Chapter 6: A Sugary Discovery

Route 3

It's been about a half hour since we started our walk. Some of us had a couple Trainer battles along the way. During those battles; my Caterpie and Weedle evolved into Metapod and Kakuna, Zach and Pat's Pidgey's learned Aerial Ace, and Sora's Bellsprout learned Power Whip. We also got to watch both Sora and Celina have a double battle against a couple students from the Academy. They took down a Kadabra and Haunter with Munchlax and Fearow. "Alright! We did it!" Sora cheered as he hugged Munchlax. "Munch!" Munchlax replied. "Great job, Fearow." said Celina as she petted Fearow. "Row!" Fearow replied happily. They shook hands with their opponents and walked back to us. "Nice battle, you two." said Zach. "Thanks." Celina replied. "Fear-ow!" Fearow replied. After that, we continued our walk. As we got to the near end of the Route, our stomachs began to growl. We sheepishly laugh at each other and then looked at our Pokémon; hearing their stomachs growl too.

"Looks like everyone is hungry?" I said. "Yeah. But... where are we supposed to go? I don't see a restaurant, diner, store, or anything around here." Zach replied. "You think we should go back? Or do you want to take a break and set up camp here for a bit?" I replied. "Uh... I guess we can sit down here for a bit. We need our teams to be healthy when we go into Mt. Moon." he replied. "Right." I replied as I took off my Bag and gently put it down on the ground. "Setting up their bowls?" he replied. "Yep. We're only stopping here to rest up and eat, right?" I replied. He nodded his head yes to my response and then put his Bag down next to mine; grabbing out food for his Pokémon. Our teams looked at us as we put their bowls down onto the grass and quickly dashed over to us. We laughed happily and then all of us gave our teams their special food to eat. We watched them happily eat together and then Zach began to make us a little lunch. After about 15 minutes, we ate our lunch together. As we ate, I turned on my phone to play some music to keep us entertained.

"Hey, Zach? Who taught you how to cook?" said Celina. "My Dad did. He learned how to cook from my Grandma ever since he was a kid." Zach replied. "Really? She taught him?" Celina replied. "Mhm. She used to be a chef many years ago in many restaurants and bakeries in the region. She can make nearly any food you can think of in a five star location." Zach replied. "Whoa..." Sora replied. "Sora? You got a bit of drool running down your mouth." Zuzu replied. "Huh? Oh! Sorry... my bad." Sora replied as he took a napkin and cleaned off the drool on his face. We lightly laughed happily for a moment after that. "Zach? Did your Grandma teach anybody else how to cook before your Dad?" Pat asked. "Yep. She taught a couple people before she retired." Zach replied. "Who did she teach?" Zuzu asked. "She taught German Fauder and and Sansho Pepper." Zach replied.

"Wait!? She taught Mr. Fauder and Mr. Pepper how to cook!?" Sora replied in shock. "Yeah." Zach replied. "Those two are like the greatest chefs in the entire region! That would mean that your Grandma was the best chef ever before they were given the title!" Sora replied. Zach nodded his head yes to his response. "Does she have trophies and awards in her house with that title?" Celina asked. "Yep. She has them on display in her kitchen." Zach replied. "Wow... you Oak's really do have some impressive titles in your family, huh?" Pat replied. "We sure do." Zach replied. "Yeah. At least your Dad doesn't brag about his title." Zuzu replied. "Huh?" Zach replied curiously. "My Dad would brag about his Contest titles for ages. Don't get me wrong, I love doing Contests. But when my Dad talks about Contests, he brags about his title and tells everyone that I will be his successor. It just annoys me when he does that." Zuzu replied. "I feel you on that. My Mom is the same way, only difference is battling. She wants me to be the next Battle Queen of the Battle Frontier, even though she didn't earn a Battle Symbol." Celina replied.

"Really?" Zach replied. The girls nodded their heads yes to his response. "So you two want to get your own titles in your way? Huh. Come to think of it... you two are going through the same thing Tay's going through. You three want to earn a certain title in your own ways. You can take all the advice you want, but if you put your heart and determination into it, you can make your dream a reality." Zach replied. Celina and Zuzu smiled warmly and nodded their heads in agreement to his response. They continued to eat for a moment, and then heard someone singing, and a tap on the table. They turned to me, Pat, and Sora; seeing us vibing to the music. Pat and Sora were singing a bit, and I was tapping my hand on the table to the beat. "Haha. I didn't know that we have a little band at the table." said Celina. Pat and Sora stopped singing and turned to the trio; seeing them looking at them. They laughed sheepishly as their faces lightly blushed, and then turned to me; noticing that I didn't stop what I was doing.

"How come she's not stopping?" Sora asked the group. "I guess she really likes the beat of the music?" Pat replied. "Maybe. It might be therapeutic for her." Zach replied. The group nodded their heads in understanding and continued to watch me. "What kind of music is she playing?" Zuzu asked. "It's a popular song, but the speed of the song is slowed down and reverbed." Pat replied. "Ah." Zuzu replied. As they watched, all of our teams approached us and saw what I was doing. Tetrax jumped up on the table, sat down by my phone, closed his eyes, and began bobbing his head to the music as I started bobbing my head too. "Wow... he's copying her." said Sora. "I guess he has the same music taste as her?" Zach replied with a smile. "Yeah." Sora replied. "And I think our teams like what she's doing too." Zach replied as he watched all the Pokémon looking at me. "Now it makes me wonder if Pokémon have the same music taste as their Trainers?" Pat replied. "Maybe. Just depends on the music the Trainer listens too." Zach replied. "Yeah." Pat replied.

After their conversation, the song ended. I opened my eyes and saw Tetrax sitting by my phone and open his eyes. We smiled at each other happily and then turned around; seeing all the Pokémon around us. "I think they liked the song, Tay." said Celina. "Did they?" I replied curiously. "Mhm. They also liked it when you were bobbing your head to the beat." she replied. I was surprised by her response and then realized that they were watching me the entire time the song played. I covered my face in my arms in embarrassment and laid my head down onto the table. "Hey... it's okay. You were having a good time with the music. It looked like it cleared out your mind a bit, huh?" said Zach as he patted my back. I turned my head to him and he saw the flustered look on my face. "It's okay. We won't tell anybody. I promise." he said comfortingly. I got my head out of my arms and lightly smiled at him. He smiled back and patted my back again. Moments later, we began packing up our bags.

As we were packing up, Munchlax began sniffing the air; smelling something from afar. "Munch? Munch-lax~" said Munchlax as it smiled happily at the smell. It then took a few steps to the left away from us and began to run after the smell while sniffing the air. "Okay, Munchlax. Let's go. Huh? Munchlax? Where did you go?" said Sora as he put his Bag on his back. He looked around and saw Munchlax running off in the distance. "Hey! Munchlax! Come back!" he yelled as he ran after Munchlax. We all turned around and saw Sora run after Munchlax. "Sora! Munchlax!" said Zuzu worriedly. "Come on. We can't lose sight of them." Celina replied. "Right." we replied. After that, we booked it after Sora and Munchlax; wondering where they were going.

The Flavor Factory

"Munchlax! Stop!" said Sora as he ran. He ran after his friend for a few more minutes and then watched it run into two Pokémon in front of it. "Munch!" said Munchlax as it fell down to the ground and looked up at the Pokémon it ran into. It's eyes widened in shock to see the two Pokémon looking down at it. "Sa-mu? Samurott?" said the first Pokémon. "Ha-ri? Hariyama?" the second Pokémon replied. "Munch..." Munchlax replied nervously. "Munchlax!" said a voice. "Munch? Munchlax?" Munchlax replied as it stood up, turned around, and saw us run upto it. "Munchlax!" said Munchlax happily as it ran over to Sora. "Thank goodness you're okay." said Sora as he hugged Munchlax. "Munch~" Munchlax replied happily. After that moment, we looked at the two Pokémon that Munchlax encountered. "Huh? What are those Pokémon?" said Pat.

I took out my phone and activated my PokéDex. "Hariyama. The Arm Thrust Pokémon. A Fighting type, and the evolved form of Makuhita. Hariyama can send a truck flying with one of its slaps and it loves competitions of strength. Although they enjoy comparing their strength, they're also kind. They value etiquette, praising opponents they battle. Samurott, Unovan form. The Formidable Pokémon. A Water type, and the final evolved form of Oshawott. Protected by armor, Samurott can defeat opponents with one sword swipe. Its glare can silence them as well." said my PokéDex. "Whoa... they look strong alright. But the question is... are they wild?" Pat replied. "I don't think so. They have a Trainer." I replied. "How do you know? By your instinct?" he replied. I nodded my head yes to his response and we saw both Hariyama and Samurott get into their battle positions; making me and my team do the same. "Samurott! Hariyama! Stop!" said a voice. "Huh?" said Celina. "Who was that?" Zach replied. We saw the two Pokémon stand down and turn back to someone walking upto them. We saw the person for the first time, and Zuzu immediately recognized the person.

"It's Gong!" she said happily. "Huh?" we replied curiously. "You know him?" I replied. "Mhm. He does Contests with me and Yuya." she replied. Gong turned to us and saw Zuzu for the first time. "Zuzu? It's really you! Gong is very happy to see you. What are you doing out here with them?" said Gong happily. "I'm traveling with them to Vermilion City. Everyone, this is Gong Strong. Gong, these are my friends: Sora, Celina, Pat, Zach, and Taylor." Zuzu replied. "Nice to meet you. Any friend of Gong's is a friend of Gong." Gong replied. "Nice to meet you too." Zach replied as he shook Gong's hand. "Wait... Gong... are these your Pokémon?" Celina replied. "These two? Yep. They are. Gong has had them since they were a Makuhita and a Oshawott." Gong replied as we looked at Samurott and Hariyama. "No way! I remember them! They were the ones you used against Yuya in the past three Contests! Wow... they really evolved. I remember them as a Makuhita and a Dewott." Zuzu replied. "Rott." Samurott replied happily. "Hari-yama." Hariyama replied happily. We smiled warmly at them and then turned back to Gong.

"So, Gong? What brings you out here?" Zuzu asked him. "Huh? Well, Gong came here to learn how to make PokéPuffs and Poffins from the Kitchen King at the bakery here." Gong replied as we turned to the bakery behind him. "The Flavor Factory?" Pat replied curiously. "No way... it's the real Flavor Factory! This is the place that makes the best treats in the entire world." Sora replied in awe. "Munch-lax!" Munchlax replied. We looked at them curiously and then back up at the sign. "Huh... this Kitchen King? Who is he?" I said. "Why don't you come inside and find out?" replied a voice. I jumped in shock and turned around with the group; seeing the person approach us. "Hello. I'm Reed Pepper: The Kitchen King of Kanto." said Reed. "Nice to meet you, Reed." Pat replied. "Wait... Reed Pepper? The son of Sansho Pepper?" Zach replied. "Yep. That's me. How do you know my father?" Reed replied. "He was my Grandma's apprentice before he became one of the greatest chefs in the region." Zach replied. "Wait... your Grandma? Your Grandma is the famous Mary Oak!?" Reed replied in a surprised tone. "Yep. She is." Zach replied.

"This is incredible! I'd never thought I would meet the grandson of my father's mentor! Please, come on in. You must tell me what your Grandmother has been upto after handing her title to my father." Reed replied. "Uh... sure." Zach replied. After that, we all went inside the Factory. "Whoa..." said most of us in awe as we looked at the candies and treats being made in the building. "Is this your first time here?" Reed asked us. "Yep. It is." Zach replied. "Actually. We arrived here by accident. You see, our friend's Munchlax had ran away from us and was led here by the smell that was coming from here." Celina replied. "Huh? I see. It's very common that a lot of Pokémon to come here due to the smells coming from here. Whenever we see them, we notice how hungry they were. So we would give them treats to keep them full and satisfied until they run back to their homes." Reed replied. "That's amazing. You and your family must really care for Pokémon, do you?" Zach replied. "Sure do." Reed replied. They smiled warmly at each other and then we continued our walk through the Factory.

After a couple minutes, we made it to the biggest room of the building. "Here we are. The Pokémon Treat Station. Here, Trainers and Coordinators can make their Pokémon some delicious PokéBlocks, Poffins, and Poké Puffs." said Reed. "Whoa..." said most of us in awe as we watched some Trainers alongside their Pokémon; making the treats Reed talked about together. We walked down to the stations and saw a couple people turn to us. As they looked at us, one of them smirked with pride. "Well, well. If it isn't Zuzu Boyle and her little Vulpix. I knew that you two would show up." said the voice. We turned to the center of the station and saw the person walk upto us. "Oh. Hello, Aura." said Zuzu. "Aura?" Sora replied to us curiously. "Aura Sentia. Zuzu's rival." Celina replied. She then walked upto Zuzu's side and stood by her; gently taking her Vulpix. "Ah. I guess this is a heated rivalry, is it?" Pat asked. "Yep. Their rivalry is as hot as a Magmar's Flamethrower." Reed replied. "Really?" Pat replied. "Yes. And I have seen this rivalry in person." Reed replied. "Oh? You do Contests too?" Sora replied. "On occasions. But I'm more into Cooking Contests." Reed replied. "Ah. Now I getcha." Sora replied. We nodded our heads in understanding and then looked back at the three girls.

"So what brings you here, Aura?" said Zuzu. "Oh, not much. I'm here to make some delicious desserts to impress my soulmate." Aura replied. "Your soulmate? Who is he?" Celina replied. Aura giggled at her question and then showed a picture of the person to them. "Yuya!?" Zuzu and Celina yelled in shock. "Yep. We are meant for each other. It's our destiny. And you should know that, Zuzu. After all, I am a Fortune Teller." Aura replied. "You keep saying that every time we meet at a Contest." Zuzu replied. "Oh really?" Aura replied. "Yeah. You do. Plus, how do you know that Yuya's your soulmate? Did you even of asking him who he has feelings for?" Zuzu replied. "Huh? No, I haven't. It doesn't matter if I ask him. I know that thanks to my abilities to see into the future, me and him will be together forever." Aura replied. Zuzu was angered by her words and clutched her hands into fists. Once I saw her do this, I knew I had to step in. "Hey. What makes you think that you can make her mad like this?" I said as I stood in front of her. "Taylor! What are you doing!?" said Celina in shock.

"Oh ho? And who are you supposed to be?" Aura replied. "Someone you don't want to mess with." I replied in a deep tone and growl. My group's eyes widened in shock after hearing me say that. "Really? You think I'm supposed to be afraid of someone like you? You may act tough, but I know you are weak on the inside. I bet you don't have the perfect Pokémon to battle me." Aura replied. "You wanna bet, sweet cake? I'll cook you like a Magikarp in battle and prove to you that your little prediction with Yuya is nothing but lies." I replied. She was shocked by my little threat and we glared at each other. "Taylor! Stop it!" said Zuzu as she grabbed my arm and pulled me away. "Zuzu? What are you doing?" I said. "You're not going to battle her. I am. This is between me and her alone." she replied. "Oh! That's cute! You're going to take her place, Zuzu? Fine by me. At least you will give me better competition that your little hot shot of a friend of your." Aura replied. "Knock it off, Aura! You don't know anything about her! At least she has a more caring heart than you!" Zuzu replied angrily. I stared at her silently and then Celina lightly grabbed my arm and pulled me away from her.

"Alright, ladies. That's enough." said a voice. We all turned to the woman as she looked at us. "Mother." said Reed. "If you ladies are going to have a battle, I'd suggest that you have it outside. I don't want to see anyone or anything get destroyed in here, understood?" said Mrs. Pepper. "Yes Ma'am." Zuzu and Aura replied. Mrs. Pepper smiled warmly and then walked away from us. A few moments after that, we all began to walk outside. As we walked, I turned away from everyone and went a different direction; wanting to get away for a bit. I lowered my head and put my hands in my jeans pockets in silence as I walked away; knowing that I escalated the situation. My team noticed the sad look on my face, and decided to run off with the others; knowing that I'm not in the right mental state right now. Tetrax ran up and jumped on Zach's shoulder. "Hm? Tetrax? What are you doing up here?" Zach asked him as my group turned to him. "Pika-chu." Tetrax replied in a sad tone. Zach was curious to his response and then stopped in his tracks, turned around, and saw my whole team looking at him. "Huh? Hey? Where's Tay?" said Pat.

My team turned back to where the station was and then turned back to them; shaking their heads. "Gong guesses that the little fight with Aura she had gotten her down. Especially when Aura called her weak." said Gong. My group was shocked by his words and then began to wonder if I was really okay. Zuzu tried to go after me, but Zach and Celina stopped her. "Guys! We gotta go after her!" she told them. They shook their heads no to her response. "She'll come to us when she's ready. Right now is not the best time." said Celina. "She's right. And if she doesn't come back, we'll find her. I promise." Zach replied. Zuzu felt hurt by their words as tears swelled up in her eyes, but she nodded her head in understanding. She wiped her tears away and continued to walk with the group.

Outside

"You two ready?" said Celina. "Yep. You ready, Pikachu?" Zuzu replied. "Pika-chu!" Zuzu's Pikachu replied. She jumped off Zuzu's shoulder and landed on the battlefield; staring down Aura. "Oh? You're not using your Vulpix? Well this should be interesting. Let's see how she can handle this beauty!" said Aura as she threw a PokéBall in the air; revealing her Pokémon. "Kir-lia!" said the Pokémon. "Kirlia, huh? Bringing out the main star of your show?" Zuzu replied. "Of course. Kirlia and I always know how to light up the stage and give the audience a Dazzling Gleam of a performance!" Aura replied. "Kirlia!" Kirlia replied. Pat took out his Phone and activated his PokéDex as its camera aimed at Kirlia. "Kirlia, the Emotion Pokémon. A Psychic and Fairy type, and the evolved form of Ralts. Kirlia uses the horns on its head to amplify its Psychic powers, and when this occurs, reality becomes warped, and future events can be seen." said Pat's PokéDex. "Whoa... it can warp reality and see the future..." Pat replied. "Maybe that's how Aura can see into the future. She's using Kirlia's ability to do that in order to get with Yuya." Sora replied.

"That's crazy! And Gong don't like crazy! If she's using Kirlia in order to get a relationship with Yuya, it's going to be nasty!" Gong replied. They nodded their heads in agreement and then saw my team looking at Zuzu. "They want Aura to lose, don't they?" Pat asked. "Yeah. Especially after hearing her say those things about Tay. So they're going to root hard for Zuzu to win this battle." Zach replied. They nodded their heads in agreement to his response and turned back to the battlefield. "Alright. This will be a one-on-one Pokémon battle. The winner will be called when the opponent has fainted. You both ready?" said Celina. "Ready." Zuzu and Aura replied. "Okay! Battle, begin!" Celina replied as she raised her hand up in the air.

Battle! Zuzu vs. Aura!

"Kirlia! Use Psybeam!" said Aura. "Kirlia! Kir-li-a!" Kirlia replied as its eyes glew light blue, put out its hands, and fired a streaky blue beam with pink, yellow, and white circles inside it from its hands at Pikachu. "Pikachu! Light Screen!" said Zuzu. "Pika! Pi-ka-chu Pi!" Pikachu replied as she raised her tail, formed a series of four transparent square barriers in front of herself, and took the hit from Psybeam. She withstood the attack and smirked at Kirlia. "Lia!?" said Kirlia surprised. "What!? How did she do that!?" Aura replied surprised. "Let's just say I got some advice from a couple people that have dealt with Pokémon like yours." Zuzu replied; making Celina smile. "Oh? Then let's see how she can handle this! Kirlia! Psychic!" said Aura. "Dodge it with Quick Attack!" Zuzu replied. "Kir-li-a!" Kirlia replied as it used Psychic. "Pi-ka! Pika-Pika-Pika-Pika!" Pikachu replied as she used Quick Attack to dodge the Psychic attack. She got back to Zuzu and turned to Tetrax; seeing him cheering her on. Once they looked at each other's eyes, she smiled confidently and turned back to her opponent. "Moonblast!" said Aura.

"Lia! Kir-lia!" Kirlia replied as it charged up a pinkish energy sphere with its hands and fired it; hitting Pikachu. "Pi-ka!" said Pikachu as she was pushed back. "Pikachu!" Zuzu replied worriedly. "Vul!" Vulpix replied worriedly. Pikachu shook off the attack and stared down Kirlia; seeing it smirk at her. "What's the matter, Zuzu? Is that all she's got to show for us?" said Aura. "No... not yet. We're just getting started. We have a lot more to show, right Pikachu?" Zuzu replied. "Pi-ka-chu!" Pikachu replied as she stood up on her hind feet. "Kir-lia..." Kirlia replied as it looked at the determination in Pikachu's blue eyes. It then smiled warmly at her and prepared for Aura's command. "Okay, Kirlia! Let's end it off with one final Moonblast!" said Aura. "Lia! Kir-li-a!" Kirlia replied as it used Moonblast again, and this time Pikachu dodged the attack on her own. "Lia!?" said Kirlia surprised. "What!?" Aura replied surprised.

"Pika! Pika-Pika-Pika-Pika-" Pikachu replied as she ran towards Kirlia with electricity sparking out of her cheeks and then being surrounded in the electricity. "Kirlia!?" said Kirlia surprised. "Oh no!" Aura replied. "Huh!? What is that!?" said Pat. "That's Volt Tackle! It's the signature move of the Pikachu evolution line!" Reed replied. "You got it now, Zuzu! This is it!" Sora cheered. Zuzu heard the name Volt Tackle, and smiled proudly. "Okay! Finish it off with Volt Tackle!" she said. "Pika-Pika-Pika-Pika! Chu- Pika!" Pikachu replied as she used Volt Tackle and hit Kirlia successfully. "Kirlia!" said Kirlia. "Oh no! Kirlia!" Aura replied as Kirlia fell back to her and stayed down on the ground. Celina ran over to check on Kirlia, and saw that it fainted. "Kirlia is unable to battle! Pikachu is the winner! That means the winner of the battle is Zuzu!" she said. "Alright! You did it!" said Zuzu happily as she ran over with Vulpix and picked up her Pikachu in her arms happily. "Pika-chu!" Pikachu replied happily as they hugged each other.

"Alright! Way to go, Zuzu!" said Sora as he and the others walked upto them. "Thank you, Sora." Zuzu replied. "You were awesome out there, Zuzu. It felt like you were battling just like Taylor out there." Pat replied. Once Zuzu heard my name, she got a little sad; making everyone notice. "Zuzu... I..." said Pat in a sad tone. "No. It's okay." Zuzu replied. "It's not okay. You're worried about her." Aura replied as she and Kirlia walked over to them. "Aura..." Zuzu replied. "My Kirlia sensed your emotions on the battlefield. You were thinking about her after she defended you from me talking about Yuya." Aura replied. "And don't forget about calling her weak and a hot shot." Celina replied. "I know." Aura replied. "But why would you call her those things? Were you really scared of her?" Zuzu replied. "Not really... until when she said something that mentioned Yuya. That's when I got scared of her. Kirlia could sense what was going on before the battle from her PokéBall, and used her powers to tell me that I was being too ignorant towards you and your friend." Aura replied. "Kir-lia." Kirlia replied.

"So... does that mean... you apologize for what you did?" Zach replied. Aura nodded her head yes to his response. "Yes. Zuzu? I apologize for my actions towards you and your friend. I never meant to truly hurt the both of you; especially you. I've always known that you had something special with him, and it made me feel jealous." she said. "So you were jealous of their connection all this time? But why do you claim that he is your soulmate?" Celina replied. "Just to make her jealous and confess her feelings to him." she replied. "Really?" Zuzu replied. "Mhm." she replied. Zuzu was surprised for a moment and then put her hand to her heart and smiled warmly as blush formed on her face. They looked at each other and then shook hands. "So? We're all good now?" Aura asked her. "Yeah. We're good... for now. There's someone you have to apologize too first." Zuzu replied. "Right." Aura replied. After that, they all went back inside the Factory and began their search for me.

Inside the Master Kitchen

I stayed sitting down on the floor inside the kitchen with my head low; wanting no one to see the sadness in my eyes. The only sounds around me were sounds of water boiling and chefs preparing their tools for cooking next door. I've been hiding in here for a bit; thinking about what I have said and done with the Zuzu and Aura confrontation. I know in my heart that I was trying to defend her, but I feel like that I just made it worse. Maybe Aura was right. I guess I am a bit of a hot shot when it comes to defending people. As I sat there silently, a sound of footsteps had come around me. "Puff?" said a voice. The steps got louder and then the creature saw me sitting on the floor. It walked over to me and then tapped my arm. "Puff?" it said. "Hm?" I replied as I lifted my head up and saw the creature for the first time. "Slur-puff?" it replied curiously. "A Slurpuff?" I replied. I took out my phone and activated my PokéDex. "Slurpuff. The Meringue Pokémon. A Fairy type, and the evolved form of Swirlix. By taking in a person's scent, it can sniff out their mental and physical condition. It's hoped that this skill will have many medical applications." said my PokéDex.

"Slurpuff? You in here?" said a voice. "Huh?" I replied curiously. "Slur-puff-puff!" Slurpuff replied as it turned towards the entrance. I stood up and looked out to the entrance too; seeing Mrs. Pepper walk inside the master kitchen. "Ah. There you are. I've been looking everywhere for you. What are you doing in here?" she said. "Puff Puff." Slurpuff replied as it pointed to me. Mrs. Pepper turned to me and saw me looking at her. "Oh? I recognize you. You were the one that was defending your friend from Aura, correct?" she asked me. "Yes, Ma'am." I replied. Once she saw that my eyes were red, she instantly knew that I was upset. "Slurpuff? Did you find her here all upset like this?" she said. "Slurpuff." Slurpuff replied as it walked upto me and stood by me. "I see. You must've picked up her scent and found out she was not okay, right?" she replied. "Puff." Slurpuff replied.

They then looked at me and then Mrs. Pepper gently put her arm around my shoulders. "Come with me, sweetheart. Let's get you something to eat and drink to help you calm down. I think I know just the treat Sansho can whip up for you." she said. I nodded my head yes to her response and followed her and Slurpuff. As we walked out, her husband appeared in front of us for the first time. "Hey, honey? Can you do something for me real quick?" she asked him. "Of course, darling. Hm? Hey? What's wrong with the kid?" Sansho replied. "Slurpuff found her in the master kitchen. She got into a heated argument with a girl at the Treat Station, and some of the words she said must've made her have a mental breakdown." she replied. Sansho looked at me, saw the red in my eyes and on my face; knowing that the crying has tired me out. "Alright. I'll see if I can make the special that Mary taught me when she made this for her kids. Hopefully that'll cheer her up and make her smile." he said. "That's great. Slurpuff? Why don't you take her to the dining area and stay with her until the food comes? I'll find her friends and tell them to meet her there, okay?" Mrs. Pepper replied.

"Slur-puff!" Slurpuff replied. "And Taylor? When you are ready to talk about how you felt in that situation... just let us know, okay?" Mrs. Pepper. "Okay." I replied. After that, Slurpuff and I went to the dining area.

Dining Area

We walked inside the area and sat down at one of the tables together. I took off my Bag and put it down next to my right foot. I also took off my jacket and put it on top of my Bag. I looked around the area and noticed that it looked like a school cafeteria. Just by the sight of this place, it gave me flashbacks of being in school with my group; hanging out together just like the old days. And then I had flashbacks of dealing with Sylvio and his friends when they bullied us when we were little kids. Hearing him calling me weak and a hot shot too as I defended my group from him; mentally and emotionally striking me in the heart. After hearing him say those things back then, I then had flashbacks of my fight with Aura; hearing her call me the same things that Sylvio called me. I felt that pain return for the first time in a long time, and this time... the pain was harder than before. All of those things they said that gave me this pain... this was something that I kept bottled up to myself for years. I remember when those words hit me in the heart and seeing my friends pull me away from the bullies; not wanting to see me get hurt. What they didn't know was that words physically hurt you more than anything else.

I lowered my head as the flashbacks ended and clutched my hands into fists as I began to cry to myself again. "Puff? Slur-puff?" said Slurpuff as it noticed what I was doing. I turned to it with teary eyes and saw the worried look on its face. "Slur-puff?" it asked me; wondering if I was okay. I shook my head no. "No... I'm not okay. I just feel guilty for what I've done in the fight with Aura. All I tried to do was defend my best friend from her and show her that I will let no one like her bully her and play with her feelings like a fiddle; especially when she feels a certain way towards someone." I replied. "Slurpuff. Slur-puff-puff. Slur-puff. Puff." Slurpuff replied. "Hm? So you agree with me?" I replied. Slurpuff nodded its head yes to my question. "Hm? But then why do I still feel guilty about it? I know now that my friends can defend themselves, but there's been times I had to step in and defend them. Either I do this completely by instinct or when someone tells me too. I don't know why, but it feels like something just clicks in my head whenever they are in danger. Whenever our bullies saw them and did something to them, I quickly run upto them and defend them; taking in all the words they say about us. Little did they know was that I took all of those words personally." I replied.

"Puff-Puff. Slur-Slur-puff. Slur-puff. Puff-Slur-puff. Puff?" Slurpuff replied. I nodded my head yes to its response. "Yeah. I do have a big heart. A big heart that cares too much for the people I care about most. And sometimes that big heart has gotten me into trouble and made them think different of me and my actions. And if I keep doing it, I know that they are going see me as way too clingy and push me away from them; wanting me to stay away. I shouldn't think this way, but somehow I do every time we deal with people who don't understand us. I guess I really do care about them and their well beings a lot, huh? Maybe I should just back off for a while and let them handle things for themselves. They don't deserve a friend like me who will cling onto them and make them feel weak. They're much better off without me." I replied. "Slur-puff. Slur-Slur-puff." Slurpuff replied. I lowered my head to its response. "...Tay?" said a voice. I turned around curiously and saw Zuzu and the others behind me. "Guys... Zuzu... I..." I said. Zuzu took my hand, made me stand up, and hugged me. "Don't say anything, Tay. We all heard what you said with your new friend. You're right. You do have a big heart. A big heart that cares for us more than we thought. A heart that has the will to defend the people you love the most. But it also gave you pain when the ones were hurting us said things that hurt you on the inside. You took all of the words they said and let them eat you up in silence; while bottling up your feelings at the same time. And that's something we're not okay with. These are feeling that you are supposed to tell us." she said.

My eyes lightly widened and then began to swell up in tears. "Tay..." said Zach. He tried to walk over, but Celina walked up and gave me a hug too. "Hey... it's okay. You don't have to repeat what you said to Slurpuff to us. Like she said, we all heard everything. You don't have to apologize. From now on, you need to tell us whatever's eating up those thoughts in your head, okay? We're all here for you whenever you need to reach out, okay?" she said. Zuzu and I ended the hug, I wiped my tears away, and I nodded my head yes to her response. My team walked upto me and began to comfort me as I wiped off a few more tears. A couple seconds later, Aura and I looked at each other. "Aura..? I..." I said. "You don't have to apologize, Taylor. It was all my fault. I should be the one to apologize. I'm sorry for hurting your feelings. I can see how much you care for your friends. You're even willing to put your life on the line to protect them, right?" Aura replied.

I nodded my head yes to her response. "And that's what good friends are for. Good friends like you inspire others to become stronger versions of themselves so they can protect themselves and for those who can't. I had to learn that the hard way after Zuzu defeated me and Kirlia." she said. "Kirlia." Kirlia replied. "Wait... she beat you?" I replied in a stunned tone. She nodded her head yes to my question. "She defeated me with her Pikachu." she said. I turned to Zuzu as she saw the speechless look on my face. "Yep. We won it all for you." she said. "Pika-chu." Zuzu's Pikachu replied. She and Tetrax then gave a high five to each other and smiled happily. Zuzu and I looked at them for a moment and then each other. I blinked my eyes and then lightly smiled at her; making her do the same. "When we noticed that you didn't come with us to watch the fight, Zuzu knew that she had to win the fight for you. She and Pikachu gave it their all and defeated Kirlia with a powerful Volt Tackle." said Celina. "Volt Tackle?" I replied curiously. Zuzu, Celina, and Aura nodded their heads in agreement. "Wow..." I replied in a soft, surprised tone.

"Well, well. Looks like we have some more guests in the room." said a voice. We all turned around and saw Sansho and Mrs. Pepper looking at us. "Mother. Father." said Reed as his parents walked upto us. "Slur-puff!" said Slurpuff happily as it jumped off the seat next to me and stood next to me. Mrs. Pepper smiled warmly and knelt down to Slurpuff; petting its head. "I see that Slurpuff helped you calm down and release your feelings a bit, huh kid?" Sansho asked me. "Yeah. It sure did. I gotta admit, Slurpuff is the perfect therapy Pokémon. It helped me feel calm and let me speak on how I felt; something that a couple of former therapists I had never done for me." I replied. "I see? I guess your former therapists would only listen to your parents and tell them what kinds of medication to give you to "help you feel better"?" he replied. I nodded my head yes to his response; shocking my group. "Hm... I know how you feel in this situation. People with mental health problems not only need therapy and all that jazz, but what nobody truly hears from the people with mental health issues is that they want to be heard. They want people to listen to them and understand how they feel. They may not know the demons that the one person is fighting inside their head, but if they have the love and support from the people that understand them... they'll fight their battles stronger than before and never give up on them and themselves." he replied.

I nodded my head in agreement to his response and then we watched Mrs. Pepper stand up; looking at me. "Taylor? When you said you were given medications? Did you ever take any of them?" she asked me. "Mhm. But they didn't settle in my stomach and made me really weak, so I stopped taking them." I replied. "I guess you might've had an allergic reaction to some of the ingredients in the medications. If they kept giving them to you, you would've been in the hospital for quite a long time." she replied. "Yeah..." I replied. After that, we sat down at the table and Sansho handed me my food. "Thank you, Sansho." I said. "No problem, kid." he replied with smile. I smiled warmly and began to eat. As I ate, Slurpuff jumped up on its seat next to me, sniffed the aroma of the food, and smiled. "Father? What is this dish you made for her?" Reed asked. "It's a Ribombee Chocolate Cake. This was Mary's signature dish that has been passed down from her family for generations." Sansho replied. "Whoa..." most of the group replied.

Zach looked at me as I was eating the cake; seeing the warm smile on my face. "You like it?" he asked me. I turned to him and nodded my head yes to his question; making him happy. "Zach? Does your Grandma make this cake too for birthdays?" Pat asked him. "Yeah. She does." he replied. "Huh? Who are you talking about, boy?" Sansho replied. "Father. Zach is the grandson of Mary and Professor Oak." Reed replied. "What!? You're Mary's grandson!?" Sansho replied surprised. "Hehe... yeah." Zach replied with a sheepish laugh. "You do realize he's going to ask you about all the recipes she made, right?" Zuzu replied. Zach's eyes widened in shock, and he lowered his head shyly. I gave him a pat on the back and then continued to eat my meal. I looked at the strawberry that was on my plate, picked it up, put on a part of the cake, and gently handed it over to Slurpuff. "Puff?" it said curiously. "Yep. That's for you." I replied. "Puff!" it replied happily. It then ate the piece of cake I gave to it; making me smile.

"Uh... Mr. Sansho, sir? Is Slurpuff your Pokémon?" Sora asked him. "Nope. Slurpuff is not my Pokémon. It is completely wild." Sansho replied as we watched Slurpuff and Munchlax jump down to the floor and begin to play with each other. "Really? How did you meet it?" Sora replied. "When I was coming home from a cooking competition in the Kalos region with Fauder, I discovered Slurpuff on our boat. It was a little timid of us at first, but then got used to us as we cooked some food and earned its trust. The aroma that Slurpuff releases from its body helped us relax and boost our confidence in our cooking. It even has a sense of smell that is way stronger than humans. Thanks to its nose, it helped us pick out the perfect ingredients for future recipes. When we came back home to Kanto, we had to battle to see who will Slurpuff stay with. So I battled Fauder with my Flareon and he battled me with his Vanilluxe. The battle ended up pretty close to my favor, but Slurpuff stopped them with Psychic and made the battle end in no contest. We were confused at first, but once we watched it heal our partners... we knew that we have to let Slurpuff decide for itself on who it wants to go with. We gave it some time to think about it, and then it chose to travel back home with me. We said our farewells to Fauder and then traveled back home together." Sansho replied.

"And Slurpuff has been with our family ever since. It has helped us make the best food and treats for everyone around the world, and help boost our chefs confidence in themselves." Mrs. Pepper replied. "Wow..." Sora replied as he looked at the Peppers in awe, and turned around to Slurpuff and Munchlax; seeing them playing with each other happily. "Does Mr. Fauder come visit from time to time to see Slurpuff?" Aura replied. "Mhm. He does. When he brings over his students and their partners to work alongside us and visiting Trainers, Slurpuff helps out and boosts their confidence in the kitchen; helping them make the best treats for Contests and other events." Sansho replied. "That's sweet. Slurpuff has a happy life here and gets to be with its friends all the time." Aura replied. We all nodded our heads in agreement and then left the area together; heading back to the Treat Station. As we left, something watched us leave from the shadows, made a sound, and then disappeared.

Baking Station

We all stood behind our counters and began to follow Sansho's instructions on how to make Poffins, PokéBlocks, and Poké Puffs. He even taught us how to add flavors into them with Berries and how to feed and cook with Poké Beans. In these lessons, he taught us how these specific treats help increase a Pokémon's affection towards their Trainers and help them in certain Contest conditions. We made ourselves some of the treats together and let our teams do a little taste test. As we baked, Sora noticed Slurpuff staying right beside him and Munchlax. "Oh? Hey, Slurpuff. Are you trying to get Munchlax to play with you?" he asked it. "Slur-puff!" it replied happily. He smiled warmly at it and then saw it walk up closer to him and begin to sniff his Bag. "Puff? Slur-puff-puff?" it said curiously. He blinked his eyes, put down his utensils, knelt down, opened his Bag, and showed Slurpuff the candy and snacks he has. Slurpuff smiled with glee as its eyes sparkled in awe of the treats. Sora smiled happily at its reaction and then took out a medium sized lollipop. "Here you go. It has the same colors as you." he said as he handed the lollipop to it. "Puff? Slur-puff!" it replied happily; thanking him. "You're welcome. Anyone who helps out my friends, is a friend of mine." he replied. He took out a small green lollipop and they began eating together.

We turned around and saw the interaction and smiled warmly. "Wow... I've never seen him interact with a wild Pokémon like that before." said Celina. "I guess he has a certain charm when it comes to Pokémon like Slurpuff and Munchlax." Pat replied. "Yep. Once it has anything to do with food, they'll do anything for it." Celina replied. "You said it. Slurpuff will do anything for food. If it doesn't get its treats after telling it to do something, it will get angry and use Energy Ball on us until it gets what it wants." Reed replied. "Huh? It's a stubborn one?" Aura replied. "Indeed. It has the hot temper of a Magmar." Reed replied. "Just like Sora. Especially when battles don't go his way." Celina replied. "Really?" Zach replied curiously. "Mhm. I noticed it at the beginning of the school year when he and Munchlax struggled during the first two months of tests." Celina replied. "How come?" Pat asked.

"Munchlax refused to listen to him. He was given to Sora by Director Akaba after seeing it take his Bag and eat all his food. At first, they didn't like each other... but one night when they were out training, they were attacked by a swarm of Beedrill. They ran from the swarm and got injured in the process. As they laid on the ground, Munchlax used Metronome for the first time. After doing that, it made him use Fire Blast; attacking the Beedrill and making them fly away. Yuri and I heard the explosion and ran over to them; seeing them passed out on the ground. We brought them back to the Academy and took them to the Nurse's Room. When we saw them wake up and heard them talk to each other, we knew that the incident was where their bond began to form. Ever since then, they have been inseparable. They now completely understand each other and their emotions. And because of their strong bond, they have made it to one of the top spots of their grade." Celina replied. "Wow. Director Akaba must've been impressed?" I replied. "He sure was. He was really surprised of the strategies they came up with together throughout this year and considered them as one of the top few students overall at the Academy." Celina replied. "That's awesome." I replied.

We smiled warmly and went back to baking. As we baked, we heard a scream from the door. All of us looked to our left and were concerned of the scream. "What was that?" said Aura. "Who knows? All Gong knows is that did not sound good." Gong replied. Sansho and Mrs. Pepper walked to the door and saw one of the chefs run towards them in a panicked frenzy. "What happened?" Sansho asked as we walked over to them. "Sir... they're back. The Rattata and Raticate... they're back." the chef replied. "What!?" Sansho replied in shock. "That's impossible! How did they come back?" Mrs. Pepper replied. "I don't know..? But it proves that those Trainers we asked to help us months ago didn't help in keeping them away." the chef replied. The couple looked at the chef in shock, turned to each other, and then turned to us; seeing that we had heard everything. "Mother? Father? We'll help you solve this. We will get them away from the building and find out where they are hiding." said Reed. "Thank you, son." Sansho replied.

Reed nodded his head and we began to leave. "Hey, Reed? Do you and your family have a infestation problem with the Rattata and Raticate?" Zach asked him. "Yes. This has been a problem for us and this building for a few months now. They've been stealing tons of food and ingredients from us and hiding them somewhere in their den for themselves. We think it started from one of our chefs feeding them from the back towards the forest, but we haven't found their den. My Father had grown irritated at this and hired a group of professional Trainers to take care of it for us, but as you all heard, they came back." Reed replied. "That must mean one of the chefs is actually feeding them." Zach replied. "Maybe. But the thing is... we don't have the evidence. We've been checking the security cameras ever since this started, and we haven't seen anyone out in the back feeding them." Reed. "Hmm..? Looks like they're pretty smart to avoid the cameras. They might be getting inside the building where there is a door with no security?" Zach replied.

"Hmm? You might be right. But who knows how they are getting in? They could be digging from underground or through a cracked door?" Reed replied. "We won't know until we go find out ourselves. Come on, let's go to the back and see if they are there." Zach replied. "You're right. Come on, let's go!" Reed replied. Zach smiled, nodded his head, and then we ran outside of the building and went to the back.

Back of the Factory

We crouched down behind the dumpsters and took a peek at one of the doors; seeing it open. "The door's open. Gong thinks that they opened the door and got into one of the kitchens." said Gong. "You might be right, Gong. But we need to see if they actually come out of there with the food they stole." Zuzu replied. Gong nodded his head in agreement and we continued to watch in silence. As we looked out, I turned away from the group and looked at my team as they looked at me. I nodded my head to them and most of them nodded their heads in understanding. Aurasoul walked upto me and knelt down to the ground; making me kneel down with him. We took a deep breath, put our right hand and paw on the ground, closed our eyes, and activated our abilities. We opened our eyes and I saw his red eyes glow blue from his Aura; activating his Aura Vision. We turned to the building and saw the Rattata and Raticate in one of the kitchens; putting food in bags, picking them up, and begin running out of the building as they were caught by Sansho, Slurpuff, and the chefs. We then turned to the forest and saw their footprints. When seeing the footprints, we also saw some human footprints too; surprising us.

We stopped using our abilities, stood back up, and motioned my team to follow us. As my team moved, my group turned around and saw us move towards the forest. "Metapod. Kakuna. I need you two to String Shot those trees over there as much as you can. We know that their teeth will chew it through with all their strength, but this will keep them busy before they get back to their hideout and some time for us to get the food back. Got it?" I said. "Me-ta." Metapod replied. "Ku-na." Kakuna replied. They leapt up in the air and used String Shot all over the trees near the door. "Whoa... what is she up too?" said Aura. "I think she's setting up a diversion for them." Zuzu replied. "Aura, Zuzu, Celina, Pat, Sora? I'm going to need you guys to keep all of the Rattata and Raticate trapped behind the web. If you see them try to chew through it, try to put them to sleep. And Slurpuff might give you a hand if it joins you." I replied. "Got it." Sora replied. "Zach, Gong, Reed. You're with me behind the webs." I replied. "Okay." Zach replied. The four of us went behind the web covered trees and looked down the path of the forest. "Taylor? What's so special about this path?" Gong asked me. "Look down at the footprints. Notice something different?" I replied.

They looked down and saw the human footprints for the first time. "What!? Those are human footprints!" said Reed surprised. "Yeah. But how did they get here?" Gong replied. Zach slowly turned to me, lifted his right hand to me, and tapped the top of it with his finger; quietly asking me if I used my powers to find them. I nodded my head yes to him silently, and he nodded his head in understanding. "Hey? What are you two doing staring at each other?" Gong asked us. Our eyes lightly widened in surprise, and we turned to Gong. "Nothing. Just confirming on how she found the footprints." said Zach. "Oh. Okay." Gong replied. We nodded our heads and then turned back to the webs; hearing something coming. "Something's coming, guys! Get ready!" said Celina. "Alright. We're ready!" I replied. We got behind the trees, knelt down to the ground, and were ready to strike. In front of us, the group saw the Rattata and Raticate run out the door with the stolen goods, and run towards them.

"Now! Bulbasaur, Bullet Seed!" said Pat. "Bellsprout, Vine Whip!" Sora replied. "Vulpix, Fire Spin! Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Zuzu replied. "Kirlia, Psychic!" Aura replied. "Venusaur, Frenzy Plant!" Celina replied as the group threw up their PokéBalls in the air and watched their Pokémon follow their commands; stopping most of the Rattata and Raticate in their place. One Raticate dodged the Frenzy Plant, Bullet Seed, and Vine Whip with ease, jumped to the web, and tackled through it. "Oh no!" said the group. The four of us saw the lone Raticate run with the Bag and ran after it. "There they go!" said Aura. "Come on, we gotta go after them!" Pat replied. "Right." the group replied. As they began to chase us, one Raticate jumped up and tried to attack Sora and his Pokémon. "Ah!" said Sora in shock. "Sora!" Celina, Zuzu, and Pat replied in shock as the Raticate got close. Before its fangs got close, a Energy Ball hit the Raticate and knocked it away. "Huh?" said Sora curiously. He looked towards the door and saw Slurpuff run upto him. "Slurpuff!" it said worriedly. "Slurpuff! You okay?" Sora replied. "Slur-puff-puff. Slur-puff?" Slurpuff replied. "Yeah. We're okay. Thank you for saving us." Sora replied. "Munch-Munch." Munchlax replied. "Sprout-Bellsprout." Bellsprout replied. "Puff." Slurpuff replied. It blinked its eyes and began to sniff the air; smelling something. "You smell something?" Sora asked it. "Puff." it replied. Sora nodded his head in understanding, stood up, and looked at Slurpuff. "Come on. Let's go." he said. "Slur-puff!" Slurpuff replied. After that, Slurpuff joined the group in chasing us.

In the Forest

The Raticate ran quickly with the bag of goods in its mouth while we were on its tail. We can hear it grunt as it ran; knowing its not giving up on the bag. It pulled the bag tight in its mouth and then used its tail to jump in the air as it saw a cliff in front of it. "Oh no you don't!" said Reed. He ran faster and jumped in the air, grabbed Raticate and the bag, and the two began falling down the cliff below us. "Gotcha!" he said as he grabbed Raticate. They then looked down to the ground, and began to quickly descend. Reed and Raticate screamed in fear as they fell from the air. "Reed!" said Zach and Gong. My eyes and Mark glew bright and I used Psychic to catch them from the fall. They blinked their eyes in shock, looked at each other for a moment, and then looked up; seeing my green light. Zach and Gong turned to me and saw what I was doing. "Huh!? What the!?" said Gong surprised. I looked down to the ground below the cliff, saw how they were halfway down there, and I lifted them up with Psychic; bringing them back to us. I put them gently down on the grass, watched them stand back up, and I stopped using my powers; falling to my knee.

"Tay!" said Zach as he ran over to me and knelt down. As he knelt down, the rest of the group appeared and saw Zach knelt down next to me. "What happened?" Zuzu asked. "Gong don't know..? Gong and Zach saw Taylor do some kind of magic to bring Reed and Raticate back up from the cliff after he jumped after it." Gong replied. "Some kind of magic?" Aura replied. Gong nodded his head yes to her question. My group looked at each other for a moment and then saw Zach help me stand up. "You okay?" he asked me. "Yeah. I'm okay." I replied. I gently let go of his hand, turned around, and looked at the Raticate. It's eyes widened in shock at me as it saw my eyes begin to glow again. I walked upto it slowly and it tried to run away from me. Once I saw it run, I followed its lead; watching to see where it goes. My team followed my lead and the group followed a few seconds later.

A few minutes had passed during the chase under the sunset; jumping through bushes and over branches. Raticate leapt through the bushes and ran towards a wooden cabin. It stopped in its tracks, looked at the cabin, put down the bag, and breathed a sigh of relief. When it opened the bag, Aurasoul and Nidoran kicked it away from it. Raticate shook off the pain and charged at the duo. Before biting them, Tetrax zapped it with Thunderbolt; knocking it down. Tetrax ran over to his teammates and saw the rest of the team join his side; protecting the bag. Raticate stood up, screeched loudly, and charged at the group. Once they saw it use Hyper Fang, my Metapod and Kakuna jumped in and tackled it to the ground. They bounced back to the group and their bodies began to glow light blue; starting their evolution process. My team's eyes widened in shock to see what was happening as their bodies began to change. Me and the others arrived on time and saw the two evolution's happening. "Check it out! They're evolving!" said Gong.

The evolution's lasted for a minute as their bodies changed. The blue light disappeared and revealed Butterfree and Beedrill flying in mid air; staring down Raticate. "Wow! They evolved into Butterfree and Beedrill!" said Sora. "That's incredible!" Zuzu replied. I took out my phone and aimed the camera at Butterfree and Beedrill. "Butterfree, the Butterfly Pokémon. A Bug and Flying-type, and the evolved form of Metapod. Butterfree has a superior ability to search for delicious honey from flowers. It can even search out, extract, and carry honey from flowers that are blooming over six miles from its nest. Beedrill, the Poison Bee Pokémon. A Bug and Poison-type, and the evolved form of Kakuna. It flies at high speed and attacks using the large venomous stingers on its forelegs and tail." said my PokéDex. Butterfree and Beedrill fluttered their wings, went up in the air, and were ready to attack on their own. Raticate looked at them and saw them quickly descend to the ground and pick up the bag. Raticate screeched in fear and leapt up towards them; grabbing the bag. They tussled with the bag for a moment and then the bag ripped in half; shocking all of us. We ran over to them and saw the stuff on the ground for the first time.

"What is this stuff?" said Aura. "It doesn't look like normal food to Gong." Gong replied. "No... it's because it isn't just food. It's specific food to make medicine." Reed replied as he picked up one of the goods. "But who would want this stuff to make medicine?" Zach replied. "Hey! What's going on out here?" said a voice. We all jumped and turned to the front door; seeing a small family walk outside. The man of the house walked down to the grass and saw us for the first time. Raticate ran over to the man and watched him kneel down to pet it. "Are you alright, Raticate? You had us all worried sick about you." he said. Raticate made some happy sounds and gave it some treats. He stood back up and looked at Reed in surprise. "What the? Reed? What are you doing out here? Aren't you supposed to be back home at your family's factory?" he said. "Chef Fauder!? What are you doing here?" Reed replied; shocking us by the identity. "Me? I'm here cooking for my granddaughter." Fauder replied. "Your granddaughter?" Reed replied. "Yes. She is terminally ill." he replied. "Terminally ill? How?" Reed replied. "We don't know. She was a happy, healthy little girl for 5 years until she got very sick when she turned 6. We've asked the doctors how did she become this ill, and they said it had something to do with her blood. They don't expect her to make it in the new few years." he replied.

We were shocked and saddened by the news, and then looked down at Raticate as it walked upto us. "So... it was you the entire time? Having Raticate steal these specific ingredients from the factory with the Rattata and Raticate?" Reed asked. "No. The Rattata and Raticate stole food for themselves. My son's Raticate here has been sneaking into the kitchens of the factory for the past few months to take these ingredients in order to make a special dish for my granddaughter to eat." Fauder replied. "Fauder... I... I'm so sorry... I've never realized..." Reed replied. "It's alright, boy. I know that this was something that you would never think I would do. This was something that no of you would ever understand. I promise you that I will pay for my crimes after this is over." he replied. We stared at him in sorrow and then heard the bushes rustle. We turned around and saw Sansho and Mrs. Pepper walk upto us. "Mom... Dad..." said Reed. "It's alright, Reed. We heard everything." Sansho replied. He looked at his old friend in shock, sadness, and disbelief; never thinking that he would do something like this. They stared at each other for a moment, and then we all saw the granddaughter appear for the first time. "Maria..." said Fauder in a soft, surprised tone.

We looked at her as she gently walked down the stairs and hid behind Fauder's leg; shyly looking at us. "So that's her." said Aura. "Yeah... Looks like she's very scared of us after what happened to Raticate." Gong replied. She blinked her eyes shyly and then saw me slowly walk upto her. I stopped walking, stood by the ripped bag, knelt down to my knee so I could meet her at her height. My team then walked upto me and stayed around me. She then let go of his leg and slowly began to approach me; surprising everyone. She then stood about a few feet in front of me; looking at me and my team looking at her. "...Hello..." she said. "Hello. What's your name?" I replied softly. "...Maria... You?" Maria replied. "I'm Taylor. Nice to meet you, Maria." I replied. "Nice to meet you too, Taylor. Are... are these your Pokémon?" she replied. "Mhm. They sure are. You can come over and pet them if you want. They won't hurt you. I promise." I replied. She was surprised of my response for a few seconds, and then turned to Fauder. "Grandpa? Can I go pet them?" she asked him. "Of course." he replied. She turned back to me, walked up closer, and saw all my Pokémon looking at her. "It's okay, Maria. I know some of them look tough and scary, but they love getting pets." I said warmly.

She looked at my team curiously and then saw Tetrax slowly climb off my shoulder. Her eyes lightly widened in awe to see Tetrax walk upto her and sit on the grass; looking up at her. "Pi-ka-chu." he said. "Wow... it's a real Pikachu. He's so cute." Maria replied as she gently patted Tetrax's head. "Hehe. Yep. He's a cutie, alright. I've had him ever since he was a Pichu." I replied. "Really?" she replied curiously. I nodded my head yes to her question with a soft smile. Tetrax was happy with the pets, and then encouraged the small Pokémon to come over. Hurricane, Nidoran, and Solar walked over slowly, sat on the grass, and let Maria pet them too; making them and her happy. She giggled with happiness and delight of petting them. The four of them came back to me and saw Maria walk closer to me. I slowly stood up and gently picked her up in my arms; showing her Aurasoul, Dragonfire, Butterfree, and Beedrill. Aurasoul gently waved his paw at her; making her smile. "You like him?" I asked her. "Mhm. What Pokémon is he?" she replied. "He's a Lucario. They are very rare Pokémon to find." I replied.

She was in awe of what I had said and then saw Aurasoul reach out his paw to her. I smiled and lightly laughed at the sight. "You wanna give him a high five?" I asked. She looked at his paw, turned to his face, and saw him smiling happily at her. She smiled back and gave him a high five; making them happy. I smiled at the reaction and then we turned to Dragonfire. "Whoa... a Charizard..." she said. Dragonfire slowly lowered his head to her and let her pet his head. He let out a small happy noise; making her smile. "Good boy, Dragonfire." I said. The petting stopped and Dragonfire gave Maria a little lick on the cheek; surprising her. "I think he likes you." I replied with a smile. Maria giggled happily at what I said and gave Dragonfire a kiss on the nose; making him happy. She then looked at Butterfree and Beedrill, and gave them gentle pats on the head. Everyone was shocked, surprised, and in awe of what was happening. Fauder even had tears in his eyes, all happy to see and hear Maria laugh with joy as my team interacted with her. We then turned to my group, Reed, Aura, and Gong; seeing them looking at us. Once they saw the smile on her face, they smiled back.

My group, Gong, and Aura walked over to us and brought out their Pokémon; letting them interact with her. Reed then walked over, took out a Luxury Ball, and revealed his Pokémon for the first time. "Stout." said the Pokémon. "Huh? Hey! It's Stoutland!" Aura replied. "Stout-land." Stoutland replied. Pat took out his phone and activated his PokéDex. "Stoutland, the Big-Hearted Pokémon. A Normal-type, and the evolved form of Herdier. With this wise Pokémon, there could be no concern that it would ever attack people. Some parents even trust it to babysit." said Pat's PokéDex. "Wow... Reed? Is Stoutland yours?" he asked him. "Mhm. I've had him ever since I received him as a Lillipup for my birthday." Reed replied as Maria happily patted Stoutland's head; while giving her little licks to make her smile. The three adults looked at us with tears in their eyes, turned to each other, nodded their heads, and picked up the goods on the ground. "Fauder? Why don't you let me and Reed help you make this special dish for her? Think of this as a way to repay us for all this." said Sansho. Fauder smiled warmly and nodded his head yes to his response.

Sansho nodded his head and smiled warmly, and then turned to us. "Reed!" he said. "Yes?" Reed replied as we turned to him. "We're going to need your help with all the goods here to make this dish of Fauder's. Do you think you and your friends can give us a hand?" he replied. He was surprised, turned to us, saw us nod our heads to him; making him smile. He turned back to his parents and they saw the smile on his face. "Sure. We'll help out." he said. The three adults smiled warmly, turned to Fauder's family and saw them smile too. After that, we all went inside the house to help out the family with their dinner. The boys helped in the kitchen, while the girls kept Maria entertained with Contest, Musical, and Performance videos. I helped heal up Raticate and bonded with it. After healing it, it went to Maria and played with her. I stood by the living room entrance and watched in silence. I then looked down at the Mark on my hand; wanting to find a way to cure Maria's illness with my powers. As I thought about it, I began to realize that there will be consequences to it; possibly the disease coming back even stronger than now. I looked back at Maria and saw the smile on her face; laughing with joy. I felt my heart break for her fighting this for a moment, but then felt my heart tell me that this little girl is a lot stronger than what anyone thinks.

I turned to the kitchen and saw the plates of food being set on the table. I blinked my eyes at the sight and then turned to the living room starting to empty out. I walked over to the table last and sat down next to Zach. When he saw me sit down, he noticed how silent I was ever since we entered the house. He gave my hand a gentle squeeze; letting me know that he's here to talk too. I looked at him, saw him hold my hand, and nodded my head. "Alright. Everyone, dig in!" said Fauder. We all ate the dinner happily together and watch Maria blossom brightly with us; making us smile happily. After that, dinner was over. I snook out of the house and went outside; seeing the stars begin to shine in the night sky. I stared up at the sky for a moment, closed my eyes, and lowered my head; doing a silent prayer for Maria's health. I opened my eyes and lifted my head back up; seeing the lights of the factory ahead from where I was standing. As I looked out, my group and Slurpuff walked out of the house and saw me looking up at the sky. They looked at me worriedly for a moment, and then Zach walked down the stairs, walked over to me, and put his hand on my shoulder. I turned to him and saw a sad look in his eyes.

"You alright?" he asked me. I sighed and nodded my head yes to his question. "Yeah. I was just... reflecting on everything that happened here." I replied. "Everything that happened here? With Maria?" he replied. I nodded my head yes to his question. "Huh... well... you're not the only one thinking about her." he said. "Hm?" I replied. "We all are. Kids like her don't deserve to have illnesses like she has. She's supposed to be running around and having fun like every other kid, but... sometimes we have to learn that life isn't fair for everyone. A lot of people around the world have been given the short stick in life, and it makes them question why they were given the short stick; wondering what words did they say and actions they've done. But when I saw her go from this shy, timid girl into the social Butterfree at dinner... I saw how strong she really is. She doesn't want this illness to define her for who she is. She wants to be known as this bright, happy little girl that everyone loves. She's a lot stronger than what everyone thinks." he replied.

I was amazed by his words for a moment, and then I smiled and nodded my head in agreement to his words. "So you agree too?" he asked me. "Yeah. I just hope that one day that this illness will not do worse to her, and she'll recover." I replied. "Me too, bud. Me too." he replied. We smiled warmly at each other and then gave each other a hug. As I hugged him, I felt my heart warm up and skip a few beats. We let each other go and then he took my hat off my head and put it on his head. I brushed my hair with my fingers and saw a little smirk on his face. "What?" I asked him. "Nothing. I'm just thinking that I look better with a hat than you." he replied. I scoffed him for a second, took my hat back, put it back on my head, and turned it backwards. "On second thought... you look better with the hat." he said. "Oh stop it. You look good with a hat too. You just need to find the right one that suits you." I replied. His eyes lightly widened in surprise to what I said, and he lightly smiled and laughed happily; making me do the same.

"Hey, lovebirds! You done over there?" said Pat as he leaned on the railing. We jumped in shock and looked at him; seeing a smirk on his face. "Come on, you two. We gotta pack up and get going. Mt. Moon isn't that far from here." he said. "We'll be right there." Zach replied. After that, we walked back to the house, said our goodbyes to Fauder and his family, and then left the cabin with Aura, Gong, and the Peppers; heading back to the factory. As we walked away, I looked up at the sky and saw the full moon up there; shining bright in the dark sky. I stared at the moon for a moment, and then began to remember what Yuya had said about the full moon shining bright above Mt. Moon and the Clefairy that live there. "They are very rare Pokémon that live around Mt. Moon. Rumors going around there say that if there is a full moon near the lake of the area, you will be able to see a bunch of them dancing around the lake; bringing happiness to whoever sees them dance under the moonlight." said Yuya in my thoughts. As that thought played in my head, I knew that we had to head there to see the Clefairy and find out of the rumors are true.

Front of the Factory

"You kids got everything you need?" Sansho asked us. "Yep. We're all set." Zach replied. He and Sansho shook hands happily. "Thank you all for helping us today." said Sansho. "You're welcome, sir." Zach replied. "Send Mary my regards and tell her what her two greatest students have become." Sansho replied. "I will." Zach replied. They ended the handshake, and we all waved goodbye to the Peppers. "Puff!" said a voice. We all turned around and saw Slurpuff break away from the Pepper family and run upto Sora. "Slurpuff!" said Sora surprised. He and Munchlax ran upto Slurpuff and hugged it as it jumped upto them. "Uh... what just happened?" said Aura curiously. "I don't know? Maybe Slurpuff doesn't want to say goodbye?" Zuzu replied. "Who knows? But Gong knows that Slurpuff sees Sora and Munchlax as its special friends after he heard it helping Taylor, and bonding with each other in the factory." Gong replied. We nodded our heads in agreement to Gong's response and watched the hug end.

Sora knelt down to Slurpuff and looked at its sad eyes. "Slurpuff..? Do you... do you want me to stay here with you?" he asked it. Slurpuff shook its head no to his question and motioned Munchlax to grab Sora's bag. "Munch? Munch-lax." said Munchlax as it nodded its head. Munchlax went behind Sora and kicked his bag open; dropping a PokéBall from it. We were all shocked of what just happened and then watched Munchlax give Sora the PokéBall. "Munchlax? Why did you do that?" Sora asked. Munchlax walked over to Slurpuff, stood by its side, and pointed at both the PokéBall and Slurpuff. "What..? You... you want me to catch Slurpuff?" he said. "I think Munchlax is saying that Slurpuff wants you to catch it." Reed replied as he walked over to them with his parents. Sora was stunned by his words and looked down at Slurpuff; seeing its eyes twinkle. "Slurpuff..." he said. Slurpuff blinked its eyes, turned back to the Peppers, and they saw the twinkling eyes too. "Slurpuff? Do you really want to go with him?" Mrs. Pepper asked. "Slur-puff." Slurpuff replied. She was honestly surprised of Slurpuff's decision, but once she saw the determination in it eyes, she knelt down and gave it a hug.

"Slurpuff... I understand. You saw something in them that we couldn't see. They have the same kind and caring heart as you, as well as your love of sweets. And they saw how strong you were when you defended them from our little intruders." she said. "Puff." Slurpuff replied as it nodded it head. She let it go gently and patted its head. "Slurpuff. You can join him." she said. "Puff? Slur-puff!" Slurpuff replied happily. "Just remember that we will always love you. Thank you for everything you have done for us." Sansho replied. Slurpuff's eyes widened in awe and began to form tears of joy; happy to see them approve of its decision. "Slurpuff? Do your very best to take care of your new friends, okay? I know that they will take great care of you just like you did for us." said Reed. "Puff-Puff!" Slurpuff replied. After hugging the family one last time, Slurpuff walked over to Sora and looked at him in the eyes. They stared at each other silently for a moment, and then smiled at each other. "I know that they have given you permission, but I still want to ask. Slurpuff? Would you like to come with me?" said Sora.

"Slur-puff!" Slurpuff replied happily. Sora laughed happily to its response and stood back up on his feet. "That's great! Slurpuff, I promise you that we will be great friends!" he said. "Puff!" Slurpuff replied. "Munch-lax!" Munchlax replied happily. Sora nodded his head in agreement and readied his PokéBall. "Okay! PokéBall, go!" he said as he threw it up in the air. Slurpuff jumped up in the air, touched the button of the PokéBall, and watched it begin the capture process. It landed on the ground, shook three times, and made a dinging sound; confirming the capture. He smiled with glee, picked up the PokéBall, and raised it up in the air as he jumped up. "Alright! I caught a Slurpuff!" he cheered. "Munch-Munch-lax!" Munchlax cheered. We smiled happily at their reaction and then saw him look at the Peppers. "Mr. Sansho? I promise you and your family that I will care for Slurpuff with all of my heart. And maybe one day, we will come back and I will show you how much Slurpuff has grown." he said. "Thank you, Sora. Just make sure you give Slurpuff a lot of love and sweets." Sansho replied. "I will." he replied. After that, we said our goodbyes to Reed and his family, and began our leave.

At the front gates, we looked at Aura and Gong as they looked at us. "So, Zuzu? We'll see you in Vermilion City, right?" Gong asked. "Mhm. And you will be there as well, Aura?" Zuzu replied. "Absolutely. And when the Contest starts, I will be waiting to challenge you for Yuya's heart." Aura replied. "We'll see about that." Zuzu replied. She and Aura shook hands, and then we watched Aura walk away from us. "That's Aura for ya. She'll never change when it comes to Yuya." said Gong. "Yep. But when the next Contest starts, I will show her the true strength of a Coordinator on how she dazzles the audience." Zuzu replied. "Vul!" Vulpix replied. "Pika-chu!" Zuzu's Pikachu replied. "Heh. Gong knows you will win for sure. Gong will be rooting for you and Yuya all the way." he replied. "Thank you, Gong." she replied. "Well then, time for Gong to head his way to Pewter City. Gong hopes to see you all again." he replied. "We hope to see you again too." Pat replied. We shook his hand and watched him walk to Pewter City. We smiled warmly and turned to where Mt. Moon is. "Ready, guys?" Celina asked us. "Yep." we replied. After that, we continued our journey to Mt. Moon; ready to see what it has in store for us.

Thank you so much for reading Chapter 6 of the story! Man... what a Chapter to write. Not only revealing another dark part of Taylor's backstory, but with Maria and her terminal illness was a tough one. This was a part that I am not fully experienced on writing, but this was something that put in as part of the reason why the goods of the Factory were being stolen. I know that Fauder isn't a bad guy at all, but I wanted him to do something that a lot of people wouldn't expect him to do and give him a prominent reason for his actions. Plus, if I would've made him the bad guy of the Chapter, the idea would be for him to kidnap Slurpuff and use its ability to find out what made Maria sick and try to cure her. But I decided to go with this one instead.

Oh! What do you think about the debuts of Reed, Aura, and Gong? I tried the best I could on staying with their personalities and see how they interact with the group. Hopefully it worked out pretty well! Anyways, thank you so much for reading, and have an awesome day!

Next time, Chapter 7: Dancing Under Moonlight. The group travels through Mt. Moon in hopes to find some Clefairy and learn about their connection to the moon. What kind of stuff they will find there before the sun rises? Find out in Chapter 7!