His Onyx ~ Gladion X Reader

Chapter 29: Gladion ~ Relentless

A/N: We don't talk about how late this update is... just like we don't talk about how my exams are coming up and I'm bracing myself for failure lol. High school is p-a-i-n.
—Chrys

<———————————————————————>

Weavile's pained howl mimicked the roaring alarm reverberating within Gladion. He forced himself to tear his gaze away from the simpering Leah, since he knew that if he looked any longer, he'd do something so harsh that Leah would never help him with (Y/N).

Gladion staggered backward, his hand jerking like a reanimated corpse as it wrenched through his blonde locks, his mind spinning with a barrage of frenzied thoughts. The first, of course, was dismay that his chance at rescuing (Y/N) was slipping away. But the second was sheer self-disgust. He used to pride himself on being brilliant at battling—how could he have slid so far down as to almost lose to a bag of mindless goo and giggles like Leah? What was wrong with him? He'd been chosen as an Enforcer for his battling ability, and his pride was why he'd been so nettled when (Y/N) beat him in a Battle Royal during the initial stages of their relationship.

Hell, I was such an idiot with her at first—

"WEAVILE! DUCK!" Gladion roared as Gothitelle aimed a Psychic, and he wished for (Y/N)'s telepathy with her Pokémon. Leah went wide-eyed at his voice, and he smirked, hoping she was frightened.

"Gladion! You have such a strong, manly voice!" Leah squealed, fanning herself with her hands.

Gladion shared a nauseous look with Weavile.

Weavile shuddered and hauled itself up, shooting across the ground and just barely evading the move. Electricity fizzed and twined around its body, hampering its movements and burning into the flesh, like a tightly-tied rope.

"Gothiiitelle, Gothiiiitelle! Gothitelle crowed, sounding as idiotic as its Trainor.

I won't let you sound that triumphant for much longer!

Gladion glanced around. He was glad they had no audience and commentator; there were none awake this early and he wanted no distractions.

"Weavile! Run back to Gothitelle and use Shadow Claw!"

"Gothitelle! Confusion!"

Leah turned in his direction, saying, "Shouldn't we end this already? I want—"

"I don't care what you want!" Gladion bellowed, slashing his hands through the air aggressively, scaring Leah into shrinking back.

Several glowing, pastel-colored bulbs swirled towards Weavile, who weaved between them like a dancer, doing a split to avoid two going over his head, throwing itself sideways to evade another, all while racing forward in an energetic sprint. Its legs moving so fast they looked like a vibration. Shoving against the ground to add momentum to its mighty leap, Weavile backflipped to give its hazardous claws the optimal position to slice painfully into Gothitelle.

Gothitelle keened, its ghostly lashing around it. Weavile slid down to avoid them, before giving a smirk and nailing her underside with a clever Shadow Claw.

Gothitelle keened once more from indignity and pain, while Gladion smirked.

"Well, Leah," he drawled. "This playtime has gone on long enough. It's time for us to—"

Weavile's shriek echoed through the walls of the stadium as it was launched backwards from the force of Gothitelle's sudden Psychic. Gladion hadn't learned from his previous mistake, allowing his Weavile to remain in a vulnerable position—beneath Gothitelle.

No! How could this happen? Weavile, get up, get up, we can't lose now!

Mercifully, Weavile arose, though Gladion could tell it was very near unconsciousness. It didn't even have a chance to catch its breath, as Gothitelle tossed Confusions its way, enveloping him in a game of dodging for a minute straight. Then Weavile managed to slip away by slithering roughly across the floor, somersaulting away, and performing a walkover to avoid ramming into a random rock on the field.

Gladion narrowed his eyes. This back-and-forth would get them nowhere and was wearing on Weavile. He needed to get creative, and fast. He knew Shadow Claw would especially hurt Gothitelle, and that it was vulnerable at its underside.

What would (Y/N) do?

Better than me, I'd say.

Leah aggravated him further by calling from across the field, "We're this close to having our date, pookie!"

Gladion genuinely felt a surge of vomit up his throat at the nickname. Pookie? He spluttered, so outraged he was rendered speechless. He would murder her! He wouldn't let anyone call him that—not even Lillie or (Y/N)! A man had his limits!

He realized she might have been trying to distract him, so he hastily snapped, "Weavile, new idea! Use Shadow Claw... and hang upside-down from the roof!"

Weavile nodded and sped off like a maniac, its paralysis dissipated, and Gladion felt a warm burst of pride for his eager Pokémon. Weavile climbed up the roof in record time, then hovered from it, while Gothitelle and Leah both stared at Gladion as though they doubted his sanity.

Leah yelled, "What are you doing? Your Pokémon's just hanging there like an apple and not doing anything!"

Gladion stayed silent. Minutes passed, with neither party making a move.

Leah stamped her foot. "Tell me what you're doing! This is boring!"

Eventually, Gothitelle gracefully floated upwards, twirling and dancing until it was a couple feet under the weakened Weavile, a highly advantageous position. It unleashed a Hyper Beam, the blinding, vast surge of power exploding into Weavile's spot, probably ending the match—

Gladion smirked.

Weavile threw itself off the roof at the last possible second. The Hyper Beam shattered the ceiling instead, raining broken wooden boards and steel fixtures onto the delicate Gothitelle's crown, while Weavile grabbed on of its appendages as he fell and began absolutely pummeling the other Pokémon in the face with Shadow Claws. The other Pokémon wailed at the assault, and they both fell together towards the ground as Gothitelle's strength drained away.

Gladion just realized he hadn't thought of what would happen when the two Pokémon had to come down.