"What's that?" Maru blurted out first, only belatedly explaining why she was visiting the farm today after.
"Ah, I see." Ron paused, then pointed at the dough in the stove and said, "It's a kind of bread, I suppose."
Although this could be made in an electric oven, after tasting the ones Leah baked in a stove, the Rattatas simply wouldn't accept the electric oven version anymore.
Ron treated it as a way to add some variety to life and indulged the Rattatas in this little whim.
He personally couldn't taste the difference between the two, but according to Indeedee's translation, there was supposedly a unique woody aroma.
"Want to try some? It'll be ready soon." Ron said, using tongs to check inside the stove and then flipping the bread to bake evenly.
The sweet, rich hazelnut spread was wrapped in dough with a slight wheat-y tang, slowly expanding under the stove's heat, then contracting back until it became soft and delicious.
Ron often suspected that the so-called woody aroma was just smoke from burning wood and coal mixing with the dough.
But he chose to respect each little Rattata's dietary preferences.
Shaymin and Froakie also enjoyed eating this, but they weren't as picky as the Rattatas—they accepted both electric oven and stove-baked versions alike.
Before long, the bread was done baking.
Ron placed it on a plate with tongs, and Indeedee brought it over to Robin and Maru.
Maru sniffed it, then took a bite.
The piping hot hazelnut spread immediately flowed out, burning her tongue and making her huff with pain.
"Is—is this Leah's recipe?" She quickly chewed and swallowed the bites.
Whether it was a stereotype or not, any dish that tasted healthy usually came from either Leah or Emily.
Since Emily didn't have time to forage around, the only possibility was Leah.
"Yeah, it's hers." Ron nodded, smiling as he watched the Rattatas hissing from the heat while chewing vigorously.
"This would be perfect for winter," Maru said, holding it in her hands after letting it cool for a moment, feeling the residual warmth from the stove.
It was late fall now, and already quite chilly.
Maru found the warmth comforting.
Though they had already eaten breakfast, Robin and Maru graciously ate several pieces before heading off to work on one side of the farm.
When the day ended, it was Ron's turn to expand the cabin.
To make life more convenient for everyone in the cabin, Ron carried a notebook, recording each Pokémon's needs one by one.
His ability to hear thoughts had gradually stabilized during this period. Though he couldn't control it for long, at least he could activate it at will now.
"You want——" Ron paused, looking up at Sailor. "No, requests can only include things like a sink in the washroom, wanting your own small bed, or which room you want to live in."
"Rattata!" Sailor, hearing his request for a pirate-themed bedroom rejected, pulled off his hat and left with a deeply melancholic expression.
"Indeedee?"
"Don't mind him," Ron said, then paused. "There's still Poffins in the refrigerator. Give him one in a bit."
Hearing this, Indeedee scampered into the house with her little legs, carrying Poffins as she rushed after him.
Ron then made a sharp turn, falling silent under the burning gazes of the Rattatas. He continued, "Those who don't make things difficult for me also get Poffins."
"Rattata!!!"
To Ron's slight surprise, Bellossom and Shaymin both requested to move in together, meaning they would no longer squeeze onto Ron's pillow with Froakie.
Bellossom had only moved in recently. When she was still a Gloom, because the Rattatas' sense of smell was too sensitive—though they never showed it—Gloom had voluntarily lived with Geodude and the others.
After evolving into Bellossom, she moved in.
Unexpectedly, she got along quite well with Shaymin.
This probably had something to do with them occasionally needing to plant things together.
Thinking this, Ron nodded and looked around.
Besides the new washroom, there would still be one room left over.
Ron planned to put three beds in there. Apart from Indeedee's beds, there would be one extra that could be reserved for Pokémon who were sulking.
Even though the Rattatas were as close as family, they occasionally had disagreements.
Previously, they would angrily move away from Ron's bed to squeeze in with Indeedee.
Or else a row of Rattatas would face Ron, with only one sulking against the wall.
Ron respected each Pokémon's right to sulk.
After finishing his notes, Ron stood up, shook his notebook, and looked over at the barn.
Robin had just finished working with Maru and was now leaning against the pasture fence, staring blankly at the animals in the pasture, as well as Miltank and Deerling.
Since Leah had come to the farm, Deerling had been granted permission to visit the farm often.
On one hand, it could keep lonely Miltank company; on the other, it could eat the last fresh grass of autumn.
According to the thoughts Ron had heard, pasture grass pulled directly from the land tasted completely different from harvested grass.
The specific difference was something Ron couldn't quite understand from the description.
It sounded like the difference between chasing a live cow to bite it and eating raw beef that had been cut.
But one Deerling couldn't eat the farm out of house and home. Ron even allowed Deerling to visit the farm anytime in the future—after all, the two places weren't far apart, no more than a ten-minute walk.
"So peaceful," Maru took a deep breath. Besides the decaying smell of fallen leaves, there was also the scent left behind after pasture grass was harvested—astringent, mixed with a faint sourness, and the smell grass should naturally have.
"What's up, Ron?" Robin asked.
Ron handed the drawing he'd made to Robin.
"Ah, the plans for the cabin expansion?" Robin immediately understood, then burst out laughing at Ron's stick-figure drawings. Because he was listening and taking notes at the same time, Ron had drawn each request-maker.
And distinguished them through their individual details.
After all, among this nest of Rattatas, apart from Sailor, Ron—being terrible at naming—hadn't given any of them names.
So Robin could tell from the tiny stick-figure Rattatas—for instance, this one had a curl of fur sticking up on its forehead and requested a bigger refrigerator.
Another one only had three whiskers on the left side and wanted the washroom to come with a small mirror, plus a little shelf to hang its felt hat.
"Alright, no problem." Robin skimmed through them roughly.
Most wanted some miniature furniture, which was a piece of cake for Robin.
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