Episode 20: The power of the Dreamer
Kayla…
…
... Kayla… wake…
The voice was distant, but serene and quiet. She slowly opened her eyes, fully aware of where she was. Somewhere deep in the sea, with rough waves that she had to stand her ground against. The surface was within sight, but against a current like this, one would need to be a powerful fish to not get swept away. Every wave was a punch to gut, chilling and relentless enough to cause bruising and throbbing long after each hit, but Kayla could withstand it somehow.
She had a few moments to look around. On one side of the surface, she could make out silhouettes she could have sworn were jumping and shouting. It was hard to tell from the water muffling. Not far behind her however, there was a panicked boy, no more elaborate than your average young beach tourist. There was no doubt he was drowning, flailing helplessly as the sea dragged him lower and lower.
Grunting to herself, Kayla kicked after him, cradling him from behind to make for the surface. It was easy, but worrisome as he soon stopped moving before they reached dry land. Angst made things a blur – she breached the surface, and then she was on the beach, pressing down against the boy's chest. A whole class of young boys and girls, all in swimsuits, glared in horror, until the boy coughed and spat up seawater. He was breathing again, and opened his eyes.
"Whoa... you saved him."
"The waves were so strong; how'd you do it?"
"You did a better job than the lifeguard!"
"You're incredible, Kayla!"
The praise kept rolling in, but it didn't feel special. It felt easy. Something anyone could've and should've done. So she stood up and walked off, offering the kids a cool tip off with her fingers as she left. She could feel their adoration all the way into the white void that awaited her beyond the beach. Where the serene voice continued to call her.
…
"Kayla… oh, please wake up," Kari moaned. She flinched when the Buneary stirred. "K-Kayla?"
"Kari… morning," she gurgled, surprised to see the Furret beside her bed. She worried she might've cried in her sleep again, but Kari didn't look terrified. Her bed wasn't wet either. "Uh… wait a minute. What gives? It's so early. Even for us."
"I know… I just, uh," she huffed, and then pointed to the bathroom.
Is the door jammed or something? Kayla yawned and slid out of bed. There was nothing wrong however. The bathroom door slid open same as normal. Kari was following her in. "Er…"
"I-I know it's weird. Just, please," the Furret was twiddling her paws and feet just as bad as yesterday. Kayla had an eyebrow raised but followed along anyway. "S-sorry. Really, I know it's weird…"
"It's just another morning. What's up? Was I doing something off in my sleep again?" Kayla cocked her head, concerned a bit when the door was slid shut.
"I just… I really wanted to thank you properly for last night," the Furret bowed profusely. "You really didn't have to, and I know you really didn't like prom and all that, but still you went and—"
"Whoa hey, that's what this is about?" Kayla leaned back. Kari nodded quickly. "Aha, I know I didn't have to, and I know what I said about all that romantic stuff. But I wanted to. I got curious, checked out the dance floor, saw Paris, and then just, made up my mind."
"I know it must've been hard for you, but I had a wonderful time. More than I deserve for sure. That really was one of the best nights of my life I've ever had," Kari put her paws together.
"What do you mean by that? Do you have to… do something to deserve to have fun?" Kayla cocked her head. She didn't reply. "Well, whatever. I had a lot of fun too, honestly. You're a fun Pokémon, Kari! I'm not gonna fight to convince you of that. Just know that you're good."
"I wanna make it up to you though!" Kari squeaked, quickly covering her mouth. "I-I mean I… I just… l-look, you've been really nice to me. Ever since you came here. More than anyone else I've ever met. And all I've been is a big dumby tripping all over myself trying to do everythin' right."
What's this all of a sudden? Kayla cocked her head again.
"I just feel like I should start giving back to you the way I'm best at and stuff, and… oh, you look confused, I'm not even doing this right!" she squealed and pouted.
"That's 'cos I don't get it. You've been fine. You're Kari. I like having you around," Kayla smiled.
"You lead the team properly even though I dumped all that on ya, and now when everything could've gone wrong, you put everything into something I know you don't like, just for my sake," Kari explained. She took a deep breath. "Easy now Kari… just… just be honest…"
"Take your time. I'm not going anywhere," Kayla was still smiling.
"I like, wanna make it up to you. Or just like, do more for you. I feel like you deserve it, and like, I uh… I just, wanna do more for you, yeah? The kinda stuff I do around the academy, I'm like a carer, right?" she explained. "Would you be okay with having me around all the time to do that for you?"
Kayla's eyes widened. "You're already a teammate. Wasn't that your dream? You've got your paws full with that."
"I-I-I, it wouldn't be that much different! It'd just be like the pizza time, or the prom dance," she turned away to try and hide a blush, playing with her paws. "I could help you lift stuff, or get dressed, or eat food that's hard for you to eat…"
"Oh. Like that," Kayla turned away as well.
"O-o-only do stuff that you ask me to! And stuff…" she squeaked, stretching up tall. She realised what she was doing as her head touched the ceiling, and retracted back to normal size. Kayla couldn't help but giggle, making her blush even deeper. Her tail was wagging a lot, however.
"You've got your own goals and stuff. Focus on that, not me. You don't have to owe me anything," Kayla assured.
"It's not because I owe you. It's what I want to do, honest. It's what I like doing," she assured. "I like doing my best to make sure other Pokémon have normal lives. O-or like, the best lives that they can, you know? And this isn't spontaneous, either. I've been thinkin' about this ever since I learnt your hands don't work. Last night just pushed me to wanna try!"
I hate being fretted over, though, Kayla twisted as she pondered the suggestion.
"You seem to really like clothes, and dancing, and good food! But you don't get to do it all that often 'cos of how awkward it is for you. But just to make sure, I'd only do what you ask me to do, promise!" Kari put her paws together.
Kayla snickered. "Something tells me you're not gonna take no for an answer."
"Well… no. I-I mean yes. I mean no yes, as in, if you don't want me to, I won't," she squeaked. Kayla was quiet for another moment, and slumped with a cheeky grin.
"This also still feels kinda outta nowhere. There no other ulterior motive?" she asked. Kari didn't respond. Then again, there's also… those feelings… even now, that fear I normally get in my gut isn't there. It might be fun to have Kari around all the time. It might not be like the maids back home.
"I-I guess this is too awkward and stuff… I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!" Kari gasped and bowed profusely again.
"I didn't say anything. Just, this is kinda sudden and big for me too?" Kayla admitted, coming closer at last. "That might mean holding my hand a lot you know. Or using your stretching powers to help me reach stuff. I… also would feel bad if you started putting me before yourself. Can you promise me you won't do that?"
"Of course! If I ever want or need anythin', I'll let you know, same as always," Kari nodded.
"This means anytime, anywhere, too. Think you'd be okay doing that, even out in public?" Kayla grinned expectantly. This time, Kari gulped. "Not saying I'm heavy maintenance, but you're talking about a job that could carry on through life. I can't do any paperwork stuff since that's down to Mum, but you're basically committed."
"I don't want it to be a job… I just wanna do it because I like you so much! I wanna do nice stuff for you. Really! I know it's weird, but I always get good outta helping Pokémon," Kari turned gleeful, doing her weird tail wag. "It doesn't pay well here at RSE, but I still do it anyway."
"So just a casual sort of… okay. Fine. I can vibe with that. Sure, we'll give it a try," Kayla nodded at last.
"Really?" Kari squeaked.
"If it's casual and just to help me out every now and then, sure, I don't see a problem. Again, just promise you won't—"
"YEEEEEAAAAAY!" Kari squealed so loud it sounded more like a screech. She scooped the Buneary up by her paws and hugged her tight, prancing around the room. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! I'm gonna make your life a blast, you can count on me!"
"Ah, Kari!" Kayla cried. For an early morning, this was a bit much. The moment the Furret stopped however, things started to become a bit clearer. Kari's body was hot. Hot enough to sweat, and her heart was thumping. Despite that, her grip was delicate and careful, and not in a way that made her feel undermined. When not being shaken around by the Furret's prancing, Kayla could happily sit in Kari's arms and be relaxed.
"S-sorry!" Kari dropped her to the floor suddenly. "I-I'll try not to do that again. I was just thinking of all the fun we could have, or how you might react to all the tasty food you could get to try, and I just got really happy you said yes! It's gonna be awesome! I mean things were already awesome thanks to Team Daybreak and all that but now they're gonna be extra super-duper awesome!"
"… You were really nervous about this. Did you sleep?" Kayla asked blankly. Amazingly, the Furret didn't look nearly as sweaty as she actually was.
"Not at all, how'd you know?" she replied, and then gasped. "Do I sound groggy or yawny or—"
"Kari, zoomies," Kayla snickered, making her stand straight and still. This time she was shuddering and jittery, making her laugh. "You're something else, you know that? Who gets that much energy when they don't sleep?"
"Err, I dunno. Noctowlnal Pokémon?" she cocked her head.
"… You mean nocturnal Pokémon. And they still sleep!" Kayla giggled.
"Wait, they do?"
"What made you think they didn't?" Kayla swayed her head in glee. "Never mind. It's about time, anyway. Let's get some breakfast."
"You read my mind!" Kari agreed.
Kari helping me out when I ask, huh? I'm not good at this, but if it makes her happy. I should hate the idea, yet still I'm not lying…. It IS fun to have her around, Kayla smiled. Knowing me, I'll probably get too nervous to ask in person. Maybe we should keep practicing in private times like this… yeah, that might be the best idea for now. Just keep it cool, okay Kayla?
Just as they moved to step out, Pola slid the door open, immediately flinching. "Err… what're you two doing?"
"Nothing!" both girls replied in sync, Kari hiding her paws behind her back.
"… Riiiight. Two girls in the bathroom. Sneaking. Hiding. First thing in the morning. Nothing weird about that. At all," Pola replied.
"Do not start," Kayla sighed. "Please for the love of the gods, just don't start."
"Hey, if you swing bicurious, I dig it. No judgey from me. Kinda makes sense, now that I think about it," Pola shrugged cockily.
"Yeah. You think that way," Kayla rolled her eyes and made to leave. Just as she opened the dorm door, she flinched this time. May, the Pichu veteran, looked as though they were about to knock, but froze just before hitting her. "A-again… uh, hi. Morning."
May grinned and hid a laugh as she tucked her paws behind her back. "Good, you're all awake. Good morning to you Kayla, Team Daybreak."
"Wait is that May? If you're here, then doesn't that mean—" Kari cut herself off with a gasp.
"It does," the Pichu nodded. "Get some breakfast if that's what you were about to do, then please gather everyone involved here. Get yourselves prepared for an exploration as well."
Kayla glanced back at her team, focused. Pola rolled her eyes while Kari struggled to hold in a gush, dancing on her toes while pawing at her face. Back to May, the Pichu appeared ready for an exploration. She wore a red scarf around her neck, as well as a red band tightly around her right ear.
…
Shannon was last to enter the dorm, and though he appeared disgruntled by something, that quickly turned into nervousness once he saw how focused everyone else was. Kayla, Kari, Pola, Ashe, and May were all here, plus Jirachi sitting on the bed, and the surprise addition of Sprite, the sunny sunshine form Cherrim. All eyes were on him as he came in and shut the door, except for Sprite, who stood by the window swaying like a Bellossom.
"Yeesh, what took you? Surely you know it's best not to keep ladies waiting?" Pola put her paws to her hips. His disgruntledness came right back.
"Didn't realise this was about you," he rolled his eyes.
Great. They still haven't made up, whatever went wrong… Kayla tried to hide her thoughts. "Well, we're all here. What've you found, May?"
The Pichu cleared her throat. "It's been a while, so allow me to preface by running through the facts again. From the account of Kayla's dreams, we are to assume that Mathildaath is troubling her with nightmares. This is because Kayla is a Dreamer, a Pokémon who can enter dreams, enabling her to do anything she wants and even alter reality to a degree."
"Pretty much," Kayla nodded.
"According to Jirachi, there are major disturbances caused by Dreamers using this power to alter reality. If we are to believe the initial dream was with Mathildaath, and was a premonition, then this means that that archfiend is one such disturbance," May continued. "We defeat her, we reduce the strain on Jirachi's Millenium Comet, enabling Jirachi to grant wishes and continue his one-thousand-year sleep cycle. Our problem was that Kayla cannot spawn a Dream Pool wherever she wants."
"Really makes me think how much of a miracle our escape from Husk Tunnel was. But anyway, that's what you've found a solution to, right?" Kayla nodded.
"I'm confident I have. RSE has a surprising amount of material on Isnomia's legends, in particular the Millenium Comet and Jirachi's wish-granting capabilities. I was able to do a lot of research without drawing attention to myself," May rubbed her chin. "It leads me to believe the higher ups may be planning an attack on Mathildaath and her region. To the extent that we may not need to do anything at all."
"Really? That's your takeaway?" Kayla raised an eyebrow.
"We have a lot of powerful Pokémon and teams here, many with extraordinary powers that make them far above the average team. If such a raid did happen, it's hard to imagine they wouldn't be successful," May tucked her arms behind her back. "Lots of precautions and plans are being made. I wouldn't be surprised if Gema himself decided to take part."
"Wow… if even Headmaster Gema gets involved, then she's right, we might not have to do anything after all," Kari remarked.
"Swe-eeet! That means we get to take it easy and do our thing," Pola stretched.
"You guys don't seriously believe that, do you?" Kayla challenged. "I'm the only one in this entire academy who can enter dreams. Mathildaath recognises I'm such a threat that she targets me with nightmares. Nobody else. If they stood a chance, those Pokémon would be attacked, too."
"… I dunno… not to put you down buddy, but Gema's pretty fucking powerful, y'know. I'm talking like, toppling mountains kinda stuff," Pola remarked.
"After all of that, are you seriously going with 'leave it to the bigwigs'?" Kayla replied.
"You're dead set, aren't you? On unlocking your potential. No matter what happens?" May asked.
"We've been through this. Jirachi wouldn't be here asking me if it wasn't down to us," Kayla replied.
"I'm asking you, specifically. Are you and everyone else fully resolved that this falls to you?" May asked again.
This time, Kayla glanced at her team. "Hmpf. What, you looking for some kinda proof? 'Cos I'll take you on, if that's what you're asking."
"Your ability to enter dreams means you can also enter nightmares, realms made of your greatest fears made manifest. If you die there, there won't be any rescue teams to call upon. I doubt the denizens of nightmares would spare you for items or money like real world mystery dungeons, either," May stated. "If you can't learn to control your powers, you could generate a realm that kills all of us guaranteed, and like any nightmare, the only escape would be your most horrific death. Even knowing that, would you still like me to unlock your powers?"
"So that's what you mean," Kayla tensed. "Jirachi, this stuff's true, right?"
"Dreamers have been known to reach their end by perishing in their own nightmare, yes. Such an act causes a disturbance that though I am able to deal with, is a bother to do so," Jirachi explained.
Kayla huffed lightly. "What do you girls think?"
"I'll go anywhere with you Kayla, that's what we decided, right? We're in this together till the end!" Kari pumped her paws.
"Stuff could go to shit yeah, but on the other hand, we also get our wishes granted, yeah?" Pola put a paw on her hip. "I already knew there'd be some dangerous catch somewhere. I think it's worth it for getting anything we want."
"This has nothing to do with my objective… should I really risk myself for it?" Shannon slumped.
"I won't hold it against you for choosing not to," Kayla assured.
"Really? You're gonna pussy out?" Pola challenged.
"Now now Pola, Kayla is handling this correctly. Not everyone's life is as worthless as yours," May shrugged.
"You do wanna fight, don't ya? You stupid fucking—"
"Just stop," Shannon groaned. "I'll go. At this point, I'm invested. It's the best shot I've got to getting stronger."
"I am the one who brought all this up to you in the first place. It would be horribly remiss of me not to join," Ashe finally spoke up.
"Going once, going twice… well May, there's your answer," Kayla smiled. May nodded in response, paused, and then presented her with some kind of bundled up ball of string and wood. Kari took it and held it high, revealing it was a dream catcher. Albeit a basic one without any decorations hanging from it.
"A dream catcher? We waited a week just for you to make this shoddy little thing?" Pola said.
"It truly is as simple as that," May stated. "Dream Pools are created by waves released by the brain that gather into a single spot. Theoretically any Pokémon could become a Dreamer, their waves simply aren't dense enough, and the waves normally scatter. A dream catcher forces the waves to congregate into one spot, so long as it is close enough to the Dreamer."
"Then it's my turn, right, right?" Sprite beamed up at last, bouncing into the centre of the room. "Just give me the signal, you can count of me!"
"I told you to shut up! I can't stand your voice," Pola snapped.
"Not quite just yet, my dear Sprite. And Pola, if you value your life, I would learn to start standing Sprite's voice," May continued. "Earlier, I emphasized that there would be no escape from nightmares. Admittedly, I lied to you. If Sunny Day is cast, it disrupts the waves of the Dream World the same way natural sunlight disrupts sleep. In simple terms, Sprite is our Escape Orb."
"Wonderful, juuuust the news I wanted to hear this morning," Pola melted to the floor.
"I feel a little bad about bringing a young kid with us like that," Kayla cocked her head.
"Don't worry about me Miss Kayla, I'll be good, I promise!" Sprite bounced up to her. "I wanna help, I wanna help! Let me help!"
"Whoa okay. I appreciate it. But if it gets scary and you want out, don't hesitate to say, okay?"
"I'm not a scaredy-cat. I'm a brave explorer, too! I'll stay by your side, Kayla and friends!" Sprite blushed a little, but seemed determined enough.
"Alright. We're counting on you, Sprite," Kayla grinned and nodded.
"Rgg just… keep your mouth shut at the back or somethin'," Pola grumbled.
Still grinning, Kayla took a look at everyone. "Alright. All we've gotta do now is put it to practice. Who fancies going to a dream of mine first?"
"We don't even know if this is gonna work. I mean, look at that thing. You may have made the PET, but is this the best you could do with wood?" Pola tapped the dream catcher. "Shitty thing looks like it's gonna fall apart."
"I dunno. There's something really cute about homemade stuff," Kari giggled, still holding the dream catcher. She hung it above Kayla's bed, where it rotated slowly. "Even though it's not a portable bed, it means you get to sleep anywhere and be fine. We can just hang it over you!"
"You're really worried about me sleeping anywhere, huh?" Kayla giggled as she hopped up to bed.
"What're you going to dream of?" Shannon asked.
"Oh right, me first, me first!" Pola shoved him aside.
"You're so tactless," he sighed.
"Uh uh uuuuh, hold on there!" Kari shoved her down. "This is kinda special, ain't it? Whatever we do first, it should be what Kayla wants."
"But you owe me! You already tried doing my wish before, now you can do it properly!" Pola cried.
"Well… I dunno about properly," Kayla muttered.
"I take it there are no objections?" Kari teased.
"None whatsoever. This is a test run, after all," May tucked her paws behind her back.
"Dream a good dream," Ashe added.
"I'll be more impressed if you can sleep like that," Shannon said.
"Gck, fiiiine, whatever. As long as I get my wish at some point," Pola folded her arms.
Anything I want to, huh? Kayla shut her eyes and laid back. Assuming this even works, that's a fair bit of creative freedom. All I have to do is make sure the others are there, so that they don't disappear.
Silence fell.
It could be anything… I know what I want right now, but it could still go like it went last time… with Mum… and that talk…
Kayla's eyes were shut, and she was fully relaxed. To her, everything aside from her and her bed were present. In a void of night sky and twinkling stars, she lay, warmed by her fluff and blankets.
Mum… I wonder how she's been doing all this time? It must take a lot of effort to not come looking for me. And that human, too… we could be one step closer to finding her…
"I… actually amuses me that she can sleep like this," Shannon admitted. "I could do with that ability."
"It is convenient that she knows Rest. You could call this fate," Ashe giggled. "I doubt she's ever thought much of it."
"Rest… right, the Pokémon move. Why does part of that feel like cheating?" Shannon commented.
"Shh! Keep talking and it might not work," Kari whispered.
"It ain't gonna work anyway, not with May's shitty little excuse for a…" Pola trailed off as a glint drew her eyes.
Sparkling lights were flickering inside the dream catcher, soon followed by a quiet, howling wind. The volume grew alongside the strength of that wind, which was cool and relaxed like a summer breeze. Sparks of electricity made everyone shield themselves, and a moment later, the lights burst into a void of space. It was as if the night sky had been plastered into the space right in front of them, exactly where the dream catcher was.
"Hooooooly fuuuuck," Pola gawked. No one else could utter a word.
"It worked. I-it actually worked. It worked, it worked, it worked! IT WORKED OH MY GODS!" Kari started bouncing. "Kayla, Kayla wake up! It worked!"
"Shh, keep screaming like that and whole academy's gonna hear," Pola slammed her down. "But holy shit, is that actually real? This ain't some dumb prank, is it?"
"That is indeed a Dream Pool," Jirachi confirmed, floating before them. "A gateway to the realm of Kayla's imagination."
"The legends… the lore. They're real," May breathed out. She couldn't close her mouth.
"I believed it the whole time, and yet… seeing it in person… I don't know what to say," Ashe remarked.
Shannon was quiet, glaring with growing intensity. "We should take this seriously. We have no idea what's in there."
"Well I do," Kayla smirked. Kari had woken her up. "I dunno how you did it, but May, I apologize for ever doubting you. Who's up for a little exploration?"
"Me me me!" Kari cheered.
"This is not a walk in the park. We could die in there!" Shannon cried.
"I dunno. I'm the one who dreamt it. Catch you on the flip side!" Kayla cheered, bouncing up.
"Kayla!" he cried as she bounced right in, vanishing into the dark tones. "Ah, I…"
"She's got the right idea! After you," Kari bowed.
"At least someone here knows how to treat a lady," May took her offer, and then leapt in.
"Hey, this ain't your team!" Pola followed after her. One by one, the whole group dove in, and the portal vanished without a trace.
…
For a few moments, Kayla was flying. The night sky texture, now coupled with flowing waves of gaseous lights all a variety of colours, flowed around her. She could feel herself travelling, yet it looked as though she wasn't going anywhere, all until a bright light appeared before her. The light grew as she neared, prompting an eager smile.
She had to shield her eyes as she breached it, but stuck the landing. Her friends landed around her, mostly confused about the whole experience. Kayla made sure that everyone was accounted for, and once Ashe came through with Sprite in her arms, the portal vanished. A small bubble of light was around them, but it didn't look harmful or protective.
"Pool residue," May spoke up, poking a paw through the bubble. It went through as if he bubble wasn't there. "It's residue particles from reality. If Kayla hasn't dreamt of all of us here, then we can remain within this field. Stepping out will cause the atmosphere of the Dream World to take over."
"Meaning?" Shannon asked.
"If we are a part of Kayla's dream, then the atmosphere won't damage us. If we aren't, then we will disappear if we linger for too long outside of the field," May explained. "Items and objects from reality generate this residue, but the residue fields shrink over time. If you forfeit an item, you can generate a bigger field and last for longer."
"You're gonna have to start speaking in Kari so the rest of us can get it," Kari tilted her head cutely.
"If Kayla does not dream us into the Dream World correctly, then we will have a time limit. If you give up an item, you can extend that time limit," May stated.
"Ooh. Good thing this world ain't scary," Kari replied.
"Wait, yeah. What is all this?" Pola raised an eyebrow.
Everything was colourful and somewhat familiar. There were rows of tables, but the tables looked like giant wafers, complete with vanilla and chocolate fillings. A short walk away, a milk river calmly swept between heaped plains of cake, each with their own decorated icing at their peak. In the distance, mountains resembled doughnuts, cookies, and other baked treats. Everything was laid out in similar fashion to RSE Academy.
"Wait… is all this… actually?" Kari's cheeks flushed pinker and pinker the more she recognised the edible nature around her. Everything smelt as sugary as expected, while walking was a little nerve-wracking due to the softness of the cake floor, but it held them all just fine. The only thing that looked as ethereal as expected was the pink, starry sky, which had the strange gaseous lights flowing across it that they saw when going in. Even then, the clouds looked like marshmallows, and when squinting, the stars looked like multicoloured drop sweets.
"S-seriously, Kayla?" Pola groaned and slumped.
The Buneary had a big, toothy grin and a bright blush. "I saw Kari get cake service a few times and I was always curious, but too shy to ask, ehehe."
"Aww, that's all?" Kari giggled. "Well now that we have our thing, I don't mind at all! First one's on me?"
"Or we could just eat it here," Kayla said, kicking up a bit of the cake floor into her mouth.
"Wait, it's all real?" Kari gasped.
Shannon dared to test, breaking a bit off the wafer table. "Yep, it's real. A-and… actually pretty good."
"Not you, too!" Pola whined.
Kari let out a feral, shrill squeal and charged off so fast she turned into a blur. The wafer tables were topped with plates of assorted sweets, from gummies to fizzy bottles to more cakes and even creamy goods. Kari dove headfirst into it all, causing an eruption of cream, juice, sugar, and more to splash all over. Despite their distance, everyone shielded themselves, but quickly calmed when they realised it was harmless.
"The fate of Isnomia. Rests on this," Pola gave up.
"Of all the things for you to be a stiff board on!" Kayla set off laughing. "Chill and have a bite!"
"You don't understand the hell you've unleashed," Pola remained slumped. "Have fun stopping her."
"Stopping her?" Kayla cocked her head, and then flinched at the sound of a large spray. She spun back to the wafer tables to find fizzy cola had erupted from the floor, flinging Kari into the air with it. The Furret was cheering and giggling the whole time, and happily fell mouth-first back into the pile of biscuits she'd procured.
"If there's one thing we can agree on, it's that your powers work aplomb. But in this situation, they work too well," May added just as pensively.
"I'm sorry to rain on your parade Kayla, but the sooner we leave, the better," Ashe joined in.
"Fiine," she sighed. "Dunno what you girls are so worked up about."
"Miss Kayla, Kari doesn't know when to stop eating!" Sprite cried.
"That's fine. We'll just take some for the road," she smiled.
"You're forgetting her stretchiness," Pola groaned.
It took a minute for that to soak in, but Kayla's eyes widened. "Wa-wait a minute. You don't mean…"
"Uh, a little help here?" Shannon called out, sounding genuinely worried. Kayla cringed, snuck a cheeky grin at the others, and then hurried over.
It was as bad as she just figured. The Furret had grown huge. In the little minute they'd lounged here, Kari had grown bigger than an Onix. And was still eating. A gorge had been eaten out of the cake floor while one of the tables was completely gone. Shannon was making a helpless effort to pull the fattened Furret out of a pile she'd made.
"K-K-Kari? Uh, that's… what in the world are you doing?" Kayla gasped and rushed over. Kari didn't seem to hear her. She just kept eating, visually growing by the second. "Er, no hands here? I can't pull her!"
"Can't you dream us outta here or something? Try that!" Shannon cried, still trying to pull.
"Oh, right. Do I just like…" Kayla breathed out and shut her eyes. In a moment, another Dream Pool formed below Kari, earning a yelp as her and Shannon fell in. "Oh wow. It really is just like Husk Tunnel. Girls, c'mon!"
Just like that, they were back at RSE Academy, albeit outside their dorm rather than inside. Kayla was surprised to bounce off the giant Furret rather than land on solid ground. Thankfully no one was around to see them, but the way Kari was giggling to herself, they would probably be found sooner or later.
"I was busy there!" Kari whined playfully. "Why'd we have to go home so soon?"
"Uh, 'cos, um- just look down," Kayla grinned and blushed.
Kari was clueless until she looked back at herself. Her cheeks had grown rounder and the centre of her body had taken on a pear-like shape which extended to her tail. Every part of her jiggled as she moved, too. "Aiiieeee! How did that happen? Why am I so?"
"Seriously… we weren't even there long. How did you eat that much?" Kayla snickered, making the Furret moan and cover her face in embarrassment. "It's fine, it's Dream World stuff. It'll go back to normal in a minute, right?"
"We explained this already," May tucked her paws behind her back. Silence fell for a moment, and nothing seemed to be happening.
"Don't tell me," Kayla's chest swelled.
"You dreamt of real items, which were consumed. Their effects will be fully real on Kari," Jirachi stated.
"I know Kari can stretch, but isn't this kinda ridiculous?" Kayla leaned back.
"She literally told you about her eating, too. Only thing we can do is wait for it to digest," Pola palmed her face. "Way to go, smartass."
"But that doesn't make any sense…"
"Sorry, Kayla…" Kari fell flat.
"You said your stomach doesn't grow with you, and no matter big you stretch, you don't actually get any stronger, and you take the same damage, right?" Kayla cocked her head. Kari nodded. "Then it actually doesn't make any sense."
"What're you on about now? You've seen it in action. The evidence is right in front of you," Pola flicked a paw. Kayla paused to think about it.
"If you don't know when to stop eating and your stomach can stretch this much, then it has to be stretching with you. And you can't just like, stretch back to normal size?"
"Well… I can, but if do, it'll really hurt while I have all this food in me," Kari grinned.
Kari fattened herself into a giant by eating more than her body size, but if she's serious that she doesn't physically get stronger or more defensive… then maybe it's a mental thing? It just doesn't make any sense. Stretching doesn't work that way, Kayla started tapping her feet. This also happened because I dreamt of real food. If I dreamt of magical food that could turn her back to normal, I wonder if that would do anything… or just, if I dreamt of normal sized Kari in general?
"While we have a moment?" May got everyone's attention. She was climbing back into Kayla's dorm through the window. "We should start to consider our moves going forward."
"Our moves?" Kayla walked after her.
"When did you get so slow? C'mon, keep up. She means what's our plans," Pola said. It didn't take long to get everyone in the room, but Kari had to peek in from outside.
"Specifically our plans to defeat Mathildaath. We've just proven that the Dream World and its effects are real. Small addition, Kayla can form the Dream Pool wherever she wants whilst in the actual Dream World, without the need for the dream catcher," May continued. "All this means is we can actually confront Mathildaath, which is no small task on its own. Research into Mathildaath is an obvious one. But we should consider how to do this without attracting the attention of the staff at RSE."
"You're procuring weapons and tools for them, aren't you? It's a bit risky, but you might be able to scrounge information from them," Ashe suggested. "I can ask as well. Pretend I'm getting fairy tales for the little ones."
"Oooh, sneaky, I like it," Kari giggled.
"A bit hard for us normal students to get involved here," Pola folded her arms.
"Not quite… Mathildaath's threat is known all over Isnomia, right?" Kayla said.
"Yes, though I imagine most information is stored here. This is the region closest to her, after all," May replied. "Why? What's on your mind?"
"I have a place we can warp where we'll probably find stuff. Big library, travellers from all over the world and all that. I'm pretty sure it's got its fair share of extraordinary Pokémon, too," she suggested. "I think it's worth a quick look. We're free now, so why don't we dive in?"
"I would be game if you, y'know, didn't do that to Kari," Pola huffed.
"Sorry… we can do the food dream again sometime though, right?" Kari replied.
"I thought you hated being fat?" Pola cried.
"When it's this delicious, there are no regrets," Kari went half-lidded, and let out a small belch. "Infinite cake service after that diet you put me on? This stuff's to die for."
"You're shameless," Pola sighed, while Kayla giggled.
"Don't worry. I have a way of dealing with that," Kayla grinned eagerly. And a giant heavy Kari also gives me an idea or two for battle…
"By the way, Ashe, are you coming with us?" Kari asked.
"Yes, I am. I thought that was already determined," the Jigglypuff replied.
"Well… not really. I didn't say anything earlier since it was just a casual dream to test things, but when it comes to actually plotting against Mathildaath? Are you sure you want to come with us?" Kayla cocked her head.
"Kayla… Um, I am the one who put you up to this in the first place. It's not fair to put me out at the starting line," Ashe was surprised.
Kayla hesitated. This Jigglypuff was still frustratingly hard to read. Even what she just said was mixed with tones that implied a number of things. Annoyance, authority, surprise, disappointment, and even a bit of sadness. Staring now, Ashe was no less delicate than ever, like she couldn't so much as brush a Joltik.
"If you are worried about me, please don't be. I can defend myself, and will be sure to use moves that stay out of your way," Ashe proposed. "May can attest to my ability. You don't need to worry about me keeping up with you."
"Ashe will prove to be more useful than you'd imagine. Her voice is magical, and she also knows songs that cause various effects on those who hear them. I'd advise against those unless you plan to make her a team member, however," May clarified.
"So until you become a teammate, your songs will affect both us and the enemies… can you fight without them?" Kayla asked.
"Most certainly," Ashe twisted around to draw her weapon of choice, an Otamatone. Its size and colours implied it could be used more like a club rather than just for music. "Before I became a nursery teacher here, I travelled a lot, I'm sure I've said before. At least, I think… I did it all alone. I can defend myself very well in combat."
"I'll take your word for it. Just a little worried, okay?" Kayla smiled. "And you, May?"
"You needn't ask. I doubt you've forgotten our proposal?" May looked serious when she said that.
"I won't forget. But you have to tell me what it is first," Kayla said.
"In due time," May calmed right down and smiled. "For now, let's focus on this plan of yours to gather information on Mathildaath. I'll take Ashe's position here; you needn't worry about my ability to defend myself in combat."
Not that I'll be dreaming up enemies for us to fight, I guess it won't be a bad idea to have these two on the team for the time being… whatever it is they're after, I'll just have to trust them.