I will do 23LeavesShipping, 420Shipping, 480Shipping, and 4GreatRocksShipping at a later date. This one was written long before those four came into existence and I want to post this. Guess the list will be a touch out of order now. Oh well…

Chapter Title: 5thSymphonyShipping
Pairing: Arceus x Lugia, one-sided Ho-Oh x Lugia

Warning: Implied past violence
Summary: His song always relaxed her when she felt stressed. Could his song possibly lead to something more?

.o.o.o.o.

Arceus had a headache. A very big one… She was tired of dealing with the arguments of the other Legendaries.

Groudon and Kyorge were always fighting over which was better, land or water. Rayquaza and Deoxys kept arguing about living space. Mew wouldn't stop bothering Mewtwo over stupid things. Entei and Raikou kept fighting over Suicune's affections. Landorus was on Earth, attempting to stop Tornadus and Thundurus from causing worldwide chaos with their storms. Manaphy and Jirachi wouldn't speak to each other for unknown reasons. Latias was unable to locate Latios, who had gone into hiding after an embarrassing incident that he refused to speak of. Cresselia kept annoying Darkrai over his habit of randomly giving people nightmares. Victini had disappeared to Earth in order to visit a friend of his. Meloetta was searching for her missing red shoes. Dialga and Palkia were running from Giratina after a prank gone wrong involving the Reverse World and a bunch of Weezing. Shaymin and Celebi kept getting into catfights. Regirock, Regice, and Registeel were forever trying to kill Regigigas for reasons better left unknown. Zekrom, Reshiram, and Kyurem were harassing Genesect over his appearance. Cobalion was arguing with Terrakion over which fighting style was better, their screams causing Keldeo to cry hysterically while Virizion desperately tried to comfort him. Heatran randomly blew stuff up for fun and had angered both Zapdos and Articuno, resulting in a huge fight between them. Moltres and Ho-Oh were ignoring each other entirely.

The only one who seemed to not be fighting was herself…and Lugia.

Getting up from her cushion-covered pedestal in the Hall of Origin, the Original One teleported herself to Shamouti Island in order to visit him. Arriving on the beach, she was suddenly grateful for Zapdos, Articuno, and Moltres' absence. Surrounding herself in a barrier, she levitated toward the center of the ocean that separated the three elemental islands from Shamouti Island. Shaking off a shiver as a cold wind hit her, she had the barrier sink deep beneath the waves toward the massive ocean current far below.

Barely halfway there, she smiled upon hearing his song. It was the song he sang to keep balance between his three elemental counterparts. Arceus wondered briefly if it was working despite how much distance was between him and them. She doubted it but still…

A monstrous current emerged from the darkness, bathing her in brilliant blue light. Focusing on keeping her barrier under control, she forced it through the rough current in order to reach its center. The waters soon calmed as she arrived at the heart of the Beast of the Sea. She found the name ironic, both since the current was not a physical beast and that its occupant was.

Now to find who she was looking for…

.o.o.o.o.

Lugia sighed, sensing the tension running through the psychic connection he had with Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno. He knew that they had been fighting as of late but why, he had no clue. In all honesty, he didn't care as long as they didn't cause world chaos or destruction…again. He was happy it was simply a few petty arguments, no doubt with the other Legendaries.

If he had to wager a guess, he'd have to say that Zapdos and Articuno's conflicts were connected. How, he didn't know exactly. His psychic connection with them only ran so deep. He could detect their feelings, their current situation, and whether they were hurt or not. Beyond that, he knew nothing. He couldn't read their minds without pushing the connection, along with his counterparts' tempers, to its limit.

Moltres and Ho-Oh were, of course, fighting over who was the better-looking Fire-type bird. That was an argument he knew was a constant with the pair. Lugia didn't really get why looks were so important to them both. They were both just so vain, it was ridiculous.

Opening his mouth, he began to sing. The song always soothed him when he felt bothered. He sent the song down the link and smiled when he felt Zapdos and Articuno's tension fade almost immediately. The smile faded when Moltres' tension faded only a little bit. Moltres was always the hardest out of the trio to calm if he was mad. Lugia sang more, hoping for his Fire-type counterpart's temper to lessen.

He suddenly stopped singing, sensing a powerful presence within the current that served as his home. Not many could penetrate the Beast of the Sea without being battered and bruised into oblivion. Spreading his flipper-like wings, he headed toward the source of the presence.

.o.o.o.o.

Why must this place be so big? Arceus wondered, looking around as she moved her barrier-encased form forward. And Giratina thinks the Hall of Origin is too big. He's clearly never been down here before.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she registered a powerful presence fast approaching from behind her. Turning around, she waited until it came into sight. Arceus would've smiled if she had a proper mouth, settling for a sigh of relief as Lugia arrived.

"I was beginning to think you weren't here," Arceus commented.

"Sorry for not realizing you were here immediately," Lugia apologized, bowing his head respectfully. "I was dealing with…you know…"

"How horrible for you," Arceus chuckled. "Any change in their behavior?"

"Zapdos and Articuno have calmed down," Lugia replied.

"But not Moltres," Arceus guessed.

"Correct," Lugia nodded, frowning. "He's so stubborn. Why does he have such a, pardon the pun, fiery temper?"

"Don't all Fire-types?" Arceus joked.

Lugia chuckled, nodding. He looked back the way he'd come. "You're here for a reason, Arceus. Why?"

Always straight to the point, Arceus thought sourly.

"I have unruly counterparts to tame," Lugia said in response to her thought.

"Stay out of my head," Arceus ordered coldly.

"Yes, Arceus," Lugia replied, turning his back on her entirely. "Come. There's more room further down."

The goddess quietly followed Lugia as he headed further down the current. She envied how he could swim and breathe within the rough waters of the Beast of the Sea so easily. He wasn't even a Water-type. Arceus, on the other hand, was forced to hide within a psychic barrier in order to survive so far beneath the ocean's surface. Even the Splash Plate, which made her a Water-type, was unable to keep her safe at these depths.

The current's heart widened out, as Lugia had said it would. Lugia swam toward the center of the room and opened his mouth, unleashing a brief song. Arceus already knew he was sending it down the connection he had with his three counterparts, still attempting to soothe Moltres' seemingly never-ending rage.

As Lugia sang, Arceus' thoughts wandered to their past…

.o.o.o.o.

When Arceus had first created the world and its inhabitants, her first objective was to create others like her to help keep the world's balance in check. The idea for making counterparts came not long after she first created Mew and the humans created Mewtwo. The first counterpart she made was, of course, her own shadow—Giratina. Dialga and Palkia were created to be counterparts to Giratina.

The counterparts were always in pairs or trios. It was a habit of hers, one she never completely understood the reasoning behind. Regardless, she went with it. Her fellow Legendaries were born, each being governed by others like them.

From the very beginning, she knew that Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno would be trouble. They constantly fought with one another and with the rest of the Legendaries. Not even Arceus was safe from them. She had become so enraged at them once that she had come very close to erasing all three of them just to save everyone else from their buffoonery.

Then Lugia had stepped forward, promising to keep the trio under control himself. Ho-Oh, Lugia's counterpart, had instantly made a fuss but was silenced by Lugia's firm stare. Arceus, not caring who did it, gladly shoved the troublesome birds onto Lugia.

In a short amount of time, Articuno and Zapdos had mellowed out enough to be less troublesome than they used to be. Moltres, on the other hand, had become less troublesome…but more violent. Even Lugia had trouble controlling him at times. It was obvious who was to blame. Ho-Oh had made it her personal goal to cause friction between Lugia and the bird trio. She had failed with Zapdos and Articuno, but she apparently succeeded with Moltres.

Lugia, however, refused to give up on Moltres. That only fueled Ho-Oh's anger even more. Thus the present day conflicts between her and Moltres. Beauty was only the cover story. Lugia was the true reason behind the quarrel.

Throughout the whole fight, both Lugia's fight to rehabilitate the bird trio and Ho-Oh's fight to separate them, Arceus had found herself admiring Lugia more and more. She only had to worry about Giratina's behavior. Lugia had not only Ho-Oh but Zapdos, Moltres, and Articuno to monitor. He had four counterparts versus her one counterpart. She was almost surprised that he was still sane.

That admiration soon turned into something she found hard to control. She had seen it happen to other Pokemon and even among humans. She managed to keep it hidden in front of her fellow Legendaries. The feeling only seemed to arise when she was near Lugia.

It was love…

.o.o.o.o.

"…ceus? Arceus, are you listening?"

"Huh?" Arceus snapped back into awareness, realizing that Lugia had been speaking to her. "Oh, sorry. I was—"

"Lost in thought, I know," Lugia finished for her.

Arceus glared, wishing she could frown at him. "I thought I said to stay out of my head," she said coldly.

"I wasn't in your head, Arceus," Lugia explained, not even flinching under her glare. "It's plain to see on your face. I don't always read others' minds, you know. I quite rarely do so, in fact."

Arceus huffed, her glare withering. "You were saying…?"

"I asked what is it you are doing down here," he repeated. "Not that I'm not happy to see you. I rarely get visitors, mind you, especially down here."

"I can tell," Arceus muttered.

Lugia folded his wings, sighing. "Do I need to read your mind to find the answer to my question?" he asked nonchalantly.

Arceus glared at him fiercely. "No," she growled. "I came here to escape the chaos of the others. They're giving me a headache."

"Ah," Lugia nodded in understanding. "Why come here, though?"

"You're the only other one, aside from me, not fighting," she replied, avoiding his eyes. "I deemed this the best place to escape to."

"The best place indeed," Lugia nodded again. "Well, make yourself at home then."

Arceus gave no response. Lugia forced back a sigh and spread his wings, heading back to his personal chambers.

.o.o.o.o.

Lugia could sense Arceus following him but dismissed it. As their god, she would do as she pleased. He was suddenly grateful that she was not as inclined to read the minds of others as many, he included, were. He wondered what she would do if she discovered that he had fallen so madly in love with her. The only thing stopping him from admitting it was his fear of rejection.

He had peeked momentarily into her mind when she had zoned out, realizing she was thinking of the past. Once the memories began to involve the conflicts between Moltres and Ho-Oh over him, he had backed out. He didn't enjoy remembering such issues.

Lugia knew of Ho-Oh's love for him. She had quickly made it known since the day of their creation. Once he offered to take in Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno, that love had turned into severe jealousy. She ended up taking it out on Moltres, who looked the most similar to herself. No amount of pleading from Lugia could convince her to stop. When the bird trio was old enough to protect themselves, he reluctantly gave up trying to quell the fighting. Zapdos and Articuno escaped unscathed. Moltres, on the other hand…

The mighty bird shook his head, clearing his thoughts. He had arrived in his own chambers. Spreading his wings, he unleashed another song and sent it down the link. Articuno and Zapdos were completely calm, whatever chaos they had caused having ceased at last. Much to Lugia's joy, Moltres' anger was ebbing away bit by bit. If he strained his connection with Ho-Oh hard enough, he could feel her rage also fading. Peace at last, if only for a moment…

.o.o.o.o.

Arceus felt herself relaxing as Lugia sang. His voice was so beautiful…

She suddenly wished her fur wasn't white. It was so easy to tell if she was blushing. She was glad that his back was turned to her, but still…

All of the day's events finally took their toll. She was struggling to stay upright within her barrier. Her eyes fell half-closed, exhaustion threatening to consume her. Lugia's songs always made her feel sleepy, for some reason. It was like a lullaby…

Flipper-like wings wrapped around her, stopping her from toppling over. A melodic voice whispered into her ear, "Get some sleep, Arceus. I'll wake you when the chaos is over."

Unable to resist, she relaxed against Lugia's larger frame and allowed sleep to take her.

.o.o.o.o.

Lugia smiled as Arceus fell asleep in his wings. He had known from the moment she entered his chambers that she was tired. His song, a special lullaby that Manaphy had taught him long ago, was the final ingredient to making her sleep.

He had always found her face to be the oddest of any Pokemon's. No mouth or nose whatsoever yet she could speak and smell just as well as any of them could. Despite its oddness, Lugia found that it fit her perfectly. It was…cute, in its own strange way.

Her peaceful expression drew him in. Before he even knew what he was doing, he had kissed her on the cheek. Pulling up a barrier of his own upon sensing Arceus' barrier fading, he was content to float there and sleep.

He had his secret love in his arms. He had given her a kiss, even if it was on the cheek. She had come to his home seeking escape.

Lugia was happy to have gained all those things. Now, if only she was awake for that kiss…

As he drifted to sleep, something pressed against his cheek. It didn't feel like lips, but…

I love you too, Lugia.

Ah, so she had been awake. And she had read his mind. Clever, Arceus, clever…

.o.o.o.o.

The two Legendaries would not return to the Hall of Origin until late the next day. Nobody would think of their mysterious absence as strange except for Ho-Oh, but her paranoia involving Lugia was well-known and her rumors were dismissed by all. Lugia and Arceus would go about their daily tasks until the chaos started.

Then they would disappear, content to be in each others' arms far beneath the sea.