MunchMunch stared at the chocolate cake in joy. It was… it was beautiful. It was the biggest thing he had ever seen! It was as big as a house! And it was his!

  He sobbed in joy as he ran up to hug it. Right before he got there…

  “Munch?” He groaned groggily, blinking awake.

  Oh.

  It was a dream.

  MunchMunch stared at his paws in devastation.

  He heard Gastly cackle next to him.

  “Gastly!” He turned and smiled, “Do you think there are cakes as big as a house?”

  He really hoped there were cakes as big as a house.

  Maybe he could eat the whole thing in one day?

  MunchMunch bounced up and down thinking about it. This was exciting!

  Gastly blinked at him, before cackling even harder. “I have no idea, but we will search the world to find one!”

  MunchMunch jumped up, clenching his paws. Yes! He couldn’t wait to start searching!

  He looked around. They were at the edge of the forest, his Teddy talking to a Ranger in front of the station. It looked like the building they went through to enter the forest, except this one was painted orange instead of green!

  MunchMunch took a chew of his forever-snack and then froze.

  Wait… where was the shrine?

  “Mama Gastly, where is the shrine?” He gasped. “I’m supposed to show it to Happy!”

  “Oh! We got to see the Shrine,” Gastly smiled. “It was lovely and super special. But you just slept the whole time! Don’t worry, I’m sure Happy didn’t sleep the whole time,” she cackled.

  She… she sounded like she thought it was funny! Like she was saying I got to see it and you didn’t!

  “But Celebi said I could show Happy!” He cried.

  Gastly abruptly froze.

  “Wait… you saw Lord Celebi?”

  MunchMunch nodded.

  She blinked.

  Her grin faltered.

  For once, she was speechless.

  “I spoke to him a whole bunch too…”

  Gastly stuttered and dropped to the ground, slinking off through the shadows.

  “… Gastly?”

  “You know you could call me by my name,” she snapped, sounding upset for some reason.

  MunchMunch didn’t know what he did to make her upset! He was also heartbroken he didn’t get to show Happy the shrine.

  “You promise Happy got to see the shrine?” He asked, feeling like he had broken a promise.

  Gastly sighed and floated out of the shadows to rejoin him.

  “I promise she saw the shrine,” she reassured him. “It was truly beautiful. I am sure one day you will be able to see it too.”

  “Really?” MunchMunch asked, looking up at Gastly.

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  “Really. I think the only reason the rest of us got to see it was because Celebi liked you,” she finished.

  “Oh… I guess that makes sense,” MunchMunch responded thoughtfully. “After all, he was really nice, and I liked him a lot. And he had the most beautiful voice.”

  Then he gasped and looked back up at Gastly.

  “Oh, he had the best smile ever! It was like… like… “ MunchMunch had to stop and think for a moment.

  “Like the feeling you have when you get all the chocolate cake you can eat, except better!” He exclaimed.

  Gastly choked.

  Then she coughed.

  And finished with a sigh.

  “Yes well, I think he believes in you,” she smiled.

  That made MunchMunch feel really, really proud.

  “I’m gonna be awesome,” he shouted, pounding his tummy. “I know I will, because I have Mama Gastly and Teddy! Oh, and Happy, too!”

  Then he froze.

  “Uhm… I thought Gastly was your name?” MunchMunch said in confusion, thinking about what she had said earlier.

  “Well… yes and no,” she smiled, seeming back to her usual self. “I am Gastly. Was Gastly, until our Trainer gave me a name.”

  “Wait, our Teddy gave you a name?!” MunchMunch exclaimed. “But.. but… but I didn’t get a name!” He cried, his heart hurting in a way he couldn’t explain.

  “That’s because you already have a name. You are MunchMunch,” she consoled him.

  “Imagine how sad you would be if you weren’t named after food!”

  “Oh. That makes sense!” MunchMunch nodded, the pain in his chest replaced by happiness. “So, what is your name?”

  “Shadow,” she smiled.

  MunchMunch stared at her.

  “Uhhhh… I like Mama Gastly more,” he stated.

  Gastly stared at him speechless. “You can’t just, decide that,” she spluttered.

  “But I like it more?” MunchMunch replied, sounding confused.

  “At least call me *Big Sister*,” she huffed.

  “That makes no sense,” MunchMunch countered. “Happy is my sister, you are our Mama. So your name is Mama Gastly,” he finished, matter-of-factly.

  Gastly just stared at him, her mouth opening and closing, but no sound came out. MunchMunch happily skipped away, excited to see what their Teddy was up to.

  ____

  When they exited the Ranger building, MunchMunch gasped, falling back onto his backside in shock.

  His brain felt like it didn’t know what was happening.

  The forest, it was gone. Not like forever, it was still there behind them. But MunchMunch realized he had never been anywhere without something above him — whether it was a cave or the safety of the forest.

  But here? Here it was so open. The sun was shining brightly, and there was grass for as far as MunchMunch could see, with a great big path winding through it, leading up to giant buildings in the distance.

  Even from here, MunchMunch could tell they were even bigger than the cake he had dreamed of.

  And that was the size of the biggest building he had ever seen!

  And the sky! It stretched up and up and up forever! MunchMunch fell onto his back trying to look all the way up.

  And still it kept going!

  He giggled, sitting up. There were trainers, people and Pokemon everywhere.

  “Mama! This is amazing!” He exclaimed, jumping up.

  “Mama, what is that?” he whispered, gazing to the left.

  It was huge and open and blue.

  Except it was darker blue than the sky.

  “That is the sea, MunchMunch,” she cackled circling his head a few times.

  “The sea… “ MunchMunch whispered, taking a huge breath.

  He loved the smell of the sea! It smelled like open-ness.

  He didn’t even know something that amazing and big and beautiful existed.

  “Ok, that’s it!” He cried. “I want to get big and strong like you, Mama Gas… uh, Shadow,” he corrected himself. He still liked Mama Gastly more, but he liked the smile she had when he used her name.

  “Oh, and why is that,” she smiled down at him.

  “Because,” he said seriously, looking forward.

  “I want to see the world with you. And with our Teddy. And Sister Happy.

  I want to do it so I can eating some of everything there is.

  But now? Now I have decided I also want to see all the things I didn’t know where out there!”

  Gastly beamed at him.

  Then a trainer shouted and waved at them from out of the grass! She was standing over, watching the waves through a fence. MunchMunch didn’t understand her, but he did understand the tiny Pokemon floating next to her!

  “Hoppip!” It called, “Let’s battle!”

  Teddy laughed and ran forward, the Egg safe in his backpack.

  Gastly cackled and slipped into his shadow.

  MunchMunch tripped, before getting up and sprinting after them, cackling just like Gastly.