Work Text:
Friede’s Shenanigans
Professor Does-Nothing added Dessert King
Professor Does-Nothing added Super Fishing
Professor Does-Nothing added Charizard’s No 1 Fan
Professor Does-Nothing added you
Professor Does-Nothing added Rhydon’s Muscles
You left the group chat
Professor Does-Nothing added you
You left the group chat
Professor Does-Nothing added you
You left the group chat
Professor Does-Nothing added you
Professor Does-Nothing: STOP AMETHIO!
Professor Does-Nothing: There’s a reason
Two-Toned Espurr: You have five seconds before I leave again.
Professor Does-Nothing: White Day
Two-Toned Espurr: Pardon?
Professor Does-Nothing: White Day. The day guys give white chocolates to girls typically in return for Valentine’s Day
Two-Toned Espurr: You mean the day you’re supposed to answer Orla.
Professor Does-Nothing: There’s that too, but it wouldn’t be fair to the other girls if I only gave Orla chocolates
Two-Toned Espurr: Couldn’t you have come up with a better name for this chat? No offense to Dot, but I swear, if that guy reads this behind my shoulder, there will be retribution to pay, Friede.
Rhydon’s Muscles: If Master Amethio swears, he’s serious, Friede
Two-Toned Espurr: Look forward to your pay later, Zirc.
Rhydon’s Muscles: I’m sorry, sir.
Dessert King: Friede was never good with names
Professor Does-Nothing: Hey!
Two-Toned Espurr: I can’t promise I will be available for White Day preparations due to my duties with the Explorers, but perhaps I can assist elsewhere.
Charizard’s No 1 Fan: Will we be using an Explorers’ base like the girls?!
Dessert King: You sound excited, Roy
Charizard’s No 1 Fan: I AM! I’VE NEVER MADE WHITE CHOCOLATE BEFORE!
Two-Toned Espurr: I’ll try my best to procure a base if that is what you need, but I’ll need to know where your ship will be at that point.
Professor Does-Nothing: Kanto
Two-Toned Espurr: You sound sure.
Professor Does-Nothing: Well, there are two reasons
Professor Does-Nothing: First, there’s a job I’ll be taking up to help our funds. Don’t worry, it won’t take long.
Professor Does-Nothing: Second, it’s where I first met Orla. She confessed to me in Hoenn, where she moved to after we spent a few years together. If I’m going to answer her, it should be in Kanto, where we both met each other.
Two-Toned Espurr: So you do know how to be romantic. Very well, I’ll try to procure a base for us. In the meantime… For the love of Arceus, change the name of this group chat.
Professor Does-Nothing changed the name of this chat to “Master Amethio and his lowly servants”
Two-Toned Espurr: FRIEDE!
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“So Friede will be dropping by in about half an hour?” Zirc asked as he guided Roy and Murdock to the base Amethio got for them.
“Yep!” Roy cheerfully answered, echoed by his Fuecoco. “He’s finishing up the job right now and will meet up at the base.”
“Gramps won’t be joining us because of how strenuous this would be for him.” Murdock supplied. “So he’ll be buying store-bought white chocolate despite the fact that we offered to help out whenever he needed help. What about Amethio?”
“Master Amethio will come by in a few hours or earlier if he’s fortunate to toss the work to Onia. He’s asked me to help make sugar cookies with these designs cut out.” Zirc answered, holding up a small sketchbook.
“Oh? He’s making sugar cookies like Liko did?”
Zirc nodded. “He wanted to return the effort she put into those cookies, so he looked up some recipes that incorporates white chocolate.”
“Seems suspicious Amethio is focusing on Liko’s cookies.” Murdock teased, at which Zirc laughed.
“Don’t let Master Amethio hear you say that.”
“Is that it?” Roy pointed to the place ahead of them as both men looked up.
“Sure is.” Zirc confirmed.
“Looks like a worn down shed.” Murdock remarked.
“At first glance, maybe. Let’s go inside.” The trio entered the shed, which contained an empty shelf in the back and some storage crates. Zirc moved to a corner and did something that Roy and Murdock couldn’t see. Seconds later, the crates began moving, revealing something that caused the younger Rising Volt Tackler to stare in amazement.
“Is that a secret staircase?” Roy asked in awe.
“Yep! This base is an underground one. So no one can walk in on us unless they know how to get in.” The agent led his two guests down the stairs, revealing a whole floor with plenty of rooms. He described the base as he pointed to some areas. “Those three rooms are the bedrooms. Each room has an attached bathroom, with a shower and bathtub, so you don’t have to worry about someone hogging the toilet. That one is the recreation room. Onia and I would play games while Master Amethio works on the plans and reports. Although it’s called the recreation room, it can also be called the game room due to the number of games in there. You can see the kitchen right there. I tried my best to get anything we might need, but if we are missing something, the town is next door, so we can simply head on there. Over there is a small library. The catalog is very random – we have picture books, biographies, school textbooks, printed research materials, fiction books, manga to name some. Then we have this whole common area to watch something if we need to kill time. What do you think?”
“Don’t tell Friede about the library and I’ll say this is an excellent base.” Murdock complimented. “Did the girls not use an underground base?”
“If I had to assume their location, no. In that area, there isn’t an underground base. The reason this one is an underground base is because the shed was already built when the decision to make a base here was made. Helps with the secrecy, I suppose.”
“This is so cool!” Roy ran around the base, opening doors and seeing the rooms. “The beds are huge!”
“Don’t use the master bedroom, though. Master Amethio has called dibs on it if I were to paraphrase.”
“Aw man. Look, Fuecoco!” The boy’s disappointment turned into more excitement, with Fuecoco following in his steps. The two men opted to leave him be and brought out the ingredients for their respective treats.
“I’ll be making donuts like my niece did.” Murdock started. “She might be open into trying more food, but I don’t want to overwhelm her. Roy is making cake pops, I think.”
“Yep!” Roy confirmed before swiftly moving into the recreation room, causing Murdock to chuckle.
“I know what Amethio is making, but what about you?” He asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Cupcakes.” Zirc shrugged.
“Classic. Good choice. I have no idea what Friede is making, though. I’ll get the oven hated up.” Murdock walked over to the oven as Zirc went to grab some bowls and utensils.
“I’ll get started on Master Amethio’s cookies. Those are pretty quick to make and it would have cooled down enough if Master Amethio wants to decorate them when he arrives.” Murdock nodded and called for Roy to come over.
“Why don’t we work together on your cake pops? Yours take the longest even though we have no idea what Friede is making. If we work together, we would be done earlier.” Murdock suggested.
“Really? Thanks, Murdock! Let’s start!” The two Rising Volt Tacklers began to measure their respective ingredients as Zirc worked with the stand mixer.
“I may offend you with this question.” Zirc began after a moment of silence in the kitchen. “But what was the deal with Orla giving an aluminum foil wrapped cookie?”
Contrary to his expectations, Murdock began to tear up slightly. “Friede destroyed a microwave oven by putting a styrofoam container with aluminum foil inside it.”
“Excuse me?”
“Cool!” Roy piped up before cowering at Murdock’s glare. “I mean, that sucks.”
“For me, maybe. Let’s just say Orla took some parts before we bade farewell to the oven and our funds.”
“I guess Orla is never letting Friede live this down.” Zirc chuckled as he began cutting out designs from the cookie dough he rolled out.
“If it was to ease her nerves before confessing to Friede, I guess I can forgive her for bringing up the incident.” Murdock shrugged as he placed the finished cake batter into the oven. At that moment, everyone’s Rotom Phones went off. “Speak of him and he shall appear. Do you want me to continue cutting that for you? Sure you’ll be gone a few minutes but…”
“Appreciate it. Thanks.” Zirc thanked the chef, who went to check on the cookie dough before cutting it, and went to fetch their guest. Roy and Fuecoco peeked over the counter top and wondered.
“Are these flowers?”
“So it seems. I wonder if Amethio needs help later with these.”
“Do you think he’ll let us help with the icing?”
“Maybe with making it. With Friede around, things are usually a mess.”
“Now that’s just rude.” Roy and Murdock looked up and faced a pouting Friede guided by Zirc, who was holding his hand over his mouth to stop himself from laughing out loud. Friede’s pout didn’t last long as his mouth parted in astonishment. “Woah! Look at this place! You guys just continue to bake. I’ll take a quick tour.”
“Pika!” Captain Pikachu hung onto Friede as the latter began to explore the base.
“Just don’t take the Master Bedroom. Master Amethio has claimed it for himself!” Zirc called out.
“Aw man!”
“That’s what I said!” Roy exclaimed.
“I didn’t do much.” Murdock pointed to the dough. “But hopefully they’re good enough.”
“This is great. Thanks.”
“THERE’S A LIBRARY HERE!” Friede could be heard shouting, causing everyone in the kitchen to laugh. “WAIT, ZIRC! WHY IS THE CATALOG SO STRANGE!”
“Call it years of no one doing a proper organization!” Zirc replied, returning to cutting out the designs.
“NOOOOOOOOOOO!” Friede stepped out of the library. “Do you think Amethio will let me reorganize the library?”
“Kachu…” Cap facepalmed at Friede’s priorities.
Zirc shrugged and Friede went back into the library, presumably to organize the books in his head. Roy and Murdock worked on preparing the donuts, with Zirc helping to cut out the donuts once he was done on his end.
“Should we drag Friede out? We have no idea what he’s going to make.” Zirc suggested.
“After we pop these into the oven, and maybe check on Roy’s cake.” He nodded while Roy finished rolling the leftover dough that couldn’t be cut.
“What are we going to do with this leftover dough?” He asked.
“Make them into small balls and they’ll be our snack once it is done baking.”
“Are we going to have sweets for lunch?”
“How do you think the girls finished their leftover dough?” Murdock laughed. “Just don’t tell Mollie how much is leftover though. She might convince me to make you eat more vegetables.”
“Sure.” Roy dreaded the thought of it. They quickly shaped the remaining dough and placed the goods into the oven alongside with the cookies Zirc prepared for Amethio. At the same time, Murdock brought out Roy’s cake and stuck a toothpick in the middle.
“Maybe a while longer for this cake.” Murdock muttered as he looked at the trace amounts of batter sticking to the toothpick, placing the tray back into the oven to continue baking. “Now let’s get Friede.”
“I heard from Master Amethio about how Friede behaved in bookstores during Christmas Eve.” Zirc said once the three stood in front of the door to the library. “Should I be ready for a catastrophe behind this door?”
“Wouldn’t hurt.” Murdock opened the door and to their surprise, the place was still intact. No books laying around but rather, they’re still on the shelves. Friede stood in front of one of the said shelves, muttering to himself. Cap was on the desk, watching the newcomers enter the library.
“Hmm… If I move The Scientific Diaries there, then maybe I can place Agent × Friends here.” Friede tapped on his Rotom Phone furiously, completely unaware of the amused people watching him from behind. “Wait a sec. If I do that, then this would ruin the section I’ve been working on. Maybe I should look at the other books before taking further action.”
“Or maybe you should just come to the kitchen and start baking.” Murdock suggested in the midst of Roy and Zirc chuckling, which turned to full-on laughter when Friede jumped backwards and hit the shelf. Friede glared at the chef, who raised his hands in surrender. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to startle you.”
“I don’t want to leave these books, though.”
“They aren’t going anywhere. Besides, whatever you’re baking probably won’t take as long as Roy’s to make. You’ll have time to do whatever it is you’re doing.”
“Organizing. I’m bothered with how these books are organized.”
“I did say no one organized these books for years.” Zirc supplied unhelpfully once he stopped laughing.
“Fine, but you’re helping me measure the ingredients.” Friede sighed as they all left the library. “I’m making the same biscuits Orla made for me on Valentine’s Day. Got the recipe from her too.”
“I’m afraid I can’t help.” Zirc apologized. “I need to get started on my cupcakes.”
“You haven’t made your baked goods? What have you been doing before I got here?”
“Making cookies for Master Amethio before he gets here to save time.”
“Huh. That makes sense.”
“Get this, Friede.” Murdock said as he measured the butter for Friede as the latter took care of the flour. “Amethio is preparing sugar cookies.”
“Rare choice.” Friede hummed before stopping himself. “Hang on. Sugar cookies?”
Murdock nodded, causing Friede to spread that idiotic grin that Amethio would’ve hated. Cap even snickered, totally not helping to curb his Trainer’s imagination. “Could it be the little emo Explorer has a crush?”
Zirc choked. “Please don’t say that to Master Amethio. I do not want to be the one who has to dispose your body somehow.”
“C’mon! Sugar cookies? He could’ve chosen something else. There has to be a reason for that.”
“He said it’s because Liko put in the most effort in decorating the cookies with artworks of our faces, so he wanted to return the favor.”
“Or is it?”
“Friede, don’t start a conspiracy theory even though I fully support it.” Murdock said, patting the eager leader while he took out Roy’s cake that had been baked to satisfaction.
“Alright, alright. I’ll drop it for now.” Friede conceded as he began mixing the bowl. “Don’t expect me to give up.”
“Feel free to bring it up when we’re done, but if Amethio is still not here.” Murdock compromised, getting an agreement from Friede.
“By the way, is he making plain cookies or is he also decorating them?”
“Decorating!” Roy helpfully answered as he handed the next ingredient to Zirc, opting to help the Explorer agent since Murdock was helping Friede. “It looks like they’re all flowers.”
Zirc grimaced as the shit-eating grin is back on Friede’s face, but thankfully it didn’t last long as the latter went on to mix instead of starting another conspiracy. Internally, he hoped Master Amethio doesn’t dock his pay if he finds out. The two pairs continued to work in peace, with Friede and Murdock rolling the dough before cutting it out and Zirc and Roy scooping out the cupcake batter into the wrappers that have already been placed into the tray. Cap went to join Rockruff, Wattrel, and Rhydon in a corner far from the kitchen. Once they were done, both batches exchanged places with the ones in the oven, those having been properly baked in the meantime.
“Oh!” Friede pointed to one of the cookies. “I hope that one is a gardenia.”
“Why?” Zirc dreaded the answered but dared to ask anyway.
“Gardenias mean secret love.” Friede giggled as he ate a small donut ball despite it being piping hot. “Murdock, these are good as always!”
“Thanks.” Murdock thanked Friede dryly. “Save some for Amethio. He might be tired when he comes later.”
“I’ll try to.” Friede said as he popped another one into his mouth.
“I’ll just melt some white chocolate here.” Murdock shook his head. “Roy, how about you get Friede and Zirc’s help with the frosting for your cake pops while your cake is cooling down?”
Roy ran off, with Fuecoco trailing after him, before Murdock could finish his sentence, leading to him chuckling softly at the boy’s energy. Watching the chocolate melt, Murdock unconsciously hummed a tune that brought Zirc’s enthusiasm to another level once he recognized it.
“That’s Nidothing’s tune!” Zirc’s head whipped up from the cream he had been measuring. “Are you also a fan?”
“Not as much as you or Liko. I do support her heavily though.” Murdock admitted. “Mind if I ask how you got into Nidothing?”
“Not at all.” Zirc relented as he passed a bowl to Friede, who failed to look like he wasn’t paying attention to the conversation. “I guess it was when I was first starting out with the Explorers, before I was assigned to Master Amethio. I used to do work that nameless grunts do, but while doing such work, I often get ridiculed for being a softie at heart despite my size. I couldn’t even intimidate anyone, so I was deemed even more incompetent. You have no idea how many times I wanted to quit but I couldn’t because I need the money for my family and the Explorers were the first ones to hire me. One day, I came across a streamer who was trying to be successful but based on the comments, it didn’t look like it was going well. However, I could tell this streamer had a goal of making it big like other streamers. Her content also got me interested in spite of the amateur editing. Then again, who starts off as a professional?”
“You got that right.” Murdock laughed. “I guess it was Nidothing?”
“It was Nidothing.” Zirc confirmed. “I left a comment for her, telling her to keep going so that she can make it big. Sure enough, she became popular later on, even though it was because of a blooper. At the same time, I got assigned to Master Amethio. Boy was everyone else surprised a softie like me got to work under an admin. I had a thought when that happened. We both had a big break at the same time, it wouldn’t hurt to keep supporting Nidothing even though she had achieved success in being famous. So, I kept on supporting her streams, paying attention to her content because it could help me someday.”
“That’s quite the story.” Friede commented, leading to Zirc blushing.
“L-Let’s just get back to work.” Zirc stammered, to the amusement of the other adults but no one uttered a word. Instead, Roy and Fuecoco expressed amazement at the cake being crumbled down for the cake pops by Friede. If it were a more morbid situation, there was no doubt the adults in room would be disturbed by such a curiosity. With the frosting done, Roy began combining the crumbles and frosting.
“Woah! It’s all coming together! Isn’t this cool, Fuecoco?”
“Fue!” Both continued to watch the two mixtures being combined as Murdock cooled down the white chocolate he melted for the glaze. Friede went back to the library while Zirc checked on the cupcakes and biscuits, determining they need more time to bake.
“I wish you can help me shape these, Fuecoco.” Roy said sadly as the Fire Croc Pokemon’s evidently won’t be able to shape the cake pops into their desired size, causing said Pokemon to pout in regret. As a compromise, the Pokemon watched his Trainer shape the mixture into small balls before setting the tray full of them into the freezer. Meanwhile, Murdock and Zirc had gotten started on dipping the donuts into the glaze the former had made.
“Can I pack away the ingredients we don’t need anymore?” Roy asked.
“Sure. I’ll point out which ones we still need.” Murdock agreed as he and Zirc were finishing up the donuts, with the agent taking out the cupcakes and biscuits at some point.
Roy picked up some items from the counter top and walked towards where the bags lay, putting them away as neat as possible. He made a few trips doing this. However, on his last trip, he accidentally ignited chaos.
“Ah! Watch out!” Roy, holding a closed bag of flour and thereby was unable to see his partner, accidentally tripped over Fuecoco, who didn’t notice his Trainer approaching. This subsequently resulted in Roy dropping the bag, producing a white cloud of flour when it opened from the impact of hitting the floor. Unfortunately, there was one person who got caught in the crossfire.
“I’m so sorry, Friede!” Roy apologized as soon as he got up. However, Friede didn’t do anything but utter something ominously.
“I see how it is.”
“Friede?” Roy backed away a little scared as Friede got down and grabbed a fistful of flour that had spilled from the bag.
“This calls for some karma!” Friede laughed as he threw the flour towards Roy’s face, leaving him stunned. “Oh the look on your face, Roy!”
Roy broke out of his stupor and returned the favor, starting a flour war with an unfortunate audience in the middle.
“For the love of… Can’t you guys not do this while I’m trying to decorate the donuts?” Murdock pleaded while moving all the trays with the food to the floor for cover, but got no response other than Roy jumping behind the sofa to block Friede’s shot.
“It was nice knowing you guys.” Zirc lamented as he scrolled through his Rotom Phone while squatting next to Murdock, opening the messaging app once he found the frosting recipe he saved earlier. “Time to let Onia know where I kept her stash of Sprigatito photos that I keep taking to curb her obsession.”
“Now is not the time for your death!”
“Pika pika!” Cap also tried to stop the fight from going on further, but it was in vain as he had to evade a shot from Roy, who opened a spare bag of flour that Murdock brought in case it wasn’t enough.
“Here comes the flour version of Ember!” Roy tossed some flour to Friede but the man easily evaded it.
“Missed! Take this! Flour-thrower!” Friede declared as he threw another fistful of flour towards a thoroughly covered Roy, who dodged it…
… Thereby hitting the person who was unlucky enough to be behind Roy at that moment.
“What… is this?” Amethio seethed as clouds of flour seemed to form with each syllable he spoke. Friede and Roy froze in their movements while Murdock and Zirc hesitantly rose from beyond the counter top. Removing his gloves, Amethio dusted off whatever flour he could get off and glared at the two offenders, with Ceruledge providing backup in the form of its extended blades. “Well?”
“Friede started it!” Roy blabbered.
“Traitor!” Friede retorted as he received the full brunt of Amethio’s glare. “Well, how do I start this? Roy accidentally spilled flour over me when he tripped over Fuecoco and I decided to have some small fun?”
“And what part of this is small?” Amethio narrowed his eyes at Friede.
“We’ll clean every nook and cranny!” Friede saluted, which didn’t do much to curb Amethio’s frustration.
“Cleaning supplies are probably in the storage room in the library. However, clean yourselves up before cleaning the whole base.” Amethio said nothing else and went to the master bedroom without greeting Murdock and Zirc, which was fair. Better clean the flour off before it leaves a mess. Friede and Roy scrambled to the remaining bedrooms and took a shower. Zirc went to find some spare clothes for Friede and Roy while Murdock contacted Orla, telling her to expect some laundry. Minutes later, Amethio exited the master bedroom.
“Zirc. Murdock. Apologies on not greeting you upon arriving.” He apologized.
“Honestly, we should apologize for not being able to stop Friede and Roy.” Murdock bowed slightly, Zirc following suit.
“If you were able to stop those two despite of their boundless energy, I’d consider asking you to join the Explorers just to stop Friede for me.”
“Pikachu!” Cap scolded Amethio, as if offended by his remark.
“Thanks for the offer, but I’ll pass.” Murdock chuckled.
“Other than the so-called ‘destroyed’ furniture, was anything else ruined?” Amethio asked as he surveyed the destruction the two missing people left in their wake.
“Thankfully no.” Zirc replied. “The cookies you asked me to make are perfectly fine, sir.”
“Thank you for making them for me.” Amethio nodded. “Once we get this counter top cleaned, could I ask for help in making the icing?”
“I have to make the frosting for the cupcakes, so I can’t help you yet, sir.” Zirc apologized
“I have a few more donuts to decorate, so I’ll help you afterwards.” Murdock said as he brought the trays up, with Amethio and Zirc getting the bowls. Miraculously, none of the food or decorations were ruined from the ‘flour fight’. Thus, it was easy to clean the counter top before proceeding with the work.
“Master Amethio, if I may ask, what happened to the mission you were on?” Zirc asked as he transferred the frosting into a piping bag.
“I left Onia to deal with the aftermath.” Was all he said.
“Aftermath?” Murdock wondered.
“Just some Pokemon Hunters who wanted to get in my way, so I left Onia to deal with the authorities. These are the colors I need.” Amethio muttered that last part while gesturing to a note he was holding to Murdock, who was behind him.
“You can use these food colorings I brought. Liko used them last time so you can be assured on how the colors turn out.”
“Murdock, could you teach me how to pipe frosting onto cupcakes?” Zirc called, holding the piping bag in hand.
“Sure thing!” Murdock moved over to Zirc now that his donuts are done and taught him how to pipe while Amethio separated the icing into smaller bowls. At that moment, someone stepped out from one of the bedrooms.
“Is my cake pops ready?” Roy asked as a towel hung over his shoulders, Fuecoco following behind.
“If they can be smoothed out, then they’re almost ready.” Murdock supplied, eyes still watching Zirc as he tried to pipe the frosting without creating a mess. Roy went to the freezer and took out the tray of cake pops. He placed it not too far from Amethio and began making the shapes rounder before putting it back into the freezer to chill longer. Meanwhile, Amethio had finished mixing the colors and started to compare his sketches to the designs Zirc cut out for him. Picking out one flower design, Amethio outlined the cookie according to the template as Friede stepped out of the bedroom at last.
“Amethio? I’m really sorry about making a mess in your base.”
“…”
“Amethio?”
“…”
“He’s not ignoring you on purpose.” Zirc helpfully answered. “He is too far gone into concentration now. I think you should clean up by the time Master Amethio is aware again.”
Friede shrugged and went to get the cleaning supplies, being joined by a waiting Roy. “It’s also my fault this place is messy, so let me help.”
“Alright, bud. Thanks, and sorry for dragging you into this.”
“No, I’m also sorry for continuing the fight. It’s just I never had fun like that before.”
“Tell you what, one of these days, let’s go have some fun on our own without these disastrous results, yeah?”
“Can we bring Amethio along? He seems like he doesn’t know what is fun.”
“If he’s available.” Friede promised. “This time though, it’s totally our fault this mess went out of control. So let’s work hard to clean this place.”
“Yeah!” Roy and Friede traded their signature handshake before the former went off to mop the floor while the latter got to work on the sofas. To their dumb luck, none of the flour ended on the television, though that’s probably the only area that wasn’t covered in flour. The sound of the bucket hitting the floor caused two heads to look up, meeting the gaze of the Explorer agent.
“What? I’m done with the cupcakes and Murdock has kicked me out of the kitchen so he would be cleaning that area himself. I’ll help you clean this side.”
“But you didn’t make a mess.” Roy pointed out.
“I couldn’t stop it though. It’s the least I could do despite knowing trying to stop the fight would be futile due to your unlimited energy.” Zirc shrugged and started scrubbing a door. Friede and Roy turned to the kitchen to see Murdock washing the dishes again. The two winced and silently vowed to apologize to Murdock later.
Some time later, most of the cleaning was done. Friede and Zirc continued cleaning the floor, once the furniture and doors were cleaned, while Roy and Murdock went to decorate Roy’s cake pops. The Pokemon, except for Ceruledge, were presently asleep on one of the cleaned sofas.
“At least you did a decent job at cleaning this place.” All heads whipped to the voice, with the owner of the voice staring at everyone irritated. “Do I have still something on my face?”
“No, it’s not that.” Murdock tried to placate the admin. “We weren’t expecting you to speak after you didn’t hear us address you.”
Amethio raised an eyebrow. “My apologies. I didn’t realize you needed my attention.”
“No worries.” Murdock snickered. “Liko does the same thing when she’s far deep into concentrating. I wonder how you two would be together when concentrating.”
“I wanted to apologize, Amethio.” Friede started, leaning the mop against the wall as he slightly bowed down, before Amethio could ask about the comment. “I never should have gotten carried away with the flour fight and make a mess of the place you helped us to secure for White Day baking.”
“I’m sorry, too.” Roy bowed.
“Roy, you are forgiven. Friede, stay like that for a moment.” Amethio turned to Zirc, handing him his Rotom Phone with a certain application on the screen. “I trust you know what to do.”
“Of course, sir.” Friede wanted to look up but he held the urge in. He could see Zirc’s feet shuffling to the side, but he didn’t know what the man was up to, at least until a sound resonated.
*click*
Friede jolted slightly at the sound and dared to look up. He ended up with an open mouth as Amethio got his phone back and smirked. Seeing him look up, Amethio walked forward and showed Friede the phone.
“It’s a good picture, don’t you think?” Amethio asked. The picture in question was Friede bowing to Amethio, who was blank-faced as always. Without context, however, the interpretations could vary. Friede knew Amethio knew that and boy did he want to throttle the admin no matter how much he agreed this was the least he could do to pay back for the mess. “With this, you are forgiven. Are you done cleaning? Murdock said you need to make the dipping for your biscuits.”
“Just about. I hope you are satisfied with that picture.”
“Quite. It’s not often an enemy apologizes for something. I have leftover icing for your biscuits if you need it. I have finished the outlines and am simply going to color it shortly.”
“Thanks, Amethio.” Friede walked over to the counter top after putting back the cleaning supplies and found a bag of black icing waiting by the biscuits. The Pokemon Professor started on the chocolate coating as Amethio colored his cookies with Roy, Zirc, and Murdock dipping the cake pops in silence, other than the sound of the styrofoam box being poked into by the cake pops.
“Friede.” Amethio spoke.
“Yeah?”
“What was the job you were doing earlier? If you can disclose the information at least.”
“Searching for a lost Pokemon. Turns out it got captured by a Pokemon Hunter.” Amethio froze mid-piping.
“Do you believe the Hunters we encountered before our arrival here are the same?”
“Hard to say. Did you battle the boss?”
“Just a few grunts. One of them tried calling the boss, but they didn’t answer. I assume they got captured elsewhere or the grunt got disposed of for being caught.”
“My guess is the boss got captured.” Friede sheepishly admitted. “I battled one before coming here and left Liko and Mollie to handle the rest.”
“Man, you two are alike at times.” Murdock laughed, ignoring the look he got from the people in question. “I’m guessing you left them to handle it so that Mollie could handle the healing?”
“Got in one.” Friede confirmed. “Liko also wanted to learn how to help Pokemon, so it’s a win-win for everyone.”
“Are you sure Mollie is not exasperated with you for leaving her to do the work?” Amethio asked dryly.
“Maybe she is.” Friede conceded.
“These just need to set and then it can be wrapped, right?” Roy suddenly asked.
“That’s right. In the meantime, do either of you need help?” Murdock turned to the two who still needed to decorate their goods.
“I would like to color these myself.” Amethio politely declined.
“I need to dip these two, so if you feel like doing some more dipping, feel free to help me out.” Friede shifted the bowl with the coating such that it would in reach for other people. A stomach grumbling reverberated around the room before a voice spoke.
“Fue…” A sleepy Fuecoco made his way to kitchen with his hands up.
“I think I should feed Fuecoco first before helping you, Friede.” Roy picked up his partner and went to grab from Pokemon food, giving the Fire Croc one of the leftover donuts as he filled the bowl with food. Zirc and Friede laughed softly at the glutton who was ravenously eating his food once it was presented like there was no tomorrow.
“Ceruledge, are you hungry, too? Roy could feed you if you are.” Amethio prompted his Pokemon. After a moment of pondering, Ceruledge made its way to Roy, who prepared a bowl for the Pokemon once it started approached. “Sorry I can’t feed you myself.”
“Ledge!” As if waving off the apology, Ceruledge also ate its food. Amethio resumed on the cookies while Friede and Zirc proceeded with the biscuits. Murdock sat on the sofa, opting to watch the Pokemon since he finally got to take a break since their arrival.
“Amethio?” The teen looked up and saw Roy shuffling his feet. “Can I use the recreation room?”
“By all means. If you’re not a fan of reading, then maybe the recreation room is for you.”
“Thanks, Amethio! Will you join us when you’re done?”
“If you want me there. I’ll most likely be here working on some Explorers stuff.” He revealed.
“Then why don’t you take a break and play some games with us?” Roy insisted.
“Very well. I’ll see you when I have finished.”
“Yes! One last thing.” Amethio prompted the boy to continue. “Can you speak less formally or use easier words? At least with me if doing it to many people is too much trouble. It’s hard for me to talk to you when you’re all ‘Explorer’ or something.”
“… I’ll think about it.” Roy cheered at the compromise and went to the recreation with Fuecoco, inviting Murdock along the way. Friede and Zirc left for the recreation room as well once they were done, leaving Amethio alone in the kitchen with the sleeping Pokemon and Ceruledge, who gave him a knowing look. Amethio huffed. His Pokemon really did know him well. “I am unsure what to feel about this, Ceruledge. Do you think I’m straying from the Explorers for being closely acquainted with the Rising Volt Tacklers?”
Ceruledge didn’t respond, and kept looking straight at its Trainer. Amethio sighed and said, “Are you trying to tell me this is what having some friends is like?”
“Ceru!”
“This is truly complicated. Is there no manual for this behavior? I am at a loss on how should I act.”
“Ceru!” Amethio looked up and saw the Fire Blades Pokemon pointing to the recreation room.
“I should make the first step in accepting their attempts to be friends with me, shouldn’t I?” Ceruledge nodded. “I suppose I should.”
Meanwhile…
“Murdock? What are these packages called?”
“Those are video games, Roy. I guess your island doesn’t have anything like those?”
“It’s an island. The most high tech stuff we have are Rotom Phones. We don’t even have a school on the island.”
“Right, right. Sorry.” Murdock laughed. “Why don’t you play a board game? Some video games are better played with even more people.”
“If you say so. Is that a snack bar?”
“It is, but I would not advise going there. I’m not sure when was the last time the food was stocked.”
Roy shrugged and looked at the board games that were placed on some shelves. Murdock approached Roy and asked if he found anything interesting to play. The boy pulled one board game for the chef to look over.
“Ekans and ladders?”
“There was a word game but it looked too wordy for me. The others don’t stand out, especially Monopoly.”
“That’s one game you should avoid if you want to be casual. Ekans and ladders also tests your patience, though. Are you sure, Roy?”
“If I don’t like it, I can just switch games.”
Murdock chuckled. “Alright, let’s set up the board. Fuecoco, want to play?”
“Fue!” Fuecoco’s eyes sparkled at the invitation and he hopped to a chair. Murdock grabbed some cushions so that Fuecoco would have additional height to stand on while being able to see the board at a more visible height. He didn’t dare to grab books unless he’s ready to face Friede’s fury, which was never when it comes to books.
“Why don’t you try rolling the dice, Fuecoco? If you can’t then Roy or I could roll for you on your turn in addition to your marker.” Fuecoco agreed and tried to roll, managing to land a roll after tossing a die from each hand instead of the same one. Whatever works they suppose.
“Let’s roll the dice to decide the order.” With agreement from the others, the three player rolled the dice. Fuecoco went first, followed by Murdock, and finally Roy. Rules explained, order determined, the game began.
By the time Friede and Zirc entered the recreation room, Roy was almost winning, with Fuecoco trailing by a few moves. When Zirc searched Murdock’s piece, his eyes bulged by how far at the bottom he was.
“Ekans and I don’t get along.” Murdock shrugged.
“C’mon. I need a seven. Appear before me, lucky seven!” Roy rolled the dice as dramatically as he could – and it answered with a six. “Gah! Please, Fuecoco. Don’t seize this chance away from me!”
“Fue!” Taking the dice from Murdock, Fuecoco sang, “Fue, fue, fuecoco!”
At the last two syllables, Fuecoco rolled a die each. He needed nine to win the game. The first die showed a six. Eyes turned to the second die that finally came to a stop – and showed a three.
“Fue!” Fuecoco cheered while Roy slumped.
“Congratulations, Fuecoco.” Friede congratulated him as he and Zirc applauded the Pokemon, much to his embarrassment.
“Friede? How long have you been here?” Roy asked, completely unaware of their entrance.
“Not that long. Are you guys going to start another round?”
“Nope, this was just to wait for you guys. Murdock says video games are better with more people, so I thought we could play this while waiting for you.”
“In that case, sorry to keep you waiting.” Zirc sheepishly apologized. “How about I recommend a game to make up for it. Revavroom Kart 9 is a racing game but Onia and I compete on it a lot.”
“Sounds like fun!” Roy agreed enthusiastically, prompting Zirc to boot up the game.
Minutes later, the four people sat on the cushions on the floor, with Fuecoco sitting on Roy’s legs. Murdock, after placing a plate of leftover donuts from earlier in front of them, sat on the far left, with Roy next to him. On the far right sat Zirc, with Friede in between him and Roy. When the game menu opened, Roy’s eyes widened.
“You can play as the Gym Leaders?”
“They are the ones driving, along with Rika, Hassel, and Geeta from the Pokemon League.” Zirc explained.
“Makes sense for Poppy to not be added.” Friede commented.
“Why’s that?” Roy asked curiously.
“She’s younger than you. Definitely not old enough to get a license even if this is just a game.”
“Oh… I call dibs on Brassius!”
“Of course you do!” Friede chuckled before noticing Zirc’s look at him. “Roy admires Brassius after meeting him in Artazon some time ago.”
“Cool! There’s a Charizard kart here! Oh but Brassius uses Grass-type.” Roy bit his lip at this dilemma.
“You can always customize later, Roy. We’re here to have fun after all.” Murdock consoled, leading to the boy choosing Charizard as the kart. Looking at the other choices, Friede chose Rika in a Clodsire kart, Murdock opted for Katy in a Quaquaval kart, and Zirc went for Kofu in a Lapras kart. Choosing Levincia as the stage, the four began racing.
Fuecoco cheered for his Trainer, who was in last place mostly due to not being familiar with the controls. He was also hit by some berries thrown by Zirc, who was in third place at the moment. Friede sped up before Murdock could overtake him, but was unable to stop himself from hitting a corner. Murdock overtook his friend while hitting him with a berry for good measure. When Friede was finally able to move, Zirc passed by him, tossing a berry as well, allowing Roy to get third place while Friede was disoriented.
“Really, you guys?”
“You were arrogant.”
“You had your guard down.”
“Zirc helped me. What can I do?”
Friede pouted as he tried to catch up to the others. With Murdock and Zirc, things were tense. Murdock tried to toss berries while Zirc tried to get into the inner lane. At that moment, Murdock noticed something and grinned.
“My gauge is up! Time to unleash it!” Hitting a button on the controller, a brief transition of Quaquaval’s figure appeared on the screen before the other player’s screens were covered by water puddles, effectively blocking their sight temporarily. As a result, Friede crashed into a corner once more while Roy and Zirc slowed down until the puddles were no longer on their screen. Unfortunately, that was all that was needed.
“I win!” Murdock cheered as a “First place” displayed proudly on his screen.
“Not yet!” Zirc bit his lip as Roy, now able to move as he pleased, was creeping up to him. His eyes widened when Roy picked up an item, allowing him to speed up and easily overtake Zirc, earning him second place. Zirc shrugged and took third place without issue. Friede pouted at the implications of the results, staring gloomily at the screen.
“Congratulations on winning, Murdock.”
“AHHHHHH!” Everyone jumped at the sudden voice from behind. Friede clutched his heart while Roy held Fuecoco for protection. Murdock and Zirc raised their respective cushions towards their newest guest, who not only had an eyebrow raised, but also Cap sitting on his shoulder, snickering. Ceruledge stood beside Amethio with Alcremie and Wattrel on each of its shoulders. Rhydon was standing on Amethio’s other side, holding Rockruff. “My apologies. I didn’t mean to scare you. I do regret not getting a picture, however.”
“Couldn’t you have said something?” Friede scolded.
“I did. You simply were too invested in racing to notice.”
“Sounds familiar…”
“Want to join us, Amethio?” Roy invited, holding a spare controller.
“Very well.” Amethio nodded and took the controller, sitting in between Roy and Murdock. Scrolling through the customization menu, Amethio’s choice of kart didn’t surprise anyone. His choice of player did though.
“Larry? Figured you’d go with Ryme as she is the Ghost-type Gym Leader and would go well with your Ceruledge kart.” Murdock remarked.
“Perhaps.” Amethio conceded. “But Larry appears rather… normal, and I need some sense of normalcy. Please tell me, is any part of this normal to you?”
The others acknowledged Amethio’s point and with Larry in a Ceruledge kart, the race began once more with five players. Friede once again took the lead, but with an unspoken agreement from his fellow players, he became the target of sabotage once more.
“Amethio! Dodge!” Murdock called out, allowing the berry to miss Amethio and hit the target, subsequently bumping the two players up a place.
“Thanks!”
“C’mon, Zirc! We should overtake Friede at least.”
“Agreed!” Once Friede was no longer disoriented, he was forced to stop moving again due to being hit by another berry by Roy this time.
“Aren’t we all friends here?!” Friede pouted.
“In the name of racing, friends never existed.” Amethio shot back as he crossed the finishing line, followed by Murdock.
“We’re not losing to Friede!” Roy declared as he crossed the finishing line in third place, with Zirc coming up at fourth.
“I hate you all.” Friede sulked watching his kart come in at fifth place.
“There’s always next time.” Murdock consoled.
“Rematch time!” They continued for a few rounds, with some changes to the customization, such as Brassius using a Sudowoodo kart, Hassel in a Charizard kart, and Iono in a Pikachu kart. The results, however, didn’t change much. Amethio consistently placed first, much to Friede’s chagrin. Murdock, Zirc, and Roy often vary in their final results but their ironclad determination prevented Friede from rising anywhere above last place.
“So you can pilot an airship but you can’t drive a kart?” Amethio mused.
“Drop the innocent act, we all know you guys are envious of my skills. Why else would you want to stop me from getting first?” Friede grinned.
“To stop your ego from getting any bigger.” Amethio started.
“You’re easy to target.” Zirc continued.
“Hopefully to teach you some modesty.” Murdock supplied.
“It’s fun to hit you with berries, Friede!” Roy concluded.
“I need better friends.” Friede muttered. “Why don’t we check on our goods? They should dry up by now.”
Everyone agreed and switched off the game console, heading to the kitchen. Amethio was pleased to see the icing on his cookies dried up nicely and proceeded to wrap them up. Friede went on to write the messages on the biscuits now that the coating had hardened while, Roy, Zirc and Murdock went to pack their respective goods.
“Friede, are you going to pack a biscuit in aluminum foil for Orla like she did to you?” Murdock asked wryly.
“Maybe.” Friede not-so-innocently replied, causing Murdock to sigh.
“Have you come with some grand speech to confess?” Amethio asked.
“Depends on what you consider ‘grand’. I could have prepared something simple.”
“From a simple man like you, I can see that.”
“Did you make anything for your colleagues, Amethio?” Murdock questioned in an attempt to stop a potential argument.
“I bought them white chocolate bars.” Amethio informed the chef. “Their Valentine’s gift was a chocolate bar and a chocolate lollipop.”
“Quite simple yet seems so petty.” Friede laughed as he finished writing the messages. “Now I have to let these dry.”
“The rest of us are done, sir.” Zirc supplied, seeing various wrapped goods on the counter top.
“In that case, Amethio. I need permission from you for something.”
“What is it?” He asked warily.
“May I reorganize the library here? The organization is atrocious!” Friede all but begged the admin, who stumbled backwards unintentionally.
“Go ahead… and he’s gone.” Friede left as soon as he said the first word, leaving Amethio exasperated. “Murdock, do you have anymore donuts? I think I need one.”
“Feel free to finish it up.” He slid the plate over to Amethio, who took a donut, as Zirc and Roy followed Friede into the library. “This might be a late timing to ask, but does this base not have any Explorer uniforms or something? I honestly expected Friede at least to come out looking like a grunt instead of actual casual clothing.”
“That would’ve been amusing but unfortunately if I guessed Friede’s size right, then the uniforms in this case for his size are pretty much torn up due to a Pokemon outbreak two weeks ago.”
“And no one has replenished it?”
“I have sent in a request but it appears no one got to it yet.” Amethio said indifferent. “As for Roy, we rarely have anyone his age. Sure there is the one with the Glalie, but her choices are questionable. At best, I could give him my old clothes but he’d probably feel suffocated.”
“Prim and proper?” Amethio nodded. “He definitely would. Shall we also head for the library?”
“In due time. I need time to steel myself for whatever Friede constitutes as ‘organizing’, if whatever happened on Christmas Eve was any sign.” After finishing up the plate of donuts, the plate was left in the sink and the final two people headed for the library. Amethio sighed upon witnessing the scene in front of him.
“This should go here and these two should be swapped. Oops, this is on the wrong shelf. Where was that book? Wait, why did I put this book here?” Roy and Fuecoco stared at Friede in amazement while Cap and Zirc facepalmed at the man’s enthusiasm.
“Whatever thoughts I had before, I now stand corrected.” Amethio commented as he watched Friede zoom all over the room, slightly wide-eyed. “If I were to dangle a book in front of him, do you think he can outrun an Arcanine?”
“Highly doubtful but interesting thought.” Murdock chuckled. The two settled with the other occupants of the room and watched as Friede ran around and tripped himself sometimes. At some point, Zirc pulled up a Nidothing video and the group watched it while tossing occasional glances at Friede.
“Valentine’s Day may be a day of love for couples, but it shouldn’t just have to be couples. You can show your love to your friends, family, and even your Pokemon!” Nidothing happily encouraged in the video.
“Quaxly!” Quaxly piped up in support while eating a chocolate donut that seemed familiar to Amethio.
“Then there is White Day, which is next month! Don’t procrastinate if you want to reciprocate their feelings! Until next time!”
“That chocolate donut…” Amethio muttered to himself but before he could think further, he was pulled from his thoughts by a loud voice.
“Done! Not too shabby if I must say.” Friede nodded to himself, proud of his work.
“Your biscuits should be done too.” Zirc reminded. Friede swiftly turned around, surprised by an audience.
“How long were you guys here?”
“Are you going to pack your biscuits now?” Amethio questioned instead of answering. “They should be dried up by now.”
“Good point. Mind helping me? If we all work together, we can leave this place earlier if you two have plans.” He directed the last part of the comment to the two Explorers, one of whom shook his head.
“I do not have any plans, but I suspect Zirc would be dragged in by Onia to finish the work from earlier. Nonetheless, I’ll help you.”
“So will I!” Roy cheered, with Murdock and Zirc agreeing to assist as well. Before they knew it, all the biscuits were packed and everyone double checked if they had their goods packed properly.
“You actually packed one biscuit in an aluminum foil.” Murdock sweat-dropped. “It’s for a good cause so I’ll let it slide.”
“I assume the plan is to meet on your airship? I saw where it was docked, so we can meet you straight instead of having one of you pick us up.”
“No problem there. See you all tomorrow.” Friede concluded the gathering.
“See you tomorrow!” Roy smiled.
“See you, guys.” Murdock chuckled.
“Bye!” Zirc waved as he got onto his Skarmory.
“…See you.” Amethio mumbled his farewell, feeling awkward at being informal but it made Roy even happy, so he supposed did something right as he got onto Corviknight.
==========================================================
“Ladies.” Friede started. “I presume you know why we have gathered here today.”
“To see you get married?” Mollie answered wryly, causing Liko and Orla to giggle.
“Sadly that won’t happen for the foreseeable future.”
“We’re here for White Day, aren’t we?” Onia asked.
“Yep! May we present our chocolates to you fine ladies?” Friede made an exaggerated motion of bowing towards the girls which caused Orla to play along.
“Of course, fine sir. Who shall be going first?”
“If I may, I would like to go first.” Ludlow stepped forward. “Unfortunately, I couldn’t do more than buy store-bought chocolate for you and I did not want majority of the work to be done by other people for it would mean I never contributed. Please accept these chocolates.”
Ludlow gave each person a white chocolate bar while Orla spoke. “It’s the thoughts that count, Gramps! You came with something at the very least, showing you wanted to return our feelings. Don’t be too hard on yourself.”
Ludlow laughed and thanked Orla before Roy stepped up with a bunch of bundles of various colors. “I got you a bouquet!”
Roy gave Liko a turquoise bouquet, Orla an orange one, Mollie a pink one, Dot a purple one, and Onia a gray one. Liko examined the bouquet closer and realized what they really are. “Are these cake pops, Roy?”
“Yep!” Roy grinned. Murdock went next, handing a box of donuts each.
“I didn’t want to overwhelm you by making you try something new, so I thought I would lessen the burden by making something you’re familiar with, Dot. Sorry if it seems like I’m copying the idea.”
“Well… The best thing you’ve made so far are donuts, so I’m not exactly unhappy with these.” Dot mumbled out of embarrassment, her voice getting softer with each word spoken. Murdock must’ve heard it if his gentle smile was any sign.
“I made cupcakes for everyone.” Zirc gave his boxes to the waiting girls while Onia giggled slightly.
“Somehow I’m not surprised. These are your favorite desserts after all.”
“Oh shush.” Zirc retorted without malice.
“I’ll remember to make some cupcakes the next time you drop by, Zirc.” Murdock commented as he took out his Rotom Phone, likely to take note of this new info.
“I’ll go next.” Amethio said as he turned to Friede. “You need to go last so that your answer can serve as a finale for today’s event.”
Turning towards Liko, he bowed slightly. “Before I present my gift, I must apologize if it appeared as though I am copying you. My intention for choosing this is simply to return the effort put into making these since I have no doubt you had a difficult time designing too. I got everyone sugar cookies but they’re all different. Instead of faces, I made mine into flowers since I took flower arrangement when I was younger. I may have forgotten a few things but I hope the interpretations go through.”
“Onia.” Amethio started with his subordinate. “These are white chrysanthemums. While these have a very negative meaning elsewhere, my interpretation when giving you these is loyalty and honesty. From now on, I hope I can continue to rely on you.”
“Of course, sir.” Onia took the cookies with a blush.
“Dot. Your cookies are lotuses. While they do mean knowledge, I also want these to symbolize strength and resilience. Embrace your knowledge and resilience as you explore the mysteries of the world with the Rising Volt Tacklers.”
“T-Thank you.” Dot stammered, temporarily caught off guard by the flower sugar cookies presented to her.
“Orla, I got you orange marigolds. These mean happiness and positivity. Regardless of what’s going to come out from the fidgeting professor’s mouth, I hope you could remain happy and positive for your crew mates.”
“Unless something big happens down the road on this adventure, you can count on me to keep smiling.” Orla gratefully took the cookies from Amethio.
“Mollie, I trust you know what these are.”
“Red carnations. Typical flowers to give to a Pokemon Doctor.” Mollie mused.
“The main feelings I want to convey are admiration, courage, and passion. I admire your passion and resolve to heal wild Pokemon that could never reach the Pokemon Centers and for being courageous enough to step out of what you know for your goals.” Amethio handed the cookies to a gently smiling Mollie before facing the last recipient.
“Liko, these flowers are white gardenias and they convey innocence and gentleness. Your feelings for Pokemon reflect the gentle and innocent side of you unseen whenever we clash. You started as the girl who only knew how to run, but now you stand tall with that gentle smile on your face. Will you accept these?”
“Thank you, Amethio. I don’t think you’re copying my idea at all. If it helps, you created the ideas for these cookies yourself and made use of what you learned before.” Liko beamed at the admin, who unknowingly blushed slightly while a certain someone squealed in the background.
“Friede, you’re next!” Amethio pushed the stupidly grinning Pokemon Professor to the front.
“Alright. No need to get pushy. I made biscuits for everyone!” Friede jovially handed out the cookies, with Orla getting an aluminum wrapped one, making her laugh.
“Did Murdock approve of this?”
“Reluctantly.” The chef answered.
“Hopefully you’ll put it in the microwave.” Friede joked.
“As if! Now, do you want to answer me here or in private?” Orla asked.
“Here. Last month, we got exposed because you forgot to put down the phone. Now these busybodies won’t leave us alone even if we tried.” Dot held a Rotom Phone, ready to record the event.
“’You’re going to be a Pokemon Professor and I’m going to be a mechanic!’ Remember those words?” Friede started.
“How could I not? I’m the one who said them to our teacher with that confident grin after you defended me that day.” Orla giggled.
“Back then, people didn’t believe we could achieve our dreams to do something we cherish. The two of us were quite the pair too, when it comes to causing trouble for others I mean. You said you wanted to stay in Kanto to be with me, right? Truth is, I wanted to move to Hoenn to be with you. No matter how much I begged my parents, they wouldn’t let me. Funny how we wanted to be together when we would’ve missed each should both our pleadings work. I never wanted to lose my friend either, so I decided to be annoying and contacted you whenever I could. I’m grateful you decided to keep corresponding with me.”
“Seems like we both really miss each other.”
“I guess so.” Friede laughed. “Now we’re back in the region where we first met, reminiscing the times we had when we were kids. When you made the airship that would bring us to today, I admit I didn’t know how to ask if you would like to join me on venturing the world. Imagine my surprise when you volunteered to join us anyway. At that time, I was happy to begin traveling with my best friend. Now, I hope you’ll accept the message written on your real White Day present.”
Orla took the biscuit Friede offered and smiled after looking at it.
“I love you, Orla. I also don’t know since when, but I also have fallen for you, Orla. Your optimism, positivity, consideration. Everything about you, there’s not a single thing I wouldn’t love. As long as you can accept an idiot like me, I’m forever yours.” Friede stepped forward.
“Yes, you are most definitely my idiot.” Orla closed the gap and the two kissed, to the joy of the onlookers. Mollie smiled at the picture she snapped of the kiss while the majority of people present applauded for the newest couple. Once they broke apart, Mollie spoke.
“Now that everyone has gotten their presents, there’s only one thing left to do.” As one, the girls lined up.
“Thank you for the chocolates!”
“Now let’s take a picture!” Roy suggested. There were no disagreements and they moved to gather for the picture. “One, two, three!”
The picture was almost the same the one they took on Valentine’s Day – with two differences. The first being instead of the guys holding their chocolates, now it’s the girls who are holding their chocolates. The other difference being, instead of forming a heart shape with their hands, Orla got onto her toes and planted a kiss on Friede’s cheek just as the camera went off, surprising him. Once everyone was satisfied with the picture, everyone broke into smaller groups, with Friede getting Amethio alone.
“So… gardenias?” Friede asked, not at all being subtle with his grin.
“I don’t know what you’re getting at.” Amethio deflected.
“If there comes a time when we’re all on the same side, just know I’ll be supporting you two.” Friede winked as Amethio glared at the retreating professor. Before he could join Murdock, someone else talked to him first.
“Amethio, about these cookies…” Liko began.
“Is there something wrong?”
“It’s not there’s something wrong, but I’m wondering if you knew about another symbolism for white gardenias.”
“Judging by your question, I assume you know the meaning as well?” Liko nodded.
“This may be a coincidence but white gardenia is my favorite flower, so I looked it up beforehand. I’m wondering if–“
“I’m going to have to stop you there. I’m sorry but as long as we’re on opposing sides, I can’t afford to hurt you intentionally if I let you finish those words. At best, I want an option to be present in the future, regardless of what might come. Would that be a problem?”
“No. I see your point. Will we finish this conversation if there comes a time for it?” Liko asked curiously.
“If that time comes.” Amethio promised.
“In that case, thank you.”
“You’re welcome."
"One more thing, did you have fun making these?” Amethio contemplated for a moment before finally answering.
“Despite a certain incident, I believe I did. Shall we join everyone else?”
“Let’s go!” The two went to join other groups of people talking about different topics. At that moment, multiple Rotom Phones went off. Without a doubt, it had to be a picture to remember this White Day.