"It's fine—I didn't take it personally," Ron said.
"Oh, good." Maru exhaled in relief and smiled.
Her dark skin made her teeth look especially bright.
"By the way—what are you working on? Need help?" she asked.
Ron hesitated, glancing at the deepening twilight. "I gathered some moss and Pine Tar to make Fertilizer for my Strawberry field."
Without another word, Maru stepped forward and took one of his wooden buckets.
"Then I'll help. It's getting late—you'll finish faster with two hands."
Perhaps it was her mother's carpentry genes, or maybe all the time she spent tinkering with machines and mining Ore—but Maru was surprisingly strong. She marched ahead, bucket in hand.
"Thanks," Ron said, quickening his pace to match hers.
"No problem—consider it part of my apology," Maru replied, eyeing the dark clouds rolling in. "Besides, I've got nothing else to do tonight."
Her only nighttime hobby was stargazing through her telescope. On cloudy nights like this? She was free.
"It'll probably rain tomorrow," she added. "That's good news for your farm, right?"
Ron looked up at the storm clouds—and felt a wave of relief. "Yeah."
They chatted as they walked, arriving at the farm in no time.
The moment they stepped inside, Ron spotted his Zubat swarm—released from the cave—now circling the fields.
"Ah! So that's why I haven't seen them in the mines lately," Maru said, watching the Zubat overhead. "You brought them here! No wonder bugs are coming back to the mine."
"Bugs?"
"Yeah." Maru set down her bucket as Ron began mixing moss and Pine Tar into fertilizer with his tool kit. Leaning on her chin, she added, "Iron Ore's gotten scarce too—but Copper's showing up more."
Probably because I caught Orthworm, Ron thought.
Since Orthworm fed on Iron, its presence concentrated Iron deposits underground, forming Iron Ore veins. Without it, the mine's natural Copper layers were reappearing.
Maru reached out and gently stroked Froakie, who lay napping nearby.
Full-bellied and content, Froakie didn't stir—until Maru poked its soft belly.
"If Sebastian were here, he'd adore you," she murmured.
Sebastian, her half-brother, had an almost obsessive love for frogs. He used to bring them home constantly—until Robin banned him after one escaped and multiplied across the house.
Froakie jolted awake, rubbing its eyes and blinking at Maru in confusion.
"Sorry for waking you," Maru whispered.
"Froakie," Froakie grumbled.
By then, Ron had finished the fertilizer. He handed Froakie a wild berry he'd picked on the way home.
Froakie's gaze flicked between Ron and Maru—then it snatched the berry, popped it in its mouth, rolled over, and went back to sleep.
Ron and Maru exchanged amused glances—and got to work fertilizing every Strawberry plant.
---
Meanwhile, in Santalune City, Kalos…
With Geodude's help, Joy had treated injured Pokémon and chased off troublemakers along the way. Now, she arrived at the Santalune Pokémon Center.
As she entered, several Trainers rushed in, frantic.
"Quick—help our Pokémon!" They thrust Poké Balls at the overwhelmed front desk.
After a moment's thought, Joy approached. "Need assistance? I'm from the Pokémon Nurse Academy—I can help."
She was handed a severely injured Starly.
"Oh, you're hurt…" Joy cooed, carefully bandaging it as she asked what happened.
"The Gym Leader, Viola," the Trainer panted. "Today she used a different Pokémon—looked bug-like, but wasn't Bug-type!"
Without Flying-type advantage, they'd been crushed.
Viola had even offered a choice: face either Wormadam or the mystery Pokémon.
Knowing Wormadam (Steel/Bug) would be high-level, they'd chosen the unfamiliar, low-level option—only to be dragged into a brutal battle.
These Trainers already had other Badges; their Level 20+ teams shouldn't have struggled so badly.
But that Orthworm was unexpectedly fierce.
"Orthworm… Could it be Ron's?" Joy froze mid-bandage, murmuring in disbelief.
"What?"
"Nothing." Joy shook her head. "All patched up. Rest well—it'll heal by tomorrow."
She returned the Starly to its Trainer.
---
Back in Pelican Town, Ron finished fertilizing just before midnight.
After walking Maru home, he carried Froakie—curled up by the dying campfire—back to the cabin.
---
The next morning…
Just as Maru predicted, rain poured from the sky.
Froakie, nestled beside Ron's pillow, woke to the sound of thunder. Seeing the downpour outside, it leapt up in joy—no watering today!
Ron rose, patted Froakie's head, and lit a small fire under the eaves.
Free from chores, Froakie happily hopped beside him, watching as Ron roasted potatoes and ground Kebia Berries.
Truthfully, potatoes were getting stale.
But compared to ten straight days of fish, Froakie figured it could endure a few more.
Still—if given a choice, it'd rather visit Penny for a proper meal… or even yesterday's wild berries.
Just then, Ron tossed it a handful of raspberries.
"Froakie?"
"Picked these while gathering moss yesterday," Ron said, placing them in Froakie's paws as he kept grinding berries. "Hang in there a few more days."
He added softly, "Once we harvest spring strawberries, mine enough Ore, and install sprinklers… you can finally rest."
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