Leo cheered, then buried his head and continued to eat with gusto.
Penny quietly watched Leo's little head. After a moment, she turned to Ron. "By the way, are you done with your work on the farm?"
"Almost," Ron replied after a moment's thought.
"I see." Penny turned her attention back to Leo, feeling for a moment glad that she had come. After Leo finished his meal, she immediately took on the task of washing the dishes, leading Leo to take them to the resort's kitchen.
Ron watched Penny's back from a distance. She was looking down at Leo, who was holding a plate, and as if she'd heard him say something, a gentle smile appeared on her face.
"She's a fine young woman, isn't she?" Willy, who had emerged from his tent at some point, said to Ron with a hint of teasing.
"Mmm," Ron nodded.
---
Meanwhile, at the farm in Pelican Town.
As usual, after finishing their work on the farm, Team Rocket went their separate ways to pursue their own interests.
James had recently been getting along well with Linus, the man who lived in a tent in the deep mountains. One reason was that Linus acknowledged his collection of bottle caps as a form of treasure; another was his admiration for Linus's attitude towards life.
After gathering a few things, James headed straight for the deep mountains.
Today, he and Linus had planned to go to the woods with the sign—the one that prohibited entry without a Pokémon.
Because Linus was on good terms with the woods' guardian, a Trevenant, no one would attack them when they entered. Even having just Linus's Trubbish with them was sufficient.
"Just to investigate the Pokémon distribution here—" James took a deep breath, repeating this reason that he himself didn't quite believe, and offered a smile to Linus, who was also ready.
"Good afternoon," Linus greeted James, then slung his basket over his arm and walked over.
Winter was a bit tough for the Grass-type Pokémon living in the forest, so in winter, Linus occasionally took on the job of looking after them. He would also pick up any trash and gather food like Snowy Yams before heading to the hot springs to warm up.
As they entered the woods, the snow on the ground had turned into patches of black ice over the mud, since almost no one ever came this way. When James nearly slipped again and was steadied by Linus, he gave him a slightly embarrassed smile.
"That's normal. I was the same way my first time," Linus said, finding a piece of wood nearby and handing it to James.
Just as James was about to say something to Linus, a pained cry came from nearby.
Linus froze for a second, then quickly ran towards the source of the sound.
Following the sound, they soon reached a small slope. There they saw Gunther, fully geared up, lying on his back and groaning in pain while clutching his camera.
"—Gunther, what are you doing here?" Linus asked as he stepped forward to help him up.
James had never run into Gunther in Pelican Town before.
Seeing a new face, Gunther awkwardly adjusted his glasses. "I was just trying to photograph the hibernating Sunkern over there," he said, "when I accidentally slipped and fell."
Ever since deciding to gather information on Pelican Town's Pokémon on his own, Gunther had been spending most of his time in the woods.
"Oh, right. Who are you?" Gunther asked, wincing as he stood up and looked at James. After learning that James was a farmhand, Gunther adjusted his glasses again. "I'm Gunther, the museum's curator. A pleasure to meet you."
As Gunther moved, a pile of red berries from his bag was exposed. Seeing Linus staring at them, Gunther explained, "These are Sweet Apples. I bought them from the farm. Most Pokémon are interested in this fruit. Also, because they're so light, they won't have much of a reaction even if you toss one at them. Instead, they'll just happily devour it, thinking it's a gift from the heavens."
"Ron again," James couldn't help but mutter.
Sweet Apples were actually quite popular on the mainland and were a standard tool for Pokémon photographers, used to attract a Pokémon's attention and observe their behavior and habits while eating. They weren't expensive, but since the farm didn't have Sweet Apple trees, it was clear Ron had prepared these specially for Gunther.
"Really—" James took a deep breath. He wasn't sure what to think of this farm anymore.
Still, for the sake of this town, he didn't want anything to happen to the farm.
Although the farm seemed to exist separately from Pelican Town, it was closely intertwined with the lives of its residents.
If anything happened to the farm, some people would lose their jobs, and others would lose their source of affordable ingredients—
At this thought, James shook his head.
"Should we take you to the clinic?" Linus asked, looking at Gunther's injured ankle.
This was a common occurrence for Linus. Since he was often active in places like the forest and the mine where few people went, he would occasionally find injured or fainted Pokémon, or even townspeople who had had an accident and passed out on the side of the road. Even if he wasn't on great terms with them, he would always make sure to take them to the Pokémon Center or the clinic.
"In that case, I'd appreciate the help—" Gunther moved, winced, and realizing he couldn't make it back to the library on his own, gratefully thanked Linus.
"Don't mention it—" Linus then turned to James, who was still in a daze. "What about you, James? Are you coming with us?"
"I'll come along," James said, stepping forward to help support Gunther's other arm.
The three of them slowly made their way towards the clinic.
---
Inside the clinic, Harvey sat by the counter with a cup of coffee. It was the weekend, and with Maru off, he was the only one minding the front.
Logically, autumn and winter were peak seasons for colds. It wasn't that Harvey wished for the townspeople to get sick so he could earn more, but he still found it a bit odd.
Come to think of it, the health of everyone who came for check-ups had also improved significantly. He couldn't quite explain it. From what he'd heard around Pelican Town, the only real change in their lives was buying ingredients from the Pokémon Center.
Thinking of the Pokémon Center reminded Harvey of what Joy had said: that the Moomoo Milk was very nutritious.
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