The scent washed over them, lulling their senses into utter relaxation. They sighed as though in a dream, closing their eyes and lifting their noses to worship the glorious aroma.
"This is what heaven smells like," Manny murmured.
Rather than concrete and asphalt, Floaroma Town was covered in an unbroken carpet of flowers whose fabulous colours and scents subdued the wandering spirit. Even at night, with only the moon to guide their footsteps, the kids marveled at the lush tapestry of nature beneath their feet.
"Can we stay here forever?" Hanny asked.
"I am NOT eloping with you in this place. It's too near home. However, I will lie down among these flowers for the next few hours."
"This is a wonderful place to set up camp. Since neither of us has a tent, I hope it doesn't rain. By the way, I caught a Budew, Wurmple, Zubat, Geodude, Psyduck, Onix, Abra and Kricketot. It seems I have better luck without you."
He blinked sleepily. "You caught all of those after you left me?"
"Yep," she said, showing off her new Pokédex entries. "In your face, Manny!"
But Manny was already snoring. Disappointed with her bragging failure, Hanny went exploring. In the meadow outside of town, she encountered a Combee-keeper and some thugs in familiar jumpsuits.
"Hi there, it seems you're having some problems with Team Galactic!"
"Yes!" the Combee-keeper cried. The thugs tied him up, then raided his home, ignoring the girl. "They are robbing me! Please help!"
"What will you give me in return?"
"I'll give you a pot of honey for free! Please stop them!" the man cried, wiggling on the ground like a Metapod.
"Nnnnnnah, I'll pick this up tomorrow," Hanny yawned, returning the way she came.
"Where are you going?" the Combee-keeper bawled. "Please! My wife and children are in there!"
The next morning, after breakfast and a shower in the local Pokémon Centre, Hanny ventured onto the meadow once more. The Combee-keeper was still tied up on the ground, joined by his wife and four kids. The Team Galactic thugs were having a smoke outside their victims's home.
"Ten pots of honey!" the broken man sobbed. "I'll give you TEN pots of honey!"
"I accept!"
Hanny vanquished the thugs forthwith with Orric and Zeke. Shaking their fists with impotent fury, the Galactic thugs bribed her with a key so that they could run away.
"Slather that honey on the trunk of a sweet-smelling tree, and you'll attract rare Pokémon!" the man informed her while untying his spouse and children.
"Slather it on a tree? I'm going to slather this on hot, buttery biscuits and possibly cornbread."
She did. In a gesture of infinite generosity, she saved a hunk of cornbread and dollop of honey for Manny whom she found dozing in the same spot she'd left him.
"Great googly moogly, this tastes so good!" he spoke between bites. Hanny smirked, pleased that her traditional family recipe had found favour with the stupid one.
"I got this key from the Team Galactic grunts I scared off. They said it's for the Windworks."
"When did you fight Team Galactic grunts? Besides, do we HAVE to get involved in their team's daily activities? They'll think we're stalking them."
"If you get off your lazy butt, I'll let you have some more honey, but this time on hot, buttery biscuits."
Four minutes later Manny was following Hanny like a pet Growlithe, shut up in immeasurable contentment with the snack.
"This is the ambrosia of the gods," Manny said, tears in his eyes, messing up his good clean scarf with delicious drippings and crumbs.
Upon arriving at the Windworks just east of Floaroma Town, they hustled through some minor Pokémon battles with Galactic grunts before confronting their redhead boss, who called herself 'Commander Mars'. There was a haggard scientist wearing a dirty lab coat behind her, accompanied by a diminutive old man with sparse, spiky lilac hair and red-tinted glasses, who wore a lab coat over a Team Galactic jumpsuit.
That old scientist made a far greater impression on the young Trainers than the hotheaded female commander; his bent stature, perpetual frown, and heavy-lidded, beady eyes bespoke a man carrying an unimaginable weight. He was the polar opposite of the painfully erect, bristling young woman staring them down with snarling lips.
Commander Mars trained her weapon on the children. "How did you trick my underlings into using their weak Pokémon instead of their firearms?"
Manny smacked his lips, looking ready to fall asleep. "They're idiots. But answer me this, my good woman: what would prevent an ambitious grunt from shooting you in the head, declaring it a suicide, and taking your place?" he asked, jabbing the uneaten half of a biscuit at her navel. "More importantly, do you think a grunt could do the same thing with a poorly trained Zubat and Skunky?"
She tilted her head. "That's… wow. I never thought of that. I have to tell our magnificent leader and recall the munitions we distributed en masse."
"All criminal organisations would do well to use Pokémon instead of guns," Manny continued, devouring the other half of the biscuit. "Not only would there be more order among the ranks, they could simply become Pokémon Trainers if the life of crime doesn't work out for them."
"Well, then," Mars said, putting away the submachine gun she had until recently aimed at Manny and Hanny, "shall we have one of these so-called Pokémon battles?"
"Oh yes, let's hurry; I've run out of biscuits."
After witnessing the grown woman's Pokémon receive a sound beating at the paws of the boy's Pokémon, the old Galactic scientist admonished Mars in a completely deadpan tone.
"My, my. Lose to a child, will you? But, no matter. We've collected plenty of electricity. With the power we obtained, we can do something quite spectacular. It seems quite obvious to me, Charon, the genius even the boss recognises."
"Who is that sycophantic old man," Manny wondered silently, "and why does he speak in third person?"
"Now, Mars, we should be going."
Mars rounded on the old fellow.
"Will you SHUT IT! The boss is the only person in the world who's allowed to order me around!"
Charon leered. "Considering your loud 'conversation' with him last night, I have no doubt, Mars."
Mars's face turned redder than her hair. She barked an order at her peons, retreating with them. Charon inclined his head to the stripling Trainers.
"You will not stop me. Give up now."
Hanny shook her head. "No."
He gave the slightest shrug, leaving unhurriedly, following Mars and her cronies. Manny searched his backpack for more snacks.
"Why did we come here again?" he said, despairing at his severe lack of sweets.
"I think we came to save this scientist. Oh look, his daughter's coming this way."
"Papa!"
The little girl pounced on her daddy, who squeezed back just as hard. His joyous expression was quickly replaced by a serious demeanor when he considered the Trainers before him.
"Team Galactic… they were saying they had to gather Pokémon and energy at all costs. It was for creating a new universe, or so they claimed."
"They have high hopes," Manny noted.
Hanny punched her open palm. "Too bad we're gonna crush 'em."
The scientist bowed. "Thank you so much for getting rid of them, I'm very grateful. I can finally be with my little daughter again!"
Speaking of whom, his daughter was now scrunching up her nose. "Yuck! Papa, you're stinky! Go shower now, stinky!"
"Ah, heh," the bedraggled scientist laughed nervously, "they had me working nonstop."
"Thank you, Trainers! You made those bad people go away!" The little girl beamed so brightly that Manny and Hanny felt embarrassed. "Maybe the balloon Pokémon will come visiting again!"
Hanny perked up at once. "Balloon Pokémon? You mean Jigglypuff?"
The scientist checked with his daughter, who shook her head. "Nnnno, that doesn't sound right. It only shows up here on Fridays."
"I will be back here on Friday, then," Hannah affirmed, adding the reminder to her cell phone calendar. "Now, then, since you're so grateful, will you buy us more honey, biscuits, and real butter; not that margarine crud?"
"Of course. Meet me in Floaroma Town in the next hour; I'm going home to freshen up and find my checkbook. Come along, sweetie."
The girl held her Papa's hand tight even though he was stinky. "Yes, Papa."
Manny and Hanny went before them, stepping outside the Windworks only to be confronted by their very own stalker.
"Oh Lord, it's him again!" Manny moaned.
Looker almost salivated, wringing his hands together in expectation. "Ah, yes. It is you, yes."
Hanny stood with arms akimbo. "Do you even know our names?"
"I have heard that the Team Galactic appeared at this power plant. I have, therefore, come running. So, the Team Galactic. Where are they?" he insisted. After rolling their eyes, the Trainers recounted the last ten minutes. Looker's dark eyes flashed with fanatical fervor.
"Very well! I shall go investigate inside!"
He charged past them into the Windworks, accosting the fatigued scientist and interrogating his daughter, who began to cry. Moments later he burst outside, nodding like a piston.
"MAGNIFICENT! Yes, it is! What you have said, it is all true! Superb! Though you are young, you are Trainers, through and through!"
"Will you let us go now, creepy detective guy?" Manny begged.
"Very well! I shall pursue the culprits! I have received tips that the Team Galactic hideout is in Eterna City. To there, I must be off!"
Like a bad case of gas, he was gone in an instant, leaving behind a feeling of desperation and embarrassment.
Hanny consoled the offended scientist and his wailing daughter. "We're sorry you got involved in this; he stalks us all the time. We can't shake him."
"Shhh, it's alright, sweetie," the scientist soothed his child. He sighed. "It's okay; I'd choose crazy people over Team Galactic any day of the week."
An hour later, after loading their respective backpacks to the brim with honey, real butter, cornbread, and biscuits, Manny and Hanny thanked the unnamed, freshly scrubbed scientist, waved goodbye to his equally nameless daughter (who was stuffing her face with the scrumptious snack), then went north into Eterna Forest.