After their last period of lessons, all of them meet up at the botanical garden to gather the chestnuts. Grim couldn't stop smiling while gazing at the chestnuts. "Whoa! There are a ton of chestnuts just layin' around. I'm going to be livin' large on chestnut tarts! Mmm!" He couldn't wait to eat it later after they baked it. "Let's get grabbin'— YOWCH!" The grey cat screams after he holds it and drops the chestnuts. "Myah! The chestnut spines pricked my paws."

Gardevoir uses psychic to remove the thorns from his paw. "Gardevoir garde voir (We need some tongs to pick up the chestnuts.)" She informed the Trainers.

"Apart from using tongs to pick up the chestnuts—" Ophelia trailed off her thoughts.

"We also need something to put them in, too." Deuce suggested since they didn't want to get hurt by the sharp spikes.

"Maybe we can find some supplies in the botanical garden?" Ace asked curiously.

"Let's take a look." Ace and Deuce are going to find the supplies.

———————————————————

They were all amazed to see the beauty of the garden. Aileen thought of Florges if she was with them to see the flowers. Florges would be happy to see the flowers are well taken care of.

"Whoa, I didn't realize this place was huge." The orange-haired boy commented and assumed the garden was small.

"If it's this large, it's got to have a groundskeeper. Let's split up and look." Deuce suggested that the garden is big enough to split into small groups.

Ace nodded his head. "Sure. Dibs on the right side."

"Then how about I go left?" He looks at the others. "What about you guys?"

"Gardevoir and I will go with you, Deuce." Ophelia volunteered to partner with the dark navy blue-haired boy.

"Su-sure." Deuce stuttered nervously at the idea of partnering with Ophelia making his heartbeat race.

The black-haired girl looks at Ace. "I'll go with Ace in case he gets lazy." It irked the orange-haired boy in annoyance. The last thing they need is for him to slack off again like his previous cleaning punishment.

"I don't need a babysitter!" Ace yelled and found it an insult for the lack of faith.

Yuu sighs heavily. "I'll join with Crystal and Lucario to ensure they won't kill each other." Lucario appreciates the thought of having someone to stop them.

"I'll take Grim with me." Aileen glanced down at the grey cat. "I don't think it would be a good combination to add him to your group." It would end up a disaster if Ace and Grim were together.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Grim and Ace asked in sync.

"Exactly that." She retorted calmly while Yuu and Deuce were snickering at their grumpy look.

———————————————————

"Hey, come take a look at this!" Grim called Aileen and Greninja and pointed at the exotic fruits. "There's a ton of fruit growing here! Smells like they're ripe too!" He sniffs to smell their fragrance.

"Don't pick anything, Grim." Aileen gave the grey cat a warning and stepped on something soft.

"Ouch!"

The blue-haired girl froze and looked down with a skeptical look. "I stepped on a tail?" She steps back to see a tail swishing.

"Hey! You got some nerve steppin' on my tail and just walkin' away!" Aileen froze and didn't know she stepped on the beastman's tail.

He's a tall young man with tan skin and fairly defined muscles. He has thick, dark-brown hair that goes below his shoulders in length, with long, side-parted bangs that fall over his eyes. Two sections of hair on both sides of his face are braided and tied at the ends with yellow bands. He has emerald green eyes and a thin scar over his left eye that goes from his eyebrow to his cheek.

Instead of human ears, he has brown lion ears on the top of his head. This is paired with a long lion tail of the same color, with a dark-brown tuft of fur at the end.

"Are you the groundskeeper? Not sure you oughta be talkin' to students that way, pal." Grim commented and didn't like his tone.

"Greninja gre (I don't think he's the groundskeeper)" The ninja Pokemon pointed out under his breath.

"Ain't nothin' worse than bein' in the middle of a good nap and havin' some jerks step on your tail." His emerald eyes glare at Aileen's amethyst eyes.

"I'm sorry for stepping your tail." Aileen apologizes and bows her head politely at him.

"You... I know you." The beastman stares at her with an intense look. "You're that herbivore from orientation. One who can control the ocean and seas, an ability to warp the reality at her own will, a demigoddess with beauty and strength." He recalled the words from the Dark Mirror and the blue-haired girl's shoulder tense. Leaning in closer to her neck to sniff her smell.

"Wha—" Aileen's words died out and blushed furiously at the sudden closeness.

The beastman smells the ocean and lavender scent. He smirked and identified she could control the ocean and seas. It amused him to see her flushed and lick the blue-haired girl's neck.

"Kya!" Aileen yelled in shock and Greninja shoved the beastman away while glaring at him coldly. The ninja Pokemon wasn't pleased with the way he mistreated Aileen by licking her neck as if she were a meal.

"Huh." The beastman laughs in amusement watching the blue-haired girl cover her neck. "It's true. You happened to have the ability to control the ocean and seas. It's against the law to lay a hand on a female but I'll do it to one of your creatures instead." He glanced at the two strange creatures.

"I dunno what's up with this guy, but when he looks at me, it makes every follicle of fur stand on end..." Grim whimpered and sensed the beastman's menacing aura.

"No one gets to stomp on my tail and just walk away without payin' the price." The beastman growls and Aileen narrows her eyes. "I'm in a bad mood on account of bein' woken up from my nap, too. That's gonna cost you a to—"

"Water gun!" Aileen conjured up her water and pushed the beastman away. "I would never let you lay a hand on them!"

The beastman is completely soaked up from head to toe. He didn't expect the blue-haired girl would attack him without knowing who she was dealing with.

"Aileen!?" Grim yelled in shock and it was the second time he'd seen her using powers.

"You—" The beastman walks towards them slowly with a menacing look on his face. He never expected she would be bold enough to soak him from head to toe. Without knowing who he was, Aileen refused to back down without a fight.

Greninja growls and readied his stance to protect them. They heard a footstep. "Leona-san! There you are!"

"Huh?" His ears twitch and he turns around to face someone.

It allows Greninja to grab Aileen and Grim to escape.

———————————————————

Leona Kingscholar hates someone interrupting them and finds out it is Ruggie Bucchi.

Ruggie is a light-skinned boy of average height. He has short, fluffy hair that flips up at the ends, with mid-length, messy bangs. His hair is mostly sandy blonde, but a darker blonde fades in from the top of his head. He has short, thicker-than-average eyebrows, bluish-gray eyes, and a subtle dark coloring underneath his eyes.

Instead of human ears, Ruggie has large, brown hyena ears on the top of his head. This is paired with a short hyena tail of the same color. Small, sharp fangs are usually seen when his mouth is open.

Ruggie is relieved to find his usual hideout of skipping the class again. "I knew I'd find you here! We got after-school classes today, remember?" He asked and blinked to see Leona was completely drenched. "Did you go swimming or something?"

"Ugh... and now I've got this guy on my tail..." Leona muttered bitterly under his breath. Ruggie would find him whenever he skipped the class. "This little mermaid here—" He noticed she's gone along with her two companions. "They're gone." Clicking his tongue in annoyance at their disappearance.

"Little mermaid?" Ruggie blinks before shrugging his shoulder. "Leona-san, you've already had to repeat one year. If you get held back again, we'll be in the same grade." He lectured the lion-eared boy.

Leona rolls his eyes and casts a spell to dry up quickly. "Oh, put a sock in it already. I'm tired of all yer yappin', Ruggie." He snarked and hated being nagged.

"Look, you think I like always being on your case?" Ruggie asked bluntly. It's always been him when one of the teachers found out Leona's ditching and asked the hyena-eared boy to find him. "C'mon, man. You act like it'd be hard for you. You could skate through life if you'd just TRY. Come on! Let's go already!"

"Tsk... the next time the little mermaid steps in my territory, there's gonna be a price to pay." Leona vowed if he saw her again.

———————————————————

"Thank you Greninja." Aileen thanked the ninja Pokemon after he lowered her down gently. "What was he thinking?" She rubs her neck where he licks it.

"Man that was close..." Grim sighs in relief they manage to escape. "What is up with this nutso?" He couldn't help but ask.

"I don't think he's the groundskeeper, Grim." Aileen answered and rubbed her forehead. "He's wearing a uniform like us."

"Yo, guys, we found baskets and tongs!" They turned around to see them carrying baskets and tongs to collect the chestnuts.

"What in the world happened to you three?" Deuce asked curiously noticing the demeanor change.

Crystal observes Aileen's face to see faint red cheeks. "Are you unwell, Lee-lee?" She asked worriedly.

"No. I'm just— angry that's all." Aileen answered faintly and received curious looks from them except Greninja and Grim.

Grim gasps in shock. "Oh, right, the chestnuts! We gotta gather those chestnuts so I can get my tart on!" He yelled in shock. "We'll fill 'em in on the crazy groundskeeper while we forage." The grey cat suggested.

"Greninja (Again, he's a student.)" Greninja corrected him.

———————————————————

Grim explained everything about the incident while collecting the chestnuts. "... and then Greninja took us and fled."

Ace flinched in shock. "Yeah, no way was that guy the groundskeeper." He pointed out.

Yuu frowned and stared at Aileen worriedly. "How are you feeling, Ai?" He feels bad for not accompanying her. He is grateful for Greninja's quick thinking to escape before it escalates more of their problem.

"I'm angry the way he treated me and I'm fine now." Aileen assured the black-haired boy.

Grim crosses his paws. "Y'know, now that I think about it, he WAS wearin' the golden vest of that Pajama-clog dorm." He said the wrong dorm.

"Pajama...clog?" Deuce repeats Grim's words before correcting him. "You mean Savanaclaw? You know, I'm starting to think that there's an awful lot of delinquents here at Night Raven..." He muttered under his breath while looking a bit worried.

Ophelia looks at Deuce in his unusual strange behavior. "Are you okay, Deuce?" She asked worriedly of his well-being.

Deuce smiled softly and patted her head. "I'm fine, Ophelia."

Ace hums in satisfaction. "All right, that should be enough chestnuts. Let's get these baskets over to Trey-senpai!" He cheered happily.

"Myahaha!" Grim laughs happily. "Now that we're all gassed up, it's destination: Flavortown, baby!" He raises his paws happily.

———————————————————

Trey smiles to see them holding a basket filled with chestnuts. "Welcome back. Looks like you got plenty!" He greeted them.

"Now, you can make us massive tarts!" Grim demanded and Sprigatito rolled his eyes.

"Well, the bigger the tarts, the harder it'll be to peel all these nuts, so... good luck with that." He explained while crossing his arms.

"Uh... Trey-san." Aileen called the dark green-haired boy. "Can we also have some of the spare ones? We're planning to eat them back in the dorm." She asked politely.

"Of course."

Deuce feels dizzy by watching the chestnuts. "We have to peel all of these? Suddenly the whole room is spinning..." He groaned and leaned on the embrace Pokemon.

"Gardevoir (There, there)" She comforted the dark navy blue-haired boy.

"Don't worry, Deuce~!" Ophelia assured him. "There's a lot of us and we can peel it faster before we can even blink!" She cheered happily.

Ace squints his eyes at her sudden brightness. "You're waaay too cheerful, Ophelia." Ophelia reminds him of a golden retriever because of her brightness and cheerfulness.

"Ace." Aileen called the orange-haired boy in a stern voice and he squeaked. "Anyway... preparation is the key to good baking." She informed them.

"Yeah, yeah, I know!" He exclaimed and Crystal glared as a sign of warning. "Haha... sorry, Crystal. We've come this far. We're not giving up now!"

Yuu claps his hand before rubbing it. "Shall we get started?" He asked and they all started peeling.

———————————————————

Trey is impressed at the teamwork of Gardevoir, Lucario, Sprigatito and Greninja. "You guys peeled it so neat." He complimented them.

"Look, prefect! Look! A primo perf pee—" Ace's jaw dropped to see how much Crystal peeled it off fast without breaking a sweat.

"You're fast, Crystal." Yuu couldn't help but compliment the black-haired girl.

Crystal smiles softly. "There's a lot of them need to be peeled and I'm glad I could help."

Trey hums in amusement to see Ace's hard work. "Wow, Ace. You're remarkably deft." He complimented.

Ace looks smug and looks at Grim and Deuce. "I mean, one of us has to be. It sure ain't the furball or the try hard." He's referring Grim and Deuce.

"Hey!" Deuce protests. "My peels are perfectly fine, thank you. See!" He shows off how much the chestnuts peeled.

"Yeah!" Grim nodded his head. "If you hold mine up next to Ace's, you couldn't even tell 'em apart!" He exclaimed.

Ophelia laughs nervously and peels all the chestnuts single-handedly. "Are they having a competition?" She couldn't help but ask.

Lucario sighs softly. "I'm afraid so, Ophelia." None of them are expecting Ace, Grim and Deuce to be competitive.

"Haha." Trey laughs in amusement. "Well, it's good you're all so fired up because you still got a ways to go." He reminded the three.

"I can deal with that." Aileen throws all the chestnuts high into the air and cuts them with her water abilities. Her ninja Pokemon catches it smoothly and hums in satisfaction. "Thank you, Greninja."

"Nin!" Greninja smiles back.

Trey claps his hand at their small performance. "Splendid job, guys. Next comes the straining."

"There's more!?" Ace, Deuce and Grim scream in shock.

"Of course." Aileen answered and stared at them. "There's a lot of steps to bake the tarts." They groaned in annoyance. "Less complaining and more work guys! Chop, chop!"

———————————————————

Ace sighs heavily and manages to puree the chestnuts. "There! Finally got 'em all pureed!" He didn't expect baking can be difficult to make a dessert.

"My arm is killing me..." Deuce groaned.

Ophelia pats the chair. "Come, Deuce." She called the dark navy blue-haired boy. "I'll massage your arm."

"Yo-yo-you don't have to, Ophelia." Deuce blushed at the thought of Ophelia massaging his arm.

"I insist and I could tell you never done baking before." She pulls Deuce and massages his left arm. "It's a lot of work but the results would give us satisfaction."

Ace looks at Crystal with a hopeful look. "I refuse." She bluntly flattened his silent request.

"Come on! Pretty—"

"No."

Yuu sighs heavily at their banter. "Somehow I don't get Ace's behavior when it comes to Crystal." He commented and the aura Pokemon grunted in agreement.

"You guys did a wonderful job." Aileen complimented and didn't notice a puree on her left cheek. "It'll be all the sweeter for your pain."

"Aileen is right." Trey nodded his head. "Ah, there's a puree on your cheek."

Aileen tries to wipe it. "Did I get it?" She asked the dark green-haired boy.

"No, come." Aileen comes closer while he grabs a tissue and wipes it. "Nice and clean."

"Thank you, Trey-senpai." She thanked him with a gentle smile while he blushed in return.

Grim couldn't stop drooling at the smell. "The smell alone already has me drollin'..." He's tempted to eat it.

"I just need to add butter and sugar to the chestnut paste, and a sensible splash of oyster sauce— that's my secret ingredient!" Trey exclaimed his secret recipe to make his dessert more tastier.

Aileen knows adding an oyster sauce would ruin the sweetness because of its saltiness. She knows he's trying to make fun of Ace, Deuce and Grim. The two girls bake together with Aileen and know the result if they add oyster sauce. Yuu used to bake with his mother and she informed him adding oyster sauce would cause a disaster.

"Oyster sauce!?" Ace and Deuce scream in shock while the other Pokemon turn back and hide their giggling.

"Yep." Trey nodded his head with a serious look. "The umami of the oysters gives the cream a deep, savory flavor." He explained to his two Heartslabyul freshmen and the grey cat. "I use this one here: Walrus-brand Young Oyster Sauce. All the best bakers use it in their tarts." The dark green-haired boy shows off the bottle.

"Really? But isn't oyster sauce like, super salty?" Deuce asked curiously.

"Some folks put chocolate into curry, don't they? Maybe it's the same idea." Ace suggested.

The girls, Yuu, Trey and the Pokemon burst out laughing at their curiosity. They believe Trey's common oyster sauce joke that easy.

"I-I-I-I can't breathe." Aileen wheezed and leaned on Greninja.

"I'm totally lying!" Trey revealed it. "No one in their right mind would put oyster sauce into a pastry." He explained.

"What!? So you were just yankin' our chain!?" Ace thought Trey was serious about the oyster sauce. "YOU KNEW ABOUT THIS!?" He points at the people and Pokemon who are laughing.

"It's common knowledge not to use oyster sauce unless you're cooking." Crystal pointed out.

"Che." He clicks his tongue in annoyance.

"Crystal is right." Trey chuckled. "If you'd use your brain, you'd have realized how ridiculous it was! Let that be a lesson to you. Don't believe everything you here." He warned them.

Grim sighs heavily. "Feh. And here I thought that human was actually somewhat decent." He whispered under his breath.

"Next, I'll put in the cream... oh?" Trey gasped and noticed he ran out of cream.

"What's wrong?" Ace asked.

"You guys gathered so many chestnuts that we may have overdone it with the chestnut paste." He answered and sighed heavily. "I don't think we have enough cream to mix in."

"Then I'll go buy some." Deuce volunteered after thanking Ophelia for the massage. "Do they sell it at the school store?"

"They sell pretty much everything, so... probably. Can I have you pick me up a few other things?" He asked the dark navy blue-haired boy. "I need two cartons of milk, two packs of eggs, some muffin cups, five cans of fruit..." He muttered under his breath.

"Trey-senpai remove the lists of the milk." Aileen leans closer and ignores his blush. "We had loads of milk back in my dorm. Greninja and I can get it for you."

"Are you sure, Aileen?" Trey asked the blue-haired girl.

"Yeah." She nodded her head with a smile. "It's fresh and the tart will become tastier if we use it."

"I'll take your word for it." Aileen and Greninja left to get some milk.

Trey finished writing the list and passed it to Deuce. The dark navy blue-haired boy hums while reading it. "I don't think I'll be able to carry all that back. Ophelia, could you come with me?"

"Sure!" Ophelia answered happily. "I've never been to the school store before." She knows the embrace Pokemon would tag along with them.

"Then I'm comin' too!" Grim wanted to join them for shopping. "I'm getting dizzy from all this stirrin'. I need a break!" He whined.

"Let's go~!" She cheers as they leave.

———————————————————

Ophelia and Gardevoir couldn't help but mesmerize at the store. They have different selections to sell. "Hello, can I get some he— whoa. This shop is wild." Deuce commented. "They have crystal skulls, grimoires, taxidermied... uh, I don't even know what animal that is!"

Grim gulps. "You think they really sell cream here?" He asked nervously.

"Greetings, my stray imps. How fare you today?" They turn around to face the shopkeeper. "Welcome to Mr Sam's Mystery Shop. What among my humble selections interests you? A charm from a secluded land? The mummified remains of an ancient king? A cursed tarot card?"

Sam is a lithe young man with magenta eyes, black-and-purple locs flipped over the right side of his head, and an undercut. Beneath his maroon blazer, he wears a bright purple vest that has skeletal motifs as buttons. He wears a hat which is sewn together of maroon and black colored parts. He has a small skull affixed to his a red clothing wrapped around the hat. He wears a necklace decorated with long, tooth-looking bones.

He also wears a black apron, tied together with a black-and-white ribbon. He has a single pocket visible near his hip, which holds a green hamsa-type object inside.

"Myah! I wasn't expectin' this kinda selection." Grim shrieked and hid behind Gardevoir's back.

"Um, we wanted to buy all the items on this list..." Deuce handed the list to Sam.

"Ring up two cans of tuna while you're at it!" Grim added.

"No, Grim! We're not here for tuna!" He refused to add his favorite food.

"What's this? Cream and eggs and... quite the sacchariferous list!" Sam exclaimed and smiled to see the blonde girl observing the items being displayed. "Okay! I'll get everything for your girlfriend." He winks at the dark navy blue-haired boy.

"She-she she's not my girlfriend!" Deuce denied their relationship.

"Ah, I see. The first stage of denial." He winks before getting the items.

Deuce sighed in relief to see she didn't hear it. "Whoa... he really does stock that stuff, huh?"

Sam came back with the items they needed for their baking. "Here you go. It's pretty heavy... are you sure you can carry this?"

Ophelia and Gardevoir joined them. "We'll manage Sam-san." She assured the young man.

"We also have our 1/100th size flying saucers are 30% off today. Perfect for carrying groceries." Sam suggested.

"Ooh, lemme see!" Grim wanted to see it. "That sounds awesome!"

"We're fine, thank you. Let's go, Grim, Ophelia and Gardevoir." Deuce called them and carried their groceries.

"Myah! I didn't realize today was National No Fun Allowed Day!" Grim whined.

"Very well. Then until next time, my little imps. Do come again! Ciao!" He waves and they leave the shop. "It's been a long time since his guardians sent them here. She happened to be the Mind Plate guardian."

———————————————————

Ophelia uses her psychic powers to carry the groceries. Deuce is still amazed at the store but finds the other items a bit weird. "That store was amazing." He commented.

"Yeah, and you're amazingly cheap." Grim said it rudely to Deuce.

The dark navy blue-haired boy didn't like his tone. "Who are you calling cheap!? Hmph. Ophelia, looks like you got the bag with all the cans. That must be heavy. Let me take one. I've got a little trick for carrying heavy bags."

Ophelia smiles at his kindness. "It's fine, Deuce. It's not heavy when I carried it." She assured him. "I think of it as a challenge to see how far I'm carrying heavy objects using my powers. Are you into shopping?" She asked curiously.

"Yeah." Deuce smiles and misses out on Ophelia's sadness which picks up the senses from the embrace Pokemon. "My mom always used to stock up at sales, and the bags would get ridiculously heavy. I was the only man in the house, so I got to do all the heavy lifting, and— oh, sorry. I didn't mean to monopolize the conversation." He apologized.

Ophelia waves it off. "It's fine, Deuce. Sounds like you took good care of your mom."

"No, it wasn't like that at all. The truth is, I— oww!" Deuce bumped someone and dropped his groceries by accident cracking all the eggs.

"Myah! The eggs!" Grim screams in shock to see the damage.

"T-the carton of eggs is totally smashed! And now the bag's dripping everywhere." Deuce hissed.

"Ouch! Why don't you watch where you're— hey!" Ophelia glares to see the white-haired delinquent boy again. "You're the jerks who broke the egg yolk on my carbonara!" He recognizes them straight away.

The maroon-haired delinquent boy clicks his tongue. "I've had about enough of you punks. You need to learn your place."

None of them look happy to see the delinquents again. "You're the ones who darted out at us from around a corner!" Deuce retorted back. "And you picked a fight with us at lunch an egg that you were still totally able to eat! And now you've destroyed six of OUR eggs!"

"Yeah, he's right!" Grim nodded his head.

"So what? You're sayin' that was our fault?" The white-haired delinquent boy asked them coldly.

"I am. Please reimburse us for the eggs. And then apologize to the chickens." Ophelia blinks her eyes.

"Does he know that these eggs are not fertilized, Gardevoir?" Ophelia whispered in Gardevoir's ear.

"Voir (I think not.)" Gardevoir answered.

"Ooh, look, who's got his big boy pants on? You sure are makin' a big deal outta some stupid eggs." The maroon-haired delinquent boy commented.

"What?" Deuce asked angrily.

"They haven't even touched the ground, so they're still edible. Quit whinin'" The white-haired delinquent boy remarked.

"You should thank us for savin' ya the trouble of crackin' em!" the maroon-haired delinquent boy commented and they burst out laughing.

"That ain't funny." Deuce whispered angrily.

"Huh?"

"I said, THAT AIN'T FUNNY!" Deuce yelled angrily and Grims shrieked in shock. "You don't get to call my eggs stupid. You don't get to call ANY eggs stupid!"

"His persona completely changed..." Ophelia whispered and eyes widened in shock. "Could it be—"

"Those eggs may not have gotten to be chicks, but they were gonna make some amazing tarts!" He ranted angrily. "Do you get it yet? DO YOU!?"

"What is with this guy all of a sudden?" The maroon-haired delinquent boy asked nervously.

"You owe me six eggs. If ya ain't gonna pay me for 'em, then you're getting a bruise for each one!" Deuce threatens them.

"Are you serious right now!?" The white-haired delinquent boy asked nervously.

"Buckle up, jerks!" He beats them leaving the rest speechless at his impulsive behavior.