serperiority | [S1 Trip and younger Gold, closed to gold

The warm colours of autumnal leaves and the crisp, cool air of the changing season was similar, but not the same as it was in Unova, but even if it was, without him here, it simply wasn’t going be the same. The festival, too, for all the nostalgia it invoked in him, if it wasn’t going to lead him any closer to Alder or defeating him, it wasn’t something he should concern himself with now. He needed to train.
Things like eating sweets or enjoying the sights and sounds of a festival was for children and had no place on an adult’s world, Trip decided, and walked on.

… even with these thoughts, he still paused, briefly, here and there, to take photographs. The beauty of this season was ephemeral and while he no longer had any place here, he couldn’t ignore it or the way it made him feel, even as pursuing his goal overtook anything else…

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From:

serperiority

"We can always try the other shops, you know. We can go through several. This isn't the only one, it's a big city. Of course, Unova has even bigger cities."

Still a bit snooty, but ah, well.

From:

gold_drum

Gold listens and tries to understand, but still doesn't get it. What makes one orange jacket worse than the other? Shade? Harmony? Matching? And no matter where he looks, there doesn't seem to be any orange jackets in Gold's size that aren't apparently eye-searing.

"Okay," Gold says with a bit of a pout. "Let's look somewhere else." It's frustrating, to look for something that he doesn't know how to find. He should probably be looking for warm hats and scarves and gloves too, not to mention a bag, but looking for a jacket has his whole focus right now.

From:

serperiority

Fortunately, Trip can help keep him on track... or pick things up for him and make suggestions. Gold can focus on his quest for an orange jacket.

... there were some brightly coloured hats with reds and blues, much like the pinwheels. They'll occupy a smaller space and even if they're bright, it won't be as overwhelming as a too-bright jacket!

"Want one of these?"

From:

gold_drum

Gold looks up at Trip's voice, then looks at the hats. Were those good? Does he want one? Well, he only knows one way to judge them. He goes over and touches the hat, frowning.

"Nah," he says. It feels too stiff and uncomfortable. He's not sure why Trip asked about them, but maybe the 'harmony' was good or something? "Does it look good?" he asks.

From:

serperiority

"Hmm... I think with smaller items like these, you could easily go for bolder colours. ... but no, I don't like it much either, I just thought you would."

It wasn't very soft, was it? Then, maybe...

He should have realized earlier Gold didn't care for him trying to pick things he thought Gold might like, but which he didn't think was any good. Gold appreciated honesty. Something they could both like, then...

He decided to leave the children's section and go for something meant for adults, pick up a finer hat or scarf. It might be a bit big for Gold, but he can grow into it, and besides—he can find nicer, softer materials.

Most of them aren't very colourful, a lot of neutral shades, but he did find a red hat and scarf!

"Try this then, it's a bit long, so you might have to wrap it a few times, but it'll keep you very warm. It's cashmere."

From:

gold_drum

"I don't really like it," Gold says bluntly, letting go of the colorful hat and moving on, following after Trip.

Honestly is, indeed, a better way to choose clothes for Gold. He's spent most of his life trying to read other people for various reasons, like pickpocketing, so he's got a pretty good sense for it. Since he very much wants Trip to like him, he's been focusing that sense on Trip, gauging his reaction for most decisions he makes, whether it's clothes, food, or anything else. Even if he finds something he really likes, he probably won't take it if Trip isn't a fan.

Oh! The red cashmere catches his attention. It looks soft and warm. Gold eagerly touches it, and finds it really soft, so he does like Trip advices and wraps it around his neck and shoulders. It's big enough it even goes up to his mouth easily.

"Is sofd." Gold's words are muffled through the scarf, and he pulls it down. "I want this one," he says very seriously, satisfied with the performance of this product. "The hat too."

From:

serperiority

That level of seriousness is both admirable and really cute.

"You've got pretty grown-up taste, sometimes," Trip said with a laugh, but placed it in the basket. "It's a good look on you. I can show you different ways to tie it, too."

Maybe Gold can keep it on for the rest of the trip, it's getting colder, right?

"I think we should pick up socks next and maybe some pants... a couple of light shirts, too, both so you can wear them under jackets, and so you can have something to wear when it gets warmer again."

Serperior, at some point, appeared to have slithered into some sort of tube scarf himself and worn it all down his back and tail.

"... do they really make scarves that long?"

Unsure of when that happened, but deciding to buy it too anyway, since Serperior seemed to like it, posing with a confident little smirk, Trip gathered it and added it to the basket.

From:

serperiority

It's a little odd for Trip right now, he's having trouble figuring out whether to treat Gold more based on his age or more based on how astute he is. He doesn't want to coddle him, but he doesn't want to hurt his feelings either... the possibility that Gold could read his reactions this well, but want to mimic him still, because he's young, at once—simply doesn't occur to Trip!

"You don't have to pick things based on if I'd like them or not, okay? I'm saying this just in case. I'm giving advice and suggestions here, but we each have our own path in life..."

Doesn't that sound too Alder? And anyway, he should simplify it a bit!

"So, I guess, what I'm trying to say is... don't pick things based on if I'd like them or not, either. Some things are just a matter of taste. What each person likes is different from someone else... we have our own unique styles."

A pause.

"But some things are just bad, very hard for most people to look good in, give people headaches, and might cause traffic accidents, like that orange jacket from before."

With the utterly deadpan delivery, it was perhaps difficult to tell if he was being serious or joking.

From:

gold_drum

Grown-up taste? Gold's not sure if that's a compliment, but if it looks good on Gold then that's good. He nods eagerly to the offer.

"Oh, that looks cool!" he compliments Serperior. He didn't know they made Serperior clothes, but it made sense! He wonders if he could find something that fits Mycen too. Mycen's so small and oddly shaped he's not sure what kinds of clothes would even fit. Maybe a smaller scarf?

Gold's looking through scarves when Trip speaks up, trying to give him advice. He looks at Trip, tilting his head with some confusion as he listens, burrowing his brows. He shouldn't pick based on what Trip would like? But... then how would he pick? He's completely lost when it comes to clothes. All he cares about is if it's soft, but only Trip knows if something looks good or not. ...It's fine to tell Trip if he's having trouble with something, right? He bites his lip a bit, fidgeting, before deciding to speak up.

"Um, I dunno what I like, and I dunno what's bad. So... I dunno what to do if you tell me I have to pick things myself. It's too hard," he says. He doesn't want to wear something that could give Trip a headache!

(If Gold were a few yeard older or a lot more comfortable with Trip, he'd immediately insist on getting that orange jacket that Trip hated and cheerfully claim he wants to cause traffic accidents. Enjoy this hero worship phase while it lasts, Trip!)

From:

serperiority

It’s Trip, he’s obsessed with proving his maturity, of course, he meant it as a compliment (as to whether or not it was a good thing…).

Trip appreciated Gold’s attempts to articulate how he felt…

“If that’s the case, that’s fine then.”

So it’s not Gold restricting himself, but still learning!

As someone who did hero worship someone, Trip’s unfortunately unable to enjoy that because it just makes him worry he’ll be a huge disappointment to Gold. If he thought little of him, he’d be more comfortable. Hatred and apathy were familiar, being loved and admired… was unfamiliar and uncomfortable.

And he can’t exactly ask Gold a question like, “If you grew up and suddenly discovered I wasn’t as great as you thought I was, like maybe I was a skirt-chasing old man bothering women half my age or something, would you hate me? Please answer now so I can conduct myself accordingly and avoid attachment like I always do!”

From:

gold_drum

Gold's visibly relieved after Trip's reply. He can ask for help! And he will!

"Is this one good for Mycen?" he asks, showing a small, red-and-green striped scarf. It's probably a christmas scarf, but he's unaware.

He's not really sure about Trip's mood right now, since he seems a bit withdrawn, but not angry or anything? So Gold figures things are all right.

Ironically, if Trip did ask that very specific question, Gold would be confused by the phrasing in the example, but would understand exactly why Trip asked it. After all, he's been expecting Trip to eventually hate him after finding out Gold wasn't like he thought he was since the beginning.

From:

serperiority

He's a bit lost in thought and brooding a bit, but reticence isn't unusual for him, unless he has something he's giving some sort of lecture. He doesn't ignore Gold's questions, however, and gives his input when asked.

"Sure, why not?" Trip said, slightly amused by it. "It'll bring out the red of Mycen's mushroom. A festive mushroom is new..."

It might take a while, then, as Trip isn't likely to open up on his own... he's only taking some initiative because Gold is likely to collapse of exhaustion or otherwise leave needs unspoken, even if he is learning to express them better.

~~In short, both are rather bad at this, but they are undeniably learning!~~

Serperior decided to pick a tiny matching hat for Mycen, carrying it over with its tail and hovering it over Mycen's head.

From:

gold_drum

Gold gets the feeling he's missing something, but Trip seems happy with it, so he's satisfied, and adds it to the cart.

Mycen already has his mushoom charm he's using as a hat, so he's hesitant about getting a hat. Gold, however, gasps in delight.

"It's a tiny hat!" he gushes, rushing over to see it closer. "Ohhh, it's a small hat... Small hat, do you wanna be on Mycen?" He pauses, like he's listening. "That's a yes!"

Mycen chitters in indignation, and Gold turns to him.

"You don't like it? But you should have more hats! Like me, I'm getting lots of different shirts and stuff," Gold says, gesturing at the pile of clothes.

Mycen thinks this over and finally nods, but that doesn't mean he's going to wear the hat if he can avoid it. Gold's just happy to get to buy the tiny hat though!

From:

serperiority

Well, it's something Gold will start figure out soon when he sees the other decorations, right? Shouldn't be too long!

Maybe he should get Gold a gift and hide it, or maybe it's best to wait, since stashing things seems to be Gold's forte and he'd likely discover it and spoil the surprise.

Seeing Gold be so excited over the little hat is... really cute. However you look at him, he's a little kid, when he's like that.

"Can you understand clothes the way you do Pokemon?" Trip asked, amused.

Rather imaginative... maybe a sketchbook and colours would be a nice gift for Gold. He briefly wondered if Gold could grip coloured pencils (can he hold a pencil well enough to write yet?) or if he should start him off with paints and crayons, then realized he hadn't asked about something.

"Also... have you ever been to school?"

Would Gold like to go? Or would he prefer to keep travelling? Maybe Trip could just get him books to study from while travelling...

From:

gold_drum

Gold will absolutely find any gift you try to hide somewhere, and would probably open it immadiately if his name is on it, not expecting anything for the holiday. To him, christmas is just a time of the year when he's more likely to get some extra food, and even sweets.

"Huh? No. It's different with Pokemon, they're alive," Gold replies like he's confused Trip would ask something so obvious. He then proceeds to continue looking at clothes, not elaborating.

"No? I can read though," Gold says, not looking up from rummaging through some socks. He's not actually very good at reading, but he did learn how to. He picks up socks that are too big for him and shows them to Trip with a look of asking him if they're any good.

From:

serperiority

Trip... will have to try his best, because delaying the shopping too much will probably make it impossible to buy anything good! Either he won't find anything good or won't be able to afford anything (he can run out, too, especially if he can't just withdraw from home...).

~~So, Gold's probably going to find the gift. Oh, well, a lesson Trip will have to learn for the future!~~

Yes, Pokemon are alive, but humans generally don't understand them quite like that...

Trip didn't give it much thought, but Serperior looked curious.

At Gold's answer to his second question, Trip looked relieved. "Then, you'll have the advantage. Would you like to go to school?"

... ah, Gold has his own questions now and those are definitely too big.

"Yeah, but only if you were a lot bigger. Those'll slide down your ankles, Gold. Do you know what size shoe you wear?"

There should be a stool nearby so Gold can sit down, especially if they're near the shoes...

From:

gold_drum

Good luck with your future money problems while raising a child and trying to spoil him rotten, Trip!

Gold doesn't notice Serperior's curiosity, so he doesn't address it. But to him it's like this: Pokemon are hard to understand because their body language is different from humans, and inanimate objects are easy to understand because they don't have body language or thoughts.

Gold frowns a little, thoughtful. School... In the few cartoons he's seen, the main characters were always complaining about schoolwork or getting bullied... Wasn't it a bad place? And Gold already knew how to read, so he didn't need to go there, right? But Trip looked happy... But Trip said it's fine to not go with something Trip likes!

"I don't need to go to school," Gold ends up saying, not looking Trip in the eyes.

Gold looks very blank at being asked what size his shoes are, and just lifts up his shoes, awkwardly balancing as he tries to look at them. There's definitely a stool, but Gold doesn't think to sit down on his own.

The shoes Gold's got on, for the record, are just slightly small for him and very worn, and the socks he's wearing are too big, whether they're the ones he had on before or ones Trip let him borrow.

From:

serperiority

"Got it. Not a lot of people like to, the other kids can be jerks... but getting an education helps you be on the same level as other people. Gives you a good foundation in different subjects. If you can study on your own, that's good too. It's mostly important if you want to get some kind of job that needs a lot of studying."

Worried Gold might fall down, Trip tried to catch his shoulders. "Let's... use the stool, okay?"

He wondered if it simply didn't occur to Gold.

"Those shoes look pretty worn down, maybe the number doesn't even show on them... it's okay, you could probably use a bigger size. We'll just have to try on different sizes and see what fits best."

From:

gold_drum

Relieved that Trip understands, Gold nods. Education, studying, jobs... That's never even crossed his mind before. Not just because he's like five, but also because he's been just surviving day-to-day. He's always just thought that if he manages to grow into an adult, he'll just have a house and money to buy things with, but a job is needed to earn money, isn't it? ...He doesn't even know what his mother does for a living, but she must have a job, right? Maybe Gold will need a job too, some day.

"...Okay. I'll study on my own. I dunno how though," Gold agrees.

"Huh?" Gold looks up, surprised, as Trip catches his shoulders to support him. "Oh! Stool." For a kid his age, things like that just aren't obvious, but now that it's been recommended he heads over to sit on it, and looks at the shoes. Just like Trip guesses, the number isn't very visible at all. Gold nods, and is fully content to just sit there and let Trip pick out shoes and socks for him. Actually, now that he's sitting down, all the fatigue from picking out so many clothes is catching up with him and he'd like to keep sitting down a little longer.

From:

serperiority

"We can get you the same kinds of books they have at school. I'll help you, I was... good at school. Very good."

He was a child prodigy.

"Once you know what's important to focus on and tricks to memorize things quickly, you can just take exams and you can get the best kinds of jobs, like anyone else."

Oh... after watching him sit down, it did look like he might really need to rest. Maybe after all of that, Gold should take a break. They aren't in any rush.

Trip brought over a couple of boxes after speaking with staff and knelt down to test different shoes for fit.

"That one's too big... how about this one? It's okay if it's a little loose, since you'll be wearing thick socks with it, but it shouldn't be sliding off. That could make you fall."

Once they find the right size, he'll pick up a few in colours Gold tends to like!

"Let's take a break and maybe something to eat after this."

From:

gold_drum

"Huh... Okay," Gold says. Having Trip helping him sounds reassuring. "Will you teach me those tricks and stuff? I'm dumb, so I won't be any good at studying without them."

Gold just watches as Trip tries shoes on him, feeling strangely happy. He's not sure why, it's just shoes. Getting to sit and do nothing while somebody looks after him with such care just feels... warm.

"Mm... I can eat the food from yesterday," Gold says, referring to the rice and fish meal he couldn't finish. Though he did finish the fish part of the meal yesterday, knowing fish goes bad quickly, so it's just a rice meal by now.

((Gold has met an alternate version of someone he knows from back home, so he's aware of alternates! And I doubt he'd be disappointed at all.))

From:

serperiority

"Sure. First trick's don't call yourself dumb. If you say something to yourself too many times, your mind starts to believe it. Build it up, call yourself smart, even if you don't believe it yet. Different tricks work for different people, so we'll just have to try different ones until you find what works best. It's like a battle style..."

"You could, but it'll be a little lacking. Maybe we could get some fruits or snacks you can eat later... maybe for dinner. Biscuits, maybe something like peanut butter, those'd last, even if we travelled with them."

Food that won't spoil easily is important!

Gold's shoe size identified, he had a bunch of shoes that fit well. "Are these colours okay?"
Sneakers in red and white, another pair in blue and white, and a neat pair of brown loafers. One pair of those clear jelly sandals kids wear to the beach, in blue, too!

~~It's too cold to swim, probably, but the beach is nearby...~~

((I'm glad... ;_; Also, awwwww, Gold is too precious.))

From:

gold_drum

"Really? Wow..." Gold's never heard of that before. It sounds kind of unbelievable, but Trip's smart, so there's got to be some truth to it. "So, I just keep saying "I'm smart"? That's going to make me smarter?" It feels fake to say it, but that's how it's supposed to work, he supposes. If it works for Trip, it'll probably work for Gold too.

"Yeah! Those are all good." Having food that won't spoil always gives Gold a sense of security. "Oh yeah, I know numbers too!" That seems like it's spoken out of nowhere, but Gold was just reminded of how he used to keep track of the 'best before' dates on food wrappings to figure out which foods he should eat first. That's how he learned numbers.

"Uh-huh," Gold says. He doesn't really care that much about the colors, but the shoes fit well and and felt fine. The sandals do catch his attention, and he reaches out to grab one of them and look at it, turning it around in his hands. It's neat-looking!

From:

serperiority

"It's definitely a start! You've still got to put in the effort to learn, too."

Just saying it won't save you if you didn't study at all, after all.

"If you think that's cool, you should try stamping your feet in the red sneakers later."

They're the kind that light up! He figured Gold might find them fun.

Trip let Gold examine it a while, while the rest of the shoes were boxed away.

"Great, if you know your numbers and letters, that'll make everything else easier."

Then, it's just a matter of building on that basis with math and reading about different things, right?

From:

gold_drum

Right. Just a start. Gold nods. He's managed to put in effort to learn how to read and count, so he can put in the effort for studying more.

"Huh?" Gold takes one of the red sneakers and looks it over. What's special about them? He wants to know now. So he puts them on, then tries stamping. "Whoa! They lit up!" That's convenient, he'll always have light when he needs it. Not to mention it's just cool.

"So what else do I need to learn other than numbers and letters, anyway?" Gold asks, eyes locked on his shoes as he takes long steps while walking around, arms held wide out on each side like he's pretending to be an airplane, for balance.