Occam's Razor Leaf

With the rising of the sun, newly shining sunlight starts to beat down on my closed eyes. The sensation jostles me awake and I clumsily scramble to a standing position as fast I can.

“No, no, no. I’m not letting that happen again,” I think to myself.

Retreating into the remaining shade of my lean-to, I let out an exasperated sigh. I need to manage my sun intake carefully if I want to avoid changing personalities. The last thing I want is a repeat of my last adventure.

Peeking my head out from the cover of my lean-to, I take a look at the sky. Not a cloud in sight. Figures. After rolling my eyes, I stretch my wings and contort my neck in an effort to get the last of the grogginess out of my system. As I do so, I feel the bananas on my chin press up against my neck and I’m reminded of the fact that I’m down to two bananas right now. I can't explain why, but that fact upsets me. I’d really hate to lose any more.

Finally feeling awake, I inspect the path towards the mess hall looking for any spots of shade I can find. Having mapped out a path, I make my way towards it, darting as best as a clumsy giant dinosaur can between the shade provided by the guild and the nearby trees.

After a couple of minutes, I make it to the exterior of the mess hall, and notice that there isn’t any shade by the window I use. Quickly weighing the pros and cons of a solar charged full stomach, I figure that as long as I don’t stay in the sun too long, I’ll probably be fine. I’ll just have to eat fast.

I stick my head in through the window and find the basket the guild’s chef set aside for me. I begin to chow down as fast as I can. Urf. I wish I could savor my meal a bit more and avoid acting like a crazed pig devouring his trough’s slop, but I really don’t want to stay in the sun for any longer than I need to. Anything is better than changing personalities again.

Once I finish, I hurriedly make my way back towards my lean-to and retreat into its shade. Sitting down, I begin to mull over what I should do today.

Given that I completed a job yesterday, I’m not hurting for cash. But the attitude of that Scraggy and the trouble I had with the Venusaur on that job is troubling me. A frown finds its way onto my face as I remember what the client Scraggy said to me.
“Why don’t you just fight it! You’re Flying-type, you can take that thing!”

A Pokémon like myself should be able to handle a Venusaur. I have the size and type-advantage to do so… I just don’t have any of the skills. Or any skills a Pokémon should have for that matter.

I grumble in frustration. I can’t keep relying on my size to carry me in combat. I need to learn how to fight like a real Pokémon. A good place to start would probably be learning how to use an actual attack. But how? My lack of ability to use a move isn’t from lack of trying. I’ve tried many times before to use a move. No matter what part of my body I used or how I thought about what I wanted to do, I couldn’t get any sort of Grass or Flying attack to work.

But… If I don’t keep trying, I’ll stay as I am now. And I do not want to be a special needs banana dinosaur for the rest of my life. That settles it, today is the day I learn how to use a move!

Rising from my sitting position, I look towards the wooded area behind the guild. To practice using moves, I’ll need some place with stuff to break that isn't important.

“I bet there’s somewhere in the woods I can practice,” I think to myself. I leave the cover of my lean-to and quickly head into the shade of the forest. I wander around the woods, sticking to the cover of the trees as best I can, until I find a small clearing with enough room for me to let loose. It’s rather sunny in the middle where it’s open, so I stay close to the edges where there’s shade provided by the trees.

Taking notice of a small sapling in the middle of the clearing, I widen my stance, close my eyes, and take a deep breath. I relax the muscles in my wings before tensing the base of my wings. Slowly pulling my wings back, I suddenly open my eyes and thrust my wings forward as hard as I can!

“Yah!”, I yell, feeling the weight of the wind I just shot forward! The wind hits the sapling and… its leaves blow around a little bit, as if I simply blew at it with my mouth.

Sighing, I rethink my approach. Perhaps the way I moved my wings was all wrong?

Over the next few hours, I try all sorts of movements, motions, and mannerisms to move my wings just right in an attempt to use an air attack to chop down the sapling, but all I can accomplish is scuffing up its leaves a little bit. Tired and frustrated, I let out an exasperated groan and begin stomping my front right foot.

“Aaaaargh! What am I doing wrong!? What am I not doing that these other Pokemon are doing!?”

I sigh deeply, sitting down to collect myself. The former humans at the guild don’t seem to struggle with this, so why’s this so hard for me? Is there something different about me? Is it the kind of Pokémon I became that’s making this so difficult? Or is there something I’m not getting?

Whatever it is, it seems like I’m not going to make any more progress on this today. I may as well try to see if there are any decent missions left on the board that I can handle so this day isn’t a total waste.

Defeated, I stand up and make my way back towards the rear of the guild, being sure to keep to the shade of the forest trees as much as I can. After a short while, I reach the back of the guild where my lean-to is located. I steer left of it and circle around towards the entrance located at the front. As I do so, I stretch my neck down to give a passing glance into one of the guild’s bottom floor windows and see a room with Pokémon practicing different kinds of attacks and sparring with each other.

“Is this some kind of training room?” I think to myself, still looking through the window while my body moves forward absentmindedly. After a couple of seconds, my body is so far ahead that my neck can’t stretch anymore to keep my head at the window, causing me to lose my balance and fall over with a loud thud.

Lying dazed in the dirt, it isn’t long before a voice calls out, “Is everything alright out there?”
Getting back to my feet while trying as best I can to shake off the dirt, I look back towards the window to see a Combusken with a confused look on his face.

“Yeah, I’m alright… Hey, that room of the guild there, is that like a training room?"

“That’s correct. This is the guild dojo, where guild members may practice their moves and fighting techniques. But I don’t believe we’ve met before. I'm KFC."

“KFC, that’s really your…?” Not wanting to get into guild memery, I ignore the obvious joke.
“Well, whatever. My name’s, uh, Tropius. I didn’t realize the guild had a dojo. So you guys practice moves and spar against each other here?”

“Yes. The dojo is here for guild members to hone their skills in battle.”

My face perks up slightly. If there’s a place like this in the guild, maybe someone here can help show me how to use moves! I reply to the Combusken, “Do you know if it’s possible for anyone in there to teach me how to perform moves? I’ve been trying to learn how to use moves for a while now and no matter what I try, I can’t get any right.”

KFC scratches the back of his head . “Can’t perform any moves, hmm? There aren’t any Grass or Flying type Pokémon in the dojo right now, but I would be willing to help you. I am unsure how effective I can be, given how different our elemental and body types are, but I will do my best. Come inside and I will teach you what I can.”

My face lights up and a smile comes across my face, but quickly leaves as I’m hit with realization. My eyes dart around awkwardly before looking back towards KFC. “Uh, that’d be a bit of a tight squeeze for me with everyone else in there, don’t you think?”

KFC appears surprised briefly. “Ah, of course. Wait out there, I’ll come out and meet you in a moment.”

KFC walks away from the window and disappears from my sight. I back away from the window and head over to the nearby garden to lie down underneath a tree while I wait for KFC. While I wait, an intrusive thought comes to my mind.
“What if this guy is just going to mess with me? This is the Clover Guild after all, and he’s a Combusken who said his name was KFC…”

I frown at the possibility. But if he isn’t messing with me, this may be my chance to finally learn how to use moves like a real Pokémon. I have to trust that at least some of the Pokémon in this guild mean well. I hope I don’t regret it…

KFC appears from around the corner of the guild, and I get up and move over to meet him. He motions me to follow him. We walk past my lean-to and head in the direction of the same clearing I was at earlier. Sticking to the cover of the trees as I follow KFC, we eventually arrive and KFC walks to its center. I stick my head out from the cover under the tree I’m under and look up. The sun is hanging high in the sky, with not a cloud in sight. I look at KFC, see him wave his right hand at me, and he asks, “Will you join me in the middle here?

“If it’s all the same to you, I’d rather stay here in the shade.”

KFC raises an eyebrow, before shrugging. “Whatever.” He walks away from the middle of the clearing to come closer to me. “So, what have you tried already?”

“Well, I’ve tried plenty of times to use air attacks using my wings. I’m not really sure what kind of move that would end up being, probably Gust or Air Slash, right? I thought it’d be straightforward, but no matter what I try, I can’t get anything more than a light breeze.”

“I see. Have you tried any Grass attacks?”

“Uh, not really. I wouldn’t know where to start with those.”

“Well, for most Grass moves, you would need to properly express the type energy of your aura for a successful attempt.”

I turn my head to the side and give him a strange look. “Expression of… aura? Isn’t that fake magic maguffin stuff?”

KFC shakes his head. “There’s nothing magic about it. All living beings have an aura, it’s 100% natural.”

A worried look finds its way onto my face. I can’t get a read on whether or not this guy is making fun of me or not. This aura stuff sounds like a load of crap. I’ve heard of Lucario and Aura Sphere of course, but every living thing have an aura? But… I am in the Pokémon world now, so what do I know? I’ll just have to trust what he’s saying and hope he doesn’t pull a “Gotcha!” on me.

With a skeptical look on my face, I reply, “Really? I didn’t know that. Auras aren’t exactly real back in the human world.”

“Well I assure you that it is quite real here. It’s a spiritual energy that’s a part of every living creature. When a Pokémon attacks beyond basic punches and kicks, they need to express the type energy of their aura to manifest the attack properly. Let’s start you off with trying a basic Grass attack. Razor Leaf seems appropriate for you..”

“Um, how exactly am I supposed to do that? I don’t know anything about aura.”

“You don’t need to know anything special about aura to utilize it like this. This application would all come naturally to you if you were a natively born Pokémon. Relax and feel the aura within you. Move it by tensing and relaxing the muscles throughout your body to channel the aura to where you want the move to manifest; for Razor Leaf, it would be your wings. You’ll feel the sensation from the energy of your aura building in your wings. Once the aura is built up enough, it’ll convert to the type energy of the move your intentions are focused on. Force it out through your wings as you make a pushing motion with them. Depending on the motion and type energy you use, you’ll get different kinds of moves.”

That’s certainly a lot to make up if he was trying to trick me. Maybe he’s actually being genuine! “That’s a lot to take in… Are you sure I can do all that?”

KFC nods. “It may seem complicated, but this is a natural thing all Pokémon do. You may find it more instinctive than you think.”

I’m not so sure about that, but I have to give a shot. I relax every muscle in my body and start trying to focus on whatever aura energy might feel like. After a couple seconds I can feel a very faint tingle throughout my body, though I’m unsure if that’s my aura or me straining myself. I tense the muscles in my body starting at my extremities, and slowly start to tense the other parts of my body towards my core, as though I’m pushing all the energy from them towards my center. I feel the already faint tingle leave my limbs and build up in my center, though it still feels quite weak there. I tighten up in my core and legs in an attempt to push this energy into my wings. I feel the tingling quickly move up to my wings.

I'm close now I think! What did KFC say I needed to do at this point? Force the energy out with proper intention? I think I understand at this point how to move the aura energy around, but intention? Does that just mean thinking of using Razor Leaf? That’s the only thing that makes sense, so that’s what I’ll have to try.

Closing my eyes, I begin imagining leaves cutting through the wind at great speed. I picture myself behind these leaves in a vague attempt at involving myself in this mental image to properly focus my intentions. Feeling as though I’ve done all I really can to guide myself mentally, I make a forceful motion with my wings and tighten the muscles in my wings as best as I can! I open my eyes, and…!

…Nothing. I don’t see anything noteworthy. I turn towards KFC to confirm, who sits down and says, “I saw your wings glow faintly around the point that you closed your eyes. It seems like you were able to manipulate the flow of your aura, which is impressive for someone who hadn’t been aware of it before today. That said, you weren’t able to pull off Razor Leaf successfully. There’s a number of different reasons that could be. Try again while I observe."

I nod at him. “Alright.” It’s unfortunate that I couldn’t get the Razor Leaf to work on that attempt, but it seems like I’m making progress finally at least. I go through the same motions as before, making minor adjustments in an attempt to channel my aura better into a potential Razor Leaf. But still I come up with nothing. I try again and again over the next five or so minutes before eventually giving up with a groan.

“Aaaargh, I can’t get it right no matter how I try!”

KFC rises from his crisscross position. “There didn’t seem to be anything obviously wrong about your technique, though I’m not very knowledgeable about Grass or Flying moves. I can’t say for sure what you’re doing wrong. But after watching you so many times, I’ve noticed your aura seems rather… weak.”

I tilt my head. “My aura is… weak? What does that mean?”

“Usually, when a Pokémon’s aura is weak, that means that they aren’t in good health. Do you feel weak or sick or anything?”

I look down at the ground in contemplation for a moment, before responding “...I don’t feel out of the ordinary or anything.”

“Hmm… If that’s the case, then maybe you’re just making a mistake at some point in the process. I would imagine aura manipulation doesn’t come naturally to all former humans, even though it seemed like you showed some prowess with it. I’d recommend you keep practicing using what I’ve taught you until you’re able to finally use Razor Leaf or another move. That’s all I can suggest for you now.”

Lowering my head limply in defeat, I sigh. “Well, I guess I can’t have expected this to be that easy… Thanks anyway for teaching me all that stuff about my aura. This was helpful… I think.”

KFC nods. “Good luck. I’m going to head back to the guild now. It was nice to meet you, Tropius.” KFC turns and walks away from the clearing, back in the direction of the guild.

For a while longer after KFC leaves, I try some more to use his guidance to perform a Razor Leaf. Each attempt I try it a bit differently, but no matter what, I can’t get Razor Leaf to work. Feeling exhausted from all the effort, I give up and start heading back towards the guild myself, staying careful to stick to any cover that I can find from the sun.

After a short walk, I arrive at my lean-to on the north side of the guild, and head left towards the entrance of the guild on the south side. Once I get there, I look in through the entrance, then up at the sky to get an idea of what time it is..

“Hmm… It’s probably a few hours past noon right now. It’s too late in the day to get a mission done, and I’m feeling exhausted after all that effort before… Maybe I’ll just take a walk around town.”

I begin my descent down the steps that lead up to the guild and head towards town. After a brief climb, I find myself on the streets of Capim Town. The town is bustling with activity, as all sorts of different Pokemon make their way through the roads of the town. They go in and out of the shops and various buildings as they talk with each other. I wouldn’t want to walk through town at noon, but since it’s a few hours past, the relatively diminutive buildings are able to provide some shade for me to stay in, though it isn’t much.

I stay close to the edges of the road, looking down constantly to make sure there are no small Pokémon in my way that I wouldn’t otherwise see. The last thing I need right now with all the other things on my mind would be to trample some poor Pokémon by mistake.

As I walk by the different buildings, I stick my head down to peer into the windows. I see all sorts of different shops: A store full of clothing and accessories with an Ariados behind the counter, what looks to be an ice cream store (they have that here?), and a store with a Golett arranging all sorts of different knickknacks on a shelf. It’d be nice to step into one of these, at least to browse, but the shops are too small for me to fit inside.

After some walking, I come out to the main square of town. Here, there’s tons of Pokémon convening and passing through. The town’s Kecleon Shop is located here, which thankfully is outdoors, so I could actually go shop there if I needed anything. However, on the corner of the square, across the main area, I spot what looks to be a café.

“Oh man, it’s been such a long time since I had a nice hot chocolate… I wonder if they have something like that there?”

I slowly but excitedly meander through the bustle of the main square area, taking care not to accidentally run over anybody, and make it over to the café. It’s only once I get there do I realize; I’m too big to fit inside!

“Right. Of course,” I sigh. My wings and neck droop in disappointment. “Why would I expect anything different at this point.”

Realizing that my walk through town is only making me feel more down, I turn around and head back towards the guild, taking the same care as earlier to stay in the shade and not to trample any unsuspecting passersby.

Eventually, I reach the base of the stairs that lead up to the guild and begin my climb. As I reach the top, I spy two Pokémon coming out of the guild entrance: a Chespin and a rather cheery looking Wooper.

A Chespin… I think I’ve met him once before. If I remember right, he’s also a human turned Pokemon. And he’s a Grass type! I bet he would have some advice for me on how to use moves. This day is still salvagable after all!

Chespin and Wooper walk towards me, seemingly headed for the stairs. I stay in the shade provided by the nearby trees and wait for them to approach. As they get close, I step in front of their path. Chespin gets startled and jumps back a bit with a “Woah!” before recomposing himself. Wooper gets an excited look on his face like a little kid seeing his favorite animal at the zoo.

Lowering my head to their level, I say, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. You’re Chespin, right?”

“Y-yeah, that’s me. Your name’s… Tropius, isn’t it? You’re a guild member too, aren’t you?”

“That’s right.” I look around to make sure nobody else is within earshot of us. I lean my head in a little closer and whisper, “Say… You’re a human, right?”

Chespin backs up a bit. “Um… yeah? Why do you ask?”

“Well, I was a human too, but-”

Wooper’s face lights up even more than it already was. “You’re a human, just like Chespin? Wow! Can you tell me all about the human world? What kind of place did you live in before? Do you have any cool human stories? Do you know who Sneed is, Chespin won’t tell me! Can I have a banana?”

I step back and raise my head away. “Uh…”

Chespin turns to Wooper and scolds, “Wooper, you can’t just ask all those kinds of questions to any human we come across!” Chespin turns to me. “Sorry about that, he gets very excited around humans.”

“I can tell…” I reply awkwardly.

“So what were you gonna say before?”

“Well, since you’re a Grass type and a former human like me, I wanted to ask you how you learned to use moves. No matter what I try, I can’t get any kind of Grass or even Flying-type move to work… I even talked to that KFC guy and while it helped a bit, I still couldn’t do a move. How exactly did you learn?”

Chespin shrugs, and his vines appear from his shoulders. “Well, I guess my vines would be the first thing I learned how to use, and that came pretty naturally to me. I didn’t really have to think about it at all! As for my other moves like Headbutt, they took a bit of practice, but they’re nothing that special.”

My expression sombers. “That’s not very encouraging for me… I mean, I know how to use Stomp, but I'd hardly call that a move..."

Chespin thinks for a moment and says “Well, how about I help you learn Vine Whip?”

“I don’t have any vines. At least I’m pretty sure I don’t.”

“Hmm… Oh! What about Solarbeam? I learned that move a while back from a TM, I bet a big Grass type like you could use it easily if I helped show you!”

The color drains from my face as I raise my head high in the sky in horror.. “S-S-SOLARbeam!?”
I quickly realize how extreme my reaction seems, so I dial it back and try to play it off. “T-t-that seems a bit much for someone who can’t even use a basic attack yet. I don’t think I’d be able to handle a move like that!”

“I suppose that’s true… But those are the only Grass type attacks I know. I don’t think I can help you besides those two moves!”

I frown. “That’s rather disappointing…”

Wooper chimes in, “That’s OK! I’m sure you’ll learn a move really soon! I know you’ll be able to do it, humans are really cool like that!”

His pep does make me crack a smile. I turn my head towards Wooper and say, “Thanks, that does help a little.”

Wooper smile grows larger before a look of realization comes over him. “Hey Tropius! Want to come to the café with me and Chespin? We were just headed there ourselves!”

I raise an eyebrow. “Really? You want me to come with you?”

Wooper grins widely. “Why wouldn’t we? You’re a fellow guild member, arentcha? We’d love to have you come with us, right Chespin?”
Chespin looks at his partner. “Oh, um, of course! If Wooper wants ya to come, I want ya to come too!”

I can’t help but feel a warm feeling of happiness come over me. My face, wings, and neck perk up, almost instinctively. It seems like the Clover Guild’s members aren’t so bad after all!

“That sounds great actually! Thank-”

A sudden realization hits me, and I feel that warm glow from earlier drain instantly.

“Um, Wooper. That café you’re talking about… That wouldn’t happen to be the one in the town square, across from the Kecleon Shop, would it?”

“Yeah it is!”

My face and wings droop. “O-oh. I don’t think I’d be able to fit inside that place.”

Wooper frowns. “Awww… That’s too bad…” He perks back up and says, “We’ll do something together another time then!”

I dejectedly reply, “Thank you for the invitation, anyways. I’d better get going… Enjoy yourselves at the café.”

I start to step away, but Chespin interjects, “Hey, Tropius, before you go, I wanna know if you’re feeling alright? I couldn’t help but notice your leaves look… pale?”

Raising an eyebrow, I respond “My leaves are pale?”

“Yeah. Usually the green of a Grass type’s foliage is more vibrant than yours. I didn’t want to say anything earlier because I didn’t wanna sound rude.”

“My leaves have always been this shade. Are you sure they look off?”

Chespin nods. “Definitely. Have you been getting enough sun?” My eye twitches at the mention of the sun. “The sun’s really good for us Grass types.”

I coldly respond, “Oh, I’ve been getting enough sun alright…”

“Well, make sure you keep getting plenty, it does wonders for us Grass types!” Chespin looks at Wooper. “Come on Wooper, let’s go get some drinks.” He turns back at me and says, “Was nice to see you Tropius! Get that sun, and stay away from chillers!” ...Chillers? What?

Wooper smiles at me and says “Bye Tropius!”

Chespin and Wooper walk down the stairs and out of my vision. As they leave, I barely catch Chespin saying to Wooper, “Hey, you think that guy would give us a ride in the sky sometime?

Feeling dejected from my interaction with Chespin and Wooper, I trudge forward, aimlessly northwards around the guild, trying to process… everything. This world, these Pokémon, this body… It’s all becoming too much for me. Back when I was still human, the PMD world always represented a sort of escape to me but… this world has been anything but that. This worthless body that can’t even be exposed to sunlight without going insane. Too big to have any sense of normalcy, sleeping out in the doghouse like a mangy misbehaved mutt. I can’t even spend the money I earn in these stores unless I want to risk breaking everything inside, if I can even fit in in the first place. And when things finally turn around, and I meet some Pokémon that aren’t these twisted jokesters and are actually being nice to me, trying to help me… Still, nothing comes of it because of this cursed form I’ve taken on.

And to top all this off, I still can’t use any moves!!! I’ve tried everything! Ugh, why is this so hard!? Nobody else is struggling like I am to use a move, so what’s wrong with me!? Am I just an idiot!? A cripple!? I can’t take it! Why me!? I just want to be normal! Is that so much to ask!?

I scream at the top of my lungs, my rage and energy coming to a fever pitch! I rear up on my hind legs, and slam my front ones down, pushing my wings forward as I do so.

Chchchchch… FweeSCHWOCH!

I pause, eyes wide open, as I watch a sapling being cut cleanly in half by a barrage of leaves!
I just stand there in disbelief until the warmth in my wings brings me back to reality. I look around and realize that I’m standing in the middle of the clearing from earlier today. Did I wander over here while I was in my own head?

“Did I just…?” Before getting too excited, I repeat the same motion from before (without the screaming), and a bunch of fast spinning leaves come shooting out from my wings!

I jump up giddedly and start running around! “I did! I did! Razor Leaf! I finally did it! Yes, yes!”

Over the next couple hours, I excitedly continue to practice my Razor Leaf on all sorts of nearby shrubbery and rocks. After a while, I realize that I might be able to get Gust to work too! I go for a Gust attack by flapping my wings with proper posturing of my legs and neck, and to my joy it actually works! I am able to apply so much more force with a flap of my wings than before, so much more in fact that I’m able to uproot some of the shrubs and saplings in the clearing! I’m so happy that I could faint, there’s no words to describe the elation I’m feeling, especially after all that misery I just went through!

After a while, I begin to find myself physically exhausted yet completely satisfied, like you would after a great workout. I take a deep breath and sit down to rest. I’m so happy, I’m finally able to use moves… They may be basic Grass and Flying type attacks but… I’m able to use moves! I’m just like a real Pokémon now!

But… why exactly am I suddenly able to use these moves? What changed exactly? I didn’t really do anything different from before, and it wasn’t like I was actively taking KFC’s advice or anything. My head looks upwards in confusion, when I feel the setting sun’s glare get into my eyes.

Wait a second… The sun’s glare?

I scramble to my feet as I realize that I’ve been basking in the sun’s glow standing in the middle of this clearing these last few hours I start to back away towards the shade, but then stop as I realize: I’ve been sitting in the sun for hours now and… I haven't changed personalities.

“I’m… still me? But how?” I stand there, puzzled for a minute, before it all hits me like a sack of bricks.

KFC mentioned my aura seemed weak, and Chespin said my leaves were pale, and now I know why. My problem this whole time was that I hadn’t been getting enough sunlight. A Pokémon like Tropius needs enough of the sun’s energy to properly use attacks like Razor Leaf or Gust. Without the sun, I wouldn’t have the energy needed to conjure up Razor Leaf projectiles, or the strength needed to get a good Gust attack blowing. When I was feeling distraught earlier, I must have forgotten to stay out of the sun and that’s why I was suddenly able to use those moves. And when I use these moves, I expend that energy, so I don’t build up enough solar energy to change personalities.

“It was such a simple answer, this whole time… I just needed the sun. And if I use moves to use up the solar energy, I don’t have to change personalities… I won’t have to avoid the sun like the plague, as long as I’m careful…”

I slump to the ground. My vision blurs as tears well up in my eyes. I’m so overcome with all sorts of emotions, so I sit there and process all this for a minute or so, before I shake the tears out of my eyes and collect myself. I stand up, thankful nobody was around to see me like this, and make my way back to the guild.

By the time I make it back to the guild, the sun has just about set. I make my way over to the mess hall and after a decent dinner, I walk back to my lean-to to settle in for the night, the sun now totally set.

Once I get there, I stretch my wings and neck, letting out a yawn. I lower myself down into my fluffy cotton bedding, feeling fulfilled with how this day turned out. Sure, I’m still too big to fit inside the guild and most buildings, I still have to sleep out in this lean-to, and I still need to manage my sun intake, but… I finally learned how to use moves like a real Tropius. I have a way to deal with exposure to the sun. I met some kind guildmates today instead of the usual jokesters. I feel like I actually kind of belong now to this world, instead of being a complete and total outsider.

As I close my eyes to drift off to sleep, I curl up my neck and bring my head close to the base of my neck, pressing it in. As I do so, I feel the two bananas on my chin as well as a small, third nub. A smile washes over my face as I drift out of consciousness.