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kiwikipedia · 2 years

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White Lies Between Allies

Fandom(s): Pokemon Black and White, Pokemon Legends Arceus

Rating: K/Gen

Summary: Ingo's less than welcome reception from the Galaxy Clan has made the Pearl Clan wary about introducing Clay to them as coming from the same place as their rather odd Warden— fortunately, Clay has an idea, but it all hinges on Lian accepting it or not.

Extra Notes: Part of the “Tip Your Hat” AU

AO3

Another Tip Your Hat AU oneshot because Clay being an Uncle/Dad is just 10/10. There are a few minor OCs that are the "Elders" of the Pearl Clan, I'm not sure if there's an actual list of named characters in the Pearl Clan, but I used the same vegetable naming scheme.

It was safe to say that, as Clay sat before the Head of the Clan, the Wardens, and the Elders of the Pearl Clan, things were certainly becoming a predicament.

Irida looked… worried, for a lack of a better word, at the prospect of telling the Galaxy Team about Clay. And according to what Gaeric had told him, though, it wasn't like Clay could really blame her.

For a group of settlers, the Galaxy Team sat on a mighty high horse and seemed to think that they had control over Hisui already— despite the fact that. should the Clans decide it, the people of the Galaxy Team could easily be driven back from whence they came. Kanto, he believed was what Calaba had told him before.

Still, they had— They being the Clans— wanted to keep the peace, and that was fine and dandy, except for the fact that it seemed as if the Galaxy Team had a habit of being too suspicious of anyone who wasn’t them, the Ginko Guild, or a member of the Clans. It wasn't as if the Clans weren't suspicious, but they were kind nonetheless towards outsiders who didn't harbor ill intent towards them. And the Ginko Guild Members were all outsiders and misfits in their own way, so they had zero issues there— Ginter had declared that himself.

The Galaxy Team seemed to be especially suspicious of Ingo. While he was a member of the Pearl Clan, one of their Wardens, even, he was technically an outsider. Tsuna, one of the Clan Elders and a friend of Cabala’s, had expressed her own worry about how the distrust of Ingo would only grow if Clay’s own origins were known— which had then fed into Irida’s worry.

Which was why they were where they were now, sitting in the main tent of the Clan’s settlement. All five of the Clan’s elders were there, as were the current Wardens— Gaeric, Cabala, Palina, Lian, and, of course, Ingo— himself, and Irida.

“We can’t just… continue to not tell the Galaxy Team about Clay, can we?” Palina asked, her hands folded into her lap as the fire keeping the inside of the tent warm popped loudly.

Gaeric grunted arms crossed over his chest as he leaned back a bit. “Well, why can’t we? We haven’t told them yet and it’s been a few months, they don’t exactly have much power here.”

Bata, another one of the Elders, shook his head as he stroked his beard.

“Warden Palina is right,” he said after a moment. “We have told the Diamond Clan already, as per our tentative alliance has recently declared with the arrival of Warden Ingo. Not telling the Galaxy Team about a newcomer would be… close to breaking the alliance with them. Though we never formally declared the additional agreement with them like we had with Diamond Clan.”

Gaeric huffed as the other four Elders nodded in agreement with him. Clay adjusted his hat while the other Wardens— sans Ingo, who seemed to be spacing out a bit, and Lian, who was only listening at the moment— and the Elders conversed back and forth about what to do while Irida listened to both sides.

In truth, Clay did have an idea. It wasn’t exactly the best one ever, but it’s one that would work if no one looked too close— and considering how the Galaxy Team seemed to be going about their business, they wouldn’t. Probably.

The thing was, Lian didn’t have any immediate family left alive. Sure, he had the Clan, and because of that, he had distant relatives, but no one who was immediate. His mother had passed in childbirth— Lian’s younger sister, Cabala had told him, but the young lass hadn’t made it. Too weak and sickly. Lian was aware of the fact that he had lost a sister, of course, but had been too young to really know the babe. The young Warden’s father, on the other hand, had been taken by sickness roughly three years ago when Lian had been seven. Since then, Cabala had looked out for him, but she was old. Lian was very independent for his age, even more so now that he was a Warden as of a half a year ago.

(Lian was still a child, but— and he wouldn't admit it— it did worry Clay with how independent and almost distant the boy tended to be. Just a bit.)

But the Galaxy Team didn’t know any of that.

He glanced up as Gaeric and Elder Jin— the Warden’s own Uncle— broke into another argument, only for Cabala to meet his gaze. The old Warden’s green eyes bore into his own dark ones. Next to her, he saw Lian looking between them both, and Ingo simply observing from the other side of Palina.

It only took a moment before Cabala broke their impromptu staring contest.

“Quiet!” she barked suddenly, silencing Gaeric and his Uncle’s argument. “Let’s see what the man in question has to offer.”

Clay hid his surprise well as he adjusted his hat, eleven pairs of eyes suddenly on him. Cabala was not known for being accepting— in fact, she was rather suspicious and stubborn of both him and Ingo. For her to bring him into this conversation before any of the others was a rather… unprecedented turn of events.

“Question, but is it necessary to reveal the fact that I’m from another time?” he asked after clearing his throat a bit.

“Were you not just listening?” Bata grunted. “If we were to not tell the Galaxy team—“

“Due respect, but that ain’t what I was askin’, Elder,” Clay interrupted as he took his hat off in lieu of adjusting it yet again. The Elder snapped his jaw shut but tilted his head curiously. “I ain’t sayin’ you gotta forgo tellin’ this Galaxy Team that I exist, and all. All I’m askin’ is that if it’s alright to just… lie a bit. I do have an idea, but it's gonna be toein' the lines of truth and lies.”

The Elders glanced at one another before breaking off into hushed whispers. The Wardens didn't do the same, simply remaining where they were, but seeming to think it over in their own ways— Out of them all, though, Cabala didn’t seem all that bothered with the idea, and Palina seemed to be pondering it. Gaeric was looking over at Irida as the young Clan Leader thought over his words and Ingo had since come back to himself, though was fiddling with that coat of his— likely, the lad didn’t think he had anything to add to the conversation as the second newest Warden. On the other hand, Lian was focusing hard on Clay’s face, though when he glanced at the lad the boy looked away rather quickly. to focus on watching Irida.

The Elders broke apart after a moment longer, Tsuna leaning over and murmuring something to Irida, who nodded slowly. Gaeric seemed to have heard her and also nodded in agreement when the young Clan Leader looked at him for a moment.

“While it would not be truthful…” Irida started slowly, turning back to Clay and playing with her hands as she spoke. “No, the Galaxy team doesn’t need to know everything about your situation…”

Clay nodded as she trailed off. “Good. Good, well then. All that’s needed is a cover story.”

The girl tilted her head. “A cover story?”

He nodded again. “Here’s where things get a bit hairy. In the end, it ain’t gonna be a lie, but it will require a wee bit of actin’ to fully pull the Whimsicott Fluff over their eyes.”

“H-hairy? Whimiscott?”

They looked thoroughly confused now and Clay shook his head. He’d have to roll it back on the Unovan idioms, only Ingo would understand them, and even then it was hit or miss on the best of days with his memory loss.

“Ignore it, just an expression," he told them before he continued. "Anyways, Galaxy Team’s gonna want an explanation for me bein’ here. We just tell ‘em the flat truth.”

Those within the tent erupted into yelling at that, the fire popping loudly again as they did.

“We just discussed and said we weren’t going to do that at your request, boy!” Jin growled and Clay rolled his eyes.

“Lemme finish, Elder Jin,” he grunted as they all quieted down. “Obviously, we ain’t gonna tell them everything, but we can tell them some basic things. Why am I here in Hisui? Well, I’m Lian’s relative. What’s with my accent and the strange Pokemon I call my partner? I’ve been overseas, brought Excadrill over with me."

“But, Lian doesn’t have relatives…” Palina murmured and he saw Lian shove his hat further down over his eyes at that. Clay frowned, or rather, his frown intensified.

“The Galaxy Team don’t know that, do they?” Clay prompted, tone edging towards a slight growl and he saw the woman shrink back just a bit. He knew the other Warden didn’t mean it, but that didn’t mean that it wouldn’t hurt Lian to be reminded of the fact that he was technically an orphan.

Cabala seemed to have a hint of a smirk on her face, and for what reason, Clay had no idea.

Irida shook her head, though, drawing attention back to herself. “The Galaxy Team don't know, yes. I mean, they know about his… situation, but they don’t know that there’s...”

She trailed off again, shifting a bit uncomfortably, but Clay just nodded instead of having her continue.

“There we go then,” he said easily. “We tell the Galaxy Team who I am, but just edit some parts out... For all intents and purposes, I am Lian’s relative, so you ain’t really lyin’ about it. It’s just in the opposite direction, technically. And I was overseas in Unova, none of it's a lie, we just ain't gonna mention the time travel bit. And if they ask why I'm back here all of a sudden, it's 'cause Lian needs someone lookin' out for him despite bein' a warden. You can push the blame on to me if ya want, say that I insisted on returnin' after news got overseas to me 'bout his Father. It just took a whole lotta time to get the message from overseas and get back here."

He paused, glancing at Lian again. “Of course, if this is alright with you, lad.”

Eyes were on Lian then, and the boy adjusted his hat in silence, the only noise being the fire crackling. It took another long moment before he looked up, meeting Clay’s eyes.

“I’m not gonna have to call you ‘dad’ am I?” he asked, a bit cautious. Clay shook his head.

“I promise ya, lad. My speech patterns might refer to you as ‘son’ every so often, but I ain’t tryin’ to replace your pa,” he assured him, tone softer and gentler than it had been before with the other Wardens and Elders. “You can continue callin’ me whatever you like.”

The young Warden took a moment longer, eyes flickering to Ingo. It was a bit funny to Clay, in a good way, to know that Lian often looked to Ingo for advice. This time was no different, it seemed. It took a moment, before Ingo dipped his head in a nod, making Lian look back to Clay before the boy nodded as well.

(Later, Clay would learn that it wasn't Lian asking for advice, but asking for permission. To Lian, back then, it had seemed as if Clay had been Ingo's guardian of sorts, with how much he looked out for Ingo. Lian, who looked up to Ingo like a big brother, hadn't wanted to take that from him, and Ingo, who had— at the time— misunderstood and had thought Lian was just looking to him for reassurance.)

"Alright then, we can... go along with this plan...?" Lian trailed off in a slight question, brows still furrowed a bit, but Clay nodded in return as Palina let out a breath— as did Irida and the others— as if a whole lot of worry that had been weighing on their minds had been lifted.

“We’re going to have to do something about your name though,” Cabala spoke up, and Clay looked at the rest of the Wardens. Palina looked a bit relieved and if Gaeric’s grin got any bigger, Clay would put money on the guy pulling a muscle in his face.

“It’s too… foreign,” Tsuna agreed with a nod. Clay hummed at that, thinking for a moment, before nodding as well.

“Then, y'all can use 'Yakon'. In front of the Galaxy Team, at least,” he suggested with a shrug. The Elder blinked, eyes crinkling up in a smile.

“Thought this through, have you, Yakon?” she asked and he barked a soft laugh with a shake of his head.

“Naw, Yakon’s just what my Gran called me. Grew up with two names,” he explained, “She’s how I know the language here. Dear ol’ Gran was from here but migrated to Unova. Anyways, I was Yakon with her, Clay with my ma and pop back home, and when I was at work in the mines. Nowadays back in the future, ain’t no one calls me that, but I’ll still respond.”

He paused before switching to Galarian as he turned to look at Ingo. “‘Cept for you, Ingo. I know for a fact that you can’t pronounce that, or you'll butcher it to hell 'n' back.” “Excuse you, Clay, I certainly can!” the once Subway Boss huffed back in the same language, easily slipping into the language switch.

“Oh yeah?”

“I-“ Ingo frowned before sighing in defeat. Ranseigo was still something that he fumbled with when speaking, though that was to be expected. Emmet was the Ranseigo expert, Ingo was better at Kalosan and any bit that he had known had vanished with the rest of his memories. Clay had been teaching him the best he could, but it was still a trial. And it had only been a few months— luckily, the lad picked up on understanding better than speaking, so he knew what was going on. Roughly at least.

Clay shook his head before addressing the confused Elders, Wardens, and Irida again. “Ingo might still refer to me as Clay, this can be passed off as another oddity of his— or a translation,” he told them, slipping back into Ranseigo again.

“Is it a translation?” Irida asked and Clay shook his head with a chuckle.

“Naw, my name is the same word you use for the soil 'clay' but just in Galarian,” he told them. Lian blinked at that.

“You’re named after dirt?” he blurted. "That's... weird..."

Clay chuckled, before reaching over and flicking the brim of the boy’s hat. “And you’re named after a root vegetable. Pot-kettle-black.”

Lian huffed, ducking his head with a slight blush, but he could see the boy smiling under his hat as Gaeric’s booming laugh filled the Tent.

As Clay glanced at Ingo for a moment (the other Unovan seemed rather pleased), he noticed something. Cabala was openly smiling at him— though it was more of a smirk with a hint of… approval?

It was strange, that was for sure, but… somehow, just somehow, Clay had managed to gain the most stubborn of the Wardens’ approval just from all of this.

Things would work out, it seemed.

For now.

Tsuna comes from Komatsuna (Japanese mustard spinach), Bata comes from Ipomoea batatas (Sweet potato), and Jin comes from Ninjin (carrot).

I have a timeline written on a stickynote on my desk for when this all takes place— about three years pre Akari. The total timespan between Ingo's Arrival and Akari's is about four years, with six months being the entire run of the game. Clay arrives roughly one and a half years after Ingo— during which, both Ingo and Lian were named Wardens of Sneasler and Klevor respectively. If Lian's about twelve and a half in PLA, he's ten when all of this is happening.

Also, I did some math and it would take roughly three and a half months to get from New York to Hokkaido (the location that Sinnoh is based on) on foot and by boat in the modern day. In the event that someone were to ask Clay why it took him so long to get "back" to Hisui, he not only had to wrap up whatever he was doing overseas, but lots of things happened in the in-between such as weather and planning to get from poke-usa to Hisui. Or some shit like that.

Thank you for reading!

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#Penguinkiwi Writes #Penguin Writes: Pokemon #Tip Your Hat And Go With The Flow AU #Pokemon Legends Arceus #Pokemon Black and White #Gym Leader Clay #Warden Lian #Warden Ingo #Subway Boss Ingo #Pearl Clan Wardens #Pearl Clan #Warden Palina #Warden Calaba #Warden Gaeric #Clan Leader Irida #Pokemon Legends Irida

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