Squirrely Sparks: Chapter 4
Part 2: The Hunter and the Casanova

“Holly, my hunny, it’s been such a long time! You’ve changed so much and yet you’re still the beautiful Scholar I know and love. Of course, I can’t forget about Menthe ma chérie, the only one who equals her sister’s loveliness, and yet now looks so much more adult than her sister.”

Holly and Menthe were confronted with a perplexing problem, one that didn’t involve balancing chemical equations or concocting a new potion, nor did it involve anything that could help the former return to her former Meowstic self just like her sister or solve the problems plaguing the locals of the Karakara Jungle. Instead the girls were faced with having to deal with Tabira’s most infamous flirt, a Pachirisu who had learned of Holly’s return and had quickly made his way over to greet them, and he was already hard at work trying to charm the girls into going on a date with at least one of them.

“Patch, this isn’t a good time to talk right now,” Holly said as she rolled her eyes, “Shouldn’t you be focused on preparing to fight Gilgamarsh?”

“Oh, I am, it’s just I’d like to help you with your little, uh, ‘de-evolution’ problem so that you could be back to your strong and majestic Meowstic self again,” the Pachirisu replied, his paws on his sides as he puffed his chest up with pride, “and I, Patch Reeses, will capture that witch who did this to you on both you and your sister’s honor!”

“W-What about Alice? She’s sick because of what her mother did to her,” Menthe spoke, “and that’s not forgetting the totems she stole. Without them, the toxic gases in the caverns would leak into the upper levels and make life hard on those who live here.”

“Oh, how rude of me to forget that darling little Alice, she’s as much an important member of the Scholars as you two are,” the Pachirisu said with a confident smile despite his gaff.

Holly turned her head towards her sister with a baffled look on her face, concerned that she was stroking his ego and allowing Patch to try and get the totems and Madeline back to win them over as a reward. The Meowstic simply shrugged her shoulders in response, but it was enough to let her sister know that she was just trying to get him to go away and couldn’t come up with a better idea to do so.

Fortunately for the two Psychic-type cats, the Pachirisu had begun walking out of the small room they were in, waving and giving the girls a wink for each of them before turning the corner and vanishing from sight.

“Menthe, remind me to help you finish that potion so we can blow him to bits…” Holly sighed at the same time as her sister

“To be honest, I think I may have a better idea of how to deal with this…” Menthe exhaled, “I just hope Ethlyn can be of help to us again…




“Locke? I don't want to fight those minions again. They're too scary…”

“Hunter, they're just globs of mud formed like Pokémon. There's nothing to be afraid of.”


“It's not that. It's just... Back in the cavern, I could sense their pain. It was like they didn't want any part of this. And yet...th-they didn't have a choice. They were forced to attack by that witch. I-I'm sorry, Locke. You can go on if you want, but...just count me out, alright?”


“... Alright, then. You can stay here, if you want. You don't have to be a part of this. No one is forcing you. It's your decision and your decision alone on what you want to do. Just as it's mine to help with taking care of the minions.”


Floating by her lonesome out in the jungle, a Gastly with a pink bow and a feline-shaped haze surrounding her black spherical body reflected on the conversation she had had with her friend Locke. Bothered by the idea of having to fight, she had chosen to sit out the preparations for the fight against Gilgamarsh and his minions and sought to clear her mind of her troubles.

Her wandering took her to a large tree that barely stood out among the dense foliage, hovering up to the highest branch she could find to have some peace and quiet as she gazed upon the panoramic view provided. A thought crept into her mind that wondered if she had seen such wonderful views in her past life as a Sylveon, but she quickly dismissed such ideas as she let out a yawn and began to close her eyes to drift into peaceful slumber.

The tranquility would not last for long, however, as the sound of male Pokémon’s mischievous snickering began to echo through the jungle below, growing louder and closer as time passed, and in one instance replaced with the words “Oh don’t worry my pretty kitties, there’s plenty of me to go around for the both of you.” The Gastly tried her best to ignore the noise and fall back asleep, but the persistence prevented her from resting her eyes, and in grumpy retaliation she summoned a blue flame and hurled it down towards the source of the racket.

The noise quickly became a yelp, but instead of being accompanied by a scream of agony as the fire burned the snickering individual, he merely commented on a close call, wondering if he might’ve wandered too close to where those who planned to fight Gilgamarsh were training before brushing off such thoughts and noting that the more ‘mons doing so meant more opportunities to catch someone named Madeline and wooing Holly and Menthe before returning to his obnoxious snickering.

Annoyed by the continuation of the individual’s noisemaking, the Gastly floated down from her branch to find the culprit to be a Pachirisu wearing a cobalt vest with a gray collar. Taking advantage of her approach from behind, she conjured another Will-O-Wisp and announcing her position, launching the fireball so that it caught his face the instant he turned around. She watched as the rodent rolled along the muddy ground to put out the flames and leave his face slightly covered in the mucky substance. He turned towards the Gastly with a disgusted look on his face, bitter that he got mud over the fur on his face, but upon realizing that his assailant was female, his anger quickly disappeared behind a sly grin.

“Why, hello there, you sure have a lot of fire in you, kiddo. I must say, you have such hauntingly gorgeous eyes!”

“Say that again and I will haunt you, literally,” the Gastly grumbled in response to the Pachirisu’s advances, her eyes briefly glowed black with blue outlines before turning back to normal and floating slightly out of his reach.

“Hey, it’s the truth. It’s just too bad you’re a little too young for my tastes,” the Pachirisu nonchalantly replied.

“Just what are you doing out here anyway?”

“Oh, just going on a little stroll to some nearby caverns, nothing unusual.”

The Gastly blinked her eyes and looked behind herself for a moment to see if her friend Locke had returned, “Well, I don’t really much to do,” she answered with a sigh, grumbling to herself to remind herself that he woke her up, “Well, I guess I’ll tag along if you don’t mind.”

The Pachirisu placed a paw under his chin in thought, certain that perhaps just one escort wouldn’t hurt his ulterior motives for his little stroll. “Alright kiddo, you’re in!”

“Thank you so much mister,” the Gastly said with a smile and a nod, “My name’s Hunter, by the way. What’s yours?”

“The name’s Patch, nice to meet ya. So, what's a cute little ghost like you doing floating around here? I'm sure there's a lot of 'mons that need help with all those preparations and such.”

“…I…I don’t like violence...” the Gastly sighed, “I’m not a fighter…Never was…”

“Ya know, as much as that witch needs to go, the only thing I fight for is love. I’ve got better things to do than build weapons.”

“Looks like we’re kinda in the same boat, huh, Mr. Patch?”

“That’s one way of putting it”. A brief moment of sympathy overcame the Pachirisu as he turned his head away from the female Gastly, understanding her motives for wanting to stay out of the coming fracas. Nonetheless, he was happy she could accompany him on his little excursion…



“It’s…huge…” Hunter said with an awestruck look on her face, shaking her head shortly afterwards to snap out of her own daze, “What are we here for anyway?”

The duo stood before the entrance of a dim-shaded salt cavern, much different from where the locals and visiting Tabirans such as themselves resided. Despite the young Gastly’s question, Patch continued staring ahead, muttering to himself of the poisonous gas that lurked inside and how some missing “totems” were threatening the locals.

“Totems?” the Gastly further inquired, staring blankly at the Pachirisu.

“Eh, just a bunch of statues that somehow keep the gas from seeping up into where the residents live,” Patch finally replied, his signature grin appearing on his face once more, “and the one responsible for stealing those totems and turning my hunny Holly into an Espurr is somewhere in there. I’m going to find her, take back those totems, and bring that Madeline creep to justice, in the name of the prettiest kitties in the Scholars Guild!”

“…You really care about Holly that much, don’t you?” Hunter asked, her own grin appearing on her face shortly after, “Is she your girlfriend by any chance?

The Pachirisu turned and placed a paw over his chest with pride, “Believe me, Holly and Menthe are just two of many female suitors I— “

Without warning, the Pachirisu was struck from behind and knocked down to the ground once more as a young Archen with a hat that bared a resemblance to a Honchkrow landed on him, unfazed at the impact as she hopped back on her talons and smiled innocently. Before Hunter could ask if Patch was alright, a trio of female Pokémon consisting of a blue Mienfoo, an Sylveon with a bell attached to her left ear, and a freckled Fennekin emerged from around the bend.

“August, please don’t run off so fast,” the Mienfoo said, “your uncle would be upset if we lost you!”

The trio soon turned their attention towards Patch as he quickly rose to his feet and turned around with a sly grin on his face to acknowledged the girls’ presence, the Mienfoo and Sylveon looked on in respective surprise and disgust, recognizing the Pachirisu as he quickly closed the gap between him and the trio and clasped the Mienfoo’s paws.

“If it isn’t my true blue Mienfoo, how wonderful it is to see you again Yang, and you as well Sonya, I must say you look pretty in pink!” he glanced over the Sylveon’s left and gazed upon the nervous Fennekin standing nearby, quickly taking her paw and causing her face to light up pink. “Hello there my fair, freckled Fennekin, I’m Patch, what’s your name?”

“U-u-u-u-m…P-P-Peaches?” the Fennekin peeped.

“Ah, Peaches, a sweet name for a sweet girl,” the Pachirisu sighed as the Fennekin made a soft, drawn-out squeak, “the fire in my heart burns---“

“Okay, that’s enough out of you Patch, we didn’t come here for you to hit on us!” the Sylveon growled as she wrapped her ribbon-like feelers around the Pachirisu and casually tossed him away from Peaches.

“W-we were just making sure August didn’t get into any trouble,” Yang said.

“Ah, so you’re all taking care of the little kid, how sweet of you— “

“Aren’t these the caves where that bad witch Madeline was said to be hiding in?” August inquired.

“Bad witch?” Hunter asked, tilting her head in confusion.

“That’s right, she’s the one that stole the totems,” a male voice called out from behind the trio of girls, “She’s also Alice’s mother, and it’s because of her that she’s in the condition she is now!”

Patch’s eyes widened as the girls made a path for a jet black Umbreon with blue markings in place of the species’ usual yellow colors, the lone exception being the ring that was absent on his long tail. He also sported silver eyes, navy blue markings zigzagging around his ankle and an upside down, hollowed star in place of a ring on his forehead in addition to a silver necklace with a blue dog tag attached to it.

While the Umbreon, Nox, announced his intention to capture Madeline and make her pay for what she had done to her own daughter, Patch glared at the Moonlight Pokémon with extreme envy, seeing him as a threat to his plans despite having the same goal of taking down the renegade Scholar leader. Like it or not, he was going to be teaming up with him for this.

“I’d like to help out,” Hunter said

“W-we’ll help too! I mean, we’ll at least help get the totems back…” Yang spoke.

“Yippee, we get to beat up a bad witch!” August cheered.

“Yeah, we can’t let Patch get all the glory!” Sonya concurred

“S-s-shouldn’t we come up with a plan first?” Peaches peeped, “I-I-It would be bad if we didn’t know what to do…”

“That’s easy, I capture Madeline, you all get the totems back,” Patch interjected, a noticeable disdain in his voice.

“By yourself? Not a chance Patch,” Nox protested, “I’m helping you fight Madeline, you’ll need my strength!”

“Fine, fine, just make sure I get the last blow, got it?” Patch rolled his eyes, prompting Sonya to pout and utter “Glory hog” under her breath

Hunter cleared her throat as she floated up to the entire group, “How about this?  Mr. Patch, Mr. Umbreon and Miss Sylveon distract the witch while the rest of us take the totems. D-does that sound good to everyone?”

Nox and Sonya blushed and turned their head away upon hearing that they would be paired with each other, but the group was nonetheless in agreement to carry out the plan, and as Hunter lit a Will-O-Wisp in preparation to enter the cave, Patch puffed his chest with pride as he lead the group towards the entrance.

“In the name of Holly and Menthe…” the Pachirisu began calling, only to feel a chill in his spine as he realized Nox and Sonya were glaring at him, “...and Alice and the rest of the Scholars, we march!



The cavern’s walls were lined with vents that periodically spewed toxic gas, the same substance that had made Alice sick and threatened the safety of the locals. Given the harsh conditions that would’ve been created by the fumes, it was a wonder anyone could be able to hide within the caverns, let alone even breathe without inhaling the toxic air.

Though such conditions presented a threat to Patch and his group, especially since most of them lacked anything that would help cover their mouths in the event they ended up in a cloud of gas, Hunter’s natural immunity to the poisonous mists made her a prime candidate to lead the group through the caverns, taking the time to block as many vents as possible using her Psychic abilities to place several rocks into the vents.

“It’s a good thing Hunter is plugging up those vents,” Yang noted, “We’d be in trouble if we had to exit the caves with all that gas in between us and fresh air…”

“I am a ghost after all, I really don’t need to breathe,” Hunter commented, “I’m just doing what I can to— “

“H-Help m-me…” a feminine voice wheezed loudly, accompanied by several loud coughs that made everyone flinch and wonder who was rasping for help.

“A damsel in distress!” Patch cried, swiftly bolting ahead of the group despite their protests and following the voice until he came across a certain Meowstic Scholar crawling on the ground, who slowly raised her head to look at Patch with sorrowful eyes.

“Menthe, what are you doing here? What happened to you?” Hunter asked as Patch helped the Meowstic back on her feet.

“I-I wanted to avenge my sister and Alice… so I went to take her in myself…” she gasped, “I was so foolish thinking I could take her on…”

“Save your breath, ma chérie Menthe, you’ll ruin that beautiful voice of yours.” Patch said as he comforted Menthe, enjoying the feeling of her tender paws placed in his, which only lasted a second or two before his right was suddenly yanked by a psychic force.

“Yeah, sure, let’s get going before you ruin your own voice, Mr. Patch!” Hunter grumbled as Nox looked on in approval and Patch complained about how the Gastly “had taken lessons from Eth”.

“Wait, please, I-I don’t mind having him near me,” Menthe shouted, a slight blush appearing on her face, “It make me feel…safe…being around him.”

Upon being released from Hunter’s grip, Patch rushed to the Meowstic’s side and took her hand once more, prompting Sonya to point a ribbon at her mouth and make a gagging motion as the other girls stared on in confusion.

“I’ll gladly help in any way I can, Menthe ma chérie.” Patch said as his signature grin appeared once more, Menthe smiling and giggling as she cuddled up with the Pachirisu.

“Can we go now?” Hunter groaned and rolled her eyes at the sight.

“Hold on, something’s not right here,” Nox spoke, placing a paw in front of Patch.

“What’s the matter Nox, jealous that all my hard work courting ma chérie Menthe is paying off?” the Pachirisu taunted, “If you ask me, she’s looking a lot better now that she’s with her Gallade in shining armor.”

“No, I think Mr. Nox has a point,” Hunter said, shaking her head in synch with Menthe nodding hers in regards to Patch’s words, “There’s something not right about Miss Menthe.”

Nox stepped towards Patch and Menthe, who quickly backed up in response. “Patch, you’re forgetting that Madeline can Transform into different Pokémon at will! She turned into Holly when she attacked Menthe, what’s to stop her from disguising herself as Menthe to trick us?”

“Oh please, I know the real deal would never try something like that. Isn’t that right, ma chérie Menthe?”

The instant Patch turned around to face the Meowstic, she swiftly gave him a punch square in the gut, and before long Patch was slumped on the ground clutching his waist as he emitted a high-pitched moan, now certain that this Menthe wasn’t the real deal.

The fake Meowstic smirked and leapt backwards as her body entered a liquefied state, stretching like putty before a black shape with red eyes and a zipper emerged as the white substance disappeared, replaced with a Banette that bared several traits of a Zoroark as part of her body.

“Well, at least I fooled one of you.” The raggedy ghost spoke, “I've heard about this philanderer back in Tabira, but I've underestimated how gullible he is when I turn into one of those Meowstic girls. How pitiful it is to be led by your... well, I can't say in front of a couple of children…”

“I am not a child! I am Hunter of Flowering Hearts!” Hunter snapped as August commented on the witch’s appearance, “You’re in big trouble for stealing those totems!”

“Yeah, and nobody messes with the prettiest kitties in the Scholars Guild and gets away with it!” Patch said, still maintaining his high-pitched voice as the others gave him annoyed faces, “Not to mention I really hate 'mons who make lovely girls like them look bad!”

Rather than listen to Patch prattle any further, Madeline leapt into the air and changed shape once more, taking on the appearance of a Honchkrow as she began to fly away from the group, only for a Grass Knot rope made by Patch to grab her talons and stop her midflight. The standstill lasted as quickly as it began, however, for Patch was unable to drag Madeline down and was instead carried away as she made her escape, pursued by Hunter and the rest of the group.

As Hunter readied a Will-o-Wisp attack, she noticed a shadow moving along the cave walls, completely undetected by the others as it rushed ahead of the fleeing Honchkrow, stopping upon getting a fair distance ahead to fling a glob of mud at Madeline before burrowing into the vents.

The impact sent the Honchkrow off her trajectory, her struggle to regain control causing her hapless Pachirisu hitchhiker to crash through several stalagmites. Sonya, Yang, and Peaches chipped in to help Patch avoid slamming into more of the rocky pillars with their Moonblast, Hidden Power, and Flamethrower attacks respectively. Though the latter’s attack nearly singed Patch’s fur in the process, much to his annoyance, the threat of him being knocked away from his Grass Knot grip on Madeline was averted, and inspired Hunter to come up with a plan to stop the fleeing Honchkrow.

Mustering up as much Psychic energy as she could, the Gastly grabbed several broken stalagmite pieces and flung them at Madeline like missiles, taking care not to hit Patch in the process. As the Honchkrow focused on dodging the projectiles, Hunter disappeared from sight and reappeared in front of the false Big Boss Pokémon to blast her with a dazzling light, blinding the entire area around them as the sounds of two bodies crashing onto the ground echoed through the caverns.

Hunter huffed and puffed as she reappeared, certain that this time Madeline was down for sure. As the light dimmed, however, she and the rest of the group found themselves faced with a double Patch dilemma.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me!” Hunter groaned

“Oh, so it's not enough that you copy ma chérie Menthe, but now you do the same with my handsome looks?!” growled the Patch on Hunter’s left.

“Oh please, you wish you were as handsome as I am, faker!” the Patch on the right sneered, “This is the look that makes females swoon as I greet them, yours just makes them want to step away as far as possible!”

“Yeah right, my image on a kid's drawing is much more handsome than you, phony!”

“Ma chérie Menthe would never fall for an imitation!”

Hunter rolled her eyes at the sight before turning back towards the rest of the ‘mons that had come along, “Miss Sonya, I hate to say this, but I think you may need to use your Ability to figure this one out.”


“WHAT?! No way, I am not using that ability! Not ever!” Sonya shrieked, a bright blush appearing on both her and Nox’s face.

“Besides, Patch doesn't need Cute Charm to become infatuated with a girl,” Nox agreed, “Madeline would quickly pick up on it.”

“U-Um, I-I might know a solution to this...I-I think…” Peaches peeped, “I-I'm not sure i-if it will work though...” the Fennekin paused to motion everyone closer and whisper into their ears, “W-w-well, w-w-why not ask them something that only the real P-Patch would know... M-Madeline can't know e-e-everything about him in a short amount of time...

“But what do we know about Mr. Patch that the witch doesn't?” Hunter murmured “I don't even know him at all!”

“W-well, we do know about his lifestyle, so maybe we should ask something specific about it? Like who was the first 'mon in Tabira he flirted with?” Yang proposed. “It's worth a try.”

Hunter sighed to herself, hoping that their plan to determine who was the real Patch would work before turning towards the two electric rodents as they stared each other down with sparks crackling off their cheeks.

“Hey, M-Mr. Patch? Do you remember who was the first mon you flirted with? Y'know, when you first arrived in Tabira?”

“Well, it should be obvious, it's Menthe and Holly,” the Patch on the left answered, “The moment I laid eyes on those two Meowstic, well, meow!”

“Wrongomondo, faker,” the right Patch shouted, “the first ‘mon in Tabira I flirted with was Curry! I would know, because I still feel the pain from when hunny bunny's husband Bullet Punched me in the face whenever I’m near him!”

Certain that the fake was the one on the left, Hunter formed a gaseous hand and pointed at the witch, prompting the rest of the group to charge at the fake Pachirisu. An arrow flew past the Gastly’s body as she prepared to attack, and it was only with a last second dodge that Madeline escaped harm, tumbling into Patch as her illusion broke and grabbing him by the neck to try and suffocate him.

Hunter hesitated to attack, concerned about who fired the arrow from behind, and it was all the distraction that was needed for Patch to discharge electricity from his cheeks, creating a blinding light show that forced Hunter to close her eyes in fear of getting hit…



The moment Hunter opened her eyes once more, she was no longer in a cave full of gas-spewing vents with Patch, Madeline, and the rest of the group, but instead in a forest glowing under the light of a midnight moon.  Though the scenery was quite pleasant, the fact she had been transported to this place in the middle of a battle baffled the Gastly, questioning whether this was a dream.

Upon looking down towards the ground, she came upon an even more perplexing sight. Instead of being limbless and shrouded in a gaseous cloud, she now has pink fur all over her body, four elegant legs and two ribbons, one on her neck and another on her left ear, the trademark look of a Sylveon.

A flash of lightning suddenly roared overhead before she could begin searching for answers, causing her to jump just before several forest Pokémon appeared and flew past her in terror as the forest became alive with splashes of orange, red and yellow. Before long, she found herself surrounded by walls of flame, slowly threatening to engulf her just as it had the forest.

Hunter found herself paralyzed with fear and confusion, her body unable to respond to her desire to escape no matter how hard she willed herself to. As she struggled to move, a pair of yellow eyes attached to a dark silhouette emerged from the wall of fire before her, bringing about a jolt of fear and, oddly enough, of familiarity. The silhouette discharged a bolt of lightning from its eyes, striking the Sylveon to the point she quickly found herself barely able to stand before the monster as it creeped towards her with electrified fangs bared, positioning itself to bite down upon her neck.

Unable to fight back, the Sylveon closed her eyes in fear once more, hoping she could wake from this nightmare…



With a loud gasp, Hunter’s eyes shot open, her blurry vision slowly coming back into focus. Gone were the blazing midnight forest and the menacing silhouette that threatened to rend her in two, replaced by a cavern and the watchful eyes of a female Emolga with a cobalt midriff halter and smartly dressed male Minun.

“Are you alright?” the Emolga asked

“I...I think so...other than my head pounding, that is…” the Gastly moaned as she slowly rose back into the air.

“Can you tell us what happened?” the Minun asked, “You don't appear to be hurt, and yet you were unconscious when we got here.”

“I... I remember being in the cavern... Then suddenly, there was this flash of lightning and... everything went dark...” she gasped after a slight pause, “Oh no! Mr. Patch! The witch!”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about him, my sister and Nox went with him after that Zoroark.”

“But how did you find us so quickly?” Hunter asked, just as a male Nidoran with a smaller horn than the norm approached

“It's was all thanks to Daffodil,” the Emolga answered, “His ears helped us locate Patch's voice all the way from the entrance. You’d be surprised how easy it is to find Patch.”

“I-it was nothing...” the Nidoran said, trying to cover the blush on his face.

“A-and that's not all, Hunter, look over here!”

Hunter turned to find Yang, Sonya, August, and Peaches gathered around (and in August’s case, playing with) several wooden poles. Despite not knowing what they looked like, the fact that the four were standing proudly next to them meant that they had recovered the totems that Madeline had stolen.

“...The totems... You got them all back...without my help...?” The Gastly lowered her head in shame, “I'm sorry... I only wanted to help, but... I ended up making a bigger mess...”

Yang approached the disappointed Gastly, “O-oh no, you most certainly helped. You blocked all those gas vents for us…”

“Y-y-you grounded Madeline and picked out the real Patch” Peaches said with a small smile

“Most importantly, you kept an eye on my friend even though you didn't know us” the Emolga spoke, “I'm glad someone was watching over him, this sort of glory-seeking is the kind of stuff he tends to get in to when I'm not looking after him...”

The Gastly smiled a little upon hearing the others’ words of gratitude, a single tear dripped from her eyes and sniffled, “Th-thank you, guys. I guess I'm not such a burden after all. I'll bet that'll stick a smile on Locke's face when he gets back. I’m glad to be of help to you, Miss…um, I don’t think you ever told me your name…”

“Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Ethlyn, I'm a friend of Patch's.”


“Nice to meet you, Miss Ethlyn.” The Gastly smiled, “My name is Hunter.”

“Oh, no need to be so formal,” the Emolga giggled to herself, “I must say, that bow looks really cute on you.”

“Thanks, and I love those earrings you have.”

A comical scream of agony echoed through the caverns, changing the conversation from admiration for each other’s accessories to concern for the wellbeing of Patch. Their worries were quickly put to rest, however, as Patch shortly returned hunched over a sassy looking Plusle’s shoulder, followed closely from behind by Nox.

“Come back here you blasted Banette broad, you’re my ticket to a double date with Holly and Menthe!” Patch spoke in his half-conscious state.

“I should've known this was what you were up to...” Ethlyn sighed and put a palm to her head, “Honestly Patch, one of these days your antics are going to get you killed!”

“Where’s Madeline? Did she get away?” Hunter asked

Well, at least I get to be held by a pretty Plusle as a consolation... *chuckles*

“We would've had Madeline, but she used glory hog and his Grass Knot as a whip and kept us at bay.” Nox growled.

“That last scream was because Nox used his Iron Tail to rescue Patch by striking him. You should’ve seen the indent left in the wall...” the Plusle, Stella, commented, “unfortunately, she used that as a distraction and fled deeper into the caverns.

“But at least we have the totems back, right?” Hunter said

“I suppose what we have will suffice,” Stella’s brother sighed

“B-But... Holly and Menthe...my date! This Plusle is cute and all, but— “

Ethlyn took her Pachirisu friend off Stella’s shoulder and placed him over her own and exhaled, “Patch, you've done enough. The recovered totems shall do for now, and I’m sure the others will put in a good word for your work.”

“If you say so, Eth” he sighed, “Maybe they’ll still…make room for me later…”

As the Pachirisu fell into slumber, Hunter floated down onto Ethlyn’s head and yawned as she curled up. “I'm all tuckered out from that task. I think I'll take a quick nap for a while...recharge my energy...if you don’t mind, Miss Ethlyn…”

“Not at all, Hunter, you’ve been of big help, so it’s the least I can do to thank you,” the Emolga giggled. Though she knew it would take a while for her to leave the caverns and return to where the rest of the Tabirans where staying with the unconscious Patch in tow, it was nice to have a little company for the time being…



Though the putrid air of the Fever Flats still proved bothersome, the atmosphere was an improvement of the caverns and the gases that had been slowly seeping out the blocked vents. It was out among this muck that a sight of interest for both the locals and the Tabirans: a pond full of strange twisted creatures that were the creations of the witch Gilgamarsh known as Marshoids. Though they bared strong resemblance to Goomy and Sliggoo, these creatures were non-sapient, and with their connection to their creator cut off, these Marshoids lacked the magic that gave them life, leaving them as suitable targets for those preparing for the upcoming battle.

During her travels to this place, Ethlyn had allowed Hunter to sleep on top of her head, tucked comfortably in between her ears as she caught up on the sleep Patch had earlier deprived her on to go on the hunt for Madeline. On the other hand, Patch had regained consciousness not long after the trio had left the caverns, remaining as quiet as possible per Ethlyn’s orders so that the Gastly could rest, speaking loudly only to announce their arrival at the pond of the inert Marshoids.

“Hm? That's odd. I don't see Locke anywhere,” Hunter said as she opened one eye, “Maybe he already finished up fighting those monsters. Or maybe he got sent back early.”

“Locke? What does he look like?” Ethlyn asked

“He's an Autumn Form Deerling with a torn flower on his head and these elegant patterns on his midsection. And he has the prettiest pair of eyes you'll have ever seen...silver eyes, to be exact. He told me he was gonna go and fight some of those monsters at the pond, but... I don't see him anywhere.”

“I think I remember seeing him on the shore when I left. He looked pretty exhausted, probably from all that training...

“I guess he's already back at the village by now. I bet he's probably worried about me,” Hunter said as she began floating away from Ethlyn, “I should probably get going and meet up with him. It was nice meeting you two, maybe we can work together again someday!”

The Gastly formed a gaseous hand to wave goodbye to the two squirrels before floating away into the distance, eager to tell her Deerling friend all about her adventurous day. Once Hunter was out of sight, Ethlyn quickly turned towards Patch, startling him for a moment before realizing that she lacked the typical glare she usually gave Patch whenever he got in trouble.

“Now listen Patch, if there's any good news out of this, it's that I was asked by Holly and Menthe for you to do one more thing for them, and they said they'll put more consideration into dating you if you help out with this task.”


The Pachirisu perked up the instant Holly and Menthe’s names were mentioned, his signature sly grin appearing on his face once more. “And what might that be?”

Ethlyn smiled in the most devious manner, knowing what had been planned for the wayward Pachirisu…