Gold banged his fist on the table. Crystal didn’t even flinch. “I can’t believe a fucking bug catcher has more guts than me,” he said. “Out of all the people in this world.”

Crystal looked back again. “At least he didn’t say yes,” she commented.

Silver’s walking got faster. Gold said, “This is kind of worrying.”

The bug catcher shouted something. Silver shouted something back, and threw a pokéball. His feraligatr emerged from it and immediately turned to his trainer; but the bug catcher ran right into the feraligatr and fell to the ground.

“Ooh!” Gold and Crystal exclaimed at the same time.

Silver recalled the feraligatr even though it hadn’t even done anything, and disappeared down the street.

“Real nice guy,” Crystal said, sitting back down. “Glad I got to meet him.”

Gold had told Crystal about Silver long before he dragged her out to Goldenrod to hang out. Professor Elm will do fine without her, he’d insisted. Professor Elm was hopeless, she’d replied.

In the end, they let the professor know about her venturing out of New Bark and the labs; and he agreed to let her go out exploring so as long as she helped fill out a pokédex, too.

It was by pure coincidence that Silver happened to be in the city, Gold explained, when he pointed Silver out to her for the first time. Crystal had rolled her eyes and Gold said, no, really. Silver had barely shown his face since Indigo Plateau, though Gold definitely seen him back there, as well as in Blackthorn City. He had asked Professor Elm where his elusive rival was coming and going, and all he got as a reply was, “He’s training.”

But Gold and Crystal caught Silver strolling out again for the third time this week, this time being followed by two joggers.

“He doesn’t look happy about it,” Gold said. “Maybe we should help him out.”

“Yeah,” said Crystal. “It’ll give you an excuse to actually talk to him, for once.”

“But I don’t know if he’ll actually want to talk to me.” Gold put his head in his hands, exasperated. “Last time we talked, we were battling and he told me he wanted nothing more than to defeat me and then I defeated him. I don’t even know if he’s stopped hating me.”

“Well if he said he wanted to beat you in a pokémon battle, and not murder you in your sleep, that probably means he doesn’t hate you,” said Crystal.

Gold shrugged. “I dunno. I hope so. He’s better than he used to be, but,” he gestured toward Silver now, “look at how he’s treating those joggers.”

Silver was sniping at them. The joggers seemed happy that Silver was just looking at them. It was a bit pathetic, but Gold wouldn’t say that he would be any better.

People who passed by gave Silver a second glance over, too, as did their pokémon. Silver seemed so pissed off already though that Gold was certain if someone else came along pursuing him—because honestly, who wouldn’t?—Silver might explode.

But he and Gold had that Team Rocket thing, and the constant battles a few years back, so maybe it wouldn’t be too terrible if he went over and talked to him.

“Okay, I’ll do it,” Gold declared. “I’ll like, y’know. Let him know that I’m here.”

“That’s it,” said Crystal. “Pretend I’m not here. I’ll just be sitting on this bench,” she quickly ran forward to a near one, “not knowing either one of you.”

“Well you do really only know me,” Gold pointed out.

He started towards Silver, and as he got nearer, became increasingly terrified of Silver’s temper—maybe Silver decided to not let things go when Gold had defeated him. When he caught sight of Gold, though, his expression turned from frustration to relief.

Gold could feel his anxiety flooding away.

“Hi Silver,” he said lightly, glancing at the joggers. “Who’re they?”

“Leaving,” Silver replied curtly. He’d grown, so much so that it wasn’t a wonder that everyone looked at him like they wanted him.

“But you’re so sexy,” whined one of the joggers.

“We just want one night with you,” said the other. “Maybe two.”

Silver exhaled sharply through his nose. “I don’t know either of your names, and I don’t care,” he said. “If you’re not leaving, then we will.”

The joggers just stared at him. Taking pity, Gold grabbed Silver by the shoulder and said, “We might as well go.”

Silver shrugged out of his grip and turned away, but didn’t yell at Gold for following. Gold went to catch up; they were heading in Crystal’s direction, where she was still sitting on her bench.

“I haven’t seen you in a while,” Gold said, falling into step. “Where’ve you been?”

“Hiding,” said Silver. “From people like those guys.”

“Those guys?” Gold started, but they’d reached Crystal and Gold stopped. Silver didn’t, so Gold tapped his shoulder.

Silver turned. “What?” he snapped.

Crystal had hopped up, which was a surprise; her smile was big when Silver finally noticed her.

“This is my friend Crystal,” Gold said.

“Hi,” said Crystal. “You’re so hot.”

It was obvious that she couldn’t take her eyes off Silver, nor could she stop smiling. Gold put his hands on his hips in frustration.

Silver groaned. “And like her,” he said. “I’ve been trying to avoid people like her. And. People.”

“Sorry.” Gold covered her mouth with her hand. “What’s gotten into you?” he whispered.

Crystal just fluttered her eyelashes in Silver’s direction.

“It’s okay,” Silver muttered. “I’ve been getting… compliments like that a lot. It’s not her fault.”

Gold was about to ask what he meant when Silver heaved a big sigh like he was done thinking about it. “What’re you doing in Goldenrod, anyway?” He didn’t sound accusatory, so Gold felt it safe to answer.

“I didn’t feel like it was time to stop adventuring,” he answered, grinning. “Got an apartment here, and I’ve been training and going to the Game Center every so often.”

Silver shook his head. “Idiot,” he said. There was barely any malice in his tone, though, so Gold moved along.

“Actually,” he continued, dropping his gaze. “I was wondering if, y’know, you wanted to hang out while you’re here. Sometime, I mean. I’ve been seeing you around the city lately, and it’s been a while, so. Y’know.”

“Like as friends?” Silver asked. “Or like a date?”

Gold figured he shouldn’t be too surprised, as Silver had evidently been proposed with at least four declarations of love in the past couple of days. He didn’t want to lie, either.

“Like a date,” he confirmed.

Silver eyed him for a moment. “We’ll see.” His expression was unreadable; Gold didn’t know if it was intentional, or if Silver had little more to say.

Crystal jumped in to say, “Let’s make out sometime, Silver.”

If Gold didn’t feel embarrassed before, he did now; heat rushed to his face in secondhand embarrassment. “Oh my god. Ignore her. Please. Ignore her.”

“I’ve been trying to learn how to do that lately,” Silver muttered. “It just keeps happening, agh.”

“These weird, pseudo-romantic, sexual pursuits?”

Silver nodded. Gold was pretty sure Crystal was trying to lean across from him to touch Silver, and he pushed her away gently, held her hand so that she wouldn’t.

“Back on route 38, I accidentally tripped over a snubbull nest. Wasn’t looking where I was going. So the mom got pissed, and cast some stupid spell on me,” Silver grumbled, “where like, I guess everyone I run into wants to fuck me or something.”

“Well, I guess that mama snubbull wanted to teach you a lesson,” said Gold. “A lesson where if you hurt your babies, you have to face the consequences of everyone wanting to get into your pants.”

Silver glared at him.

Gold faked a cough. “Uh,” he said. “Anyway, why don’t you just fly back to the lab and see if Professor Elm can do something about it?”

Silver shook his head. “My crobat’s acting weird. And I thought of doing that first, contacting Elm, but I’m pretty sure he’ll be the same as everyone else.” He scrunched his nose. “Some youngster called me to tell me that he loved me almost as much as he loves his raticate.”

“Well that’s real love right there,” Gold joked. He swore he saw Silver smile this time.

“I thought I could walk to New Bark, but I made it through Ecruteak and that’s when I realized how bad it was. Morty told me that he Saw a future of him and me together.”

“Ew,” Gold said.

Silver nodded. “So now I’m just staying here until it wears off,” he said. “If it wears off.”

“Well if you keep walking in the street, you’re going to keep getting accosted by random strangers, you know.”

“I know,” Silver muttered. “I can’t stay at the pokécenter all day, though.”

“How about you go to the Ilex Forest?” Gold suggested. “There are some trainers, I guess, but it’s easier to hide there. And you can train against the wild pokémon, too.”

Silver shrugged. “Better than nothing.”

Silver wasn’t as reluctant as his silence seemed; passivity was a good sign, Gold knew, after witnessing mostly aggressiveness, even if it had been a long time. They were trailed by a pokéfan and a picnicker at one point, but managed to shake them off.

“I know you and your friend are affected by it too,” Silver said, “but at least I know you guys. It’s not as creepy as,” he gestured to over his shoulder, where a bug catcher was watching them excitedly.

Gold said, “Oh, I wasn’t—I actually like you, Silver.”

“Yeah, that’s what Morty said too,” Silver grumbled.

Gold didn’t know how to explain otherwise, so he didn’t bother.

When they got to Ilex Forest, Gold said, “Finally, some peace and quiet.”

“Well if your friend stops jumping around.” Silver pointed at Crystal, whose eyes were wide, hands clasped together, hanging on his every word.

She said to Gold, “He looked at me, Gold, did you see that?”

Gold patted her head. “You’re going to be so embarrassed when we leave,” he said to her. She seemed deaf to his words.

They’d been standing around in the forest for only a couple of minutes when a caterpie hopped out of some nearby bushes. “Aw,” said Gold, as it inched forward.

Another one jumped them nearly a second later.

“Is this a swarm?” Silver wondered.

The caterpie were getting closer, not even looking angry, just… predatory, for some reason. Several more came out, along with weedle and metapod and paras. Even an oddish hopped into view, and Gold said, “Okay, this is weird. Oddish only come out at night.”

He clung to Crystal, who seemed to just realize the weirdness of their situation. “What’s happening?” she said to Gold, no longer looking lovestruck.

“Uh,” said Silver. All of the pokémon were heading towards him, and Gold and Crystal were holding onto each other and backing away slowly. “What the fuck is happening?”

“I think the pokémon want to bang you, too,” said Gold, watching a caterpie dry-hump Silver’s leg.

“I can’t believe this.” Silver kicked it off, but a kakuna attached itself to him right after that. “Fuck pokémon. Fuck everything.”

“I don’t think they’ll protest to that.” Gold tugged himself away from Crystal, and reached for his pokéball belt. “Typhlosion, go!”

His typhlosion came out, grinned at the sight of the gathered bug pokémon. He blew a fireblast around Silver immediately and the bugs scattered. The top of Silver’s hair looked a little bit singed, but he was otherwise okay.

Silver nodded at Gold, and stepped towards them. But typhlosion interrupted him, prowling around and then stroking Silver’s arm with his paw.

“Gold,” Silver said.

“I got it.” Gold rolled his eyes and pressed his typhlosion’s pokéball open. “Return.”

Silver whined,”I can’t believe this. I don’t want to fuck any pokémon.” He put his hand on his pokéball belt, which was rattling dangerously.”What am I supposed to do?”

“Maybe you have to like. Actually do something with someone for it to wear off,” suggested Gold.

“I’ll kill myself. Or kill everyone else. Or live in a cave.”

Silver was tugging at his hair in frustration. Gold tilted his head in thought.

“You can stay with us then, if you want,” he offered. “We have food, drinks, video games. The only downside is Crystal being a weirdo when you’re around.” He gestured to her. “I promise she’s usually not like this.”

“That’s because you’re the weird one.” Crystal had backed away during the bug fiasco so she was far away enough from Silver that she could talk to Gold like normal now. She couldn’t stop staring, though.

Silver glanced between the two of them. “I guess I’d rather do that than stay in this forest,” he said.

Gold clapped his hand on Silver’s back as they headed out. “Thanks. That means a lot.”

They went to the pokémon center to pick up Silver’s things. Gold and Crystal had to ward off strangers from hounding him, but it was sort of fun; Crystal started saying, “He’s my man, back off!” and Gold went, “We’re victims of his hotness, I know, I know, but we must move along.”

“This is ridiculous,” Silver muttered as they hurried toward Gold’s apartment as fast as they could. “I feel so humiliated.”

“You should feel blessed to have two wonderful bodyguards,” said Gold.

“Shut up.”

They made it there soon enough, and Silver dumped his backpack on the floor once he got in.

Gold said, “Make yourself at home,” just as Silver collapsed onto the couch in the sitting room. He ran a hand through his hair.

“I can’t believe what’s become of me,” he said. “I was almost assaulted by a bunch of horny bugs.”

Crystal had started following him, but Gold tugged her into the kitchen at the last minute. “You guys want anything to drink?” he asked, opening up his fridge. “Soda? Juice? Er. Soda?”

“Give me a soda.” Crystal’s face cleared, not looking as dazed as before. Gold handed her a can.

“Water’s fine,” said Silver.

“From the tap?”

Silver shrugged. Gold took that as a yes, and got him a cup.

When he turned around, Crystal was gone: one glance into the sitting room and Gold saw that she had parked herself right next to Silver, who was very pointedly ignoring her, on the couch. Gold wondered if Silver was more irritated or comfortable.

He walked into the sitting room with Silver’s drink. “So like,” Gold said, “you can stay here as long as you need to, use all our things, whatever’s lying around, and I promise I won’t let Crystal do anything weird to you—”

“Will you?” Silver asked. Gold frowned as he set down his cup. “I need to make sure.”

“Of course not,” said Gold. “Actually, you can take my bedroom. I’ll just sleep in Crystal’s—maybe in her bed, if she lets me—”

Crystal’s head snapped up. “You snore,” she said. Then her expression softened and she looked at Silver again. “But I’ll do anything that makes him happy.”

“God,” said Silver. “Please. Don’t.”

Gold said, “Crystal, come here,” and patted next to him on the couch he was sitting on. “I’ll snore all night in your ear if you don’t,” he said; so, pouting, Crystal sat next to him. She blinked and her pupils became less dilated.

Turning his attention back to Silver, Gold said, “We have lots of food, and if there’s anything you want or need, just let me know. I mean, like, I guess, Crystal’s right, we’ll do whatever makes you happy—not everything maybe, but.”

“I guess there are perks of being cursed with having everyone want to fuck you,” Silver commented.

Gold rolled his eyes. “I told you,” he said patiently, “I don’t—I had a crush on you before, Silver.” Confessing his feelings is a lot more aggravating than as humiliating he thought it would be.

“Morty said that to me, too.”

“Maybe Morty’s just weird.”

“I ran into a few campers who said similar things,” Silver explained. “It’s nothing I haven’t heard before. Even some firebreather called me right after I’d run into him to tell me that he couldn’t stop thinking about me.”

“I can’t stop thinking about you either,” Crystal gushed.

Silver grumbled, “I hate this curse. I hate snubbull. I hate fairies. They don’t even have cute charm or skill swap.”

“Listen,” Crystal whispered, when Gold was curled up beside her in her bed. “What embarrassing things did I say to Silver? It’s all fuzzy.”

Gold had been ready to fall asleep—what with the exhausting day, not to mention that his nemesis-turned-nemesis crush-turned-rival but still a crush was currently sleeping in his bed, in his apartment, and it made Gold’s stomach flutter thinking about it. He didn’t know how to persuade Silver that it wasn’t caused by Silver’s so-called curse, but since Silver didn’t seem to care for him, he supposed that they could forget Gold said anything.

Gold rolled over and said into Crystal’s ear, “You told him to touch your tits.”

She hit him. “I did not!”

“How’s it feel, being a part of Silver’s curse?” Gold murmured.

“You mean you weren’t affected by it?”

Gold shook his head. “Even if I was, it wouldn’t be much different,” he said. “I’m just the way you and everyone else and those pokémon are, just less spontaneous and… weird.”

He could imagine Crystal rolling her eyes. “You’re already plenty weird,” she said. “And I don’t understand why you like him. He always looks grumpy and he keeps talking about me while I’m in the room like I’m not there.”

Gold couldn’t defend Silver’s attitude, but he said, “Hey, earlier today you said he was hot, so—it’s nice to know in your right mind you don’t think so. Even though you’re wrong,” he added.

Crystal elbowed his side. “Be glad I don’t actually want to go after your man,” she said, and sighed. “God, it’s like walking through a fever dream. I can only remember the parts where I’m not around him. When I am, it’s all,” she made a gagging noise.

“You do remember that I, your best friend, genuinely like him.”

“You have awful taste,” Crystal said. But she patted Gold’s head and smiled at him through the dark all the same.

Silver seemed perfectly content with staying locked up in Gold’s apartment, as Gold went out to find wild pokémon to battle, or tried to gamble some of his champion winnings in the Game Center. Silver laughed when he came home looking disappointed, and told him that the champion money was being wasted on voltorb playing cards.

Crystal would walk by the sitting room with as much distance away from Silver as she could possible. She said one day to him, “I totally don’t mean to be rude, but I’m definitely going to be avoiding you while you’re here, so I don’t,” she gesticulated and Silver nodded, “and you aren’t—”

“I know,” Silver interrupted. “I’d rather you avoid me, too.”

Gold supposed that they should work on his people skills, but this wasn’t exactly the optimal time for that.

Silver didn’t seem to mind having Gold the only living thing around him—he even let Gold put his pokéballs away because they kept clattering on his belt. Gold let them out in his spare room so they weren’t too bored or restless.

“You do not want to fuck your trainer,” he told them sternly.

Silver’s feraligatr gave an offended snarl.

“Don’t think I haven’t been paying any attention to you,” Gold scolded. “You’re making eyes at my man.”

Sneasel rolled her eyes. Gold said, “I’m for real.”

But other than that, they seemed to like him enough, and were delighted whenever either he or Crystal gave them food or even walked them around the city. It seemed best that everyone avoided Silver for the time being.

Gold also got into the habit of asking Crystal if she still felt the pull whenever she got close to Silver, that she just started saying, “Yes,” without him asking. She didn’t even look at Silver, and Gold wondered if looking at him affected the infatuation too. He couldn’t imagine sharing the same (albeit temporary) living space as Silver while avoiding all sensory contact with him.

He brought over Silver’s dinner one night a few weeks later, as Crystal was currently in the kitchen so it would be difficult for Silver to get it himself. He was in the sitting room, with the television on.

Silver took his plate so Gold didn’t have to set it down. “You’re not annoying as everyone else,” he said, by way of thanks.

Gold shrugged and picked up his own sandwich. “I’m just glad you’re not treating me weird even though I told you I had a crush on you,” he said.

“I’ve gotten used to it,” said Silver. He started on his food.

Gold said, “How—why route 38? Why here?”

“I’ve just been training, battling, smoothing out a few rough patches I made for myself,” Silver muttered. “And I show Professor Elm how my pokémon come along, too. But,” he stabbed his chopsticks into his rice, “now I’m caught in this mess.”

“Have you gotten any marriage proposals?”

“One,” said Silver. As Gold opened his mouth, he said, “Don’t ask me about it.”

“Okay.” Gold nodded. “As long as you said no.”

Silver ate in silence. Gold shifted.

“Well, like, this is cool, y’know,” he said. “We’re sort of doing what I asked we could do. Hanging out. Except probably not as a date.”

Silver shrugged and continued eating.

“I mean I don’t care if it’s a date to you, or me, or. Not. Spending time together is nice.”

Silver didn’t respond, or look up from his food. Gold felt his face get warm and said, “I’ll stop talking now.” He pretended to focus on the television, but from the corner of his eye, Silver’s head stayed bowed.

“Look,” Silver said, walking into Gold’s bedroom. “I—kind of—you’re not an awful battler, and even when you’re under a curse you’re better than everyone else, you—the way you treat pokémon made me treat them better, so.”

Gold was on the ground, looking for an ultra ball he swore he accidentally dropped under his bed a while ago. Crystal had gone out shopping.

Gold looked up, trying to follow what Silver had said. “What?”

Silver’s face was getting increasingly red.

Instead of repeating hismself, he bent down and grabbed Gold’s chin. Silver kissed him straight on the mouth. Gold flailed, but then kissed back; Silver was sharp to the touch, and warm under his blushes.

“I kind of don’t not have a crush on you, too,” he said when he pulled away. Gold figured that for people skills, Silver was getting better. “And I know you’re just under a spell, but you said—and this is the most I’ll get—”

“Silver,” Gold tried to say, I’m not under a spell.

But Silver kissed him again and wasn’t that a distraction. So Gold decided to let it go and put his hands on Silver’s waist and tugged him closer, getting hot at Silver’s desperate lips.

Crystal said, “No,” for the first time the next morning, and her eyes widened in delight. “Finally I don’t have to be in love with an asshole!” she said.

“Hey,” Gold said, walking out of her bedroom, rubbing his eyes. He could practically feel Silver’s glower from the sitting room.

Crystal had gone into the kitchen. Gold was pretty sure she was singing, “We-e are never, ever ever ever, getting back together!”

Silver was standing up when Gold got to the sitting room. Bewildered, Gold said, “Hi.” The television was on, but Silver seemed distracted.

“Can I have my pokémon back?” he asked.

“Oh,” said Gold, “oh, of course!”

He led Silver down the hall to the room he’d been keeping Silver’s pokémon. They were all asleep, except for sneasel.

Silver said in the softest tone Gold had ever heard from him, “Hey, did you guys miss me?” At the sound of his voice, they started waking up. “You don’t want to hump me anymore, do you?”

His sneasel shook her head and leapt into Silver’s arms. Silver laughed—actually laughed—and his crobat crowed while fluttering around Silver’s head.

Gold watched as Silver hugged his alakazam and gengar, grinned as magneton beeped and lit up in delight. “I guess you can go and walk out in public now,” he said.

Silver turned to him. “I guess,” he said. And then his eyes hardened, and he looked down. “Sorry for, you know, the things I did and—said, yesterday. Just forget it.”

Gold furrowed his eyebrows. “Forget it? Forget what?”

“The.” Silver waved a hand. He still wasn’t meeting Gold’s eyes. “You probably can’t remember it that well, but the thing I said about—having a crush on you, and the… kissing…”

“Oh,” said Gold. “No, I mean, I remember it just fine. Why would I want to forget it?”

“Idiot,” Silver said, and if Gold wasn’t mistaken, he sounded fond. “The curse.”

“You’re the idiot,” Gold said. “I told you, like, a thousand times already, I always—there was no curse on me, I liked you before, I—I still like you now.”

“What,” said Silver.

His gengar pushed him toward Gold. Gold said, “I can’t speak for Morty, but I meant what I said about you. Then and now.”

Silver said, “Are you sure that the curse is gone?”

Instead of Gold answering, Silver’s alakazam pushed him toward Gold this time. Silver said, “What,” and his alakazam nodded.

“Well there’s your answer,” Gold said.

“This is stupid,” Silver declared. “You’re an idiot for liking me.”

“No,” said Gold, “you’re the idiot for liking an idiot.” And he was the one who kissed Silver first this time, and Silver pulled away with something between a cough and a laugh.

“Morning breath,” he said. “You taste like morning breath.”

“At least you know I’m not under a spell now,” Gold said, and Silver was grinning.

Probably, Gold could guess, because this was better.

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Pursuit

by aroceu

Summary:

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© 2009-2026 aroceu