When Lightning Strikes

Past: Desert Heat

The Alola region was normally pretty warm, only changing a few degrees in the winter and summer. This stayed true in Po Town too since, with all the rain, the place was normally humid and hanging around the same temperature.

There was one week, however, where the Ula'ula was having a real scorcher, making the whole of Po Town feel like everyone was swimming in thick soup. Everyone was miserable as they tried to keep out of the rain and sit in front of fans in the main house.

Reeda barely came out of her basement that week, staying where it was cool. It was a little better than the people who were sweating it out in the main house, but the place wasn't a complete solution. Fang would use Ice Punch on the wall behind her fan and use the ice behind it to chill the room, and Reeda had used one of her blankets to block out the basement windows. The lights gave off some heat, but at least the place was functional.

"Reeda? You in?"

"Where else would I be?"

Cissel staggered in and closed the door behind her quick. She seemed to brighten up a little after noticing the change in temperature. "You keep a tight lid in here!"

"Everyone else is trying to do the same."

"Yeah, but you keep a real tight lid when it comes to this heat. It's actually a little chilly in here come to think of it."

Reeda shrugged. "I learned some tricks when I was in Konikoni. Remember? The boat?" The old boat in Konikoni had been a heat magnet, but the floor remained cool because of the water. After closing off the windows and making a few ice bags with Fang's help, the place would be cool enough to live in during the day.

"I remember." Cissel snapped her fingers. "Speaking of remembering, all the grunts are heading out to the beach on route 16. Apparently the boss is sick of the heat as well, so everyone will be heading over there. I thought you'd like to know so we can both head over there together."

Reeda cursed internally. Leaving the basement would be suicide, but staying behind would be suspicious as well. No one would blame her though. Cissel could vouch that she was perfectly cool at her place.

Then people would try to get in and bum her cold though, and she didn't want the company in the first place. Her basement was okay but the rest of the house...

No, she had to risk it. Fang would be able to help her keep cool.

"... fine," Reeda grumbled. "I'm not getting my feet wet though."

"Fine by me!" She opened the door. "I need to get a few things, but I'll be outside the gate when you're ready!"

"Alright, see ya then I guess."

"Awesome!"

As soon as Cissel left, Reeda got to work. Fang helped her make an ice bag to strap over the back of her neck, and then he chilled the back of her coat on the inside. It was all she could do, but hopefully it'd be enough to deal with the heat. There'd be no escaping it, but if they could get out of the rain and to the meadow quick enough it'd be enough.

Reeda realized as soon as she got outside with Squeak and Fang that it was hotter than she had anticipated. Cissel was at the gate when she got there, and they got over it quickly enough. They traveled slow though, which she found irritating. She knew if they moved fast they'd get overheated, but she didn't want her ice to thaw. It had to last longer than this.

"Yo! Reeds! Cece!"

She and Cissel turned around to see the grunt who tried to give Reeda a cup of Tapu Coaco last month or so. He had apologized for everything, but in the end she made sure that he shouldn't feel guilty because he didn't know to begin with. He'd sometimes visit with Cissel, and in the end he was a pretty nice guy. He ran over to them, shirtless in a pair of flipflops and swimtrunks. The only other things on him was a towel and his bandana.