Togetic's Various Guild Misadventures

Storehouse Organization

(Alright, and this box should go... Here!)

I place a box of cotton and other bedding materials in a corner of the storeroom, making some dust fly up as it hits the floor, which would make me cough if I hadn't gotten used to the dust in the air from organizing this room for the past few hours.

(Damn, I'm starting to get tired. How much is there left to organize...?)

Looking around the storeroom, I can see I've made a decent amount of progress, but there's still a large amount of clutter all over the storeroom that I haven't even begun to organize. Finally taking a moment to relax, I notice how dark it's gotten, and how the room's scattered oil lamps now fail to reveal the full extent of the mess to me.

(... I might've gotten a bit too carried away, it must be midnight or early in the morning by now. It'll take me days to clean up this WAR CRIME by myself. But who else could I trust to join my righteous cause? Well, I'd need someone with arms, so guess Wooper can't help. Chespin's vines would be useful. Maybe the Guildmaster has telekinesis? Both of those two will probably be too busy to help though... Oh, what about that Duskull? Elm, I think his name was. I should try asking him, having someone else who can fly would be helpful...)

A large yawn overtakes me and interrupts my thoughts. (So tired... I can probably just use some of the bedding here to take a nap...) I lethargically grab some cotton bedding from one of the boxes I just organized, and make a makeshift cushion for me to sleep on. Once it's done, I flop onto it and feel the day's work catch up to me.

(I'll try getting someone to help me... Tomorrow... Zzzzzz....)

"... getic...."

"... Togetic..."

"Togetic, WAKE UP!"

"Mmrph... F-Five more m-minutes... Dewott... Zzzz..."

"Dewott? Oh forget this, I have a better idea."

Barely cognizant, I hear some rustling and a light thud next to my ear. Then my eardrums are burst by the start of an unfortunately familiar song.

"EIGHTEEN NAKED COWBOYS AT RAM RANCH-"

All at once I'm awake, clutching my skull trying to get my ears to stop ringing. "Urgh! What the h-hell!?" I rub my eyes and look around, and see a giggling Duskull in front of me. "O-Oh, i-it's you. Ow..."

"Sorry, I just couldn't help myself from playing a little prank. Try waking up a bit faster next time."

"Y-Yeah... Sorry..." (Prick. Now I'm FOR SURE getting this guy to help me organize this room.) I slowly get up and stretch my arms while letting out a loud yawn. Looking around, I notice the thing he placed next to my head that RAMMED and RANCHED my eardrums, which is a small glass vase.

"That's a frism." Elm floated over to it and picked it up. "I've already pranked some other guild members with it, just consider it another part of guild initiation!"

(Gee, this really makes me feel like a real guild member now.) "T-Thanks... U-Um... W-What time is i-it?"

"It should be just past midday, you've been snoozing for a while. I was watching you organize last night, you certainly got very... Passionate about it."

"I-I get like that s-sometimes..." (From the choice of song, I can assume Elm's a human as well.) "Um... A-Are you a h-human too?"

Elm nods. "Still adjusting to becoming a pokemon?"

I shake my head. "M-More just a-adjusting to being here... Erm... W-Would you... Uh... W-Want to help me o-o-organize?"

Elm rubbed the back of his skull bashfully. "Heheh, I assume it's the least I can do to apologize for waking you up like that."

(Perfect. Time to work him to the bone-)

"Just try not to work me to the bone!" Elm started giggling to himself once again.

(FUCK, my puns...) I sighed. "W-We should start off by o-organizing any loose items o-on the f-floor..."

Elm nodded in acknowledgment. "And then what, just stack them all up in a pile?"

"A-A neat one, y-yes. O-Once all small loose o-objects are c-collected, w-we can focus on organizing t-them into various b-boxes and cabinet-ts."

"Alright, let's go!" Elm floated off and started picking up various small objects from the floor, and I did the same. After about half an hour of organizing, we've cleaned up the floor a substantial amount and made a tidy pile of items.

"G-Good work so f-far, Elm." (Glad to see the little prankster can actually do something useful.) "Y-You can t-take a b-break now i-if you want... I-I can finish organizing the p-pile from h-here."

"Don't worry, I'm not even tired at all yet. Just tell me where we should start placing stuff."

"A-Alright..." I then explained the various boxes and cabinets I had placed and how I planned to organize them, and we started organizing all of the different seeds we collected from all over the storeroom first. While doing this, I passed by a mirror and couldn't stop myself from taking a look at my reflection. I never really had the chance to get a good look at myself after evolving, so I take the chance to examine myself.

(Wow, I look like shit. My eye bags are really big, and I still have those bandages...) I moved my hand to touch the large bandage that was still on my head, which made the wound sting a bit. (Ow, still hurts. I'll probably need to wear this for a while.)

I could see Elm peeking over my shoulder in the reflection of the mirror. "Doing some self-reflection?"

I ignored his pun, mad that I didn't come up with it first. "N-No... J-Just still not u-used to being e-evolved."

Elm tilted his head inquisitively. "So you've been a pokemon for a while then?"

I turned to him and nodded. "I-I was on a t-team b-before j-joining the guild... H-How about y-you?"

Elm turned his gaze to the mirror. "I only recently became a pokemon, but so far, I couldn't be happier. I..." Elm's cheery tone faltered for a moment. "I felt like I need another chance at life, and coming here has let me finally be the person I couldn't be in the human world."

(Must be nice. Meanwhile I'm stuck here with the same problems I had as a human.)

Elm must've noticed my internal sulking, as his expression shifted to look more upbeat again. "Oh, I just noticed, you don't have a badge yet. You should probably pick one out while we're here."

I looked at myself in the mirror again. He was right, I hadn't picked out a badge or any clothes yet. I've noticed that a bunch of different guild members had been wearing stuff like bandanas, Elm himself was wearing a purple headband with his badged attached to it. (Hmmm, I never really felt the need to wear any clothes when with Dewott. What should I wear...?)

Before I could finish thinking, Elm tapped my shoulder, and as I turned around I saw he was holding a guild badge and a blue bandana.

"Why don't you try these on?" I took the items from Elm, and began wrapping the bandana around my neck. Then I attached the clover-shaped badge to the middle of the bandana.

I take a few moments to look over my new outfit in the mirror. (Huh. Not bad. I've never cared much about my own personal fashion, but this looks nice. Wonder why he decided to help me out with this though, I guess ghost-types are just like dogs and they sort of just do things arbitrarily.)

Noticing me smiling at my newly-clothed reflection, Elm looked pleased. "Now everyone will know you're one of us!"

"F-For better or for w-worse." We both chuckled. For the first time since going out on my own, I felt I was around someone I could trust. (I haven't felt like this since I was back with Dewott... Maybe I was wrong to ever have my guard up around here.)

"Erm... Elm?"

"Yeah?"

"T-Thanks for a-all of the h-help you've g-given me... Uhh... I-I just... Uh... W-Want to s-say that... I-I t-think you a r-really n-nice pokemon, a-and I want you to h-have this!" I trust a small package that I had boxed while organizing towards Elm, who looked like he was trying not to blush from the sudden compliment and present.

"Oh, thanks! I wonder what's in here..." Elm quickly opened up the small box, and the moment he looked inside...

Training!

"Yawn..."

I let out a loud yawn as I get up and stretch my arms. I'm in my room, currently sitting on my makeshift bed with a warm blanket over me. Rubbing my eyes, I can see that it's still dark outside.

(Damn, must be the middle of the night. My sleep schedule's fucked due to all of the storeroom work... Ugh...)

I flop back onto my bed and cover myself back up with the blanket, in an attempt to fall back asleep.

(... Okay fuck this, I'm too awake. I need to tire myself out a bit.)

I toss off the blanket and climb off the cushion while doing a large stretch. (Hmmm... I could go back to fixing up the storeroom, but then I'd probably be unable to make myself stop working until I drop from exhaustion again... I should do something a bit lighter. Some training maybe?)

I stared at my own hands. (I'm so weak on my own that training won't do much, but at least it might wear me out a bit so I can go back to sleep.) Sighing, I open the door to my room and exit into the hallway. (I could use the training room, but it's a nice night tonight, I'll head to the docks. Less chance of someone walking in on me there too. Hopefully.)

Carefully sneaking out of the guild, I enter the streets of Capim Town. Various lamps light the roads, but the moon in the sky does much more to illuminate the town. The streets are mostly empty, apart from some random pokemon wandering around that I can barely make out the shadows of.

(I haven't had much chance to explore the town since coming here, I've mostly stayed cooped up in the guild. Maybe I should try for an aerial view?)

I do a small leap into the air and flap my wings, sending me flying upwards towards the stars in the sky. Once the momentum wears off, I flap my wings more lightly to maintain my position in mid-air. (Still need to get the hang of flying... Let's just do a nice glide to the docks.) I re-orient myself so my back faces the sky, and tilt my body downwards slightly to glide down. I glide over the town's roads and houses, with the lights becoming a blur as I start to pick up speed against the cool night wind.

I flip myself around so my chest faces the sky, and let the stars of the night sky wash over me. (The stars and town are beautiful out here at night, I should explore it a bit more. Would help me get betting at flying too-ACK!)

SPLASH

I landed back-first into the water, and panicked for a second trying to get myself upright. After a bit of flailing and splashing around, I'm treading water with my head just above the waves. I shake my head to try and get some water out of my ears.

(Ugh... I need to pay more attention sometime. Lets just swim to the dock-)

My thought is interrupted by a large splash of water in front of me! The water splashes into my eyes, and after wiping them I see what caused the commotion. It's an Oshawott, and one I think I've seen before at the guild.

The Oshawott swims up to me. "You okay? You didn't look like you were intending for a splash-down."

I shake my head. "I-I... D-Didn't check w-where I was f-flying."

"It's alright, need some help getting back onto land?"

"I-I t-think I-I'll be f-fine..." I tread water a bit harder to get my back and wings out of the water, then wiggle my wings to get some water off of them, and then give him a large flap to lift me out of the water. Once back in the air, I land on the nearby pier. The Oshawott dives under the water, then jumps out of the water like a dolphin and lands right next to me.

"I'm Gus." Says the Oshawott as he adjusts the scallop on his chest.

"T-Togetic. N-Nice to m-meet y-you." I say while bowing.

"No need to be that formal. What are you doing out here?"

"I... U-Uh... O-Originally w-went outside to t-train b-but got m-mesmerized b-by the night s-sky..."

Gus smiles. "You like looking at the stars, too?"

I nod, and then walked to the edge of the pier to sit down, and Gus sat next to me. For a while, we just stared at the stars in silence, letting the sound of the waves wash over us. Neither of us seemed to want to break the silence with idle chatter. However, our peaceful moment is interrupted by the sound of footsteps. I get up and turn around, and see a Sneasel walking towards us.

Waltzing up to me, the Sneasel appears to size me up before she finally says something. "So you're that Togetic that joined the guild."

"Y-Yeah... H-Hello..." (... What's with the cold stare? She is an ice type but she's freaking me out.)

Stepping closer, she forces me to look up as she towers over me. "... You know, I heard some interesting rumors a while back. Something about a powerful duo of a Togetic and a Dewott that went around beating up outlaws within an inch of their lives... And other exploration teams, as well, robbing them of their supplies."

My heart stopped. (No.... I escaped all that! Why-)

"... But there's no way that's you, considering how weak you look!" She chuckles and backs off. "I'm just messing with you. I'm Sneasel. Glad to finally have the chance to meet you."

"U-Uhrm.... Y-You t-t-too...." (What the fuck.)

I can feel my heart finally starting to beat again, and I notice her face has changed to a much more cheerful expression with a large smirk, but the same doesn't apply to her eyes, which continue to hold the same suspicious glare.

(Oh god. This is some sort of test, isn't? She's going to fucking gut me right here if I don't answer right. I guess this is finally the time to see if I can really trust my fellow guildmates.)

I take a deep breath. "W-Well... A-Actually... I... Uh... E-Erm... Y-You're..."

Sneasel raises an eyebrow. "I'm what?"

"... Y-You w-were r-r-right... I-I was o-on a t-team with... a D-Dewott..."

Sneasel steps back in shock. "What? Are you serious?"

I nod while staring at the ground. There's an awkward silence, but I don't dare to look back up at her.

(... Well, she hasn't stabbed me yet. Maybe she can't tell if I'm telling the truth? Fuck, what do I-)

My inner ramblings are interrupted by a weird sound I hear from Sneasel. I finally decide to look up, and see her covering her mouth with her claws, holding back laughter.

"Pfft... Bwahahaahaha!" She finally lets loose and nearly falls backward onto the ground from how hard she laughs. "Oh, you're hilarious! I almost thought you were telling the truth for a second, but you look like way too much of a weakling to ever be a part of some infamous team like that."

(I should probably just take this chance to lie here... But if she finds out later... Fuck it, full honesty. I don't wanna constantly worry about getting shanked by this insane psycho bitch in the future.)

"... I-I'm not j-j-joking. The rum-m-mors a-are true... W-We d-did beat up-p-p a l-lot of p-pokemon pretty b-badly..." I take another deep breath in a futile attempt to calm myself. "S-Sorry i-if... W-We h-hurt one of y-your f-friends..."

Sneasel's laughter stopped, and her face once again contorted back to its original suspicious glare. "So, what are you doing here then? Tired of stealing from other adventure teams? Oh, I get it! That's why you're in the storeroom all the time." She steps closer to me once again, and I once again stare at the ground, both too afraid and ashamed to face her. "You're stealing stuff from the storeroom, aren't you? Well, I've only got one thing to say to the likes of you..."

(Well, at least God can't say that I never told the truth.) I close my eyes as I prepare for the worst.

"... Can I train with you?"

(What.) "What."

"I mean, obviously you aren't a good guy, but every rumor I heard described you and your partner's fighting style as amazing! You two defeated pokemon that should've been much stronger! C'mon, give me some good tips and I promise I won't tell anybody about your past!"

(... She... Just wanted... Fighting tips?! This girl is even crazier than I thought. )

She kneels down in order to be at eye level with me. "Sorry if I spooked ya', but I just gotta know your secrets! Do you have some kind of secret move? Secret aura powers? Oh, do you trick your enemies into underestimating you since you look and sound so weak?"

(I'll take that as a compliment, I think.) "U-Uh... N-None of t-that... I-I'm sorry, b-but... I-I can't t-train you..."

"Aww, why!? Give me a reason, at least!"

(I don't mind training, But... Do I truly want to get stronger? Chasing power... That's one of the things Dewott wanted, and what almost got us into a lot of trouble. I guess it couldn't hurt to see why this girl wants to train.)

"W-Well... W-What d-do you w-want t-to g-get s-stronger f-for?" Feeling a bit more relaxed, I sit down on the dock, and Sneasel decides to take a seat as well.

"Well, cuz... I just need to get stronger. I never want to have to run away from a fight again. And more recently... I have someone I want to protect." She looks off towards the guild. "It's not just for my own sake anymore."

I close my eyes and ponder her words. (Someone to protect... Oh, she must mean that Rimbombee that's always hanging around her. I've heard other guild members say he's completely useless in combat, I guess she must be carrying the weight of their team. Reminds me of me and Dewott...)

I open my eyes and faced Sneasel. "T-The one you w-want to p-protect... W-Would you f-fight t-t-to the e-end-d-d f-for them? Even if t-they c-couldn't d-do the same f-for y-you?"

Sneasel locked eyes with me and instantly replied. "Without a second thought."

(Wow, she's...)

"Y-You're... U-Um... Really fucking stupid."

Sneasel is taken aback by my sudden outburst. "... What did you just say to me?"

"Exactly what I said." I flap my wings to quickly make myself stand up. "You're a complete MORON! You think strength is just fighting until your body can't fight anymore? You think strength is defending helpless friends? You REALLY think strength is dying for your friends, leaving them without you?!" Unable to hold myself back, I get up into her face. "What's that little useless bug friend of yours going to do if you fuck up during a fight? Use a dinky little slingshot to defeat ferals? Hah! Any mistakes YOU make in a fight would doom your partner as well!"

Sneasel jumps backward with a growl. "Don't you dare say those things about Booker, he's doing his best to get stronger, unlike a weakling like you who refuses to train!"

(I know I shouldn't be doing this, but she's really getting on my nerves!) "Alright then, I'll give you your damn training lesson! GUS!"

Gus, who had been silently watching us talk from the end of the pier, jumped up as I called his name. Startled, he replied, "Uh... What do you want me for?"

"You're going to be my partner for this sparring match. Make sure I can trust you, got it?!" Gus is shocked by my sudden assertiveness, and seems too scared to argue with me.

"A-Alright, I'll fight with you!" Gus grabbed his scallop from his chest and locked eyes with Sneasel.

Sneasel put her claws on her hips. "Two versus one? This isn't fair."

"Why don't you call Booker to be your partner then? I'm SURE that'll make this fight eve-WHOA!" I'm cut off by an ice shard flying inches away from my face, it was so close I could feel the freezing air around it graze my skin. Looking back at Sneasel, I see her dashing towards me, with another ice shard ready in one of her claws!

I do a roll to the side which sends me flying off the pier, and I use my wings just in time to stop me from hitting the water. Hovering in place, I see Sneasel preparing to throw another ice shard at me, but Gus decides to go in for a slash with his scallop, shattering the ice shard in Sneasel's claw!

"NICE ONE! FOLLOW IT UP!" Gus looks at me for half a second and gives me a quick nod, and follows up his attack with more scallop slashes that force Sneasel to block them with her claws. She seems hesitant to make an attack against Gus, which I assume is because she only really wants to beat me up, not Gus. However, her patience runs out and she easily deflects one of Gus's slashes with a slash of her own, which sends his scallop flying into the air!

(Shit, he's defenseless against her claws without that!) I flap my wings as hard as I can, gliding across the surface of the water while keeping my eyes locked on the scallop flying through the air. I position myself under it, and flip myself around to catch it right before it would've landed on my chest. (Perfect!) I fly up and look back towards the dock, and see Gus struggling to dodge Sneasel's claw swipes.

"OVER HERE!" My yell grabs both Gus and Sneasel's attention. I thrust Gus's scallop in front of my head, and send myself flying like a missile straight at Sneasel. She covers her face with her arms to brace for impact, but right before I'm about to collide with her I orient myself upright and flap my wings, stopping my momentum for a successful feint. I quickly toss the scallop back to its rightful owner, and Gus seizes the chance to slash Sneasel in the side while she's still covering her face! Sneasel lets out a yelp as she's sent flying down the dock!

"Perfect! Gus, time for the finisher!"

"Got it! Wait, wha-" I quickly fly behind Gus and grab his back, and use all of my strength to lift him into the air! "W-Wait, what are you doing!?"

I ignore his whining as I focus on flying the both of us over towards Sneasel, who is only now getting back on her feet. Flying above her while carrying Gus, I do a spin in mid-air and send Gus hurtling toward Sneasel! Seconds before impact, Sneasel sees the living projectile flying towards her and jumps backwards, making Gus miss her and smash right through the wooden planks of the dock and splash into the water below!

(Oops. I uh, probably should've explained what I was doing first, guess muscle memory from doing combo moves with Dewott took over. I hope he's okay.) As I fly down to the hole in the dock, Sneasel shoots some ice shards at me, and I yell in pain as one connects with my right wing! The freezing cold sends shivers throughout my body as I start plummeting back down to earth! I slam into the pier, and hear the wooden planks creek under me as a wave of pain passes through my entire body due to the impact. Dazed, I pull myself up only to see another ice shard speeding towards my face. I don't even have time to let out a gasp before I feel the freezing shard hit my face. The feeling of burning cold envelops my body for a second before everything goes black.

I'm awoken by a rush of energy flowing through my body, as well as hearing the crunch of something being chewed in my mouth. Swallowing, I open my eyes and realize Gus just fed me a reviver seed. I sit up and rub my eyes, and see Sneasel sitting nearby, staring at me with her arms crossed.

"You okay?" Gus says as he hands me an oran berry. "Sneasel hit you pretty hard."

I munch on it and feel another wave of energy course through my body, erasing some of my pain. "Y-yeah... I-I s-should b-b-be t-the o-one asking y-you if you're o-okay... S-Sorry a-about t-the throw..."

"It's fine, I didn't get hurt. That throw actually let me jump up through the hole in the dock and sneak up behind Sneasel to knock her ou-"

"HEY! You said you weren't going to mention that!" Sneasel snaps.

"Right, sorry." Gus says as he scratches the back of his head sheepishly. "Well, good thing we're all okay."

"Y-Yeah..." I finish eating the oran berry and stand up. "U-Um, S-Sneasel?"

"... What?" Sneasel doesn't look at me as she responds.

"I-I'm s-sorry... A-About e-everything I s-said b-before..."

Sneasel sighs. "... It's alright. You weren't entirely wrong, I am pretty dumb. But you're completely wrong about Booker being useless. He might not be strong, but he's saved me from my own stupidity countless times."

I nodded. "I a-also g-got myself k-knocked out b-by y-you... D-Despite s-saying t-to n-not make s-stupid m-mistakes l-like I j-just d-did..."

"It was a mistake you could afford to make since Gus could still fight. You were right in saying me making a fatal mistake like that would put Booker in a lot of danger as well. And..." Sneasel sighs again. "... You fought pretty well."

"I-It was m-mostly all G-Gus..."

Gus smiles. "Thanks, but really all I did is just wave my scallop around. In a fair fight, Sneasel would've had me beat."

"Of course." Sneasel said with a satisfied smirk. "But your guy's teamwork was amazing. It made me understand what you think strength is, Togetic. It's teamwork, isn't it?"

I nodded again. "Y-Yes. B-But more t-than that, s-strength is k-knowing you c-can t-trust your team-m-mate to c-cover your w-weaknesses with t-their own s-strengths."

"Ha, don't need to do that if I just get strong enough to have no weaknesses!" Sneasel puts her arms behind her head and lays back on the pier, staring at the stars. "... Teamwork is a powerful thing though. You and that Dewott must've been a true force to be reckoned with."

I just stare at the ocean silently. (We were, though Dewott did most of the heavy lifting. I was pretty much useless until I evolved, and even then I can still barely fight on my own. Here I am getting my ass handed to me in a 2v1 while Dewott's probably doing just fine on his own.)

Sneasel lifts up her head to face me. "... Don't want to talk about him? Fair enough, it was rude of me to bring up your past anyway."

"... You r-remind me of h-him, a b-bit." I mutter under my breath. "I-I guess t-that's why I g-got so m-mad... I s-saw m-myself and D-Dewott in y-you a-and B-Booker."

Sneasel put her claw to her chin with a grim expression her face. "So... Then, did he make a mistake and...?"

"O-Oh, h-he didn't die." Sneasel let out a sigh of relief as I said that. "W-We just h-had s-some close c-calls... O-One of them d-did lead t-to me e-evolving t-t-though..." I let out a sigh of my own. "We w-were both h-humans, a-and he w-wanted to g-go back to the h-human w-world while I-I d-didn't, s-so we a-abandoned e-eachother." I struggle to stop my voice from wavering.

Gus sat down next to me and put his arm on my back. "I want to go back too, but I wouldn't ruin a friendship over it. I know I'd have to leave some friends behind here, but I'd want to leave on good terms with all of them."

Sneasel looked off towards the sea, and her face made her look like she was deep in thought. (I wonder... Is she thinking about if Booker would want to go back to the human world? I wonder how many of the humans here would want to go back. It's going to be a sad day when a way back to the human world is finally found.)

We all continue to look out to the starry sea, enjoying how beautiful the moon and the stars in the night sky made it look. The only thing we could hear is the wind rustling through some of the nearby trees and the waves crashing against the supports of the pier.

However, our peaceful moment was soon interrupted.

"ZZZZZT, WERE YOU THREE THE CAUSE OF THE NOISE COMPLAINTS?"

Startled, we all jump to see a Magnezone behind us. "AND NOW I CAN SEE THAT THE PIER IS DAMAGED, ZZZZZZZZZT"

"Uh... It was like that when we got here!" Sneasel quickly responds nervously. "Actually, we came here cuz of the noises we heard! Right guys?" Sneasel waits for a response from one of us to back her up, but there's only silence. "... Guys?"

Sneasel turns around to see that both me and Gus have disappeared. I've already flown back over the town while Gus silently dived into the water, out of sight.

I'm unable to hold back a smirk when I hear Sneasel yell "COWARDS!" in the distance while I glide my way over to the guild.

(Now she's for sure going to shank me later.)

Wooper gets Smashed

"Ugh... Huff!"

I adjust the crate I'm holding in my arms as I struggle to carry it through the halls of the guild. It's the middle of the night, and the guild's hallways are illuminated by oil lamps. Not wanting the crate to obscure my view, I walk at an awkward sideways angle which slows me down. The sound of jingling bottles within the crate continually makes me nervous, as at any moment I'm afraid I could hear one of them shatter.

(Damn, why didn't they include some packaging to act as a buffer so the bottles aren't all bouncing against each other!? And Beast is going to think I'm the one that broke them if any of them do happen to crack.)

I walk through the dim and empty dining hall and notice that the door to the kitchen is ajar. (Thank god, don't have to risk putting down the crate to open the door.) I hit the door with my shoulder to open it, and inside I see...

"C'MON WOOPER, CHUG CHUG CHUG!"

Wooper is laying on the floor as Chespin pours a wine from a wine bottle directly into his mouth. Wooper's eyes are half-closed and dazed, while his large smile looks even larger as he's opening wide to make sure none of the wine spills out of it. Chespin can barely hold the bottle straight as his body sways from side to side. Chespin finally notices me and looks over, and his eyes look just as dazed as Wooper's.

"Oh... hic, hey Toge!" Chespin slurs as he accidentally spills some of the wine onto Wooper's chest, which just seems to absorb it.

"U-Uh... H-Hey..." (Well, at least I happened to restocking the wine tonight. That'll save them getting skinned and fileted alive by Beast.)

Chespin's bottle lets out its final drip of wine, and it lands directly on Wooper's face, once again getting absorbed into his body. Wooper is unresponsive, but has a look of pure bliss on his face. Chespin lets out a loud hiccup and falls on his behind, giggling.

(... I'm not sure how I feel about seeing my two saviors getting completely shitfaced. I should probably cover for them considering how much I owe them for saving me that one time.)

I walk over to one of the kitchen counters and carefully place down the crate of wine, and then turn to face my two inebriated guildmates. "H-How m-many b-b-bottles d-did you d-drink?"

Chespin groggily looks up at me with a smile. "I hadsh... hic... One bottle, and we wanted tch see howsh many... hiccup... Wooper could takesh... I thinks he had... hic.... Two..." Chespin then flopped down onto his back, staring at the kitchen ceiling.

Sighing, I open the crate and start taking out and organizing some of the wine into the kitchen cabinets. (Cabernet Carnivine... Mareep Merlot... Persim Noir... Chesto Chardonnay... Chateau Cherrim... Ah.) While organizing them, I notice that the cabinet that usually held Chateau Cherrim was empty. (Well, guess that's their favorite. I'll have to remember that for their birthdays or Christmas.) Just as I'm about to get back to organizing the bottles, I hear footsteps and a voice from the dining hall.

"WHO'S IN MY KITCHEN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT!? I SWEAR IF YOU'RE MESSING WITH THE MAYO AGAIN CYNDAQUIL I'M GOING TO TURN YOU INTO BREAD!"

(Oh, fuck! Gotta hide the drunkards!)

I quickly open up a large cabinet close to the floor that is full of pans and various cooking utensils, but is thankfully large enough to be able to hold Wooper and Chespin if they were squeezed in there. (It'll be a tight fit, but they'll thank me later.) I fly over to Wooper, pick him up, and then shove his squishy body into the cabinet, making the pans clang against each other. Chespin is alerted by the loud noise and sits up.

"hic Whatsh... What are you doing to Woopy?!" Before Chespin can get angry at me, I grab him and throw him into the cabinet! "OOFSH! HEY, hic, WHAT ARE-"

I whisper closely to Chespin "s-stay quiet or y-you're going to g-get s-slow boiled-d." Before slamming the cabinet door on him and Wooper. I hear them fidget inside against some of the pots and pans for a few seconds, but eventually the noise stops. I breathe a sigh of relief, and Beast finally makes his way into the room.

"YOU BETTER NOT BE MESSING WITH MY NEWLY BOUGHT PANS- Oh, it's just you, Togetic." Beast leans against the doorway as he catches his breath. "Heard some clattering down here and assumed it was one of the usual troublemakers."

"H-Hello S-Sir Winchester..."

"You don't have to call me "Sir", everyone here just calls me Beast anyway." However, his slight smirk betrays the fact that he actually enjoys my choice of honorific. Beast seemed to like me more than most other guild members. Initially, he disliked how I would sneak into the kitchen to organize things for him without him knowing, but over time he came to accept it, and he started sending me on errands for him to restock the cooking supplies he needed. He also appreciated how I could understand his rants about food, but sometimes this led to ranting of my own about food in the human world that he couldn't keep up with. "Restocking the wine?"

I nod. "Y-Yes... F-From the s-special order you p-put in w-with the K-Kecleons back i-in t-t-town. T-They a-assured me i-it was only the f-finest of e-each batch..."

Beast scoffed. "It better be, it took a lot of convincing to get the Guildmaster to let me use the guild's funds to pay for it." Beast walked over to the open crate and started examining some of the bottles I had yet to put away. "Looks like they haven't been tampered with, at least. But we won't know if they've been watered-down until they're open."

"N-Not like t-the plebian palettes of the pokemon here would be able to tell the differences between a watered-down wine and one of the highest, most refined quality! N-None of them probably even know how something as simple as the shape of the wine glass itself c-can influence how the wine can taste due to how the wine's aroma reaches one's nose!"

A large grin formed on Beast's face. "Perfectly right. Everyone here just gulps down everything alcoholic without actually trying to enjoy the flavor profile of the drink. Well, not that we really have the fancy glasses to do something like high-quality wine tasting here anyway." Beast put his hand to his chin and thought for a moment. "Hey... Why don't we do a little taste test right now? You're the one that carried it all over here, you deserve the chance to enjoy some of it before the rest of the guild goes through all of it."

(A-Actually drink it!? Sure I know a lot about alcohol, but I've never drank any, even as a human! Ugh, why am I thinking about that, I have to get Team Cozy out of here before they make any noise and blow their cover!)

Nervously shaking my head, I say, "U-Uhm... I-I m-must d-decline... I-I wouldn't w-want to w-waste any of the w-wine..."

"Nonsense! Come on, let's get some glasses!" Beast starts walking towards me, but then nearly slips on a puddle of wine! Regaining his balance, he notices the large amount of Chateau Cherrim spilled all over his kitchen floor. "Who... Who made this mess!?"

(Oh fuck. Well, I'm still indebted to Team Cozy, so here goes.) I let out a sigh. "... M-Me.... I'm s-s-sorry... I-I d-d-dropped a... Erm... B-Bottle by ac-c-ccident... I-I w-was c-cleaning it u-up b-b-before you c-came in... I-I-I'm really s-sorry, S-Sir W-Winchester..."

Beast's expression turned soft. "O-Oh... It's alright. Even a great chef like me makes a mess of the kitchen sometimes. Here, I'll help you clean up-"

"N-No! A-A h-head chef l-like you s-shouldn't have to c-clean up the m-mess of an a-assistant l-like me..."

"Oh, come on. I'm down here, I might as well hel-" His voice is interrupted by some clattering within the cabinet behind me, and I see the cabinet door move slightly out of the corner of my eye. Acting quickly, I bash myself against the cabinet to force it closed, while clutching my chest and wincing to pretend that I'm in pain.

"O-Oof.. O-Ow..."

Beast rushes over to me. "Togetic! Are you alright? I can get some oran berries from the pantry."

"I-I'm fine... J-Just a-a little s-sore f-from... U-Uh... T-Training w-with... S-Sneasel!" (God my excuses are getting worse by the second.)

"You don't look fine, are you sure you don't need any help?"

"Y-Yeah.. J-Just a l-little s-sore... And t-tired..." I let out a large yawn, right into Beast's face. "A-ah... S-Sorry... I-I should g-go get s-some rest..."

Beast lets out a smaller yawn of his own. "Yeah... I'm feeling a bit tired too all of a sudden, I should get back to sleep." After letting out another yawn, Beast lethargically walks to the kitchen's exit, only slightly attempting to avoid stepping in the puddles of wine. Once he disappears through the doorway I let out a large sigh of relief.

(Haaah... I can't believe Yawn worked. I should use it more often, I just hope he doesn't fall asleep while climbing the stairs.)

Turning my attention back to Team Cozy, I get up, and the moment I stop holding back the cabinet door Chespin and Wooper come rolling right out. "Ouch! Couldn't you have put us in a larger cabinet? It wasn't comfy being in there! hic" Chespin pouts as he stands up and dusts himself off, he's still somewhat unsteady on his feet but he appears slightly more sober. "... Thanks for hic covering for us, though."

Wooper attempts and fails a few times to stand upright, and Chespin has to help him stay steady. "Yeah... hic, thanksh! Your natural awkward shtuttering made it imposshible for Beasht to tell you were... hic... lying!" Wooper says gleefully when Chespin finally gets him back onto his feet.

"T-Thanks... I-I think." Despite being somewhat annoyed at them, I can never stop myself from smiling when I see Wooper's joyful face. "W-Why were you t-two getting d-drunk d-down here a-anyway? Y-You know h-how mad B-Beast gets."

Chespin put his hands behind his head. "Heheh... Well, hic Wooper was asking me about how hic humans drink alcohol, so..."

(Guess someone was a party animal in a past life. Or at least wanted to be one.) "W-What kind of h-human chugs w-wine, t-though?"

"We hic couldn't find... any beersh!" Wooper nearly falls over again but Chespin puts his arm on his head to balance him.

"And Wooper just hic really likes this wine, Beast has caught him sneaking in to hic drink it before!"

(Extra noted. Now I just need to find out their birthdays) "A-Are both of you s-sober enough to w-walk?"

Chespin nods, and Wooper tries to nod, but instead he just faceplants into the ground. After helping his friend up yet again, Chespin takes out his vines and wraps them around Wooper's body, and then lifts him over his head shakily. "I can hic carry Wooper back to our room like this."

"A-Alright. You two g-go on ahead s-so I can catch you i-if you stumble." After taking a moment to clean up the cabinet I shoved them into, I follow them out of the kitchen and through the dining hall. As Chespin stumbles up the stairs holding Wooper above him with his vines, I carefully keep an eye on both of them, arms ready to catch either if they fall. Thankfully, neither of them falls over, and we make it to the floor that Chespin and Wooper's room is on. After a short walk we make it to the door of their room, and Chespin places Wooper on the ground as I open the door to their room for them.

"Y-You two feeling a-alright? I can get you some w-water if you two need to s-sober up more."

Chespin and Wooper shake their heads. "I'm feeling mostly hic sober now. You okay Wooper?" Wooper looks at Chespin and begins to nod, but lets out a loud yawn instead. "Alright then, let's get you into bed." Wooper nods again, and walks into the room. Chespin and I follow behind him, and I'm momentarily shocked by the massive blanket that takes up the room. Chespin seems to notice my awe. "Impressive hic, right?"

"Y-Yeah, your t-team name is n-no joke." (... How the hell are they going to wash that thing when it eventually gets dirty though?) My gaze eventually turns to Wooper, who flops down on the middle of the blanket and falls asleep near instantly. (Feels weird to see Wooper actually tired out for once, guess he's hungover. Chespin and Wooper are such great friends, if only I could have a friendship like that.)

Chespin notices my forlorn expression. "... Something wrong?"

"... I-I'm just jealous of y-your friendship. Y-You two are p-practically inseparable. I d-don't think anyone else in the guild has a r-relationship as deep and as i-inspirational as you two."

Chespin blushes. "W-Well, that might be exaggerating it a bit, but thanks. Just know we both consider you a great friend as well. If you're ever feeling uncomfortable, Team Cozy will always be here to make you feel cozy!... hic"

I giggle as Chespin isn't able to hold back a hiccup. "I j-just... Wish I could c-connect with s-someone on the same l-level you and W-Wooper can..." I let out a sigh. "F-Feels like I c-can n-neve-BAWH!?"

Out of nowhere, Chespin suddenly gives me a big hug, and holds me tightly. "I told you! hic We'll always be here if you need to feel more comfy, got it?" Chespin's embrace fills me with warmth, and I hug him back.

"... T-Thanks..." All of my worries wash away as I just let myself enjoy the feeling of being hugged and embraced by someone. Chespin's body occasionally vibrates violently when he hiccups, but it's not enough for me to mind. After hugging for about a full minute Chespin lets go of me.

"Uh... Sorry if that seemed kinda...hic y'know. I don't know what came over me, must be the wine." Chespin says while looking away from me awkwardly.

(Guess the booze makes him more touchy-feely.) "I-It's fine. I-I kinda needed t-that, anyway." I take another look at Wooper, who's still out completely cold on the giant blanket. "Well, I should p-probably let you s-sleep off your drunkenness. T-Thanks for all of the s-support."

"Heh, hic you're the one that saved us from getting chewed out by Beast, we should be thanking you." Chespin stretches out his arms while letting out a yawn. "Well, goodnight!"

"G-Goodnight." I walk out of the room and Chespin closes the door behind me. (Well, that sure was... Something. I should get back to the kitchen and clean up the rest of the mess down there before turning in for the night myself.)

---

While cleaning up the mess of spilled wine in the kitchen, I notice something glint on the floor from the light of the oil lamps. Moving closer, I can see it's a Clover Guild badge.

(Huh. I guess this must be one of Team Cozy's, probably fell off after they tumbled out of the cabinet. I'll go sneak it into their room while they're sleeping)

---

Making my way back up to their room, I slowly and carefully open up the door, not wanting to disturb either of Team Cozy's coziness. Once it's open enough, I peek my head in, and see a sight that shocks me to my very core. An image that will forever be burned into my retinas for the rest of my life. Chespin and Wooper are under the covers of the giant blanket, and cuddling each other, with Chespin having his arm over Wooper's body.

(This... This... Is...)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WY_-MK0XBGc

(This is the absolute cutest thing I have EVER seen in my life. Nothing else in this world or the human world could possibly compare to the level of cuteness and beauty at this moment, right here. This simple moment of innocent cuddling between two best friends is the PEAK of adorableness within all universes. There could be a million universes where this exact scene happens, yet this one will always be the cutest and most powerful of all of them. Breaking down how this scene and all of the factors that create it as the perfect image of kawaiiness would do a disservice to the scene, as all of those factors working together in unison, much like how Chespin and Wooper always work in unison, is what makes the scene whole, and what makes the scene the pure unfiltered essence of cuteness and beauty. However, despite how I know how folly it is it try and analyze this scene, I cannot stop myself from wanting to indulge in describing what makes it perfect, as doing so would allow me more time to view the scene critically, and perhaps even embolden my philosophical appreciation for this pinnacle of kawaii. Chespin and Wooper's friendship, and their undying devotion to each other, is perhaps the most important aspect of this scene. Perchance. Their relationship is one that would be the envy of anyone in the world, a friendship between two friends who understand each other near-perfectly, and who both have their minds completely set on the same, noble but in-of-itself adorable goal of making the world a comfier place. This sets the backdrop for the rest of the scene, while Chespin and Wooper's embrace shows how masterful their relationship is, there's more going into it than that. As a pokemon, Wooper does not have any reason to believe why cuddling with someone for warmth would be awkward or even something to get flustered about. However, as a human, and due to how awkward Chespin got after he hugged me, it is obvious Chespin, like a lot of human males in the world, find the idea of any physical contact with another male, for a lack of a better term, "extremely gay", and thus are afraid to manifest their platonic affection towards another male friend in any physical ways. Now this has never stopped Europeans, but due to the fact that Chespin hasn't attempted to kiss anyone on the lips as a greeting and hasn't asked for a license for his vines and other possible weaponry, it can be assumed he's American. These pure homo-social bonds between Chespin and Wooper are also why a male like me is the only one who could EVER truly appreciate this scene. Women would NEVER understand this scene, they would mistake the pure, loving embrace between friends as homosexual and assume that they are lovers instead of being the world's best companions. Homosexual men and of course, DYKES would never be able to understand the rich nuances of this scene either, this is a scene with straight men that only other, just as straight men could fully appreciate. Disgusting FUJOSHITS would bastardize this scene and use it as an excuse to write DISGUSTING smut instead of PROPER fanfiction that would show the true colors of Team Cozy's relationship. Lesser men, not as confident in their own sexuality, would laugh at this scene, calling it gay, unable to accept their own insecurities and would be unable see to that their """criticism""" of the scene is really just a projection of their own inner turmoil of being faggots. Truly, only I, standing here right at this moment, this scene forever ingrained into my mind, could ever hope to-)

"Watching the two lovebirds cuddle each other?" Elm whispers as he floats next to me to get a better look into the room. "More like Team Homozy, am I rig-"

With all of the force in my body, I perform a devastating uppercut, powered by the power of the cuteness of Team Cozy that flows within me. Elm's body is instantly shot upwards and hits the ceiling... Or it would've, if he wasn't a ghost type. Instead he went flying right through, and with how much force I put into that uppercut I can only assume that he must be somewhere within lower orbit by now.

(Team Cozy and their relationship are truly the peak and pinnacle of all relationships within the guild, no, within the entire world, and it must be protected AT ALL COSTS. That DUMBSKULL, that motherfucking baka, that sick motherfucking BAKA will NOT ruin this perfect moment, nor will ANYONE else. I must make sure this moment, and all future moments like it, are safe and protected. I must secure a future for Team Cozy and Team Cozy appreciators (Me). I will make sure no one and nothing stands in the way of Team Cozy's bonds of friendship. I cannot allow a world to exist where Chespin and Wooper stop being friends. Their friendship will be protected. If anything were to happen to Chespin or Wooper, I would kill everyone in this guild and then myself.) Remembering what I initially came here for, I quietly float into the room, and place the lost badge on the small table on the side of the room, and quietly float out, sneaking one last glance at Chespin and Wooper before I carefully shut the door to their room.

As I turn away from the door, I see a familiar shadow floating down from the ceiling. He rubs the lower half of his body, wincing in pain. "What was THAT for?"

"U-Uh, sorry. Y-You just s-spooked me."

"Remind me to not be a ghost next time. What were you doing staring at those two, anyway?"

"S-Something you'll n-never understand, d-don't worry about it."

Elm gives me a weird look, then shrugs. "Well, see you around." Elm gives me a wave and then goes back on his way. I start making my way back to my own room.

(I will create a world where the coziness that we know today lasts forever.)

Pancake Pandemonium

(What should I do today...)

I stretch as I walk up the stairs from the storeroom to the guild lobby. It's just past midday, and most guildmembers are off on missions or wandering around the town. I'm about to make my way back to my room when I notice Debby the Delibird by the entrance of the guild carrying some packages.

(Ah, I should go help her deliver some of those.) I fly down over to her and she gives me a smile.

"Hello there, hon!" Chirps Debby as she takes a package out of her bag. "Ya' mind takin' this here package to Beast? I'm a busy gal with a lot of packages to deliver today!"

"S-Sure, m-maam..." I pick up the package, which is a wooden crate. I nearly fall over as I lift it up, as it's heavier than I expected. "Wh-What's in th-this?"

"Sorry dear, client confidentiality!" She says with a chuckle. "Y'all got some strong arms an' wings hon, ever thought about makin' some cash on the side workin' for me?"

I blush at the offer. "U-Uh... I-I'll c-consider i-it..."

"Hoot! Hope y'all do, hon!" She says a little extra cheerfully, obviously glad she made me blush. "Well, I hafta get back to deliverin', thanks for being such a sweetie, Toge!"

"Y-You t-t-too..."

She grins as she lifts her bag over her shoulder and flies out of the guild. I adjust my grip on the crate and start waddling over to the kitchen, as the crate is too heavy of a load for me to carry while flying. (Wait, how did she know my nickname? I don't think I've ever introduced myself to her... Well, she does deliver packages here a lot, she must've just overheard it from another guildmember. That or she just guessed it since "Toge" isn't the most original nickname...)

The crate's so tall that I can barely see in front of me as I walk into the mess hall. (Getting some deja vu here, I should probably tilt myself to the side so I can see where I'm go-) Suddenly, something bashes into the other side of the crate, making the crate fall out of my hands and making me fall over! "O-Ow... Wh-Wha-"

I'm interrupted by a Pikachu running up to me. "OMIGOSH, I'M SOOOOOO SORRY! L-Let me help you!" Says the creature nervously, with tears in her eyes. "You aren't hurt, are you!?"

She puts out her hand, and I grab it, only to feel a shock course through my entire body that makes all of my fur stand on end! "O-OW!"

The Pikachu gasps and retracts her hand, looking horrified at what she just did. "I-I'M SOSORRYOMIGODIDIDN'TMEANTO... WAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!" Without warning, she breaks down and starts crying.

(... What.) I shake my body to get my fur to go back down. As I stand back up, I get a good look at the Pikachu, and notice she's wearing a cute pink bow on one of her ears that has a Clover Guild badge on it. (Oh, she must be a new guildmember.) "U-Uhm... I-I'm f-fine... A-Are you... O-Okay?"

She rubs her eyes and seems to calm down a tiny bit. "Yeah... sniff... Sorry for running into you... And sniff shocking you by accident..."

"I-It's o-okay... I'm T-Togetic... B-But the o-other guildm-m-members call m-me T-Toge..."

The Pikachu stops crying and cracks a small smile. "I'm Pikachu, nice to meetcha!" She puts out her hand for a handshake, but then quickly pulls it back. "Oh, right, eheheh..." She says as she scratches the back of her head bashfully. "I still haven't gotten full control of my electric powers yet..."

(So, then she's probably another human.) "... W-Well, n-nice meeting y-you..." I turn away from her and start picking up the crate again.

"Wait, let me help you! Where are you carrying it?" Pikachu says as she walks to the other side of the crate.

"J-Just to the k-kitchen o-o-over there..." I point to the kitchen's doorway which is just past some of the mess hall's tables.

Pikachu nods. "Alright, let's GOOOOO!" She grunts as she lifts up her side of the crate, and I lift up my end as well. The weight of the crate is much more manageable now.

"Th-This way." We walk sideways as we slowly bring the crate to the kitchen. Once we're at the kitchen's doorway, I look inside to see an irritated looking Beast staring at a piece of paper. Both me and Pikachu move to the center of the room and slowly put down the crate, which makes a thumping sound that alerts Beast.

"Oh, that must be some of the new equipment I ordered." Beast says with a deadpan tone. "Just in time too..."

"I-Is th-there something w-wrong, C-Chef W-Winchester?" I ask, while floating closer to look at the paper he's holding.

He sighs. "Well Togetic, there happens to be a cooking competition today out in town, and the winner gets some of the finest and most high-quality frying pans in the world, straight from the Sand Continent! But alas, that coffee maker Spinda came by earlier just to gloat about how she will win the competition."

"Wh-Why d-don't you j-just join the c-competition a-and b-beat her th-then? S-Surely your c-cooking prowess w-would e-easily let y-you win..."

"The problem is that the competition starts in a few hours... And well, just take a look for yourself." Beast hands over the paper he's holding to me, and I read it over. The paper is a poster that's mostly pink and white, and includes a drawing of a Slurpuff wearing a chef's hat.

Chef Slurpuff's Powerful Pancake Competition!
Participate to win the best frying pans in the world from the Sand Continent!
Participation is free, but entrants must supply their own ingredients. (Cooking stoves and other cooking utensils will be supplied by us.)
Once the competition starts, participants will have twenty minutes to make their pancakes.
Each group will make a stack of three pancakes that will be rated under these three criteria:
Deliciousness!
Uniqueness!
Cuteness!
All pancakes will be judged and taste-tested by Chef Slurpuff.
Making syrup will not be required, Chef Slurpuff with use syrup of his own choosing.

(... Uniqueness? Cuteness?) "... S-Some i-interesting choices f-for w-what's j-judged... B-But I-I st-still don't s-see the pr-problem..."

"The ingredients. If I had known about this in advance, I could have ordered some specialty eggs and milk for the perfect pancake mix, but if I were to join now, I would have to make do with the supplies here, which are less than adequate for a contest meant to show off the peak of culinary expertise. The stock here is meant only for making mass-producible slop to keep up with the guild's appetite." Beast says while looking around at the various supplies within in his kitchen. "... And while I can understand how one would make a dish "unique", I am afraid I have absolutely no idea how to make a dish... "Cute"."

Pikachu perks her head up at the mention of the word "cute", and walks over to me to peek at the poster. "This seems like it could be fun! Even if you don't win, it would give you the chance to get creative and just have some fun!" Her face lights up as she talks, and her cheeks start to flash with static. "I could even help you with making some cute designs, Mister...?"

Beast gives the Pikachu a disapproving stare. "... Winchester. Beast Winchester. I do not remember inviting you into my kitchen."

"... T-To be f-fair, y-you never i-invited m-me either..." I say while staring at the floor.

"You stay out of my way and keep my kitchen well-stocked and organized." Beast quickly retorts. "Anyway, even if I DID decide to accept your help, we would not have enough time to come up with a suitable design that fits all of the criteria."

(Beast will probably yell at me for even thinking to suggest this, but...) "... W-Why don't-t a-all th-three of u-us t-try making d-different t-types of p-pancakes? Th-That w-way we could t-taste test d-different ingredient i-ideas faster..."

Beast opens his mouth, about to instantly rebuke the idea, but then closes it and brings his hand to his chin. "... That is not the worst idea I have ever heard. I can trust that both of you know how to flip pancakes?"

I nod. "U-Used to m-make s-some b-back home..."

Beast turns to Pikachu. "And you?"

"Uh... I enjoy making cute faces in them!" Responds Pikachu, tugging on her bow nervously.

Beast lets out another sigh. "Well, I doubt you two will be able to botch making simple pancakes. I'll go start making some mixes, then. Togetic, get some pans out and start the stoves, please. " Beast starts heading to the kitchen cabinets and getting the supplies he'll need for his pancake mixes. I head over to the cabinets with pans and start placing them on the stoves.

---

"E-Everything sh-should be all-l s-set, C-Chef W-Winchester..." I say as I finish lighting the last stove.

"Good work, Togetic." Beast says as he grabs some spatulas from the crate me and Pikachu brought in earlier. "Here. It took a lot of convincing to get the Guildmaster to order these, do NOT break them." Beast hands two spatulas to both me and Pikachu, and then picks up two large jugs of pancake mix. "Here is what we are going to do: Me and Togetic will test out different mixes, while you attempt to make some "cute" designs, got that, er...?"

"Just Pikachu is fine." Responds Pikachu as she takes a jug from Beast and starts pouring some pancake mix into her pan. "Now I wonder what cute things I could make? Oh! What about the faces of some cute pokemon?! And having them stacked on top of each other... Cute pokemon... S-Sandwiched between two other cute pokemon... Kyute..." Completely ignoring us, Pikachu starts poking at her pancake mix, trying to shape it into something while drool starts to drip from the corner of her mouth.

Beast stares at her. "... She seems passionate, at least." Beast turns back to the stove and starts pouring some pancake mix into our pans from two different jugs. "Now, we cook."

I nod, and we both grab our pans with our spatulas ready in our other hands. Beast slightly tilts his pan around to spread the mix as equally as he can across the pan, and I attempt to imitate him. However, my touch isn't as delicate as his, and my pancake just ends up looking more and more misshapen. I sigh at my incompetence, while Beast takes a look at my pan and cracks a smile.

"Practice will make perfect, Togetic. You should not worry about the shape right now anyway, what matters is how the mix tastes." Beast turns his attention back to his pan, and in one fluid motion, he slides his spatula under the pancake and flips it over, revealing a perfectly golden-brown side of the pancake.

Turning back to my own pan, I try and copy Beast's movements, but I fumble and end up making only half of the pancake flip, making it flip onto itself and tear. (Damn it...)

Beast looks over again, this time looking more irritated. "You have to make sure the entire spatula is under the pancake before flipping. Do not just try and copy me without thinking, I thought something like that would be obvious enough."

"S-Sorry..." I slide my spatula over the pancake to un-flip half of it, and then do as Beast instructed. This time I successfully flip the entire pancake without issue, and the fried side is a nice shade of brown, and it already looks appetizing despite the tear right through the middle of it.

Beast's face softens. "Good. Now, you-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!"

We hear a blood-curdling yell from Pikachu, and turn around to see that she's somehow flipped her pancake onto her face. Now it's that of a Wooper's in pancake form, and I have to stop myself from giggling as I see her try and rip the cheerfully smiling Wooper pancake off of herself.

Beast isn't as amused, and just facepalms with a sigh. "This is a KITCHEN, not a masquerade party."

---

Following Pikachu's little disaster, she was barred from using the stove and was instead given a pencil and paper to design her perfect pancake on. Meanwhile, me and Beast finished our pancakes, and we moved them onto plates. Beast brought the plates over to the table Pikachu was drawing at, and starts cutting himself a piece from the pancake he made. He takes a bite and chews with a focused look on his face.

"Hmmm... Milk in this mix might have been too rich." He then cuts a piece from my misshapen pancake and eats it. The moment he chomps down his face lights up. "Mmm... Not perfect, but I like this mix. I will go make some more mixes to test out, feel free to eat the rest." Beast heads off back towards his supplies as me and Pikachu pick up some knives and forks to try out the pancakes ourselves. Just like with Beast, the moment Pikachu tastes my pancake her face also lights up, and her cheeks let out a ZAP.

"Mmm... It is really good!" She goes for another bite, while I decide to try Beast's pancake first. It tastes great, just like all of Beast's dishes. It's cooked just the right amount and has a sweet, savory flavor, and the fluffiness of the pancake makes it melt in my mouth.

(... My pancake is somehow better than this? Guess I should try it and see for myself.) I cut myself a small piece from my now half-eaten pancake and put it into my mouth. (... Huh. This just tastes like Beast's but worse. Why do those two prefer mine? Maybe I just don't have enough of a refined palette or something.)

Beast comes back with some more jugs of pancake mixes, and the two of us start baking some more pancakes. This time I get the mix to spread out more evenly through the pan, and I don't mess up when flipping the pancake this time. Beast gives me an approving nod when he sees me successfully flip the pancake. Before long we have two more completed pancakes, and Beast gives each a taste. Once again, his face beams as he takes a bite of my pancake, but this time the look is followed by a look of confusion.

"Huh... I gave you a different mix and it does taste different, but..." Beast looks completely befuddled. Pikachu uses this chance to cut a bite from my pancake and her face also sparks with joy again. I try a bite of my own as well, but it just tastes like a normal pancake to me.

(... What's got him so confused? Tastes average to me.) "S-Something w-wrong, C-Chef?"

"... Nothing. I have decided on the mix we are going to use, but now I want to try mixing in some berries." Beast deftly moves over to his berry cabinet and skillfully starts chopping up some Pecha Berries. He scoops up the chunks into a bowl, then moves over to the stoves. He pours the pancake mix into the pans, then carefully sprinkles the expertly-chopped Pecha Berry chunks onto the mix. He then takes out his spatula and motions for me to come over. I take my spot at my pan, and see Beast push the chunks deeper into the mix by gently pushing down on top of the pancake. I copy him, careful not to push too hard with my spatula. From there we bake the pancakes just as we did before, and soon we have two more delicious-looking pancakes, this time with little pink spots scattered over them.

"These ones look and smell AMAZING!" Pikachu says as she looks up from her drawings, licking her lips. I sneak a peek at her pancake drawings, only to see that she hasn't been drawing pancakes at all. Instead, I see a bunch of different cute-looking pokemon all in... interesting situations.

(What the...? "B-But Raichu-sama... W-We're both boys!!! W-What if people see us?!"... "I won't let anyone stop our fated love, Clefairy-kun...") I blink rapidly, trying to process the bizarre drawings before me. (It's all... Yaoi... But... It's so cliché! Come on, the relationship dynamics here are barely-)

Pikachu notices my staring and quickly flips the paper over, revealing the pancake designs she was working on earlier. Her face turns red and her cheeks flicker with static. Beast doesn't seem to notice Pikachu's embarrassment as he places the pancakes onto the table. As usual, he takes a bite from his pancake, and then a bite from mine. The familiar happy look hits his face again for a second after he tries my pancake, but now it's followed by a look of frustration.

"HOW?! It was the same mix and you copied me near perfectly! These SHOULD NOT taste different, but they do! And it is not just the taste, something about your pancake just feels... I can not describe it, it just makes me feel pleased! Togetic, have you been adding anything to your pancakes?!"

Beast's sudden outburst startles me, and I feel my eyes begin to water as I struggle to stutter out a response. "U-Uh... I-I w-w-was... E-Erm... J-Just c-copying wh-what you d-d-did... I-I'm s-sorry..."

Realizing his yelling almost made me break down, Beast takes a deep breath to calm himself. "No need to be sorry my good man, my frustration should be with my own skills, not yours. That said, do you truly have no idea why your pancakes taste better?"

I wipe my eyes and shake my head. "N-No. B-But to be h-honest... I-I t-tried a-all of the p-pancakes, and f-for every one I-I think yours t-tasted better than m-mine..."

Pikachu chimes in. "You don't need to be modest! I thought yours tasted better too, Toge!"

"B-But... I-I'm t-telling the t-truth. I-I d-don't taste w-whatever it is y-you two a-are tasting w-when you t-try my p-pancakes..."

Beast crosses his arms and examines all of the pancakes on the table. "... Hang on..." He leans in close to one of the pancakes I made and stares at it intensely. He raises his finger and then drags it over the surface of the pancake, then brings that finger right in front of his eyes. "Joy Dust, I should have known!" Beast gets up and walks over to me, pointing his finger at me. I look closer to see that there's some small specks of white dust on the tip of his finger.

(Oh right, I forgot Togetics produce this stuff! I guess that's why it didn't affect me.) "S-So... I-I must've g-gotten this d-dust on the p-pancakes w-when c-cooking them..."

Beast nods as he shakes the dust off of his hand. "Precisely. I have heard of Joy Dust being used as a condiment before, but it was usually too expensive to buy or import for even the most high-quality establishments, so I have not had any experience with it at the places I used to work." Beast takes a second to look over me, and a smirk begins to form on his face. "Togetic, I think you just got us our ticket to winning this competition!"

"I-I have?" Beast jaunts over to me, and starts rubbing the fur on my chest with his hands, making me shiver from the sudden contact. As he rubs, the same type of white dust begins floating out. Beast moves in close to get a good sniff of it, but then quickly backs off with a grimace.

"Togetic... When was the last time you bathed?" Beast says with a deadly serious tone that raises the tension in the room.

"E-Er... I-I think W-Wooper washed m-me off w-when I w-was f-first b-brought t-to the guild... I-I've b-been busy i-in the storeroom m-most of t-the time, s-so..."

"... And you were first brought to the guild HOW long ago?"

(... Oh no.) "A-A few weeks a-ago...?"

Beast brings up the palm of his hand to wordlessly tell me to stop talking, and then he walks over to one of the kitchen sinks. He leans over the sink, and my ears are graced with the sound of Beast retching as he vomits up everything he ate earlier.

"Eww..." I hear Pikachu say behind me as she clutches her stomach. My face flushes with embarrassment as Beast finishes puking and walks back over to us.

"Stay here. I will be back." Beast says before he walks out of the kitchen, leaving me alone with Pikachu. I do my best to restrain myself from ranting about Pikachu's "art" as we wait for Beast to come back. Pikachu beckons me over, and the two of us start discussing which of her pancake designs is the cutest.

---

Our discussion eventually gets interrupted by Beast barging back into the room, carrying a large wooden tub with one arm and a bucket of water in the other. He places the tub on the floor and points at me as he takes out a scrubbing brush. "Clothes off, now."

I hear a mini-thundercrack and a "Hau...!" next to me as Pikachu nearly falls out of her chair. Her eyes are completely glazed over and drool starts dripping from her mouth again. I even see her noise bleed a little as well.

Feeling even more flustered, I take off my blue scarf and badge as I sit down in the tub. Beast wastes no time and dumps the bucket of water onto me, making me sputter as I try and wipe the cold water out of my eyes. I'm then met by the feeling of something rubbing my fur as Beast begins brushing me down. The chilliness of the water makes me shiver as beast cleans me with his scrubber, which also makes Joy Dust fill the air around me. Beast tries to hide his smile as he accidentally inhales some of the dust, but does a poor job of it.

After a few minutes of brushing me down, Beast re-fills the bucket and dumps it over me again. "A-Are w-we done y-yet?" I say as I wipe the water out of my eyes.

"Almost." Beast grabs a towel and starts drying me off with it. Once I'm dry, I step out of the tub and Beast grabs an empty condiment bottle. He opens it up and starts rubbing the bottle against my fur, and Joy Dust slowly starts filling it up. Once it's about halfway full, Beast steps back and puts the lid back on the bottle. "There. Our key to victory!" Beast says as he puts the bottle in one of his apron pockets. "Please try and keep yourself clean, especially if you plan on handling kitchen supplies in the future."

"R-Right, s-sorry..." I shake my whole body to get the last bits of water off of me, and then put my scarf and badge back on. I look over at Pikachu, who still looks a little dizzy from her earlier outburst.

(Reminds me of what I get like when I think of Team Cozy, though I think her thoughts a little less innocent...)

Noticing my staring, she snaps herself back to reality and goes back to working on her design. Both me and Beast walk over to her and take a look at what she's drawing. "What do you guys think of this idea?" Pikachu says.

The paper shows three different designs, which are supposed to be stacked on top of each other. The bottom design shows what looks like a flat square, while the middle is a smiling Wooper, and the top design is what's supposed to be a blanket. "S-So it's s-supposed t-to b-be a W-Wooper tucked i-into bed?"

Pikachu nods gleefully. "Yep! It's gonna look totally cute! What do you think, Mister Winchester?"

Beast looks unamused, but doesn't seem to disapprove of the design. "It should be easy enough for me to replicate faithfully. I have no objections, though I still do not fathom why someone would want to make what they eat look cute."

Pikachu's eyes seem to sparkle as she hears that Beast will make her design a reality. "Everything's better when it's cute, even food! Oh, isn't the competition going to start soon?"

Beast looks out the window. "You are right, can the two of you help me carry some supplies?"

Both me and Pikachu nod, and Beast leads us to the supplies, which mostly include the ingredients for his pancake mix. Once we have everything, we make our way out of the kitchen, and exit the guild into Capim proper.

---

The competition is being held in the middle of Capim town, and lines of portable stoves have been set up for all of the participants. A crowd of pokemon has formed around the venue, and the three of us push through and take a spot at one of the unclaimed stoves. Much to Beast's dismay, this spot happens to be right next to Spinda's as well, and she spots us as Beast starts setting up his supplies.

"Oh, Beastie boy~! I thought you weren't going to join the competition, heheh~" Giggles Spinda as she stumbles over to us. "And you got some friends! Mymymy, training up some more rookies? Maybe with them you could upgrade from a cafeteria worker to a food stand chef~!"

Beast ignores her taunting and continues setting up his equipment. Before Spinda can begin another round of insults, she's cut off by Chef Slurpuff clapping his hands loudly and walking up onto a makeshift wooden stage.

"HELLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOO LADIES AND CHEFS!" Slurpuff opens his arms up wide as his voice booms across the venue. "I'm delighted to see such a large turnout! Now, I hope all of you know the rules! Your pancakes will be judged on their deliciousness, their uniqueness, and lastly and perhaps most importantly, their cuteness! Now, I would give you some more time to prepare, but..."

A loud rumbling sound can be heard coming from the stage, and I feel the entire area around me shake. "... I'm absolutely famished! Let's not waste anymore time, shall we? Start your ovens... NOW!" Chef Slurpuff takes a party popper and pops it to signal the start of the competition, spreading a small amount of confetti in the air. All of the various participants start rushing to light their ovens, and before long the sounds and smells of sizzling pancakes can be felt throughout the square.

My own stomach starts to rumble as I watch Beast begin his work. Not wanting to disturb him, I decide to take a look at what Spinda is making. She's somehow molded her pancake into the shape of her own face, and used a different, darker type of mix in large spots on the pancake in order to emulate the spots all over her body. It looks like she's also sprinkled berry chunks into a spiral to be the pancake's "eyes".

(That's pretty inventive... But Pikachu's design is way cuter.) The noise of the cooking pancakes, clattering kitchen supplies, and chatter from the participants and the audience starts to make me feel stressed out, so I decide to just take a seat near Beast and Pikachu and try to tune out all of the noise. (I've never liked big crowds like this... Hopefully this is over soon...)

"You okay?" Pikachu says as she sits next to me, looking concerned.

"... Y-Yeah. J-Just n-not f-fond of n-noisy c-crowds..." I say with a sigh.

"We can try and find a quieter spot, if you want."

"I-I'm f-fine... B-But thanks." I give her a bit of a forced smile, and she smiles back. "I-It sh-shouldn't be t-too long u-until this is o-over, a-anyway..."

"Right, just don't force yourself if you're really uncomfortable, alright?" Pikachu moves to give me a pat on the back, but stops herself halfway. "A-Ah, nearly forgot again, heheh..."

(... She's really nice and more observant than I thought she was initially. I thought she was just kind of a stupid ditz at first, glad to know that head of hers isn't only thinking of degenerate thoughts about male pokemon. Even if that's what she's probably thinking about most of the time.)

Both of us watch Beast finish up cooking his pancakes, and just as he finishes the third and final one, Chef Slurpuff steps onto the stage again and claps his hands. "Annnnnnd TIME! Get your stacks ready and form a line in front of the stage. Stay orderly now, and no cutting!" As Chef Slurpuff says this, some Machokes come up and place a chair and table next to him, and he takes a seat as all of the participants start forming a line.

"Come on, you two." Beast says as he grabs the plate of pancakes and starts heading toward the line. Both me and Pikachu use the chance to get a look at the pancakes. They came out perfectly and have a delicious-looking shade of golden-brown that has a bunch of small bits of Pecha Berries mixed in, and the shape of the pancakes is also perfect, with it looking like a smiling, sleeping Wooper tucked into bed. Looking closely, I can also see that tiny specks of Joy Dust cover the pancakes.

"Wooooow..." Pikachu is awe-struck. "It looks exactly like my design! You did amazing, you truly are a top chef!"

Beast can't hide his smile. "Eh, it's no big deal. Pancakes are not exactly hard to make."

All three of us make our way to the line, but right before we join it, Spinda slides in front of us, holding her stack of pancakes with one hand. "Whoops~! Guess I'm faster than you~!" Spinda taunts as she stumbles around in front of us. "Don't know why you're even bothering, I had all of my ingredients specially prepared from the best suppliers in advance~! You stand no cha-" Spinda's cheery expression completely disappears as she notices me standing next to Beast. "... You didn't."

Beast's smile grows even wider. "Something wrong? I thought you were confident in your specialty, high-quality imported ingredients? You should have no problem winning against our lower-quality ones."

Spinda stares at me for a few seconds, before suddenly changing back to her previous expression, though now it doesn't look genuine. "H-Ha... R-Right you are, Beastie~! I'm glad you're already admitting defeat, will you be sending your resume to one of my cafes after your inevitable defeat~?"

Beast opens his mouth to respond, but is interrupted by some pokemon clearing their throat behind us. We've been accidentally holding up the line, and all four of us quickly rush to catch up with the line before the pokemon behind us get even more irritated. It isn't long until we reach Chef Slurpuff, and Spinda places her pancakes on a table in front of him.

"Oooh, Spinda! I should've known you would've joined the competition!" Says Chef Slurpuff as he licks his lips. "And I must say, these pancakes do look pretty cute, just like you!"

"Dawww~, thanks chef!" Spinda says while happily teetering from side to side. "I put only the best ingredients into them, I hope you love it~!"

"I'm sure I will! Just needs some syrup first..." The chef takes out a large bottle of syrup, and begins pouring it onto the pancakes. And then keeps pouring it. And keeps pouring it. And pours even more onto it...

All four of us stare in stunned silence. (.... You can't even see the pancake anymore... It's just a glob of syrup...)

Once the jar is empty, Chef Slurpuff just throws the bottle behind him, and one of his Machoke assistants grabs it before it hits the ground. Then he grabs the plate, and flings the mass of pancakes and syrup right into his mouth, and he devours it in one bite! "MmmmmMMMMmmm... Delicious! The best pancakes so far!"

Shaking the bewilderment from her face, Spinda quickly returns to her overconfident self. "Hear that, Beastie? Looks like I'm gonna win~"

Beast pushes her out of the way as he places our pancakes on the table. "Here you go, Chef." Beast says with a bow.

"Ohohohoho! You must be Chef Winchester! I've heard many rumors about you, I hope these pancakes can live up to your reputation!"

(... I wonder how much of that reputation is good?)

"While these pancakes are not made with the most expensive ingredients, me and my... Friends put a lot of effort and care into them. The Pikachu here is the one who made the design, and Togetic helped with some finishing touches." Beast says with an unusually proud tone.

"Oho! A team effort between friends! How sweet! You did a great job with the design, young lady! These pancakes are so adorable I almost don't want to eat them! Almost."

"T-Thank you!" Pikachu says as she gives a deep bow, which ends up making her ears slam into the table by accident. "Ooops, s-sorry!"

Chef Slurpuff lets out a hearty laugh. "Ah, the vigor of youth! Now, time to dig in!" He once again douses the entire pancake until it's completely covered in syrup, and gobbles the entire thing in one gulp. The moment he swallows, his face lights up with the expression I've seen on Beast and Pikachu's faces earlier today. "T-This flavor... This feeling... It's perfect! Despite the average ingredients, something about it just... Makes me feel so much joy! What's your secret, Chef Winchester?" Asks Chef Slurpuff as he nearly jumps out of his seat.

"I already told you, it was... Pffft... The power of friendship." Beast says as he struggles to stifle laughter while looking at Spinda's shocked face.

Chef Slurpuff lets out another hearty chuckle. "Ah well, a good chef always keeps some ingredients secret, I suppose. Maybe I'll have to visit the Clover Guild sometime if all of the food you serve there is like this!"

(If Beast starts washing me down every day for Joy Dust because of this I'm going to drown him in his own pancake mix.)

"I would much prefer if you would invite me to some of your high-quality kitchens, Chef. I am afraid the guild's kitchen might not be up to your refined standards." Beast's response helps quell my sudden mon-icidal thoughts.

"A wonderful idea! Maybe you could invite your friends here, or some of the other guildmembers? Anyway, your pancakes are by far the best ones I've had all day! I doubt any others today will compare, but we still have to be fair to all entrants, so I'm afraid our nice little chat has to come to an end for now-"

"Impossible..." Spinda mutters under her breath.

"Did you say something, Spinda?" Asks Chef Slurpuff.

"Impossible... Impossible, IMPOSSIBLE!!" Spinda gets up into Beast's face, anger clearing overtaking her. "I PUT OFF CAFE RENOVATIONS SO I COULD AFFORD THOSE INGREDIENTS! HOW COULD A MEASLY CAFETERIA WORKER LIKE YOU BEAT ME WTH SUCH INFERIOR INGREDIENTS?! THIS IS CHICANERY! I WON'T STAND FOR IT!"

"I think you already know how." Beast retorts smugly as he takes out his small bottle of Joy Dust. "I just had a little help from some friends." Beast wiggles the bottle in front of Spinda, and she makes a grab for it, but Beast quickly slides it back into his pocket. "If you had focused on making friends instead of making profit, you might have won." Beast says sarcastically as he wags his finger in front of Spinda's face....

??? (Coming soon)™

??? (Coming soon)™