The wild Bulbasaur, Ivysaur, and Venusaur possessed expressions twisted with uncertainty and doubt. Several bowls of Pokémon food surrounded them, all prepared by yours truly. It took little effort making their food thanks to all my experience cooking for Paul's Venusaur. I only needed to triple the ingredients in the Bulba-Ivy-Venu recipe, but I still had to make a triple-batch just as fast as a single-batch. Nothing I couldn't handle.
The act of cooking itself came to me as an opportunity to improve my efficiency.
Convincing our Grass-type guests to eat my cooking proved to be the more difficult task.
"Come on, you guys. It's full of yummy stuff all Grass-types like. One bite and you'll totally love it." I felt like I had spoken while the mic was off.
"What's going on?" said a curious Paul, approaching us with a sleepy yawn.
"They don't want to try the breakfast I made for them."
One of the wild Bulbasaur seemed slightly interested, but an Ivysaur held it back.
"It's the same recipe I use for your Venusaur, so I know they'll love it." I scratched my head. "We just have to find a way to prove that."
Paul's Venusaur trotted up to me with a suggestion, and a hungry tummy.
"Yes, that's a great idea, Venusaur! Could you please? Here. This one's yours."
With a smile, Venusaur started on his portion of the meal. He easily demonstrated to the others how delicious—and not poisonous—my food tasted. Now content and comfortable, they started chowing down.
Just as I predicted, they all loved it!
All the Pokémon enjoyed a yummy, healthy breakfast that morning.
"I can't believe you cooked all of that already." Paul gazed around the camp, still looking a little sleepy. "I didn't even hear you get up."
"Not surprised. You were snoring louder than Gyarados." While ignoring his heated words of denial, I retrieved two wrapped parcels from the table. "I couldn't sleep, though. I was too excited to make today's breakfast."
As though on cue, Paul's stomach grumbled. "I hope you made ours, too."
I laughed and shoved one parcel into his hands.
"Just this?"
"No manners as usual. You know, it'd help if you opened it before criticizing it."
After tearing apart the wrappings, he discovered two mini loaves of bread. "What is it?"
"Egg bread."
"Egg what?"
"Egg bread. Basically a pastry with a whole egg inside that gets cooked at the same time as when the bread bakes. There's some cheese inside, too. It's a popular street snack that's good to eat as it gets colder, which it is."
"That's certainly true," he grimaced, rubbing his arms after getting the chills. Just then, he suddenly noticed...I have my jacket on? When did she... How did she—?! His train of thought got interrupted by a Flamethrower nearly incinerating him.
"Hey, don't space out right in front of the campfire, Paul. And thanks, Vulpix!"
She smiled before returning to her food.
Brought back to life, the campfire provided some heat for myself and a pot of water. I sat on a blanket while waiting for it to boil, which wouldn't take very long. Not with Vulpix's high temperatures.
"See, when I woke up this morning, I noticed a bit of frost on Torterra's back. That means winter's coming soon, and that's when these delicious little treats start popping up in food stalls everywhere. You should stop staring at them and try them. You like everything inside."
After sitting beside me, Paul examined the breads more closely. "You said there's an egg on the inside?"
"Correct. I put the eggs and cheese between the bread batter." I poured both of us a cup of tea, and then I slowly sipped from mine. "Some people will make it differently, but that's the way I first tried it."
Nodding, he nibbled on one of the breads. Then, his eyes bulged. "Wow. That is good. It tastes somewhat similar to corn muffin, but with egg and cheese, and with a slightly sweet and salty taste all at once."
His accurate description impressed me. "Who knew you were such a connoisseur? If only you were as good at cooking food as you are critiquing it."
He shook his head. "Nah. If I were any better, then you'd cook less often. I can't have that."
"What do you mean you can't—?!"
"Thank you for the meal!" He proceeded to stuff his face.
"Hmph. Want me to be the permanent chef? Fine. But that makes you the permanent dishwasher. So, I'll leave you to clean up while I go change. Let's head into town sooner rather than later."
"Wait. You already ate?"
"Yep. While you were sleeping. The egg bread tastes much better when it's hot."
"You could've woken me up. I probably shouldn't have slept in this late in the first place."
"It's alright. I didn't want to disturb your esteemed repose."
"But, you..."
"Look, Paul. If you wanted to eat with me that badly, I'll wake you up next time. Or you can just get up earlier. But it's not a big deal. Really. Just eat your breakfast before it gets even colder, or before Luxio snatches it from you."
Paul eyed the cat inching closer and closer. Eevee was also closing in.
"Now, I'm gonna change out of these pajamas, so leave me alone for a few minutes."
Paul nearly choked when he discovered an orange tent set up beside Torterra. "Since when did we have a tent?!"
"Since always! Just never needed it till now," I replied while crawling inside. "I set it up this morning while everything was cooking. And it's not for us. It's for me. You're not allowed inside."
"What? Why not?"
"No boys allowed!" After I closed the zipper, Luxio dragged his bowl near the front of the tent and sat on the grass, barking back at me. "Right! Except for Luxio, though he prefers guard duty. And I guess Wartortle, and Cubone, and any of my other Pokémon can come inside. And, I suppose, your Pokémon, too, as long as Luxio says it's okay."
"So, is the rule 'no boys allowed' or 'no Paul allowed'?"
"No creeps allowed!"
"Creeps?!"
"Yeah. Ever since I found out a certain someone is a big, fat pervert, I'm no longer comfortable simply walking behind some trees and changing my clothes."
"For the last time, I'm not a pervert, Girlie!"
"Yeah, yeah, that's what they all say, but I still don't trust you."
"I'm serious. It was an accident seeing you..." He went quiet after seeing Luxio scowl at him—and he was scowling. Paul lifted his hands. "I promise it was an accident, so don't shock me."
After a moment, Luxio believed him.
"Do you see my hairbrush anywhere, by the way?"
"Uh?" Paul scanned the closest areas of camp. "No. Wouldn't you have left it in your bag?"
"Normally, but it's not in here."
Eevee skipped over to the tent with a brush in her mouth.
"Oh, Eevee has it," announced her trainer.
"Ooh! Good find, Eevee. Can you bring it to me? Or, you can give it to Luxio."
She wanted to enter the tent herself, so she asked Luxio if she could pass.
Luxio was a little hesitant to let Eevee through, wondering why she was so eager to get inside. He made a grave error underestimating her determination as she set down the brush and looked at him with the cutest face ever! Turning bright red, he shuffled to the side.
"Just like that you're letting her through?!" Paul gasped.
"Well, everyone has a soft spot for Eevee. Right, Luxio?" My Pokémon threatened me to stop teasing him. "Alright, alright. I do appreciate you being a bouncer, so I won't tease you, for now."
Eevee moved to the tent's front flap, and I zipped it open just enough so she could slip inside.
"Just don't take too long, alright. There's a lot of dishes."
"I made the food, you clean up! And don't rush me! A girl needs time to get ready—H-Hey, Eevee! That tickles! Stop that! Not there...haha!"
With slightly pink cheeks, Paul went back to eating. Luxio listened to my cry-giggling and slightly regretted allowing Eevee into the tent. The two ended up sharing the remaining portion of Paul's egg bread. Afterward, they washed the dishes with help from the rest of our happy Pokémon crew, all while Eevee and I took a nap on Torterra's back.
★
Once enough time passed to properly digest breakfast, Paul and I headed into town accompanied by Eevee and Pikachu. Luxio volunteered to stay behind and watch over the campsite; that way, the other Pokémon could remain outside of their Poké Balls and enjoy an ample amount of freetime.
We asked Gyarados and Torterra to lend Luxio a hand in his supervision duties. All three would be in charge of settling any fights that may or may not break out as well as defending the camp from trespassers.
Hopefully, they wouldn't encounter issues of any kind.
Mossgreen Village's famed herbal shop nestled between the other homes, the trees, and a small, blue pond where some Poliwag played. Windows popped out of nowhere. Barrels supported the western walls. The thatched roof suffered from years of wind, rain, and snow.
"This is it."
I crinkled my nose at overgrown vines firmly grasping the shop's wooden beams. "It's got...character."
A tarp covered the front entrance. Someone had clumsily staked it into the ground at multiple points, and then they cut away at the middle to provide access to the door. Paul pushed his way through the break in the tarp.
"Hello?" he called with one foot in the door. "Anyone home? We're here to buy some medicine."
No response.
"Is anyone in there?" I asked.
"Can't tell. It's so..."
I had just poked my head in behind him. Thanks to the tarp and lack of sizable windows, the interior was pitch-black. Only the faint outlines of shelving units, herbs hanging from ceilings, and glass jars filled with unknown substances could be spotted.
Oh, and something shifting against the darkness.
I was ten feet away in a heartbeat, squeezing Pikachu so hard that she gave me a jolt.
"Why is it...so dark...in there?"
"They keep it that way to protect the medicine. Some chemicals are photosensitive and will break down into less effective or possibly toxic compounds when exposed to light. So, it's crucial they keep the sunlight from pouring inside, especially in the early morning."
My lips parted.
Noting my silence, Paul turned back to me. "What?"
"Just...you know a lot about medicine, apparently."
He shrugged. "It's common sense. Didn't you already know that stuff?"
"Pfft," I turned away with folded arms, "Of course, I did!"
"Yeah, right."
"Well, I don't care how crucial the darkness is. I'm not going in there, nuh uh."
"Huh?! What do you mean you're not—"
A nearby Pokémon roared at us to shut up. The beige cat sitting by the door was trying to nap while the sun still hit the front of the building.
"Who's that Pokemon?" asked Paul.
"It's a Persian."
"How do you know?"
Oh, yeah. I never really told him the details of our Game Corner invasion.
I swallowed back the lump in my throat. "Don't ask."
Persian rose for a moment to quickly groom itself, stretched, and curled up on the grass.
"Must be in charge of guarding the place."
"Pretty lousy guard if you ask me..."
We heard a sudden growl, right before Paul got attacked by a pale pink energy beam fired from the jewel on Persian's forehead. Eevee quickly bounced over to my shoulder to avoid the attack.
"I don't feel bad for you," I said as Paul fell back onto the dirt. "Learn to say something nice."
"Just speaking my mind."
"Then, tell your mind to shut up." I went over and crouched beside Persian. It poked its head up to stare at me. "Sorry about him. He's not a great judge of character, so I wouldn't take much offense if I were you."
"Well, I was right about you when we first met," Paul said.
"Oh, really? Care to elaborate?"
"Nah. Maybe another time."
"Uh-huh. That's what I thought."
Persian still looked a little wary of us, so I slowly reached out. The cat sniffed my hand for a moment before pushing its snout against my fingers. It stood up, walked over, and rubbed up against my side. I could hear a deep purr as I scratched behind its ears.
"Nice to meet you, too."
"Enough messing around." Paul plucked Eevee off my shoulder. "Let's shop to it."
"Okay. You go buy the stuff, and we'll chill out here with Persian."
"You're really not coming?"
"No way. You saw it in there. It's...," I shivered, "...dark."
"Oh, right. Forgot you're not a fan. Alright. Give me that list you made."
I handed over a scrap of paper with messy scribbles, plus a few bills to help cover my half of the cost. "And don't forget to ask about a phone."
"Got it. Be back in a bit." With a wave, he and Eevee disappeared.
Pikachu asked about the validity of sending Paul on a medicine run by himself.
"He'll be fine," I smiled. "He knows enough to recognize which ones we need."
Persian meowed and rubbed up against my legs, its tail wrapping around them.
I reached down to rub its head. "Yes, I like you, too." The big cat's eyes burned holes into my head. "Oh. I see. You can smell them, can't you? Did you not eat breakfast this morning?" Reaching into my bag, I grabbed two Sitrus Berries plucked from a tree on our way into town. One went to Pikachu, and one went to Persian. "Here you go."
The cat thanked me before devouring the berry.
Pikachu also took down the fruit rather quickly.
"Jeez. If I didn't know better, I'd think you were starving."
She licked the juice off her paws and grinned at me.
I crouched down in front of the big cat currently cleaning its face. "I'm gonna have a bone to pick if these guys aren't feeding you properly. What's a life without three square meals a day, huh?"
Persian agreed with a hearty yowl, finishing the grooming of its face to stare at me.
I stared back, holding the cat's firm gaze.
Neither of us blinked. Neither of us moved except for an occasional flick of Persian's tail.
Pikachu tried breaking our concentration by waving her tail in our faces, but we didn't budge. "Quit it, Pikachu," I hissed, trying not to laugh.
Persian gave another half-yawn half-growl before rolling onto its back and stretching.
While maintaining eye contact, I tucked my knees into my stomach and rolled over. Persian lifted its front paws and playfully pawed the air, its toes slowly stretching out to show its relaxed mood. I copied its movements as best I could.
After some time, there was the crunching of grass at my side.
"Uh, what are you doing?"
I didn't respond at first, not until Persian craned its neck and licked my face. The scratch of its sandpaper tongue against my forehead made me laugh, which made me blink. I lost the staring contest.
"Hey, Paul?"
"Yeah?"
I rolled back and sat on my knees. Persian copied me, and purred once again when I scratched underneath its chin. "I think I'm a cat person."
"I think I noticed."
"Cats are great, huh?"
Pikachu whined.
I quickly scratched her chin the same way. "Mice are great, too. Don't worry." Eevee also got a little jealous. She jumped onto my shoulder and rubbed her entire body against the side of my head. "Yes, yes, I would never forget you, Eevee. Hey, pleh, you're getting fur in my mouth."
All the Pokémon laughed at my face.
"Come on, crazy cat lady." Also laughing, Paul grabbed my bag and lifted me onto my feet. "We've gotta call Reggie before it gets too late over in Sinnoh. The old bag inside told me about a phone booth in town."
"Old bag? That's a little rude. Didn't she sell you the medicine we needed?"
"Yeah. Here." He handed over a drawstring bag full of potions, antidotes, and other homemade remedies. "Though she first offered me snakeroot that would cure insomnia and grow hair on my nose and tongue. Disgusting."
"Oh, that is weird. Good thing I didn't go in with you. Now, where's the phone booth?"
"This way." He walked off.
"Bye, bye, Persian!" I waved to the shop's guard cat and then chased after Paul.