[ACTION]

[shiro2hero]

[There sure is a fire in the middle of camp.]

[Okay, yes, true. There should be fires. Everyone is camping, after all. Those fires are vital to the health and survival of everyone currently in Hisui! So of course there's a fire in the middle of camp.]

[Except...]

[This is not one of those kinds of fires.]

[This fire is in the cooking area. Where some poor, unsuspecting Guild member let Shiro step in to assist... with predictable results. He was just supposed to be making salad.]

[Just a salad.]

[And yet?]

[The salad is on fire.]




[Please help.]

Comments

[singlespacedad]

I think it wasn't just you.

[Mando glances around them. It's times like this that he really misses his helmet; he would scan this area for Pokemon so damn fast!]

Something else must have been involved.

[Is the Chimchar shaking in its boots yet? Mando is on the case!]

[shiro2hero]

I appreciate the vote of confidence...

[But - Seriously he burned water once.]

[The monkey has absolutely frozen in its hiding place. Like %@$# is it going to come out when the scary mask guy is here.]

[singlespacedad]

[Ball the Spheal has just been chilling during all this, rolling triumphantly around the fire he put out. But now it sounds like the humans are looking for something. Maybe another Pokemon! Maybe a new friend!]

[He barks and claps his flippers, then rolls over to the table where he's known the monkey was hiding the whole time.]

Did you find something, Ball?

[Mando comes to investigate.]

Shiro, are there monkeys here that light things on fire?

[shiro2hero]

[Oh, Spheals are officially the best. What perfect, wonderful fat ice dogs they are. Of course, the Chimchar doesn't think so, and waves a burned carrot at Ball - go away!!]

[Shiro's about to respond, when the little creature shrieks, and goes sprinting off toward the bushes as soon as it spies Mando.]

[He just sort of. Stands there.]

[Looking at the remains of the "salad", then at the bushes. And back.]

I... yeah. Yeah there are.

[singlespacedad]

[Mando makes a grab at the Chimchar, but it just manages to evade him. He considers giving chase for a moment, then lets it go. He doesn't need a rabble-rouser on his team, and hopefully the monkey will stay away now.]

I think that's what happened to your first salad.

[He straightens up, giving Ball a pat on the head on the way. Good ice dog, best Spheal.]

Want to try anything more complicated, now that the monkey is gone?

[shiro2hero]

... You have got to be kidding me.

[On the one hand, good, he didn't screw up a salad. On the other hand, it was seriously a weird monkey creature?? Really?? Ugh.]

No, I just needed the salad. For the hippo pokemon problem.

[singlespacedad]

If you change your mind, I'll be working on a stew.

[Which will be terrible, mind you. Mando is of the "throw whatever's available into a pot and boil it down" school of cooking. Sometimes it turns out edible! Most of the time it's absolutely godawful. Good thing he's only feeding himself and a goblin these days.]

[shiro2hero]

Thank you, by the way. I really do owe you one for this.

[Hey, Mando, at least your cooking is... often edible. As opposed to Shiro's.]

[singlespacedad]

It's no problem.

[It's pretty obvious by his tone that Mando is smiling under that mask.]

I'm just glad we found the criminal responsible for the fire and chased him off.