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Pokémon SVtember drabble collection!

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Hey all I'm doing a challenge I came up with last year. Gonna write a drabble a day for the whole month. Yes it's the 9th but better late posting it here than never!

They're not connected to each other, and I'm not done with them as of now so I can't really warn for anything but spoilers. Maybe The Feels.





Day 1--Little Buddy

Through the rumbling thunder, Arven could hear something higher pitched. It wasn't one of his mom's experiments, he realized, since it was coming from the door.

Without her noticing, he slid away from his play space at the table and entered the code for the door, using all his tiny might to pull it open.

And outside was a Maschiff, small and wet and muddy and whining, that looked up at him with the same expression he would give his mom when she would leave for the lab.

"Ok, but just until the rain stops," he murmured, inviting it in.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 2--Food

"Here, I made extra. Tell your friend Penny she can have as much as she wants."

Florian paused, setting his drying dish aside. "Why specifically Penny?"

"Haha, I saw the way she was acting during dinner. She clearly misses home-cooked food. And frankly," she dropped her voice to a whisper, "being from Galar, you know how the food is there."

"Mom, that's a weird stereotype."

"I'm Galarian, I can say it," she smiled slyly. "But I don't think that girl eats right. She was drooling just being around this food!"

Florian paused. "That's...not why she was drooling, mom," he sighed.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 3--Ancient Past



It was seen as a hoax, despite tests showing the age. The mural depicting a human woman riding a Tyrantrum was a scientific impossibility, flat out, no matter how ancient it seemed. They didn't live at the same time, fossil revival being only made possible in the past thirty years. Millions of years divided them.

Unbeknownst to them, the mural was the work of a time traveler, a caring robot who had saved Paldea by sacrificing herself to the machine that had endangered it.

Despite the seriousness of her goal, she had her creator's passions. Tyrantrum riding was especially sicknasty.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 4--All Business


He had to keep working. There was nothing else to do.

As much as the AI wanted, needed, to have time to mourn his creator, his programming compelled him to continue their research.

He could only take a brief moment here and there. Seeing his reflection in the crystal tube, his creator's face, he took a second to simulate a sob.

But it could be only a moment before he had to keep working, pushing through the dull silence with only his fellow machines for company. Every inherited instinct he had demanded remembrance, but his programming denied him his grief.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 5--Champion Time


"YOU GUYS GUESS WHAT!" Nemona shouted as she burst through the front doors of her home.

Silence.

Her parents were supposed to be home, weren't they? Her sister? She set her precious trophy down and began to search.

"Oh, Miss Nemona. Was that you yelling a few minutes ago?" It took until the second floor to find anyone, a servant, vacuuming.

"Are my parents here?" the girl asked, rocking on her heels.

"They wanted us to tell you that they and your sister were called away on a meeting. What do you want?"

The new champion looked down. "...oh, nothing..."
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 6--Secret Identity

A good pompadour never went out of style. Even if his hair was too short for the proper thing, well, that was what wigs were for.

He'd played the role of Clive before, inventing the character decades before, back when being a man was something he thought he could only pretend at. Over the years, the ability to play a role had come in handy for many occasions, even if it wasn't so obvious.

And if his old reliable could help kids in need as it had once helped him, then he certainly wouldn't turn down the opportunity for it.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 7--Online Star


"Hey, Giacomo, when was the last time you checked your Primarina?"

It took a second for the musician to realize that Eri was asking him about a music website and not a pokémon. "Geez, forgot all about that," he admitted. "Probably should upload my latest piece."

In a flash, her phone was thrust in his face. "Damn right you should! Thirteen MILLION hits just last month!"

That took him longer to process. Thirteen... "MILLION?" he repeated with a sharp waver.

"DJ Vice is the hottest thing in Paldea, dork."

He bounded from his desk, schoolwork clattering aside. "D! J! VIIIIIIICE!"
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 8--Forbidden Land


It was a plan that Juliana never thought had a chance. Every attempt she and Miraidon had made to climb the mysterious rocks had ended in failure. No matter what, Miraidon slid right off.

But the treats that Amarys had given it that let the dragon fly had reinvigorated the young trainer's resolve. They WOULD reach the top, no matter what!

Taking off from the top of Glaseado Mountain, the strange outcropping remained in sight even at a distance.

"We're gonna make it!" she gasped, barely believing it. "We're gonna--"

But Miraidon's progress was halted by a strange invisible wall.



(This one is based on a true story! Watch as I fail to climb the insurmountable cliff!
View: https://youtu.be/E8VomCveSl0?si=MFzy4tpc_40HKzWU
)
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 9--Far Future


Terapagos fondly remembered the age of humans. It had fun in their era, finding various companions in that species.

They were all long gone, and their descendants had left for some new home elsewhere in the cosmos. Terapagos would sometimes watch the sky and wonder if they watched back from a twinkling star.

It was certain the humanoid figure hadn't been there before. It couldn't really be a human, not with a core of crystal, but the resemblance jolted so many memories.

It nudged the unmoving figure and the crystals on it charged with light.

The figure opened its eyes.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 10--Passionate Song


Giacomo hadn't thought much about uploading his song to the Star group chat. He knew the other bosses would enjoy it, but he had made it for the Big Boss, whoever they were.

It was fast paced, hectic and swooping, with an overlayed heroic tone that kicked in and made her feel that she could do anything in the world.

The first time she had played it was before her return to Paldea, alone in her room and terrified of going back.

So when Juliana was set to confront her in the courtyard, she knew exactly what song to play.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 11--Lighthouse


Arven thought he hated lighthouses. They were cramped, isolated, prone to breaking, and he had spent far too much of his life in one.

But that was in Cabo Poco, and overlooking Porto Marinada, it may as well have been a world away.

The salt breeze blew inwards, and he would have to wash his hair later but it didn't matter. The sight of the town below, the colorful striped houses, the vibrant market, the calls of Kilowattrel as they swooped through the air...

Even something as bad as a lighthouse could be a happier place in a brighter world.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 12--Overcoming


It had been years since Sada had gone mountain climbing, but her AI double retained the knowledge. Enough to know that climbing without the necessary equipment--ropes, proper boots, a harness--was a bad idea. But it was all she had.

If she fell, her durable body could withstand more than a human. She would suffer no long-term injury. But repairs would take time, and the outside world awaited.

She was nearly at the top, already past the fog that covered the Great Crater. Barring any unforeseen disaster, she could finally leave.

With a burst of crystal energy, she pulled herself onward.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
(Ok I know I said none of these were connected but a review twisted my arm to do a followup to day 9)

Day 13--Stars Above


"The constellations have changed so much since our era," the AI mused.

Terapagos nudged against him.

"Of course, it is all from his memory that I know this. I could never see the sky from the Great Crater." He smiled. "In a way, I feel though this means he is here with us. He would have been proud to see you thrive."

The crystal turtle knew that the AI's creator had visited it, studied it in its slumber. It had no idea of the man. But in a way, it was grateful as well.

Things were less lonely that way.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 14--Lost Chance


It was typical for scientists like Sada to speak to their alma maters, and visiting an elementary school class was vital in ensuring the next generation's advancements. She grinned broadly as she looked out over the sea of enthusiastic children.

Until she saw her own eyes watching back.

The boy had her sandy hair too, and the familiar features of a boy she had known so long ago. Had thought she had known...

"How about we introduce ourselves?" she offered. "Starting with... let's see, you!" She hoped it wouldn't be seen as forced.

The boy blinked. "Me? I'm Arven, ma'am!"
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 15--Investigation


The best way to investigate anything was to be direct. Geeta knew the importance of that in her business dealings, even if Rika usually did the bulk of negotiating.

This, however, was a passion all her own.

She marched the familiar ramp up to the heavy Zero Lab door and prepared a big smile as she knocked on it as handily as if she was knocking on the door of a coworker. "Knock knock!" she enthused.

Almost silence, only faint mechanical sounds.

"Professor~! I wish to learn more about Area Zero~!"Yes that would solve everything.

It would work someday.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 16--Smoliv Oil


"C'mere you..." Arven groaned.

Three sandwiches in. They had worked insofar as they had lured Smoliv in droves, far more than a normal outbreak, but all of them were green.

He was glad he had found another ingredient that was said to lure shiny pokémon, as wasting Herba Mystica on something as silly as a quest for the world's greatest olive oil would be a travesty.

Just a drop, a taste from his teacher Katy, was enough to convince him. He needed a shiny Arboliva.

"Is that--" He dove at a black spot, only to end up in the mud.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 17--Tera Type


"What sort of tera type would you be?"

It was a simple enough question. And one, Cyrano thought, had a simple enough answer. Or it should.

That strange water Briar was always importing may have caused the udon to smell oh so very off, and the tera shards had to be ground into the finest powder before they could be considered even close to palatable, much less edible, but he was determined to find out.

"Hm. Perhaps I need to add more tera powder..." he mused before the phone rang.

"Director Cyrano, how are..." Clavell trailed off. "You are... glowing?"
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 18--Entrepreneur


"Ah, customers! What ho, travelers!" Atticus greeted the approaching trio.

"I'm not here for auctions," the first person said, pulling an envelope from his suit pocket. "This is a cease and desist from the Aether Foundation to stop selling your knockoff shoes."

Atticus blinked. "I was not aware shoes could be--"

The second person approached, with her own paper. "You're also wanted for questioning by the International Police for how you obtained the design for your 'Replica Ultra Glasses'."

"I represent the market," said the third. "You're officially asked to stop selling the likeness of the international fugitive Ball Guy."
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 19--Downhill


The slopes around Alfornada were both popular and dangerous. What drove people in great numbers, the wild Donphan, were known far and wide for their antics of curling into a wheel and flinging themselves down the hillside as fast as they could.

Normally this was far enough from the town, but sometimes an exceptionally bold or foolish one would attempt to roll its way down the central street and would have to be quickly routed or captured.

Jacq watched from a window as that strange metal Donphan the student had found careened around the schoolyard. The future didn't change much.
 

Blackjack Gabbiani

Merely a collector
Pronouns
Them
Partners
  1. shaymin
  2. dusknoir
Day 20--Auction

"Listen, if I don't get that Prison Bottle, the entire region is going to be in danger!" Raifort spat, slamming a fist down on the counter.

The auctioneer remained stonefaced. "You'll have to get the winning bid like anyone else. Now, are you going to place a bid to remain in?"

"I--" She sighed. While Clavell paid a lot more comfortably than she'd expected to make, she had just shelled out a small fortune for a less than legally obtained Unearthly Urn. "...no..."

"Then, sold! To the young lady with the pigtails!"

Paldea's fate, in the hands of a kindergartener.





(if Unearthly Urn sounds familiar it's from the anime and is very cursed indeed)
 
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