A/N: **Even though I'm using the same Pokemon for Hero and Partner, this story is not connected to my previous ones.
I wasn't planning on writing any more fanfics, but I seriously cannot get over my love for the Leaf Dad ;.; send help.
Don't read if you haven't played Super Mystery Dungeon and plan to.
Gn- oww. Why is my head throbbing? What happened last night?
The tiny Chikorita slowly picked herself up and rubbed her eyes. Her blue crocodile friend wasn't in the bed next to her. A melted ice pack was at her bedside.
"...What in the world?" she muttered to herself.
It seemed quiet. Normally the other members were awake and making noise around this time.
She started walking out of the room, when she nearly crashed into her partner.
"Oh! Harley, you're awake!"
"Gah! Yeah, hi Todd. Sorry, I think I just hit my head again… ow."
"Ehehehe… sorry about that. I've got another ice pack if you want it?"
The cheery Totodile started holding it up to his friend's head.
"No, that's OK. What happened, anyways? I just remember… eating and then blacking out?"
"Erm… that's a little bit of a story…"
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The night before...
"Hello?" Todd called out as they entered the building. "Anyone home?"
"In here!" came a soft reply from the dining room.
"Shhh! It's supposed to be a surprise!" came another muffled voice.
"I'm sorry! I'm just so hungry!"
"Just be patient!"
"Would you guys be quiet?! They're gonna hear us!"
Seconds later the two heroes entered the room, catching their bickering friends off guard. As soon as they saw them, they turned back and let out a big "SURPRISE!"
The whole Expedition Society stood behind the table, where a large cake was sitting.
"What's all this?" Harley asked.
"It's your one-year anniversary since you guys joined the Expedition Society!" Jirachi replied cheerfully.
"I'm afraid that's actually incorrect," Ampharos said. "The one year date was exactly two weeks ago, but you two were traveling at that time, so…" *pose*, "here it is! Your belated one-year celebration!"
"Plus, Swirlix just really wanted to make a cake and eat it," Buizel added.
"Hehe… can't deny that! I was about to eat the whole thing just now before you got here!"
"Aw, shucks, you guys…" Todd got all smiley. "You didn't have to go through all the trouble…"
"Nonsense." Ampharos came around the table to stand in front of them. "We would not be standing here now were it not for you two. Indeed. Baking you a large, delicious cake was the least we could do."
"Thanks guys!"
"Well, shall we dig in?"
"YESSSSS!" Swirlix exclaimed.
As the gang stuffed their faces, the heroes started filling the society in on their latest adventures. Todd was telling the story of their victory over Groudon, when…
"So, after we did our alliance, I pulled back," he stepped away from the table to demonstrate, "and Harley uses razor leaf from the other side, and then, BAM! Blastoise jumps in from behind!"
Getting a bit too carried away in his demonstration, the hyper crocodile ran back up and accidentally slammed his partner's head into the table, knocking her out.
"Ahh! I'm sorry Harley! I just meant to hit the table… ohhh, what have I done?!"
"Oh dear…" Ampharos sighed. "We'd best get her into bed and ice that bump on her head. Dedenne and Buizel, would you be so kind?"
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"...You know something, Todd? Sometimes I wonder how I'm still alive after spending all this time with you…"
Harley was rubbing her head. The throbbing was slowly coming to an end.
"Aw, come on. I'm not THAT bad. Remember that time I saved you from that Muk that had you trapped?"
"That was Marshtomp who saved me," she said, smiling and shaking her head. "You were trying to be a distraction, but all he had to do was blast Muk with mud shot."
"Ehh… you got me there. But I had an oran berry ready for you, right?" he started laughing and sweating nervously. "But hey, in all seriousness, I'm sorry. I'll try not to do so many demonstrations when I tell stories…"
She rolled her eyes and laughed. "Come on. Let's get breakfast."
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"Good morning, you two," Ampharos greeted. "My, my, my. That was quite the strike you took to the head last night, hmm?"
"I'll be fine."
The two sat down at the table and started munching away at berries.
"I certainly believe it. I imagine you experience far more rigorous afflictions on your journeys, but you never let them stop you. Very admirable, I must say."
"She's the toughest girl I know!" Todd said, muffled through the berries in his mouth.
"So what are you two up to today? Were you planning to stay long?"
"We're actually going to Serene Village today. Not sure how long we'll stay there, but I at least wanted to see my Pops. I'm stoked about it!"
"Ah, I see."
Ampharos tilted his head at the less jazzed of the two. "My, my, Harley. You don't seem to share in this excitement. Is something wrong?"
She lifted her head and tried to perk up, though it was obvious she was faking it. "Nothing's wrong! It's fine, it's just… I don't have someone really close to me who I'd be excited to go visit, like Todd does. But that doesn't mean I'm against going or anything…"
"Well, what about that Nuzleaf fellow? I mean, despite the… unsavory things he did in the past, it was evident that he cared for you quite a lot in the end. Don't you stay with him when you visit?"
"Yeah, I do… and he's always really nice and never fails to give me a warm welcome home, but… I don't know, it just feels shallow most of the time. He doesn't really talk to me, other than a little bit of small talk here and there. We never actually got to know each other, and it seems like he doesn't want to."
"He most likely still feels rotten for what he did," Ampharos said. "Just give him time. Surely he'll come around. Indeed, I'm certain of it."
"I agree with the chief," Todd said, finishing up his last berry. "And on that note, we should head out. I don't want to waste too much daylight."
"All right, you two. Have a nice trip, and whatever you do…"
*Pose*
"Do it with style!"
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*Pant* "H-here, ya go, good sir," *pant*
Nuzleaf set down two gigantic baskets of oran berries in front of Carrracosta.
"These here are all your harvested crops for today. Hopin' they'll all suffice 'til the next batch is ready."
"Thank you kindly, Nuzleaf. This is all very much appreciated. And thanks to you, I was able to spend the day finally repairing this bookshelf."
Nuzleaf snickered a little, looking at the shelf and catching his breath. "That little one of yours is quite the ball of energy, ain't he?"
"Indeed. I just wish he could refrain from breaking things with that energy…"
"Eh, sometimes ya just gotta let kids be kids. I reckon he'll learn to control himself better soon enough."
Carracosta went over to the counter to pull out a wad of cash and handed it to Nuzleaf.
"For your labors."
Nuzleaf was caught off guard.
"O-oh, no, I can't accept that… I'm perfectly fine with jus' helpin' out…"
"Nuzleaf, I don't want to hear it. Take the money. You've earned it."
"I… don't deserve it. I owe my services to y'all for all that I-"
Carracosta put a hand on his exhausted neighbor's shoulder. "You've been working for me for almost a year now. You never owed us anything in the first place, but out of the kindness of your own heart, you've been serving us with the most selflessness that I've ever seen. You deserve a reward. So take the money, or I will have to send you on a long vacation away from my fields."
Hesitantly, he took the Poke from the large turtle's hand. His eyes were starting to water a little, but he managed to hold it back. Such undeserved kindness from this man…
"Thanks a heap, I reckon…"
Just then, a tiny Budew peaked in the doorway.
"Um… hi. Um, Mr. Nuzleaf, sir… sorry to interrupt, but I was wondering if you were gonna pick up the flowers and berries from Mama's gardens today? If not, then I can do it! It's no problem at all!"
The child was clearly eager to help her mother out, like always, though there's no way she could manage such a task herself.
Nuzleaf knelt down to her level and smiled. "How 'bout we go an' get it done together? You can be my helper. Sound like a plan?"
She smiled back excitedly. "I get to help? Yay!"
As the two left his house, Carracosta sat on his front steps for a bit and enjoyed the perfect weather. He wasn't really one to show emotion too often (other than anger, whenever he deemed necessary), but he was in a good mood. His child would be coming home for a visit in a couple of days.
After Nuzleaf and Budew were out of sight, Lombre approached the large turtle.
"Nice day isn't it?"
"Indeed it is. What brings you over here?"
Lombre glanced behind Carracosta and saw the large baskets of berries in the house.
"...Seems like that guy's been pretty helpful to you, eh?"
"He has been phenomenal. I appreciate every ounce of help he's given me."
"Well, that's great. That's real great."
Carracosta picked up on the small hint of sarcasm in his voice. "Is there a problem?"
Lombre sighed.
"Come on, Carracosta… you're a smart guy, and everyone knows it. So why…"
"Why what?"
"...Why are you so trusting of that guy?"
The turtle glared at him.
"...You can't be serious…"
"It's not a crazy question. You know what he did before. And yeah, we forgive him, but trust is a completely different issue. I think he could still be dangerous. It's possible, anyways. And it's not just me. Everyone in the village feels this way. Everyone except for you and Roselia. I didn't want to have to bring this all up, but it's been so long now and I'm worried..."
"Oh, so we're being judgmental now, are we?"
"I'm just concerned about you is all. That's not to say he'll do anything bad, but… you never know. We all had to learn that the hard way last time."
"All right. So let me get this straight… either the lot of you know something that I don't, or you are completely ignorant of the situation Nuzleaf was in."
"I know the situation. We all know he was being controlled, but… have you ever thought about why that was? I mean, Dark Matter never took control of any of us. In fact, it only had like five minions, from what I've heard. Nuzleaf was one of them. Couldn't that mean that he wasn't the best of characters in the first place? Have you ever wondered about that?"
"I don't need to wonder about the past. I know him now. And if that question is tormenting you so much, perhaps you should actually try and talk with him sometime and ask him yourself?"
Lombre was silent for a moment as he started sweating nervously.
"...Oh, hey, look at the time… well, I should get back to the square. Great seeing you again…"
As he darted off, Carracosta stood up and sighed heavily in disgust before going inside.
The nerve of some people…
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"Hurry up, Harley! We're almost there!"
"Hold your Ponyta! I'm coming…"
The two entered the village's gates, expecting to find their friends hanging around the area. But it was surprisingly empty, even for a school day.
"...Where is everyone?"
They saw Kangaskhan cross over the bridge, looking lost or like she was searching for someone. It was a little concerning.
The two approached her from behind.
"Um… Ms. Kangaskhan? Is everything OK?"
She spun around and smiled real big, giving both of them a hug.
"Oh! There you two are! Welcome back! Quick, come with me!"
She grabbed Todd by the hand and Harley quickly followed.
"H-hey, wait! Where are we going?"
They were brought into the square, and what appeared to be the whole village started applauding.
"Hehe… what's going on here?" Harley asked, suddenly feeling shy.
"All right everyone, now that they're here, it's time for the big announcement!" Kangaskhan spoke into a megaphone. "Next week marks one year since our world was saved by these two courageous kids here. And so to commemorate, I'm putting together a little festival that will take place here in the square. Nothing huge, but just a little something to celebrate, and to remind these two how much we appreciate them. Does that sound good to everyone?"
The crowd of villagers cheered.
"Wonderful! I'll get to work, then! Now, can I get a show of hands for how many folks would like to volunteer for the event?"
Several hands went up. Kangaskhan wrote down their names and gave the details for the time and place of their meeting.
"Thank you everyone! If anyone else wants to help out, I'll have a signup sheet at the cafe. See you all there!"
The crowd dispersed. Todd had already found his Pops and the two went back to their house. Harley wandered around the square and eventually found Nuzleaf standing on the sidelines, almost as if he had been hiding during the town meeting.
She slowly walked up to him.
"...Hi, Nuzleaf…"
"Hiya, Harley. Welcome home!"
"Thanks. It's good to be back. That was a nice little… surprise to come back to," she laughed nervously.
"I was a bit surprised myself. But I know how much ol' Kangaskhan cares about you kids." He picked up his bag. "I reckon we should head home. Are ya hungry?"
"I'm actually OK… Todd snuck a bunch of apples into our bag before we left the Expedition Society, so we were covered."
"Well alrighty then."
The two made their way back to Nuzleaf's house and Harley got situated in her room. She noticed the crates were gone.
"So… I see you did some spring cleaning in here?" she called out to him in the kitchen.
"I reckon you mean those ol' crates? Nah, I just decided to finally unpack 'em. Just some old books, mostly. Somethin' to keep me occupied when I'm not workin'."
"Do you… get lonely here?"
"Eh… maybe a little, but it ain't that bad. I'm workin' most of the time anyhow."
"Do you ever see any friends when you're not working, though?"
He was now officially uncomfortable with where this conversation was going.
"No need, kiddo. I ain't much of a people person. Alone time gives me a chance to recharge."
"Well, what about the Beheeyems? You see them around, right?"
"Not so much these days, actually. They formed a rescue team some time ago and they're always out an' about, saving lives. It's their way of makin' up for their wrongdoings, and those fellas are mighty high in demand, I tell ya."
"I see… well, that's really cool for them."
"Hey," he said suddenly, making his way to the door. "I gotta go take care of some errands, before it gets too late. I'll see ya later."
And he darted out the door.
"W-wait…" she muttered.
You were starting to open up…