"Alain! Alain, guess what?"

Alain raised his head with a quiet groan as Manon burst into his room with Chespie at her heels. Both trainer and Pokémon had a beaming smile. He set his notebook on his desk and turned in his chair, giving her his full attention, mostly.

"Alain, a new bakery opened in town today! Steven says that they'll be giving out lots of free samples to promote business, or something like that . . . We should go!"

"Why don't you go by yourself? You can take Pooch for a walk or something. He needs to lose weight. He's above the recommended weight for an average Poochyena, even with his winter coat coming in." Alain tapped a book on his desk labeled, General Hoenn Biota and Fauna, as if to further prove his point.

Pouting, Manon crossed her arms over her chest. "Alain, don't make this about Pooch's weight. You know he's sensitive."

"Yeah? I've never seen him care that much. Especially when he's sneaking snacks from my bag."

Manon let out an annoyed grumble, saying something under her breath, most likely directed at the disobedient dog that she had been desperately trying to train since the raking incident. "Look, I just figured it would be more fun if we went together. You're always locked up in your room. Besides, going alone would be super boring." To emphasize her point she made a huge stretching motion with her hands, to show EXACTLY how boring it would be if she went alone. Alain couldn't help but chuckle at this.

"Can't Steven or Wallace take you?

"They're both busy training their Pokémon. I asked them first because I knew you wouldn't want to go." There was a slight hint of hurt to her voice that told him she was actually a bit upset.

With a sigh, the teen slid his papers into a neat pile and raised himself from his desk, being sure to properly tuck in his chair afterwards. "Alright, I'll go. But I don't want to be out too long. It's getting pretty cold outside."

Manon nodded excitedly, and with Chespie leaping up onto her shoulders, she bolted to the front door to grab her coat and shoes. Alain shook his head, hoping to get this trip over with quickly.

Soft, powdery flakes drifted down from the gray curtain above them as Alain and Manon walked through the busy streets of Mossdeep. There seemed to be more people out than usual despite the cold weather, and Alain could only guess they were all going to the new bakery. Anxious, he held Manon's coat between his fingers so that he could feel that she was by his side and not lost in the crowd somewhere. She had looked at him with a confused frown, but quickly shrugged his protective behaviour off and continued walking down the street with Chespie as a lookout on her shoulder.

"So where is this bakery?" Alain asked, scanning the countless buildings for any sign of the place she was looking for.

Manon made a thoughtful humming sound, biting her thumb a bit as she tried to remember the directions. "Well . . . I know it's in town . . ."

"Manon . . ."

"It's fine! I can find it!" She yelped, waving her hands frantically and quickening her pace. "There's no need to worry, Alain! I know exactly where I'm going!" Determination sizzled within her hazel eyes. She pulled at Alain's sleeve, dragging him down the streets as they went from building to building in hopes of finding the bakery.

I should have asked Wallace or Steven for directions before leaving . . .

After about an hour of pointless wandering, Alain was tempted to suggest giving up and heading back to the house. He opened his mouth to speak, but Manon beat him to it.

"Alain! It's there! The bakery!" She wore a massive grin and pointed with her finger to a small shop just across the street, a small group of people were shuffling outside, all with a piece of bread, or a cookie, or some other sugary dessert that made Manon's mouth water. "Alain let's go!"

Like a dog on a leash, Alain was yanked across the road and up to the window of the shop. Warm smells flooded out from under the door that chased away the cold in his body almost immediately. He couldn't help but stare at the delicious treats himself, despite not having much of a sweet tooth himself, it all looked delicious.

Manon smiled knowingly as she watched him stare at the food on display. Tugging at his arm again, she pulled him through the door and up to the counter where the baker was waiting expectantly. He had one of those funny, white hats on that Manon had assumed were only for television. She stood on her toes grinned at him over the counter with her natural, rosy smile. He did the same and held out his hand for her to shake.

"Hello young lady, what can I do for you today?" He asked, a foreign accent glazing his voice. He wasn't from Hoenn.

"We'd like to try one of your desserts, please! It all smells so good! You must be an amazing baker!"

The man blushed slightly at the kind complement before laughing it off. He reached down to grab a few cookies from inside the glass case, but stopped suddenly. Holding up a finger for the two trainers to wait, he disappeared into the back of his shop for only a moment, returning with a big, white box in his arms. Alain grunted as the baker handed it to him, surprised by the weight.

"A kind girl like you deserves more than just some freebie cookie. I want you to share that with your friend here, it's one of my best cakes. I hope that you enjoy it."

Alain could swear he saw stars in Manon's eyes as she thanked the man over and over. They took a seat near the window and opened the box, revealing a decently sized cake with gorgeous frosting decorations littering the sides and center. It was meant to be some sort of Grass type collage, perfect for the little redhead.

"Alain, it's amazing! We have to save some for Steven and Wallace!" She cheered, her fork hanging in her mouth. Chespie chattered gleefully as she let him have a taste too. "Chespie likes it too!"

Alain tentatively bit down on his own fork. He had expected some sort of blast of sugar to take over his mouth, but instead was met with a pleasant fluffy texture that was sweet, but not overpowering. "You're right, it is good." He admitted, looking down at the rest of his slice. "We should get it back to the house while it's still fresh."

Manon nodded and they finished eating quickly and packed up the rest of the cake. She waved a goodbye to the baker before following Alain out the door, looking forward to sharing the cake with Steven and Wallace.

"Hey, Manon?" Alain looked at her as they approached the house.

"What is it, Alain?"

"Don't give any to Pooch. He doesn't need anymore treats."

"Yeah . . . You have a point."

A/N - Oh my gosh, kalosstarters thank you for sharing my story! I love your fics so much, I've read and reread them all! You're an amazing writer and I get so happy whenever I see a new fic from you! Yes I did write this chapter just to leave a note for you because I don't have tumblr. Oops.