[ser] writings

Honestly, today was not Cosmopaw’s day. Not only was the Musemoth apprentice held back on an assessment again, but now she was stuck on border patrol. They didn’t care for border patrols at all, especially not the ones above ground, rather than in the tunnels. At least give her a job that actually mattered, like berry-gathering or den-building. StarClan, they would even take putting mouse-bile on the elders over this.

To make matters worse, she was stuck with the most energetic apprentice they could have possibly paired her with, Muddypaw. The slimey Dingrai was one of PechaClan’s youngest apprentices at the moment - and it definitely showed. He was constantly bounding way ahead of Muddypaw, only stopping to investigate every nook and cranny that interested him. Yip would then zoom off again, leaving behind a disgruntled Cosmopaw.

Unfortunately, Cosmopaw didn’t have the sense of smell that Muddypaw had, so she had to let him be the one on scent detection duty. It just wouldn’t be so annoying if yip didn’t have to investigate everything. She just plodded behind the Dingrai reluctantly, even yawning at a couple points. 

It had basically seemed like the territory was normal - nothing amiss. That was, until Muddypaw’s head shot up after sniffing something, ears perked. Before Cosmopaw could even react, the younger apprentice was bolting forward, battle stanced.

“Intruders!” he barked, barreling through the undergrowth. 

“Wh- hey!” Cosmopaw exclaimed, now having to take flight to keep up with the Dingrai. Their wings flapped as they hovered slightly above the earth. 

Eventually, Muddypaw came to a full stop, growling, hackles raised. Cosmopaw landed slightly behind him and finally saw what had left the scent that sent the younger apprentice into a tizzy. 

There were two loners, slightly over the PechaClan border, who seemed to be in their own argument. One was a basic Alolan Marowak, who seemed extremely agitated. The other was an Alolan Sandslash, with glowing markings and Piñata-like tufts. The latter of the two loners was shrinking back in fear, a bundle of unknown herbs held tightly in their clawed hands. 

“I don’t have time for this right now!” the Alolan Marowak groaned, attempting to dismiss Muddypaw, “I need to deal with this thief!”

The Sandslash began to try to defend themself. “But, I told you-”

Muddypaw interrupted by barking out the typical border spiel. “You’re on PechaClan territory, loners! So you have to-”

“Everyone be quiet for one moment!” Cosmopaw interrupted everyone with her own exasperated groan, trying to get everyone’s attention. They were getting tired of dealing with Muddypaw at this point. But, the argument that seemed to be transpiring between the two loners caught their attention.

Cosmopaw began again, clearing her throat. “What is this about a thief now?”

Muddypaw’s head snapped as yip looked at yips clanmate, looking shocked. “What are you doing? These are intruders! We have to-”

Cosmopaw just responded by putting one of her hands in the Dingrai’s face, a motion that silently said “stop talking.” She even gave yip a cold glare, trying to get the point across with as few words as possible. Finally, Muddypaw seemed to take the hint and closed his muzzle shut for once.

Finally able to speak, the Marowak begins again. “This thief here took herbs from my stash - very precious herbs, mind you!”

“But…” The Sandslash replied, sounding terrified. They were visibly shaking, tears in their eyes. “I need these herbs!”

“I need them, too!” retorted the Marowak, “Now, hand them back over!”

“But-!”

“Okay, okay, hold on,” Cosmopaw interrupted, trying to keep a level head here. It seemed she was the only one with one at the moment, anyways. “So, you stole herbs? Why?”

The Sandslash sniffled a bit before replying, choking back a sob. “My friend… they’re sick and… I heard these herbs would make it better! They’re just so hard to find- and they’re only a kid- and-“

“Okay,” Cosmopaw replied, a thoughtful look in her gaze. The Musemoth brought a hand to their chin as they stood there, clearly lost in thought. The rest of the Pokemon seemed antsy; the Marowak was tapping their foot irritably, Muddypaw was scratching at the ground anxiously, and the Sandslash’s tail swished fearfully. Finally, Cosmopaw came to a conclusion.

“You will have to hear me out on this, but, you should return the herbs.”

The Sandslash’s expression seemed to turn to one of horror, while the Marowak rolled their eyes and let out a huff and said, “Finally!”

“But, I need them!” exclaimed the Sandslash.

“I know you do,” Cosmopaw began explaining, trying to make the loner understand her plan. “Believe me, I do. But, you shouldn’t have to resort to stealing to obtain them. I know Pokemon that can help you get the herbs you need.”

The Sandslash’s face seemed to light up a little at that fact, ears perking. “Really?”

Cosmopaw nodded and replied with, “Really. I promise our Clan can help your friend, but you need to return those herbs first, okay?”

The Sandslash seemed to hesitate, clutching the herbs a bit tightly as they looked down at them. The Sandslash seemed to consider the offer. Eventually, they relinquished the herbs to the Marowak. The Marowak snatched them a bit harshly, as if they were trying to prevent the Sandslash from reconsidering the deal.

“Thank you,” the Marowak said a bit coldy, before turning their head to give a nod to Cosmopaw and Muddypaw. Then, the Marowak swiftly took their leave, not even giving the rest of the Pokemon a chance to say anything else on the matter. Once they were gone, the Sandslash turned back to Cosmopaw and Muddypaw.

“I need to get back home, so I can check on my friend,” they started, their voice a bit more confident now, “But, I know of a pal that can come with you guys to collect the herbs.”

“We gotta get going soon,” Cosmopaw replied. “I can speak to our leader and medics and have them send out some of our members to help you collect the herbs, okay? We can have them and your friend meet at this spot.” 

“Thank you, I really appreciate it!” chirped the Sandslash sincerely. 

Cosmopaw dipped her head and turned to Muddypaw, motioning for the Dingrai to follow her. The two PechaClan apprentices then turned and went their separate ways from the loner, preparing to report their findings back to camp. Muddypaw was staring up at Cosmopaw with wide eyes, seeming impressed.

“Wow, Cosmopaw! You’re really good at that argument-solving thing. Maybe you should be one of those mediators!”

Cosmopaw seemed to be taken aback by the compliment given to them by the younger apprentice. They just responded with a “hmm” noise. Maybe the other apprentice was right.