Iris frowned– thoughtful, but in a way that suggested she’d come to an uncomfortable realization. “Hilda caught Reshiram, didn’t she?”

Only half listening– trusting his brother to rein his attention in when need be– Emmet automatically said, “Yep,” and so didn’t [notice] the look that passed between Drayden and Elesa. Slowly, the latter turned her attention to the elder twin; none of this escaped his notice, but, absent context, he had no idea what to make of it. He assumed his brother had simply committed a minor faux pas– likely the visibly waning attention.

“Hey Ingo, gut feeling, do you think the weird Plasma kid captured Zekrom?”

“I would assume so.” He said blankly; he wasn’t entirely sure why, but saying things he didn’t understand was hardly a new experience. What was one more instance to toss onto the pile?

She hummed a contemplative affirmative and went on to ask, “You don’t have any idea who I’m talking about, do you?”

“…I’m afraid not.” Ingo admitted, flustered.

[…]

“Uh, anyway, I’m just worried that it could be… you know… still possible?”

“We’re human.” Emmet said flatly, though the angle of his smile suggested there was anxiety lurking somewhere beneath.

“Usually.” [Elesa this time] “But sometimes you’re a big, fluffy dragon, and it’s not always by choice.”

[I don’t want to bother w/ this right now, but we do establish that, in human form it’s fine; in dragon form, not so much. Idk how much this would work, but I kind of like the idea that, even though it was a test and there was absolutely no danger, whichever brother wasn’t the test subject automatically lashes out (just, like, vocally) as it’s proven that, yes, this could be a problem. Since Ingo’s getting a moment in a bit, it might be good to give Emmet this one.]

—

He perked up.

“Do tumblestones still exist? They must, right? It’s just stone, it can’t exactly go extinct…”

Without bothering to peel himself away from his twin’s side, Emmet gave a half-hearted shrug and, after a moment to unfasten it, handed his Xtransceiver over. “Have fun looking for rocks.”

[…]

Looking up from the Xtransceiver, Ingo frowned [not excitedly, but ???], “If we can get the appropriate materials, I can craft some pokeballs. That would circumvent the problems you’ve mentioned, wouldn’t it?”

“You can do what, now?” Elesa asked at the same time that Emmet, peering around his brother’s shoulder, said, “Apricorns?”

Without acknowledging the latter question, Ingo passed the device back to its owner, “It’s not a [craft] I’m particularly well versed in, but we could likely do worse.”

—

Emmet passed one of the pokeballs from hand to hand, considering it. The quality was better than the one that carried Gliscor, likely marking that as an earlier foray into the craft, but still a far cry from the uniform construction of modern pokeballs. It was heavier, for one thing, likely due to the fact that it was partially made of stone and, while cool to the touch, did eventually warm at the points of contact with his palm. He could tell where a tool had dug too deep into the material, only to be caught and the flaw smoothed out, creating a small but noticeable groove along the capsule’s side.

They worked like modern pokeballs, at least– save for the features they were purposefully trying to circumnavigate– and something in him distantly wondered if they felt the same. Emmet pointedly ignored the rogue thought and set the practice ball down. He cast an eye over the dark semicircles that had been carved from the black apricorns, but didn’t dare touch them. As much as he understood having backup materials, it seemed a bit excessive; Ingo clearly understood the process behind the craft, so why all the fuss? Did he not trust the quality of modern apricorns? Was there a difference in the density or the technique involved in carving them? It was an interesting process– and, while not a hobby Emmet particularly wanted to pursue, shone a unique light on the manufacture of the modern day product.

[…]

“If you want it, this is for you,” He said, and placed the capsule securely in Emmet’s palm.

Emmet almost turned it over, conditioned to assume the white half of a pokeball was the bottom, but the distribution of weight suggested that wasn’t the case. These handmade pokeballs put the stone at the top, and, thinking back on it, it was plainly obvious which material was which: black apricorn, white tumblestone. He was holding it right side up already.

He liked it, he decided after the surprise wore off. He liked it a lot– a unique design, a combination no one else could lay claim to.

Excepting, of course…

“Did you make one for yourself?”

“That’s yours.” Ingo said easily, [idk action tag?] “I made it for you, so it’s your call whether you want to match or not. I can put another one together, or use one of the pokeballs I already made.”

What kind of statement was that? Of course Emmet wanted to match. It would throw everything off to put the monochrome pokeball next to the red and tan.

[he says as much for now, but before the day is out, decides on something else.]

That explained the four extra tops and bottoms; Ingo had been giving himself room to learn from the last, and, ultimately able to pick from the best of the lot.

Emmet paused and turned back around, picking the black and white capsule up. As he’d done with the prototype, he [turned it over in his hands], considering it. Still nothing like a regulation pokeball, but orders better than the one he remembered inspecting– no odd grooves or spots where the apricorn hadn’t sanded down properly. It was lighter, too; more of the material had been carved away to make for a sleeker product.

He hadn’t noticed at first– hadn’t appreciated it at first– but a lot of work had gone into making it the best it could be. Emmet set it down again, further back than before so no curious limbs could snag it and knock it off, and crept into the living room.

His twin was on the far end of the couch– Excadrill draped over his lap and soaking up every bit of absent-minded attention she could get– skimming an outdated report on Galarian battle facilities. Newer [editions] were stacked on the arm next to him, suggesting he was trying to make up for lost time. Emmet rounded behind him and leaned against the backrest, wordlessly announcing his presence.

“Show me how to make a pokeball.” He said without preamble.

“You would hate it.” Ingo said just as immediately, failing to look away from his reading material.

“Doesn’t matter.” / “You spent a great deal of time and effort crafting something you knew I would like. I can at least attempt to do the same.”

Finally, his twin looked up, meeting his eyes, “It’s a nice sentiment, but I didn’t make it expecting anything from you. There are enough pieces for four perfectly good pokeballs, and I’m happy to use one of those– really, it would be a waste not to put any of them to use.”

“It just feels unfair. Imbalanced. I don’t like it.”

Ingo considered him for a moment and then, with a rueful pat, uprooted Excadrill to the next cushion over. He pivoted to sit on his knees, an elbow braced against the backrest so they could look each other head-on, “Think of it this way, then: I happened to have a skill that could be immediately put to use. I didn’t have to spend any time learning how to conduct it, only to acquire the materials and shape them– and I was happy to do so. That’s what I want that pokeball to embody. If you have to be tied to something, it should represent that truth: that it was made because I love you.”

Emmet shot him a look and made to interrupt– because if that was meant to dissuade him, it was an incredibly counterintuitive argument– but Ingo pointedly charged full steam ahead.

“And I understand that you want to show the same, but please trust me, you would not enjoy learning this craft. Carving an apricorn would wreak sensory havoc, and I don’t want that for you; knowing that you’d put yourself in an uncomfortable position to make this hypothetical pokeball would really, truly bother me.”

There was a long silence as Emmet considered that, and, eventually, said, “At least guide me through carving a tumblestone. We can compromise and use one of your apricorn halves.”