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Together In The Storm: Chapter 3!

Chapter summary: While Olimar heals up, the Koppaites return home... Troublesome Pikmin in tow

AO3 link (recommended)

Sorry about the weird formating on the Tumblr version, guys. It's been very difficult for me to post the chapters here as of late, so there's a chance that I might go back to posting just update notices here and only post the actual chapters to AO3.

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Things were fairly chaotic when the three heroes returned to Koppai.

It was to be expected, of course, but still produced a few odd sights. The take off center was overflowing with people, some not even wearing proper surface gear, desperately trying to get the loads of seeds off the Drake and into the nearby city as quickly as possible. From there, the seeds would be transported to a few different cities, each with their own greenhouses. The greenhouses of Koppai had always been huge, a fact that proved very fortunate given the size of the fruits they had collected. Alph, Brittany, and Charlie did their best to weave through the crowd and get to their lockers for some personal belongings, then they dove straight back into the massive sea of bodies. Once the crew made it through the crowds of rushed and desperate people and into the city below, they were bombarded by reporters and journalists from damn near every news outlet.

That's when Koppai first saw the little pikmin, riding on Charlie's shoulders far above the chaos.

People were fascinated by it, of course, and immediate questions were asked about it. It wasn't long before they were shepherded away from the heroes. When finally taken to a government building of some sort where they could sit and answer people's questions, the first thing asked was "What is that yellow thing?"

"A pikmin." Charlie answered. It was sitting on the table in front of him, pressed against his chest as it looked around the room. It seemed a little overwhelmed, and Charlie tried to soothe it best he could, but there was nowhere else to go with it. "Really, they saved Koppai this time around."

"A pikmin? So there's more?"

"An entire species!" Alph continued for him. "We were able to help each other. They helped us gather fruit, we helped them gather resources, and we protected each other. Without them, we would have never succeeded."

"Why is one here, and not back on PNF-404?"

"Oh Stars, we'd like to know as well." Brittany laid her head on her hands as she spoke, earning a chuckle from the crowd. "Little thing snuck on the ship just before takeoff. We don't know why it decided to. The plan right now is to take it home after things have settled down here."

"Why didn't you take it home right away?"

"Many, many reasons." Charlie answered again. "Including that we had to get these seeds back here as soon as possible. As for the other reasons, I think it best if you let us tell you everything that's happened first. Would make it easier to follow, instead of jumping all over the place. No questions 'till the end, please, write down what you wanna know."

And so, the three began to share roughly everything that had happened on the planet. Alph began the tale, trading it off to Brittany, and then Charlie, each taking turns explaining the wonders, trials, and horrors of PNF-404. Some things they chose not to explain, never mentioning the food theft or details about what they had dubbed the Plasm Wraith. It just seemed to be too much to tell them about the ghastly monster that damn near killed a man for no discernible reason. Nor did they want people harassing Olimar about it. His mental state was completely shot by the time they had rescued him, forcing him to relive all of that was the last thing they wanted. All they could do was hope that the descriptions of the other frightening beasts - including the one that had eaten Charlie - would be enough to keep people away.

To their surprise, people seemed interested in Olimar. They hadn't mentioned much - "He had a run in with a creature, we never could get a good look at it." Alph had explained, the lie being something they agreed on beforehand. Louie was also let in on it, to pass onto Olimar when he was home. "We saved him from it, and it turned out he had our drive key! He gave it back, of course, but we also found out that the data files we were collecting were his work."

"So he has extensive notes on the lifeforms of PNF-404?"

"That's correct." Brittany had taken over now. "He'd been to the planet before, it turns out, and kept a large log of information on it. We didn't get to see much, of course, but he did say he has more beyond the files we got. And what we did get helped us so much, we would have taken much longer without him." Or they may have died. Death was a very real possibility. Or far more pikmin could have died. They weren’t exactly enthused about the idea of sharing those points, though, so they’d stay quiet. At least for now.

Soon the reporters we're muttering to their other crew members. Eventually, one asked "Do you think he'd ever be up to answering more questions for us, about the life forms of PNF-404?"

"We'd have to ask him." Alph replied. "But it certainly won't be any time soon, if at all."

"Of course, of course."

Charlie then looked down at the Pikmin, who had begun to cling to him desperately and hide its face against his chest. Frowning, he held it closer. "I'm sorry, but I'll have to leave early. The Pikmin is getting overwhelmed…"

"Actually," Alph began "This would be a good place to stop. It's been a long few weeks, and I'd like to rest."

"Same." Brittany leaned back in her chair a bit.

"Alright. We're done for now then."

A few news reporters tried to get one last question in but the crew simply ignored them. They headed away from the crowd and into a quiet room to sit and take a breather. The pikmin was already calming down, though it still stayed latched onto Charlie.

"If you don't mind," Charlie began, "I know you two don't live in this city. But I do. Would it - would it be alright to ask for your help getting the pikmin settled in? You can stay at my place until you have a chance to get yourselves home."

"Of course, Captain." Alph offered him a kind smile. "Plus I appreciate it…. I think I'm the furthest from you guys?"

Brittany shrugged. "I'm from Cho, east of here. There's one more cenote between this one and Cho."

"Then yes, I am much further away." Alph sighed. "I'm from Aether."

"Ah, of course you are." Charlie couldn't help but tease. "Must've been convenient then, having Aether Aerospace University right there."

"Convenient, sure. But like, that university is awful. Yeah it's prestigious and like the best of the best or whatever, but they wear down both students and professors."

"Sounds about right." Brittany groaned. "Aran University was similar."

Charlie paused then, unsure of what to say. He was a military captain, having been stuck in Koppai's Space Force since he was eighteen, and never went to university like the other two. So he just nodded along, hoping it didn't bother his crew.

"Anyways, yeah, I'd be happy to help too." Brittany sighed. "Gotta make sure the little pik-pik is okay."

Charlie chuckled a bit as he stroked the pikmin's stem. "Thank you so much. I'll buy our lift tickets, then, and we'll head to my place."

It took the trio a few days to get everything set up for the little pikmin.

First was pikmin-proofing the house, a task that was much easier said than done. They weren't entirely sure what kind of trouble it'd try to get into either, which didn't exactly help with figuring out what to do. They put baby caps over unused outlets and protective covers over plugs. They weren't sure if the yellow pikmin would try and mess with them, but better safe than sorry. Fragiles were secured into safe areas, and anything potentially dangerous was hidden away. They also made sure to stock up on anything they thought the pikmin could "eat", which meant anything that was liquid or close to the consistency of nectar. Fruit juice, mashed fruit sauce, smoothies, sweetened sap, soup, they even found that the pikmin could eat some kinds of baby food. Really, if it was soft and mushy, the strange little plant critter was able to absorb it. Though things thicker than nectar usually took it longer to "eat".

They got it a few cheap toys to play with, a mix of cat toys and children's toys, just to see what it'd like. It liked the plastic ball with a bell inside it the most, followed by a few small dolls it liked to cuddle. They let it build its own nest in Charlie's room, using a few spare pillows and blankets they had found.

It also took both the pikmin and Charlie's pet duck, Elizabeth, to get used to each other. Charlie was honestly a little afraid that the pikmin's high prey drive would get to it and that it'd chase poor Elizabeth around, but that worry was thankfully unneeded. Eventually, they seemed to get comfortable around each other. Lizzy even let the little one pet her!

And yet still, when they weren't working on the pikmin's needs, they were being called into various offices to accept awards and answering interview questions and getting various other official stuff done. The pikmin usually had to come with them, as they had no one to watch it just yet. They expected it to cause trouble but really it usually just seemed shy and overwhelmed, hiding its face against Charlie's chest as he carried it.

Needless to say, they were exhausted after all of that. Brittany announced she was going to take a subway to her home city, check in on her aunt and then "Sleep for like five days straight in my own bed". She almost refused the money Charlie offered her to get back home, only accepting the fare she'd need for the lift from Charlie's house to the subway due to his insistence.

"You're not the only one who'll have way too much money, Captain." Alph had pointed out. "All three of us are set for life after this one mission."

"You guys still have to work, though. "For you guys, it's expanded work paychecks. For me, it's free money. So please, at least let me help you."

"I'll think about it." Had been Alph's teasing remark.

Charlie had been unable to convince Alph to let him pay for his lift fare. He only stopped trying when Alph admitted he wasn't going home just yet.

"I know you have a pikmin and Brittany has work, so I don't expect either of you to come, but I'll be visiting Captain Olimar on Hocotate, then make my way back to Aether."

That made Charlie's ears wiggle in surprise. "Really? You don't wanna rest with your family first?"

"Well…" Alph paused for a moment before sighing. "I don't think I can rest easy 'till I check in on him again."

"Oh…" Well, now he felt like an asshole. He hadn't thought much about how Olimar was doing beyond that he needed to be left alone and not harassed by the media. "Tell him I said hi." He managed in a rather weak voice.

"Of course, Captain."

Life with the little pikmin proved… interesting, to say the least. Often, Charlie found himself needing to play with it using various toys in order to keep it calm - something he had expected based on Olimar's advice. He also found that covering the outlets and plugs was a good idea, as it did try to mess with them. Thankfully, it quickly gave up on that front. It did rather enjoy climbing up to high places to survey over Charlie's house, though those high places were usually shelves that the captain didn't exactly want the pikmin on. He ended up giving the little one its own shelves specifically for climbing on, which proved to help with that a lot.

He was surprised to see that it seemed fascinated with the TV. He eventually put on some kids' show for it to watch, which did seem to keep it entertained. He wasn't sure how much the little pikmin understood, though he did catch a few rare moments of a visual joke happening on screen and the pikmin laughing in response. It also liked to draw, something he found out after deciding to give it some cheap crayons and paper. It only drew pikmin, unsurprisingly. He wondered if it missed home… ah, but it'd still be a while before he'd have the opportunity to take it back. In the meantime, he decided to keep the cute little drawings on his fridge.

The pikmin never seemed sick, weak, or drained while in his care. So the bright UVB lights that lit up Koppai's underground cities were certainly enough to keep it energized, at least in combination with regular meals. It did, however, eventually grow restless. It'd sit and stare out of Charlie's windows and pace around the door. Which left the captain with a hard decision. He'd love to take the little pikmin out, but he was terrified of it wandering away from him. Pikmin usually stayed by their leaders' sides, but they could get distracted and wander away - something that had gotten far too many pikmin killed on PNF-404. Nor did he think it'd be happy with being carried all of the time. He eventually asked his mother for advice. At first he wasn't sure about her idea, but she seemed confident in it. "It certainly worked for you when you were a toddler." She had teased. So, he decided to give it a shot.

"Pikmin?" Charlie called out, box in hand. The little one had learned to respond to it, running to him when he called out for it. He then showed it the box. "This just arrived in the mail today. It's for you."

The pikmin tilted his head at first, then seemed excited. It had come to understand what "this is for you" meant thanks to its shelves, bed, toys, crayons… Charlie had made a point to introduce those items by explaining they were for the pikmin, and it clearly paid off. Teaching it what mail was would be a whole other ordeal.

One I won't need to go through. Charlie reminded himself. Because I'll eventually take it home. He opened the box up and pulled out a little harness with a cute duck-shaped backpack attached. Apparently, when he was a toddler and young child, he had a habit of being distracted by something and just wandering away from his mother without really thinking about it. With no one else to really keep an eye on him for her, her only choice was to get him a child harness and lead. It felt a little embarrassing to get one for the pikmin, but he was so deathly afraid of it getting hurt and he knew it wouldn't put up with being carried for so long. A stroller felt even sillier to him, and he knew the pikmin would detest something like that. So until it learned to stick close to him or he figured something else out, the poor pik would just have to put up with it. At the very least, he got something that looked comfortable and cute. The backpack also meant it could bring home whatever little things it ended up collecting.

"See? For you!"

The pikmin quickly became confused again.

Charlie sighed and urged the pikmin closer. It did so, then whined a bit as the captain put the harness on it. It grumbled as it poked at it, but thankfully it didn't try to take it off. It did, however, level him with an unamused glare.

"To stay safe." Charlie explained, hoping it'd understand him. It didn't seem so. He sighed and brushed the pikmin's stem back, causing it to let out a happy coo. He then grabbed hold of the lead and stood up. "Ready to head out, then?"

The pikmin still didn't understand, but seemed intrigued. It quickly stood beside him, staring up at him as he grabbed his keys and wallet. As he opened the door, it finally figured out what was going on. At that same moment, Charlie realized that the child harness was a good idea, as the pikmin attempted to dart away when presented with a chance for escape. It whined when it reached the end of its lead, though from annoyance rather than pain. Charlie just sighed as he locked the door up, watching the pikmin finally get a good look around Koppai's caverns.

Charlie's house was made of stone, and built into a wall of the cavern. It was slightly higher up than most of the houses, providing him an extra bit of privacy - though his house was harder (or more accurately, expensive) to keep cool as a result. There was a soft blanket of moss over most things, though there was a dirt path leading up to the house. A tiny fenced-in moss yard was at the front of his house, complete with a small pond for Elizabeth where she happily swam. Koppaite ducks were actually flightless birds (as were all of the very few species of bird on Koppai, actually), so she was fine to be outside while he was gone. She had plenty of amenities to keep her comfortable there as well, and he'd let her in when he got home.

"C'mere, pikmin." Charlie called. He lifted up just long enough to show it what was beyond the fence. The pikmin gasped a bit and leaned into Charlie more. The cavern was a large cenote which tunneld deep into the ground. The water at its base was crystal clear, being the city's primary water source. Various buildings were built into the walls, countless paths and lifts twisting all around to allow for easy travel across the cave. The sun shone through a hole on the surface, hot as it beat down into the cavern below. In a few of the more cavernous parts, where no sun got through, large UVB lights were installed to both help them see and to help the plants grow.

"Pretty, huh?" Charlie asked, knowing he wouldn't get a response. "This is my home."

The pikmin simply cooed a bit.

Charlie laughed and began to head for the yard's gate. "C'mon, lil' one, I have something to show you."

It had taken them quite a bit of time and much travel to get where they were headed, mostly because Charlie opted to take lesser traveled paths to ensure the pikmin's privacy. It ran all around him, jumping and climbing and generally just being a pikmin as they walked, often finding shiny things on the path which it wished to collect. Charlie helped it put those in its backpack. A few times they'd have to ride a lift, which the pikmin seemed a little spooked by. It probably wasn't used to something like this. Few others would be in the cab, something Charlie was so grateful for.

Eventually, they arrived at a small park. Not many people went there, but Charlie adored the place. The sun couldn't reach here at all, and the UVB lights were kept dim. Instead, it was all lit up by a few different species of bioluminescent plants. A very common sight on Koppai, actually, some of these plants were even considered weeds. But to the pikmin, it must have seemed magical. It let out a small gasp, running around with wide eyes. Charlie couldn't help but chuckle as he watched it dart to and fro. Certainly, something so alien to the little one would satisfy its need to explore just long enough until he could get it home…

The thought made him pause for a bit. Why, he wasn't sure.

He followed the pikmin, allowing it to take the lead. It would regularly turn back to him and squeak excitedly about something. He wondered what it was trying to say and desperately wished he understood it. Oh well.

After a little while they came to a bench to stop and rest. Well, Charlie rested. The pikmin was still exploring the best it could within its limited range, now on the ground looking for more things to take home. Occasionally, it would return to Charlie for him to put the trinkets it found into its bag. Usually they were just weird rocks. One was a seed, a few were lost rings and stray coins. But eventually, the pikmin came back with a very peculiar looking pebble.

"Heh, it's shaped like a rubber duck." Charlie laughed a bit. "That's very cute. Alright, let's get it in your bag." But when he reached for the bag the pikmin stepped away and shook its head.

"... You don't want it?"

It pointed at him in response. "Nu mo."

Charlie paused for a moment. "Huh?"

The pikmin groaned. It lifted up another pebble, pointing to it and then itself. The little one then pointed at the rock Charlie still had and then at Charlie.

"... For me?"

He was surprised to see the pikmin nod so eagerly.

The captain smiled widely as he held his arms out for it. The pikmin squeaked and eagerly jumped up, snuggling against him. Charlie chuckled and rubbed its back. Oh, such a sweet little thing. He couldn't lie, he adored the little trouble maker. He hadn't had it for long, and yet he felt so attached. Stars above, he'd miss it so much when he had to bring it back.

As his heart sank with the thought of that, he finally realized something.

He… didn't want to bring it back to PNF-404.

"What do you mean, you want to keep it here?"

Charlie just shrugged, the little pikmin sleeping in his arms. "I just… I dunno, I wanna keep caring for it, I guess."

Brittany crossed her arms as she groaned. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"No. That's why I called you over." Charlie leaned back into the couch a bit. "I got rather attached to it over these past few days. But if it's better off back home… I want to care for it, which means doin' what's best, you know?"

Brittany finally relaxed then, arms falling to her sides. "I'm not sure, then. On one hand, PNF-404 is its home, where the other pikmin are. On the other hand, that planet is so dangerous…" She wouldn't say it out loud for the sake of both of them, but he knew what she was talking about. How many pikmin they lost just trying to get by there.

"And it chose to sneak on our ship." Charlie teased, though he wasn't sure if getting to Koppai was its end goal. If it wanted to be here.

"In a way, yeah… I don't know either, Charlie. I'm sorry. Does it seem happy here?"

"Well, I'm very biased on that front." He admitted. "But it does seem happy. I've seen it laugh at the cartoons I put on for it. It drew a lot of drawings." Mainly of pikmin… "And it gave me a duck shaped rock when I took it to the glowing garden the other day."

Brittany paused for a moment, ears wiggling and eyes wide. Then she suddenly burst into a fit of giggles. "Oh Stars, captain, you are treating it just like it's your kid!"

Said pikmin began to squirm in its sleep, and Brittany tried to quiet down for it.

Charlie sighed as he looked down at the little yellow pikmin. "Yeah, I guess so…" his ears leaned back a bit.

Brittany then frowned as she looked over to the captain. "Listen, I really can't say what is or isn't best for the pikmin. It is safer here, and happy here, but there's just too much we don't know. Nor are there other pikmin here - though it may be able to befriend some kids… point is, I don't know. But I do know that, if you decide to keep it, I'll at least help out."

He looked over at her, a sad smile on his face. "Really?"

She nodded.

He looked down at the little sleeping pikmin. "I think… I'll keep it for a little while longer. And bring it home if we suspect something is wrong, or if it clearly wants to. I'll have to see about taking it to playgrounds once I can trust it to not wander off, because it should at least get that."

"Yeah… yeah, that sounds good."

The two stayed quiet for a few moments. Then, Charlie asked "Would naming it be a bad idea? I feel bad for calling it just "pikmin" all the time."

Brittany didn't answer for a few moments. "I mean, it probably is, if you have to bring it home. But… I get you."

Charlie huffed, holding the pikmin closer. It whined in its sleep, but never woke up.

Several more moments of silence passed, when Brittany suddenly just said "Marigold."

"Huh?"

"Marigold. It's a flower grown on many other planets, not native to Koppai. Very pretty orange and yellow colors. I… I think it's a good name, too."

Charlie looked back down at the yellow pikmin. He sighed and smiled, gently rubbing the base of its stem. "Yeah, Marigold. I like it."

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