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:

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.

From:

serperiority

"You can keep them on, if you want. We're buying them right now, anyway."

They'll be broken in more easily this way too!

"Lots of things, like math, science, history, literature, art... it might help you figure out what you'd like to do when you grow up, too, but a lot of it is just stuff have to study whether you think it'll be useful or not... so you'll be on the same level as everyone else, I guess. So if they talk about stuff most people know, you'll know some things about it too. Some of it can be useful, even if it's not directly related to what you do."

Serperior slithered close by, between them, in case he needed to dive in there in a flash if Gold lost his balance despite his efforts.

From:

gold_drum

"Really? I can?" Gold, who's never gone shopping for clothes before, had no idea that was an option. But if that's the case, he's keeping these on forever. (Or until he has to take them off for the night.)

"Hmm... Sounds kinda boring..." Gold says, pouting. "I don't need to know all that stuff. I don't talk to people anyway. And if they talk about something I don't know, then I just don't know it."

Gold isn't exactly sheltered, but his world is small. Having only lived in New Bark Town and watched very little TV, and read only the books his house had, he's got a very limited set of skills, knowledge, and understanding of the world. The concepts of history, science and such are too far divorced from his worldview right now. It'll be difficult to convince him to learn things he doesn't understand the use of.

Gold's not about to fall over anytime soon, fortunately. He's having fun with the shoes, and proudly shows them off to Serperior too, now that he's close.

From:

serperiority

"Sure."

While he'd usually put old shoes in the box, those ones looked so dirty and worn out, he was just going to have to ask for another bag for them as he paid.

"You might change your mind on things if you learn them in a different way," Trip said with a smirk. "Even if you won't love every subject, learning other things like that can be fun too. You'll see."

Serperior watched intently, swishing his tail, wondering if the little light helped Gold power up like sunlight boosted his powers.

From:

gold_drum

"Hmm, okay, I guess I'll try," Gold says, dubious. But Trip usually knows what he's talking about, so maybe he can have some fun.

"Hey, do we have to buy any more clothes before we eat?" he asks, changing the subject. He's getting pretty hungry by now. He thinks they've got basically everything and more he could ask for, except the backbag.

The little light does power Gold up! But not very much, he's still tired even if seeing the light is exciting. He eyes Serperior, wondering if he could ride on his back, but doesn't ask out loud.

From:

serperiority

"Nah, we'll go to a place for school supplies later," Trip said. "We can go eat first."

Serperior kept close and gently nudged Gold when he saw him tire, then slithered under Gold's arm. He can hold onto his tail! Climbing on is an option too.

From:

gold_drum

"All right," Gold says. School supplies... Well, he supposes he's gotta. At least they're eating.

When Serperior goes under his arm, Gold takes that as permission, and climbs on. He hugs onto Serperior and lets himself be carried. It's a smooth ride, and surprisingly comfortable. It feels... safe. Maybe it'd be fine to close his eyes for a bit? Trip's keeping an eye on him, so he shouldn't have anything to complain about this time if he falls asleep.

So yeah, Gold falls asleep on Serperior's back.

From:

serperiority

It's perfectly safe to sleep with Serperior, Mycen, and him around, yes.

He can rest until they get back home for a meal, Gold can have what's left of his meal from yesterday heated up, but Trip also brought some more food, so he'll have something a little more substantial than just the rice.

He decided to wake Gold after that to have some food. If Gold's still not eager to eat anything too heavy, there's bonito fish flakes he could add to his rice. If he's interested in eating something else, there are sandwiches, made with vegetables and various kinds of cheese.

He also picked up some teabags, since they also last a long time, so if Gold's interested, there's a cup of tea ready for him too. Still hot and steeping!

Trip likely won't discuss anything until Gold's fed, unless Gold wants to talk to him about something. He didn't feel like ruining the meal with a heavier topic, but he did feel he should apologize for what he had intended to do earlier, or he'd just feel perpetually guilty about it and might shy away from Gold.

From:

gold_drum

When Gold wakes and finds there's already a meal waiting for him, set out and all, he's amazed. He takes some tea, and adds some bonito flakes to his rice, and grabs a sandwich too. So much variety! And he's never had tea this good before!

But while he's eating, he notices signs that Trip's in a heavy mood, which makes him kind of anxious.

"...Did you eat yet?" Gold asks carefully. Maybe Trip's just moody because he hasn't eaten enough?

From:

serperiority

"Hm? Yeah, of course, I ate," Trip said.

Maybe he should have known Gold was too astute to miss it, even if he hadn't said anything at all. Maybe he should have kept eating, even if he wasn't hungry anymore, not to draw attention? He couldn't do that once it was already noticed...

"There's just something I wanted to tell you—once you're done," he said, trying not to rush him.

He wasn't any good at this, was he?

From:

gold_drum

Well, that's ominous. The fear of abandonment spikes up, but by now, Gold is pretty sure Trip isn't going to just dump him. Not after spending so much money on clothes for Gold. So what else could it be? If it's something he can only tell onse Gold's done eating, it's got to be something serious, or maybe something that'd make Gold lose his appetite.

Something like 'I killed someone and hid the remains in the food you just ate' or 'I've actually been a robot this whole time' or 'I spent too much money and now we need to rob a bank together'?

Gold muses on that as he keeps eating, staring at Trip with mild curiosity. Well, Trip is basically perfect as far as Gold's concerned, so it'd make sense if he had a big secret like that. Everybody's got some flaws, after all.

"Did you kill somebody?" he asks. "If you did, I'll keep it secret." And he takes a sip of tea.

From:

serperiority

He just—

"I what—?!"

From:

serperiority

"I'm not a murderer," he protested, sounding quite offended. "... I admire the loyalty, but seriously?! My Lampent might feed on spiritual energy, but I only have it feed off the dead, and I certainly don't let it eat whole spirits or anything like that..."

That's one way of breaking the ice, I suppose... but he really needed to get back on track.

"... no. That's not even remotely what this is about. You're... sure you want to stay with me? Even if I might lose my temper sometimes? I really felt awful, because... I really was going to hurt you that time. I feel like I shouldn't be the one to take care of you, so I thought you'd be happier... being taken care of by someone else. So, I thought..."

'—to leave you somewhere for someone else to find,' he couldn't bring himself to voice; instead, he left it hanging in the air and watched Gold with a scrutinizing gaze, anticipating his reaction.

From:

gold_drum

Huh, kind of a funny reaction. Well, it's not like Gold really thought Trip was a killer. But if he did kill someone, he'd use Lampent? Good to know. Gold finds himself giggling as Trip keeps protesting.

But when the topic turns serious, Gold does too. So Trip has been worrying about that all this time? He thought he wasn't good enough? That's just not true. But just saying it's not true probably wouldn't help at all.

"You didn't hurt me, though," Gold says, with a gentle frown. He pauses to try and gather his thoughts into words. "You, um... You feel safe. I've never really met anyone who feels safe, and who wants to keep me too. And, um..." he hesitates, not sure if he wants to say the next thing. "You're... mean sometimes, but that's good. Because it means you're not just pretending all the time. So I want to stay with you and not somebody else! Because with somebody else it'd be different. I'd have to..." he frowns, trying to think of how to say it. "I'd have to start all over... trying to figure out if they're safe and how to act... and stuff. So it'd be scary."

Now Gold's the one watching Trip and seeing how he reacts to that, fidgeting slightly. He's not good at words.

From:

serperiority

No, it probably wouldn't, Gold.

Even just hearing Gold's explanation made him look more conflicted, then, resigned. He sighed.

"I'm sorry she made you feel like this is as good as it gets. There's definitely better than me out there... people who are kind, to everyone, to the point it feels fake, but they'd do whatever they can for someone else. There aren't that many people like that, that's true, and it's hard to trust and figure them out from people who are faking it and hiding something worse... and the ones who are that kind can't understand us... they're usually very naive, living in their own worlds, where things are a whole lot simpler. Not like ours."

He might be thinking of someone in particular, saying this.

So, maybe it really was best for them to stick together, like they said before?

"It'd be scary, huh?"

He thought for a moment, then got up to come closer, awkwardly putting a hand on Gold's head to pat it. "I won't leave you. I'm sorry for thinking about it."

If he gave hugs, he would right now.

"It's just... if you ever find someone better, like, maybe when you're older... I promise I'll let you go. You deserve it. I won't get in your way unless I've got a bad feeling about it or they seem like they're up to no good, okay?"