Well of Memories

Dong ding!

The sound of that bell ringing sent shivers down Gunpowder’s spine. It was the voice of his nightmares. It could mean only one thing: a new customer had come into the store in order to attempt to buy something. The last two Pokemon that had come in were also “attempts”, as Gunpowder was incapable of finding anything the customers needed.

Shopkeep was certainly not Gunpowder’s dream profession. However, after having spent an embarrassingly long amount of time alternating between sleeping under the docks or in the gutters, it seemed rather hard to turn down such a deal.

This deal was offered to him by none other than Anana, a sweet little yellow lizard who he had been helping since arriving at the bay. At first she had him finish small tasks in exchange for food, but as the workload grew larger and larger, Anana decided it would be a better investment to hire Gunpowder on as a full-time employee in exchange for room and board.

Since she had been impressed with his prior work, Gunpowder hoped he had finally caught a break, but his performance with this first day had almost completely shattered that distorted painting of potential reality.

“Uhh.. Hello?”

The voice belonged to a tiny green lizard. Anana mentioned something about a regular like him, who she referred to by name, but Gunpowder wasn’t really the best at retaining... anything.

“Ah, apologies Mr. Snivy matey. I couldn’t see you there! You know how it is, right?”

“Eh? First you ignore me,” the Snivy said in a most distasteful voice, “and then you take a stab at my height? Do you even know who I am? Certainly not this ‘Matey’ you speak of.”

“No sir, I just meant.. I don’t know what I meant.” Gunpowder took a deep breath. “I’m new. I just started today, y’know. Cut me some slack.”

The Snivy still did not look impressed, but seemed willing to forgive Gunpowder’s immense insolence. He waved his hand dismissively. “Yes, yes, fine. I am here to pick up a package. I trust your boss told you about it.”

“One moment, sir, I will take a look for you.” Gunpowder walked towards the wall, not having the slightest idea where to find such a thing. Sweat would be dripping down his face, were he a creature capable of such a feat. He was a man of the ocean, a sea dog, and yet here he was, nervous about being unable to find a package for an annoying little morsel. Unfortunately, he was not paying enough attention to where his claws were wandering, and one of them clumsily knocked a glass bottle off the shelf.

This is it, he thought. This is the end. The loud crash drew Anana’s attention immediately, as she was concerned for the product, of course, but more so the well-being of her customers; she couldn’t bear the thought that someone could be hurt in her store. Before she could speak, the Snivy raised another objection.

"Oy, you oaf! Thankfully, that was not my package, but you must be more careful if you want to make it in this business! Seriously, I cannot believe that--"

"Penne," interupted Anana. "What have I told you about treating my employees poorly?" She put her arms on her side and gave the Snivy 'the look,' and he knew exactly what she meant.

"I.. I'm sorry, Anana. You know how it is. I'm just so busy lately and--"

"Yes, I understand," Anana interjected once again, but instead of upsetting the Snivy, it just made him more timid. "Let's see.. Ah! Here it is." She grabbed a small box off the shelf, nowhere near where Gunpowder had been searching, and handed it to the Snivy. "I'll charge it to the account," she said with a smile and a wink.

"Thank you, Anana. As usual, it was a pleasure to work with.. you." The Snivy had added extra emphasis to 'you.' Anana glared at him again. The look on his face in reply said it all, as did his rather hasty departure. Gunpowder bowed his head in shame as soon as that tasty treat was out of sight.

---

Anana walked over to Gunpowder and put her hand on his thigh. "It's OK, dearie. It's tough to start out. That gentleman is also known for being.. not so much of a gentleman. Now, chin up!"

Despite her kind words, Gunpowder refused to stop moping. She made a 'hmph' noise and walked out of sight. She wasn't gone for long, since Gunpowder could hear the sound of a crate sliding across the hard floor. Just then, he felt something get planted atop his head. He looked behind himself to see Anana standing on top of the box.

"There! This seems to always cheer people up. Here, take a look," Anana said with a gleeful smile and a mirror in her hand. On his head was now the most ridiculous hat he had ever seen. It was a big, flowery purple sombrero that said "ANANA" across the top. Due to the symmetry of her name, it was clear even to Gunpowder what it said through the reflection. He couldn't help but giggle a little at the sight of his own misery.

"See, sweetie? I knew it would help! Your punishment for being sad for something that isn't your fault is to wear this hat. After all, the image of my business is important, and this hat just screams 'me'!" Anana snickered to herself as well. Gunpowder knew she was mostly just joking, but he really appreciated the efforts. She always treated him like this.

Dong ding!

Another customer. Great, Gunpowder thought to himself. Another chance to mess up, but this time in front of my boss. Anana's face lit up.

"Come on in, I've got everything you could possibly need! Make yourself at home!"

She looked up at Gunpowder, urging him to lean forwards so that she could whisper to him. "Let me handle this one, dear. If you watch me, you'll learn a great deal about how to handle customers." She hopped off her throne atop the crate and cheerfully went to assist the customer.

Anana handled everything quickly and elegantly. Not only did she know exactly what the customer wanted without having been told, the small talk she made elicited laughter from said customer. Gunpowder was giving her his full attention, but he just couldn't see himself replicating what was just done. He just wasn't a Pokemon-Pokemon.

After concluding the business transaction, Anana held herself high, a big smile across her face. Gunpowder knew the real reason she took the reigns. She wanted him to learn how to handle customers better, sure, but more than that she wanted to show off. Gunpowder had known her for long enough to figure that much out, at least. She was good at hiding it.

“See? It’s not so bad! You just have to stay positive!” Anana could definitely tell Gunpowder was all but positive, and her face reflected this. Never had a smile turned upsidedown so quickly. “Come on, Gunpowder. You look like you’ve got something else on your mind today. What is it?”

“It.. It be nothin’, OK? I just don’t think I be able to do this yet, s’all. Can we trade jobs fer today? I promise I’ll get good at this, but.. just not today, aye?”

Anana stared into the very depths of Gunpowder’s soul. She knew he was hiding something, but she also knew there was no sense in prying. If he wasn’t going to say, nothing would change that. She let out a sigh of defeat.

“Fine, fine. Go help Fabian in the back with counting inventory,” Anana said rather dismissively. Before she had even finished, she had found something much more interesting to fiddle with on the shelves to pass the time until the next customer came in. I can’t really count, Gunpowder thought to himself. Bad time to mention it, though. Not like there’d ever be a good time. Anana probably thought he was an idiot.

---