Previously on Oranges to Grapes: The Tree of Masks...

Samuel shows the Pomegranetes around the Festival of Masks and how it's changed over the past four years... which isn't much, really. Once they get their second signboard photo for their assignment, Samuel thinks he heard something...

-

Now that the signboard photo was out of the way, the group could finally come to the Ogre Offering kiosk, styled after the Kitakami Hall building across from it. There, right in front of the kiosk (and next to the rental Stantler for those who didn't have a Ride Pokemon), stood examples of the Berry trays to be used for the game... but instead of the ogre faces in scary scowls, they were drawn on the banners in more positive emotions: Teal was giddy, Hearthflame was proud, Wellspring was pleased, and Cornerstone was jolly!

"Wow!" Balto said when he saw the faces on the banners. "They are really bending over backwards for Ogerpon, aren't they?"

"What can I say?" Samuel said. "She got dealt a bad hand all those years ago, and this is our apology for that."

"And we also feel sorry for her," Pico dismissed, "but I still want to get a round in before the stage show." He then approached the front desk and said, "I would like to play a round of Ogre Offering, please."

"And is this your first time playing?" the desk worker wearing a Hearthflame Mask asked. "Because we also offer tutorial sessions for beginners."

"Actually, yes," Pico said, "and that does sound like a good idea. Is there anything I need to know before I get started?"

"I'm glad you asked!" the desk worker said happily, "But I must preface that the explanation tends to drag on in places, so I'll try to minimize the filler. Now, the rules are simple: you'll be sent to a random part of Kitakami on our Stantler here near trays like these, and tasked to pop balloons in order to gather Berries that correspond to the trays. But there's a few catches: you can only hold 30 Berries at a time, and you only have 2 minutes to fill the trays with a certain number of Berries. Plus, wild Pokemon will try to nab Berries you put in the trays, so you'll need to scare them off with Stantler's call. Put enough Berries into the trays before time runs out, and you'll clear the round. Clear all the rounds in the game, and you win!"

Pico ran the info in his head, then summarized with, "Okay, ride Stantler, pop balloons to get Berries, limited carrying space and allotted time, keep strays from the trays, and fill the trays enough to clear rounds until you win. Got it!"

Since Easy was the only difficulty Pico had available to him, he had no choice but to accept, then he was allowed to climb onto Stantler's back, and was taken away...

While that was going on, Balto overheard the explanation and asked, "Huh. Samuel, remind me again, how is Ogre Offering different from Ogre Ousting? Because those sound like the exact same rules."

"That's because the rules are the same," the male bunny explained. "But the correction just made a change of decoration in order."

-

As soon as Pico was set at the random field (doesn't matter which one, they all work the same), balloons appeared in rows, rings and crowds for him to pop... but they had pictures of Pecharunt and the Lousy Three reaching for Berries at the top, while their Toxic Chains kept them anchored to the ground at the bottom!

Unsettling as they were, Pico didn't let that deter him as the timer counted down... then he rode Stantler at full speed! Knowing what to do, he darted after the clusters of balloons to pop them and gathered the Berries, but only started off with a few of each color since that was all he had to get. Once he was satisfied with how many he had, he darted back to the trays to load them up, and cleared the first round!

But there was no time to celebrate yet, because the second round was already underway. Once the timer counted down, Pico rode Stantler back to the balloons to repeat the cycle, but this time he filled the bag to capacity before he could get the required number of Berries, so he had to rush back to the trays and empty it out before he could get some more. But he had to work fast because a hungry Squovet caught the smell of the Berries and made a beeline for the trays. Fortunately, Pico was able to get the rest he needed and made it back to the trays to scare off the Squovet and clear the second round!

Now there was only one round to clear, and it was the hardest yet. Both the lizard and the big horn Pokemon primed themselves for the push they had to endure... then shot off again as the time came. They popped balloons and filled the bag with Berries like there was no tomorrow, then raced back to the trays to dump them off and go back out for more. But nature was not idle, as the Squovet from earlier smelled the trays' contents and made off for the haul. Pico filled the bag a second time that round, but he was only robbed of two Berries before the Squovet was scared off. Fortunately he only had to go for a third trip to get a few more, but this time a Greedent was headed for the trays, and time was still ticking away! A quick cluster-pop, though, and Pico raced back to the trays, scared off the Greedent, and filled the trays to the goal just in the nick of time to win!

-

Back at the festival, Camilla watched as Pico and the Stantler were returned to the kiosk for Pico to collect his reward: an Exp. Charm. "So, Pico," the female bunny questioned, "how did you enjoy your first game of Ogre Offering?"

"Gotta be honest," the lizard huffed from the adrenaline, "it was exhilirating... both for me and for Stantler." He then turned around to give the cervine Pokemon some gentle scritches on its neck. "Thanks for helping me win, nuevo amigo."

"Well, glad you had fun," Camilla praised, "but you'll have to cut your gratitude short. Samuel and Balto have already taken their seats for the stage show, and I'm here to get you back together with the group before it starts."

"Right, thanks for that," Pico said before he walked away from Stantler. "Gracias again!"

While Stantler was cocking its head in uncertainty over the unfamiliar language, Camilla and Pico found Samuel and Balto sitting on a blanket on the gravel in front of Kitakami Hall. "Ah, we were hoping you'd show up," Samuel said.

"Of course you were," Pico muttered before he sat down... between Balto and the male bunny. "Welp, the gang's all here, now we just have to wait for the show to start."

"Oh, that's not until five minutes," Camilla said, "so we've got time to chill." She then sat down on the blanket with the boys and waited.

"So, Pico," Balto said, "how'd you enjoy the game?"

"Really fun, actually," Pico answered. "I got to ride a Stantler, gave some common Pokes a righteous fright, and when all was said and done... I even won this." He then presented his new Exp. Charm for the husky to see.

"Wait until you clear the harder difficulties," Samuel boasted. "That's where they give you the good stuff."

"I'll just have to take your word for it," Pico said as he put his charm back, "since it might be another year before I come back to Kitakami... if I win the lottery again, that is."

"Good point," Samuel relented, and he stopped the conversation to wait for the show.

"Of course," the lizard pressed, "the same goes for Balto, as well."

"What about me?" Camilla piped up.

"Oh, you've got family here," Pico dismissed. "You could come back any time."

"Yeah, you're right," Camilla relented, and no more words were said for the rest of the wait...

-

To be continued.