A sizable mushroom cloud billowed into the sky, instantly drawing the attention of Mawile and Charmeleon, who had been focused on their training.
"Cottonee, are you alright?"
Though Maki knew that the smoke effect alone shouldn't have caused any real harm to Cottonee, he still called out toward the sky just to be sure.
"Cotton!"
A voice rang out from within the thick smoke—full of energy and not at all weak. It didn't sound like anything was wrong.
"Good, as long as you're okay."
"Cotton!"
How could I possibly be okay?!
A dark silhouette suddenly burst from the smoke. If Maki's guess was right… this shadowy figure was probably Cottonee?
Due to a lack of control, the smoke had spread wildly instead of being directed forward like before. Fortunately, this also meant it lacked any real power.
Still, Cottonee ended up in quite a sorry state.
Now completely covered in soot, Cottonee floated down to Maki and shook its head furiously, causing a cloud of black powder to scatter everywhere.
"Maw! Maw!—Hic!"
Cottonee's appearance was honestly hilarious. Charmeleon struggled to maintain its dignity as a senior, barely managing to stifle its laughter. Mawile, on the other hand, had no such restraint.
The steel-type Pokémon collapsed onto the ground, clutching its stomach and kicking its stubby little legs in sheer amusement.
"Cotton!"
Cottonee's eyes narrowed as it took in Mawile's laughter. You dare laugh at me when I look like this?!
A sinister smirk formed on Cottonee's soot-covered face—not that anyone could see it through the layer of grime.
Without warning, Cottonee floated above Mawile and, at just the right moment, gave its body a mighty shake.
A fresh downpour of black dust rained down on Mawile's face.
The laughter stopped abruptly.
"Maw! Pfft—Mawile!"
Mawile had been laughing so hard that it accidentally inhaled some of the soot. Coughing and sputtering, it scrambled to its feet and glared furiously at Cottonee.
"Cotton~ Pfft!"
Cottonee cheekily stuck out its tongue. That's what you get for laughing at me!
However, it seemed to forget that its entire body was still covered in soot. As soon as it did the motion, it ended up swallowing a mouthful of ash itself.
Watching the two little troublemakers take turns eating dirt, Maki was speechless. Every time he trained them, they somehow managed to turn it into complete chaos.
Mawile furiously patted the soot off its face. Knowing it stood no chance against the mischievous Cottonee, it decided to let the matter slide. Cottonee, on the other hand, wasted no time fleeing the scene before Mawile could change its mind.
But just as it turned to leave, it saw Maki's face—desperately trying (and failing) to hold back laughter.
Cottonee's anger flared again. Excuse me?! I only look like this because of you! And you dare laugh?!
"Ahem! Cottonee, you might not realize this, but in the human world, this look of yours is called 'smoky makeup'—it's actually quite fashionable!"
"Cotton~"
Cottonee shot Maki a deadpan stare. Do you think I was born yesterday? Do I look like I inhaled smoke along with my brain?
Given that Cottonee was now covered in soot, training had to be put on hold. Maki had no choice but to take it back for a bath first.
Of course, because of the sheer amount of soot clinging to its body, he strictly forbade Cottonee from perching on his head this time. He wasn't about to walk around covered in ash, too.
And, naturally, on the way back, he didn't forget to grab the two rabbits. After all, that was his dinner. No way was he leaving them behind.
...
When Maki returned to the camp, he found Mohn crouched beside a large pot, busy with something.
Noticing his arrival, Mohn looked up and greeted him with a smile.
"Oh, you're back, Maki. What happened to your Cottonee?"
When it had left, it had been fluffy and clean. Now, it was completely blackened.
"Cotton~"
Cottonee responded weakly. Right now, it only wanted to soak in the water and wash away all the grime. As for everything else… it was too tired to care.
"Uncle Mohn, what are you making?" Maki asked, stepping closer to take a look.
"Fish soup."
Maki froze mid-step.
It wasn't that he disliked fish, but the thought of eating it for days on end wasn't exactly thrilling.
"It's bass, not fish sauce, don't worry," Mohn added with a chuckle, seemingly amused by his own joke.
Handing over the supplies, Maki took Cottonee down to the river for a bath.
...
A river ran near Mohn's cabin, and since this area was downstream, they could wash up without any issues.
Maki dunked Cottonee into the water and swirled it around a few times until all the soot was finally gone.
The cold water made Cottonee shiver, and it suddenly longed for the warm baths of the Pokémon Center.
Maki gave Cottonee a good shake, scattering most of the excess water.
"You'll have to air dry from here."
"…Cotton!" How long will that take?!
Cottonee threw a mini tantrum, bouncing up and down on Maki's head. It knew it wouldn't be getting back to its warm, cozy nest anytime soon.
"Alright, alright—stop! You're getting my hair wet!" Maki sighed. Then, as an idea struck him, he smirked.
"Why don't you try heating yourself up and evaporating the water?"
"Cotton?"
Did you seriously just suggest that to me? Are you even listening to yourself?
"If that doesn't work, we can always have Charmeleon help you dry off. It should be pretty quick."
Hearing this, Maki glanced at Charmeleon, who immediately caught on and unleashed a small burst of fire.
Cottonee yelped and jumped a full meter into the air.
"Cotton, cotton, cotton~!" Forget it! I'll just wait!
"Well, since we're here by the river anyway, why not continue our experiment? Maybe you'll get the hang of it this time. If anything goes wrong, you can just dunk yourself in the water again."
Maki suggested it so casually that Cottonee almost thought it sounded reasonable. But it wasn't fooled.
Oh, I see how it is. If something goes wrong, I'M the one who has to jump into the river again, huh?
Cottonee narrowed its eyes. After spending so much time with Maki, it had definitely picked up some of his cunning.
Of course, I wasn't always like this… right?
Still, despite all its complaints, Cottonee obediently floated into position and began its training again.
With no trees obstructing the sunlight, the open riverbank had even stronger sunlight than the forest. This should help.
"Your biggest problem right now is that you're gathering fire-type energy too quickly. Try slowing down."
For the first time, Maki realized—using a move too quickly wasn't always a good thing.
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