"Morpe, Morpe!" Morpeko waved its little limbs around as it accused loudly, its small ears drooping in grievance, though a faint trace of cunning flashed in its eyes.
Looking at Morpeko's empty pouch and its exaggerated angry gestures and expressions, Silas quickly understood what had happened.
Cyclizar must have played a clever trick, using snacks as leverage to push the work onto Morpeko.
With a helpless sigh, Silas stepped forward and rubbed Morpeko's small head. "Alright, alright. Let's go find Cyclizar right now. It has to return all your snacks."
"Morpe!"
Morpeko nodded lightly, suppressing the upward curl at the corner of its mouth.
Picking Morpeko up, Silas brushed off the wood chips on its body and then took out a handful of snacks, stuffing them into its pouch before setting off to confront Cyclizar.
At that moment, younger sister Indeedee beside him leaned in and whispered something into his ear, causing Silas to nod in understanding.
Morpeko might not understand itself, but Silas certainly did.
Morpeko had always been the one to willingly share the food in its pouch. It would never allow another Pokémon to rummage through it, not even Cyclizar.
If Cyclizar had truly snatched its snacks, then what Silas would have seen was Morpeko's Hangry form.
Ever since coming to the ranch, Morpeko had never gone hungry again. It had almost forgotten that it even had another form.
Turning his head, Silas called out, "Morpeko, hurry up."
"Morpeko~" (Silas, wait for me.)
Morpeko hurriedly picked up the snacks it had dropped and ran after Silas in small, quick steps, clutching its pouch with both hands.
After circling the ranch several times, Silas finally found Cyclizar rushing toward him along the path leading to the garden.
The moment he saw Cyclizar, Silas's expression turned stern.
"Cyc?!!"
Sensing something was wrong, Cyclizar slammed on the brakes and stopped steadily in front of Silas.
Its hind legs bent slightly, its body lowered, and its tail stretched straight out. Its eyes darted left and right, looking as guilty as could be.
"Come here."
Silas beckoned.
"Cyc?" (What is it, Silas?)
Cyclizar shook its head, indicating that Silas should just say what he wanted.
The kid had gotten smarter.
"Didn't I tell you to chop firewood? Where did you go?"
At the mention of this, Cyclizar instantly became alert.
It shuffled forward in tiny steps, putting on a flattering grin. "Cyc…" (I was looking for you, Silas. You said you would spend time with me…)
"Tomorrow. I will have time tomorrow." Silas cut it off, then immediately glared at Cyclizar. "Do not change the subject. Be honest."
Seeing that it could not avoid the issue, Cyclizar admitted that it had handed the work over to Morpeko.
It even promised that it would go back and finish the job immediately.
"What about Morpeko's snacks? It said you used snacks to threaten it."
Cyclizar panicked at once. It would never admit to something it had not done.
"Cyc! Cyc!"
"Morpeko is right behind you. You two can talk it out yourselves."
Silas pulled Morpeko out from behind him, where it had been trying to lower its presence. Morpeko immediately put on a flattering smile.
...
By the small wooden bridge, Silas stood on the bridge wearing a mask, giving instructions.
"Morpeko, you go wash Mudsdale's head, ears, and its dreadlocks. Make sure everything is clean, understood?"
"Morpe Morpe…"
Morpeko peeked out from beside one of the Mudsdale, replying weakly.
Cyclizar's laughter rang out nearby, but it quickly stopped laughing.
"Cyclizar, you get moving too. Wash Mudsdale's body, hooves, and tail."
"Cyc…"
One had exaggerated the situation, the other had slacked off. Their punishment was to bathe the Mudsdale.
As the two Pokémon got to work, the clear stream water quickly turned muddy, mixed with large amounts of dirt being washed away.
The three Mudsdale shook their bodies uncomfortably, splashing water everywhere and turning Cyclizar and Morpeko into muddy messes. The two Pokémon pointed at each other and burst into laughter.
"That's enough, you two. Hurry up and finish."
While kneading Litten's ears, Silas did not forget to urge them on.
Once the three Mudsdale came ashore dripping wet, it was Litten's turn.
The Litten brand dryer, with adjustable low, medium, and high heat, was now in service.
"If you two make mistakes again, you will be in charge of bathing the Mudsdale next time as well."
"Morpe!" "Cyc!"
The two Pokémon shook their heads like rattles, clearly unwilling to repeat the experience.
"Alright, you two can go play now."
Holding Litten, Silas walked over to the three Mudsdale. Most of the water had already been shaken off, so now they only needed to dry their fur.
Litten nuzzled Silas reluctantly before lightly jumping onto a smooth stone. The flame orb hanging at its neck glowed with a reddish light.
A warm breeze flowed from Litten's mouth, gently brushing over the Mudsdale's manes. The remaining moisture quickly evaporated, leaving their fur fluffy.
The Mudsdale snorted comfortably and let out a couple of satisfied sounds, as if praising Litten.
Before leaving, Silas reminded them, "Do not go rolling in the mud immediately. At least stay clean for a while."
They agreed enthusiastically, only to forget everything moments later.
Bringing the three Pokémon back to the ranch cabin and letting them play on their own, Silas prepared to make lunch.
Older brother Indeedee came over.
"Indee~!"
Silas paused while tying his apron. "Celebi came last night? And it brought a gift? What is it?"
He had not expected that troublesome little one to be somewhat thoughtful.
"Indee!"
Older brother Indeedee ran off quickly and returned holding a yellow crystal in both hands.
"Crem?"
Alcremie floated over curiously to observe it. Cyclizar and Morpeko did the same.
Morpeko even boldly tried to bite it.
With a crisp crack, the little mouse covered its mouth and ran off. The yellow crystal was far harder than expected. Not only did it fail to bite through it, it even made its teeth ache.
The Pokémon looked at each other and shook their heads. None of them knew what it was.
Then, as if by unspoken agreement, they all turned to look at Silas, the smartest and wisest among them.
"This is a stone. A yellow one. Inside, it seems to be a Mega Stone."
The Pokémon gave him looks that clearly said, tell us something we do not already know.
Stepping forward, Silas touched the yellow crystal with his finger.
[Mega Stone: Please break it open to view detailed information.]
Alright then.
It seemed that the outer yellow crystal had to be shattered before his system could reveal more details.
"Litten."
"Meow!"
The domesticated Litten stepped forward and used Fire Fang on the unknown crystal. The effect was minimal.
"Cyclizar."
Cyclizar used Dragon Tail. The effect was also minimal.
Lunch was completely forgotten as Silas and the group of Pokémon surrounded the yellow crystal, knocking and striking it from every angle.
No matter what type of attack they used, they could not damage it. Not even a small chip could be made. Its hardness was so extreme that it could probably withstand even an extremely powerful explosive attack.
That troublesome Celebi had delivered a truly troublesome item.
Just as Silas and the others were about to give up, a burst of giggling came from the corner. The shiny Celebi had appeared at some unknown time.
(End of Chapter)