Redemption

Chapter 16

        She refused to let him out of her sight, just as she promised. That meant that he had to go with her as she carried out her tasks for the day. Though he hadn't spoken much since last night, he agreed to follow her around for the day. First was grocery shopping, which he seemed to rather enjoy. As for why it was food shopping that lightened his mood, (y/n) wasn't sure but didn't complain.

        The second task was attending the island challenges for that day. It wasn't often that Hau was able to battle in order to determine whether trial goers passed to the next trial or not. It was (y/n)'s job to be present to witness these battles when she could. The islanders believed that all would go well no matter the outcome of the battle so long as she was there. Silver had commented something along the lines of Hau being a gym leader, but he had kept quiet other than that.

        That brought them to their final task. (Y/n) was to attend a meeting with a group of islanders, herself, and Hau to discuss the plans for this year's Tapu Festival. It was set to start just before the stormy season which was a month from now. "It shouldn't take long. I don't think anyone will mind that you're here," (y/n) said to Silver as they waited for everyone to arrive at the center of Iki Town where the island trials were held. They sat clustered around the miniature arena like embers surrounding a flame.

        "What exactly is the Tapu Festival?" Silver questioned from where he sat behind her.

        "Oh," she forgot that he didn't know. "It's an annual event where the Tapu pokémon visit a different island and become that island's guardian for a day. It's one of the few times that the Tapus interact with anyone on the island outside of battle ceremonies or emergencies. This year, Tapu Koko is trading places with Tapu Fini. We had Tapu Bulu visit the previous year. Once all the Tapus do a rotation, they stay on their own island for one year before the rotation starts again." (Y/n) got a little excited just talking about the festivities. "Each island has their own way of celebrating. For us here on Mele Mele, we usually have dancers and I perform a special ceremony with Pikachu and Togedemaru to represent Koko in his absence. The visiting Tapu pokémon stays around to hear the music and play with the children. The food is the best part. Hau's always been good about ordering enough malasadas for everyone. It's become a tradition for us now to have them during the festival." (Y/n) smiled brightly. "And then at the end, we shoot fireworks into the sky!"

        (Y/n) hadn't noticed the slight blush present on Silver's face while he watched her explain the event to him. "It sounds like a lot of fun," he commented.

        The meeting started shortly afterwards when Hau arrived with his grandfather Hala. Questions were asked about what types of dances would be performed for this year as well as the pokémon that should be involved in the dancer's selection. In the end, it was agreed that Sensu styled Oricorio and Comfey would be chosen. The topic of the fireworks handling was out of (y/n)'s jurisdiction, so she didn't pay much attention to it. She just knew that they were talking about colors and other things. When the time came, she would choose her own colors, but it wasn't a pressing matter. Everything else progressed smoothly up until food was mentioned.

        "We...might not be able to have malasadas this year. If we do, they'll be limited," Hau solemnly announced. There were surprised gasps and murmurs among the people. "I happened to be at the shop just last night. The manager told me that because of how short staffed they've been, there's no way they can operate their normal business hours and set aside enough time to finish the malasadas for the festival."

        "So that's why." Hau had been upset about two things then. No wonder he had been so uncharacteristically quiet.

        "But they've known about this for months now," one of the town residents spoke up.

        "We can't have the Tapu Festival without malasadas. It just wouldn't be the same anymore," another said. Several voices of agreement rose found the audience. They had served the treat for five consecutive years now. It truly would be strange not to have them present so suddenly.

        "I understand everyone's concern. I'm working on a solution to see to it that we still have enough before the festival arrives." Hau's own frustration was showing in his tone of voice. "The other shops on neighboring islands are unable to help since they are occupied with the needs of the festivals on those islands. Malasadas aren't the main focus of those festivals, but they still require enough to go around."

        "We can only hope for a miracle at this point," a local resident expressed in distress. More of the people could be heard voicing their own opinions on the matter as well.

        "(Y/n)." Silver's voice came to her as a quiet whisper. He had her full attention in seconds. "I can do it. I think I can help," he offered.

        "Wahine Uila, can you ask the great Tapu if there is any possible way to solve this problem? We just can't let the children down. They'll be expecting enough malasadas for everyone to share." (Y/n) snapped her attention back to the meeting. She was caught off guard by being put on the spot so suddenly, but she managed to keep her composure.

        Glancing back at Silver, she made her decision. "I already have a solution." Sighs of relief and noises of surprise were the people's immediate reactions. "Although he hasn't been here for long, I know of someone who has shown exemplary skill in the making of malasadas. Though, I will not allow him to work alone."

        Already figuring out (y/n)'s plan, Hau gave his own input. "I also trust in this person's skill. I had the chance to witness it myself although it didn't occur to me to ask for help until (y/n) pointed it out just now."

        "Both Kahuna Hau and Wahine Uila support this person? What more do we need to worry about? The problem is solved," someone in the crowd said.

        "But, who is this person?" Everyone grew quiet, grateful for the brave soul who dared to ask as they were all likely thinking the same thing.

        (Y/n) stood up, bringing all of the attention to herself. She beckoned for Silver to join her, a hesitant effort on his part. "His name is Silver, and as I said before, I do no expect him to work alone. If you truly wish to bring smiles to all of the children's faces this year, then I ask that anyone with the time volunteers their service to assist him." One by one, hands began to raise among the crowd. Most of them were from elders of the town who were masters of the craft. Still, others came from younger people who were willing to sacrifice their free time for the sake of the festival's success. "Thank you very much. I will call forth a meeting here tomorrow to discuss how we will carry out this plan. That is all."

        (Y/n) gave a short nod followed by Silver's bow before they both returned to their seats. As soon as she was settled, Silver rested his head against her back. She peeked at him as best as she could without completely turning around. Only his hair was visible as he kept his head down to stare at the grass as he hid his face from the crowd. When (y/n) felt him tug at the hem of her shirt with one of his hands, she realized the meaning of his actions even though she was unable to see the shades of color that lit his face.

        Before long, the meeting's atmosphere had returned to normal. Hau resummed the rest of the proceedings without any other issues leading to one of (y/n)'s most successful days yet. For the rest of that month, they would need to plan and prepare everything precisely.
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I would like to note that in real life, malasadas will not keep their quality past like...five minutes. However, in the pokémon world they keep for as long as you have them in your bag, so that's what we're going by! Until next time you spectacular readers!