"Peter, how's it looking up there?"
Texi stood at the bottom of the wooden ladder, calling up to his son.
"Our home is safe for now. I'm going to take a quick look around," Peter replied.
Hearing this, Texi and the rest of the family looked worried.
"Don't worry, I'll just take a peek from the window and come right back," Peter reassured them. He carefully opened the cellar hatch and climbed out.
He moved cautiously toward the window and saw that it still hadn't started snowing yet, which left him a little disappointed. His gaze shifted toward the berry orchard, and he suddenly froze. The unripe berries were still hanging on the trees, and many of the berries, after so many days, now looked ripe enough for harvesting.
"Have the wild beasts still not found their way here?"
Peter found it hard to believe. Their village was very close to the Black Forest and was usually among the first places attacked during a beast invasion.
Returning to the cellar, Peter shared what he had seen with his family, who all wore similarly puzzled expressions.
"Maybe this time there was no beast invasion at all?" Texi guessed uncertainly. "Or maybe the lord managed to stop them?"
"That can't be," Peter's sister interrupted. "If that were the case, someone would have informed us."
Peter thought about it for a moment before saying, "Let's wait a few more days. If nothing happens, I'll go out and check."
The family all nodded. Even though it was quiet, they couldn't shake the sense of unease.
Just like Peter, the other villagers of Fruitvale Village were also feeling that something was off.
Simon's orchard was located at the eastern edge of the village, the area most vulnerable during past invasions. Yet, after so long, there hadn't been a single disturbance, making Simon feel strangely uneasy.
Then, one day, a loud rumbling suddenly echoed, making Simon jump. Finally, it's happening, he thought, oddly relieved.
But the voice that followed made him freeze.
"Rhyhorn, use Earth Power!"
As the command rang out, the ground shook, followed by a loud crashing sound.
"That voice... was that Aven?"
Simon's face changed. He thought he might have misheard, but then came another call:
"Petilil, use Leech Seed!"
This time, Simon heard clearly — it was indeed Aven's voice. Petilil was Aven's Pokémon.
What's going on? Aven must be fighting something...
Simon closed his eyes, recalling Aven's efforts to protect the village. Determination filled his heart. Gritting his teeth, he climbed out of the cellar.
The moment he emerged, he saw Aven standing inside the house. The front door had been smashed into pieces. Outside, Rhyhorn stood prominently, and further away, a Skuntank lay sprawled on the ground, a foul stench filling the air.
"Aven, what happened?"
Simon was still confused, looking between Aven and the unconscious Skuntank.
"Oh, it's nothing serious," Aven said with a sheepish smile. "It's just that this Skuntank was too fast — I couldn't stop it before it got into the village."
Simon stared in disbelief.
"Stopped it before it got into the village?"
Suddenly, everything clicked in Simon's mind.
The reason the village had been so quiet wasn't because there was no invasion — it was because Aven had been intercepting the beasts before they reached them!
"You... you've been keeping the beasts outside the village?" Simon asked, incredulous.
Aven paused, then nodded.
"The village... it's safe now?" Simon hesitated.
"For now, yes," Aven said with a smile, "but I can't guarantee what will happen later."
Simon nodded, understanding. After a moment of hesitation, he asked, "Can I help you... protect the village too?"
Aven smiled warmly and nodded. "Of course."
"But first, let's move this Skuntank out of the village."
Without wasting time, the two got to work. The Skuntank was extremely heavy, but fortunately, they had Rhyhorn pulling a cart, which helped them drag it outside the village limits.
As they reached the village entrance, Simon scratched his head, noticing a patch of grassland that hadn't been there before.
Suddenly, he heard a squeaking noise from the distance. Looking up, he saw a group of over ten small Rattatas approaching.
"Wild Beast! We need to get back to the cellar!" Simon instinctively said, fear flashing in his eyes.
He glanced at Aven and noticed how calm he looked. Meanwhile, the Rattatas had already charged into the grassland.
Simon watched in shock as a faint blue powder began drifting across the field. The moment the Rattatas entered the mist, they froze, staggered a few steps, and collapsed onto the ground.
Then, some of the grass suddenly pulled itself up from the ground — they weren't just grass — they were Oddish!
"They're Aven's Oddish!"
Simon recognized them immediately. These Oddish had once helped the villagers harvest berries, so he was very familiar with them.
But now, he felt like he was seeing them for the first time.
When had these little grass Pokémon, once thought of as no more than weeds, become so powerful?
And all this time, it had been these Oddish quietly protecting the village.
His feelings became complicated — touched, yet a little guilty.
"Don't worry," Aven said reassuringly. "Those Rattatas won't get past the Oddish.
And for any that do slip through, Starly will catch them."
He pointed at a Starly soaring overhead, and Simon could only nod in amazement.
It was clear now — Aven had prepared an entire plan to protect the village, without any of them even realizing it.
"No... I have to tell the others."
Simon's heart was filled with emotion.
How could they just stand by and watch Aven struggle alone? Even if they were ordinary people, they still had to do something for their village!