![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
javert posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
teamflareTitle: Fight It Out to Wow the Crowd
Fandom: Pokémon X&Y
Pairing: Diantha/Professor Augustine Sycamore/Lysandre
Rating: G
Summary: "What's wrong with unovan music?"
Notes: Written for Writer's Month, for the prompt: melody. Title from Stadium Love by Metric.
AO3 Link: Here.
The booth was a lot smaller than Diantha had expected when she'd made the reservation, which wouldn't have been a problem were one of them not one of the largest, tallest men who lived in Kalos and wasn't a legendary figure cursed with immortality. As it stood, she was now squeezed between Lysandre and Augustine on the couch, holding on to her overpriced cocktail for dear life while Lysandre frowned down at the list of available tracks.
"I don't know any of these," he mumbled. He looked so crestfallen that it was almost comical. "So few of them are kalosian songs with kalosian lyrics, too. Has unovan music really taken over?"
"Arceus, Lysandre, you sound like you're seventy and complaining about teenagers trespassing in your yard," Augustine groaned. "What's wrong with unovan music?"
Lysandre pursed his lips. "When you suggested we go and visit the newly opened karaoke bar in Lumiose, I simply thought it would involve a selection of kalosian songs to choose from. You know, considering we're in Lumiose–"
"Give me the mic," Diantha cut him off. "I'll sing first."
He was holding it up for her to take when Augustine grabbed his wrist.
"No, trust me," he said with a smile that did not bode well. "He should sing first. Isn't that right, Lysandre?" He didn't wait for a reply to go on, "Let me look through the list, I'll pick something for you."
Lysandre's frown deepened, but then he shrugged, accepting defeat. This, of all things, was what caused alarm bells to ring in Diantha's mind.
She'd been the one to suggest they go and visit the new karaoke bar, because it was close to the lab and it offered the option to book private booths. Augustine had made a face, something between a grimace and a smile, that she hadn't been able to decipher, and Lysandre had agreed on the spot, always eager to please her now that she was beginning to warm up to him again.
It had been a long and painful process – mostly for him. She tried not to let her thoughts wander in that direction too much, if only because this wasn't the right setting for it.
"There, you like that one," Augustine said, bringing her back to the moment. She took a sip of her cocktail. Too sweet.
Lysandre hummed. His hand was absurdly large even around the bulky karaoke microphone. He brought it up to his mouth and looked up at the screen.
The song Augustine had picked sounded a lot more electronic than Diantha would have thought Lysandre liked. The music reverberated through the booth, making the glasses on the low table vibrate.
She was in the process of taking another sip when Lysandre began to sing. She swallowed too quickly, the liquid in her glass going the wrong way down, and she coughed so hard that Augustine promptly began to give her quick, short taps on the back.
Calling Lysandre's singing awful was an insult to all singing everywhere all the time. His voice kept cracking – even though Augustine had picked something that more or less fitted his range, he had clearly no idea how to follow the tempo, he frequently dragged the wrong word out – even though Augustine had picked a song he already knew, and on the rare occasions when he, miraculously, managed to hit the right note at the right time, it threw him off so much that he barely managed to enunciate the next verse.
It was so bad that, once she'd gotten her coughing fit under control, Diantha didn't even think to try and shield her sensitive ears from the cacophony. She simply stared, slack-jawed, while Augustine very clearly attempted to keep himself from bursting into laughter.
When he finally lowered the mic, Lysandre was drenched in sweat, breathing hard through his mouth. He looked about as well-put-together as he did once they were done having their way with him, which was not very. He ran his free hand up his face and sighed like he'd just gone through an especially exhausting trial.
"That was great!" Augustine exclaimed. Diantha stared at him like he was spouting absolute nonsense. "Isn't that right?"
Lysandre glanced down at her, his cheeks flushed bright red from his intense demonstration. He blinked, uncharacteristically sheepish, his eyes oddly soft.
"Oh, yes," Diantha said with her gentlest smile. "It was very good. I'd never heard that one before."
If he could tell she was lying, Lysandre didn't appear to mind. He smiled back, happy and relaxed, and it hit her like a blow to the heart.
Augustine shifted to lean close to her ear. "I told you he would surprise you," he murmured.
He had – though it had done nothing to prepare her for the actual surprise. There were always new wonders in the world to discover, she supposed.
Fandom: Pokémon X&Y
Pairing: Diantha/Professor Augustine Sycamore/Lysandre
Rating: G
Summary: "What's wrong with unovan music?"
Notes: Written for Writer's Month, for the prompt: melody. Title from Stadium Love by Metric.
AO3 Link: Here.
The booth was a lot smaller than Diantha had expected when she'd made the reservation, which wouldn't have been a problem were one of them not one of the largest, tallest men who lived in Kalos and wasn't a legendary figure cursed with immortality. As it stood, she was now squeezed between Lysandre and Augustine on the couch, holding on to her overpriced cocktail for dear life while Lysandre frowned down at the list of available tracks.
"I don't know any of these," he mumbled. He looked so crestfallen that it was almost comical. "So few of them are kalosian songs with kalosian lyrics, too. Has unovan music really taken over?"
"Arceus, Lysandre, you sound like you're seventy and complaining about teenagers trespassing in your yard," Augustine groaned. "What's wrong with unovan music?"
Lysandre pursed his lips. "When you suggested we go and visit the newly opened karaoke bar in Lumiose, I simply thought it would involve a selection of kalosian songs to choose from. You know, considering we're in Lumiose–"
"Give me the mic," Diantha cut him off. "I'll sing first."
He was holding it up for her to take when Augustine grabbed his wrist.
"No, trust me," he said with a smile that did not bode well. "He should sing first. Isn't that right, Lysandre?" He didn't wait for a reply to go on, "Let me look through the list, I'll pick something for you."
Lysandre's frown deepened, but then he shrugged, accepting defeat. This, of all things, was what caused alarm bells to ring in Diantha's mind.
She'd been the one to suggest they go and visit the new karaoke bar, because it was close to the lab and it offered the option to book private booths. Augustine had made a face, something between a grimace and a smile, that she hadn't been able to decipher, and Lysandre had agreed on the spot, always eager to please her now that she was beginning to warm up to him again.
It had been a long and painful process – mostly for him. She tried not to let her thoughts wander in that direction too much, if only because this wasn't the right setting for it.
"There, you like that one," Augustine said, bringing her back to the moment. She took a sip of her cocktail. Too sweet.
Lysandre hummed. His hand was absurdly large even around the bulky karaoke microphone. He brought it up to his mouth and looked up at the screen.
The song Augustine had picked sounded a lot more electronic than Diantha would have thought Lysandre liked. The music reverberated through the booth, making the glasses on the low table vibrate.
She was in the process of taking another sip when Lysandre began to sing. She swallowed too quickly, the liquid in her glass going the wrong way down, and she coughed so hard that Augustine promptly began to give her quick, short taps on the back.
Calling Lysandre's singing awful was an insult to all singing everywhere all the time. His voice kept cracking – even though Augustine had picked something that more or less fitted his range, he had clearly no idea how to follow the tempo, he frequently dragged the wrong word out – even though Augustine had picked a song he already knew, and on the rare occasions when he, miraculously, managed to hit the right note at the right time, it threw him off so much that he barely managed to enunciate the next verse.
It was so bad that, once she'd gotten her coughing fit under control, Diantha didn't even think to try and shield her sensitive ears from the cacophony. She simply stared, slack-jawed, while Augustine very clearly attempted to keep himself from bursting into laughter.
When he finally lowered the mic, Lysandre was drenched in sweat, breathing hard through his mouth. He looked about as well-put-together as he did once they were done having their way with him, which was not very. He ran his free hand up his face and sighed like he'd just gone through an especially exhausting trial.
"That was great!" Augustine exclaimed. Diantha stared at him like he was spouting absolute nonsense. "Isn't that right?"
Lysandre glanced down at her, his cheeks flushed bright red from his intense demonstration. He blinked, uncharacteristically sheepish, his eyes oddly soft.
"Oh, yes," Diantha said with her gentlest smile. "It was very good. I'd never heard that one before."
If he could tell she was lying, Lysandre didn't appear to mind. He smiled back, happy and relaxed, and it hit her like a blow to the heart.
Augustine shifted to lean close to her ear. "I told you he would surprise you," he murmured.
He had – though it had done nothing to prepare her for the actual surprise. There were always new wonders in the world to discover, she supposed.