Twin Switch

(In which Emmet's plan burns up and Ingo is left to smother the flames.)

1/1

The car shook and swayed as the subway changed tracks and turned in time to make room for another line heading towards Gear Station. Ingo looked out the window and watched the rather bland scenery go by; stone and concrete blurring into swatches of gray, gray, and even more gray.

Sighing, the Subway Boss looked away from the window and down towards his book, absently noticing how the white pants and coat looked against the blue seats. It looked...odd. He was used to seeing a darker blue on the seats. Maybe it looked different when it was besides the black of his own Subway Boss coat. It was just odd.

Everything was odd. His white gloves seemed dull and a bit dirty compared to his brother's coat. White drowned the edges of his vision; the collar of the coat was a little higher up and a little longer than his own. While Ingo was sure he fit Emmet's clothing just fine, he couldn't help but feel as if he were out of place and out of his own skin. Ingo wondered if his brother was feeling the same way on the Single Line. It wasn't enough that they had switched clothes; they had also switched subways.

The Double Line was quiet, something Ingo relished in as he read. The Single Line was never this quiet, nor this peaceful; there were trainers coming all the time, with most of them already used to battling one-on-one. He was glad that he had decided to follow his brother's rather crazy idea this time—it meant he had more time to himself.

It also meant he had more time away from a certain trainer from Nuvema town. Hilda always battled on the Single Line, as she preferred to stick to something until she finished it (Which had yet to happen, of course). She was extremely stubborn, but that was one of the good things about her, Ingo supposed. She often had a look of concentration on her face when she fought him; it made her look childish and surprisingly...

"Ah, hello?"

The door to the 21st car slid open, and Ingo looked up from the Pokecare book (one of Emmet's he found lying around and decided to bring on a whim) to spot familiar black boots speckled with dry dirt. He followed the boots up to familiar legs, jean shorts, shirt, and face.

"Mr. Ingo?" Hilda called out, closing the door behind her. Ingo waited until she had turned back around to place the book down and stand up, holding onto one of the rings for stability like he'd noticed Emmet do before. A part of him wondered how she knew it was him without him doing anything. Had he been frowning? No, he could feel that it was a rather big smile (for him, at least) on his face. Was it maybe his eyes?

"I am not Ingo; I am Emmet. I am a Subway Boss-"

"Mr. Ingo," Hilda interrupted, "That's really creepy when you say it."

Ingo sighed and let the smile fall from his face. "Then I suppose you would not like to hear it?"

"Um, yeah."

"Good. I was getting quite tired of saying it myself." Ingo paused, taking in the sight of the one trainer he hadn't really wanted to see (and yet waited for every day the Single Line was running), and asked the question that had been gnawing at him. "Miss Hilda, how did you know I was not Emmet?"

Hilda let out an un-ladylike scoff, waving a hand nonchalantly. "Oh, I already visited the Single Line and noticed something odd. Did you know your brother almost lost by default?"

Ingo raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Yeah. He almost took out two Pokemon during a one-on-one battle."

"Aah." Somehow, he was not surprised. It was quite hard to adapt ones battling style after getting used to it for so long. Plus, they had only switched a couple of hours ago.

"Yeah. So I asked Mr. Emmet where you were, after beating his face into the floor, and he told me to take the Double Line and find out." Hilda finished off her explanation, her face brightening up a little when mentioning her win against Emmet. "So, would you like to explain why you two have done a twin switch?"

" 'Twin switch'?" Ingo parroted. He had his own look of confusion on his face, mimicking Hilda's earlier expression. "I am unfamiliar with the term."

"It's just something Hilbert and I made up when we were young." Hearing Hilbert's name made Ingo's heart pause for a second; none had given as much of a glorious battle as Hilda's twin had, and even remembering the battle left him breathless. None had defeated Ingo as easily, either. Hilda continued on, unaware of Ingo's thoughts. "But anyways, a twin switch is when twins, or identical looking siblings, switch places for a day or so. Hilbert and I used to do it before I started growing my hair."

"I was under the impression that you did not like being compared to your brother." Ingo had learned that fact rather quickly, when he had asked Hilda how her abilities as a trainer were liked compared to Hilbert's. Automatically, the young girl had formed tears in her eyes and was close to blowing at Ingo. She probably would have yelled at him or had a small tantrum, had it not been for the fact that he had not known just how much she didn't like being compared to Hilbert.

He supposed she had a right to be defensive, since her brother was the League Champion of Unova, not to mention the sole Hero that had destroyed and disbanded Team Plasma and their leaders (One of the Seven Sages, however, was still at large, and their 'King' had disappeared on the day he was defeated).

"I don't," Hilda answered, "But we did our last twin switch a long time ago. Think it was a year before we started our journey. You haven't answered my question, though, so don't think you're getting away with that."

Ingo sighed, bringing the brim of the white cap (it was so white it blinded him) down to cover his eyes. "Defeat me in a Pokemon battle, and you shall receive your answer."

"Doing this the hard way, huh?" Hilda smirked, pulling out a Pokeball. "That's okay, I'd like to beat you for once."

She had lost.

It was rather shocking, however. The two had competed in a Double Battle, with Hilda using her usual team and Ingo using his brother's own Pokemon ("Wow, you guys even switched all your Pokemon! I thought Mr. Emmet just had the same Pokemon as you all along!") in a battle of sparks, flames, and the occasional bodily contact between their two Pokemon.

Hilda smiled, leaning down to rub the head of her exhausted but content Audino. The Audino chirped happily before disappearing into the red and white Pokeball as Hilda recalled it into its capsule. "Well, looks like I lost. Yeesh, I never get to beat you, even when you're not using your own Pokemon."

Ingo's face was that of content, a smile on his lips as he petted the Galvunta he had grown accustomed to seeing at his brother's side. "Emmet and I often like to battle each other in our spare time and compare strategies. You never know when there would be a time where one of us would have to cover for the other." With that, he recalled Emmet's Galvunta and clipped the Pokeball onto his belt.

Somehow, Hilda wasn't surprised at the twins' ability to think ahead. "Is this was today is? A practice run?"

Head shaking, Ingo brought a gloved hand up to keep his hat from falling off. "No, this was just one of Emmet's ideas. It held some merit to it, so I agreed to the 'twin switch', as you call it. It is a good way to see if any of our employees can tell us apart. " It was the truth—the idea had been a bit appealing. Despite how uptight he usually appeared to the trainers and conductors, Ingo had as much of a mischief streak as Emmet did.

He just knew how to hide his tracks, is all.

Hilda blinked, then blinked again. "I thought you were only going to tell me if I beat you."

"I did say that, did I not? I suppose there is no harm in telling the reason, however." Oh great, now he was playing favourites. When had this started, he wondered. Was it visible to other people?

Hilda scrunched her eyebrows together. "You know, if I didn't know any better, I would say that you're playing favourites."

Damn.

"Then perhaps..." Ingo muttered as the train started to slow to a stop. He could see the lights of the familiar station out of the corner of his eyes. "Perhaps it is better than you do not know any better."

"Huh?" Hilda looked up with confusion in her eyes. "Mr. Ingo, did you say something?"

"No, it is nothing." He replied, reaching down to pick up the book he had left on the too-bright subway seat.

The two were silent as the the train slid to a bumpy stop. Doors were opening car by car, but the two remained standing where they were. "Miss Hilda?"

"Huh?"

Ingo tugged the brim down once more. "Did you...How difficult was it to tell that Emmet and I had switched places?"

There was a brief silence, and then a cheeky grin from Hilda. "Oh, are you looking for tips on how to do better next time?"

"No, I am just-"

"It wasn't that hard," Hilda brushed off whatever he was going to saw quickly. Ignoring his twitching eyebrow (one of the subtle signs that he was annoyed), she continued. "You and Emmet are so different that I wonder how people get you mixed up."

"Oh?" What an odd thing to hear. He and Emmet were identical twins; even their own mother had difficulty identifying them when they were younger.

"Yeah. Maybe it's because I grew up with a twin too, but I could spot the differences. For example," Hilda stepped forward and invaded Ingo's personal space, ignoring how the man stiffened. "You wear your gloves differently. Mr. Emmet likes to roll his gloves at the end, while you like to stretch them out and get them wrinkle-free. You can tell the difference when you bring your arm up like this." Hilda grabbed Ingo's arm and demonstrated the action, pointing at the gloves in question.

Ingo's faced slightly burned as she continued to list off differences between him and Emmet, not used to all of a female's attention being on him. That was better saved for Emmet, who charmed people with his bright personality and even brighter smile. Perhaps that was why he wore white, and why he was left with black.

Ingo supposed he was a little jealous—no, envious—of his brother.

"And finally," Hilda had almost finished her rant while he was musing on his twin. "Finally, your skin. Mr. Emmet's skin is more tanned; it works with the white coat. You just look really pale and sick right now."

"Is that so?" Ingo looked down at the open skin between his glove and his pulled-up sleeve. The difference between their skin tones had to be minimal at best. Just how was Hilda able to spot all these small details?

"Yup! You look better in colours you're used to. Don't try so hard to copy Emmet, either; he didn't put as much effort into it as you did. You tried to copy even his phrases; he just went with the ol' 'I am Ingo hear me roar' thing."

Somehow, Ingo knew those words weren't necessarily directed towards him. "Is that why you stopped impersonating your brother?" he asked, noting how she winced slightly.

Hilda stood silent, and slowly released Ingo's arm to let it fall back to his side. "I...guess. I know it doesn't really look like it now, but I looked pretty similar to Hilbert. I guess after being confused for him so many times with so little effort, I got sick of it. So I grew out my hair, cut my jeans, and the rest is history...I guess."

"I guess..." Ingo trailed off, remembering all the times his mother had mistaken him for Emmet whenever Emmet had misbehaved, or when Emmet had run off and shirked from his responsibilities.

The two stood for a while, lost in their own worlds, when a sudden rap on the subway car's wall caught their attention. One of the Depot Agents was at the open doorway with his knuckles resting against the cold metal. "Sorry to interrupt, but the subway stopped around ten minutes ago."

Hilda and Ingo looked at the Depot Agent, then at each other. It was Hilda who made the first noise, giving a bit of a snort. "Ha! Were we really talking that long?"

"Talking would imply that we had actually conversed with each other on pleasant terms. What you were doing for the majority of the time was more of a rant, Miss Hilda."

"Hey! We so did talk...just not as long as the ranting!"

The Depot Agent fidgeted, having been left off to the sides. "Well, I guess I'll be going now..." He turned around and walked back to the Battle Points booth as the sound of Hilda and Ingo's somewhat-bickering rose. It wasn't for another five minutes that the two would turn around and notice the Depot Agent gone.

Hilda rubbed the back of her head (messing up her ponytail) In embarrassment as Ingo pinched the bridge of his nose. "Well, should we head off, then? It's lunch time, after all, and you are on break now."

Ingo absently wondered how she knew his break schedule. "I suppose. Perhaps we will meet with Emmet and see about changing back into our regular apparel."

"Please." With that, the two took a step forward and out of the subway. "Hey, Mr. Ingo?"

The Subway Boss looked down at Hilda from the corner of his eyes, eyebrow raised. "Yes?"

"Don't ever change, okay?"

Ingo paused in mid-step, fully turning his head to face Hilda. "And what is that supposed to mean, Miss Hilda?"

"What it means." Rather than looking bashful, Hilda looked a little mournful. "I mean, I like you the way you are, and I like Mr. Emmet the way he is, so if you two change—worse, if you change into each other—it won't be so cool anymore and-"

"Miss Hilda." Hilda stopped and looked up at Ingo, who gave her an all-knowing gaze back. "I am Ingo. I am not Emmet, nor will I even be. Does this satisfy you?"

"..." A smile. "Yeah, it does. Can I also call you 'Ingo' instead of 'Mr. Ingo'?"

"Do not push your luck." he replied with not-so-frigid frost in his voice. Hilda laughed and pushed ahead of him, running up the stairs towards the rest of Gear Station. Ingo followed at a slower pace, silently observing his companion as he followed. He later came to the conclusion that Hilda was someone to be watching; not only would she mature in terms of her skills as a trainer, Hilda would also mature as a person, and Ingo wanted to be there to witness the end results.

Hilda suddenly stopped in mid-step, her arms raised in the air as she turned. "Are you sure I can't call you 'Ingo'?"

"Would you care to battle for that right?" Ingo retorted.

The girl shook her head. "Maybe after I destroy your brother again." With that, Hilda turned back around and continued walking towards the employee's area.

Ingo chuckled, bringing the rim of the white hat down like he often did on his own conductor's hat. Miss Hilda, you are quite the girl.

End.

Extra

(In which Ingo burns his brother, but never teaches Emmet why not to play with fire.)

Lunch found the three Pokemon trainers (read: two grown men and a girl that barely reached their shoulders) sitting in the employee's break room eating their respective lunches. Conductors and other employees paused in their routines to stare in curiosity before either a look from Ingo or a too-eerie grin from Emmet had them scurrying off.

Hilda looked up from her lunch, a smudge of mayonnaise on her cheek. "Hey, Emmet?"

"Hmm?" Emmet looked up from his Joltik-shaped sandwich, already used to the sudden change in Hilda's way of addressing him.

"Why'd you decide to switch places with Ingo?"

Raising an eyebrow at his twin that asked 'Ingo?', Emmet turned back and gave Hilda a tooth-filled grin. "Well, Miss Hilda, it all began one night when I was trying to get to sleep..."

Hilda listened to Emmet's story with rapt attention as Ingo sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Ignore him, Miss Hilda. Emmet is merely making up lies to fill your head with."

"Brother!" Emmet sounded hurt. With the same grin on his face, Emmet gingerly placed one of his gloved hands on top of his chest. "I'm hurt!"

"Obviously, you are not hurt enough." Hilda's laugh warmed Ingo's stomach briefly (although the man will forever claim it was the hot soup in his thermos).

"Miss Hilda! Can you believe this man?" Emmet leaned in closer to Hilda (ignoring Ingo's warning look) and brought a hand up to not-so-discreetly whisper something into her ear. While Ingo didn't quite catch it, the expression on Hilda's face said everything for him.

"At least I know how to pronounce my name." the Subway Boss bit out, watching in satisfaction as Emmet's face turned bright red and the grin fade from his face. "Oh, I'm sorry, did I hit a nerve, Eww-wat?"

"Brother! That was when we were still kids! That's a low blow!"

"It is still rather valid, Eww-wat."

Hilda (not quite understanding the inside joke, but finding it funny enough) laughed, the noise echoing throughout the room as Ingo continued to poke fun at his twin. "Anyways, Eww-wat, I suppose it is time that we switch back, is it not? I would like my record to not be ruined any further."

Emmet glared at Ingo. "What makes you think I ruined your record?"

"Miss Hilda here was gloating about how she 'beat your face into the floor', if I recall." The usually-frowning Subway Boss watched with a smile on his face as Emmet rounded on Hilda, who let out an "eep!" and leaned away from the frowning man dressed in black.

"Miss Hilda! Why did you tell him that?"

"Well, it's true!"

Ingo merely shook his head and cleared his throat. Automatically, the two looked towards him. "As I was saying?"

Emmet stared for a couple of moments before realization shone in his eyes. "Oh, right! Switching!" He grinned once more and reached forward, grabbing the white Subway Boss coat and starting to tug on the clothing. "Strip, brother~"

"E-EMMET!"

"Eeep!" Quickly, Hilda covered her eyes, but a gap through her fingers let her see Emmet stand up from his seat and continue trying to disrobe his brother through sheer force while the yelling Subway Boss tried to fight back.

Emmet managed to get one sleeve free and half of the coat off his brother's torso (as well as loosening Ingo's tie and unbuttoning a button or two on his shirt) before he found himself kneeling on the ground cradling his stomach. Still in his seat with his feathers ruffled, Ingo held up his foot in warning. "Do not-" a kick towards Emmet, "-Try that-" another kick towards the arm reaching out, "-Again!"

Emmet continued to laugh and cackle, even as Ingo batted away every attempt of him trying to grab his leg. "But it was so funny!" he laughed, dodging a rather nasty kick. "Besides, Miss Hilda certainly enjoyed it!"

Ingo paused in his attacks and looked to his left, where Hilda sat across the table from him. The girl still had her face hidden in her palms, but he could still see the red, red skin underneath.

The half-dressed Subway Boss looked down at his appearance and noted why Hilda was blushing. With a blush of his own, Ingo stood up and headed towards the Nap room. "We will be back momentarily. Do not, under any circumstance, allow any persons into the Nap room." Ingo warned Hilda as he grabbed the back of his still-laughing brother's clothing and dragged him towards the closed room.

Hilda (palms now down on her thighs) gave a short nod, her face still flaming crimson red as she watched the two Subway Bosses (one laughing like a maniac, the other with his shirt halfway off his chest) disappear into the room.

"What a day," she muttered aloud, barely hearing her own words over the racket Ingo and Emmet were making next door.

And so starts my stay on this site, as well as my start in the Pokemon fandom. I want to experiment with this pairing, ExpressShipping (Ingo/Nobori x Hilda/Touko) before delving into other pairings in the fandom. There will be more to this; I just haven't decided whether to post it as another chapter or another one-shot.

(Actually, I'm a bit nervous about posting this in the first place. I haven't written fanfiction since...forever. I have no idea what is good to write and what isn't, so I feel like I'm going to flail around and look like an idiot.)

(On another note, I remember doing twin switches with my sister. Got us extra candy as a kid. Fun times.)

I feel like I did okay with this, thought I'd like some feedback from the community. Was this good (In your opinion)? Where there errors I missed? Is there some bits that don't work/don't flow as well? Would you want more oneshots/fics like this? I'm just looking for feedback so I can alter how I do/write things in the future.

Anyways, thank you very much for reading!