The Sinnoh Frontier Brains are severely underrepresented in terms of fanfiction, which is a shame since they're such wacky characters. They totally need more stories! (throws confetti)

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.

"Argenta! Argenta, wake up!"

The Hall Matron groaned, her hopes of a relaxing spa treatment crumbling away as the persistent voice continued to call her name, shattering the tranquil silence. The magenta-haired woman sat up and grumpily removed the zucchini slices from her eyelids, fixing her reddish-brown eyes on the visitor, a younger woman with wild black hair. "Dahlia," she grumbled in annoyance, "I'm a little busy right now."

Completely ignoring the older woman's protests, Dahlia grabbed her friend's shoulders and shook her violently, her expression hysterical. "This is important, 'Genta!" the Arcade Star squealed, biting her lip and looking tearful. "I checked my freezer this morning and I'm all out of ice cream! Not only that, but I'm fresh out of cake, as well." Her shoulders slumped miserably and her face scrunched up into a pout, eliciting an exasperated sigh from the Hall Matron. Argenta arched a delicately plucked eyebrow and awkwardly patted her companion's shoulder, while massaging her own temple with the other hand.

"Dahlia," she questioned wearily, "have you ever considered cutting your sugar intake a bit?" The younger woman merely sniffled in response. "I think you've become unhealthily dependent on it, to the point where you cannot function whatsoever when you don't—"

"—Hey!" The Arcade Star suddenly perked up, her miserable face brightening into a smile so abruptly that Argenta was too disturbed to be angry about the interruption. "Hey, 'Genta, I have a great idea! Darach makes really good chocolate-chip cookies! In fact, I'll bet he's making some right now... I'll go over to the Castle to see him! Thanks, Argenta! Bye-bye!"

And with that she dashed away, leaving the magenta-haired Frontier Brain sitting there, flabbergasted.

She spotted the Castle Valet in one of the hallways, polishing microscopic particles of dirt off an otherwise spotless staircase with a fluffy feather-duster. Humming in satisfaction, Darach then walked a few feet further, adjusting a large hanging portrait of the Castle's princess, and—

—and turned around only to see the Arcade Star standing inches behind him, grinning innocently. The man started, looking slightly flustered, and hastily executed a polite bow. "Miss Dahlia," he stammered, not quite over his initial shock, "if I may, can I ask why you are here?"

Dahlia cocked her head to one side. "Are you very busy right now, Dar?" she asked.

"I am in the process of cleaning the Castle at the moment, as you can undoubtably see," he answered distractedly, gesturing around the immaculately shining hallway as if it were tarnished and covered in grime. "Lady Caitlin values cleanliness greatly, and I must not disappoint her. But forgive my lapse of manners, Miss Dahlia, surely you are here to visit the princess? Shall I fetch my Lady now?"

The woman shook her head rapidly and gave the young butler a disarming smile. "Actually, Darach, I was wondering if you had any cookies. Chocolate-chip cookies? The really good ones you make that I always eat right out of the oven and burn my mouth on?" The desperation in her voice was growing more and more evident. "I went to the Battle Hall earlier, see, but 'Genta didn't have anything... Y-you do have some, right?"

"...Ah." The man shifted uncomfortably, running a hand through his elegantly styled hair before bowing apologetically. "You'll have to forgive me, Miss Dahlia, but I don't."

"Well, you can bake some more, right? Please, Darach, pleeeeeease?" she begged, looking as though she'd start foaming at the mouth at any moment. He bit his lip and shook his head in the negative, and she continued, pouting, "Why not? Is it because I'm interfering with your cleaning? I wiped my feet before coming in!"

"N-no! It's not that, I can assure you," the Castle Valet protested, wringing his hands. "It's... well, it's Lady Caitlin, you see. She seems to be going through a phase where she's convinced that she is overweight, and actively forbade me from making confections. I've tried to convince her that she has a perfectly petite figure, but my Lady can be rather... obstinate... at times..."

"Darach! I heard that!" The voice came from the aforementioned princess, and the butler cringed and bowed low as a slender girl with magnificently wavy, light brown hair came into view. She folded her arms over her chest and glared at the much taller man, green eyes narrowed. Dahlia, deciding to leave before things got nasty, turned and hurriedly jogged away.

"Thanks anyway, Dar! See you later, Cait! Hope your weight issues get resolved soon!" the Arcade Star called over her shoulder, waving. The princess squeaked indignantly and, with an angry frown, stomped over to her cowering butler.

"Well, I might as well try Palmer," she halfheartedly mused, feeling on the verge of losing hope completely as she hurried to the Battle Tower. Upon entering the tall building and walking through a few rooms to the battle arena, she was nearly blinded as several powerful floodlights doused the area with brightness. "Palmer?" the woman called, squinting. "You there?"

"Indeed, Arcade Star Dahlia!" was the loud reply, and the figure of a tall man with unruly blond hair leapt out from the shadows, standing before her in a dramatic pose as his long green coat billowed from some unseen source of wind. "I take it you are here for a battle, no? As the Tower Tycoon, I accept your challenge! Show me your skill as a fellow Frontier Brain! Ha ha ha!" He ended his speech with a rather maniacal laugh, which soon died away as the woman stared at him, biting her lip as not to start laughing. "...Did I overdo it a bit?" he asked after a moment, deflating.

"Just a little, Palm," she sighed, shifting her position so the lights were not shining directly in her eyes. "I'm not really here for a battle today. I was hoping you might have—"

"Not here for a battle?" he interrupted, crossing his arms and frowning in disappointment. "I'm surprised at that, really. Here I was hoping for an good match... but beggars can't be choosers, I guess. What's going on?"

The Arcade Star made a face. "Well, you interrupted me before I could say," she chided in mock-annoyance. "See, I'm fresh out of cake, Argenta doesn't have anything good in her pantry, and Caitlin won't let Darach make any cookies. Palmer, please tell me you have some candy or something that can tide me over until I have time to go to the store! I'm practically going through sugar-withdrawal over here!" As if to further illustrate her point, the woman grabbed fistfuls of her hair and spun around in a nervous circle before facing him once more, her left eye twitching ominously.

The Tower Tycoon backed a few steps away from her, a bit alarmed. "Eh... Well, I might have something stashed away..."

"Really? Palm, if you do, I'll... umm..." She racked her brains furiously. "...I'll clear your overdue bar tab at the Arcade!"

Palmer immediately perked up. "Whoa, you'd do that for me, seriously? That would be great, the bouncer doesn't even let me in there anymore. But, now that I think about it," he continued disappointedly, "I'm pretty sure I sent everything back to my home in Twinleaf for my son."

Dahlia looked heartbroken at this.

Normally the Arcade Star would have laughed at the idea of asking Thorton if he had any sugary munchies, but desperate times called for desperate measures. The Battle Factory was full of flashy machinery emitting constant beeps and whirrs, sounds the woman found far from inviting. Nevertheless, she made her way to where the Factory Head stood poring over his analysis machine, and he spoke before she had even opened her mouth. "Hey, Dahlia," he said, his eyes not once leaving his gadget. "Push that red switch to your left, will you?"

"Nice to see you, too, Thor," she sighed despondently, reaching back and flipping the switch he had indicated. It immediately activated a small conveyer belt which spun merrily in place, carrying a square box into view. The teen, after setting his analysis machine down carefully, snatched the box up and deposited it into the Arcade Star's arms, grinning as she tore it open curiously. Inside was a large chocolate cake.

Dahlia nearly fainted. "For the love of Arceus, Thorton," she said faintly, "you must be a psychic. That does it—I am never playing cards with you again."

"Don't be ridiculous," the boy sighed. "Argenta called me a few hours ago about your predicament. She told me that you might visit, so I devised a hypothesis and came to the conclusion that you were seventy-two percent likely to, having failed at the other facilites, end up here at my doorstep. Pretty impressive, no?" The Factory Head smiled victoriously, clearly pleased with himself. He nearly stumbled back as Dahlia jumped forward, hugging him affectionately.

"You are such a nerd," she giggled, and he, for once, did not protest.

And so it begins.

Cookiekitten loves requests, so feel free to throw some ideas at me. :D