A/N: Wallace is non-binary in this and they/them pronouns are used for Wallace throughout the fic. If you're down with that please continue into Originshipping hell.

The Ace Trainer

"Sweet Arceus, is that Steven Stone?"

"She's right! It's him!"

High-pitched noises of excitement could be heard from the group of teenagers.

"Who's with him?"

"Jeez, don't you know who Wallace is? Do you even contests, Ami?"

"Of course she doesn't pay attention to anyone other than Lissi."

"I forgot Lissi is her 'waifu', but how can you say that without knowing her uncle?"

One of the girls walked straight into one of the people they'd been following.

Wallace surveyed them briefly. "Ladies, I am glad that both Steven and Lisia have fans, but it is rather distracting to have you following us like this."

There was an outburst of apologies as the girls began to shuffle away, but not before looking up at Steven in amazement, feeling blessed to have seen him up close.

"Is it always like this in Rustboro?" Wallace asked.

"You get used to it, sign a few autographs, pose for a selfie. It's become part of my life now."

Steven had seemed unfazed by his fans, trying to carry on the conversation, but this whole city was too loud for Wallace. They were no stranger to fame, but at the end of the day it was always the return to quiet Sootopolis they looked forward to.

Dinner was as fancy as ever. Devon had found the need for an on-site restaurant to cater to clients, some of whom were too rich for their own good, and so Steven could invite whoever he wished at no cost.

"So, what news do you have?" Steven asked over the starter of king prawns.

"There isn't much," Wallace said, but Steven could hear the hint of more.

"Do tell."

"Okay, so…you know how I've established myself in the contest world and, well, I know you could tell something wasn't quite right last time we met... I felt like I'd hit a wall. As if I'd done as much as I could in the way of contests."

Steven nodded. "I suppose there's little more you can achieve unless you create more contests."

"Yes! That – exactly that." Wallace laughed to himself. "Perhaps I should have mentioned it last time if it was that easy to figure out. I spent a while working that one out, so, drumroll please." They tapped the table lightly. "I present to you my latest idea – the Wallace Cup!"

Steven clapped quietly. "Sounds fabulous. What does it entail?"

Wallace opened their mouth and then pulled a face. "I didn't get that far. Maybe I'll come back with the details next month."

"I'll be waiting. Maybe I'll even enter."

"As if I'd allow such casual contest entrants into my Cup."

Steven pouted. "Champion privileges?"

"I'll think about it. How is champion life?"

"I have no idea why I agreed to do it. I guess it was the easy option at the time, not wanting to go into Devon and all, but Wallace, I need to tell you about the rock business!"

"I noticed you took my advice."

Steven smiled. "Wallace, I just… I don't even know how to thank you. Literally if there is anything you want that money can buy I will get it for you. Seriously. No one wanted to buy my rocks until your ingenious plan I call 'rock modelling.'"

Wallace nodded slowly. "What a great name."

Their sarcasm didn't throw Steven off. "Once I was the one selling rocks we sold so many more. Everyone wanted a rock that the champion liked."

"Mmm, it has nothing to do with your open shirt, lying on a bed of silk looking oh so lovely."

"The guy directing the ads said we'd be following the style of all the successful jewellery, watch and perfume brands." Steven paused while the main was set in front of them. "Do you really think that's why, Wallace? I mean, are people buying my rocks for reasons other than liking rocks?"

Wallace smiled at their sweet friend. "Who knows? Maybe you should survey your buyers some time."

Steven shrugged. "I don't really mind why they buy them because it means I have more reasons to spend time in caves looking for them. I found some nice lapis lazuli the other day…"

OooO

Steven sat in Wallace's living room, fiddling with his rings as he waited for the opportune moment to approach Wallace with his problem.

"So, how are you?" Steven asked.

"I'm good, thank you, but Steven, you don't have to beat around the bush with why you're here."

Steven smiled awkwardly. "I'm sorry, I have something I need to discuss and I didn't know who to talk to… I couldn't go to my father about the matter."

Wallace raised their eyebrows in intrigue. They were already surprised by Steven's in-person visit, but to find out he couldn't confide in his dad only deepened the mystery. "You know I'm always here for you."

Steven reached down and opened his briefcase from which he pulled several envelopes. "This is just a small selection. A choice few, if you will."

To start Wallace opened the pink envelope. As they scanned the contents their eyes widened. Without waiting they opened the next one, nodding slowly at the content.

Steven sat patiently, watching as Wallace's expression changed. When they had finished they pressed their hands together and brought them to their lips. Several deep breaths happened before Wallace found the words they wanted.

"What do you think of these letters?" they asked.

"At first I was flattered," Steven said, "but the first few I received were not as…explicit as the ones I have shown you. Now I find them entirely inappropriate and I want to put a stop to them."

"I understand. I, as a contest champion, have received letters of a similar nature, but I am now extremely grateful that my fans have more elegance in their writing. This is just… Well, this one here is basically a self-insert fanfiction. Do your fans feel no shame in sending these directly to you?"

Steven shrugged. "Clearly not. Do you think I could just tell them I'm not interested and then they'll leave me alone?"

It was difficult for Wallace not to burst out laughing. "Steven, my dear, you cannot stop them. Say what you wish, it will not stop them from believing what they want to believe. Actually, from what I've seen, if you were to say that they would assume that – wait, before I make assumptions – do you receive these letters from a particular type of person?"

"From what I've gathered they're mainly teenage girls who have an interest in me and not my rocks." Steven pouted.

"So, if you tell them you're not interested in them they may assume you're interested in men and, to be truthful, I think that would be worse."

"Oh, I've had a couple like that. It made a nice change to be honest."

Wallace shook their head. "Steven, no, that's too small minded. If your female fans cannot ship you with themselves then they will find suitable males to ship you with! Your closest friends will appear in your next letters doing Arceus-knows-what."

"Well, aren't I lucky I don't have too many close male friends. I personally thought Roxanne, fellow lover of rocks, would be the obvious ship. I don't think anyone from the Elite Four is a contender…"

"It doesn't matter to them, Steven, they will make it work."

Steven cocked his head. "Why, it almost sounds as if you're worried about something, Wallace."

"I would do many things to stay out of your fans' letters."

"What if I told you I had another letter to show you?" Steven asked, sliding a finger across the briefcase.

"Please, tell me you're joking."

"I am. But why so worried? It would be like a compliment, right?"

Wallace shook their head. "No, it would be weird. Honestly, I don't want you to read letters like that because it would be uncomfortable for you, and I don't want them to be written by people who may not have done their research on me."

"Well then I would hope that I received one that had glaring errors about you so I could focus on that rather than it being 'weird.' However, you have convinced me that I need to end this sooner rather than later. What is the appropriate course of action?"

Wallace furrowed their brow. "One option would be to stop accepting fan mail, but that's not advisable. Ah, of course… So currently you read the mail yourself, right?"

"Naturally."

"Well then all you need to do is employ someone to screen your mail. They read it first and then only pass the good stuff onto you."

Steven clapped. "I knew you would find the answer. Who should I get to do this? Knowing that I'm about to dump a load of porn on their desk?"

"Someone you can trust to just go through it and not bat an eyelid preferably."

"Wallace."

"Yes?"

Steven shook his head. "I meant you! You can do this job. I'll pay you. And it's not like I get excessive amounts – if it becomes too big a burden I'll find someone with more time."

"I…I suppose I can do it for the time being until we find a better solution." They weren't exactly thrilled by the idea, but they were willing to do a great many things to help their friend.

OooO

Throughout the following week Steven watched as his pile of fan mail grew. He was getting excited like a child at Christmas, being able to look at presents but not open them. When the weekend finally rolled around he made sure he turned up promptly to Wallace's Sootopolis home, eagerly awaiting the news of what his letters held.

"Hi, Steven!" A big grin was plastered on the face of the speaker.

"Oh, Lisia, it's nice to see you."

"Yes, you and Lisia are going to be working away at the same time as me," Wallace announced.

"Oh?" Steven was surprised at this turn of events.

"What were you planning on doing all day while I was reading away? I mean, I was assuming that you were going to stick around?"

"Yeah…I… Okay, I'll admit I was so excited to find out what was in the letters I hadn't really thought about it. I guess I'd imagined they were all going to be good letters so I would be reading and replying straight away."

Wallace made a face. "Yeah, that's not going to happen and you know it. So, that's why I have Lisia on hand to keep you busy. I would help you with your task were I not otherwise engaged."

Lisia took Steven's arm and led him to the table where a laptop sat. "Today we're going to learn about the internet."

"I already know about the internet," Steven said.

Lisia made a face very similar to the one Wallace had just given him; it must run in the family. "Sure you do, but you're not using it like you should."

Wallace planted themself on the sofa and pulled a few letters out of the bag. "Steven, it occurred to me that you come across as a very mysterious man. I was talking to Lissi about you, actually, because she's the right age and has friends who fit the kind who'd write to you. And through our conversation I learned that most of your fanbase know nothing about you."

Lisia nodded. "Steven Stone, 24 years old, birthday unknown. Heir of Devon, current Hoenn champion, has a house in Mossdeep. Likes rocks. Likes all of the rocks. Rocks! Oh, and trains steel Pokémon despite the fact he likes rocks."

"Hey, I –"

"Shh," Lisia continued. "So they're like some facts we know about you. Then there's the opinions that are commonly 'Steven is hot,' 'Steven has a nice butt,' 'I want Steven's babies.'"

"That's gross."

Wallace cleared their throat. "Anyway, the point is the public don't know anything about you really. And that makes you seem way cooler than you are because at least Lisia and I know you're just a massive rock nerd. So to make you seem more normal, and to sate your fans, we're going to get you onto social media."

"I have a Pokébook account…" Steven's defence was poor.

"You're not even my friend on there," Lisia said. "So if I, your best friend's niece, can't even see what you post, then how is some random fan in Fortree? We need to get you a public page where you can interact with them. And a Pika account."

Steven groaned. "But Pika's so ridiculous. Why limit yourself to 140 characters? Can I not have one of those? Maybe a…Tackler?"

"No, you're having all of the social media and Pika is one of the most important, so get used to it."

Lisia was a tough cookie and his new social media mentor for the next couple of weeks.

During the hours it took to make all of his new accounts, Wallace occasionally interjected with a choice quote from the letter they were reading. Steven was surprised that Wallace just casually quoted some of the material in front of Lisia, but then realised they must be 'the cool uncle.' It didn't seem to faze her and on one occasion she groaned at how badly written it was.

"Oh, oh I've been mentioned!" Wallace waved the paper like a golden ticket. "Let's see, 'I've seen you hanging around with Wallace in Rustboro a few times,' wow, that's kind of stalker-ish, 'maybe you haven't replied to my previous letters because he's the one for you?'" Wallace huffed. "At least it's not a whole story of incorrect pronouns."

"Maybe you should get all these social media things so you can tell everyone to use the right pronouns."

Wallace placed a hand on their chest and Steven knew he was about to be told. "Steven, my dear friend, if you had 'all these social media things' you would know that in every bio I put my pronouns so that even people passing by my profile will know."

"So should I just put my sexuality in all of my bios so people will leave me alone?"

"You wish to destroy the mystery just like that?" Wallace mock-gasped. "Seriously though, I don't know what advice to give there. You might end up trading these explicit letters for prying and inappropriate questions."

"You make it sound like whatever I tell my fans I won't be able to win."

Lisia spoke up, "you can't win. They will write and ask whatever they want. You can only minimise how much crap you get. My fan community were a bit like yours at the start. Myself and others were constantly reminding people that I am actually underage and shouldn't be receiving some of the things I am sent. Now the community are always reminding people on their own and so a lot more think before they act. We just have to do the same for you. Although admittedly it was easy for me because it was a legal issue."

"It's entirely up to you what you want to tell the fans and how you want to do it," Wallace said. "Mull it over while we eat."

"Oh, are you done?" Steven asked as Wallace made their way to the kitchen.

"Almost."

Steven looked at the letters piled neatly on the floor, one substantially bigger than the other. "So, which one is the good pile?" he asked hopefully.

"Take a guess."

Eager to take a break from staring at the laptop screen, Steven got up and picked the top letter off the tall pile. "Wallace, I am crying. Why do I get so much junk mail?" He bent down and picked up the small pile, counting a total of 7 letters.

"You'll like at least one of them," Wallace said from the doorway. "They went on about rocks for so long that I didn't finish reading it."

Steven beamed and began to dig through to find the one Wallace spoke of.

By the time dinner was served there was a very happy Steven. It was definitely much nicer to read just the quality stuff.

"Wallace, you are too kind. Reading all of my junk and making me dinner? I'm blessed to have you as a friend."

Wallace brushed it off. "It's no big deal. It was nice to have you over, and Lisia too." She grinned. "She definitely deserves just as much thanks for putting up with your whining all afternoon."

"Certainly. Thank you, Lisia, I will try my hardest to use all these accounts like you've told me."

"If you don't you'll get an earful next week," she said.

"So, what do you want to do with the rest of your mail?" Wallace asked.

Steven shrugged. "I'll probably just throw it away."

"Leave it with me and I'll recycle it." Not just nice to their friends, also nice to the planet.

OooO

"Steven!"

Steven was surprised to find Lisia standing in his office.

"I wasn't expecting to see you today." He quickly glanced down at his diary. "What brings you here?"

She smiled. "I was in the area and thought I'd check up on you. Noticed you've been posting some stuff."

"I thought I'd start by showing everyone the rocks around my office."

"Yeah, that's great, but maybe you could make the posts…um, maybe you could take selfies with the rocks. I'm sure your fans are eager to see you."

Steven nodded. "Pick one for today for me."

She looked around, spoilt for choice. "Oh, actually, I have a stone." She reached up and plucked the mega stone from her hair clip. "Not something you'll be able to photograph every day. Take a selfie with me and the stone and you can tag me. Maybe some of my followers will follow you too."

They posed and Steven took the photo. "I have over 100 followers now."

"It's a start. I reckon we can get you several thousand with more content and exposure. Anyway, I must be off. Seeya!"

He barely got the chance to wave before she was out the door. He whipped up a few words to accompany the photo and posted it. Within seconds the notifications started to trickle in and the option to disable them was suddenly very relevant.

By the time the weekend rolled around Steven had amassed more followers than he could handle and was begging Lisia to help him.

"I can't possibly reply to all of them! Why did you make me get so many accounts?"

She sighed. "You won't reply to all of them, it's impossible."

"B-but I don't want to disappoint them."

"In retrospect we probably should have started you on one thing so we could ease you in, but it was just easier for me to do it all in one day. Oh well, at least it gets this part over quickly rather than you slowly building up fans and cracking under the pressure of trying to respond to them all."

"How do you do it?" he asked.

"I have learned that you can't please them all. I log into things when I have time and reply to a few. Honestly, Steven, you need to let it go. Some people will never have their message read, but you are only human."

He frowned at her. "Waaallace, tell me how you do it."

Wallace looked up from the letter they were reading. "Lissi is right. Although maybe you can search your messages for the word 'rock' if that'll satisfy you. Welcome to 'famous' life."

Steven groaned. "I preferred it when I wasn't well known."

"It was inevitable," Wallace said. "All champions end up being famous within their region. It was only a matter of time before more people took notice of you."

"Yeah, they're coming to interview me now I've held the position for a few months which is only going to make this worse."

"You say it like it's a bad thing. I haven't seen a single hateful letter yet - well, I mean apart from this one guy who wrote in saying you have to stop being so pretty because his girlfriend only talks about you – but that's not exactly a bad letter."

"I didn't ask to look this good. I don't even know what they see in me." Steven laid his head on the table, defeated. "Maybe I'll just shave my head and wear clothes picked out by a 5 year old."

Wallace laughed. "Aw, letting your fans get the better of you?"

"I just want to go digging in caves without the pressure of having to reply to everyone when I get home."

"Then just stop replying."

"No, Wallace, I can't just stop and be mean."

"Steven Stone, too kind for this world to the point where he's mean to himself. It wouldn't be so funny if it weren't for the fact you're getting less than half of what Lissi gets."

"Maybe I'll hire someone else to reply to my messages. Anyway, what kind of mail did I get this week?"

Wallace picked up the good pile and placed it in front of Steven. "You've had a request from someone who wants to dig with you, someone who wants a job, and a marriage proposal."

Lisia patted the poor man on the back. "Congrats on your first proposal."