VGS2's notes: Y'know, I considered putting this chappie in Questing For Respect instead of here... but then I realised that it might be a bit too much of a shift in gears for what I was going for, so screw it, here it goes!
No context from the main fic is really needed this time. Go and have fun! :P
Story 3: The Little Monster
(Takes place within the first eight chapters of QFR, but can be easily read whenever!)
Ben trudged up the barren plains leading to the notoriously spiky mountain known as Mt. Bristle. He had to be careful for the occasional sharp rocks jutting out of the sandy soil, which only grew in frequency as they approached the dungeon.
His usual smile widened in glee. This place would be perfect for what he had in mind. For the time being, at least.
He craned his neck back to look at his travelling partner who was trailing behind. The little monster he was in charge of, as usual, did nothing but stare down at the ground as he travelled, frowning at nothing in particular. No emotion behind his eyes, despite the scowl they held. No passion behind his gaze, otherwise filled with an anger that Ben had never been able to figure out. No logic behind his body language, yet his ears were always down.
Ben's paws trembled with irritation, but he held his smile. He always had to hold his smile. Without it, he would not be considered a normal pokémon. He would be considered as much of a freak as the little monster behind him.
He strained his smile and decided to speak. "We're nearly there~ Does that please you?"
"... No," the pokémon grumbled, voice as cold as ever.
Ben's smile strained further. "... Why not?"
The pokémon's gaze went off to the side, revealing his ridiculous ponytail of fur. "The sooner we get there, the sooner we'll have to..." He trailed off, but Ben already knew what he meant.
"But... we're pokémon, aren't we? This is what we were born to do~"
"... I guess."
An irritated breath left Ben's lips. "... You need to train. Let's train."
The little monster glared in his direction with widened eyes. "I..." He let out a long huff and closed his eyes. "... Alright."
Ben turned to face him and leapt forwards, tail glowing green. Twirling, he slammed it into the pokémon, sending him through the air. He was sent crashing to floor, and went rolling over many spikes before coming to a stop. Sprawled against the ground, he grunted and glared up at Ben.
Ben's smile twitched. That empty glare was so unsatisfying to look at. "... You need a little more, I think," he said.
"... Okay," the little monster grunted, slowly getting to his feet. Ben saw light bruises sprinkled across his body, from where the sharp rocks had stabbed him.
Ben stalled. Actually, on second thought... too much training outside of a dungeon was risky. In dungeons, lethal damage would end in a teleportation elsewhere. Outside of a dungeon, taking a mortal hit would most likely result in death.
Ben inhaled sharply. If he killed anybody, he would go to Noe Town's high-security prison reserved for renegades. He didn't want that. "... No more training, actually. You're strong enough, for now," he said.
The pokémon raised an eyebrow. "Oh... fine," he replied.
Ben's smiled widened. "We need to pick up the pace, anyway~ If we get there before lunch, we can eat before our mission."
"I'm not all that hungry..."
"Well, I'll be, so either way, don't lag~" Ben turned around and started towards the entrance to the dungeon, which he could see in the distance. He heard the little monster's footsteps following a short distance behind.
Stunky hummed a tune to herself while she rolled up her sleeping bag, getting it ready to be packed away.
While she was busy with that, the morning sun's rays caught on her beautiful, sparkling, magenta fur. Seeing it, she followed the gleam upwards, toward the bright blue sky.
It was a radiant sight, only made better by the view. Because she was near the edge of one of the many gargantuan spikes poking out of Mt. Bristle - large enough to make a floor all of its own - she could clearly see the horizon of the land. It truly was a radiant sight.
She smiled brightly and sighed happily. "Oh, what a gor~geous day~ I'm so glad we camped up here." She fanned her tail out to stretch. "To think we nearly returned straight home yesterday to deliver our client's missing special band. We would have missed something wonderful!"
From her treasure bag on the floor nearby, she heard some faint murmuring, far too quiet to be understood.
Tilting her head, she lifted the flap of it up to peer inside. "Hm? What was that, my darling?" she asked.
The bag jumped into an upright position. Afterwards, a familiar ghostly figure erupted out of the bag, a smile shining brightly on his purple, misty face.
He gave a bow. "Apologies, Miss Stunky," he murmured in his usual dark, wispy voice. He went upright. "I was just saying that I'm so... happy for you."
She blinked. "Oh, why... thank you? What about, though, my dear?" she asked.
"I am simply happy you are enjoying yourself. While I may not like bright, sunny days, myself... I can appreciate those who do."
She laughed. "Oh, you're such a stereotypical ghost, Spiritomb. You wouldn't be out of place wearing a bed sheet."
He snickered in his usual slow, dark manner. "You're very funny, as always...!" His gaze drifted towards the sleeping bag. "Now, then, would you care for some... assistance?"
"Oh, very kind of you to offer! If you would~"
"My pleasure...!" He reached down towards the half-rolled sleeping bag and absorbed it into his face. She could see the green, spiritual orbs begin to wrap it up while it was inside of him, his smile unwavering.
It was such a bizarre sight, but Stunky was quite used to it by now. She would never understand ghost-types, but their skills were certainly useful!
She turned to gaze at the scenery while he continued. As she did, she briefly caught a glimpse of some kind of grass-type further down the path. It ducked back into the corner before she could identify it properly, though.
Hm, had that been a wild pokémon? A particularly shy one, perhaps? Well, whatever worked for the dear. Stunky preferred that sort of wild pokémon to an aggressive one, that was for certain!
Some rustling brought her attention back to Spiritomb. He was retracting back into the treasure bag, bringing the sleeping bag in with him. He mumbled something else, and - although she couldn't hear him for the treasure bag - she imagined he was saying he was finished.
She stood on her hind legs to clap, delighted. "Oh, lovely! You were so fast~" she chimed. She moved over to the side of the treasure bag on her fours. "I guess we're all good to go, then, aren't we?"
The ghost's head poked out again. "Yes, we are ready to get going. Exciting, isn't it...?"
She let out a chuckle. "A bit much to call it exciting, but sure. I'll just find something lovely to wear, and we'll be off~"
She reached into the bag, ready to pull out one of her many aura bows. She hoped to find one that made her feel just as bright as the gorgeous day did~
With her treasure bag on her back, and her lime bow around her neck, Stunky merrily strolled through one of the mountain's caves. Her bow's power made her feel healthier than usual, and not just because it looked glamorous on her. It really was such a nice piece of clothing~
Spiritomb was poking out of her bag. His own bag was hanging over his ghostly body, and a black and orange cover band was wrapped over his equally ghostly head. He was keeping himself busy with glancing around at the scenery, jagged smile unchanging.
Taking a page from his book, she looked around the place, herself. They were in a large room, with gray, rocky spikes jutting out of the ground here and there, both big and small. The floor's spikes were nothing compared to the ones lining the walls and ceiling, though. With little space between each protrusion, and in both orderly and chaotic patterns, they were a sight to behold. Not only that, but they were so tremendously thick and spiky that she couldn't help but admire them.
Their formation was almost unnatural, but it was what one would expect of a mountain named after bristles, she supposed. Either way, she wouldn't want to be launched into them. Because they were in a dungeon, she would survive... but it wouldn't be pleasant, all the same.
Spiritomb piped up, suddenly. "Oh dear... it appears we have a visitor," he said, looking forward.
She turned her head to match his gaze and saw a machop. It was peeking from behind some large spikes jutting out from the floor. Its bulging chest suggested a female, and her glare suggested hostile.
"Hey!" she shouted. "What're you trespassers doin' on our mounta-!?" Her eyes widened. "... W-Wait. Oh crap, you're a stinky stunky."
Stopping, Stunky sighed. Oh, great... "Yes, I... suppose some stunky do smell a bit, but I'd rather not-"
The machop yelped and held her nose. "Uh oh! I ain't dealing wid a stink dis early in de morning, no siree!" she shouted. She made a hasty retreat before anything else could be said.
Stunky's ears flattened. "Oh, not again..."
"How very unfortunate..." Spiritomb murmured, stretching his body and angling himself so they could see face to face. His smile was unwavering, as was the usual for him. "If only she knew how... dazzling your personality was."
"Quite..." She clicked her tongue. "Unfortunately, as long as I remain a stunky, I doubt that'll be happening any time soon. Even though I would never be caught..." She pulled a face, "... spraying."
"Hmm, alas... Though at least your... friends back at the guild know you better, hmm?"
She let out a breath. "I suppose so... as long as they're not Banette, anyhow."
"Mmhmm... Well, I do not think you should listen when she calls you an... 'assface', was it? "
Stunky curled her lip. "P-Please don't remind me of that. I could go the rest of my life without remembering her utterly vulgar nickname for me, back in school."
His smile dipped ever so slightly. "Ohh... my apologies..."
"It's okay..." She started walking again. "It's not your fault that my species has, what she would call an 'arse face,'" she said, rolling her eyes to herself.
"All the same, Miss Stunky. I feel absolutely... terrible about my wording...."
She giggled. "Oh, it's just like you to never accept forgiveness, Spiritomb. Well, if you're still intent on feeling bad about it, then why don't you make up for it by helping me through these last few floors?"
His smiled widened again. "Oh, why of course...!" He corrected himself so he could stand watch above her, as his body continued to extend past her bag.
She nodded with a smile. "Excellent~"
With that, she continued onwards. With their mission already accomplished, they wouldn't need to do too much exploring. Just a simple trek to the top of the mountain, so they could teleport back down with their badges. Afterwards, home for tea.
She grinned to herself. Oh, she was excited, already!
As Stunky and Spiritomb continued up a large, sloped corridor towards a higher floor, some flapping from above caught their attention.
"Pokémon to fight, oh boy!" a starly sang, flying close to the spiky ceiling high above. A boy, from the looks of things.
Stunky sighed. Oh, for goodness' sake... they'd been close to the next floor, too. So typical.
Well, no matter. She was always ready for a quick scrap! "Okay, let's look alive, my dear Spiritomb!" she said.
He gave a low chuckle from behind her, still poking out of her bag. "I'd be honored...!" he muttered.
The starly suddenly zipped down towards them with Quick Attack.
Stunky jumped out of the way, hoping he would crash. Instead, he twisted around to land on his feet.
"Woo, here's my Fury Attack~!" the bird chimed, lunging towards her with a glowing beak.
She yelped and tried to block with an arm. It stung as the bird quickly pecked her over and over again.
"That's enough now, if you please...!" Spiritomb said, thrusting his face into the starly, smacking him away.
The starly hit the ground, but quickly flipped back to his feet, yelling, "No way! Hyaah!" He rapidly flapped his wings, sending a thick cloud of dust flying their way.
Ugh, a Sand Attack. Thankfully, the dust brushed against Stunky's eyes to no effect, thanks to her Keen Eye ability protecting her vision. She couldn't say the same for her fur, though. It was going to need a long time brushing, after this...
A grunt of displeasure from Spiritomb reminded her that it was sadly worse for him than her. She had to do something soon, or else his eyesight was going to suffer.
Huffing, she charged an attack in her mouth. "Well, two can play this little game!" she shouted. She glanced at her partner. "Spiritomb, bag yourself, please!"
"At once...!" Spiritomb responded, retreating into her treasure bag.
After inhaling, she fired off a Smokescreen ball at the starly, which burst into fumes on impact.
The bird began to hack and cough. Though he was obscured by smoke, she could just about see his silhouette, thanks to her ability. She ran around him and prepared a Flamethrower. "Sorry, dear, but you're done for~" she chimed.
The starly quickly glanced around. Instead of panicking as expected, his gaze followed her direction as she ran around him.
She faltered. H-How was he keeping up so well?
Ah, oh well, it wasn't a concern! She let out a long stream of fire and swept it across the corridor.
The starly took off flying, missing the flames. He did a backwards loop and came at her, wing glowing for a Wing Attack. "Keen Eye prevails, woooo!" he screamed, ending with a cough.
Stunky yelped. Oh, Arceus! Hoist by her own ability!
Her mind scrambled for a move to save herself with. The bird slammed into her before she could, stopping her plans dead. Crying out in pain, she stumbled backwards toward the spiky wall.
Her eyes widened. Ohhh, that wasn't good! She tried desperately to stop herself, but she still tumbled into the spikes.
Intense pain was... surprisingly absent from her body. Instead, a ghostly light coated the areas that were touching the spikes. What...?
When she heard Spiritomb's pained groans come from within her bag at around the same time, she recalled his cover band. Yes, right, it all made sense, now. It was clothing that would protect the wearer's allies from attacks that would cause fainting... although the drawback was that the wearer had to bear the pain, instead. And considering she had just smashed into some spikes...
She grimaced. Oh dear... As fashionable as that thing was, it sure was troublesome for the poor ghost-type. "Um... s-sorry, Spiritomb, dear!" she apologized.
Spiritomb mumbled something which she couldn't hear. She did hear the starly gasp loudly, however.
"Wooow, you didn't faint? Oh my legends!" he exclaimed, staring at her in awe while standing on the ground. "This is so fun! I gotta up my game!" He crouched as his beak glowed.
Stunky let some acid bubble in her mouth. "That's my line, darling!" she shouted, firing a ball of Acid Spray.
Unfolding his wings, the starly hopped to the side, dodging it. While seemingly getting into position to fly at her, the ball hit the ground behind him and burst, spraying his back.
He squealed and turned around as the purple gunk sizzled against him. "Owww! Who gave me a squirt!?" he shouted, looking around frantically.
"He's distracted! Do your thing, my dear!" Stunky shouted.
The starly's head snapped in her direction "What-!?"
Spiritomb burst out of her bag and stared into his eyes. "Please excuse my manners...!" he murmured.
Staring back in surprise, a flashing swirly pattern appeared over the bird's eyes. He soon became unsteady on his feet, eyelids drooping. "O-Oh...! That's... Ah... Starlyyy..."
He crumpled onto his front, fast asleep.
Not wasting a moment, Spiritomb hovered over the sleeping pokémon and opened his mouth wide. The starly's body glowed bright red, and multi-colored sparkles poured out of him to fly directly into the ghost's open mouth. Eating them made his bruises glow before dissipating entirely.
Grimacing, the starly tossed and turned in his sleep, clearly pained by the experience. After a short while, Spiritomb stopped his attack and shifted around to look at the starly's closed eyes, his own glowing.
The same swirly pattern as before appeared over the bird's eyes as they slowly drifted open. Stunky couldn't help but notice that he didn't look very... aware. Clearly, he was still asleep.
"Now, if you could perhaps be so kind..." Spiritomb started, "I would appreciate it if you could apologize, and then maybe... depart."
"Y... Y-Yeahh..." the starly murmured, shakily getting up to his feet. He turned to Stunky and bowed. "Sorry for the cool... battle."
"Th-That's... quite fine, darling," she replied, a little unnerved by his glazed over appearance which was not unlike a zombie. Goodness, Hypnosis was quite frightening for every reason imaginable. "It was, um... quite fun."
The starly lifted his head and flew away, down the sloped corridor. Before he could get too far away, a purple haze fell over him, causing his flying to become quite erratic.
"My word, a Nightmare, too, Spiritomb?" Stunky asked, turning to her partner with a grimace. "A little much for the poor thing, don't you think?"
He nodded. "Perhaps, yes... but now, after awakening and interrupting his hypnotized state, he will not be coming back anytime soon to disturb you...!" He bowed, much like the starly had done, earlier. "I hope you do not mind my brutal methods too much..."
She stalled for a short while, before shaking her head with a smile. "No, it's quite fine. I enjoyed our little skirmish, so it's a shame it had to come to such an anti-climatic end... but those are the breaks, as they say. We'll never get to a place where we can warp home if we're getting caught up in overly long fights, constantly."
He bowed again. "Oh, then please accept my most sincere apologies..."
"Of course, dear..." she replied, smile growing slightly awkward. While she appreciated how considerate he was, his self-consciousness could be so overwhelming, at times...
He rose his head again. "To be quite uncharacteristically frank of myself... I shall never understand how one can enjoy such... intense fighting. I find such fights to be ever so... worrisome."
She gave a light huff of amusement and began up the sloped corridor leading to the next floor. "Well, you never were one for fighting, so you wouldn't unders- ... Oh?"
While continuing upwards, she spied something at the top of the slope. A yellow pokémon looking directly down at her from the next floor, species unknown from the distance.
"Look, my dear: It seems we had a spectator watching our little tussle," Stunky said, gesturing in its general direction.
Spiritomb's head lurched forward in front of her. "Hmm... as much as it terribly saddens me to say... I fear it may be... hostile," he said.
"More than likely..." she replied, cautiously moving onward. Her vision was better than most, so maybe if she got a little closer, then...!
Sadly, she didn't get very far before the pokémon suddenly turned away, gaze facing the floor. Afterwards, it disappeared behind a corner.
Stunky slowed to a stop, perplexed. "I... suppose it wasn't?" she said.
"Your fierce fight must have given them quite the nasty fright...!" Spiritomb suggested.
She giggled lightly. "I suppose so, you poet, you. Anyhow, let's sally forth~"
He bowed towards her. "As you wish, Miss Stunky...!"
Stunky continued back up the slope. "Oh, by the way... you simply must stop wearing that awful cover band. It may look nice, but you'll do yourself a mischief if you're not careful, one of these days."
"I do appreciate the concern, Miss Stunky, but your safety is... my number one concern..."
"That's sweet of you, dear, but your safety is just as important as mine..."
He gave one of his dark chuckles. "You're too kind... I wouldn't worry, however. As long as I possess Dream Eater, I shall be okay."
"Hmm, all the same..." She blinked. "... How does a dream taste, anyway?"
"Well, I suppose it would depend on the type of dream. Pleasant dreams taste quite sweet... Empty dreams of no substance are oftentimes dry... Frantic dreams are awfully spicy... Dreams of a more... adult nature tend to be rather sour... And finally, nightmares are bitter, which makes me quite fond of them...!" he explained, finishing on another dark chuckle.
She smiled. "Ooh, interesting~" She paused. "Though, um... I'll refrain from asking how you gained that sort of information."
"Very understandable..."
"... Yes. Um... say, what sort of dream was the starly having, do you know?"
"The young starly's dream was of fighting, so it had a notable twang of spice."
Her smile faltered in concern. "Oh dear, but you don't like spicy food, do you?"
"It is... pleasant, so long as it is not the sort of spicy food that burns my poor, sensitive tongue."
"Oh, well... fair enough. I shall try to remember~" Even though her cooking was admittedly atrocious when it came to using spices, in no small part to her large distaste for spicy food.
... Speaking of which, she still had to apologize to Swadloon, the poor, poor dear... Hopefully, she wasn't still too mortified about spewing in front of everyone after tasting her razz and cheri berry curry...
After about a minute of walking up the slope, Stunky had officially made her way to the next floor, with Spiritomb tucked neatly into her bag.
She found herself having to wipe her face free of sweat with a handkerchief as the ground leveled out. Whew... despite her best efforts, she was going to end up smelling, anyway.
Tsk, oh well... nothing a good shower wouldn't cure! It would be a nice excuse to use that new nanab shampoo she'd bought recently, to bring out the sparkle in her shiny fur~
Putting her handkerchief away, she looked around to take in her surroundings. She was in a small room with three different choices of corridors to pick from. The walls were as spiky as usual.
She glanced at the different corridors, wondering which to take. She jumped when she saw a pokémon lingering fairly close by in one of them, staring at her. Oh, goodness, how long had it been there?!
... Then again, there had been that onlooker from earlier. Perhaps this was the same one?
Either way... it appeared to be a pikachu. A male one, judging by all the obvious signs. He had a bag slung around his shoulder and, for reasons that she could only guess at, he was scowling directly at her... though oddly, his lax posture didn't imply he had aggressive intentions.
After getting a thorough look at him, she realized something. His fur was unkempt and coated in dust and scrapes... he seemed slightly sweaty, likely from exertion... and the frown on his face gave him a distinctly roguish appearance...
Stunky found herself fanning her face. Oh, dear... she could feel a case of the vapors coming on.
When she noticed the pikachu tilting his head, she swallowed and recomposed herself. "Why, hello there, you handsome devil, you~" she greeted, fluttering her long eyelashes at him.
"... Er... hi..." he replied, raising an eyebrow.
She strolled closer to him, making sure to sway her hips with each step. "Do you perhaps... come here often?"
He blinked. After a pause, his frown deepened and he averted his gaze. In doing so, he revealed a strangely attractive ponytail of yellow fur, held in place by a rugged black and orange cover band.
As nice as it looked, she stopped in her tracks, face falling in concern. Oh, joy... being a skunk was putting him off, wasn't it? "Um... just so you know, darling," she started, "I'm not like all the other-"
"Yeah, um... I..." he interrupted. He let out a breath and looked at her. "I have to mug you, now."
She stared at him. "... Er..." She chuckled awkwardly and took a step back. "Y-You have a peculiar sense of humor, dear."
Spiritomb's head came out of her bag and floated to her side. Though he was still smiling, she could see some worry in his swirling eyes. "Forgive my intrusion of your flirting, Miss Stunky..." he apologized, "but I think he might mean what he-"
The pikachu's cheeks sparked and his frown darkened significantly. The room grew murky as violent sparks filled the air, letting off intense crackling.
... Uh oh.
She took up an immediate battle stance, while Spiritomb did the same. Apparently, this handsome devil was most certainly a devil...! "Spiritomb, let's- Agh!" Her limbs locked up, making her cry out in shock. What!? But she hadn't even felt any pain!
She glanced at her partner, who was spasming as if his muscles were stiff. Electricity was jumping across his skin, which clued her in on the mouse's move.
"Dear, he's hit us with a strong Thunder Wave!" she cried out to Spiritomb. "This might require a lum berry or two!"
"R-Right away, Miss Stunky..." Spiritomb replied, retreating into the bag.
"No, you're not drawing this out!" the pikachu shouted in response, beginning to glow with power. He fired off a blast of energy. "Stop!"
Grunting, Stunky tried to take evasive maneuvers. However, her stiff legs refused to let her run properly, making escape impossible. Oh, for crying out loud...!
She braced for impact. The projectile smashed into her treasure bag, snapping the strap and sending it reeling across the room. Spiritomb's keystone - which practically made up his body - was flung out of it, bringing him along for the ride. He went flying into a spike-ridden wall with a moan of pain.
"Apologies, but... ouch..." he grumbled, flopping to the floor. He didn't stir, afterwards.
Stunky gasped out his name. Gritting her teeth, she turned to the pikachu with a frown. "You monstrous mouse, look what you've done to him!" she cried out. "Hunky or not, you'll pay for making him faint!"
The pikachu clenched his eyes shut. He huffed through his nose and opened them again. "Ugh... enough of this," he muttered. He reached into his bag and pulled out a wonder orb. One with the dotted outline of a generic pokémon floating in the middle.
As he held it up, it shined, turning him invisible. It shattered afterwards.
Stunky grinned to herself. Ha! He likely didn't know about her Keen Eye ability. Unbeknownst to him, she had the advantage!
Concentrating, she could easily see the light around him warping, giving away his position. She could also smell the sweet aroma of grass, which she hadn't noticed until now, but assumed belonged to the pikachu.
She gathered energy in her mouth for a Flamethrower, ready to catch him off-guard. A sharp pain suddenly erupted across her backside, and she was sent tumbling through the air.
Ow!? What in Dialga's name!? W-Was he really that fast!?
She gasped when she saw herself flying towards one of the spiky walls, unable to stop. Squealing, she slammed into it at full force.
Ben smiled brightly while eyeing up the little monster's catch. A shiny female stunky and some sort of ghost-type he didn't recognize. They were unconscious and covered in light bruising from where they had hit the spikes jutting out of the wall. Thankfully, it seemed as if the stunky hadn't been able to detonate itself with its ability in time.
Nearby, the treasure bag of the two pokémon was on the floor, having flown off her body already. Ben would enjoy looking through it with the little monster later, as well as the bag that was still strapped around the ghost-type.
"My, you've done well, haven't you~?" he praised.
"I guess..." the little monster replied, gaze trailing the floor.
Ben looked at him. "You hurt them very badly, didn't you, you little monster?"
"... I guess."
Ben nodded and turned his gaze back towards the two pokémon. "Do you think they deserved what happened to them?"
"... Maybe..."
Ben's smile dropped slightly, but he maintained it. "No. Definitely." He walked over and kicked the stunky onto its back, eliciting a small, unconscious groan from it. He pointed at the gleaming object pinned to its chest above its concealed breasts. "Do you see on her chest? A badge. She's an explorer."
The rodent looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. "... What about it?"
"Explorers and rescue teams are the biggest hypocrites in the world, without question." His paws trembled in irritation. "Such horrible creatures... Pretending to care for each other when they secretly loathe each other's guts. ... When we hate each other's guts. Each and every one of us..."
The little monster let out an audible sigh, but Ben chose to ignore him.
"So this is good," Ben continued. "It's good when the little bastards suffer. They love suffering so much, so it's only good when it happens to them." His smile grew as he stared at the fainted pokémon. He got a rush of adrenaline when he remembered their expressions as they faced their impending defeat. His heart hammered in his chest when he pictured what sorts of thoughts had gone through their rotten minds at their last moments of consciousness. His breaths grew shallow as he wondered if he could garner that sort of reaction again. "H-Heheh... it's only good..."
He heard a confused murmur from the little monster, making him glance over. Though still frowning, the rodent was giving him some raised eyebrows.
"You're... acting strange," the rodent admitted.
Ben blinked. Realizing what the little monster was getting at, he took a deep breath to calm himself and smiled. "... Don't worry about it," he replied.
"It's... hard not to."
Ben stalled. He stretched his smile. "... My mistake. I..." He looked at the fainted pokémon. When he saw the female stunky, something occurred to him. "... I suppose I just realized how... pretty the stunky is. Even I'm not above a pretty pocket monster like this~"
The little monster raised an eyebrow. "... I... don't really follow."
Ben huffed. "You wouldn't, would you?" He pointed at the stunky. "As pokémon, it's in our DNA to find other pokémon attractive. Otherwise, we wouldn't want to breed. We'd need heat cycles, like regular animals once did."
The little monster stared at him. "Um... I guess...?"
Ben glanced at him. "Do you find this stunky attractive?"
"... I guess..."
Ben's paws shook in irritation, but he calmed himself. "... That's always your answer, isn't it?" He turned back to the stunky and grabbed at her chest fur. He tore at it and pulled out one of the stunky's breasts, revealing its nipple. It was surprisingly big for a quadruped, but he put that out of his mind as he turned towards the little monster. "How about now? Do you not find this sexy?"
The little monster's face went red and his eyes went wide. "... W-What are you doing?"
"Isn't it obvious? This lump of fat is a trait pokémon stole from the humans. It's considered normal to be aroused by this." He picked up the breast. It felt like a balloon filled with water under his paw. Revolting. "... Come here and feel it."
The rodent visibly cringed. "... Why?"
Ben squeezed the breast lightly. "You'll never be a normal pokémon if you can't even be aroused, properly~ Come and feel it until you have a proper erection." He stared intensely. "... Now."
The little monster squeezed his eyes shut and turned his head away. After a short while, he slowly inched forward and prodded the breast in the side before retracting his arm.
Nodding in approval, Ben glanced at the rodent's groin. Something seemed like it was stirring under the surface, past the concealment... but he wasn't entirely sure. "... That's not enough. Do you want to be a proper pokémon, or not?"
The little monster stalled. His eyes opened with a deep scowl. "... No," he growled, reaching into his bag. He quickly pulled an orb out and used it before Ben could object.
Rays of light shone on the stunky and ghost-type's bodies before the orb shattered into nothing. They disappeared into two red lights which then flew away, carrying them somewhere else in the dungeon.
Ben stared after them. His smile fell. "... Let's... train," he said slowly.
The horrible little monster closed his eyes and turned his head away again. "... Alright," he replied.
On her back, Stunky groaned as she opened her eyes. Oh, good gracious, she felt awful.
She tried to push herself up to her feet, but her limbs felt like lead, so she couldn't. She must've entered a fainted state. Otherwise known as 'feeling faint'. Until she recovered, she was practically helpless, which was utterly fabulous...
She tried to get a bearing on her surroundings, while simultaneously trying to remember what had happened. She was in a cave with thick spikes protruding out of the wall everywhere they could.
She let out a huff. Ugh, yes, she remembered, now. She was in Mt. Bristle, and that nasty, attractive Pikachu had knocked her and Spiritomb unconscious. She didn't recognize the area she was in, currently, so... had she and Spiritomb been teleported away, so he could make a stealthy exit?
She frowned. Whoever that rogue had been, he was undoubtedly a clever one. A fast one, too, considering how he'd managed to attack her from behind in an instant.
She tried to lift her head up, but she couldn't even manage that much. "S-Spiritomb? D-Dear? Are you there?" she called out weakly.
"Uh... no, um... spiritombs here, lady," a gruff voice replied, sounding like it belonged to a boy.
Surprised, Stunky strained to move her head to the side. She saw a nidoran giving her a perplexed look.
"Oh, bother... well, thanks for letting me know," she replied with a sigh. So they hadn't teleported to the same location, then...
Oh dear... they weren't going to get home until nightfall, were they? And that was if an explorer came to save them in time. Thankfully, HAPPI - the organization behind explorers and the like - always knew when to send out a pokémon's request for rescue, so that wasn't an issue, at least. She wasn't sure how they always knew, but she wasn't about to question it, as long as they came soon.
Her eyes widened as she recalled something. Oh no, where was her treasure bag!? Her aura bows were in there, as well as the client's special band!
She felt her sides for it, but she couldn't find it. Her ears flattened as she gave up. Oh... the client wasn't going to be happy about his stolen clothing. And those aura bows had been somewhat costly, too. The treasure bag would no doubt be replaced by HAPPI, so that could be written off, but still...
Oh, how could this possibly get worse?
She looked back at the nidoran, wondering if she should ask him if he'd seen her things. She paused when she noticed him just... staring at her, wide-eyed. A blush seemed very visible on his face, too.
... Wait, was he admiring her beauty? Well... that was nice, at least~
Straining as hard as she could, she rolled to lie on her side and rest her head on her arm. "Oh my, dear, are you... enjoying the view~?"
He smiled brightly and nodded rapidly, making her ego soar. "Yeah, you bet'cha, lady! Dunno why you just got one out, but I do like me a nice tit or two!" he explained. "If I saw more, I wouldn't complain, none! Heh...!"
She blinked. She chuckled sheepishly. "That's, um... I appreciate the compliment, but... 'eyes up here' as they say. Hee hee..."
He looked at her as if she'd just spouted gibberish. Hm, had she been too subtle? Then again, she wasn't upright right now, so...
... What had he meant by 'got one out'?
She strained her head to look down at herself. As he'd said, she was partially uncovered, with her free breast being left to gravity's whims.
She shrieked and, in a panic, flopped onto her front to cover herself. Her nipple stung as it scratched against the rough floor, but she hardly cared right now. "O-Oh! Goodness heavens me!" she shouted.
"Er... you didn't do that on purpose?" the nidoran asked.
"I-I am a proper lady, I wouldn't dream of it! It's one thing to flirt, but to expose myself, too!? Goodness me...!"
"Oh..." he quietly replied. Glancing at him, she saw that he was blushing up a storm. "... Oh, crud, I'm sorry! Er... f-f-forget what I said!" he stammered, looking as mortified as he sounded.
Stunky felt her own face heat up. Oh, how awful... Clearly, he wasn't the one to blame for her uncovering, so... who could have done such a horrible thing?
... Oh... that pikachu... Yes, not only had he stolen her belongings, but he'd copped a feel, too, hadn't he!?
Stunky felt extreme irritation build up. While she couldn't blame the mouse for his excellent taste in women to ravish, he could blame him for his... his... utter audacity! Ohhh, it made her so mad! She could barely contain her annoyance!
"Um... you okay, lady?" the nidoran asked cautiously. "... I ain't an outlaw for what I said, right?"
"Oh, no... no, darling," Stunky said as calmly as she could manage. "However... I'm about to say something more than a little... unladylike. So please cover your ears."
"Er, sure...?" the poisonous rabbit replied, sitting on his rump to cover his large ears.
"Okay..." She inhaled and buried her head in her arms. "... FUCKING LEGENDS DAMNIT! SHIT!"
...
... She gave a long exhale. Oh, that had felt good. She uncovered her head and looked at the nidoran. He was staring at her in shock, hands only loosely covering his ears.
"... Hot dog, I never knew swears in super posh accents was my fetish," he mumbled. His eyes snapped open when he saw her looking at him. "... Oh, whoops."
She immediately grew embarrassed. "Awww, I told you not to..." She sighed and covered her head again. "Oh, never mind..."
She swore to herself never to swear in public again.
TO BE CONTINUED!
Word count: 6,460
Finished: 17/10 (October)/2020
VGS2's sausage notes: And there you have it! I hope you enjoyed Stunky and Spiritomb's little adventure, before they got stabbed unconscious! :D
Believe it or not, but Ben was originally going to be in the original Questing For Respect by ravengal, though with a different species, a different personality, a different name, and, um... a different everything but one thing I won't talk about, yet, I guess... XD He, too, was a meaniepants, though. I'll tell ya that much!
By the way... fun fact: If you use Hypnosis on sleeping pokémon in some of the Mystery Dungeon games, they'll start running away until they wake up. On the other hand, if the same thing happens against you or your pals while you're asleep, you'll turn into a traitor and attack each other until you wake up. Cool, huh?
Character highlights:
Name: Glamor Stunky
Age: 7
Fighting style: Stylish sweep style.
Appearance: Shiny. Well groomed, and often wearing pretty accessories. Large boobied, for a quadruped.
Description: A lady who came from Elegant Gorge, and later from Shallow Beach. Joined the guild to help people, and also in an attempt to help some friends of hers discover a secret...
Personality: Is very upperclass, often enjoying the finer things in life, though she can go without if need be. She's prim, proper, and polite, but has a somewhat tomboyish side about her, too. Hot, sweaty, rugged men will make her feel hot and sweaty, too.
xXx
Name: Services Spritomb
Age: 6
Fighting style: Sleep tight style.
Appearance: Almost always smiling, no matter what.
Description: A man who came along with Stunky in order to serve her. His motivations in life aren't very complicated.
Personality: Extremely polite, and greatly enjoys trying to help others with a smile. Unfortunately for him, due his species, that same smile is quite creepy, and his speech mannerisms often come across as evil and villainous, even though he isn't.
Fun mistake/s of the day: #1: 'He had to be careful for the occasional sharp rocks jotting out off the soil, which only grew in frequency as they approached the dungeon.'
(Are the spikes launching out of the ground? O,o Reminds me of Kraid, with those rocket spikes on his belly that launch out. Y'know, when he's not busy rotating a Smash Brothers stage, anyway.)
#2: 'He had to be careful for the occasional sharp rocks jotting out of the soil,'
(In the same sentence, which I posted online, the spikes tend to write things down when out of the soil. Goddamn it. XD)
#3: '"Hm? What was that, my darling?" ash asked'
(Oh, Christ... XD No more staying up for eighteen hours straight for me. I've apparently turned Ash into a bit of a dandy.)
#4: '"Apologies, Miss Stunky," he murmured in his usual dark, whispy voice.'
(Imagine having Whispy Woods on your team. At least you wouldn't be short of apples, if nothing else.)
#5: 'He mumbled something else, and, although she couldn't hear him for the bag The Land Before Time: The Anthology Volume 3 -, she imagined.'
(Lol, I accidentally copypasted something I'd been searching for. How embarrassing. Especially since it's this shitty series. XD Before you tease me, ravengal and I were planning on watching it to make fun of it! We like us some Predawny Lad, after all. XP)
#6: 'Hm, had that been a wild pokémon? A particularly shy open, perhaps?'
(Naw, it's a shy close, mate.)
#7: With an explorer bag on her back,
(It turns out they're called 'treasure bags'. Oops! Hope I didn't make this mistake somewhere else...)
#8: 'As Stunky and Spiritomb continued up a large, slopped corridor towards a higher floor,'
(Sounds pretty gross.)
#9: 'She yelped and tried to block with both arms.'
(I fell for the ol' quadruped conundrum of making them use both front legs and somehow not fall over. She must have some amazing balance!)
#10: 'Sadly, a grunt of displeasure from Spiritomb grunted in displeasure.'
(The grunt grunted?)
#11: 'although the drawback was that the wearer had to bare the pain, instead.'
(The wearer has to strip it naked? O,o)
#12: 'The bird began to hack and cough. Able to see him due to the smoke'
(Got distracted while writing, again! I guess the bird tried some smoke signals to get her to see him, but screwed up his lungs in the process. That ain't what makes the red starly red. XP)
#13: "Sorry for the coold... battle,"
(How Dawn's buneary apologises whenever she fights Pikachu. XP Seriously, though, no idea how I managed to press 'd' miles away from 'o' and 'l'. My massive fingers at work again, clearly.)
#14: 'After getting a thorough look at him, she realized something. , had true friends...'
(How wholesome. XD Naw, I messed up and wrote down my notes from PokéPark 2 in the wrong fakking place in the wrong fakking window. Thank you, Master Darkrai, you cunt.)
#15: '"... My mistake. I..." He looed'
(Ben needs to learn to control his loose bowels better, Jesus Christ.)
#16: 'It was surprisingly big for a quadraped, but'
(Considering what he's doing in the scene, this misspelling isn't entire inaccurate, I guess... XD)
#17: 'the little monster a little later.'
(Little little little little little little little little little. ... And now I've ruined the word 'little' for you for the next hour or so. XP)
#18: 'Oh dear... they wasn't going to get home until nightfall, was she?'
(Innit, mate! They well whazn't makin' it 'ome, guvnah, woz she? 'Ight!)
#19: 'He smiled brightly and nodded rapidly, making her ego saw.'
(Oops. I didn't know lots of pride made such a good workshop tool.)
#20: 'As he'd said, she was partically uncovered'
(Sounds like it was on an atomic level, or something.)
#21: '"Er, sure...?" the poisonous rabbit replied, sitting on her'
(For fuck's sake... XD I guess she must've looked comfy, or something.)
#22: 'His eyes snapped pen when he saw her looking at him.'
(Those are some strong eyelids to snap a pen in half. Unless he's actually using his squishy eyes to do it... O,o)
- Two bonus mistakes from some totally serious Ash Betrayal-ish fic I'm making for shits and giggles –
'"Yes," Ash Ketchum replied, wearing a shit and some jeans.'
(... Hmm. XD Well, at least he's normal enough to be wearing jeans, I guess!)
"I have just received my first starter. Say hell, Piplup."
(Dawn's piplup is trained to praise Satan, apparently.)
And that is that! Hope you enjoyed, and please, if you noticed a fuck up in the chapter, let me know! I like to go mistake hunting while ravengal plays Three Houses, so there's always the chance something might have slipped my notice. ... A high chance. XP
Ah well, either way, thanks for reading and tata for now! c: