[Originally completed January 21st, 2019. Published July 27th, 2019. This version of the chapter was scrapped September 14th, 2019, due to it being a weak story, a bad introduction for Breloom and Ziggy, and a poor characterization for Meowth. Content from this chapter was reused in the new chapter 3, so be prepared for copied dialogue and narration if you choose to read on.]
Chapter 3: Spark of the Forest Fire
The morning played out similar to the prior day. Mathew sprung up from his nightmares before his roommates came into consciousness. One by one, they awoke to the dim lighting brought in by the morning sun. After getting ready, the group of pokémon retreated from their small house. After consuming another small breakfast, the group gathered into the room, Mr. Persian rounded everybody up, and Medicham began the sorting once again.
"Going to Pawalmtry Forest: Breloom, Joey, Mathew, Meowth, and Ziggy."
"What?!" Jermy said. "I'm not with the other two newbies?"
"NO MINCCY AGAIN?!" Ziggy shouted, by some divine power, concisely.
From the back of the room, Breloom sighed in protest. "No Politoed again…?"
"Yes, I understand, this organization is unusual," Medicham said. "I've been attempting to take in feedback. I intend to space out the most efficient and well-reviewed individuals so each dungeon our members travel to gets a hefty amount of love from our craft. Thanks to the shining reviews from Minccino and Politoed after yesterday's workday, I now better understand who should lead each foray. Today's organization is the result of that. Returning to topic… Going to Asulaguah Beach: Jermy, Minccino, and Politoed."
"Oh, there again…" Jermy remarked.
"Gonna have to get used to these places, Jermy. Kinda all that's here," Politoed said.
"I WONDER WHAT WILL KILL HIM FASTER, THE MONOTONY OR THE POKÉMON," ORB jested.
"You'll be the death of me, ORB." Jermy said.
"I CAN DO SO AT YOUR REQUEST."
"No!"
"I DON'T PLAN TO, BUT LET ME KNOW WHEN YOU HAVE GIVEN UP ON LIFE AND ARE CEASING TO MOVE FORWARD. HOWEVER, I WILL PRIORITIZE AN ATTEMPT TO GET YOU HELP UNDER SUCH A SITUATION."
"...Well THAT sort of came out of nowhere," Minccino commented.
ORB whirled around towards the pokémon. "THIS IS LITERALLY MY PURPOSE FOR EXISTENCE."
"Well, MY purpose is to pick up trash," Minccino said. "Let's just do that." The gray chinchilla picked up her satchel and left the hotel lobby. She stopped outside of the building, waiting for the others to do the same.
The rest of the employee base followed suit. After stepping into the fresh, humid air, the large group said their goodbyes before splitting off into smaller chunks, and heading to their respective locations.
Mathew's group approached the dense and familiar forest as they strolled down the hilly trail. The surrounding tropical greenery would look brilliant to the eye if it wasn't for the occasional piece of waste sullying the image.
"HERE IS US: PAWAWAWAWAWLMTRY FOREST, THE CLEAN WAIT NOT RIGHTY UNCLEAN FOREST OF UNCLEANLINESS!" Ziggy yelled as he ran forth into the dense forest. Before long, he ran back carrying a beaten up paper plate in his mouth. The zigzagoon beat on it with his front paws for a few seconds. After such a senseless beating, the zigzagoon finished off the "enemy" by scooping it into his mouth, and dropping it into his satchel. "MY THIRST FOR THE EVIL BEATINGS IS A NO QUENCH!" he yelled.
Mathew turned to Breloom. "Is he… alright?" he mumbled.
"Well, um - you see - from what Politoed said about you yesterday, I'm not sure if you want to know. I'm afraid you'll just need to put up with him," she softly replied.
Mathew looked to the dirt trail, and felt the sense that he was being judged for things that they couldn't understand, much like the zigzagoon he was trying to reason over.
"So anyways," Breloom changed subject with a louder tone. "See this trail, you two?" She motioned to Mathew and Joey.
"Yes?" Joey faced the direction of Breloom's gentle voice.
"AWARENESS IS YES!" Ziggy screeched while cramming whatever objects he could get his manic little claws on into his bag.
The raptor shook her head. "So, we follow this trail until we reach the end; then we walk back. Do you two understand?"
The two new employees nodded.
"That's great to hear!" Breloom said with a little fist pump.
The group began to pick at the remnants of food containers and various other forms of waste, each at their own pace and positioning. As boredom began to set in, the group began to speak among themselves to stave off such emotions.
Joey scoured around for more trash. As he did so, he took notice that his two roommates were almost reluctant to do much more than stand around, only grabbing trash if it was where they were walking. "Are you two okay?" he asked. "You haven't been grabbing much garbage…"
"I'm not taking any chances here," Mathew said defensively. "I'm doing what I can, but there's no chance in Hell I'm stepping too far from anyone this time."
Meowth just shrugged and began to distance himself from the two pokémon.
"But, wait… Isn't the goal of the job to get everything…? Why are you two trying to ignore that?"
"That's a fair point, but I value not dying painfully to the local weirdos, thank you very much," Mathew responded.
"You worry too much," Joey muttered.
"I worry too much?!" Mathew snapped back. "Did you not see the madmen at that godforsaken beach?!"
Joey backed away from the enraged cubone, not knowing how to respond in a way that would alleviate the situation. "I - I - think you're overreacting a bit. I mean, we can all fight them off, right?"
"That doesn't mean I want to be fighting!"
Hearing the fuss, Breloom stepped back a couple of feet from where she was working to address the bickering coworkers. "What seems to be the problem here?"
"Mathew's whining," the totodile stated.
"I'm just trying to do the best I can without putting myself at risk!" Mathew said. "Is there seriously a problem with that?"
"Just let him be, Joey. 'Safety first' is important no matter how old you are."
"...Yeah, you're right," Joey said, suddenly heel turning his tone as if he hadn't been upset at all. "What've I been saying? It's okay if you don't want to go all-in with this stuff."
Mathew was taken aback. One second ago Joey was frustrated with his choice, then suddenly he became the opposite. Before he had a chance, his pondering was short by Ziggy running out of some shrubbery screaming.
"RAT GANG RAT GANG RAT GANG RAT GANG!" he screeched. Behind the zigzagoon was a small group of three alolan rattatas, scurrying and scampering to try and gnaw at Ziggy.
"It's the cubone! And the totodile!" one of the black rats exclaimed, causing the trio to pause. Ziggy took the opportunity to gather with the remaining four group members.
"The food bringers of the sky! The traitors of our hopes and dreams!" one of the rattatas reminded the others. Upon hearing this, the three took initiative and surrounded the group.
"Oh my God," Mathew muttered in frustration, readying his club.
"Avenge our betrayed friend! Ven-geance! Ven-geance! Ven-geance!" they chanted, clearly ready to sink their massive teeth into their flesh.
"Enough of this!"
Mathew jumped at the sudden movement of Breloom. Without hesitation, she rushed towards one of the surrounding rattatas. Her right arm stretched forward and snatched it by the tail. The green raptor pulled the ferocious creature off of its tiny feet and held it up by the tail she had grabbed. The rat desperately swang around its limbs, trying to escape from the tall pokémon's grip. With her left arm, Breloom swiftly pressed her claws against the rattata's chest, apathetically ignoring the constant scratching and squirming. Slowly the rat's fight became less and less potent with each passing second until any fight was gone. Breloom dropped the seeming husk to the dirt below.
The two remaining rattatas stood in horror, staring at the fallen ally.
"He was taken without even a single blow…!"
"The ultimate pacifist… Spoken of by campfires...!"
"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!"
Both of them fled the scene in the blink of an eye, leaving the five of them back to their own devices once again. Breloom turned around, standing over the unconscious body. "They're not exactly the most brave gang," she told the newcomers that had their jaws dropped.
"...What the hell did you just do?" Mathew asked, bewildered by the performance.
"Hm?" Breloom sounded innocently before realising that he was talking about the body next to her. "Oh, that was just Mega Drain. Nothing special, really!"
"UNIMPRESSIVE THING! BIG SUCK HAND IS DONE MANY TIMES WHEN BAD LADS ARE MAD!"
"Big… suck hand- What," Mathew said as Ziggy's gigantic enigma that was himself grew ever bigger.
"What does sucking have to do with what you just did, Breloom?" Joey asked.
"Hmm… I've tried to explain this a lot, but nobody ever seems to get it when I do it. Meowth, can you explain this to them? You know how to word things a lot better than I do."
Meowth nodded. "Mega Drain is a very basic Aura manipulation technique that some grass types are able to use. To be concise, the pressure against the victim's body allows for the movement of life force between the two. The user can drain away and absorb the victim's energy."
"You lost me at 'Aura manipulation'," Joey said.
"I get the gist of what you're saying, at least," Mathew said.
"But that's not all!" Breloom exclaimed. "I can also give some of my own energy to the pokémon I'm using it on. It's basically a sacrificial heal, and it's really helpful!"
"It's been the opposite of helpful to these excursions, considering it's never needed," Meowth said.
"Well…" Breloom, clearly devoid of any counterpoint, looked away. "I think it's cool."
"I don't really see how. It's just Mega Drain in reverse."
"That's it!" Breloom exclaimed.
"This isn't something to get upset abou-"
"Reverse Mega Drain! That's the perfect name for it! I can't wait to tell Politoed I finally named the thing!"
"Okay," Meowth said lamely.
"That's pretty neat and all, but we really should move back on topic," Joey interrupted.
"Oh, of course! Sorry…" Breloom said as she began to scan the area around them with her eyes. She quickly spotted a discarded water bottle and resumed her work. Her beginning sparked the rest of the crew to recommence as well, dropping them back into the serene sounds of the trees swaying from the heavy breeze pressing against their sides.
As Mathew worked away at the pieces of waste around his small stubs for feet, he found time to once again ponder his situation and his goal. The fantasy of D.E. alluded him like a looming dream on the descent of sleep. His only lead that could guide him through the darkness back into the promised light was a passing line about his heritage potentially - potentially - being outside of the scope of Kalmwa'er, a thought that made this mess more complicated than simple. Mathew grew somewhat frustrated with the nature of the situation. Why did D.E. not set up his coordinates close to him if he has the cosmic power to poke holes through dimensions?
There has to be something I can do about all this… Mathew thought, mindlessly grabbing a plastic bag off of a bush. D.E. wouldn't have sent me like this if there was no plan, I don't believe. He'd leave behind some kind of trail, or breadcrumbs, or… Well, he's a techie, something like an extension cable? A realization dashed into his mind as fast as the sand dashed into his eyes the day before. Wait a minute! I'm not the only engineer around here!
Mathew's head flung up and darted around in search of his pikachu acquaintance, only to realise that the stupid system had torn them apart. "Ugh," he grunted, finally putting the bag he had in his hand into the satchel after halting for several seconds. I bet Jermy's in the exact same situation I am. Maybe he has a better lead than I do. I'll have to ask him whenever the heck I have a chance. For now, I guess it's back to tending the filth…
With a new goal in mind, Mathew picked up the pace in hopes that he'd get to leave faster. After a couple more specs of waste were crammed into the satchel, he looked ahead at most of his coworkers, gazing upon their productivity. Yet such work quickly became disturbed by a very unpleasant shout, and the kicking of dirt by what seemed to be a large group of rattatas coming up from the distant portions of the trail. His eagerness swiftly turned into dread as he counted their numbers; one, two… six.
The gang walked with a pompousness in their step, making an approach meant to garner the attention of the intruders within their domain. Among the several rats was a much larger and rotund one, with a bald tail and cheeks puffed up like a ceaseless allergic reaction. Surrounding large buck teeth barely held the mouth closed. The leading dark-colored raticate spoke loudly, cementing its intent: "WHERE IS THE GIRL?!" Drops of spit fired into the air with each syllable that came from its disgusting face.
"Oh, goodness, it's talking about me…" Breloom said casually as if she had been called out of her room for a moment by a parent.
"OH NO OH NO! IT'S A RAT GANG TWO!" Ziggy exclaimed.
"WE AIN'T NO SEQUEL, PIPSQUEAK! AND WE AIN'T CALLED RAT GANG, THAT'S STUPID! YOU OF ALL POKÉMON'S GOTTA KNOW THAT AFTER THIS MANY BEATINGS!"
"RUDE BOYS YOU ARE!" Ziggy exclaimed.
"Oh my God, how many more pokémon are going to scream our heads off… giving me a fucking headache," Mathew muttered.
"You get used to it," Meowth commented.
"I REPEAT; WHERE IS THE GIRL?"
"Right here~" Breloom said, waving.
The raticate pivoted and twitched simultaneously. "YOU!" it spat, pointing at Breloom with its tiny arm and tinier fingers. "YOU WILL TEACH US THE POWER OF HAND SUCK!"
"Um… You're… A… Dark type?"
"WHAT'S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?!"
"I'm afraid it's not in your move pool. Sorry!"
"NO!" The raticate's maw burst with droplets. "TEACH US OR DIE! WE NEED THAT POWER!"
"Maybe you could teach your rattatas some skills they're legitimately able to use in a way that is efficient instead," Meowth suggested.
"STOP PROVIDING REASONABLE ALTERNATIVES!" it barked at Meowth. "THAT AIN'T YOUR JOB!"
"Why are you giving them good advice?!" Mathew called out in panic.
"Maybe he's trying to stop the situation from getting any worse and becoming a fight?" Joey speculated.
"That's what it does," Meowth responded. "I'm not sure why I suggested it. I guess I'm tired of just swinging my claws at these things for the upteenth time."
"Why not just use something else?" Joey suggested. "If you're sick of hand-to-hand combat, maybe another weapon will work."
"It's not that kind of tiredness."
"Oh… Then what is it actua-"
"ENOUGH OF THE RANDOM SIDE BANTER!" the raticate intruded. "RATTATAS! AIM FOR THE SUCK MASTER!"
"YES SIR; WE WILL GET THE SUCK HAND!" one of the rattatas exclaimed.
Breloom sighed. "Let me handle this," she told the others. "They just want me, after all."
The group of rattatas rushed at Breloom chanting "SUCK HAND! SUCK HAND! SUCK HAND!" repeatedly. Breloom anticipated and readied herself for the gangster that managed to reach her first. Immediately, she scooped up the enraged creature and drained what she could from it before the rest of the goons could reach her. As they drew near, Breloom reeled her arms and body behind her with the struggling wretch in hand and threw the rattata at her enemies. The projectile rat barreled into member of the crowd, knocking both of them over. Too pained to move, the flung rattata succumbed to the injuries and passed out. The one nailed square in the face slowly pulled itself up as the rest scattered away. Using the opportunity, Breloom rushed at the rising rattata before it could get its bearings. She snatched it into her arms, and began the draining process anew.
As Breloom held the next kicking and biting rattata, the rest of the snarling, unkempt group backed away from Breloom to regroup. They swarmed towards Breloom in the closest thing to an orderly formation they could muster. Breloom threw the rattata in her arms at the quartet once again, but this time the group was prepared. They nimbly dodged out of the way, leaving an open aisle for their ally, who was bowled across the dirt before they could return to their feet again. A look of concern swept onto Breloom's face after realising her tactic had failed.
The rattatas took advantage of their separation, attempting to space out a circle around the single combatant. Crap, there's no way she can handle an attack from all of them at once! Mathew realized.
As the gang closed in on Breloom, Ziggy darted into action by leaping at the closest rattata. "IGNORE SOLO FIGHT TO ASSIST WITH MOUTH CLAW WEAPON STAB STAB BITE!" he rambled just before he sunk his teeth and front claws into the side of the attackers. The rattata shouted, then retaliated with its own similar moves, resulting in a violent brawl. The two opposing creatures tore into each other's flesh with sharp teeth and claws.
"We have to help them!" Joey told Mathew. The cubone was prompted to think a moment whilst holding his bone club in front of him. Now as mentally ready as he could be, he charged at one of the rattatas and swung downwards. Unfortunately, he struck dirt, as it had maneuvered out of the way thanks to how loud and clear Mathew's tell was. He felt no worry thanks to Joey's follow up. It was only after looking up and realizing Joey was not trailing behind but instead going after the idle leader that immense worry seeped in. Looking back down. he stared at the monster wide-eyed as the dark-colored thing readied to jump at him.
Suddenly, Mathew's newest friend came to his aid, striking at the rattata with his claws. The thing shouted in pain before Meowth kicked it away. Mathew straightened up. "Oh, thanks, Meowth!" he said.
Meowth's next response was no acceptance of the thanking: "Take a step to the left."
"HRAAAGH!" a voice behind Mathew shouted as another of the creatures attempted to strike him. Following his advice, Mathew barely avoided its lunge. As the rat skidded in the dirt trying to turn around, Meowth took initiative and slashed at the rattata with his claws. His nails slid across the messy fur and flesh of his enemy, leaving a red line where his claws were. The rattata shrieked in agony at the attack. It kept its distance from the idle cat as it reconciled with the other creature.
Meowth glanced at the cubone. "Whack them in the head to take them out," he suggested.
Mathew readied the club in his hands. "I think I can do that!"
The two rats faced the group once again. "SURRENDER YOUR SUCK MASTER AND WE WON'T FIGHT YOU," one of them said.
"Never!" Mathew barked back.
"WE WARNED YOU!" The tiny beast began a lunge towards the cubone's stomach. In the flurry of emotions within him, Mathew realized that the rattata would be too close for him to swing at it in time. As fast and as carefully as he could, he held the club over his head and tilted the blunt end downward and the sharp end upward. Just as the rattata reached him, he brought the thing downwards and prayed. Fortunately, good timing found itself in the strike, gently assuring him as the greasy mess slid down his chest until it found the dirt. He heaved a sigh of relief.
Mathew turned to find Meowth making short work of his injured beast as well. As it lunged at him, Meowth forced his right leg into the bottom side of its maw. The thing lost its momentum and dropped. Before it could stand up, Mathew once again brought down the merciless tool and granted it a sudden trip to the subconscious.
"You're better at combat than you let on," Meowth commented.
"...Thank you," Mathew responded. He then went to tending his bag, ensuring the small portion of litter he had picked up hadn't fallen out during the shows of force. Suddenly, Mathew's eyes were shot up in response to a noise nearby: a large thud and the rustling of leaves.
"Ow…!" Joey exclaimed, rubbing the back of his head while sitting with his back to the tree.
"Holy shit, are you okay?!" Mathew exclaimed.
"Y-Yeah, I'm…"
"FACE THE ULTIMATE POWER OF CONCUSSIONS!" the raticate shouted, as he backed away from the totodile he rammed. The raticate opened its mouth wide, and prepared to charge.
"Uh… Uh…!" Joey remained stunned as the creature barreled towards him with the fury of a thousand snacks. Joey braced for his demise as the raticate came down… to the ground, slumping over.
"UGH… N… NOoooo…" it breathed as Breloom pulled the last of its energy away.
"There we go!" Breloom exclaimed, crossing her arms in satisfaction. "Are you alright, Joey?"
"Oh, um… Yeah, I'm okay." Joey returned to his feet and hands solemnly.
"MHIM MHKAY!"
Mathew turned to look at Ziggy… and was taken aback by the rattata that was wrangled in his mouth. He saw Ziggy holding the beat-up thing loosely with its maw just before he threw the rattata away like a rag doll. Mathew stared at it for a few moments… its chest was moving lightly. Oh thank God.
"And how about you, Ma…" Breloom's expression moved from joy to concern as she looked at the cubone. "Goodness, that's an awfully long scratch mark!"
"Wait, what? Where?!" Mathew exclaimed as he tried to get a look at his chest.
Meowth placed his paw on the right side of Mathew's chest causing the cubone to flinch in pain. "That final rattata must have left that scratch on you with its buck teeth."
"Oh of COURSE it did!" Mathew shouted in a mix of panic and anger.
"Somebody is going to have to find him an oran berry," Meowth said.
"What about your kit, Meowth?" Joey asked.
"...I don't have it with me."
Mathew glared at Meowth in frustration. A fire was set alight beneath his skin. "What?! You forgot the medical supplies, dumbass?!"
Meowth looked at Mathew with the same empty, dead stare that he gave everyone. "It shouldn't be hard to substitute it."
"I'M BLEEDING AND DYING OVER HERE AND YOU…!" Mathew clutched his wound to feel the coldness of… his skin. There was substantially less blood than he expected. "...I could've been dying and you wouldn't give a damn!"
"Maybe I'd be more concerned if you cared about somebody other than yourself."
The fire within Mathew burst into a furious blaze that would decimate the tree-filled backdrop if it weren't for the fact that they were contained within his own mind. However, there was one solitary opening for this endless searing pain.
"FUCK YOU!"
Mathew swung.
The grey cat slipped away from the easily telegraphed attack. Mathew's mind raged as Meowth's bright green fake eyes that covered the true black within continued watching him with that godforsaken half-open stare. "Do you feel better now?"
Mathew held his club down, staring at Meowth with trembling arms. "What do you mean, now?" he muttered.
"You looked like you were already about to get physical, so I goaded you into attacking me instead of somebody else. Do you feel better now?" he repeated.
Mathew continued to hold still. "So… You tricked me…" The fire inside of his mind now contended between the gasoline of Meowth's tactic and the water of his good intentions.
"Um... I'll go find us some… oran berries…" Breloom said before promptly darting away into the trees, obviously dodging Mathew's scene. Meanwhile, the nearby Ziggy stared in terror.
A panicked Joey rushed between the two pokémon. "Woah, woah, woah! Mathew, where did this come from?!"
Joey's sudden arrival into the scene doused the flames, going from a raging wildfire to a flickering torch. "Everywhere, Joey!" Mathew answered for his crime. "Everything is out to get me, and it's making me go crazy!"
"WOAH HEY HEY!" Ziggy zigzagged around the furious cubone. "MYSELF IS A CRAZY TOO! NOW IT'S A BIG WANT TO KNOW HOW BIG SCARY BONE CLUB MAN BECAME THE WAY HE IS!"
"NO!" he screamed. "I refuse to even think about it! I don't wanna relive it!"
"BUT… WHAT'S THE REASON FOR BEING A PRIVATE BONE? MAYBE ANOTHER BONE WHO UNDERSTANDS COULD HELP-"
"That's enough, Ziggy!" Joey interjected. "Not everybody want to be open with their secrets. Mathew said no."
"BUT IT'S GOOD AND NICE AND GOOD TO BE OUT IN THE OPEN OR THE WILD OR-"
"Maybe not everybody wants to be as fucking crazy as you are, Ziggy!"
Ziggy's maw, for the first time, changed expressions from a joyous insanity into a look of what could only be described as genuine shock. His shaky body held in place like it never had before.
The sudden silence was broken by the sound of the bone club furiously smacking the ground after being thrown downwards by the angry cubone. "I quit!" Mathew dropped his satchel and ran away.
Into the forest he went, going farther and farther away from his shocked "companions." A lengthy stream of salt-ridden waters fell away from his eyes, letting them run along the sides of the skull with the crack in the right side. Melancholy played with his heart as he sat against a tree and sobbed. It was in those minutes that he felt the immense anguish of his demolished state. He didn't know what to do with himself anymore. All these new co-workers he had already come to care for, but the occupation they were involved in would show no compatibility to his want for safety. The cubone couldn't tell if everything he had done up to then was worth it, but on the other side of the coin, he knew he did not want to return home.
A rustle was heard in the bushes behind Mathew. He snapped his attention immediately to the source and braced himself for whatever demon was about to manifest, only to see it was simply Joey with an oran berry in his hands.
"Hi. I thought you could use one of these berries," Joey said, slowly making his way towards Mathew.
"...Thanks, I guess," Mathew lowered his head, trying not to make eye contact.
Joey sat down next to Mathew and extended his hand towards him, offering the berry, which Mathew promptly took lifting his mask to take a small bite of the blue fruit. Upon doing so, the wound in his chest shrunk by a small amount.
"Are you okay? You snapped pretty badly back there."
"No," Mathew's voice sounded quieter and scratchy. As he spoke, putting his hands to his eyes. "Nothing is okay. Nothing will ever be okay." He took another bite of the berry, once again causing the scratch to recede in size.
"Says who?"
Mathew shook his head. "You don't understand."
"I can try to understand."
Mathew looked at the crocodile; his eyes cooled down, appearing far more docile. "I appreciate the effort, but it's - it's just that - It's hard to explain. I - I just need more time."
"I understand, but please, you need to speak up. I don't want to see you like that…"
Mathew thought on it for a moment; he shuddered. "I'm sorry. I… I've lost control of myself. Everything is just… pain now. It's so hard to live like this. Talking about it, making myself relive - that - to recite it in speech… I can't do it. The most I can do now is just try to live and figure out what isn't pain. The job just… doesn't fall into that spectrum in the right way for me. I feel so pressured and it's so uncomfortable…"
"I wish I could…" the totodile said. He seemed to drift off, staring past Mathew into the woods ahead.
"You wish you what?"
"O-Oh, nothing. I understand. I'm sorry… I pushed you to do this job yesterday. I shouldn't have done that. I only made it harder for you…"
"It's not your fault. You didn't know. Look…" Mathew stood up. "Let's just go back. I'm ready to end this last workday."
"Of course." Joey stood up and joined him. Slowly, the pair walked back whence they came. Awaiting them was an emotionally stonewalled cat, an insane and broken zigzagoon, and Breloom. With them, the two of them would return to the place that played with their emotions; it brought them their great joys and their most immense sorrows. Joey had failed to pry away at Mathew's emotions in the end, but the cubone couldn't help but wonder how that would change the way they saw each other. He hoped that perhaps the crocodile wouldn't be pain as well.
"WELL THIS WAS A MISERABLY UNEVENTFUL MORNING," ORB stated.
"Yeah…" Jermy confessed. Around them, various conversations between the other ten employees were occurring within the lobby's walls. The pikachu let his lengthy ears listen to a conversation that he was interested in hearing but not in participating.
"How is this for a deal…" Mathew began, fiddling with his club in his hands. "If I help to clean your house (which you really need cleaned by the way), can I stay without a job?"
"I'll accept a part of that," Meowth responded. "I'll half your monthly rent if you help with anything house-related I ask for."
"I'll pay that 30 P, Mathew," Joey reassured him.
"There, then it's settled! I'll resign from this day forward. Thanks again for this, Meowth. I can't say enough how sorry I am that all this mess came out the way it did."
"Don't worry about it," Meowth responded in his usual tone, clearly having forgiven whatever had happened.
"Wait, what? You're leaving the job?" Minccino said, having picked up that line with her giant ears just as Jermy had. This led to a mass gathering as everyone tried to say their goodbyes to their coworker before he left.
"Yeah," Mathew replied. "I - I just don't have the mental strength for this kind of stuff."
"Oh… What happened that changed your mind?"
Joey interrupted Minccino's curiosity. "I don't think he would want to talk about it."
"Oh, I get it."
The conversation soon attracted the rest of the club members not present with him in today's haul, all of which curious to the context of what occured.
"Quitting...?" Politoed asked.
"Yeah," Mathew repeated his previous statements to the small crowd.
"A shame. You seemed to be doing alright."
"I know, I know, but it's for the best. Look, this career just isn't for me."
"WE GETS IT!" Ziggy exclaimed. "HAVE FUN WITH THE OTHER THING! THE WHATEVER THING!"
"...Thank you," Mathew said, clearly just trying to seem polite dispite heavy signs of agitation. "Well… before I go, I just wanted to apologize for the trouble I was, especially to you, Meowth. I tried to make this work, but - yeah. Goodbye."
"Huh… So he's actually gonna quit, huh?" Jermy murmured, staying out on the outskirts of the crowd, directly behind Minccino's parents and Medicham as each of them said their goodbyes to the cubone.
"THIS COMPLICATES THINGS."
"Well, let's respect his freedom of choice here," Jermy said. "His career option isn't our problem to meddle with."
"Psst! Mr. Shock!"
Jermy and ORB spun around. Back in the hallway was their current boss, Mr. Persian.
"Can you come to my office for a moment?"
"Um… Yes, of course, Mr. Persian." Jermy picked up ORB and turned it off for the purpose of courtesy. He then joined Mr. Persian as he turned around and brought him to an elevator. The quadruped tapped the 6 button and the rectangular pulley shut its doors and ascended.
"So…" Jermy said as the two of them were forced into the same confinement. "How are you doing?"
"I'm under pressure as I always am, but it's not as chaotic as it could be," Mr. Persian answered.
The doors then opened, bringing them into a hallway. Mr. Persian led Jermy to their left. They walked silently, passing by one or two pokémon cleaning the rooms of Kalmwa'er Resort's residential facilities, until they reached a door at its end. Mr. Persian slowly pushed it open, letting Jermy into his abode: a relatively normal-looking office with various drawers and cabinets embedded into the furniture. A large and wide window was implanted in the left wall, letting bright rays of light from the sun to the east flood inside.
"Now then…" Mr. Persian sat on his rear behind his wooden desk. "Has the job been alright so far?"
"Uh, yeah, it's been good, Mr. Persian," Jermy responded, rubbing the back of his head behind his ears with one hand and tightly clutching ORB in the other. "The job hasn't been very hard or anything."
"I see." Mr. Persian opened a drawer, dipped his head inside, and came out with a pen held between his teeth. "How are…" he dropped the pen onto the desk. "Your coworkers?"
"Mmmm... They're interesting, to say the least. I wish I had been paired with them today. It seems to have been important. From what I can tell, Mathew's quitting."
"Really?" Mr. Persian's eyes widened. "That was rather quick."
"Yeah, sorry if that's a pain."
"Don't worry about it," Mr. Persian said. "You're doing the best you can. Just be ready for when help arrives and you'll be alright."
"Can you make sure that Medicham puts me in with Joey, at least?"
Mr. Persian shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't. He does too many... too many good favors for me." He looked down at his desk. Jermy noticed that his eyes weren't clearly looking at any of the dozens and dozens of papers. "I refuse to force his hand after all this."
"Oh... I understand. I wouldn't wanna do that to somebody, either."
Mr. Persian's head tilted back up. "I'll see if I can get the help you need in other ways, though."
"Alright, thanks, Mr. Persian. I think I'll head back now." Jermy opened the door and began leaving. "Enjoy your day!"
"Yes, of course I will. Good day and good luck."