VGS2's notes: Yo! Welcome to this fan-remake of an old fic! :D
For those who aren't in the know, Questing For Respect is an old Pikachu x Buneary Mystery Dungeon fic, made by ravengal. It was a cute little tale featuring a colorful cast of characters, action, fluff and plenty of plot. Despite taking place in the Mystery Dungeon world of Time/Darkness/Sky, it could be enjoyed by pretty much anybody who likes pokémon!
Sadly it was cancelled to be replaced with a complete retooling (which shall also have PikaBun, eventually). I was sad to see the old version go, so I've decided to adopt it, so I can truly flesh it out and make it a grand ol' story! With my own little... additions, of course! :P
For the longer version of events... well, let's just say there's a word from my esteemed sponsor before the first chapter begins…
Heyo! ravengal here. Yeah, surprise! XP
Okay, well… here's the deal. Basically, I've handed 'Questing For Respect' off to VGS2, to do with as he pleases! He has full control of it now!
Why did I do this, you ask? Well, back when I was writing it, I didn't plan it very well at all. Characters, plots, backstories… anything. So I wanted to scrap it and try again. With a brand new title, no less! The old one didn't fit the new plot at all, so VGS2's using it, instead. XP
I'm still planning out the new fic, since it's much more complex than before. Woe is me... XP However, while you wait, maybe this fic can tide you over!
(If you liked the old one, by the way, then fear not! Because I'm not deleting it. Instead, I'll be leaving it up for prosperity.)
As for this fic right here… I gave VGS2 all the info needed for the characters, though he's the one who thoroughly fleshed them out. As you'll see, most of the characters are the same as before, as well as any new ones he's added.
Empoleon and Blaziken aren't here, though, because I wanted to reuse them for my current Mystery Dungeon fic, 'Birds of a Feather'. There, they have much more refined personalities than what they had previously. And it… maaaay or may not have some connection to my reboot. XP
Also! My reboot will have a brand new cast of well thought-out characters! Hence why the old ones ended up here, instead. XP VGS2 didn't want them to be scrapped entirely, so he decided to reuse them!
The plot of this fic, by the way, is veeeery different to the reboot I'm doing. Mine will be a T rating that's mostly humour and romance, while this one is an M rating for… various reasons. XP Here's hoping you enjoy them both!
Chapter One: The New Life
Buneary kept on gripping the sides of the carriage she was in for dear life, as it sped across a meadow. She screamed when the carriage wobbled on hitting something. Hopefully something that wasn't another pokémon. Oh, dear legends, she was going to die a thousand times!
Darn it, why couldn't the rapidash pulling this thing slow down just a little!? Ohh, she was regretting choosing the seat in front...
Quickly glancing at the other seats in this big, fancy carriage with the colors of a rapidash, she saw that things were faring no better behind her. Despite that, the two other pokémon riding along in the back didn't seem to be freaking out anywhere near as much as she was. In fact, things were rather casual, with one pokémon talking cheerily to someone who was minding his own business, glaring at nothing in particular. Yeesh, were everyone's nerves made of iron, but hers!?
After another bump in the road, her attention snapped back forwards. Her eyes widened when she saw something in the distance, past the rapidash's large bum and fiery tail. A very long beach, with buildings of different shapes, sizes and colors dotted about the place.
"Okay! Here we are~!" the rapidash sang energetically. Dash Crash Rapidash, if Buneary remembered her rather worrying title right. "Venture Village! Home of the famous guild~!"
Despite herself, the rabbit beamed brightly. Aha, this was it! Venture Village, the famous beach which had an entire community living on its shores! She was here at last! Now, she could-
As grass met sand under the wheels, the wagon came to an abrupt stop. Buneary screamed as she flew out of her seat and tumbled through the air. She crashed harshly into some soft sand head first, getting buried up to her waist. Oww...
She could hear Rapidash's voice, though it was faint, due to the sand in her ears. "Ohhhh no, no, not again! Oh, you've done it now, Rapidash!" the horse cried in anguish.
Buneary kicked her legs back and forth in an attempt to get free. Shortly after, she unrolled her ear, springing herself out of the ditch to land on her back. Shakily getting to her feet, she looked back at Rapidash, brushing sand out of her fur as she did.
The horse had unhooked herself from her harness, and was running over in her direction. Remembering what had happened the last time Rapidash had run at her, she braced herself with her move, Endure.
Rapidash predictably stumbled and crashed into her again. Grunting in pain, she was only sent back a few steps, powered by her move. Ouch... well, it could have been worse, she supposed. Fool her once...
Shrieking again, Rapidash tumbled about, somehow landing on her hooves to spin on the spot, facing Buneary. Running over, she constantly kept bowing in apology. Her breasts - although concealed and kept together by special fur, like most girl pokémon - bounced around like crazy as she did. It was very distracting. Especially since she looked a lot bigger than Buneary. Hmph...
"Sorry! Sorry! Oh, Arceus, I'm sorry!" she apologized gratuitously. She slapped a hoof to her cheek in worry. "Ohhh, this time, my pretty ass is out on the curb for sure! I just know it! Unemployment time for me!" She began bowing again, faster than before. "So, so, so sorry!"
"I-It's okay...!" Buneary reassured, sheepishly waving her paws to calm the horse. She smiled. "You didn't do it on purpose, so it's all good!"
Rapidash let out a humongous sigh of relief. "Ohh, thank you, thank you!" she said with one final bow.
Buneary felt herself start to get a bit overwhelmed. "Uh, n-no problem!" Oh dear... she was usually shy enough as is, so meeting someone like this was... well, an unforgettable experience, to put it lightly.
Rapidash picked herself up and smiled. "Okay, well, Buneary... places to go, customers to carry across the continent! You know how it is, haha!"
"Oh, okay. Bye, Rapidash~ Thanks again for the free ride!"
"My pleasure! It's the least I could do after... well... you know..." She laughed as loudly as she did awkwardly. She cleared her throat. "Um... if you ever need another ride, just ring the bell by the kiosk and either me or someone else will come running to take you somewhere!" She gestured towards the kiosk in question. A set of stairs with carriages dotted around it, below a signpost shaped like a rapidash's face. "... Um, for money next time, I'm afraid. Y'know, so I don't lose my job."
Oh dear... riding with Rapidash again...
Buneary swallowed down a lump in her throat and nodded, stretching a smile. "O-Okay, cool, thanks...!" she replied.
"Alrighty. Tata~!" Rapidash chimed, running back to her carriage and putting her harness back on.
While the horse began to turn away, Buneary heard the chipper man's voice from the back of the carriage with her sensitive hearing, unseen in his seat. "Oh~ Looks like we're going there now, little monster!"
"Seems like it..." the other man replied in a much deeper, grumpier voice.
"Remember our plan?"
"... To punish pokémon..."
"Good to see you paid attention~" He huffed out an oddly dry sounding chuckle. "Maybe you won't disappoint, after all...!"
"... Hope so."
Before Buneary could hear any more of the conversation, the large carriage sped off, going to places unknown.
Huh... had they been explorers? She'd heard that a part of the job was punishing pokémon for doing bad, so it certainly made sense. Even if the cheery one was being a bit mean about it...
She took a steady breath. Oh man... she'd be doing that soon, too, wouldn't she? Stopping pokémon from doing bad, if she wasn't helping good pokémon, instead.
That was why she was here in Venture Village, after all. To enlist in the village's guild and become a proper explorer.
Buneary shivered lightly, and not only at the cold morning air. Oh dear, but it wasn't just any guild she was going to join. The one she had her sights on was the guild owned by her heroes, Team Destiny. The ones who had saved the planet from total paralysis with the use of the time gears.
She found herself shivering even more. Oh legends, she was going to have a mental freak out today, wasn't she? She just knew it! She was already really shy and timid by nature, so the pressure of not only meeting her heroes, but joining their guild was going to ruin her!
She tried to calm down her breathing, which had started growing frantic. No, no, she could handle this. Sure, she was a known wallflower, back at her old home... but she had to have confidence! If she was going to have any chance of making a name for herself, and getting out of the shadow of her little brother's heroics, she had to push on!
Letting out a long, drawn out breath, she began making her way through the village. Thankfully, it was fairly quiet this early in the morning, so she didn't have to push past many pokémon as she went.
She looked around at the interesting sights as she moved. Wow... this place was a far cry from Tempest Beach, another shoreside village she knew. It was almost like a town! She was very interested in exploring, and getting to know the place!
She let out another breath and shook her head. No, she'd better not. Not until she was enlisted in the guild, anyway. Her nerves were already bad enough as it was, so she didn't want to delay, and risk making things worse.
She stopped in her tracks when she spotted something remarkable in the distance. A large building set in the center of the entire village, shaped after what looked like the head of... a donphan.
Buneary gasped. Oh, that was it! The Donphan Guild!
Readjusting the strap of the treasure bag slung around her shoulder, she hopped quickly towards the building, excitement growing.
When she drew close, she slowed to a walk as she approached its front. Gosh, up close, it was so… intimidating.
It was surrounded by a moat, which seemed to be reinforced with stones. Stretching across the moat was what appeared to be a tunnel, shaped like a donphan's trunk. At the end of it was a big, wooden door, reinforced by iron bars.
She eyed it up, nerves returning full force. So… this was it. This scary building was where it would all begin. Her new life as an explorer. Not part of an adventure squad, like she used to be... but a proper, guild-grown explorer.
She took a shuddering breath as she stood before the door at the end of the 'trunk'. Okay... she had this. After all of her journeying, going across the ocean on the Lapras Travel Liner, staying in a hotel in Capim Town, and finally having the worst experience of her life, travelling on the Rapidash Express... she wasn't going to leave without at least asking!
She took a few tentative steps towards the guild's door, taking another breath. She just hoped their recruitment process wasn't too strict. Her nerves were already utterly shot, so if they didn't think she was capable, or if they didn't like the look of her...
She shivered again. She wasn't exactly the best at the whole exploring business, as her escapades back home would have told anyone... and in entering these doors, she would come face to face with the two most important explorers of all time. The standards were so extremely high! She didn't even compare.
The only explorers she could think of who came close were Team Unity, the rescue team who'd stopped the meteor from destroying everything. Or 'The Angels,' who'd founded Paradise and stopped the Bittercold. Or 'The Happy-Go-Luckies' of the Expedition Society, who had worked together to stop Dark Matter from petrifying the world, and sending it flying into the sun.
As she ran all of this information through her head, she gulped, throat going drier than Thirsty Desert. Ugh… was she really ready for this? Sure, she wanted to make a name for herself… to rise up above her brother's glory, and to become a legendary explorer… but she had such a big bow to fill, figuratively speaking. Would she even stand a chance?
She paused for a while before shaking her head hard and frowning. No. To go home now would be a complete waste of her journey. Not to mention, it would be very awkward to go crawling back home to Chimchar, her brother. She just had to bite her lip and… get to work!
She smoothed out her trimmed fluff which puffed out around her waist, slowly walked up to the door, placed her paw on the rope dangling next to it and, with a deep exhale, pulled it.
A bell could be heard from within the guild. Afterwards… silence.
Buneary waited. Upon noticing the periscope near her, she squirmed uncomfortably. They were probably gazing at her right this moment, weren't they? Analyzing her… Judging her…
She tried hard not to pull a face. Aghh, the whole thing made her feel so awkward and nervous, she could barely stand it!
Still, she could also feel… excitement bubbling up from inside. Soon, in no time at all… she was going to become an explorer herself, wasn't she? Taking on missions, stopping bad guys, and working her way up the ranks.
Maybe even all the way up to Silver Rank, like her brother. Heck, maybe even higher…
A smile worked its way onto the rabbit's lips, though she tried to stay professional by suppressing it. She was probably still being watched, after all...!
Her extended ear pricked when she heard something heavy approaching from inside the guild. As it got closer, she realized that it was footsteps, coming from behind the large wooden door.
Before she knew it, the door slowly began to lower with a noisy rattle.
She stood up straight. This was it! Her moment of destiny! Uh, so to speak. She just had to make sure not to screw it up!
While still slowly opening, the door allowed her a peek through at who was on the other side, looking back at her. It was… a snorlax?
She blinked. Wait… this wasn't the Relic Finder Snorlax, was it!? Donphan's partner, the one who'd helped save the planet from paralysis? Ooh, she was in the presence of a celebrity~! One of her biggest heroes, even!
As the door opened up enough for them to see each other, face to face, her nerves shot up tenfold, nearly making her gasp. Gosh, she'd expected a member of staff or someone similar to answer the door. Not someone as important as him! She wasn't ready! No, not one bit! Eek!
... But… he was so small, wasn't he? Only about four times her size, at most. She'd always imagined him to be way bigger, on account of him being a gosh darn snorlax! They wouldn't even fit in a door this size, normally, and yet... well, there he stood! She'd heard he was thinner and more muscular than a normal one, but still.
Ooh, but he was still as handsome as the book she'd read about his tales had suggested! She'd expected that at least~
She realized that whatever face she was pulling probably didn't look very professional, and immediately tried to change it into a polite smile. "Oh, um… y-yes! Hello!" she called out to him, using every last nerve she had left to avoid melting into a nervous, fangirlish puddle.
"We don't accept salesmen and we don't want any surveys, so you'll have to go elsewhere," Snorlax called out to her. "Goodbye!"
She stared at him, the gears in her head stuttering wildly. Her face fell in panic. "N-No, w-w-wait, I'm not a… those things!" she stammered desperately. "P-Please, I'm only here to see Don- uh, th-the guildmaster, and-"
Snorlax suddenly burst into a fit of giggles, catching her off guard completely. "No, no, don't worry, I'm just joking with you, sorry," he apologized, wiping tears away. "Oh, the look on your face was one for the history books. Haha!"
She stared at him again, blinking in disbelief. After her brain caught on, she pouted hard at him. "H-Hey…! I thought you really meant it…" she whined.
His smile went rather sheepish. "Urk! Um, a-again, sorry…" He rubbed the back of his head. "If it's any consolation, they would have said that and meant it, over at the Wigglytuff Guild. Eheh…"
She tried to avoid pouting even harder. Being pranked by her hero... dang it, what a new low. "Well, I guess so..." she mumbled awkwardly, not daring to argue. After all, she knew better than to argue with such a big hero of hers. Not to mention, he was the vice-guildmaster! What if he kicked her out for real!?
The door fully finished lowering, allowing for entry. "Um… anyway, come on in!" the green bear called out, waving her inside. "We won't bite, I promise!"
She let out a breath and followed him as he turned and went further inside. "Th-Thanks," she mumbled shyly as the nerves in her heart made themselves known again.
Well… he was certainly friendly, at least. She should take it as more of a blessing than a curse. Like he'd said, Wigglytuff's Guild was a place for only the toughest of explorers. At least, according to her book. Maybe it really was a place where they would kick you out on a whim.
She shivered lightly. And to think that she'd considered going there, first.
Once she walked through the door, Snorlax pulled a lever. The door slowly began to close upwards behind them. Really slowly, in fact. Jeez, it sure was sluggish, wasn't it?
Thankfully, Snorlax didn't wait for it to fully close and just began down the hallway formed by the building's 'trunk'. "Well, let's get going, shall we?" he asked.
"Y-Yes, sir!" she replied, following him.
As she followed along, her glee from before quickly built up in her chest again. Being led somewhere by one of her heroes...! Oh, she could faint~!
After a short walk behind Snorlax, Buneary arrived in a large dome-like room. As she entered, she gazed around at the walls in amazement. Whoa… a massive map of the world was coating the wall on all sides. So cool~
An area was marked out, highlighting Venture Village, which was apparently near some place called 'Drenched Bluff', and another place called 'Abundant Pass'. She briefly tried to see if she could find her home somewhere in the Sand Continent. However, she stopped when she bumped into something.
Looking, she saw a small fence with multiple handrails on it, circling around some sort of big hole in the floor with a set of spiral stairs inside of it. Snorlax was already making tracks down it, chuckling at her as he went down.
"Coming?" he asked.
"Oh, um… y-yeah, sorry!" she replied. Pushing her bag up into a more comfortable position, she found an opening in the fence and quickly started down the spiral staircase.
She expected it to be dark lower down, what with everything being underground, and all... but the walls were lined with shimmering jewels that lit the place up. It was so pretty that she couldn't stop staring...
While they continued down the stairs, her attention was suddenly drawn to the massive hole next to her, in the middle of the stairwell. When she peered down and saw how deep and dangerous it was, even with a fence between it and her, she had to grip onto the fence's lower handrail for dear life. Oh, dear Dialga, how far down did this guild go!?
Snorlax chuckled again with a paw casually placed on the higher handrail. "You know… they had to build the stairs extra strong when they dug this place out," he explained, apparently noticing her worry. "All the exercising I do might make me smaller than my mom ever was… but I'm still pretty heavy, y'know. We were afraid the whole thing would crack up when I went walking around."
She screeched in surprise. "I-It's not gonna do it now, is it!?" she cried, gripping onto the handrail with all her might.
He laughed. "Hasn't done it yet, so I'm hoping not!"
She shuddered. That didn't reassure her at all!
"Hey, hey, don't worry, miss," he said, taking on a reassuring tone. "I'm just joking to put you at ease. It won't collapse, I promise!"
"Ohh... you kind of have a funny way of putting people at ease…" she mumbled in reply, displeased.
"Yeah… the guildmaster tells me to cut down on it all the time." He twiddled his claws together. "Um… on that note, please don't tell her too much about my teasing, will you? She can be a bit, um… stern. Eheh."
Letting out a breath, she nodded, smiling lightly. "Okay." Well, she was glad he seemed really friendly, still. More than in the book, even!
Her ear drooped as she considered what he'd said. Speaking of friendly... "Er… she's not too stern, though, right?"
He waved his paws in dismissal. "Oh, no, no, nothing too stern! But, uh, I'd better warn you... if you're not ready for her, um… 'ways', she might come across as intimidating. Scary, even!" He gave a thumbs up. "But don't worry at all! That's just the way she is. Always sticking to saying just what she needs to say. She's actually a caring gal with a very kind heart under that tough exterior of hers!"
"Well… okay," Buneary replied, wondering if she should be comforted to hear that or not. She supposed she would have to see for herself...
As she and Snorlax continued to descend the spiraling stairs, Buneary could see a room approaching. When she descended some more, she got a good look at it. A room bustling with activity.
She couldn't help but look around in amazement. In the large cavern-like room, there were pokémon of many kinds almost everywhere she looked. Most were dotted around in groups, chatting avidly. Many were staring at the various bulletin boards littering the room. Though none seemed to be going near the black one adorned with spikes, for some reason.
An excited smile formed on her lips. It was amazing! There were enough pokémon here to rival the village she'd been born and raised in, back on Wellware Island!
"Say, miss, this is the 'Bulletin Room'!" Snorlax chimed in, catching Buneary's attention. "It's where we post posters for rescue missions, and wanted outlaws. Or maybe some important news. A very important room, indeed!"
"Oh, it sounds like it~" Buneary replied cheerily. Where she'd come from, there was also a bulletin board somewhere in town. It didn't compare to this, though!
"You look like you're wanting to join us, so I guess it's important you know this stuff, huh?"
She nodded gleefully. She stopped with widened eyes when she realized that, due to nerves, she actually hadn't said why she was here visiting Donphan, yet. "Huh? H-How did you know?"
He chuckled. "Well... you sort of remind me of me, before I joined Prodigy Wigglytuff's guild. A big ol' bag of nerves with big aspirations, right?"
"Oh, heehee, okay. I guess so~" she replied, pleased to be compared to such a great guy. She stalled when she thought his words over. "... Wait, or... is that an insult?"
He smirked. "Just an observation, miss!"
Going awkward, she pouted and rubbed her arm. "Aww, I guess, but... did'ja have to phrase it that way? I'm not that much of a big bundle of nerves…" She realized that she'd taken her paws off the handrail during the conversation and immediately grabbed for it again.
The bear chuckled again, louder than before. "If you say so, miss. Anyway, this way, if you please! The place we want is on one of the lower floors."
She nodded, face going red hot. "Okay."
She followed him as he continued down the stairs. As he went along, Snorlax greeted several pokémon who waved to him from the Bulletin Room, or greeted him directly while walking past on the stairs.
While most either didn't seem to notice Buneary, or care enough to pay her much heed, a few pokémon looked at her in intrigue as she passed by them.
Becoming somewhat nervous, she felt the natural desire to hide away. Gulping, she did her best to ignore the feeling and waved at them in what she hoped wasn't too awkward a manner. She didn't look any of them in the eye, so maybe that was asking for too much...
Oh well... she'd try her best to suppress her nervousness. If she didn't, she was going to keep being a wallflower all her life, for sure.
Once on the next floor, she noticed a load of tables and chairs placed about in an orderly manner. In the distance, she could see another room filled with kitchen gear, behind a big counter. Was this where everybody ate?
"Everyone's favorite room, the dining room!" Snorlax said happily, inadvertently answering her question. "Doesn't need much more explanation than that, huh?"
Buneary giggled. "I guess not," she replied. She glanced around, frowning lightly in worry. "It looks like it'll get pretty busy in the hustle and bustle of dinnertime, though..."
"A bit, but don't worry. Everyone'll be too busy eating and wanting to eat to crowd around you all at once, believe me."
"Well… o-okay," she replied, not fully reassured by that answer.
Snorlax started down the stairs again. "Now c'mon, miss! The next floor is the one we're headed to."
Buneary nodded and followed him down. As they arrived on the next floor, she could see lots of tunnels leading to Palkia only knew where. More striking than that, though, was the impressively large door off to the side of the stairs, decorated with carvings and symbols. It was almost like the sort of thing one would see in some ancient, mystical ruins, or something.
"Pretty easy to guess which one is the guildmaster's, huh?" Snorlax joked, making Buneary grin in amusement. "This floor is actually the one where everyone sleeps, but it's also the office for Donphan. And her bedroom, too, I guess. Um, and mine…"
"Oh, okay then," Buneary replied, feeling her nerves start to flare up again. Oh… that meant it was almost time to meet… her.
"Below here is where the toilets and showers are. As well as a secret underground entrance to the bluff. Er, Drenched Bluff, that is. After that, it's just nothing but solid rock and nothing else."
She smiled, slightly pleased at the distraction to her thoughts. "Okay then. This place is really cool! How long did it take to make it all?"
"Honestly, we've been at it ever since we achieved Guildmaster Rank, about... oh, I dunno... six-ish years ago? With a little help from some friends from Post Town, over in the Mist Continent."
"Okay! Fair eno-" Her eyes widened. "W-Wait, what!? How many ranks above Silver is that?"
"Huh? Silver, specifically? Gosh, um…" He rubbed his chin in thought. "About… nine or ten? Something like that, but it's hard to say, since they started bringing in the ones from other continents, too. There's all the 'Secret Rank' stuff, too, if you count it, but that's a whole kettle of fish of its own."
Buneary nearly felt her heart stop. As her brain finally processed the unbelievable information, her ear sprang up. "T-Ten!? Um… wow."
"Not too shabby, eh?" he replied with a chuckle.
"Not at all…" Wow. She had a very big bow to fill, indeed. Silver was the highest rank anybody had ever gotten where she'd come from. She would have to work extra hard in this place!
Getting off the stairs, they quickly moved over to the grand door signifying the guildmaster's room. The room of destiny. ... Um, literally. Eheh...
Snorlax moved over and, after knocking, pushed the door open. "Visitor for you!" he called inside.
"Oh, okay," a deep yet feminine voice called out from within. "Let them in, please."
"Okay!" He indicated for Buneary to go inside. "Here you go."
She thanked him and walked past, into the room. Looking around, she saw all manner of charts and maps littering the walls, as well as the floor in some cases. There were certain board games on stands in some places, too, such as chess, checkers and that shogi thing which was becoming popular recently, from what she'd heard.
She caught sight of shelves lined with trinkets, treasures and other goodies. They were so cool that she had trouble tearing her eyes away. There were things such as a golden box filled with gems, smooth stones with unown patterns on them, a brown rugged rock with a neat pattern inked onto it in white, and some weird… art piece, which had a silver donut-shaped base, a dark pink 'face' pattern on top, and was covered in golden rings.
There were more things to gaze at, but she shook her head and looked away. Her eyes widened in awe when she saw the guildmaster, Puzzle Solver Donphan, lingering near one of the many bookcases lining the walls. She was busy putting a book away with her trunk.
Wow… this was really the Donphan in the flesh, wasn't it? The one who, when she'd been known as 'Puzzle Solver Phanpy,' had travelled alongside 'Relic Finder Munchlax' to the future, and had come back to save the planet from paralysis? The leader of Team Destiny, even?
Gosh… what an honor! Meeting Snorlax had been amazing, despite the awkward introductions, but Buneary was so excited to meet such a cool heroine! Though… it was also very intimidating. She had to make such a good impression to the legendary elephant, and she wasn't sure if she would be up to the task.
No... she had this! For sure!
She took a very deep breath. "H-Hello!" she stuttered. Whoops.
"Hello," Donphan replied, moving over to her desk, which was in the middle of the room. She sat on a chair which crinkled as she faced Buneary, who slowly made her way over to the front of the desk. "How may I help you, little one?"
"I... I'm... here to..." Buneary's throat locked up. Especially as the elephant's glare caught her eye. She could see what Snorlax had meant. She sure knew how to hold a frown.
"… Yes?" Donphan asked, leaning forward in her seat.
"… W-Well… you see, I-I'm…"
"… I suppose you're here to form an exploration team and join our guild. Correct?"
Unable to find the right words to reply with, Buneary nodded enthusiastically.
Donphan smiled, though her gaze looked just as stern as ever. "I see. You're a shy one, aren't you?"
"She's shyer than I used to be, and that's quite the accomplishment, huh?" Snorlax said from the doorway, making Buneary spin around in surprise. Oh, he was still here?
... She pulled a face. Wait, hey, what did he mean by that?
Donphan snorted lightly. "… Correct, but manners, Snorlax," she chided.
Snorlax blinked. "Whoops, sorry," he mumbled awkwardly. "I've gotta work on keeping my inside thoughts from getting outside. Eheh..."
Buneary sighed, shoulders slumped. Ohh, now even her heroes thought she was lame.
"Don't mind him," Donphan said, flicking a light eye roll at Snorlax. "Anyway, did you come here with a partner, by any chance?"
Buneary blinked. "H… Huh?" she muttered.
Donphan rested her trunk on the desk in front of her, in the same way someone would use their arm to prop themselves up. "Somebody to explore dungeons with, and share your explorer rank and treasures with."
Buneary's eyes widened. "O-Oh, you… you mean an… exploration partner?"
"That's right."
Buneary let out a small breath through her nose. "Well… I… used to be in… a squad, but… not anymore, I guess…"
"Ah." Donphan let out a light sigh. "While doing missions on your own is certainly possible, it's… not recommended. Dungeons are filled with all manner of traps, hostile pokémon and the like. If you get hurt, it may take some time for help to arrive, which is no good if you're in the middle of a mission."
"She's right," Snorlax agreed. "You should probably get yourself at least one friend to form a team with, first."
Buneary felt her spirits drop. "Oh… okay," she mumbled. So she needed a partner, after all? It hadn't really occurred to her up until now, but it made sense. Even if she didn't want the chance of becoming the biggest wallflower in history again.
Just where the heck was she going to find a partner?
"Oh well. It can't be helped," Donphan said. "Snorlax?"
"Oh, yes, Guildmaster?" Snorlax asked.
Donphan smirked slightly, though it dropped soon after. "It's fine if you just call me Donphan, you know."
He blinked before chuckling sheepishly. "Oh, my bad. I still slip into that, sometimes. Well, it'll set a bad example if we're not at least a little official, right?"
"Most likely, but I don't mind." She turned to Buneary and smiled. "On that note, we're not as stern as some other guilds, so use whatever names help you feel comfortable. Okay?"
Seeing Donphan smile helped ease Buneary's nerves immensely. Despite the elephant's scary disposition, she really was nice, wasn't she? "Um... yes, Miss Donphan," Buneary said.
Donphan's smile shifted to a small smirk once again. "Somehow, I knew you would pick the polite option." She turned to Snorlax, smirk fading. "Anyway, do you suppose you would be okay to do a mission for me, Snorlax?"
Snorlax made a small hum of surprise. "A mission? Me?" he asked.
"Yes. Please escort Buneary through Drenched Bluff and see what she's capable of. I'll take over sentry duties, in the meantime."
"Well... sure!" he replied happily. "Haven't done an adventure with a newbie in a long time. Should be fun!"
Buneary did a double take. "M... Me, Miss Donphan!?" she yelped.
"You'll be fine, little one," Donphan reassured. "He might not seem it, but out of the two of us, he is easily the strongest."
"A bit of a debate, that one..." Snorlax added with an embarrassed chuckle, "but at the very least, if there's any trouble, I'll deal with it, lickity split!"
Buneary paused, mulling the idea over. Well... in the book that had been written about them, Time & Darkness, they'd gotten through Drenched Bluff super easily. So there wasn't too much chance of her messing things up and ruining her chances of joining, surely.
She smiled. "Um... w-well, okay!" She balled a paw and raised it in a show of determination. "I'll... do my best!"
"That's the spirit! Meet me downstairs, and I'll go get everything ready," he said.
Donphan gathered up an important-looking book and left her desk. "And while you're away, I'll try and figure out a plan of action for your team issue," she said. "A lot of teams are comfortable as they are, right now, but I'm sure I'll think of something."
"Okay! Um, thanks! A lot!" Buneary replied, beaming widely.
"That's okay. Good luck out there."
"I'll try! To, um… be lucky with things!" Buneary replied, face warming at her awkward response. It warmed even further when she heard the two guildmasters chuckle at her. Dang it…
She sheepishly began to leave the room. Feeling the fabric of her bag against her side, though, she stopped. "Umm…" she started, glancing down at it.
"Anything the matter, little one?" Donphan asked.
"O-Oh, er, no, it's okay!" Buneary reassured, looking at her.
"Hmm… it's about your bag, isn't it?" Donphan asked.
Buneary stared at her in surprise. "Wow, how did you know?"
The elephant huffed softly. "You glanced down at it a lot just now. Is it not for exploring?"
"Well… it is, sort of… but it has all of my stuff from home, right now."
"Hm. Understandable."
"Guess that saves us ordering another treasure bag, huh?" Snorlax said in a joking tone.
Donphan grinned faintly. "That it does." She nodded towards the corner of the room. "Leave it there for now."
"Oh… will it be safe, there?" Buneary asked. She rubbed her arm. "I, er… don't want anyone going through it." Not when she had such… personal belongings.
"Don't worry about it. Anybody who looks through it will receive toilet cleaning duties for a week, mark my words."
"Well… okay," Buneary replied, feeling a bit better about it. Well, if the guildmaster was sure about it, then…
"Now come along, miss!" Snorlax said, indicating to outside of the room. "Adventure awaits!"
She beamed at him. "Um, a-aye aye!"
While walking out of the room, as Snorlax held the door open for her, she nearly squealed in excitement. This was it! This was the stepping stone in her new life of adventure, fame and glory!
She was finally going to work towards getting the respect she wanted!
TO BE CONTINUED!
Finished: 24/04 (April)/2020
Word count: 5,867
VGS2's notes: And there you have it! The fan revival of Questing For Respect has begun! :D Hope it's caught your interest so far. Lord only knows if it'll live up to ravengal's older version, but I'm confident that it'll do pretty decently. Hearing about most of the stuff that'll be in ravengal's upcoming remake, though, I think she just might blow me out of the water. XD We'll see, though!
By the way, I'm gonna be giving other people's fics shout-outs in these author's notes! I'll mostly be focusing on fics that feature pokémon as the protagonists, so if you like that sort of thing, be sure to go and read these stories, too! And be sure to review, favourite and/or follow them! Don't be a lurker, now. XP
Today's shameless promotion: Birds of a Feather
Author: ravengal
Universe: Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky
Main species: A torchic (human) and a piplup (partner)
Summary: After the events at Temporal Tower, a born and bred piplup begins to feel a whirlwind of emotions for his best friend and partner, a once-human torchic. This is the tale of how he struggles to deal with those feelings.
Romance: A lot! (Gets on with it fairly quickly, too!)
Wackiness: Not too much! (Fairly grounded with comedic moments dotted about)
Lewdness: None really!
Action: A little bit in the future!
Grittiness: Not much! (Though the Darkrai arc will cover slightly darker topics, as expected!)
Length: Average!
Do you miss Blaziken and Empoleon from the original Questing For Respect? Well, here's where they buggered off to! The fic shows off their adventures in the post-game of Explorers of Sky, so if you liked the game, I think you'll enjoy it! Even if you've never played the game, the fic is easy to follow, and will give you a fluff overdose, believe you me. It's very popular on AO3, so don't just take my word for it! Go and have a heart attack now! :D (Figuratively.)
Fun mistakes of the day:
#1: 'As grass met sand under the wheels, the wagon came to an abrupt stop. Buneary scramed'
(Oh, 'ey up, she's off! I guess this is the end of the fic, then... XD Not a great start to things.)
#2: 'Grunt in pain, Buneary'
(Ohh, she will. Many times...)
#3: 'she hopped quickly towards the building, excitement building.'
(Is that where she's going? The Excitement Building? Sounds like a fun place!)
#4: 'She expected it to be dark, what with bing'
(Buneary doesn't like Microsoft's search engine very much. When she looks for cute pictures of her family, awful things happen if she doesn't turn safe search on, first.)
#5: 'the large cavern-like room, there were pokémon almost everywhere she looked. Dooted around in groups,'
(Stop dooting this instant!)
#6: 'She stalled before running her arm.'
(Is she a robot? Or does she have a bionic arm? If it's the latter, is she going to fight Hitl- Um, 'Master D', at some point?)
#7: '"Oh, okay then," Buneary replied, feeling her nerves start to flair up again.'
(Wrong 'flare'. Unless her nerves really do have some stylish flair.)
#8: 'Bookshelves were also lining the walls, with books'
(What else would they be bloody filled with? Human heads?)
#9: 'Despite her disposition, she really was ice, wasn't she?'
(Ice, ice, baby…)
#10: 'While walking out of them room,'
(Look at this chav over 'ere. Usin' right cockneh slang, innit, guv'nha! Gettin' ready to do 'er chimney sweepin' at five o' bong, she is.)
#11: "Somebody to explore dungeons with, and bunk with at night"
(Ahh, crud. I forgot I changed the lore, so that everyone gets their own room! Err, let's say that Donphan forgot, too, lol.)
Welp, that's it for now! I'm hard at work with this fic, so expect more stuff soon! :D 'Till then, make sure you drop a favourite and/or a review, and I'll see ya soon! Tata for now! c: