Prologue
Another successful mission, another chorus of fans to welcome him home. Lucario was the hero of the village, the most famous ranger there, homegrown. He had girls swooning all over him, and always he would graciously thank them for the attention, but always maintaining that politely aloof air, always “leaving his options open,” as it seemed, never showing too much interest one way or another. He was a common face around town when he wasn’t on missions, too—a friend of many, and still no one had yet seen him hanging out with anyone that looked quite like a “special someone.”
And despite how much these girls would fawn, there was one little fan that admired him more than all the rest, hanging back at the edge of the crowd, walled out by all the bigger fans. Here was a little Riolu gazing starry-eyed, leaning and hopping this way and that, just dying for a better view. Always the little pup had followed his idol eagerly from afar, always pushed to the sidelines by pokemon apparently more worthy of his attention.
His friends often teased the boy, so single-mindedly obsessed with Lucario, and ever eager to emulate his role model, sometimes even getting the gang into trouble as he would occasionally go a little too far into adventuring, and end up on the rescue list themselves.
Each time Riolu would feel a bit embarrassed, despite his friends good-spirited reassurance—that they didn’t think any less of him for it, that they all had fun in the end, really. He just couldn’t stop thinking about how easily Lucario handled himself, how the superstar rescue ranger dazzled and wooed, how in all the troubles the boy got themselves into, he always found himself imagining how effortlessly the older mon could come saving the day, and despite his best efforts, he could never come close to reproducing any of what he imagined Lucario would do.
One day the insecurity got the best of him, and he wandered into trouble again, this time all alone. He was going to train himself to be as strong and cool as Lucario, no matter what it took. It started to become routine, sometimes even taking up the time he might normally spend with friends. Not to much success, though—more often than not with the riolu running away and barely escaping without fainting. He was doing a little bit better in that regard, at least—lasting longer, escaping more adeptly. But no matter how far he ‘improved,’ it still never felt like quite enough.
He wanted to just talk to Lucario, even just once. All the tales he heard around town, and the ones he could sometimes make out over the noise of the crowd, enticed and wooed the little dreamer, and he wanted so bad to ask how his hero had gotten there. But all he could do was throw himself into the Mystery Dungeons and try his best, determined to find a way. He had no idea how to even approach Lucario, and it always seemed like he was busy talking to someone else, someone more important. It looked like he’d just never get his chance to meet him, until one fateful day.
It was just a stupid dare, and Snivy seemed so sure of himself—he always seemed the most capable of Riolu’s little group of friends, so strong and quick-witted, and certainly more confident than him. Of course the grass-type had his own little crush to impress—he’d seen a rare item from the local mystery dungeon, and was determined to obtain one and present it to that special girl. It seemed like a cinch—he wouldn’t have to go super deep into it, just a quick little in-and-out to grab the item. But of course it couldn’t just be that easy, and after waiting patiently for Snivy to return, the friend group started to worry.
Eventually they decided to go call for help, but Riolu chose to stay behind, just in case Snivy would come out again. In truth Riolu had more reason than the others to worry about Snivy. He’d heard an ominous rumbling from the dungeon earlier that day, and after having taken so many treks into it familiarizing himself, he just knew something was off, but no one would believe him. Fearing the worst, and with a little heroic streak burning at his heart, the Riolu steeled himself and entered in to save his friend.
The woods inside were dark and thick, spookier than usual, branches tangled and twisted this way and that; he could hardly keep sense of left and right. Soon enough he’d found Snivy cornered by a big monster that had chased him all over this floor.
The terrible thing loomed over his cowering friend, about to attack, when suddenly…
“HEYY!!” Riolu shouted, throwing a stone at it to draw its attention.
Snivy’s head whipped over to Riolu, then back to the monster, then back to Riolu again. His As soon as the shock wore off, Snivy scrambled to his feet and scampered on out of there, leaving Riolu to now fully grasp the weight of his actions, to almost immediate regret.
Outside, Snivy had just managed to scrape by, totally out of breath and panting to catch it. Just as he’d emerged Lucario pulled to a stop right before him, having sprinted the whole way there, now relieved to see the little mon okay. But then Lucario noticed, the other little pokemon he was told to meet there wasn’t present.
“R-Riolu’s… s-still inside!” the grass-type panted out.
Lucario grimaced as the boy hurriedly and fearfully described the scene, and wasted not another moment, dashing inside the moment the words left Snivy’s tongue.
Riolu was barely conscious, light fading from his eyes, when suddenly he caught glimpses of a wonderful sight—his hero crashing onto the scene, mere feet away from him. Time seemed to slow as he saw Lucario drift into view, flying through the air with that iconic focused look in his eyes, landing gracefully on his feet, right into combat stance. He dodged this way and that, landing blow after blow with ease.
A weak little smile sprouted on Riolu’s face, he could hardly help it—despite the pain, watching the amazing Lucario easily dispatch the unexpected foe. The last thing he saw as his vision began to fade was that of his hero drawing near, stooping low and close to him, a worried look on his face.
Part 1
When Riolu woke, he had no idea where he was. He found himself tucked away in a little bed, in the corner of a boxy little room—what appeared to be a cozy thatch hut.
Looking around, it seemed empty at first, except for some spare decorations and comfort items, and a handful of trophies that seemed to have come from some bigger, more dangerous fights. He had a sneaking suspicious as to where he must be, and he didn’t have to wonder for long, as his eyes settled on the far corner of the room. There Lucario sat, patiently stationed in a little wooden chair, his snout pointed to the floor and arms crossed just below, eyes shut in consternation.
“L-Lucario..?” the boy asked weakly, feeling that sense of wonder stir up inside him already, despite his well-tended injuries still weighing on him. That little voice caught the older male’s attention—his eyes shot open immediately, the Lucario rushing urgently over to the boy’s side.
“H-hey,” the older male checked in, trying to keep his composure, not wanting to panic or stress the kid any further. With a warm, slightly nervous smile on his face, he said, “How’re you feeling, bud? You took a pretty bad rough and tumble in there, y’know…”
All of a sudden, there Lucario was, up close, so much closer to him than he’d ever been before—closer than he’d ever dreamed. Riolu’s eyes widened a little, and for a moment Lucario wondered if the boy lost his voice, the way he just stared silently in awe. “A-ah um!” Riolu finally came to, “I’m f-fine, yeah! Ow…” He winced a little as his spirited reassurance awoke the soreness all over his body.
Lucario cracked a little smile, more comfortably amused now, reaching over to pet the boy between the ears, rubbing one of them a bit, comfortingly. “Good to hear. You rest up now then, okay?”
The boy blushed a little. He was finally talking to his hero, up close—and he even touched him! Even that meager bit of affection felt better than the best day of his life. But now Lucario was turning toward the door, and the boy’s voice cracked as he hurriedly asked, “W-where are you going?”
Lucario chuckled a bit, “Gonna gather some supplies to replenish the ones our little guest here took up.”
Riolu’s ears splayed and they quickly looked down, crestfallen and mortified at being such a helpless little inconvenience.
Lucario tensed up as he caught his mistake, quickly rushing back over with his soft voice and carefully warm smile back on his face. “Hey, hey…” he comforted, his paw already right back to where it was, with slow, tender, little strokes that warmed the Riolu right back up. “I’m just glad you’re okay, now. So don’t you worry your pretty little head one bit, okay little guy? I’ll be hardly gone a moment, anyhow; it’s no trouble. I’ll be back before you know it!” He said, flashing a more familiar iconic Lucario smile, one that easily made Riolu light right back up—and the extra petting probably helped a bit, too, no doubt.
...
Riolu spent most the rest of the day there—Lucario had already let the cub’s friends know he was okay, that he was just spending time over recovering at the ranger’s “secret” base—really just a bit of a home away from home that happened to be much more closer and conveniently located near the mystery dungeon. He didn’t consider himself so secretive really, just enjoyed the bit of privacy every now and then.
But of course Riolu’s friends were all totally jealous. And of course Riolu felt an extra bit special now, even if it had come at the cost of a bit of embarrassment and maybe a smidgen of trauma. And Lucario didn’t take long at all, though even just a few minutes felt like ages to the growing little mon.
It was quiet, a little awkward at first, but eventually the two got to chatting. Lucario honestly felt a little almost as bashful as Riolu, the way the kid just gushed so sincerely about his endeavors. He was used to the attention of course, but something about Riolu’s seemed different. He was like a professional with how much attention to detail he’d dedicated to recounting Lucario’s skills and accomplishments.
And it was cute seeing that youthful, unabashed energy on full display—once the kid had gotten over his initial shyness, at least. Spurred on, Lucario even indulged the kid in some insider perspective, filling Riolu in on details he’d missed out on or had questions about. And eventually Lucario had even got the boy talking about his own attempts to be a great ranger like him.
There was no shortage of scolding and warning of course, at first, but after getting that out of the way, Lucario was honestly impressed to hear how determined and even crafty the boy was. Even subtly suggesting that that practice had probably been the difference between his current state and a much worse one. It was a reserved compliment, but still enough to turn Riolu bashful, and Lucario smiled warmly.
But with the sun beginning to set, and the boy’s body using up all its energy just to recover, he was starting to feel a bit chilly. Lucario apologized for the lack of heavier blankets—he hadn’t quite prepared the place for winter yet, and he’d always run a bit on the warmer side anyway, he explained.
But he did think of a solution, if the boy was okay with it.
Riolu blushed—he’d never even thought of the possibility, as much as he’d dreamed and fantasized about even just meeting Lucario or catching one of his adventures up close. It stirred up weird feelings inside that the boy hadn’t yet come to recognize, and he almost was too nervous and shy to respond, but eventually he nodded and murmured a tiny, “O-okay.”
So Lucario climbed into bed with him, helping Riolu to sit up a bit more as he settled in behind him and under the sheets along with him. There he held the boy close, arms wrapped around the little guy, head nestled down in between his ears, eyes closed and breath coming on in warm little waves, comforting the boy as they washed over his headfur. It all happened so fast, but then, a little bit of permission was all Lucario needed to settle right on in, it seemed.
Riolu felt a hotter blush burn up inside him, wondering helplessly why the older male was being so nice to him—what did he do to deserve this? He was just a pathetic little riolu, that couldn’t even save his friend without needing rescuing himself. He started to tear up a bit, and when Lucario noticed, he stiffened up in concern.
“H-hey um... y-you okay there, bud..?” he asked in a soft, slightly nervous voice, almost starting to loosen up that close embrace, instinctively.
Riolu tensed next, his arms quickly grasped around one of Lucario’s without thinking, hardly used to the warm embrace yet already afraid to lose it, “Um! Y-yeah! S-sorry..! I-I…” He whined a little… “I just… I feel like all I do is just make everything worse. I wanna be a ranger like you, I wanna help people, not just, get myself in trouble all the time... I thought maybe I-I could help Snivy, but then I went and screwed up and needed help too…”
Lucario’s heart ached at the poor boy’s lament, his throat feeling tight, but he wasn’t gonna just let the little guy beat himself up like that. “Hey there…” he started, daring a little brush of his paw against the pup’s cheek with his free arm, his snout hovering over the boy’s shoulder, close to his ear. “I know it’s hard not being as strong as you want. It sucks feeling like a burden to others, especially when all you ever want is to help. I know I’ve been there before, for sure.”
Riolu’s ears rose, almost in disbelief. They couldn’t imagine his hero as anything less than the perfect ranger he’d always appeared to be.
“But look at you,” Lucario continued, lowering his snout in closer, down along the boy’s cheek. “Sure you needed a little help along the way, sure I came in to rescue you—but rescuing Snivy? That was all you, bud. You’ve been working really hard, I’m sure of it. And maybe it’s hard for you to see now, but I’ve no doubt it’s paying off.”
Riolu was quickly overwhelmed, eyes watery, cheeks burning red, and a swirl of emotions in his chest that he couldn’t make heads or tail of. “Y-you really mean that..?” was all the boy could manage to say.
Lucario just chuckled, helping himself to nuzzle along to the boy, cheek to cheek. “’Course I do. Don’tcha think a ranger knows one when he sees one?”
Riolu whined all flustered and giddy, paws doing ginger little kicks under the covers, and tail beginning to wag.
“Now just don’t take that to mean you can keep on waltzing into dungeons all the time like that, okay?” Lucario chuckled.
Riolu whimpered a little more childishly. “But… but…”
Lucario just squeezed and rubbed a little ear. “Hey. Hey… no buts! Silly little guy… if you want to train so bad, then you better do it the right way—there’s just no reason to put yourself into danger like that.”
Riolu’s ears perked up again, and he remembered one of the questions that had been on his mind. “W-well… h-h-how did you do it, then..?”
Lucario tensed up a bit, a subtle bit of blush settling in his cheeks. “T-that’s… um…” he started, scratching his cheek with a sheepish little smile. “W-well, I certainly had help.”
“I dunno anyone like that…” Riolu whimpered, crestfallen again.
“Hey now, that’s not true...” Lucario leaned in close again, smiling to the boy nestled cheek-to-cheek, “You know me, don’tcha?”
Riolu just blinked, not quite comprehending at first, not quite believing next. “W-w-wait… y-you mean..?”
Lucario just smiled. “Welllll if you wanna be a ranger so bad,” the older mon sighed, “It can’t be helped I suppose. I’ll just have to train you.” He cracked a playful little smile.
Riolu’s eyes lit up! He felt dizzy with just how happy he was turning out this day, his tail wagging up an absolute storm now. “N-n-no way! You um, y-you really m-m-mean that!?” the pup stuttered excitedly.
Gosh, he really was such a cute little guy; Lucario could hardly help himself. He hadn’t at all planned to get himself into something like this, and already his brain was churning worries of every way he could mess this up, but he could hardly let those worries make him say no to a cute face like that. “It won’t be easy for you, y’know. You put yourself into a lot of danger so far, but real training isn’t just danger—it’s hard work.”
“I-I know! I-I-I want to—I really wanna!” the pup stammered determined, turning his whole body to one side, legs strewn over Lucario’s thigh and paws gathered on his chest, to really look the older male in the eye.
Lucario chuckled warmly. “Then yes, I can help you train.” Looking into those starstruck eyes, the older male couldn’t help but feel a bit of that infectious bubbliness himself. He was following his body more than reason now, now more than ever. Without a second thought, the older mon leaned in and planted a kiss right at Riolu’s forehead.
Riolu squeaked, blushing a bit again. He still hadn’t quite grasped just how affectionate Lucario could be, or just how to respond. Heck, he was still coming to absorb the fact that Lucario was actually going to train him.
But Lucario couldn’t see that. In the brief pause, Lucario was already beginning to worry he’d done something wrong. “Ahh..! S-sorry, heh… I um, should’ve asked…”
“W-what..?” Riolu asked, not quite sure what he meant at first.
“Um, I mean, kissing you. I mean, I startled you, it seems. I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable, heh… sorry…” Lucario said, far more composed than he felt inside, his heart sinking, mind already catastrophizing every which way, all over just a simple little forehead-kiss.
“O-oh!!” Riolu realized with wide eyes, paws clambering up Lucario’s chest to reassure him, “N-no wait! I um!! No I, uh… h-heh I d-… don’t think I’m uncomfy, n-no… I-it’s okay, d-don’t say sorry. I’m sorry—i-if I um, w-worried you, heh…” The boy was fiddling with his paws now, snout tucked in, with a nervous, bashful little smile as he attempted to explain himself. “T-thank you, Lucario… I’m… r-really excited to train with you!” he yips, squeezing Lucario’s arm tight to his chest.
That caught Lucario by surprise, a look plain on his face. He felt his blush deepen, hopefully not enough for Riolu to notice. The older mon sighed, a Riolu far too cute for his own good, all his restraints crumbling under the weight of this blossoming affection. With a nervous little smile, all he could do was stuff his paw behind his head, idly scratching at the black lobes hanging by his ear. “Y-yeah, me too little guy. Um… so, you really didn’t mind then? Kissing your head like that, I mean.”
Riolu was already in a rush to move on—and certainly more than a little excited just to train under his favorite ranger. But with Lucario shining a spotlight back on that again, now he had to think about it. His gaze shied away as he grasped for how to answer. “I-it felt kinda… n-nice I guess… I-I just…” Riolu struggled, reaching through his feelings for words he couldn’t find. “W-why are you so nice to me?” he finally managed to ask, eyes flitting back to Lucario’s, a sheepish, squiggly little smile on his face as he felt a little embarrassed of how blunt that sounded.
Lucario tensed. He already knew he’d gotten too comfy, too fast with Riolu, but he didn’t think he’d have to explain himself so soon. “W-well um… I think you’re a sweet kid, that’s all.”
Riolu just whined a little, “C-come on, it can’t be j-just that! I’ve barely even seen you h-hug someone before! Even when s-some of the bigger kids come around.”
Lucario only got more nervous as the pressing continued. “Well that’s… —P-private and public are two different things, eheh…”
Riolu’s brows furrowed, so determined to get answers, that any filter they had disappeared. “Hmm… so does that mean those rumors about you having a secret girlfriend are true then?”
“Th-th-the what??” the Lucario stammered.
“The rumors!” Riolu insisted, “No one ever sees you with like a girlfriend or anything, and there’s always girls, like, all over you, everytime you come back from a mission! So um… y’know… some people got to thinking like, maybe you do have a girlfriend, and you just like, keep it a secret—like this place—so you won’t get too much attention or whatever…”
“Ohh… huh, heh… well, I suppose people do have reason to wonder…” Lucario says, gaze wandered off to the side toward the ceiling. “I um… No—I don’t have a girlfriend… no secret girlfriend or otherwise.”
Riolu just tilted his head to one side, as boy pups do. “How come?”
Lucario tensed again, forced to enjoy the wonders of cubs and all their innocent directness. “W-well thats…” he started, feeling his breath catch in his throat, words jammed, thoughts lost in circles, looking anywhere and everywhere in his brain for some kind of answer, and coming up totally empty. Finally he sighed, knowing that this would probably just dig him in deeper, but not having the heart or the confidence to lie at this point. “Just… n-not something I’m interested in…”
“Huh..? Why not?”
“I just, um… d-don’t like them.”
“But there’s all kinds of girls in our village! Y-you really don’t like any of them? Not Flaaffy, not Meowscarada, not Sylveon?”
“Sylve—? N-no, yeah none of them…”
Riolu blinked. “W-whaaaat… b-b-but what about like, when you go into town, then, n-none of the girls there, either?”
Lucario sighed. “Nope. Not a one.”
Riolu practically fell over backward, if Lucario’s paws weren’t still securely wrapped behind his waist. “No wayyy… You don’t like any girls..?”
The older male got a nervous look on his face. “Ehehh… t-that’s right…”
Riolu stopped. “W-wait… l-l-...like at all?”
Lucario chuckled a bit more, amused at his astute observer, if not for how nervous he still all was. “Mhm, that’s how it is…”
Riolu’s wagging tail had slowed to a more measured sway, gears turning in his head as he concocted what to say next. “W-...what do you like, then..?” he asked, seemingly out of nowhere, not even really sure where he was going with that.
Another pointed question causing Lucario to tense again. He sighed. With a paw returned to the boy’s cheek, caressing little strokes with his thumb, he said, “Oh, well… all sorts of things. Honestly though… I… really like something cute, and small. Those are my favorite,” looking the boy in the eye with a soft, nervous smile.
Riolu blushed again, as if his body knew before his conscious did. “I-I… um…” he started, his paws gingerly holding onto the wrist of the paw carressing his cheek, but not stopping it.
“Hey, Riolu…” Lucario asked, not entirely dissuaded by the boy’s response this time.
“Y-yes..?”Riolu said.
“Can I kiss you, again..?”
Riolu froze for just a moment. “M-my forehead..?”
Lucario shook his head softly with a warm little smile, his thumb reaching over and gently brushing up against the boy’s lips. “Here.”
Riolu gulped, eyes wide, blushing full-on now. The moment felt torturously long—for both of them—as the boy struggled to process what was happening right before him (and within him) and Lucario struggled not to let his anxiety fill in the gap, but finally Riolu whispered a tiny, squeaked little, “O-okay…”
They kissed, Riolu’s lips catching Lucario’s before he’s realized, prompting a startled little whine but no resistance. Muzzle on muzzle, pressed together in tender embrace for a moment that felt longer than any other in the boy’s entire life, and yet not long enough all the same. The look in the boy’s eyes had softened once their lips parted, and so had Lucario’s.
Lucario’s heart was pounding, a part of him terrified it could go wrong at any second, anxious of all the eyes on him, ready to turn sour the second they might catch wind of this. All of a sudden he was very grateful for this “secret” little base of his. And yet somehow, all of that took a backseat to the wonderful feeling of those dainty, soft little lips, so easily enveloped by the older mon’s own. And more than that, the sweet little look on Riolu’s face, adorably inviting more.
He leaned in again, only to hesitate at the last second. This time Riolu gingerly closed the distance, and they kissed again. And again. Simple, almost childish little kisses, if not for their scandalous target. For now Lucario held back the urge to fill the cub’s maw with his tongue. For now he satisfied himself with the gentle taste upon the boy’s lips, and the soft little shape that hugged close to his own.
“H-how are you feeling..?” Lucario asked, almost trembling with excitement—and still deeply afraid that he was doing something wrong, though his body seemed to be acting more and more unfettered by that fear now. He was very aware of the power he held over this cub—despite all his fears of getting in trouble, there was a good enough chance he could probably just get away with whatever he wanted to. It would be so easy, in so many different ways, for “the hero of town” to really just abuse a kid like this. He wanted to say that’s not how he is, but could he really ever be so sure? He looked into Riolu’s eyes, hoping to find the answer...
