Chapter 1-1: Mount Mold Sledathon

One day, in front of the Pomefiore Dorm, Epel is looking around to see if he is truly all alone.

He looks to his right, "All clear on the right," And then to his left, "And all clear on the left."

Seeing that no one is there, Epel sees that he is in the clear, "No one's coming. Here goes…!"

Epel takes a deep breath and screams, "DAGNABBIT AND CONSARN IT!"

And then calms down, "…Phew. Okay, I feel a little better now. Vil really let me have it for accidentally slipping into my accent when I saw him in the hall. I was born and raised in Harveston. What does he expect for cryin' out loud?! I've had it up to HERE with all his stupid nitpicking! If I had a thaumark for every time he's told me "ain't" isn't a word, or "it's 'I,' not 'Ah'," or "indoor voice, please"… Well, I guess I just gotta watch myself around Vil, I don't like it, but it is what it is," And then let out a sigh, "I wish I could visit home, but our next break is a long ways away."

Suddenly, he hears ringing sounds.

"Huh, someone's calling me," Epel replies and soon takes out his phone to see who's calling, "It's… Meemaw?"

Seeing who it is, Epel quickly answers the phone, "Hey, Meemaw. How ya been? It ain't every day you call me up on the phone. Somethin' goin' on? Huh?" And suddenly becomes shocked, "…BWHAAA?!"

Sometime later, in the cafeteria, Epel walks into the cafeteria and he is in a serious dilemma.

Epel sighs and expresses his frustration, "Boy, that phone call threw me for a loop… It's great I get to go home, but… Does it have to be tomorrow? Talk about short notice! Why'd Meemaw have to spring this on me? And apparently, I gotta bring some friends too. Who could I even ask?" Not long after, Epel is able to grab himself some lunch, "I spent so long tryin' to figure it out that it made me late for lunch. This place is packed. Are there any free tables…?" He then notices a group of familiar faces, "Oh, look! Briar and the others are over there."

Epel then walks towards the table where Briar and the others are.

In fact, the group is having their lunch.

Epel walks over, "Hey, Briar, Grim, Sereia, Tanzanite, Jasper, Trinket. Is this seat taken?"

"Sure. We don't mind," Briar says.

"Of course," Sereia says.

"Thanks a bunch. I don't think I'd be able to find another seat," Epel says.

"Might as well since on one's usin' it," Grim says. Then have his eyes on his food, "And now I get some of your lunch as payment!" and of course, tries to take his lunch.

"But that's my food!" Epel says.

Grim looks at Epel's lunch, "This piddly lunch ain't fillin' at all…"

"Grim, you really shouldn't," Tanzanite asks.

Grim then asks, "Hey, Epel. Got any apples today?"

"'Fraid not. I don't carry a ready supply around, you know. I just share any extras I can't eat myself when I get shipments from home," Epel says.

"Aww, man…" Grim says, disappointed, "Those apples are real tasty. Wish I could get my paws on some…"

Trinket nods, even though she likes the apples Epel has. Even the juices.

Then an idea comes to Epel, "…AHA!" He then asks, "Hey, Grim! Since you're craving some apples, how'd you like to visit Harveston with me? Then you could have your fill of the best apples money can buy."

This has Grim excited, "Really?! Sign me up!"

But Epel admits, "Only thing is… The trip's tomorrow."

This shocked Grim, "Tomorrow?!"

"That's pretty sudden," Briar says.

"Tell me about it. I only heard I was goin' back this morning," Epel says.

He lets out a huff and says, "Meemaw sure loves her surprises."

"Your Meemaw?" Sereia asks.

"Yes," Epel says, "The thing is, one of Harveston's annual festivals is this weekend. And my family asked me to be there for it."

"I'm down to go if it means I get to munch on delicious apples!" Grim happily says.

"You can bet on that!" Epel says. He then asks, "And, uh… Grim, would you be up for joining me in the Mount Mold Sledathon?"

"The Mount Sledathon?" Jasper and Tanzanite say, surprised and sound pretty excited.

"The Mount what now?" Grim asks.

"Oh, Mount Moln's this giant mountain that you can see from Harveston. We hold an annual sled race on it every year. That's the Mount Mold Sledathon!" Epel explains.

Grim thinks, "Hmmm. A sled race, you say?"

"What is it?" Briar asks.

Then Epel explains, "People get in teams of four and compete to see who can reach the finish line the fastest. Meemaw asked me to bring some friends from school for my team. She was all like, 'You musta made a whole heap o' friends by now. How 'bout bringin' some 'round?' 'Y'all young'uns can liven up the race!' But it's such short notice, I don't even know who to invite. So please, would you do the race with me?"

And Grim says, "Mrah… I didn't really get all that, but… It sounds like a pain! Count me OUT! I'll go for the apples, but I ain't messin' with no sleds."

"So much for that…" Epel replies, "Well, you'll still liven things up either way, I guess."