Hisui is a very dangerous place- the harsh climate, wild Pokémon and giant alphas are only a few of the dangers you can meet there. That is the reason why the Wardens are so important- they keep their clans safe; they make sure wild Pokémon don't run rampant, solve problems, guide travelers, watch over great Sinnoh's nobles and so much more. As much as the Wardens look after the members of their clan, so do the clan members look after their Wardens and respect them, it is a strong bond and if something happened to one of them, a clan would make sure their Wardens are fine with all of their strength.
….
It all started with a regular morning in the highlands. Lady Sneasler had already left to check on her territory and Ingo just finished his own breakfast and was about to go out on a patrol around the Highlands. There had been some reports of unusual activity and loud noises on the west side of the mountain and he was going to check it out. The area was famous for its many caves and frequent cave-ins and rockslides, so him making sure everything is within the safety guidelines should be fine.
"Safety, check! All ABOARD!" – he struck his pose and headed out.
At first, everything seemed fine- no panicking Pokémon, no disturbed terrain, no signs of destruction. It seemed all was fine even after more than an hour of searching, so Ingo was about to do one last look-around before heading towards the village.
"GROAAAAAAAAAAAAARR!" – it was the roar of a steelix and a pretty big one at that.
Ingo looked around, trying to locate the angry 'mon but he couldn't see it. Suddenly the ground shook and a few hundred meters up the mountain, a giant alpha steelix burst out from the ground. It was MAD and firing attacks around itself, shaking its head madly. The whole mountainside shook and Ingo almost fell to the ground. He was about to steady himself on a nearby tree when the ground underneath his feet gave in and he found himself falling into an underground tunnel. More angry roars and rumbling followed and the warden was forced to run deeper in as loose dirt and rocks started to fall along with some of the ceiling- the steelix had also caused a landslide! Ingo ran as more dirt and rocks fell from the hole he fell through, as the entrance was filled up, it became darker and harder to see, soon he tripped and fell, pain blooming from his forehead. Ingo weakly lifted his arm, as his surroundings still shook and rained dirt, touching where the pain was coming from and finding the wet stickiness of blood and clumps of hair.
'Ah… It seems that I have dropped my hat-' – he thought before blacking out.
===Meanwhile, a bit later…
The steelix finally stopped its rampage, its red eyes scanned the surroundings one last time.
"Grrrrr…" – it growled and burrowed back down underground.
A bit after that, one of the piles of fallen foliage and rocks shook and from it a purplish-gray sneasel head popped out. It was a male- he looked around and wriggled out of his hiding spot.
"Sneas…" he victoriously lifted a sparkling blue rock in the air "EL!" – and shouted victoriously in triumph.
The male was an odd one- his coloring was duller and a bit grayish compared to his brethren, his head feather was a bit ragged, and his eyes were set in such way he had a natural permanent scowl to his face and females ignored him because of that. But he was not giving up, if he was going to aim for something, this time he was aiming for the top!
"Elel sneas nes e sneel se!" – he proudly looked over his prize and turned it over in his claws.
With this, he was finally ready to go and try to court the most beautiful, the strongest and most perfect partner that every male sneasel and sneasler could dream of- the Lady herself! Obviously, for a female this pretty you'd need a pretty gift, so he had snuck down into the tunnels and searched for the prettiest stone, he even faced an alpha steelix to get it but it was indeed a special stone. He rummaged in his scruffy neck fur and pulled out a razor claw, facing the high noon sun, light enveloped his form and he finally evolved into a sneasler- a grayish, scruffy sneasler with a ragged feather, even evolution couldn't change genetics.
"Snee…" – he said dejectedly as he looked himself over after evolving.
What was he going to do if he looked so drab even after evolving? Should he try and stylize his fur by the river before going to seek out the Lady?
Sneasler walked over rocks, broken wood and dirt that had been scattered around by the steelix, a thoughtful expression making his face even more frowny. Then, he stepped on something soft that didn't feel like grass or fur. He looked down and saw some sort of black cloth half-buried under the dirt. The male carefully dug around with his paws and soon pulled out a familiar-looking black hat.
"Snarr?" he dusted the black hat and looked it over, tilting his head to the side "Snee sler see? NE!" – he cried out in realization.
The male had seen humans before wearing such garments on their heads and the one serving their glorious Lady always wore a similar one, not to mention Lady Sneasler seemed to like it by how often she took it from her weird servant.
"Sneasler see… SNEAS SNEES ler~" – he put the hat on his head, adjusted it a bit to the side to make room for hir feather and struck a pose.
Yes, maybe he'd have a better chance by making himself more appealing by wearing something the Lady liked.
"SNEEEEE SLER!" – the male hyped himself up, pointed in his chosen direction and marched on.
=== With Ingo ===
"Ugh…" – Ingo groaned as he pulled himself into a sitting position.
He slowly blinked around but saw nothing but darkness, the hole he had come through completely buried by the landslide. Carefully, he accessed himself by touch, nothing hurt too much or feel dislocated, his pokéballs were even there but… he couldn't seem to find his hat anywhere nearby. The warden then pulled out Gliscor's ball and released the Pokémon.
"Glee? Eeeee-eee!" – the bat chittered and mapped the surroundings with echolocation.
"I am fine, everything is in working condition right now. However, we must make haste and find a way out. Can you lead us to another, safer destination?"
"Scorr glee ee!" – the Pokémon chittered and gently offered a pincer to his partner.
Hand in claw, the two made their way down the underground tunnel.
=== Back to the surface ===
The scruffy Sneasler was walking through the woods, a thoughtful expression on his face and a claw scratching his chin. He was still thinking of the best way to go and court the Lady. Should he try to find her while she is patrolling and make it seem like a coincidence? Should he go and wait for her to head back to her den and then offer the shiny stone? Or maybe go for a night serenade? So many options~!
As he was deep in thought, he didn't notice a child in Pearl clan robes hiding in a bush nearby.
…
Naoki and his elder sister Maoki had trekked from the snow-covered fields of the Icelands to gather some herbs and do some trading with passing Ginko guild merchants, since they rarely travelled that far north due to the rough weather and terrain. His sister had flagged down the merchant and was haggling with him… for EVERY. SINGLE. ITEM! By the third, the boy was bored and tired more than if he worked an hour in the field, so he took his almost empty basket and informed his sister he's going to forage a bit nearby and running as far away before he could be stopped.
'It's fine! I told her I would wait to her by the big pine by the road to the mountains. She'd find me easily and it's not like this is my first time here.' – Naoki tried to assure himself.
He noticed a few medicinal leek leaves sticking out between the branches of a bush, so with a pleased smirk (:3) he went to pick it up. It was a great day~
*Rustle~ rustle~*
He froze and ducked behind a bush, in Hisui you didn't really know when an angry 'mon or an alpha could be walking through the foliage. Soon, a tall figure came in view, at first, it looked like a person-
'Maybe a merchant or one of the Galaxy team members? What are they doing?'
-but then as it got closer it was obviously a Pokémon.
'Oh, Sinnoh! It's a Sneasler!' – Naoki mentally screamed and ducked even further behind the bush, waiting without making a sound.
Adult Sneaslers were Dangerous, with a capital D, everyone in the clan knew to be careful around them, including the Lady. Not that she'd ever intentionally harm a clan member for nothing, but because even an accidental scratch from her claws could cause a lot of pain and put a person in the healer's tent for a day or more. Wild Sneaslers were even more dangerous because they often fought with other mons, would never refuse an opportunity to satiate their hunger and were generally in a bad mood most of the time.
'What rotten luck, I escaped my sister's haggling session just to stumble into the path of a wild sneasler. Please, oh great Sinnoh, let it not see me!' – he begged.
Thankfully, the 'mon didn't even come near his hiding bush and continued onward. Its face was set in a thoughtful frown and it was scratching its scruffy face-fur with a claw. Also…
'WAIT!? Is that a hat on its head, that shape, color…it looks just like Warden Ingo's-' – Naoki was frozen as he looked over the sneasler carefully.
The hat was definitely the same one their Warden wore, said mad DID live and patrol here- in the highlands, the sneasler was more gray than blue/purple, it had scruffy fur and the face… At that moment, the boy's brain reached the only conclusion it could with what it saw.
'Oh my Sinnoh! Warden Ingo has been turned into a SNEASLER!'
He quickly darted out of the bushes and ran towards where his sister should still be haggling with the merchant.
"SIS! It's an emergency!" – he shouted as soon as he saw her.
A few murkrow flew up into the sky from the volume of it.
===With Irida===
Irida was sitting in her tent, drinking some warm herbal tea with Calaba. The old warden had finally visited and the young clan leader wasn't going to miss the chance to catch up, as she was getting older and the journey was not easy to make to begin with, especially for an elder. Glaceon and Eevee were snoozing in the corner, the two of them were chatting, everything was peaceful…maybe too peaceful.
"Wonder what disaster will be happening next? My back is starting to ache again." – Calaba muttered.
"Come on, you can't be certain something bad will happen. It's not like we can't have peaceful days." – Irida argued.
"Oh, please, those Wardens are ALL trouble! Especially the strange one the Lady picked up. I swear, disaster follows that man!"
"It's not true, Warden Ingo is just a bit odd but he is fine." – Irida said but couldn't meet the old woman's eyes.
In the two years since Ingo came to the clan there have been some… mishaps, but he was a good man and Irida could see it clearly with how devoted he was and how kind he was to others!
"- the clan 'eader!" – there was a commotion outside.
Both women sighed and quickly finished the last of their tea before heading out. Outside greeted them almost the whole clan in disarray. People had left their work unfinished, some were arguing, some were gossiping, some were complaining, children were buzzing around trying to hear something or see what the adults are doing, many of the elders were also peeking from their tents. One of the guards was arguing with a boy younger than her and the boy's sister.
"Order! Order, everybody!" – Calaba shouted.
The crowd slowly quieted down and looked at their leader and the Warden.
"What is going on? What is this whole commotion about?" – Irida asked.
"Clan leader, this boy-" – the guard began.
"CLAN LEADER!" Naoki shouted "It is an emergency! Me and my sister went to the Highlands to gather herbs and do some trading. There I saw Warden Ingo- he had been TURNED into a Sneasler! He's been CURSED!" – the boy said with such urgency that it didn't seem to be a prank, despite the unbelievable claim.
She was shocked by the declaration. Ingo was cursed, turned into a Pokémon, but how, why?!
"Well, if anyone was going to get cursed, it would be him… or Gaeric." – Calaba sighed from beside Irida.
"Warden Calaba, please do not add wood to the fire! There must be a logical explanation. Maybe he mistook what he saw? Did anyone else see it? Um…" – she looked at the older girl.
"Maoki, I am Naoki's elder sister, and no, I didn't see it. I was buying things from the merchant when this brat-" she pulled her brother into a headlock "went off on his own to gather herbs and then came back running and hollering loud enough to wake up a Snorlax!" – she squeezed him.
"What do we do, clan leader?" – one of the older villagers asked.
Irida, as a clan leader, was taught all there was to know, including history, myth and folk tales. She knew of olden stories where people were cursed by doing heinous deeds or wandering into the territory of a vengeful Pokémon but those were all just tales to teach the kids not to do crimes or wander alone, to stay safe! She hardly believed any of them as a child and doubted the Warden was truly cursed, there must have been a logical explanation to all of this! On the other hand, the kids and most of the elders strongly believed the legends to be true, especially elders like Calaba were very superstitious, so she couldn't just leave it as it is.
"Well, first, there's no need to panic as nothing truly bad has happened to the clan. It is completely possible that young Naoki simply saw something that looked similar to the Warden of Lady Sneasler. Everyone, please return to your business, I will personally go and check if this rumor is true or not, also to see if our Warden is safe." – Irida stated in front of the clan.
The people murmured among themselves but slowly returned to their work. Irida exhaled a breath and frowned.
'Now that I think about it, I really should go and check on the Wardens in the Highlands. I have heard nothing from there after the last report of some disturbances in the area.' – she thought, worry slowly building in her heart.
===With M(ale) Sneasler===
He looked around the mountain but he couldn't find the Lady anywhere, unaware that she had changed her usual routes to look for her missing Warden, missing her by a bit several times.
"Grrh! Snear- snarrr! SneeeZLER!" – he shouts in frustration and claws a nearby tree stump.
The hat flopped down his eyes from the aggressive movement, so he straightened up and re-adjusted it on his head. Sneasler was not used to wearing anything and was still trying to find a way to set the hat to sit properly on his head without falling, the constant need to readjust it adding to his frustration. Where was the Lady?! He had been walking around for hours! He sighed, calming himself and sitting on the grass. The scruffy sneasler took a good look around, taking in his surroundings – in his wanderings he had found himself on one of the many tall hills in the highlands. The view was nice and he could see pretty far, it was peaceful, nice. He aimed a good Slash at a branch and a few oran berries dropped into his waiting paws.
"Snee~" – he smiled as he bit into the ripe berry.
It was not bad relaxing a bit from time to time. Now that he thought about it, he'd been so focused on finding a Razor claw, fighting other male sneasels to get it, running from stronger rivals and angry Pokémon and spelunking into the caves for a gift for the Lady that he hadn't had time to really sit back and enjoy the weather.
"Teee! Teeetee! TeDDI!"
There was a shout of distress echoing through the woods. His ears perked up and swerved around to try and locate from where the noise came as he quickly jumped on his feet.
"Eeeeedd!"
There it was! He quickly climbed up on a nearby tree and looked into the distance. He saw two little Teddiursa – one was clinging to a branch for dear life, hanging from the side of a cliff and the other one was crying and frantically trying to stretch its paw and grab its friend. He shouldn't get involved, where there were Teddiursa,, their mother was always somewhere nearby. She'd be there soon enough and help them. He turned around and was about to walk away when-
*Crack!*
"EEEEEEEEE!" – the Teddi hanging from the branch screeched in terror as it started to break.
"Teddi! TeDDIURSA-SAAA!" – the other tried to stretch out even more but also shouted in fear as it almost tumbled over the edge too.
He grit his fangs as his heart clenched. He was reminded of the time he almost drowned and no one was there to help- because he was the odd one, the runt, the klutz, because he was the one left behind, alone, all on his own.
"Sler!" - he spat and quickly ran towards the two distressed cubs.
His now much longer and powerful legs quickly carried him over rocks, fallen trees and bushes. He got closer, the cliff not far away from him.
"Sneasler! Sneee sne ler!" – he shouted at the Teddiursa.
They both looked down at him in shock but they listened, the one on top got away from the ledge while the other clutched the half-broken branch in its claws as it dangled above the rocky ground. M leaped and sunk his long, sharp claws into the cliffside, quickly making his way to the cub in distress. He had to be careful now, if he was careless and accidentally scratched the little one, it would be in even more trouble than now (his ability had become Poison touch). Sneasler was soon close enough to reach and grab the little bear, so he stretched a clawed paw towards it.
"Di!" – seeing the big, sharp claws coming towards it, the cub flinched and closed its eyes in fear.
"Snee neenee…" he said quietly and calmly "Snees leer neee. Sne?" – he coaxed the cub to open its eyes and look at him, trying to give a reassuring look instead of the usual frown that he wore.
"Ted-di…" – it sniffled as it looked at him with its big teary eyes.
"Ne. Sneasler. Snee snarr snaaase." he needed it to trust him and not do any sudden movements in order to not be scratched on his claws "Sne?" – he asked if it was ready.
"Teddi…Sniffle~" – it sniffled but nodded in confirmation.
"Eee… Saaa… SAN!" – at the final count he used the back of his claws to push the cub towards his chest.
The little bear Pokémon clung to his scruffy chest fur the moment it came close enough and buried its face in it, too scared to look back down. M grimaced at the feeling of moisture penetrating his coat but continued onward and quickly made his way to the top of the cliff and to the other Teddiursa.
"Teddi! Ursasa!" – it cried in relief, seeing its friend had been rescued safely.
"Uuuu~Ursaaaaa!" – it finally let go of the sneasler's fur and rushed to meet its friend and hug them.
"Teddi usaa sa ttdi!" – they thanked him for saving their sibling's life.
"Sneasl snarr snees?" – he was curious how they ended up in the situation and where was their mother.
The two Teddiursa suddenly looked very guilty and meek.
"U-urrsaa…" – they began explaining.
Apparently it was their mother's, an URSARLUNA (thank Arceus she was not nearby to try and maul him), hatching day and since the siblings felt it was a good idea to go and surprise her with her favorite snack, they sneaked out of the den while she was asleep and went to find her present. Eventually they got distracted, ended up play-fighting, rolling down a hill and lo and behold one of them in mortal peril. By the end of the story our sneasler wore an even deeper frown and was rubbing his forehead with the back of his paws.
"Aaaa…" – he groaned, holding the urge to drag his claws through his fur, least he messes it up even more before meeting the Lady.
"Teddi…" "Ursasa ted!" – one sibling was apologetic while the other was getting jittery from how long they were away from their mom.
"Snes snesl snarr?" – he couldn't just leave the two troublemakers alone if he wasn't sure they won't get into even more trouble.
"DDI! Teddi!" – one insisted, they were already in trouble, so why not finish what they came out there to do?
"Ursasa terr us." – the other didn't want to cause any more trouble and bother the nice sneasler.
"Urs!" – the sibling huffed and pouted.
M stared at them for a bit as they argued, then huffed, giving in.
"Sneasler! Sneesl leer snarl!" he scolded them "Snees nenner lee snaw." – but he couldn't leave them on their own without worrying, so he was going to help them quickly get back to their den.
"DDI!" "Ursa?" – one sibling jumped and clung to his leg while the other looked at him in disbelief, not believing the sneasler would willingly help them even more.
"Sneeas." – he confirmed that his decision was final.
He shook the clingy sibling off his leg and pointed with his claw forward.
"Sneeees! Sneer law!" – he declared loudly and led the way, the two cubs dutifully following their savior.
The sooner he helped those two gather the damn beans, the sooner he'd be back on his quest to find the Lady!
===Some time later===
Irida was worried now. She had searched for Ingo but she could not find him neither at his home, the Lady's den or any of his other usual hanging spots. Melli, as usual was unhelpful and admitted he had not accompanied Ingo on the investigation. Where has Ingo disappeared?!
"Vee…" – Eevee put a paw on her leg, trying to cheer her up.
"Thanks, Eevee."
"Gla!" – Glaceon barked, warning her of something that could be dangerous nearby.
The clan leader tensed and looked around carefully, then followed Glaceon's gaze into the distance. There he was…
It was getting kind of late, but there was more than enough sunlight to see clearly. A tall scruffy sneasler with grayish fur, a scowl instead of the usual smirk or snarl, the black hat… not to mention how the dangerous predator seemed to be 'conducting' two young Teddiursa while helping them gather and carry plump beans.
'No way… i-it can't be-' – she was trying to think of a plausible explanation for the sight in front of her.
Still, she would not jump to conclusions so easily! She was the clan leader, so she should think things through before-
"SNEEAS-LER!" – the really loud shout from the sneasler startled her.
The mountain winds blew and she had to close her eyes to not get them full of dust, but when she opened them… Irida held her breath in shock. The loud shout from the sneasler and then seeing it pointing forward with its right paw while the left one held the cap- The familiar pose struck by the 'mon was the final nail, she was convinced.
"Oh, my Sinnoh… Warden Ingo has been cursed!" – Irida was now fully convinced the scruffy sneasler was the missing Warden.
The scruffy sneasler on the other had was just trying to keep the hat from being blown away, completely unaware of the human girl watching him from afar.
….
Finally, the two Teddiursa and Sneasler gathered a satisfying amount of beans and headed towards the Mirelands. The siblings described where their den was pretty well, so M was confident he knew where it was. He walked forward while the two trailed after him… the feeling was nice, even though they were a bit annoying, he found himself enjoying having company.
"GRAAAAAAAAAARH!" – a roar sounded, shaking some trees in the distance, it sounded angry and kind of tense.
"Te!" – the meeker sibling was a bit startled and looked worriedly at sneasler.
"Urs teddi!" – the other one confirmed it was their mother.
Sneasler nervously gulped and continued forward but with much more caution, letting the two Teddiursa walk in front of him.
"Urrrrr~" – a very big, angry shiny ursaluna soon greeted them.
She was panting, tired from running around, trying to find her missing children. When she saw them with the sneasler, her first reaction was to try and get the dangerous predator away from her babies but she quickly stopped herself before charging at him. She saw both her babies safe and happily trotting towards her, both their and sneasler's paws full of her favorite snack.
"Teddi! Ursa-ted!" – one loudly greeted her.
"Teddi…" – the other meekly trailed after their sibling.
The sneasler had stopped, warily looking at the momma bear. She scooped her babies up, glad they were both safe, then she looked at them and roared.
"URSA LUNAAAA!" she shouted angrily "Ursarrr rrrul luna usarr la lun?!" – it was so loud the sneasler tried to stop the sound by pressing his paws to his ears.
"T-te-" – one sibling tried to say while the other meekly looked down and took the scolding.
"UR-sa-lun! Luna lu ursarr!" she was so angry that they snuck out without telling "Ursalun… luuunaaa~!" – but also so glad both of them came home safely, shedding tears of relief.
"S-snee…" – the sneasler awkwardly shuffled backwards, twiddling his claws, not daring to look at the family directly.
"Ur? Luna lurs." – she looked at him oddly and doubtfully.
"Teddi!" – the louder sibling said.
"Urs teddiur ursa tedd!" – the other one also exclaimed loudly, defending the sneasler.
The mother was surprised that her usually meek and quiet child was so loud this time, so she placed them on the ground and waited for an explanation. The two siblings often talked over each other but by the end of the story, she had the full picture. The male sneasler had willingly come to their rescue, helped them gather the beans and escorted them home safely, despite the risk of an angry mother bear and expecting nothing in return other than returning with his life and all limbs intact.
"Ursa…" she nodded in understanding "Luna urs lunlun ursalun." – she stood up, M tensed, and then she bowed her head to him in gratitude, her nose touching the slightly damp grass.
"S-sneas snee ler le!" – he waved his paws nervously, feeling awkward by the show of respect and gratitude, trying to brush his deed off as nothing.
"Usa luna lursalu." – she looked at him and shook her head, it was not nothing and he should be proud from what he did.
She now owed him a life debt, he not only saved one if not both her cubs, but also unknowingly saved her from the pain of losing another cub, so until she could also save his life or repay the debt in other ways, she'd be here if he needed help with something.
"Neee…" – he was embarrassed and awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck with a paw.
Loose grey fur and fluff fell from the thick scruffy neck fur along with a pretty, shiny blue stone.
"Di?" "Teddi?" – both siblings looked curiously at the stone.
"A! Snesla!" – he quickly picked his treasure with his claws and looked it over, sighing in relief when he saw it was not damaged or scratched by his claws.
"Luna urs?" – she curiously pointed with a claw at the stone.
"Sneas…" he was a bit shy but explained what the stone was "Sneasler snnees ler ler leee snarl er sneasl."
""Uuuuuu!"" – both Teddiursa exclaimed at the same time, cooing at the gift.
"Lun…" Ursaluna thought for a bit "Ursalun luna lulu ursa!" – she stood on her hind legs with a determined look.
"Sne- sneasler er!" – he tried to deny her offer.
"Luna!" – her word was final.
She got back on all fours, the two cubs quickly gathered the dropped beans and made their way to their mother. She helped then climb on her back, making sure her cargo was safe, then motioned for M to also climb on. He hesitated, but one look from the mother stopped any protests, he climbed on carefully to not poke or scratch her with his claws and let himself be carried for the ride.
…
"Hmm… it appears this railway led us to a dead end." – Ingo said as he touched the solid rock wall.
"Glis…" – Gliscor's ears drooped.
"Worry not, my friend, we simply need to change out direction! All aboard!" – Ingo pointed and was about to start walking into the darkness when his Pokémon stopped him.
Gliscor gently turned the man in the correct direction.
…..
After safely storing the beans in Ursaluna's den, the three bear Pokémon and sneasler made their way into the Mirelands. It was getting a bit late, so the two Teddiursa were starting to doze off, despite the excitement of the trip. They made for a pretty odd sight and a few other mons stopped to look at them. Sneasler was not used to so many eyes looking at him, so he laid flat on Ursaluna's back, trying to hide in her fur somehow.
"Luna." – she informed him they had arrived.
He quickly got off and looked around – they were on a patch of grass near one of the muddy ponds.
"Snee?" – he wondered.
"Us auras lunar lunlu ursalun-" – she began explaining.
Basically, she was going to help him make his gift for the Lady of the Highlands even more special. After all, Lord Ursaluna had been offered many special gifts from suitors before choosing his current partner. With her powerful claws mama ursaluna pulled out some good reeds and dug out special swamp mud that would make the rock even prettier and shinier when it is washed a few times with it. Soon they had not only polished the blue stone but also woven a pretty string of reeds and aromatic flowers to tie the stone with. Sneasler was quite happy with how his gift looked even better than before. By the time they were done it was already dark and the siblings were asleep, so they headed back to Ursaluna's den.
===With the Diamond clan===
It was already dark and the bonfires burned in the clan settlement. Everyone was gathered there and having a meal together, including the wardens. They chatted to each other and shared what has happened recently, as usual, Melli was the loudest one to complain.
"And then a huge alpha steelix not only caused a landslide but rampaged for few hours more, tearing up the eastern mountainside! Worst of all, I was left all alone to try and somewhat clean up that whole mess! Ugh, that Pearl clan warden was nowhere to be found, probably hiding off somewhere to not help me with the cleanup!"- he huffed and dug into his rice with mushrooms. A few clan members were still on patrol but they'd be home in time to enjoy the warm dinner. Sabi sat to the side, humming and occasionally feeding some of her vegetables to Rhyhorn. Suddenly, she stopped, her eyes widened for a bit, then she burst into giggles.
"What is it, Sabi? Did you have another vision?" – Mai asked.
"Yes, and it is hilarious! Hehehe~" she looked at Melli "I think you'd get the answer on where Warden Ingo has gone to soon enough." – she giggled once again.
(Sabi could see in the future, but only her future, meaning she knows stuff from the future she saw but if something happened and she never learned about it, she would not have a vision of said event.)
Soon, a panicked Diamond clan guard could be seen running towards the camp. Adaman saw it but continued with his dinner, he'd learn of the event in due time, no reason to worry right then.
"Clan leader, Wardens!" the guard shouted before he even stopped running "We have an emergency! I saw the Sneasler warden! He's been cursed and turned into a sneasler!" – the guard declared as he panted from the long run.
"PFFFFFFT~!" – Adaman choked at the unbelievable declaration and spat his half-chewed dinner in surprise.
"Gah!" – Melli shouted as said dinner splattered him straight to the face.
"Hahahahaha!" – Sabi laughed again.
""WHAT?!"" – everyone that heard exclaimed at the same time.
"C-cough!" Adaman coughed "W-what do you mean? The Warden is cursed? That is not possible!"
"I-it is true, sir. I saw it with my own eyes- a sneasler that looked like the Warden was in the Mirelands and it even hitched a ride on an ursaluna with its cubs! It had gray fur, the same look as the Warden, even the same hat and that man is never without the hat!" – the guard reported earnestly.
Murmur spread across the campsite, people talked and argued whether it was possible. The children and elders believed in earnest, the elders even wondering what kind of thing Ingo had done to be cursed like that, the younger ones were doubtful, not really as superstitious as the elders. The wardens shared worried looks between themselves and their leader, Sabi still giggled a bit and Melli was wiping himself clean.
"S-sabi…" Iscan looked at the young Warden "What do you see, is that what the vision was? D-do we need to worry about any of us being cursed? Don't tell me it was a gggghost!" – Iscan was very superstitious and especially scared of the possibility of a ghost coming after him.
"Hmm…" she hummed and the others looked at her "Well, I can't see much right now, BUT I do see a message from the Pearl clan coming here tomorrow and it is about Warden Ingo and asking to help if we know how to break a curse!" – she declared with a smile.
Everyone looked really worried now, even the sceptics were getting worried, if Sabi really saw an official letter from the Pearl clan, then this was no joking matter! It was serious and who knew if somehow one of their Wardens wouldn't be cursed.
What Sabi didn't tell them was that she also saw Warden ingo talking to her, looking like normal a few days from now. She didn't know how the curse was lifted because no one told her future self but she knew the nice Warden will be fine, meanwhile she'd be enjoying the show.
===The next day===
After bidding the Ursaluna and her family goodbye, the scruffy sneasler headed back to the Highlands. Maybe he'd have more luck finding the Lady today? He grabbed a few mushrooms on the way up and was munching on them when he heard a strange soud, the sky darkened and a strange thing appeared in the sky. He got really nervous and restless, similar things have been happening all over the place and it was never good. There was another cry for help.
"Sneeeeeseeeeel!"
"Groaaaaarrrg!" – an angry roar of a garchomp followed.
The sneasler's instincts told him to get out of there as quickly as possible, to follow all the fleeing Pokémon but… yet again he could not ignore the cry for help, so he ran towards it. He had to dodge a few Pokémon on the way but finally arrived to see an enraged garchomp slashing at everything in sight and an odd blue and red sneasel trying to run and not get hit. He had seen one or two of those odd 'mons, they were brought here by the sky holes along with other odd stuff. He shook his head and steeled his resolve- he was going to get that sneasel to safety and run away as fast as possible.
"Snarrr!" – he growled and went forward.
"Sne?!"
"Garrr!" – the garchomp looked at him and tried to cut him with its sharp fins.
Sneasler was faster, so he dodged the attack and countered with a Dire claw at garchomp's flank but was shocked to see it barely did any damage. He grit his fangs and his scowl deepened.
"Rarrr graa!" – garchomp tried to bite him.
Sneasler barely stepped away, the attack missing by a hair and latching on a tree. M used the momentary distraction to circle behind the dragon type and go to the distressed sneasel.
"Snesl er?" – he asked her with concern.
"S-snee e!" – she nodded, confirming she was fine if a little scratched up.
*Cree~Crack!*
The wood shattered in the garchomp's jaws and it quickly turned towards our sneasler, its eyes glowing red.
"Sne- snesle ler le!" – he told her and she quickly climbed on his back, latching her claws to his shoulders.
"Raaaarrr!" – garchomp charged back at them.
M dodged yet again and started running away, weaving between the trees, trying to lose the angry dragon but garchomp was relentless and broke through several trees as it chased them. It was quickly gaining on them, so Sneasler jumped up and Slashed at garchomp's head.
"Raaaaa!" – the dragon roared in pain as its eye was injured.
At this moment M's Poison touch activated and slightly poisoned the garchomp. It shook its head and swayed a bit but the attack didn't deter it. Seeing there was no way to run, Sneasler ducked to the side and ushered the small female to hide in a rock crevice, if he had to fight, he'd have more of a chance to survive if he didn't have to watch for the safety of a passenger. He dashed away from her hiding place and faced the garchomp. He was a lower level, he was in a disadvantage and his main weapon – his poison, was not very effective, still Sneasler's face was set with determination as he faced the angry dragon type.
"Sneas-LER!" – he Taunted the other Pokémon.
The small female sneasel looked out of her hiding spot, her ears were pinned back in fear, but they quickly straightened up. The sight of the male that came to her rescue as he stood up against his foe with determination made her heart throb. The scruffy sneasler, framed by the morning sun seemed to shine.
"Garrrh!" – garchomp charged and slashed with its fins at M.
This time he couldn't quite dodge and was hit. His side was cut and fur flew into the air but the injury was not deep. He retaliated with a Rock smash at garchomp's ribs and the other 'mon staggered for a bit. The poisoned state had somewhat weakened it and was dealing additional damage but it couldn't really make up for the level difference. Sneasler used Slash two more times, a quicker initial swipe and then a much stronger second strike to garchomp's flank. The dragon roared in pain as the claws cut him and Poison touch activated again. Garchomp tried to Bite him, Sneasler moved to the side, so the attack missed his body but not his paw. He hissed in pain as the dragon type's teeth latched on his paw but thankfully the damage was reduced, his scruffy fur also somewhat protected his skin from the fangs. He struggled to push the angry Pokémon away, twisting his paw left and right, his feet trembling from the effort of not falling back. Just before his back gave out, he managed to twist his claws in a way that they scratched the garchomp's mouth.
"Ragh!" – it finally let go of his paw and shook its head, some drool and blood flew as it did so.
Sneasler was panting. He was tired and received more damage than his opponent, he didn't know if he'd be able to run away or even survive the battle. At least he managed to help that sneasel.
"Graaaah!" – garchomp Bulldozed towards him.
Sneasler went to dodge the attack, but he wasn't fast enough, it was going to hit him anyway. He braced for impact but then-
"Neeee!" – the female jumped out and fired Ice shards at the garchomp's feet.
The still damp grass froze and was littered with small shards of ice, making the charging Pokémon to slip and crash to the ground. Dirt, rock and turf flew in the air from where the dragon crashed.
"Sne?! Snesler ler le sne?" – he was surprised by her appearance, why did she come back out when he told her to hide?
"Sneas selel snesl!" – she responded with determination and stood beside him, readying herself for an Icy wind.
Garchopm got out from the crater it caused and glowered at the two weasel Pokémon.
"Garr…"
With her coming to help him against the garchomp, he felt a confidence boost. He bared his fangs at the dragon 'mon.
"Sneesler snes snesle ne!" he pushed the hat, that had not fallen somehow, back into place and pointed his claws straight at the garchomp "SNEEAS-LER!" – he shouted with more determination than he ever had before.
The garchomp charged back at them and the two jumped away in opposite directions, dodging the attack.
"Sneasler-sne!" – he told her.
*Shaa~*
She blew an Icy wind, frost quickly covering the garchomp's side, M quickly circled and used a well-aimed Rock smash to hit garchomp's leg, making the 'mon crash to the ground.
"Sneasler ler le! Snn see!" – he gave another command.
She ran towards him and he gave her a boost up, from where she rained Ice shards on the back of the downed dragon 'mon.
"Aaaar!" – it roared in pain.
"Sneas ler sne!" M shouted "Ler lee SNEAS!" – he aimed a strong Rock smash at the frost-covered back of garchomp.
"GaaaAAARRR!" – it hollered in pain, the impact shaking the trees.
Sneasler and Sneasel pulled back a bit, he hissed while she prepared another volley of Ice shards. The garchomp looked at them with its red eyes, it hesitated, it was angry and wanted to attack but the slow poison was starting to take its toll as it has been damaging it little by little this whole time, and then those painful ice attacks caused even more damage. In the end, the garchomp stumbled to its feet and ran away.
"Sneee!" – the female sneasel jumped and cheered with joy.
Sneasler on the other hand stared at the retreating dragon Pokémon. Did he do this? Did he really just stand up to a garchomp, an angry alpha on top of that?! His limbs shook as he plopped down on the ground, stating at his trembling claws.
"Sneas el! Snee?" – she was quickly by his side, checking if he was alright.
"Sler sneas…" – he waved his paw.
"Nene sne!" – she pointed at the ground and scurried into the forest.
A few minutes later she came back, her paws full of oran berries and medicinal leeks, putting them beside him.
"Sler snee-" – he tried to refuse the gift.
"Snesel snease sne!" – she huffed and pushed the berries closer to him, while starting to peel the leeks.
He awkwardly munched on a few berries as she treated his injuries, feeling a bit embarrassed. No one had really taken such good care of him in a long time. He had saved some of the berries, so when she was done, he gave them to her.
"Sneas nene ne!" – she waved her claws and shook her head.
"Sneasler. Sneler ler snee." – he told her and tried to give her a reassuring look, but it didn't work out with his almost permanent frown.
She sighed and accepted the berries in the end. They both sat in silence as they munched on the healing fruit, sometimes she'd secretly glance up at him, taking in his unusual features, then avert her eyes because of embarrassment, only to repeat it again. He, on the other hand, stared absentmindedly in the distance as he turned his last berry in his claws.
After a while, he noticed a familiar purple-blue figure climbing one of the cliffs in the distance, so he jumped to his feet, startling the small sneasel.
"S-snee?" – she asked from the place she tad tumbled down to.
"Sneas ler le sne!" he apologized and bowed at her, one paw holding the hat in place "Ler leer snesler! Leee!" – he quickly told her he had to go, then said his goodbyes before hurrying onward.
"L-leee…" she waved as he disappeared "Sneas snees el le!" – she muttered to herself and hit her head a little with her paw.
How could she have been so stupid, she should have at least asked him where he lived or if he had a partner! And what did she do, stare at him silently and dumbly, like an idiot, taking in his silvery fur, charming scruff and serious face- She caught herself daydreaming and shook her head.
"Sne! Slee sneasel le SNEASEL!" – she stood up straight, clenching her paws in determination.
She was going to go fins a present, then go to her hero and give it to him! If she was lucky and he wasn't already taken, she might even have a chance to become his partner! With fire in her eyes, she marched forward and down the mountain.
…
Lady Sneasler was really getting worried now, it was not uncommon for her to not see her Warden for a day or so, especially if he went down the mountain to do some trading with the people of the village or the merchants. The problem was that is has been more than a day without seeing him at all. He should have at least visited her den at least once to leave some offerings or inform her he was going away if he was leaving the Highlands. Something was wrong, so she had been searching for him since yesterday afternoon. She was going back to her den when she noticed the approaching scent of a male sneasled and a faint familiar whiff carried by the wind. She crouched on a tall boulder and waited.
The scruffy sneasler came out of the woods, he looked like a mess, dried flecks of blood in his scruffy, messy fur, also smelling like leek juice and dragon drool. But when she saw the familiar black hat on his head, she saw red – how dare someone attack her Warden. Lady snarled viciously and jumped on top of the male, pinning him to the ground.
"SNEES LER LESE?!" – she angrily asked him about what he did to her Warden.
"S-sneasler sne?" – he managed to say before she pressed harder on his throat.
"LESE! Snesler lele Lese's erre!" – she picked up Ingo's had and showed it to him, angrily emphasizing her question.
"Ler, sne Lese snes!" he coughed "Sneas snee lerere sel sene. Selele…" – he denied doing anything to the Warden and told her how he got the hat.
She let him go, he pulled himself into a sitting position as she looked over the hat, she could smell on human blood on it and knew her Warden would risk injury to keep his precious hat on him.
"Snene nee." – she apologized for being so rough, but not for her actions, he should have known better than taking someone's belongings.
"Sneas…" – he was also apologetic for taking the hat.
Lady smirked and twirled the hat on the tip of her claw, the guy looked pretty rough, so she was going to give him some beans as thanks for keeping the hat whole and then ask him to show her where exactly he got it. Yes, she nodded to herself, this was a good plan, she wouldn't seem rude for roughing up the guy and also quickly find Ingo's trail! She turned towards him and was about to speak when she saw the little Clan head and two other Pearl clan members running towards them.
"Lady Sneasler!" – Irida shouted.
"Snees." she called back to the girl and then looked at the male "Ler sneasl." – she warned him not to do anything stupid like attacking the clan.
"Oh, thank Sinnoh, you found Warden Ingo!" Irida exclaimed, sighing in relief "We were so worried when we couldn't find you both!"
"Sne?!" – uh, what, the Lady was confused.
She looked at the scruffy sneasler, then at the Clan head. This dirty, scruffy guy, HER Warden?! They were nothing alike! He was human and this male is a sneasler, an odd sneasler, sure, but there was no way even a half-deaf zubat would mistake him for a human!
"Do not worry, Noble Lady, I sent a letter to the Diamond clan and asked for help of them to see what might have been the reason for Warden Ingo's curse and find a way to break it!" – Irida mistook Lady Sneasler's surprise for worry for the 'cursed Warden' in front of them.
"Sneasler…" – M awkwardly said as one of his paws went up to readjust the now missing hat, a habit he picked up in the past 2 days.
"Snee…" – Lady said thoughtfully.
She could try and go through the whole process of trying to explain with gestures and actions the whole situation to the Clan head and her companions… but it would take too long or it could fail and they'd misunderstand, like it happens sometimes, not to mention they would hold her back and slow her down. OR she might also have a bit of fun… The more she thought, the more her mischievous side reared its head. The whole situation was hilarious and a one-of-a-kind opportunity to mess with others and who knew when something so interesting would happen.
"Sneasler, snee ne ler!" she smiled and shoved the hat back on the male's head "Ler snesse nee nee!" – she then looked at Irida and nodded her head, appearing to agree.
"E?! Snes?" – the male was startled.
"Sneasle lerle lleees er lee! Snease ler eee sneel." – she looked at him and basically ordered him.
He should stay, keep the hat safe and keep those three distracted while she went to get her Warden back.
"Snesler?! Snee ner leer re? Sne-" – he tried to argue back a bit.
"Snarl senn snae seeel. Sneees eeeeel~" – she used her persuasion skill on him, promising to listen to whatever he has to say after she gets her Warden home.
"Sneasle…" he agrees "Ler le sneasler leer eele-" – and tells her where the place he got the hat from was exactly.
Meanwhile, the three members of the Pearl clan are watching the whole thing in fascination, especially the guards. They knew Ingo had been turned into a sneasler but didn't expect to see him and the Lady to have a full conversation like that, although it should have been logical when the Warden was a Pokémon.
"Snee snee~!" – Lady turned, waved them goodbye and quickly left.
"Sne…" – the male lowered his gaze away from the humans, his back stiff and loweded the hat a bit with his paw, feeling nervous with so many humans looking at him like that.
Unknowingly, his mannerism looked very similar to Ingo's in the eyes of the Pearl clan members.
"Do now worry, Warden Ingo, we are sure the Lady has something in mind!" – one of the guards said confidently.
Meanwhile M was wondering who the peck were they calling him Warden Ingo.
===Meanwhile with the real Ingo===
"Do you see an exit tunnel anywhere, Gliscor?"
"Corr…" – the bat Pokémon sadly said and shook his head.
They had been walking through the caves, looking for an exit for quite a while but only darkness surrounded them, they were lucky that there was some running water safe for drinking so the man could refill his flask and take a drink but it had been quite a while and they were getting hungry.
Gliscor's ears perked up as something moved. Way down one of the tunnels he detected a moving Pokémon. If they didn't find an exit soon, he didn't have any trouble hunting some food for himself and his Warden. They would survive and he'd make sure of that!
===The Pearl clan===
The whole clan was abuzz with excitement, everyone was trying to sneak a peek at the transformed Warden. Especially the children were trying to sneakily approach the scruffy sneasler without their parents noticing and pulling them back.
The male sneasler on the other hand was feeling pretty nervous and out of place – in all his wandering days across Hisui, even reaching to the southernmost point and the highest peaks, he'd never went this deep into the Icelands, not wanting to deal with the snow, cold and the many packs of zoruas and zoroarks. So, right now he was standing quietly to the side and following the blonde girl, occasionally helping carry stuff handed to him. It was really strange to have so many humans pay attention to him.
A small girl manages to wander close to him and he looks down at her. She pulls out some beans and awkwardly hands them to him.
"Snnes." – he carefully plucks them with his claws and eats them in one bite.
She quickly runs off, squealing, and his frown deepens. What did he do?
….
The sun was setting by the time the clan finally got used to the 'cursed Warden' and were no longer staring at him all the time. He could finally relax a bit, so quietly left the blonde girl to continue looking at leaf bundles and went to look around. M did a circle through the human settlement, looking over buildings and what the humans were doing, he contemplated going after one of the swinub he saw enclosed in an area but decided against it, it would be unfair to take an already trapped Pokémon, they must be left as rations for the humans here. Some cold wind blew and he had to readjust the hat again, he had gotten used to the garment's presence, like it was always there.
"Hello, Warden Ingo!" – a kid greeted him.
"Snee, sness snaw." – he greeted back, noticing a few other human children peeking from behind one of the dwellings.
"See, he's still nice!" – the boy called back to his friends.
Soon a girl and another boy slowly approached the poison Pokémon.
"A-are you sure it is fine Akito? Momma said not to bother the Warden while he's like this." – the girl, Mimi, said.
"Uhuh!" – Nomo, the other boy nodded in agreement.
"Nah, it is fine. We are not bothering you, right, Warden Ingo?" – Akito looked up at the sneasler.
"S-snal…" – Sneasler was unsure, so he just looked the other way.
"Alright! Can we go do patrol again with you?! Like the last time? You's be con-duck-tour and we'd be pss-en-geers!" – Akito stepped closer and looked at M with sparkling eyes.
The other two children were quieter, but also joined in with his friend.
"Y-yeah!" – Mimi agreed.
"I wanna do patrol too!" – Nomo piped up.
""Pleaaaase!"" – they begged at the same time.
The male sneasler didn't know what they were talking about, so he lowered the front of the hat to try and ignore them… it was unsuccessful.
"Snee." – he agreed, even if he had no idea what they were to do.
"Yay!" – Mimi cheered.
"All aboard!" – Akito said and imitated Ingo's signature bose the best he could.
M's eyes wandered in realization! So it was like what he did with the Teddiursa, playing Follow the leader.
"SNEEEAS-LER~!" – he shouted, striking a pose with one claw forward, the other lifting the hat from his eye, imitating the Warden without knowing.
The children cheered and lined behind him as he led them around the settlement perimeter, from time to time stopping to show them something or explain something to them, not that they understood him, but the kids had a lot of fun following the sneasler before they made their way back to the center of the camp.
"Sneasleeer! Snee snarl eees!" – he stopped and gestured with his claws, indicating it was their final stop.
"Thank you!" – Mimi smiled.
"Final stop." – Nomo pouted and Akito was vibrating.
"Snee snaal…" – M repeated the words of the boy a few times, seeming to like how they sounded.
It was getting dark and fires were lit, the chimneys were smoking and smells from the different dwellings were carried through the air. Sneasler sniffed and his mouth watered at the delicious smells, he helped today, so maybe they'd let him have some of that stuff? He hoped, at least.
"-have you seen Saburo?" – he overheard an older human woman asking around.
"No, I haven't seen him? Has he not come back, yet?" – the other woman sounded worried.
"N-no. W-what if he gets attacked by wild Pokémon or falls down and injured himself in the dark?!"
"We'll go ask the guards for help, ok?"
Sneasler's eyes take on a sharper look as he follows the two women.
…..
"Damn… Curses!" – a man in his early 30s is cussing as he limps through the woods.
Saburo had gone out for mushrooms and herbs but was startled by a snorunt popping out of a snow mount, so he fell and sprained his leg really bad. What a bad luck to not have a single medicinal leek in his basket.
*Crunch-crunch-*
Footsteps in the snow were approaching him, he held his hunting knife out, just in case a dangerous Pokémon decided to try and come after him. From the woods came a scruffy sneasler with a familiar black hat.
"Ah, it's you, the Sneasler Warden." Saburo relaxed a bit "Did you hear from my wife I was gone?"
"Narrl snees snaa." – M informed the man and nodded.
Saburo put the knife back in its holster.
"Sorry ta bother you, but I sprained my ankle, so it would take quite some time to get back." – he gestured at his leg.
The sneasler came closer and examined the injured limb without touching it with his claws, then he turned his back to the man.
"Sneeas-LER!" – M pointed in the direction of the settlement and lowered a bit so the man could climb on his back.
"Hehe, always the helpful sort, huh, Warden? I guess even being furry doesn't change that." – the man muttered to himself but climbed on the Pokémon.
M lifted the human easily and quickly traced his steps back to the human settlement. There the humans were waiting for them, they were greeted with cheers. Sneasler received more food than he could eat and for the first time regretted eating so much that his stomach kept him awake.
…
"LESE! LEEEESEEEE!" – Lady called for her Warden as she scoured any caves and tunnels uncovered from the landslide.
"Ge! Geo gge dude!" – an angry geodude popped out of the ground, cussing at her for waking him up so late at night, waving a rocky fist in her direction.
"Sneasler, snee nees sleen Lese." – she apologized and explained what she was doing.
"Uuu… geo dud du geo." The geodude then went quiet, thinking for a bit "Geo! Dude dude gedudude. Geodude gege." – he told her what he knew of the caves running underneath her, then pointed her in the direction of a friendly Onix that lived in a cave nearby.
"Sneas?! Sneasler snee!" – she was happy and grateful for the help.
"Geo…" he stopped her "Geo ddude gude deo." – he advised her to wait until tomorrow to go ask for Onix's help.
It might be the fastest way to find her missing friend but the onix, as friendly as he was, was NOT a morning person and definitely WON'T be happy to be woken up in the diffle of the night.
"Snee…" she was a bit disappointed but agreed with Geodude "Sneasler snee nees?" – she wondered how to repay his help.
"Geo, geodude ggeod!" – he only wanted some salts and to not be woken up in the middle of the night.
===Jubilife village===
A small nimble shadow snuck from rooftop to rooftop as it scouted the village, ducking in the shadows whenever a security corps member came close by. It was the female sneasel – she had snuck into the human settlement… to steal!
After pondering for a long while what the best gift for her hero would be, the answer came to her in a flash, well more like the thundering steps of a slightly overweight merchant running away from an angry combee. He had almost ran into her and she was about to swipe at him when she saw a few hats hanging from his full backpack. One of the hats looked quite similar to the one her savior wore, well except the logo, everything else was the same, including even the same shade! It was the perfect gift- a new hat for the heroic sneasler because, let's be honest, his was tearing at the seams.
She sneakily trailed the merchant all until he entered the village and unfortunately, she was chased away, so she snuck in at night. She was getting that hat no matter what! She made her way to the next human dwelling and peered inside from the small window. There it was! The fat man was talking and eating with some other humans! As soon as they fell asleep, she'd go in and get the hat!
~some time later~
"Thief!" – the merchant shouted, throwing a wooden clog at the sneasel.
"Neeee!" – she screeched as she ducked under the wooden projectile.
In her paws she tightly clutched the black hat.
"What's going on?!" – a villager looked out, asking.
"That thieving Pokémon stole my merchandise! Catch it!"
A few security corps members ran over, they tried to catch the nimble sneasel but she just jumped out of the way, ducked between their legs and then left the village by climbing over the fence. The villagers looked for a bit and then went back to their homes, ignoring the still puffing merchant.
"We should build up the fence a bit more." – one security corps member said.
"Oh, shut up." – his colleague said and gave him a slap to the back of the head.
"Sneeeheheee!"
Meanwhile the female sneasel was happily running through the field with her prize.
===With Ingo, the human===
These tunnels seemed to go on forever, he had no idea what time it was, did a day pass already, maybe even two? He hadn't slept at all and he was tired. If he didn't have Gliscor to lead him in the dark, Ingo was sure he'd be a goner.
'When will we reach our next station?' – he wondered as he held Gliscor's pincer.
"Glissss!" – his partner hissed.
"What is it? Do you hear something?"
"Corr!" – Gliscor pushes Ingo behind himself, standing protectively in front of the man.
Soon the human could not only hear but feel a rumbling in the distance and it was getting closer and closer. Gliscor was ready to defend his trainer if needed, he just hoped they could avoid big battles in this enclosed space.
"Nyyyyx!" – the approaching onyx bellowed, warning anyone to watch out.
The onyx came closer but screeched to a halt down the tunnel across them.
"On onix!"
"S-snees- gueh…" – Lady slid off the rock beast and almost emptied her stomach.
"Milady, is that you?!" – Ingo asks after hearing the familiar sound.
"Gliiiscorrr!" – Gliscor cheered and quickly dragged his trainer towards their rescue.
"S-snee -geeeh- sneas…ler…" – Lady needed some more time to catch her breath and brace herself for the journey back, hopefully it'll be shorter now that they know where their next destination is.
…..
M left the human settlement the next day. He didn't know what else to do and some of the humans were getting a bit too close for his liking, especially the blue-faired loud man… he was too much for M to handle, so he bid the blonde human goodbye and left for the Highlands. He was going to talk to the Lady, he was confused and needed more than just 'go there, act nice'.
He made his way to the Lady's den only to see her carrying a tall gray-haired man in her paws, nuzzling his dust-covered face and licking his hair clean, accompanying them was a gliscor. That was the Lady's servant, the Ingo she was looking for the previous day. He deflated; he knew he stood little chance in courting the Lady but now he was sure of his complete failure. No wonder she had been chasing off all her suitors as soon as the eggs were ready to hatch.
"Ah! My hat!" Ingo exclaimed when he noticed the other sneasler "I was worried it was buried somewhere in the landslide. Thank you for finding it!"
The man was loud, but it wasn't like he wasn't the same sometimes. M took off the hat and returned it to the man, his head now feeling strangely bare for some reason.
"Sneas lel snee." The Lady addressed him "Snee snees snarl leee." – as she had promised, she'd let him tell her whatever he came there for and then see if she could help in any way.
"Snarrr alel snees lerr le." – he waved his paw, he was already over it, it was clear he stood no chance in the Lady's eyes compared to the man, so he wasn't going to even try courting her.
M turned to leave when he was stopped.
"Please wait!" Ingo shouted and got out of the bridal carry "I insist to give you some reward as thanks for finding my hat and returning it to me! Please come to the station and see what you'd like from my storage chest." – he bowed his head at the wild sneasler.
"Sneesee." Lady agreed "Snesl sneeesee snarl leer snawr." – she also owed him some compensation for forcing him to distract the Pearl clan for a while.
"Glii~" – Gliscor chimed in from the air.
"Sne, snee…" – M finally agreed and followed the trio.
When they arrived to Ingo's house, the male sneasler picked out some berries and salted snacks while the lady quickly brought some herbs and special stones she had picked up from near the rifts. Ingo packed it all in a small sack and gave it to M. The sneasler thanked them for the gifts and left the lady to coo over her Warden.
…
The female sneasel was back in the Highlands, on the way there she had found a few nice flower and added them to her head fur in an effort to make her feather pop out even more and to also smell nice when she went to meet her hero. She found him soon enough, but he looked sat, sitting all alone on a flat rock and gazing at the sky.
"Snee… Sneasel el?" – she approached and cautiously asked.
"Sne-" he was about to dismiss her but stopped the automatic response "Snall snees sel el seasler leer…" – he admitted he was not too good, touching his now unclothed head, missing the hat.
"Sneas snesel sness al le!" – she declared cheerfully.
He finally glanced at her.
"Sneeeneee!" – she pulled the previously hidden hat from behind her and proudly showed it to him.
"Sne?! E… snes ler?! Lel se?" – he sat up and looked at her in surprise, not believing she got a hat for him.
"Snee… sneasles nees seel snee snall. Leleee aaaa saal! Se sneal snaas selela." – she poured her feelings into her confession, the reason she went to such lengths.
"Sler…" he gently took the hat in his claws, stunned at her words "Snesler sel leer lar ree? Snee ne?" – he was flattered, no one had thought of him so highly before, nor had someone been interested in him in such way thanks to his odd appearance.
"Snesel! Snneees sna nal laes le!" – she puffed her cheeks, appalled at how he had such low self esteem when he was so awesome.
"Sner… snee snall." – he tried to argue.
"Snne SELA!" – she didn't care about what the other sneasels and sneaslers thought, she was also an odd one in this land, whisked from her family and left here by a strange hole in the sky.
He looked at her embarrassed and stunned.
"Sne… snee al laes?" – she finally asked the big question and held her breath, wishing to not be rejected.
"E… snesler…" – he told her he was still single.
"EES!" she cheered "Easel snes ellala! Elas snee…" – she offered and bowed to him.
He continued to stare as she ruffled her head feather and did a little twirling dance. She was courting HIM?! He was frozen as she did the small performance again and again before finally stopping and looking up at him.
"Ee?" – she asked hopefully.
"Sneas sler le-" it was going a bit too fast for him "Sneasler snne lerle?" – was she sure, they had just met yesterday.
"Sneasel el leea." – she was sure and willing to try it out, there was some time before the courting season officially came.
"Sneasler ler le." – he accepted at last.
He put the hat on and set it securely on his head, the weight of it feeling nice. The female came and sat next to him on the rock, smiling happily. He felt it was unfair for her to not receive something too, after all she found this nice hat for him. He ruffled through his neck fur and pulled out the reed necklace with the blue stone, presenting it to her.
"Sneasl sneer sna… Sneasler?" – he admitted he had made the gift for someone else, initially, but he felt it would also suit her too.
"Sneees! Sneasel!" – she was overjoyed at the gift and wrapped herself around his torso, hugging him with all she got.
They both purred in happiness, her sweet and smooth, while his a little stuttering and scratchy.
===The Pearl clan===
"Hooray!" – the whole clan cheered.
"The curse has been lifted!" "Our warden is back to normal!" "All hail the great Sinnoh!" "Aww… he's not fluffy anymore…"
There were a few disappointed kids but otherwise everyone was happy their Warden was back and un-cursed. They were surprised when early the next day after the 'sursed Warden' left the campgrounds, the Lady came back, carrying a protesting Ingo, human and un-cursed.
Irida quickly pulled Ingo and the lady into he healer's tent, so he could be looked over. Soon Lian and Palina also entered- she was glad to see her fellow Warden was alright and he was excited to ask the old man what his experience was in the body of a Pokémon.
"What are you talking about?" – Ingo asked, he was confused by all the talk about curses and odd questions aimed at him.
"I am talking about your time as a Pokémon! What did you do to get turned into a sneasler? What was it like to be a Pokémon and talk to the Lady?!" – Lian bounced in his seat, acting like a kid his age in his excitement.
"Yes, Warden Ingo. You should be more careful. I didn't even think it was possible to actually get cursed like in the old stories." – Palina sighed.
"Again, I have no idea what you are talking about. I was caught in a landslide and was wandering the caves for the past few days until the Lady found me and helped me out. I haven't been cursed."
""WHAT?!""- they all shouted in surprise.
"W-wait then what about the gray sneasler with your hat?! You'd never leave your hat for so long." -Palina asked with a shaky voice.
"Ah, the scruffy one, yes, I met him yesterday. I actually lost my hat in the landslide and he had found it and kept it. He returned the hat to me when we met on the way to Lady's den." – Ingo stated as a matter of face.
"So… let me get this straight, you were never cursed, just lost in a cave?" – Lian asked with a disappointed look.
"Yes."
"And we let a wild sneasler, a verry dangerous Pokémons to just wander freely into our clan because of a kisunderstanding?" – Irida asked.
"I suppose… Did you really mistake that sneasler for me?"
"This is NOT getting out of this tent, ever! Got it?! We can't let anyone, especially those from the Diamond clan learn of this!" – Irida commanded.
"But I-"
"You were cursed but now you are fine, end of story. Got IT?!"
Ingo and the others gulped nervously but nodded. And so the whole misunderstanding was settled.
===One year later===
"Uncle Ingo!" – Akari waved as she ran down the street of Jubilife to meet her honorary uncle.
"Good day to you, Akari." He tipped his hat to her in greeting "How are you today?"
"Great! I did a lot of survey work and filled a lot inside the Pokédex! I am getting lose to the halfway point." – she showed off her work.
"Bravo! That's great effort, young Akari."
"Hehe, thank you. Oh, I also saw something very interesting today! Wanna hear it?"
"Of course, I am always happy to hear your stories." – he said and took a sip from his tea.
"OK! So I was passing by the edge of the Mirelands, you know where the ground is still not muddy and there are trees? And I saw a sneasler that looked like you!"
"Pff~ Cough-cough!" – Ingo sputtered and choked on his drink.
"Are you alright?!" – she patted his back in worry.
"Y-yes… I am fine. Please, continue. What was that about a sneasler looking like me?" – he wiped his mouth with a handkerchief.
"Oh, it was the funniest and curest thing ever! I was just coming back when I decided to drop by and check on Calaba, so there I am, just entering the Mirelands when I see a figure that looks a lot like you. I am like- Wait! What is uncle Ingo doing here? But then I notice it is actually not you but a sneasler! An odd scruffy sneasler with grayish fur, scowl and a black hat! It really reminded me of you! What a coincidence!" – she laughed.
"Yes… a coincidence." – he let her continue but didn't dare look her in the eyes.
"So, the sneasler is there and it is like, really loud, for a sneasler, it even points kinda like you and then the cutest thing happened. It called out and from the tall grass came out two teddiursa and a pair of baby sneasels, it was kind of odd because they were not Hisuian sneasels, but then their mother, I guess, also came out of the grass and she was a weavile! Then, the scruffy sneasler led them off to somewhere and they all trailed after him in a little line. It was like he was conducting them! Kyaa! It was sooo stunky cute!" – she gushed.
Ingo just listened and nodded. He guessed his Pokémon doppelganger was still out there and he was apparently doing great and had a family. Ingo was glad but also worried if someone from the Diamond clan would see the sneasler and think he had been 'cursed' again.