The riolu’s eyes flutter open with ease. He sits up while holding his head. “Ugh, what a nightmare…” The jackal conjures a smile and lets out a little chuckle. “That was actually very funny… I dreamt I was some sort of pokemon and had a battle with some ghost types... I even met some cute fennekin… It felt so real, I-” He pauses, taking notice of his surroundings to realize he’s in an unfamiliar room in some nest. Looking down at his stomach, he also sees bandages wrapping around his torso, remembering the details of the battle. “Oh… That’s right… I already ruled out that I’m not dreaming…”
“Hey there,” calls a female voice. The riolu turns and in his view is a buneary with a green, polka-dotted bandana and a red, polka-dotted bow by her ear. Her blue eyes are fixed on the riolu. “Are you okay?”
“Where am I…? What is this place…?”
“You’re in my home,” explains the buneary. “My friend, Nate, brought you to me and told me what happened. I went to work to make sure you didn’t die in the process. You suffered bad claw marks, nearly losing a lot of blood, as well as being poisoned from a gastly’s poison effect.”
The riolu touches his bandaged area. “That’s funny… I don’t feel too much pain… I also don’t feel sick anymore… What did you do?”
“I’m a mixologist by trade,” she says. “I know how to make good concoctions to treat and heal pokemon. I also make a mean cocktail for your mental troubles.” Another pokemon enters the room. The riolu turns and sees it’s the fennekin from before. “Hello, Nate. How do you do?”
“Hey, Benny,” the fennekin responds. “I came to see if the riolu was okay.”
“Ask him yourself.”
“How do you feel, Riolu?”
“I-I’m fine,” the jackal pokemon tells him. “Thank you for saving me by the way…”
“Don’t just thank me,” the fox pokemon says. “Thank Benny. She makes these great potions to help pokemon in need. Whatever you desire, she’ll make it.”
“So, your names are Benny and Nate.”
“Yep,” the buneary clarifies. “I’m Benny, and this fennekin here’s my friend, Nate. So, Riolu, what brings you out here other than being chased by the ghost bandits?”
“My name is Zach,” states the riolu. “And I don’t know how I got here or why I woke up as a riolu… I also have no idea where I am…”
“Well,” Benny begins. “First off, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Zach. Also, to tell you where you are, you are in the town of Leafy Creek. We’re a small, peaceful town by the river.”
“A town run by pokemon? Oh, I am definitely far from home for sure… And I’m not sure I’ll be able to get back…”
“Hey listen,” Benny starts. “You’re welcome to stay here for a while and get settled, but I have to lay some ground rules.” Zach sighs and listens as she discusses the rules of her home.
***
Later, after the three pokemon have had lunch and have conversed over the rules of Benny’s dwelling, they take a stroll around town, giving Zach a tour of the great Leafy Creek. Benny talks about everything about the settlement and points out all of the buildings with their functions. They then stop at a billboard with posts on it.
“This is the town announcement board,” Benny explains. “It’s where most of the news come in; employment, criminals, updates, and even the missions.”
“Excuse me,” Zach interrupts. “Missions? For what?”
“There are groups of pokemon that go on missions; rescues, adventures, artifact-hunting, and so forth. These groups are known as guilds. We have one here in Leafy Creek, but they’re mainly rescue pokemon. Not really the adventurous type. Those missions stay up there for a while, and no one goes on them.”
“Man,” Nate starts. “It would really cool to go on cool adventures. I could never really do things on my own, though. I would like for you to come along with me, Benny.”
“Would love too,” she states. “But, you know how dangerous these dungeons and such are… Not that I wouldn’t want to go, I just feel ill-prepared for these sorts of things… and my customers… Oh, what the heck?! Of course, I’ll join you! I want excitement in my life!”
“Hm…” Zach ponders for a moment. “You know, I’ve always dreamed about going on adventures when I was young. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to try for one of these.”
“You sure about that, Zach?” asks Nate. “Like Benny said, these types of missions can be dangerous.”
Zach works up a smile. “Heh, are you kidding? I used to get into all sorts of trouble when I was little. It’s nothing new for me.”
“Well, if you say so. But, we can’t start any missions with you hurt still.”
“Oh, don’t worry about that,” states Benny. “I’ve got enough potions to heal him faster. He’ll be all healthy and prepped. And while we wait for that, we can some things for our first mission. We’re going to need to bring some medical items and food, and we’re also going to have to register with the council.”
“Isn’t there a fee for that?” Nate asks.
“Yes, but that’s nothing to worry about, either. My concoctions sell for great prices. We’ll have more than enough money for that.”
“Oh boy!” Nate’s tail wags rapidly. “I’m so excited! We’ll be Leafy Creek’s very first adventure team! Which mission will we do first?”
“Nothing that involves fighting,” adds Zach. “Bad enough I got hurt pretty rough…”
“That’s nothing that can’t be handled,” goes Benny. “You’ll just learn how to better yourself at the gym. They’ve got impressive training courses there. That can happen after our first adventure. Now, come along, boys. We’ve got work to do.” The two males follow her back to the dwelling.