Chapter 4: B.B...
"Then making sure his fists were wet, I ordered Ferraligator to use Dynamic Punch to stop the Fire Blast!" The green-haired trainer said as he lifted an hors d'oeuvre to his mouth.
"Wow and it worked?!" Ash asked leaning in, nearly dropping his drink in his excitement.
"Yup! It was a little risky but it totally dispersed the attack." The trainer replied as he munched on the small snack that he wasn't entirely sure as to what it was.
"That's so awesome! I probably would've used something like Fire Punch. Y'know, fight fire with fire?" Ash said as he used his hand holding his drink to punch the air in front of him.
"Well, I don't know about that. Ferraligator certainly couldn't do that being a Water-type and all." The trainer chuckled.
"Heh, yeah I guess it depends on the Pokémon." Ash sheepishly said as he rubbed the back of his head, still smiling.
As Ash discussed the finer details of Pokémon battling, Dawn herself was engaged in a conversation with three coordinators, going over any tips that they could give each other.
"With electric attacks, the trick is to having your Pokémon let it all out, otherwise they might get static sticking to them." One of them quipped.
"Oh honey that's not even the worst thing to consider. The worst thing is fire attacks. One slight miscalculation and poof! Your poor Pokémon's outfit has gone up in flames!" Another replied.
"And water attacks, they can be really pretty if you use them just right but try not to let your Pokémon get too reckless or they'll get soaked!" The third one said.
"Heh, well I'll need to keep that one in mind, my Pokémon are mostly using Water and Ice-type attacks." Dawn giggled.
"Oh dearie, you simply have to hear about when I combined the two create a sparkling snow shower in my last contest!" One of them replied.
"Oooh do tell!" Dawn asked, genuinely interested.
Meanwhile, Brock was discussing the perks of Pokémon breeding with two other guys.
"My Bonsly just evolved into Sudowoodo. Had him since travelling around Kanto a few months ago." Brock said.
"That's great to hear! I myself just got a Pokémon egg from a festival a few days ago. It looks like it'll be a bidoof when it hatches. Had to leave it at the Pokémon Center for the moment though." The purple-haired breeder said.
"I once had to travel with a Pokémon egg. They sell containers to keep it safe and stuff but if you ask me, it's better to carry it in your arms. Even though they haven't hatched, the Pokémon inside is still kind of aware of its surroundings and it's better to have contact instead of being in a glass cage." The other breeder replied.
"Interesting, I'll have to keep that in mind." Brock said with a smile. "Way back in my earlier journeys, I got a togepi egg and I made sure to sleep with it instead of keeping it in a container." He quipped, remembering fondly of those good old times to which the other breeder nodded in approval. It was nice that someone else shared in his sentimentality instead of scoffing in disbelief like Misty did.
"Aside from that, I've been studying instances of unusual breeding pairs. Like for example..." The purple-haired breeder said before leaning in closer to whisper something. Brock and the other breeder curiously leaned in to listen. "I read that a trainer in the Kanto region managed to breed a blastoise and a stunfisk." He whispered with a smirk.
"Oh that's really unusual!" The other breeder exclaimed.
"I'll say! I once heard there was a charizard and magikarp pairing in Hoenn!" Brock laughed.
"Haha, good thing the offspring only looks like one parent! Those pairings would've otherwise made...interesting children." Laughed the purple-haired breeder.
It looked like everyone was enjoying themselves and making connections as hoped. Even Pikachu and his friends were making friends with the other attendees' Pokémon.
"(So then I used my tail to insulate myself from the attack!)" Pikachu said as he recounted how he managed to defeat Lt. Surge's Raichu in one of his earliest gym battles.
"(Oh that's pretty clever!)" The delcatty said.
"(Yeah...it was.)" Buneary muttered as she continued to gaze at Pikachu.
"(I myself once had to use Copycat to use Hydro Pump.)" Delcatty said with a proud smile.
"(Oh well that's-)" Pikachu started before he was interrupted.
"(On the ground...to propel myself into the air before using Shadow Ball and winning the battle!)" She finished with a smirk.
"(Oh wow that's something else!)" Piplup nearly shouted before patting his chest with his flipper. "(My trainer and I made this new move called Bubble Bomb. It's basically a giant bubble that explodes upon impact!)" He said quite smugly.
"(Oh my, that must be something to see!)" The mismagius next to him said.
"(That's nothing, you should've seen the bubble vortex that Buneary turned into an ice vortex!)" Pikachu chimed in, turning to Buneary and causing her to blink in surprise at the mention of her name.
"(Oooh do tell!)" The gardevoir standing directly across from her asked, her interest piqued as she took a sip from the drink she was holding.
"(W-Well...)" Buneary struggled to say, tapping her paws together. She glanced over and saw Pikachu's smiling face. Ignoring the burning in her cheeks, her heart did a backflip at the sight of him beaming proudly at her. Strangely, it brought a much-needed comfort to her nerves.
Feeling a surge of confidence from the mouse's support, Buneary gave a determined look. "(I hopped into the middle of the vortex and using Bounce, I turned every bubble in that vortex into ice spheres!)" She said with steadily increasing boldness, causing everyone to lean forward in anticipation.
"(Yeah! And then I used my Bubble Bomb to turn that vortex into a storm of doom!)" Piplup proudly said.
"(Wow that must have be unbelievable to witness!)" Gardevoir said, enthralled.
"(It was...it really was.)" Pikachu said softly, glancing at Buneary who only felt her face getting hotter. "(One of the most amazing things I've ever seen. And trust me, I've seen a lot!)"
"(Teehee, thanks~!)" Buneary giddily said before pulling her fluff up to her face and turning away.
"(Been around the block have ya? Tell me, what was the most impressive battle you've managed to win?)" Delcatty asked, with an amused smile and eyebrow raised. Pikachu merely blinked in response at the new question.
"(Well...)" Pikachu said, taking a moment to think it over. "(I guess it was the time I took down a Regice and won the Battle Frontier.)"
"(WHAT?!)" Everyone in the group shouted in unison, Buneary included who dropped her fluff and turned back to him with a look of absolute shock on her face, causing Pikachu to jump back in surprise.
"(Well...er...yeah.)" Pikachu embarrassedly said with a smile, rubbing the back of his ear.
"(Okay, now I've got to hear about this!)" Mismagius excitedly declared.
"(Same!)" Piplup shouted.
"(Me too.)" Buneary softly said, once again unable to take her sparkling gaze off Pikachu.
Seeing that all eyes were on him, Pikachu took a deep breath. "(Well...it was just down to me and the Battle Frontier leader's Regice. It was our third time battling him and this time it was all or nothing...)"
As Pikachu retold the story of the final face off with Brandon and his Regice, everyone waited in eager anticipation for what happened next. All the while, Buneary never once took her eyes off of him.
An hour passed after the group had started mingling in the ballroom when they heard the sound of metal tapping against glass. Everyone in the room turned to see Laura Nicks on the stage gently tapping a spoon against an expensive-looking glass of water in front of the microphone.
"Everyone, your attention please!" She declared with a graceful smile. "I'd like to thank each and every one of you for attending our gala, no doubt your participation will only help organizations that will in turn help others! Before we let you get back to your conversations, I'd like to introduce the host whose generosity started this event and who graciously let us use his palace for the night! Mr. Bartholomew Buckingham III!" She proclaimed as she stepped aside with her arm extended out. Following this, an older man with gray hair and wearing a particularly-looking expensive suit walked onto stage to thunderous applause.
The man cleared his throat before speaking into the microphone. "Good evening everyone, it's so nice to see so many new faces that were willing to take some time out of their busy schedules to attend our event. I do not wish to keep you waiting for much longer so I'll keep it short to let you get back to your parties. I'd like to thank you all for your participation and do be sure to enjoy yourselves here. In about an hour we will begin the charity event so any representative of an organization or body please make sure you attend in the conference room. Otherwise, please feel free to make yourselves known!" He concluded before being showered with more applause. He calmly walked offstage as everyone went back to what they were doing.
Pikachu couldn't help but continue to stare at the host of the event. He noticed that as soon as the older man stepped off the stage, a small crowd of people gathered around him. It looked like they were all important people representing some organization or something else. There was a guy who mentioned that he was the dean of a university, there was Nurse Joy, there was Ash, there was the representative from a local charity organization, there was...wait Ash?!
Pikachu blinked as he noticed his best buddy make his way through the small crowd. Somehow he managed to get through and eagerly walked up to Mr. Buckingham. Pikachu angled his ears to get a better listen on what was being said.
"Hey mister! Thanks so much for hosting this thing, this place is really awesome!" Ash declared.
"Oh that's quite alright, er...are you a representative from a charity?" The billionaire asked.
"No my name's Ash Ketchum, and my goal is to become the greatest-"
"Yeah that's great kid but if you'll excuse me..." Buckingham interrupted and – with his expression unchanging – turned to walk away with the rest of the crowd following him.
Pikachu grimaced as the group left the ballroom and into the adjacent foyer, perhaps to discuss business. He looked back to see Ash still standing in the same spot with a dumbfounded look on his face.
"(What a great guy.)" A familiar voice behind him sarcastically said.
Pikachu jumped back in surprise, not expecting someone to be right behind him. As soon as he could, he turned to see Buneary giggling.
"(Ummm, I'm guessing you heard that too?) Pikachu asked, feeling his cheeks redden from embarrassment.
"(Yup!)" Buneary said as she pointed towards her ears. "(Looks like that guy's only polite to people he's trying to please.)" She said in a more annoyed tone.
Pikachu merely shook his head in agreement. He'd been around the block and seen many people and places. He may not have fully understood human society but he recognized a snobby rich and powerful person when he saw one.
"(Poor Ash though.)" Buneary said, her voice becoming slightly sad.
"(Oh don't worry about him, he always bounces back from something like that.)" Pikachu said somewhat more positively as he turned back to see Ash raiding a tray full of hors d'oeuvres.
"(Man, food will get that guy out of any slump huh?)" Buneary said, rather amused.
"(Heh, yeah.)" Pikachu chuckled.
As Ash raided the hors d'oeuvres tray, both Pikachu and Buneary noticed Laura Nicks walking up to him. A little intrigued, they leaned forward to hear what she had to say.
"I see you met Mr. Buckingham. He can be a...a...erm...a busy man." She said a little sheepishly with a bead of sweat on the side of her head.
Turning to look at her with several snacks crammed in his mouth, Ash tried to speak. "Mmph yeah, he sheemed like he wanted to talk to dose other guysh more." He mumbled.
"Well he may prioritize business but he is quite the generous man. Just between you and I..." She started before leaning over to whisper something to him. Pikachu and Buneary also leaned further forward and angled their ears to hear a little better. "Mr. Buckingham is planning on giving each representative a generous donation of one million dollars during the charity event! He's going to surprise them by having them look under their chairs!" She said smiling.
Swallowing his food, Ash could barely hold back his enthusiasm. "Oh man that's great!"
"Yup! He certainly made a big promise! Before this gala, he started a fundraiser with the intention of giving extra money on top of what he's already giving those representatives. But do keep it a secret for now please? The only other person who knows about this is me." She said.
"You can count on me!" Ash nearly exclaimed before suddenly hushing himself, causing Laura to laugh.
"(Huh, maybe I shouldn't have written him off just yet.)" Pikachu thought aloud. Buneary nodded in agreement.
"(Hey you guys!)" Another voice rang out, causing Pikachu and Buneary to turn in its direction to see Piplup leaning forwards with his flippers cupping his beak. "(If you're done chatting over there, we're gonna play hide-and-seek!)"
"(Hide-and-seek? With all of these fancy Pokémon?)" Pikachu asked incredulously.
Almost as if on cue, Delcatty walked up next to Piplup. "(Yeah! Bet you won't ever find me in this huge place!)"
Pikachu and Buneary both looked at each other before smiling. They both turned back and nodded in agreement.
Half an hour passed since the game started and already they were on their third round. The first round everyone had stuck to the ballroom but realized that there weren't many hiding spots available that wouldn't get them in trouble with their hosts. By the third round, Piplup was the seeker but before they started, everyone huddled up.
"(Alright look, clearly it seems like we've already used up all of the good hiding spots in the room so how about we expand it? It's a big mansion after all.)" The blue penguin asked somewhat exasperatedly.
"(Yeah, the other rooms are big enough to find a good hiding place.)" Aipom said.
"(I don't know...)" Buneary muttered.
"(C'mon, we won't get in anybody's way. And besides...)" Piplup started. "(It's not like it will matter much if I'm the seeker.)" He proudly declared with a satisfied nod.
"(Oh alright.)" Buneary said, rolling her eyes.
"(Great! The whole mansion is game as long as it's inside. Better get going 'cus I'm counting to a hundred startiiiiiiinnng now!)" Piplup declared before turning around and closing his eyes. He began to loudly count down.
Everyone immediately scrambled to find new hiding spots. Buneary ran out of the ballroom and quickly turned her head from side to side, looking for a room to hide in. She tried a little room with a fireplace first. Walking in, she immediately spotted a large cushy chair. She figured that she could try to hide underneath it or even squeeze herself inside of it. Smiling, Buneary approached it and bent down to check if there was enough space for her. Instead she jumped back in shock as her gaze was met with another pair of eyes.
"(Hey! This is my hiding spot, get outta here!)" Delcatty cried out.
"(S-Sorry.)" Buneary muttered before looking around the room. To her astonishment, there didn't appear to be any other good hiding spots nearby! Holding back a groan, Buneary bolted out into the lobby. Shoot, Piplup must be reaching zero in his countdown. Where to hide...WHERE?!
Buneary's brow furrowed as she noticed Aipom quickly run into the room that she was about to choose. Not wanting a repeat of what just happened and waste more time, Buneary looked to her right and ran down the hallway. As she ran, she eyed the walls for any doors but didn't see any, much to her astonishment. What kind of design for a mansion was this?! Finally, the hallway turned right and to Buneary's surprise, the rest of the hallway was blocked off by a velvet rope. Oh that's just great, a dead end!
"(Dead end huh?)" A male voice rang out, causing Buneary to jump three feet in the air. She turned back to see Pikachu laughing. Okay, she deserved that.
"(Umm, yeah.)" She said, trying to settle down her heart which was beating like a jackhammer. Still, she was just glad it wasn't Piplup who had already found her.
"(Well I'm pretty sure we've ran out of time.)" Pikachu said, turning to look down the hallway.
"(Yeah I guess so.)" Buneary sheepishly replied as she rubbed the back of her uncurled ear. A sudden thought came to her. "(Say, why are you here anyway? Couldn't find another hiding spot?)"
Pikachu turned back to her and gave an embarrassed grin, ears drooping. "(Well...no. I mean I did at first, I found a big desk to hide under but then that Mismagius beat me to it.)"
"(Ah, well maybe we can just stay here?)" Buneary asked, eyeing the hallway.
"(Yeah we could...or...)" Pikachu said before looking over Buneary's shoulder.
Buneary looked behind and immediately understood what he was insinuating. "(Oh no, you're not suggesting that are you?)" She asked somewhat sternly.
"(I mean it's either that or definitely get caught. And besides, Piplup said the whole mansion was game, as long as it was on the inside.)"
"(But it's off limits, we're not supposed to go past it!)" Buneary said as she turned back to look at the rope.
Pikachu let out a small sigh. Welp, looks like she's not budging on this, guess he'll just have to...
Suddenly Pikachu's ears twitched and his eyes widened. He soon began to take on a mischievous, if not slightly evil, smile as a certain thought came to him.
"(Fine, then I guess we'll just have to let Piplup catch us. Oh, I can already hear the bragging coming from him.)" Pikachu said in a soft, faux concerned voice.
"(Huh?)" Buneary muttered as she looked back at him. Her head jolted back in surprise as she saw that Pikachu had morphed his face to look just like Piplup's; beak and all! He even managed to make his arms look like flippers! Well that was...unexpected. She certainly didn't know he was capable of such good impressions!
Upon seeing him, Pikachu struck a pose that the blue penguin often made, flippers on sides and head tilted upwards with a confident look.
"(I knew I could find you no problem! Ha! Even in a huge mansion, you're no match for my seeking skills!)" He said in a near-perfect impression of Piplup's voice.
Buneary merely blinked at the sight. She didn't know if it was the impression or the point itself but she couldn't help but feel that he was right. As much as she liked Piplup, this would certainly push him over the edge and she'd never hear the end of it. He was a great guy, just a little...much.
"(Still...)" Pikachu said in his normal voice as he quickly contorted his face and arms back to their normal forms. "(I understand of course.)" He said before turning away from her.
"(You do?)" Buneary asked with raised eyebrow.
"(Yeah it's alright. I mean...)" He said before giving her a side-glance. "(If you're too scared.)"
"Scared?" Buneary thought to herself. No way! As Mew as her witness, she wasn't scared of a little rope, she wasn't scared of going somewhere new and she certainly wasn't scared of Piplup!
"(Scared huh?)" She repeated, almost laughing in disbelief.
"(Yeah, I mean nobody's around, it's technically not off limits for the game and staying here means that Piplup will definitely find us but if you're too afraid then...)" Pikachu said, shrugging his shoulders, pretending to act nonchalant.
"(Listen here mister!)" Buneary said as she walked up to him and lightly bopped him on the head with an uncurled ear. "(I'm not scared! I just think that-)" She started before they both heard Piplup's voice ring out from down the hall.
"(Ha! Found you! Thought you could hide under that chair did ya? No chance, I'm the best!)" He cried out in sheer jubilation. They suddenly heard rapid footsteps but weren't sure if they were coming down the hall.
"(No time!)" Buneary shouted as she grabbed Pikachu's paw and together they ran past the rope and down the hallway. The hallway past the rope didn't go much farther and their frantic running finished upon seeing a room at the end. Looking at each other, they both nodded and opened the door. They peered into the dark room and realized that it was a somewhat spacious office, possibly belonging to Buckingham.
Pikachu rushed to close the door. "(Quick, look for a place to hide!)" He shouted.
Eyeing the room, Buneary saw a large desk. She made a few steps to it when she suddenly stopped.
"No, too obvious." She thought and turned to her left to see a bookcase. Something caught her eye: the space between the bookcase and the wall was just large enough to fit herself in between. She looked back at Pikachu who was approaching a closet on the other side of the room. Quickly, Buneary squeezed herself between the bookcase and the wall. She heard some more shuffling from Pikachu as he no doubt tried to look for a spot in the closet to hide.
Soon all was quiet in the darkened room save for the muffled voices of the guests in the other rooms. Suddenly Buneary heard the pitter patter of familiar footsteps approaching the door. She held her breath as the door swung open.
"(Oh ho! Think you can get away from me do ya?!)" Piplup declared. Buneary heard him walk past her hiding spot and approach the desk. "(Well how about now!?)" He shouted as he looked under the desk.
Heh, good call on that one.
She heard Piplup make a disappointed noise before she heard him walk elsewhere in the room.
"(Hmmm, nice try...but not good enough!)" He shouted before he opened the closet door. Buneary closed her eyes and braced herself for Pikachu to groan and Piplup to start bragging.
"(Huh, nothing.)" Piplup said before the unmistakable sound of a filing cabinet being opened rang through the air. Piplup sighed as he shut the closet doors. Buneary opened her eyes in surprise. Okay seriously, how the heck did Pikachu get out of that one?
She heard Piplup's footsteps moving away from her and soon the door closed and all was quiet again. A few seconds passed and – waiting to make sure the sounds of the footsteps fully receded – Buneary suddenly found herself unable to stop giggling. Likewise, she heard stifled, muffled laughter coming from the closet.
Believing them to be safe, Buneary squeezed herself out of her hiding spot and walked to the closet. She opened the doors and to her surprise – expected or not – she didn't see any sign of Pikachu. Just coat hangers and a filing cabinet.
"(Pikachu? Where are you?)" She asked, eyeing the closet up and down.
"(Here!)" Pikachu said as he suddenly squeezed himself from behind the filing cabinet.
"(Ahh, stole my idea did ya?)" She laughed.
"(No idea what you're talking about!)" Pikachu determinedly replied, eyes closed and looking away albeit with a smile.
"(Well you were right, Piplup would've definitely found us!) Buneary said, feeling a giggling fit coming on again and trying her best to calm herself but failing. "(Ha! This is great, we're totally gonna win! He'll never find us now!)" Buneary exclaimed as she felt herself wanting to jump in place out of sheer excitement.
She suddenly paused, taking a moment to understand what she was feeling. Gosh, that was...a bit unexpected. Breaking the rules, doing something they weren't supposed to and getting away with it to top it off. What was this feeling? It all felt so...
...Fun!
"(Yeah and now, we've got this game in the bag!)" Pikachu proclaimed as he leaned on the wall. His confidence turned to surprise when he felt the wall give way and he lost his balance.
"(Woah!)" He cried out as he fell sideways. A square part of the wall pushed inwards and suddenly a small compartment opened up above them. Pikachu started to get back up.
"(That was weir-)" He said before being interrupted by something falling on his head, making him fall over again.
"(Pikachu! Are you alright?!)" Buneary cried out, leaning over to help the poor mouse.
"(Yeah...what was that?)" He asked, rubbing his head. They both turned to see that a black box was the culprit. They looked up and saw the wall compartment that it fell out of.
"(Huh, looks like some personal, secret stuff. Better put it back.)" Buneary said as she grabbed the box. Before she could return it, the box suddenly opened up and spilled its paper contents on the floor. "(Shoot! Help me with this would ya?)" The bunny groaned as she leaned forward to pick up the scraps of paper.
"(Sure thing, it's a little hard to see in the dark-huh?)" Pikachu confusedly muttered as he lifted up a piece of paper to get a better look at it.
"(Hey don't read that! It's probably personal!)" Buneary yelled as she continued to pick up the other papers.
Pikachu squinted his eyes to make sure he was reading the paper correctly. His brow furrowed.
"(Hey uh, you might want to come look at this.)" He said.
"(Oh no, look we've had our fun being in this room, now let's just put everything back.)" Buneary sternly replied as she put the other papers in the black box.
"(No seriously, this is important.)" Pikachu responded, the seriousness in his voice causing Buneary to look back at him.
Sighing, Buneary walked over to him. "(Okay fine.)" She said as he handed the paper to her.
Giving it a once-over, the contents of the paper had a lot of business terminology and names of stocks. It was the kind of stuff that neither one of them had any good understanding of. She was about to hand the paper back when something caught her eye. In between all of the money jargon were the words "fundraising money to be deposited into" followed by several stock options.
Raising an eyebrow, Buneary looked back at Pikachu, then back at the paper. It was dated for tonight's gala.
A little suspicious but still not fully understanding what she was reading, Buneary looked back Pikachu. "(Yeah, so?)" She asked, raising an eyebrow though she noticed Pikachu's expression quickly turning into pure rage.
"(So that Buckingham guy's a liar! He was never gonna give away that money, he was just gonna use it for stocks to make himself richer!)" Pikachu angrily exclaimed.
Before Buneary could respond, Pikachu quickly walked over to the black box and shuffled through more of the papers. He quickly glanced through each paper until something caught his eye again: a diagram of another wall compartment that was on the other side of the filing cabinet. Pikachu quickly followed the directions and pushed the wall inward which caused another square compartment to open up in the wall, revealing stacks of envelopes.
Pikachu immediately rummaged through the envelopes, revealing bundles of cash each of which was held together with a band that said "$500K".
Buneary hung her mouth open in shock at the sight.
"(See?)" Pikachu asked as he pointed at the stack of money.
Buneary likewise walked to the black box and looked through its paper contents until she suddenly held up a note.
"(Not only that, check this out.)" She said as she held it up to Pikachu. He squinted and parsed through more jargon until he saw the words "Force Nicks to keep quiet."
Pikachu scoffed as he shook his head in anger. "(Unbelievable! The project manager has no idea and he was gonna make her stay quiet! That fundraiser he did was to line his own pockets! He's not giving that money away at all even though he promised!)" He yelled.
"(I know! What a snake! Er, or ekans, whatever he's a bad dude!)" Buneary shouted as she extended her arms outward, still holding the note.
"(Well I think it's pretty clear what we need to do: we need to stop him!)" Pikachu said with conviction as he started to put the papers back in the box.
"(Stop him?)" Buneary asked.
"(Yeah! We need to show these notes to that Laura Nicks woman. When we do, he'll be exposed!)"
Buneary looked at the note that she was still holding on to, then at the floor, lost in thought.
"(Alright I think that's it.)" Pikachu said as he grabbed the paper out of Buneary's paw and put it in the black box. "(Now all we need to do is go out there and-)"
"(What if we do it ourselves?)" Buneary interrupted.
"(Huh?)" Pikachu muttered, blinking as he turned to face her. He was taken aback upon seeing her expression. Unlike her usual demeanor, there was a strangely intense and serious look in her eyes. It almost made him shudder. He'd never seen that look from her before. He didn't even think that she was capable of making that look! Heavens above, in that moment she was more intimidating than a raging ursaring!
He waited to hear some kind of furious response but instead she maintained a calm expression before folding her arms.
"(I mean think about it...)" She started before closing her eyes. "(What exactly would happen if you went out there and showed them this stuff?)"
Pikachu merely blinked again, not entirely sure where this was going. "(Ummm, then he gets stopped. People would know the truth.)"
"(For all we know he just made a promise to Laura, he probably didn't even sign a...what do you call it?)" She asked as she twirled her wrist in circles, trying to find the correct word. "(Contract, so really even if you did expose him, he could just deny it and keep the money anyway.)"
"(I-I erm, uh...)" Pikachu mumbled as he tried to find a proper response but found himself falling short. She had a point after all, he didn't see any proof that Buckingham was legally obligated to give the money away.
"(In other words, he'll be fine but the people who need this money won't see a dime of it.)" Buneary said as she folded her arms again.
Pikachu took a moment to let her words soak in, still trying to rack his brain for an alternative solution. He could only sigh in exasperation upon realizing that he couldn't.
"(...Okay, so what do you propose we do?)" Pikachu defeatedly asked.
"(Simple, one of us causes a distraction and the other takes the money, goes into the conference room and puts it under the chairs like Laura said.)" Buneary explained, a small smile creeping across her face. Was that...excitement he was seeing from her?
Now it was Pikachu's turn to fold his arms, this time in contemplation. After looking at the floor and going over her proposal, he lifted his head to look back at her. "(But I mean...isn't it stealing?)"
"(Not really, Buckingham already made a promise to give it away, he's just not following through on it. It's not really his money to keep. We're just doing right by him.)" Buneary said, shrugging her shoulders.
There was silence as Pikachu continued to think it over. He let out a small exhale. "(Okay so...who would make the distraction?)" He finally asked.
"(Well you seem to have a knack for impressions, I'd say you do it!)" Buneary cheerily declared.
Pikachu felt his cheeks warm a little upon hearing her compliment. Damn, that's what he gets for being a little mischievous with her.
"(I only need a few minutes, just keep everyone's attention for a little bit.)" She said.
"(Heh, easier said than done.)" Pikachu said with a smile. Still, he couldn't deny that deep down...he was excited too, if not just a tad curious to see how this plays out. Huh, strange, it's almost like he enjoys living life on the edge. Maybe just a bit.
"(Soooo...you in? Pika~?)" Buneary asked, leaning in with a determined smile.
"So you're planning on entering the Sinnoh League then?" The green-haired trainer asked with an amused smile and raising an eyebrow.
"Sure do! But first I need to get my badge in Oreburgh City!" Ash enthusiastically said.
"Well all the best of luck to you! From the sound of things, you seem to know what you're doing!" The trainer said before taking a sip from his drink.
"Thanks!" Ash said with a smile.
Before the two could continue their conversation, they were interrupted by a familiar-sounding Pokémon coming from the raised platform.
"(Hey everyone check this out!)" Pikachu declared as he stood on the podium to speak directly into the microphone.
Everyone in the room – Pokémon and human alike – turned to face him.
Seeing all eyes on him, Pikachu suddenly felt as if he was incredibly small. His ears momentarily drooped and he shrunk back. Oh legends above, was he actually gonna do this?
"Pikachu?" Ash wondered aloud as he saw his best friend standing on the podium, now commanding all of the attention in the ballroom.
Pikachu's gaze suddenly caught something off to the side. He quickly turned his head to see Buneary in the conference room holding two envelopes of cash in her paws. He blinked in confusion as he saw her give him a smile before mouthing the words "You've got this!" to him with a fist pump.
Feeling his confidence return to him, Pikachu gave a determined smile and nodded in return before facing the crowd again.
"(Check this out! Can you guess who I am?)" He asked into the microphone as he took a step back on the podium and began contorting his face.
Many in the audience wondered aloud what they were looking at while others stood in intrigued silence.
"(Ta-da!)" Pikachu declared as finished morphing his face into a delcatty.
There was a moment of silence before a familiar voice rang out from the crowd.
"(Hey that looks like me!)" The Delcatty from earlier shouted with a smile as she stood in the middle of the crowd.
"Oh my, that pikachu looks just like your delcatty Bella!" An older, upper-class woman shouted as she turned to the aforementioned trainer; a young lady with dark red hair tied in a ponytail and wearing a light green dress.
"Er...yeah, he does!" The young lady named Bella said as she turned to face the older woman and then to her Delcatty before turning her attention back to Pikachu.
"(And how about now? Any guesses?!)" Pikachu asked before once again contorting his face – and this time body – into a gardevoir.
"Wow that looks like a gardevoir! Isn't that something!" A fairly-young man in a suit and tie shouted with an excited expression.
"(Yeah, the resemblance is uncanny!)" Gardevoir declared from the crowd.
"Fascinating, both his face and body! Is he secretly a ditto?" A woman in a red dress wondered aloud.
Blinking and glancing from side to side, Ash began to smile upon hearing the positive reception to his friend's impressions. "Alright Pikachu! Showing off that talent of yours buddy!" He yelled.
"That's your pikachu?!" The green-haired trainer next to him asked with a stunned expression.
"Sure is! He really has a talent for impressions doesn't he?" Ash said as he turned towards the other trainer.
"Yeah you could say that again..." The trainer muttered as he turned back towards Pikachu.
While maintaining his impression, Pikachu subtly looked to the side and noticed Buneary hopping out of the room to retrieve the rest of the money. In her shining baby blue dress, she was moving so fast that she almost looked like a bright beam of light zipping around the hallway. Satisfied, he began to take his natural form again.
As he rubbed his face to ease the muscles in his cheeks he smiled and looked to the crowd. "(Any suggestions? I bet you I can do them all!)" He boldly declared.
"(Me next!)" Mismagius shouted as she made her way to the front of the crowd.
"(Yeah her next! C'mon Pikachu! Show them what you're made of!)" Aipom shouted from the center of the crowd as she jumped in place to get his attention.
"(Ahh, now that's a challenge!)" Pikachu yelled with a smile before cracking his neck and back. He immediately made his ears appear as Mismagius' hat and began to contort his torso to resemble the other Pokémon's dress-like body. "(Voila!)" He proclaimed as he finished morphing his body to perfectly resemble the Ghost-type Pokémon.
Mismagius giggled and clapped her non-hands. "(Absolutely stunning!)" She announced. Her reaction was followed by a series of responses almost all at once from the crowd.
"Unbelievable!"
"That Pikachu's truly talented! He should do tours!"
"Pretty crazy to see. Are we absolutely sure he isn't a ditto?"
The initial reactions were soon followed by a slew of suggestions for new impressions.
"Do a treecko!"
"How about hippopotas?
"No, no! He should do marill!"
"Bet he can't do charizard!"
"Could he do tentacool? How about tentacruel? How would that work?"
The shouting from the crowd was almost too much and Pikachu could only chuckle sheepishly as he felt a bead of sweat form on the side of his head.
"Okay Buneary, the rest is up to you. Please hurry." He thought as he began to pick out suggestions from the crowd.
Buneary was certainly getting her exercise for the day, hopping back and forth between rooms as fast as she could and all the while trying to be as surreptitious as possible. It was particularly taxing given the fact that there were fifty chairs to work on! Each time she exited a room, she stole a glance at Pikachu to make sure that he had everyone's attention...and each time she smiled to herself. She knew he would be a crowd pleaser.
A few minutes passed of constantly grabbing envelopes and placing two under each chair in the conference room. Thankfully, each chair had a label saying that it was reserved for the attending representative so she didn't have to second-guess herself.
Soon she was down to only a few more envelopes. All Pikachu needs to do is keep at it for a little bit longer.
"(Okay prepare yourselves!)" Pikachu announced as he took a deep breath to steady himself. Many members of the crowd leaned forward in anticipation, some of whom couldn't keep quiet.
Pikachu stretched his back while contorting his ears and flatting his arms against his body. He opened his mouth as wide as it could go and took on an intensely angry expression.
"(Behold!)" He declared as he finished contorting his body into a serpentine figure and his ears resembling a crest on his forehead.
"Incredible! That's a gyrados!" A member of the crowd shouted.
"Wow, this pikachu is something else alright!" Another person yelled.
"Alright buddy! You show them what you've got!" Ash proudly said, a large smile plastered on his face.
Pikachu began to make his body return to its natural form as he eyed the conference room looking for any sign of Buneary.
Okay, it shouldn't be long now. So far, he'd seen her making progress going through the chairs. It looks like she was reaching the last ones. Any moment now she'd give the signal and he could give the impressions a rest and just sit back and watch-
Pikachu suddenly felt someone walk up along the stage and approach him from the side. Confused, he turned his head and to his horror he saw both Laura Nicks and Buckingham standing next to him.
"Excuse me there, I'd hate to interrupt you but we have an announcement to make." Laura said with a warm smile.
Blinking, Pikachu could only stare back at her, unable to think of an excuse.
"(Err...okay.)" Was all Pikachu could say before he jumped off the podium, all the while cursing himself for not thinking of something else to say or do.
Laura approached the podium and began to speak into the microphone.
"I see everyone is having a good time, let's all thank Pikachu here for his wonderful impressions!" She said as she extended her arm towards him. The crowd erupted into thunderous applause, with several from the crowd demanding an encore. Pikachu couldn't help but feel a slight swelling of pride at the positive reception but that'll have to wait. He was no longer distracting the crowd, what about Buneary?!
He tried looking off to the side without being conspicuous and saw her hopping out of the conference room back to the office. Damn! She's still not done yet! While he was eyeing her, he heard Laura continue to speak into the microphone.
"I apologize for interrupting the show but it's just about time for the charity event!" She declared which was met by more applause. "Now all attending representatives please make your way to the conference room at this time. Your reserved chairs are labeled and anyone else who wants to see the charity event can watch on the side of the room or on the monitors." She said as she took out a remote and pressed a button which caused several panels along the ballroom walls to open, each revealing a large television screen.
"But before that, some words from our host!" Laura said before stepping to the side as Buckingham walked up to the podium, earning more applause from the crowd.
"I'll keep it short; I look forward to seeing you all in the conference room. We have plenty of awards and donations to give, so please don't hesitate to attend!" He said with a smile before he started to walk off stage, followed by Laura. Once again, the crowd began cheering.
Pikachu took a moment to marvel at the many screens adorning the walls before he snapped his attention back to his situation. He noticed that several people in the crowd had begun to turn away and head towards the conference room. His horrified mind began to race at an unprecedented speed. He looked over to his side to peer at the hallway and noticed Buneary laying low. Soon her gaze locked with his. She held up two envelopes in front of her, indicating that those were the last ones. Panicking, he turned back towards the crowd.
"(W-Wait! I can still do one more! C'mon I'll take anything! Even if it looks impossible! I'll-)" He desperately shouted before being interrupted by a familiar voice.
"(Ah-ha! Thought you could hide from me did ya?!)" Piplup shouted, causing Pikachu to jump back in surprise as he turned to notice that the blue penguin had joined him on the stage.
Pikachu's eyes widened. Oh right, the game. Man he didn't need this right now, he had more important things to attend to! Before Pikachu could respond, Piplup ran up to him at a blinding speed.
"(I'll admit you had me looking for a bit, I nearly searched the whole mansion...But...!) The blue penguin proudly shouted. "(Looks like I found you!)"
"(Piplup this really isn't a good ti-)" Pikachu started before he was once again interrupted.
"('Course I shouldn't be that surprised, after all nobody stands a chance against my seeking skills!)" Piplup began to brag as he slapped a flipper against his chest.
Rolling his eyes, Pikachu turned his attention back on the crowd and saw that many of them were halfway across the massive ballroom towards the conference room. What to do? WHAT TO DO?! If only he could just cause one more distraction if only...
Pikachu's gaze wandered towards the top of the room, beyond the television screens. Blinking, he noticed something interesting: the only source of light in the ballroom was a huge chandelier that hung in the center of the room. Hmmm, if he could just...
His mind raced through options as he heard Piplup continue to brag off to the side. He'll need to make sure nobody suspects anything but if he could just take out that light source then...
"(But in the end it doesn't matter because I...)" Piplup declared as he walked up to Pikachu.
"(Huh?)" Pikachu wondered aloud as he was snapped out of his thoughts.
"(FOUND YOU!)" Piplup proudly proclaimed as he shoved his flipper into Pikachu's chest.
Blinking, Pikachu saw his chance. He suddenly fell backwards.
"(Ooohhh nooo!)" Pikachu yelled in the most believable way he could manage as he landed on his back. He pretended to close his eyes from the shock of hitting the floor.
"(Oh um...whoops!)" Piplup said with a sheepish smile which only turned into surprise as electricity began to spark from Pikachu's cheeks.
Pikachu opened one eye, his focus on the chandelier above them.
"Need to aim this just right." He thought. "Alright, it's now or never!"
With that thought, Pikachu unleashed a mild Thunderbolt that directly hit the chandelier. The Electric-type attack enveloped the sole light source and caused it to short-circuit. The entire ballroom immediately went pitch black, save for the light coming in from the adjacent rooms.
The sudden darkness immediately caused the room to descend into utter bedlam! Amongst the surprised gasps, screams and shouting, there were many people shoving and tripping over themselves or each other. In the sea of uproarious yelling, some shouts could be discerned.
"What happened?!"
"Hey you're on my foot!"
"I can't see a thing!"
"I think I stepped in punch!"
"My hair!"
Still laying on the floor, Pikachu eyed the room to see any sign of Buneary. To his frustration, he couldn't make out anything. His plan worked a little too well it seemed because all he could perceive were shadowy bodies pushing and stumbling over each other. He could only hope that she got out in time.
As soon as the lights went out, Buneary high-tailed it to the conference room. She only had two more envelopes to put under the last chair so she just needed to get in and get out!
"Great thinking Pikachu!" She thought to herself with a smile. She really shouldn't be surprised though. He was always a super smart guy.
But gushing over him will have to wait. Right now, duty calls!
Buneary quickly hopped into the conference room but noticed that just like the ballroom, it too was shrouded in darkness. From where she was standing, she couldn't see where the last chair was!
Remembering the layout of the room, she hopped to where she knew the podium was and jumped on it to get a vantage point. She peered into the darkened conference room to see where the last chair was located. Squinting her eyes, she managed to make out the silhouette of the final chair at the end of the row.
Before she could hop off the podium however, she noticed something on the podium itself, right in front of her feet. Leaning down, she picked it up. It was a notecard with the title "Laura's Notes". Taking a moment to think about it, she saw a pen next to her foot and quickly grabbed it and wrote the word "CHAIRS" on the bottom of the notecard.
Satisfied, Buneary placed the card and pen back and hopped off the podium to make her way to the final chair.
"Don't worry everyone! We have a backup light source!" Laura cried out amongst the sea of panicked people. She took out the remote again and pressed another button as several lights adorning the walls of the ballroom turned on, enveloping the room in a warm light.
The crowd's panic quickly began to die down as their vision returned to them. Soon, civility too returned as people got their bearings and others began to pick themselves up or help each other off the floor.
Pikachu could only look on as his plan of distraction had come to an end. He sighed. "Well it worked for what it was, I just hope she got away unnoticed." He thought before he heard Piplup speak up.
"(Sorry about that buddy, I guess I don't know my own strength!)" Piplup said with an embarrassed grin as he rubbed the back of his head. He extended a flipper to help Pikachu off the floor. Pikachu blinked before he grabbed it.
"(It's okay man, just be a little more careful next time, 'kay?)" Pikachu said with a fake smile although he couldn't help but feel worried as he turned to see that several people were beginning to walk into the conference room.
"(C'mon, let's find Dawn and Ash!)" Piplup declared.
"(Oh uh...right.)" Pikachu responded with a nod before they made their way off the platform and into the crowd. All the while, Pikachu was fighting a sense of dread of where Buneary might be.
"(Say, was everyone able to regroup after the blackout?)" Piplup inquired as they walked through the ballroom.
"(I'm sure everyone's good.)" Pikachu chuckled nervously, a bead of sweat coming down the side of his head.
"(Oh really? 'Cus I swear I couldn't find-)" Piplup started before he was interrupted by Buneary hopping into their view from the conference room.
"(Oh hey guys! There you are!)" Buneary shouted with a smile. Pikachu couldn't help but let out a quiet sigh of relief. Oh thank goodness, she made it out! "(Man, I got lost in that blackout, I almost couldn't find my way out of this place!)"
Before either of them could say anything, they suddenly felt another presence next to them.
"(Me too.)" Croagunk said in a monotone voice. His sudden comment and appearance made all three of them jump a foot in the air.
"(Gahh! Croagunk! You nearly gave me a heart attack!)" Piplup screamed to which the frog simply stared back at him. Letting out a small exhale, Piplup took on a look of curiosity as he stared back at Buneary. "(Still, something doesn't seem right. I can't put my flipper on it.)"
"(O-Oh yeah?)" Buneary stammered as she and Pikachu exchanged nervous glances.
"(Yeah...you were gone for a while...and the blackout...the conference room was the only place I didn't look so you must have been in there...)" Piplup wondered aloud. Oh noooo.
Pikachu felt himself choking on the air in his throat while Buneary's eyes widened in surprise. Suddenly a look of realization came over Piplup's face.
"(You must have been hiding in the conference room and then the blackout happened and you got scared!)" He proclaimed, causing both her and Pikachu to blink in unified confusion. "(Yeah, you thought you could get away in the dark but knowing you, you got too frightened!)" He said in a smug tone.
"(E-Err yeah...you got me!)" Buneary chuckled somewhat uncomfortably, thankful that he didn't actually figure things out.
"(And that reminds me...)" Piplup said as he walked up to Buneary's confused face before tapping her on the forehead. "(Found you! I win! Yesssss! A whole mansion in the dark can't stop my awesome seeking skills!)" He proclaimed with both his flippers extended to the ceiling.
Pikachu and Buneary merely looked at each other before bursting into a fit of giggles.
"(You're right Piplup, nothing can stop you! Congrats!)" Pikachu said in-between laughter.
"(Don't sweat it, one day you might be just as skilled at hide-and-seek like me!)" Piplup said, as he patted his chest.
"(Okay, okay, if everyone's satisfied, let's find our trainers shall we?)" Buneary said, finally calming herself to which everyone nodded in agreement before turning and walking back into the crowd of people.
Soon they found their trainers who were picking themselves off the floor. Dawn in particular looked like she had just been through something traumatic as she refused to get up.
"Ahh! It's a disaster! Someone knocked me over and messed up my hair!" She yelled before trying to get her hair under control which really wasn't that messed up aside from a few strands sticking out.
"Hey Dawn it's okay, your hair looks fine to me." Ash said reassuringly.
"That's what you say! You always wear a hat; how would you know anything about hair maintenance?!" She practically yelled back.
Pikachu felt a pang of guilt at seeing the girl fret over her hair. He'll have to make it up to her later somehow. He saw Ash turn towards him.
"Woah that was just crazy wasn't it? I couldn't see a thing! I wonder what happened?" Ash said.
Pikachu shrugged, trying to act innocent. He couldn't help but feel relieved that nobody seemed to notice that he was the culprit. He glanced over at Piplup who merely tried to suppress a chuckle.
"Hey guys, there you are!" Brock shouted as he practically ran towards them from across the ballroom. "You all okay?"
"Yeah we're good." Ash said before turning to Dawn.
"Speak for yourself!" Dawn shouted as she tried to get the errant strands of her hair under control.
"Well aside from that, looks like the charity event is happening now, wanna check it out?" Ash asked as he turned back to Brock.
"Sure!" Brock happily said.
"Hang on, hang on! Just gimme a sec here!" Dawn mumbled in annoyance as she continued to sit on the floor to adjust her hair to everyone's exasperated laughter.
A few minutes later, the conference room was packed with guests with the representatives taking their respective seats. By some stroke of good luck, Pikachu, Buneary and the others managed to squeeze their way into the room to get a good look at the charity event unfold for themselves.
To start things off, Buckingham walked up to the podium to give his opening speech but before he started, he looked down at the podium with a more intense look. A few moments passed before he held up Laura's notecard that Buneary had found. Both Pikachu and Buneary leaned forward, their voices caught in their throats. Oh noooo. Is he going to tear it up or throw it away?! A few more agonizing moments passed before Buckingham called Laura over and handed the notecard over to her to which she happily took. Pikachu and Buneary simultaneously gave sighs of relief.
For the next half hour, the event was rather uneventful with each representative being given an award or recognition for something or handed one of those comically-large checks. All the while, Pikachu and Buneary tried their best to act calm, hoping to see the fruits of their labor. At last, the end of the charity event was upon them and Buckingham returned to the podium to give his closing speech.
"I'd like to thank you all again for attending our event. No doubt it helped give more to those who need it." He said with a proud smile.
Both Pikachu and Buneary rolled their eyes and tried their best not to give disgusted looks, knowing how much Grade-A B.S was spewing from his mouth right now.
"With this, we will be heading into the final part of the gala. Please enjoy yourselves if you decide to stay for the next two hours. Now, to give more details on that and closing this event, please give a big hand to our wonderful project manager: Laura Nicks!" He said as he ushered the young woman to the podium to enthusiastic applause.
Laura approached the podium and took out her notecard. As she did, she suddenly leaned in a little with a frown and squinted her eyes at the piece of paper. Pikachu and Buneary both once again leaned forward in eager anticipation. After a beat or two, Laura's frown morphed into a warm smile.
"Well everybody, it looks like we're nearing the end of the gala. For those wanting to stay with us for a little bit longer, we are serving dinner with good music from tonight's amazing band. Feel free to enjoy yourselves before you head out. But before you do..." She said as Pikachu smiled to himself.
"Yesss!" He internally screamed as Buneary held her paws up to her mouth to stifle a giggling fit.
"We do have one last little surprise for you. All representatives sitting down, please reach under your chairs!" Laura announced.
There was confused mumbling from the audience as several people looked at each other. Hesitantly, each representative did as was asked and soon found two envelopes under their chairs.
"Now please open them!" Laura said, barely holding back her excitement. Little did she know, two Pokémon off to the side of the room were having the same reaction as her right now. All the while, Buckingham looked on in confusion with a raised eyebrow.
The confused mumbling soon turned into shocked gasps followed by jubilated crying from some very emotional attendees.
"As a special thanks for attending our gala, each representative has been given an extra one million dollars on top of what they've been given tonight!" Laura announced to thunderous cheers and applause.
In the middle of all the cheering, Pikachu and Buneary couldn't help but put on the biggest smiles as they turned to see Buckingham's reaction. Good old Bartholomew Buckingham III didn't disappoint. His already pallid face took on the shade of flash paper as his mouth hung open in complete shock. While they couldn't hear him over the loud cheering, they could swear that they heard incoherent mumbling coming from him.
Suddenly, some people ran past them and up to Buckingham, one of whom was holding a handheld microphone while another was holding a large camera.
"Mr. Buckingham! Mr. Buckingham! Rhonda with Sinnoh Now! How does it feel giving away this much money all at once? It must add up to around $50 million!" She loudly asked as she shoved the microphone in the billionaire's face.
"Err, uhh...I-I..." He stammered, completely caught off guard.
Rhonda barely gave him any time before she brought the mic back to her own face. "Is this a new thing from you?" She asked before Laura's voice rang out from the podium.
"Certainly not! He's the most generous man in all of Sinnoh!" She exclaimed, causing Buckingham to quickly turn towards her, eyes widening.
"And can we expect to see this to become a regular thing? Will you be doing this for every charity event you host from now on?" Rhonda continued before she turned the mic back to him.
"Uhhhh..." He managed to mumble.
"It certainly wouldn't be a surprise! Not for the philanthropist with a heart of gold!" Laura said with a huge smile. Buckingham could only look between them with an absolute horrified look on his face.
As Rhonda continued to hound Buckingham with questions, more people began to crowd around him, praising him, thanking him or putting forth their own questions. All the while, Pikachu and Buneary looked on in satisfied amusement.
"(Well looks like he's the big hero tonight.)" Pikachu said with a smirk.
"(Yup, he certainly deserves it!)" Buneary replied with her own big grin.
They looked at each other and burst into a fit of giggles, still unable to grasp that their plan had worked so well! Running around, bending the rules, concocting a hair-brained scheme and somehow saving the day without anybody noticing. To the both of them, the feeling was simply indescribable!
After managing to calm his laughter, Pikachu looked at Buneary. She was still giggling up a storm but in that moment he couldn't help but notice that she looked absolutely radiant! Her beautiful smile and eyes full of life. All accentuated by her gorgeous baby blue dress.
He could feel his heart do a strange backflip and suddenly he felt a jolt surge throughout his body as if he was struck by a Thunderbolt.
Trying to calm what he was feeling, Pikachu smiled as he extended his arm to her and gave a fist bump.
"(Thanks Bun Bun. Nice job, partner in crime!)" He proudly said to Buneary as she finally managed to get her laughter under control before giving him a large smile in return.
"(Right back atcha Pika!)" She proclaimed before bumping her fist against his as the cheering around them continued.
Author's Notes:
Phew! And there you have it, the longest (hopefully) chapter of this entire fic.
Actually, I was debating if I should keep this chapter and the next one together since I liked the chapter title I came up with so much, but I figured it was ultimately a better read to separate them.
Speaking of which, if you haven't noticed, I'm doing something with the chapter titles of this fic. It's probably already obvious what it is but instead of explaining it, I think it's more interesting for the reader to discover it for themselves. I will say that sometimes the title is obvious, other times it's not and sometimes it has multiple meanings (like this one and the next). It's just a little thing that I think is neat to do.
As a side note, I wasn't entirely sure what kind of currency to use since money isn't really relevant in the show so let's just say they used what was in the games.
Anyway, that's all for now, until next time!