Chapter 15 – Day 8, Part 1: Normalcy

Chapter 15 – Day 8, Part 1: Normalcy

Lavender is such a nice looking plant.

I could see why Fenn liked it so much; there was a lot to love. That kind of color just pops in a way that looks really appealing. I mean, just looking at the flowerpot on the windowsill now was giving me a decent idea of how much it tied the room together. That’s what I would’ve said if the flowers had actually grown yet. A small stem was all that was sticking out of the dirt, and I could barely even see it from where I was laying.

Flowers in general were just something I enjoyed seeing in person. Maybe I was a gardener in my past life because if I didn’t already have to deal with so much then I might’ve considered finding a way to own more of them. Kebia Castle in particular seemed to use them as decorations quite a bit. The gardens, in the hallways, in the light fixtures—whatever. They were everywhere, despite the castle being devoid of anything else noteworthy in terms of aesthetics.

There was a flower field just around the corner, after all. I wouldn’t be surprised if the merchants in town sold them. Maybe…we could go into town and pick up some pretty ones on our way back from work today.

Okay, that was all well and good, but why was I saying all of this? I don’t know, I guess I was just trying to distract myself from the fact that, when I woke up, Fenn was asleep with his head resting on my chest and his lower body curled up on my side. I nearly jumped back when I saw him, but thankfully, I restrained myself.

I wasn’t upset as much as I was just surprised. I mean, I already had one of the best nights of sleep since I arrived in Pamtre last night thanks to the soft covers of the bed. And Fenn…he was really warm. Like, really warm. He was like a heated blanket that made it twice as hard to be mad.

Honestly, my biggest problem might’ve been the fact that I felt embarrassed to be so close to him. Not that I didn’t like him, it was just the fact that being this close would give off the wrong impression. Humans don’t sleep this close together unless they were involved in some way.

Pokemon though…? Fenn did respect my boundaries already. If anything, I get too close for comfort more than he does, what with the ear scratching and…whatever. I digress.

I didn’t really mind that Fenn was using me like a pillow. After spending all that time working on that house and coming across “the greatest psychic ever,” I think a well-deserved rest was warranted. So, I just resigned myself to accept it, lay back, and try to sleep in a bit more.

We can be embarrassed about this when we’re both awake…

“Cosmo is awake! The day calls for him!”

Which is now, apparently.

“Ngh…” Fenn groaned on top of me, gradually blinking his eyes open, “…give me five more min-“

The Quilava froze once he realized that he wasn’t lying on the bedsheets, but me instead. His eyes went wide as he met my gaze.

I stared at him blankly. “…Good morning, Fenn.”

Fenn’s face flushed a shade of red so bright I was worried that he was about to spit fire. He stood up quickly and fell onto his back. “I’M SORRY I’M SORRY I’M SORRY!”

I sat up to see Fenn rolling around on the bed, covering his face. I let out a kindhearted smile. “Don’t be embarrassed, Fenn,” I said. “It’s fine, I don’t mind.”

“Nooo,” Fenn mumbled into his paws, “y-you trusted me to share the bed with you and I abused that trust. I-I don’t know what came over me….I’m so sorry…”

“I already said it’s fine—I haven’t slept that well in a while. You’re really warm, you know?”

Fenn buried his head into the bedsheets and screamed.

“What’s going on?” Cosmo asked rather innocently. “Did Cosmo miss something?”

I chuckled. “It’s nothing, Cosmo. Fenn is just being overly dramatic.”

Fenn yelled, “I am not!” into the bedsheets, his voice muffled.

I rubbed Fenn’s shoulder and turned to the Solosis. “Well, Cosmo, are you ready for your first day on Team Lavender?”

“Cosmo is always ready!” he beamed. “Cosmo is ready to…do things!”

“Heh, I bet you are, buddy.” I shook Fenn’s shoulder lightly. “You gonna be okay?” I spoke gently.

He rose from the sheets and faced me, his eyes avoiding mine, his cheeks still rosy. “Y-yeah,” Fenn whispered. “G-got flustered, that’s all.” Fenn sighed breathlessly. “Back to work today…”

Work, as in dungeon work, I thought. Not looking forward to that. I fail to see the rationale behind exploring dungeons at all if carpentry pays twice as much. Not to mention the physical and, in my case, mental trauma that comes with dungeon diving. It’s not a stretch for me to believe that my motivation has been thoroughly drained by now.

Unfortunately, I had no real choice, and I doubt Anemone wanted to hear that I hadn’t been staying useful. It was an obligation for me at that point, but yesterday proved that it didn’t have to be. What I should’ve done is tell Fenn outright that I didn’t want to do this anymore and instead spend the rest of my pokemon life lying around all day, doing nothing. After all, my only stipulation was to not die.

But…I wanted to figure things out. What if the solution to all of my problems was with the mystery dungeons, or what if staying put and doing nothing was what they wanted. I didn’t know. What I did know, though?

I looked over at the Solosis kid on the other side of the room. He was bouncing in a circle in the air, going on about how excited he was to be on the team. I still didn’t know how to feel about him yet, but I was glad that he was safe now.

Then I looked at my close friend and roommate, Fenn. The Quilava had gotten over his embarrassment and was looking at me with a warm smile and soft eyes. He was waiting for me to say something, most likely for me to tell him that we should head out to the bulletin board.

So, after putting some thought into it, I might be a complete moron that was missing something important right in my face or something, but I did care about those closest to me. I’d endure a deadly dungeon run to make them happy. It was Cosmo’s first mission after all; don’t wanna let him down. With that thought in mind, I hopped off the bed.

“Let’s head out,” I announced.

Fenn nodded wordlessly and hopped off the bed as well. I followed his lead and snatched the bag off the nightstand.

“Onward!” Cosmo shouted, jiggling with determination.

---

“What does this say?”

“Uh…Noivern clipped their wings and can’t escape?”

“…Not even close. It’s…a Tropius. And it’s a bounty mission…”

Oh. That’s embarrassing.

Fenn decided to quiz me on my reading skills after we got to the bulletin board. Naturally, I hadn’t gotten any better so I failed horribly. How can a Tropius even be an outlaw? That doesn’t make any damn sense!

“Haha! Oswald can’t read!”

And now the talking bubble is making fun of me.

“H-hey, Cosmo, what does this say?” Fenn held up a piece of paper for the Solosis to read.

“Ooh! Ooh! It says, ‘find lost X-Ray Specs in Kelpsy Fields.’ Cosmo is the greatest reader!”

What? How come Cosmo knows how to read and I don’t? He doesn’t even have feet!

“Very good! Great job, Cosmo!” Fenn said, shooting me the smuggest grin imaginable.

“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” I deadpanned, “the dumb Dewott can’t read. Can we stop with the bullying now?”

Fenn giggled. “O-okay, I’m sorry,” he apologized facetiously. “Just…couldn’t resist.”

“Hm,” I grumbled. “What did I do to deserve such torment?” This isn’t even payback for what happened earlier. This is unwarranted, blatant oppression!

“That was fun!” Cosmo beamed. “Where are we going next?”

I looked at the Solosis incredulously. “…We’re not done here yet. We haven’t picked a mission.”

“Oh! A mission for what?”

I blinked. “Um…” I exchanged glances with Fenn. “We’re explorers, Cosmo. We help pokemon by going through mystery dungeons and such. So like with that X-Ray Specs mission that told us to find an item someone lost.”

“Oh, cool! Cosmo hasn’t been in a mystery dungeon before! Cosmo loves to explore, though! He’s great at finding things.”

Fenn and I looked at each other again and the look on his face told me that we were thinking the same thing.

We had accepted not just some random pokemon onto our team, but a literal child that had never been in a mystery dungeon in his life. We didn’t even test to see if he knew any useful moves or any moves at all. Does he even know what he’s in for?

“Hey, Cosmo,” I started, “do you know what being on an exploration team means? Like, are you aware of the risks?”

Cosmo froze in midair and looked between Fenn and I. He was silent for a moment. “…Cosmo…gets to find treasure!” he said loudly and proudly.

Whoops.

I got careless and now I might’ve put a little kid in danger. I acknowledge the fact that I said that Cosmo will probably be fine because I suck just as much as he does, but there’s a difference between sending a useless moron like me into a deadly dungeon versus sending a child who doesn’t know what he’s in for into the same dungeon.

I motioned for Fenn and I to huddle together and discuss this covertly. We crouched down behind one of the bean bags in the lounge room. “What do we do?” I asked Fenn in a loud whisper. “Would it be irresponsible of us to take Cosmo with us? I don’t think we’re the right kind of pokemon to teach him.”

Fenn grit his teeth and looked away. “U-uh…I’m…suuuure it’ll be fine,” he whispered slowly. “Besides,” he let out a weak smile, “I…still bring you along a-and you can barely fight. Eheh…” he laughed awkwardly.

Ouch. I mean, he’s not wrong, but ouch.

“Jeez, Fenn! What did I do to deserve all this verbal abuse?”

The Quilava twirled his bandana in his paw. “Heh…I-I don’t know. I guess I’m just feeling mean today…”

I sighed and crossed my arms. “Regardless, you have to agree that this isn’t the same thing. Cosmo is just a kid. If he gets hurt, it’s our responsibility.”

“H-hey! It can’t always be our fault! Kids join the guild all the time! He has to learn how to do it eventually!”

“And if he does get hurt?”

Fenn bit his lip. “…We can pick an easy mission,” he mumbled quickly.

“Really?” I raised an eyebrow. “You’re fine with that?”

Fenn nodded.

“Alright.” I stood up. “Guess we can’t just leave him here. May as well show him the ropes.”

Fenn seemed relieved. Though, in retrospect, I wasn’t entirely sure why.

The two of us walked back to the bulletin board to find Cosmo in the same place as before, trembling slightly. “Is…is Cosmo in trouble?” he asked shakily.

“No, everything’s fine, Cosmo,” I told him. “Me and Fenn were just discussing something.” I peered at the Quilava only for Fenn to avoid my gaze. “We still have to pick a job, though. Anything stick out to you?”

Cosmo’s attitude improved considerably out of nowhere. A piece of paper floated up from the floor and into my paws. “X-Ray Specs! Cosmo wants to try them on!”

I stared down at the parchment. This must be the same job he read out a few minutes ago. “Hey, Fenn-“

“Already on it.”

Fenn reached into the bag around my shoulder and pulled out the dungeon guide, flipping to the section with Kelpsy Fields. He read it out. “K-Kelpsy Fields is an enigmatic dungeon of ten floors. The primary wildlife includes psychic types of varying challenge ratings. There are no specific entrances. E-easy to get lost the first time through. Proposed average difficulty: ‘D’ plus.”

“‘D’ plus? Average?” I scoffed. “You’re telling me we’ve been working off a letter grade system this whole time? And it’s averaged? With our luck, we’ll run into the strongest pokemon there. How is a dungeon full of psychic types a rank as low as ‘D’ anyways?”

Closing the book, Fenn shrugged. “Not sure…but I think we can handle it.”

“I know you can handle it, Fenn. You’re not at a disadvantage this time. I’m more worried about-” I tilted my head in Cosmo’s direction, “-that one. This dungeon doesn’t sound as easy as you think it is.”

Cosmo didn’t associate the meaning with the action and stared at me out of the corner of my eye, confused.

“I-it’s only one item, how hard could it be?” Fenn said nervously.

“Did the job posting mention which floor it’s on?” I asked, handing the piece of paper to the Quilava.

He scanned it for a moment beforing simply answering with “no.”

Then difficulty isn’t the issue. Ten floors means a lot of ground has to be covered to avoid missing such a small object. All the while, the dungeon will probably try to screw with me again, which is a give in.

I absentmindedly peeled one of my scalchops off my hip then put it back just as quickly. “I’m not…opposed to the idea. Just…hesitant. Finding it is gonna be a hassle, so if we’re really going through with this job then we should stock up on the necessary gear.”

“Yep,” Fenn agreed. “Th-there were some things that I wanted to get at Kecleon’s now that we have a decent amount of money.”

The Solosis sheepishly floated closer to the two of us. “So…we get to go to the store next?” he wondered, picking up on Fenn and I’s conversation.

I replied, turning to the Solosis, “yes, we need to get the appropriate equipment to make sure this mission goes well. We’ll head there next.”

“…After breakfast.”

“Yes, after breakfast. Thank you, Fenn.”

“Yay! Food!”

---

Now in the cafeteria, Cosmo wasted no time letting us know how thrilled he was to be there. “Cosmo is hungry! Yay, food! Food food food!”

“You sure are excited. What kind of berries do you like, Cosmo?” I asked, sitting down at our regular spot.

One has to wonder how a Solosis even eats. What does having your food slide through a gelatinous bubble do to the taste? How much of his body is his stomach? Really makes you think.

“Cosmo does not eat mortal food! Cosmo…devours the souls of his enemies! No pokemon can escape his psychic awesomeness!” Cosmo’s eyes burned with an immense power!

I nodded frivolously. “Oh yeah, I eat the souls of my enemies all the time. Great flavor. Wouldn’t you agree, Fenn?”

The Quilava blinked as he looked between Cosmo and I. Knowing Fenn, it’ll probably take him a minute. His eyes rested on me. “S-souls?” he wondered aloud.

“Yeah,” I responded, sarcasm dripping from my lips. “Souls. You remember that Kabutops soul we ate that one time? Mmm…scrumptious.”

Fenn stared at me vacantly for a few more seconds before the corner of his lips curled into a smile. Now he gets it.

“I…I do actually,” Fenn uttered. “I-it was really good…that one was really sweet, wasn’t it?”

“Mmmmm, don’t remind me! Dang! I could go for some souls right now! I wonder if they’ve got any on the menu today?”

“Grebes always cooks up a good soul! They’re done just well enough every time! So good!”

“I KNOW! It’s unreal how precise he is! A true master chef! Mwah~”

“I-I could eat so many souls right now…ohhh, I wanna eat till I pass out…”

“Haha, you better watch your soul diet, Fenn! Don’t wanna lose that lean form of yours, now do ya? Haha!” I winked.

Fenn…blushed…and lost his cool. “L-lean?” he stammered. “U-um…”

I realized I might have taken this joke a bit too far. “W-wait, Fenn…what I meant was…um…”

Meanwhile, Cosmo looked on, completely nonplussed. “Cosmo…also likes Lum berries,” he said.

“R-right,” I blurted out. “I’ll go get the food. Be right back!” I stood up from the table, doing my best to avoid eye contact and the burning sensation in my cheeks.

Fenn kept his head down, fidgeting with his paws uncomfortably.

Cosmo had no idea what just happened, but he shrugged it off. The adults were being weird like always! Food was on its way! Hooray!

The following meal was eaten in silence. I’ll admit, it was entirely my fault.

But come on, Fenn is quite lean. That wasn’t even me being flirtatious, it’s true! I swear I’m not trying to make our relationship more awkward than it already is!

Oh well. We’ll get over it eventually. We always do.

---

Afterwards, the three of us went to Kecleon’s.

Cosmo was ecstatic about all of the knick-knacks and rare items. He zoomed around the shop while Fenn and I talked to the shopkeep.

“This is so cool!” Cosmo exclaimed excitedly. “Is that a-” he gasped, “-a warp wand? Cosmo wants one!”

“A-ah, please don’t touch anything, young Solosis!” the shopkeep cried. “Those aren’t toys!”

I waved him off. “It’s fine, Kecleon. Cosmo is well behaved, he won’t break anything.”

“Ooh! A One-Shot Orb!”

“Could you keep an eye on him, please?” The Kecleon sighed. “I knew I should’ve kept that sign up…”

“Oh, sure,” I chuckled and looked over at the Quilava peeking out from behind me. “Fenn, could you look after Cosmo?”

“Hm? U-uh, I guess. H-hey, Cosmo, let’s calm…no, put that down!” Fenn left me with the Kecleon to discuss what needed to be bought.

“Sooooooo…” I careened my head back around to face the pokemon behind the counter.

He looked at me indignantly. “What is it you need?”

“A lot of things, actually. We’ve got a mission in Kelpsy Fields today.”

“Kelpsy Fields…” he repeated thoughtfully, stroking his chin. “An odd one, that’s for sure. Gave me trouble last time I was there. Best be on your toes.”

I nodded. “I can imagine. Speaking of, we’re supposed to find a pair of X-Ray Specs? You wouldn’t happen to have any I could look at in person, would you?”

Considering that I had never seen such an item, I wanted to know what we were looking for.

“Ah. Of course. Give me a moment.” The shop owner fiddled with one of the display cases and picked out a pair of purple specs modeled after the features of a Venonat. He brought it back to the counter for me to look at. “Quite the intriguing artifact, don’t you think? I doubt you’ll have trouble recognizing it in the dungeon.”

There was another reason why I wanted to see the X-Ray Specs: I wanted to know if we could skip the job entirely by getting the required item through…other means. Not stealing, mind you; I wanted to see how much they’d be worth. Primarily because, well, the job listing only mentioned that we had to return the thing, it didn’t say we had to get it from Kelpsy Fields.

“Yes…definitely…hmm. Just Curious, how much do these go for?”

“Eight thousand.”

Nevermind.

I briefly considered the prospect of swiping the specs while the chameleon wasn’t looking, but ultimately surmised that that wouldn’t be the greatest idea. He probably had some sort of security system installed. No way of getting out of this one.

“What else did you need?” The Kecleon wondered.

I tapped my fingers on the counter. “I was hoping you could help me with that, what with you being so experienced and familiar with the place.”

“Ha!” he chuckled. “I’ve been there once, my good ‘mon. I wouldn’t call myself ‘experienced,’ but I understand what you mean. Have you considered investing in weapons?”

“Weapons?”

He waved me over. “Follow me.”

The two of us walked to the other side of the shop, where Fenn and Cosmo were currently bickering.

“What about this one?” Cosmo suggested.

“N-no, we don’t need a mobile orb,” Fenn chided. “We need to save our money for more useful equipment.”

The Solosis pouted. “But I wanna go through walls.”

“No means no, Cosmo.”

“Gentle-mon!” Kecleon approached Fenn from behind, catching him by surprise and causing his back to spark momentarily. “If you would be so kind as to make some room. Your acquaintance needs to survey the weapon selection.”

Fenn frantically stepped out of the way, nearly knocking down a display case to the floor. Thankfully, he caught it just in time.

“Careful!” the chameleon yelled. “You break it, you buy it!”

His ears drooped. Fenn ashamedly dragged himself to my side. Cosmo continued to bounce throughout the shop, keeping to himself.

“Now,” the Kecleon started, “I trust that you, a Dewott, have some experience with deadly instruments?”

“…You could say that.” I was about to reach for my scalchop, but I stopped myself.

Key in hand, the shop owner unlatched the glass case. He pulled out an iron spike and…a rock. He held them up. “How good is your throwing arm, Dewott?”

I stared at him with a vacant expression. “What?”

“Your throwing arm. How good is it?”

My eyes drifted to the stone in his hand. I blinked slowly. “That’s a rock,” I stated.

“A Gravelerock.”

I blinked a second time. “You’re selling me a rock.”

“Wh…yes. I am selling you a rock. A rock for throwing.”

“Kecleon, I don’t know what kind of trick you’re trying to pull, but I’m not buying a damn rock.”

He sighed and placed the objects back in the container before pulling out another spike—this one pink and white. “This is a Corsola Twig,” he said. “Strong and very sharp. Plucked from the back of a healthy Corsola. I recommend it for a bipedal pokemon like yourself.”

“…I fail to see how this is better than a metal stick and a rock.”

“Like I said, they are quite sharp. Even the hardiest dragon type with their scales as impenetrable as steel cannot stand a chance.”

“What about actual steel types?”

“Yes. More or less.”

“How much are they?”

“Eighty poké a piece.”

Jeez. That’s steep. How much money do we have again? I glanced at Fenn for his opinion.

He shrugged. Fenn didn’t have anything to say.

Well, alright then. Wouldn’t hurt to take some backup just in case. And…if I’m being honest, I don’t know if I trust myself with my scalchops. I just don’t think I’m all that good at using them. Maybe I could do better with these twigs? “I’ll take five.”

Kecleon nodded. “A wise choice. I use them often myself. You won’t be disappointed.”

“Right.” Suddenly, I felt a tugging on my thigh. I looked down to see Fenn peering up at me, his expression one of anguish. “Hm? What’s up, Fenn? You look anxious.”

The Quilava shot a glance at the Kecleon and motioned for me to get closer.

I kneeled down to his level. “Yeah?”

“C-could you ask him about Reviver Seeds?” Fenn whispered in a voice that was barely audible.

“Reviver Seeds? Uh, sure.” I stood up and faced the Kecleon. “Do you have any ‘Reviver Seeds?'”

The eyes of the reptile lit up after I asked my question. “Reviver Seeds!” he exclaimed. “You’re in luck—a new shipment just came in! Come, this way!”

Kecleon led us to the other side of the shop. More glass cases lined the wall, displaying many seeds of various types, all of which seemed very distinct and mystical.

But then, Kecleon, unlocking the case that held the seed I was asking for, pulled out the blandest one of them all.

The little doodad was small enough to fit between Kecleon’s fingertips; it was unremarkable. He held it up for me to see. “Have you ever seen a Reviver Seed in person, Dewott?” Kecleon asked.

I squinted in an attempt to better see the item. “I’ve definitely seen a seed before and, boy, is that a seed,” I said impassively. “What’s so special about it?”

“Oh! You’ve not even heard of them before?”

Didn’t Anemone mention these at some point? What did she say about them? “…I might have. What do they do?”

He twiddled the small object in his fingers, it’s bland surface lightly gleaming from the light of nearby lamps. “Reviver Seeds are very rare and powerful oddities. I would wager that they are the most valuable commodity for any dungeon diver. They are both my most sought after product, and incredibly scarce.”

I raised an eyebrow. “It looks pretty plain to me. I don’t get it.”

Kecleon smirked. “It looks so unassuming because we are not within a dungeon at the moment. If we were, you would see just how incredible it truly is.”

“…You still haven’t answered my question. What does it do?”

The chameleon paused, his smirk widening to a full knowing smile. “My good Dewott, what can’t it do?”

“What?”

“Broken bones…any known or unknown disease…a permanent disfigurement…all can be healed thanks to this one seed…

“Not even death is incurable when one possesses a Reviver Seed.”

I glared at the shop keeper in suspicion. “You’re joking, right?” I didn’t believe any of it. “Is this an elaborate ruse to get me to buy worthless, stale seed?”

“Not a ruse,” he told me. “A Reviver Seed’s main purpose is to bring one back to the plains of consciousness in the event that the holder loses it.” He narrowed his eyes. “Even if that means reversing death itself.”

“You’re…no. That’s ridiculous,” I stated. “Death is death; a seed of all things can’t change that.”

“It is the truth. Though I suppose the only way to know is to see it for yourself.”

I scowled. What kind of nonsense…?

I was about to tell this scam artist off some more—maybe leave right then and there because it’s obvious we were being hoodwinked, but then I felt a tugging on my thigh again. I looked down and met eyes with Fenn.

His expression was dead serious; his resolve was apparent. Fenn believed every word. That, or he already knew all of this. One thing is for certain: he nodded very slowly as if to tell me that Kecleon was correct.

But if Kecleon is correct, then that means…

“How do they work? The Reviver Seeds, I mean.” I wasn’t willing to accept whatever this guy had to say just yet. I wanted to hear how plausible his explanation was.

“Well,” Kecleon began, “the true reason is still up for debate, but the most common theory I’ve heard is that, when a pokemon dies, their spirit leaves their body.” He held up the tiny object. “The Reviver Seed acts as a sort of conduit to allow the spirit a safe passage back as well as a protective shield. Once the power is released, the seed returns to a plain state.”

“So…the seed is more like a vessel for…whatever power it’s holding?” I asked.

Kecleon nodded. “Yes, I believe so.”

“But how does it…fix the previous injuries?”

The Kecleon stroked his chin in thought. “I’m not entirely sure how, but I had once heard the explanation that when a body and a spirit connect, the body returns to its initial form of the current age.” He shrugged. “Or something of that nature. Like I said, I don’t quite know. Reviver Seeds are an enigma.”

“How are they even made? Don’t tell me you just find them lying around.”

“Ha,” he chuckled lightly. “You are well within your right to be suspicious. Not many know of the creation process of relics such as these.” He cleared his throat. “To put it simply, they can be grown, and found, in mystery dungeons and only in mystery dungeons.”

“…What?”

“Yes, indeed, Reviver Seeds are so rare because the task of acquiring them is laborious and very frustrating. It is all luck, really. I have never found one when I actively search for them. And don’t get me started on how irritating growing them can be. Expecting the dungeon to cooperate can be quite painful.”

That’s…okay, I need to get my facts straight. With all I’ve seen so far, magical seeds capable of reversing death isn’t that egregious of a concept. The fact that they existed was odd, but I wasn’t in any sort of position to dispute something as stupid as this.

And now to ask the question I need the actual answer for.

“How much are they?”

Grimacing, Kecleon looked us over a couple times. “Prices fluctuate often,” he told us, “but normally they range from 20,000 poké to 50,000 poké depending on available stock.”

Holy shit.

I heard something hit the floor just then. Looking down, Fenn was staring at the Kecleon with eyes wide, mouth agape. He had dropped the writing utensil he had been holding.

I turned my head back to the shopkeep. “Um…nevermind,” I mumbled. “We don’t have that kind of money.”

Kecleon nodded understandably. “Very few do. Will there be anything else?”

“Uh-“

I was interrupted by my thigh being tugged on once more. Fenn was trying to get my attention. He held a small piece of paper covered in scribbles in front of my face. “What’s this?” I asked him.

“G-grocery list,” the Quilava said quietly.

“Grocery list? Oh, right!” I handed the paper to the Kecleon. “Here.”

He scanned it for a few moments. “Ah, yes, of course. Let me-“

There was a crashing sound behind us. We all swung our heads to see Cosmo floating above a toppled rack of trinkets. “Cosmo didn’t do it!” the Solosis yelled, clearly guilty.

I could feel Kecleon tearing me apart with his eyes. We had forgotten to watch Cosmo.

“Uh…we’ll pick that up.”

---

The trip to Kelpsy Fields took us the better part of three hours. It wasn’t far, no, it was just hard to find.

Heading to the east this time, the land here was flat and consisted of more pokemon-made roads and structures. Fenn explained to me that most large settlements on this continent occupy the eastern side since that’s where the most of the trading happens. The pleasant climate was also a factor, but even that was variable.

Kebia had been moderately cool the whole time I had been here. I didn’t mind much; I prefer the cold over the heat any day. To the east, however, the temperature was warmer and the skies were clearer. That said, the atmosphere was generally more melancholic out here in the wild, what with the warm winds and the light browns adorning the tall grass in the meadows we walked through. The sky was clear and a bright blue.

There were a lot of meadows. And fields. Fields, fields, and the occasional town or outpost. Not much to talk about.

The scenery that is. The three of us talked quite a bit, actually.

“S-so, why did you buy those spikes, Oswald?” Fenn wondered as we continued our journey. “Don’t you already have weapons of your own?”

“Hmm…” I pondered Fenn’s question. “I suppose so, but I am sort of worried that I’d lose them. Plus, I wanna try these out. Maybe I’m better at throwing than slicing? It’s not like I’m a pro with my scalchops anyways.”

I wasn’t being completely disingenuous. Learning how to use my scalchops was exciting and something I was genuinely interested in figuring out. But…I didn’t know anymore. Not after Swift and everything with Anemone. What was the point? At least with these spikes, I would be on common ground with anybody else who would use them. I wasn’t an expert, but I also wasn’t expected to be one. The scalchops were a different story.

“…But your scalchops will grow back, won’t they?”

I flinched. “They what?”

“Y-you know,” Fenn said, “they’ll grow back if you lose them. I never understood how it works, but I read somewhere that the bodies of pokemon with natural tools have a way of knowing if they get lo-“

“Fenn?”

“H-huh?”

“Please be quiet.”

“O-oh. Okay…”

I didn’t wanna hear anymore of that. Even if it meant being rude like I just was, knowing that the blades on my hips were a part of me made me physically ill. I had to stop him.

Oh my god. Why didn’t I make this connection before? My body produces weapons. How does that work? Do they form under the skin and pop out when they’re done? Blegh. Ugh. Just thinking about that makes me nauseous. Now I’m definitely not using my scalchops after knowing that.

I rubbed my temples and tried to get my mind off the disgusting images in my head. I looked ahead at the Solosis jauntily bouncing in midair.

I can think about Cosmo, that’ll get my mind off of it.

The little guy led the way so that Fenn and I could keep an eye on him. He’d caused quite a bit of trouble for us so far, though not as much as I would’ve expected. Cosmo was shockingly obedient for a kid his age; listened to the two of us without question. It may not have seemed like it at first, but he was very conscious of what was going on around him. He shuts up when we’re having a conversation that doesn’t involve him, listens when we do, and doesn’t complain often.

You would think that such a young kid would go on and on about being tired or hungry, but no, Cosmo doesn’t do any of that. Almost to a fault if I was being honest. When I asked him how he was doing, only then did he say that he was really tired and needed to rest. Makes me wonder how he got that way…

Fenn had actually been the one to suggest that Cosmo lead the way. Imagine my shock when I found out that Fenn worked surprisingly well with the kid. I was worried that he might be timid like he always was and have a hard time keeping Cosmo under control, but no, Fenn slipped right into the role of “surrogate dad.”

Does that make me the other dad? I hope not. Like I said, I’m not much of a role model.

“…Are we there yet?” Fenn tiredly asked. “This shouldn’t…be taking this long.”

“That’s the thing,” I replied, map in my paws, “we should already be there. We already passed by all of the landmarks…”

“I haven’t seen any fog…have you?”

I shook my head. “Not even a little.”

Fenn sighed and eyed the psychic bubble pokemon in front of us. “Y-you think he’ll be able to handle it?” Fenn asked me softly. “I-I know it’s kinda too late to ask…but…I have my d-doubts.”

Yeah, no kidding. I shrugged nonchalantly. “I don’t know, why don’t you ask him?”

Fenn shot me a glare out of the corner of his eye. “You already know what his response would be, Oswald. He’s not great at telling us how he’s feeling.”

“We’ve only known him for a day, Fenn.”

“…Still.”

I didn’t disagree with the sentiment. I was the one worried earlier and I didn’t stop us from going through with this. I didn’t understand why Fenn was so concerned all of a sudden either. Up until today, I would’ve assumed he had no reason to care. Maybe I was just feeling bitter, I don’t know. Either way, I felt like humoring myself for a bit.

I called out to the Solosis. “Hey, Cosmo! Think you can handle this dungeon?”

“Of course!” he shouted. “Cosmo is the greatest psychic type in the whole world! Evil-doers don’t stand a chance! Cosmo is amazing! Absol-utely so! Haha!”

Fenn snickered beside me.

“Don’t encourage him,” I glowered, cutting him off. “That one wasn’t even structured like a joke.”

Fenn stammered. “D-wh…puns are funny!”

“Puns are not funny.”

The Quilava pursed his lips. “Oh, what would you know? You haven’t got a single funny bone in your body!”

I acted surprised at that comment. “Excuse me? I absolutely have a funny bone! But what about you? All you’ve got is funny bones! You practically have a funny skeleton!”

“Hehe! I sure do!” Fenn stuck his tongue out at me.

I smiled. Haha! This is fun! I like it when we get all playful like this.

“Ha! Yeah, I-“

My eyes had just drifted back to the fields in front of us. Within the span of our non serious conversation, we had walked through a pasture of tall grass. The grass was pulled back and we were now in a patch of significantly shorter grass.

I froze. Fenn froze. The happy-go-lucky mood was sucked right out of the air and all that was left was an icy cold feeling of dread.

My heart dropped.

Not far ahead of us, perfectly placed in the middle of the clearing…

…

…

…

…the source of our dread.

…

…

…

…

A pure white marble staircase.

…

…

…

Topped with a deep, dark portal…