Setting up a stall, huh—
Indeedee paused, turning her head to look at the Rattatas who were currently filing out of the farm one after another. After a moment, she agreed.
So, Ribbon followed behind Indeedee as they headed toward the kitchen.
"Indeedee?"
Why do you want to set up a stall?
"Ratta, ratta, ratta."
At the mention of this, Ribbon started chattering endlessly. It was mostly because the selling price for accessories was pitifully low for a weak, helpless little Rattata like Ribbon. Add to that the occasional need to buy a few gems from the Sailor, and Ribbon's little treasury had hit rock bottom early on.
Hearing this, Indeedee didn't say anything. She just silently took out the ingredients and began to prepare them one by one.
Seeing this, Ribbon also climbed onto the counter and joined Indeedee in getting to work.
***
Meanwhile, at the Saloon.
Even though she could exchange for some Stardew Valley currency from Lewis, Dawn, intending to adapt to local customs, started working a part-time job at the Saloon alongside Emily.
Today was the Dance of the Moonlight Jellies, so the Saloon was only open until about one in the afternoon.
Originally, they hadn't planned to be open at all today, but under the Rattatas' endless begging, Gus finally agreed to their request. He was waiting for them to bring their menu later so he could prepare a batch of food for their evening camping trip.
So, Gus was in the back kitchen prepping the ingredients, while Emily wiped down the counter and listened to Dawn talk about her past travel experiences.
Occasionally, Piplup, who was helping wipe cups nearby, would pat its chest proudly, as if it had accomplished all those things single-handedly.
"That sounds wonderful," Emily said. "Maybe Haley is living a life like this in Kalos right now."
Emily herself didn't have much desire to travel. Compared to Haley, she was the more homebody-ish one.
"Piplup!" Piplup wobbled as it handed a cup to Emily. Emily took the cup, casually placed it on the shelf, and then remembered something. She turned to Dawn: "So, are you not planning to participate in Pokémon Contests anymore?"
Seeing Dawn nod, she asked in confusion, "Then what are you planning to do next?"
For Emily, it was a bit hard to imagine. Even if she truly became an amazing tailor in the future, she wouldn't just stop designing clothes one day just because she won some medal.
She thought dreams were supposed to last a lifetime.
"Traveling around as a tourist," Dawn rested her chin on her hands. "Although sometimes I think about going to other regions I haven't been to and participating in Contests... Hmm—I actually can't say for sure, but for now, I just want to take a good rest."
Emily tilted her head in slight confusion. Before she could think too deeply about it, Gus shouted from behind her: "Emily, come clear up these dishes. Dawn, you're in charge of setting out the glasses—um, should we move a keg of beer to the beach later?"
"Are you trying to steal Pierre's Seafoam Pudding business?" Emily asked, tossing the wet vegetables and starting to pluck them one by one.
"Hmm—does that stuff even need stealing?" Gus said, hoisting a large keg of beer onto the table by the door. Then, he dumped all the prepared food scraps into the waiting, wide-open mouth of a Snorlax standing nearby.
Just then, the Rattatas chattered their way in through the door. Gus went over to meet them, taking the long strip of a menu from the lead Rattata's paw, along with a small bag stuffed full of coins.
"You guys really worked hard—it must have taken a lot of time to save up this much money," Gus said as he looked at the list and walked toward the back kitchen.
The lead Rattata thought of the loan it had taken out from the Sailor, and nodded its head solemnly.
Seeing this, Emily burst out laughing: "Then why didn't you have Ron make it for you? The cooking skills are about the same, and Ron even..."
Before she could finish, under the sudden realization of the crowd of Rattatas, Gus cast a near-physical glare from the back kitchen.
So, Emily swallowed her words: "But Ron is busy, maybe he doesn't have time to make this stuff for you either. The farm has a day off today, right?"
"That's right, meow!" Meowth pushed the door open and entered, conveniently answering Emily's question. He then hopped onto the counter, passing the menu and money over: "This is ours, can it be done before the afternoon?"
"Gus?" Emily turned her head to confirm. Seeing Gus nod, she took the list.
Dawn looked at Meowth with a bit of curiosity, as well as Jessie and James behind him, who were currently happily eating two ice creams.
Judging from her observations over the evening, she found that Team Rocket really did seem to have integrated into this town.
It was probably the change in environment, but she felt that Team Rocket's faces seemed to have become much more approachable now.
She didn't know what they had experienced in Pelican Town, but Dawn had quite a good impression of the place. She felt that most of the people here were very kind. It was just that there was an incomprehensible mystery to some things here, but the locals seemed to take it for granted.
Dawn thought to herself and patted Piplup's head.
Gus was baking cookies according to the Rattatas' list. He casually took out a handful and stuffed them in front of Piplup as he walked past, then went along and distributed them to everyone one by one.
The Rattatas naturally let out a cheer.
However, what was slightly surprising was that even Meowth got a special cookie, as if Gus were treating him like a kid. Meowth hugged the cookie, took a careful bite, and then revealed a smile.
"How are your cooking skills?" Emily asked.
"Not bad." Before Dawn could finish, Emily shoved a bunch of ingredients into her hands: "Then come help out."
Dawn took another glance at Meowth and the others, who were now passionately discussing crop farming. She gave a hum of agreement and joined Emily in getting busy.
***
Meanwhile, at the Pokémon Center, Nurse Joy.
After finally treating the wound of a little patient in the Pokémon Center, Joy patted the Rattata's head and said to the Trevenant standing nearby, "Everything is fine now. If you're not in a hurry, you can let it stay at the Pokémon Center for two more days."
The Trevenant stared at the Rattata for a moment, then decided to leave it at the Pokémon Center.
Joy let out a long sigh of relief. Just then, Robin's voice came from the doorway.
"Good afternoon, are you ready? Let's go to the beach together!" Robin had Maru following behind her. The two waited at the entrance of the Pokémon Center, so Joy trotted over to them.
"Ready, let's head out!"
Robin smiled, naturally wrapping an arm around Joy's shoulders, and led her toward the beach.
"Time really flies—" Robin sighed with emotion, for a moment recalling the day Joy had first arrived.
"Yeah, time really flies."
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