"Little guy, where are your parents?" Mark also ran over curiously, acting as if they were close friends, and reached out to pat Cubchoo's tiny head.
"Cuuuub~"
Cubchoo let out a babyishly "fierce" cry, startling the unsuspecting Mark so badly he fell flat on his butt.
Then it scurried behind Joseph, peeking out cautiously from behind his leg. With that timid look in its eyes, it seemed like it was the one who had been scared.
"No~ My heart can't take this!" Phoebe clung to Ryoko, her cheeks flushed red as she stared at Cubchoo, eyes full of heart-shaped sparkles.
"Out playing and got lost?" Joseph now used Viridian Power to understand why such a young Cubchoo was alone here.
"Choo… Choo…"
With tears in its eyes, Cubchoo once again hugged Joseph's calf. The pitiful sight was enough to break anyone's heart.
"Let's bring the little bear along," Phoebe finally couldn't help but speak up. "Look how cute it is... ahem, I mean, how pitiful! Let's help it find its mom!"
"Yeah, yeah~" Ryoko nodded rapidly beside her, fully in agreement.
"But what about the trial?" Mark asked as he struggled to his feet, realizing no one was paying him any attention.
"You're the one who brought us here. Meeting the little bear is just fate." Phoebe said matter-of-factly, then cautiously reached out toward Cubchoo.
"Little bear, can I pet you just a little?"
"Choo?" Cubchoo poked out its head, watching Phoebe's hand inch closer…
Then rubbed up against it on its own…
Mark: ('')
Phoebe: (ˊˋ)
"Then let's bring it along," Sato also nodded in agreement. Not because Cubchoo was cute, but because in situations where strength wasn't everything, a bit of kindness might yield unexpected rewards.
The group continued deeper, now with an adorable Cubchoo added to the team.
Since Cubchoo was too young to keep up, Phoebe had Mismagius use Power Gem to form a small stone basket. Joseph then lined it with a soft towel, and Cubchoo obediently climbed inside.
"Be good, okay? Big sis will help you find your mom~" Having earned Cubchoo's trust, Phoebe began shamelessly patting its head.
"Choo~"
Cubchoo tried to dodge twice but failed, clearly frustrated, but then got distracted by the floating stone basket. It looked around curiously, showing no fear at all.
The group pressed forward. Phoebe, wanting to keep patting the bear, offered to switch positions with Sato.
Sato had no choice but to walk in front for now. After all, there likely wouldn't be any fierce battles here in the short term.
So their formation didn't really matter anymore. Though Phoebe kept saying she wanted to help Cubchoo find its mom, the task ended up falling to Ryoko.
Among their Pokémon, when it came to scent sensitivity, Swampert was second to none.
Of course, if Houndoom were here, Swampert wouldn't even get the chance.
Swampert walked up to Sato and dutifully began sniffing out a scent matching Cubchoo's, effectively taking the lead.
Though they knew the battles up top were still raging fiercely, everyone had the feeling that this underground world would yield even greater rewards.
They passed through the not-so-dense jungle without any surprises. The five of them arrived at the foot of the "mountain", looking up at its massive form; even though it was only the base portion.
Everyone felt as if this entire underground world was being propped up by the mountain. Even though they had only reached its base, the sight was overwhelming enough.
Suddenly, an urgent bear roar echoed out, and Cubchoo, sensitive to the sound, started calling back frantically with matching cries.
At that moment, there was no doubt.
Cubchoo's parents had arrived.
Even though Sato's group hadn't harmed the little bear and had even brought it here to find its mom, bear Pokémon were infamous for their bad tempers.
So, when they felt slight tremors coming from the ground, they couldn't help but quietly pull out their Poké Balls… just in case.
"Cub… CUB!"
"BEAAAR!"
The cries from both large and small Pokémon grew more and more intense. At Phoebe's signal, Mismagius removed the Power Gem basket, letting Cubchoo tumble out and run ahead unsteadily.
A few seconds later -though Cubchoo hadn't run far- a pure white Beartic with not a single speck of other color suddenly leapt out of the bushes ahead.
"Cub!"
Cubchoo was so happy even its snot swung wildly side to side as it threw itself straight into its mom's embrace.
Everyone prepared themselves, ready to witness a heartwarming reunion between mother and child.
And then…
Plop!
Beartic slammed its tire-sized paw right down on Cubchoo, smashing it halfway into the soft dirt with a stunned look on its face.
Everyone: (⊙x⊙;)
That's definitely its real mom…
"Ar~ Artic~ Beaaaar~" Beartic vigorously pounded the dirt around Cubchoo with its paw, not hurting it any further, but leaving the poor thing completely dumbfounded from the impact.
Everyone silently watched the scene transform from a tearful reunion into a massive display of parental discipline, utterly stunned.
Finally, having disciplined her child to her satisfaction, Beartic let out a refreshed roar and pulled Cubchoo -half-buried in dirt- out by the scruff.
Beartic gave her filthy little cub a disgusted look, then scanned the surroundings as if searching for something.
Suddenly, Beartic locked eyes with Swampert, clearly sensing the strong Water-type energy emanating from it.
"Bear Beaahr!"
"Swa?"
"Bear~ Beartic!"
"Swam…pert…"
And so, with a helpless expression, Swampert condensed a super-small Water Pulse at Cubchoo's head, where it burst open.
Water sprayed everywhere, soaking Cubchoo through. The mud and grime on its body visibly faded.
"Bear Bear!"
"Swa…"
Splurt!
A second Water Pulse. Then a third, a fourth, a fifth…
Only after Cubchoo's body was completely free of filth did Beartic finally give her cub a good shake.
"Achoo~ Achoo~ Achoo..."
Cubchoo wobbled and sneezed repeatedly, spraying droplets everywhere as most of the leftover water was shaken off.
For some reason, as everyone watched, they suddenly understood why such an adorable little bear was named Cubchoo…
It was all thanks to its overbearing and overzealous mom!
And as for why Swampert obediently kept casting Water Pulse without a single complaint?
It was because the Beartic in front of them was clearly a monstrously powerful Pokémon… one that had reached the High Pseudo-Elite Four level.