This is just a quick one-shot to prepare me for writing two huge lab reports and studying for two exams. This is going to be one intense week. XP I'm still working away at Delusions of the Heart, so don't worry! The title sounds kind of, well, pervy, but I swear it's not! I'm also in a huge fluff mood lately, so be warned! ^o^

Note: This takes place after "Evil General Durahan's Challenge" from Season 2.

Disclaimer: I don't claim to own Monster Rancher or the characters. I'm just a huge fan. Tecmo owns everything. I just own the plot.

The Taste of Sweetness

Throughout the journey to defeat Moo, the group of rebels had seen plenty of amazing things. They had seen beautiful scenery, exotic plants, rare animals, and natural wonders that would stay in their minds forever. They had seen things most people would never get the chance to and their journey was still progressing. The young boy of the group was enjoying the sights the most, though, since everything was new and amazing since he wasn't from this world at all. Sometimes being from a different world made him feel a little out of place, though, since everyone else in the group generally knew what they were looking at while he was clueless. One of the first times he felt the feeling of being out of place was when the group came across the Iron Bird. While the rest of the group seemed to know what they were talking about, the young boy had to learn everything there was to know about the flying machine. Living in a world that wasn't his own was both wonderful and frustrating at the same time.

'I wish I could amaze them for once instead of them always amazing me with stuff. Had I been prepared to come here I would have brought a ton of cool stuff to show them.' Genki thought to himself as he led the group of anti-Moo rebels through a small town on the outskirts of where they had battled a few hours earlier.

"We need to restock our food supply before we leave town or else we won't make it far." Holly commented with a frown as she dug through her purse before pulling out a small sack of gold. With seven of them in the group, the gold was depleting more rapidly and so they had to watch what they spent.

"Sounds like a plan then. Let's stay at an inn tonight and restock out supplies tomorrow. After the battle with End Bringer, we really need a break." Hare spoke as he rubbed his sore shoulder from where End Bringer had hit the rabbit monster earlier. "If we travel in the condition we're in, we'll be easily picked off by Baddies. That Durahan fellow isn't fooling around."

"I agree. Let's find the inn and get ready for the night." Tiger stated bluntly while the other rebels only nodded in agreement before heading off to find the town's inn. With the town being so small, it didn't take long to find the inn and for the rebels to get themselves some rooms. Once again, though, Golem would have to stay in a barn to accommodate his large size. Being a girl, Holly was also sent to her own room, though she was reluctant to go. Rules were rules, though, and in the end the rebels gave up on fighting the manager and Holly had to move her belongings to a new room.

"Ah, nothing feels better than a soft bed to lie on!" Suezo sighed with relief as he curled up on one of the beds with a large grin on his face. "We should stay here for a few weeks!"

"I wish, but sadly we have more important things to do so we should stay here for five days at tops." Tiger replied gruffly as he hopped up onto one of the beds.

"Yeah, I guess… It's stupid how we had to rent out two rooms, though, just because Holly's a girl! We've crammed into smaller spaces with all seven of us, so I don't see what the problem is." Genki scowled as he crossed his arms and lied down on his bed with a sigh.

"I agree! What a rip off!" Hare exclaimed.

"You only care because we had to pay extra for the room, rabbit." Tiger stated with a roll of his eyes. Before Hare could retort, the door to their room opened up and Mocchi slipped in before closing the door.

"Where did you do?" Genki asked with puzzlement.

"Mocchi went to see Holly, chi!" Mocchi replied quickly.

"Really? How's she doing?"

"Holly lonely, chi. She doesn't like being away from us, chi." The young monster said with a frown as he hopped up onto Genki's bed before leaning up against the young boy's side. "Why does Holly have to sleep away from us, chi?"

"I asked the manager and he said they had some problems a year ago with mixed genders sharing a room. I guess it kind of makes sense when you think about it. We're use to sleeping together as a group, but other people probably look at us with skeptical looks." Hare replied to the young monster.

"Huh? Why would they look at us like that?" Genki chimed in.

"Oh, Genki. You have a lot to learn, my boy." The rabbit monster stated with a chuckle as he turned over. "Now, if you're not going to nap then go look around the town or something. I, for one, am beat from the journey and I'll be sleeping for awhile. Wake me for dinner, okay?"

"Sure." Genki replied with a shrug as he turned to the rest of the group. Whether it was because he was a naturally fast healer or because Holly had taken good care of him during the fight with End Bringer, the rest of the group was already drifting to sleep from their long day while he was still wide awake. With a shrug, Genki slowly got up before leaving the room and quietly closing the door behind him to let the other rebels rest.

The young boy walked down the hallway of the inn as he went to leave, but suddenly he felt himself stop in mid step before turning to the door that was next to the guys' room. Knowing it was Holly's, the young boy knocked gently on the door to see if maybe she wanted to join him in walking around the town, though when there was no response he felt himself get anxious. With a low gulp, the young boy quietly opened the door, though he felt himself relax at seeing Holly's sleeping form on the bed. Her hair was messy and tangled after her long chase with End Bringer and her clothes were dirty and wrinkled. Small patches of dirt clung to her clothes while her face was blotched with sandy dust. Even in her weary and messy state, Genki could feel his mind produce a single word to describe what he saw in the sleeping girl.

Beautiful.

He had always thought the young girl was attractive and pretty, but something had changed after their run in with End Bringer. The horrible gut feeling he had felt when he saw the Magic Stone fall from his lap was one of the scariest feelings he had ever felt. Since that moment, he couldn't help but see Holly in a new light. The wielder of the Magic Stone still had yet to talk to anyone about her experience and what had happened with End Bringer, but everyone could see it had a huge impact on her. Since then, Holly had been more withdrawn and was extremely skittish. Even in her current slumber her face shone with worry and fright as she held onto her blanket tightly. Even in such a ragged state of body and mind, though, Genki still found her to be stunning.

'I wish I could find a way to thank her for what she did for me, though. I wish I could do something for her that's new and unknown here in this world.' Genki thought to himself with a small smile as he slowly stepped out of the room before closing the door behind him.

The town's market place was littered with strange trinkets, colorful food, and sparkling jewelry as Genki walked through the crowd with determination to find something to make Holly's day. Not only had she saved his life, but he also knew she was currently not happy with the room arrangement and that she was lonely. If he could brighten her mood even just a little, he'd be a happy guy. After a few hours of walking around the market place in circles, though, he felt his quest was in vain. Nothing in the area seemed like it would truly make Holly happy no matter how he looked at it. With a scowl, Genki went to look at a table of figures for a third time, but his vision was blurred when someone slammed into his side; causing the young boy to land on the ground with a 'oomph'.

"Ah! I'm so sorry, sir! Are you alright?" A young woman asked with an apologetic frown as she helped Genki to his feet. A small Hopper was perched on her shoulder and even it looked at Genki with worry. "I was in such a hurry that I didn't even see you there!"

"Ah, I'm fine. Don't worry about it." Genki replied with a wryly smile.

"Please, take this as a way to show you how sorry I am." The woman said with a smile as she dug through her bag before pulling out a sack and placing it in Genki's hands while the Hopper nodded its head in excitement.

"What is it?"

"It's sugar, dear. I'm sorry again, but I have to go!" The woman said with a small bow before rushing off into the crowd of people and disappearing from sight; leaving a very confused boy holding a sack of sugar in the middle of the street.

"…what the heck am I suppose to do with this…?" Genki whispered to himself as he stared down at the sack in his hands with curiosity, but when he spotted Golem looking through the market place he felt an idea burst into his mind and a wryly grin to form on his face. "THAT'S IT!"

Suezo, Tiger, Hare, and Mocchi all watched Genki with confusion as he talked with the inn's chef about letting him use the kitchen for a little while. After giving the chef his desperate pleas, the chef couldn't help but cave in and let the boy use the kitchen. Genki smiled as he poured the sack of sugar into a pot before pouring in some water. Once the water was in, Genki used the stove to heat the pot while stirring it slowly until the solution began to boil and all the sugar was dissolved. The monsters could only look at one another with looks of confusion, though none of them knew how to ask the boy what he was doing.

"Hey, Tiger? Could you shoot your Blizzard Attack at this pot until it gets to be a little below room temperature?" Genki suddenly asked. Tiger blinked in puzzlement at the request, but he didn't question it as cool air shot from his mouth at the pot and before long, the pot was at a perfect temperature. With a smile at the success, Genki then proceeded to grab a jar out from one of the cupboards before digging through his book bag and pulling out some cotton string. Using a butter knife as an anchor, the young boy tied a piece of string that was long enough to hang in the jar without touching the bottom or sides onto the knife. The young boy then gently wet the string with some of the water and sugar solution before he poured all the solution into the jar with the string tied to the knife suspended in the liquid. The butter knife with the string hanging from it lay firmly on top of the jar, and Genki couldn't help but feel proud of his work.

"Genki, what the heck is that suppose to be?" Suezo asked with a curious look.

"This? It's a gift for Holly!" Genki replied with a nod of his head.

"A jar filled with solidified water and sugar? Genki, you need some serious lessons on how to get a girl's attention." Hare mused as he looked at the odd set up with a shake of his head. Genki scowled at the rabbit monster's comment and he quickly picked the jar up before heading back to the guys' room and hiding the odd set up under his bed. His pride had been hurt a little at Hare's comment, but he wouldn't let it get to him too much. For now, he would get some shut eye and wait patiently for his creation to be complete.

The rebels woke up late the next day as their stiff bodies screamed at them to go back to sleep, but to no avail. It had been a strange night for all of them since it was extremely rare when Holly wasn't sleeping in the same room as them. There was something strangely eerie about not having the young girl around, though there was nothing they could do about it. Instead of thinking too much about it, the group went down to fill their hungry bellies with the inn's offered breakfast and they felt their spirits lift as Holly descended the stairs to join them for breakfast. Although now cleaned up and more presentable than the day before, the group could tell Holly didn't sleep much that night. The young girl let out a low yawn as she almost had to drag herself to the table from fatigue.

"Holly, are you alright?" Suezo asked with concern as he handed the girl a plate full of different breakfast foods.

"Yes, I'm fine. I just didn't sleep well, is all. I guess I'm just not use to sleeping alone." Holly replied with a hesitant chuckle before taking a bite of scrambled eggs, and Genki could see the loneliness reflecting off her deep brown eyes.

"You need to get to bed early tonight so you can get some rest! We don't want you to get sick or something." The eyeball monster stated with a frown as he watched his closest friend giggle softly before resting a gentle hand on his head.

"I will, I promise. We'll only be here a little while longer anyways." The wielder of the Magic Stone said as she wore a tired smile. "Today we should gather up the supplies we need so we can leave here within the next two days. If we stay too long we'll be putting this village at risk."

"I agree. The sooner we leave the better. After defeating End Bringer, I bet Durahan wasn't very thrilled and I know he'll definitely come after us soon." Tiger spoke up before eating a piece of freshly cooked bacon.

"True, but we also can't leave until we're better rested. Just look at us; we're still feeling the after math of yesterday's battle. Hopefully we'll be in better shape in a day or so." Hare replied as he ate away at the breakfast meal as if he hadn't eaten in days. Holly smiled softly as she watched the group eat away like hungry savages before she slowly got up and headed to the door.

"I'm going out to start shopping. You guys just relax and take it easy, okay?" Holly said with a warm smile before leaving the inn without waiting for a reply from the other rebels. After quickly gulping down his food, Genki didn't even speak a word to the monsters as he booked it out the door and ran to the wielder of the Magic Stone's side in a hurry. Holly blinked in surprise at the boy's sudden appearance, but her surprise quickly turned to happiness as giggled softly.

"So, um, you need any help shopping?" Genki asked awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his head with nervousness.

"I don't think so, but thank you for offering. You had a really long day yesterday so you should go back to the inn and rest." Holly replied.

"But you had a long day, too! I think you had a longer day than any of us, so you should be resting, too!" Genki exclaimed as he looked at Holly with worry. Not only had she had a rough day yesterday, but she had been forced away from the group and hadn't slept well.

"Genki… You're very sweet to worry about me, but I'll be just fine. I promise I won't be gone long, okay?"

"…alright. If you're gone longer than an hour, though, I'll come looking for you!"

Holly blinked in surprise at the young boy's response, though she couldn't stop the red from staining her cheeks and the loving giggle from escaping her lips at hearing his concern for her. "Okay, that sounds like a deal."

Genki smiled wryly at her response as he watched her wave gently to him before disappearing in the mass of people who were also shopping for daily necessities; leaving the young boy to sigh softly before trudging back to the inn to reunite with the other rebels. Genki didn't know why, but he felt his eyes stayed glued to the sun dial that was on the inn's window still as if something miraculous would come from staring at it. Every minute seemed to go in slow motion, but he was relieved when Holly did keep her promise as she returned to the inn before her hour time limit was up with an armful of groceries. As Hare sorted through the bags of food, the other rebels planned their dinner before discussing the traveling plan. In the end, it was decided that they would leave in two days. So for the rest of the day the rebels counted their inventory before eating dinner and heading off to bed; much to Holly's displeasure.

"So what do you guys think of Durahan? I mean, he's a general and everything!" Suezo asked the other rebels, who were now all in their beds getting ready to sleep.

"I'm not really sure. He seems really tough, but he didn't confront us himself. He's doing the traditional sending out minions thing." Hare replied with a shrug before letting out a yawn. "Go to bed already, Suezo! Sheesh! We're trying to sleep!"

"I can't! I just keep thinking about how lonely Holly must be in that room all by herself." Suezo said with a sigh.

"I know what you mean, but it's only for another night after tonight and then we'll be on the road again. So for now we just have to deal with it." Tiger responded before turning over and grumbling a few words under his breath.

"Good night, chi." Mocchi whispered as he cuddled into Genki's chest.

"Yeah. Good night to you, too." Genki replied with a smile as he patted the young monster's head before gazing up at the blank ceiling above. He couldn't help but to be excited about giving Holly the gift he was making for her since he had never seen it made in the world of the monsters. 'Hopefully it'll cheer her up.'

The next day was the same as the day before. The group got up, ate breakfast, argued a little, ate lunch, argued some more, ate dinner, and then headed off to bed. Golem was the first to leave as he waved to the group before heading off to the barn, though luckily for him the place was comfy and the owners were very pleasant to him. Genki could see the disappointed look on Holly's face as she parted ways with the group before going into her own room while the other rebels went into their shared room. One by one the rebels fell into much needed slumbers, since tomorrow they knew they would be back on the road again so the time to enjoy sleeping in a bed was now. All but one rebel fell asleep, though, and Genki grinned with excitement as he snuck out from his bed without disturbing Mocchi before kneeling down and grabbing the jar from under his bed. With a glance at the contents of the jar to make sure everything had gone as planned, Genki quietly snuck out of the room before walking to Holly's room. With a deep breath of air, Genki quickly built up his courage before tapping lightly on the door to see if the girl was awake. To his surprise, the sound of gentle footsteps came from under the door before the door opened up slowly to reveal a confused looking Holly in her sleepwear. The nightgown was simple and baggy as it came down to Holly's knees and the sleeves went down to her elbows. Her hair was without its usual hair ribbon, causing Holly's flowing brown hair to frame her pallid face and for her eyes to look even more innocent than usual.

"Genki? May I help you?" Holly asked with a confused look at the boy, though the sound of her voice hinted that his appearance was more than welcome.

"Oh! Uh, hey Holly! It's a nice night tonight, huh?" Genki replied nervously, though this only caused Holly to be filled with even more puzzlement.

"Yes, I suppose it is. Um… would you like to come in?" Holly offered as she smiled warmly. "If you stand out in the hallway we may wake up other people and we'll get in trouble."

"Yeah, that would be great." The young boy said as he cautiously walked into the welder of the Magic Stone's room as if a swarm of Baddies would leap out at him at any time. Holly watched the boy with curiosity as he kept his hands behind his back before she shrugged and closed the door behind them. Holly's room was empty besides a bed, a small table that had a single lit candle on it, and what little belongings she owned. The room truly was lonely and isolated.

"Genki… What's going on? Is something wrong?" Holly suddenly asked out of curiosity.

"What? No, no! I'm fine, really! I just wanted to give you something." Genki replied with a smile.

"Give me something? For what?"

"It's for saving me from End Bringer the other day. Plus I know you've been kind of down lately so I wanted to cheer you up. Before I give it to you, though I have something I want to ask…"

"Sure, ask anything you'd like."

"…after End Bringer attacked us, what happened while I was unconscious?"

Holly felt her shoulders slump at the question, but she knew it would come up eventually. "After you were unconscious, End Bringer went to kill us so I slashed him with my dagger. He fell over from the impact and I carried you to a cave. I… I was scared you weren't going to make it at first, but you showed signs of life. Right after that, though, End Bringer began to shoot at the cave we were in. I made the choice to leave the Magic Stone with you and to lure him away from you in hopes that you would stay safe. He chased me for awhile until I was cornered at the ledge. Then, you guys came."

"When you left the Magic Stone with me, did you think you were going to… die?"

"…yes."

"You really were ready to lay your life down to save mine? Why?"

"…it's hard to explain, Genki. It's something I hope you'll eventually find out on your own."

Genki nodded in understanding at Holly's words before he took the jar out from behind his back and placed it on the table. Holly blinked in surprise at the strange gift, and she slowly leaned forward to take a look. On the top of the jar was a knife with a string dangling down into the jar, but it was what was on the string that made Holly's eyes widen. All along the string were large clumps of sparkling crystals that shimmered with every flicker of the candle. The clear color of the crystals made them look elegant and almost like a mass of diamonds.

"G-Genki? What is this?" Holly asked in surprise as she stared at the jar in awe.

"It's actually just sugar. In my world it's a popular candy called Rock Candy. Normally it's flavored artificially, but I didn't have that kind of resource." Genki replied as he looked at his creation with pride.

"…Rock Candy? So do you eat it?"

"Yeah! It's really crunchy and sweet! You have to try it!" Genki exclaimed with excitement.

"I don't think I can! It's so pretty!" Holly replied with a look of awe as she kept examining the jar on the table. With a smile to the young girl, Genki carefully removed the string from the butter knife before handing the end to the string for Holly to take. The young girl's face seemed to glow as she held the sugar crystals close to her face to inspect before glancing over to the boy next to her. With an encouraging nod to her, Holly slowly brought the mass of crystals up to her mouth before parting her lips and taking a small nibble of the crystals. The candy was hard as Genki had explained, but the smooth texture and sweet taste caused the young girl to close her eyes to savoir the flavor. She could feel the crystals dissolving in her mouth before the candy disintegrated completely, though the sweet after taste still remained.

"…do you like it?" Genki asked up timidly.

"Genki, it's wonderful! What an amazing food! I wish this world had candy like this!" Holly exclaimed happily as her eyes stayed glued on the crystals that had caked onto the dangling string. With a glance over to the young boy, Holly carefully held the crystal coated string in front of the young boy's face while her smile only grew at his confused look. "You have some too, okay?"

"H-huh? Eat off the same t-thing as you?" Genki stuttered nervously as his face flushed red.

"I promise I'm not sick or anything. If you don't feel comfortable doing it, though, it's alright…"

"No, no! I'd, uh, love some!"

Holly giggled playfully at the young boy's response as she held the candy crystals out to the boy once again. With a small gulp, Genki gently placed his hand on the hand Holly was using to hold the candy to keep the string steady before he took a small bite of the sugary crystals. The sweet taste of the hard crystals toyed with his taste buds and he felt his stomach crave more of the candy. As if reading his mind, Holly motioned for the boy to take another bite, in which he did. The smooth texture was exhilarating, though there was something more exhilarating at watching Holly take another small bite from the string. The young girl's smile never wavered as she savored ever second that the candy stayed whole in her mouth, and her eyes sparkled in excitement at the new found treat. Genki smiled at seeing his present work its wonders, though he blinked in surprise as he noticed Holly now staring at him.

"Is something wrong?" Genki asked with puzzlement.

"You have some sugar on your cheeks." Holly giggled softly at the scene. Before Genki could try to wipe his face off, Holly's warm and gentle hands pressed up against the sides of his face and began to brush away any stray sugar crystals, causing Genki to feel his heart start to beat faster. As the young girl's hands left his face, though, he felt a sudden burst of emptiness, as if having her touch against him was a sudden spark of life.

"Uh, thanks." Genki said bashfully.

Holly's smile was still ever present, though Genki didn't miss the now red tint to her cheeks. The young girl looked down at the string in her hands and she couldn't help but be a little disheartened at seeing that the crystals were almost all gone, though it was to be expected. It didn't stop her from extending it over to Genki again, though, and the young boy blinked at her in shock at knowing that even though there were so few crystals left, she'd still offer the treasure to him. Turning her offer down could offend her, though, so Genki smiled before taking her hand that held the candy before raising it up to their eye levels.

"We could always, ya know, eat it… together?" Genki suggested sheepishly as his face flushed another shade of red at even mentioning it. Before he could feel embarrassed about it, though, Holly's hand tightened slightly on his own and the smile on her face let him know things were still going forward.

"O-okay. Let's try that." Holly stuttered nervously as she felt her cheeks get warmer again. Never in her wildest dreams would she have imagined she would agree to a suggestion like that, but something about Genki made her feel secure. After letting out a deep breath, Genki leaned forward and could feel the string of crystals on his mouth. The sugary taste was as good as before, but suddenly he felt his lips get warmer as Holly leaned in and placed her lips against his. Between the warmth of Holly's lips and the sticky sensation of the crystals, Genki couldn't tell which one tasted sweeter; though he had a feeling it was Holly's lips. Goosebumps formed on both of the young humans' arms as neither of the two felt the desire to break their position, though both knew they couldn't stay like that forever. After what felt like eternity, the two humans slowly parted as the sugary crystals were completely gone. Blushes covered both of the rebels' faces, though their hands still stayed linked together. Minutes passed as no words were spoken by either of them, but when Holly cleared her throat Genki felt his mind race. Unsure of whether or not what had happened was a good or bad thing, the young boy slowly turned to the wielder of the Magic Stone to hear what she had to say.

"…you should make more of that candy sometime, Genki."

"R-really?"

"Yes, but…"

"But, what?"

"…only if we can share it again."

Genki felt his heart leap at the brunette's words, and he felt a wryly grin make its way to his face as he saw Holly's bashful smile. What started from a pitiful jar had flourished into something entirely different, and for once he felt something from his world had affected a person in the world of the monsters. He would make sure not to tell anyone how to make the candy, though, so only he could make it for Holly. Somehow, candy never tasted as sweet until that night.

This was so random. I do love Rock Candy, though! It's so tasty! Everyone should try making it sometime. ^_^ The girl from the marketplace that bumped into Genki was Nina from Season 3 (the girl who unlocked Gray Wolf). Even if it wasn't much, this was sort of my first kiss scene. It's not a real kiss scene, but it's a start. I wrote this and was writing my cell structure lab report at the same time, so the rocky road agate pendant ripitupgenki make more me is working! Yay! ^_^

RockyRoadSmith: Signing off! :3