The Villa in Pokemon Platinum gave me a plotbunny, and I ran with it.
*
Ash looked around his circle of friends as they sat on the floor, picking at slices of pizza. It was still so hard to believe this was actually happening.
It had all started during a trip to the luxurious Resort Area in Sinnoh. Some freewheeling trainer had unceremoniously passed his rather huge Villa onto Dawn, who promptly invited her friends to share the place with her-and invited Ash to invite some of his friends to stay as well. Several weeks later, Ash, Misty, Brock, May, Gary, Tracey, Dawn, and Zoey were in the proccess of getting settled in.
"If I never see another pizza again, it'll be too soon," Misty groaned. Today had been yet another long, long day of unpacking, unloading, setting up and all the other backbreaking work that came with moving into a new house.
"Don't worry, the kitchen'll be all set up tomorrow," Dawn said.
"And I'll be back behind the stove in no time!" Brock laughed. "Of course, you're all welcome to pitch in with the cooking every now and then."
"You sure you want Ash doing any cooking?" Gary snorted. "Hell of a trainer, but don't let 'im anywhere near a stove!"
"Hey!" Ash frowned. "I can cook some things! I mean...I can cook sausages over a fire and add water to instant noodles!"
"More than I can say for myself," May said sheepishly.
"Don't worry, we'll all learn sooner or later, right?" Tracey offered.
"If a certain Piplup doesn't try to eat all the results," Zoey poked Dawn, and the other girl blushed.
"Hey, it was only that one time," she said, gently nudging Piplup away from her plate. Pikachu happily offered one of his apples to the small penguin, who turned his beak up in refusal.
"At least he's not Arcanine," Gary groaned. "I've learned not to eat sandwiches in front of him, otherwise he begs! So undignified!"
Ash glanced around at his circle of friends as they sat on the floor, picking at slices of pizza, and smiled.
This is the way it should be.