Chapter Text
Han Yoojin’s peaceful days came to an abrupt end when he met Sung Hyunjae.
Han Yoojin just finished his morning rounds when he heard a knock at the front door of the breeding center. He wiped the sweat off of his forehead and sighed.
“We’re closed today,” he grumbled, “why can’t they read the sign?”
Next to Han Yoojin was Blissey, who was currently cleaning the counter. She gave her trainer a confused look but Han Yoojin just shook his head.
“Whoever it is can wait.” Han Yoojin gestured to the floor where a variety of Pokémon footprints were scattered around. “Thanks to the rain, the ground is muddy, so we need to clean the floors.”
Blissey nodded and grabbed the mop in the nearby cleaning cabinet. Just as Han Yoojin was about to call for his water Pokémon, the knocking sound increased.
“You can start mopping Blissey,” Han Yoojin rolled his eyes, “I’ll just tell them to come back tomorrow.”
Blissey let out a hum and began to dutifully mop the floor. Han Yoojin let out a thanks as he trudged to the entrance of the breeding center, ready to unleash his scorn on the idiot who couldn’t read the business hours sign that was posted in the front.
With no finesse, Han Yoojin opened the door, mustering the meanest expression he could make.
It turned into a dumbfounded look the second he saw who was on the other side.
“Hello,” a smooth sounding voice greeted Han Yoojin’s ears. “Is this the Han Breeding center?”
“Yes,” Han Yoojin said with a stammer, “You’re correct.”
“Ah,” the taller blond held out a hand, “I am Sung Hyunjae, it’s nice to meet you. I am in need of your services.”
Han Yoojin wanted nothing more than to slam the door in Sung Hyunjae’s face.
What the hell was a member of the Elite Four doing here? They all already had super strong Pokémon, why would they need Han Yoojin to raise them?
A shiver ran down Han Yoojin’s spine as Sung Hyunjae’s pleasant smile bore down on him.
“May I come in?” asked Sung Hyunjae. “It’s quite cold out here.”
Han Yoojin really wanted to slam the door.
“Of course,” Han Yoojin said through gritted teeth, “Come in.” He stepped aside and let Sung Hyunjae walk inside.
Sung Hyunjae looked around the building with curiosity. The walls had pictures of Pokémon frolicking around the fields and newspaper clippings of Pokémon that Han Yoojin previously took care of. There were even some crayon drawings from children that volunteered.
“Such a cute place,” Sung Hyunjae stared at a picture of Han Yoojin holding up an Eevee.
“Thanks.” Han Yoojin closed the door behind him and crossed his arms. “So, what did you want? Usually clients wait until opening hours.”
“Hm? But you opened the door for me, so I assumed you were open.”
Han Yoojin scowled at him. “Your knocking would’ve woken up the baby Pokémon.” It took him forever to put all of the baby Bonsly to sleep since they kept on using Fake Tears.
“Ah, my apologies,” Sung Hyunjae continued to smile politely, “But I really did need to speak with you about a Pokémon that has come into my possession.”
Han Yoojin sighed. “Why me? There’s plenty of other Pokémon breeders you could’ve gone to.”
“I’ve heard many good things about you, so I wanted to see the amazing breeder in person.” Sung Hyunjae’s ever pleasant smile was still plastered on his face. “I’ve heard rumors that you know how to evolve a Pokémon with a single glance.”
“…”
Han Yoojin made sure to keep a composed face, but inside he was panicking. Damn, how did his secret get out? He made sure to keep a low profile. Before he could come up with an excuse, Blissey bounded over and stood protectively in front of Han Yoojin.
“Blissey!” Han Yoojin patted his dear Pokémon’s back, “It’s okay, he’s not doing anything bad.”
“Ah, is this one of yours then?” Sung Hyunjae observed Blissey for a moment. “Blissey are quite rare. They require a strong bond to evolve and your Blissey looks quite happy and healthy.”
Blissey let out a proud cry and Han Yoojin couldn’t help but pat her on the head. “I’ve had Blissey for a long time. She even helps out with chores.”
Sung Hyunjae nodded appreciatively. “I knew I was correct with choosing you Yoojin-gun.”
“Huh?”
Sung Hyunjae’s smile widened. “Will you become my breeding partner?”
“…Excuse me?!”
“We can write a contract if you wish.”
“I don’t think so. I’m allowed to choose my clients and I don’t think we’re really compatible.” Han Yoojin didn’t want anything to do with an Elite Four member. “I suggest finding someone else to help you.”
Sung Hyunjae’s smile took a frosty edge. “I really insist on Han Yoojin being my breeding partner.”
Before Han Yoojin could reach his phone to call the police, a bundle of red and yellow fur bolted into the room. It hissed at Sung Hyunjae, baring its fangs.
“Peace!” Han Yoojin quickly picked up Peace, who tried to claw at Sung Hyunjae. “Don’t attack the guest!”
“What is that?” Sung Hyunjae took out a Pokédex and held it towards Peace. “Strange. There’s no entry.”
Shit. “I…can explain. Peace is uh…a Vulpix.”
“I’ve seen a Vulpix before and your Peace is nothing like one.”
Han Yoojin was being backed into a corner. Blissey didn’t even know what to do as her trainer trembled. “Oh haha did I say Vulpix? I meant Growlithe.”
“Peace has a horn on its head. Neither Vulpix or Growlithe have horns.”
“Well you see…Peace is actually a miniature Rapidash.”
Sung Hyunjae ignored the weak deflect. “Did you discover a new Pokémon? And you didn’t tell anyone in the Association?” Sung Hyunjae’s voice was accusatory as he grinned at the now sweating Han Yoojin. “Oh my.”
Han Yoojin was fucked. “So…you need my help? How can I help you?”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
After some deep breaths, Han Yoojin brought Sung Hyunjae to the guest counter where he sat and turned on his computer.
After promising Blissey he would reward her, she reluctantly left to complete the rest of the chores with Peace. Han Yoojin didn’t want to leave his Pokémon with all of his duties, but Sung Hyunjae certainly threw a wrench in his plan.
Han Yoojin opened his computer program. “Okay, so what Pokémon do you need help with?”
Sung Hyunjae took out a PokeBall and tossed it up. After a flash, the Pokémon was on the ground, looking innocently up at Han Yoojin.
“This is Pawmo, a new species from the Paldea region.”
Han Yoojin went over and kneeled down to get a closer look at Pawmo. It was the first time he had ever seen this species before.
“So cute,” mumbled Han Yoojin. He raised a hand but stopped himself. He looked at Sung Hyunjae. “May I?”
Sung Hyunjae shrugged. “He might bite.”
“Pokémon can sense whether a person’s intentions are good or bad.” Han Yoojin placed his hand on Pawmo’s head and slowly rubbed the soft fur. Pawmo let out a happy sound and snuggled closer to Han Yoojin. “See, Pawmo knows I mean no harm.”
Sung Hyunjae’s smile fell into a tiny frown. “Strange. When I tried, Pawmo bit me.”
“Hmph. Maybe Pawmo sensed something off.”
Sung Hyunjae didn’t look amused. “I have been nothing but kind to Pawmo.”
“Sure,” Han Yoojin picked Pawmo up and handed him to Sung Hyunjae. Pawmo began to struggle in Han Yoojin’s arms and Han Yoojin put the Pokémon back down. “See? Pawmo doesn’t want to be held by you.”
“Perhaps it’s because Yoojin-gun has soft hands.”
“T-That has nothing to do with it.”
“So, how does Pawmo evolve?”
Han Yoojin’s eyes flickered to Pawmo, immediately catching the Pokémon’s gaze. After staring at it for a while, he went back to his computer and typed a few things.
“What are you typing?”
“An itemized list of charges for my services.”
“What type of Pokémon was Peace—”
“Just kidding.” Han Yoojin said with clenched teeth, “I’m writing up a plan for Pawmo’s evolution.”
“You’re such a good breeding partner. Also don’t worry, you’ll be properly compensated for your services.”
Well at least he wasn’t getting blackmailed, but Han Yoojin really wished Sung Hyunjae would shut up. “Pawmo evolves, but it will only evolve if you’re willing to put in the effort.”
Sung Hyunjae raised an eyebrow. “Effort? You don’t have to worry about that, I’m willing.”
“Okay then, follow me. Keep Pawmo outside of its ball.” Han Yoojin stood up and began walking towards the back of the center. Sung Hyunjae slowly followed with Pawmo trotting behind him.
“And where are we going?”
“Outside to the grounds. I still have a bunch of things I need to do before the center actually opens.”
Han Yoojin opened the gate and led Hyunjae to a wide open grass field. There were plenty of Pokémon grazing and running around, but the moment they saw Han Yoojin, they all bounded over. Han Yoojin greeted all of the Pokémon with a smile, patting their heads and cooing at them in a cute voice.
“Good morning everyone. We have a special guest today.” Han Yoojin pointed at Sung Hyunjae, who waved amicably. “This is Sung Hyunjae and Pawmo. They’ll be hanging around today.”
All of the Pokémon in the field gave Sung Hyunjae a withering glare before returning their attention to Han Yoojin.
“It’s nice to see such…lively Pokémon.”
Han Yoojin didn’t hear Sung Hyunjae’s comment over the cries of the Pokémon around him. He walked over to a wooden shack and grabbed a bucket of Pokémon food and handed it to Sung Hyunjae.
“Sung Hyunjae, your job is to go around the field and feed everyone.”
“Isn’t the lively crowd here—”
“This is just a fraction of the Pokémon I take care of. There’s still the water Pokémon in the lake and the ground types by the sand pit.”
Sung Hyunjae’s lips twitched. “I see. And just how will this make Pawmo evolve?”
“Just do it and see.” Han Yoojin said with a smirk. “And remember: keep Pawmo out.”
Han Yoojin watched as Sung Hyunjae walked off, food bucket in hand. Once he was sure he was out of earshot, he let out a groan. The Pokémon picked up on his sour mood and tried to comfort him. He felt a bit better but as long as Sung Hyunjae was around, he needed to keep his guard up. The bastard must have an ulterior motive or something.
“How could this happen…” Han Yoojin rubbed the temples of his head.
Peace walked through the crowd of Pokémon and rubbed itself against Han Yoojin’s ankle. Han Yoojin picked up Peace and tightly hugged it.
“You were supposed to stay in my room!”
Peace mewled pitifully.
“No excuses! Now look at what you’ve done.”
Peace rubbed its head against Han Yoojin’s chest.
“…You’re lucky you’re so cute.” Han Yoojin nuzzled Peace against his cheek. “I can’t stay mad at you.”
“Ah, so you can easily forgive cute things? I’ll keep that in mind.”
Han Yoojin pivoted around to see Sung Hyunjae’s infuriating grin.
“What the hell? I told you to feed everyone!”
“There was a very hungry Snorlax—”
Han Yoojin’s eyes widened and he hurriedly filled another bucket of food. “AH I COMPLETELY FORGOT. That Snorlax belongs to a friend of mine and I’m just watching it for the week.”
Sung Hyunjae chuckled as he followed Han Yoojin to the part of the field where a Snorlax was grumbling. Once Snorlax saw Han Yoojin, it sat up and waited expectantly.
“Interesting,” mumbled Sung Hyunjae, “Snorlax didn’t even get up when we approached.”
He watched Han Yoojin toss berries up to the Snorlax, feeding it until it passed out again. Sung Hyunjae smiled at the sight.
“He truly is perfect isn’t he?”
Pawmo looked at its trainer and back at Han Yoojin. It nodded in agreement.
“Glad we agree on something, Pawmo.”
Han Yoojin followed Sung Hyunjae around the rest of the grasslands to make sure the blond didn’t slack off. Pawmo followed behind Sung Hyunjae and seemed to be having a good time enjoying the grass and interacting with the other Pokémon.
“Okay, the last Pokémon are here,” Han Yoojin said as he gestured to a midsized lake. “The water Pokémon will pop their heads out if they’re hungry.”
“I see.” Sung Hyunjae handed some berries to Pawmo, “We’ll do our best.”
Pawmo squeaked and ran off to the edge of the lake. A few water types rose from the lake to take the berries. The last one to emerge was a Milotic that let out a pleased sound when it grabbed a berry from Sung Hyunjae’s hand.
“What a spectacle to behold,” mused Sung Hyunjae. “Milotic are considered rare sights.”
“Actually that Milotic is mine,” said Han Yoojin, “I leave her in the lake so she can keep it in order.”
“I’m learning so many interesting things about Yoojin-gun today,” Sung Hyunjae’s smile widened, “Milotic are extremely hard to evolve, let alone train.”
Milotic left the lake and curled around Han Yoojin who softly stroked her scales.
“I caught her way back when she was a Feebas. It wasn’t that hard to raise.”
“I think you’re the only one who could say that.”
“Really?”
“A Blissey and a Milotic,” Sung Hyunjae hummed, “I wonder what other Pokémon you have.”
Han Yoojin rolled his eyes. “I’m not telling you.”
“That just means I have to visit again and find out.”
“You won’t have to.”
“And what makes you so sure?”
Han Yoojin simply pointed at Pawmo, who was hopping around the edge of the lake. Pawmo abruptly stopped as its entire body began to glow white. It let out a surprised squeak and Han Yoojin squinted as Pawmo evolved. Its body grew longer and its fur darkened until it finally emerged.
Sung Hyunjae immediately took out his Pokédex. “Its new form is called Pawmot. Welcome to the team Pawmot.”
Pawmot squealed happily and ran to Han Yoojin to give him a hug. Han Yoojin laughed as Pawmot jumped and hugged his waist.
“Congratulations Pawmot, you’re fully evolved!”
“How are you sure that Pawmot is in its final stage?”
Han Yoojin felt a shiver run down his spine. “It’s just a hunch. Pokémon usually only have a maximum of two evolution stages.”
“You said that today was the first time you ever saw a Pawmo,” Sung Hyunjae’s eyes were sharp, “And that there was no information in your database. How could you have possibly known that Pawmot was a final stage evolution?”
Han Yoojin once again felt like he was being backed into a corner. He put down Pawmot and slowly reached for his belt. “Sung Hyunjae…don’t think about it too hard. It's just a hunch based on intuition.”
“Thank you for confirming something with me.” Sung Hyunjae smiled at him. “Don’t worry Yoojin-gun, I won’t breathe a word of this to anyone.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m just happy Pawmot evolved and that our business is finished.”
“It seems so.” Sung Hyunjae let out a quiet laugh. “I’ll be on my way then.”
“I’ll see you out.”
“You don’t need to, I have a Pokémon that can fly.” Sung Hyunjae took out a Pokeball and threw it up in the air. Han Yoojin’s mouth dropped as he saw what emerged from the Pokeball.
“You have a Zapdos?!”
Sung Hyunjae smirked. “Is Yoojin-gun interested in my Zapdos? Unfortunately it’s not available for trade.”
Han Yoojin’s eyes observed Zapdos, taking in every detail of the legendary bird. Zapdos was majestic, its regal aura similar to its trainer. Its yellow wings crackled with electricity and its beak was sharp and shiny. Han Yoojin heard stories of Zapdos since he was young. As far as he knew, no other breeder has ever had the chance to approach a Zapdos.
He…he wanted to get closer.
A hand gripped Han Yoojin’s wrist and took him out of his stupor. “Ah Yoojin-gun, that’s not a good idea. You need electric resistant materials to handle my Zapdos.”
“Oh sorry.” Han Yoojin didn’t even realize he was about a meter from the legendary bird.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be back and you can play with Zapdos.” Sung Hyunjae returned Pawmot to its Pokeball and hopped on Zapdos’ back. “Until then, take care of yourself my dear breeding partner.” He waved at Han Yoojin as Zapdos took off into the sky, leaving Han Yoojin with his Milotic still protectively curled around him.
“Can you believe it Milotic? That was a Zapdos! I heard they were only found in Kanto, but there was one right here in front of us!”
Milotic dipped her head in acknowledgement.
“Don’t worry, you’re still prettier.” Han Yoojin stroked her neck, still riding off the high of seeing a legendary Pokémon. Sung Hyunjae started off rude but—
“…Wait a minute, did he just say he was coming back?”