Cold Feet in the Cold Copse?

[21-11=10]

Fallen Leaf Copse was not a place Opal had been to before, but the mission she'd accepted had a reward that was too good to pass up. Besides, how would she grow stronger if she never expanded her horizons? The young pup hopped deftly across the set of stepping stones that gave access to the forest ahead. It was such a beautiful forest, with sights and smells she had never before experienced. Autumn certainly didn't look like this in a desert.

As she touched town on the forest floor proper, Opal had a thought. She was looking for a teddiursa, which was sort of brownish. The Copse was sort of brownish, too. Would she be able to find the bear pokemon? After a brief moment of uncertainty, Opal decided that of course she would. Nothing could hide from the tracking power of her nose! She set off along the leaf-carpeted ground, putting her olfactory abilities to work at once.

Mille: 8 Energy
» [19 - 11 = 8 for entry]

Another quadrupedal individual had made the same journey across the stepping stones a few minutes earlier. The Fennekin had a small pack on her back, the frying pan attached to it rattling as she hopped over each of the stones in order to enter the forest.

At this point, Mille had been into Pecha Forest a number of times in search of ingredients. The small forest near Grassveil was an excellent place to gain the berries that it was named for, but Mille was curious as to whether she could get other ingredients from other locations.

As a result, she'd made the trek to Fallen Leaf Copse.


Mille looked around at the trees, all painted in hues of orange and red due to the permanent autumn that seemed to encompass the area. She had to admit it was beautiful and wondered if the permanent autumn was also reflected in bountiful harvests throughout the forest. Mille smiled, pausing to take in the sight for a moment before she moved onwards, her bushy tail bobbing as she scanned the trees and bushes for potential fruits.

Her target smelled like honey, and honey was a sweet and sticky substance, she'd been told. Honey was another thing the growlithe had never experienced. Still, the scent seemed unique enough that the pup foresaw little difficulty in tracking down the runaway groom.

The nature of this mission seemed rather odd to Opal. Wasn't this a bit... personal for Guild business? Relationship problems were something you sorted out by yourself, surely. And if someone had left you, shouldn't you just move on? Oh well, a mission was a mission, and a reward was a reward. Her client must really care if she was offering up a Life Seed. Those were incredibly rare, weren't they?

It then occurred to Opal that perhaps the teddiursa she sought wasn't being unfaithful. After all, who would want a lying cheat? Maybe something had happened to the bear? Whatever the answer, it was Opal's job to find out, and find out she would.

The short trek that Mille had made through the woods so far, unfortunately, hadn't yielded anything that looks particularly edible, much to the Fennekin's disappointment. The thought did cross her mind that perhaps none of the trees here produced fruit, but it was still early days. She might yet find something tasty deeper in the forest.

What she had found though, were a number of dry sticks that would be absolutely perfect for lighting a fire. Of course, the actual lighting part had never been much of a problem for her, what with a permanent Ember at her disposal, but good wood would serve to keep the fire alive whilst she cooked over it.

Mille paused underneath one of the orange topped trees to collect the sticks from beneath it, removing the backpack from her back in order to tuck the sticks and wood into the side. She had been so distracted by packing the wood, that she hadn't noticed the approach of another individual.

Turning around at the sound of pawsteps, Mille spotted a striped individual, a Growlithe, also wandering through the woods.

Opal did not immediately notice the little fox pokemon. Her attention was taken up by what her nose was telling her. There was no honey here, at least not in this part of the forest, but she did smell all kinds of other pokemon, including another fire type, which was rather unexpected. She followed the scent to see who she'd find, and was surprised to come across the fennekin who had also decided to travel to these parts. Why were they collecting twigs, though? There was much more exciting stuff to find!

"Oh, hello! I take it you're looking for something, too?"

The Fennekin couldn't help but smile warmly as the Growlithe spoke to her in such a kind tone. She had half been expecting to have to defend herself, as one always had to be careful when out exploring mystery dungeons. Luckily, that was not the case and Mille padded over to the other pokemon, treading carefully so as to not jostle the contents of her bag.

"Hi!" she began, responding to the Growlithe's greeting as she approached, "Yea, I'm actually here looking for ingredients for my stall. I'm not too sure whether the place actually has anything edible though," she chuckled lightly. "At least, not that I've seen so far. I might be wrong. What brings you here?"

"Well, it's a forest, so there should be berries and things, right? Opal thought out loud, "What kind of stall do you run? I take it you make food? What kind of food? Oo, I should visit it sometime!"

The growlithe grinned and wagged her tail, delighted to have made a new friend and excited at trying whatever her fellow fire type sold. "I'm here on a Guild mission. It's a bit of an odd one, but it will pay well if I find who I'm looking for. He's a teddiursa who was supposed to get married to my client back in Grassveil. I have to find out why that didn't happen."

Frebedor carried out 10 launched of one Fallen Leaf Copse :

, , , , , , , , ,

"That's what I'm hoping for!" the Fennekin grinned at the other's thoughts. If they'd thought the same thing as her, then perhaps there was still a chance to find something good! "I run a pancake stall in Grassveil Town square," she answered the Growlithe's question cheerfully, "So I like to collect fresh berries from places nearby to use as toppings and syrups!"

Mille paused as she realised this was quickly turning into a pitch for her stall and chuckled, "Ah, Sorry! You're welcome to stop by though! If I can find some nice berries in the forest I could even make some right here for you!"

The Fennekin listened as the other explained why they had made their own journey to visit the forest, her curiosity piqued by the Growlithe's job. "I've never met a Guild member whilst they're on a job before," she commented, eyes wide at the idea of seeing how they might complete a request, live in front of her. Mille had a lot of respect for Grassveil's Guild members, as they were clearly well regarded within the town and went a long way towards making the area a peaceful and pleasant place to live. They could also be attributed to allowing her to run her stall in relative peace in a roundabout way!

"I haven't seen a Teddiursa around so far, but I'd be happy to help you look for him, if that's okay? I'll be around the forest anyways looking for berries, so..."

Solilo carried out 8 launched of one Fallen Leaf Copse :

, , , , , , ,

"Well, I'm still pretty new, this is only my second mission. One day, though, I'll be a great Guild member! Maybe even great enough to become the next Guildmaster!" Opal beamed with confidence. She trotted in a circle before calming down a little. "Um, I joined the Guild because I want to help others, of course," she said sheepishly, "It'd be nice to be a renowned hero, but the helping comes first."

The growlithe took another good sniff of their surroundings but could still detect no honey. She turned back to the fox and spoke again, "You're welcome to come along. You help me with my search, and I help you with yours, hey? How's that sound?

Watching Opal beaming with confidence, Mille couldn't help but grin at her new friend. She seemed to be really enthusiastic about being a Guild member, and it was encouraging to see! The Fennekin wondered if all Guild members were like this, or if Opal was just a particularly good role model. Nevertheless, she smiled, "I can appreciate that! If you enjoy helping others I'm sure you'll be one of the very best guild members one day!" She could feel herself getting caught up in the other's enthusiasm.

"That sounds like a good deal!" she replied eagerly, "I'll do my best! I'm Mille by the way, may I ask your name?"

"Of course! I'm Opal! Sorry for not introducing myself earlier!" she barked, loving that the other fire type seemed just as excited as she was. She then suddenly stopped for a moment, closing her eyes as if concentrating on something, then gave herself a good shake. "Sorry, just giving myself a bit of Morning Sun. I find the sun really invigorating, don't you?"

One of Opal's paws brushed against something as she moved slightly. She inspected the item and quickly found it to be a seed. "Hey, speaking of edibles, here's a seed! Do those make good pancake ingredients? I haven't had pancakes before, so I don't know what goes in them... Hm? Hang on, let me look a little closer at this..."

The growlithe frowned as she got a closer look at what she'd found. "This is a Blast Seed. We can't put these in food, or it would explode," she informed Mille as she manoeuvred it into her bag, "I'll just pick this up so it can't hurt anyone... There, that's better! Are you ready to go deeper into the forest now?

Opal looked excitedly at Mille, eagerly waiting to set off with her new friend. Even if she didn't find the teddiursa, she would still count this trip as a success.

The Fennekin watched as Opal seemed to pause for a moment in intense concentration. Mille tilted her head to the side in curiosity, before the other pokemon gave herself a good shake and continued the conversation.

"Oh! I suppose so," she replied, glancing up at the forest's autumn canopy as she thought about it. She wasn't usually one for early mornings, but the sun itself was essential to the growth of berries so she could definitely appreciate it. And then it clicked; Opal had been talking about using the move Morning Sun. Blushing for a moment, Mille kept her small mistake to herself. Luckily, Opal seemed to find something of interest on the ground in the moment that followed, allowing Mille to move on from her personal moment of embarrassment.

Opal quickly identified the object of interest as some sort of seed, asking if seeds made good pancake ingredients. "Honestly, I've never used seeds in pancakes before but I'm sure some types of seed might make a good topping," she commented, also looking closer at the seed. Opal was right though, it was definitely a Blast Seed and as such would be pretty hard to incorporate into pancakes. As the Growlithe slid the seed into her bag, Mille couldn't help but wonder what could potentially be made with a Blast Seed.

Perhaps if she could find smaller than normal Blast Seeds, the 'explosion' would be tame enough that it wouldn't harm anyone? Or... what if she roasted them? Were roast Blast Seeds still as dangerous?

"Hmmm... I definitely don't think they'd be very good with pancakes, but if we can find any smaller Blast Seeds I might experiment with them," she chuckled lightly. "I'm ready to continue onwards though!" She replied, hopping forward a few paces as they began their trek through the forest.

Mille made sure to keep her eyes and ears alert for any other Pokemon that might be wandering around the forest. Berries were one thing, but Opal's mission was important to someone else, allowing her to put locating the Teddiursa at a higher priority than her own mission for edible fruits.

The list of priorities didn't quite prevent her from getting distracted by any prospective ingredients though as Mille spotted an odd looking plant with white leaves growing underneath some of the trees. Curious as to what they were, the Fennekin made a beeline towards them.
"Ooh! I've never seen anything like these before!" She exclaimed, curious as to whether the plant could be used for anything tasty. Picking a couple of the leaves, Mille carefully removed her bag so that she could place them inside, "I'll have to ask around the market and see if anyone knows what these can be used for!"

[0+4=4]

"You'll have to let me know if those experiments come to anything. Maybe you'll discover something that will make you a great cook, like how I want to be a great explorer!" Opal chuckled. She could only wonder at what kinds of dining experiences might be unlocked with the addition of a Blast Seed, and genuinely hoped for Mille to succeed in her efforts.

Equally intriguing was the plant that had caught Mille's attention. Opal had never seen such leaves, and hadn't even known they could be white in colour. Flowers, certainly, but leaves? She was happy to follow along and learn. "I have no idea there, but they smell nice," the pup remarked as she gave the vegetation a good sniff.

It was while Opal was inspecting this unusual growth with her nose that a glint of sunlight drew her eyes to something very fascinating indeed. She knew about the elemental stones that allowed certain pokemon to evolve, but to actually find one was incredible. If only the one before her right now was a fire stone instead of thunder. Oh well, maybe she would find a fire stone if she kept looking? She put the precious item into her bag, and was further surprised to find a pair of TMs underneath, partially obscured by leaf litter. Those were swiftly picked up as well.

Mille grinned widely at her new friend's enthusiasm. "Maybe! I'd be happy even just with having fun with the experimenting, though!" She replied entirely honestly. She'd always loved cooking, but being able to share her cooking with others was also fun! "If I make anything good though, I'll bring it over to the Guild so you can all have a try!"

The Fennekin reached over to pick a few more of the leaves, interested in having a small number of them to experiment with if they ended up being a particularly good ingredient. She paused, considering the plant and instead opted to dig up one of the roots. Lifting the plant from the ground, a small seed fell from its branches. It didn't look like it belonged to the plant, but instead like it had fallen between the stems only to be disturbed now.

Shaking the soil from the root, Mille wrapped the herb in some fabric before gently placing it inside her bag. She then looked to the seed that had fallen, poking her nose to it.
"Oh! Speaking of small Blast Seeds! This one might be good to try something with," she grinned, also slipping the seed into her bag before re-equipping it to her back.

"I don't know if there are any actual berries here, but there sure are lots of other interesting things," she commented, glancing over to where Opal had found a number of useful items. The Fennekin glanced over the items, wondering just what TMs the Growlithe had found. Mille parted her jaws to ask but was immediately distracted by the loud snapping of a twig nearby. Her ears swiveled backward before she turned her head in the direction the noise had come from, hoping to spot what had caused it.

Opal may have been marvelling over her finds, but her attention was immediately yanked toward the sound of a twig snapping. Her ears were pricked up and her eyes wide and alert. If whatever was coming intended to threaten the fiery pair, she was sure she could asses the danger before any attacks were launched.

"Careful, Mille," the growlithe warned, "We should be on our guard, especially since neither of us are familiar with the local species."

The pup hoped that who or whatever came through was not hostile, but it always paid to be cautious.