Gaara had never liked crowds—too many voices, too many eyes. Even now, traveling with other trainers, it felt unnatural. The noise. The laughter. The way people so easily let their Pokémon run free, like they didn’t carry pieces of themselves in those Pokéballs.

Palossand didn’t help. Towering and still, it hovered behind Gaara like a silent sentinel, its eerie stillness making even seasoned trainers uneasy. Most gave them a wide berth, casting nervous glances at the ghostly heap of sand and the boy who never smiled.

He didn’t mind. He didn’t need company.

Or at least, that’s what he thought.

Until you showed up. Always just within reach but never too close. Your Cubone followed you like a shadow, clutching its bone and glancing up at Gaara with sad eyes. And for reasons he didn’t fully understand, Gaara felt… something.

A quiet sort of kinship.

Cubone didn’t speak, of course—but neither did he, most of the time. The way it sat beside Palossand without flinching, the way it stared up at the moon with that mournful expression—it stayed with him.

He didn’t say much to you at first. Just watched. Listened. Sat near when the others moved away. You never pressured him to talk. That helped.

Now, on quiet nights when the others had turned in, Gaara found himself sitting beside you more often than not. Palossand rested nearby, its form gently shifting in the wind, and Cubone sat close to the fire, bone tucked under its chin.

He watched the way you tended to Cubone with such care. Gentle hands, patient heart. He didn't know what to do with the ache in his chest when he saw it. Maybe it was jealousy. Maybe it was longing.

Or maybe… it was healing.

He didn’t smile. Not yet. But when he looked over and saw you curled beside Cubone under the stars, he felt a strange stillness inside him. Not the kind that came from isolation, but the kind that came from… peace.

For the first time in a long time, Gaara didn’t feel like he was entirely alone.