Title: Imperfect
Author: Shadow/Phantomness
Pairing: Championshipping (Lance x Ash/Red)
Fandom: Pokémon
Theme: #33, Cross-Dressing
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Pokemon belongs to Nintendo and Shogakukan Comics. This non-profit, non-copyright infringing fanfiction belongs to me under international copyright laws and taking it is plagiarism. Thank you. *Phantomness bows*

Notes: <> for telepathy, ** for thoughts, italics if a pokemon talks

Warnings: Cross-dressing, AU, Het, mixed gender pronouns, and others

Sometimes, Red thinks, it’s easier to be a girl. He doesn’t have to be strong, and he doesn’t have to pretend to be interested in things like sports, because he really, really doesn’t like them! But if he’s a girl, he can eat parfaits daintily and read as much as he wants to, and no one will complain.

So he gets away with it, because he’s young enough, and not muscular like his older brother Brock, and he likes wearing pretty skirts that swirl around his hips, and he can giggle and hug cute pokémon like Pikachu and Charmander, and no one will complain that he’s not evolving them.

So he doesn’t become a trainer – at least not a serious one, anyway, and since his parents are dead, who will know when he runs away from home, only one more child to take care of?

And he and Charmander and Pikachu journey, and add more cute pokémon to their team – like Skitty and Luvdisc, and start taking on the Pokemon Contests.

Sometimes, Lance thinks, it’s easier to be a boy. She’s not delicate and she’s not giggly and she’s just not the type of girl who sits and acts like a Lass. She’d rather be a Cool trainer, but her parents insist that she be a lady.

She’d rather have her brain removed and replaced with marshmallow fluff than to suffer such a fate.

So she binds herself tight with a corset of iron, and wears a catsuit of sleek black silk and white boots, and the red jacket and cape hide any remaining hint of curves and if anyone comes too close, she has holsters of poisoned needles on her arms.

She doesn’t want a weak little Meowth, so she lets it go, and heads to the Safari Zone in search of real pokémon.

She finds Dratini, which is cute, but more importantly will evolve into Dragonair. She catches two of them, much to the Warden’s shock, and sets out to train.

Red wins the Lilycove Pokémon Contests, Cute and Cool, and sets off to work on the other ranks.

Lance wins all eight badges of Houen, and sets off for Sootopolis to challenge the Elite Four.

When Red first meets Lance, he is in the Lilycove museum, admiring the picture of Skitty that the artist has put up. It’s really pretty, and Skitty looks so happy! But he looks at the boy that walks in, and his breath catches.

He’s… pretty, and Red has a sudden urge to dress him up and show him off in pokémon contests.

When Lance first meets Red, she sees a little girl in a cute schoolgirl uniform, and she shakes her head. But then, someone cute like that might be fun to travel with, and it would help her disguise, right?

Besides, people will underestimate her power, and she loves it when that happens.

When Red and Lance first talk, Red asks if Lance wants to travel with him. Lance agrees easily enough, and they leave Lilycove together.

It’s quite fun, and they never bathe together. Red’s too scared of Lance finding out his secret, and she doesn’t want him to know hers.

Neither of them comments on it though, not until they’re in Victory Road and there isn’t any standing water around.

Lance sighs, and says it’s a good thing they’re both girls, as she starts taking off her clothing. Red just gapes at her, and then in a small voice, he admits that he’s not a girl.

Lance shrugs – she’s not about to condemn him for his lifestyle choices since he’s doing the same thing he is.

Anyways, the awkward moment passes, and then Red looks shy, before he leans up and kisses her.

That surprises her, but the kiss isn’t bad in and of itself, and she does have feelings for her- no, him.

Red is pleasantly surprised to find out Lance is a girl, because he’s been wondering how straight he is for a while now.

Months later, when they’re much older, they get married, though the bride and the groom aren’t what either one expects. But it’s still perfectly legal, and there’s no law that says they can’t wear what they want.

And they live happily ever after.

End Fic

Completed 8/23/06

Saa… so Red is a boy dressed as a girl… and Lance is a girl dressed as a boy…. Look, it’s happy fluff!
Lance: ^^
Red: ^^V But why am I the girl?
Phantomness: *Coughs* we can discuss that some other time

Red: Besides, I got forced to be the girl in other fics!