Oh, God, what is this?
I need to stop this madness.
But I don't want to. :p
Homemade with Love
Dent was lucky to find a bush of strawberries. He smiled, inspecting each one thoroughly before plucking from their branches and putting it into a small basket. Satoshi and his friends stopped in a small town before moving to the next city so he could obtain his next badge. Dent, since then, felt closer to his friends as they moved (especially closer to Iris). Something about her made his heart race, made his face burn, and he just felt comfortable being next to her. So he came up with a thought to express his feelings for her: make her a delicious pie. That was a good idea! Dent wanted to surprise her and what better than making her a home-made pie? He smiled at the idea.
From the other side of the bush came his Yanappu. The small green monkey held up his small green paws, showing his Trainer the reddened berries to him. Dent beamed, placing the basket in his hands on the ground.
"Thank you, Yanappu," he said, taking the berries, glancing over the strawberries. "These are good." He placed them into the basket, but gave one to his Pokémon one of the small red berries.
The Yanappu took it into his small green paws, and started to nibble on it. Dent patted the green monkey fondly on the head before returning to the bush.
"Do you think Iris will like this?" he asked his Pokémon.
"Yana," the monkey stated, looking at his Trainer.
Dent nodded, pawing through the bush absentmindedly. "I hope you're right," he said. The green-haired boy closed his eyes in thought, and sighed through his nose. He opened them, and started to resume picking the best berries for the special pie he was going to make for his sweetheart. Dent soon glanced down, staring at the filled basket.
"Well, I think this is done," he said proudly, standing up, the basket gripped in his hands. "Let's go, Yanappu."
"Yana!" the small green monkey cried, jumping up, resting on his Trainer's shoulders.
"So, let me get this straight: you like Iris, you have no idea if Iris likes you, but despite that fact, you're going to make her a pie, and you want me to do what?"
"Get her out of her, maybe for an hour or two—make it two!" Dent said, his voice straining to whisper.
Pikachu and Satoshi exchanged glances with each other.
"Please, Satoshi, as a friend," Dent said, resting his hand on his chest, his emerald eyes moving around the room they were occupying at the Pokémon Centre. "I'd do the same for you."
Satoshi reached up, scratching the back of his head, and then he smiled. "No problem," the other male said. "Leave it to me."
Dent let out a deep sigh of relief, his hand moving up to touch his forehead. "Oh, thank you, Satoshi," he breathed. "This means a lot to me."
Satoshi grinned from ear to ear. "Hey, I don't mind helping a friend," he said, placing a hand to Dent's shoulder. "But, how should I keep her busy?"
Now that was a good question. How would Satoshi keep her busy for two hours? Dent blinked, his Yanappu wrapped around his shoulders as he scratched his chin in deep thought. And idea clicked in his head, and he snapped his fingers to emphasize his thought.
"Well, tell her I got some bad news from my brothers," he said, "and I need to call them right away. That should give me some time."
"Okay, sounds good," Satoshi said, still grinning. "Two hours?"
"Yes."
"Okay, then. I'll just say that you need your space."
"That is correct."
"And, Dent?"
"Yes?"
"Do I get some of the pie?"
"No," Dent said firmly, shutting his eyes tightly. "How rude. It's for Iris only."
"Oh, c'mon," Satoshi pleaded, his hands out in a pleading motion. "She gets an entire pie and I get nothing for helping you out?"
"You get dinner," Dent retorted mischievously.
Satoshi pressed his lips tightly together, and Pikachu shook its head while Yanappu snickered to itself on Dent's shoulder.
"Pika, pika," the mouse Pokémon said, nudging its Trainer's cheek.
The door opened, causing the two humans and the two Pokémon to jump. Dent rushed to the phone, pretending that he was going to call his brothers as Iris entered the room.
"Hey, guys, what . . ."
She paused, watching the fidgeting Dent by the phone. Her Kibago popped up from her hair, looking at the boy worriedly.
"Dent, what's w—"
Satoshi grabbed her shoulder, causing her to look at him. He shook his head, pretending to look solemn and confused. "Let's go," he said quickly, pulling her away from Dent.
Iris wiggled from her friend's grip. "What's wrong? Did something happen?" she asked, feigning worry on her face.
Satoshi swallowed, glanced over to Dent, who gave him a stern look, as if to say: "Don't you screw up!" The other boy swallowed, and closed his eyes. "One of Dent's brothers called," he lied. "Something's happened."
Iris gasped, turning to look at Dent. "Hey, Dent, are you going to be okay?" she asked hurriedly, trying to approach him.
Dent quickly looked up to her as he reached for the receiver of the phone. "I-I don't know," he quickly lied. "I have to call Pod and Corn back. It's Mom. I—I just need some alone time, okay?"
Iris nodded her head, understanding on her features. "Okay, okay," she said tenderly. "Okay, let's go, Satoshi." She whipped around, grabbing her friend by the arm, pulling him away.
Satoshi glanced behind him, and waved as Dent winked at him and gave him a thumbs up.
"Gosh, I hope Dent's mom's okay," Iris breathed worriedly.
"Kiba, kiba," her Kibago breathed, nudging her face gently.
Satoshi looked at her, and put a smile on his face. "Hey, don't worry," he breathed, reaching up, wrapping around her shoulders. "I bet she's okay."
Iris glanced up at him, her eyes wide and brimming with tears almost. "What if she's dying? What if she got hit by a car and she's in the hospital!" she said loudly. The dark-skinned girl grabbed Satoshi's hands. "C'mon! Let's go to the nearest chapel! Let's go pray for her health!"
She yanked him along. Satoshi swallowed, glancing at Pikachu for support, but the yellow mouse Pokémon flashed him a worried-confused look. He had no idea how to get his Trainer out of this mess.
"Oh, she's going to love this!" Dent said merrily, rolling out the tan-coloured dough on the counter in the small kitchenette in the room they were in.
His Yanappu sat on the bed, and watched his Trainer roll out the dough with the wooden roller. Dent reached for the newly-bought small bag of white flower, drizzling a little white powder on the tan dough. The rest of the white powdery substance that was on his hands he smeared on the roller. He turned to his monkey-like Pokémon.
"Don't you think?" he asked with a cheery smile.
"Yana!" it said, lifting up its paw in the air.
Dent beamed as he returned to kneed out the dough.
Satoshi kneeled before the large shrine that sat before him, Iris next to him as she bowed her head deeply as she said a prayer under her breath. Her hands were pressed against each other as her lips moved. Pikachu's eyes glanced around the church they were in, not sure of what to do. Iris glanced over to her friend, glaring at him.
"Why aren't you praying?" she sneered. "Dent's mother's life could be in trouble! Pray!"
"Sorry!" Satoshi said, pressing his hands together, and bowed his head in mock-prayer. Um, hi, God, he thought. Um, how's it going up there? I'm guessing good? Okay, as you know, Dent's mother is fine, so just ignore Iris' prayer for now. Satoshi blinked, glancing around the building before going back to his mock-prayer. Got a question for you: do you have television up there?
Dent patiently waited for the beep of the oven to sound off as he cleaned the strawberry juice from his hands and arms. He had smashed the strawberries into a thick jam, and placed it into the interior of the pie. Yanappu's paw went across the bowl that held the smashed strawberries collected the juice, and he started to lick it off. The waiter-chef boy dried his hands off on his apron, and glanced down at the oven, seeing the dough rise little by little. He beamed.
"She's going to love this," he said more to himself than to anyone else. Dent glanced over, watching as his Pokémon lick the interior of the bowl. "I see you like it."
"Yana," the Pokémon said, juice smeared on its face.
Dent chuckled, his hand reaching up to comb through his hair with his hand.
"And watch over Dent's mother, and Dent, and Pod, and Corn, and everyone else that Dent is related to," Iris continued to pray.
Satoshi was still kneeled down, his eyes dull, his face blank in boredom. Was he going to spend another hour in here and pretend to pray nonstop? Pikachu was still on his Trainer's shoulder, his ears low and his tail trembling in confusion.
"If there is something wrong with Dent's mother, please look after her," Iris whispered, her eyes closed tightly. She turned to look up at her friend. "Are you done praying?"
"Um, yeah," Satoshi fibbed, reaching up to scratch the back of his head.
Iris pulled her hands apart, sighed, resting her hands on her folded lap. "Okay, this is good," she said thoughtfully. "We've prayed for an hour. God will look over her."
Satoshi swallowed, glancing up to where God was supposed to be, and flashed a nervous smile skyward. Iris abruptly stood up, her hands pressed to her chest, her Kibago clinging to his Trainer's shoulder, staring at her worriedly.
"C'mon, let's go check up on Dent," she said, bending down, grabbing Satoshi's hand, yanking him along and out of the church.
In Dent's glove-covered hands was the freshly baked pie. The aroma filled the air, and it smelled positively divine. Dent sighed dreamily, placing the pie down on the counter. Yanappu jumped up to his Trainer's, staring hungrily at the pie.
"No, no, no," Dent said. "This is for Iris." He reached up, grabbing his darling Pokémon, cradling him gently. "If you're hungry, let's get you some food."
"Yana," the green monkey-like Pokémon said, being settled down on the table, eagerly waiting for his Trainer to give him some food.
Dent rummaged through his bag, pulling out a container filled with his special blend of Pokémon food, and handed it to his Yanappu, giving him a pat on the head before returning to the pie. Dent went to the small hotel-sized refrigerator, taking out a small carton of butter, and placed it on the counter. From his bag, he got a butter knife and a glazing brush along with a small bowl. He approached the butter again, using the knife to scoop up the butter, which he placed in the bowl. He made sure to put enough in the bowl, and he placed it into the microwave, allowing the butter to melt for fifty seconds. When it was completed, he used his brush to glaze the top of the pie over, and he sprinkled sugar on the crust. He smiled at his work, and dusted his hands on his apron.
"Good," he said simply. "She's going to love it."
The door opened, and Dent nearly jumped out of his skin. They were back? He grinned. Just in time! He grabbed the pie, and held it chest-level, waiting for her to round the corner.
"Dent, are you okay?" she asked, making a turn into the small kitchenette. She paused, staring at the pie with a confused expression upon her features. "Um, Dent . . .?"
Dent smiled sheepishly, and held out the pie to her, a blush over his face. "Surprise," was all that he said.
Iris looked at Dent, voiceless, and then turned to the grinning Satoshi. "What's going on?" she asked sharply, looking back at the pie.
"Um, I made you a pie," Dent said.
"Yeah, Dent and I lied to you so I can get your out of here," Satoshi said. "He wanted to surprise you with that, Iris."
Iris was speechless, staring at the flustered Dent, and a blush started to burn at her face. Her Kibago stared at the pie with his jaw open. "So, nothing wrong with your mom?" she asked, her eyes narrowed.
"No."
"You did that so you could make a pie for me?"
"Yes!"
"Dent," she whispered, approaching him. Suddenly, her hand came up, slapping him upside the head. "That's for lying to me!" She approached the surprised Satoshi, and repeated the process, causing him to whine and grip his head. "That's for lying to me too!" Iris then went back to Dent, who was not sure what she was going to do. But she softly smiled. "And this is for making me that pie." She pressed a soft kiss to his cheek, causing him to turn another shade of scarlet.
"I-it was nothing," he stammered, looking at her. "I just wanted to make this for you."
Iris couldn't help but to smile. "But dang it, Dent, you really had me scared! I thought your mother was dying, and Satoshi and I went to the chapel to pray for her."
"For an hour?"
"Yes," Satoshi drawled. "A whole hour."
Dent looked from Satoshi, to Iris, to Satoshi, and back to Iris. He bit his lower lip, trying to suppress his laughter. Iris stared at the pie. "Why did you make this for me?" she asked.
"Because he likes you," Satoshi said in a sing-song tone.
Dent flustered even more, and Iris turned to glare at him, despite the fact she was blushing too. "You're such a child," she growled, shaking her head. She turned to look up at Dent, and smiled. "You're too kind." Iris stared at the pie. "What type is it?"
"Strawberry," he answered brightly.
Iris froze. Strawberry?
"Oh, no," she breathed.
Dent blinked. "What's wrong?" he inquired, inspecting her face.
"I'm allergic," she said, looking up at him sheepishly.
Dent froze. He glanced down at the pie brokenly. She was allergic to strawberries? All my hard work, Dent thought to himself.
"Oh, Dent," Iris whispered, gripping his arm. "I'm sorry. I know it must be good."
Dent looked up to her, and a small smile graced his lips. "It's okay, I should have asked if you were allergic to anything," he breathed.
Satoshi's gaze flickered between both friends. "So . . . is it alright if I have it?" he asked, a large grin on his lips.
If looks could kill, Satoshi would be dead from Iris' death stare. He shivered under it, stepping back from her. Dent, wordlessly, handed the pie to Satoshi, who quickly made off with it.
"Satoshi!" she hollered.
"No, no, it's okay," Dent said, his hand moving to touch his forehead. "He can have it."
Iris turned to her friend, and gripped his hands. "I know you worked hard on it," she said. "Even though I didn't eat it, I know it was going to be good. Thank you."
Dent smiled at her. "You're welcome," he returned, closing his eyes. He then opened them. "Do—do you want to go to a café? We can get something to eat."
Iris grinned. "I'd love to."
"Kiba!" Kibago said cheerfully.
And the two of them left, arm-in-arm, leaving Satoshi alone with the pie. Pikachu and Yanappu stared at the young boy with a displeased-disgusted expression on their faces. The young Trainer looked at them as his fork stabbed the pie.
"What?"
"Pika, pika," his mouse Pokémon breathed.
"Yana," the monkey Pokémon agreed.
Satoshi looked between Pikachu and Yanappu. He had a gut feeling that they were talking about him.