Ange and Munchlax were sleeping soundly, but the Altaria family could not fall asleep.
To be exact, only Swablu's mother was awake.
Diancie had prepared a cozy room for them. The thick carpet covered the floor, and the family of three huddled together under a soft blanket. It was wonderfully comfortable.
Worried that they might still be afraid of the dark after the stormy night, Diancie had left the light on when it left, reminding them they could turn it off if it felt too bright and even showing them where the switch was.
The Swablu and its mate were exhausted and had quickly fallen asleep, their bodies curled up close. But the mother just couldn't sleep.
It gazed out the window at the dark night. The wind howled outside, and the rain pattered endlessly. Its thoughts drifted far away.
It felt like many years ago when it had gone through a night like this. It had lost another battle, and its trainer punished it by making it stand outside without dinner.
That night, it poured. It was cold, hungry, and finally, it fainted in the rain.
If only its trainer had been like Ange, calling it back inside, giving it warm food and a dry place to rest, then maybe it wouldn't have grown to hate humans.
But no such thing happened. In the end, it was another Pokémon from its trainer's team who carried it back inside.
Now, looking back, every memory was still painfully clear.
No one knew how long it took before the first light of dawn finally appeared. Only then did the Swablu's mother drift into a light sleep.
Morning sunlight streamed through the window. A Fletchling landed gently on the balcony railing.
Fle~ Fle~~ Ange, wake up, the sun's shining on your butt!
Ange opened his eyes sleepily and found that Munchlax was still clinging tightly to his arm. The nightcap that had been neatly on its head was long gone.
Munch~ Munch~ So tasty... I want more...
Whatever it was dreaming about must've been delicious; it kept mumbling nonstop.
Ange gently freed his arm and got out of bed. He walked to the balcony and waved. "Good morning, Fletchling!"
The air after the rain was crisp and fresh. Ange took a deep breath, and his mind instantly cleared.
"Whoa! There's a rainbow!" he exclaimed. Far away, a giant arc stretched from one mountain ridge to the other.
Fle~~
Fletchling flapped its wings joyfully, flying up and playing with Spritzee. They chased each other higher and higher, toward the rainbow, until they disappeared from Ange's sight.
After standing there for a while, Ange dragged Munchlax out of bed and pulled it into the bathroom to wash up.
That little guy could really sleep. Even while brushing its teeth, it was still half-asleep. Ange had to squeeze the toothpaste for it.
When he saw Munchlax almost brushing its nose, Ange sighed. "I was hoping my apprentice could stand on its own soon so I could relax, but I guess it's not going to happen. Someone said they'd work hard just a couple of days ago, and now they're back to their old self."
Munch!!!
Ange's words made Munchlax jolt awake. Its sleepiness vanished instantly. With eyes wide open, it brushed its teeth in record time, ran out, changed into its chef uniform, and even started urging Ange to hurry.
Munch~ Munch~~ Master, hurry up! If you're too slow, I'm leaving without you!
Ange: ...
Maybe because of the rain, few Pokémon came to eat breakfast that morning. Ange didn't mind; it meant he could rest a bit.
After the customers had eaten, Ange asked Diancie, "Did the Swablu family come down for breakfast?"
"They didn't." Diancie shook her head. "They were exhausted last night and probably still shaken. Let them sleep a bit longer."
Ange nodded.
When breakfast was over, he, Diancie, and Munchlax saw the guests off. Vivillon and the Dugtrio brothers also took the chance to leave.
Then Ange put on rain boots and headed to the backyard garden.
Raindrops still clung to the leaves, and the vegetables looked vibrant and tender. Ange couldn't resist plucking a few baby greens, he decided to stir-fry them for lunch.
If he didn't eat them now, they might not stay this fresh later.
He also noticed the tomatoes had started growing, though still green. Thinking about all the dishes he could make with them made his mouth water.
Just a little longer.
The garden was still damp, and the freshly picked greens were covered in soil. Ange carried them to the new pond he had dug and washed them there.
Good thing he'd made that pond; otherwise, the garden would've flooded, and many vegetables might have been destroyed.
After washing the greens, Ange hummed a tune as he walked home. But just as he reached the door, he saw Swablu and its father flying out in panic.
"What happened?" he asked.
Ria~ Ria~
Blu~ Blu~~
The two Pokémon talked frantically. Of course, even if they spoke clearly, Ange wouldn't have understood them.
Diancie came over with a medicine box and said, "The mother is sick, it has a fever."
Ange blinked in surprise. He wasn't sick, yet the Altaria, who was much tougher than him, was? And its mate wasn't sick either!
"Let's go see."
He put down the greens and followed Diancie and the father and son pair into their room.
Inside, the Altaria lay weakly on the floor. Its blue feathers had turned bright red.
Ange reached out to touch her neck; it was burning hot.
Sensing someone's touch, it opened her eyes slightly and gave Ange a weak glance. It didn't even have the strength to glare.
"Diancie, give me the medicine quickly."
Diancie immediately opened the box and handed him fever medicine.
The System had stocked it with both human and Pokémon medicine. It was well-prepared, though not in large supply. Once it ran out, Ange would have to buy more with Happiness Points from the System Store.
He helped the Altaria take the medicine. Afraid it wouldn't swallow, he whispered gently, "Take it, and you'll feel better. Don't be stubborn."
The Altaria was too weak to resist. Its consciousness was fuzzy, and it let Ange feed it the medicine and water.
Then he placed a cool towel on its forehead and wiped its body with alcohol. After a while, its temperature finally began to drop.
When it was done, Ange saw the father and baby still looking worried. He smiled and said, "Don't worry. The fever's already going down, so it'll be fine. Stay with it. I'll get you something to eat, you must be hungry, right?"
The pair nodded and settled quietly beside the mother, watching it closely.
Ange went to the kitchen, steamed a basket of mantou, and washed the baby greens he had just picked.
After cleaning them, he prepared the seasonings: oil, salt, and chicken essence.
He poured oil into the hot pan, tossed in the greens, added salt, oyster sauce, and finally chicken essence before plating.
A simple but delicious stir-fried greens dish was done.
The finest ingredients often needed the simplest cooking. The baby greens he had grown himself were no exception.
He picked up a bite with his chopsticks and tasted it. The flavor amazed him.
Fresh! Tender! Delicious!
No wonder these were grown from seeds bought at the System Shop.
As Ange was about to put down his chopsticks after eating, he noticed Munchlax clinging to the kitchen doorframe, staring straight at him, a suspicious glimmer of drool at the corner of its mouth.
"Munch~" Master, what tasty thing are you sneaking?
It twitched its nose slightly, sniffing the aroma lingering in the air, its expression saying clearly: Don't try to fool me, I can smell it!
Ange sighed helplessly, changed to a clean pair of chopsticks, picked up a bite, and held it out toward Munchlax. "You little glutton, nothing edible can escape you. Here, have a taste."
"Munch~~" Munchlax trotted happily to Ange's side, swallowed the vegetables in one gulp, chewed twice, and squinted with delight.
"Good?" Ange asked.
"Munch~" Good, good.
(ˊˋ) Munchlax looked pitifully at Ange again.
Ange refused, "This is breakfast for Swablu and its father. If you want to eat, I'll make some for you at noon, okay?"
"Munch~" Hearing that, Munchlax stopped pestering him. After all, it was a well-behaved little cutie.
Seeing that the steamed buns were ready, Ange lifted the lid, took them out, placed them into a food bowl, and handed them to Munchlax along with the freshly stir-fried greens. "Good boy, take these to Swablu and its dad."
"Munch~~"
Munchlax nodded, obediently carrying the bowl away.
***
Around one in the afternoon, Swablu's mother slowly woke up. Though its fever had completely subsided, after such a serious illness, it still felt weak all over.
As soon as it opened its eyes, it saw its husband and daughter sleeping peacefully beside it. Seeing their calm expressions, a gentle smile appeared on its face.
It was a smile that Ange, as an outsider, had never seen before.
"You're awake? How do you feel?"
Ange's sudden voice startled Swablu's mother.
Before it could react, Ange's hand was already on its forehead.
"Hmm, the fever's completely gone. Looks like you're really fine now."
Before it could speak, he quickly withdrew his hand.
Swablu's mother: …
"You must be hungry. I saved you some food, wait a bit." Saying that, Ange left the room.
Watching his back, Swablu's mother's expression grew complicated.
Why hadn't the first human it met been someone like him?
At that moment, it finally had to admit that Ange was different from the humans it knew.
No sooner had Ange left than Swablu and its father woke up too.
"Blu~ Blu~" Mom, you're finally awake! I was so worried!
Swablu dove into its mother's arms, rubbing against it affectionately.
"Ria~"
With a face full of tenderness, Swablu's mother lightly patted its daughter with its wings, soothing its fears. Having its mother suddenly fall ill must have frightened it badly.
Swablu's father pressed its head gently against its wife's neck, rubbing affectionately to express its worry and love.
Swablu's mother responded in kind, intertwining their necks. For a while, the room was filled with warmth.
After eating the meal Ange brought, Swablu's mother finally regained its strength.
Bathed in the bright afternoon sunlight, the family of three flew out of Ange's home together.
"Ria~ Ria~"
"Blu~ Blu~"
Their clear cries echoed across the azure sky, bringing a vibrant liveliness to the Nebel Plateau.
"Come visit again sometime!"
Standing at the doorway, Ange waved toward the sky, and in return came the melodious calls of Altaria.
***
That day, Ange invited Barboach and Whiscash over to his house because he had bought some lotus roots from the System Shop and wanted their help planting them in the pond beside his vegetable garden.
Originally, Ange had planned to ask the two to plant the lotus roots in the puddle near their home, but now that he had his own pond, there was no need to go so far.
Standing by the pond, Ange watched as Barboach and Whiscash buried one lotus root after another into the mud. Suddenly, he asked,
"How about you two move into my pond?"
The brothers froze for a moment.
Huh?
Ange explained, "See, your old home's in such a remote spot, you live there all alone. You're both Water-type Pokémon, so it's not easy for you to move around on land, and it's a hassle to come all the way here for meals.
So why not just live in my pond? You can help me plant the lotus roots and clean the pond. When the lotus roots are ready, I'll share some with you as food. The ones I grow taste way better than yours, they are big and delicious!"
Ange thought that ponds needed to be cleaned regularly. Otherwise, the sludge would pile up and make the water shallower and shallower, even clogging the passage that connected the pond to Lake Nebel. Barboach and Whiscash were perfect for the job.
Barboach and Whiscash looked at each other, a bit hesitant.
Ange went on, "Look, my pond has a direct channel to Lake Nebel. If you get tired of staying here, you can go there anytime to relax. Isn't that better than your little puddle?"
This last point finally tempted the brothers.
"Bar~~"
"Bar~~"
At that moment, the Dugtrio brothers popped their heads out of the ground, chiming in to persuade Barboach and Whiscash. They had come again to help loosen the soil and weed Ange's vegetable garden and happened to overhear the conversation.
"Dug~ dug~"
In the end, Whiscash made the decision and agreed to Ange's proposal.
Overjoyed, Ange said, "Whiscash, Barboach, then we're neighbors from now on. Let's get along well!"
"Bar~ bar~~~"
"Dug~ dug~~~"
Barboach and Whiscash nodded, then dove back into the water and continued planting the lotus roots.