Everything was not okay. 

Michiko was used to wild Pokemon being a nuisance-- she still had to get rid of that Salamence nesting on her shed-- but that didn't make her prepared for it. Wild Pokemon attacks were one of the risks of going out in the countryside, where less-socialized creatures could sometimes be aggressive or mischievous when they encountered humans. But she'd never had them try to get at her in her car before, much less try to carry the whole thing away!

Of course, a full vehicle was too heavy for them to actually pick up, though she swore she'd actually felt the tires lift off the ground for a moment. But the fact that Zac hadn't even noticed (not even when she'd had to turn on the windshield wipers to clear them away) was alarming.

I am going crazy, Michi thought to herself, shaken, as her friend Jun-jun jogged up to meet them. She made doubly sure to lock the car, checking to make sure there was nothing inside. It was empty--  no slithering green bodies, no yellow eyes. I lost them on the road when I sped up, maybe, she thought, but felt unconvinced. Before today she'd never even seen a Dreepy in real life, and now she'd already seen more than she could count. 

Jun-jun's wife, Maki, met them at the door. "Please come in! It's so nice to have guests," she exclaimed. There was something strange about her-- despite her smile and warm tone, her face was almost a worried grimace. 

Michi remembered the fancy apples she'd forgotten to give Zac and made a swift decision to repurpose the gift, sending a silent apology to the red-haired man. She'd get him something different to make up for it.

"Petalburg Apples! What a lovely treat!" Maki exclaimed as Michi pulled them out of her bag and handed them over. "You're too thoughtful, Michiko. Oh, but please! Everyone sit down, dinner's ready. I've already gotten your place settings ready." She showed them through the entry into the dining room, stopping Matchan at the entryway. "Your Machamp can eat outside with the herd if it's hungry, there should still be plenty of feed set out."

Michi blinked. Lately she'd been eating with Matchan at the table, since it seemed so empty with just one place setting, but of course she couldn't do that as a guest. "Oh, of course," she said, feeling silly. "Matchan, can you find your way there?"

The fighting-type shrugged, seeming resigned, and backed out of the front door back into the darkness.  She felt a brief stab of regret. She'd been hoping to ask the Machamp if he'd seen anything on the drive over, but it looked like she wouldn't have a chance. 

Clutching her handbag and following the others to the dining table, Michi gave the room a quick once-over but didn't see any Dreepy-- not even the one that had been hovering near Jun-jun's head when she'd run into him earlier in the day. 

Why did that make her nervous? 

Still looking around herself uneasily, she sat down with the others, helping herself to a bowl of steaming white rice before passing the bowl to Jun-jun. "So Jun-jun," she said carefully, picking up her chopsticks, "You say, recently, you are being bothered by... pests?"

The farmer exchanged a glance with his wife, who had just come in holding a big plate of roast lamb. Something passed between them and Jun-jun looked away.

"Oh, we don't want to talk about that over dinner," he said with an uneasy laugh. "Let's just relax and spend a nice meal together. It's been too long since we've caught up! We'd have to get to know your new friends as well. Zac, was it?" Jun-jun leaned forward, "You said you were good with Pokemon, right? What do you know about Dr--"

Michi froze with her chopsticks halfway to her mouth. 

"--Dry feed vs. wet feed?" 

Michi sighed, slumping again. Was she really going crazy?

Zac rocked from the enormity of the question. He rubbed his head, trying to get his thoughts in order.  

"For livestock? Well wet feeding is usually easier to do and increases intake, but can be more expensive if you don't have any liquid byproducts readily available. I guess you would though, right? You have Miltank here."

"Exactly!" Jun-jun said, through a mouthful of rice. "I thought it would save me and Maki time, but now my Miltank have stopped producing!"
He shook his head, cramming a slice of roast lamb into his mouth. 
Maki sawed sadly at the single steamed vegetable on her plate.

"And it's Winter too!" Jun-jun continued. "These are the peak months."
    "Maybe something is messing with your livestock." Zac suggested, remembering the disconcerting feeling of being watched he had experienced on the way to the house. "Do you get many predators out these parts?"

With his hands full, Jun-jun wobbled his head side-to-side in a 'so-so' motion. "Your usual." He said, finishing his glass of beer. "Scyther and Politoed getting into the rice crops, and wild Emboar digging at my yams, but nothing comes near the sheds." 

"How do you keep 'em safe? I didn't see any Growlithe."
There was a soft exclamation of sadness from Maki, and she stood up quickly. "You must be thirsty." Maki said to Jun-jun, her eyes full of tears, and she hurried off to get him a refill.
    The old man's chewing slowed, and Zac heard muffled sobbing coming from the kitchen. 
"We had a Growlithe," he explained, softly. "Char-char-maru. But he...well he disappeared last week. Run off maybe?" Jun-jun deflated as he talked, as if the distraction of food had been the only thing keeping him upright. 
"I thought about getting a new dog, but I haven't seen anything bothering the livestock..." he looked behind him, making sure that Maki wasn't on her way back to the table.
"...and I don't think Maki wants a new dog." His voice lowered further, and Zac leaned in to catch the words. "They used to sit together and watch her daytime dramas."

They ate in silence for a few minutes, until Maki returned with fresh makeup and sans Jun-jun's beer. Nobody said a word.

Michi made a soft, sad sound hearing about her friend's lost Growlithe, Char-char-maru. The name is very cute... it is too bad. She looked back at the kitchen, where Maki had retreated to compose herself, and bit her lip. How would I feel if Thor disappeared? she thought, and immediately felt terrible. No wonder there was a strange atmosphere over dinner-- this was a family still grieving.

"The rice is delicious, Maki," Michi piped up after the woman returned and they'd continued eating in quasi-silence. "The lamb is... also delicious! Is it from Jun-jun farm also?"

"Yes, it is," Maki answered, throat sounding a little tight. She seemed to relax a little as she got back into talking. "We've been experimenting with different wool blends from both Mareep and Wooloo. We find the market is trending towards Mareep here in Hoenn, though, so we're cutting back on our Wooloo stock." 

"Oh! I know Wooloo! My husband said there are many in Galar! Their wool is very warm, he says." Michi clasped her hands, remembering the picture he'd sent her of the pastures from the train. Feeling suddenly queasy, she decided not to think too closely about the meat on her plate. Of course it was natural, but it was still jarring.

Jun-jun nodded, sitting back in his chair and wiping his mouth with his napkin. He'd just finished eating. "You've got it in one-- you know what the Hoenn climate's like, Michiko. Mareep wool's just a little bit lighter than the Wooloo stuff, so people tend to go for it. We've still got a few of the little roundies around, but we're givin' 'em away if you know anyone who wants any."

Lighting up, Michi opened her mouth to say something, but froze.

There was a Dreepy in the room. Her eyes followed it as it floated over to Jun-jun's now-empty glass of beer. It peeked through the glass at her, yellow eyes grotesquely distorted, before coming out the other side. "Michiko, are you interested in a Wooloo?" Jun-jun asked again, "Most of 'em are pretty tough and stringy at this point, so we can't make good mutton out of them."

"No-o-o. I mean, yes," Michi said distantly, watching the Dreepy. It flew over to Zac's glass next, its forked tongue flicking out and dabbing into the surface of the liquid. Didn't he notice?! It made a face and zipped away again.  "Yes, Wooloo is very cute. Maybe, I can take one."

"Then it's decided! I'll show you the flock and you can pick your favorite," Jun-jun said, seeming more cheerful. The Dreepy phased through the table from below into her glass of water and Michi stood up quickly, chair scraping against the floor. "That sounds... amazing!" she said forcefully, response a bit delayed. Maki and Jun-jun were too polite to stare, but they seemed... concerned.

I'm causing trouble for everyone, she thought, quickly gathering up her things. Best not to mention the Dreepy. "Zac, maybe you also are interested? Let's go look! " She quickly turned away from the table and her empty plate, willing herself not to see the tiny dragon zero in on a basket of coffee creamer and lift one thimble-sized cup into the air, bobbing under the weight.

Jun-jun hadn't even reached for his jacket when there was suddenly an outburst of noise from outside. A cacophony of animal sounds, squeals and deep moos-- and, Michi swore, one distinct <Matchaaan!>

Jun-jun paused. "It's happening again," he said, as if afraid. 

He and Maki exchanged glances. 

Coat thrown over one shoulder, the farmer-- followed by the rest of them-- flew out the door towards the feedlot.

They ran out into the night. The darkness feeling even more oppressive after the bright warmth of the dining room. <Matchaaann!> came the cry for help, and Zappa's weak light cut through the night like a fork through cold butter. Zac could barely make out the edge of the orchard through the thick, soupy night. 
        The group ran towards the feedlot, down the dirt path which cut straight through the berry bushes. To one side, the boughs were thick with winter fruit. The aspear and yache berries would soon be ready for harvest, naturally sweetened by the cold. 
    On the other side, the bushes were completely bare. They must have been picked already. Zac thought.

    <Matchaaan!> shouted the long-suffering Pokemon, and as the group reached the feed lot they saw that Machamp wasn't crying out in pain, but frustration. He was standing protectively in front of one of the Miltank, chopping with blinding speed at...nothing?

Matchan's fists blurred, striking the air at speeds of 6000 ppm (punches per minute). "What's going on mate? Getting some training in?" The Pokemon ignored him. His eyes were following something that Zac couldn't see. The Miltank let out a distressed <Taaaaank> and it jostled in its stall. For a second Zac saw milk, drip from its udder and disappear. 
    "Michi! That milk just vanished! Did you see that?...Michi?"

Maybe Zac couldn't see it, but Michi could. As the men flew down the hard-packed dirt driveway and towards the barn, Michi was still struggling to wrap her scarf around her neck as she hurried after them, one arm in her coat sleeve with the other flapping behind her. Maki had stayed behind in the doorway, watching them go. Her silhouette was black against the distant light, like the wick of a candle.

But Michi wasn't alone. Dreepy skimmed past her like ribbons of wind, toothless mouths gaping. Some of them held sprigs of bitter-looking herbs from Maki's garden. Some of them carried round blue Oran Berries instead, two laboring under a single fruit as they squealed and fought in the air. Pests, Michi realized. This must have been what Jun-jun was talking about back at the pet store. But why the animals?

There was no doubt in Michi's mind what was going on by the time she caught up with Zac and Junjun. "Do your best, Matchan!" she cried, pumping her fists as the four-armed fighting-type swiped at the literal cloud of tiny dragon Pokemon around the Miltank behind him. Despite the speed of his punches, Machamp was not impervious. Michi could barely see the Miltank's belly for all the little dragons clustered on it.

"They been taken by the madness," Junjun said, shuddering. "It's a sickness that's been going on around here at night. Char-Char-Maru did it too-- he ran off chasing after nothing down the old well, barking his head off." He took off his hat and wrung it in his hands. "Damn! I didn't think your Machamp would get it so soon! I'm sorry, Michiko. It's something in the water here."

"It is not madness," Michi said indignantly, drawing herself up. "It is Doreepi! There are so many, and they are taking many fruits and milks!"

There was a silence as Jun-jun evidently wrestled with this information. After a moment he stilled, putting his cap back on his head. "Come to think of it, Michiko, you drank that water too, didn't you..."

"Ah! They are leaving now!" Michi interrupted him, shuffling back as the cloud of dreepy suddenly floated up, their heads turning as one as if summoned by a hidden signal. Their eyes, luminous, glowed in the night as the tiny dragons passed like a swarm of fireflies. Matchan slumped, exhausted as they went. "Goodbye, Doreepi!" 

"Michiko, let's get back to the house. You're welcome to stay the night, Maki will take care of you until you're safe to drive in the morning." Jun-jun gestured back towards the house, trying to take Michi's arm to guide her back in that direction. She shook him off.

"No! I want to find Char-Char-Maru, and Zac is taking care of your pest problem you did not want to talk about!" Jun-jun seemed surprised as the older woman whirled on him, hands on her hips. "I also have Doreepi, so we have.... Doreepi Connection!" To prove it, she pulled out its Pokeball and waved it triumphantly. "Zac saw also! He believes me!"

Zac was torn. 
    On one hand, he trusted Michi, and really wanted to believe that she hadn't been drinking the water (thankfully he'd only had beer). On the other hand, he didn't know what the heck a Dorey-pete was. 
    "I'm with Michi on this one," He said supportively, moving to stand next to her. "We've gotta save ya little dog. And if we can clear those pests at the same time then too easy."
    "You lead the way Michi, my, uh my cataracts are acting up. Zappa! Help Michi out!" 
    The yellow lizard looked up, neck twisting slowly around from where he had been curled up in some hay. His eyes were low-lidded from the cold. "Ah sorry buddy. Here."
    Zac sent out Turtonator, and a wave of crackling warmth swept through the barn. Zappa climbed on top of the turtle, perking up at the prospect of a sizzling seat. 
    The crew headed out into the night, huddled around the beacon of heat and light. They cut straight down a row of empty oran trees, with Michi leading the way. Matchan had been too tired to follow them, and had remained back in the feedlot with a jar of fresh milk to help him recover.
   Michi and Matchan saw something, Zac thought as they walked briskly through the darkness, and the Miltank were definitely spooked, so maybe it isn't just the water madness. Zac fell into step beside Michi, with Jun-jun trailing not far behind. When she activated her drippy connection she was looking around like there were...things in the air. And before that! On the way over here she kept eyeing something up ahead.
    Even now Michi was looking around, as if following something moving through the air above and around them.
    "Michi. Pssst!" Zac said, trying to keep his voice down so that Jun-jun didn't hear. He trusted Michi to take his honesty well, but wouldn't dream of undermining her in front of an old friend.
"I don't see it," he admitted. "I don't know what's in that pokeball of yours, and I didn't see anything in the barn. I'm sorry Michi."

"I don't see the drippy."   

"Not Drippy! Doreepi!" Michi whispered indignantly back. She pointed up ahead at Doree, who she'd released from her Pokeball. The captured Dreepy seemed enraptured by something in the distance, firefly-eyes fixed unwaveringly in one direction. "You cannot see Doreepi because you do not have connection."

It was the same thing she said before, and as she repeated it she became more convinced it was the truth. "Devin was helping me take pictures! He would know..." But the cameraman had stayed behind at the farmhouse. There was still no one to corroborate her story.

She wavered. "I can show you pictures," Michi insisted, coming back from her uncertainty. She pulled up her phone, swiping past her Applin background. She'd even shown her daughters the pictures! But now that she was thinking about it... had they ever actually mentioned Dreepy? She couldn't remember. Maybe they didn't...

"Y'know, stuff like this didn't happen around here til we started bringing in Wooloo," Jun-jun said behind them, his voice quiet. "I've been raising Mareep, Miltank, Spoink all my life. But 'til this year, I've never seen anything like it. First I thought it was just a coincidence, but... hell, maybe the pests rode here on 'em. That's how we got the Cutiefly infestation in the barn a couple years back when we started breeding Mudsdale."

Michi spun around. "Do you believe me, Jun-jun?" she asked, clasping her hands. The farmer shrugged, sighing. "I don't know what's going on any better than you do. But something's taking my fruit." He pointed at the Oran trees, stripped bare of berries. "I thought the Wooloo were attracting them, but maybe the damage was done as soon as we got 'em."

The older woman tried to imagine a cargo ship filled with Wooloo, tiny little Dreepy clinging like remoras to their fluffy bodies.

<Dreeeee!> Doree chattered up above, and Michi turned to look, eyes following the little Pokemon as it zoomed forwards out of the trees. She hurried after it, leaving the little sea of sunlight and warmth from Zac's combined reptilian Pokemon. Outside it was cold and dark, and she actually tripped as she ran into the side of an old stone well.

"A-a-a! It hurts," she said, rubbing her knee as the men came up behind her. Doree dipped down into the empty well and came back up, looking expectant. She seemed to be waiting for them. Michi craned her head to see inside, but it was as black as everything else. "This is where the Doreepi go! Ouch, ouch."

Strangely, it seemed even colder within. 

"Yep. This is where Char-Char-Maru went," Junjun said grimly, adjusting his hat. "Michiko, either you and Char-Char were onto something, or you both have something. I don't know what you'll find down there, but if you find anything of Char-Char... well, at least bring his collar back for Maki. She'd like to... say goodbye."

Michi nodded. It seemed like the farmer wouldn't be going with them.

But with that said, how were they going to get down? She usually carried everything she might need (including climbing equipment, since she'd been learning to do spelunking) in her handbag, but she'd left it behind at the farmhouse. She felt naked without it.

<Dreep-a-dreep!>

"Doree says it's time to go," she said, turning to Zac. "Zac, if Onix is feeling better... maybe we can ride him down to the bottom? I don't know how deep, but I think Onix is a very long Pokemon." 

"Onix? Yeah that's a good idea," Zac said, and he sent out Kev. The rocky snake ground his way across the cold gravel before slithering down into the well. Kev let out out a rumble as he reached the bottom. "Too easy," Zac said with a grin, and he offered Michi a hand as he climbed onto Kev. Zappa scuttled up after him.
    He slapped Kev's side. "Okay buddy bring us down." The Onix rumbled, and wound further into the well. The temperature dropped quickly, and Zac's breath was coming out in frigid plumes as they reached the bottom.
    "What's, uh, is going on down here?" he asked, looking around at the frozen walls, and the sheets of ice that slithered across the ground like mirrors. Something seemed to be bothering Kev and Zappa, the latter of who was snapping occasionally at the air, as if something was flying past. Maybe it is just something I can't see. But i'm great with Pokemon! Why does Michi have Dreeb Connection and I don't? What does she have that I don't? Zac thought for a moment.
    "She has a Droblip." He whispered, the words coming out as a silver stream.
Zac reached into his bag and pulled out a pokeball. "Okay Michi. I know how to get an, uh, a connection with the little guys. I have to catch one! You just tell me where to throw, okay?"

Taking Zac's hand, Michi climbed up the Onix's back. She could hear scuttling sounds as the Heliolisk followed them. Michi was glad Zappa was coming-- after listening to Zac's full lecture on the virtues of the electric/normal Pokemon, she was confident he would be very useful in finding Char-Char Maru and solving the Dreepy Mystery.

As they descended, more and more Dreepy appeared, swirling out of the darkness to hover around them like will-o-wisps. Doree zoomed back to cling to the top of Michi's head as its fellows swirled around, harrassing Zac's Pokemon, who easily knocked them out of the air. One or two landed on Michi, who brushed them off with a squeak.

Her breath curled away into frozen vapor as they reached the bottom, the Onix's boulders rumbling deeply as it ground down into the depths of the well. Michi wondered why it had dried up. Maybe the water is frozen, because it is so cold, she thought. Ice covered the base of the well, reflecting little streaks of green and yellow from glowing Dreepy eyes as they streaked past.

They were all flooding down a side-tunnel, a dark passage void of any light from the outside world above. Her eyes had adjusted to the dim nighttime, but this was different. The older woman shivered. 

She looked up when Zac spoke. "You want to catch a Doreepi?" she asked, recognizing the Pokeball in the man's hand. She clapped her hands. "Oh! It is a good idea! I will find one..." There was actually one desperately trying to bite Zac's ear, but its teeth were too weak to break the skin. Michi shooed it when her friend wasn't looking and pointed into the side tunnel instead. "Hmm, I am not sure, but I see many go this direction..."

The older woman poked her head in and was immediately blown back by a swarm of squeaking Dreepy shooting past her. "Ooh yes, you will definitely hit one if you throw here! Many are..." She struggled to find the right verb, having difficulty focusing on all the pairs of tiny glowing eyes at once, "...flying around."

She shielded her face with a hand as a torrent of miniature dragons continued to pour past her shoulders, ascending back up the well to cause more mischief. Nearby within the passage, tiny Dreepy clustered in its horns, something larger opened its eyes. "I see a very big one!" Michi reported dutifully, ducking out of the way as more Dreepy were torpedoed out of the entrance. "Maybe you should hurry?"

"Hurry? Oh, so now. Now?" Zac threw the Pokeball where Michi was looking. The orb flew threw the air, dispersing a cloud of Dreepy, who swarmed around it like a school of fish avoiding a rounder, uglier fish.
    Unbeknown to Zac, his aim had been spot on, and the ball struck that angular head of a Dragapult that had been floating out from the inner section of the tunnel. The Pokemon looked underfed and half-frozen, and didn't have the strength to resist capture. "Wahoo! Drippo-get! Now I've got the connection." Zac shouted, in his best imitation of Michi's excitement. He went to retrieve the ball, but stopped, starting as the cavern suddenly filled with motion and noise.
    Little blue and red arrows peeped as they streamed past him, heading deeper into the cave. Those not carrying berries or scraps of food flew low and slow, full of stolen milk. "I...see them..." Zac confirmed, and he looked around at the swarm that was now visible. "They're everywhere! The little thieves!" 
    He ducked as another cloud of Dreepy shot past and he grabbed the full Pokeball. He returned Onix and the pair pushed further into the cave. The path forked, and they followed the Dreepy, the little ghost pokemon dipping in and out of Zappa's light. "What do you think they're doing?" Zac asked, as he stepped around a frozen section of floor. "Feeding their King or something?"
    And then Zac heard a bark. Faint, but clear. <ROWL! ROWL!> 
    "That's him! That's Cha-Cha Maru!" he exclaimed, walking faster through the frozen cavern. The bark had come from nearby, and as Zac rounded the corner he was hit first by the colour, then by the smell, and then by the strangeness of the scene.
    Berries and food were piled around a central pillar of ice. Bright blue Orans, torn packets of stolen supplies, and puddles of spilled milk made the cave feel messy, like a recluse's bedroom. And it smelled like it too, with the stench of rotten food and worry permeating the air.
    "Ugh! What are they doing in here! It's already Winter guys, a bit too late to be storing food," Zac said as he wrinkled his nose . <ROWL! ROWL!> came the bark, and Zac looked around for Cha-Cha Maru.
    The Growlithe was at the base of the ice pillar, barking up at a shadowy form that was trapped within. He growled, and Zac expected a gout of flame to shoot from the little dog, but instead there was the briefest of sparks. Cha-Cha Maru wined, unable to attack the Dreepy swarming above him.
    The form in the ice looked frozen solid. Only its drooping, arrow shaped head poked free of the prison. "Crikey! Look at the size of 'em!" Zac said, as he stepped down into the feeding cave. He pushed closer, trying to avoid the garbage, and watched as a cloud of Dreepy milled around, dropping Oran berries and squirting milk into the mouth of their leader.
    The trapped Dragapult looked healthy at least, but the stream of food did nothing to free it from the ice. 

"Amazing! Amazing!" Michi clapped enthusiastically, scaring Dreepy from her in droves. She'd almost screamed when the ball had bonked the largest dragon right in the eye, but now Zac had caught it, and she could see from the change in his posture and expression that he could finally see the same thing she could. 

She felt her eyes fill with tears. 

"You can see them!" she cried. "I am so happy!" Tiny dragons swirled around them like schooling sardines, flying somewhere darker, deeper. Still overcome by Zac believing in her enough to make the capture, Michi followed him into the tunnel, using the big man like a shield to part the ever-present flow of Dreepy slithering along the ground, floating through the air, riding on the back of her jacket. 

She was not as observant as Zac when it came to studying the dragon Pokemon, however. To Michi they were all just 'doreepi', looking mostly identical (except for Doree, who was much nicer.) She did heard the bark and exclaimed out loud, running forward into the main chamber. At the horrendous smell, however, her face dropped like stone shutters.

Politely, she arranged her scarf over her nose. It was so strong, and so distracting, that for several moments Michi didn't even see the Dragapult encased in the ice.

She just saw the dog.

She whistled, skirting the pile of spoiling food and fruit and beckoning the Growlithe. "Char-char! Char-char-Maru! Is it you?" He saw her and growled, sad-looking puffs of smoke coming from the sides of his mouth. That's right, he's a guard dog, isn't he? They were usually kept away from people, supposed to bond with their flock instead.

But Jun-jun had said Maki would watch her dramas with Char-Char Maru, hadn't he? He had to be a little tame.

Patience was key. Making sure there were no puddles of milk or stolen berries underfoot, Michi squatted down on the ice, holding out her hand. "Shh-shh! Come here, Char-char! Oh, you're out of power..." The dog was trying to use a fire-type move, but he couldn't.

"Did you use all your fire melting big Doreepi's face?" she asked him, managing to coax the Growlithe within arm's reach. "It was good to do that, so she can eat. You are a very good boy!" Like the creature in the ice, Char-char Maru looked healthy and well-fed. WIth the surplus of food, how could he not be? 

The Dreepy, however, were another story. Unlike Michi's, which seemed healthy, the tiny ghosts had clearly suffered while collecting so many things for their queen. It was harder to see the difference on them rather than, say, the Dragapult Zac had captured, but it was clear that they had not been eating while they worked themselves to the bone here. But for what? Who was all this food for?

A Dreepy flew by, offering an Oran berry to Char-char Maru, who growled. It flew up to deposit in the Dragapult's half-open maw instead. Looking belabored, it chewed and swallowed. The Dreepy seemed to pause expectantly, then when nothing happened, flew away.

"The food," Michi said slowly, rocking back on her heels. "It's for... Char-char Maru? But he does not need food, he is healthy." She looked at the big dragon again. "And this one... she is frozen and needs to be helped, but Char-char Maru doesn't have fire." So why were the Dreepy only bringing healing items, when any kind of elixir or ice heal berries would have solved their predicament?

Wheels turning, Michi lighted upon a very simple explanation.

Oh... they aren't very smart.

The process was straight forward, and highly ineffective. The horde of Dreepy scoured the land on and around Jun-jun farm, and brought back food to try and heal their Queen. 
Unfortunately, she was trapped in ice, and an Oran berry doesn't do anything to thaw a frozen friend.
    However, one of the Dreepy seemed to be...unhappy with the current plan. Zac saw him biting and hissing at his friends, trying to get their attention. This Dreepy had clearly been keeping himself fed with the scraps, and looked nice and healthy. At some point, he had been burrowing through a packet of junk food and popped out the other side. Now he wore the torn white packet around his body like a lab coat. 
    Zac went to check on this one, who was now whizzing around the next swarm, trying to get their attention. They ignored him, dropping a stream of useless food into the Queen's mouth. This smarter Dreepy saw Zac and zipped down to gnaw on his hand. 
"Hey!" Zac said, and he swatted at the creature. It detached, flying down to where it had cleared a section of ground, brushing the trash away so that it could scratch something into the soil.
    "What is that?" Zac asked, looking at the drawing of something round and covered in spots. "A grenade? A Spinda head?" the Dreepy bit him again before it zipped off. It found an Oran berry nearby and rolled it over to the drawing, flying between the plain, flatish orb of the Oran and the clearly spherical shape of the drawn item. "Oh, an Aspear berry?" Zac said.
    The smart Dreepy shot up into the air, wheeling in joyous circles. Zac pulled one of the berries out of his pocket. He had picked a fresh one off the tree and had been planning on eating it later. They were great for the cold months. Filled with warming juice, it was like they melted you from the inside- "Oh you are a smart one. Little genius you are." Zac said to the Dreepy, who was hissing smugly. "I'll call you Doctor Eepy, yeah?"
    The Pokemon seemed ambivalent to this.
    "Whatever. Okay, well why haven't you grabbed one yourself?" Zac asked, clutching the huge berry. "Oh," he said, remembering the trouble the other Dreepy had been having with just carrying a single Oran between them, let alone a bulky Aspear. 
    "Okay, well lets see what I can do," Zac said, and he lobbed the Aspear up, straight into the Queen's waiting mouth. 

The Aspear Berry flew up, landing in the dragon's wide, flattened maw, and the Queen swallowed.

Slowly, she began to move.

She wiggled in the ice, the block slowly melting from within as her toes and fingers found space, her knees bent, her tail coiled. When enough had melted, the Dragapult lunged. Her shoulders broke the ice and it fell in two piles of slush as her legs and tail broke free as well, leaving her standing on her feet at last.

Vapor trickled from her nostrils, then she breathed a deep sigh.

Squeaking brightly, Dreepy streamed around her, hiding in her horns, landing atop her head. In a little under a minute, what Michiko would have called an almost-infinite cloud of them had disappeared without a trace back into the cavernous space like an impossible magic hat. 

"That was very good thinking!" Michi exclaimed. She'd finally managed to get ahold of Char-Char Maru's collar and the Growlithe, seeing they meant no harm, was eager to go with them now that the situation here was dispersing. So interesting-- one berry fixed all their problems. It was so easy, but they couldn't do it.

Wasn't this just why people and Pokemon needed each other?

<DRAAGAAAA> rumbled the Queen, and the remaining Dreepy all trilled and squeaked, flying in circles around the chamber before descending as one upon the pile of food. "A feast!" Michi exclaimed, delighted. The pile was being picked apart now much quicker than it had apparently been put together as the famished ghosts fed upon the cornucopia of stolen farm goods.

Michi wondered whether she should have stopped them but dismissed the thought-- Jun-jun probably would just be happy not to have his Wooloo and Miltank not be preyed upon anymore. And Maki would get her dog back!

The Queen was sniffing around, slowly stretching her warmed muscles. She seemed to be looking for something-- or someone.