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“Friede...” The man groans softly, hearing his name. He stirs, but doesn't awaken. “Friede..!” The call sounds more earnest... is that... Roy?
Friede blinks himself awake, before snapping up as if he'd been awake the whole time. “Roy?” He calls out, the darkness of the captain's cabin keeping the boy hidden. He sits up, there doesn't seem to be any sign of an intruder, or else Cap would have alerted him via their screams.
“Friede..” Roy whimpers, and Friede reaches for the lamp. He tugs on the string of the lamp, illuminating the room dimly to find Roy in his pyjamas, frowning, and visibly upset. “What's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?” Friede asks gently, “No, I..” Roy pouts, “I can't find the chips...” Friede nearly turns off the light and goes back to bed. His body is begging for him to do so. Ignore the boy's pleas for chips, it begs desperately. Friede massages his temples instead, “I think Dot ate the last of the chips.” Friede recalls softly.
Roy looks crestfallen at the idea of not having his midnight snacks. Friede wills himself to have strength. “Oh.. Okay, I'll go back to bed then.” Friede cracks immediately. “Hey, no one said we couldn't go out and buy some for you..” He spots a flutter of hair-like flames next to Roy's leg, “...and Fuecoco.” Friede pats the boy's head, and he visibly perks up. Molly is going to curse his bloodline when she finds out, he just knows it. “Really?” Friede smiles softly at his question, “Really.”
“Should I get changed?” Roy asks, Friede chuckles at his enthusiasm. “It's just a midnight excursion.” Friede reminds the excitable child, he stands and grabs his jacket before offering it to Roy. “It's cold out, you should wear this.” Friede comments, Roy eyes it curiously. “I think I'll be fine, you should wear it instead.” Roy smiles, “Orla said you're no good with the cold,” Friede winces.
He drapes it over his shoulders, “True. Didn't think Orla would tell you my biggest weakness though...” Friede mutters, betrayed. Roy grins at that. “Chips! Chips! Chips!” Roy cheers, making Friede shush him. “If Dot and Liko hear you, they'll come looking.” Roy grins impossibly wider. It makes Friede's heart melt slightly. “Be quieter, okay? Molly doesn't need to know.”
After carefully sneaking out of the ship, they head off to the closest town with a 24-hour convenience store. It was a bit of a walk, but Friede didn't want to risk getting caught by Molly.
“—So then Dot ended up battling a bunch of trainers while me and Liko watched on the sidelines. He's not very good at battling, but Dot's improving really fast!” Roy explains, “I ended up battling this really nice girl named Soma during Battle Tactics class, she has a Pokémon called Popplio, it makes bubbles,” Friede hums, noting the name sounding foreign, “She's also a transfer?” Friede asks, Roy nods excitedly, “She's from Alola! She says she's training under a Champion! Isn't that cool?!” Roy chatters excitedly.
Friede listens, offering quips and jokes and small tidbits of information about Pokémon into their conversations as Roy continues to talk about the girl from Alola, along with his adventures with Liko and Dot. Mostly about Liko and Dot.
“Oh! Oh! We're here!” Roy cheers, making Friede chuckle. There aren't many houses nearby, so the volume should be appropriate. Roy beelines for the snack aisle, and Friede browses the alcohol they have. It's cheap, and pretty bad most of the time, but he's gonna need it if he wants to survive Molly's lecture tomorrow.
“Friede!” Roy grins at him, Friede hums curiously, turning to the smaller boy. Roy offers him an energy drink, holding 3 bags of chips, 3 different flavours. Friede pauses to look the drink over. It's a brand he hasn't seen (or tried) before. “Dot gave me one once, it's good! Said it re-.. repreni- replenishshes your electrolytes? re- you know what I mean!” Roy stomps his foot in annoyance. Friede nearly snorts, but smiles at the thoughtfulness. “Thank you, Roy.”
They pay for it at the counter, and Roy simply carries the bag as they make the trek back to the ship. Fuecoco has practically fallen asleep while they were shopping, so Roy returns him to his pokéball to rest.
“...Thanks for the snacks, Friede,” Roy mumbles, uncharacteristically quiet. “Hm?” Friede blinks before smiling softly, patting Roy's head. It's a little odd seeing the boy without his hat, but it adds to the peacefulness. “You're welcome, Roy.” Friede replies.
Roy puts away all the chips, and Friede keeps his drink in a hidden minifridge. Roy gasps when he sees the drinks that went missing in the minifridge, but Friede only shushes him. They giggle when they finish putting everything away. Roy yawns, exhaustion hitting him all at once. Friede catches him before he falls, carrying him back to his room and releasing Fuecoco from his pokéball before tucking them both into bed.
Roy sleepily stares at Friede like he hung the stars, it makes the man smile. “Goodnight, Roy.” Roy smiles softly, cuddling into Fuecoco. “Goodnight, Friede..” He mumbles, eyes closing as he succumbs to slumber.
Friede leaves the bedroom, returning to his room to find Cap standing there, unamused. He lets out a frustrated chirp, Friede scratches the captain under his chin, and his anger melts away immediately. “Sorry, sorry... I'll let you know if I leave the ship next time.” Friede chuckles, before slipping into bed, yawning as Cap snuggles into his chest.
Friede lets his eyes flutter closed, returning to the embrace of the slumber that was interrupted earlier that night.