Let me tell you. Rest (the move) is weird.

  It feels like a Slack Off times ten, and is thus super tiring to maintain past the first conforting bit despite what the name would suggest. Another weird bit is that you stay somewhat conscious despite falling to sleep... Of course you can't see anything since your eyes are closed, but you can still hear and understand what's going on around you. It just feels... Distant. Or perhaps the right term would be distorted ? You feel oddly detached from what's happening and sounds come at you muffled as if you were underwater.

  I woke up from my first Rest in sweat from the effort and under the concern gaze of Momma and my siblings. She just looked at me in silence, something in her eyes telling me that she was conflicted to talk about the whole affair.

  My lil' brothers and sisters had no such reservation.

  "Lars! You Ok? You went all weird for a moment."

  "Why did you glow purple?"

  "Did you die? I poked you with a stick and you didn't move."

  "What was that? Something powerful?"

  Immediatly getting swamped upon waking up by questions from four young slakoths talking over each other is certainly an experience. My brain was still switched off from the move and I must have looked completely out of it.

  After some dozens seconds to get my bearings back, I finally tried to calm my siblings down.

  "I'm okay, I'm okay. Just tried a new move. Clearly, I wasn't as ready as I thought for it. I mean, I did succeed, but I'm spent." I said laughing.

  "Glad, I thought that we'll have to put Ada and Bash to sleep on our own from now on."

  "Ok, but still why purple?"

  "That means I can still poke you with sticks if you didn't feel anything ?"

  "Most be super strong if big bro can only do it once !!!" They all answered again at once, only for it to devolve staright into an argument about who will talk to me first. Well, it was mostly Ada and Bash that argued. With Scratches. And me still in the middle of the bundle of sloths.

  "Children, stop harrasing your brother." Momma intervenned. "Decide on the order by yourself near that tree over there, I need to talk to Lars. Alone." she added with a serious tone.

  We all knew better than to not obey Momma when she was like that. So I was now alone facing Momma.

  "Care to explain yourself Lars ?" she asked harshly. Perhaps too harshly. She seemed surprised at her own aggressiveness in her tone. But strangely, it did not seemed directed at him.

  She lowered to my level to continue. "Listen Lars, you are not in trouble. But what you did raise questions. Questions that we'll need answers for in order for me to know what to do. Alright ?"

  I nodded.

  "Good. Now, can you explain to me what you were trying to do and what you thought you did?"

  I nodded again.

  "When you told us to experiment to find a new move, I didn't felt like trying to fight was worth the effort, so I tried to look inside for energy and inspiration. I knew how to do advanced sleeping and felt like I could do more by building on it, like it was something I already knew." I explained, omitting the part about wishing to God for it because, if there is one thing I have learned from my previous life, it's too never bring religion into family debate. "Next thing I knew, I was sleeping."

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  She digested my words for a moment and gave me the slightest of nods.

  "Lars. What you did fall way out of the scope of advanced sleeping. It is part of expert sleeping. Something many of us never learn to do properly, and even if we do, it is not before we become Slakings. And most of the time we need outside help for it.

  It is of said possible outside help that I am worried of, they can speed up the learning of moves, but it is not for free. And difficult to do without consent. However, It is possible to do while you sleep... The implications of that would be severe.

  Are you sure it is something that was in you from the start ?"

  Oh no! Did I screw Momma over by wishing to get rest ?

  "... Yes. I can't quite explain it. But I think I knew it since I became aware in the egg, but couldn't use it until you taught me how to properly sleep. Sorry Momma." I apologized.

  "If you are sure of that, then everything is good. And don't worry. I wasn't angry at you earlier. Just at myself for letting someone get to you while you slept. I thought that I had failed you. That I didn't protect you like a good mom should have." she confessed, on the verge of tears.

  I did the only thing that crossed my mind. I stood up (very difficult for a Slakoth), and hugged her.

  "It's okay Momma, it's not your fault. I know you're doing your best to protect us, even if we don't really see it because we spend the days sleeping. It's not your fault."

  She hugged me back. "I was scared, Lars. Some moves aren't taught to younguns because they are too demanding or dangerous. This one, Rest, is amongst them. Without proper energy reserves to use, they would just render yourself unconscious, or worse. How do you think I felt seeing you collapse like that ?" She asked, releasing me from her embrace and looking into my eyes. "Promise me that you'll not use that move again without my supervision! I'll have to adapt your training from now on..."

  A bit miffed to see my ticket to ultimate sleep removed from my grasp, but I could understand where she was coming from. I tentatively nodded to the promise. But was forced to vocalize an answer when the nod was met by the disciplinary gaze of Momma.

  "Ok. You can Rest assured. I'll only use it if you give me permission until you think I'm strong enough to do it on my own." I beamed a smile at her.

  Relief filled her face.

  "I'm really blessed to have a good kid like you. Now, return to your siblings, they have been looking worried for a while and want their big brother back." she said, ending the conversation, and pushing me toward the four little Slakoths who were anxiously observing the interaction.

  "Everything's good you all. Sorry for the scare. Turns out I really didn't know what I was getting into. Haha!" I said, trying to diffuse the gloominess with a cheerful tone.

  Looking at each other before nodding, they left Ada coming forward to meet me just before I reached the group.

  "Big bro, we know you're probably too tired but we agreed on a solution for who get to ask questions first."

  "Go on."

  "We'll spar with you and if we win we get to ask all the questions we want." she announced proudly.

  "... Assuming I wasn't dead tired, why not. But I failed to see how that solve the order of who ask what?"

  "You decide."

  "What?"

  "Yeah, if we win, you decide who goes first."

  I stared at them silently for a minute until it clicked.

  "Wait, when you said 'we', you meant all four of you ? Against me ?"

  "Yup." she smiled.

  "... That's not very fair."

  "Why? Are you scared to lose?" she asks without any attemps to cover her provocation.

  Oh, Ada. There are some words you just can't say to any eldest siblings. It makes them do stupid things. And sorry for you, I'm no different.

  "Oh ho! Bold words. Looks like I will have to stay awake just a tad more longer then. You four are due for a lesson." I countered.

  The fire of battle has been lit, my four siblings finally following their natural instinct to bully their big brother because they know he usually can't hit back in fear of the dreaded sentence "I will tell Mom.".

  Unfortunaly for them, I don't play fair and there won't be any proof for them to complain. Hehe.

  "Oh! And Ada. You said what you all wanted upon your victory. But what if I win? What do I get?" I asked mischieviously.

  It caught them off guard, and they start to fidget to find an answer. But I didn't gave them time to do so.

  "I know, if I win, I'll convince Momma that I should eat your Oran berry slices at dinner."

  The shock in their eyes. Surely, I was bluffing. I grinned.

  The game was on.

  Lars movepool :

  Slack Off, Yawn

  Rest