Rocky ducked and weathered the burst of shadows. "Huh. That felt pretty weird. I can do that, too, can't I?" After a few seconds of trying, he was able to produce his own small Shadow Blast as well. "I don't know what attack that was," he said with interest. "Maybe I couldn't do that before, either!"
For a while, they sparred back and forth, testing the limits of their new forms. Mia was faster than ever, and her scythes were sharper, too. Rocky didn't put up his best fight, easily distracted by wanting to feel new things or prod Mia to try something different. He was stronger, too, but his attacks didn't have their usual bite.
After a while he was clearly getting bored. "That was a good fight!" Rocky said. "Do you want to try different foods now? I can wake Marshtomp up, and then we can find somewhere to eat!"
It took some determined mental prodding to drag Nate back to wakefulness, but at last he was yawning hugely, blinking bad-temperedly up from his spot by the substitute. "Oh. Right. Hot dogs, was that it?" He got up and stretched, then stood rubbing his face for a moment. "Might as well head to Pasta Plaza, then. Loads of shit out that way."
Outside the air was warming up, and the trees lining Destiny Village's streets were in bloom. Rocky perked up a little, watching petals drift through the air, and he took it upon himself to lead the way to Pasta Plaza. Nate watched him with narrowed eyes, apparently unmoved by the trees.
"Okay, Mia!" Rocky said. "Let me know when you see someplace that looks good. Or--or smells good! We can smell now, too!"
