A cold wind blew through the old trees into a clearing. Dead grass surrounded the area, adorned with rocks and twigs. Slowly, a silhouetted figure entered the clearing and surveyed the area. It was dark, and outside of the natural debris there wasn't anything notable. Perfect. They pulled out a sack and placed it on the ground. A quick peek revealed a ton of golden nuggets, shining beautifully.
The figure laughed, then closed up the sack and began to dig...
*RIIIIIING*
Row flopped out of bed, his ears ringing. Chester, in the bed next to his, reached over and smacked the alarm clock off. "You said it wouldn't be too loud!" Row said grumpily. The chespin shrugged, "It's not that loud to me."
Row pulled himself off the ground and rubbed the sides of his head. Still groggy, he walked over to the fridge.
Chester's house was small, consisting of a single room with beds, a couch, a bookshelf, and a kitchen tucked into the corner. The ceiling was covered in beige bandages, as was the couch. Really the whole place looked broken up, yet was somehow clean with not a single dirty spot around.
The ralts got up to the fridge and opened it, revealing rows of drinks, fruits, vegetables, and the odd mystery meat. He grabbed an apple and crammed it into his mouth. Not even chewing it before he swallows. Chester stared with awe,
"Did you just swallow an apple whole?"
Row just shrugged before going to sit on the couch. The Chespin decided his breakfast would be a banana, peeling it and taking a bite like a normal Pokemon.
"So." Row fidgeted a little and looked over at Chester, "You still haven't explained the bandages."
"Training." Chester answered bluntly, "Gotta keep up in shape! I wanna evolve and get stronger sooner rather than later." He then flexed, showcasing a vague shape of muscles. Row started to think. Training would help a lot in his current situation, plus he should develop those supposed powers a psychic-type has. Maybe it'd help his memory problem.
He was taken out of his thoughts via Chester hopping beside him on the couch. "So, later today I gotta head to my job. It's at the school nearby." Row blinked, "You work at a school?" "It's nothing much, just cleaning and keeping the baby Pokemon from causing trouble." Chester said, eating more of his banana. "That's rather kind of you." Row smiled. Chester blushed a little, "It's the least I could do really."
The two sat in a brief silence while the Chespin finished his meal. The Ralts looked over at the bookcase to glance at its contents. Lots of bland covers, even from a distance it was apparent they were more training manuals than actual books. Their golden texts on the spines glowed in the light and featured words like "Fighting" and "Techniques''. Chester's talk of training was more serious than he thought. He then looked at what was on top of the bookshelf.
A photo of an old looking Chespin with a pink hair bow standing next to a similar aged-looking Sobble. He then thought about that sad feeling he felt from Chester when he mentioned his mom and dad yesterday...
His parents? What happened to them? He would ask, but he figured that he would be better off not sharing that information right now. He did have another, less personal question.
"Do you have any friends?"
"No. Not any really close ones anyways." Chester said, finishing his banana.
Another silence. Probably better that way. Row could feel the slight pang of sadness from the grass-type beside him. Then it faded away into a more cheery attitude.
"Well before I go to work, want me to show you around town?"
Row nodded.
The two now stood in the center of town. Homes to the north, entrances to the south west and east. Facilities all around them and going west.
Chester pointed to the stall Row had visited yesterday, "That's the doctor I took you to." He then pointed towards the Delibirds, "That's Bandy and Bundy, they run the shop and bank. Bandy built Bundy by the way." Then there was the Donphan, "Uncle Jack's taxi service! He'll take you to the city and back as smoothly as possible!"
He gestured towards the ralts to follow him west. There was a small restaurant run by a breloom named Mooshi, namely for travers to snack at. And at the end was the school. A small building with an outside classroom. Singular.
"...They don't have any more?" Row asked, incredulous.
"Not many babies around." Chester answered. Row conceded.
*BING BING BONG*
"Oh! That's my cue!" Chester looked back at Row, "Wanna come with? I'm sure they won't mind."
Row stared at the school. The idea of having to interact with more pokemon, even if they're babies, was off putting. Plus with the whole feeling emotions thing, he can imagine all the wild emotions they'd be emitting. But.. that would be a good way to practice controlling that.
"Sure." Row nodded.
Chester, overjoyed, grabbed his hand and took him into the building. It was a small office with school supplies stacked on shelves in huge amounts. The center of the room was a bright pink carpet with a wooden desk. Chester got to work on cleaning up the loose papers and supplies, doing so with great results. Row just stood and watched in amazement. He really does clean up nicely...
The door to the office opened, and in walked an Ampharous. A pink one. With long eyelashes.
"Oh good work Chester! I meant to clean up before you came but I had to have a conference with Torrex's parents." She sighed.
"Ah, did he shock Manny again?"
"Yup, you'd think a Toxel and a Pichu would know they can't absorb lighting..." She then noticed Row standing there, "Ah hello! Friend of Chester?"
"You can say that." Row exhaled in a sort of chuckle.
The Ampharous extend an arm, "Call me Mrs. Zee."
Row took and shook it, "Row."
Chester finished his cleaning and hopped over to the two. "So what's the lesson for today?"
"Just some more math and writing. Continuing from yesterday."
Row raised his hand instinctively, "And when do the baby pokemon get here?"
Mrs. Zee hummed, "Soon. Class starts in about 20 minutes. Would you like some tea while we wait?"
The two agreed.
Outside, the Pokemon had already begun arriving. There was a Riolu, a Pichu, a Mime Jr., a Bonsly, a Toxel, and a Budew. They had already sat themselves down at the tables and waited for the teacher. The Riolu had already gotten his books and papers out at the ready. The Toxel and Pichu were having a conversation about which taffy flavors were the best. And the rest just sorta fidgetted around.
Mrs. Zee exited the building, with Chester and Row following behind. Row was hit with the many feelings of the Pokemon waiting. Mainly boredom and anxiety, except from the Riolu who was emitting confidence. So much for practice, these are the most composed babies he's ever seen. Not that he's seen many. Or has he? Before he could ponder that, he realized he was now in front of the class.
"Good morning Mrs. Zee." The class said in unison. Collected bunch aren't they.
"Morning." Mrs. Zee bowed, "Hope you all are doing well."
The Riolu raised his hand, "Who's the new guy?"
"This is Row, a friend of Chester." She gestured to him.
Row shrugged at nothing. All those eyes on him were kind of getting to him, even if those eyes belonged to baby pokemon. Crowds were not his thing. He looked over at Chester, who gave him a warm reassuring smile. The feeling of warmth got picked up by him, giving him the confidence he needed.
Chester... Helpful fellow isn't he. Even when he doesn't realize it.
The teacher then went on with her lesson. The grass and psychic duo sat on the side watching the youngsters work. They did their math first, working on multiplication. The Riolu was the most diligent, writing notes down as hard as possible. Apparently, his name was Rocky and his mother was a hard working sort. Row could tell.
"What school did you go to, Chester?" Row asked.
"The one in the city. It's a little harder to get into, but they teach you a ton!"
Row started to think about himself again. He hated how he kept coming up with questions he had no possibility of answering, but he just couldn't stop. Did he go to school? What kind of school? Wh-
"Hey." Chester shook his shoulder, "You're thinking about the no memory thing again aren't you?"
Row nodded, and Chester responded with a hearty pat on the back.
"Look, I'm not that smart at people things, but maybe you should focus on something else for a while. No sense in dwelling on something you can't solve right now you know?"
Row nodded again, "Yeah... I can do that."
The two went back to watching the class work. Mrs. Zee was writing something on a portable chalkboard, something about multiplication tables.
"Are you good at math?" Row asked.
Chester just quietly laughed, "Nope!"
"...Yeah me neither." He laughed along.
*BING BING BONG*
The class was over. All the baby Pokemon packed up their things and took their homework. They got up and went to the entrance, talking amongst themselves. Row and Chester watched as they did, making sure nothing got left behind. That also meant Row helped Chester clean up, something he was not terrible at as it turns out. They finished up and took the remaining papers to the office, packing them up nicely. When they exited the building however, the Riolu Rocky and the Budew walked up to them. They both turned to Chester.
"Ay, Chester!" Rocky said, "I'm gonna be taking my friend Lilly into the forest dungeon to show her something cool!"
Lilly hopped up and down happily.
"Does your mom know?" Chester asked.
"Yup!"
Chester smiled, "Well you two stay safe now! Remember to run back as soon as something comes up!"
The two little ones grinned and ran off.
Row blinked, "Did he say... forest dungeon?"
Chester nodded, "Yeah, mystery dungeon. Don't know what those are?"
Row shook his head.
"Well, I'll explain over lunch. Come on, let's go to Mooshi's restaurant!"
They began walking with Chester taking the lead. It didn't take long to reach their destination, which was a rather elaborate looking building with a big glowing sign depicting a Breloom eating a plate. Chester opened up the door for his friend, who walked into the chilled building. There was a reception desk with a partition behind it, and behind them both was a big square dining room with a kitchen in the back. Within seconds a Breloom, definitely Mooshi, popped up in front of the Ralts and startled him something fierce.
"WELCOME!" Mooshi gave a big smile. Row could feel it's sincerity, which provided no comfort given the lack of personal space. Chester thankfully came in and took the breloom's attention.
"Table for two?" Chester asked. Mooshi nodded heavily and pointed to a table in the corner. The boys sat themselves down and within seconds were given menus via a hoppip wearing a bowtie. Efficient.
Row popped open the menu and was greeted with a short list of menu items. Spaghetti, salads, and soups were available. Wait...
"What's Jellybean Pie?" He asked. There wasn't a description to read.
"Oh, it's pie, but filled with jelly beans. It's supposed to make it softer."
"I want it." Row licked his lips, sounding very interested.
Chester sputtered, "I wasn't expecting you to be into that... I'll just have the tomato salad. And-"
"They have milkshakes?!" Row gasped as he examined the drink section. He practically drooled over himself as he read the options. "I want vanilla!"
"I'll have chocolate then!" Chester closed his menu, "Guess if I ever need to cheer you up, I'll take you out for food!"
Row gave him a look, but also a smile. "Yeah," he said, "I guess you will. Can you even afford this actually?"
"Mhm! Saved up a pretty penny, so cash is almost not a problem. Almost."
"Well ok." Row tapped the table, "So about that forest dungeon..."
"Oh yeah!" Chester cracked his knuckles, "So: Mystery dungeons are these spaces, like caves or mountains, and they contain all these floors. They're usually filled with treasure and angry pokemon that act all crazy and stuff. These dungeons also shift around every day and change the layouts of their floors. And before you ask, no there isn't an explanation to any of this, it just is."
Row stared, mouth agape. "So... what's the deal with the forest dungeon?"
"Oh that one is barren with only seeds and berries left. No Pokemon. Good source of wood since the trees seem to regrow when you cut them down! That's where I got the wood from yesterday!"
Explains that then.
"Oh! That also reminds me!" Chester clapped his hands gently together, "There's the explorer teams! They're the ones who go into these dungeons to discover, collect, and rescue in case anyone stumbled in there!"
"Explorer teams huh..." Row hummed. Sounded good to him. Although he yet again couldn't explain why.
"I actually want to be an explorer." Chester shuffled around awkwardly, "It's why I wanna get stronger. Cuz I wanna protect everyone." He blushed a little out of embarrassment, "It's been a dream of mine for a long time."
Row was intrigued. "Why haven't you joined one yet?"
"Two Pokemon minimum." Chester admitted, "And... no close friends you know? Not like I wanna force someone to be my partner either."
Row really didn't have any more words to share. And thankfully their food arrived to give him a good reason. Row got the pie, and Chester got his salad. Oh, and the milkshakes too. Row grabbed a provided fork and scooped up some of his meal onto it. He popped it into his mouth and swallowed every piece of it down.
...
"This..." He choked up
Chester patted him on the back, "Good?"
Row sniffled, "The best... How about you?"
Chester popped a tomato into his mouth and chewed. "Mmph, ish good too!" He gulped with a smile on his face.
Row moved over and grabbed his milkshake, "Wanna toast? To nothing really?"
Chester nodded, "To nothing."
He grabbed his drink, raised it up, and drank alongside him.
The two exited the building, full and content.
"So what's next for today?" Row asked.
Chester shrugged, "More training. Maybe I can rope you into doing some squats and-"
"Chester!" The voice of Mrs. Zee called out, and she ran into view not long after.
"Mrs. Zee? Something wrong?"
"R-Rocky is missing!"
Everything went silent, the chespin broke out in a cold sweat. "M-M-Missing?!" He sputtered, "What happened?!"
"His mother went to pick him up at the spot they agreed on, and he wasn't there!"
"M-Maybe he got lost?" Chester couldn't believe what was happening, there had to be an explanation.
"I thought so too, but it's been far too long... And..." She sniffled, "Someone... said they saw someone sneak into the forest last night..."
There it was, the worst possible thing to hear. Rocky and his friend Lilly were possibly in danger...
"Did you call a rescue team?" Row spoke up, clearly shaken by this development.
"Yes. They should be arriving in a couple of minutes"
Chester gasped, "A couple of minutes?!"
"Chester please, I know you-" But before Mrs. Zee could finish, the chespin had already broke into a sprint. Heading straight towards the dungeon with tears in his eyes.
Row quickly chased after him, barely being able to keep up. He called out to him, but the Chespin just kept running. It wasn't long before the two ended up at the entrance to the forest dungeon. In a desperate move, the Ralts did the first thing he could think of... he tackled him. The dive connected with the grass-type's legs, causing him to fall over. He yelped, then tried to push the ralts off of him.
"G-Get off, I gotta go in there!" He yelled.
"You heard her, there's a team coming already!" Row yelled back.
"But what if they're already in danger? They might not even have minutes to spare!" Chester forcibly pushed Row off of him, standing up and growling. Row could just feel the rage off of him, which didn't help either of their moods.
"Come on Row, I told you, didn't I? I want to protect everyone! They need me there!"
Row pulled himself off the ground, "So you're charging in without a plan? Alone? What if you get hurt?! What if this someone is someone who will hurt them if they see you?! What if this someone is a pokemon twice your size who could crush you with a single move?!"
Chester's resolve faltered. His expression fell, "P-Please..."
Row's gaze dropped to the ground. Then... his heart thumped. Heavily. This emotion coming from Chester wasn't just sadness or anger, but regret. And it hurts. Row bit his lip, knowing that what's about to come out of his mouth would set a point of no return for both of them.
He knew this was bad. He knew this wouldn't end well. But yet again, for some reason, a deep rooted part of him couldn't just let this go.
"Fine... but you aren't going alone." Row stepped forwards, "I don't think I can just-"
Row was interrupted by a tight hug from Chester, who was sobbing.
"T-Thank you..." He blubbered.
He released his grip, and dried his eyes before taking on an expression of pure confidence. "Come on, we got some pokemon to rescue!"