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Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features.  Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri.  Please support the official release.

Listening to as I check my moon chart: The Howling End Title music

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Vagrant

Like any other rural community, Pallet Town had its own local hangout and Delia was proud to say that place was her diner.  The creation of the diner dated back to when Delia was a child.  While most of her peers ventured out into the outside world to capture and battle Pokémon, Delia traversed in search of a different prize: culinary skills from across the globe.

Okay, maybe not across the globe.  Delia didn’t have that kind of money.  But she did have a collection of old recipes that had been passed down from her family, some of which did travel the globe.  At first, cooking was just a hobby Delia partook in while she tried her hand at different careers.  While her success in these occupations varied, Delia would always receive high praises whenever she brought in food to share.

Eventually, Delia decided to focus her energies on turning her delightful hobby into her calling. Delia stepped away from the shops and the lab and began apprenticing at different restaurants across Kanto to refine her skills so that she may bring her recipe collection to the next level.

The result of Delia’s labors was a humble restaurant with a busy kitchen.  Such as today.  Delia really shouldn’t have been in work today, but as luck would have it there was a meteor shower later that evening and Pallet Town was chosen as the prime spot for stargazing.  One thing lead to another and soon enough a small festival was set up between Pallet Town and Viridian City.

As the local favorite, Delia’s diner was going to show up as one of the caterer’s with one of the larger food stands.  This would be good for business, but it would also need a ton of preparation.  So much so that Delia would have to step away from her maternity leave to help her staff.

“Thank you again, Mrs. Ketchum,” one of the diner’s workers managed to say between heavy breaths.  He along with Delia and several other staff members just finished loading equipment into the back of a truck for the festival.

Delia wiped one of the strands of her long, brown hair away from her face.  Sweat glistened from her petit body as a result of the hard work combined with the hot summer day.  Nevertheless, her bright hazel eyes beamed with cheer.  “Don’t mention it, Bran,” Delia replied.

After waving the truck driver off, Delia went back into the kitchen.  Since she was here, might as well check on her crew.  Predictably her employees were hard at work either cooking up meals for the lunch rush or cleaning up their stations.  Normally the restaurant wouldn’t be this bustling considering the small population of Pallet Town.  It was thanks to the influx of tourists waiting to watch the meteor shower that her staff were getting an extra workout.

Smiling with pride at her employees, Delia made her way to the dining area.  Just like the kitchen, the dining area was busier than normal.  Almost all of the tables were occupied with both locals and travelers.  The diner’s waiters and waitresses were practically jogging around the room in a real life game of dine and dash.  Since she was already on site, Delia considered throwing on a uniform and given her staff a helping hand.  But first she had to attend to someone very important.

“Oh, Mrs. Ketchum,” one of waitresses came up to greet Delia with a smile.

Delia returned the waitress’s smile.  “Oh, Ginger.  How’s Ash?”

The waitress led Delia over to a table.  On top of the table was a baby carrier filled with various baby toys resembling a variety of Pokémon.  Sound asleep and curled up in a blanket that was covered in cutesy Pokémon cartoons was Delia’s son.  Normally Ash was an energetic baby, but now he looked calm and peaceful.  He didn’t even stir when Delia reached over to stroke the black hair growing on his head.

“It took forever to get him to sleep,” Ginger sighed.

“Thank you for looking after him,” Delia said.  “Do you mind if I ask you to watch him for a little while longer?  I’m going to lend a hand in the kitchen.”

“I don’t mind at all, ma’am,” Ginger chirped.  “Take your time.”

Delia was about the thank Ginger again before another employee called her over.  “Excuse me, Mrs. Ketchum?  We’ve got a little situation.”

After giving Ash one last look over, Delia went over to see what the “little situation” was.  Apparently the situation was a man.  An unwell man judging by the way he was toppled over next to the dumpster.  Approaching to get a better look, Delia could see that the man was passed out.  Judging by the smell of his breath the cause was probably intoxication.

The man was a mess.  His clothes were torn and dirtied save for his shoes which were completely absent.  Most of the man’s face was hidden by a shaggy, white beard which was peppered with various stains.  The man’s fingernails were dirty and chipped with mud caked underneath.  Clothing wise, he was dressed in a thick coat and beat-up pants.  His shoes were absent showing off his callused feet.  When Delia reached out to grab his shoulders she was surprised to find that his body temperature was very warm.

“Excuse me.  Sir?” Delia said gently as she shook the man’s shoulder.

“Do you think this guy’s here for the festival?  I don’t think I’ve ever seen him before,” observed the waiter.

“I think you might be right,” Delia observed.  She gave the man’s shoulder a harder shake.  “Sir?”

The man snorted and jolted awake.  He looked up at Delia with bloodshot eyes that made it look like he’d just gotten through a long crying session.  “Huh?  Wha?” inquired the man.

“I’m sorry, sir,” Delia said quietly yet firmly.  “But this isn’t a place to take a nap.”

Looking around, the man let out a small “Oh” before rising to his feet.  The man’s movements were shaky and unsteady causing Delia and the waiter to rush to his side to help him.  The man waved the two off and stumbled forward, catching himself on the wall of the diner.

Unperturbed, Delia continued to speak to the man in a patient tone.  “Are you staying somewhere nearby?”

The man paused to think.  “Yeah,” he responded in a gruff voice.  “I’m camping off the main road near town.  I’ll be out of your hair-”

Before the man could finish his sentence he lost his footing and began to fall forward.  Delia rushed into to catch him.  “Sir, would you like a ride back?” she offered.

“Mrs. Ketchum,” the waiter began to speak nervously.

“No, no,” grunted the man.  “I’m fine.”

The man then took several more steps forward and fell face first on the ground.

Frowning at the man’s state, Delia turned towards the waiter.  “Herb, please bring my truck around back.”

A few minutes of hauling later and the man was loaded into the back seats of Delia’s truck.  Delia accompanied by Herb, who didn’t want her going anywhere alone with the unstable-looking man, were driving along the road that led out of Pallet Town.  They kept their eyes peeled for a campsite, but it wasn’t until the man snapped out of his stupor that they were able to find it.

“Here,” croaked the man without sitting up.

Apparently “Here” was a tent hidden away in the bushes.  Just like the man, the campsite was a mess.  There was a small collection of sticks and rocks that were probably made to build a fire, but it looked like someone collapsed on top of them.  The tent was just as miserable being half set up and spotted with patchwork that was probably used to cover up some holes.  Next to the tent was a cooler which looked like it was ripped apart by a large Pokémon.  Accompanying the bitten open cooler were an assortment of Pokémon tracks scattered around the site, the most prominent being canine.

As Delia helped the man out of her car, she blinked.  Was it just her, or was the man looking bigger?  His baggy clothes did look like they were fitting him better.  No, that couldn’t be right.  Humans can’t grow within an hour.

“Thanks,” mumbled the man.

“You’re welcome,” Delia said politely.  She and Herb then helped guide the man over to his tent.  “Are you a Pokémon trainer?”

Pokémon trainers were usually kids who ventured around the region challenging other trainers and participating in events such as contests or the Pokémon league.  By the time trainers reached adulthood they usually settled down into another career, though Delia had seen her fair share of trainers who continued their adventures once they grew up.

“I had some Pokémon,” responded the man.  His eyes then clenched together in a vain attempt to hold back tears.  “They were my best friends.  And now they’re gone.  Everyone’s gone.  And I can’t join them because I’m a coward.  I’m too afraid to do what I should have done a long time ago!”

The tears finally broke through and the man began sobbing.  He gripped into Delia’s shoulder earning a wince of pain from the woman.  Not only was his grip strong but for a moment it felt like his fingers were tipped with claws.

Keeping a sympathetic smile on her face Delia spoke again.  “I’m sorry to hear that.  But I don’t think your Pokémon would want you to do anything drastic.”

The man just continued to sob.  He released his grip on Delia and made his way over to the ruined campfire and sat down on a rock.  Delia probably could have just left him there, but that didn’t feel right.  So, she continued to talk to the man.  “You know, if you need help there is a shelter in Viridian City that-”

“NO!” exclaimed the man.  “I can’t be around people!  They’ll be dead!  I won’t be able to hold back!  I can’t!”

The man continued to ramble which just cemented Delia’s belief that this former trainer desperately needed help.  “I don’t think any person is meant to be alone.  Tell you what, there’s a festival tomorrow night.  It’s going to be held between Viridian City and Pallet Town.  If you come to my stand I’ll make sure to fix you up a nice warm meal while you watch the shooting stars.  Would that be okay?”

Ignoring the unsure look on Herb’s face, Delia continued to watch the sobbing man.  The man had gone still at Delia’s offer.  After a minute of quiet, he spoke up again.  This time his voice carried an air of finality.  “Maybe I should go.”

The man stood up and lumbered to his tent as he continued to mutter.  “Tired of being alone.  Tired of being afraid.  I’ll just get it over with.”

With that the man hunched down into his tent.  When Delia heard snoring, she and Herb climbed back into her truck and headed back to the diner.  As the drove, Herb looked at his boss.  “Are you sure that was the wise thing to do?”

“Hard to say,” Delia replied.  “I’m not sure how much I can do to help him, but if a little festival and a good meal are what he needs, I won’t turn him down.”

“I guess,” Herb relented, though the worried look didn’t leave his eyes.  “But if it’s all the same, I don’t think you should be alone around that guy.  He doesn’t seem well.”

Delia didn’t respond.  She just continued to think of the man and the tired look in his eyes.

AN: Would now be a bad time to mention that Delia named her diner “The Slaughtered Mareep?”

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features.  Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri.  Please support the official release.

Listening to as I attend the literal burning man: The 13^th Struggle (Kingdom Hearts II)

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Inferno

The next evening the festival was in full swing.  The atmosphere was filled with music provided by a rotation of bands performing on a large stage in the middle of the fair.  Surrounding the musicians were an assortment of stalls ranging from games like Goldeen Scoop to food venders just like Delia’s.

Once the diner’s stall was completely set up, Delia and her staff took their shifts in turns so that everyone got a chance to go out and experience the festivities.  Ginger was on babysitting duty again, not that she seemed to mind.  When the time came for Delia to take her break the girl volunteered to keep watch over Ash while Delia went out to try a meal from one of the other venders.

While scouting out a possible dinner, Delia saw a group of people gathered around in a small crowd.  Curious, she wondered over to find that the crowd was made up of Pokémon trainers who had set up a makeshift tournament.  The current battle was between a muscular, humanoid lizard and a large crab with a spikey crown.

“Machoke!” called out the lizard’s trainer.  “Use Focus Punch!”

“Meet him with a Crabhammer, Kingler!” ordered the crab’s trainer.

Fist and claw collided as both Pokémon clashed in the middle of the field.  Neither Pokémons’ attacks sent the opponent back resulting in a shoving match between the two combatants.  Meanwhile the audience cheered on.  Amongst the crowd Delia noticed other trainers waiting for their chance to battle including a humanoid boxer, Hitmonchan, that was warming up by shadow boxing, large blue duck, Golduck, and a muddy, long-nosed Drowzee that was staring hungrily at a couple of children that were nodding off.

Delia was about to leave when another Pokémon, a large, pale tan feline known as a Persian suddenly stood up and began hissing startling Delia and everyone else standing near it.  It wasn’t just the Persian.  Multiple Pokémon scattered about the festival began to perk up.  It wasn’t until the band ended its song that Delia and trainers were able to make out what had the monsters up in arms.

It was distant, but Delia could make out what sounded like some kind of howl.  As to what kind of Pokémon was howling, Delia couldn’t say.  Thanks to years of living in the same town as the region’s most well-renowned Pokémon professor, and even temporarily taking up a side job helping at the lab during her teen years, Delia was more than familiar with a wide variety of Pokémon as well as their cries.  Whatever made that howl sounded like some kind of canine Pokémon like an Arcanine or a Houndoom.  But there was something about the call that just seemed off.

Well, whatever it was it sounded like it was pretty far away.  And even if it were to get closer the partying Pokémon trainers seemed pretty experienced and capable of fending off a wild Pokémon attack.  Plus, the Pokémon that lived in the wilderness around Pallet Town were a lot more docile and weak than the Pokémon who lived in other routes of Kanto.

It seemed like the Pokémon came to the same conclusion as Delia because a few minutes later they calmed down and continued to enjoy the festival with their human partners.  For her part Delia was able to grab some grub and return to her restaurant’s stand without incident.  It wasn’t until half an hour later that the night took a turn for the worse.

“It’s starting!”

Everyone simultaneously dropped what they were doing to look up at the skies.  Streaking across the heavens was the meteor shower.  White flashes soared through the air leaving behind a long trail of light that disappeared just as soon as it appeared.  It started slow with just a couple before the entire sky was streaked with falling stars.

Joining in the lights was the moon.  Bright and full, it hung over the route illuminating the festival below like the spotlight of a stage play.  The stars further elevated the moon’s hypnotic magnificence by dashing and shooting past the massive orb, accenting its glow with their own.

Then, as if to try and steal the show, one large star whizzed across the sky.  Instead of shooting straight across it traveled in an arch, flying against the flow.  The star glowed with a bright orange light and billowed through the air with wild abandon making it look less like a star and more like a large fireball.

Wait a minute…

Before anyone realized what was happening, the fireball reached the top of its arch and exploded into multiple, smaller fireballs that rained down on the festival below.  Now broken out of their trance, the audience of star gazers began screaming and running away to take cover form the flames.  More fireballs began to follow the first, bursting apart and shooting down to the earth.

Tents that held games had transformed into kindling for the growing inferno.  The electrical equipment for the stage sparked before igniting an electric fire which added to the chaos.  Trainers were either ordering their Pokémon to put out the flames or running around looking for the attacker.

“Mrs. Ketchum!  What do-” Ginger began.

“Get everyone in the van and leave,” Delia immediately ordered.  “Take Ash with you.”

“But the van wont’ fit-” Ginger tried to explain before Delia cut her off again.

“It will fit all of you,” Delia began to make her way to a group of cars.  “I’ll find another ride.”

“But-”

“AWOOOOOOO!” A cry echoed throughout the festival.  It sounded like a large Pokémon, but something was wrong.  The beast’s call was just as much a pained scream as it was a howl.

Delia wasn’t willing to let her team, or infant son for that matter, wait around to find out who that Pokémon was.  She gave Ginger a shove.  “GO!”

Satisfied to see her team piling into their blue van with Ash safely tucked into the back, Delia quickly made her way over to the flattened out land that served as a parking lot.  Just as she was about to reach the group of vehicles, another fireball came hurtling down, hitting one of the cars, and taking out the surrounding cars and anyone close enough to be caught in the explosion.

Though Delia was lucky enough to be just outside of the blast range, a loud snarl from behind signaled the end of what little fortune she held.  Looking around, Delia found herself standing a few yards away from one of the largest Pokémon she’d ever seen.

The Pokémon in question crouched on all fours, either bracing itself for the volley of attacks other Pokémon were hurling at it or to prepare to pounce in retaliation.  It was covered from head to toe in orange and black stripped fur save for the tail, ankles, and mane which were covered in voluminous, cream-colored fur.  It had a body type that was mostly canine, though the thicker limbs added in a feline flare.

Delia recognized this Pokémon as an Arcanine, though it seemed different from the rest of the members of its species.  This Arcanine was two to three times larger than the average Arcanine and had a far more brawny build to the point where some of the muscles were looking like they’d burst out of its hide.  Sparks of fire flickered and bounced across its skin like a bad flea infection and the normally fluffy mane and tailed were matted and dirty.  A powerful wave of heat emitted from the beast causing anyone who even so much as stood near it begin sweating.

Most shocking of all was the Pokémon’s face.  Most Arcanine had a stern yet benevolent expression adding to the fire dog’s regal appearance.  This Arcanine looked enraged.  Every muscle on its face was scrunched up in anger, fixed into a permanent snarl.  When it wasn’t roaring or biting the creature’s jaw hung in an uncomfortable position that made it look like it was sick or broken while ropes of slimy drool dripped down.  Fire constantly glowed from its throat and would periodically pump out through the mouth.  Sometimes the flames burst out in short plumes of flames and other times as a massive fireball that it launched at the surrounding trainers.

Said trainers were now ganging up on the rabid Pokémon.

“Kingler, use Water Pulse!” called out the Kingler’s trainer.  The crab’s massive pincer opened revealing an orb of water.  The pincer then crushed the orb releasing a torrent of water which shot out at the Arcanine.

The water hissed and transformed into steam upon striking the Arcanine.  At first it looked like it worked when the Arcanine snarled in pain, but the massive dog did not falter.  Instead, the Arcanine released an overpowered Flamethrower attack at the crab sending it flying across the ground.

“Now, while it’s looking away,” called out the Machoke’s trainer.  “Use Focus Punch!”

Taking advantage of the distraction created by the Kingler, the Machoke gathered up energy into its fist and charged forward.  The punch connected to the Arcanine’s side and sent the dog skidding back, but at a cost.

The Machoke yelped and pulled its arm back.  Large flames erupted from the fighting-type’s knuckles showing that it had been inflicted with the burn status and badly.  Machoke’s trainer’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Arcanine doesn’t have Flame Body!  Does it?” he asked the other trainers.

One trainer pushed his glasses up.  “Perhaps it wasn’t Flame Body.  It could just be that this Arcanine is exuding so much heat that it’s creating an imitation of that ability as evidence by its ability to evaporate a water attack.”

“I can believe either theory,” a female trainer remarked watching the Arcanine stalk back to face the group, no scratches on its super-heated hide.  “That thing’s clearly not natural.”

Another trainer cracked his knuckles.  “It doesn’t’ matter what it is!  What matters is that this thing picked the wrong festival to destroy!  Let’s go, Hitmonchan!  Hit it from a distance with your Vacuum Wave!”

“Chan!” the boxer punched at the air multiple times sending out vacuum pulses that hit that hit the Arcanine square in the face.  They weren’t very effective.

Instead of feeling phased by the barrage of attacks, the Arcanine snarled and began to charge at its attacker.

Before the Arcanine could hit the Hitmonchan, the female trainer stepped in.  “Persian, break up its charge with a Fake Out and follow up with a Power Gem!”

Following its trainers instructions, the classy cat dived forward and struck the ground before right in front of the Arcanine.  The bluff attack caused the Arcanine to halt its charge and leap back.  Satisfied that it saved the Hitmonchan, the Persian then proceeded to fire a beam of energy from the small gem on its forehead.

Though a rock type move would usually be super effective on an Arcanine, this super Arcanine was more irritated than harmed.  With a roar it used its powerful legs to leap across the ground and snatch the Persian in its jaws.  The large dog than began to gnaw and shake the cat like a chew toy.

“Persian!  Return!” cried Persian’s trainer, unable to watch her cat take that kind of abuse.

The red light connected and the cat was beamed back into the safety of its ball, though it was clear to anyone watching that the Persian was going to need multiple trips to a Pokémon Center before it could battle again.

“It seems as though just attacking it won’t work,” observed the glasses trainer.  “Let’s try for a status condition.  Drowzee, use Hypnosis.”

“Droooowzeeeee,” said Drowzee as its body glowed with psychic energy.  Rings of energy emitted from the tapir hitting the Arcanine.

The Arcanine stumbled and shook its head before slumping as it succumbed to the sleep status.

“Now!” declared the knuckles trainer.  “Let’s all hit it at once!  Hitmonchan, protect your fist with lightning, use Thunder Punch!”

“Machoke, use another Focus Punch!” called out Machoke’s trainer, figuring that since his Pokémon already had the burn state there was no harm in going in for another physical attack.

“Drowzee, use Psyshock!” ordered Drowzee’s trainer.

“Golduck!  Hydro Pump!” shouted another trainer.

“Go Golem!” the Persian’s trainer decided to send in more durable Pokémon.  “Use Rock Blast!”

Electricity erupted from the Hitmonchan’s fist as it charged forward alongside the Machoke who had powered up its fist again.  From behind the two front-liners the other Pokémon fired off their attacks.  The Drowzee sent off a wave of pure psychic energy.  The Golduck opened its beak to release a powerful blast of water.  The girl’s ball snapped open to release a Pokémon who resembled a stone, spherical, bipedal tortoise, a Golem, which sent a barrage of rocks hurling at the Arcanine when the Golem touched the ground.  All the attacks connected resulting in a massive explosion.  Both the Hitmonchan and Machoke retreated back with the other Pokémon to watch.

Before the smoke could settle, the Arcanine leapt out of the cloud and at the Pokémon.  The Arcanine’s paws glowed with a dark magenta as it proceeded to bat and smack around its opponents using a savage version of the move Play Rough.

Too rough.

With each swipe of a claw the battling Pokémon became more bloodied and bruised.  A few of the trainers attempted to call back their Pokémon, but before the return light from Poke Balls could touch their respective mons, the Arcanine howled and let loose a stream of fire.  The dog’s head whipped back and forth creating a wall of flames blocking the trainers.

When the flames settled, the observing humans could see the Arcanine had managed to snatch the Machoke up in its jaws.  At first it looked like the Arcanine was going to start rough housing with it just like it did with the Persian earlier, but then dark energy started to emit from the canine’s mouth.

CRUNCH!

The Arcanine bit down hard on the Machoke.  The superpower Pokémon struggled and screamed before slumping down.  It continued to dangle like a rag doll as the Arcanine tossed its corpse to the side so that it could turn back to deal with the rest of the Pokémon.

“MACHOKE!” screamed the Machoke’s trainer as he ran to his deceased Pokémon’s side.  Meanwhile, the rest of the fighting Pokémon unleashed more attacks on the Arcanine in a desperate bid to put the mad Pokémon down for good.

It didn’t work.

Flames burst from the Arcanine’s hide coating it in fire.  The Arcanine began to run around and around in a circle, the fire following it as it ran.  The flames quickly transformed into a small fire tornado which sucked up the attacking Pokémon, burning them to a crisp.

“No!” shouted one of the trainers.

“We’ve got to get out of here,” voiced another trainer.

Though retreating to save themselves and the rest of their Pokémon was the obvious path forward, the Arcanine wasn’t going to let its pray go that easily.  The fire tornado dissipated releasing the Arcanine who shot more Flame Bursts into the air, turning the field into a meteor shower.  The Arcanine then ran across the field and grabbed the glasses trainer in its mouth and biting him in half.

“Alright, I’ve had enough of this guy,” declared the knuckles trainer as he took out an Ultra Ball.

“Dude, that thing’s nowhere weak enough to be captured!” exclaimed the Golduck’s trainer.

“No, but it should still go into the ball for a bit and buy us some time,” reasoned the knuckles trainer before tossing the ball at the Pokémon.

It was a sound theory, but with one problem.  Whatever happened to that Arcanine to make it bulked up and enraged also made it immune to Poke balls.  When the Ultra Ball hit its target, it didn’t snap open and suck the beast inside like it should have.  It just bounced off the monster and landed harmlessly on the ground where the Arcanine crushed it beneath its paws as it pounced on the human who threw and ball.

With a single swipe of its claw, the Arcanine took out the Golduck trainer.  The Arcanine then bit down on the knuckles trainer’s head causing the rest of the body to tumble to the ground, decapitated.

“Mommy.”

Delia, who had been watching the battle in a stunned stupor, snapped back to reality at the cry of a little voice.  Huddled next to a crate was a little boy.  The best that Delia could assume was that the boy had gotten separated from his parents during the Arcanine’s rampage.  Or at least she hoped the kid was just separated and not orphaned by the rain of fireballs.  The poor child was now weeping in fear, clutching the crate as a lifeline.

Alas, the Arcanine did not spare any sympathies to the child.  Its ears perked when the boy began to sob and its jaw flapped back open.  Slowly, the Arcanine began to stalk forward much like a playful Meowth hunting a Rattata for sport.

The image of the dead trainers burned fresh in her mind, Delia rushed forward to place herself between the boy and the mad dog.  Predictably, this move was rewarded with fangs piercing her shoulder.

“Rrrrr,” the flames in Arcanine’s maw were replaced with the dark energy needed for a Crunch attack.  Delia was spared the experience of being burned alive, but was now in agony thanks to the Pokémon’s teeth skewering her body.

“Blastoise, use Hydro Pump!”

“Nidoqueen, Earthquake!”

The ground beneath the Arcanine began to shake causing it to lose its footing.  This was followed up by a powerful blast of water which sent the Arcanine flying back and causing it to drop Delia on the ground.

Her shoulder practically ripped apart.  Delia struggled to push herself up.  On the bright side she could see that one of the trainers that had helped her escape was now carrying the boy away from the danger.  The other trainer attempted to get to her but was pushed back by his Blastoise which used Protect to shield him from another Flamethrower.

As Delia collapsed back onto the ground, her vision began to blur.  She could make out some shapes moving around, probably the Arcanine engaging some other trainers in a new battle.  Watching the blurs trade blows, Delia felt torn.  A part of her wanted the trainers to just take their Pokémon and run.  Enough lives had been lost tonight and these kids shouldn’t be throwing away their future fighting that deranged Pokémon.

And yet…

Tears pricked at Delia’s eyes.  She really wanted someone to come along and save her.  She wasn’t done living yet!  Her son was still a baby.  Ash didn’t deserve to grow up an orphan.  Delia wanted to see what kind of person the boy would become.  Would he become a cook like her?  Or would he become a trainer or some kind of celebrity like she used to dream about when she was younger?

While these thoughts raced through Delia’s head, the moon continued to shine overhead.  It shone down on the burning festival below, on the bodies littering the ground, on Delia.

In a flash, Delia’s eyes snapped back into focus.  She was seeing clearer now than she had ever seen before.  Her heart raced and her breathing became more labored.  Delia could still feel the pain from her wounds, but it was growing faint.  Gingerly reaching over to her wounds, Delia could feel the skin stretch and crawl over her injuries sealing them up.

Adrenaline began to pump through Delia’s body in droves.  She managed to stand up, but every one of her muscles was convulsing.  Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through her.  Everything from her bones to the tips of her nerves ached in intense agony.  Delia opened her mouth to scream, but her voice was twisted into a sharp snarl.

A pulling sensation burst from Delia’s mouth as both her teeth and her jaw were pulled out into sharp points.  The pulling sensation worked its way up to her ears which were yanked up to the top of her head into long, pointed ears.  Meanwhile, the heels of her feet began to slide back out of her shoes creating a new pair of digitigrade feet while her spin pushed out through her skin to produce a tail.

Delia’s skin began to itch announcing the arrival of a thick fur coat which spread across her like weeds.  Underneath that fur, Delia’s muscles continued to convulse, growing bigger, stronger.  Her nails cracked open, pushed out by a set of sharp claws.  Soon after the backs of her arms as well as the middle of her chest split open unleashing the metal spikes that were sprouting from her now metallic skeleton.  Finally, four long appendages stretched out of the back of Delia’s skull.

Her clothes now laying in shredded ribbons at her feet, Delia drew herself up to her new, very tall, height.  The creature that had replaced her had a mostly humanoid build with canine features.  It was covered in blue fur save for its cream colored torso and black fur on its lower legs, hands, joints, and wrapped around her face which, along with the long skin flaps sticking out of the back of her head, made it look as though she was wearing a mask.  These features along with the new spikes sticking out from her chest and hands made it clear that Delia had transformed into a Lucario.

However, Delia was not your average Lucario.  Your garden variety Lucario was barely 4 feet tall while Delia was almost twice the size of your average adult human.  Her fur was longer, courser and there were extra jagged spikes jetting out the sides of her arms.  While the usual Lucario just had a long nose, Delia’s lower jaw was pushed out with the rest of her snout, probably to make room for all her new teeth.  Here hands were less like paws and more like clawed human hands and when Delia opened her eyelids, the irises weren’t just red.  Her eyes glowed with a malevolent red, staring straight at the Arcanine.

When Delia’s body was finished with its metamorphosis, the changes moved onto her mind.  Rational thought was quickly replaced with pure instinct and Delia’s memories became a blur.  She didn’t know where she was or why she was here, but she could smell another predator in her presence.  He was not familiar, not a member of her pack which meant only one thing: he was an enemy.

Lips curling back, Delia released a screeching howl.  This caused the Arcanine to pause its rampage and turn around to spot Delia.  Delia stood tall and continued to growl a warning.  The message was simple: leave or I’ll make you regret it.

Evidently the Arcanine wasn’t impressed with this newcomer’s challenge.  He stood his ground and returned Delia’s snarl with one of his own.  What few humans and Pokémon were left had fled at the sight of another mutated Pokémon, leaving only the rabid canines.  Neither opponent willing to back down or back away only one option was left.

Kicking off against the soil, Delia flung herself at the Arcanine who intercepted her charge with an intense Flamethrower.  Using her newly acquired fighting instincts, Delia leapt over the river of flames effortlessly.  She landed next to the Arcanine, spun around, and kicked into one of the dog’s front legs.  Thrown of balance the Arcanine stumbled back allowing Delia to continue her assault delivering blow after blow into the tiger-dog’s hide.

It didn’t take long for the Arcanine to grow tired of the abuse and to turn around and halt Delia’s punches by biting down on one of the Lucario’s arms.  Fire flooded the Arcanine’s jaws turning the simple bite into a Fire Fang allowing the Arcanine’s teeth to sink into Delia’s metallic skeleton.

Howling in pain, Delia tried to knock the Arcanine off by driving her free knuckle into the Arcanine’s face.  In retaliation the Arcanine’s bite intensified.  He then jerked his head back before quickly pushing forward effectively tossing Delia across the festival grounds.

Unable to regain her footing, Delia rolled across the ground before coming to a stop.  She tried to get back up, but the Arcanine charged forward and began to Play Rough with her.  He batted her and tossed her around swiping at her with his claws and bruising her with the fairy energy used for the attack.

Finally, the Arcanine kicked Delia pushing her out of the festival grounds and onto the road.

Delia landed in a spot on the road just outside of the festival.  The Arcanine looked like it was about to give chase, when a volley of other Pokémon attacks hit it in the back of its head from a new batch of trainers.  Growling, the Arcanine ran off to deal with the pests leaving Delia to stagger to her feet.

Though she was in pain, burned, and low on health from the Arcanine’s assault, Delia still managed to make her way to her feet.  Albeit with a lot of effort.

As Delia stood, a familiar scent pricked at her nose.  Curiously, she followed this smell to the remains of a flaming, blue van.  Smelling around, she found the trail of various familiar human scents leading away from the wreckage.  Some of these humans smelt burn or of blood indicating the fireball that hit the truck had injured them.  The lack of bodies probably meant that there was miraculously no deaths, but some scents were closer to one another than others which probably meant they helped carry each other away.

Delia’s snout wrinkled.  She knew these scents from somewhere, but as to where that was she didn’t know.  Delia also couldn’t shake the feeling like there was something missing.  Something important.

“Eeee.”

A high pitched voice from the bushes caused Delia’s ears to perk.  As she made her way over, the monstrous jackal began to sniff.  After carefully poking around the bush, Delia was able to find the source of the noise.  Nestled within the bush was a human baby.  Half of the baby’s body was burnt which probably meant the infant was thrown from the car blast just like the missing humans.

To many predators, this baby would have been an easy meal.   But as Delia smelled the child, her movements slowed.  She knew this baby.  It was her baby.

The baby seemed to reach the same conclusion because its cries settled down.  Tears in its eyes, the infant reached out to the large Lucario.  As the baby gently patted her nose, Delia’s snarling features relaxed and she gently licked the child’s wounds.

Knowing that this place was not safe for her pup, Delia carefully took the baby into her jaws to carry him to safety.  Unfortunately, it was right when Delia’s teeth had a good grip on the baby that a fireball struck her in the back.  Judging by the smell of burnt bodies, the Arcanine was done with his other challengers and had returned for Delia.

Surprised, Delia’s jaw tightened.  Parental instincts kept her from fatally biting into the baby, but they did not stop her teeth from piercing the skin.  While the baby’s cries turned into the whimpers of a puppy, Delia’s rage ignited anew.  Growling, Delia put her pup back in the bush and turned to face her attacker.  Roaring, Delia signaled her acceptance of the Arcanine’s challenge for a round two.

This time, it was the Arcanine that charged forward to finish off his weakened opponent.  A grave mistake.  Right before the Arcanine could swipe Delia with his claws, Delia’s body emitted an orange glow.  The second the Arcanine’s paws touched the glow, they were pushed back with the same amount of force as they were about to deploy on Delia forcing the Arcanine onto its hind legs.

Taking advantage of the Arcanine’s momentary shock.  Delia charged forward and began hitting its exposed belly.  The Arcanine retaliate by biting down at Delia again, this time with the dark energy of a Crunch attack.

Delia grunted in pain and flinched back from the force of the bite.  The Arcanine tried to go in for another Crunch, but this time Delia was able to dodge.  The Arcanine continued to snap at Delia in a vain attempt to snatch her in its jaws, but with each failed bite Delia’s speed would continue to increase.  She was dodging him left and right while working in her own blows.

When the Arcanine had enough of Delia’s punches, he leapt back and began to charge up a massive Flamethrower.  Sensing the Arcanine’s intentions, Delia brought her paws close together and began to collect energy into a sphere.

The Arcanine released a stream of flame and Delia tossed forward her Aura Sphere.  The sphere cut through the fire, parting the flames and redirecting them around Delia and the bush holding her child.  But Delia wasn’t done.  She ran after the sphere, chasing it down the cleared path.  Once Delia reached the Arcanine, metallic energy gathered on the back of her wrists.

SNIKT!

Some of the bones from Delia’s metallic skeleton jetted out from her paws creating Metal Claws.  With a swift uppercut to the jaw, Delia thrusted her claws straight through the Arcanine’s throat.  The Arcanine stuttered and croaked before its body went limp.

Seeing as the Arcanine was no long a threat, Delia withdrew her claws and allowed the corpse to drop to the ground.  As the large canine’s body settled in the dirt, it began to shrink and whether away.  When it was done, the Arcanine was replaced by a human man with a mangy beard.

The battle won, Delia turned to make her way back to her pup.  It was just as she was taking her first step toward the bush that Delia stumbled and fell down to the ground.  The exhaustion and injuries from the fight had finally caught up with Delia, and she blacked out.

New Poke Stats!

WereLucario

Trainer: None

Ability: Justified

Nature: Never threaten a mother’s child.

Item: None

Moves: Aura Sphere, Counter, Metal Claw, Screech

WereArcanine

Trainer: None

Ability: Intimidate

Nature: At the end of his rope.

Item: None

Moves: Howl, Fire Fang, Crunch, Flame Burst, Flamethrower, Play Rough, Flare Blitz

AN: Smokey the Ursaring would later arrive, look around the scene, drop to his knees, and let out a scream of rage.

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features.  Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri.  Please support the official release.

Listening to as I seek out a gypsy for answers: Terrible Fate (Theophany cover)

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Curse

The next morning, Delia woke with a headache.  Last she remembered, she was at the festival.  Everyone was having a good time until…

Delia’s eyes shot open.  That Arcanine!  Where was it?

Looking around, Delia could see she was no longer at the fair grounds on Route 1.  She was in a building.  A hospital judging by the stark clean walls and medical equipment scattered around the room.  The room even smelled like a hospital or a Pokémon Center judging by the strong Pokémon odor that wafted through the air.  Delia tried to sit up, but was overcome by a sudden dizzy spell which forced her to lie back down and close her eyes.

“Oh!  You’re awake!”

Delia’s ears twitched.  The voice was female, high-pitched, and chipper.  Was this her nurse?  “What happened?”  Delia asked.

“We found you by the festival on Route 1.  You were passed out on the side of the road,” answered the nurse.

Delia’s eyes opened back up.  As she stared at the ceiling her mind wondered back to the previous evening.  She could still remember the fire and the anguished cries of the trainers as their Pokémon were taken out one by one.  Then there was the Arcanine itself.  Massive, enraged, and taking it out on anyone it laid its eyes on.

The nurse continued.  “You are very lucky.  We found so many dead bodies left.  Eyewitnesses say it was a rabid Arcanine.  You are one of the few who are still with us.”

Delia could still feel the beast’s jaws clamp down on her shoulder.  Organs pierced, muscles ripped, her arm almost torn from her shoulder.  And then…then what?

“Especially with your type disadvantage.”

What?

“Type disadvantage?” Delia inquired.

“Well, you are a steel type dear.  I know Lucario are well renowned fighters, but even you need to be careful when dealing with a diseased Pokémon whose affinity trumps yours,” the nurse gently lectured.

Delia was now wide awake.  Sitting up she looked down at her body.  Her hands had been replaced with dexterous, black paws with steel spikes sticking out the back.  She used these paws to pat down the rest of her body.  Just like her paws, her legs were no longer those of a woman but those of a canine.  They were lean and black up until her knees where blue fur fluffed out to resemble shorts.  From her waist up to her neck the fur turned cream-colored and was cut off at the shoulders by black rings which connected her blue arms to her body.

Reaching up to her head, Delia felt her face.  Her nose came out into a sharp point while her ears stood tall above her scalp and would move around as she fiddled with them.  Brushing her paws down the back of her head, Delia could no longer feel her hair.  Instead she tugged at four long appendages that felt like extra floppy ears.

Now awake and aware, Delia could even feel a new alien limb sticking out at the base of her spin.  Her new tail twitched when she tried to move it, though she was defiantly not in the mood to wag it.  No, she was very much panicked at the moment and began to hyperventilate.  What happened last night after she blacked out?!

“Miss?  Are you okay?”

Looking around, Delia finally saw the face of her nurse.  She was a pink, oval creature that was a little over half the height of an adult human.  It had stubby limbs and a stubby tail along with sweeping pink and red feathers sticking out from the sides of its head.  The creature’s face was comparable to a cartoon smiley face and a large pouch containing an even larger egg was nestled in the center of its stomach.  Perched on top of the creature’s head was a nurse’s cap.  As a native resident of Kanto, Delia immediately recognized this Pokémon as a Chansey.

“You don’t have to be scared, Miss,” the Chansey stepped forward and placed a stubby paw on Delia’s arm comfortingly.  “This is a Pokémon Center.  Our health care is second to none.  You are in good hands.”

Despite the Chansey’s attempt to consult Delia, the human turned Lucario did not feel very secure at the moment.  Her mind raced with a billion questions ranging from “How is this possible?” to “What do I do to fix this?”  Finally, Delia settled on the most important question she could think of.

“Where’s Ash?” Delia blurted out.

“Ash?” questioned Chansey.

“He’s my son.  He-“ Delia was about to give a description of her baby, but caught herself.  Was Ash still human?  Or did what happen to her also happen to him?  When she tried to recall all she got was a blurry memory of a human baby with burn wounds and the sounds of a whimpering baby Pokémon.

“Oh your puppy,” Chansey said in realization. “You don’t have to worry!  He’s in good health and is currently being kept in a ward for younger Pokémon.”

“Thank you,” Delia said with some relief.  Judging by the Chansey’s response Ash was indeed a Pokémon now, but at least he was alive and receiving care.  Still, she had to check on him.  Though alien, her new body was still humanoid enough that she could move it just fine, or at least she was sure it would.  “Excuse me, I need to WHOA!”

As Delia attempted to get out of bed, she forgot that her new feet were digitigrade.  This mental lapse resulted in Delia stumbling around before Chansey zoomed forward to catch and steady her.

“Miss I understand you’re a little frightened by the sudden change in scenery,” Chansey began.

No.  The change in scenery wasn’t the problem.  It was the least of Delia’s problems.

“But you’ve got to settle down!” Chansey lectured.  “Now, if you’ll sit down I can go fetch my trainer and we can take your vitals.”

“It’s alright.  I’m fine,” Delia insisted, trying to sound as level headed as possible.  Normally Delia prided herself on maintaining a good attitude (a power she honed to combat the stressful restaurant industry), but today was one of those rare events when she wasn’t able to follow through with her usual chipper demeanor.  “I feel perfectly healthy.”

“It’s not that simple,” Chansey said with a shake of her head, or entire body.  “When we found you, there was a dead human nearby.  One that didn’t look like it was killed by an Arcanine.”

The phrase “dead human” caused Delia to tense up.  Her mind began to flash again.  The Arcanine was shrinking down.  In its place was a man who was impaled on metal claws.  HER claws.

Delia’s paws flew to her mouth when she felt the bile climbing up her throat.

Taking the initiative, Chansey guided Delia to a chair and sat her down before handing her a bag.  While Delia emptied her stomach’s contents into the bag, Chansey continued to explain.  “Now, I’m not saying you did anything wrong.  That fair was a disaster zone.  But the human authorities take murder seriously.  It’s not like in the wild where you can hunt or fight for territory and everyone knows it’s just part of the natural order.”

“I didn’t…I couldn’t,” Delia began weakly.

“I’m sure you didn’t” Chansey gave Delia an apologetic smile.  “But you were one of the few survivors from that festival and the investigators want to be thorough.”

Delia’s claws clinched.  She wasn’t the one who tore up that fair, but she was fairly certain that she took at least one life that night.  “What will happen to me if…if they think I killed someone?”

Chansey’s helpful smile fell.  “That all depends.  If you’re judged to be a Pokémon who may endanger humans you’ll…well it’s hard to say for certain.”

Though the Chansey didn’t want to say it out loud, Delia had a sneaking suspicious on what may happen.  Most Pokémon authorities tried to either relocate or keep dangerous Pokémon under lock and key.  The exception was in severe cases where if a Pokémon was deemed diseased or extremely dangerous, then they were euthanized.

She could still smell the blood dripping from his throat.  She could feel it leak onto her claws.

“I need to go,” Delia stood up again.  Her heart, already hammering away at her chest, beat even faster.

Chansey tried to push her back.  “Miss, please.  If you’re on your best behavior I’m sure the authorities will-”

Before the Chansey could finish, Delia’s paw shot out.  When it made contact with the Chansey’s head the fingers of the paw elongated into a bizarre cross between a human hand and a Lucario’s paw.  The clawed fingers gripped onto the Chansey’s skull before shoving her across the room.

A part of Delia felt alarmed at what she just did, but those thoughts were quickly shoved into the back of her mind.  She had to get out and get out now!

After giving the Chansey a warning snarl, which sounded deeper than her voice had any right being, Delia slashed through the door and ran down the hallway.

As she ran, her mutated arm shrank back to a normal Lucario’s paw, but her mind was still on autopilot.  It was just like the prior night.  She was mostly guided by instincts with only a vague sense of self informing her single minded mission: find her pup and get away.

Coming to a halt, Delia looked around and began sniffing the air.  Her pup had to be around here somewhere, but his scent was frustratingly absent.  Desperation swirled together with primal proclivity leading Delia to her next action.

The Lucario closed her eyes and allowed her sixth sense to take over, her aura sense.  All around Delia could sense life.  She could sense everything form the aggressive Primape waiting impatiently in the lobby, to the human staff running around to check on Pokémon with weakened auras, to the tiny non-Pokémon insects that scuttled across the floors.  She could even sense the plant life that grew just beyond the walls.

More pressing, Delia could sense a human checking on the Chansey that she pushed to the side earlier.  The small voice of reason that remained told her to hurry and find her pup so they could escape.  After a bit of searching, Delia found it.  An aura which felt small yet familiar.

Bolting down the hall, Delia was met with resistance.  Standing between her and the room filled with infant Pokémon was a blue-haired female human and a smaller Arcanine.  The faint voice in the back of her head identified it as a Growlithe.

“Hold it right there!” shouted the human.

“Get back in your room, lady!” the Growlithe added on with a snarl.

Delia huffed, unimpressed.  These creatures were no threat.  Any other day they would have just been prey.  It was their good fortune that she wasn’t looking to hunt at the moment, just leave.  As such, she answered the Growthile’s snarl with one of her own.

Both the human and the Growlithe looked taken aback by both the volume and unnatural sound of Delia’s growl, but they continued to stand their ground.  Running out of patience, Delia dashed forward to meet the two head on.

The Growlithe opened its mouth to shoot forward multiple small fireballs.  Without losing momentum, Delia dodged past the fireballs by running to the side and onto the side of the walls.  She ran past the Growlithe and jumped off the wall, delivering a kick into the human’s torso.  This sent the human flying into the wall, knocking her out.

“You’re going to pay for that!” roared the Growlithe.  The puppy Pokémon flung himself onto Delia.  Fire coded his mouth as he bit down on Delia’s shoulder earning a roar of pain from the Lucario.

Once again, Delia’s mind flashed to the previous night.  In her mind’s eye the Growlithe was starting to look a lot like that Arcanine.  Anger replaced pain.

Roaring, Delia reached back to grab onto the Growlithe.  Just like with the Chansey before, her paw was now the mutated claw she had when she fought the Arcanine.  However, unlike with the Chansey it wasn’t just her claw that morphed.  The rest of her body was following suite.

Seeing the Lucario transform into a towering monster, the Growlithe stared up in horror.  “What are you?”

Instead of answering, Delia just growled and tossed the Growlithe against the wall to join its trainer before smashing through the door (and some of the wall) to the nursery.

Immediately the baby Pokémon began crying and retreating from the terrifying intruder.  Delia paid them no mind.  Her gaze was fixed on a bed holding a blue puppy Pokémon with a black torso, lower legs, and mask pattern on its face.  Instead of spikes it had blunt arm guards and there was only a single pair of black, appendages flopping at the side of its face.  A Riolu.  Her Riolu.

Dropping to all fours, Delia ran up to the Riolu and gently picked it up in her clawed arms.  Sensing his mother, Ash opened his eyes and began to yip happily.  His tail wagged as Delia brought her snout down to lovingly nuzzle the puppy.

Their reunion was cut short when Delia’s ears perked.  She could hear more humans and Pokémon coming her way.  Cradling Ash protectively with one claw, she used her free spiked arm to punch through the wall and run out towards the woods, away from anyone who would dare try and take her pup away from her.

Delia kept running out of the city, making sure to avoid humans and Pokémon as she did so.  It was not that she was afraid of them, she could rip apart anything and anyone whom she pleased.  But her pup was vulnerable.  So Delia kept moving from alley to alley even going so far as to scale some buildings and trees to make sure she left no scent to be tracked.  She wasn’t quite sure where she was heading, she just continued to follow a sense of familiarity.

It wasn’t until she was in the middle of Route 1 that Delia regained her senses.  When she came to, she was no longer in her mutated form.  She was just a regular Lucario again.

Delia shook her head.  What was that!?  Her memories were a bit more clear as to what had occurred earlier that day than the night before, but she was still clueless as to what was causing her metamorphosis.

Looking around, Delia saw that she had managed to make her way to a hill overlooking the fair ground.  The colorful array of venders and performances were now replaced with burnt tents and the remains of automobile explosions.  Scattered around the site were police officers and Pokémon rangers accompanied by their Pokémon partners.  No doubt they were investigating what had happened the night before.

Frowning, Delia replayed that memory of the Arcanine reverting back to the old, wondering trainer she bumped into the day before.  There was no way anyone would have guessed what really happened last night.  No one in their right mind would assume a man had turned into a massive, rampaging Arcanine.

Slowly, one of Delia’s paws made its way up to her shoulder.  The man who transformed, did he do something to her?

“I tell ya, it was a blood bath.”

Delia was snapped out of her musings by a nearby voice.  Turning, she spotted a purple rodent with a curled tail, a Rattata, talking to a brown and white bird, a Pidgey.  Both Pokémon were sitting on the branch of a large tree.

“There I was, scouring the fair grounds for trash when suddenly fire starts raining from the skies,” said the Rattata.  “At first I thought it was some human’s Pokémon misfiring its attack, they were holding a bunch of battles you see, but no.”

The Rattata leaned in.  “Turns out it was one of them Arcanine.”

The Pidgey cocked its head skeptically.  “But Arcanine don’t live around here.  It must have been with a human.”

“No way,” the Rattata shook its head.  “You’ve seen those human partnered Pokémon.  They would never go around killin’ other humans.  And it wasn’t just the humans.  That thing was killin’ Pokémon too.  But not for food.  It was just tearin’ them apart and leaving the bodies to rot.”

“My goodness,” the Pidgey remarked in surprise.  “You don’t think it was diseased do you?”

“I’m not sure about that,” the Rattata said thoughtfully.  “There was somethin’ else going on with that Arcanine.  It was too big and the way its jaw flopped around when it wasn’t usin’ it, ugh.  That thing wasn’t right.  Looked like it was just out to kill for the sake of killin’.  Speakin’ of which, hey!  Lady!”

Delia looked around before realizing the Rattata was talking to her.  “Yes?”

“Could you call your pup off?  If he wants me to come down so he can chew on me, then he’s going to be disappointed,” the Rattata pointed down to the base of the tree.

There was Ash.  His front paws were on the trunk of the tree while his tail was wagging madly.  Every so often he would let out some high pitched yips before letting his tongue droop out the side of his mouth.

“Oh!  I’m so sorry,” Delia apologized to the rat.  All things considered talking with Pokémon was the least strange occurrence today.  “Ash!”

Ash’s ears perked at his mother’s voice.  The little Riolu happily yipped and dropped to all fours to run up to his mother.  About halfway through his run, Ash reared up on his hind legs and jogged up to his mother.  He reached out with his front paws, signaling he wanted to be picked up, a request his mother was happy to grant.

“Ash!  You’re walking already!” Delia exclaimed happily.  Though the day had been stressful, a sense of pure joy flooded Delia’s being at the sight of this milestone.

“Already?” the Pidgey watched the scene below.  “Shouldn’t he have been walking within a day of hatching?”

“Maybe their species is slow,” the Rattata whispered.  “I don’t think I’ve seen their kind before.”

Over hearing the two onlookers, a new set of concerns entered Delia’s head.  She looked over Ash.  On the bright side, the burn marks from the car crash had completely vanished.  He was a perfectly healthy Riolu.  On the other hand, he was now a perfectly healthy Riolu.  A Pokémon.

Was his new found ability to walk due to his transformation?  What else had the changed caused?  Will he be stuck as a Pokémon for the rest of his life?  Would there be health issues thanks to the transmogrification?  He looked pretty small for a Riolu, but that was probably just because he was a baby.  Or maybe it wasn’t.  She had no way of knowing.

A part of Delia wanted to turn back and go back to the Viridian City Pokémon Center to get her son checked up.  But given what happened earlier she was pretty sure that bridge was burnt.  However, there was an alternative.  If she kept following the road to Pallet Town, then she could reach someone who had even more knowledge and better equipment than your average Pokémon healthcare worker.

Securing Ash in her arms, Delia snuck around the investigation site and made her way down the road making sure to be extra quick about it when she noticed the storm clouds gathering overhead.

Pallet Town

It was night by the time Delia made it back to Pallet Town.  And the storm that she saw forming earlier had finally hit and hit hard.  Delia dashed through the muddy roads of the farming town, all the while wishing that Professor Oak would have built his lab a bit closer to the road leading into town.

Ash wasn’t very helpful in this trek.  Now armed with the ability to walk on his own, the Riolu spent a good chunk of the storm trying to squirm out of his mother’s grasp so that he could go play in the puddles.  It wasn’t until a particularly loud clap of thunder that the Riolu decided that taking safety in his mother’s arms wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

Delia’s sprint came to an end when she found herself at the foot of a long staircase which led up a hill to her destination.  Smiling, Delia proceeded to climb the steps.  Though her legs ached from the day’s journey, the light at the end of the tunnel of this chaotic day gave her the energy she needed for that final push.

When she finally made it to the front door, Delia knocked.  While she waited, anticipation turned into anxiety.  How would she explain to her old teacher and friend who she really was?  She supposed she could grab a pen and start writing, but would he believe her?  Delia still didn’t quite believe what was happening.

Finally the door opened.  The old man answering the door looked around in confusion.  “Hello?”

Despite herself, Delia blinked in surprise.  It had been years since she found herself looking up at the professor.  Back then she’d just been a girl looking to see if she wanted to try to do something else with her life aside from cooking.  The professor took her on as an assistant and taught her a fair bit about Pokémon and lab work.  It was a good experience, but in the end the lab just didn’t suit Delia.

Shock aside at the reminder of her new stature, the local professor looked just the same as usual.  Semi-casual clothing underneath a large lab coat and a short cropped greying hair.  The man’s eyes widened in surprise when he finally looked down.

“A Lucario?  What are you doing all the way over here?” asked the professor.

Seeing as how she was now a Pokémon, Delia didn’t bother trying to use words.  For now, she just showed Prof. Oak Ash.

When the scientist saw the shivering pup, his confused features softened.  “Come inside.  I’ll give him a look.”

Grateful that her friend was at least able to deduce a portion of her problems, Delia quickly made her way into the house.  The professor’s home was split into two sections.  Up front there was a living space which looked like your average two story house.  In the back there was a laboratory.

Finally out of the rain, Delia shook herself off.  It was only after she was finished spraying her surroundings with cold water that Delia realized what she just did.  Looking up at Oak, she gave the now wet man an apologetic smile.

“It’s alright,” Prof. Oak wiped the spray off his face with the sleeve of his coat.  “Follow me.”

Though she had been in her old mentor’s house countless times before, Delia couldn’t help but to look around in awe.  In addition to her new size difference, Delia was constantly feeling new, for lack of a better word, emotions.  Now that she, or her feral self, unlocked her ability to sense auras she didn’t have to look out the windows to know there were a bunch of tired Pokémon who were either wild or just preferred to stay out of their Poke balls nestled outside in dens to escape the storm.  In front of her Delia could sense the professor’s concern mixed with curiosity.

Before the professor led Delia into the lab, they passed by another Pokémon.  This Pokémon was a large, spikey, purple Pokémon who was currently laying belly down on a cushiony Pokémon bed.  The Pokémon lifted its horned head and twitched its round, turquoise ears inquisitively.  Delia recognized this Pokémon as Professor Oak’s Nidoking, one of the few Pokémon left over from the scientist’s days as a young, traveling trainer as evidence by the dull shine of the drill Pokémon’s chipped and worn down plates.

Nidoking regarded Delia with sleepy eyes before giving her a gruff “Evening.”  He then readjusted his heavy tail to curl around and cushion his head before he nodded back to sleep.

Delia watched the old poison-type fall back asleep with a sense of gloom.  This was the same Nidoking she used to feed and care for during her time at the lab.  She liked to think she had a bit of a friendship with him.  Did he really not recognize anything about her?

The sound of the professor clearing his throat broke Delia out of her thoughts.  Right, medical attention for Ash now, self-pity later.

As soon as Delia followed Oak into the laboratory, her snout scrunched up.  The lab was the same as usual.  Same computers, same beakers, same tiled floor.  Same layer of dust on the neglected machines, same crumbs of Pokémon food scattered in patches on the ground, same unwashed bowls piled up and pushed to the side.

“Sam, what is this?” Delia sighed and shook her head.  “Do I have to go back to nagging you into hiring a maid?  I’d settle for a lab aide who just knew how to clean at this point.”  As far as Delia knew, the last time Samuel did a proper cleaning was when his kid visited to introduce Sam to his new grandson.

“Not a fan of messes, are you?” Professor Oak asked light-heartedly when he spotted what was causing the Lucario to growl in disgust.  “Well, it’s usually tidier around here.  I’ve just been having an off week.  Lots of work.”

“I’ve heard that excuse before,” Delia muttered with a playful eye roll.  Weird as it was, Delia actually felt relieved to be scolding Samuel about his messes.  It made her feel as though not everything had gone topsy turvy (even though he couldn’t understand a word she was saying).

“In any case,” Oak cleared his throat before kneeling down to address Delia.  “I must confess, your visit surprised me.  We don’t usually get Lucario around here.”

For a moment, Delia considered heading straight over to a computer and typing the events of the last 24 hours up in a manic report.  But that would take time.  For now, she just settled on making sure Ash was okay.  With a pleading whimper, Delia held out Ash.

“Ah, yes.  Your Riolu.  Don’t’ worry, I haven’t forgotten about him,” Professor Oak said with a reassuring smile.  Gently, the old man accepted Ash and began to carry him over to a counter with some examination equipment.  Seeing that he was no longer in the arms of his mother, the Riolu pup began to whimper and squirm.

“It’s okay, dear,” Delia called out to Ash.  She walked over to the examination table and reached out to gently pet her son.  “Mommy’s right here with you.”

At first it looked like Delia’s attempts to calm her son were working.  The little Riolu stopped wiggling around enough to allow Prof. Oak to grab some tools.  “That’s a good boy,” Prof. Oak cooed.  “This will only take a sec-OUCH!”

When Oak attempted to reach out for one of Ash’s ears with an otoscope, the Riolu’s head shot forward and bit down on Prof. Oak’s hand.  Ash then took advantage at Oak’s momentary surprise and pain to scramble down form the examination table and run behind his mother.

“Ash!” Delia scolded her son.  “That is no way to behave!”

Delia then turned to face Prof. Oak and bowed.  She hoped that even if he couldn’t understand her speech, her body language could communicate her apology.  “I am so sorry about this, Samuel.  He’s usually better behaved then this.  I promise I’ll train him not to bite.”

Even though blood was dripping from his hand, Prof. Oak just laughed and waved Delia off.  “It’s fine.  This is on me for not taking proper precautions before removing an infant from its mother.  Fortunately, I’m quite used to this.”

As the professor reached into a drawer for a first aid kit, Delia sighed.  It was true.  Despite being the foremost expert on human-Pokémon relationships, Prof. Oak had a talent for finding new ways to agitate whatever Pokémon he was examining into firing off its attack at him.  At this point the real scientific mystery was how he was still alive.

While Oak was bandaging his hand Delia’s ears perked.  The grandfather clock in the living room had just chimed twelve times.  Was it midnight already?  A loud yawn from Ash signaled that yes, it was indeed very late.

Scooping her pup into her arms, Delia turned to Oak to see if she could get his attention and signal that Ash needed somewhere to sleep.  When she looked over at the professor, she was surprised to see the tips of his ears had turned green.  That couldn’t be good.

Delia padded over to the professor.  She tugged at this coat and spoke to get his attention.  “Excuse me.  Samuel?”

As soon as those words left Delia’s mouth, Oak’s head swerved around and he stared at her in shock.  His ears, now looking slightly bigger, perked up like a startled animal.  “Delia!?” he exclaimed.

Now it was Delia’s turn to be stunned.  Did her old friend really understand her?  “Yes!” Delia could feel her tail wag.  “Yes, it’s me!”

“How did this happen?” Oak asked in astonishment.  As looked down at Delia with wide eyes, Delia could see small, green plant buds begin to push through the skin of his neck.

“I don’t know,” an uneasy feeling began to take root in Delia’s stomach.  “But it looks like it’s happening again.”

“Wha-” Prof. Oak began, but his sentence was cut off by a series of sickening pops that sounded off when his mouth pushed forward into a small muzzle.

Following the muzzle, the rest of the professor’s body began to change.  Light tan fur sprouted from his skin followed by the leafy buds from his neck and scalp.  His ears sprung back into even larger leaves followed by a loud rip form the back of his pants allowing a new leafy tail to stretch free.  There were more audible snaps that accompanied the old man’s hands curling into brown paws.  The rest of his body began to shrink until Oak hit the floor on all fours no longer a human, but a Pokémon known as a Leafeon.  The only traces of his old identity were his thick eyebrows and signs of aging in the streaks of grey in his fur and the browning at the tips of his leaves.

Still in shock from watching her old mentor transform into a Pokémon in ill-fitting human clothes, Delia’s words came out in a tremble.  “Samuel.  I am so sorry.  This last day, these changes, I don’t know what’s happening.”

With her aura abilities, Delia could sense a storm of emotions rage in the professor.  The understandable shock and the ever present curiosity were in there, but the most prominent emotion was dread.  Lifting up the hand, er, paw that Ash bit, Prof. Oak stared down at it intensely.  “I have a sneaking suspicion,” he said seriously.

In Delia’s arms, Ash began to stir awake and whine.  Whether this was due to him sensing the uneasy emotions in the room or hunger, it was hard to say.

Hearing the Riolu’s cries, Prof. Oak straightened up.  “Delia, I’ll tell you what I know in a moment.  But first we should get, I’m assuming that’s Ash, something to eat.  Let’s see, I think I keep the Pokémon baby formula over here-”

The Pokémon professor tried to take a step forward, only to immediately trip over his four feet and landed on his face.  From his spot in Delia’s arms, Ash giggled and clapped.  At least someone was enjoying himself.

The Living Room

After a bit of stumbling around and clumsily pouring some infant Pokémon formula into a baby bottle, Delia and Prof. Oak had made their way over to his living room where they took their places on opposing couches.  For her part, Delia had managed to make herself comfortable and was now holding the baby bottle for Ash who was happily guzzling down the meal.

For Prof. Oak, it was a bit more difficult.  Not only did he have less time to adjust to his new, quadruped form, but his clothes were mostly still intact impeding his movements.  Finally, Delia had enough of watching her mentor trip over his wardrobe and had him remove his clothes.  Though the man blushed madly under his fur at this suggestion, he finally agreed when he slid into the counter containing the towers of dishes that proceeded to crash down on the poor Leafeon.

Now the professor was just in his lab coat which was draped across his shoulders like some couch covers.  Bringing his paw up to his mouth, Prof. Oak cleared his throat.  “So, Delia.  Could you start at the beginning?  How did you find yourself turned into a Lucario?”

And so, Delia recounted her story.  She told Prof. Oak about the mysterious man and the arrival of the Arcanine.  She recalled how the fire-type not only torched the festival, but mauled everyone who got too close, herself included.  From there her memories became fuzzy, but Delia still managed to relay what she could remember about her transformation and her fight against the Arcanine.  This was followed by her more vivid memories of what happened at the Pokémon Center and the rest of the events from that day.  Throughout her story, Prof. Oak was dead silent, his face growing more serious the more she relayed.

When Delia finished her tale, Prof. Oak finally spoke.  “What I’m about to say is going to sound ludicrous.”

Delia held up a paw.  “I think we’ve already crossed that line.”

“Fair point,” Oak said.  “Delia, it is my professional opinion that you were bitten by a lycanthrope.  More commonly known as a werePokemon.”

“Like in the movies?” Delia asked in surprise.

“Believe it or not, the stories that inspired those films are based on real events,” Prof. Oak nodded.  “Though most people only are aware of them through Pokestar movies, lycans have been amongst us since ancient times.  Times when men did not quite understand Pokémon which led to some clashes between man and monster.”

“One such clash,” Prof. Oak continued.  “Was between a boy and a Ninetails one full moon night.  The boy wanted to protect his village from a Pokémon they perceived as a threat while the Ninetails was looking to protect itself.  The pair clashed in a battle which resulted in a victory for the Ninetails.”

As Oak continued the story, his voice grew darker.  “Normally, the tale would end there.  But this Ninetails was vengeful.  As the legend has it, this Ninetails was old enough to develop powers beyond your average Ninetails such as the ability to speak with humans and even curse them.  The Ninetails told the boy that as punishment for entering its territory, it would turn the boy into a Pokémon.  In doing so, the boy would be seen as a monster by his village and looked down upon by other Pokémon for his human past making him a true outcast.”

“And we’re now under that curse?” Delia asked.

“Not exactly,” Oak explained. “You see, the Ninetails messed up the curse.  It’s unclear why it happened.  Some versions of the story say it was because the fox was new to its hexing abilities.  Other versions suggest that the anger from the Ninetails warped the spell, or that the boy found some way to disrupt the casting.  Whatever happened, the boy was not properly transformed into a Pokémon.  Rather, he was turned into an enraged beast who attacked the Ninetails, killing it on the spot.”

“Funny, usually when you hear these stories the sorceress is some all-knowing entity leagues above the person she’s cursing.  You never hear about the cases where the spell got botched.”

Both Delia and Prof. Oak looked over to the source of this new, gravelly voice.  It was the professor’s Nidoking!  The drill Pokémon walked into the room, a tray of tea cups in one claw and a steaming teapot in the other.

Nidoking awkwardly paused when he saw the two canine Pokémon stare at him.  “I, uh, overheard what was happening and thought you might need something to drink.”

Nidoking then placed the tray of cups on the table and began pouring the hot water.  “I’ve never really made tea before.  Sam did.  But I think I got it right.”

The poison-type then looked over at his trainer who was still staring at the now talking Pokémon in surprise.  Nidoking scratched the back of his head.  “Sorry.  I thought that, seeing as how you’re now a Pokémon too, you might be able to understand me,” He then cleared his throat and gently nudged the tray.  “Tea?  Want?”

Smiling, Delia placed the now sleeping Ash down on a pillow and reached for one of the cups.  “Thank you, Nidoking.  This is very thoughtful.”

From his spot on the couch, Prof. Oak jumped out of his lab coat and bound over to Nidoking, tail wagging the whole way.  “Marvelous!” he gushed.  “I was told that Pokémon had a more intricate language than people gave them credit for, but it’s another thing to witness it firsthand!”

The professor then placed his front paws on Nidoking’s chest and shoved his face into the Pokémon’s mouth, probably to inspect the vocal cords or something crazy like that.

As she sipped her tea, Delia couldn’t help but to giggle at the comedic site of a Leafeon sticking its head down a confused Nidoking’s mouth.  She then realized something.  “Samuel, who told you about Pokémon linguistics?”

Oak’s entire body froze and his wagging tail stilled.  He then pulled himself out of Nidoking’s jaws and sat down on the couch to recompose himself.  “Ah, yes,” he reached forward with a paw to grab the tea cup, only to withdraw it when he remembered he lacked proper fingers.  After a failed attempt to slurp up the tea, he settled on lapping it up like his body was built to do.  “As you’ve probably guessed, the existence of lycans is secret.  I just so happen to be familiar with their curse because I had the honor of being one of the few outsiders to know about them thanks to bumping to a couple of wereLycanrocs years ago.”

“Wait, when was this?” Nidoking asked.  “I don’t remember ever bumping into werePokemon on our journey.”

“This was at a conference.  You stayed home,” Prof. Oak explained.  “I was meeting with other professors when I accidently stumbled across a pair who were slipping into their lycan forms.  I kept quiet and covered for them while they changed back into humans.  So they let me in on their secret and answered all my questions, which you can imagine I had plenty of.”

“Did they tell you how they were able to change back into humans?” Delia asked.

“I’m just wonder why they wanted to keep everything secret in the first place,” Nidoking mumbled.  “Humans live with Pokémon just fine now.  Why hide that you can change back and forth?”

“There’s a good reason for that,” Prof. Oak explained.  “Most lycans live in isolation thanks to the berserker state.”

“That’s what happened to me, isn’t it?” Delia said.  “Back when I fought against the wereArcanine and escaped form the Pokémon Center.  I was in the berserker state.”

Prof. Oak nodded.  “Thanks to my lycan friends, I have been able to take extensive notes on the curse.  To make things easy to digest, I’ll break down my findings into rules.  Rule number one,” Prof. Oak held up a paw.  “A human can become a werePokemon by either inheriting curse through their parents or if they were bitten by another werePokemon like we all were.”

“Rule number two,” two of the stubby fingers of Prof. Oak’s paw tried to stretch out.  “A lycan can switch between Pokémon and human form at will for most of the day.  But they will be forced to take their Pokémon form, which is almost always a canine, from midnight until the next sunrise.  This is why I transformed despite it not being a full moon.  Which leads me to rule three.”

“Do Eevees count as canines?” Nidoking asked.

“Shh,” Delia shushed.

This time all of the fingers of Prof. Oak’s paw tried to spread out.  “Every lycan has a berserker form.  This form is basically a more powerful, if somewhat twisted, version of their Pokémon form.  When they are in this form they cannot be reasoned with.  The berserker form primarily runs on instinct and emotion.  It is why werePokemon are so dangerous and why they live in isolation.  They don’t want to harm anyone, but they also don’t want to take the chance that the outside world will hunt them down.”

“What about the wereArcanine?” Nidoking asked.  It was looking more and more like Nidoking shared his trainer’s inquisitive nature.

“Hard to say without more information,” Prof. Oak folded his front legs thoughtfully and leaned back.  “From what I’ve been told, sometimes lycans can go stir crazy and will venture outside of their packs’ territory.  It could be that our wereArcanine was one of those individuals, or it may have been that he had a nasty encounter with a lycanthrope, got cursed, and was left to roam without a proper pack to help him.”

“In any case,” Professor Oak now was holding up two paws, the pinky of his second paw stretching out.  “Rule four: the berserker state can be triggered by either the full moon, or by extreme, negative emotions such as anger or fear.”

‘That explained the hospital incident,’ Delia thought to herself remembering back to her panic attack.  Then a thought hit her.  “What about Ash?  He’s just a baby, he can’t control his emotions.  Is he going to-”

“No, no.  He’s fine for now,” Oak said calmly.  “I guess we’ll make this the fifth rule: the berserker state doesn’t fully set in until maturity.  For now, Ash is only subject rules one and two.   At some point, when he gets older, he’ll exhibit signs of the berserker state.  Until then he’s just a harmless shapeshifter.  Well, unless you try to give him a checkup.”

Prof. Oak’s tail wagged at his little joke before stilling.  Oak then spoke in a more somber tone.  “Sadly, I don’t think the boy will be able to live a normal life.  Not only will be never be fully human or Pokémon, but as he gets older he’ll have to take more precautions to make sure he doesn’t become a danger to those around him.”

“Speaking of which, should we do something about you guys?  You’re adults,” Nidoking asked.  His head hung a bit at his next question.  “I don’t’ have to get a silver weapon, do I?  You know, in case I have to…” He left that sentence unfinished.

“Oh no, silver won’t be necessary.  That part’s just made up for the movies,” Prof. Oak got back up to walk over and pat Nidoking with one of his paws.  “Lycanthropes can be killed or subdued through the usual methods.  They just have a lot more endurance and the ability to heal from almost any wound save dismemberment or fatal blows.”

Though the professor tried to maintain a cheerful and calming façade, Delia was able to sense a squirming unease boiling underneath the surface throughout the conversation.

The professor hopped down from the couch and began to lead his Pokémon away.  “Let’s see, we’ll need to put together a new containment unit before the next full moon and figure out some protocols to protect against the berserker state.  I think there is a special formula for an oral tranquilizer that may help.  I’ll get in contact with some other lycans to learn more.”

Delia had long since tuned out the professor’s musings.  She just sat by Ash, gently petting the sleeping Riolu.  All she could think about was how lost the wereArcanine’s human form looked.  Try as she might, she couldn’t stop herself from imagining an older Ash in a similar position.

AN: Hey, remember that story where that one prince got cursed for not letting someone in from the rain?  Turns out, if you let someone in need into your house you get cursed anyway.  The moral of the story is that you can’t win.

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features.  Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri.  Please support the official release.

Listening to as I lock the cages: Running with the Wolves (Aurora, Wolfwalkers Version)

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Riolu

The woods near Pallet Town were the ideal habitat for a wide variety of Pokémon.  There were strong trees to take residence in, tall grass that was perfect for a predator to set up an ambush, and plenty of seeds and berries to stash away making the forest welcoming even to the smallest of Pokémon.  In fact, one tiny Pokémon decided today would be the perfect time to go scurrying through the forest floor.

This Pokémon was a small, yellow rodent with bright pink pouches on its checks.  Its diamond shaped ears were tipped with black as was the spiky pattern around the collar of its neck, and its jagged tail.  This little Pokémon was named Pichu and it was having a wonderful time collecting nutritious Oran berries which had fallen onto the forest floor.

At some point during the Pichu’s harvest its ears began to twitch.  The Pichu froze and looked around.  There was a patch in the tall grass that moved, but it was just the wind.  There weren’t any other Pokémon in the clearing, so it continued what it was doing.

Not a minute had passed when the Pichu heard another noise.  This time it sounded more like the snapping of a stick.  Once again the Pichu looked around.  There were no movements in the tall grass.  The Pichu’s eyes narrowed, but it nonetheless continued its scavenging.

As the Pichu gathered food, a Pokémon in the grass stalked forward.  It messed up a few times, but now it had gotten into the groove of moving across the forest floor silently.  Only a few more steps, and that Pichu would be in his grasp.  Carefully, carefully…

“Rawr!” The predator Pokémon leapt out of the tall grass and straight at the Pichu.

“Pi-CHUUUUU!” Just before the predator could snatch the Pichu, sparks flew from the little rodent’s cheeks.  The mouse generated enough electricity to zap the predator, sending it flying back with a pained yelp.

“Hey!  No fair!” the predator Pokémon sat up from where it landed after the Thundershock.  It was a  Riolu, a Pokémon very rare in Kanto.  This Riolu in particular had some extra fluff on its head and a pair of sideways, lightning-shaped markings on its cheeks.  “You’re not supposed to use attacks!  That’s against the rules!”

“Well, you used Quick Attack when we were playing tag yesterday,” Pichu folded his tiny arms.

“I wasn’t using Quick Attack!” protested Riolu.  “I’m just that fast!”

Pichu’s tongue stuck out.  “You’re nowhere near quick enough to catch me.”

“Now, now children.  Behave.”

Stomping up to the arguing duo was a rather large and stocky Pokémon.  She was covered from head to toe with tough, brown skin that had the occasional patch of platting save for her soft cream colored belly which hosted her pouch.  The top of her head was covered with a thick, black plate with a pair of cream colored ears sticking out of the sides.  Each of her limbs were tipped with powerful claws and a pair of fangs stuck out the back of her mouth.  Fairly typical for a Kangaskhan.

Though Kangaskhan may have appeared intimidating at first glance, the marsupial was able to quickly break that image with her soft, red eyes and a warm smile.  “Ash will be heading home soon and I don’t think either of you want this day to end on an argument.”

“Already?” Pichu asked, his ears drooping.  “Why?”

“His mother requested that he return early today,” Kangaskhan replied.  She handed Ash a stack of neatly folded clothes.  “She wants to make sure his chores are finished before they head over to the professor’s tonight.”

Now it was Ash’s turn to look glum.  “I thought she forgot about those,” he mumbled as his tail fell to the ground.  Nevertheless, he accepted the clothes.

“Well, let this be a lesson to you.  A mother never forgets,” Kangaskhan winked.  “Now go and change.”

Minutes Later

While Ash had barricaded himself behind several bushes to change, Pichu had gone back to looking for berries.  Though he was a fair distance away, Pichu could still hear the transformation.  He winced as Ash’s bones cracked and popped while the skin made a noise that could best be described as stretching leather.

Pichu’s fur ruffled signaling a shudder.  How Ash was able to go through that process without screaming was beyond the little mouse.  To his acute ears, it sounded like the Riolu turning human was being tortured.

“Psst, kid.”

Pichu’s ears shot up.  He looked around wildly until his eyes landed on a brown bird with a sleek, red crest resting in a nearby tree.  A Pidgeotto.

Immediately, warning sparks flared from Pichu’s checks.  Kangaskhan went to fetch Pichu’s sister which meant that the mouse was on his own while Ash changed.

Seeing the Pichu’s aggressive display, the Pidgeotto ruffled his feathers before descending to the ground.  “Relax, kid.  I’m not going to eat you.  I just had lunch.  I just wanted to tell you something.”

“Do you think I look stupid?” Pichu growled.  He eyed the bird’s sharp talons and took a step back.

“No, you look like a really nice kid.  Which is why I’m going to let you in on something,” the Pidgeotto spoke in a low voice.  He looked over at the bushes Ash was behind before leaning forward to whisper.  “Stay away from the Riolu.”

Though Pichu kept his distance, the sparks on his checks died down.  “Stay away?  Why?”

“Because he’s not normal,” Pidgeotto hissed.  “That thing’s dangerous.”

“Ash?  Dangerous?” Pichu rolled his eyes.  “You’ve got the wrong Pokémon.  Ash wouldn’t hurt a Caterpie.”

In all the time Pichu had interacted with Ash, never once did he see the clearly carnivorous Riolu hunt.  Chase around other Pokémon, yes.  But Ash never landed anything even close to a killing blow.  The only time Pichu had seen Ash seriously attack another Pokémon was when they first met.

It was a couple months ago.  Back then Pichu and his sister got separated from their mother in a Nidorina ambush.  The pair were chased away from the rest of the Kangaskhan mob and found themselves cornered.  Pichu made an effort to protect his sister, who wasn’t old enough to fight for herself.  But being a Pichu his attacks shocked him as much as they did the Nidorina.

The situation was beginning to look hopeless when a Riolu leapt out from the bushes and placed itself between the Nidorina and the two would-be prey Pokémon.

“Look, I’m not trying to prank you,” the Pidgeotto muttered hastily.  He shot the bush a quick glance before continuing.  “That guy and the rest of his pack, they’re not normal Pokémon.  They’re not natural period!”

By the rest of his pack the Pidgeotto probably meant Ash’s mom and that old Leafeon Pichu saw once or twice.  Pichu met Ash’s mother on the same day he met Ash.  The Nidorina didn’t seem impressed with the front Ash put on to scare her away and attacked.  The two began to tussle before a female Lucario wielding a picnic basket leapt into the fray and separated them.

The snarling Lucario placed herself in front of her son, stared down the wild Nidorina, and cheerfully offered the poison pin Pokémon some sandwiches.  Though confused by this turn of events, the Nidorina ultimately decided to take the free meal.  Better that than risk a fight with a Pokémon much stronger than a bunch of children.

In the aftermath of the battle, Ash and his mother were invited back to the Kangaskhan herd.  Though most of the mob were cautious around the two, Pichu’s mother welcomed the jackals with open arms.  The two families had been friends ever since.

As for the Leafeon, Pichu’s family bumped into him once while the old grass type was sniffing around some trees.  Pichu’s sister tried pointing out that the area was the hunting grounds for a large Arbok and the Leafeon might want to try and find a new territory.  The Leafeon just smiled and said that he wasn’t looking for food, rather he was trying to find places to hide “cameras” (whatever those were) for his studies.  He then spotted Pichu and immediately struck up a conversation with Kangaskhan about Pokémon taking in and caring for other species.  Pichu and his sister just snacked on their breakfast and tuned the adult’s conversation out.

“Yeah, they’re kind of weird,” Pichu admitted with a shrug.  “Doesn’t mean they’re dangerous.”

The bushes began to rustle.  Looks like Ash was done changing.  Pidgeotto reached the same conclusion.  He turned around and spread his wings.  “I know you think these guys are your friends, but you can’t let your guard down.  I don’t want to see you end up like those Spearow.”

“There aren’t any Spearow around here,” Pichu frowned.

“Exactly,” Pidgeotto said before taking off.

“Hey, Pichu.  You still here?”  Ash stepped out from behind the tree.  Whereas before he was just taller than Pichu, now he towered over his friend.  As a nine-year old human, Ash was a combination of scrawny and scruffy.  His limbs were gangly which were contrasted by his hair which stuck out both sides of his head.  Like his Riolu form he had distinguishing sideways lightning marks on his cheeks.  In terms of wardrobe the boy was just dressed in the standard t-shirt and shorts one would expect of a kid on a warm afternoon.

Pichu gave the retreating Pidgeotto one last look before scampering over to Ash.  “Here!”

Ash bent down to allow Pichu to climb onto his shoulder.  Once Pichu was settled, the little mouse addressed his human friend.  “So, what’s so special about tonight?”

Ash began to walk towards Kangaskhan’s den.  “It’s the full moon,” he answered.

“What happens on the full moon?” Pichu probed.

“I can’t sleep,” Ash simply replied.

Pichu didn’t look impressed.  “That’s it?”

“Pretty much,” Ash grinned.  “I don’t know what it is, but I just feel really energized on the full moon.”

Pichu frowned.  That couldn’t be it.  There had to be a reason that Pidgeotto was so spooked.  “What do you do with all that extra energy?”

“Mom takes me to the professor’s laboratory so that Mr. Dragonite can babysit me,” Ash explained.

“Babysit?” Pichu’s head tilted.  “They have a dragon sit on you?”

“No!” Ash laughed.  “Babysitting just means they don’t want me to be alone.  Mr. Dragonite doesn’t sit on me.  He just looks after me.  We play games, run around the ranch, and have practice battles.”

A determined smile crossed Ash’s face.  “He always goes easy on me, letting me win.  But one day, I’m going to be strong enough to take Dragonite on in a real match!”

“Wait a minute, if you’re being babysat then were are the rest of your pack?” Pichu asked.

“I don’t know,” Ash admitted.  “At some point Mom and Professor Oak go off somewhere with Mimey and Nidoking while I’m with Mr. Dragonite.”

“And you don’t know where?” Pichu pressed.

“Whenever I ask they tell me that I’ll know more when I get older,” Ash grumbled.  “I’m pretty sure they’re just hunting.  They always smell like meat when they get back.”

That was…suspicious.  “Maybe the other Pokémon at the ranch know.  Have you asked them?” Pichu suggested.

“All the trainer owned Pokémon are locked up in their balls on the full moon.  When I ask them they just talk about what a great sleep they had.  Even the nocturnal ones,” Ash sighed wistfully.  “I’ve tried to ask the wild Pokémon, but they don’t want to talk.”

That tracked.  Pichu never really thought about it before, but it wasn’t just the Pidgeotto that avoided Ash.  Whenever he and Ash hiked around the woods or looked for a spot to fish, any Pokémon who caught wind of them turned tail and ran.  At the time Pichu thought nothing of it.  While most Pokémon were civil with one another, there were still predators and the occasional territory battle.  Pokémon getting fidgety around carnivores really wasn’t outside the norm.  But now with that Pidgeotto’s warning in mind…

“Ash!” Pichu was broken out of his musing by the high pitched voice of his adopted sister.

Scampering up to the pair was a Kangaskhan that was shorter than Ash’s Riolu form but bigger than Pichu.  Unlike the older members of her species, she had light purple skin and had not yet developed a pouch.  In her paws she carried a knotted mess of blue yarn.

“Hey, Josie!” Ash bent down to meet the young Kangaskhan.  Josie was named by Ash’s mother as a means to tell the juvenile and older Kangaskhan apart in conversation.  “What have you got there?”

“It’s a scarf!” Josie announced proudly.  A while back Ash’s mother brought Pichu’s family a blanket as a gift to help keep them warm during cold evenings.  Entranced with the quilt’s array of designs and colors, Josie begged the woman to teach her how to make human arts and crafts.  Amused, Ash’s mother returned the next day with some yarn and large needles to start teaching Josie how to knit.

Ash accepted the wrap.  “This is supposed to be a scarf?  Ow!”

Pichu, having just gave Ash a small shock, shot his friend a scolding look before turning his attention to Josie.  “This is better than the last one, Josie,” Pichu said with a smile.

“Thank you!” Josie beamed.  “One day, I’ll be able to knit a real scarf!  Then I’ll be able to add it to the Kangaskhans’ secret stash of treasures!”

“Secret stash?” Ash asked.

“It’s a collection of old junk the older Kangaskhan keep,” Pichu explained with a shrug.

“It’s not junk!  It’s magical treasure!” Josie exclaimed.  She then bowed her head.  “But I guess I’m not ready to add to it yet.”

“No way!  Your scarf is awesome!  In fact,” Ash took the “scarf” and tried to wrap it around his neck.  Pichu wisely jumped off avoiding getting tangled in the mess of yarn.  Finally, Ash got the scarf around his neck, which now looked more like a messy mane of string.

While Pichu’s paws came up to his mouth to muffle his laughter, Josie burst out in titters.  “I’m defiantly not ready yet!”  Josie concluded in between fits of giggles.

Before Ash could respond, a loud series of stomps announced Kangaskhan’s arrival.  “Ash,” Kangaskhan said in a concerned tone.  “What’s that you have around your neck?  You’re going to choke yourself.”

“Right, hold on a second,” Ash proceeded to untangle the yarn around his neck.  Try as he might, all he succeeded in doing was making himself look like he had a Tangela stuck on his head.  While both Pichu and Josie burst out in laughter, Kangaskhan just sighed and gently sliced the yarn apart with a massive claw thus freeing Ash.

“Alright, funs over,” Kangaskhan said, claws on her hips.  “Time to say good-bye.  Ash needs to get his chores done before visiting the lab tonight.”

“He’s going to Prof. Leafeon’s place!” Josie said in alarm.  She looked up at Kangaskhan.  “But there are monsters there!”

“Monsters?” Ash asked in surprise.

“Josie,” Kangaskhan scolded the joey.  “The Pokémon who stay at that lab aren’t monsters.  Some of them are just foreign.”

“I’m not talking about the foreigners, Mommy,” Josie said in a worried voice.  “I heard from Venonat who said that the Venomoths once heard the howls of monsters near Prof. Leafeon’s home!”

“You sure they weren’t just the howls of a foreign Pokémon?” Pichu asked.  From what he was told, the professor’s lab was home to a bunch of Pokémon that were partnered with humans traveling all around the world.  Surely some of them had odd voices.

Josie shook her head defiantly.  “I said they weren’t foreigners!  Venonat said that the howls of the monsters were empty.  They didn’t have any words!”

“Josie!” Kangaskhan scolded.  “Stop trying to scare the boys.”

“I’m not trying to scare them!” Josie whined.  “There’re monsters at the lab, that’s what everyone says!  The Tauros’s say that years ago, they were attacked by the monsters!  And Diglett says that he sometimes hears footsteps coming from the lab.  Footsteps that are neither human nor Pokémon!”

As Pichu listened to Josie’s frantic warning, he kept replaying the warning the Pidgeotto gave him.  ‘They’re not natural period!’

“Can I go with Ash tonight?” Pichu blurted out.  The reaction to his request was immediate.  Josie looked over at Pichu with shock and fear while Ash brightened up with hint of hope in his eyes.  Kangaskhan stiffened.

“Pichu,” Kangaskhan said in a slow and controlled voice.  “I don’t want you leaving the den at night.”

Pichu’s ears twitched.  It was true that his mother didn’t want him or Josie to leave their den after the sun went down as a general rule, but there was something in the way she said it this time that felt off.  “I don’t have to stay until night.  Just the afternoon,” Pichu bartered.

“I don’t know,” Kangaskhan said with a frown.  “It wouldn’t be right to impose.”

“It’s not imposing!” Ash jumped in.  “Mom won’t mind.  I’ve been wanting to invite Pichu over for a while.”

There was a pregnant pause as Kangaskhan mauled over the situation.  Finally, she spoke.  “Very well.  You can visit for the afternoon.  But I want you back here before dinner.  Am I clear?”

“Yes Mom/Ma’am!” Pichu and Ash coursed.

Ash then looked over to Josie.  “Want to join us?”

Josie turned around and folded her arms.  “No way.  If you guys want to be monster chow, that’s on you.”

The Path to Town

“And those are fences.  Human’s don’t have a good sense of smell so we use those to tell where someone’s territory begins and ends,” Ash explained as he carried Pichu into Pallet Town.  The little mouse had only seen human civilization from a distance making this his first proper visit.

For Pichu’s part, he was busy looking around at the vast stretches of farm land with wide eyes.  “Look at all the food!” he said in wonder as he eyed the crops.  “How do you guys eat all of it?”

“We don’t,” Ash explained.  “We keep some of it for ourselves, but the rest gets sold to other humans in other towns.”

“Why don’t they just eat their own crops?” Pichu asked while he leapt down from Ash’s shoulder to get a better look at a field of daikon.

“Not every town has their own crops,” Ash leaned on the fence to join his buddy in watching the gentle breeze sweep through the plant leaves creating small waves of green.  “Some places are closer to the ocean, some towns are on top of tall mountains, and some places are large cities with buildings that touch the sky.”

“No way,” Pichu snorted in disbelief.

“I’m not joking,” Ash said defensively.  “My mom’s got a whole bunch of pictures from when she visited other towns.”

“Just pictures?” Pichu looked up at Ash with a tilted head.  “You’ve never been there before?”

“No, I’ve never left Pallet Town,” Ash sighed wistfully.  His hands then tightened into fist.  “But one day, I’ll get to see it all.”

“Hey, Ash!” Ash and Pichu’s heads whipped around to see a small group of human children making their way over to them.

Ash grinned and waved at his classmates.  For the longest time he was homeschooled and had to beg and plead his mother to allow him to attend the local school.  Finally, his mother caved and Ash was allowed to attend class provided he follow four rules: maintain good grades, be on his best behavior, don’t bite anyone, and never EVER shift into or tell anyone about his Pokémon form.

“Is that your Pichu?” asked a boy.

“You’ve already got your first Pokémon!  That’s soo cool!” squealed a girl.

“You guys think Ash is in charge?” Pichu scoffed and folded his arms.  “I’d say it’s the other way around.  I am the better battler, plus I win all the games.”

“Can I pet him?  Or her?” another girl asked Ash.

“Hey,” Pichu’s ears fell in confusion.  “Did you hear what I just said?”

“Sorry guys,” Ash dropped his arm down to allow Pichu to scamper back up to his shoulder.  “This Pichu’s still wild.  He just likes to play with me sometimes.”

“Too bad,” pouted the girl.  “He’s so cute!”

“Uh, thanks,” Pichu said bashfully.  He had repositioned himself on Ash’s shoulder and was now modestly rubbing the back of his head.  “But you don’t have to ask Ash.  You can just talk to me directly.  I don’t mind.”

“Yo, Ketchum,” just like the girls the boy ignored Pichu and continued to address Ash.  “Remember to bring your cards tomorrow.  We’re holding a tournament after school.”

“Cards?  Tournament?” Pichu asked, still attempting to wedge himself into the conversation.

“Alright!” Ash pumped his fist.  “Just you guys wait!  I’m winning this time!”

“If you say so,” laughed one of the girls.  The group then departed.  “See you at school!”

Ash returned his classmates farewells before continuing his walk back home.  Meanwhile, Pichu watched the group of children stroll away with a look of confusion.  “What was that about?  Are all humans rude?”

“Sorry about that,” Ash apologized.  “They weren’t being rude.  Humans can’t understand Pokémon.”

“You can understand me,” Pichu frowned.

“I can also turn into a Pokémon,” Ash shrugged.  “Me, my mom, and the professor are the only humans around here who can turn into Pokémon.”

For a moment, Pichu studied Ash.  “I guess that makes you guys really unique.”

Ash scowled.  There was something in Pichu’s tone that sounded almost suspicious.  “We’re not unique,” he said defensively.  “There are tons of other people like us out there!”

“Where?” Pichu asked, ears perked in surprise.

“Uh, I don’t know.  I never met them,” Ash admitted.

“Master Ash!  Welcome home!”

Ash broke eye contact with Pichu to see that the pair had arrived home.  Ash’s home was nothing special by human standards.  Two-stories, triangle, red roof, white paint, white picket fence, small garden to the side, the works,  Sweeping the stone pathway that led up to the house was a Pokémon who resembled a clown.

The clown was humanoid in shape with skinny arms attached to large, white glove-like hands and skinny legs ending in black feet that curled at the toes like elf shoes.  The Pokémon’s main body was round and white with a red belly that matched the round shoulders and hips making the Pokémon look as though it was in the suit of a performer.  Finally, the Pokémon’s head was fairly human (if humans lacked noses) with rosy cheeks and a pair of wavy, dark blue horns that resembled human hair.  It was also wearing a stark blue apron, but that was not natural to its species.

This Pokemon was a Mr. Mime, though this particular Pokémon was named Mimey.  Much like with Pichu, Ash and his mother met Mimey while walking on the outskirts of town.  The mime had attempted to steal some food from a shrewdness of Primeapes.  Taking pity on the clown, Delia managed to redirect the enraged monkeys away from where Mimey was hiding.  She then shared some food with the mime.

Mimey, who was not much of a fighter, would then turn up from time to time at the Ketchum household for a chat and hopefully a free meal.  At some point down the line Delia roped him into helping her with housework in exchange for some food.  From then it was only a matter of time before the mime became the Ketchum’s housekeeper working for food and board.

“Your mother is waiting for you,” Mimey said as he continued to sweep.  He then spotted Pichu.  “Oh!  You must be Pichu!  How do you do?”

“Fine,” Pichu replied staring up at the Ketchum household in awe.  He turned to Ash.  “You live here?!”

“Yeah,” Ash blinked.  “Is there something wrong?”

“It’s massive!” Pichu pointed an accusatory paw at the house.

“It’s not that big,” Ash shrugged.

“It’s bigger than any den in the forest!” Pichu exclaimed.  “What do you use all that extra space for?”

“Uh, kitchen, game console, couch, at least a couple bathrooms,” Ash ticked the items off his fingers.

“What even is half that stuff?” Pichu asked, eyes still wide.

Mimey chuckled and leaned up against the fence.  “Don’t worry.  Humans can be overwhelming and strange, but there is a method to their madness.  Take this broom for example.”

The clown held up said broom.  “At first you think it’s pointless.  Why put so much effort into moving dust around?  But then you realize that it actually feels good to clean.  Therapeutic even.  I am the feng shui and the feng shui is me.”

Pichu looked over at Ash and silently mouth “What?”

Ash just scratched the back of his head with his hand in a very dog-like manner and shrugged.  He allowed Pichu back on his shoulder before heading up to the door and inside the house.

Once inside, Pichu’s head began swerving every direction.  It seemed silly, but Ash couldn’t blame him.  The mouse did grow up living in tree holes and dens dug into the earth.  A human home complete with furnishings would be pretty alien to the little guy.

“Oh!  Ash, sweetie, what did I say about letting me know when you want to invite friends over!” poking her head out from the kitchen door was Ash’s mother.

“I know, but Pichu knows about our powers,” Ash reasoned.  There was an incident a year ago when Ash invited a couple of his classmates over.  Not expecting visitors, Delia had been working around the house in her Lucario form when the children walked in.  Ash had to quickly lie that his mother was out and that the Lucario was just there because they were pet sitting.

“It doesn’t matter if someone knows about our abilities or not.  You should give me a heads up if you want a playdate,” Delia scolded.  “Especially when you are supposed to be doing your chores.  I’m pretty sure I asked Ms. Kangaskhan to let you know that.”

Ash flinched.

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Ketchum.  I can leave if you want,” Pichu offered apologetically.

Delia’s frown flipped into a smile.  “You’re not in trouble, Pichu.  You just caught me off guard.  You can join me in the kitchen while Ash cleans.”

“Nope,” Pichu put its paws on its hips.  “I came here to help Ash with his chores and help him I will!”

“If you insist,” Delia said before turning her attention back to her son.  “Ash you only have one chore today.  You need to clean your room.”

“…You sure you don’t need me to weed the garden or fold laundry?” Ash offered remembering how his room looked when he left that morning.

“It wouldn’t get like this if you cleaned up after yourself more often,” Ash’s mother continued to lecture.

That wasn’t Ash’s fault!  He was a busy guy!  He had schoolwork to turn in, card games to play with his classmates, video games, and those were just his human obligations.  As a Riolu he had forests to venture through, trees to sniff, rivers to jump in, holes to dig, more trees to sniff, he was a busy guy!

Catching the disgruntled look on Ash’s face, Delia smiled.  “You know, I was in your room earlier.  I think I spotted a certain package you’ve been waiting for.”

Immediately Ash’s spirit lifted and he bolted up the stairs with Pichu gripping onto his shoulder.  The boy raced over to his room to see that, just as his mom said, there was a package sitting on his bed.  He practically pounced on the parcel before ripping it open.

Looking to avoid the debris of slaughtered package, Pichu leapt off Ash’s shoulder and onto the bed.  He received a surprise when he bounced on the flat surface.  In a bid to regain his footing, Pichu hopped again and again.  He kept jumping up and down until Ash caught him.

“Like my bed?” Ash teased.

“Guess I got carried away,” Pichu replied Mareepishly.  He then spotted a new piece of clothing sitting on top of Ash’s head.  “What’s that?”

Putting on a satisfied smirk, Ash reacted up with his free hand to adjust his new hat.  “This is the official Pokémon League Expo hat for this year!”

“Pokémon League?” Pichu questioned with a head tilt.

“Yeah!  The Pokémon League is awesome!  It’s where a whole bunch of trainers, the best of the best, get together and battle with their Pokémon to see who’s the best!  They battle on all kinds of fields with different rules and to get in you have to fight a bunch of gyms and-” Ash started to explain.  He stopped when he noticed that Pichu wasn’t looking any less confused than he was before he started.  Deciding to change tactics, Ash headed over to his desk.  “Maybe it will be easier if I show you.”

Once at his desk, Ash began digging through the pile of junk.  As Pichu watched the shower of clothes and toys fly through the air, he gave Ash a frown.  “You know, I think I can see why your mom wants you to clean this place.”

“Here we are!” Ash victoriously held up a laptop before opening it up and bringing up a video.  He then turned the computer around so that Pichu could get a better view of the screen.  The video displayed a pair of Pokémon squaring off against one another.  On one side was a large Pokémon who resembled a toad with a flowering plant on its back, a Venasaur.  Opposite him was a blue and white Pokémon who looked like a bipedal frog with a spiral on its belly, a Poliwrath.

“And it’s Venasaur verses Poliwrath!” came the voice of the announcer.  “It looks like Venasaur is starting out with a Razor Leaf, but Poliwrath won’t stand still!  And would you look at that!  Poliwrath is diving into the earth using Dig!  Looks like Venasaur’s trainer didn’t count on that!”

“Whoa!” Pichu stared at the screen.  He then leapt down onto the desk and looked behind the computer.  “What is this?  Where are they?”

“This is my computer,” Ash explained.  “I can use it to look up videos, play games, and a whole bunch of other stuff.  But my favorite thing to do is watch Pokémon matches.”

As the video continued to play, the boys watched more and more trainers and their Pokémon take to the arena to fight.  Some Pokémon were big, others were unevolved, and some weren’t even native to Kanto.

“This is all real?” Pichu asked in awe.

“Yep!” Ash grinned.  “And the best part is I’m going to be turning ten soon.  Which means I’ll be old enough to compete!”

“Cool!” Pichu squeaked.  “What do you need to do to get started?”

“I just need a Pokémon, some traveling supplies, a sponsor, and my parent’s permission,” Ash listed.

“And you have that stuff?” Pichu asked.

Ash’s smile dropped.  “I’m still working on that.  I’ve told my mom that I want to go, but she’s been stonewalling me.”

Two years ago

“Mom!” Ash scampered into the kitchen in his Riolu form.  “Can I join the Pokémon League!?”

Delia frowned as she stirred their dinner.  “It’s pretty dangerous out there.”

“I’ll get stronger!” declared the Riolu waving his paws around.

“I don’t know, Ash,” Delia responded.  Ash could feel a flurry of unsettling emotions emanate off her.  “I understand that you love watching battles on TV, but that might not be what you want to do with your life.  Just give yourself sometime and think about it.”

One year ago

“I’m sorry, Ash.  I just don’t feel comfortable letting a ten year old run around on his own with a bunch of fire-breathing dragons and large, venomous bugs.”

A few months ago

“Honey, I know you’re set on this but we can’t always get what we want in life.  I’m sorry.”

This morning

“No,” Delia said before Ash could even open his mouth.

Now

“Wow,” Pichu mumbled.  “Sorry.”

“It’s not fair!” Ash groaned.  “I just want to go out and explore and meet new Pokémon!  Is that so much to ask?”

“Doesn’t your mom prepare food for other humans?  Maybe she wants you to do that,” Pichu suggested.

“That or start a farm or get a job as one of Prof. Oak’s aides,” Ash sighed.  “It’s like she doesn’t want me to leave this town.”

“Oh!” Pichu perked up.  “What about the professor?  He’s part of your pack.  Maybe he can give you permission!”

Ash sighed.  “I tried.  But…”

Last Month at the Lab

“Professor!” Ash scampered into the lab in his human form.  “Can you sponsor me for the Pokémon League?”

“Have you spoken to your mother?” the professor asked without looking up from his microscope.

Now

“They’re conspiring against me,” Ash scowled.

Pichu walked over to Ash and patted his arm.  “I’m sorry, Ash,” he then looked around the room and spotted a box sitting in the corner.  “What’s that?”

Looking over to where Pichu was pointing, Ash brightened up.  “Those are my Pokémon cards!  Here, let me show you my deck.”  The two boys then spent the next half hour fooling around until Ash’s mother came in to remind them that they were supposed to be cleaning.

Before long the evening approached and it was time to leave.  As soon as the last dish was placed in the sink for cleaning (and Pichu was ripped away from his newly discovered love: ketchup) Ash and Delia retreated to their rooms to change.  Moments later, a group consisting of a Riolu, a Pichu, and a Lucario exited the Ketchum household.  Careful not to be spotted by anyone out on a late night stroll, the group made their way to their first stop: the forest.  At the edge they found Kangaskhan and Josie waiting for Pichu.

Before Pichu returned to his family, he turned to address Ash.  “You know, Ash.  Some of the other Pokémon are kind of suspicious of you because you’re half human.  But you know what?  I think you’ve got it pretty good.”

Ash’s tail wagged.  It was true.  Maybe his mother was extra cautious with him and he did notice that wild Pokémon where pretty jumpy around him and the rest of his pack.  But in the end of the day he was one of the few people who was blessed with the chance to experience the best of both worlds.  Human and Pokémon.  And he wouldn’t trade that away for anything.

With Pichu safely back with his family, Ash and his mother began their walk to the laboratory.  As he plodded behind his mom, Ash adjusted his new hat.  Obviously it was designed with a human head in mind, but thanks to the strap in the back he could get it to rest snuggly over his cranium.  The trick was getting it to fit in a way that didn’t pinch his ears.

“Enjoying your new hat?” Delia asked, looking down at her son.

“Definitely!” Ash’s tail wagged.  He walked alongside his mother in silence for a few minutes, taking in the sunset before speaking up again.  “Wouldn’t it be cool if I wore this hat at the Indigo Plateau?”

Delia sighed.  “Ash, you know my answer.  We can’t have everything we want in life.”

“But why can’t I at least have this!” Ash burst out.  “Why can’t I go out and see the world?  Why can’t I find Pokémon who don’t hate me?  Why can’t I even have a chance to at least try?”

Ash would have continued with his rant, but was silenced when Delia pulled him into a hug.  There were so many emotions spiraling around the two.  Though his anger and frustration held strong, Ash could now feel his mother's emotions bleeding in: heartache and guilt.

“Ash,” Delia spoke softly.  “I know this is tough on you.  I know I’m asking a lot from you and it’s unfair.  I promise that this will all make sense soon, but for now please grant me just a little more time.  It doesn’t seem like much, but I want you to continue enjoying being a kid just a little while longer.  Can you do that for me?”

For his part, Ash had no clue what his mother was talking about.  But through both her aura and her physical touch he could feel that she was hurting too.  So, he decided to just let his irritability go and lean into her hug.  “Okay.”

Moments later the two jackals arrived at the laboratory where they met…

“Who’s ready for some board games and Poke blocks!?”

Standing before the pair was not the professor.  Instead the individual answering the door was a tubby, bipedal dragon.  Most of its body was covered in orange scales save for a cream colored belly and antenna framing a short, orange horn.  Sticking out of its back was a pair of small, teal wings.  Each of the dragon’s limbs from its rounded snout to its thick tail was rounded and chubby which, along with the dragon’s bright smile, gave the dragon the demeanor of a huggable carnival prize.

“Hi Mr. Dragonite,” Ash greeted the pseudo-legendary.

The dragon’s warm, hazel eyes landed on Ash and his new headgear.  “I see you’ve got a brand new Pokémon League hat!”

“Yeah!” Ash’s tail wagged as he reached up to adjust his hat.  “Our plan worked!”

“Excellent,” Dragonite’s hands began to rub together maniacally.  “While everyone else was content sending only one postcard we shot to the top of the list by sending in an army or postcards!”

“The fools!” Ash cackled as he rubbed his own paws together.

The Riolu and Dragonite then let out an evil laugh before breaking down into genuine laughter.  When the laughter died down, Dragonite straightened up.  “Seriously though, it looks good on you.”  Dragonite then turned to Delia.  “And how about you, Delia?  Word on the street is you had a bit of a kitchen fire at your job.”

Delia’s ears folded back in embarrassment.  “It was just a small incident with a new cook.  I can’t believe you heard about it.”

“In a town as small as this one me and the misses will soak up whatever fragment of excitement we hear,” Dragonite replied.  He reached down to start guiding Ash towards the living room when Ash spoke up.

“Where’s the professor?” Ash asked looking around.  The adults always went off a bit before midnight.  It was way too early.

At this question, Mr. Dragonite’s demeanor lost its bounce.  The dragon’s aura darkened and the bubbling optimism popped to reveal the puddle of sadness it had been covering up.  His antennae flopped down and he took a deep breath.  “Ah, that is, um, I’m sure you’ve heard about the accident.  We got a call from the hospital earlier.  Most of Sam’s family didn’t make it.”

The atmosphere within the house plummeted.  Though Ash never met them, he knew that Professor Oak had some family outside of Pallet Town.  It was a relationship that always struck Ash as odd.  He could feel a great deal of love and pride radiating off the professor whenever the subject of his family came up, but from what Ash heard visits were brief and sparse.  Ash could tell from the professor’s aura that he wanted to see them more, but when Ash suggested to the old man that he invite them over more often or that he should take longer visits he was told that the professor was a busy man and scheduling was difficult.

Things came to a head a few days ago when Ash stopped by the lab to see if he could help out with the Pokémon housed in the lab (the Pokémon at the lab were a lot more willing to hang out with him than wild Pokémon).  When Ash went up to main lab he was informed by one of the aides that they received a hastily scribbled note that the professor’s family was in an accident which left most of them hospitalized.

Curious, Ash eavesdropped on some of the trainer Pokémon housed at the ranch gossiping.  From what he heard the last anyone saw of the Leafeon was him running off towards the far edges of his property.  Ash tried to track the grass-type’s trail only to be stopped by Mrs. Charizard who was, for some reason, burning down the field.

Ash attempted to ask the pseudo-dragon what happened by was immediately shooed away by the cranky old lizard who just stated she was “doing something important and didn’t need little kids to get in the way” or something to that effect.  With no leads, Ash just came to the conclusion that the professor had left town to visit his family and went on his way.

Upon hearing that Ash’s pack was going to be doing their usual schedule of meeting up on the full moon, Ash assumed that all was well and that the professor’s family was making a recovery.  This theory was just stomped by Mr. Dragonite’s words and emotions.

“Oh no,” Delia said gently.  She walked up to the dragon and placed a comforting paw on his arm.  “I’m so sorry.”

Mr. Dragonite gave Delia a small smile.  “Thank you, Delia.  I miss them, but I’ll be fine.  It’s Sam that I’m worried about.  He has not been taking it well.”

“Then let’s go see him!” Ash declared as he was about to walk into the lab to find the professor.

The Riolu was stopped when Mr. Dragonite quickly grabbed him and pulled him to the side.  “Upupup, I, uh, know that Sam would appreciate this, Ash, but he’s not, um, in a good place right now.  I don’t think he’d want you to see him like that.  Please give him some space.”

Ash was about to protest, but ultimately sighed and complied.

Delia reached over to pet Ash.  “I’ll let him know you’re here for him, Ash,” she said.  She then looked up at Mr. Dragonite.  “I’m going to see Samuel.  I trust you have everything under control here?”

“Absolutely,” Mr. Dragonite said.  His face brightened up and he was able to put back on a mask of positivity.  “Come on, Ash.  You weren’t the only one to receive a package today.  I just got a new game of Hungry, Hungry Hippopotas.  Do you want to play with me?”

Ash watched his mom walk into the lab presumably to meet with the professor.  “Sure.”

The Burnt Field

With Ash distracted by Dragonite, Delia headed out the lab’s back door and kept walking.  Usually the wide stretches of land were useful for housing the various Pokémon whose trainers left with Professor Oak.  On full moon nights they were useful for isolating Delia and the professor.

Before long Delia came up on her destination, a field that was burned to the ground.  The Lucario was about to step onto the dead ground when she felt something wrap around one of her legs.  Looking down she saw that some of the longer blades of grass had latched onto her and was how pulling at her leg.  A quick swipe with a Metal Claw attack severed the plant and released her leg, but not for long.

In retaliation the rest of the surrounding plants began to swarm her.  Delia found herself slashing left and right as the grass uprooted itself and started climbing up her.

“Get back!” roared a voice from overhead.

Heading the voice’s advice, Delia threw herself onto the burnt, plant-free ground.  The second she was away from the grass a massive plume of fire shot down at the land scorching the plants.  Then, landing between Delia and the plant life was another dragon.

Like Dragonite, this dragon had a bipedal build with orange scales and a cream-colored belly.  That is where the similarities ended.  This dragon had a long neck and a fiercer face than Dragonite’s soft features with a pair of slightly longer horns sticking out the back.  Her wings were larger and her tail was longer ending in a torch of flames.  When the dragon turned around to offer her hand to Delia, it was a skinner, more boney appendage than the Dragonite’s.

“Thank you, Charizard,” Delia said to dragon.  This Charizard was more weathered than the other members of her species.  Her scales had lost their shine and her eyes were sunken with one of them starting to glaze over.  The dragoness’s wings were also tattered at the ends, though they were still intact enough to allow for flight and create a strong enough gust of wind to blow off the remaining clumps of grass that were clinging to Delia.

“Troublesome things,” Mrs. Charizard growled down at the animated plants.  She blasted most of the remaining plants with another breath of fire.

“I don’t know.  They’re actually kind of cute when they’re not attacking,” Delia noted watching a weed scuttle across the ground on its makeshift root legs.

Mrs. Charizard immediately slammed her tail on top of the weed.  “You’re not the one who has to deal with these obnoxious vermin,” she growled.  “I swear they grow back faster every year.”

Back when they were first cursed, Delia and Samuel learned the hard way that containing a werePokémon was easier said than done.  Thanks to the wereArcanine, Delia was well aware of the first obstacle: werePokémon could not be contained by Poke balls.  Even in their regular Pokémon forms the balls refused to operate.  The professor had made various attempts over the years to modify the Poke balls to account for the human-Pokémon hybrid, but to no avail.  The closest he got was creating a ball that tased the werePokémon on contact.

The second obstacle was strength.  The average werePokémon was physically stronger than their normal counterpart which made holding them in a regular cell difficult.  The bars to Delia’s cell held enough voltage to fry a rampaging Snorlax and she still managed to break out on her first night.  Never mind Samuel who, as a grass-type, was insulated against electric attacks.

Further complicating a werePokémon’s containment was its typing.  Just like regular Pokémon, werePokémon could utilize their elements to create attacks.  Unlike your regular Pokémon, werePokémon constantly bled energy like a nuclear reactor undergoing a meltdown.  It wasn’t as noticeable with Delia whose berserker form seemed to favor brute strength over her aura abilities (granted she hadn’t found someone she’d need her aura for since the wereArcanine).  However Sam’s monster form seemed to have an effect on the plants nearby.

Whereas the wereArcanine constantly emitted heat, Professor Oak’s grass typing seemed grant the wereLeafeon chlorokenisis.  How this worked and to what extent nobody knew for certain as it only happened in his berserker form, thus the professor couldn’t properly study himself.  But everyone knew by now that if the plants were left to their own devices they would start trapping and attacking any poor soul that just so happened to walk through them.  In order to prevent the plants from causing any potential hazards, Charizard had made it her duty and the duty of any other fire type willing to volunteer to incinerate the plant life around the containment unit before a full moon.

“What’s going on here?”  Nidoking had arrived on the scene carrying multiple large canisters.

“Where have you been?” growled Charizard.  “The foliage has been getting uppity.  Shouldn’t you have tranquilized Sam by now?”

“I had to go get more gas,” Nidoking grunted lifting one of the canisters for emphasis.  “We’ve been burning through these canisters this week.  First thing Sam’s going to have to do once he gets himself together is synthesis more of this stuff.”

“We’re still going to have enough for tonight, right?” Delia asked, worry evident in her voice.

“Don’t worry, we’ve still got plenty,” Nidoking said.  He strolled past Delia and Charizard and over to a metal door on the ground.  He placed the canisters to the side and reached down to open the door.  “We’re nothing if not prepared.”

Nidoking then began to lumber down through the door and out of sight, leaving the entrance open for Delia to follow.  Charizard watched the poison type leave and shook her head.  “Sammy,” she sighed.  “I don’t envy you.”

“We’ve gotten better at controlling the curse,” Delia said comfortingly, patting Charizard on her side.

“This isn’t about the curse,” Charizard replied.  She grabbed onto Delia’s paw and gave it a gentle squeeze.  “Right now, Sammy’s living my worst nightmare.  Every time a trainer chooses one of my children or grandchildren as their first Pokémon I feel so much joy.  I’m happy that there are people who are able to see just how special each one of my hatchlings are.  But at the same time…”

“You know how unforgiving the world can be and worry that they will find that out the hard way,” Delia finished sympathetically.

“No parent should receive an invitation to their child’s funeral,” Charizard nodded.

There was a moment of silence before Delia began to walk towards the kennel door.  “Charizard, could you do me a favor and grab Mimey for me?  I’m sure there are more canisters, but just to be safe I’d like Mimey to erect some extra barriers.”

“I can do that,” Charizard said curtly.  The dragon’s wings then stretched out which created a series of popping noises.

Delia winced.  “But if you don’t want to I can go grab Dragonite and-”

That offer earned Delia a dirty glare.  “I may not age as gracefully as dragon-types like my husband,” Charizard growled.  “But the day I can no longer fly is the day I’m dead as dirt.”

With that, the dragon took off leaving Delia to walk down into the kennel, closing the thick metal door behind her.

The “kennel” as it was called was actually an underground bunker that was built long before Professor Oak acquired the land for his laboratory.  It was built like a labyrinth with branching hallways and large rooms that led to other passages.  Before becoming cursed Oak just used it as the world’s most convoluted warehouse.  Now it had been repurposed to cage the most aggressive Pokémon in Pallet Town.

Having been down here countless times before, Delia knew which turns to take in the redundant subterranean structure.  It didn’t take long before she came across Nidoking hooking the canisters up to a large pump.

“Everything okay over here?” Delia inquired.

“We should be set for tonight,” Nidoking nodded.  “But I still think you should talk with Sam.  He’s been cycling in and out of his berserker form for the last few days.  See if you can get him to calm down while I grab some more canisters.  I’d like to save some gas.”

The gas in question was adapted from an oral tranquilizer that had been used by werePokémon for generations.  It was a mix of various berries and herbs that when ingested by a lycan would calm their emotions and reverse most emotion based transformations.  It was less effective during the full moon as there was no stopping those transformations, but they still helped by putting the monster in a more manageable drowsy state.

Now, one would think the tranquilizer would be the perfect solution to the werePokémon problem.  Unfortunately the tranquilizer had a massive Achilles’ heel: its viability.  The tranquilizer effects were strong but short lived.  As a result your average lycan had to get creative on how to continuously administer the tranquilizer.  Tactics ranged from dowsing a fresh corpse with the concoction or training a Pokémon to administer the medicine.  These plans were also flawed as unless kept in a secure cage a werePokémon would always choose killing fresh prey over a perfectly good carcass and no trainer enjoyed the prospect of ordering their Pokémon to get close to a deranged beast.

To work around these obstacles, Professor Oak remodeled a section of the deepest part of the bunker into a gas chamber.  The chamber would not only cage werePokémon, but regularly pump clouds of the modified tranquilizer into the room keeping its occupants pacified.  Well, mostly pacified.  Nobody should approach a werePokémon even if it is tranquilized.

A big part of this plan relied on Nidoking who not only had opposable claws, but the poison typing.  As a poison type Nidoking was able to breath in the mixture without any negative effects which meant that he was the best choice to stay in the kennel in case of emergency.  To this end Nidoking received training in mechanics and plumbing.  He wasn’t going to be building any houses or cars, but by this point he was the most familiar and qualified to keep the kennel running.

Descending further into the bunker Delia finally reached the containment room.  Before she even opened the door she could sense a cloud of emotions emanating from inside.  Anger and fear swirled through the air, but the most over powering emotion was grief.  Taking a deep breath, Delia turned the knob and entered.

Once Delia opened the door Oak’s aura hit her like a wave.  It wasn’t just his emotions, the room reeked of the scents of rage and stress.  Accompanying the smells were the sounds of claws clicking against the floor and the growling of a large Pokémon.

Flicking the light switch, Delia could get a better view of the room.  There were several large prison cells built into the walls complete with vents and flaps in the ceiling to drop items into the cells.  Each cell was walled off from the rest of the room by thick, metal bars which would emit a painful electric shock when turned on.  Delia knew the electrified doors wouldn’t be enough to hold back a werePokémon, but they were a good deterrent to keep the drugged lycans away from the fastest exit.

In the cell closest to the door Delia could spot the source of the troubled aura.  Seemed as though the professor hadn’t completely transformed into his berserker state, but he was on his way.

Pacing around in the cell was a large Leafeon with a very pronounced muzzle filled with gnashing teeth.  There was a light hunch in his back and its fur was a bit shaggier.  Sprouting from random spots across the Leafeon’s body were small, short vines which wiggled around making it look like the grass type had a bad worm infection.

“Professor,” Delia called out to the monster.  “I heard what happened.  I’m sorry for your loss.”

The Leafeon stilled for a moment before shooting across his cell to start snarling and snapping at Delia.  There were multiple loud sparks and zaps as electricity jumped form the bars onto the Leafeon.  It snarled and leapt back.  After shaking itself off, the professor jumped back at bars and reached through them to swipe at Delia.  There was an audible snap and one of the forearms began to stretch out while its paw extended into clawed, almost human-like hands.

Not missing a beat, Delia took hold of the clawed hand before it could grab her.  She held it comfortingly, though with a firmness that prevented it from slashing into her.  “It’s okay,” she said soothingly.  “You can take your time.  We’re here all night.”

There were several beats where the monster Leafeon glared into Delia’s calm eyes before he retracted his long arm and began to shrink.  Within moments a normal Leafeon slumped onto the cold cement floor of its cell.  “Delia,” Professor Oak greeted in a hoarse voice.  “How long have I been down here?”

“It’s a full moon tonight,” Delia informed the professor.

Oak covered his face with one of his paws.  “So I’ve been down here for days.  I can’t believe I lost control of myself like that.”

“It happens to the best of us,” Delia replied sympathetically.  The two lycans had gone to great lengths to keep their curses in check.  Both of them were fortunate enough to be the bosses at their jobs and could adjust their hours as needed which came in handy when recovering from a tiring full moon night.

Delia herself didn’t go into her dinner as much as she used to under the guise of being a mother, which was technically true.  She did spend years raising and homeschooling Ash all by herself.  It just so happened that her excuse worked well on days when she wasn’t quite in the right mind.

One incident in particular took place when Ash was very young and came home from playing in the woods covered in cuts.  Apparently some of the more rowdy members of the local Spearow flock had been picking on Ash for being a “freak” and ganged up on the puppy.  Delia could still remember the raw fury she felt when Ash came home decked out in talon scratches and pecks, sniffing in a vain attempt to hold back the tears.  It was while Mimey was treating Ash’s wounds that Delia noticed that fur was involuntarily crawling up her skin.  One minute she slipped into the bathroom to try and find where she put her tranquilizers, the next she was in the middle of forest surrounded by dead birds.

In contrast Professor Oak only seemed to transform under the full moon.  This isn’t to say that there had been no negative changes to his life.  In order to lower the possibility of an accident Samuel had receded from his usual appearances on radio shows and lectures citing his old age as the reason for his reduced public appearances.  Though the professor shrugged it off saying he was looking for more down time anyway, Delia knew that sharing his love of Pokémon during those venues meant a lot to him.

The bigger personal sacrifice for the professor was time with his family.  Having seen how powerful parental instincts were thanks to Delia, Oak and his kid had decided to keep family visits to a minimum.  Thus making him an odd distant relative as appose to the loving grandfather role he wanted to play.

“It’s good that I didn’t go,” Oak mumbled settling his head between his paws.  “I would have ripped the hospital apart like this.”  It sounded more like the professor was talking more to himself than to Delia.

“I’m sure they knew that you would have visited if you could,” Delia assured the professor.  The sad fact was that the best thing that Samuel could have done was cage himself.  A human that was scared for the life of a family member in the emergency room knew to sit aside and let the doctors do their job.  A werePokémon would have just identified the patient as a pack member in trouble and would do everything in its power to “save” said member.  Even if said saving meant mauling the hospital staff and dragging the injured pack member away from the healthcare they desperately needed.

“Thank you,” the professor replied half-heartedly.  He then sighed.  “There is another problem, my grandson.  He’s still alive.”

“That’s wonderful!” Delia wagged her tail.  Her tail slowed when she realized why a hum of anxiety was emanating from the professor.  “What’s going to happen to him?”

Professor Oak didn’t move.  “I’m his only living relative.”

Delia’s tail fell.  It looked like Samuel was stuck between a rock and a hard place.  If he took his grandson in, he’d heighten the chances of activating his cursed half’s parental instincts and Delia knew firsthand how powerful those were.

Then there was the secret aspect to being a lycan.  Delia had really stressed to Ash the importance of keeping his Riolu side hidden from other humans.  Given that children tended to have loose lips, she wasn’t sure how compliant Oak’s grandson was going to be.

On the other hand, with no other family members to take him in the child’s only option would be to be put in an orphanage.  A tough experience for anyone made worse by the knowledge that his own grandfather rejected him during his hour of need.

“Maybe there’s a middle ground,” Delia tried to reason.  “Perhaps we can make an excuse, say that you’re not healthy enough to take in a child and find a friend to house your grandson-”

Samuel’s head immediately shot up and gave Delia a possessive snarl.  His faced morphed and his lips pealed back revealing a maw filled with far more sharp teeth then a Leafeon had any right hosting.  His eyes then slammed shut and his face returned to a normal Leafeon.  “Sorry.”

“No, I get it,” Delia said softly.  Her parental instincts had almost triggered a transformation on multiple occasions (thank goodness for the tranquilizer).  Considering the reaction she just got for merely suggesting letting the kid live elsewhere, Delia got the distinct feeling that it would only be a matter of time before Samuel transformed and kidnapped/rescued his “pup” killing anyone who would try and stop him.  “You know, I’ve become an expert on dealing with parental instincts.  I can help you with them.  Plus, if it makes you feel any better, your grandson will be the safest person from your berserker form.”

There was a knock at the door and Nidoking stuck his head in.  “It’s almost midnight.  Delia, you should get in your cell.”

“Understood,” Delia nodded.  She stepped into the cage opposite Professor Oak’s and locked the door.

Nidoking turned towards his trainer.  “Are you okay, Sam?”

The professor gave Nidoking a nod.  “A little better, thank you.”

With a small smile, Nidoking left the room to turn on the electricity in Delia’s cage and start the gas pump.

“Now then,” Professor Oak sat up and straightened himself.  “Since we are done discussing my problems, care to tell me what is troubling you?”

“Excuse me?” Delia’s ears perked.

“I don’t need aura empathy powers to know something is troubling you,” Professor Oak said with a small smirk.

Delia sighed.  “It’s Ash.  He’s getting older and more restless.  I was hoping that when he first wanted to become a Pokémon trainer that it would just be a phase, but he’s still going strong.”

“Oh, I’m well aware of that,” Oak chuckled.  “He’s been popping up in my lab a lot lately offering to volunteer.  I suspect that he’s hoping that if he butters me up I’ll give him a sponsorship behind your back.”

Given that Delia found a chart in Ash’s room graphing the pros and cons of each Kanto starter, she could defiantly believe that.  “It’s not just that.  Ash is also getting more observant.  So far he just smells the meat Nidoking feeds us during the full moon and thinks that we’ve been hunting.  I’ve been keeping him away from werePokémon movies and stories, but it’s only going to be a matter of time before he wisens up.”

Delia gave her old mentor a pleading look.  “Do you think it’s time I told him the truth?”

“You’re the boy’s mother,” Oak responded neutrally.  “It’s all up to you.”

Delia sighed.  She should have known she was going to get that response.  Her head told her to just rip the bandage off and get it over with.  Just tell Ash that he was destined to turn into a blood thirsty monster that had to be kept in isolation.  The more she allowed the boy to believe otherwise, the harder it was going to be when he inevitably found out.

But Delia’s heart stopped her.  She could still feel the emotions of pure joy and naïve content from that afternoon when Ash was playing with Pichu.  She couldn’t’ just take that away and replace it with self-fear and heartbreak.

As Delia mused, a sudden pain shot through her body.  The Lucario doubled over clutching her stomach.  Midnight had arrived which meant all rational thoughts would have to wait until tomorrow.

The Living Room

Back at the Oak Laboratory, the grandfather clock in the living room struck twelve.  It was midnight, which meant Ash still had the second half of the night to keep himself entertained.  At the moment, he and Mr. Dragonite were sitting across from each other at the coffee table locked in a battle of wits.

“Do you have any fives?” Ash asked, the fingers of his paw drumming against the table.

“Go fish,” Mr. Dragonite responded.

Ash sighed and grabbed some new cards.  He was so done with this game!  Even inside this house he could feel the moon shining overhead.  His body was practically exploding with energy and this card game wasn’t cutting it!

Looking down, Mr. Dragonite could see that now Ash’s back paws were tapping impatiently against the floor.  Spotting this, Mr. Dragonite folded.  “You know, I think we’ve done enough fishing for now.  How’s about a short walk-”

Ash bolted out the back door before Mr. Dragonite could finish that sentence.

Outside, finally!  Ash took a deep, savory breath of night air.  By now the trainer owned Pokémon were locked up in storage and most of the wild Pokémon had vacated the preserve in the back of the lab.  Which meant he had the whole place to himself.

Not wasting a moment, Ash began to run.  His feet trampled against the ground sending him shooting forward across the grass.  The longer Ash ran, the faster he became.  The air soared by his fur causing the appendages on the sides of his face to flap in the wind.  He wasn’t a flying type, but with his speed he felt like he had wings.  Looking over his shoulder, Ash could see his babysitter flying overhead.  A grin grew on Ash’s snout.  Time to see if he could out run a Dragonite.

Dropping to all fours, Ash headed into the forest.  Blood pumping through his veins, Ash was able to direct his body to weave around the trees.  His reflexes were fluid and his speed continued to pick up.  Over roots, under logs, straight through bushes.  Faster.  Faster!

Feeling up to a tougher trek, Ash reared back onto his hind legs and sprung onto the trees.  Using each trunk as a springboard, Ash leapt from tree to tree without losing his footing.  He spotted a low hanging branch and grabbed onto it.  Ash then swung into the leaves.

The Riolu proceeded to leap from branch to branch.  As he jumped he felt the auras of multiple Pokémon nearby.  Curious, he followed his senses and found a flock of purple insect Pokémon with big white wings.  Butterfrees!

“Hey guys!” Ash greeted as he hopped by.

“Shoot, is it the full moon already?” asked one of the Butterfree.

“Let’s get out of here!” said another.

Then as one, the flock of giant butterflies took to the skies.  Ash leapt down from the trees and stared up to watch the kaleidoscope of butterflies take off in front of the full moon.  The Riolu marveled at the sight and panted.  That was a good warm up, but he still felt energized.  Eyeing a large rock formation nearby, Ash took off again.

Ash’s paws grasped onto the rock wall and began propelling upwards.  As he gained momentum, he began leap up with energy and grace that would make a Gogoat nod in approval.  When Ash reached the top he looked around.  The forest, the water, the grasslands, the town, he could see it all.  Mr. Dragonite was still flying overhead, but Ash was sure he gave the dragon a better challenge than he ever had.  He was getting stronger, he could feel it.

Still feeling the moon overhead.  Ash was about to take off again, but before he did he decided to answer an urge he had since the moon reached to the top of the sky.  Taking in a gulp of air, Ash threw back his head and howled.

AN: This is Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, age nine with his birthday fast approaching.  Like all adolescence he is about go on a Pokémon journey.  But his exciting exploits of endangerment aren’t going to be through Kanto, Alola, or Kalos.  Instead he shall be venturing through the Twilight Zone.

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features.  Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri.  Please support the official release.

Listening to as I spit out my coffee: Pallet Town Theme (Alca Animusic on Piano Cover)

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Close One

Ash released a sigh.  He was visiting the lab today, but not for volunteer work or to play with one of the trainers’ Pokémon who were being stored at the lab.  No, today was his doctor’s appointment.

One of the downsides to having both a Pokémon and human form was that Ash had to go to twice the amount of doctor’s appointments as a regular kid.  First he had his human appointment which he attended several months ago.  Nothing special there, though the doctor did complement Ash on being ideally in shape for a kid his age.  A benefit from spending most of his free time either running through the woods or wrestling with other Pokémon.

For his Riolu form Ash would report to the lab to be examined by the professor.  As a veteran Pokémon researcher, Professor Oak was familiar enough with Pokémon biology to act as Ash’s, for lack of a better word, vet.  He was also Ash’s dentist.  For some odd reason Ash’s mother didn’t seem to want to take Ash to a normal dentist.

Taking out his spare key to the house, Ash let himself inside.  “Professor?”

No one responded.  Shrugging, Ash made his way to the living room.  Given how chaotic the laboratory could get (schedules were just suggestions around here) it was highly plausible that the professor was running late because of some shenanigans breaking out in the Pokémon reserve out back.  In situations like this Ash was instructed to just sit down and wait.  Thus Ash made his way over to the couch.

It was as Ash was about to sit down when his nose picked up an odd scent.  It seemed human, but wasn’t the professor’s nor one of his aides.  Ash had been over to the lab enough times that he could tell which scent belonged to a regular visitor in the professor’s house and which was that of a stranger.  Oddly enough this scent, though new, was prominent enough to suggest its owner had been in and out of this room a lot recently.

Curiosity growing, Ash crouched down to the carpet to give it a better sniff.  He tried to get a better feel for this new scent, but it was no good.  Though his human nose was more sensitive than the average human oral factory, it could not compare to his Riolu’s form’s nostrils.  The same applied to his hearing, though sadly not his eye sight or aura sense.  Whilst Ash could see in low light and sense the emotions of others as a Riolu, his human form was practically blind in the dark and could only occasionally pick up a spark of an aura.  On the flip side, Ash’s human hands were way more dexterous and had a better grip than his Pokémon’s form so it had that going for it.

His curiosity still not satisfied, Ash took a quick peak at his surroundings before he began to transform.  As though to answer his desire to better identify the scent, the first part to change was Ash’s nose.  It pushed forward while the tip darkened and became wet.  He could also feel his jaws following along with his teeth sharpening into canine fangs.

Now armed with a better nose, Ash gave the rug a good sniff.  Weird.  This new scent sort of smelled like the professor, but different.  But not different as in the professor shifted to his Leafeon form.  It wasn’t nearly grassy enough for that.  But he could tell that this new smell walked through the grass sometime earlier in the day.  What’s more, the scent was definitely human and-

“What are you doing?”

Ash froze.  Another human!  Immediately Ash tried to pump the breaks on his transformation.

‘Stop, stop, stop!’ Ash mentally chanted to himself.

To the casual observer it would appear that if Ash willed his transformation to occur then he was in complete control.  They would be wrong.  While it was true that outside of certain situations such as the midnight change Ash could switch back in forth between human and Pokémon form whenever he pleased, the transformation still had a mind of its own.  Now that Ash told his body “I want to only be part Riolu” his body’s natural response was “Okay, Riolu all the way.”  He couldn’t just pick one body part to change, it was all or nothing and it was very hard to stop.

As such, when Ash changed his snout the rest of his body began to follow suite.  Right now he could feel the palms of his hands thicken into paws and a thin layer of fur sprout down his back.  For the record, none of his changes were ever painful.  He had been told by other Pokémon that he looked like he should be screaming, but his body felt numb to the transformations.  Kind of like being injected with painkillers while the dentist worked on you, or at least Ash believed that’s what it was like (once again, his mother had a weird aversion to dentists).

Ash felt the toe of a boot prod his shoulder.  “Hey, are you deaf?”

Much to Ash’s relief, he felt his changes reverse.  Looks like he was able to halt it just in time.  There was a small pop and Ash felt his muzzle push back into a human nose allowing him to look up as a human boy.

Standing above Ash was another kid his age.  He was a boy with spikey, brown hair, a long-sleeve, purple shirt, black jeans, and a pair of brown boots.  The boy looked down at Ash with a raised brow.  “Were you trying to smell the floor?”

“No, I…” Ash began, but he couldn’t come up with a convincing lie.  So he pivoted.  “What are you doing in the professor’s house?”  He asked accusingly.

The boy folded his arms.  “You mean my house?”

“You’re house?” Ash asked, his voice now less accusing and more baffled.

“Oh!  Gary!”

Coming in through the door to the living room was the professor.  He had his usual calm smile on his face, though Ash noticed that the man’s eyes were looking very tired.  This was mirrored by the man’s voice which sounded fairly drained.  “I see you met Ash.  He comes around here to volunteer at the lab from time to time.”

The professor then made his way over to the boys and addressed Ash next.  “Ash, this is my grandson Gary.  He just moved in.”

Oh!  That’s what he meant when he said this was his house.  Ash smiled and held out his hand to shake.  “Nice to meet you, Gary.”

Instead of returning Ash’s greeting, Gary just gave the offered hand a pointed look.  Following Gary’s line of sight, Ash saw that while he was on the floor his hand picked up some loose bits of dust and crumbs.  He quickly wiped his hand on his pants before offering it again.

Gary still didn’t take Ash’s hand.  “You really know how to pick them, Gramps.”

Ash felt his face heat up.  “What’s that supposed to mean!?” he asked heatedly.

A smirk crossed Gary’s face.  “What?  You want me to spell it out for you?”

Instead of retorting, an angry growl emanated from Ash’s throat.  Gary stepped back, clearly caught off guard.  He then regained his footing and snorted.  “What was that?”

“Alright boys, that’s enough.  Now Ash, I need you to head to the examination room in the lab.  There is a Pokémon that I’ll need your help with today,” Professor Oak said, giving Ash a subtle wink.  He then turned to Gary.  “Gary could you-”

Before the professor could give Gary a chore to distract him with, the boy was out the door.  Moments later Ash could hear the door leading to the Pokémon preserve in the back slam open and shut.

“That works too,” Professor Oak muttered.

Examination Room

After changing into his Riolu form, Ash made his way to the examination room.  The room contained a plethora of machines and tools the professor used for his studies.  Scanners, x-rays, ultrasound machines, and an assortment of standard vet tools from thermometers to scales.  The examination finished after the professor concluded his inspection of Ash’s ear’s with an otoscope.

“You don’t have to wear those thick gloves, professor,” Ash stated as he watched the old man remove a pair of sturdy gloves that he used to handle more rowdy Pokémon.  “It’s not like I’m going to bite you.”

“I learned a long time ago not to take any chances,” Professor Oak responded.  Gloves removed, he reached up to pinch at the bridge of his nose and rub the corners of his eyes.

“Are you feeling alright, professor?” Ash asked with a head tilt.

“Just a little tired,” the professor waved Ash off.  “The new medication I’m taking has drowsy side effects.  Which reminds me, I think the coffee I brewed earlier should be ready.”

Ash slid down from the examination table and followed the professor out of the lab.  The pair made their way to the kitchen where the smell of freshly brewed coffee wafted through the air.  Ash watched the professor pour himself a cup and remembered his mother.

Now that Ash thought about it, his mom also liked to occasionally take medication that made her sleepy.  Why she and now the professor were doing so was beyond him.  As far as he was concerned, any medication that made you look like you were about to keel over was not worth taking no matter what the positive effects were.

The Riolu was about to leave when the professor called out to him.  “Ash, could I talk to you for a moment?”

Though that phrase usually meant he was getting a lecture, Ash detected no anger or annoyance in the professor’s aura.  Exhaustion and stress, yes, but it didn’t seem like he was the cause.  The Riolu walked back over to the professor.  “Sure, what is it?”

“First, I want to apologize on Gary’s behalf,” Professor Oak bent down to Ash’s level.  “He’s been going through a rough patch ever since his parents passed away.”

“Oh,” Ash’s tail fell.  That’s right.  Mr. Dragonite said that most of the professor’s family weren’t able to recover from their accident.  Immediately Ash’s annoyance at the new kid’s behavior was replaced with pity.  “Sorry, professor.”

Professor Oak gave Ash a little smile.  “Thank you, my boy.  Now as you may have guessed Gary’s arrival means there are going to be a few changes around here.  First off, you’re going to have to be more careful about changing between human and Pokémon around here, even if my assistants aren’t around.”

Ash’s ears perked.  “Why?”

Oak stood back up.  “Gary is not like us.  He doesn’t have a Pokémon form nor does he know about human to Pokémon transformations.  I’m planning on telling him later, but for now I’m going to ask you to keep it secret.”

Ash blinked in surprise.  Professor Oak’s grandson didn’t have a Pokémon form?  But they were related!  How did that work?

“I’m also going to ask you to do me a big favor,” the professor poured himself more coffee.  “Could you be Gary’s friend?  All these recent changes haven’t been easy on him and I think having someone his age helping him out would go a long way to making him feel more at home.”

Be Gary’s friend?  It didn’t seem like Gary wanted to be friends.  On the other hand, Professor Oak did just say that Gary was having a hard time.  Maybe Ash just met him at a bad moment?  Either way, the professor asked Ash for assistance with an important task.  As a member of the pack Ash felt a base need bordering on instinct to help out his fellow pack mate.

Smiling, the Riolu effortlessly leapt onto the counter, grabbed himself a mug of freshly poured coffee, and clanked it against the professor’s.  “What are packs for?”

Ash then took a drink from the mug.  The second the bitter liquid touched his tongue, the Riolu’s eyes bugged out and he spat the drink back into the mug.  “How can you drink this stuff?!”

“It’s not so much that I drink it as it is that I rely on it,” Professor Oak chuckled before taking another drink.

The Next Day

Standing next to the base of the stairs that led up to the lab, Ash peaked around the corner.  Still no sign of Gary.  Was this guy a late sleeper?  If so, Ash could totally understand.  Getting out of bed was always a challenge for him which usually led to him charging out the front door after scarfing down breakfast.

In order to make sure that he kept his promise to the professor, Ash instructed Mimey to make sure he got out of the bed extra early today at any cost.  Ash would later come to regret these instructions when the clown came into his room loudly smacking a pot with a metal spoon.

The clunking sound of a door closing snapped Ash out of his thoughts.  He straightened up and greeted Gary when the boy made his way down the stairs.  “Good morning!”

Gary blinked.  “Were you waiting for me?”

“Yeah, well,” Ash began.  Holy snap this was turning out way more awkward than he planned.  “I just thought we got off on the wrong foot yesterday and wanted to make it up to you.”

There was another awkward pause before Gary adjusted his backpack and walked past Ash.  Not one to be deterred, Ash jogged after him.  “…So, I thought I’d help you by showing you how to get to school.”

“Yeah, it’s good you came along when you did,” Gary sarcastically replied.  “I could have gotten lost.  They’re, like, ten whole buildings here.”

Internally, Ash began to seethe.  What was with this guy?  Did he want nobody to like him?  Remembering that Gary had just lost his family, Ash forced a smile back onto his face.  “So, what are you into?”

“This and that,” Gary replied with a shrug.  Helpful.

“I’m into Pokémon battles,” Ash supplied.

“Cool,” Gary responded with little enthusiasm.

“Do you like Pokémon?” Ash asked, desperately trying to latch onto something as a conversation starter.

Another shrug.  “Most sane people do.”

Finally, some common ground.  Ash grinned at the other boy.  “Yeah, I should have guess since you’re related to the professor.”

At the mention of the professor, Gary’s face soured.  “Okay, I didn’t think I had to be blunt, but I really don’t want to talk to you.”

Ash opened his mouth to fire back, but bit his tongue.  The two continued their trip in silence, though there was a tense atmosphere as Ash would occasionally glance over at Gary.  The tension broke when the two arrived at the school.  Ash led Gary over to their class.

“Here’s our classroom,” Ash announced, though not with any grandiose.  Just stating it plain and simple.  “Pallet Town’s not a big place, so we don’t have to split everyone up into different classes.  Everyone in our grade should be right here.”

A part of Ash expected another sarcastic remark.  He was pleasantly surprised when Gary just gave him a nod.  “Thanks.  Hey, do you know where the bathroom is?”

Well that was more courteous than before.  Maybe the guy just needed to be left alone for a while.  Ash pointed down the side of the building.  “Just go down there and take a right.”

“Alright,” without further ado Gary headed toward the restrooms.  As he left he gave Ash a little wave.  “Smell ya later.”

Red crept across Ash’s checks.  Dang it, Gary wasn’t going to let him live that moment down was he?  At least he was sounding friendlier than he was this morning.  “No problem, see you in cla-”

Gary disappeared around the corner before Ash could finish his sentence.  Letting it go, Ash took his seat and waited for class to begin.  For the rest of the day, Gary didn’t show up.  Neither did he show up the next day.  In fact, Ash did not see the boy again until a few days later when Mr. Dragonite showed up at school carrying a disgruntled Gary in his arms.

“Whoa!  The professor’s Dragonite!” exclaimed one of Ash’s classmates.

The rest of the class broke out in excited whispers at the appearance of the pseudo-legendary.  Ash, meanwhile, was more focused on the boy the dragon was carrying.  It was clear by Gary’s wrinkled clothes and Dragonite’s bear hug of a grip that the boy did not come willingly.  Catching Ash’s gaze, Mr. Dragonite gave Ash a quick smile before lumbering in front of the teacher and dropping Gary and his backpack onto the classroom floor.

“Thank you, Dragonite.  I can take it from here,” the teacher, Ms. Tau, politely said.  Nodding, Dragonite gave the class a friendly wave before heading out leaving the woman to deal with Gary.  Ms. Tau placed her hands on her hips.  “Gary Oak, I presume.”

Gary picked himself off the ground a straightened his clothes.  “The one and only.”

“You know, when you failed to show up on Monday I thought that there was a miscommunication on when you’d start attending.  Imagine my surprise when I called your grandfather to confirm and learned that you were in fact supposed to be in class.  It seems to me like someone decided to play hooky.”

“Seems like the logical conclusion,” Gary responded, dismissal evident in his tone.  “Nothing personal, teach.  But I’ve got better things to do with my time.”

This declaration didn’t do anything to alleviate Ms. Tau’s frown.  “So, you don’t think you need an education?”

Gary met his teacher’s stare.  “Not from this place.”

Ms. Tau’s frown turned into a scowl.  “Then you shouldn’t have any problems solving the equation on the board.”

Ash turned his attention to the board.  The equation in question was part of the day’s math class.  Before Gary came in Ms. Tau was giving the class an introduction to order of operations.  To Ash, the series of numbers and symbols on the board looked like a second language.  Gary, on the other hand…

“Twenty-five,” Gary responded after giving the board a good look.

“Sorry, the answer is twenty-one,” Ms. Tau corrected.  She looked a little too pleased to be correcting an elementary school student, but after the lip Gary was giving her Ash couldn’t blame the woman.

Though he was called out, Gary maintained his composure.  “No, it’s twenty-five,” he pointed up at a 9.  “It would be twenty-one if that was a four.  Looks to me like you closed the top of your four.  You should probably work on your penmanship.”

Surprised, Ms. Tau turned to look over her problem.  Her silence was all the admission of guilt the class needed.  Face red, Ms. Tau called out to the class.  “Alright, everyone.  Settle down.  Yes, everyone makes mistakes.  Even me.”

Ms. Tau then turned her attention back to Gary.  “Thank you for pointing out that error, Gary.  But if you want to continue being snippy, it’ll have to be in detention.  Am I understood?”

“Crystal clear, ma’am.  Sorry for interrupting class,” Gary said, though his smirk didn’t make him look sorry.

As Gary sauntered on over to a free desk in the back, Ash frowned.  That wasn’t particularly nice.  Sure, Ms. Tau made a mistake, but Gary didn’t have to such a jerk about it.  Then there was that skipping school business.  Admittedly Ash wasn’t the most academic student in the class, but after all the pleading he had to do to get his mother to let him attend school he couldn’t help but to feel a little sour.  Those sour feelings only grew when a couple of Ash’s classmates swarmed around Gary’s desk.

“How did you do that?” asked one of the boys.

“Just did some arithmetic,” Gary said casually.  “It wasn’t that hard.”

“What about the way you spoke to Ms. Tau?” asked one girl.  “I don’t think I could ever stand up to an adult like that.”

“She did put me on the spot,” Gary leaned back in his chair and folded his hands behind his head.  “You shouldn’t let someone’s age intimidate you.  It’s not like people become infallible just because they’ve lived longer.”

Hearing Gary’s smarmy tone, Ash couldn’t hold it in any longer.  “You were the one who put her on the spot first, you know.”

The rest of his classmates turned their attention on Ash with Gary giving him a disinterested “Hmm?”

“The reason Ms. Tau put you on the spot was because you skipped class,” Ash continued.  “You then started mouthing off to her first.”

“What I do with my free time isn’t any of her business,” Gary replied.  He then looked Ash dead center in the eye.  “And I don’t need to hear any criticism from anyone.  Especially guys who smell other people’s carpets.”

That last sentence caught Ash’s classmates’ attention.  “Dude, seriously?  Have you really been smelling carpets?”

“I-I was just looking for something I dropped,” Ash stammered.  One look at his classmates’ faces and he could tell they didn’t buy his lie.

“With how much sniffing you were doing it must have gone straight up your nose,” Gary snarked.  Ash could feel his face heat up as the rest of the class laughed.

The rest of the week was downhill from there.  Every day, before school, after school, and during lunch Gary was crowded by other kids.  As a result of his status as the new kid (very rare in Pallet Town) and his dominating personality, the boy shot to the top of the social ladder before the end of the week.  He was never alone at lunch and Ash overheard girls gossiping about him on more than one occasion.  What’s more Gary seemed to do well in class without even trying!

One afternoon, Ash found himself with the unfortunate luck of sitting at the same table that Gary decided to sit down at.  Sure enough, his little posse showed up soon after and crowded the table inadvertently pushing Ash away from his seat.  Grabbing his lunch, Ash gave the boy one last glare before finding somewhere he could eat in peace.  Just looking at that smug smirk made Ash’ blood boil.  It was like Gary was being rewarded for bad behavior.  Did that kid even remember he lost his parents?

Before Ash could leave, a voice spoke up.  “Hey, Gary.  We have a Pokémon card game club after school today.  Want to join?”

No!  The promise of that club’s safe haven was what had been keeping Ash sane this last week!

“Eh, no thanks.  That’s kid’s stuff,” Gary responded dismissively.

Phew!

“I’ll be busy getting ready to go on a real Pokémon journey,” Gary announced drawing in more excited chattering.

What!?

Later at the Lab

“Why does he get to go on a Pokémon journey!?” Ash exclaimed as he slammed a large piece of lab equipment onto the floor.

Infuriated by Gary’s announcement, Ash skipped his card club meeting and marched straight to the laboratory.  When the professor spotted Ash, he asked if he could help move some furniture around.  It was an ideal job for Ash seeing as most fighting types had a dense muscular system which meant that even something as small as a Riolu could carry out the work of a group of human movers.

The professor winced when the machine hit the tiled ground.  “Please be careful.  These machines may be heavy, but they are also very delicate.”

Ash ignored Oak.  “He skips school, acts like a complete jerk to anyone who doesn’t kiss up to him, and now he gets to travel Kanto and enter the Indigo Conference.  How does that add up!?”

“Ash, I know about Gary’s behavior and I have spoken to him about it,” Professor Oak said placatingly.  “I have let him know that if he continues to misbehave I won’t sponsor him.”

That would explain why Gary started arriving to class on time and stopped giving the teacher lip.  But Ash still wasn’t satisfied.  “What about me?  I follow the rules!  I help out in the lab!  And my grades are…I do my best at school!  Why can’t I go on a Pokémon journey!?”

“Because you need your parent’s permission,” Professor Oak calmly explained for the umpteenth time.  “I’m Gary’s grandfather and guardian, thus I can give him permission.”

“But you’re my grandpa too!” Ash exclaimed.  Technically not true, Ash wasn’t related to the professor by blood.  In fact, Ash didn’t have any relatives outside of his mother.  But as far as Ash was concerned, the professor was as good as his grandparent seeing as how the old man had been a guiding figure for as long as Ash could remember.  Besides they were a pack, a unit that was synonymous with family in Ash’s mind.

At Ash’s declaration, the professor’s features softened.  “Ash.”

Through Ash’s aura sensory, he could sense that the professor was genuinely touched.  Ash steeled himself.  Capitalizing on these emotions was underhanded, manipulative, and would make him feel like a complete tool, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

Tilting his head upward, Ash widened his eyes to be as big as possible.  He sat down on his haunches and raised his front paws in a begging motion.  Behind Ash, his tail gave a hopeful wag.  Nobody with a soul could resist a pleading puppy.  “Come on, professor,” Ash gave the scientist a pathetic whine.  “It would mean the world to me.”

The professor looked straight down into Ash’s hypnotic eyes, sighed, and then reached forward to pat the Riolu on the head.  “Sorry, my boy.  My answer remains the same.”

Heart of ice!

Just then, Gary choose to enter the lab.  “Hey Gramps, we’re out of Pokémon feed-” his sentence trailed off when he saw Ash.  “When did we get a Riolu?”

For the first time, Ash was around Gary in his Riolu form.  For the first time, he could sense the boy’s aura.  The curiosity at the sight of a new Pokémon seemed on point.  Most people instantly perked up when the saw Ash a Riolu, a rare Pokémon even outside of Kanto.  What really stuck out to Ash was how the aura felt when Gary initially addressed the professor.  His aura was cloudy and dour.  The most prominent emotion was annoyance, like Gary didn’t even want to talk to his own grandpa.

You know what?  This also tracked.  The ungrateful brat was probably irritated that the professor dared to tell him to behave.  He probably felt he was owed a Pokémon journey while other kids weren’t even being given a chance!

“Oh, that’s not our Riolu,” Professor Oak quickly covered.  “This one belongs to another trainer.  I just asked it to help me move some items in the lab.”

Gary looked Ash up and down.  “Why is he wearing that Ketchup kid’s hat?”

Ash let out a small growl.  “My name is Ash.”

“Ah, yes.  Ash must have left his hat here earlier and the Riolu found it.  You know how some Pokémon get with hats.  They just see one and have to put it on!” Professor Oak nervously explained.

“Uh, huh,” Gary hummed.  He reached out to pet Ash.  “Hey boy, do you like scratches?”

Hands off!  Ash growled again, even louder this time.  Normally he’d be fine with humans petting him, but not this guy!  Seeing Gary’s hand dangling ever closer, Ash’s head shot out to bite him.

“Gary!”

Before Ash’s teeth could make contact with Gary’s hand, the professor’s arm shot out and yanked Gary back.  Panicked, Professor Oak grabbed Gary’s hand and immediately began aggressively inspecting it.  “Are you okay?  Did he bite you?”

Gary pulled his hand back from the professor and shot the old man a glare.  “I’m fine, thanks.”

The boy then shot Ash one last glance before unceremoniously exiting the room.

Ash’s tail began to tuck between his legs.  His tiny ears flattened against his head as he looked over at the professor.  The old man’s aura was going crazy.  It was practically boiling with anger and fear.  Underneath all that Ash could feel something else.  Something raw, primal.

Not one to shy away, Ash spoke up.  “Professor?”

The professor’s hands were shaking.  For a brief moment, Ash could have sworn he saw claws breaking through the nails.  Then, before Ash could get a closer look, the professor shoved his hands into his lab coat, grabbed a pill bottle, and practically ripped it open.  Once Professor Oak swallowed some of the contents, his hands stilled and his aura settled.

While the professor rubbed the side of his head as if he was nursing a headache, Ash cautiously approached.  “Professor?  I’m sorry, I-” Ash began.

“Ash,” Professor Oak spoke in an eerily calm, tired voice.  “Please go home.”

Tail now limp, Ash grabbed his backpack and headed out.  As he walked, tears began to prick at his eyes.  Since he was little Ash was given several rules to follow, chief amongst them was to not bite another human.  Today, he almost broke that rule and he had no excuse.  Yes, Gary had gotten on his nerves, but that was no reason to physically harm him.  Especially since the guy just lost his family.

To make matters worse, now the professor was mad at Ash.  If he had any hopes of taking on the gym challenge before, they were as good as gone now.

Tears now rolling down his face, Ash ambled home.  No energy nor joy emanated from the normally upbeat Riolu.  No reason to rush, it wasn’t like he had anywhere else to go.

AN: I was bitten by a Riolu once.  At first I was worried that it was a wereRiolu, but then I found out he just had rabies.  What a relief.

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features.  Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri.  Please support the official release.

Listening to as I hunt Bigfoot: In the Swamps Dark Center (Sly Cooper)

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Cryptid

To say it rained the next day would be an understatement.  To say it poured would not do the weather justice.  A better description would be to say that Kyogre somehow traded its fins for a pair of wings and flew all the way over to Pallet Town where it decided to soar around in circles for hours on end.

The rain was so thick that whenever Ash looked over at the window he was briefly convinced someone placed a waterfall just outside his house.  It was safe to say that nobody was going anywhere in that weather.  Not that Ash even felt like going outside to begin with.

Throughout the storm Ash kept replaying the events of the previous day in his head.  Gary’s Pokémon journey announcement, nearly biting Gary, the professor’s barley contained anger, as much as Ash tried to forget about it and move on, he just couldn’t put it out of his mind.  As a result Ash spent most of that evening sitting in his room, watching Pokémon League videos on his computer.

When Ash’s mother returned, she immediately knew something was off.  Initially she gave Ash some space when he kept quiet, but came a knocking the next morning.  The empathy she natural felt towards Ash as his mother multiplied when her body made its usual midnight switch from human to Lucario. 

Predictably, Delia wasn’t pleased when Ash confessed that he almost broke one of her most important rules: no biting humans.  However, through Ash’s aura she could feel that the boy was genuinely sorry for his actions.  As such Delia kept Ash’s punishment relatively light.  Ash was grounded from watching Pokémon League videos, playing video games, and card games until further notice.  Normally cutting Ash off from his favorite past times would have sent him into a frenzy, but oddly enough Ash couldn’t bring himself to care.  If anything it was kind of a relief to have his usual comforts taken away as at this point it felt like they were taunting him with a destiny he couldn’t obtain.

The somber atmosphere, not helped by the rain, lasted the rest of the day.  Delia tried to snap Ash out of his funk by inviting him to help her with some baking and family games, but the boy maintained his depressed demeanor.  When Pichu showed up the next day to ask if Ash could play, Delia practically threw Ash out the front door with the orders to have a wonderful day.  An order that was made a little more difficult thanks to the town’s new swampy terrain.

Thanks to the intense storm, Pallet Town and the surrounding areas were completely soaked.  There was a layer of moisture coding every inch of plant and earth drenching Ash’s feet with every step he took.  Said steps were accompanied by audible squishes and splashes as there was a puddle or plot of mud every few feet.  Even the air was wet creating a murky fog that caked the air.

With everything turned into a wet mess, Ash and Pichu decided to grab Ash’s fishing gear and head over to Route One.  While the heavy rain made most Pokémon and humans miserable, water Pokémon predictably enjoyed the boggy weather causing them to become more active.  And more likely to bite.

“Why are you so down?” Pichu asked from his vantage point atop Ash’s head.

Ash took a deep breath.  It was awkward enough explaining it to his mother, but he might as well get it over with and clue Pichu in.  “A new guy moved into town this last week, the professor’s grandson.  He’s been a real pain.  Making fun of me, skipping school, and he just seems to get rewarded for it.  I got mad and almost bit him.”

Pichu peaked down over the brim of Ash’s hat.  “That’s not a big deal.  You’re a dog.  Cats scratch, birds peck, electric types shock, and dogs bite.  Pokémon attack when irritated, nothing wrong there.”

“Maybe it’s not a big deal for wild Pokémon,” Ash explained as he readjusted the fishing rod on his shoulder.  “But giving a human a good bite could seriously injure them.  My mom is very strict about biting.”

Ever since Ash was little, his mother drilled into him to never bite humans.  He could bite his food, he could bite his toys, he could even playfully nibble other Pokémon.  But his teeth were forbidden from even so much as touching another human’s skin.  One time he began to playfully wrestle with one of the kids from town.  During that event he almost gnawed at the other boy’s leg out of reflex only to be yanked away by his mother.  She didn’t let him get close to other kids for a while after that.

Mirroring Ash’s frown, Pichu climbed down to his human friend’s shoulder.  “Well, we can’t change what happened.  Why don’t we just do some fishing?  It beats moping around.”

“I guess you’re right,” Ash concieded as the duo settled at the riverside.  Settling down on the least muddy section of the river, Ash cast the line and waited.

It didn’t take long for Ash to feel a tug at his line.  Sitting up, Ash pulled and reeled until a large, orange fish with yellow whiskers and yellow and white fines.  The fish, which was a Pokémon called Magikarp, flopped around on the line until its wide eyes spotted Ash and Pichu.

“Ah!  A fisherman!” exclaimed the Magikarp.  “You may have tricked me with a juicy worm this time, but I won’t fall for your tomfoolery again!”

The Magikarp then let go of the hook and dropped back into the water.  Ash and Pichu shared a mischievous smirk before grabbing another worm for the hook and recasting the line.  They successfully hooked the same Magikarp.

“You got me again!” exclaimed the Magikarp.

Both Ash and Pichu burst out laughing.  Before the Magikarp could once again flop back into the water, Ash heard a familiar voice come from the other river.  “Chill, it’s just a Magikarp”

Gary!  There was no escaping this guy!  In addition to his usual wardrobe, the boy was wearing a long sleeved, black jacket and had a pair of head phones around his neck.  Judging by the pole his was carrying, Gary was also out to do some fishing.

Spotting Ash’s glare, Pichu leaned over to Ash’s ear.  “Is that the guy?”

“Yep,” Ash muttered.

“Is that your Pichu?” Gary’s voice snapped Ash out of his conversation.

“No, he’s just a friend,” Ash answered.  After their last interaction, Ash was determined to have nothing to do with Gary.  “Could you go away?  This is our fishing spot.”

“Your fishing spot, huh?” Gary replied with a hint of mockery in his tone.  He then sat down on a nearby rock and cast his own rod.

A low growl emitted from Ash’s throat.  He cut it off when he felt a nudge from Pichu.  “Ignore him.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Ash muttered turning his attention back to the river.

“You say something?” Gary called out.

“I said yeah!  Go ahead and fish here.  I don’t care!” Ash called back.

Shrugging, Gary placed his headphones over his ears and began attending to his own rod.

“If he bothers you so much, maybe we should just go to a different spot,” Pichu suggested.

Ash scowled.  “No way!  I was here first!”

“Oh brother,” Pichu sighed.

The three sat in silence for a good long while until Ash felt a tug on his line.  Ash gave it a firm yank, but whatever was on the other end pulled back harder.  So Ash gave an even firmer yank.  In response the line pulled back even harder.

Standing up, Ash gripped the rod and continued to pull.  He moved and shuffled around in an attempt to get a better vantage point.  It was as Ash moved around that he caught sight of Gary.  The Oak boy seemed to also have a bite and was tugging at his line in the opposite direction off Ash.  Catching Ash’s eye, Gary yanked his poll.  As the other boy yanked, Ash’s line gave a powerful tug.

“Your line’s interfering with my catch!” Gary called over to Ash.  “Let go!”

“You let go!” Ash fired back, pulling at his own line.

From his spot on Ash’s shoulder, Pichu watched the dueling fishing lines with a glazed over expression.  “You know, you guys might just be fighting over trash.”

“Not now, Pichu,” Ash said as he continued to pull at his line.

The pair of boys continued to fuss and fight over their lines.  As their game of tug of war went on, they found themselves moving down the river bank and near a bridge.  Finally, Ash put all his power into one final pull.  Though he was not in his Riolu form, Ash was still a very physically fit kid and his superior strength won out causing Gary’s line to snap.

The force of the snap resulted in Ash to falling backwards.  His rod slipped out of his hand and went flying back into the tree line bringing his catch along with it.  Ash didn’t get a good look at what it was that tangled the lines, but whatever it was gave a small glint before disappearing into the foliage.

“What was that?” Ash wondered out loud.

Gary, meanwhile, ran across the bridge and past Ash.  “I’ll find out!” he called over his shoulder.

“Hey!” Ash shouted.  He immediately scrambled to his feet, almost dropping Pichu in the process, and gave chase.

Even though Gary had a head start, Ash was fast.  He was able to catch up to Gary just as the other boy was about beat him to the lost rod.  Right before Gary could reach down to pick up the item the rod hooked, Ash leapt forward and pounced on Gary sending both boys tumbling forward.

TWING!

The boys landed in a section of the woods that had a suspiciously numerus amount of leaves on the ground.  The second their bodies made contact with the leaves a massive net encircled the group and hauled them upwards.

“What the-”

“Ow!”

“Hey!  Get your foot out of my face!”

“Stop poking me with your elbow!”

“Pi!  Pichu!”

After a fair bit of kicking, squirming, and several electrical zaps, the three captives had managed to untangle themselves.  Ash and Pichu were taking up half the net while Gary leaned up against his side.

“Who put this net here?” Gary asked in annoyance.

“No idea,” Ash responded.  He turned his upper body to get a better look at the net.  The ropes were thick and sturdy.  Whoever laid this trap was after something big.  “Can you chew through this, Pichu?”

The little mouse leaned forward and gave the rope a quick sniff.  “I think I can, but it’ll take a bit.”

Pichu then squeezed himself out of the net and climbed until he reached the main rope suspending the trap.  While the little rodent went to work gnawing at the rope, Ash turned his attention back to Gary.

“So,” Ash said slowly.  “What was on the lines?”

Rolling his eyes, Gary tossed a small object to Ash.  “Here.  You can keep it if you want it so bad.”

“You were chasing after it too,” Ash grumbled as he caught the object.  Looking down Ash found that the object that tangled their lines was a Poke ball.  The ball was tiny, indicating it was disarmed when it was lost.  Its shell was covered in scratches and rust, making it clear that the ball was now nothing more than a useless husk of metal.

“A broken, old Poke ball?” Ash said.

“Told you it would be trash!” Pichu called down in a teasing tone.

“You don’t have to rub it in!” Ash shouted back up to his friend.  “No need to be so high and mighty about it!”

“I’m the one who has to get you two out of this mess,” Pichu mocked.  “I’ll be as high and mighty as I want!”

“Shut up and chew,” Ash muttered.

From across the net, Gary looked at Ash like he was a crazy person.  “Why are you talking with your Pokémon?”

“Okay, one, I told you earlier Pichu’s not my Pokémon.  He’s just my friend,” Ash huffed.  “Two, trainers talk with their Pokémon all the time.”

“There’s a difference between saying a sentence or two to a Pokémon and pretending to have full on conversations with them,” Gary said pointedly.

Ash was about to respond when he heard the voice of a man.  “Over here!  There’s something in this trap!”

Another voice, this one female, joined in.  “It must be the Route One Monster!  Time for a promotion!”

“Told ya twos coverin’ the forest with traps was a good idea!” came in a third voice.

SNAP!

It was at this moment that Pichu finished chewing through the main rope causing the net and its captives to fall to the forest floor.  Pichu quickly scurried down the trunk of the tree and to Ash’s side.  Groaning, Ash slowly got to his feet.  When he stood, he was met with the sight of three people wearing trench coats, sunglasses, and fedoras.

The first of the trio was a woman with long, magenta hair sticking out from under her hat.  She regarded Ash and Gary with an annoyed scowl.  “That’s no Route One Monster,” she said with a click of her tongue.  “It’s just a couple of twerps.”

Coming up next to the woman was a man with blue hair.  He bent down to inspect the ropes of the net.  “My hands still hurt from weaving together all those nets,” he scowled at Ash.  “You have some nerve ruining all that hard work!”

Ash glowered at the man.  “It wasn’t like we were trying to get caught in your net!  Why do you even have a net here anyway?  Just who do you think you guys are?”

At Ash’s question, the woman smirked.  “You want to know who we are?  Well then, you better prepare for trouble.”

Right as the woman finished her sentence the man stood tall.  “And you should make it double.”

For a moment it sounded like the pair was ready to recite…something.  But before they could continue the third member of their group, a very short man, leapt in the air and began clawing at their faces.  “Shut up!  Shut up!”

Had there been music starting up as the two made their introduction, this would be the part with a record scratch.

While the other trench coated humans whined and nursed their faces, the short human turned to face Ash.  This man seemed to have some kind of dwarfism judging by the size.  He was so short that even a kid like Ash towered over him.  What’s more he had an abnormal amount of hair on his round face making it look like he was covered in cream colored fur and whiskers.  There was also a faint feline smell whiffing from him.  Poor guy must get a lot of stares.

The short man spoke with a fanged mouth.  “Please ignore my associates,” he said in a thick city accent.  “Dey have a tendency to get theatrical if you know what I mean.”

The woman sniffed and turned her attention towards Ash and Pichu.  “Rude interruptions aside, it looks like someone chewed straight through our net!”

From his spot next to Ash’s legs, Pichu’s eyes darted back and forth.  Seeing that everyone was looking at him, Pichu awkwardly stepped back behind Ash’s leg.

“Well, well.  That’s a guilty look if I’d ever seen one,” smirked the woman.  She then shifted her gaze toward Ash.  “Seeing as how your Pichu chomped our ropes, you should pay for the damages.  Or else.”

Ash opened his mouth to argue, but was cut off by Gary.  “Or else what?  You’ll call the police on us?  Actually, that sounds like a good idea.”

As soon as Gary finished that thought, his hand slipped into the pocket of his jacket and took out a device.  “If you’d like, I can call up the police and they can help us sort out this rope deal.  And while we’re at it, you guys can explain to them why you set up the trap to begin with.  I’m assuming you have the proper license for this kind of thing.”

The trio of trappers stiffened at the mention of the cops.

“License?” asked the blue haired man weakly.

“Well, yeah.  Setting up Pokémon traps without a license would be pretty bad.  That and I think we may have been injured when YOUR net snagged us helpless bystanders,” Gary began pressing some buttons on the screen’s surface.  “I’m also assuming you have legal clearance to place all those other traps scattered around these woods you mentioned earlier, right?”

The trio began to sweat bullets.  The short man spoke up again, this time in a more nervous tone.  “Der’s no need to bring the local authorities into this.  It’s just a little misunderstandin’.”

Gary brought his phone up to his ear.  “Hello?  Officer Jenny?”

That made the trio jump in the air.  They began running around the clearing in panic, grabbing the net and any other piece of equipment they left behind for the trap.  The three then jetted out of the clearing yelling something about going to clean up the rest of the evidence.

Smirking, Gary pocked his phone and started walking away.

“Uh,” Ash said slowly.  “Shouldn’t we stay and wait for the police?”

“The police aren’t coming,” Gary replied.  He took his phone back out.  “This isn’t a phone.  It’s just plays music for my headset.”

As the other boy walked away, Ash and Pichu shared a quick look.  Ash then scooped Pichu up and proceeded to follow Gary.  “Hey!  Gary!”

“Hmm?” Gary stopped and looked over at Ash.

“Thanks for scaring those guys off,” Ash said as he caught up.

“It was no big deal,” Gary smirked.  He tried to sound modest, but Ash could hear the usual smugness creep into his voice.  “Like I was going to let a bunch of dumb weirdos get away with netting me.”

Gary continued to walk off.  “Route One Monster,” he scoffed.

“The Route One Monster hunters do seem to keep getting crazier,” Ash agreed.  At least once a month there were some group of cryptid hunters that would visit the area in an attempt to get a glimpse of now infamous monster.  These groups ranged from small time UFO enthusiasts to teams from famous monster hunting shows.  Ash’s pack was fairly familiar with the latter as their TV teams would usually pop into his mother’s diner for a meal and a strategy session.  The TV crews would also try to interview Professor Oak for any insight, though much to their disappointment the professor would always tell whoever asked that the monster was probably just a misidentified Pokémon.

“I don’t know,” Pichu said as he climbed from Ash’s arms to his shoulder.  “I don’t think anyone’s going to top those guys who tried to dump blended festival food around the woods.”

Ash’s statement caught Gary’s attention.  “You know about this monster?”

“Pretty much everyone in Pallet Town knows about it,” Ash responded.  “Almost ten years ago a large fire type Pokémon showed up to a festival that was being held on Route One.  The Pokémon went on a rampage burning down the festival and killing humans and Pokémon alike.”

“What did the Pokémon look like,” Gary asked.  Surprisingly, he didn’t give off a hint of insult or sarcasm as he spoke.  He actually sounded curious.

“Most versions of the story say the monster was a canine,” Ash explained.  “From there, nobody really agrees exactly what it looked like.  Some people say it stood on four legs, some say two.  Some say it had a crocked jaw that constantly spat fire.  Other people say it had spikes covering its arms.”

“I’m guessing nobody captured it?” Gary asked.  A reasonable assumption.  If someone captured the creature, then people would defiantly know what it looked like.

“Actually I think they did, but it escaped,” Ash said.

“And nobody took a picture or registered it to their Pokédex?” Gary probed skeptically.

“I think it was taken to a Pokémon Center, but the security cameras were undergoing maintenance that day,” Ash said slowly.  When you said it out loud, it did sound fishy.  “Scary Stacey says that some people believe the camera maintenance was just a cover story.  They think someone from the Pokémon League pulled the footage.”

Gary looked confused.  “Scary Stacy?”

“She’s the girl who sits in the back with the ghost hoodie,” Ash explained.  Gary should know who Scary Stacy was.  Ash was pretty sure that the girl tried to slip Gary a love potion last week.  Or maybe it was poison.  It was hard to tell with that girl.

“Oh, that one,” Gary hummed.  He fell silent for a moment before addressing Ash again.  “Do you know where the festival was held?”

Ash blinked.  “Why?”

“I want to check it out,” Gary replied.  Ash could almost hear the “duh” at the end.

“What for?” Ash asked incredulously.  He squinted his eyes.  “You’re not going to try look for the monster are you?  You do know it doesn’t exist, right?”

“Of course I don’t believe it exists,” Gary laughed.  “A Pokémon that destructive would have showed up more often.  I just want to see the spot where this festival took place.”

Ash thought over Gary’s request.  The site of the attack was just a short hike away.  His mother wasn’t expecting him back until later, so time wasn’t an issue.  Plus, the Pokémon on Route One were fairly harmless.  Well, except for one Pokémon but so long as they steered clear of her territory they should be fine.  Ash looked over at Pichu.  The mouse caught his eye and gave a little shrug.

And just like that, Ash found himself on a hike with Gary.  Given the events from the previous week, Ash would have expected this adventure to be a painful babysitting mission, looking after the professor’s smart-mouthed grandson.  As it turned out, the most difficult part of the hike was navigating the soggy terrain.  Maybe it was because it was because Gary had more time to settle in or perhaps it was because they were doing something Gary was mildly interested in, but Ash found himself meshing a lot better with the new kid.

Throughout the trek to the fairgrounds, Ash and Gary were actually able to have some civil conversations.  They talked about Pokémon battles.

“Did you catch that match between Lance and Steven?” Ash asked.  Lance was the new champion of Kanto and Johto.  He was supposedly from the Ice Mountains that ran along the border between the two regions, though it was hard to say for certain.  Not much was known about the man aside from his preference for dragon and dragon-like Pokémon.

“Of course I did.  That’s probably going to be his only match for the year,” Gary replied, using a large stick to push away some of the tall grass.

“What do you mean?” Ash asked in confusion.  Champions, elite fours, and other professional trainers did exhibition matches all the time.

“Haven’t you heard?  The guy’s hard to schedule,” Gary said as he swatted at another thicket of grass, causing a Pidgey to fly away.  “He’s a prima dana.  He’ll only make a televised appearance if the people filming him use a special digital camera and he won’t allow live audiences.”

“That is weird,” Ash agreed.  “It was still a good match though.”

“Oh, no question about that.  The guy’s got skills,” Gary nodded.  “But that’s just going to make it all the more satisfying once I take him down.”

“You think you’re going to take on a champion?” Ash asked dubiously.

“Why not?” Gary smirked.  “Half of his team has a glaring ice weakness.  I just need to find a Pokémon who can deal ice damage and tank his dragons’ attacks and that champion title will be as good as mine.  Besides…”

Gary turned around and gave Ash a challenging grin.  “Don’t tell me you haven’t even thought about challenging him to a battle.”

Even though Ash didn’t respond to Gary’s jab, internally he had to admit yes.  Yes he had daydreamed on so many occasions on taking on the dragon master and the rest of the champions.  It hurt to think about it given his current situation, but he wanted it so bad.

After discussing some other match ups they talked about Pichu.

“So you hang out with a Pichu, but you haven’t caught it,” Gary asked looking at how well behaved and tamed the wild Pokémon was.

“Pretty much,” Ash affirmed.  He then held up a few fingers clumped together towards the mouse.  Not missing a beat, Pichu leaned forward and high-fived the fingers with one of his tiny palms.  “We met when Pichu and his sister were attacked by a Nidorina.  I saved them!”

“After I softened her up for you,” Pichu scoffed.

“How did you deal with the Nidorina?” Gary asked.  “You don’t have a Pokémon, do you?”

“Uh no,” Ash’s mind rushed to come up with an explanation that omitted him fighting the Nidorina in the body of Riolu.  “My mom bribed it with some sandwiches.”

“Technically true,” Pichu said with a nod.

Luckily Gary accepted the simple explanation and left the story at that.  The conversation then moved on to Gary’s Pokémon journey.

“I’m thinking of taking Squirtle,” Gary declared.  “If I can get it to evolve into a Blastoise I’ll have a party member who can tank hits and hit back even harder.”

“I’d just go with Squirtle because the Squirtles at the lab are always fun to hang out with,” Ash admitted.  “It would also be pretty cool to go with a Pokémon who can help you out in a water fight.”

“That’s a good reason too,” Gary agreed.  “So what would be your back up choice?  Because I’d go with Charmander.”

“I mean, Charmanders are cool, but you should probably know that the nearest gyms use rock and water types,” Ash warned.  “You’d be better off with a Bulbasaur.”

“That doesn’t matter.  I’m so good that I can work with any handicap,” Gary bragged.  “I’ll tell you what, on the off chance you beat me to the starters, my Charmander will defeat your Squirtle in our first official battle.”

A premature declaration of victory against him should have gotten Ash fired up.  Instead he just felt somber.  “I’m not going on a Pokémon journey.”

That statement earned Ash a droopy eared look of sadness from Pichu and a questioning glance from Gary.

“Why?” Gary asked.

“My mom is worried that I’ll run into trouble or something,” Ash lamented.  “And Professor Oak’s not going to give me a sponsorship without her permission.”

“Sorry, Ash,” Pichu said sadly.  In response Ash gave his friend a small smile and scratched the mouse’s chin.

“Then don’t ask for permission,” Gary suggested.  “Sneak out when your mom’s not looking.”

Ash froze at the suggestion.  Sure he wanted to go on a Pokémon journey and it was looking like there was no way to do it by the book, but to go behind his mother’s back?  That just felt too cloak and dagger for Ash’s tastes.  Besides, Ash could think of several problems off the top of his head.  “What about supplies?  Or a starter Pokémon?”

“A starter Pokémon’s easy.  All you need is an empty Poke ball.  Just toss it at low level Pokémon and boom.  Starter.  Heck, you could probably use it on your Pichu friend since he already likes you,” Gary explained.  “As for supplies, just check to see if you have any loose change around the house and use it as a starting fund.  Do some foraging and some odd jobs on the road and you should be fine.”

While Gary explained Ash’s new option, Ash felt his heart race.  He had been trying for a long time to convince his mother to let him go on a journey and at least see the rest of Kanto, but was met with a no at every turn.  Given that pretty any trainer who came through Pallet Town got their starter and sponsorship from Professor Oak, Ash never considered another option.  “What about the league?  The Indigo Plateau needs parent’s permission for kids.”

“Go somewhere else,” Gary said with a sly smile.  “There are other leagues out there and some of them don’t even ask for parents’ permission in their paperwork.”

A war raged within Ash.  If he took Gary’s idea, then he would basically be stealing from his mother and running away from home.  On the other hand, he tried to play by her rules and was getting nothing.

“Ash!” Pichu’s squeaky voice sounded surprisingly firm.  “Don’t do it!  I know you want to go on an adventure, but you shouldn’t do it by back stabbing your pack in the back.  They love you!”

Pichu’s words caused Ash’s shoulders to slump.  Now he felt like a huge jerk for even considering Gary’s idea.  Ash looked over at the other boy.  “Thanks, Gary.  But Mom and Professor Oak care about me and I don’t want to betray them.”

Ash half expected Gary to laugh and make fun of him for being such a sap, but was surprised when the boy’s face darkened into a scowl.  “Maybe your mom cares, but don’t be fooled by Gramps.  He couldn't care less.”

With that statement, Gary continued down the trail.  Ash stood in a stunned silence at the amount of venom in the boy’s voice.  Jogging forward, Ash spoke to Gary.  “What do you mean?”

“Gramps is just following the parent’s permission rule.  I doubt he cares about any of the kids he sponsors.  He just wants them to go out and gather data for his dumb job,” Gary spat.

Okay, that defiantly didn’t sound right.  Thanks to aura, Ash’s Riolu form was pretty good at telling whether people were being genuine or not.  During his time volunteering at the lab, Ash witnessed the professor interact with a whole bunch of trainers.  Whether it was happiness for a trainer for winning a competition or concern for a kid that was about to head into a dangerous area, Ash could sense that Professor Oak was a very genuine man.

“That’s not true.  I’ve known the professor my entire life.  He’s a really caring person who tries to help both humans and Pokémon,” Ash said.  As Ash spoke he remembered the fear Professor Oak felt when Ash almost bit Gary.  “I also know he really cares about you.”

Gary’s anger spiked so high that Ash could even sense it in his human form.  Ash could practically feel the boy glare daggers into Ash.  “Then where was he when my family were on their death beds?!”

Caught off guard Ash froze.  Suddenly, the annoyance Ash felt in Gary’s aura when he spoke to the professor the other day made sense.  Gary wasn’t mad at his grandfather for scolding him about skipping school, his anger went even deeper.

With no response from Ash, Gary continued.  “I was stuck in that hospital for days.  Hoping everything would turn out alright.  While I was there I saw a whole slew of people come in and visit their families.  There was even this one guy, who everyone said was a workaholic, which came by every day to check on his daughter.  Meanwhile my grandfather doesn’t even show up to the funeral!”

As Gary spoke his eyes began to water.  “He then comes by later, takes me in, and tries to pretend everything’s hunky dory.  Offers to give me a starter Pokémon so I can go to the Indigo League, like that’s going make everything better!”

Seeing the sympathetic look on Ash’s face, Gary marched ahead.  Ash could see his arm move up, probably in an attempt to discreetly wipe away the tears.  “But you know what?  That’s fine.  I’ll just take what I need and go.”

While Gary went on ahead, Ash’s mind raced.  He knew it wasn’t true.  He felt the professor’s love for his family first hand.  The scientist even took time off, something he almost never did, to grieve for his family’s passing.  Which begged the question: why didn’t the professor go to visit his family in their hour of need?

With the mysterious trio

After that tattletale twerp went and called the cops, the trio of trappers got straight to work removing their nets.  You can’t arrest someone if you can’t find evidence of a crime!  Normally the trappers would retreat, but they had orders from their boss to search the area for any signs of the Route One Monster.  Given that the three were on thin ice with their boss for more than a few previous mess ups, they dared not return to headquarters without the mysterious Pokémon.

“Trap number twenty-five,” sighed the blue haired man as he disarmed the net.  “Still no monster.”

Scowling, the woman turned to the shortest member of their group.  “This is all your fault!”

“My fault?!” balked the short, furry man.

“Yes, your fault,” the woman cross her arms.  “You’re a Pokémon.  Why don’t you just ask the local wildlife where the monster is so we can get out of this dingy dump of a forest?”

Scowling, the short man removed his hat and sunglasses revealing a pair of black triangular ears, large slit eyes, and a golden koban in the middle of his forehead.  A cream and brown colored tail with a curled end slithered out of his pants confirming that this man was indeed a Pokémon.  A feline species called Meowth.

“For your information, I had been talkin’ with the local Pokémon,” Meowth hissed.  “Whenever I asked dem about dat monster dey just tell me to look out for a Lucario and Leafeon.”

“A Lucario and a Leafeon?” questioned the blue haired man.  “But the reports said the Route One Monster set a festival on fire.  Neither of those Pokémon are fire types.”

“Dat’s what I’m sayin’!” exclaimed Meowth.  “And any time I press dem for more info dey tell me to leave before I cause trouble.”

“Humph.  As far as I’m concerned these freak-outs just confirm that there’s something lurking around here,” sniffed the woman.

“Hey look!” exclaimed the blue haired man.  “There’s something in that trap!”

The woman and Meowth looked over to where the man was pointing to see that yes.  There was something squirming around in the trap down by the river.  Excited, the trio hurried over to open up the Net.  It was only when they opened the trap that they realized they only got the creature’s head.  As the rest of the body rose, the Pokémon glared down at the trio.

Back with Ash, Gary and Pichu

Their hike concluded, Ash, Gary, and Pichu successfully arrived at the old fairgrounds.  Despite the wild events that happened almost a decade ago, the wide field looked perfectly peaceful.  Wet and quaggy like the rest of the route, but peaceful nonetheless.

“Well, this is unspectacular,” Gary remarked.

“I don’t know what you were expecting,” Ash said dryly.  “The attack happened forever ago.”

“I know,” Gary sighed as he walked around the site.  “But that monster was the only thing that was kind of exciting about this backwater town.”

“Hey!  This place isn’t that bad!” Ash argued.

“This backwater town is our home!” Pichu said in agreement.

“Sorry, sorry,” Gary responded with a shrug.  “I was just hoping for some excitement.  Is that too much to ask?”

Just then, the three trappers from earlier came barreling right past the group of kids screaming.  Wait a minute, was that short man a Meowth?  That couldn’t be right.  Pokémon can’t speak human.

“What was that about?” Pichu asked.

“GRAAAAH!”

Pichu just had to ask.

Turning their attention to the direction the trio was running from, the kids saw a massive outline come slithering out from the fog.  Towering above the group was a blue sea serpent with a cream colored underbelly.  A series of pronged spikes ran down the beast’s back ending in a wide fin at the base of the tail.  The monster’s face was framed by a pair of short, white fines, a pair of long whiskers, and had a trident crest resting just above the eyes created a permanent glare.  The sea serpent, known as a Gyarados, opened its wide fanged mouth and roared.

Ash felt his insides clinch.  It was common knowledge to the local populace to steer clear of the deepest parts of the river as a Gyarados had made it her home in recent years.  Judging by the pieces of net caught on the spike closest to her head, the trappers either didn’t see or flat out ignored all the warning signs that decked out the area.

Gyarados glared down at the boys.  “What do we have here?” she hissed.  “More trespassers?”

“Leave them alone!” Pichu shouted up to Gyarados.  “These humans aren’t the one who set up all the nets around here!”

“I don’t care!  I’m done with humans constantly coming into my territory to catch Pokémon or look for a diseased dog!” Gyarados snarled.  Her eyes narrowed as she stared down at Ash and Gary.  “Maybe people will finally get the message if I give them a couple of examples of what happens to invaders.”

With that, the blue and purple flames began to build in the Gyarados’s mouth.

“Run!” Ash shouted to Gary.

The other boy didn’t need to be told twice.  He bolted right before the Gyarados fired a stream of fire down at the humans below.  The first Dragon Rage missed.  The second and third were too close for comfort.  By the time the fourth bout of flames blasted apart the ground, Ash decided he had enough.

“You want a fight, fine!” Ash began growling.  Not only were he and Gary blameless, but this Gyarados was also ripping apart the surrounding environment.  They were lucky it rained as hard as it did or else all these Dragon Rage attacks would have started a field fire or even a forest fire.  Not that the Gyarados seemed to care, her kind were infamous for their temper.  “Ready, Pichu?”

“Ready!” Pichu chirped as he hopped on top of Ash’s head.  Though he couldn’t see the mouse, Ash could feel the electricity in the air spike as Pichu’s cheeks began to release small bolts of lightning.

“What are you?! Stupid?!” before Pichu could unleash any kind of attack, Gary slammed into the pair stopping the attack.  The trio then scrambled to their feet and ran into the trees before the Gyarados could unleash another attack.

The three ran through the trees for a bit before Ash spotted a ledge.  Grabbing Gary, Ash dragged the other boy over the ledge and huddled up against the side.  The group squatted silently, waiting.  After what felt like an eternity, they heard the slithering of a massive body passing by.  They waited for a while after they heard the serpent pass before getting up and heading back to town.

“What was that about?” Ash snapped now that he was sure the lake monster was out of ear shot.  “Why did you attack us when we were trying to save you?”

“Because you were about to use an electric attack!” Gary fired back.

“Uh, yeah.  Gyarados is a water and flying type,” Ash argued.  “Electricity is super effective.”

“Duh,” Pichu agreed.

Gary just gave Ash an annoyed glare.  “Do you know why electricity is strong against water types?”

“Water conducts electricity?” Ash answered, not sure where Gary was going with this.

“And what are we surrounded by?” Gary’s hand motioned to the ground.

Ash looked down to see that the forest, just like the field, was a minefield of puddles.  Puddles of water.  Realization struck.  If Pichu fired off his Thundershock, he wouldn’t just be shocking Gyarados.  He may have electrocuted everyone else.

“Oh!” both Ash and Pichu chorused.

“Let’s just go home,” Gary sighed.

Even though all three hikers were eager return to safety, they all knew that so long as an angry Gyarados was on the loose they had to be vigilant.  Pichu took point atop of Ash’s head with his sensitive ears perked.  This choice of look out paid off when Pichu jumped down to Ash’s shoulder.

“I think I hear her up ahead,” Pichu whispered.

Nodding, Ash grabbed Gary.  Before the other boy could say anything, Ash held up a finger to his mouth in the quiet gesture.  Immediately the other boy shut his mouth and just in time.  The pair could see Gyarados swimming in a small pond just beyond the next tree line.

Ducking behind some nearby trunks, Ash, Gary, and Pichu peered around at the snake.  She probably guessed they would be coming this way and decided to cut them off.  For a second, Ash considered just walking away and finding a longer, safer route, away from the murderous water type.

Unfortunately, Ash’s plan immediately failed when he tried to take a step.  His foot landed atop a large, moist clump of grass which release a very audible squish.  Hissing, the Gyarados’s head swerved over to where the boys were hiding and she began to swim over.

Catching this, Gary reached down and grabbed a rock.  He quickly turned around and gave the rock a good toss.  The rock hit the water a good distance away creating a loud splash.  The Gyarados gave the tree line one last look before swimming towards the splash and sinking into the water.

With one way blocked off by noisy foliage, Ash and his group carefully made their way to a more sturdy, and dry looking strip of land that lead around the lake.  The group attempted to quietly sneak over and…where did Gyarados go?

“GYRAAAA!” Gyarados roared as she rose back from the water, closer to the area Ash and company were at.  The serpent glared down at the boys.

“Did you really think I would fall for such an obvious trick?!” snarled the Gyarados.  She then raised her tail and summoned a vortex of water around it.  The Aqua Tail attack slammed down on the ground sending Ash and his friends flying in different directions.

Thanks to his years of practice fighting and scampering around the town, Ash was able to catch himself and land on his feet in a hunched over, almost bestial motion.  Gary wasn’t so lucky and was sent flying into a tree where he fell down limp, knocked out.  And as for Pichu…

“AHHHH!” screamed the mouse, now trapped in the coils of the Gyarados.

“Pichu!” Ash cried out for his friend.

On reflex, sparks flew from Pichu’s checks.  “Thunder-AH!”

Seeing her prey was firing up an electric attack, Gyarados squeezed harder cutting off Pichu’s air thus choking the mouse and stopping the attack.  Watching Gyarados effectively torture Pichu, Ash’s mind began to race.

A couple years back

Being as young as he was, Ash wasn’t ever assigned anything too dangerous when hanging out at Professor Oak’s research laboratory.  Most of the time it was doing household chores or taking inventory.  Boring.

The fun jobs came when Ash was asked to interact with the Pokémon on the reserve.  Feeding, grooming, interviewing, it was always a blast to meet and play with the trainer owned Pokémon.  By now Ash was fairly familiar with almost every species found in the Kanto region, which made tasks with foreign Pokémon extra exciting.

Ash, in his Riolu form, scampered circles around Professor Oak.  “What are we doing today?” he barked.

“Save your energy, Ash.  You’ll be needing it for this next assignment,” chuckled the Leafeon.  “As for which Pokémon we are meeting, I found a message this morning from a trainer who is currently competing in the Galar League.  He requested one of the Pokémon he’s keeping at the lab for an upcoming battle.”

“And you need me to help find the Pokémon?” Ash asked as galloped to the professor’s side.

“What I need you to do is,” the professor began to explain before he caught a scent.  He raised his nose to give a couple of confirming sniffs.  “Ah!  Here she is!”

Following the professor’s line of sight, Ash spotted a Pokémon he only saw once or twice while running around in the fields but never really had a chance to investigate.  This Pokémon was humanoid in shape and was around the same height as Ash’s mother’s Lucario form.  However this Pokémon wasn’t a canine.  It was a rabbit.

The rabbit’s lower body was covered in orange fur with a blue waistline and golden fluff just above the knees making the rabbit look like she was wearing shorts.  Adding to the rabbit’s athletic appearance were her blue lower legs and orange toes which resembled the high socks soccer players wear to cover their shin guards.

As for the rabbit’s upper body, it was mostly white save for some stripes of blue around the shoulders.  The rabbit’s ears stood tall with a golden inner ear and a golden, trident crest above the eyes.  Between the ears was a short mane of orange fur.

The rabbit’s ears perked when she spotted the Professor.  She raised a paw and waved.  “Good morning, Professor!”

Professor Oak trotted forward.  “And good morning to you, Cinderace!  I was just looking for you.  It seems your trainer gave us a call last night.  He’ll be needing you for his team soon.”

“Oh, I’d love to help. But,” Cinderace’s bright smile fell as she looked at the bushes behind her.  “My paws are kind of tied at the moment.”

“Mommy!  Mommy!” squeaked the voice of a little boy.  “Look what I found!”

A small, white bunny with orange tipped ears and feet came charging out of the bushes.  Across its nose was a rectangular, yellow patch and in its paws was a decent sized pebble.

The bunny ran up to Cinderace and proudly held up the pebble.  “I found the perfect rock to start practicing with!” he announced.  The bunny then tossed the pebble in the air.  When it came down he kicked it back up.  He continued these motions, kicking and punting the pebble around like a hacky sack.

“Good job, Scorbunny!” Cinderace said, beaming down at her son.  She then turned towards Professor Oak.  “As you can see, my kid is growing up fast.  But, I feel it’s a bit too early to leave him alone.”

“That shouldn’t be a problem,” Oak responded.  “Dragonite is currently running an errand for me, but he’ll be free to babysit your son when he returns.  Until then, I’m sure Ash will be willing to look after Scorbunny.”

Ash eagerly nodded.  “I promise to take good care of Scorbunny, Cinderace!”

Cinderace looked down at Ash and considered him for a moment.  She then put her hands on her hips and smiled.  “You look like an energetic lad.  Alright, I’ll trust my boy to you.  Scorbunny!  Come here!”

Scorbunny paused his game and dutifully looked up at his mother.  Now that she had her kit’s full attention, Cinderace motioned to the Ash and Oak.  “I’m going out of town for a bit.  Mr. Dragonite is going to look after you while I’m gone.  Until then, Ash is going to play with you.  I expect you to be on your best behavior.  Am I understood?”

Scorbunny’s eyes squinted as he studied the two new Pokémon.  He pointed at Professor Oak.  “You’re that old Leafeon, aren’t you?”

Though Ash could feel a spark of embarrassment from the professor, the Leafeon just chuckled at Scorbunny’s observation.  “I wouldn’t say I’m that old.”

Scorbunny shook his head.  “Everyone says that you’re part human and humans live longer than rabbits.  That must make you super old!”

“Scorbunny!  We don’t go around calling people old!” Cinderace scolded her son.

“Even if they’re really old?” Scorbunny innocently asked.  “Wouldn’t that be lying?”

“It doesn’t matter if it’s true.  It’s rude!” Cinderace looked back over at Oak.  “I’m so sorry…Professor?”

The Leafeon was currently sitting to the side, back to the group and head bowed.  His ears, tail, and every miscellaneous leaf on its body were flopped down.  Ash could swear that he saw a dark cloud hanging over the professor’s head.

“For a species known for their kicks, you sure don’t pull your punches,” sulked Professor Oak.

“Uh, shall we got the transporter?” Cinderace asked clearly looking to change the subject.

Remembering his job, Professor Oak perked up.  “Ah, yes.  Right this way.”

Before the pair left, Cinderace waved to Scorbunny.  “Good-bye, Scorbunny!”

“Bye, Mommy!” Scorbunny said, waving both of his front paws.

Ash decided this was a good time to introduce himself to the little rabbit.  “Nice to meet you, Scorbunny.  My name is Ash.  Do you want to play a game?  I’m up for whatever you want.”

Scorbunny’s paw moved to his chin as he thought.  Finally, he darted forward and tapped one of Ash’s legs.  “Tag!  You’re it!”

With that, Scorbunny began darting across the field.  Ash, every bit as energetic as the rabbit, gave chase.  When it looked like Ash was about to catch up to Scorbunny, the rabbit’s outline glowed with a dim, white light.  Recognizing this as a Quick Attack, Ash began activating his own Quick Attack to continue his pursuit.  Unlike before, Ash couldn’t keep up with Scorbunny.

Noticing his playmate falling behind, Scorbunny stopped running.  “Why are your dragging your feet?”

“I’m not dragging my feet!” Ash barked.  He came to a stop right in front of Scorbunny.  “I’m just not as fast as you.”

“You should use Quick Attack,” suggested Scorbunny.

“I was using Quick Attack.  Watch,” Ash’s form emitted a low, white glow.

Scorbunny looked Ash up and down with a pout.  “You’re not doing it right!  Here, watch!”

Once again Scorbunny’s body began to glow.  He hopped up and down and began kicking the air.  “My mommy says that if you want to use Quick Attack to its fullest you’ve got to focus most of your power into your feet!”

“My feet?” Ash looked down at his hind paws.   His mother never really taught him how to fight, probably because she was a chef and restaurant manager by trade instead of a battler.  Most of what Ash knew either came from instinct or was pieced together by watching and talking with other Pokémon.

“Your feet!  Your feet!” Scorbunny cheered.  He then launched himself off the ground and began hopping around.  He jumped from a rock to a tree trunk and straight over Ash’s head.

“My feet,” Ash closed his eyes in concentration.  Before long, he felt a majority of his energy pooling down his legs and into his back paws causing them to prickle with extra power.

Looking over Ash with a satisfied smile, Scorbunny nodded in approval.  “Now we can really play!”

Now

Looking around, Ash took in his environment.  Gyarados wasn’t too far from the shore putting her well within range of attacking.  Gary was pushed over a few trees away by the Aqua Tail and was down for the count.  He wouldn’t be able to see what Ash was about to do and even if he did, this was an emergency.

Kicking off his shoes, Ash focused his power to his feet.  In response, his body began changing.  His feet stretched out of his soggy socks giving his legs a more digitigrade shape.  Crouching down, Ash could feel energy begin to flow throughout his entire being.  Perfect.

Shapeshifting was a mix between controlled and random.  Often Ash’s body responded to what he wanted by prioritizing certain parts, but it was no guarantee.  It also didn’t help that the pace of the transformation varied with some shifts happening quickly while others took their sweet time.  The point during the transformation when Ash could use Pokémon moves was almost entirely random which meant that sometimes Ash could use his moves while he was still mostly human while other times he couldn’t do a thing until he was a full Riolu.

Today it looked like was the former situation.  Wasting no time, Ash used a Quick Attack to launch himself forward and upward straight at the Gyarados.

Snarling, the Gyarados came forward to meet Ash.  Dark energy formed around her lips creating a second pair of jaws.  Gyarados used Bite before Ash could make contact with her causing the boy to flinch.  Ash was about to drop into the water, but threw his hands out.  He managed to grab ahold of one of the spikes, stopping his fall, and placed his back feet on the serpent’s side.  By this point his lower legs resembled a pair of human-sized Riolu lower legs giving Ash a spring when he kicked off her side with another Quick Attack.

Once again, Gyarados blocked Ash’s attack.  This time she brought her tail up to stop Ash and bat him away.  Ash landed back on the shore line and growled.  Quick Attack wasn’t working.  Maybe if he-

“AH!” Pichu yelled.  His scream was then silenced by a choke as Gyarados squeezed tighter.

At that moment, Ash felt all rational thought leave his mind.  All he could hear was the sounds of his friend suffering.  An even more feral snarl left Ash’s lips as he once again threw himself at the Gyarados.

Once again the Gyarados tried to strike at Ash with a Bite.  This time, Ash was ready.  Seeing the lake monster diving forward for an attack, Ash raised a now clawed human hand.  He held his hand flat, allowing energy to pour into his palm, before thrusting it forward straight into Gyarados’s face.

The newly learned Force Palm hit is mark with so much force, the Gyarados’s upper body crashed into the water.  Noticing the serpent’s weakening tail grip out of the corner of his eye, Ash twisted around in the air and swiped towards the snake’s coils.  A Vacuum Wave of wind blasted forward knocking Pichu out of Gyarados’s grasp.

Both Ash and Pichu hit the water with a loud splash.  Immediately Ash swam forward to grab his friend and head towards the safety of land.  Once the pair was back ashore, Pichu released multiple coughs.

“Thanks, Ash,” Pichu said once he got his breath back.  He looked over to where Gyarados was temporarily knocked out.  “How did you do that?  That was amazing!”

Ash looked down at his hands.  At this point they were completely covered in fur and the fingers were being sucked into his palm to create a pair of paws.  He wasn’t really sure where that came from.  He already knew Quick Attack and Vacuum Wave, but Force Palm came completely out of nowhere.  What’s more, that power.  It was way more than anything he managed to perform before.

Seeing that Gyarados was starting to get back up, Ash turned to run away.  “I don’t know, but I’m going to grab Gary and leave.”

“Okay, but won’t she just follow us?” Pichu pointed out.

Shoot!  Ash froze up.  That serpent was still very much mad and Ash’s rising aura sense could tell that her bloodlust was not yet sated.  And given that Gyarados had a reputation of destroying towns…

“Alright new plan,” Ash announced.  “I’ll have to knock Gyarados out cold.”

Pichu climbed up to Ash’s shoulder.  “WE will have to knock Gyarados out cold.”

A roar announced that Gyarados was back in action.  This time, water began to gather in her mouth.  Ash darted away right before she could hit them with the stream from a powerful Brine attack.

While Gyarados was busy blasting the shore with water, Ash crouched down and used another Quick Attack to leap back at Gyarados.  Once again, he flattened out his paw and thrusted his palm forward.

“Take this!” Ash shouted.  “Force Palm!”

It’s not very effective.

This Force Palm lacked the might of the previous attack, only pushing Gyarados back an inch.  Gyarados took this time to swerve around and prepare another Brine attack.  Her charge was interrupted by Pichu.

“Thundershock!” Pichu yelled.  A small bolt of electricity nailed Gyarados between her eyes causing her to lose focus.

Taking advantage of Gyarados’s falter, Ash threw both his front paws forward to try and grab onto her scales.  A loud screech similar to nails on a chalkboard emitted from the spot where Ash slid down the monster.  Though Ash’s claws were feeling extra sharp, Gyarados’s scales were as hard as steel.  Ash had no choice but to kick off the serpent’s belly and retreat back to shore.

There was a loud rip from the back of Ash’s pants announcing the arrival of his tail.  Ash fell to all fours and jumped away from a Dragon Rage which obliterated the rock he was standing on moments ago.  While Ash ran, he noticed Gyarados was retreating deeper into the water, away from the shore.  Looks like she was tired of swatting Ash off her body and was going for some long rang sniping.

A knot of extra brow formed between Ash’s eyes as he squinted them in concentration.  The only long distance move Ash knew was Vacuum Wave and he wasn’t feeling too optimistic on its ability to put the water dragon down.

Ash’s eyebrows spread out into a black, furry mask as he called back to Pichu.  “Pichu, can you fire off a bit Thundershock?”

From his back, Ash could feel Pichu’s hesitation.  “Wouldn’t that electrocute everyone?”

“I’ll grab Gary and move out of the way before the attack,” Ash assured Pichu.

Though Ash could sense that Pichu didn’t like the idea, he felt the mouse jump off his back.  As Ash continued to lead Gyarados’s Dragon Rages away from Pichu, Ash could sense a buildup of electricity from Pichu using a Charge.

As Ash ran, he felt his aura sensors push out from the back of his skull.  With them, Ash was able to get a clearer view of the aura around the lack.  There was Gyarados, anger nowhere near close to dispersing.  Behind Ash Pichu was still Charging up for an attack and in front of him Ash could feel Gary.

The young Oak’s aura was beginning to stir, become more active.  Ash almost froze.  Gary was waking up.

Pushing his Quick Attack to its limit, Ash shot forward.  By now he looked like a very humanoid Riolu. Ash’s mind raced.  Should he start changing back to hid his shifter status, or should he risk losing his Pokémon moves and abilities to preserve his secret?

Before Ash could decide, Gyarados darted forward and slammed an Aqua Tail down right in front of Ash.  Her tail then circled around Ash, cornering him.  Now towering over the boy-Riolu hybrid, Gyarados powered up another Brine attack.

“I’ve got you now,” Gyarados growled.

“Ash!”

Just as Gyarados was about unleash a point blank Brine, Pichu came charging down the shore and leaping straight up at Gyarados.  The little mouse was brimming with excess electricity and was just about to unleash it on the Gyarados.

It was now or never.

Though the Gyarados’s tail tried to rise and push Ash back, Ash managed to grab onto one of the spikes and hauled himself forward.  He dropped to the ground and snatched up Gary.  Using his fighting type muscles, Ash maneuvered Gary onto his back and turned around to see Pichu firing off the biggest Thundershock Ash had ever seen in his life.

Lightning branched off from Pichu and spiked out in multiple directions.  The dark, gloomy sky was lite up in a massive flash, voltage sparked off the surface of the pond, and Gyarados roared in pain.  Meanwhile, a glow engulfed Pichu causing the already bright light to become practically blinding.

True to Ash’s word, he jumped back and landed on a nearby tree, carrying Gary with him.  The wood insolated most of the electricity and served as a good platform for Ash to leap again and catch his friend.  Once the lightning died down, Ash caught a smoking Pichu and held the mouse to his chest.  For some odd reason the mouse was feeling a little heavier.

Seeing Gyarados fall down into the water, Ash bolted away from the pond.  As he ran Ash could feel Gary’s aura strengthen.  He was almost awake.  Ash practically shouted in his mind to start changing back.

‘Faster, faster, faster!’ Ash mentally whined.  He felt his fur recede into his skin followed by his aura sensors.  His paws branched out into human hands giving him a better grip on his passengers, but it came at the price of losing his strength.

Ash tripped forward over his feet as they changed back dropping both Gary and Pichu.  Now laying on the ground barefoot, Ash groaned.  He was going to need a new pair of shoes.

“Ash?  Ash are you okay?” came a new voice.  “Please tell me you weren’t hit by the Thundershock!”

“I’m fine,” Ash grumbled.  When he pushed himself up, Ash’s eyes widened in surprise.  “Whoa!”

The owner of the new voice was a Pikachu!  This Pokémon was an electric mouse, just like Pichu, but was slightly larger with a pair of long, pointed ears, and a lightning bolt shaped tail.  Color-wise, Pikachus were a slightly darker shade of yellow than Pichus save for the black at the tips of their ears, their red cheek pouches, and the brown at the base of their tails and stripes on their backs.

“What?  What’s wrong?” Pikachu asked with a head tilt.  His voice sounded like Pichu’s but less squeaky and more mature.

A smile stretched across Ash’s face.  “Take a look at yourself!”

Blinking in confusion, Pikachu looked down at his body.  His eyes widened in surprise and he began inspecting every inch of his new form from patting his new cheeks to giving his longer tail a few experimental waves.

“Congratulations!” Ash grinned.

“Thanks, I-uh oh,” Pikachu shared Ash’s grin for a split second before a look of worry washed over his face.

Following Pikachu’s line of sight, Ash could see Gary was now awake and staring at him.  Oh no!  His tail!  Did that change back?

“I can explain,” Ash said quickly.

Gary stared at Ash with a look of shock.  He then met Ash’s eyes.  Ash stiffened trying to think what to say next.

Gary beat him to it.  “Could you cover yourself up?  I can see your crack.”

Ash’s eyes glanced down at his behind.  Looks like his tail disappeared just in time.  With a mix of relief and embarrassment, Ash flipped himself over.  “You wouldn’t just so happen have a sewing kit on you?”

With an eye roll, Gary took off his jacket and handed it to Ash.  “Here.  Use this.”

Once the two boys were back on their feet and Ash had tied Gary’s jacket around his waist covering the hole in the back, Gary addressed Ash.  He spoke with a slow and careful tone.  “What happened to that Gyarados?”

Grinning. Ash hoisted Pikachu onto his shoulder.  “Pikachu was able to evolve and use Thundershock to knock Gyarados down for good!”

Pikachu grinned bashfully.  “It was nothing.”

Gary studied Ash.  “That was all Pikachu?  By himself?”

Before Ash could answer, a blue and purple ball of fire came down from the tree line, almost hitting the boys.  Both kids dropped looked up in horror.  There was Gyarados, charred but not finished.

Pikachu leapt down in front of Ash and Gary, electricity sparking from his cheeks.  “Are you ready for round two?  Because I am!” he shouted, angry but confident.

“I’ll kill you,” Gyarados hissed.  “I’ll kill you brats if it’s the last thing I do!”

With that, the Gyarados fired up another Dragon Rage.  Down on the ground, Pikachu got ready to fire off another Thundershock.  His attack was interrupted when something else charged past him and the boys and leapt straight at Gyarados.

“GYRAAA!” Gyarados cried out in pain.  There, biting down into her throat was a Leafeon.

Relief flooded through Ash.  Glancing over his shoulder he could see a few more figures charging in their direction.  Wither it was Pikachu’s massive Thundershock or all the commotion caused by Gyarados’s rampage, their fight had attracted attention.  The cavalry was here!

Next to Ash, Gary watched the lone Leafeon snarl and continue to hold onto Gyarados despite her thrashing.  “Where did the Leafeon come from?”

“That Leafeon’s from your family’s lab!  You’ve probably seen him around,” Ash said.  A mischievous smile tugged at his lips.  Technically, he was telling the truth.  Now all they had to do was capture the Gyarados and then they could hand her off to someone to relocate-

THWAP!

While Gyarados tried to throw off the professor, the edges of the Leafeon's tail leaf stiffened and glowed.  With one swift motion, the tail slid across the Gyarados’s neck, separating her head from the rest of her body.  Ash watched with horror and surprise as the Gyarados’s corpse fell to the ground below.  The professor landed next to the neck stump, panting from all the energy he used to run over and fight the snake.

Ash felt his blood run cold.  Sure, the Gyarados had just tried to kill him and his friends, but Ash couldn’t find it in him to wish death on the Pokémon.  Then there was the professor.  Ash had never seen the scientist like this.  The Leafeon stood tall with a slight arch in his back.  Every leaf on his body from his ears to his tail were sharp and stiff.  As the old eeveelution panted, Ash could see his lips were still parted into a snarl showing off his fangs.  Most alien of all was the look in his eyes.  They were angry yet distant.  No thought, no warmth.  Just a cold glare.

“Uh, Leafeon,” Ash carefully called out to the old fox-cat.  He took a step forward half expecting the professor to relax and apologize for his rash behavior, but all he got was a warning snarl.

Before Ash could respond, a familiar Lucario swiftly placed herself between him and Professor Oak.  Delia released her own warning growl while aura began to flow out of her body.  At first Ash wondered if they were going to fight.  That option was tossed out the window when Mr. Dragonite landed between the two and held his arms out.

“Alright, that’s enough,” Mr. Dragonite said in a more serious tone than Ash was used to hearing from the friendly dragon.  “The children are safe.  Everyone needs to calm down before this gets even messier.”

From the side Ash could see Kangaskhan protectively scooping Pikachu up in one claw while using the other to shield Josie’s eyes.  Mimey, who was panting even harder than the professor, jogged up to Ash.

“Look.  Delia,” Mimey managed to say between breaths.  “Ash.  Is.  Okay.”

Seeing that the boys were in fact okay, both adult canines relaxed.  Oak blinked a couple of times before looking over at the Gyarados.  His tail fell and his eyes widened in horror.  “That, that I…I.”

“It’s probably for the best,” Dragonite said gently.  “She told us that she would keep the peace if she was left alone, but a Gyarados’s rage can last for a month.  If it wasn’t her, she would have taken out someone else or worse.”

“…That’s a good point,” Professor Oak agreed, though his voice was still stiff with fear.  He slowly approached Gary, but his grandson practically bolted back.  Nobody could blame him.  From the kid’s perspective the professor was a deranged guard dog.  Ears leaning back, Oak looked over at Mr. Dragonite.  “Could do me a favor?”

Nodding, Mr. Dragonite walked forward to start guiding Gary home.  Professor Oak followed behind, from a distance.

“What was that about?” Ash asked watching the uncomfortable group leave.

“You gave us all a fright,” Delia said with a relieved sigh.  She turned to look up at Ash.  “Could you tell me exactly what happened here?”

“A couple of trappers set Gyarados off and she took her anger out on us,” Ash explained.  “But Pikachu was able to save us.”

“Hey now,” Pikachu leapt down from Kangaskhan’s claws and stood by Ash.  “I can’t take all the credit.”

The pair recounted the events of the past day.  While they talked, the group walked away from the Gyarados corpse.  By the end of the story, both mothers were sharing looks of concern while Mimey was gripping at his chest complaining that they were going to give him a heart attack.  Josie on the other hand…

“You took down a Gyarados with a single Thundershock?!” Josie asked with starry eyes.  “That is sooo cool!”

“It was Ash’s idea,” Pikachu said modestly from his spot on his mother’s shoulder.  “He did most of the work.  I just delivered the finishing blow.”

“That’s still an impressive feat,” Kangaskhan hummed in approval.  Though the kangaroo was clearly concerned for adopted son, there was a spark of pride in her eyes.

“And you managed to evolve.  That’s pretty big too,” Delia added on.  “In human culture moments like these deserve a celebration.  How would you like it if I cooked dinner for everyone tonight?  Whatever you want.”

Pikachu looked thoughtful.  “Do you know a food that uses a lot of ketchup?”

“Ketchup again?!” Josie groaned.  “You’re obsessed!”

“You only say that because you still haven’t tasted heaven,” Pikachu sniffed.

Eventually the group would make it back to Ash’s home where his mother managed to whip up a small feast.  Though everyone else seemed to enjoy the meal, Ash’s mind was stuck on the headless Gyarados.

Seriously, what happened back there?

With the mysterious trio

Meowth and his human companions were hunched over wheezing.  At some point they somehow managed to ditch the Gyarados, but no one dared to stop running.  Safe to say at this point the day was a complete bust.  Ratted on by a couple of twerps, hours of hard work and traps down the drain, one angry water monster, and what did they have to show for it?  No Route One Monster, that’s for sure.

Suddenly, Meowth’s ears perked.  Scampering across the ground just a few feet away were a pair of Rattata.

“I hear there’s a kid living at the lab,” said the first Rattata as he passed by.  “Want to go digging through their trash?  See if there’s more food now?  I could really go for a half-eaten pizza crust.”

“No way!  It’s the full moon tomorrow,” snapped another Rattata.

“Oh yeah,” the first Rattata said in realization.  “Don’t want to take any chances the you-know-whats will break out of the basement.”

“Meowth?”

Meowth looked back over to his human partners.  Both of them were regarding him and the rats with curiosity.

“What are they saying?” asked the man.

A fanged smile split Meowth’s face.  “I think we have a new lead.”

New Pokémon Stats!

Ash (Riolu)

Trainer: None

Ability: Inner Focus

Nature: Plucky young adventurer

Item: Official Limited Edition Pokémon League Hat and his less important clothes

Moves: Quick Attack, Vacuum Wave, ???, Force Palm

Pichu->Pikachu

Trainer: None

Ability: Static

Nature: Adamant

Item: None

Moves: Thundershock, Charge

Wild Gyarados

Trainer: None

Ability: Intimidate

Nature: Hates tourists

Item: None

Moves: Bite, Dragon Rage, Brine, Aqua Tail

AN: “Now I learned a lesson I won’t soon forget.  So listen and you won’t regret.  Be true to yourself, don’t miss your chance.  And you won’t end up like the fool who went and ripped his pants!” ~ Spongebob Squarepants

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features.  Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri.  Please support the official release.

Listening to as I mess with the pipping: Team Rocket Encounter (Pokémon HeartGold/SoulSilver)

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Breach

The next day everyone was talking about the Gyarados attack.  Apparently the noise made by the sea serpent’s rampage didn’t just attract Ash’s pack.  Curiosity got the better of some of the townsfolk and they went investigating only to find a decapitated corpse.

As Gyaradoses are well renowned for their raw power, everyone was gossiping over who had done it.  Theories ranged from the Route One Monster, to a high level, traveling trainer, to Professor Oak taking care of the Gyarados before it could harm anyone in town.  That last theory was correct, though Ash was pretty sure no one would believe how the professor actually did it.  Heck, he witnessed the deed first hand and he still didn’t believe it.

After school was let out, Ash had gone to visit the dead Pokémon, only to find that its carcass was in the process of being picked clean by some of the wild Pokémon in the area.  No words of mourning, no prayers.  None of the Pokémon in the area were close to the Gyarados.  To them she was just an apex predator who finally bit off more than she could chew.  All that was left was to make use of the free meal and wait for another Pokémon to claim the newly vacant top Pokémon position.  Nature could be cold, but one could never accuse it of being inefficient.

Ash then made his way over to the lab to check on Professor Oak.  The old man was back to his usual self, asking Ash how he was doing and apologizing for the incident yesterday.  While Ash knew the return to status quo should have been a relief, he couldn’t help but to feel a little unnerved.

“Uh, Professor, why did you kill Gyarados?” Ash asked cautiously.

“Ah yes,” Professor Oak frowned.  “It was a bit of a split second decision.  As you know, we’ve been monitoring that Gyarados for a while.  Even spoke to her way back when and brokered a peace agreement.  We made sure she was left alone, and she wouldn’t harm anyone.  When I saw you, Pikachu, and Gary were in danger, I assumed she broke the contract and acted a little rashly.  Sorry you had to see that.”

“Okay,” Ash replied, uncertainly.  His aura powers may have been dulled in his human form.  But even now he could tell that the professor wasn’t telling the entire truth.

Without Ash pressing him, Professor Oak continued, this time in a formal tone he hardly ever used with Ash.  “On that note, I do want to thank you for looking after Gary yesterday.”

“It was kind of a team effort.  Pikachu helped.  And Gary stopped us from shocking ourselves and got rid of a couple of trappers.” Ash said bashfully.  “How is Gary by the way?”

That question elicited a confused look from the professor.  “I should be asking you that question.  Since school was let out for the day, he’s been on the computer in his room.  Did something happen at class?”

No.  Nothing happened.

Contrary to last week, Gary had been fairly subdued.  The Gary Ash met last week would have jumped on the chance to talk about his encounter with Gyarados while probably throwing in some bits to make himself look like the hero.  Today, Gary kept to himself unless someone addressed him.  At one point Ash overheard someone ask Gary if he saw the Gyarados only for Gary to shrug it off saying that he wasn’t in the area.

Ash could have chalked this change in attitude to Gary’s brush with death.  Maybe almost being obliterated by an angry water type caused Gary to chill out?  This would have been fine, though Ash couldn’t help but to wonder if there was something else going on.  He caught Gary staring at him multiple times that day and could practically feel his eyes when he wasn’t looking.

It was weird.

“Not much,” Ash replied.  He never considered himself a tattle tale.  If Gary continued to watch him tomorrow, he’d talk to Gary himself.  Actually, while they were on the topic of the professor’s grandson.  “Are we still meeting for the full moon tonight?”

Professor Oak took a deep breath.  “Actually, there’s going to be a small change to our routine.”

Delia

“You’ll be staying home alone tonight!” Delia announced to a stunned Ash.

Predictably, a regular human staying at the laboratory heightened the chances of the pack being discovered.  Samuel felt Gary need a bit more time to settle down before letting him in on the secret.  Given that it sounded like the boy was going through a rebellious phase, Delia had to agree.  Letting a troublemaker in on the existence of WerePokémon would be a good way to sink the thousand year old secret.

The problem was the location.  Delia and Samuel had to retreat to the kennel out behind the lab, where Gary lived.  Delia had hoped that Gary would make a friend during his first week at school and a sleepover could be arranged (plus it would be nice for the boy to have a new friend given what he had been going through).  But it sounded like Gary, despite his popularity, wasn’t close to anyone.  Thus Samuel had to resort to plan B: wait until Gary fell asleep, lock him in his room, and have Dragonite guard the boy.

With Dragonite guarding Gary, Delia felt it was best for Ash to stay home.  Having an energetic Riolu running around the lab would risk waking Gary who may notice something was up.  Since Ash was still a tad bit too young to be dangerous on the full moon and hadn’t shown any signs of the berserker state, Delia didn’t see any issues with leaving him, mostly, by himself.

“Really!?” Ash asked.  Through her Lucario’s form’s aura abilities Delia could sense both confusion and excitement from her son.  Understandable.  This arrangement was the latest in a series of departures from the norm.  However, it was also the first time Delia left Ash (mostly) home alone for the night.  Delia remembered how enthusiastic she felt when her parents finally trusted her to be by herself.

“Well, mostly alone,” Delia corrected herself.  “Mimey and Pikachu will be staying with you.”

At the mention of Pikachu, Delia could feel Ash’s jubilation soar.  Thanks to the curse, Ash never experienced a sleepover before.  Granted there would be no sleeping for Ash thanks to the full moon, but it was kind of a tradition for kids to try and ignore the sleep portion of a sleepover anyway.

“I’ll be doing chores around the house.  Just holler if you need me!” Mimey cheerfully instructed.

“Now,” Delia spoke in a stern voice, grabbing her son’s attention.  As she spoke, the Lucario began piling papers and items in Ash’s arms.  “I’m going to temporarily pause your grounding, but I don’t want you vegging on the couch.  If you want to go outside, stick to our territory.  I don’t want you wondering into the homes of any of our neighbors, human or Pokémon.  In case of emergency I put together a first aid kit and a list of numbers to call.  I already cooked you, Pikachu, and Mimey some dinner, it’s labeled in the fridge.  All you have to do is warm it up.  Here are some towels in case of a mess.  Also, I left some blankets in the living room if you and Pikachu want to build a fort.  I checked the contents of these board games and all the pieces are there except some spare dice and the shoe for Monopoly.  Do not open the door for anyone, complete your homework, and leave it on the kitchen table so I can check over it in the morning.  I also expect you to do the dishes.  Here are some candles and a flashlight in case of a blackout.  Now, if a-”

“MOM!” Ash yelped.  He placed the ever growing pile in his arms to the side.  “I’ll be fine!”

Delia paused her rambling to look over Ash.  Since yesterday’s Gyarados encounter Ash had felt a bit anxious.  She couldn’t blame her son.  The shock of watching one of the adults in his life go feral and kill a Pokémon in cold blood would spook any sane person.  More concerning to Delia personally was that she empathized with Samuel’s state and what happened in the heat of the moment.

The second the Gyarados’s roar echoed across the town, Delia could feel her inner beast press out against her mind.  Just the knowledge that Ash was so close to a dangerous, territorial, sea beast pushed her towards the edge.  It was only thanks to years of learning how to deal with those instincts that Delia was able to keep herself from completely snapping.

Delia was worried that she would have to face an injured or dead Ash by the time she arrived on the scene.  She was surprised when she learned that Ash and Pikachu were able to fend off such a powerful Pokémon.  What’s more, Ash was using his powers to protect his friends, like a man.

“My little baby is growing up so fast,” Delia gushed while wagging her tail.

“Mom,” Ash muttered, his face turning pink at Delia’s words.

It wasn’t long before Pikachu arrived and bounded over to Ash.  The two began animatedly talking about how they were going to spend their evening from Ash showing Pikachu some movies, to sneaking off to the woods to run around, to turning dinner into an eating contest.  As Delia exited the front door, she could hear the boys scrambling around to get Ash’s console plugged in.

A wistful smile passed over Delia’s face.  It seemed like only yesterday the doctor’s placed Ash in her arms.  He was such a tiny baby, but every bit as energetic as the boy he was destined to become.  Now he was almost ten, the very age so many children left home to find their way in the world.  A dream that Ash had to skip out on.

Mimey, who had stepped out to do some weeding in the garden, regarded Delia with a concerned look.  “Are you okay, Delia?”

“Tomorrow,” Delia said.  “I’ll tell him everything tomorrow.”

“It’s for the best,” Mimey nodded.

With that, Delia bid Mimey a good evening and headed off toward the lab.

Later

After playing multiple rounds of Pokken Tournament, eating dinner, and rushing through his homework, Ash decided it was time to show Pikachu his first movie.  But which one?  Let’s see, there was The Luxray King, Noivernman Begins, How to Train Your Dragon Types, Galvantula-Man, Poke Wars, oh hey!  How about this one?

About an hour later or so, Ash and Pikachu were sitting comfortably on the couch munching on snacks and watching a movie about ancient curses, tomb robbers, and the restless undead.  Ash took a long sip of his drink as he watched a man with a mummified mouth make moves on a captive woman.

“Hey!  Get your ugly face off of her!” demanded the hero as he stormed into the room.

The monstrous man turned around to speak to the hero in an ancient language.

In response, the hero held up an Espurr.  “Look at what I got!”

The Espurr, an adorable, grey, bipedal feline with folded ears, narrowed its wide eyes, raised its tiny paws, and hissed at the monstrous man.  This action elected a terrified roar from the monster who evaporated into sand and fled the room.

“So,” Ash asked Pikachu between sips.  “What’s it like now that you’ve evolved?  Is it still like being a Pichu but bigger?”

“Not really,” Pikachu replied.  He nibbled on a tortilla chip.  “It’s kind of like chewing on a wire, getting zapped with a whole bunch of electricity, and retaining it.  I’m taller, sure.  But the real difference is how much more power I have.  It’s actually kind of scary in a way.  Like we were afraid of me electrocuting us by accident yesterday with all that water.  Now I feel like I don’t even need the water to do some real damage.”

“Wow,” Ash muttered thoughtfully.  He always felt a power boost on the full moon.  Even now in his human form he felt as though he could take on a Rhydon if it randomly decided to break into his house.  What was it going to be like when he evolved into a Lucario?

Pikachu continued.  “The other change is Mom.  Now that I’m too big for her pouch to fit both me and Josie, Mom’s showed me how to make my own nest.  She said she wants me to start doing more independent foraging and to start thinking about where I want to go.”

Ash tilted his head.  “Why?”

“Now that I’m evolved, it’s only a matter time before I’m supposed to move out,” Pikachu explained.  He grabbed a nearby ketchup bottle and squirted a tiny bit on a chip.  As he chewed, he elaborated.  “It’s a Kangaskhan thing.  When the babies start getting too big, the mothers start teaching them how to fight and take care of themselves.  Since I helped fight off a Gyarados, Mom thinks I’ll soon be ready to head out on my own.”

For a moment, Ash felt a sting of envy.  Here he was, just starting to come to terms with his imprisonment in Pallet Town.  Meanwhile, his best friend was about to become free and go anywhere in the world he pleased.  Ash looked over at Pikachu who was finishing up his chip.  “Any idea on what you are going to do?”

“Still figuring that out,” Pikachu replied.  He looked back at the humans running around on the TV in contemplation.  “I could stake out some part of the forest to build a burrow, preferably somewhere with less predators and plenty of food.  But if I find a place that good I’ll probably have to fight for it.  I could also hang around urban areas and live off of excess human food.  But then humans might brand me a vermin and send some pest control Pokémon after me.  Or I might get captured by some random human who’s going to do Arceus knows what to me.”

Finished listing the pros and cons of his options, Pikachu sighed and leaned back into a pillow.  Ash watched over his friend with a small frown.  “I can ask Mom if you can stay here, if you want.”

At first, Pikachu’s ears perked as the mouse considered Ash’s offer.  His face then scrunched up.  “I don’t want to impose.”

Before Ash could respond, there was a knock at his door.  Pikachu leapt up from his spot on the couch and looked at the door.  “What’s that?”

“A door knock.  It’s how humans ask if someone is at home,” Ash explained, watching the door in confusion.  Who’d be coming over here this late?

“I figured out that much.  Give me some credit, Ash,” Pikachu said with an eye roll.  “Are you going to answer it?”

Ash’s mother instructed Ash not to answer the door while she was out, so that should have been a no.  Then again, nobody should be out so late at night.  His curiosity perked, Ash decided to at least check the peephole.  When he saw who it was, Ash opened the door.  “Gary!?”

“Hey Ash,” Gary greeted before inviting himself in.

“Wow.  This guy has been popping up everywhere lately,” Pikachu commented.

“What are you doing here?” Ash asked in surprise.  Ash was up at this hour because of the excess energy from the full moon.  But it was way past bedtime for the rest of his classmates.

“I snuck out.  Apparently Gramps decided to lock my door.  Talk about a lack of trust.  Good thing he didn’t think I would be able to make it out the window,” Gary replied.  The way he said it Ash would have thought this was an everyday event for him.  Gary then spotted the TV and swung himself over the top of the couch onto where Ash was sitting and grabbed some popcorn.  “Nice, I like this movie.”

A part of Ash wanted to grill Gary for crashing his sleepover.  He was stopped when he noticed the clock on the wall.  It was getting way too close to midnight for comfort.  Ash had to get his new friend back home before the midnight hour forced Ash to transform.

“Okay, it’s nice to see you.  But shouldn’t you go home?” Ash asked assertively.  Slowly, Ash made his way over to Gary getting ready to grab him and pull him out of the house.  Prior experience told Ash that blatantly telling Gary what to do would result in Gary refusing to cooperate.  Ash would have preferred resolving this problem peacefully, but if Gary continued to be Tauros headed then Ash would have to get forceful.

Without looking around, Gary spoke to Ash.  Though Ash couldn’t see Gary’s face, he could hear the smirk.  “Nah, I think I’m going to stay here.  I’m curious about what Riolus do for fun at night.”

Ash went ridged.  From the corner of his eye, he could see Pikachu freeze up too.  What?

“That’s what you are, right?” Gary turned around to look Ash in the eye.  “You’re a Riolu in disguise.”

“I’m not,” Ash was about to correct Gary.  He was a shapeshifter who could switch between a human and a Riolu at will.  Not a Riolu who somehow figured out how to pull a Zorua.  He caught himself before he could finish that sentence.  Better to deny the entire premise.  “I mean, that sounds crazy.  What makes you think that?”

“Let’s see.  That Riolu at the lab that was wearing your hat, you sniffing the carpet, growling at me, and the way you talk with that Pikachu were all a little weird, but didn’t necessarily indicate you’re a Pokémon,” Gary elaborated.  He looked Ash up and down as expecting something to happen.  “But then there was that moment when I saw your tail sticking out of your pants yesterday.  That casted those previous moments in a new light.”

Ash paled.  “You saw the tail?”

“Just before it sank into your butt,” Gary smirked.

“Oh,” Ash said weakly.

That was all the admission of guilt Gary needed to do a victory lap.  He continued explaining his thought process.  “Of course, I had to do a little research to make sure I wasn’t just seeing things.  Turns out, a Pokémon disguised as a human isn’t that farfetched.  Pokémon like Zoroark and Kadabra have been known to hide themselves with illusions.  Put that together with historical accounts of Lucarios such as the one owned by Sir Aaron learning how to communicate with humans and you’ve got the perfect set up for a Riolu pretending to be a boy.”

Personally, Ash felt like Gary’s explanation was a bit of a stretch.  While there were Pokémon who could disguise themselves, Riolu wasn’t one of them.  Plus speaking directly to humans via telepathy was an extremely rare skill even amongst psychic Pokémon.  On top of that, Pokémon who could actually talk like humans were even rarer unless said Pokémon mimicking voices like a Chatot.

On the flip side, Gary saw Ash’s tail and was able to come up with a theory.  A theory which, to be fair, had more precedent than humans turning into Pokémon.  He was just missing a lot of key data.  Ash would have been fine letting him know more, but he was pretty sure Professor Oak wanted to be the one to let his own grandson in on the secret.

Oh no.

Ash was already in trouble for almost biting Gary.  Was he going to be in even deeper trouble for screwing up and revealing himself and by extension the rest of the shifters?  Or would it all be okay because it was an accident in the middle of an emergency?  Should he go back to denying?  No, it was too late for that.  Ash basically admitted he had a tail.  What if he told Gary what was going on and then asked Gary to fake being surprised when Professor Oak finally let him know?

While Ash’s mind struggled to come up with the next step, Gary continued to talk.  “So, was that Lucario I saw heading towards Gramp’s bunker your mom?”

Gary’s question broke Ash’s train of manic thoughts.  “Bunker?”

“The cellar in the field behind Gramp’s lab,” Gary explained.  “I saw a Lucario heading toward it earlier.  Didn’t see much else, the entrance is just a bit out of ways from my window.  She definitely went in there, though.  She left tracks in the burnt dirt leading to the doors.”

Burnt dirt.  Ash knew which underground entrance Gary was talking about.  He himself had passed by that entrance multiple times, though he had never went in.  The professor and his Pokémon had forbade Ash from going down there, but for what reason Ash didn’t know.  He was told it was just storage, which begged the question of why it was so forbidden.  Ultimately, Ash never felt the incentive to investigate.  Why go down into the dusty old basement when there was plenty to be done with the plethora of Pokémon on the surface?

Gently, Pikachu prodded Ash’s arm.  “She may have just been grabbing something from the bunker before her hunt.”

That sounded sort of plausible.  Still, something felt off.  What would a Lucario need before a hunt?  Ash looked back at Gary.  “Did she come back out with anything?”

A victorious smirk crossed over Gary’s face at the word “her.”  Clearly, that was another admission that his family of disguised Pokémon theory was right.  “Didn’t see.  I would have gone down if my Gramp’s dragons weren’t on patrol.  Although…”

Gary’s expression shifted from smug to focused.  “Gramp’s Nidoking was out there earlier too.  He was carrying some large canisters down that same cellar.  Charizard was burning the land around there as well.”

That shouldn’t be too concerning.  If the cellar was for supplies it would only make sense that Nidoking would go down there to store those canisters.  Also, Mrs. Charizard and other fire type Pokémon did like to practice in that field about once a month.  Though Ash couldn’t help but to think back to that time when Professor Oak’s family was hospitalized and Mrs. Charizard was torching the plants for who knows why.  Adding that together with the uncharacteristic attack on Gyarados yesterday and Ash wasn’t sure what to think.

“It took an hour of plumbing, but never fear!  The clog is gone and the upstairs bathroom is once again useable!  I even sprayed it with a fresh lemon scent,” Mimey’s voice came from the other side of the room.  The clown was wiping his hands with a towel and wearing a proud smile on his face.  His smile was replaced with a look of shock when he saw Gary lounging on the couch.  Mimey pointed an accusing finger at the boy.  “You!  You’re not supposed to be here!”

Immediately, Mimey marched over to the phone and began dialing.  The only response he got was the answering machine.  So, he hung up and tried again.  Curly foot tapping, Mimey turned towards Gary.  “The second I can get someone to pick up, you’re in big trouble, Mister!”

“Hey Ash, can you translate?” Gary laughed.  “Is he calling about me or trying to order a pizza?  Huh?  Where are you going?”

A part of Ash told him there was nothing to worry about.  That there were perfectly reasonable explanations for all the activity around that cellar.  His gut said otherwise and he wasn’t going to get any answers by just staying put.  With those thoughts in mind, Ash dashed out the door.

“Ash!” Pikachu shouted after his friend.

“You don’t have to go to the lab!” Mimey called out.  “I’m sure someone will answer soon!”

Ignoring everyone’s cries, Ash bolted down the road.  Pikachu was probably right.  Nidoking and his mother were just grabbing items and Mrs. Charizard was doing some practice or letting off steam.  And yet, when Ash awoke that morning as a Riolu all he could feel in the air was tension.  Tension from his normally cheery mother.  Between her mood and the professor snapping, Ash just had to at least check and see if they were okay.

Ash slowed down when he arrived at the foot of the lab’s stairs.  From down there everything looked normal.  So far so good.

“ASH!”

Looking around, Ash found himself tackled by an angry Pikachu.  “Pikachu?  What are-GAHH!”

Electricity erupted from Pikachu’s body enveloping Ash.  When the shock died down, Ash pulled Pikachu off him and let the mouse drop to the ground.  “What was that for!?”

“For ditching me!” Pikachu huffed.  “Would it kill you to at least let me know when you’re about to run off?”

“Sorry, Pikachu,” Ash apologized before turning his attention back to the lab.  “I know you think everything’s fine, but I’ve got to at least look.”

Pikachu studied Ash for a minute before sighing.  “Fine.  But I’m checking with you.”

“Fine by me,” Ash smiled.  He then spotted someone coming up behind Pikachu.  “Gary, what are-”

“This way!” Gary ordered.  Before Ash could protest, Gary grabbed Ash and yanked him into the bushes.  Curious, Pikachu followed.

The three of them hunched in the foliage, watching the night sky.  Well, Gary and Pikachu hunched.  Ash squirmed out of Gary’s grasp.

When Ash successfully slid out of Gary’s arms, he rounded on the boy.  “Why’d you do that?!”

In response, Gary wordlessly held one finger up to his mouth in the silence motion while point to the sky with another.  Following the gesture, Ash could make out a pair of dragon silhouettes flying across the full moon sky.  One silhouette, was carrying a plum of fair at the end of its tail.  It must have been Mr. Dragonite and Mrs. Charizard.

“Looks like they figured out I’m gone,” Gary muttered.  When the dragons disappeared, he came out of the bushes and dusted off the leaves and twigs.  “Locks his grandson up at night and then sicks his guard dragons on him, Gramps is crazy.”

From where Ash was standing, that Professor Oak’s actions where actually pretty reasonable given that Gary spent half of last week ditching school.  He was about to point this out to Gary only for a Pokémon cry to exit his throat.  “Rioool.”

Midnight had finally come to pass and Ash’s body immediately began to shift.  Following his bark, blue and black fur sprung from his skin covering his entire person.  His fang filled gums pressed forward past his lips while his aura feelers slid off his cranium like melting skin.  Next, Ash’s body compressed and shrank.

As Ash worked to remove his now oversized clothes, Gary and Pikachu watched with mixed looks of fascination and disgust.

“I would have thought you would look like a Zorua dropping an illusion or at least glowed like a Ditto using Transform,” Gary muttered, not taking his eyes on the body horror before him.  “This is just gross.”

Now fully transformed, Ash the Riolu folded his arms and stuck out his tongue.  “I’m not any grosser than your face!”

“You remember he can’t understand you like this, right?” Pikachu deadpanned.

“I know,” Ash grinned.  Despite Gary’s snark, Ash was feeling oddly relieved.  It was liberating that a human outside of his pack sort of knew what he really was.  Who cares if he messed up by spilling the beans!

Gary, meanwhile, bent down to get a better look at Ash.  It was kind of funny.  Despite the boy’s disdain for his grandfather, Gary kind of resembled the professor as he gently poked and observed Ash.  “That didn’t look like an illusion.  A lot closer to an ugly evolution.  Or de-evolution.  Hey Ash, can you talk like this?”

Ash was about to bark a “no,” when a loud BOOM sounded off from the lab.  Looking back toward the lab, Ash didn’t see any smoke causing his eyes to narrow in suspicion.

“What was that?” Gary voiced everyone’s thoughts.

Spotting the look in Ash’s eyes, Pikachu walked up next to the Riolu.  “Are we going in?”

“We’re going in,” Ash confirmed.  Both he and Pikachu jogged up the stairs toward the lab, Gary following behind.

Following his gut, Ash didn’t bother looking in the lab for the source of the explosion.  Instead, he headed straight for the cellar out back.  Ash’s suspicions proved correct when he not only found the door to the bunker open, but an unfamiliar smell wafting from within.  Oddly enough, the smell was not unlike bubblegum.

Before the group could descend, Ash turned around and held up a paw in a stopping motion.  He knew that Pikachu could handle himself if the situation got out of hand, Gary not so much.  The boy didn’t have any Pokémon to protect him and Ash didn’t want a repeat of the Gyarados encounter.

Seeing the Riolu’s gesture, Gary snorted.  “Do you really think you can keep me out of my own basement?  You and I both know I’m not going to march back to your house to watch movies with your clown butler while something suspicious is going on in my backyard.”

With that, Gary walked past Ash and Pikachu leaving the two Pokémon to stare after him.  Ash tried calling after the boy.  “Gary!  Wait!”

“He’s not going to listen,” Pikachu sighed.  “The best we can do is just make sure he doesn’t get in over his head.  Come on.”

Ash groaned.  He considered following after Gary, picking him up and throwing him out, but quickly tossed that idea to the side.  Ignoring how difficult it would be to get a good grip on a human that was now taller than him, Ash was sure the second he pushed Gary out the boy would find his way back in just to spite Ash.  He supposed he could break Gary’s legs, but that just wasn’t Ash’s style.  Ash wasn’t the kind of guy to severally hurt another human or Pokémon and as far as he was concerned, there was no power in the world that could make him do otherwise.

So, there they were.  A Riolu, a Pikachu, and a human navigating an underground bunker.  The more they walked through the subterranean area, the more apparent it became that this bunker more of a maze.  Despite the professor’s insistence that this place was a storage area, there wasn’t much down here.  Occasionally there would be a dusty box sitting in a corner or a bottle of medicine halfheartedly discarded on the floor, though it was not nearly enough to consider this place a storage unit.

Though a maze like this one would have been difficult for a normal human to navigate, Ash was able to lead his group just fine thanks to his nose and aura senses.  Through his sense of smell Ash could pick up that multiple people had been down here recently.  There was Nidoking and his mother, just as Gary said, as well as Professor Oak, and three new scents that Ash vaguely recognized.  Next to Ash, Pikachu frowned when he ran his nose over one of the new scents.

While smell was good for telling who passed through, Ash’s real guiding sense was aura.  Through it, Ash could feel that Nidoking and several other people were still on this floor.  It was just a matter of finding the proper path to them.  By combining smell and aura, Ash and his group were able to find that path.  All the needed to do now was turn the corner and…

“You guys!?” Pikachu exclaimed.

Deeper in the Kennel

Delia lumbered around her cage, her body at war with itself.  Even though she was deep underground she felt the power of the full moon flowing through her, charging her up, sending her instincts into a frenzy.  Much to her frustration, she couldn’t act on those instincts thanks to the foul fog that filled the room!

All throughout the chamber, the air was thick with a blue-purple fog that smelled of herbs and berries.  Whenever Delia inhaled the sweet and spicy gas, her body turned lethargic sapping her strength and making it difficult to think straight.  Whilst she knew she could break out of the cage she was barred in, Delia couldn’t summon the strength so long as she was breathing in that troublesome air!

Growling in frustration, Delia fell to all fours and slowly plodded over on to a large, stuffed dummy of some kind of Pokémon.  It was hard to tell which one it was as the dummy had been maimed beyond a recognizable form.  Upon reaching the stuffed doll, Delia bit down on one of the still intact limbs and gave it a halfhearted tug.  Even with the air handicapping her, Delia still felt the drive to chase, to rip, to hunt.  What she wouldn’t give to be out on the surface tracking down some prey.

Laying down, Delia grabbed onto the dummy with one of her claws and held it down while she continued to tear into to it.  As she worked out her bottled up aggression, Delia spared a glance at the cage opposite hers.  Inside that cage was another member of the pack.  Her foggy memory informed her that that Pokémon used to be her mentor at some point.

Bereft of any real memories, her mind made up images of a monstrous Leafeon showing a young, female Riolu how to hunt down food and defend herself from would be attackers.  It was pathetic to see that Leafeon in its current state, flopped down on the ground looking less like an apex predator and more like a compost pile.

Though she couldn’t blame the Leafeon for its sorry state.  A combination of the stupid air and old age had left the grass type slow and feeble.  To make matters even more stressful on the old Pokémon, he was dealing with some personal issues.  Delia couldn’t quite recall all the details, but she was sure it was a rowdy pup.

That line of thought lead Delia to remembering her own pup.  He’s almost at the age where he’d be old enough to hunt for his own food and form his own pack.  Or take over this one.  That last one would be a bit tricky as he would have to fight Delia and the old one to prove himself worthy and neither of them were going to hand the puppy an easy win.  It was a tough world out there and Delia would be doing her puppy a disservice by pulling her punches.

Delia’s ears leaned back and her head fell down on the dummy using it as a makeshift pillow.  Her pup wanted to scamper out of their den and into the world, but would he be able to care for himself?  If only she wasn’t in this cage, then Delia could go on a proper hunt with her pup.  Show him how to properly sneak up on his prey.  Demonstrate how to fight food that didn’t know how to submit.  Allow him to savor the sensation of his dinner squirming in his jaws in a fruitless bid for its life.

Suddenly, Delia’s head shot up.  New aura entered the underground labyrinth and one of those auras was her pup!  As the air cleared up, Delia reared up on her hind legs.  It would take a while to be back at full strength, but she would use every ounce of her power to make her way back to her child and—

HISSSH!

Before Delia could make her move, the chamber refilled itself with more of the foul air.  Just as fast as she was up, Delia found herself stumbling back onto the ground.  A small whine of frustration escaping her throat as she did so.

Back with Ash

After turning the corner, Ash found himself and his group looking into a large room.  One side of the room held a number of large gas canisters, some of which were hooked up to some kind of contraption in the back.  The contraption looked to be a mess of pipes and knobs.  The best Ash could guess was the pipes were carrying whatever was in those canisters off to a different room.  For what reason was anyone’s guess.

Not far from the pipes was Nidoking who, for some reason, was stuck to the wall.  Everything from his hefty tail, to his large feet, to his clawed hands were tied up in a glob of pink goo which reminded Ash of chewed gum.

Spotting Ash’s group, Nidoking tried to say something.  But thanks to the goo that was sticking half his face to the wall, all Nidoking could get out was “MMMM!”

Nidoking wasn’t the only individual in the room.  Standing on the other side of the contraption were three very familiar figures.

“You guys!?” Pikachu exclaimed.

The female trapper from the other day turned to look at Ash’s group, Gary in particular.  She scowled.  “Oh, this twerp.”

“Is he going to call the police again?” asked the man with blue hair.  He was kneeling down next to what looked like an empty bazooka.  Ash could detect a strong scent of gum wafting from the mouth of the bazooka.

“Doesn’t matter because we ain’t budgin’ dis time!” grinned the short man who smelled like a cat.  “Not when we’ve come so close to our goal!”

“Goal?  What goal?” asked Gary in a mix of surprise and rage.  An emotion Ash could relate with.  He’d feel pretty upset if a group of burglars broke into his house and hog tied Mimey.

“Why the most noble goal of all: theft!” the woman elaborated shamelessly.  “Our goal is to steel the most rare and valuable Pokémon available.”

The blue haired man shared the woman’s smile.  “Word on the street is there is a Pokémon hiding in this lab that fits that description.  We want to liberate it.  For ourselves.”

From his spot gummed up to the wall, Nidoking began to grunt and squirm.

“The Pokémon at this laboratory belong to their trainers!” Ash growled at the thieves.  He slammed a fist into an open palm.  “If you don’t leave now, you guys are in for a world of trouble.”

Much to Ash’s surprise, the short man grinned and translated.  “Do you hear dat guys?  The guard dog says we’re in for trouble.”

The threat only seemed to amuse the woman.  “Oh, I think you’ll find that it is you who needs to prepare for trouble.”

“And you should make it double,” added on the blue hair man who was now standing next to the woman.

The pair than began to recite some kind of motto.  They bounced off each other seamlessly and with such perfect synchronicity that Ash could practically hear villainous theme music playing in the background.

“To protect the world from devastation,” recited the woman with flare.

“To unite all peoples within our nation,” followed up the man.  Where did he get that rose?

“To denounce the evils of truth and love.”

“To extend our reach to the stars above.”

With one swift motion, the pair somehow managed to throw off their hats and coats revealing their true work clothes underneath.  Both robbers were wearing white uniforms with the woman’s cut short to show off her midriff while the man’s had long pants instead of a skirt.  The robbers also wore black boots and gloves, though the woman’s were a lot longer to compensate for the short skirt and sleeves on her top.

The woman whipped her long, magenta hair back and struck a deva pose.  “Jessie.”

The man tossed the rose in the air.  As it flew up in the air, the petals fell off the stem showering the pair.  “James.”

“Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!” declared Jessie.

“Surrender now or prepare to fight,” James said pointing toward Ash’s group.

The final member of the trio threw off his disguise to reveal that he wasn’t a short man with whiskers and a strong cat scent but, get this, a Meowth!  “Meowth that’s right!”

Ash, Pikachu, and Gary stared at the three slack jawed.  It’s not every day a burglar puts on a show before they try to rob you.  Finally, Ash broke the silence.

“That the Meowth can talk!” Ash exclaimed.

“Nice of you to notice.  As it turns out, I am one of those rare Pokémon who is intelligent and gifted enough to emulate the human tongue,” Meowth explained while he smugly shinned his claws on his chest fur.  Looking up, he shot Ash a toothy grin.  “Jealous?”

“Like we’d be jealous of a dirty crook!” Pikachu spat.

“That’s rich coming from a rodent,” Meowth sneered.  His tail twitched.  “Shouldn’t you be at some farmer’s house gnawing on his dumb crops?”

“I’m here because Ash is my friend,” Pikachu shot back.  His checks began to spark threateningly.  “And I’m not just going to sit back while his pack is being robbed.”

“Same here!” Ash said, stepping forward and raising his paws in a fighting stance.  Nidoking was gummed up, Mrs. Charizard and Mr. Dragonite were out looking for Gary, Mimey was probably meeting with them, the rest of the Pokémon kept at the lab were all locked up, and his mom and the professor were…who knows where.  It was up to Ash and Pikachu to get rid of this robbers!

“Ha!” Meowth grinned and addressed his cohorts.  “It looks like da twerp’s puny Pokémon are looking for a fight.”

“I’d like their chances better than yours,” Gary fired back.  “Seeing as how these two Pokémon took on the same Gyarados that sent you running.”

“A likely story,” Jessie sniffed before smirking at Gary.  “But just to be safe.  James!”

“On it!” James nodded before swiftly grabbing the bazooka and aiming it at Ash’s group.  He then pulled the trigger and…nothing happened.

James tried again and again to fire the bazooka to no avail.  While Ash and his friends were startled at first, bracing themselves to dodge the blast, now they were looking at gun with expressions of confusion mirroring Team Rocket’s.  Finally Meowth had enough.

“Don’t tell me you twos didn’t bring enough ammo!” shouted the cat in rage.

“Excuse me!  Do you know how many hours we spent concocting that goo?” Jessie placed her hands on her hips.  “My jaws still hurt from chewing all that gum.  If you wanted more ammo, you should have joined in!”

“I was busy risking my life, scouting out dis lab!” Meowth argued back.  “I spent hours trapped in a tree after a dumb Growlithe chased me around!”

“In our defense, we didn’t think we’d be using up all the ammo on one Pokémon,” James added in.  “That Nidoking was tough.”

In speaking of Nidoking, Ash looked over at the retired champion Pokémon.  The poison type was still trying to escape by pulling at the sticky goo that bolted him to the wall.  He only stopped when the metallic grinding of pipes moving sounded from behind the wall.  That sound of stressed pipes caused Nidoking to freeze up and stop his struggle.

Upon hearing the pipes, Ash felt a wave of fear emanate from Nidoking.  Ash’s best guess was that Nidoking was afraid that he might accidently tear apart the wall and bring down the room on everyone.  Ash gave Nidoking a thumbs up to reassure the drill Pokémon.  These Team Rocket goons didn’t look too tough.

Despite Ash’s reassurance, Nidoking’s ears folded back against his head making him look even more worried.

Meanwhile, Gary watched Team Rocket argue with a raised brow.  “So, what do you guys plan on doing now that you’re out of gum-goo or whatever that junk is?  Are you going to steal my gramp’s super-secret Pokémon that he probably doesn’t even have with your own hands?  Because let me tell you, that thing’s a fighter.”

“Snarky brat,” Jessie scowled.  She reached down to her belt and grabbed a Poké Ball.  Pressing the button in the middle, the tiny ball grew to the size of a baseball.  “Time for plan B!  Go Ekans!”

With that, Jessie tossed the ball.  The ball split open releasing a flash of light that took shape on the floor.  When the light died down, it revealed a coiled, purple rattlesnake with a yellow belly, neck, rattle, and slit eyes.

“I’m ready, Massster!” hissed the snake.

Following Jessie’s lead, James tossed out his own ball.  “Weepinbell, take them head on!”

Another Pokémon took to the battlefield.  This one resembled a yellow, pitcher plant with a pair of green leaves for arms and a short, brown stem growing out of the back of its “head.” Said head was actually the pitcher as indicated by the googly eyes located toward the back of the pitcher tube and the pink, peristome mouth.  Said mouth was currently chomping on James’s face.

“I said take them head on!  Not take on my head!” James’s exclaimed.

Taking her partner’s struggle in stride, Jessie focused her attention on the battle.  “Ekans, poison them with your Acid!”

Obediently following his trainer’s command, Ekans’s mouth opened up unleashing a thick, purple liquid.  The acid flew through the air straight at Ash and Pikachu causing the two to leap to the side.  A sizzling, hiss emanated from the acid when it hit the ground.  Though the acid was not corrosive enough to eat through the floor, Ash was glad it didn’t touch his skin.

“If that’s how you want to play, then fine by me!” Pikachu declared.  The electricity already sparking from his checks began to emanate from his entire body.  “Thundershock!”

Lightning flew from Pikachu’s body straight at the snake.   Before Ekans could get zapped, James finally managed to pull Weepinbell off his face and toss it into the battle.  Right in front of Ekans.

“GAAAAH!” Weepinbell cried out in pain.  Electricity engulfed the plant leaving him slightly charred.

“Excellent work, James!” Jessie congratulated her partner in crime.

“Ah!  Weepinbell!” James cried, clearly not intending for his Pokémon to take the hit.

Not letting the plant shield go to waste, Jessie gave her next command.  “Now Ekans, use Dig!”

Ekans sprang up into the air and dived head first into the concrete floor.  Normally such an act would result in a cracked skull.  It was thanks to the move Dig that Ekans was able to tunnel through the sturdy floor as though it was made of soft dirt.

Ash’s aura sensors stiffened.  Looks like the floor was thick enough for the Ekans to tunnel through, but not nowhere near deep enough to escape Ash’s aura senses.  Through the snake’s aura, Ash could tell Ekans was passing Pikachu and circling around for a behind attack.

Just as Ekans was about to spring up from the ground, Ash leapt over Pikachu to meet the snake.  Ash’s plan worked and when Ekans surfaced, he met a Force Palm to the face.  It was super effective.

With Ash busy taking care of Ekans, James decided to strike.  “Weepinbell, retaliate with Razor Leaf!”

Weepinbell began throwing his leaf arms back and forth.  As he did so, multiple razor-edged leaves sprang from his main leaves.  The leaves flew forward and rotated in the air like disks.  The bladed leaves were about to hit Ash’s exposed back, when Pikachu leapt in front of Ash and sent a blast of electricity at the leaves, knocking them out of the air.

“Thanks for having my back!” Ash grinned at Pikachu.

Pikachu returned Ash’s smile.  “Right back at ya!”

“Hey!” Gary called from the side lines causing Ash to jump.  He’d almost forgot about his new friend.  “Keep your heads in the game!”

Ash mentally kicked himself.  He and Pikachu scored a couple good hits, but Team Rocket wasn’t down just yet.  As good as it felt to have his first battle with Pokémon trainers (granted he wasn’t acting as a trainer himself), these people weren’t here for fun and Ash had to stay serious!

“Try to deflect this!  Ekans, Acid!” Jessie ordered Ekans.

Once again, Ekans spat out a glob of acid at Ash and Pikachu.  While the pair was dodging the poison, James gave Weepinbell his next order.  “Weepinbell, stop them with Stun Spore!”

Weepinbell inhaled deeply before releasing his breath.  When he did so, a cloud of golden spores puffed out into the room heading straight for Ash and Pikachu.  What’s more, the range of the spores were quickly widening leaving no room to dodge.

“Can you deflect it like with the leaves?” Ash asked Pikachu.

Pikachu shook his head.  “No way.  The spores are too small.”

As Ash’s mind raced, Gary called out to him again.  “Do either of you have a long distance move or something that can whip up a wind?”

Oh yeah!  Ash slashed his arm forward creating a wind blade.  “Vacuum Wave!”

The wind blade flew forward causing the air around it to create a small gust.  The move successfully dispersed the Stun Spore leaving Ash and Pikachu unharmed.  Ash barked a thanks to Gary.  This was the benefit of having a trainer.  Not only did it help to have another pair of eyes, but sometimes it was hard to come up with plans in the heat of battle.

Still, Gary wouldn’t be too much help if he doesn’t know all of Ash’s moves.  Perhaps he needed a demonstration of what else Ash could do.  So far Ash has only shown off two moves: Force Palm and Vacuum Wave.  Of Ash’s remaining moves he had one offensive and one defensive.  The defensive move only really worked in tight situations which left the offensive move.

“Hey Gary!” Ash barked.  “Check this out!”

After charging energy to his feet, Ash jumped in the air.  When Ash came down, he delivered a kick to Ekans’s side.  Before the snake could retaliate, Ash used the same move to make a speedy retreat.

“Quick Attack, nice,” Gary smiled in approval.  “Try combining it with your Force Palm.”

Taking Gary’s suggestion, Ash dashed across the room and plowed his palm into Weepinbell’s face.  Once again, he used Quick Attack to retreat.  He did this again and again, hitting Weepinbell from different sides and angles causing Weepinbell to go dizzy from trying to keep up and momentarily stopped fighting back.

So occupied with beating down Weepinbell, Ash almost missed Ekans sneaking up on him.  Just before the snake could land a Bite, Pikachu bolted forward and slammed his body into Ekans sending the snake tumbling to the side.

Ash noted the increase in energy Pikachu used to speed up his attack.  “When did you learn Quick Attack?”

“Just now,” Pikachu grinned.  “You just gather the energy at your feet, right?”

“Uh, yeah,” Ash confirmed.  His shoulders drooped in a little.  He didn’t get that move right until a little kid-bunny came along to tutor him.  “How did you learn it so fast?”

“It’s a pretty basic move,” Pikachu said modestly.  “Once you understand the basic principle, it becomes easy to execute.”

Well now Ash just felt a little dumb.  The only move he got correct off the bat was Force Palm.  His other moves came from Pokémon instructing him.  Did certain moves come easier to certain Pokémon, or was he just slow?

Gary whistled at the pair.  “Bad guys at twelve o’clock.  Ash, Pikachu, circle Ekans while Weepinbell is down.”

Sharing a nod, Ash and Pikachu zoomed forward to run circles around Ekans.  Ekans tried to fight back by biting or spiting Acid at the pair, but every time he zeroed in on one target the other Pokémon would use that as an opening for an attack.  Just as it looked like Ekans was going to faint, Weepinbell sprung back into battle.

“Weepinbell, use Slam!” called out James.

“Ash, Vacuum Wave behind you!” Gary ordered.

Sensing the incoming Weepinbell, Ash spun around and dragged one of his arms through the air.  The spin in combo with the arm motion created a large air wave which blasted Weepinbell back.  Ash’s tail wagged when he saw the powered up move.  “I’ll have to remember that one!”

“Quick!  While the Riolu’s busy!  Use Acid!” Jessie cried out.

Ekans zeroed in on Ash’s back and opened his jaw.

Gary didn’t miss a beat.  “Pikachu!  Grab Ekans and shock him!”

Pikachu jumped forward and grabbed Ekans.  “Do you like hugs?”

Ekans paused his attack and gulped.  “Pleasse sstop hugging me.”

“Too late,” Pikachu announced.  Electricity cackled across both his and Ekans’s body, stunning the snake.

Seeing that the snake was now stunned, Ash grabbed Ekans by the tail.  He addressed Pikachu.  “Mind if I take this?”

“By all means,” Pikachu said, letting the snake go.

With Pikachu now off Ekans, Ash tightened his grip and began spinning the snake around.  The two spun around and around with Ash serving as the center of the makeshift top.  Finally, Ash released Ekans allowing the snake to fly across the room and collide into Weepinbell.  The snake and plant then went crashing into a wall where they both released pained groans.

“Alright!  We won!” Ash cheered.  He bounded over to Pikachu to give his friend a high-five.  But just before he could congratulate the mouse, Meowth leapt across the room and scratched both Ash and Pikachu causing them to stumble back in pain.

“Don’t forget about little ol’ Meowth,” purred the cat as he backed away to safety, smugly flexed his claws all the way.

While Ash and Pikachu were recovering from Meowth’s surprise attack, James grabbed another Poke Ball from his belt.  “Koffing, use Sludge!”

The ball cracked open revealing a floating, round, purple Pokémon covered with bulbous pores.  Just below the Pokémon’s fanged, smiling face were white markings which looked a lot like a skull and cross bones.  Koffing spied Pikachu and spat out a glob of dark, brown goo.

Koffing’s goo shot through the air nailing Pikachu in the eyes.  Though Pikachu grabbed and pulled, the goo stayed fixed to his face like a blind fold.  While Pikachu struggled, Ekans and Weepinbell got back up with the former diving back underground.  Both combatants were bruised, but not completely out.

Ash looked around wildly.  Weepinbell was on onside, Meowth was on the other.  Koffing floated overhead, Ekans was working his way underneath.  He was surrounded.  Growling in frustration, Ash barked at Meowth.  “Four verses two isn’t fair!”

“Of course it ain’t fair,” Meowth preened.  “We’re the bad guys!”

“And as the bad guys we don’t have to care about rules of engagement,” Jessie added in with a smirk.  She then pointed at Gary.  “Ekans, grab the twerp!”

Before Gary could react, Ekans shot up from the floor and used his Wrap attack to bind the boy.

“What’s going on!?” Pikachu asked in a panicked voice.  His ears twitched as he looked around wildly.

Ash’s heart began to pick up the pace.  Nidoking was still trapped, Pikachu was blind, and Gary was basically a hostage.  Oh, how the tables had turned.

“Why don’t you be a good doggie and stay there while we get our work done,” jeered James.

Ash growled.  He couldn’t just let these guys get away with robbing the professor.  Ash tried to think of a way out, but if he tried attacking any of the Pokémon that would just leave him vulnerable to attack from the others.  The same applied if he tried to clean the slime off of Pikachu or wrestle Ekans away from Gary.

Still growling, Ash sat down on the ground.  “Fine.  You win.”

“That’s a good puppy,” Jessie cooed in a voice that made Ash want to puke.  She reached into the sack and grabbed a metal collar.  When she tossed the collar at Ash’s feet, it popped open.  “Now, if you’ll just put on that shock collar, we’ll get you into your cage so that we can ship you out of here when we’re done.”

“Cage!?” Ash exclaimed.

“Ash!  I can feel the electricity in that thing.  It really is a shock collar.  Don’t put it on!” Pikachu shouted.  He clawed more aggressively at the sludge on his face, but to no avail.

Despite the threat of a snake attack, Gary decided to throw his two cents in.  “I thought you guys were just here for that dumb Route One Monster!”

Jessie waved her finger back in forth.  “Tisk, tisk.  Didn’t we just get through explaining that we go after rare and valuable Pokémon?  Riolus fit both of those criteria.”

“And besides, it’ll be a good safety net incase our current lead on the Route One Monster is a bust,” James threw in.

Ash glared down at the collar in disgust.  This was not how you captured a Pokémon!  Ignoring the fact that Ash was actually half Pokémon, a trainer was supposed to earn a Pokémon’s loyalty by proving themselves in battle or through their deeds.  Not with dirty tricks!

Desperate to find a solution, Ash took one last look around the room.  He could see Meowth and Weepinbell inch closer to Pikachu and Ekans tighten his grip on Gary.  To the side, Ash caught Nidoking giving him an apologetic look.  Sighing, Ash spoke to Pikachu.  “Pikachu, if I can’t escape please tell my mom what happened.”

“Ash!” exclaimed Pikachu.

“Don’t worry,” Ash said as he reached down for the collar.  “I’ll find a way out of this.”

Pikachu’s checks sparked.  “Don’t be an idiot!”

Slowly, Ash brought the open collar to his neck.

“STOP!” Lightning sprang from Pikachu’s body and branched around the room, shocking everyone.  Team Rocket yelped in pain as electricity coursed through their bodies.  Ekans and Gary were sent flying back when a bolt lashed against Ekans’s coils.  The collar in Ash’s paws exploded from the overload.  Ash himself winced in pain, but thanks to the vitality supplied by the full moon he was able to muscle through it.

Over against the wall, Nidoking was still trapped and looking more destressed than ever.  Wait.  Nidoking was a ground type, the electricity shouldn’t affect him.  Why would he look so destressed?  Following Nidoking’s line of sight, Ash saw that the gas canisters were shocked loose by Pikachu’s attack.  As a result, a sweet and spicy smelling gas began to leak out of the canisters and into the room.

Deeper in the Kennel

Delia rose to her feet and sniffed.  Odd.  The foal air wasn’t blowing into the room any more.

Curious, Delia looked around.  The old one’s body began to twitch, indicating he was also breaking out of the effects of the bad air.  Also, the Nidoking that usually came around by now with food was missing.

With a lack of immediate information, Delia decided to reach out with her aura.  Beyond her cell she could sense Pokémon in their burrows perfectly content, nothing unusual.  The plants were starting to stir now that the old one was waking up, only a matter of time before they begin to swarm the prison.

Finally, Delia zeroed in a cluster of auras several floors above her.  One of them belonged to the Nidoking, though he was a lot more stressed than usual, and most were strangers.  A few felt familiar, but she wasn’t sure where they met before.

The last aura in that room was most defiantly her pup.  Delia could sense the fatigue and adrenalin, indicating her pup was in a fight.  Even more alarming was her pup’s stress.  Someone had upset her pup.  Someone was putting her pup in danger.  Someone was going to pay.

Snarling, Delia grabbed ahold of the bars of her cage and pulled.  The second her claws wrapped around the bars a massive jolt of electricity coursed through her body.  Yelping in pain, Delia momentarily backed off before charging the side of her cage and breaking the bars down.

Now free of her cell, Delia gave her body a quick shake.  She was still feeling sluggish from the gas that was still in her system, but not enough to keep her away from her pup.  Raising her clawed hand, Delia brought it down on the door breaking it open and letting her loose.

Back with Ash

The gas swirled around the room assaulting Ash with its thick scent.  As far as Ash could tell, it was a mix of herbs and berries though he couldn’t tell right away which ones.  When he sniffed the air to get a better picture, Ash immediately felt the gas’s effects.

Tense muscles when slack and Ash’s eyelids began to droop.  The Riolu tried to stand up straight, but his body immediately began to flop.  Inwardly Ash began to feel woozy.  Despite all the danger, Ash wanted to lay down.

Shaking himself, Ash tried to reorient.  Through the thin fog of gas and the noise of Team Rocket’s confused panic, Ash could sense both Pikachu’s and Gary’s auras.  Pikachu, though blind, could take care of himself.  Gary didn’t have any electric powers to fight back with, so Ash decided to free him first.

Sluggishly, Ash made his way over to Gary.  The good news was that between the battle and Pikachu’s massive Thundershock the Ekans looked to be on his last legs (so to speak).  The bad news was that after breathing in that gas, Ash wasn’t feeling to up to battling himself.  Gary, aside from occasionally coughing from either the gas or the snake strangling him, was fine.

Though he was weak, Ekans still managed to give his tail a rattle.  “Put that collar on like Jessie commanded.”

Instead of dignifying that threat with a response, Ash growled and made for an attack.  He tried to hit Ekans with a Force Palm, but missed.  Ekans took advantage of this blunder and bit down on Ash’s back before throwing him away.

Shaking, Ash tried to get back up on his hind legs.  His will and shaky body were able to compromise and Ash stood up on all fours.  He then charged forward, which looked more like a clumsy fast walk, and bared his teeth.  The gas may have been messing with his ability to perform regular Pokémon moves, but he could still fight the old fashioned way.  Opening his jaws, Ash leapt forward to give Ekans a bite.

“OW!”

Surprised, Ash let go and shook himself.  Getting a good look at where he attacked, Ash saw that Ekans moved his head out of the way in time causing Ash to bite into Gary’s neck instead.  Growling at the now laughing snake, Ash got ready to charge in again.

CRACK!

The gas that was already slowly making its way out of the room now drained away faster thanks to a new hole in the floor.  The source of this hole was a massive, blue, clawed hand that was currently sticking out of the concrete like a zombie hand clawing up from its grave.  Everyone stared at the clawed hand, frozen in shock.  Behind him, Ash could feel Nidoking’s fear spike.

Then, slowly, the claw withdrew back into the hole.  There was a minute of silence where no one said anything.  Finally, James spoke up.  “What was-”

“LUCAAAAR!” came a loud roar.  The floor shock several times, feeling as though something was knocking from below.  Finally, it burst open.

Climbing out from the cracked open floor was a massive Lucario.  Spikes along the arms, glowing, red eyes, and thick fur.  When the Lucario finally managed to crawl into the room, it stood up revealing it was tall enough to scrap the room’s ceiling with its head.  No, not an it.  Ash could tell from the scent that this mutant of a Lucario was a female.  A very familiar smelling female.

“Mom?” Ash asked drowsily.

Though Ash couldn’t see any pupils in the Lucario’s red eyes, he could feel her spare him a glance before turning to face the cowering Team Rocket.

“I-is that it?” James stuttered.

“I think so,” Jessie shook.

“Quick!  Plan C!  Plan C!” Meowth shouted anxiously.

“Right!” Jessie and James coursed.  The pair reached into a bag and threw a pair of metal balls at the Lucario.  The balls broke open revealing a pair of contraptions that looked like metal ropes.  The metal ropes sprang at the Lucario and wrapped around her body, momentarily binding her.

“Now!  While she’s trapped!  Attack!” called out Meowth with a bit more courage.

All the other Team Rocket Pokémon went to work.  Weepinbell began rapidly firing Razor Leafs across the Lucarios body while Koffing went up to her head and puffed a large cloud of Poison Gas in her face.  Ekans ditched Gary and slithered off to start spraying Acid at her ankles.

It was not very effective.

None of the attacks seemed to bother the Lucario.  If anything she just looked annoyed, staring at Team Rocket with a furrowed brow and pursed lips.  This was followed by a loud SNAP as by just flexing her muscles she was able to break out of her restraints.  She then began to reach for the now screaming humans.

CRACK!

Nidoking finally broke free from the wall.  Still covered in the sticky substance and now peppered front and back with pieces of the concrete ceiling that fell on him as he made his escape.  With the floor, ceiling, and some of the wall compromised, the room began to give.

Planting himself between the Lucario and Team Rocket, Nidoking grabbed the Lucario’s claw and shoved it back.  The Lucario growled and brought down another claw in a slashing motion.  Nidoking brought up a cement armored forearm, allowing his makeshift arm guard to take the damage instead of him.

As the Lucario reached down to grab Nidoking, the drill Pokémon looked over at Ash.  “Ash, take Gary and Pikachu and leave!”

“What’s going on!?” Ash barked back.  With the gas cleared out, he could slowly feel his head clear and body steady.

“I’ll explain later!” Nidoking yelled.  Electricity sprung from his spikes and hit the Lucario square in the face eliciting an angry snarl from the beast.  “Go!  Now!”

Ash was about to refuse, when he felt Pikachu tugging at his tail.  The mouse was pulling him away from the crumbling room and toward the exit.  Next to the exit, Gary rose from the ground, one of his hands scratching the area where Ash bit him.  Ash spared Nidoking and the Lucario one last glance before following his friends and leaving the room.  The wall collapsed behind, sealing them out.

While the trio retreated down the hallway, Pikachu continued to wipe the slime from his face.  He grunted in frustration as he pulled and wiped at the substance to no avail.  Finally, Gary brought their group to a stop.

“Hold on, I think there might be some water in these boxes,” Gary said before heading over to one of the dusty boxes sagging against the wall, scratching at his side as he did so.

Something was off about Gary.  Ash wasn’t quite sure what it was, perhaps it was just in his head.  Tonight had been very taxing on his sense of normalcy.  But now that they had successfully escaped the bandits and that monster of a Lucario, Ash was able to spot a number of oddities with Gary.  His scent was off, smelling more like a mix between his normal odor and something else.  Ash was sure he knew that scent, he just couldn’t recall where from.  What’s more his clothes were looking a little looser than earlier and there was a large, black smudge on the boy’s nose that Ash was certain wasn’t there a minute ago.

The biggest oddity was the scratching.  As Gary rummaged around for water, he would reach up to either his side or back and give it a quick scratch.  Not a fan of silence, Ash voiced his thoughts.

“Wow, you’re itchy,” Ash said.  He watched as Gary finally fished out a water bottle and used it to dampen the hem of his shirt.

“Yeah, I don’t know why,” Gary agreed.  He rubbed the dampened hem across Pikachu’s eyes, clearing away the sludge.  “Maybe I’m allergic to whatever was in that smoke.”

“That could be it,” Ash nodded.

…

Gary stopped cleaning Pikachu and swerved around.  His eyes were wide with surprise that matched the shock in his aura, though Ash could also sense some annoyance.  “You could talk this whole time!?”

Now it was Ash’s turn to be surprised.  He stepped back, ears perked, and tail standing straight up.  “You can understand me?”

“Who’s understanding who?” Pikachu asked, rubbing away what was left of the slime from his eyes.

“Holy!” Gary’s head circled back around to stare at Pikachu.  The annoyance swirling around his aura was replaced with pure confusion.

So, it wasn’t just Ash.  For some mysterious reason Gary could now understand Pikachu too.  Again, Ash recalled the weird gas.  “Do you think this is because of that gas?”

“Don’t be stupid,” Gary remarked, rolling his eyes.  He reached up to the spot where Ash bit him and began scratching at it in a rapid manner similar to how some clawed, quadruped Pokémon alleviated an itch.  Was it just Ash, or was there extra hair trailing down his neck?  “It would take more than just breathing in a gas to understand Pokémon!”

“Says the guy who’s talking to a Riolu!” Ash fired back.  Looking away from Gary, Ash folded his arms and thought.  “Do you guys think that’s why the professor kept this place secret?  So that he could work on a Pokémon translation gas?”

“Maybe,” Pikachu said.  The mouse frowned and his ears twitched curiously.  “It might also be to hide that monster Pokémon back there.”

Right, the monster Lucario.  Thinking about it sent a shiver down Ash’s spine.  It wasn’t just the scent of the monster that put him off.  The creature’s aura was erratic and unstable.  Even now Ash could feel the Lucario’s frenzied aura like an out of control fire burning her alive and threatening to consume everyone around her.  That wild aura was like nothing Ash had ever seen.  Yet it, like the monster’s scent, was familiar.

“I think that monster might have been my mom,” Ash muttered.

“Ash,” Pikachu began, concern clear in his voice.

“It makes sense!  Mom’s the only Lucario in Pallet Town, plus Gary saw her go down here earlier!” Ash exclaimed.  Earlier this evening Ash would have thought his mother and the professor would be dashing through the woods or hunting a late meal to burn off excess full moon energy.  Now he wasn’t sure what to think.  “Do you think this is where she and the professor go every full moon?”

“Full moon!?” Gary exclaimed.

Looking back at Gary, both Ash and Pikachu jumped in astonishment.  It looked like the hair was indeed traveling down Gary’s neck, and up his arms, and across his face.  What’s more, the black smudge had completely taken over the tip of Gary’s nose.  His teeth had sharpened into fangs while his pupils had dilated to the point where they almost consumed his eyes.

“You said this happens every full moon, right?” Gary urgently asked.

“Gary…your hair,” Ash managed to say in a shaky voice.

Confused, Gary reached up to feel the hair on his head.  It was as he reached that he noticed his now hairy hand.  Shaking, Gary turned both his hands around to see that they were both sprouting more hair by the second.  Alarm growing, Gary grabbed the bottom of his shirt and brought it up revealing even more hair.  Gary cast his now fearful eyes down at Ash.  “Y-you bit me earlier.”

“Uh, yeah.  That was an accident.  Sorry about that,” Ash apologized, rubbing the back of his head bashfully.  Looking back up at Gary, Ash noticed the hair around his neck was growing out and lightening from brown to a creamy white.  Ash stepped forward.  “Look, you don’t have to worry about the bite.  I had my shots.  But right now you’ve got bigger problems.”

“Stay back!” shouted Gary.  The normally cocky boy’s body was almost ridge with fear.  He held out a hand in a stopping motion to create some semblance of a barrier between him and Ash.  No sooner had he done so that his arm begin to shrivel until it disappeared up his sleeve.

Gary let out a startled cry which sounded like a cross between a human yelp and the yowl of a scared animal.  While he tried to wiggle around his stub of an arm, his fuzzy ears sprang out from his head becoming thin and long.  Finally, the rest of his body followed his arm and Gary shrank into his clothes.

Both Ash and Pikachu watched the transformation frozen in place with twin looks of horror.  Pikachu was the first to recover and dashed over to the now squirming pile of clothes.  When he pulled back Gary’s shirt, he revealed a small Pokémon shaking from head to toe.

This Pokémon was mostly covered in brown fur save for the fluffy cream colored mane around its neck.  The Pokémon’s body was quadrupedal with four paws similar to those of a feline or a canine.  The Pokémon’s face also seemed to be a cross between those two families of Pokémon with a short muzzle, long ears, and some extra fur atop its head.  Ash immediately identified the Pokémon as an Eevee.  Mostly an Eevee.  All that was missing was the-

FWOOF!

A fluffy, vulpine tail sprouted from Gary’s rear completing his transformation.

Though surprising, Ash was able to quickly reason through this turn of events.  It actually made a whole bunch of sense when he thought about it.  Professor Oak’s Pokémon form was a Leafeon so why wouldn’t Gary turn into an Eevee?  Good news for the professor, turns out his grandson did inherit the shapeshifting gene!  He was probably just a late bloomer.

Wagging his tail to try and put Gary at easy, Ash stepped forward again.  “Okay.  So Professor Oak was going to let you in on the secret, but I guess the Meowth’s out of the bag.  You see my mom and I aren’t Pokémon disguised as humans.  We’re really-”

Gary backed away from Ash, stumbling over his clothes.  Keeping his eyes fixed on the Riolu, Gary finished Ash’s sentence for him.  “WerePokémon!”

New Pokémon Stats!

Meowth

Trainer: None

Ability: Pickup

Nature: Top Cat

Item: Thieving tools

Moves: Fury Swipes, Bite, Nasty Plot, Snatch

Ekans

Trainer: Jessie

Ability: Shed Skin

Nature: Docile

Item: None

Moves: Wrap, Acid, Dig, Bite

Weepinbell

Trainer: James

Ability: Gluttony

Nature: Naughty

Item: None

Moves: Razor Leaf, Wrap, Slam, Stun Spore

Koffing

Trainer: James

Ability: Levitate

Nature: Impish

Item: None

Moves: Smokescreen, Tackle, Sludge, Poison Gas

AN: There!  There Pokémon.  There laboratory.  What?  You guys don’t want me to talk this way?  Suit yourself.  I’m easy.

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features.  Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri.  Please support the official release.

Listening to as I water the plants: Here we Are (Toby Fox)

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Compost

The Kennel, Bottom Floor

A pair of glowing, white eyes blinked awake as Samuel took in his surroundings.  Cage destroyed, door smashed open, and no wereLucario.  Giving the air a few experimental sniffs, he detected none of the usual gas that plagued his den.  Odd.

BOOM!

The shaking of the roof was accompanied by the sound of falling rocks.  Samuel’s ears flattened against his head as tiny pieces of the ceiling crumbled into his cell.  The wereLeafeon released an annoyed growl.  So much for getting some shut eye.

On the other hand, it did feel like forever since Samuel last hunted.  Might as well take advantage of the situation and take an overdue walk.

Standing up on all fours, Samuel’s back arched and popped as he stretched.  The foliage that ran from the top of his head to the tip of his tail rustled as his spine quivered.  Slowly, the wereLeafeon lumbered over to the bars of his cage.

As Samuel approached the bars, a spark of electricity jumped from the metal and on to his nose.  The wereLeafeon snort and rubbed at his muzzle before turning his attention back to the barrier.  Multiple vines across his body stretched forward and wrapped themselves around the bars.  The bars tried to shock the vines at first, but one Giga Drain later and the energy began to be redirected.  Instead of shocking the monster, the power from the cell was channeled into the Leafeon.

Feeling the new energy humming through his body, Samuel instinctually used it to reach out to his environment.  As usual, he could sense the foliage around the Kennel.  Trees, weeds, roots, all of them would normally twitch and even come to life in the wereLeafeon’s presence.  Now, thanks to the energy boost, they were beginning to squirm and grow.

Massive roots began bursting through the cement walls of the underground facility.  The roots branched out and encompassed Samuel’s den making it slightly cozier to the plant monster.  Some roots latched onto the bars and pulled causing the wall of the cage to snap off its hinges and be carried off by the plants.

Now energized and free, Samuel made his way over to the door and sniffed around.  Drool began to drip from his jaws when the scent of multiple Pokémon met his nose.  Time to hunt.

Ketchum Residence

While the kennel was crumbling into a massive mess, Mr. Dragonite and Mrs. Charizard were handling their search for Gary in a calm and rational manner.

“What did you say happened?” snarled Mrs. Charizard.  She held up Mimey by his rounded shoulders to her eye level, her claws pinching his skin.

“I came down from cleaning the bathroom and I found Gary talking to Ash.  Ash bolted off toward the lab and the other boys followed.  That’s all I know, I swear!” Mimey gulped.

“And you didn’t stop them?” Mrs. Charizard pressed.  Her lips pealed back revealing her impressive dental work.

“I was about to, but the phone, and everything was happening fast, and I couldn’t keep up!” Mimey stammered.

Mrs. Charizard began shaking the clown and shouting.  “HOW DO YOU LOSE A FOOT RACE TO A REGULAR HUMAN BOY?”

“Those kids can really book it!  Please, I’m just a housekeeper!” cried Mimey.  “Don’t send me to jail!  I’m not ready for the big house!”

“Jail?” Mrs. Charizard asked incuriously.  She stopped shaking Mimey and let him drop to the ground.  She then adjusted the messenger bag strapped around her shoulder.

“I may or may not have been watching too many cop dramas,” Mimey mumbled twiddling his fingers.

Mr. Dragonite stepped in and cleared his throat.  Unlike usual, he was wearing a yellow and red bandana around his neck known as a Muscle Band.  An item he hoped he wouldn’t have to use tonight.  “Dear, I understand your frustration, but we should head back to the lab.  We don’t want those boys to be poking around there during the full moon.”

“I have a bad feeling about this,” Mrs. Charizard sighed.  As she spread her wings she grabbed Mimey off the ground and swung him onto her back ignoring the clown’s startled yelp.  “You’re coming too!”

The two dragons took off to the skies and toward the laboratory.  Catching his wife’s sour expression (or at least it was sourer than usual), Mr. Dragonite gave her a comforting smile.  “Don’t worry.  Nidoking is there.  He knows how to handle himself.”

Nidoking

Nidoking was not having a good evening.  The walls were cracking, the roof was caving in, thieves behind him, and his claws were locked in a shoving match with a werePokémon.  Glancing behind, Nidoking could see that the roof in one of the back corners had fallen down creating a pile of rubble leading to the outside.  Looks like he was being granted at least one mercy.

“If you want to keep living, climb outside, run away, and never look back!” Nidoking shouted to Team Rocket, using his tail to motion toward the hole.  While it was true that those thieves were looking to kidnap his friends, Nidoking wouldn’t wish a werePokémon mauling on anyone.  Even more than that, he didn’t want someone as sweet as Delia to have any more blood on her hands than she already did.  “What are you waiting for go-”

Once again Nidoking looked over his shoulder to see that Team Rocket had already fled, scurrying out of the hole like a bunch of scared Torchics.  Nidoking grumbled.  “You’re welcome.”

Taking advantage of the momentary distraction, Delia brought one of her hands back and swiped at Nidoking with enough force to send him flying.  Nidoking smashed against the wall causing a large chunk of the ceiling to fall, narrowly miss him.  Before Delia could leap over to deliver another blow, Nidoking used his hefty tail to slam into the wall.  As a result, more of the ceiling began to rain down on the two.  Nidoking was close enough to the hole to flee.  Delia was not as fortunate and had to suffer through an artificial rock slide.

Quickly, Nidoking climbed out of The Kennel.  Once he was able to successfully pull himself back to the surface, he turned around to face the rubble.  By now, Nidoking knew it would take more than a collapsed roof to take out a wereLucario.  Right on que, the rubble began to shift signaling that Delia was digging her way out.

Before Delia could make her way to the surface, Nidoking took a moment to access his current situation.  The rubble seemed to have settled which meant that the ground, while very much uneven, had stabilized.  Though he should still be careful to not cause any more cave-ins in case the boys hadn’t escaped yet.

A shudder ran down Nidoking’s spine.  He really hoped those boys were able to get out.  It was bad enough that they got to see Delia like this, they didn’t need to see Sam too.  Sam tended to recover from the gas slower than Delia, which was probably the reason the plants hadn’t started attacking yet, so maybe the boys would be able to miss the mess of a mutant the professor turned into every full moon.

Speaking of gas, another small blessing this evening was the gas Pikachu knocked over.  It seemed like it gave Delia a healthy second dose of the tranquilizer giving Nidoking a slight edge.  Past experiences of lycans breaking loose had taught Nidoking how powerful werePokémon were.  They were a challenge Nidoking would have appreciated back in his prime, easily stronger than their non-cursed counter parts and far more brutal.  Your average Pokémon would stand no chance.  All they could do was try to outrun whatever other poor Pokémon was being hunted.

Fortunately, Nidoking was no ordinary Pokémon.  He may have been retired, but he was still a member of an Indigo League champion team.  Back in the old days, Nidoking could count on Sam to come up with the strategies.  Now, he had to employee his own experience in a solo battle.

Move-wise, Delia had only two offensive moves: Metal Claw and Aura Sphere.  Her other moves, both those she instinctually learned upon transforming and those learned in the nine years since she was cursed, were all defensive.  Most troubling of those defensive moves were Counter and Detect.

Detect was a move that granted a Pokémon a brief moment of precognition.  Any Pokémon using that move would innately know where an opposing move was going to hit allowing the Pokémon to fluidly dodge out of the way.  Detect also had its draw backs in that it took a lot of energy to use and it couldn’t be used back to back.  Still, it could be used to dodge a solid blow dragging out the battle.

Even more troubling was Counter.  With Counter, Delia could take any physical move that made contact with her and use its power to push back her opponent all the while mirroring the damage back at said opponent.  This meant that Nidoking had to be careful with throwing physical attacks, which really stunk because he worked best with physical attacks.  Not to say he was helpless.  He’d been living with the threat of a werePokémon outbreak for years and had time to prepare some contingency plans just in case he found himself fighting Delia.  All he needed to do was wait until the noise from the rubble died down.

As Delia climbed out of the rubble, Nidoking took a deep breath and used Focus Energy.  A lavender aura swirled around Nidoking’s body, strengthening him.  Most Pokémon had a very limited move set, only learning up to four moves.  Pokémon who had the benefit of working alongside a competent trainer could push past those barriers and learn a wide variety of attacks.  As a Pokémon who was both worked on a champion team and a retired lab worker, Nidoking had learned and practiced a wide range of attacks.  Not that he’d be able to just start randomly firing them off in hopes of victory like a lot of wild Pokémon were prone to do.

Toxic and Poison Jab were off the table as Delia’s secondary steel typing granted her immunity from poison attacks.  Shame, as a poison type himself Nidoking had a natural affinity for those kinds of moves.  The threat of Counter also cut Nidoking’s move pool in half leaving him with just special moves.  One of which seemed very appropriate for this situation.

Taking in a deep breath, Nidoking felt a vortex of heat gather at the back of his throat.  He held it in for a second before unleashing it through his mouth straight at the emerging wereLucario.  Delia roared in anger as a powerful Flamethrower was blasted straight at her.

Flamethrower wasn’t an attack that Nidoking used back in his heyday.  That was Charizard’s specialty.  She had taught it to him after it became clear that he would be the one who would be stationed closest to the steel type who could deflect physical attacks.  It also helped that Sam turned into a grass type giving the two local lycanthropes a shared weakness to fire.

There was another snarling roar.  It seemed as though Delia dodged Nidoking’s Flamethrower, probably using Detect, and was now leaping out of the fire and straight toward Nidoking himself.  Nidoking moved back just in time avoid Delia’s fist which slammed right into the ground sending small chunks of stone flying through the air.

Bringing up an arm to shield himself from the spray of rocky debris, Nidoking took note of Delia’s movements.  Still sluggish which meant she was still working off that extra blast of gas.  It would be a bit of a gamble, but if Nidoking wanted to go in for close combat now would be the time.

Again, Nidoking gathered energy into his throat.  This time, however, it was dark energy.  Nidoking used Taunt.  “Here, puppy!  Come on!  Come here, girl!”

Growling, Delia charged forward, claws reaching out to slash Nidoking.  Nidoking met her attack head on, literally.  Thanks to the taunt, Nidoking was safe from the threat of a Counter, at least for a little while.  Light green energy formed around Nidoking’s horn making it larger.  By shoving his head up, Nidoking drove his Megahorn into Delia’s chin slightly knocking her back.  That was enough to create an opening for Nidoking to start rapidly punching Delia’s now exposed stomach.

Fist after fist.  Nidoking kept fighting.  As he punched, his hands ignited on fire creating a dual Fire Punch.  It didn’t take long for Delia to regain her balance and start blowing back.  Even weakened her strikes were powerful.  Through the makeshift concrete armor, Nidoking felt Delia’s attacks.  Each swipe broke off another piece of concrete threatening to get to the Pokémon underneath.

Deciding that now would be a good time to get some space, Nidoking blew another Flamethrower right into Delia.  This time the attack was too close to dodge and Delia snarled in pain.  With the wereLucario thrown off balance, Nidoking began preparing a new attack.

Cold, ethereal energy began to gather around Nidoking’s right claw creating a clawed gauntlet of ghostly energy.  Normally this would be enough for a Shadow Claw, but for what Nidoking had in mind he needed more power.  He quickly combined Shadow Claw with Focus Energy causing the ghost claw to swell in size all the while keeping up his Flamethrower.  By the time his fire attack lost steam, Nidoking had a clawed hand large enough to grab around Delia’s body.

Swinging his Shadow Claw forward, Nidoking managed to push Delia to the ground.  By now, Nidoking was feeling sore both from the fight and all the energy he was using to maintain that fight.  But he couldn’t afford to take a break.  Tilting his head skyward, Nidoking managed to summon one last Flamethrower creating a fountain of flames that would hopefully get the dragons’ attention.

Now completely out of breath, Nidoking panted and settled down.  He focused all his power into keeping the giant Shadow Claw clamped firmly around Delia.  The tranquilizer should wear off any moment, but Charizard and Dragonite should have seen his Flamethrower distress signal.  If they all worked together they should scrounge up some extra gas to readminister to Delia and-

Suddenly, the ground erupted.  Roots, both big and small, broke through the surface resembling a pod of water Pokémon rising from the sea.  The minefield of plant parts slithered and coiled creating an uneven field and throwing Nidoking back, away from Delia.

The Kennel B1F

Ash blinked in confusion.  “Where Pokémon?”

“Yes, we’re Pokémon,” Pikachu said slowly.  Good to know that Ash wasn’t the only one feeling lost.

Gary, who was still adjusting to walking on all fours, continued to shuffle around.  He looked back and forth between between Ash and Pikachu, ears leaned back against his head.  His ears then cocked forward as his face morphed from terrified to perplexed to skeptical.  “Is this some kind of joke to you?!”

Joke?

“Look, I know you’re scared,” Ash could feel fear emanating from the new Eevee in waves.  Not that he could blame Gary for being freaked out.  He imagined most humans wouldn’t take a sudden species shift well.  “But this is actually natural.  See, there’s a secret society of humans that can turn into Pokémon.  Sometimes we shift by will, but most of the time we transform in the middle of the night and can turn back into humans after dawn.”

“Right, and I assume memberships for this little club are always handed out via biting on the full moon,” Gary sneered.  His tail stuck up while all the fur on his body stood on end, making him look slightly bigger.  “Like you did.  To me.  Just now.”

“What has biting got to do with anything?” Ash asked.  “I said I was sorry!”

Slowly, Gary’s tail lowered.  His eyes traced over Ash’s form with suspicion and his head tilted.  “Holy Arceus, do you really not know?”

“Know what?” Ash pressed.  Wasn’t he supposed to be the one teaching Gary?

“You’ve never heard of a werePokémon?” Gary asked.

Alright, so it looked like werePokémon was a word and not a question about their location.  Ash shook his head.

“It’s a horror movie monster,” Gary explained.  He tried to stand up on his hind legs only to fall back down on all fours.  A look of annoyance crossed his face and he carefully began to walk around, getting used to his quadrupedal body.  “A werePokémon is a human who turns into a half human, half Pokémon monster on the full moon and goes around attacking other humans and Pokémon.  Also,” Gary added on with a scowl.  “If you get bitten by a werePokémon you turn into one!”

Ash returned Gary’s scowl.  It was bad enough he had to deal with Pokémon who called him a freak, it stunk that he had to hide his true self from other humans, but did he have to sit through being called a monster by his new friend?  “That’s a load!  I’ve been turning into a Pokémon my entire life and I’ve never hurt anyone!  Just because we’re different doesn’t make us freaks or monsters!”

“Oh yeah?  Then explain mommy dearest back there,” Gary spat.  By now he made his way over to the wall and was clinging onto it in a desperate attempt to get back onto his hind legs.

Though he seethed, Ash couldn’t respond.  What happened to his mother?

To the side, Pikachu had brought his paws up to his chin in a more contemplative look.  “This would explain why your pack is so strict on biting.”

“No, not biting people is just common sense!  Humans don’t recover as fast from injuries as Pokémon!”  Ash argued.

“Maybe, but you do get a lot of extra energy during the full moon and the forest Pokémon are terrified of you and your pack,” Pikachu said apologetically.  Ash could feel the mouse’s aura dower with sympathy.  “All I’m saying is there might be some merit to this werePokémon theory.”

“We aren’t monsters!” Ash snapped.  Inwardly, he had to admit that Pikachu had a point.  Gary’s description matched up pretty well with recent events and his mother’s transformation did look eerily similar to something out of a creature feature.  Nevertheless, he continued to cling to denial.  “Outside of maybe the occasional hunt, which regular Pokémon do by the way, my pack has never hurt anyone!  My mom’s a saint and the professor spent his life studying Pokémon, not slaughtering them!”

Gary’s ears swiveled forward.  “Gramps?”

Suddenly, roots burst through the walls of the room.  It started with just a few cracks in the cement before the plants shoved their limbs shoved their branching limbs straight inside.  The mess of roots spread and wrapped around the room tangling up Ash and separating him from Pikachu and Gary.  Then, just as fast as they appeared, the roots stopped growing leaving the room a giant snarl of thick roots and over turned cement rubble.

“Can you hear me!?  Guys!” Ash called out.  His ears twitched and swiveled around.  Ash could hear his friends’ voices, though they were muffled through the new cobweb of roots.  Twisting, Ash managed to free himself from the plants’ grasp and plop down to the floor.

Carefully, Ash climbed through the maze of vines to try and find Pikachu and Gary.  His heart leapt when he saw some movement in the now heavily shadowed room.  Jumping over some wood, Ash was disappointed to discover that the movement was not one of his friends, but a Raticate.

The Raticate looked like the rest of its kind.  Short, giant incisors, main body covered in scruffy, brown fur save for his hands, feet, and naked tail.  The rat’s back was turned toward Ash while he surveyed his surroundings.

“Are you lost too?” Ash asked.

“I suppose you could say that,” replied the Raticate.  “I was in my den a few minutes ago.  Then these plants came and pushed me into this room!”

“Sorry about that.  Hey, me and my friends are trying to figure out how to escape too.  Want to join us?” Ash offered.

“That might work.  Strength in numbers and every-” the Raticate turned around and his eyes grew wide.  Ash could feel the rat’s aura swiftly switch from confused and frustrated to outright fear.  Without another word, the rat made a mad dash through the vines and away from Ash.

It was always like this.  Ash would try to befriend a wild Pokémon and they would run away.  He always thought it was because he was part human.  Most wild Pokémon were cautious around humans and a human who could slip into a Pokémon body was undeniably unusual.  Now with Gary’s explanation in mind, Ash had to wonder.

Sitting down on his haunches, Ash looked at his paws.  They didn’t look any different from a regular Riolu’s paws.  Dull claws, tough paw pads, soft fur, no spikes or human fingers.  Was he really a monster?

Ash jumped a little when he felt another paw tap his shoulder.  Swerving around revealed it was Pikachu.  Pikachu took one of Ash’s paws and began to pull him away.  “We found a path to the hallway.  It’s clearer out there.  Come one, Gary’s already out.”

After climbing through the jungle of roots, Ash found himself in the hallway with the rest of the group.  Just as Pikachu said, it was a lot clearer.  That is not to say there were no roots.  Plant limbs stretched across and poked out of the once blank walls of the underground facility.  The foliage also seemed to be messing with the wiring as evidence by the flickering lights.  There was no talking or further discussion of werePokémon as the trio walked.  Just silence and the occasional awkward eye contact.

Suddenly, Pikachu’s ears perked.  “Something’s coming.  Something big.”

Ash closed his eyes and focused.  Indeed, something big was coming.  It wasn’t Nidoking or Ash’s mother, though it did have an overwhelming aura like hers.  “We need to hide.”

The three boys scrambled over to the nearest room to huddle amongst the boxes.  Before they settle in, Gary spotted a flaw in their plan.  “What if it can smell us?”

A fair point, both Ash and Pikachu had used their own noses to find other Pokémon in the past.  Ash looked around the room.  Boxes, a few shelves, some jars, nothing that could obscure their scents.  Finally, Ash’s eyes landed on a large vent sitting between a shelf and the ceiling.

“Over here,” Ash whispered motioning to the vent.  Pikachu was able to nimbly ascend a pile of boxes leading up to the vent and shock the grate loose.  Ash finished the job by pulling the grate off and carefully setting to the side as to not make any more noise.

Climbing into the vent after Pikachu, Ash felt a chill run down his spine.  The aura of the new Pokémon had almost arrived.  Ash could even hear its heavy, wheezing breathing coming from down the hallway.

Before Ash finished climbing in, he looked down to see Gary was still at the base of the boxes.  The Eevee was trying to jump onto some of the larger boxes, but still hadn’t quite mastered the coordination required to pull off that stunt.  The closest he got was hanging onto the top of the box with his lower half dangling behind.  Panicked, Ash rushed down the pile to grab Gary.

“What are-Hey!” Gary protested when Ash grabbed him.  Ash hardly heard him.  All he could think about was that aura that was about to round the corner.

No longer caring about noise, Ash zoomed up the pile of boxes with Gary.  It was right as the pair reached the mouth of the vent that Ash froze.  The wheezing, labored breath was no longer echoing from down the hallway and the strange aura was right behind them.

Looking around, Ash and Gary could see the monster in the flickering light.  At first, Ash thought it was some kind of canine.  It stood on all fours and its head had a long snout filled with sharp, drooling teeth.  Its torso, on the other hand, looked more human.  It was as if someone took a human chest and arms and stitched it between a dog’s head and legs.  The animal’s humanoid arms were long and bent to the sides making it look the animal was crawling just as much as it was walking.  Each of its gnarled, human hands were tipped with sharp claws.

The Pokémon’s legs looked like regular canine limbs, if a bit big so that they could support the rest of its messed up body.  Most of the body was covered in shaggy, tawny fur which looked and smelled like dead grass.  The exception was the mane of leaves which trailed from the top of the creature’s head, down its hunched back, and out into a tail that resembled a long collection of sickly leaves.  Branching out at random sections of the beast’s body were short vines that occasionally twitched as though they were alive.

Sticking out from the mop of leaves that served as hair were a pair of large, leafy ears which perked forward when the beast spotted Ash and Gary.  Its beady eyes glowed with a bright, white light allowing them to peer out from under the mess of leaves.

The wereLeafeon gave the boys low roar.  As if to respond to a command, more roots began bursting through the walls reaching out for the boys.  From within the ventilation, the boys could hear Pikachu shout.  “WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?  GET IN HERE!”

They didn’t need to be told twice.  Ash practically shoved Gary into the vent before charging in himself.  Just before he went, he could feel the tip of a root brush against one of his feet.  The group crawled as fast as they could through the metal shaft, ignoring the banging from the sides that were most likely plants moving around outside.

Eventually, the vent stilled and the boys had a moment to catch their breath.  Gary was the first to speak up.  “Was that Gramps?”

“Probably,” Ash admitted.

“Is that going to be us?” Gary asked.  He tried to sound detached, like he was just asking out of curiosity, but Ash could feel the wall of anxiety that consumed the Eevee’s aura.

Neither Ash nor Pikachu responded.  They all just kept moving.

Nidoking

The massive roots ripped away at the ground, sending Nidoking flying back.  Groaning, Nidoking pushed himself back up and glared at one of the larger roots.  “Bad timing, Sam.”

“LUCAAAR!”  Now free of the Shadow Claw, Delia leapt over Nidoking.  Nidoking felt his insides freeze.  She was looking a lot more limber and energized.  The gas had officially left her system.

Which begged the question, why wasn’t the WereLucario going in for the kill?  He had been fighting her, shouldn’t he be her first priority?  No, wait.  He was the second to attack.  The first was those Team Rocket characters.  She was also probably targeting them because she thought they were harming Ash, which they technically were.  If the situation wasn’t so dire, Nidoking wouldn’t say no to a little justice.

Standing up, Nidoking took a deep breath and began waving his arms back and forth making it look like he was directing something.  Very quickly, water accumulated in the area created a massive pool.  Nidoking continued to wave his arms around, motioning the waves of the water into the woods Delia had charged into.  He directed the Surf into flooding the woods and circling around.

A smile crossed Nidoking’s fanged lips when he saw that waves bring back a large Lucario.  Within the moving pool, Delia snarled and began to swim forward.  Time to switch tactics.

Nidoking changed up his movements from waving and swaying to a push.  He pushed the air at an angle that made it appear as if he was turning some object around.  That object was apparently the pool of water which twisted from a roaming wave to a water tornado.  Nidoking used Whirlpool!

“Dragonite, Charizard, hurry up,” Nidoking grunted.  He eyed the werePokémon that was now baring her teeth at him from within her watery prison.  “I’m not sure how much longer I can keep her in there.”

As Nidoking poured his power into maintaining a current strong enough to hold back a werePokémon, he began to feel an itching crawl up his back.  It felt as though hundreds of little tentacle legs were climbing up his body.  Before Nidoking turned his head, he already had a sneaking suspicion of what was happening.  As such, he was not surprised to find a hoard of animated weeds clinging onto his body like a swarm of parasites.

Ash

Having successfully escaped the wereLeafeon via ventilation shaft, Ash and company were back to traversing the underground labyrinth.  The deeper they wondered, the more roots they found branching out from the walls.  Judging by the smell trailing across the floor, the professor had been through here.  Thanks to his aura sensors, Ash could feel the unbridled energy the wereLeafeon was leaking throughout the area.  Fortunately, he could also sense the main body which was on the other side of the level they were on.

“Is Gramps responsible for this?” Gary asked, looking back and forth at the roots that stretched across the walls.

“Maybe,” Pikachu said.  He made sure to walk directly in the middle of the hallway, away from the plants.  It didn’t matter if they were stationary, he wasn’t taking any chances.  “He is a grass type.”

“Never seen a grass type do anything like this before,” Ash commented.

The group’s trek came to a halt when the stumbled across a massive root sticking out in the middle of the hallway.  It stretched across the pathway splitting at the end to look like a thin-fingered hand.  Ash cautiously approached the root…

SNAP!

The root sprang to life and began snapping at Ash, using its fingers as fangs.  Nimble on his feet, Ash was able to spring back before the root could grasp him.  He slashed his paw across the air.  “Vacuum Wave!”

Ash’s attack hit the plant right at the base of the branching fangs severing it form the rest of the root.  The detached part fell to the ground bellow.  For a moment, it looked like it was dead.  Then the severed roots sprang back to life.  Its former fangs twisted and touched the ground to transform into makeshift legs with which it used to scuttle across the ground like an angry Ariados.

“Thundershock!” Pikachu attempted to blast the root with a bolt.  It wasn’t very effective.

The root was right on top of Ash, attempting to coil its long fingers around the Riolu.  Growling, Ash thrust his palms forward.  “Force Palm!”

With a charged push, Ash managed to send the roots up into the air.  He then followed up with several Vacuum Waves.  The waves managed to shatter the root into splinters which, thankful, stayed stationary.

“Okay, I think we’re good to go,” Ash panted.

Pikachu’s ears began to twitch.  “I don’t know about that.”

Pausing to listen, Ash could hear it too.  It sounded like an army of bugs marching toward Ash’s group on hundreds of tiny legs.  One peep around the corner proved that this was not the case.  Heading their direction was a group of plants.  Not plant-like Pokémon, actual plants.

Much like the severed root, these plants were using their own makeshift appendages to crawl across the tiled floor.  Weeds pulled themselves forward by the arms of their stems, clumps of grass scuttled on hundreds of tiny, root legs making them look like hairy bugs, and moss slowly slithered behind the rest.

“This is getting weird,” Ash remarked.

“Oh, you noticed that too?” Pikachu asked with dry sarcasm.  He pulled away from the corner and began to head in the opposite direction.  “One of those possess plants is trouble enough.  We should probably head back.”

“Wait, isn’t Gramps that way?” Gary pointed out.  “I think our odds are better against the walking grass than dealing with him.”

“Plus, these things aren’t invincible.  We know that if you hit these guys enough they go down!” Ash declared.  Without waiting for further input, Ash zoomed forward and began beating down the weed monsters in a flurry of kicks and punches.

“You know, these guys aren’t the fastest.  We probably could have come up with a quick strategy before charging in,” Pikachu said with an annoyed sigh.  Nevertheless, he followed his best friend into the thicket.  Thankfully, his Thundershock was a lot more effective against the weeds than it was against the thick, root as demonstrated when he blasted a crab grass into tiny pieces.

Even though Ash and Pikachu put up a good front, some plants still managed to slip past them.  Gary, having finally gotten used to walking on all fours, now found himself leaping and scurrying away from the plants’ outstretched roots.  His inexperience quickly caught up to him when a dandelion sprang forward and began wrapping itself around him like a snare.

Spotting this, Ash ran forward and yanked the weed off.  He decided to give Gary some instructions.  “You can’t just dodge.  You’ve got to fight too.”

“How?” Gary asked cynically, shaking himself off.

“Just channel your energy into an attack!” Ash said as he thrust his arm forward in another Force Palm.

Gary glared at Ash.  “Could you pretend that I only started being a Pokémon ten minutes ago?”

“Hey, no need to be so snippy,” Ash huffed.  He spun around and kicked an incoming fleabane into the air.

“I’ve shrunken down into a fuzz ball, my grandpa is trying to kill us, and we’re being swarmed by my lawn!” Gary snapped, backing away from a vine that almost snagged him.  “I’ll be as snippy as I want!”

“Guys!  Arguing is getting us nowhere!” Pikachu shouted.  He used a Quick Attack to launch forward and knock a grass clump back.  Not letting up, Pikachu then used a Thundershock on a moss slug completely frying it.  “Gary, just try and imagine the energy.  Picture it gathering inside your body and try and turn that into an attack!”

Armed with a more thorough explanation, Gary slammed his eyes shut.  His body stiffened and his muzzle scrunched up.  Had Ash not known better, he’d think the little Eevee was dealing with constipation.

While Gary tried to figure out how to launch his first Pokémon move, Ash and Pikachu continued fighting.  Ash used his Vacuum Wave to slice off a thick section of one of the roots hanging from the wall.  He then picked up the stick and began using it as a club to beat back the other plants.  Knowing that electric attacks weren’t very effective against your average grass type, Pikachu opted to use Quick Attack to tackle the plant monsters before using the move again to spring away before they could capture him.

No matter how hard the pair fought, the hoard kept flooding in.  Inevitably, there was a slip up.  Ash tried batting back a particular weed with long limbs.  The weed used its stem and roots like tentacles and grabbed the bat.  Before Ash could react, the vines began climbing the bat and wrapping around Ash’s arms, binding his movements.  The rest of plant followed suit, threatening to constrict Ash.  That is, until a small glowing star shot straight into weed blasting it away.

Then another star slammed into an incoming plant.  And another.  And another.  Soon the room was filled with a shower of tiny, glowing stars.

Looking over his shoulder, Ash found the source of the star shower.  Gary’s tail was sticking up in the air and giving off a bright glow.  Star-shaped energy budded off from the light and shot out into the air landing on the plants.  Gary learned Swift!

Once the move was finished and the plants lay defeated, Gary collapsed to the ground.  Ash watched the new Eevee pant.  That was a pretty strong Swift for a first time user.  Was it just dumb luck, or was that sudden burst of energy part of the curse?  Even after fighting off a swarm, Ash was feeling a second wind thanks to the full moon.  Maybe that full moon energy gave Gary a quick burst as well?

“That was a pretty good move, for a rookie,” Ash teased.  He tried to follow it up with a friendly pat on the head, but Gary ducked out of the way.

Probably thanks again to the full moon, Gary seemed to have recovered from his sudden burst of energy.  The Eevee stood up and shook himself off.  He pointedly kept his line of sight away from Ash and walked down the hallway.  “Let’s just get out of here.”

The Kennel BF2

Unfortunately, the group could not find the exit.  What they found instead was a staircase leading them deeper into the underground.  There was a brief debate on whether or not they should descend with Ash voting in favor of going forward to explore and gather new clues on what was going on.  Gary voted for turning back and finding an exit.  Pikachu served as the tie breaking by pointing out that Professor Oak and his plant spawns were still roaming the first floor.  While they were more likely to find a way out on the top floor, they were also more likely to meet their maker.

Thus the group descended.

The next floor was a mixed bag.  There weren’t any hordes of roaming plants in sight and Ash could still sense the professor mindlessly crawling the floor above making the group’s current location preferable.  However, they were far from safe.

More than the first floor, the second floor was wrapped up in streams of roots and vines.  Whereas before roots were sticking out and stretching across the walls, here Ash could hardly see any wall left.  Most of the plant life was stationary save for the occasional root movement.  It made Ash feel less like he was walking through an overgrown plant collection and more like he was sneaking through a den of Ekans.

After multiple twists and turns, the group found themselves staring down a hallway filled with a tangle of roots.  These roots squirmed and twitched showing that were ready to attack should anyone get too close.  Beyond the mess, Ash could see a dip in the ceiling indicating that the next stairway was just ahead.

“Are you guys sure we have to go through there?” Gary asked glaring at the roots with suspicion.

Pikachu gave the air a sniff.  “We’ve explored every other hallway and room on this floor.  So unless you want to head back upstairs or pick a corner to sit and wait in we’ll have to go through these guys.”

“This should be simple,” Ash said confidently.  He stepped forward and began to slash at the air to create a Vacuum Wave.  His attack was cut off when Gary head-butted his leg.

“Remember what happened to the last moving root you sliced apart?” hissed Gary.  “If you cut these guys loose, they’re all going to rush us!”

“Oh,” Ash said quietly.

Since cutting their way through was off the table, Pikachu carefully stepped forward to get a better look.  Squinting, he looked around the vine ridden hallway.  He then motioned to several points along the floor and wall.  “See those spots?  If you connect them, they make a clear path through the vines.  We just need to jump from one space to another, but we’ll need to be fast.”

“Then let’s use Quick Attack!” Ash suggested, pumping his paws and wagging his tail.

“Good idea,” Pikachu nodded.  “If we use Quick Attack to launch ourselves from spot to spot, we should be able to move through the thicket fast enough to avoid the plants.”

The two turned to look at Gary

Gary sighed.  “Alright, how do you do this?”

“Don’t worry, this move is easy.  I was able to pick it up in a snap,” Pikachu assured with a smile.  “First, think back to how you were able to do Swift.”

“I was able to feel the energy you guys were talking about,” Gary said slowly.  He looked over his shoulder at his tail.  “I wasn’t really sure what to do with it once I gathered it up.  All I could think to do was send it out at those weeds and then it began to shoot out.”

“That’s a good start,” Ash said encouragingly.  “Now all you need to do is take that same energy and hold it into your body.  Try focusing it to your feet.”

“Feet?” Gary looked down at his dainty paws.

“Your feet!  Your feet!” Ash cheered.  He charged his own feet with energy and jumped up in the air, showing off their bright light.

“Why are you saying it like that!?” Gary asked annoyed.

“Quiet down!” ordered Pikachu.  He stood up, alert.  His ears twitched.  “I hear something.”

A sense of dread flooded Ash.  He was so distracted by the vines he forgot to keep watch for the professor!  Ash’s aura sensors flared out.  Sure enough, he could feel the wereLeafeon’s corrupt aura approaching accompanied by the sound of his thick, wheezing.  “He’s coming!  Pikachu, show us the path you saw earlier!”

“Right!” Pikachu nodded dutifully.  He then took off, bounding from clear spot to clear spot using Quick Attack.  A few of the plants attempted to snatch him only to grab at empty air.  With no prey to fight, the plants settled back into their former positions.

“Alright.  Gary, you go next,” Ash ordered.  Given that this was Gary’s first Quick Attack, Ash felt it was best that he go ahead so that Ash could follow after him in case of a jam.

As it turned out, complications occurred before Gary even took off.  The Eevee froze to the spot, looking back behind Ash.  Thanks to the sound of heavy breathing and clawed footsteps, Ash knew what was happening before he even looked back.

There, peeking out from behind the corner, was Professor Oak.  The wereLeafeon made a noise that sounded like a cross between a bark and a cough before starting down the hallway.

“GO!” Ash shouted at Gary.

Startled, Gary leapt straight into the vines.  Whether through a fight or flight instinct or by sheer dumb luck. Gary was able to successfully copy Pikachu’s path and make it out to the other side.  This just left Ash to deal with the professor.

The second Gary took off through the grove, the professor unleashed an angry roar.  He continued to crawl towards the group while launching some of the foliage detached from his body and flung themselves forward like flying blades.  Spotting the incoming Razor Leaf attack, Ash deflected them with a Vacuum Wave before throwing himself through the vines.  From what Ash could tell, the wereLeafeon’s moving speed was pretty low (probably thanks to how messed up its body was), but he wasn’t going to risk letting the professor catch up.

At first it looked like Ash was going to make it through the tangle just like Pikachu and Gary.  It was only when Ash reached the end that he realized that the plants’ reaction time hastened in the presence of their animator.  Just before Ash could exit the foliage, multiple roots snapped forward and insured him.

Ash struggled as the vines pulled him back.  Multiple roots were wrapped around his limbs hindering his movements.  Pikachu dashed forward and grabbed at Ash to try and yank him back.  Gary attempted to use Swift to cut through the vines while he spared the incoming wereLeafeon multiple nervous glances.

Gary’s Swift stars were able to slice off the weaker roots allowing Ash to pull a little bit away from the more sturdy appendages.  Another roar announced that the professor had arrived at the other end of the vine tunnel.  Ash and Pikachu’s pulls became more frantic when they heard the other roots begin to move, probably to make way for the massive wereLeafeon.

Panicked, Gary leapt forward and grabbed onto one of the roots with his jaw.  Dark energy began to gather around his teeth giving them extra strength.  Some of that dark energy formed in front of Gary creating a second jaw of sharp fangs.  Using the new move, Bite, Gary was able to sever the last root freeing Ash.  With not a moment to waste, the boys turned tail and ran down the stairs.

The Kennel BF3, Pikachu

With the threat of a carnivorous monster on their tails, Pikachu and the rest of the group ran down the stairs as fast as they could.  The overgrow on next floor was even worse.  Hard as Pikachu looked, he couldn’t see any wall between the strands of root.  Even the ceiling was covered with roots wrapping themselves around the flickering lights casting webbed shadows up and down the hallways.

Thanks to his electrical senses, Pikachu could also detect the old wiring in the walls.  He could feel the wiring move around, pushed by the growing plant infestation.  It was like an army of parasitic worms wigging through a body.

The only section of the floor that was mostly clear of roots was mercifully the tiled floor.  Pikachu and the rest of the group made their way down the hallway while keeping an eye out for some place safe to hide.  It was as they turned a corner that Pikachu paused.  There was something odd in the air.

Pikachu wasn’t alone.  Ash stopped to sniff the air as well.  He then slowly followed the scent.  “There’s something nearby.  Something metallic.”

“Yeah.  I think I smell it too,” Gary agreed, cautiously going after Ash.

After giving the air a couple more sniffs, Pikachu went ridged.  He knew this smell from living in the wild.  As a prey animal, Pikachu had learned to avoid this smell.  It was the smell of a freshly killed meal.  It was a smell that promised a predator nearby.  It was the smell of death.

“Stop!” Pikachu called out.  It was too late.  Ash and Gary found the source of the scent.

It was blood.

Laying on the floor was the lower half of a Raticate.  There was no sign of its top half, just a trail of organs that were halfheartedly pulled out from its body.

“It’s…it’s a Raticate,” Ash said, his voice shaking.

While Ash’s eyes were fixed on the rat, Gary looked around the rest of the hallway in confusion.  Curious, Pikachu followed Gary’s gaze.  More blood was splattered around the floors in dried up puddles.  Some close, some further down.  Weird, did the Raticate bleed all over the place before finally dying?

The answer was no.  Gary looked up toward the ceiling.  His eyes grew wide and his fur stood on end.  His mouth opened to choke out a scream.  Again, Pikachu followed the Eevee’s line of sight.  He wished he didn’t.

Hanging from roots in the ceiling were the corpses of various Pokémon.  Most of which were either rodents or bugs, Pokémon who liked to make their homes in burrows.  Each corpse looked as though they were violently torn apart.  A pair of Ratattas were bitten into, the insides of a Caterpie slowly oozed onto the floor below, there was even another Pikachu that was split open down the middle.  Judging by how the body’s hung from the ropes of plant roots, they were probably held in place by the plants while the wereLeafeon worked his way through each victim.

It took every ounce of will power for Pikachu to prevent himself from puking.  Being a wild Pokémon, he was no stranger to corpses.  However, there was a list of unspoken rules on how Pokémon handled hunting.  Don’t kill for vengeance.  Never torture or taunt your prey.  Make sure to eat every last bite.  To be wasteful of a meal was to be disrespectful of your prey’s lost life.  At the end of the day, they were all Pokémon and were to be treated with honor regardless of where they fell on the food chain.

Judging by this scene, werePokémon had no regards for the Pokémon they killed.  No more than a few bites were taken from each Pokémon at most.  Pikachu was willing to bet the wereLeafeon spent a little time mauling each of his victims before moving onto the next living Pokémon.  It was an act of barbarism that Pikachu could never picture any Pokémon performing let alone that friendly, old Leafeon he and his family met.

Pikachu snapped back to reality.  “We need to leave.”

Neither boy moved.  Gary’s eyes were glued to the dangling corpses while Ash watched the Raticate.  Pikachu ran up to Ash and tugged on one of his limp paws.  “Come on.  We need to go!”

“I-I think I met this Raticate earlier,” Ash said quietly.

A familiar noise began to approach.  Pikachu could hear the heavy wheezing and claws scrapping of the professor.  Pikachu’s pulls became more frantic.  “We’re going to end up like that Raticate if we don’t get out of here!”

Ash didn’t budge.  He just continued to stare.  Desperation lead Pikachu to his next act.

ZAP!

In an attempt to snap Ash out of his stupor, Pikachu gave the Riolu a firm shock.  The Thundershock did the trick and Ash flinched back.  “Ow!”

“Idiot!  You’re going to attract him!” Gary snapped.

“He’s already coming this way!” Pikachu snapped back.  “Let’s go!”

The trio ran down the hallway.  As they sprinted, the roots along the walls began to wiggle and writhe.  Some of them reached over to the boys forcing them to weave through the plant tentacles until they found themselves cornered in a room at the end of the hallway.

Running was no longer an option, neither was hiding.  It didn’t matter if they crammed themselves inside a box or climbed to the top of a shelf, a Pokémon with a snout as long as the professor’s would defiantly sniff them out.  This left only one option.

Turning around, the boys faced the wereLeafeon at the doorway.  Ash stepped forward.  “Professor, it’s me!  Ash!  Please fight this!  I know you’re in there!”

From where Pikachu stood, it looked as though Ash’s words fell on deaf ears.  The professor’s expression didn’t change.  His lips remained drawn back in a fixed snarl as he surveyed the room.  When his glowing eyes landed on Gary, the professor gave a couple of strangled chuffs before he began eagerly crawling forward.

“Now what?” asked Pikachu.  The image of those corpses were still flashing through his head.

“We fight!,” Ash shouted.  He slashed his arm forward creating a Vacuum Wave which hit the professor square in the face.  It was not very effective.

The wereLeafeon’s body rustled as he shook himself off.  He turned his head slightly to look at Ash.  At first Pikachu thought he was going to change his target.  However, the wereLeafeon only gave Ash an annoyed growl reminiscent of the tone used by adult Pokémon when they were scolding their young.

Despite his attack’s failure, Ash charged forward to meet the lumbering Leafeon head on.  The Riolu tried kicking and punching at his foe from different sides and angles.  Every so often Professor Oak would give another annoyed snort and swat at Ash, only for Ash to dodge.  Between Ash’s ineffective attacks and the professor’s slow movements the match was at a draw.

Meanwhile, Gary attempted to assist Ash from a safe distance.  Like with the hoard of plants upstairs, Gary used Swift to fire off a cloud of star-shaped energy disks at the wereLeafeon.  Every so often the Eevee’s attacks were interrupted when a root from the wall reached out to grab him.  Whenever this would happen, Gary would somehow manage to retreat to another section of the room out of the vine’s grasp.  It was early similar to how some Ratattas were able to Run Away from danger.

Not one to sit back and let others do all the work, Pikachu used Charge.  A regular Thundershock would be inefficient if they were fighting a regular grass type, against this thing they needed all the power they could get.  When he felt that he was fully charged up, Pikachu called over to Ash.  “I’m about to attack!  Give me some space!”

“Got it!” Ash zoomed forward to deliver one last flurry of blows which he finished off with a Force Palm before using Quick Attack to dart away.  Spotting this, Gary followed up with a few more Swift stars creating a bruise.  Finally, Pikachu unleashed his Thundershock.

Without the copious amount of water, the lightning bolt was not as large as the one that Pikachu used against the Gyarados.  Still, it was big.  Big enough to light up the room in a brief blinding light.  When the flash died down, Pikachu saw the fruit of their attack.  The spot on Professor Oak’s shoulder where they combined their attacks had been opened up by a large burn.  The grassy fur was cleared away showing off a smoking gash with green pus.

Though he felt a little drained, Pikachu couldn’t help but to smile.  The wereLeafeon looked big and threatening, but it could still bleed just like any other Pokémon.  All they had to do was keep combining their blows in concentrated bursts and they should deplete the professors health to the point where-

SHHHHH

There was a green glow emanating from the wound.  Almost instantly the burn sealed up and sprouted new fur around the spot.  It was as if the injury was never there to begin with.

“What happened?” Gary cried, his voice mirroring the alarm Pikachu was now feeling.

“It’s Synthesis!” Ash announced.  Of course, Ash worked as a volunteer at the professor’s lab.  He would be familiar with the Leafeon’s move set.

Pikachu felt his stomach drop.  What was the point of injuring this thing if it just kept healing itself?  Even more pressing, the only attacks that seemed to have any effect were powerful combined attacks like the one they just pulled.  Even if there was a finite amount of times the werePokémon could heal himself, their group would probably be out of energy before they even reached that limit.

An angry snarl announced that the professor had run out of patience.  His leaves shot off his back and straight towards Pikachu, threatening to dice him.  It was only thanks to a Swift launched by Gary that the leaves were shot out of the air before they could reach Pikachu.

“Raaah!” Ash released a battle cry as he headed back into the fray.  He tried again to weaken the wereLeafeon through a series of blows, but this time the professor was ready for him.

One of the writhing vines sticking out from Professor Oak’s main body shot out to grab Ash’s paw.  The vine then tossed Ash forward where he was pushed to the ground by a massive hand-paw.  Professor Oak held Ash down on the ground and gave the pup an annoyed growl.  Rather than submitting, Ash growled back, staring straight up into his elder’s glowing eyes.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Pikachu looked around the room.  Since a straight up fight against this thing was looking like a lost cause, they needed to escape.  The wereLeafeon’s walking speed was slow, if the group could manage to get around him and through the door they could make a mad dash for the upper floors and hopefully find the exit.

But before they could escape, Pikachu needed to find a way to release Ash.  Regular Pokémon attacks didn’t seem to have much of an effect, so he had to think outside the box.  Or maybe he needed to reach into the box.

A few boxes lay nearby.  When Pikachu first entered the room, he paid them no mind in favor on focusing on the imminent threat.  Now, however, he noticed something peculiar about them.  None of the plants were touching the boxes despite how close they were to the walls.  Wasting no time, Pikachu followed his gut instinct and ran over to the boxes.

After blasting one of the boxes open with a Thundershock, a couple of green spray bottles spilled out.  Unable to read, Pikachu called over to Gary.  “Do you know what these are?”

“Stop wasting time and,” Gary was about to scold Pikachu for savaging when Ash was in danger until he saw the spray bottles.  His eyes lit up.  “Weed killer!  Quick!  Try it out on Gramps!”

A part of Pikachu wondered why weed killer was kept in the middle of a grass type’s den.  Maybe it was used as a tool to subdue the professor in case of a situation like this one?  Pondering would have to come later, now Pikachu had to act.

Arming himself with the spray bottle, Pikachu charged up to the wereLeafeon, took aim, and sprayed him right in the face.  Pikachu had seen humans sometimes discipline their Pokémon by giving them a quick squirt of water.  Surprised, the Pokémon in question would back off and shake off the water.

“RAAAAAAAAAH!” Much like a naughty Pokémon, the wereLeafeon backed away the second the spray hit his face.  The wereLeafeon let go of Ash and began to paw at his face trying to wipe off the poisonous liquid.

“Let’s get out of here!” Pikachu shouted to his cohorts.  Gary didn’t need to be told twice.  The Eevee shot past the professor and straight towards the now unguarded door.  Ash paused to give the professor one last weary look before joining Gary.  Satisfied that his friends were safe, Pikachu made a move to escape after them.  The professor had other plans.

The wereLeafeon’s bushy tail stiffened and glowed a light green.  The leaves that lined the professor’s long tail transformed into sharp blades creating a club covered in leafy knives.  The Leaf Blade came crashing down toward Pikachu almost hitting the rodent.  Being as agile as he was Pikachu was able to avoid being sliced into meaty ribbons.  Unfortunately, he could not say the same about the vine.

When Pikachu jumped back to avoid the Leaf Blade, one of the professor’s body vines lashed out and grabbed Pikachu.  Pikachu tried to struggle only for the vine to tighten its grip.  If that wasn’t bad enough, a faint green glow emanated from the vine and Pikachu began to feel strange.

Pikachu attempted to shock the vine, hoping electrocuting the plant would create enough pain for a release.  When he did so, the electric current was immediately sucked away leaving Pikachu feeling drained.  Pikachu tried again and again, but every failure left him feeling weaker than before.  Snarling, the professor began to pull Pikachu back toward his waiting jaws.

“No!” Ash cried.  He dashed back, grabbed the vine, and began to pull.  “Let go!  Give Pikachu back!”

Thus, Pikachu found himself trapped in a game of tug of war.    Between its larger size and the Giga Drain inducing vines, one would think the wereLeafeon would be an instant winner.   Yet Ash continued to hang on, heels dug into the ground.  Maybe it was thanks to a heavier muscle build found in fighting types, maybe it was because Ash was getting a power boost from the full moon, or maybe it was because the boy was just too stubborn to know when he was out classed.  Whatever the case, Ash was determined to fight until his last breath.

It didn’t take long for the professor to tire of the contest of strength.  Raising his tail again, the professor was about to swat Ash away only to be stopped when the vine holding Pikachu was suddenly severed.  Apparently Gary saw an opportunity to use Bite to cleave through the vine in a similar manner to how he cut through the root from the hall above.

Both Pikachu and Ash were sent tumbling back into a pile of boxes.  The severed vine released Pikachu and began flopping around on the floor not unlike a lost lizard tail.  Pikachu tried to stand, only to collapse on the floor.  Even free from the vine his strength was still completely drained.  Ash wasn’t looking much better.  Now that Pikachu was safe, Ash’s spent energy caught up with him leaving him panting on the ground.

For a moment, Pikachu watched Professor Oak in fear.  Would the wereLeafeon lumber over to the flimsy fortress of toppled boxes to finish the job?  Was Pikachu going to end up just like those Pokémon hanging in the hallway?

The answer was no.  Professor Oak seemed to have completely forgotten Pikachu and Ash.  His attention was focused back on Gary.  Once again, Gary tried to dart away from the wereLeafeon.  Unfortunately thanks to the energy spent throughout the night Gary finally tripped up and found himself snagged in the wereLeafeon’s jaws.

“Let me go!  Let me go!” screamed Gary.  He tried to wiggle free, kicking his tiny legs as he did so.  It was no use.  The professor proceeded to carry the reluctant Eevee out of the room with a small wag in his tail leaving Ash and Pikachu forgotten on the cold tiled floor.

Nidoking

As hard as Nidoking tried to maintain his Whirlpool prison, the plants became too much.  Long, branching weeds tangled themselves around his limbs and crawled across his face blinding him and binding his movements.  Eventually the onslaught of leafy pest became too much and Nidoking could no longer keep the currents of the Whirlpool strong enough to entrap the werePokémon.

Sensing the weakening water trap, Delia’s claws shoot forward breaking the cocoon.  She landed on the ground with a splash and shook herself off.  Fixing her gaze on the now over run Nidoking, Delia crouched down and prepared for a pounce.  Her attack was canceled when a stream of fire accompanied by a loud roar sprayed down from the sky above.

Mrs. Charizard circled around the battle site setting it ablaze.  A few of the plants attempted to snatch her out of the air only to be met with instant incineration curtesy of a Flamethrower powerful enough to secure Mrs. Charizard’s position as the alpha fire type on the ranch for decades.  Before long, the field was transformed into a blazing inferno accented with the scent of burning wood.

It didn’t take long for Mrs. Charizard to spot a weed covered Nidoking and give him cleansing Flamethrower.  “It figures.  I would have hoped you would be able to handle yourself long enough for us to run a quick errand.  Looks like my expectations were too high,” Mrs. Charizard growled.

“I enjoy subverting expectations,” Nidoking snapped back, returning Mrs. Charizard’s sneer.  “Side note, the boy you were looking for returned to the lab.”

“Please tell me he didn’t somehow sneak past you and pressed the release button on the cages,” Mrs. Charizard growled.  She used her tale to beat back a massive, flaming root that reached up toward her.

“No, he just walked in on us getting burgled!” Nidoking explained.  He used his own Flamethrower to finish off a group of weeds.

“Burgled?!  How did you manage to get burgled?!” Charizard roared, unleashing another stream of flames.

“EVERYONE HALT!” Dragonite shouted.  He floated between the two arguing Pokémon and looked back and forth.  “Before we go any further, have either you noticed we are missing a werePokémon and a clown?”

Delia

Running through the woods on all fours, Delia focused on the scent of the intruders.  She would have ripped them apart earlier had it not been for that meddlesome Nidoking.  What right did he have to stand between her and her prey?  If he was smart, he would have allowed her to eat the vermin who had been bullying her pup and used that time to escape.  No matter, she’ll go back and kill him later.  Preferably when the area wasn’t engulfed in flames.

So focused on hunting down her prey, Delia hardly noticed that she was now carrying a passenger.  It was only when she stopped to check the scent she had been tracker that she felt something clinging to her back.  Looking over her shoulder, she found a Mr. Mime clinging to her fur like an over grown tick.

“Ah!  Good evening, Delia!  Lovely weather we’re having.  It certainly is a good night for a run.  I hope you don’t mind if I landed on top of you and hitched a ride,” Mimey nervously rambled.  He ended with a loud gulp.  “Please don’t kill me.”

Delia’s lips curled back into a snarl.  She had half a mind to grab this hitchhiker and show him exactly what happened to Pokémon who tried to use her as a Ponyta.  But she couldn’t.  She couldn’t quite put her claw on it, but there was something about this Mr. Mime that gave her pause.

Snorting, Delia put the Mr. Mime out of her mind and went back to tracking.  Her unwanted passenger would be allowed to live for now.  Provided he didn’t get in her way.

Pokémon Stats!

Ash (Riolu)

Trainer: None
Ability: Inner Focus

Nature: Questioning himself
Item: Pokémon League Hat
Moves: Quick Attack, Vacuum Wave, ???, Force Palm

Pikachu

Trainer: None
Ability: Static

Nature: Trying to keep a level head
Item: None
Moves: Thundershock, Charge, Quick Attack

Gary (Eevee)

Trainer: None
Ability: Run Away

Nature: Fluffy and mad
Item: None
Moves: Swift, Quick Attack, Bite

Nidoking

Trainer: Professor Oak
Ability: Sheer Force

Nature: Over worked and under paid
Item: Gooey Concrete Armor
Moves: Focus Energy, High Horsepower, Megahorn, Poison Jab, Fire Punch, Shadow Claw, Toxic, Thunderbolt, Surf, Flamethrower, Taunt, Whirlpool

Delia (WereLucario)

Trainer: None

Ability: Justified
Nature: Sobering up
Item: None

Moves: Aura Sphere, Counter, Metal Claw, Screech, Detect, Coaching, Heal Pulse

Professor Oak (WereLeafeon)

Trainer: None
Ability: Chlorophyll
Nature: Morning breath
Item: None
Moves: Razor Leaf, Giga Drain, Synthesis, Leaf Blade, Helping Hand

AN: See, this is totally a mystery dungeon!  There’s mazes, roaming enemies, and I think that piece of discarded trash counts as a pick up item…this isn’t a mystery dungeon.  This isn’t a mystery dungeon at all.

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features.  Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri.  Please support the official release.

Listening to as I trim the hedges: Dr. Potter Boss Fight (Luigi Mansion 3)

I hope you like long chapters.

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Controlled Burn

The Kennel, Bottom Floor

In keeping with the pattern established by the prior floors, the final level of the bunker held even more plant life.  This time there were no visible walls or floors, only roots.  Roots stretched and wrapped themselves around the room coding everything from objects to lumps that suspiciously smelled like more dead Pokémon.  The only source of light came from the flickering fluorescent lamps and even they were dimmed thanks to the plants’ tendrils.

By now Gary’s little heart should have burst out of his chest with how fast it was beating.  What was his grandpa going to do to him?  The most obvious answer was rip him apart the same as the rest of the wereLeafeon’s victims.  Or maybe those Pokémon were just the appetizers, and Gary was the main course!

“Look, Gramps, I hate you and I don’t think you’re liking me much right now either,” Gary spoke quickly.  He had tried everything to squirm out of his grandfather’s grasp since he’d been caught.  Wiggling, scratching, and even using Pokémon attacks.  None of these phased his monstrous guardian.  The wereLeafeon just kept moving forward down into the deepest floor of its makeshift den.  So now Gary had to enact his last resort: pleading.

“But I don’t think you want to kill me!” Gary exclaimed.  As disappointing as the professor had been as a grandfather, Gary hadn’t thought he was a murderer.  Or at least he hoped that was the case.  The smell of freshly killed Pokémon was really testing that notion.  “I’m sorry if I’ve been giving you trouble.  It’s just that-”

A lump formed in Gary’s throat.  Brute force was not on Gary’s side.  If he was going to die, might as well lay it all out.  “I used to look up to you.  Growing up, I heard all about you.  You were a champion and one of the world’s top scientists.  I thought it was cool to be related to you.”

The wereLeafeon found a place on the floor to settle down in.  He moved around in a circle in the same manner as many Pokémon did when they wanted to curl up for a nap.  Gary continued to try and squirm free.  No such luck.  “And then I learned you were a reclusive jerk!  Sure you called from time to time, but you hardly ever visited, you never invited any family over, it seemed like you cared more about the trainers that were helping you with your research than your own family!  Your family who’s dead by the way!”

Dead.

Tears welled up in Gary’s eyes.  Normally, Gary wouldn’t dare let anyone see him cry.  Now?  Now he was about to die.  Who cared if anyone saw him?  He was about to die.  He was about to die and anyone who found his remains wouldn’t know it was him because he was stuck in the body of an Eevee!

“Is this it, Gramps?  Did you keep us away because you were afraid of hurting us?  Or were you afraid we’d out you as a freak?!” Gary was now shouting.  “Because if it was the first one, you could have let me know you were a monster!  YOU COULD HAVE TOLD ME WHY I HAD TO STAY IN MY ROOM!  WELL CONGRADULATIONS, GRAMPS!  YOU’RE GOING TO GET OFF SCOTT FREE FOR MURDER BECAUSE IT LOOKS LIKE I’M TAKING YOUR SECRET TO THE GRAVE!”

By now, the wereLeafeon had settled down on the floor and had Gary fixed between his front paw-hands.  Gary’s ears leaned back when he saw the werePokémon opening its jaws.  The Eevee slammed his eyes shut.  He knew what was coming, but he couldn’t stand to watch.  He just hoped that his grandfather would make it clean and quickly rip off his head.

Gary was surprised when he felt a large tongue lick at his fur.

As it turned out, the tongues of the Eeveelutions were very much like the Pokémon who owned them in that they were a hybrid of different animal qualities.  Like cat tongues, they were covered in barbs making them rough to the touch.  However, they were also like dog tongues in that they were coded in a thick layer of slimy drool.  The resulting sensation was of a slobbery brush running up and down Gary’s body in an attempt to groom him.

“AH!  GROSS!” Gary exclaimed; his fear now completely replaced with disgust.  He managed to finally break free of his grandfather’s hold and tried to make a break for it.  Alas, he wasn’t fast enough resulting in the wereLeafeon giving a disapproving grunt before grabbing Gary by the tail to drag him back into the cleaning session.

The Woods

Somehow, Mimey managed to get past obstacle number one: instant death.  It seemed as though for now Delia wasn’t in the mood for maiming Mimey as she was too busy tracking down…something.  For the life of him, Mimey didn’t know what was going on.  Last he knew he was riding on Mrs. Charizard’s back before he spotted Delia bolting off into the woods.  Worried that his boss was about to get away and do Arceus knows what, Mimey leapt down and by some miracle landed on Delia’s back.

Now that phase one of Mimey’s plan was successful, it was time for phase two: figure out what phase two was.  Mimey didn’t have as much experience with werePokémon as the trio of retired champions (which he dubbed Team Oak).  Those three were there from the beginning of the curse and had learned the ins and outs of how to deal with cursed humans.  Mimey came into the scene well after the pack had established its routine and thus hardly saw Delia’s monster form.  The few times he had gotten to see the wereLucario, he wisely kept his distance and let someone more qualified pacify her.

Since Team Oak was lagging behind, Mimey had to figure out what was happening himself.  Obviously, Delia was tracking something and whatever it was had her utmost attention.  Contrary to regular werePokémon behavior, Delia was ignoring every other Pokémon in the area in favor of her quarry.  This should have been a relief to Mimey, but he couldn’t help but to wonder what garnered the absolute fixation of a werePokémon.

It was at times like this that Mimey wished that he had some more sensory psychic powers.  Contrary to popular belief, not all psychic Pokémon were adept mind readers.  While their powers all came from the same source, the mind, different species of psychic Pokémon specialized in different kinds of mental powers.  Xatus had a keen sense of precognition, Delphoxes had a knack for pyrokinesis, Hypnos were good at, well, hypnotizing, and Mr. Mimes were masters of mind over matter.

Mimey could use his barriers to replicate solid matter, but that was going to only do so much against a werePokémon which could break through almost anything.  If only he could read minds.  Perhaps then he’d be able to gleam into Delia’s warped brain and see what had her so invested.

“Well, well, well.  Here we through we’d have to track you down.  It was so nice of you to come to us!”

Or maybe a massive clue would drop right into his lap.

Standing before the mounted werePokémon was a robot.  The mech was two stories tall and resembled a bipedal canine.  The robot’s legs were thick, digitigrade, and were painted with black and orange stripes.  Moving up the robot had a barreled torso with twin cannons mounted on each shoulder.  The arms were also thick ending in metallic claws with spikes on the back like a Lucario.  Finally, the head of the robot was a mix between a Lucario and an Arcanine with a thick canine muzzle, tall, pointed ears, and a window for the cockpit which made it look like the mech was wearing a vizor.

A pair of headlights turned on forcing Mimey to raise his hand over his eyes to avoid going blind.  The sound of machine parts whirling and hissing filled the air and a woman’s voice came on over the robot’s speaker system.  “Did you really think we’d leave without you?”

Down below, Delia stood on all fours glaring up into the robot’s lights.  The she-wolf snarled, clearly taking issue with the pilot’s condescending tone.

“Turns out, we weren’t just running away.  We were grabbing reinforcements!”  This time a male’s voice came over the speaker.  “We call it the Route One Mech!  We thought since we were going after the Route One Monster, we’d fight fire with fire!”

While the pilots bragged about their machine, Delia calmly stalked toward the robot and began curiously sniffing it.  For a moment, she looked less like savage beast and more like a confused Growlithe trying to find a treed Pokémon.

“Hey!  Are you ignoring us?!” snapped the woman.  One of the robot’s feet came forward to try and stomp on Delia.  The wereLucario leapt back and loudly snarled at the machine.

“Meowth, what is it saying?” demanded the woman.

A new voice with a city accent came over the speakers.  “She ain’t sayin’ nothin’!  She’s just makin’ noise!”

“That thing’s a she!?” asked the woman, clearly surprised.

“She does kind of have a feminine shape,” noted the man.

“If a bit more in shape than some certain females,” chuckled Meowth.  This statement was quickly followed by the sounds of a cat chocking.

“Care to elaborate?!” roared the female pilot.

Wait, Meowth?  Was that just a guy with a nickname or was that a legitimate Meowth who could speak human?  If so, Mimey could work with this.  “Excuse me!  You need to leave!  It’s not safe here!”

“What’s he saying?” asked the non-Meowth male.

“He’s sayin’ we need to book it,” Meowth translated.

“Yes!  This Pokémon I’m riding, she’s acting docile right now, but she’s really dangerous!  You see, she’s actually-”

“No!  We spent in too much time searching for this thing.  We sunk too much money into this robot.  We are dragging that flea ridden mutt to the boss whether she wants to go or not!” shouted the woman.

“Your job isn’t worth your life!” Mimey begged.  “Please go before she figures out you’re robot has meat in it!”

Meowth didn’t even bother translating.  Once again, the robot attempted to stomp down on Delia.  This time, Delia didn’t just give the mysterious metal creature a warning snarl.  Instead, Delia reared up on to her hind legs forcing Mimey to grab onto her shoulders to stay on.

With a howling roar, Delia charged forward and attacked!  The pilots shouted a garble of instructions at each other (along with a few expletives) before the robot hummed to life.  The mech brought one of its heavily armored arms forward to block Delia’s swiping claws.  Meanwhile the other arm reared back, ready to throw a punch.

When the punch was delivered, Delia caught the fist.  Despite the force of the punch (which Mimey could feel even through Delia’s body) the wereLucario didn’t flinch.  She grabbed the robot fist with her front claws and dug her feet into the ground.  Delia then proceeded to bite down onto the fist, denting the metal.

“You’ll have to try harder than that!” taunted the male pilot.

SNIKT!

Metal Claws jetted out from Delia’s hands and sank into the robot’s arm.  The steel type move sliced into the robot with more efficiency than Delia’s regular claws cutting off the extra metal and turning the robot’s armor into scrap.

Mimey ducked down narrowly avoiding a flying piece of shrapnel.  Delia normally only used a move like that for housework like chopping up vegetables during their cooking sessions.  A pit formed in the barrier Pokémon’s stomach when he thought of Delia waking up to find blood on her gentle hands.

Eyes scrunched up in resolve, Mimey thrust his palm forward.  He focused his psychic powers into casting the move Barrier.  Multiple invisible walls appeared between Delia and the robot arms.  When Delia tried to slash into the arms, a loud noise screeched through the air reminiscent of nails on a chalkboard.  The sound was unpleasant, but the robot’s armor was reinforced.  Hopefully Delia didn’t notice.

A loud growl affirmed that indeed, Delia noticed.  Whether or not it was because she saw Mimey’s hand move or because remnants of her human mind told her what a Barrier attack looked like Mimey didn’t know.  What he did know was that he was now receiving an over the shoulder glare from a ticked off she-wolf.

Sweating profusely, Mimey tried to think of something to say.  “Hello again.  Lovely even-LOOK OUT!”

Whether Mimey was going to get away with reinforcing the robot’s defenses or get turned into mincemeat was going to be put on hold.  A pair of compartments opened up on the robot’s legs revealing the nozzles of a series of flamethrowers.  The weapons ignited blasting the forest floor with flames in an attempt to burn Delia.

Delia was too fast.  The wereLucario swiftly retreated out of the flames’ reach allowing the forest floor to take the attack in her place.  A small inferno began to flourish creating a barrier between Delia and the robot.

“Oh fire, you’re biggest weakness.  We’ll never get to that robot now.  Too bad,” Mimey said attempting to sound cheerful and failing to hide his nervousness.  “I guess we’ll just have to turn around and-”

Sadly turning tail wasn’t apart of Delia’s plan.  Seeing that the robot was stepping forward, flamethrowers still activated, Delia took several steps back before charging forward.  With an impressive bound, the wereLucario threw herself at the robot’s midsection where she used her Metal Claws to grab on and climb.  The pilots were not pleased.

“Grab her!”

“Shake her off!”

“Why didn’t we put flamethrowers here too!?”

The robot jerked and fidgeted in an attempt to shake off Delia.  Its efforts were in vain.  Between her claws and her muscles, Delia clung to the robot and was even able to make her way to the cockpit.  Once the wereLucario made it around the robot’s muzzle, she slammed a spiked knuckle into the visor.  The window shattered allowing Delia to shove her head inside.

The cockpit was cluttered and cramped.  Sitting in the back were the three pilots: a pair of humans, male and female, and a Meowth.  Between them and Delia was a large console covered in flashing lights, buttons, and levers.  Stacked to the side were some supplies such as a toolbox, a first aid kit, and a large net that Mimey was fairly certain had no hopes of holding either Delia or the professor.

The pilots scrambled out of their seats and toward the door in the back.  The woman began manically jiggling the door handle trying to get it open while the other two quivered in fear in front of her.

“M-my, what big teeth you have,” stuttered the man eyeing Delia’s fangs.

“Quick!  Use one of your Pokémon on her!” ordered the Meowth.

“I’m not sending my Pokémon after her!  You attack!”

“What do you want me to do!?”

“Kick her in the nards!”

“She’s a lady!  She don’t got no nards!”

“Will one of you just do something!” the woman snapped.  She then let out an earsplitting scream when she saw that the corrupted Lucario was beginning to crawl inside.

WHAM!

The invasion was paused thanks to the toolkit which went flying across the room and into Delia’s face.  Snarling in range, Delia looked behind to see Mimey still clinging to her back.  The clown was now whistling innocently, his hand glowing with psychic energy.  Or at least he was trying to whistle.  Mimey was so nervous that his whistles were coming out as strained puffs of air that occasionally made a shrill squeak.

Growling, Delia once again stalked forward.  This time, Mimey took a more direct approach by using his Psychic attack on her limbs.  Immediately, he felt resistance.  It was like he was propping up a dam that was holding back a massive flood.  Mimey knew there was no way he was going to be able to restrain Delia for long.

“Please don’t do this!” Mimey managed to gasp.  He felt like he just got done running a marathon while carrying a backpack filled with weights.  And he had only just begun holding the wereLucario back.  “I don’t know what these people did, but they don’t deserve to die!”

“What he said!” shouted the Meowth.

With a few violent shakes, Delia managed to break Mimey’s Psychic hold.  So the clown switched tactics.  If he couldn’t stop her directly, he’d use Psychic on something else.  Pushing through the fatigue, Mimey used Psychic to start randomly pressing buttons on the console.

The robot began violently shaking back and forth.  Inside the cock pit the pilots were slammed and smacked around.  They’d be bruised by dawn, but at least they’d be breathing.  Delia, not expecting the sudden shift, was thrown backwards knocking Mimey off.  Mimey went down through the branches of a nearby tree slowing his decent and somewhat cushioning the impact.

Above, Delia continued to cling to the robot.  She was successfully knocked away from the head and was now ripping away at the robot’s chest.  Her claws slashed back and forth filling the night with the loud screech of metal.   Mimey raised a shaking hand to try and nab her with another Psychic, but the light around his hands flickered out before he could even get ahold of Delia.

The lycanthrope must have sensed Mimey’s intention because Delia paused her attack to look down at Mimey.  She swiped at the air creating a small, unstable Aura Sphere which was tossed down at Mimey like a grenade.  The haphazard attack landed right in front of Mimey and exploded sending him flying into the air.

Mimey soared up and back through the tree line and was about to plumet to the earth when he was caught by a pair of plushy yet muscular claws.

“New hobby, Mimey?  I didn’t know you were interested in flying,” chuckled Mr. Dragonite.

“Dragonite!  Delia!  Robot!  Please help!” Mimey gasped.

“It’s alright.  I’m here.  I’ll take care of Delia,” Mr. Dragonite said comfortingly.  He then looked down at the scene below and his eyes grew wide.  “No time like the present.  Excuse me.”

Delia had once again managed to climb up to the robot’s head and was about to move in to eat the occupants.  Or rip off the metal cranium and use it to beat the occupants to death.  She was in position to perform either action.

Before Delia could flush out her prey, Dragonite zoomed down from the sky.  Air formed around the dragon creating a windshield protecting from Delia’s arm spikes.  Dragonite then used Fly to slam into Delia finally knocking her down from the robot.

It was super effective.

Dragonite then neatly landed between Delia and the robot.   He took off the harness which strapped a large canister to his back and removed a pouch from the straps and handed it to Mimey.  “There’s some berries in there.  Eat them.”

Mimey ignored the dragon’s gift.  Instead, he pointed at the incoming threat.  “Behind you!”

It looked like Delia did not appreciate Mr. Dragonite’s air drop and was now charging right at him.  Without missing a beat, Dragonite moved slightly to the side.  It was enough to dodge the incoming Metal Claw while still protecting Mimey.

The clown watched in amazement as Mr. Dragonite parried Delia’s swipes and blows.  When the wereLucario started to glow with Counter, Dragonite stopped boxing and instead inhaled.  He released a powerful wind of fire and heat known as a Heat Wave which injured Delia enough to break her out of Counter.  Seeing his opening, Mr. Dragonite then went in with a Dragon Tail.  Draconic energy gathered around his thick tail, and he batted Delia back.

“How do you champion Pokémon do it all?” Mimey asked, watching Delia get pushed back across the ground.

“Years of practice,” Mr. Dragonite humbly responded.  He then dodged a charged-up Aura Sphere which proceeded to mow through the rows of thick trees that were behind him.  “It also helped that I performed a whole bunch of Dragon Dances while I was tracking you down.”

“Where did that Dragonite come from?” came a man’s voice.  Mimey jumped.  He almost forgot about the mysterious pilots.  It seemed as though the successfully resituated themselves and had taken back control of their machine.

“Who cares?” came the woman’s voice.  “Now we can grab both it and the Route One Monster and present them to the boss!”

Unbelievable!  Those three were this close to maiming and they’re still thinking about bagging the clearly dangerous Pokémon!

“Are these the burglars?” Dragonite asked, thoughtfully eyeing the machine.

“Given how determined they are to grab Delia and run, I’d say they are Pokenappers,” said Mimey.  He winced as he stood up.  Just a little ways away, Delia had also risen and was now stalking over to the mech again.

Spotting this, Dragonite zoomed over and attempted to use Dragon Tail to push Delia back.  The wereLucario saw this coming and leapt back to dodge the blow.  She then released a deafening Screech.  Dragonite cringed back, leaving himself open for an attack.  Just as Delia charged in, Dragonite landed a Mega Punch right into her face halting her movements.

As the dragon and lycanthrope exchanged blows, Dragonite thought aloud.  “Let’s see, how to handle this.  I’ll need you to breathe in the tranquilizer, however the gas will immediately disperse out here.”

While the two fought, the robot fired off several small missiles at the two.  Dragonite’s tail slapped the ground summoning a column of water.  The Waterfall attack blocked the missiles allowing Dragonite to continue his brawling and brainstorming.  “I could blast it right in her face, but it would take a while for the effects to kick in.  During that time she could make a getaway.”

Delia backed away and began firing up an Aura Sphere.  Seeing this, Dragonite swiftly flew around Delia, grabbed her shoulders, and pulled down just before she fired off her attack.  The sphere shot off past the robot and above the tree line where it exploded lighting up the night sky with a massive flash.

Meanwhile, the mech tried to take another shot at Delia with its flamethrowers.  Dragonite slammed his feet on the ground creating a miniature Earthquake which caused the robot to stumble redirecting its flames away from Delia.  As he fought, Dragonite continued to mutter.  “The trick is going to be getting her to hold still long enough to breathe in enough gas.”

Another Aura Sphere hummed to life in Delia’s claws.  Mimey shouted to get Dragonite’s attention.  The dragon’s back was turned to the werePokémon which seemed to be creating an opening.  Without even looking behind, Dragonite used his Dragon Tail attack to sweep Delias feet and knock her down.  He then kicked the robot’s arm up to shield the pilots from the fired Aura Sphere.  “Guess I’ll just have to wear her down.”

By now, Delia noticed that Mr. Dragonite, though adversarial, was pretty stationary.  As such, she leapt over the pondering Dragon and back onto the robot.  From there she continued to slash and rip the machine apart while the pilots screamed and tried to swat her off.  That snapped Mr. Dragonite back to reality.

“Whoopsie daisy!  Thunderwave!” Electricity sparked from Mr. Dragonite’s antenna and flew over to zap Delia.  At first she resisted, but after increasing the voltage, Dragonite was able to slow down her movements.

“You got her!” Mimey cheered.

Dragonite shook his head.  “No, look.”

While her movements slowed, Delia was still able to keep her grip on the robot.  What’s more, with a powerful swing she was able to use Metal Claw to slice off one of the robot’s arms.

“That’s the problem with werePokémon.  They aren’t just tough, they’re resilient.  Even if you get a status condition to stick, they usually power through it.  Unless you lay it on really thick,” Mr. Dragonite explained.  He slapped his tail on the ground creating another Earthquake.  With Delia’s grip loosened by a combo of paralyzed muscles and an unsteady ground, Dragonite was able to push her off with a swift Fly attack.

There was a loud FWOANG!  And the robot fell.  Delia’s landing was a bit more graceful.  She managed to twist in the air and land on all fours in a hunched position ready to pounce.  Dragonite swooped back down to land another blow, only for the Lucario to glow with the Counter move.  The second he hit her; he went flying back.

With a loud roar, Delia charged forward to slash at Dragonite.  She was stopped last minute by Mimey sliding in front of the dragon and use Protect to summon a bubble of green energy.  Delia’s claws didn’t even dent the shield forcing her to bounce off and glare at the pair while she waited for the move to disperse.

Mimey felt a chubby dragon claw grab him by the head.  “Excellent shield!  I’ll need your help!”

“Not again!” Mimey yelped.  Next thing he knew, he was back to riding a dragon into certain doom.  Delia wasted no time in leaping back into action.  She and Mr. Dragonite exchanged blow after blow.  Mega Punch vs Metal Claw.  Every so often the ground would shake courtesy of the one-armed robot which was trying to reorient itself and get back onto its feet.

Though he hid behind Dragonite’s bulky form, Mimey was still able to contribute by blocking Delia’s more fatal blows.  Barrier upped Dragonite’s defenses which was very much needed after one of Delia’s Screeches.  Light Screen kept the Aura Spheres in check while Protect could be activated to stop a disembowelment.

“Are we just going it keep fighting her for the rest of the night!?” Mimey asked after blocking a Metal Claw that would have decapitated Dragonite.

“Sorry.  This isn’t as easy as it looks.  Normally, I’d be able to put all my energy into attacking and leave the battle plans to Sam,” Dragonite grunted.  He managed to grab Delia by the hand and swing her around letting her fly into the trunk of a nearby tree.  Dragonite let out a tired sigh.  “You really don’t know how much you miss someone until he’s been transformed into a rabid beast.”

“Can’t you just fly up and rain attacks down on Delia until she’s weak enough to gas?” Mimey suggested.

“Two problems with that plan,” Dragonite held up two claws.  “One, my only long ranged attack is Heat Wave.  Not the kind of move you want to use in the middle of a forest.”  Looking around, said forest was turning into a lumber yard with how many trees were knocked over by either Delia’s attacks or the robot’s weapons.  “Or a former forest.  The other problem is-”

Just then, a missile went sailing through the air.  It seemed as though the robot had finally risen to its feet and was now unloading what was left of its arsenal on Delia.

Acting fast, Dragonite flew up to catch a couple of the missiles and hit a few others off course.  One of the missiles whizzed off into a tree and exploded.  Dragonite threw away the other missiles and touched down on the ground.  When he did, he used the move Waterfall to create a geyser to put out the flames.  “The other problem is I can’t leave any down here alone for a minute.”

“LUCARR!” While Dragonite was dealing with the missiles, Delia had yet again made her way over to the robot.  Seeing as how the robot was now in an area with less lumber (boy were they going to get an earful from the forest dwelling Pokémon for this), Dragonite decided a little more heat wouldn’t hurt too much.

Taking in a deep breath, Dragonite began flapping his wings and combing their wind with his own breath to fuel a Heat Wave.  The attack caused the robot’s metal body to heat up.  Delia gave a yelp of pain and backed away.

“Now!  Grab her!” The robot lurched forward; arm outstretched.  Delia met this arm, grabbed it before it could grab her, and gave the arm a heavy tug.  This tore the arm away from the shoulder electing numerous alarmed shouts form the cockpit.  But Delia wasn’t done.

The wereLucario took her new dismembered arm and swung it down onto its former owner.  Between the force of the swing and the heated metal, the robot finally gave and fell apart.  Once again, Dragonite had to step in.  This time, Dragonite’s body erupted in a blue aura.  The aura shaped itself into a dragon with a fiercer demeanor than Dragonite and flew over to Delia knocking her back.

Now that Delia was stalled, Dragonite had to act fast.  Just because Dragon Rush made her flinch that didn’t mean she would be out.  Mimey watched as the dragon’s mind raced.  He might be able to take her out, but then he’d have to deal with those Pokenappers.

“If only there was a way to decrease the amount of people you have to worry about,” lamented Mimey.

Dragonite’s eyes suddenly lit up.  “Wait!  There was a way!”

Inside the crumbled mech, Mimey could hear the pilot’s moan.

“Ow, my head.”

“Did somebody get the license of that arm?”

“It’s a good thing we sprang for the safety belts.”

The three paused their groans when they saw Mr. Dragonite hoovering in front of their decapitated cock pit.  Dragonite smiled, waved, and explained what he was about to do.

“What is he saying?” asked the woman as she and her cohorts awkwardly returned the wave.

“Have a safe landin’,” translated the Meowth.

“Oh, okay…wait what!?” exclaimed the woman.

Before any of the pilots could protest, Dragonite’s tail glowed with green energy lengthening its size and strength.  Dragonite whipped his tail around and smacked the head into the air.  In a professional fight, Dragon Tail could be used to temporarily bat an opponent out of combat, forcing the opposing trainer to substitute with a different Pokémon.  In the wild, it could be used to send an unwanted foe to parts unknown.  Or send a trio of liabilities rocketing into the sky.

“Arg!  We were this close!  This close to our big score!” seethed the woman.

“No Riolu, no Dragonite, and no Route One Monster,” lamented the man.  “We need to figure out a new plan…after we finish paying off our loans for that robot.”

“But until then,” started Meowth.

“We’re blasting off into the night!” cried out all three criminals as they soared past the full moon.

“There!” Mr. Dragonite declared with finality.  He took a moment to dust off his hands.  “This way I don’t have to worry about protecting those three while dealing with Delia.”

“Is it a good idea to let them escape?” asked Mimey.

“Better lost than dead,” Dragonite reasoned.  “We’ll track them down and figure out what to do with them latARRAHH!”

Dragonite’s plan was disrupted when Delia, fully recovered from Dragon Rush, sprang forward and ripped into one of the dragon’s hind legs.

Outside the Kennel

Forget burning the grounds around the kennel.  Next month, Charizard decided she was going to burn down every plant on the lab’s property!

Green energy coded Charizard’s claws which she used to slice apart the roots that were reaching out to grab her.  Immediately the root segments attempted to slither toward Charizard, only to be incinerated on the spot by Charizard’s Flamethrower breath.  She continued this pattern, in a desperate attempt to reach the entrance to The Kennel which kept itself just out of reach.

Not far away, Nidoking was having similar problems.  The poison type had just finished stomping out a group of weeds and was now wrestling a bush.  “It’s never been this bad before,” Nidoking grunted from beneath the bush’s body.

Inwardly, Mrs. Charizard agreed.  Back when they first started dealing with the curse, there were numerous close calls.  Thanks to their lack of experience in dealing with werePokémon, Sammy and Delia managed to break out from their cages every so often to terrorize the local Pokémon population.  It was thanks to one of these breakouts that they learned about Sammy’s cursed half’s chlorokinesis.

But the plants back then were slow and weren’t actively fighting.  They served more as traps which ambushed Sammy’s prey and held it still for him to crawl over and maul.  Or Delia.  On some subliminal level those two recognized that they were friends and would help each other out in a pinch.

Between the two lycans, Sammy was the easier to handle due in part to his age and how slow his cursed form was to attack Charizard and the rest of Sammy’s party.  From these interactions, they could deduce that Sammy still recognized them to some degree.  Though they weren’t completely immune to assult.  If they interfered with the werePokémons’ hunts, Sammy would turn against them and treat them as they were any other prey.  But even back then Sammy’s attacks weren’t as bad as they were now.

With a thrash of his tail and a Flamethrower, Nidoking finally shook off the mobile bush.  “I just had a thought.”

“Did it hurt?” Charizard snipped.  She held up her tail, turning it to iron to deflect an incoming vine.

“How original,” said Nidoking, rolling his eyes.  His arms glowed with purple, toxic energy as he used Poison Jab to punch a large clump of grass that was springing towards his face.  “I think Sam’s stress is translating over to his werePokémon form.  You know how much of a handful Delia used to be.  Maybe having a kid around is reawakening Sam’s parental instincts.  Which is probably why the weeds are more aggressive this month.”

Charizard hummed in thought.  The theory sounded plausible.  While there were Pokémon species like Sharpedoes who laid their eggs and swam off or Ursarings who left all the parenting to the mothers, most Pokémon tended to be very protective of their young.  Charizard couldn’t remember where Eevees fell on that scale (keeping track of that stuff was Sammy’s job), though she was fairly certain grandparents didn’t play an active role in the pups’ lives.  Most wild Pokémon tend to grow up without knowing their grandparents.

Several more vines ripped apart the ground in an effort to throw Charizard off her feet.  She saved them the effort and flew upwards where she proceeded to rain down blades of wind using Air Slash.  Watching the plants try and catch her, Mrs. Charizard continued to muse.

While grandparents weren’t really a part of a regular Pokémon’s life, werePokémon were still humans at their core.  It could be that some human conventions got mixed in with the base Pokémon instincts.  Which meant Charizard and Nidoking were going to have some extra difficulties fishing out the boys from The Kennel.  Assuming they were still down there.

Of course, that explained the aggression.  That still didn’t explain the power behind the plants.  Even if they were more active, the plant life shouldn’t have been regenerating and coming in this fast!

“Hey, I just had another thought,” Nidoking shouted before mowing down a hoard of flowers which were attempting to sneak up on him.

“Enlighten me,” Charizard replied.  She summoned a squad of purple, fireball Will-O-Wisps which she directed at some of the thicker vines.

“You think this might have something to do with Sam learning Helping Hand?”

Ah, that might explain where all the extra power was coming from.  Years ago, after they ironed out the full moon containment protocols, there was an incident when Delia slipped into her berserker form.  Charizard, Nidoking, and Dragonite had to work together to hold her down, but it wasn’t quite enough.  During that fight, Sammy stepped up and managed to learn Helping Hand to give them the edge.

At the time the main concern was keeping Sammy from using that move on Delia in their werePokémon forms, nobody ever thought it could be used on something non-Pokémon.  Then again, werePokémon had a special talent for warping regular Pokémon powers into something more dangerous.

“Horror monsters,” Charizard growled in disgust.  By now, she was done with playing wack-a-vine.  Time to ditch the carefully tread forward strategy in favor of something more aggressive.  Reaching into her messenger bag, Mrs. Charizard felt around until she found the item she needed.

Charizard reached up to her head and strapped on a pair of yellow goggles with red lenses.  These goggles were actually a pair of Choice Specs modified to strap to Charizard’s face while she flew.  Like other Choice Specs, these goggles had the ability to boost special attack moves at the price of locking the user into that move until the user fainted or the goggles were destroyed.

As for which move Charizard was going to stick with, the choice seemed pretty obvious.  Cleaving through the vines turned them into smaller, more manageable opponents but didn’t kill them so moves like Air Slash, Iron Tail, and Dragon Claw were out.  Non-attack moves like Sunny Day and Will-O-Wisp were also ill advised.  Sunny Day in particular was a bad idea since Sammy had the Chlorophyll ability.  Solar Beam would take too long to power up at night and Blast Burn required a recharge.

This just left old reliable.

“Cover me,” Mrs. Charizard ordered fixing her specs into place.  “I’m going in.”

Taking in a deep breath, Mrs. Charizard opened her maw and used Flamethrower to unleash a torrent of fire and burn a path to the entrance of The Kennel.

Ash

Groaning, Ash rose to his feet.  Despite the effects of Giga Drain, the Riolu could feel a new rush of energy flow through his body.  Even underground, the full moon fueled him, made his muscles ache for action, made his body hunger for a fight.  For a hunt.

Shaking himself, Ash refocused.  He’d go after the professor in a minute.  Now, he had to check on Pikachu.

It didn’t take long for Ash to move aside the boxes that buried his friend.  When Ash saw the electric mouse, his heart sank.  Unlike Ash, Pikachu wasn’t bouncing back from the Giga Drain.  The rodent’s breathing was labored and raspy and his eyes were unfocused.

“Pikachu?” Ash gently shook his unconscious friend.  He then shook him harder.  “Pikachu!”

Through the mouse’s aura Ash could feel that he was alive if severely drained.  Options flashed through Ash’s mind.  He should take Pikachu out of here, but then he’d be abandoning Gary.  Unless, Gary was already…no.  Ash didn’t even want to think about that possibility.

Not for the first time since seeing them, the hanging Pokémon corpses flashed through Ash’s head.  Their fixed expressions of pain and horror, the tantalizing fresh scent of blood, Ash shook his head.  He was NOT going to lose anyone tonight.

Gently, Ash picked up Pikachu and carried the mouse across the room.  He gave the vines a warning growl before finding a box that was out of their reach.  Ash placed Pikachu in the box and closed its folds.  He was about to leave when he heard a voice.

“Don’t,” Pikachu managed to rasp.

Fear was radiating off of Pikachu.  Both fear for Ash and fear of being left alone.  Ash wanted to bring Pikachu along, however the image of the professor’s wide jaws was still fixed into his head.  “Sit tight, Pikachu.  I’ll be back soon.  I promise!”

Without looking back, Ash dashed out of the room and down the stairs.

The final floor was a bit of a paradox.  Down here there were more plants than ever.  Almost everything was covered in vines making the terrain tricky to navigate without tripping.  Yet none of the plants made a move to attack Ash.  They felt almost content, as though Ash was entering a sanctuary.

Beyond the foliage, Ash could sense the aura of Gary and the professor.  Just like the plants, Professor Oak felt oddly at peace.  Gary, on the other hand, was in distress.  Spotting a snapped off piece of an iron bar, Ash grabbed it and hardened his resolve.

Holding his new weapon at the ready, Ash inched closer to the source of the auras.  He peered around the corner to see the professor lying on the floor with Gary fixed in his clutches.  Gary was writhing around, trying to escape.  Above the fidgeting Eevee, the wereLeafeon opened his mouth and gave Gary a good lick.

Sweet Arceus!  The professor was tasting Gary!  Ash had to stop this before Gary was gobbled up!

With not a moment to lose, Ash charged forward with a battle cry.  He slammed his metal bar into Professor Oak’s head startling the Leafeon.  The sudden attack loosened the professor’s grip on Gary allowing the Eevee to make his escape and scamper over to Ash’s side.

Ash sighed in relief.  “That was a close one.  It looked like he was about to eat you.”  He then looked over Gary and noticed the way the Eevee’s fur was sticking out in multiple directions.  It was as if he had left in the middle of a grooming session.  “Uh, you were about to be eaten, right?”

“Not another word,” Gary hissed.  He used his legs to scratch and brush his fur back into its usual style.  “Not.  Another.  Word.”

A loud snarl caused both boys to jump.  Professor Oak had risen on all fours and was staring over at Ash.  Ash returned the Leafeon’s growl with one of his own and brandished his metal bar like a warrior brandishing a sword.  He had this.  All Ash had to do was remember what he was taught about dealing with aggressive wild Pokémon.  Step one: don’t approach or capture their cubs.

The Riolu gave Gary a sideways glance.  Okay, he already messed up step one.  Moving on to step two: back away slowly while never turning around.

Ash inched away from the professor.  Keeping his bar facing forward, Ash tried to project a bigger, more threatening image off himself.  He tried to ignore the sensation of his heart hammering in his chest and calmly spoke to the angry wereLeafeon.  “It’s okay, Professor.  I’m not going to hurt Gary.  We are just going to go back to the lab and wait until the morning.  Then we can talk all this out, alright?”

There was a loud snap as a grove of roots rapidly grew over the exit, trapping everyone in the room.  Ash looked back to see the professor was now advancing, still growling.  “That’s a no,” Ash muttered to himself.  He turned to Gary.  “Ready to fight again?”

The Eevee crouched down into a pounce and gave the mutant Leafeon his own snarl.  “Like I have a choice.”

“Let’s go!” Ash cried as he charged forward.

The first obstacle made itself apparent right away: the room itself.  The vines that wrapped around the room began to writhe and shake.  Some untangled themselves to reach out and try and grab the boys.  Ash was nimble enough to dodge most of the blows thanks to years of play fighting.  Gary, who didn’t have such experience, was able to compensate with his Run Away ability that seemed to grant him an instinctual, safe retreat from the vines.

Completely surrounded neither boy could avoid harm for long.  One of the vines finally managed to nab Gary and began hauling the squirming Eevee up to the ceiling.  Spotting this, Ash slashed at the air with his bar creating a Vacuum Wave.  The wave sliced through the air cutting Gary lose and allowing him to plop to the floor.  Ash followed this up by taking his metal bar and slamming it into the severed root before it could scuttle after him.

Ash grinned at Gary.  “Don’t worry!  I’ve got you!”

Gary’s fur stood on end.  “Behind you!”

A huff of breath brushed through Ash’s fur.  He suddenly realized that he was so busy fending off the vines that the professor was able to lumber up behind him and was now barring his teeth down at the Riolu.  Ash tried to retreat, but the roots beneath his paws quivered causing the ground to shake.  Ash lost his footing and tumbled forward.

The wereLeafeon swiped at Ash knocking the bar out of the Riolu’s paws.  Ash was sent flying back into a nest of writhing vines which immediately lashed out and constricted him.  The more Ash thrashed, the harder the vines squeezed.

Satisfied that Ash was restrained, Professor Oak turned his attention to Gary and moved forward to recapture his pup.  Whether on purpose or by instinct, Gary growled at the approaching threat and nimbly backed away.  Roots spiked up around the ground to try and impede Gary’s movement forcing the Eevee to weave through an ever-changing obstacle course.

Gary’s footwork paid off when he landed on an area of the floor where the vines were too tangled to attack.  Looking around, Gary could see the layout of the room.  By now the vines had encircled the area in a protective dome with only him, Ash, and his possessed grandfather inside.  Ash was still fighting against the roots, and his grandfather was standing as tall as a hunched back sin against nature could.  Eying the hunch, Gary came up with an idea.

Switching tactics, Gary employed Quick Attack to zoom forward.  He dodged back and forth through the vines until a large root burst through the floor.  The hand-like appendage struck forward, its branches ready to wrap around Gary like fingers.  In response, Gary used Bite to sever the “wrist” of the plant and continue his charge straight toward his grandfather.

Before the monster Leafeon could react, Gary jumped on his head and charged up his back.  He then sprang into the air and use Swift!  The stars from the attack rained down across the battlefield hitting the vines, his grandfather, and most importantly, the roots holding Ash.

His prison roots severed; Ash was able to pull free.  He rushed forward and grabbed his metal bar.  Following a path similar to Gary’s, Ash came right before the professor and jammed his bar into the ground.  Ash then pull vaulted into the air, bringing his bar with him, and grabbed Gary just as the airborne Eevee landed on his grandfather’s back.

“Thanks for the assist!” Ash barked.

Gary wasn’t in as jovial a mood.  “Don’t get cocky,” he said looking around the room.  The enemies controlled the environment and were constantly regenerating.  Then there was the boss monster which was slow but completely unharmed.  Granted, even if they did get in a good blow the werePokémon would just use a move like Synthesis or Giga Drain to heal himself.

Suddenly, the room began to shake!  Both of the boys stumbled around to regain their footing.  It felt as though, as one, the vines were moving.  It was kind of like an elevator suddenly starting and stopping.

“Well, we’ve got to do something,” Ash said as he regained his balance.  Whatever just happened, it felt like it was stabilizing.  “Maybe if we hit him in the head hard enough, he’ll pass out and we can escape.”

“You know what?” Gary’s eyes narrowed and he crouched, ready to spring forward.  “I could really go for hitting something tonight.”

More hand-like vines burst from the floor to try and grab the boys.  Ash tried hitting one with his bar, but it held strong.  Looking over at Gary, he wasn’t having much luck either.  Looks like these vine hands were more reinforced than the one that tried to grab the Eevee earlier.

“It’s no use!” Gary cried out.  He use Quick Attack to swerve between the fingers of a root before they could nab him.  “They’re getting too thick!”

Ash parried a root arm, trying to find a weakness.  He was so focused on the sinister sprout that he completely missed that the professor had moved from his spot in the center of the room and was now right next to Ash!

The Riolu spun around and swung his weapon at the professor just before the wereLeafeon could snap at him.  The professor caught the bar in his mouth, ripped it out of Ash’s arms, and tossed it aside.  Now weaponless and with his enemy right in front of him, Ash tried to go in for a Force Palm to the professor’s face!

Though Ash’s palm successfully connected with the side of Professor Oak’s head, it hardly seemed to affect the large Leafeon.  It only annoyed him.  The professor gave Ash an angry snort before swatting him with his long tail.  Ash was sent skidding across the floor into a group of vines which grabbed his feet, holding him in place.

Looking up, Ash found Professor Oak looming over him.  The grass type’s vines reached toward Ash, ready to use Giga Drain.  Just like before, Gary tried to use Swift to cut the vines loose.  This time the stars weren’t enough.  It was only thanks to a combination of Ash’s fighting type muscles and a sudden rush of adrenaline that he was able to snap through the weakened plants and away from the leeching vines.

Now free, Ash dropped to all fours and dashed away from the professor and back to Gary.  As he ran, he felt the floor continue to lurch beneath the roots.  Above, Ash could sense a pair of familiar auras descending through the bunker: Nidoking and Mrs. Charizard.

Grabbing his bar, Ash positioned himself next to Gary.  They were back to where they were before: fending off hoard of vines with a peeved were-creature waiting on the other side of said hoard.  At least this time there was help on the way.  But would that help arrive in time?

No.  Ash couldn’t rely on a rescue.  There had been too many close calls.  He needed to knock that demented Leafeon out.  The only question was how.  The professor tanked most normal Pokémon moves and his vines were growing back stronger with each hit.  Neither Ash nor Gary’s moves could take them out alone.

Wait, that was it!

His brainstorm concluded, Ash’s tail began to wag.  Noticing this, Gary gave the Riolu the side eye.  “You’re way too excited about all of this.”

“I just had an idea!” exclaimed Ash.  He leapt back before a vine could spike up and constrict him like an Ekans.  “We should combine attacks!”

“Combine attacks?” asked Gary with an unsure look on his face.  He ducked down dodging another root.

“Yeah!  You’re Swift and my Vacuum Wave!  It will go shh-woom and boom!  And then we can get to the professor and knock him out!”  Ash demonstrated his plan by energetically waving around his weapon.

The half-lidded expression Gary gave clearly conveyed that he did not appreciate the sheer genius of the Riolu’s well explained scheme.  It was only after he was snagged by particularly large root that he decided to give it a chance.  “Alright!” Gary shouted as the root hoisted him into the air.  His body glowed creating a cloud of Swift stars which rained down below.  “This better work!”

Without a moment to lose, Ash slashed through the air horizontally with his weapon creating a Vacuum Wave.  The wave caught the stars and directed them through the horde of plants.  This combination of attacks successfully cut down Gary, severed the plants’ stems, and created a path to the main threat.

Before the severed plants could reanimate and attack, Ash charged across the room and leapt at the professor with his bar ready to swing down.  The wereLeafeon roared and reared up onto his hind legs to take a swipe at the flying Riolu.  With all his might, Ash brought down his bar to bludgeon the werePokémon before he could do any more damage.

FWOOSH!

Whatever clash would have occurred was interrupted by a massive explosion.  Burnt roots went flying through the air thanks to a massive flamethrower bursting through the closed off exit.  The force from the blast knocked Professor Oak back on all fours and Ash into a hoard of writhing vines.

For whatever reason whether it be because the plants were channeling the wereLeafeon’s aggression or because Oak ordered the roots to carry the rebellious Riolu away to safety, the roots began to carry Ash through their makeshift wall to parts unknown.

Mimey

Caught off guard by the wereLucario’s retaliation, Mr. Dragonite threw Mimey off his back to relative safety.  Mimey watched in horror as the dragon tried and failed to fly away from Delia.  There was no escaping the iron grip of the cursed steel type.  Delia held onto the main body while her jaws tore through and shredded Mr. Dragonite’s leg electing howls of pain from the pseudo legendary.

Finally, Delia grew board of her new chew toy and tossed him to the side.  Looking over to the decapitated robot, Delia sniffed the air.  When she figured out that her primary prey had successfully escaped, she released a loud snarl of frustration.  She then turned her murderous gaze to Mimey and began walking towards him.

“D-Delia, I’m sorry we foiled your hunt,” Mimey rambled.  Still on the ground, he crawled backwards as fast as he could.  “But it was for your own good!  Deep down, I know you’re the sweet woman who took me in when I had nothing.  You don’t want to do this!”

There was a loud crack, and a thick tree caved into the pressure from the stress exerted on the forest from the fight.  The tree fell downright above Delia who didn’t seem to care about the possibility of a concussion.  She lazily punched a spikey fist upward and split the wooden debris in half.

Mimey flinched back and shield himself from the splinters.  “Try and remember!” Mimey called out to the monster.  He had seen this tactic before on TV.  Maybe his bond with Delia could fight against the curse and reawaken her true self.  “Remember all the good times we had?  Baking new recipes, planting the garden, rom com night?”

As the wereLucario loomed over Mimey, claws raised back to deliver the killing blow, Mimey remembered something important: TV could not be trusted.  Closing his eyes, Mimey steeled himself to the inevitable blow.

WHAM!

Mimey cracked an eye open to see Delia being tackled away by a Dragon Rush.  The tackler was Mr. Dragonite!  However, he wasn’t in good shape.  His leg was a bloody mess of chewed up meat with his foot dangling by a thread.  The dragon was currently asleep, probably using a combination of Rest and Sleep Talk to restore some of his strength and keep him fighting.  Too bad Rest didn’t restore body parts.

Mr. Dragonite slammed into Delia again, this time using the move Dragon Rush for some extra power.  Delia slid back slightly before retaliating with Metal Claw.  What happened next was a dance of claws and weaving.  Like a kung fu fighter using drunken boxing, Dragonite slipped and dodged away from Delia’s blows and was even able to punch back using Mega Punch and Dragon Tail.

At some point during the exchange Delia got tired of trading blows and used Counter.  The resulting backfire caused a Dragon Tail turn back spinning Dragonite out of control.  Mimey had to reach out with his Psychic attack to still Dragonite and redirect him back into battle.

Even with Dragonite back in the fray, Mimey couldn’t just stand idly by.  He used a Protect force field to create a bubble around Dragonite’s leg to keep it from falling apart.  It was no substitute for a proper bandage (not that a bandage would help that injury) but it was the best Mimey could conjure in the heat of the moment.

Mimey whimpered in exhaustion, maintaining Protect on oneself was hard enough.  Most Pokémon could only manage to hold a shield for a brief moment to deflect a single attack.  Projecting a shield around another Pokémon was extremely difficult and was probably only working now thanks to the massive adrenaline rush triggered by Mimey’s fight or flight response.

Of course, it would be a whole lot easier if Dragonite didn’t just randomly decide to use Earthquake to shake up the ground!

If it was in consolation prize, the Earthquake got Delia too.  The wereLucario was forced to use her Metal Claws to grab the ground and stabilize herself.  This left her open to Dragonite’s Waterfall attack.  A new geyser erupted from the earth to carry Dragonite forward and knock Delia back.

Alas, this attack was also Countered and Dragonite was sent tumbling back into a pile of toppled trees.  Thankfully, Dragonite was so deep asleep that he didn’t even register the blunt force trauma and immediately got back up to prepare for another attack.  Silently, Mimey prayed for a Heat Wave.  It was a special move that couldn’t be Countered that Delia was also weak against.

Dragonite used Dragon Dance.

“Oh, come on!” yelled Mimey.

Seeing an opening, Delia stood up and began charging a large Aura Sphere.

“Use Fly and dodge the sphere!  Use Fly and dodge the sphere!” chanted Mimey.

“Zzz,” responded Dragonite.  Instead of Fly, Dragonite used Waterfall.  The pillar of water sent Dragonite up and over the Aura Sphere and past Delia.  Though he missed the werePokémon, Dragonite was safe from the Aura Sphere.  Good thing too.  When that sphere hit the ground the attack blew up another section of the forest.

Though fast asleep, Dragonite sensed that his opponent was in the other direction.  He turned around and used Dragon Rush to propel himself forward toward Delia.  Detecting the incoming dragon, Delia turned around and caught the Dragon Rush.  From there, the two combatants engaged in a shoving match.

Spotting his chance, Mimey grabbed the canister of tranquilizer and ran up to Delia.  Noticing Mimey, Delia turned around to snap at the interfering clown only to receive a massive cloud of gas.  Delia tossed Dragonite to the side and tried to move away, but Mimey used his barriers to create a fishbowl helmet around Delia’s head which forced her to breathe in the gas.

After a lot of thrashing and clawing, Delia fell down to the ground with a loud THUMP.  The force from her collapse finally woke Dragonite.  Between the adrenaline leaving the dragon’s system and his return to consciousness, Mimey wasn’t surprised to see the dragon yawling in pain.  He was surprised to see the dragon settle down.

Clearly, Mr. Dragonite was still in agony.  His face was scrunched up and contorted in a way that said as much.  Though it seemed as though Dragonite was trying to work through the anguish and rise to his remaining good foot.  Mimey rushed forward to help him.

“It’s over!  We’ve got Delia!” Mimey announced in a voice that was both hushed and excited.

“Not over yet,” grunted Mr. Dragonite.  He stumbled over to Delia and tried to lift her up.  Mimey quickly used Psychic to do it instead, wincing from her weight as he did so.  “Can you take her back with us to the lab?” Dragonite asked between labored breaths.

“Of…course,” Mimey managed to grunt.  His body was in pain.  It felt like he was trying to lift a large piece of furniture all by himself.  Still it could be worse.

With what looked like great effort, Mr. Dragonite picked up Mimey, spread his wings, and took off with Mimey psychically dragging Delia behind.  The weight was unbearable.  Forget the sensation of your arms falling off from carrying too much, Mimey felt as though his body was about to crumble.  That was until he saw the look of determination in Mr. Dragonite’s eyes.  Despite the immense pain the dragon must have been in having to fly back with a giant open wound, he continued to do his part in containing an extremely dangerous Pokémon.

Yes, it could be much worse.

Charizard

While Ash and Gary battled Professor Oak, Mrs. Charizard and Nidoking made their way through The Kennel.  Being the seasoned fighter she was, Charizard knew how to handle every single encounter in the maze.  Animated weeds?  Burn them.  Roots reaching out to snag her?  Burn them.  Corpse of half-eaten Pokémon who posed no threat?  Burn it all the same.  Sammy was definitely going to have a massive guilt trip when everything was said and done, and he did not need to see his victims’ remains.

“Hey.  Hey!  Hold your fire!” yelled Nidoking.  Charizard paused sweeping her Flamethrower around the hall to give her teammate an annoyed look.  They were close to the bottom of The Kennel, why were they stopping?

Nidoking’s ears twitched.  “I think I hear someone.”

Though Charizard was ready to write off this someone as just some of the vines moving away from a fiery death, there was the possibility that the kids were still down here.  Hopefully alive.  No sign of a Riolu or a human boy, but that ripped apart Pikachu was concerning.

Cautiously, Nidoking moved into one of the side rooms.  A handful of roots immediately reached out to grab him only to be swiped at with Nidoking’s Fire Punch.  The drill Pokémon made his way over to an overturned box in the middle of the room and lifted it up to reveal Pikachu.  The mouse was barely alive if his labored breathing was anything to go by.

“Pikachu,” Nidoking gently bent down and scooped up the mouse.  “Can you hear me?  What happened?”

At first, Charizard thought the mouse wouldn’t respond.  Then, a tiny hoarse voice wheezed from the mouse.  “Professor.  Ahead.  Save, Ash-”

Pikachu passed out before he could divulge any more information.  The most they learned was that Ash was in danger.  It would have been nice to know what happened to Gary.  Charizard took in a deep breath and let out another Flamethrower.  At least they now had confirmation on where Ash was, maybe Gary was with him?  Then again, maybe it was better Gary’s whereabouts remained a mystery for a little while longer.  Wherever he would be was probably safer than where Ash was now.

With one final Flamethrower, Charizard broke through a wall of roots.  Inside should have been the room with the cells for holding Sammy and Delia.  What Charizard found was more vines, broken cage bars, and the all too familiar smell of fresh Pokémon corpses.  Sammy was standing in the middle of the room in all his werePokémon form’s mutated glory.  Nearby was another Pokémon, but it wasn’t a Riolu.  It was an Eevee.

Oh great.  What was this Eevee doing out of its ball?  It couldn’t be a wild Eevee; they weren’t native to this area.  The only Eevees Charizard was familiar with were the ones left by trainers at lab where they spent their time prancing, playfully across the grounds showering everyone with love and affection.  Oh how Charizard hated them.

Throughout her life, almost every Eevee Charizard met either had an obnoxiously bright and optimistic personality.  Even their more cool-headed evolutions had this sickeningly sweet kindness that got on her nerves almost instantly (only her husband was allowed to be that jolly).  By now she was convinced that the main reason these cotton-brained pests were still around was because humans found them cute.  They didn’t even have the decency to taste good when you hunted them as prey as eating one was like swallowing a hairball.

The fur balls got even more irritating after Sammy was bitten.  Constantly going up to investigate him, bombarding him with questions, and insisting on showing him the ropes of being a Pokémon.  Some of the more prideful Eeveelutions would even strut around the lab like they owned the place, a delusion Charizard was more than happy to break them out of.

Why couldn’t Sammy be cursed to turn into a canine Pokémon with more dignity?  Like an Arcanine or a Houndoom?  Heck, Charizard would take a non-fire type Pokémon like an Alakazam.  He’d be missing out on joining the ranks of the best typing, but at least he’d be spared from becoming the evolved form of one of the most annoying Pokémon in existence.

Right off the bat, Sammy made his displeasure at the intruders known.  Every strand of fur and leaf stood on end, and he stepped in front of the wide-eyed Eevee.  Snarling, Sammy summoned multiple vines from the ground and walls to lash out at Charizard and Nidoking.

Charizard was about to incinerate the vines with another Flamethrower until she was stopped by Nidoking.  The drill Pokémon stepped in front of Charizard and used Megahorn to slice and bat the plants back.  Several of the severed roots tried to slither up to Nidoking only for him to stomp them out with his hefty tail and feet.  “We should probably hold back on the fire attacks until we figure out where the boys are,” Nidoking explained.  “One stray ember and this place could transform into a bonfire.”

“Ash is in the vines!” piped up the Eevee from behind Sammy.  “He fell into the wall and the vines took him away somewhere!”

Wonderful.  Just what Charizard needed.  A hostage situation that was stacked against her.  One wrong move and her flames could end up incinerating the kid.  She could either fight Sammy with a no-fire handicap or she could find some other way to make herself useful.

“Keep Sammy occupied and see if you can find Ash and Gary,” Charizard muttered to Nidoking.  “I’ll evacuate Pikachu and the Eevee and come back.”

Nidoking nodded and handed Pikachu over to Charizard.  He then lowered his horn.  Anticipating an attack, Sammy’s eyes narrowed and more vines whipped forward.  This time, Nidoking opted to use High Horsepower.  Orange, ground energy surrounded Nidoking’s body as he took off.  The charging poison type managed to break through the guard vines and head straight toward the werePokémon.

Sammy didn’t move an inch.  The wereLeafeon stayed planted between the Eevee and the charging Nidoking.  His bodily vines struck forward and managed to grab Nidoking and slow down his attack.  The vines then began to glow signifying Sammy’s uses of Giga Drain.

Seeing her chance, Charizard flapped her wings and took flight.  The room was relatively small forcing Charizard to steer into and leap off of the vined walls to maneuver around Sammy.  As one would guess by now, the vines tried to grab her when she pushed off against the wall.  Seeing this coming, Charizard swung her tail around to smash through the plants as she flew forward.

As she flew forward, Mrs. Charizard whipped her tail and burned through the vines sticking out from Sammy’s body using the flame on the tip of her tail thus freeing Nidoking.  While Sammy roared in pain, Charizard dived forward and grabbed the Eevee.

Seeing the Eevee now in Charizard’s hands, Sammy roared.  As though responding to his call, the roots making up the room began to shake violently and the earth around them rumbled.  Charizard swooped over to the other side of the room and ran out of the door before the vines could reseal the exit.

“What are you doing?!” exclaimed the Eevee.

“Getting you out of here before those vines get you too,” snapped Charizard.  “Now be quiet!”

With the hallways too narrow to fly, Charizard opted to run as fast as her stubby legs could carry her.  She tried to follow the path she burned through the underground labyrinth before, but the roots were already regrowing and covering the walls.  The roots constantly stuck out and smacked her, tempting her to forgo caution and go back to burning everything in sight.

What’s more, the walls continued to shake.  They were erupting into small earthquakes earlier when Mrs. Charizard and Nidoking made their way down, now they were even more intense.  Pieces of ceiling debris rained down on Charizard’s head pushing her to move faster in hopes that she could get out before everything caved in.

“Hey,” began the Eevee.

“I said be quiet!  I need to concentrate,” hissed Mrs. Charizard.  She did NOT have the patience to deal with an Eevee’s prattling right now.  Dumb pup probably thought it could tame a werePokémon through the power of friendship or some other whimsical garbage.

Up ahead Charizard could make out the exit.  Her wings unfurled and she summoned one last burst of speed to jump forward and take flight.  Finally out in the open air, Charizard could easily soar over to the lab’s back deck and deposit the Eevee and the unconscious Pikachu.

Turning around, Charizard steeled herself for another dive into the collapsing tunnels to help Nidoking and somehow save Sammy without hurting anyone else.  She was not ready for what she saw next.

The Kennel was gone.  Rising from the ground was a massive mound of vines and plant matter.  The mound squirmed and stretched until it formed a snapping, earless, canine head and shoulders with long tendrils of vines that waved around every which way.

Well.  That was new.

The vines lashed out and began grabbing and anchoring to the ground pulling the plant mass forward toward the lab.  For her part, Charizard groaned and took a deep breath.  She was getting too old for this.

“I want you to get back into your Poke ball,” Charizard ordered the Eevee.  She took off her Choice Specs and tossed them to the side.  Reaching into the bag, Mrs. Charizard withdrew a Sharp Beak which was strung into a necklace.  She placed the necklace around her neck and spread her wings.

“But-“ the Eevee began to protest.

“No buts!  Unless it’s yours getting back into your Poke ball!” roared Charizard.  Without another word, she took off into the skies and toward the mass of plant parts.

Nidoking

Right as Charizard left, Sam forgot all about Nidoking.  The wereLeafeon roared and began charged toward the door as fast as his messed-up body would let him.  Nidoking, despite feeling a bit woozy from the Giga Drain, was faster and slammed Sam against a wall.

Snarling angrily, Sam turned around dug his claws into Nidoking’s plating.  A series of snaps rang out from Nidoking’s armor-like hide cracked from the force of Sam’s attack.  Nidoking hissed in pain and loosened his grip.

Now free, the wereLeafeon scrambled out of Nidoking’s grasp and made a beeline for the door.  Immediately, Nidoking grabbed the beast’s long leafy tail and pulled.  Sammy roared in protest and looked over his shoulder.  The leaves on his tail sharpened into a collection of knives and cut into Nidoking’s claws.

Despite the pain, Nidoking did not let go.  At least not right away.  Instead, Nidoking swung his body around, tossing Sam back against the wall.

Huffing, Nidoking watched as Sam twisted around and climbed across the wall, aided by the vines.  At the same time the room began to rattle and shake.  Nidoking stomped forward to keep himself from tilting over, never once taking his eyes off of Sam.

The shifts in the environment were concerning.  Between the two local lycanthropes, Delia was physically the strongest.  Sam, however, had a greater effect on the surrounding environment.  That effect was amped up tonight and Nidoking was certain it was either because of the stress Sam was dealing with in his human life or because his Leafeon form learned Helping Hand since the werePokémons’ previous break out almost a decade ago.

Either way, plant life had been completely unruly tonight, and it seemed to be getting worse and worse the longer this evening dragged out.  The wereLeafeon got even more aggressive once Charizard took away that Eevee-

No.

“Sam,” Nidoking groaned watching the wereLeafeon stalk across the walls toward him.  “Please tell me you didn’t bite Gary.  Please tell me that was just an Eevee out past curfew.”

In response to Nidoking’s inquiry, Sam’s tail shot out a flurry of Razor Leaves.  Nidoking shielded his face with his forearm while the blades sliced across his skin.  The most obvious solution to this attack would have been to blast through the blade storm using Flamethrower but seeing as how Nidoking still had no idea where Ash was (and hopefully his hunch about that Eevee was wrong) Nidoking had to try something unconventional.

Just like with Delia, Nidoking found himself using Whirlpool.  This time, he drew the water from the surrounding plants.  The vines grew brittle as the water was extracted from them.  Nidoking directed the water around his body, stopping the razor leaves.  He wasn’t a fan of the humid environment within the water dome, but he’d take that over being sliced up any day.

Though the current of the water dome was enough to block the leaves, it was not enough to block out a werePokémon.  Sam burst through the rotating water wall and charged toward Nidoking.  Nidoking charged his bloody fist with venomous energy and swiped at Sam.  The attack missed but Sam backed off, not wanting to be hit with a super effective poison attack.

Nidoking braced himself, ready for Sam to pounce.  He wasn’t ready for the vines to open up beneath Sam swallowing him into the floor.  What’s more, multiple new vines sprung up from beneath Nidoking and wrapped around the drill Pokémon’s limbs.

No longer able to move, Nidoking lost control of the Whirlpool causing the water to come crashing down around him.  Now Nidoking was trapped, wet, and was being stalked by a predator submerged like a hungry Sharpedo.

Nidoking’s mind raced.  Even with the dampened environment, he was still hesitant to use fire attacks.  He probably could flush out Sam with a Surf, though there was the chance that a powerful rush of water may seep through the gaps in the vines and hit Ash and Gary (who was hopefully NOT that Eevee).  Maybe he should use High Horsepower to rush through the room and try and find Sam.  Or maybe he should just wait for Sam to come to him.

Closing his eyes, Nidoking relaxed his limbs and waited for the inevitable.  Sure enough, Sam sprang from the vines to attack.  Hearing Sam’s incoming movements, Nidoking whipped his head around and opened his mouth as far as it could go.  A fountain of thick, smelly, purple goo sprang forward and blasted Sam.

Nidoking used Toxic!

After following up with a Megahorn powered headbutt, Nidoking used High Horsepower to rip away from the vines anchoring him in place.  Sam tried to lash out with a Leaf Blade only to miss thanks to the Toxic slime that was obscuring his vision.  Nidoking took this opportunity to spray more Toxic onto the wereLeafeon.

Thanks to their resilience, it was hard to get a status condition to stick.  While a normal Pokémon would be badly poisoned by one lone Toxic attack, Nidoking knew he could not take any chances with Sam and continued spamming the attack.  He followed this up by rapid punching Sam with a series of Poison Jabs until the wereLeafeon had enough and reared up on his hind legs to slash into Nidoking’s chest before disappearing back into the floor.

At first, Nidoking braced himself for another pounce attack, only for the room to start shifting again.  This time, Nidoking felt like he was in an oversized elevator.  What was going on?

Before Nidoking could investigate, the vines surrounding him once again sprang up and attacked!  Nidoking tried to fight back against the plant limbs only to find himself feeling more and more drained.  Looking down, he saw the source of his sudden fatigue.

It turned out the vines were just a decoy.  Sam was attacking him, just not using the standard werePokémon hack and slash method.  The wereLeafeon had slightly surfaced beneath Nidoking’s feet and was touching the stumps of his Giga Drain vines to Nidoking’s feet.

Misdirection followed by a subtle sneak attack.  Looks like some of Sam’s mind was still working under the werePokémon’s usual caveman brain.

Tried as he might, Nidoking was too drained to escape the vines.  His eyes fluttered shut and he collapsed on the ground where the vines pulled him down beneath the floor.

Ash

Professor Oak’s and Nidoking’s bout was not the only battle occurring withing the fortress of vines.  From the moment Ash was captured by the roots he had been struggling to escape.  No matter how much he twisted and pulled, the vines keep him held in place.

What was worse, anytime Ash got in a good yank the vines’ grips would grow tighter.  It got to the point where not only could Ash not move, but he felt as though his limbs might pop off.  To stay in one piece, Ash deployed his final move.  He Endured.

Stuck in one place, using every last bit of energy to prevent himself from fainting, Ash could do nothing but think.  He thought about Pikachu laying prone and alone.  He thought about Gary who’s confused and now trapped with his monstrous grandfather.  He thought about his mother and her murderous aura.

He thought about the hallway of dismembered bodies and which one of his friends was going to be next.

No.

Ash once again pulled at the vines.  This time they began to snap.

No.

A loud snarl erupted form Ash’s lips which pulled back to reveal his sharp teeth.

NO!

With a powerful yank, Ash broke free from his prison and began climbing the web of wiggling vines.  He was not going to die to tonight.  No one else was going to die either!  He was going to protect his friends, his pack!

As Ash climbed more and more vines struck forward or repositioned themselves to block his accent.  Unperturbed, Ash continued upward.  Most of the time he would nimbly dodge away or through the unruly foliage.  If a vine got too close, Ash would lash out and break through whatever plant was in his way tarring through the obstacle through sheer force alone.

By the time Ash climbed out through the vines and back into Professor Oak’s den, he was looking for a lot rougher than before.  His fur was unkept and rustled every which way, his snarl seemed to be permanently etched onto his snout, and his eyes had the same cold, distant stare owned by the other werePokémon.

Ash had not yet developed his berserker form, but he was far from the friendly Riolu he usual was.

Shoving his way into the den, Ash watched as Nidoking was pulled down into the tangle of vines in a manner very similar to how he was pulled away just a little while ago.  As the Nidoking finished disappearing, Ash watched a clawed hand burst from the floor.  It was soon followed by the rest of the professor, rising form the ground like a plant zombie.

With a feral growl, Ash leapt forward and attacked the professor.

Gary

When Gary first arrived in Pallet Town he didn’t think much of it.  Small, empty, and forgettable had it not been the location for his grandfather’s laboratory.  Gary was sure that he was going to be bored to death before he even got the chance to head off on his Pokémon journey.  Then he found out his neighbor was a Riolu which led him to transforming into an Eevee and learning that werePokémon were real.  And now he was staring at a giant canine head made out of plants growing out of the ground.

“It’s official, this is a dream,” Gary muttered to himself.  He watched his grandfather’s Charizard soar around the snapping plant head.  Every so often she would send out blades of air to trim the overgrown hedge and follow up by burning the debris before it could touch the ground. “This is what I get for eating that pudding in the back of the fridge.”

A groan brought Gary’s gaze away from the battle in his backyard and over to Pikachu.  The mouse wasn’t looking too good, probably still recovering from Gramp’s Giga Drain.  Charizard told Gary to get back into his Poke ball, an order that was impossible given Gary never had been in a ball.  Would it even work on him given he used to be human?  Though he supposed he should at least get himself and Pikachu inside the lab and away from danger.

Rearing up onto his hind legs, Gary placed his front paws on Pikachu’s side and began rolling him to the doggie door installed in the door for the back deck.  He made it halfway across the deck when Dragonite and Ash’s mother crashed down onto the lawn.

Despite how short his legs had become, Gary jumped up in surprise when the mutant Lucario’s massive body slammed into the ground.  And here Gary thought she looked big before.  Now that he was an Eevee, Ash’s mom looked like she could swallow Gary without even chewing!

Already startled by the cargo drop, Gary’s heckles raised when he saw the wereLucario begin to stir!

“Oh, no, no, no, no, no!” Ash’s Mr. Mime, who was apparently riding Gramp’s Dragonite, frantically ran past Gary and into the lab.  It didn’t take long for him to return with a large canister similar to the ones from the cellar.

Mr. Mime charged over to the wereLucario and immediately sprayed her with gas.  The wereLucario, who had been slowly rising, collapsed back into the ground.  At least the clown knew what to do.  Gary was about to return to pushing Pikachu into the lab when he heard a groan.

Looking over at Dragonite, Gary flinched back.  One of the dragon’s legs was completely shredded making it look like it was caught up in a lawn mower.  A shudder ran down Gary’s spine.  Did Ash’s Mom do this?

Suddenly, Dragonite’s eye cracked open.  He spotted Gary and spoke in a tired, hoarse voice before passing out.  “Shelf 20.  Ball 37.”

What was that?  Did Dragonite give Gary the directions to his ball?  Gary looked over at Mimey to see if the clown heard what was going on, only to find the psychic type fretting over Ash’s mom passed out body.  Probably best to let him handle the werePokémon while Gary went to investigate that ball before Dragonite lost too much blood.

His destination in mind, Gary dashed into the lab.  If the wereLucario looked big and intimidating, the lab looked massive!  Now reduced to a foot tall Gary found himself looking up to navigate the lab and read the shelf labels.  When he finally found the ball in question, he had a new obstacle.

How was he going to reach a ball that was several shelves up?

There were no stools or ladders around.  Gary supposed he could push a chair with wheels over, but he was sure the second he jumped on it he’d cause the chair to swivel from the shelf he needed.  Then again, adjacent to this shelf was another shelf of balls a few feet away.  Maybe he could jump from the chair to the shelf?  Or maybe he didn’t need the chair at all.

Crouching, Gary focused his energy to his feet and used Quick Attack.  He used his attack to bounce back and forth with the shelves acting as springboards.  When Gary finally reached the shelf he needed, he swatted the Poke ball pushing it onto the floor.  The ball snapped open and released the Pokémon inside.

Standing before Gary was a tall, elegant Pokémon who was way more humanoid than most Pokémon.  This Pokémon had porcelain white skin save for its arms which were as green as its short, neat, green hair.  Segments of its body flowed down past its hips resembling a flowing white dress while a pair of red shields protected its front and back.

The Gardevoir looked up at Gary in surprise.  “You should not be out of your ball, little one.  It is not safe to wonder around the lab on a full moon night.”

“I know,” Gary responded.  He could think of a billion snappy comebacks to Miss Obvious’s statement.  All of which would have to wait.  “Gramp’s…the professor’s Dragonite is out back.  His leg has been torn off and he’s bleeding to death.”

Gardevoir’s eyes widened in shock, and she took off toward Dragonite.  Gary was about to follow until he looked down and saw how far from the floor he was.  His brain told him that it was okay, that he had seen small Pokémon jump down from tall heights and land perfectly safe.  His sense of self-preservation decided it was best to not take any chances and carefully climb down.

By the time Gary made it outside, the backyard had gotten even more chaotic than before.  Charizard was still fighting that plant monster in the distance which now looked as though it sprouted shoulders.  Mr. Mime had formed a bubble around Ash’s mom’s head and was pumping some more gas inside.

Meanwhile, Gardevoir was standing over Dragonite’s body.  Her eyes were glowing, and her hands were splayed out.  Water droplets began collecting in the air above her creating an orb of glowing, liquid which then flowed down into Dragonite’s leg.

“What are you doing?” Gary asked in awe.

“Life Dew.  I’m trying to restore the fluids in his body,” Gardevoir explained.  “My trainer likes to go on long trips into the wilderness.  He taught me and some of my teammates some first aide in case we bumped into an emergency without a Pokémon Center nearby.”

Though Dragonite absorbed every last drop of healing liquid, he didn’t look any better.  Gardevoir frowned.  “Sadly, this is the most I can do with an injury this egregious.  We’ll need to transfer him to a Pokémon Center.”

“No kidding,” Gary agreed, still shuddering at the sight of the destroyed limb.

Gardevoir continued.  “We’ll need to find Dragonite’s Poke ball and someone who can operate a Poke ball teleporter.”  She looked over at Mr. Mime.  Gary guess the clown was qualified, he didn’t seem to have any trouble utilizing the phone at Ash’s house, but it didn’t look like he was going to be available any time soon.

“I’ll do it,” Gary volunteered.

“You know how to operate something as complex as human technology?” Gardevoir blinked in surprise.  “You trainer must have taught you well.”

A part of Gary wondered if human tech was really as difficult as Gardevoir was making it out to be or if it was just a matter of Gardevoir growing up without having to use computers.  Psychic types were supposed to be super smart after all.

Meh, he’ll leave that line of questioning to his Gramps.  The guy was supposedly an expert on human Pokémon relationships when he wasn’t a slobbering plant monster.

Just like before, Gary dashed back into the lab.  He ran around looking for a place where his grandfather would keep his Poke balls.  Time was running out and frustration was building fast.  Gary growled.  “Why couldn’t he keep these kinds of things in plain sight in case of emergency?”

“Can you not use Dragonite’s odor to find his ball?” Gardevoir inquired.

Gary nearly slapped himself.  Right, he was a Pokémon now.  A Pokémon with a solid sense of smell.

Closing his eyes, Gary focused on Dragonite’s scent.  It took a moment, not because Gary couldn’t pick anything up but because Gary was now picking everything up.  There were so many scents wafting through the lab that he could have spent hours following and analyzing everything.  For now, he focused on Dragonite’s scent.

Following the scent trail led Gary to Dragonite’s ball sitting comfortably inside a desk drawer.  A few minutes later, Gary was standing atop the teleporter’s keyboard.  With Dragonite safely returned to his ball all that was left was to contact the nearest Pokémon Center.

“Come on, come on,” Gary muttered waiting for a center attendant to pick up the phone.  “Someone be awake.”

A wave of relief swept over Gary when the video flashed on.  Staring at Gary from the other end was a Chansey with a nurse’s cap.  The Chansey studied Gary in surprise.  “Oh, hello!  Where is your owner, Eevee?  You shouldn’t be playing around with the telephone.  This number is only for emer-”

“We’re sending someone over,” Gary interrupted.  He then slapped his paw down on several keys initiating the teleporter.

Hearing the urgency in Gary’s voice, Chansey went to work.  As soon as Dragonite’s ball was in her tiny hands, the nurse opened the ball and released Dragonite onto the floor.  She gasped in shock before running off.  “Everyone!  Wake up!  Wake up!  Somebody get Joy!  Prepare the emergency room STAT!  We have a Dragonite, bleeding profusely, severely maimed leg!”

Gary watched as a team of Chansey’s ran back and forth across the screen shouting orders and status updates.  Dragonite was returned to his ball and carried off to parts unknown leaving Gary to stare at the clock mounted on the wall and wait.

“What do we have….rib fractures, second degree burns, head trauma…”

“Good news is you’ll be fine…Don’t worry about the rest of your family.  Our surgeons are top notch.”

“We’ve contacted your grandfather.  Please wait here for now.  Is there anything I can get you?”  

“Eevee,” Chansey’s firm voice came in over the phone.

“Huh?” Gary snapped back into the moment to see the first Chansey had returned to the phone call.

“Can you tell me what happened to this Dragonite?  Or better yet, get your trainer.  My Joy is going to want to know,” said Chansey.

“It was a were-” Gary began before Gardevoir cut him off.

“A wild Lucario attacked him.  We don’t have any humans available at the moment, but I can tell you what I know,” Gardevoir stated calmly.  She then went into detail on what she did to stabilize Dragonite and answered what questions she could.

Wild Lucario?  Looks like knowledge of werePokémon’s existence wasn’t just unknown to humans.  Gary was willing to bet that most Pokémon probably didn’t know about them either.

Looking out the window, Gary could still see Charizard battling the plant construction.  Ash said that they were supposed to change back at sunrise.  Gary looked back at the clock and waited.  Just a bit longer.

Ash

Both lycanthropes growled and rolled around on the floor, biting and clawing as they wrestled.  There was no strategy, no talking, just savagery.  Ash knew this Leafeon was his elder, but he was attacking Ash’s friends, an unforgivable sin.

Though the wereLeafeon was far larger than Ash, the little Riolu was able to make up the difference through sheer scrappiness.  The Riolu used his claws to climb and claw his way across the large Leafeon’s body will the professor rolled around and snapped at the Riolu if he dared to get too close to its head.

Finally the professor got a good swipe in and sent Ash flying across the floor.  Ash landed on all fours and growled.  The two canines circled around each other, daring the other to make the next move.  The pacing was broken when a group of vines sprang from the floor to try and ensnare Ash.  In response, the Riolu slashed his arm forward creating a powerful Vacuum Wave which sliced the vines in half.

While Ash as distracted by the vines, Professor Oak pounced and pinned Ash to the ground.  New vines sprouted form the stubs of the severed ones and wrapped themselves around Ash’s arms.  Ash raised both of his back legs and shoved them into the professor’s stomach pushing him off.

Now able to get back to his feet, Ash still found his arms wrapped with vines and was losing his strength to Giga Drain.  Using Endure; Ash was able to keep the professor from draining him completely.  He then pulled back on the vines swinging the professor across the room.

Seeing the other werePokémon’s prone form, Ash moved to pounce.  However, more vines untangled themselves form the floor and grabbed Ash’s feet causing him to fall.  Meanwhile, the professor rose to his feet and raised his tail which was sharpened into a Leaf Blade.

Ash used his free arms to swipe at the air and create multiple Vacuum Waves to try and fend off the professor.  His attacks were blocked by more vines rising from the floor to catch the attack before it hit their master.

Soon, Ash found himself looking up at the wereLeafeon and his raised Leaf Blade.  By all accounts, it should have used that moment to smash and slice Ash into a bloody pulp, but it didn’t.  There was a pause, a look of hesitation passed through the Leafeon’s eyes.

Not one to pass up an opening, Ash stroke.  He lashed out with a Force Palm into the Leafeon’s snout pushing the monstrous canine away.  Ash then ripped himself away from the roots holding him to the ground.  More vines sprung up to try and ensnare Ash, but the Riolu was able to use a combo of his naturally nimble body and Quick Attack to dodge and zoom back.

Yowling in pain and anger, Oak unleashed a barrage of Razor Leaves.  Ash dodged most of them allowing them to cut into the vines behind.  He then ran forward to tackle the professor, only for the Leafeon to collapse before he could even get close.

Curious, Ash slowed his run.  The wereLeafeon lay on the ground, moaning in pain.  Purple sparks flew from the Leafeon’s body, and a pale purple dotted its face.  Signs of the poison status.

His anger forgotten, Ash cautiously approached the downed Leafeon and sniffed.  He whined and pawed at the older werePokémon, trying to get him to rise.  All Ash heard was a strained groan.

Suddenly, Ash’s ears perked and he sniffed the air.  He smelled smoke.

Without warning the room lurched sending Ash flying back into the vines that were weakened from the Razor Leaf.  Ash’s body punched through the root all and out of the towering plant construct.  He then plummeted down towards the ground below.

Charizard

Alright, time to compartmentalize what’s going on.  Dragonite went after Delia, Mimey, and the robbers.  Judging by the smoke rising from the forest he found them.  Nidoking and Sammy are fighting somewhere inside this giant mess of a plant puppet.  Pikachu and one lone Eevee have been salvaged from said monster mass and Ash and Gary are still unaccounted for.

Charizard swooped back and unleashed an Air Slash at a group of vines that tried to snatch her.  She then blasted the dismembered plants with a quick spirt of fire.  She couldn’t risk using fire on the main mass least she end up burning the unaccounted individuals alive.  Thus she was stuck hacking and slashing at the growing mound.

The plant head tried to snap at Mrs. Charizard with its massive jaws.  Luckily, Charizard had a near lifetime of aviation experience and was able to dive between the teeth before the jaws could close around her.  The teeth then began to unravel into more vines which leapt out to catch her only to be diced to pieces by Charizard’s Dragon Claws.

Continuing her flight around the monster head to either find the kids or a weak spot, Charizard slashed at every attack that was sent her way.  She would then follow up with a Will-o-Wisp to sizzle the debris out of existence.  It was during this search that she noticed something glowing from between the gaps in the plant vines.

Flying closer revealed that the glow was coming from Nidoking who was no longer fighting Sammy.  Instead, he was tangled up in the middle of the makeshift, plant monster’s throat and thrashing around trying to cut through the vines with Poison Jab.

Seeing as how there was no one else around, Charizard sent multiple Air Slashes toward Nidoking to cut him free.   One High Horsepower charge later and the drill was able to break through the weakened vines and tumble down to the ground below.

“What happened?  I thought you were supposed to be fighting Sammy!” hissed Charizard as she hovered next Nidoking.

“I’m fine, thanks,” grumbled Nidoking.  There was a wobble that shook through his body as he rose back to his feet indicating the poison Pokémon was on his last legs.  “Sam trapped me, but I was able to poison him.  Haven’t found Ash.”

A bunch of vines grouped together and swung down at Charizard and Nidoking like a massive club.  Charizard summoned a massive Air Slash and followed it up with an Iron Tail to cut through the vine weapon.  “What about Gary?”

“I had a thought,” Nidoking started.  He was momentarily cut off when a group of weeds bum rushed him only to be incinerated by a Flamethrower blast.  Nidoking took a moment to catch his breath before continuing.  “You know that Eevee we found?”

Mrs. Charizard’s eyes widened in realization.  “Son of a Growlithe!”

“Rioooo!”

Looking up, Charizard saw a small figure smash out of the back of the construct’s cranium and begin its decent to the ground below.  Immediately, Charizard flew over to catch the falling Pokémon.  It was Ash!

“Ash are you okay?” asked Mrs. Charizard.  The Riolu’s eyes were slammed shut.  He was covered in scratches which Charizard was sure would recover thanks to the lycan healing factor.  She was more worried about what the boy saw.

Slowly, Ash’s eyes fluttered open.  “Charizard?  What’s going on?  I was in the vines, and then…uh…”

Sighing in relief, Charizard flew over to the deck.  Ash was drained, but okay.  Charizard carefully deposited the pup on the back deck.  Looking around she could see Mimey was tending to an unconscious Delia and Pikachu was still passed out.  Did the Eevee go inside?  Charizard sniffed the air to find out.  Her head snapped up in alarm when she smelled blood.

“Where’s Dragonite?” Charizard asked in alarm.  If Mimey and Delia was here, did that mean Dragonite was in the lab?  Please let him just be in the lab grabbing a first aide kit or more tranquilizer canisters, or anything but bleeding!

“He’s been sent to a Pokémon Center.”

Looking over to the door, Charizard saw the Gardevoir that was trained as a field medic.  If she had Dragonite sent to a Pokémon Center, that meant she couldn’t handle his injuries.  That deduction in addition to the amount of blood Charizard smelled caused her heart to sink into her stomach.

This battle had to end NOW.

Just then another Pokémon came out onto the deck to see what was happening.  It was the Eevee from earlier.  Charizard whipped her head to look at the Eevee.  “You!  Are you Gary?”

“Yes?  I-” Gary began.

“Good!” Charizard replied sharply.  Not good.  Now they’ll have another werePokémon to deal with.  It was bad enough that they were going to have to explain to Ash why he was destined for isolation, now they had to ruin another kid’s life and keep him contained until he died.

Turning her glare over to the plant construct, Charizard ripped off the Sharp Beak and reached into her bag for one more item.  She and the rest of her team would deal with initiating the new wereEevee and make sure her husband recovered.  For now, she needed to do some gardening.

Charizard took off into the sky.  By now the plant construct had formed an arm which was pulling it closer to the lab.  Figures, even after fighting Nidoking and being poisoned, Sammy still had the strength to chase down his pup.  Hopefully that strength would keep Charizard from saying goodbye to one of her closest friends.

“Sammy,” Charizard muttered to herself.  She took out one last item from her satchel.  It was an orange gem brimming with fire.  A Fire Gem.  With a single squeeze, she crushed the gem in her claws releasing the pent-up energy inside.  “Please survive this.”

The flame on the tip of Mrs. Charizard’s tail swelled until it was as big as her main body.  Every scale of her skin glowed with excess heat to the point where Charizard herself emitted a hot orange light of thermal energy.  Charizard took a deep breath and unleashed all that energy down at the giant plant monster below.

Charizard used Blast Burn!

An avalanche of fire shot down through the giant beast of vines incinerating everything.  Upon contact it its intended target, the fire exploded outward creating a massive shockwave of hot air which completely demolished the construct causing its charcoaled remains to rain down on the field below.

Out of power, Charizard hardly caught herself as she landed in the middle of the scorched ground.  Surrounding her were the singed remains of the plant monster and the smell of burn wood.  Charizard wanted to search the wreckage for her trainer, but thanks to Blast Burn she was too tired to move.

The good news was she didn’t have to look.  The bad news was that Sammy found her.

A pile of charcoal moved revealing the wereLeafeon.  Like the plants around him he was covered in burns.  Every leaf had been incinerated including the bush that was his tail leaving behind a long whip-like appendage reminiscent of a Raticate’s tail.  The grass fur had turned completely black, and his ears were burnt into nubs.  The wereLeafeon’s eyes still retained their eerie glow allowing the soot beast to look around until he spotted Charizard.

Still out of strength, Charizard could do nothing but watch as a green glow enveloped the wereLeafeon’s body.  As Sammy began crawling toward Charizard, his burns disappeared, and his fur returned.  The leaves bloomed out recreating the burnt off ears, mane, and tail.

“Of course you’re still alive,” Charizard sighed with a mix of relief and resignation.  “Horror movie monsters, you always come back.”

The wereLeafeon reared up onto his hind legs and raised his claw to strike.  Only to be rammed to the side by a High Horsepowered tackle.

Nidoking, now armed with a canister he must have salvaged from the remains of the kennel, wrestled Sammy to the ground.  The wereLeafeon roared in annoyance and took several swipes, but Nidoking would not be detoured.

With a loud hiss, the canister unleashed a cloud of gas straight into Sammy’s face forcing him to inhale a lung full of the tranquilizer.  The wereLeafeon then collapsed onto the ground and lay still, just as the sun was about to rise.

New/Updated Stats

Ash (Riolu)

Trainer: None
Ability: Inner Focus

Nature: Questioning himself
Item: Pokémon League Hat
Moves: Quick Attack, Vacuum Wave, Endure, Force Palm

Mr. Dragonite

Trainer: Professor Oak
Ability: Inner Focus

Nature: Jolly
Item: Muscle Band
Moves: Dragon Dance, Fly, Earthquake, Dragon Rush, Dragon Tail, Waterfall, Rest, Sleep Talk, Thunderwave, Mega Punch, Heat Wave

Mrs. Charizard

Trainer: Professor Oak
Ability: Blaze

Nature: Rash
Item: Choice Specs, Sharp Beak, Fire Gem
Moves: Flamethrower, Air Slash, Will-O-Wisp, Dragon Claw, Iron Tail, Sunny Day, Solar Beam, Blast Burn

Mimey (Mr. Mime)

Trainer: Delia
Ability: Soundproof

Nature: Quirky
Item: Apron
Moves: Light Screen, Barrier, Protect, Psychic

AN: STAY OUT OF THE BASEMENT! – Plant Dad from “Goosebumps: Stay Out of the Basement.”

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features.  Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc., and Satoshi Tajiri.  Please support the official release.

Listening to as I drink my hot coco: Pokémon: Pallet Town Theme Emotional Piano Arrangement (Alca Animusic on Piano)

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Aftermath

As the sun rose, exhaustion finally set in.  The constant shots of adrenaline Ash received from the full moon disappeared in a flash leaving him feeling awake yet drained.  Normally, Ash would take the day after a full moon easy.  If it was a weekend he’d settle down for a nap.  School days didn’t allow such a luxury least someone start to notice a pattern, so he’d attend class though he would still get in trouble for nodding off during lessons.

Suffice to say, Ash didn’t feel like going to school today.  After Mrs. Charizard deposited Ash on the back porch, Ash groggily got up.  What happened?  Last he could remember, the wall of vines was dragging him away from the fight.  Then nothing.  Ash could vaguely recall climbing, maybe that was how he got out of the tangle of vines?

Now that he was back to his senses, Ash took a look around.  The air was thick with the smell of smoke and charcoal wafting from a mess of incinerated wood scattered around the field.  Ash could sense three auras amongst the piles of wreckage.  Mrs. Charizard’s, who was feeling very drained, Nidoking, also drained though he seemed to still be pushing through, and the corrupted aura of the professor’s though it too seemed to be settling down.

From within the lab Ash could sense Gary’s aura along with the Gardevoir who knew first aide.  Gary seemed to be in sync with Ash in that they were both too tired to do much yet too alert to curl up for a nap.  After all, who could rest after what they just witnessed?

Outside and on the deck, Ash could observe three more Pokémon.  Pikachu was lying close to the door, alive but definitely passed out.  On the other side of the deck, closer to the lawn, was Mimey who was about to collapse himself.  He was using a canister to prop himself up next to…Ash’s mother.

Tepidly, Ash approached the wereLucario.  He could feel his mother’s aura blazing around wildly just as it had earlier.  Even knocked out, she had a restless bloodlust that ached for a kill.  It was more perverse than muscle bound beast his mother had become.

Suddenly there was movement.  Though exhausted, Ash steeled himself for whatever was going to happen next.  He was expecting his mother to rise, roar, and swipe at himself or Mimey.  He did not expect her to start shrinking.

Ash watched in amazement as the wereLucario’s muscles shrank along with her bones, returning her to her usual body frame.  Arm spikes receded into her skin while her raspy breath quieted to a barely audible eupnea.  Soon, the wereLucario was completely replaced with a regular Lucario.

There was a small groan as Ash’s mother’s eyes fluttered open to reveal they were no longer glowing red.  Normal eyes blinked into focus and looked around before settling on Ash.  “Ash!”

In a flash, Delia was on her feet.  The Lucario shot forward and wrapped her pup up in a tight hug.  Nestled into a familiar gesture, Ash was practically enveloped by his mother’s aura.  No longer was it wild with ravenous instincts, now it swirled in a typhon of emotions.  Love, relief, guilt, Ash felt them all.  So lost he was in his mother’s whirlwind of feelings that he almost missed Nidoking walk by.

Lying limp in Nidoking’s arms was Professor Oak, back in his usual Leafeon form.  Though clearly groggy, the professor managed to stir awake.  He looked around, processing where he was and what was going on.  In a snap, his eyes widened, and his ears and tail stood on end.  “Gary!”

Ash managed to turn around in his mother’s grasp and see what the professor was looking at.  Gary had come out from the lab and was now standing on the deck.  Professor Oak squirmed out of Nidoking’s arms and ran up to his deck.  He froze a few feet from Gary, his leaves and fur standing on end as he studied his transformed grandson.

Nobody moved a muscle.  Though the deck was eerily calm, Ash could feel terror emanating from both Oaks in droves.  Despite knowing the Leafeon for as long as he could remember, Ash could definitely sympathize with Gary’s fear of the professor.  Even now, looking at the scientist’s more docile Leafeon form, Ash couldn’t shake the memory of the wereLeafeon or its half-eaten victims.

Then, without saying a word, Gary turned tail and bolted through the pet door and back inside the lab.

Gary

Gary dashed up the stairs as fast as he could.  Not an easy task given how small he now was.  Each step was a small leap upwards making it feel like he was hoping up a ridged hill.  Despite the effort, his new body was able to take the strain.  Small as they were, Eevees were still Pokémon and as such had enough muscle strength and stamina to pull off feats that would leave a human gasping for breath.  Even after the events of last night, the stairs were hardly an obstacle.

When Gary reached the top, he continued to run until he reached his room.  After slamming his door shut, Gary finally took a moment to catch his breath.  He looked around his room, which now looked like it belonged to a giant, and froze.

The new werePokémon’s eyes landed on a full length mirror sitting by his closet.  There he was, in all his fluffy, foxy glory.  Gary lifted a paw, so did the Eevee.  When Gary wiggled his ears or moved his new alien limb of a tail, the Eevee in the mirror would copy wearing the same lamentable expression Gary’s face was making right now.

This was wrong.  This was all wrong!  Gary was supposed to become a Pokémon trainer, not a Pokémon!

“Sometimes we shift by will, but most of the time we transform in the middle of the night and can turn back into humans after dawn.”

Remembering Ash’s words from last night, Gary slammed his eyes shut.  It was already sunrise, and he was still an Eevee.  Clearly the transformation back wasn’t automatic.  He would have to make it happen.  Gary felt his ears fold back as he concentrated on turning back into a human.  “Come on, come on.”

It didn’t take long for Gary to feel the floor shift underneath his feet.  Against his better judgement, he opened his eyes.  Once again, he was met with the Eevee in the mirror except this time it had human hands and feet.  Ew.

Despite Gary’s discomfort, the changes continued.  Gary closed his eyes again, focusing on his old body and trying to ignore the horror show that was probably happening in the mirror.  The floor continued to brush against the bottom of Gary’s hands and feet as they spread out and grew bigger.  His ears slid across his scalp back to the sides of his head while his muzzle pushed its way back into his face.  A cool breeze bushed against Gary’s bare skin as his fur receded before his tail retracted back into his spine leaving Gary to feel as though he just lost an arm.

For a moment, Gary didn’t dare to look back into the mirror.  When he finally cracked his eyes back open, he was relieved to see his human self in the mirror squatting like quadruped.  Gary shot up to his feet and looked down at his hands.  He flexed his fingers, savoring each grasp before using them to pat down and investigate his body.  Not a patch of fur in sight, thank Arceus.

Carefully, Gary made his way over to the window to peak outside.  The rest of the Pokémon from last night were still down there, including his Leafeon of a grandfather.  Ash and Gardevoir knelt by Pikachu’s unconscious form while Nidoking, Charizard, Ash’s mother, and his grandfather stood in a circle, talking.  The professor was sitting down, tail held close to his body, head ducked, and ears leaning back making him look like an anxious pet.  Gary began to feel nauseous.

As a sudden sensation of claustrophobia overcame Gary, he marched over to his dresser and began dressing.  It didn’t take too long for him to be fully clothed and out the door.  Cautiously, Gary made his way out the front door being careful not to bump into anyone else.  He knew he couldn’t avoid them forever.  For now though, he just need to go on a walk and clear his head out a little.

“Oh my!  What happened?”

Gary’s head whipped around to find a Butterfree conversing with a Pidgeotto.  The Pidgeotto’s feathers ruffled.  “Didn’t you hear?  The cursed humans broke out last night!  Ripped up the woods!”

“Is that why there’s so much smoke in the air?” asked the Butterfree, twitching her antenna.

“No, that’s from the battle here.  You see…” the Pidgeotto went on to explain the battle between Charizard, Nidoking, and Professor Oak all the while the two Pokémon sounded just like a pair of gossiping neighbors.  Gary continued walking.  He needed to clear his head out a lot more than he did a minute ago.

Ash

After Gary left to go inside, the professor was about to give chase until stopped by Ash’s mom who thought it would be better to give Gary some space.  Reluctantly, Professor Oak agreed.  The group then went over the events of the previous evening.

Nidoking, having witnessed most of the events at The Kennel informed everyone how Team Rocket ambushed him and how the kids tried to fight back.  He went on to recount his fight with Delia and how he and Mrs. Charizard stormed The Kennel where he fought against Professor Oak.  Charizard, still recovering from her Blast Burn, would occasionally chip in before laying back down on the ground to rest.

When it came time for Mimey to recount what happened in the forest, he stammered and mumbled until Ash’s mother cut him off.  “Mimey, it’s alright,” she said gently.  “I need to hear this.”

Though she maintained a calm façade, Ash could sense his mother’s guilt spike as Mimey recounted what happened in the woods.  Her composition broke when Mimey reiterated what happened to Mr. Dragonite.

“No!” Delia gasped and her paws flew to her mouth.  “Dragonite!  Is he…”

“Of course he’s okay!” snapped Mrs. Charizard.  The dragoness lifted her head and gave the group a defiant glare.  “My husband is the strongest Pokémon in Pallet Town!  It will take more than a measly werePokémon sneak attack to put him down for good!”

“Charizard, I cannot even begin to apologize,” begun Delia in a shaky voice.  Her eyes kept going back and forth between Mrs. Charizard and her own paws.

“It’s not your fault,” Mrs. Charizard snorted.  She lay her head back on the ground and gripped at the deck with her claws while smoke puffed out from her nostrils.  “The Ninetails who created this curse should count itself lucky the first werePokémon killed it.  Almost makes me wish it were alive today so that I could show it true pain.”

Mrs. Charizard’s words hung in the air until Professor Oak spoke up again.  “I’ll make a phone call to the Pokémon Center as soon as I change back.  But first,” the Leafeon looked over at Ash who was kneeling next Pikachu.  “Ash, we’re missing one final portion of the story.  Can you tell us what happened after your battle with Team Rocket?”

Now it was Ash’s turn to feel a wave of guilt.  He wasn’t in a rush to relive any of the events last night.  However, now that the professor was watching him, one event in particular kept replaying through his head.  The moment he bit Gary.

 “If you get bitten by a werePokémon you turn into one!”

If what Gary said was true, it was his fault that Gary was now a werePokémon.  How was going to tell the professor that he was responsible for cursing his last family member?  Then again, the professor probably already figured it out.  There were only three werePokémon who could have bit Gary and Ash was the one who was stuck with Gary that night.

Ash was broken out of his musings by the professor’s approaching aura.  Frustration weaved itself back and forth with melancholy, making it hard for Ash to look the old Eeveelution in the eye.  Before Ash could say anything, the professor placed a paw on the Riolu’s shoulder.  “Whatever you’re sensing in my aura, it’s not directed at you,” reassured Prof. Oak.  “Please, tell us what happened.”

Thus, Ash recounted his adventure.  He told them about the gas, biting Gary, Gary’s transformation, navigating the subterranean labyrinth, meeting the wereLeafeon, how Professor Oak tried to eat Pikachu, and fighting the professor.  His story ended after he was pulled into the vines.  “Next thing I knew, Mrs. Charizard was carrying, and I woke up here.”

It didn’t take long for Ash’s mother to wrap Ash in another tight hug.  “Oh, my poor baby.”

“So, what now?” asked Mimey sadly watching his employer try and comfort her son.

“Now, we should probably clean up this mess before anyone comes to investigate,” sighed Nidoking.  “I’ll gather as many Pokémon who can help clear away the rubble.  Then we should probably start digging a new containment unit.”

Professor Oak nodded.  “I’ll change and make that phone call to the center.”

Gardevoir, who up till now had been quietly nursing Pikachu, spoke up next.  “In speaking of Pokémon Centers, I think we should get this Pikachu home.  Does he have a trainer?”

“No, he’s wild,” answered Delia.

“Is he okay?” blurted Ash.

“He’s fine now,” smiled Gardevoir.  “Just tired.”

“I’ll find a volunteer to chauffeur him back home,” said Professor Oak.  “By then I think Gary will have settled down for a talk.”

“Gary left,” informed Delia.  “I sensed his aura exiting a minute ago.”

The professor immediately stood up.  “Then I-”

“You make that phone call,” interrupted Mrs. Charizard.  “I’ll find a ride for Pikachu and some fliers to keep an eye on Gary.”  She slowly stood up and stretched her wings.  “Then I’ll get some Pokémon to help me keep anyone nosy away from the lab while Nidoking works.”

“Charizard, you really shouldn’t,” began Professor Oak, but Mrs. Charizard wasn’t hearing any of it.  She walked past her trainer and into the lab to get to work.

“What do we need to do?” asked Ash, ignoring his fatigue and standing at attention.

Delia sighed and squeezed Ash’s shoulders.  “We are going home to have a talk.”

Later, Ash found himself back home.  His mother instructed him to change back into a human while she prepared some food and excused him from school.  Before long, Ash found both himself and his mother back in human form sitting across from each other at the kitchen table.  Mimey collapsed upon entering the house and was now resting in his Poke ball.  Given how exhausted the psychic type was, Ash wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t see the housekeeper for at least a day or two.

“Here you go,” said Delia.  She placed down a hearty breakfast plater along with a mug of hot coco.  The hot coco for breakfast was unusual, then again Ash’s mom’s best means of cheering someone up was with her cooking.  Actually, Ash was willing to bet she would have cooked him up a feast if she had the time and energy to do so.

Even though he was practically starving, Ash didn’t dig in right away.  He stared down at the swirling marshmallows in his coco and prodded his omelet before finally speaking.  “Gary says we’re werePokémon.”

After taking a deep breath, Delia answered.  “We are.”

“He also said that we change into monsters every full moon,” Ash probed.

“Only the adults,” said Delia grimly.

“Is…that’s going to happen to me too,” said Ash.

“Someday.  It’s hard to say when.  You could start showing signs anytime between now to your late teens,” explained his mother.  “Ash, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you any of this sooner.  It’s…it hasn’t been easy living as a werePokémon.  You live knowing that you are a hazard to everyone around you.  Every time you feel anger or fear, you have to take medication to calm yourself down to prevent your instincts from taking over or worse.  You have levels of uncontrollable strength that puts other Pokémon on edge.  It gets easier to live with over time, but you cannot let your guard down.”

Ash caught the sad look in his mother’s normally cheerful eyes.  “I didn’t want you to carry the emotional burden of knowing what we really are until you were older.  I hoped that your love for Pokémon training and the league was just a phase.  I should have cut you off sooner.  I’m sorry Ash, but it’s too dangerous for you to take the Pokémon League challenge.”

Those words hit Ash like a ton of bricks.  Here Ash thought he came to terms with never getting a league sponsorship.  Now he knew the true reason he couldn’t leave.  His pack was afraid he might turn into a bloodthirsty monster while he was on the road.  “Can’t I take some of those pills?” Ash pled.  “The ones you and Professor Oak take?  Those are the ones that help with the transformations, right?”

His mother shook her head.  “They help in short spirts but can’t be relied on for the full moon.  The gas you breathed in last night was a version of the tranquilizer the professor made to make us easier to cage, but we have to breath it in at regular intervals.  If your curse fully matures while you are on the road, you won’t have a cage with the tranquilizer ready to hold you,” explained Delia. 
“This is why werePokémon live in isolated packs.  Even with the gas we don’t want to take the chance that we will kill or infect anyone else.”

If he headed on a journey, he might kill someone or spread his curse.  Neither option sounded appealing.  Of course, living out the rest of his life in Pallet Town like it was some big cage wasn’t ideal either.  “Are we never allowed to leave?”

“Sometimes werePokémon can take short trips out of town, but they have to be well planned.  I would have taken a vacation with you if I weren’t afraid of my other half getting overprotective and going berserk in a populated city,” said Delia.  She regained some of her usual cheer and gave Ash a smile.  “Though it does have its uses.  If it weren’t for the berserker form, I would have died a long time ago.”

Seeing her son’s confused expression, Delia elaborated.  “Back when you were a baby, I went to a festival to watch a meteor shower.  A wereArcanine attacked that festival and began killing people and Pokémon left and right.  That was the werePokémon who bit me.  I then transformed and fought off the wereArcanine.  If I didn’t change, that wereArcanine probably would have killed more people, including us.”

“Did it bite me too?” asked Ash.  He tried to imagine a rabid Arcanine biting a baby and none of the pictures that popped into his head included the baby living.  Or staying in one piece.

“Actually, I think I was the one who bit you,” Delia said with a bashful smile, sounding like a kid explaining an embarrassing mix up.  “My memory gets very fuzzy during the full moon.  I only remember bits and pieces of what I did.  I think I accidently bit you while picking you up in my mouth.”

Ash’s mind raced.  There had to be a way out!  He wanted to travel!  He wanted to meet new Pokémon!  He wanted a team of friends who would always be by his side and go on adventures with him.  He wanted to have cool battles and party with his team and make memories.

He wanted to live his dream.

And Ash wasn’t alone.  Gary was a part of this too.  All thanks to a wayward bite.

Guilt flooded through Ash.  It must have been a lot because his mother seemed to pick up on it despite being in human form.  She reached over to grab his hand and give it a comforting squeeze.  “You know, we are looking to find you a Pokémon partner to keep guard on full moons.  Just because you can’t leave town doesn't mean you can’t be a trainer.”

“I guess,” Ash agreed, though he was having a hard time picturing a Pokémon who would voluntarily stay with him.  The wild Pokémon in the area avoided him like the plague, probably afraid he or his mother would snap and transform.  He supposed the Pokémon at the lab were friendly, granted that was probably because they trusted the professor.  And even with that trust, would they really risk their lives guarding a rabid Pokémon human hybrid?

His mother and the professor are lucky to have Mimey and the professor’s Pokémon.  Especially considering the professor’s remaining team were retired champions.  Wait a minute.

“How strong was the wereArcanine?” asked Ash.  “It must have been powerful if it could take on Professor Oak’s team.”

This observation caused Delia to hesitate.  “Samual wasn’t at the festival,” she slowly admitted.

“Then how did he get cursed?” Ash asked in surprise.  Was the scientist always a Leafeon man?

“It was…the morning after the festival,” Delia continued.  Her eyes avoided Ash’s at first before giving him a comforting smile.  “I took you to the professor to make sure you were okay.  You got a little scared and bit him.”

“I DID WHAT?” exclaimed Ash, slamming a palm on the table in surprise.

“Sweetie, no,” Delia’s voice switched from comfort to firm.  “It wasn’t your fault.  You were just a baby.  You didn’t know any better.”  But Ash didn’t hear her.  Two lives.  He ruined two lives.

Two lives amongst who knows how many others.  All around the world, there were people like him.  Kids who wouldn’t be able to venture out on their own journeys.  Adults who missed their chance to do so too.  Pokémon who were duty bound to fight and die by the hands of their friends should the worse come to pass.  So many lives were bound together and trapped by this curse.

Professor Oak

“Yes, you will be receiving pay for today.  Don’t worry, we have everything under control…I understand your concern.  It’s like I said, too many people around might aggravate it.  Have a good day,” Professor Oak released a sigh as he hung up the phone.

This morning had by phone call after phone call.  Calling the Pokémon Center about Dragonite’s status.  Calling lab aides to tell them to take paid leave.  Receiving calls from neighbors asking what was the ruckus last night.  To anyone who was wondering exactly what happened, which was pretty much everyone, he gave them the vague explanation that there was an out of control Pokémon who was being wrangled in.  He kept it as vague as possible as to the identity of the Pokémon and any other details by changing the subject or telling them it was still being delt with.  It wasn’t much and certainly wasn’t going to stop the rumor mill, but it would have to do for now.

Now that he finished the last of his phone calls, the Pokémon professor could go check on Nidoking and his progress.  No sooner than he rose from his seat that he let out a hiss of pain.  Pulling back the sleeve of his lab coat, Professor Oak inspected his newly acquired burn scars.  Though most of his burn wounds from Charizard’s attack were healed curtesy of the curse’s extraordinary regeneration powers, there were still patches of scared tissue splotched across his chest, back, and limbs.

The scared tissue made it look as though the wounds had been there for ages, though they still ached and itched something fierce.  Not to mention the occasional too warm for comfort flare ups.  Still, considering the amount of fire that Charizard must have produced to leave the backyard in the state it was in, Professor Oak was sure he got off easy.  Nothing a little ice couldn’t fix.

Before the professor could leave to retrieve a cold pack, his phone went off.  Putting the scars’ pain in the back of his mind, Professor Oak sat down and accepted the call.  Oddly enough there wasn’t any caller ID or video feed allowing him to see the callers face.  However, thanks to keeping up with the news, Professor Oak instantly recognized the voice on the other end.

“Good morning, Professor,” spoke a young man in a laid back yet polite tone.  “I hope this isn’t a bad time.”

“Not at all.  You caught me before I was about to go on a break,” replied Professor Oak in his own polite tone.  Even before he was bitten, Oak was warned by other lycanthropes about this man and his kind.  “How may I be of service?”

“I’m calling to check in.  I believe there was some drama last night,” replied the man.

“News travels fast,” Oak responded neutrally.

“I like to keep tabs on these kinds of events,” said the man.

“So I’ve heard,” frowned Oak.  He wasn’t naïve as to think there was no way this man and his clan didn’t have someone watching the only pack of werePokémon in Kanto.  Or at least have some spell placed on the lab’s premise to go off if someone broke out of their cage.  “Well, rest assured the situation is under control.  So if that is all..”

But the man wasn’t done.  “Actually, I was wondering if you could answer some questions.  Such as what caused the breakout?”

Oak took a moment to think over his answer.  Even though he didn’t want outside interference refusing to answer could invite curiosity.  It would be best to give a benign reason.  “I’ve been dealing with some family drama.  It’s caused my other half to be more restless than usual.”

“I heard about that.  My sincerest condolences.  It’s never easy to lose family,” replied the man.  Given what Oak knew about this individual’s history, he wasn’t sure how true that sentiment was.  The clans had a nasty reputation for political infighting.

The man continued.  “That being said, you’ll have to forgive me if I’m skeptical that increased agitation is the sole cause.  Afterall, the improvements you’ve made to the tranquilizer is fairly famous amongst our circles for how potent it is.  Have you had any break-ins?”

Thanks to Nidoking and Ash, Professor Oak was well aware of the burglars from last night.  He could admit to the break-in, or he could try to extract some information himself.  “Perhaps.  The grounds are still messy; we’d need to clean up before looking for any signs of intruders.  Why do you ask?”

“I imagine you’re up to date on the news,” stated the man.  It sounded like he was finally getting to the point he wanted to bring up.  “Have you heard of Team Rocket?”

Oak’s eyes narrowed.  “You think they may have interest in my lab?”

That response elicited a chuckle.  “Don’t act so modest.  Many talented trainers keep their Pokémon at your abode.  There’s plenty of Pokémon there to make a crook salivated and even more valuable targets to those who know where to look.”

“You think Team Rocket might be after something more?” pried Oak.  Based on what he heard, the Team Rocket members from last night simply heard about Delia and himself from some local Pokémon gossip (a Meowth capable of human speech, wasn’t that something) and were looking to bag a couple of rare specimens.  However, if Team Rocket were looking for something else, he’d certainly like to know.

“Sorry, that’s classified information.  Only the people on my paycheck are allowed to know,” said the man.

“Is that an invitation?” asked Professor Oak, reading between the lines.

“If you want.  I can protect you and your pack as well as supply more stable holding facilities.  I imagine your current cells aren’t in the best condition right now.  I hear Galar has developed some new technology to shield audiences in their stadiums from Dynamax Pokémon.  It’s been tricky, but I have managed to procure some units to house my lycanthropes.  Of course, if those force fields prove inadequate, I could always resort to more traditional methods.  They haven’t let me or any of my lycanthropes down before,” offered the man.

There it was.  The Faustian bargain which dragged many a lycanthrope into situations they wanted no part in.  Best to cut this off before it got out of hand.  “Thank you for the offer, but-”

“Tell you what, I have some agents in the area.  I’ll give you some time to consider my offer and a number to reach if you want to discuss further,” said the man.  As he spoke, Oak’s computer pinged with a new message.  “Have a good day.”

With the call finished, Professor Oak exhaled and leaned back in his chair.  Forget the burn scars, now he had to deal with a headache.  A headache which got worse thanks to a loud CRASH that sounded off from the back.

Groaning, Professor Oak got up to find Mrs. Charizard had flopped down on the ground outside clearly exhausted.  Oak was about to return her to her ball when the dragoness cracked an eye open.  “I’m still working.  This is just a little break, that’s all.”

Oak considered forcing her to rest in her ball for the break before remembering how seriously Charizard took herself as the head of security.  If he returned her to her ball, she would either let herself out right away or, if she were too weak to resist, would throw a fit next time she was released.  Reaching down to offer his hand, Oak lead his friend into the lab for her to rest.

As he walked into the lab, Professor Oak saw Nidoking talking to a group of Pokémon.  Most were ground types and those who weren’t still had some excavation capabilities.  Nidoking spotted Oak and Mrs. Charizard and nodded.  He turned back toward his assembly.  “Go ahead and get started.  I’ll join you later.”

The Pokémon left walking around and giving Oak and Mrs. Charizard friendly if quick hellos.  Professor Oak felt a little thump on his shin and looked down.  A Raticate had accidentally bumped into his leg.  “Excuse me,” apologized the rat.

Smelling the rat, Oak’s tongue ran across his teeth.  “It’s alright.”

Once the rest of the of the Pokémon left, Oak placed Charizard down on the large Pokémon bed in the corner.  Almost instantly, Charizard nodded off, folding her wings to her side and curling her tail around on the large fireproof cushion.  Nidoking walked up behind Oak.  “Is she doing alright?  She’s been busy all morning directing Pokémon and scaring away bystanders.”

Oak was about to answer the question when he spotted the new claw marks racked across Nidoking’s chest.  For a moment, his mind flashed back to the previous night.  He remembered Nidoking whaling on him with a flurry of Poison Jabs right before Oak retaliated with a swipe at his Pokémon’s chest.  And then, just as fast as it came, the memory was over.

“She just needs some rest,” Oak replied placing the memory to the side for now.  Even after a lifetime of late nights and the occasional bouts of insomnia, he couldn’t even begin to guess what his Pokémon were feeling right now.  Spending all night fighting plant hoards, unleashing attacks which burned through energy reserves, and now leading the cleanup, Oak was tired just thinking about it.  Then again, maybe that was his own fatigue talking.  Oak turned to address Nidoking.  “You should get some rest too.”

“Just get me some coffee and I’ll be fine,” muttered Nidoking, waving Oak off with one of his bandaged arms.

“I never should have introduced you to that stuff,” sighed Oak.  Nevertheless, he poured his oldest partner a mug.  “How is progress in the backyard?”

“We assembled three groups of volunteers.  One to clear away the debris, one to patrol for any unwanted visitors, and one to dig out a new basement,” explained Nidoking as he happily accepted the mug.  “You just saw the last team mobilize.  Though, to be honest, they’ll probably have to do their own debris clearing before they can check for damages and start any digging.  And then…I don’t know.”

Nidoking took a deep breath before giving Oak the same expectant look he used to give his trainer back when he was a Nidorino.  It was the look Nidorino would give Oak in the middle of a tough battle, hoping his trainer would concoct a plan to lead them to victory.  “We lucked out having that cellar already when you were first bitten.  Building a new cellar from scratch is going to be a whole lot more difficult than just modifying a dusty old one.  Not only will you have to synthesis a bunch of new tanks of tranquilizer, but we’d also need to purchase new materials and hire a construction crew who knows what they are doing.  You taught me stuff on plumbing and repairs, but I’m no architect.  Heck, even Pokémon who work in construction have a professional trainer on standby to help with the design and blueprints.  I doubt we’d be able to find someone who won’t ask questions.”

With a long swing of coffee, Nidoking finished his though.  “It’ll be a miracle if we could get anything close to a secure cage before the next full moon.”

Professor Oak would be lying if he said he was surprised.  Currently, he was flirting with the idea of hiring a construction group to build the new Kennel but given what little he knew about building and renovating it may take too much time to get the project off the ground.  Not to mention finding someone who was willing to do the work and not feed into the rumor mill by telling everyone that he was working on a secret underground holding facility.  A group of nosy robbers and a couple of kids out past curfew was all it took to topple the last prison.  Who knows what kinds of individuals would come poking around at the wrong place at the wrong time if they got too curious on why this cage was being built.

“We’ll think of something,” Oak finally said, hoping to put Nidoking at ease.

“Actually, I was thinking about that.  Maybe we should get in contact with another pack.  See if they’d be willing to take you guys in for the next full moon?” suggested Nidoking.

“It may be worth looking into; however I wouldn’t get our hopes up,” frowned Oak.  “Because most werePokémon live off the grid they have some difficulty getting the materials and equipment needed to synthesis the tranquilizer.  In fact, I have had to mail out some of our own stock to packs asking for assistance on more than one occasion.  Add on top of the that the gamble of Delia’s or my protective instincts taking over if something goes wrong and a trip to a faraway pack may end disastrously.”

“What about the Alola pack?  They’ve got the backing of the Aether Foundation so they’re pretty stocked.  They were able to house you and some of their pack went on your expedition,” Nidoking pointed out.  He then cast a look downward.  “Ironically the full moon was the smoothest part of that visit.”

A shudder ran down Professor Oak’s back.  That trip was a lesson in futility and humility.  Up until Gary moved in, the expedition to capture and study one of the Tapus was the only time Oak transformed into his berserker form outside of a full moon.  After that incident, he and his team returned home and never mentioned it again.  “Lusamine and Mohn have vanished.  Wicke is currently running the foundation.”

“Did she say what happened?” asked Nidoking, ears perked.

Oak shook his head.  “She refuses to talk about it.  All I do know is that they’ve halted lycanthropy research.  And besides, it’s probably best that we stay away from Alola considering my falling out with…their current alpha.”

“Uh, right.  Let’s forget about Alola,” Nidoking muttered bashfully.  “What about Johto’s pack?  They’re close enough for a quick flight and you’ve given them plenty of tranquilizer in the past.  They owe you one.”

“They’re no longer with us,” Oak sadly replied.

“How?” Nidoking asked, clearly taken aback.

“I don’t know the details, but I suspect they may have been caught up with the latest Noivern clan skirmish,” Oak pontificated.

“Figures.”

Both Oak and Nidoking looked down to see that Charizard was awake again.  The dragoness slowly stood up, letting more than a few of her joints pop before she lumbered over to the coffee pot.  “What are those blood suckers up to now?”

“I have no evidence they had anything to do with Johto’s pack’s disappearance.  It’s just a hunch,” Oak explained in a placating manner.  Given the phone call he just received, he had a good idea on where this conversation was going to lead.  “There was a storm in the area which came out of nowhere.  Too strong for an average Pokémon and there was a Pokémon League event that night which the clan’s head would have attended.”

“And here I thought those overgrown bats wanted to keep their existence under wraps,” snorted Charizard as she poured herself a mug.

“Yeah, I’m not sure if the Noiverns did that.  I mean, why would they risk compromising their cover?” pointed out Nidoking.

“It is possible they are gearing up for another conflict with the Swoobats or someone else,” said Oak, taking a sip.  Might as well spill the beans.  “That would explain why the Noivern head just tried to recruit me.”

There was a pause.  Nidoking and Charizard stared at Oak as though he casually told them an explosive was planted in the room.  Predictably, Charizard was the first to speak.  “No.”

“I didn’t agree to anything yet,” began Oak.

“And I’m forbidding you from even considering,” growled Charizard.  Her eyes narrowed and she put her cup down.  “I don’t care how desperate we are.  You are not allowed to talk any kind of deal with them.”

“You know, I’m still your trainer.  I get the last say in major decisions,” Oak remarked in amusement.

“And as second in command I get to prematurely going to veto any of your stupid decisions,” Charizard replied pointedly.

“Wouldn’t I be second in command?” asked Nidoking with a raised brow.  “I am Sam’s first Pokémon.”

“I’m vetoing that notion too,” snapped Mrs. Charizard.  She rounded back on Oak.  “If you sign up with those bats, they’ll just see you as another attack dog at their beck and call.”

“Not all that different from how we met,” mused Oak.

“There’s a big difference!” snapped Mrs. Charizard.  “You captured me fair and square.  Survival of the fittest dictates that you were in your right to either eat me or kick me out of my territory.  Instead you incorporated me into your team.  It was an up front and simple transaction.”

Professor Oak could have pointed out that his capture of Charizard (Charmeleon back then) was not at all simple on account of her being a stubborn lizard.  However, he had learned not to interrupt the fire type when she was in the middle of a rant as she would just double down, even if she is in the wrong.  “Vampires don’t care about natural rules of engagement.  They don’t fight or capture, they manipulate and extort!”

“The other packs have warned us how tricky vampires are,” agreed Nidoking.  “You sign up for one thing and then vamps will drag you into something else.”

While his Pokémon lectured him, Oak mauled over the situation.  On one hand, signing up with a vampire was like signing up a draft for the supernatural underground.  If they needed something from you, they were going to get it one way or another.  On the other hand, the two strongest vampires, both in terms of power and influence, were supposed to currently be at peace.  Plus, the Noivern head was a huge proponent of ethical Pokémon treatment and knew about the Pallet Town pack for years.  If he were going to do anything underhanded, he could have done so already.  That had to say something good about his character.

Of course, this was a moot point if they could figure out a way to safely contain Oak and Delia by the next full moon.  So, Oak decided it was time for a subject change.  “Don’t worry, I’d also prefer to avoid a Noivern contract.  On another note, I was able to contact the Pokémon Center.  Dragonite made it and is currently in their recovery ward.”

At the words “made it” Mrs. Charizard’s tensed up body relax.  A soft smile crossed her lips.  “Of course Dragonite is still here.  He’s too stubborn to leave this life before any of us.”

Though Charizard accepted the subject change, Nidoking caught Oak’s eye and gave him a look that said, “This is not over.”  Nevertheless, he went along with the change of topic.  “How is he?”

“He’ll live, but they couldn’t salvage his leg,” Oak replied, his voice somber.  “They had to amputate what was left.  He won’t be leaving the center any time soon.”

“How soon until he’s back?” Charizard pressed.

“He’ll be stuck in the center for several weeks and even afterwards he won’t be battle ready for a long while,” Oak evenly explained.  Even with a Pokémon’s speedy healing ability, amputation was a long term recovery process.

“Meaning we’re down one guard Pokémon for the next full moon,” Nidoking summed up grimly.  “Although, now that Ash and Gary know about the secret, they won’t need a babysitter.”

“You weren’t the one stuck chasing Gary down every time he skipped class,” snorted Charizard.

“Neither were you.  Dragonite did that,” pointed out Nidoking.

“My point still stands.”

“In any case, this brings up another complication: who will look after the kids when they grow up?” asked Oak.  On average, dragon type Pokémon tended to live longer and age slower than other groups of Pokémon save fairies and rock Pokémon.  And possibly ghosts, but there in lied the debate on whether or not ghost Pokémon counted as alive.  Given his experience and good health, Dragonite was the obvious contender to serve as a guardian to Ash (and now Gary) and train any new Pokémon they could somehow convince to work this dangerous job.

“Well, we’re not going to solve anything by sitting around and doing nothing,” said Mrs. Charizard.  She gulped down her coffee, slapped her mug down on the counter, unfolded her wings, and headed for the exit.  “I’m going back on patrol.”

“You should get more rest,” Oak called after her.

Mrs. Charizard glanced over her shoulder.  “My husband put himself on the line to keep everything together.  I’m not going to insult him by lying around like a Snorlax.”  With that she left the room and out the back.

Nidoking shook his head.  “You’re going to end up in the Pokémon Center too if you don’t take breaks.”

Professor Oak could have pointed out that Nidoking was being a bit hypocritical himself.  The drill Pokémon didn’t get a wink of sleep last night and was no doubt going to help out in the back once he finished his coffee.  Of course, if Oak said this out loud Nidoking would then point out the bags under Oak’s own eyes.

The sad fact was that none of them were going to be able to keep this up for much longer.  None of them wanted to admit it, but old age was catching up with them and they were going to need some new help.  The question was: where were they going to find a Pokémon crazy enough to partner with a cursed human?

Pikachu

Pikachu awoke to the rapid thump-thump, thump-thump of taloned feet hitting the ground.  His body was justled around by the force of the quick gallop.  Not the idle situation to wake up in but he was feeling too drained to do anything about it.

Peering up, Pikachu could see the Pokémon he was riding was a bird with three fuzzy brown heads attached to three long necks.  Each head had a crest of black feathers, and a long beak used to yap at the other heads while it ran.

“What a mess,” grumbled Dodrio’s right head.  “Lab is chaos, werePokémon on the loss, carrying an unconscious kid to the middle of the off limits zone, and to top it all off we’re late to our job!  We’re the wake up call!  Not mailmons!”

“I’m just happy we’re delivering a living Pikachu instead of charcoal,” chirped the middle head.  “I don’t think I’ve seen so much ash in one place.  As in soot, not Ash the kid.  Not sure how we’d be able to handle more than one of that pup.”

“Ugh, don’t even joke about this!” snapped the angry head.  “We’re lucky Charizard was able to take care of the situation.  Can you imagine how many dead bodies would pile up if the professor’s cursed form got out?!”

Pikachu stiffened.  He could still remember them.  The dead rodents and bugs everywhere.  Bodies ripped apart.  Blood dripping.  Nothing was fully eaten.  No signs of a struggle.  It was not a battle for food or survival.  It was killing for killing sake.

The mouse could still see the jaws.  Wide jaws filled with sharp teeth, opened like a newborn Pidgey asking for food.  Glowing eyes staring impassively at Pikachu.  Slowly the vine brought him towards the waiting mouth.  He couldn’t struggle, couldn’t fight, couldn’t resist.

“That’s not even counting any Pokémon who was unlucky to meet Delia on a hunt,” shuddered the angry head.  “We don’t need another Spearow incident.”

“Well, if she did kill anyone, they’ll now get some proper closure,” said the joyful head.

“Yeah, now they get to be leftovers,” grumbled the angry head.  The looked over at the head on the left.  “You’ve been quiet.  Got anything thoughts?”

“I heard the new kid got bitten,” mumbled the sorrowful head.

“ARG!  Don’t remind me!” snapped the angry head.  “Now we have to deal with four of them!”

“We’re lucky it’s just the four.  It could always be worse,” laminated the sorrowful head.  “If we weren’t so lucky, the entirety of Pallet Town would have been bitten by now.  Every full moon would become a bloodbath as a new class of Pokémon purges the world of the old!  Then without any victims left they’d spread out to the rest of Kanto.  Anyone who survives becomes another werePokémon and the pack turns into an army.  Trials of paranoia take place between each slaughter as the uninfected try to find and kill the predators in a processes which pits neighbor against neighbor, friend against friend.  Soon the entire world is engulfed into a mob of werePokémon and carnage which only ends when the final werePokémon is picking the remains of its last dinner from its teeth.”

“You always managed to find the silver lining of any situation,” chuckled the joyful head.  “Oh!  We’re here!”

Using what little strength he had, Pikachu lifted his head to look around.  He found himself in the middle of the deepest part of the woods.  The thick canopy provided by the trees cast the forest floor in a comfortable shade.  Multiple rocky grooves were scattered throughout the area creating a neighborhood of dens inhabited by the members of the Kangaskhan mob.  They were home.

All around, the Kangaskhans took notice of Dodrio and began whispering to one another.  Spotting Pikachu, his mother jogged forward.  “Pikachu!”

“Mom,” Pikachu managed to weakly respond.

The powerful Pokémon gently picked Pikachu off Dodrio’s back and began examining her son.  “What happened?!”

“The werePokémon got out last night, ma’am.  Your kid was near the sight,” explained the joyful head.  “I think the professor’s Giga Drain got him.  He probably won’t be moving the rest of the day.”

When they heard the werePokémon escaped, the rest of the mob’s whispers became more audible.  There were mutterings of broken contracts, questions about safety, and wonders on whether or not they should move.  While the rest of the mob gossiped, Pikachu’s mother placed her son inside her pouch and gave Dodrio a nod.  “Thank you for delivering my son.  I’ll take it from here.”

“The lab sent us with some medication, for what good it will do you,” said the sorrowful head.  He leaned over to a pouch that was strapped to his leg and took out a bottle to hand to Kangaskhan.  His duty fulfilled, the ostrich jogged away leaving Kangaskhan with Pikachu.

Ignoring the continued gossip, Kangaskhan returned to her den with Pikachu and the medication.  Before they even entered the cave, Pikachu could hear his sister.  “Mommy!  Mommy!  What’s going on?  Everyone says that we’re going to die!  Is that Pikachu?  Did you see the monsters, Pikachu?  Everyone is saying there was a monster fighting a metal Pokémon last night.  Did you see that one?”

“Josie, give your brother some space,” Kangaskhan gently chided her child.  Josie followed her mother’s order and sat to the side, though Pikachu could see her wiggling around itching to get some answers.  Meanwhile, Kangaskhan sat down next to a small pile of berries and grabbed an Oran berry.  She squished it between her claws and allowed the juice to slowly drip down into Pikachu’s mouth.

As the juice made its way down Pikachu’s throat, he felt a bit more awake and began to sit up.  Josie took this as an opportunity to start her interrogation back up.  “There were some earthquakes last night.  Like, a couple of small ones like the ones some of the stronger Pokémon can make and one giant one!  Did you feel them?  Did you see what made them?”

“Josie, what did I just say?” Kangaskhan said again, this time sterner.  Once again, Josie sat down and watched.  Satisfied, Kangaskhan took out the bottle of medicine.  She regarded it with puzzlement.  “Hm, I’ve seen Delia handle these before.  I could never figure them out myself,” she mused.  The gave the bottle a sharp twist with her mighty claws and the container split apart.  Neither she nor Pikachu thought it was supposed to do that, but hey it was open now.

Pikachu accepted one of the pills and swallowed it in a quick gulp.  His face screwed up at the bitter taste and he happily accepted another Oran berry to wash down the medicine.  He still felt drained, but it was more like a groggy drained that came from waking up after a busy evening as appose to two inches from death.

His mother smiled warmly at Pikachu.  “Better?”

“Much better,” replied Pikachu, returning the smile.

“What happened last night?” Josie blurted out.

Again, the wereLeafeon’s waiting jaws flashed through Pikachu’s mind.  His body stiffened.  “I found the monster in the basement.”  He went on to tell his mother and sister about what happened last night, making sure to leave out certain details like the dead bodies hanging from the ceiling.  Josie wasn’t ready for that kind of imagery.  However, Pikachu couldn’t justify skipping the part when he was about to be eaten.

“Why would Professor Leafeon do that?” Josie asked in shock.  “Doesn’t he have plenty of human food?”

“It wasn’t a conscious choice,” explained Kangaskhan.  Throughout Pikachu’s tale, the parent Pokémon had remained silent.  She twitched at certain points like when Team Rocket blinded Pikachu and when Professor Oak captured Pikachu.  Pikachu was pretty sure she was on the verge of a lecture when he talked about leaving the Ketchum residence and going into the basement, though she continued to listen.  “WerePokémon have a powerful hunting instinct that drives them to kill even when they’re well fed.”

“You know about the curse?” Pikachu asked, ears perked.

“Many of the Pokémon in these woods know about the curse.  There were several incidents in the past where Mrs. Ketchum or Professor Oak broke lose.  They quickly gained a reputation, well a different reputation than any human around here had before,” admitted Kangaskhan.  “I refrained from telling you two about what Ash was as a favor to Delia.  She didn’t want her son to know about his burden until he was older, and I wasn’t about to double cross the Pokémon who saved my children.”

So Ash’s mother wanted to keep him in the dark until later.  Pikachu sat back and drank this information in.  On one hand, last night might have gone differently if Ash knew not to head over to the lab.  It probably would have still been a disaster with those Team Rocket guys poking their noses where they didn’t belong, but at least that Gary guy wouldn’t be cursed and Pikachu wouldn’t have to witness…those jaws.

On the other hand, Pikachu could still see the look of denial and heartbreak Ash went through.  Learning you are something that should belong in a nightmare would be hard for anyone to take in.

While Pikachu contemplated, Josie had already made up her mind.  “You could have told me!  I’m great with secrets!” she declared.

Kangaskhan gave her daughter a sad smile.  “I considered letting you two know many times.  I held back out of pity.  I had my reservations about that pack, but after getting to know Ash and Delia, I decided that so long as we were careful, it wouldn’t hurt to allow you to be friends with Ash.”

“And look where it got you.”

There was another Kangaskhan standing at the entrance to the den with her claws on her hips.  “We should have never gotten involved in the affairs of cursed humans, let alone try and befriend them.”

“Considering whose land we live on, I think cursed human affairs will always have an effect on us.  So why not make peace with them?” Pikachu’s mother replied evenly, though Pikachu could tell by how ridged her tone was that she didn’t appreciate having someone else butt into her private business.

The other Kangaskhan didn’t let up.  “It’s one thing to refrain from antagonizing those monsters.  It’s another to invite them to play with our children.”  She pointed at Pikachu.  “You see the price.”

“Thank you for your concern.  Now, if you don’t mind, I have a son to take care of.  So, if you don’t have anything else to contribute, I’ll ask you to leave,” said Pikachu’s mother pointedly.

The other Kangaskhan snorted but did as Pikachu’s mother requested.  Josie watched their neighbor leave and huffed.  “That was rude.”

“Some Pokémon like to lash out when they feel upset,” said Pikachu’s mother.  She reached over to grab Pikachu another berry.  “It makes them feel as though they have some level of control.”

“I always thought the mob was scared of the Ketchums because they were shy around humans,” stated Pikachu as he accepted the berry.  Now though, now he knew full well why the Pokémon of the woods were so skittish around Ash and his pack.  Now he understood that Pidgeotto’s warning.

It seemed as though Josie was having similar thoughts going through her head.  “Are Ash and his mommy going to come and eat us now too?”

Kangaskhan frowned.  “No.  The full moon isn’t for another month, and our friends haven’t ever shown any inclination to eating us before now.”  She began smashing up another berry and smearing its insides across some of Pikachu’s wounds.  “As for what you said, Pikachu, yes.  We are careful with humans as a general rule.  Many of our mob haven’t forgotten the old days when we were hunted by them.”

“Hunted?” asked Pikachu, his ears perked.

“Long ago, before any of us were born, humans would explore the world.  Some of the more successful explorers would gather items enchanted by the legendries to help humans and their Pokémon partners in difficult situations,” said Kangaskhan.  “Because they could only carry so many items at once, they charged Kangaskhan mobs like our own with guarding those treasures until the day anther explorer would need them.”

“Yeah, Mom, I remember the story,” groaned Pikachu.  It was practically doctrine around these parts.  Protect the seeds and scarves because some ancient and powerful Pokémon blessed them, yata yata yata.  Pikachu wasn’t really apart of this system as he wasn’t a Kangaskhan, so he never really paid close attention.  It wasn’t that the thought of a chest of items being enchanted wasn’t cool, it just wasn’t any of his business.

“Perhaps but have I told you two the story on how we came to these woods?” asked Kangaskhan.  When she saw that she still had her children’s undivided attention, she continued.  “Long ago, our mob roamed throughout Kanto.  The original humans who entrusted us with our treasures had passed away leaving us to fend off less honorable humans who either wanted our treasure or to capture one of us.”

“Why would they want one of us?” Josie asked innocently.

“Humans like to capture and own Pokémon.  Rare species such as our own are very desirable,” explained Kangaskhan.  Pikachu scrunched his tiny nose in disgust.  He knew there were plenty of Pokémon who daydreamed of finding a human to feed them, teach them how to be strong, and shower them with affection.  Even Pikachu, who wasn’t really found of the idea of joining a human’s team, had to admit it was a sweet sounding deal.  Of course, this came with a lot of stipulations such as being stuffed inside a small ball.  How do those things contain Pokémon that were ten times too big?  No thanks.

Another reason Pikachu wasn’t so keen on pairing up with a random human was that you don’t know what you were in for.  Sure, it could be a perfectly nice person, or it could be someone like Team Rocket who didn’t have any problems taking Pokémon who weren’t theirs just for some kind of profit.  Had it not been for the werePokémon, the sound of grim acceptance from Ash when he was blackmailed into giving up his freedom would be the most haunting memory from last night.

Kangaskhan’s story continued.  “One day, a member of our mob was captured by a human boy.  For the longest time, the mob thought she was forever lost.  Just another human pet.  Until one day, she returned.  According to her, that boy was able to tell that she was feeling homesick and decided to release her when their adventures came to an end.  Years later, that Kangaskhan became our mob’s leader.  She lead our mob to this forest where she was reunited with her trainer, the wereLeafeon.”

“Professor Leafeon was the old one’s human?” asked Josie in surprise.  Years ago, when Pikachu was first adopted into the mob, it was ruled by an old Kangaskhan.  Though that Kangaskhan passed away before Pikachu could get to know her, he could still remember her wrinkly smile and worn down toothy grin.

“Yes,” confirmed Kangaskhan.  “It’s thanks to him that we have our sanctuary.  Even after the old one passed away, he retains power over our land and uses it to keep us secret and secure from those who would do use harm.  So please, don’t hold the actions of the wereLeafeon against our landlord and don’t think less of our friends because of what they are.”

Josie bowed her head in shame.  “I’m sorry, Mommy.”

“It’s okay, my little joey,” said Kangaskhan.  She reached down, picked up Josie, and placed her in her pouch.  “Fear is a natural emotion.  It keeps us alert to what is dangerous.  However, it can sometimes blind us.  I don’t want you to ignore your fear, I just want you to be reasonable about it.”

While his mother and sister conversed, Pikachu’s mind wondered back to the wereLeafeon.  If what his mother was saying was true, the professor was a pretty ideal human to be partnered with.  If someone like that could become something as deranged as the wereLeafeon, what was going to happen to Ash when he transformed?  What was going to happen to him now that he knew the truth?

“Pikachu,” Kangaskhan’s voice snapped Pikachu out of his thoughts.  “Starting tomorrow, I don’t want you to hang around Ash as much.”

“But you just said-” Pikachu began.

“I don’t want you to bear a grudge against Ash and his kind for what they cannot control, but I also don’t want a repeat of last night, understand?” said Kangaskhan firmly but not unkindly.  “You can still visit him every once and awhile if things look safe.  Otherwise I want you to focus on getting ready to move out.”

“Yes, Mom,” Pikachu said dutifully.  Though he understood why he was told to stay away, Pikachu couldn’t help but to picture the look of rejection on Ash’s face.

Giving her son a sympathetic smile, Kangaskhan knelt down and nuzzled his head.  “Now get some rest.”

Still tired from yesterday, Pikachu picked a spot out on the den’s floor and curled up.  As he settled down, his mind continued to wonder to Ash and beyond.  What was his friend going through right now?  How many other werePokémon were like him?  How many Pokémon were like the ones at the lab, tasked with keeping their trainers from going on a murder spree?

These thoughts fueled Pikachu’s memory of the wereLeafeon.  Even with his mother’s reminder of how kind the Pallet Town pack was, Pikachu couldn’t help but to fear them.  He couldn’t help but to fear Ash and immediately follow that fear with guilt.

Team Rocket

Miles away from Pallet Town, a pile of scrap lay scattered across the ground.  Robot arm here, smoking engine over there, and a wad of ripped up metal right here.  Some of the metal wobbled and lifted up to reveal the Team Rocket Trio.  Groaning and aching from their one way trip across the sky, the three robbers plopped on the ground.

“I’m never complaining about roller coasters again,” whined James.

“No Route One Monster, no Riolu, no Dragonite, our money spent on the robot just bought us a junk yard, and I think I broke a claw,” groaned Meowth.  “Can dis day get any worse?”

A high-pitched buzzing filled the air causing the three crooks to jump.  Apparently, their robot’s command console, or at least what was left of it, was still functioning.  The monitor on the console hummed to life.  A woman glared at the three from the other end of the transmission.  The woman had a short, lavender hair cut strait at the ends which, along with her business suit and glasses, gave her a no-nonsense appearance.

Spotting the woman, Jessie scowled.  “Apparently it can.”

“You three are past due for a report,” Matori stated coldly.  “Have you found anything of value, or should I reassign you something more fitting of your skill set such as custodians?”  She then glanced at the wreckage.  “Then again, I doubt you’d be able to amount to that much.”

In a flash, Jessie was to her feat with her hands on her hips.  “Listen, while you have been sitting in an office drinking lattes, we’ve been on the trail of a very rare Pokémon which people have been trying to capture for years.  A Pokémon we were on the verge of capturing last night, thank you very much.”

“I don’t doubt it,” said Matori, though the sheer level of sarcasm dripping from her voice said otherwise.  “Do you at least have something to send in while we patiently wait for this so called “very rare Pokémon”?”

James jumped in.  “There’s not much else around here.  It’s mostly Pidgeys and Rattatas.”

“You are stationed in the same town as Professor Oak’s laboratory.  It is a storage facility for numerous trainers’ Pokémon.  Has it not occurred to you that there might be something of value there?” said Matori as though she was teaching kindergarteners their ABC’s.

“We were robbing that place but then the Route One Monster-” James began before both his teammates slapped their hands and paws over his mouth.

“What are you crazy?” hissed Meowth.  “She ain’t gonna believe us unless we have proof!”

“Pardon me, did you just say you found the Route One Monster?” Matori asked, adjusting her glasses.  It was clear by her narrowing eyes that Meowth’s assessment was correct.

Meowth cleared his throat, composed himself, and tried to salvage their group’s operation.  “We wanted it to be a surprise, but we think we may have stumbled across a Pokémon powerful enough dat it inspired the urban legend of da Route One Monster.  As you can see by the state of our highly advanced Pokémon capture unit, da specimen in question is extremely strong and worth further investigation…and a few thousand bucks to finance its capture if you would be so kind.”

One look at the soured expression on Matori’s face could tell the trio exactly how little of an investment they were going to receive.  “If you really expect me to believe,” Matori was about to go into another verbal smack down when a barely audible voice came from off the screen.  Matori looked over in surprise.  “Are you…yes, sir.  I understand.”

Matori returned to her usual professional countenance.  “You are to report back to HQ effective immediately.”

All three of the trio balked in surprise.  “Immediately?” asked Meowth.  “As in right now?”

“As in drop whatever you’re in the middle of and get over here.  No complaints or excuses,” ordered Matori.  “Over and out.”

Professor Oak

At this point, Professor Oak was running on fumes.  Answering questions, dodging questions, drawing up plans for a new cage, conversing with vampires, it had been a day.  Throughout his afternoon, he found himself resting his head on his desk and had to catch himself from dozing off.  Even now he could practically hear his bed calling out to him, but that had to wait.  He had one more important task to tackle.

Throughout the day, Oak had a number of the Pokémon staying at the lab go out to keep watch over Gary.  They’d come back with reports that his grandson spent the day walking around Route One, sitting by the river and kicking rocks.  Every time a pair of wild Pokémon came along chatting, he’d immediately relocate to somewhere quiet.

Professor Oak began walking towards the front door, getting ready to head out and retrieve his grandson, until he heard some noise from the living room.  Walking in, Professor Oak found Gary sitting on the couch by the TV.  The screen displayed a scene from a movie.

A woman walked down an alleyway and called out in a Galarian accent.  “David, they’re going to kill you.”

The woman found herself face to face with a burly, midday Lycanroc that had a permanent snarl plastered on its face.  “David.  Please.  Please let me help you.  I love you, David.”

Taking a deep breath, Oak made his way over to Gary and sat down on the other end of the couch.  Though exhausted, Oak tried to sound upbeat.  “What are you watching?”

The Lycanroc roared and leapt at the woman.  Multiple gun shots fired off and moments later the woman was weeping over a human body riddled with bullets.

“A documentary,” Gary bitterly replied.

“You shouldn’t be watching this,” muttered Professor Oak.  He picked up the remote and flicked off the TV before turning on a lamp.  Even with the TV off, Gary refused to look away at the blank screen.  So, Oak continued.  “…I imagine you have some questions.”

At first, Gary said nothing.  Finally, after a good minute or two, he spoke.  “Hey Gary, guess what?  I’m a werePokémon.  Just thought I’d give you the heads up since, you know, you’re moving into my house!”

The vitriol in the boy’s voice was every bit as evident as it was earned.  Oak sighed.  “I was planning on telling you, believe me.  But you have to understand, this is a big secret.  Bigger than Pallet Town.  If word got out that werePokémon existed, a lot of innocent people could get hurt.”

“You mean werePokémon,” corrected Gary.

“Gary, most werePokémon aren’t looking to hurt anyone,” Oak explained keeping his voice calm.  “They’re just people with an unfortunate condition.”

Again, Gary took a moment to glare at the TV before responding.  “Did my parents know?”

“Yes.  We were planning on telling you when you were older-”

Gary cut him off.  “What else are you hiding?”

“Gary, please,” Oak knew this wasn’t going to be easy.  Gary was distant back when he first moved in before he was cursed.  Now that the boy was a wereEevee, getting him to trust his grandfather had gone from an uphill battle to a climb up a steep cliff.  “I am not trying to harm you.  In fact, I can pretty much guarantee that I wouldn’t have killed you even in my cursed form.”

“No.  You just traumatized me a little.  That’s all,” Gary sarcastically snapped.

“I’m sorry you had to see me the way you did last night,” said Oak, knowing every apology he could throw the boy’s way wouldn’t be enough.  “If I could cure you, I would.  But I can still help you if you let me.”

“…What’s going to happen to me?” asked Gary.  By now his voice lost its edge.  He sounded less angry and more anxious.

“The good news is you won’t have to deal the berserker form, the full moon transformation, for a now.  Though you will change into your Pokémon form every night at midnight.  You’ve probably also noticed you can still understand Pokémon as a human and that your senses are a bit keener than before.  You might also develop some new mannerisms, though they will be minor.  It took me forever to realize I was dozing off on sunny days-”

“I can still pass as a regular human, right?” Gary urgently asked.

“So long as you don’t let anyone catch you transforming and keep your emotions in check when the berserker state manifests, yes,” answered Oak.  Even though Gary was still refusing to make eye contact, Oak gave his grandson a helpful smile.  “I have a pill that can help once that happens.”

The tension left Gary’s posture, and he finally relaxed.  “I can work with that.  Do Pokémon Centers have cameras in their overnight rooms?”

“I don’t believe so,” answered Professor Oak.  Why would Gary want to know…oh no.

“I’ll just make sure I’m by myself at night when I’m on the road for my journey,” muttered Gary, already making plans. 

There was no easy way to say this, but it had to be done.  “Gary, there’s not going to be a Pokémon journey.”

That statement got Gary’s attention.  His head finally whipped away from his starring contest with the TV to address his grandfather with wide eyes.  “What do you mean?”

“It’s a policy amongst werePokémon to live in near isolation to make sure we don’t accidently trigger the berserker state and kill innocent bystanders,” Oak explained.  He could see by the look of betrayal on Gary’s face that he was shredding the boys dreams apart, no matter how gently he tried to deliver the news.  “Any trip taken out of Pallet Town has to be well planned with proper precautions.”

“You just said I haven’t developed a berserker form yet!” shouted Gary.  He stood up and glared down at his grandfather.  “I’m safe!”

Despite his grandson’s frantic mannerisms, Professor Oak attempted to maintain a controlled presence.  “You’re safe at the moment.  The age when the berserker form develops is different for every person.  Some develop it before hitting puberty, others may not start transforming until their late teens.  I’m sorry to say that you are right at the earliest age when you can start showing symptoms.  We can’t take the chance that you’ll start changing in the middle of your adventure.”

“You can’t do this to me!” Gary continued to shout, his voice cracking as he did so.

“Gary-”

“I am not wasting my life collecting fleas in some backwater, nowhere town!” Gary ranted.  “You may be fine sitting around all day taking care of other people’s Pokémon and doing your dumb science experiments, but I’m not!”

Whether it was the fatigue from the day’s events or because Gary’s constant disrespect was finally reaching him, Professor Oak’s voice gained a slight edge.  “Well, perhaps you wouldn’t be in this mess if you simply followed the rules I gave you.  Specifically the one about staying in your room at night.”

Gary didn’t back down.  “You could have let me know!  You should have let me know!”

“You were hardly giving me any incentive.  Playing hooky, being disrespectful to your teacher, being disrespectful towards me.  I had no reason to think you were mature enough to be trusted with a secret that could affect people all over the world!” Oak shot back.  He stood up and looked his grandson in the eye.  “Now listen, from here on out you are to follow my rules to a T.  No talking back and no mischief.  This is a serious matter, and I expect you to treat it as such.  Am I understood?”

At first, it seemed as though Gary was about to continue arguing.  Then a look of terror crossed his face, and he stepped back.  Concerned, Oak was about to say something until he caught sight of his reflection in the dead TV screen.  Leaf buds were pushing out from his skin and his mouth was full of sharp teeth.  Stress had finally won, and Oak was transforming into the wereLeafeon.

Not wanting a repeat of last night, Oak acted fast.  He yanked a pill bottle out of his coat and swallowed the contents.  “Sorry,” he apologized in a growling voice.  “See, this is why-”

Before the professor could go into a lecture on the importance of caution and self-control, Gary bolted out of the room.  There was a series of loud thumps signaling Gary’s assent up the stairs followed by a startled cry.  Looking over at the above the TV, Oak saw that it was now midnight.  His body confirmed this observation by continuing to transform, this time into a regular Leafeon.  No doubt Gary was undergoing his own change upstairs.

At first, Professor Oak wanted to chase after Gary and help him through the metamorphosis.  After all, it took him awhile to get used to the new status quo and his own curse acquisition was far less calamitous.  Then again, he was absolutely certain that going up there right now would just result in another shouting match.  Maybe he should continue to give the boy some space?  Hard to say.  In all the years he spent consoling new trainers, he’s never had to coach someone through adjusting to lycanthropy let alone coach them while dealing with family drama.

Once Oak’s transformation was complete, he slipped out of his clothing and leapt onto the couch.  Carefully, he fiddled with the remote using his paws until he got the news.  The screen displayed a man standing in front of a flaming wreck with a microphone.

“As you can see behind me, firefighters are still putting out the Viridian City Gym.  Though the cause is still unknown, early eyewitness reports put an unidentified trainer and a quadrupedal Pokémon on the scene,” said the reporter.  “It is believed that this trainer was fighting off some Team Rocket members who were also found at the scene of the crime.”

At the mention of Team Rocket, Oak’s ears perked.  First his lab then the neighboring city’s gym?  What was going on?  He had heard of Team Rocket before, but they were never this active.  Or at least they were never this overtly active.  The reporter went on to say multiple grunts were taken into custody, however the trainer who took on the grunts and the Pokémon who started the fire were still unaccounted for.

While Professor Oak watched the news, Nidoking came in and sat down next to the couch.  The drill Pokémon glanced up to where Gary’s room was and back down at Oak.  “Well, that could have gone better.”

“You heard all that?” asked Oak.  His voice sounded every bit as exhausted as he felt.  Right now he was curled up on the couch, his eyes threatening to close any second.

“I think the entire lab heard,” grunted Nidoking.  He took out a can and cracked open the tab allowing him to take a swing of the drink.

“Oh,” mumbled Oak.  He looked back at the TV.  The colors on the screen began to swirl as his sight blurred and his eyes began to close.  “What I wouldn’t give for a redo.”

“Wish we could have met Celebi later in life, huh?” asked Nidoking.

The Leafeon just gave his friend an affirmative grunt.  Back when he was just a bit older than Gary, he and his team encountered the mythical time traveling Pokémon.  It was a brief jaunt in the woods, playing with the fairy, hiding it from some seedy individuals.  That adventure easily topped the list of weird experiences, though turning into a werePokémon was a close second.

Since then, Professor Oak went back to that forest multiple times and left food at the forest guardian’s shrine.  Sadley, he never saw that Celebi again.  He even kept up his regular trips after he was cursed, hoping that against all odds he’d gain favor with that Pokémon and be granted a trip back in time to stop the wereArcanine incident.  A more selfish part of him would have settled with preventing Delia from going or at least tell his past self to wear thick gloves should he ever find himself handling a baby Riolu.

Then again, if time travel was that easy he imagined that someone would have abused it by now.  Or maybe they did, and he didn’t notice because he was currently living in an edited timeline?  Whatever the case, it was probably for the best that he never met Celebi again.  The powers of legendries and mythicals weren’t meant for the machinations of man.  His failed expedition with the Alola pack demonstrated that.

Eyelids feeling heavy, Oak began to nod off.  Spotting this, Nidoking reached over to scratch his trainer behind the ears.  “Don’t worry.  We’ll be able to handle this,” was the last sentence Oak heard before succumbing to slumber.

Viridian Pokémon Center

While the Pokémon professor gave into sleep, someone else was fighting against fatigue.  The Viridian City’s Nurse Joy had one heck of an evening.  She was hoping to get some sleep after being awaken the previous night to an emergency operation on a Dragonite, one that saw one of the dragon’s hind legs amputated.  Alas, this evening was every bit as chaotic.

The nurse was about to turn in for the evening when she received a call on the emergency line.  Apparently someone set fire to the Viridian City Gym!  Any plans for an early rest had to be put on hold as Nurse Joy found herself coordinating her staff of Pokémon medics and Chanseys to get ready for a bunch of rescued Pokémon suffering from burns and smoke inhalation.

Oddly enough, the only Pokémon they ended up having to heal were the ones belonging to the Team Rocket grunts.  It seemed as though the mysterious arsonist and their Pokémon had stolen all the Viridian City Gym Pokémon and sent them off to parts unknown.  Which begged the question: why were they fighting Team Rocket goons?  Were they rival thieves?  Whatever the case, it was none of Nurse Joy’s concern.  She was here to healed the sick and injured, best leave the criminal investigations to the police.

Before heading off to finally get some well deserved rest, Joy decided to do one final check on the Dragonite.  Poor thing.  She was surprised to be awoken by the frantic cries of one of her Chanseys.  She was even more surprised to find a Dragonite was her emergency patient.  More specifically, Professor Oak’s Dragonite.

Nurse Joy wasn’t sure what happened at that lab to maul a champion trained pseudo-legendary and she certainly wasn’t getting answers from the Dragonite’s owner.  Usually Professor Oak was so easy to converse with.  If he had to send in a Pokémon for treatment he’d have a full list of what she would need to know to diagnose and treat said Pokémon.  Today, however, the professor was very vague as to what happened and what kind of Pokémon caused it.  If Joy didn’t know any better, she’d say he was hiding something.

When Joy turned the corner, she was surprised to find a pair of strangers standing outside the Dragonite’s looking through the window.  The first was a woman with long silvery hair wearing a black coat over a yellow tank top and capri pants.  Next to her was a teenage boy whose face was obscured by the black hoodie pulled over his head.  Both individuals had a series of Poke balls strapped to their belts signifying them as Pokémon trainers.

“Excuse me,” said Nurse Joy.  She cautiously approached the two while reaching for a Poke ball she kept in her pocket.  “This section of the center is closed for the evening.  If you’re looking for a room for the night, I can help you at the front desk.”

The boy kept his eyes trained on the bandaged Dragonite on the other side of the window.  The woman was more friendly, flashing Joy with a friendly smile.  “That won’t be necessary.  We’re just passing through.  We heard about an injured Dragonite and wanted to check it out.”

Before Nurse Joy could respond, a phone went off in the woman’s pocket.  “Excuse me,” she said as she accepted the call.  “Understood…Yes…Right away, Sir.  We’ll check it out.”

“Sorry for disturbing you,” said the woman while she pocketed her phone.  “We’ll take our leave right now.  Come on.”

For a moment, the boy ignored the woman’s summons and lingered.  His eyes narrowed as he studied the Dragonite’s maimed leg and for a second Joy could have sworn they flashed red.  Then, without a word, the boy turned away and followed after the woman and out of the Pokémon Center.

AN: I know there’s a lot of angst in this chapter, but don’t fret.  Lemu Dodrio is here to tell us about Liberty Mutual!  It customizes your home and auto insurance, so you only pay for what you need!

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features.  Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc., and Satoshi Tajiri.  Please support the official release.

Listening to as I ring the doorbell: Team Rocket Battle Music (HeartGold and SoulSilver)

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Favor

Nidoking

Two days.  It had only been two days and Nidoking felt like he was about keel over.  WerePokémon escaping, battling said escapees, cleaning up after said escape.  One would think battling the werePokémon would prove to be the most taxing task.  They would be wrong.

As it turns out, building was a far more tedious and painstaking past time then destroying.  Any appreciation Nidoking had for Pokémon who were trained for construction work easily doubled within the last 48 hours.

Thanks to the efforts of the Pokémon staying at the lab, they managed to clear away a good chunk of the mess from the battleground on the surface and had started to dig out the now caved in bunker.  Nidoking had hoped that they could salvage some of the piping, gas tanks, or any other part of the old Kennel.  Alas, that proved to be a fantasy.  If Sam’s plants didn’t manage to mangle a salvageable part, Charizard’s Blast Burn certainly insured that it was good as cooked.

Given that Nidoking had been doing nothing but fighting, digging, and testing his optimism on little to no sleep, the drill Pokémon decided to take a break.  Well, more like he was ordered to take a break by his trainer who, as far as Nidoking could tell, might have been in worse condition.  Nevertheless, Nidoking took the breather because he had a few family members to check on.

Which is why Nidoking now found himself on the other side of the preserve with a bundle of flowers.

During the full moon, those very same flowers uprooted themselves to try and dogpile Nidoking.  He was so busy trying to rip the hoard of blossoms off that he didn’t notice an incoming root until it smacked him across the ground.  Now that Sam was back to normal, the plants had returned to being stationary and the flowers were merely uprooted garden decorations.  Nidoking could have just tossed them aside like the rest of the debris, but his wife was a bleeding heart who would hate to see such pretty flowers go to waste.

Thus, Nidoking brought the same flowers which tried to kill him across the reserve, far away from The Kennel.  Here, Nidoking laid the flowers at the base of a much larger plant.  This plant was a large pink flower with white spots and a thick stem.  Fern-like leaves sprouted from the base of the flower which gave shade to the makeshift bouquet that Nidoking placed on the ground.

“Good morning, Venus,” Nidoking said to the remains of his wife.

Back when Samuel decided to retire from battling and go into research, he immediately looked into possible Pokémon to hand out to new trainers.  According to Sam, it was an old tradition of sorts for scientific professionals to hire new blood to do field research for them while the experienced veteran worked in the lab.  In return, the researcher would give the new trainer their first Pokémon partner.  This was a custom that traced its roots back to many notable professors of the past such as Professor Laventon.

In order to insure that his future assistants had options, Sam stuck to the basic grass, fire, water trifecta.  To reward his trainers for taking good care of their Pokémon, Samual had to find three evolution lines with a lot of room for growth.  Sam already had the perfect candidate for a fire line in Charizard, he just needed water and grass.

For grass, Sam looked into the lines native to Kanto.  The Tangela and Paras lines were a bit on the short side with only one evolution.  Meanwhile, choices like Oddish, Bellsprout, and Exeggcute had their final forms locked behind a Leaf Stone which costed money.  It wouldn’t be fair to the grass type starter to have its full potential require a different set of conditions than the others.

It was for these reasons that Sam settled on the Bulbasaur line.  After contacting several breeders, Sam was able to acquire Venus.  She was a quiet and loving Venusaur who took Kangaskhan’s place as the team’s mediator and served as a bit of a groundskeeper for the ranch.

Sam was looking for breeding stock.  His team found a new den mother.  Nidoking found a wife.

When Venus passed away, Nidoking buried her remains in her favorite spot at the ranch.  In the middle of a quiet groove in the woods surrounding by her garden.  Ever since Sam’s cursed form revealed that it possessed chlorokinesis, Nidoking had gone to check on his wife’s remains after every full moon.  He was always relieved to find that the burial site was still beyond the wereLeafeon’s range of influence.

“Sorry for being late, Venus,” said Nidoking.  He sat down in front of the flower.  Whenever a Bulbasaur or one of its evolutions died, the plant on the back was the last part to rot away.  In fact, if properly cared for, the flower could live on for many years.  So, in a way, Venus was still alive.  She was not sentient by any stretch of the imagination, but Nidoking liked to believe that her presence was what kept this groove so peaceful and protected.

“Huh, where do I begin,” Nidoking mumbled.  “The kids know about the curse now.  Not sure how Ash is taking it.  He looked pretty shellshocked yesterday.  Gary isn’t faring much better.  Poor kid was bitten.  Apparently Ash got some lung fulls of Sam’s gas and accidently nipped Gary while trying to pry off a Team Rocket Ekans.  Oh, yeah.  We were being robbed.  Some Team Rocket goons, Team Rocket is a bunch of criminals, broke in and got the jump on me.  Used some sticky substance to trap me while they fought the boys.  Not my finest hour.”

Nidoking released a loud sigh.  “And then the adults broke out.  Really could have used your area of expertise back there.  Sam’s plants just took over at the end of the fight, made a giant plant puppet that would have attacked the lab if Charizard wasn’t there.  Heh, still wish you could have been around to see Sam as a Leafeon.  I know you would have gotten a kick out of showing how to be a grass type.”

Gently, Nidoking brushed his claw against one of the flower’s petals.  “And now we’re cleaning up the aftermath.  Not sure if we’ll be able to make it by the next full moon.  Nobody here is a construction worker, Sam isn’t an architect, and I’m worried about him.  He hardly slept last night, and he got in a fight with Gary.  Not sure how much longer until either of them snap.  Vampires gave him a call earlier and we’ve all heard the stories about how messy contracts with those guys can get.  I just don’t know if we can take anything else that gets thrown at us.”

“Graaaaaandpa!”

Nidoking was broken out of his conversation by a large object which came rocketing forward and headbutted his leg.  Looking down, Nidoking saw a little, blue toad creature with green spots.  She had a pair of stubby, pointed ears on her head, claws on each of her toes, and a large bulb growing out of her back.  The toad, Bulbasaur, looked up at Nidoking with large, red eyes and a fanged frown.

Ignoring the look of scrutiny from Bulbasaur, Nidoking picked up the plant toad and smiled.  “Hey there!  How’s my little spud doing?”

“I told you to stop calling me that,” groaned Bulbasaur with an eye roll.

“You’ll always be my little spud.  Even if you’re standing in the winner’s circle onto of a pile of defeated Pokémon,” chuckled Nidoking.

“Which I will get the chance to do, right?” asked Bulbasaur with scrutiny.  “Because I hear we’re going to a new lab, and  I don’t want my new trainer to get lost.”

“You can relax.  The next group of new trainers will be coming here,” said Nidoking.  He gently placed his granddaughter down into the grass.  “You will be the last Bulbasaur to be handed out by Professor Oak.”

“Yes!” grinned Bulbasaur.

“Bulbasaur?  Bulbasaur?”  Another plant toad Pokémon entered the groove.  She was much larger than Bulbasaur and lacked the slimy, spotty skin.  Instead, her skin was warty, leathery, and tough giving her an appearance which crossed a toad with a dinosaur.  Upon her back was a fully bloomed flower not unlike the one planted in the ground.  She was a living Venusaur.

“Bulbasaur!  Where have you been?  It’s mealtime.  Come back and eat with the rest of your family.  We want to enjoy your company before you go on your journey,” lectured Venusaur.

“I’m just making sure everything is in place, Mom!” stated Bulbasaur as she proudly walked past her mother.

Sighing and shaking her head at her rambunctious daughter’s antics, Venusaur turned to Nidoking.  “How are you holding up, Dad?”

“I’m staying in there,” replied Nidoking.  He rolled his shoulders electing a series of pops from his abused joints.  “How’s everyone else?”

“Anxious,” said Venusaur.  She and her father walked out of the groove, following Bulbasaur who was charging ahead.  “Is it true that Sam is planning on moving us to a new facility?”

“He’s making the arrangements as we speak,” confirmed Nidoking.  While Sam was struggling with figuring out the logistics of building a new werePokémon cage he came to a decision: he could no longer be trusted with keeping other trainers’ Pokémon safe.  Had the wereLeafeon succeeded in creating a fully mobile plant construct, it would have been able to destroy the lab and crush everyone inside.

As such, Sam decided it was time for him to officially step down as the region’s go-to professor.  He found a candidate for a successor in an up and coming scientist in Vermillion City named Cerise.  It just so happened the man knew Sam and had once reached out to him to act as a consultant for designing a massive indoor preserve for Pokémon.

“Dragonite and I scooped out the new lab way back.  It’s basically a massive greenhouse.  There’ll be less room, so everyone will have to go into their Poke balls more often.  But it’s beautiful.  Exotic plants, clean water, plenty of places for the kids to run and hide, and no werePokémon,” reported Nidoking.

Venusaur slowly nodded, drinking in Nidoking’s assessment.  She then paused and looked around the preserve, a wistful smile on her face.  “I’m going to miss this place, curse or no curse.”

Next to her, Nidoking watched his granddaughter bound up to the other Bulbasaurs to brag about her status as the last Bulbasaur of a generation.  “That’s the thing about life.  It’s always changing.  You can’t take anything for granite.”

Ash

Given the recent turn of events, Delia felt it was best to give Ash some time off from school.  So, she called him in sick for the rest of the week.  To help maintain this illusion, Ash had to either hang out at home or change into his Pokémon form if he wanted to walk around outside.  Predictably, Ash would not be bound to the confines of his own house.

Whether out of curiosity or by habit, the Riolu found himself totting down the road to the laboratory though with less of a pep in his step than usual.  As he got closer to the lab, his aura sensors went crazy.  The lab itself was bustling with activity.  Pokémon who called the lab home were mobilizing left and right.  While some groups of Pokémon seemed to be going about their usual activities, some were circling the parameters of the property, probably acting as guards.  There was a large cluster of auras near the site of the full moon incident which Ash could only guess were the makeshift cleanup crew.

Getting closer, Ash saw two Pokémon hanging out near the front of the lab.  The first was a bipedal, blue turtle with a brown shell and a fluffy, curly tail.  A Squirtle.  It was talking to another bipedal reptile, though this one was an orange lizard with a yellow belly and flame on the tip of its tail.  A Charmander.

Having grown up visiting the lab, Ash had seen his fair share of Bulbasaurs, Charmanders, and Squirtles come and go.  Almost all of them shared the same fate: starter Pokémon to an up and coming trainer.  One of Ash’s “jobs” growing up was to help socialize the starters.  After all, they were meant to be given out to children.  It was one of Ash’s favorite duties as he was always up to making a new friend, even if he inevitably had to say goodbye.

“Squirtle!  Charmander!” Ash greeted as he happily jogged up to the pair.

The pair spotted Ash and waved.  Once the Riolu caught up with the reptiles, Squirtle smiled and reached up to pat Ash on the back.  “Ash!  How are you holding up?”

Momentarily, Ash froze.  He quickly recovered and pasted a smile on his face.  “I’m out of school for the week, so I thought I’d check on everyone.”

“No problems for us,” replied Squirtle.  The tiny turtle folded his arms.  “We’re just getting ready to meet our new trainers in a few weeks.  Since Gary’s out of the running, the professor had to reach out to another applicant.  We were hoping to ask about the newbie’s profile, but everyone’s too busy.”

Ash felt his insides freeze.  Even though he suspected as much, it still hurt to hear it out loud.  Now that Gary was also a werePokémon, he was barred from going on a Pokémon journey.

The boiling sense of guilt bubbling up in Ash’s chest caused his tail to drop in between his legs.  Charmander noticed this and looked up at Ash.  “Ash?  Are you okay?”

Not really, no.   But, as much as he enjoyed Charmander and Squirtle’s company, he didn’t want to talk about it now.  Ash moved his tail away from his legs and forced it to wag.  He gave Squirtle a smile.  “I’m fine.  I’m just…learning about a lot of things.”

“I don’t envy you,” sighed Squirtle.  He placed his hands behind his head and stared off into the distance.  “That werePokémon stuff doesn’t sound easy.”

“Yeah,” Ash agreed.  Then a thought occurred to him.  “How long did you guys know about werePokémon?”

The two starters shared a look before responding.

“We’ve heard stuff,” admitted Charmander.  “The adults didn’t really tell us too much, though.”

Squirtle nodded in agreement.  “We figured that shapeshifting humans aren’t the norm and the fact that we had to stay in our Poke balls every full moon was fishy, but we didn’t know too much outside of all of that.  We definitely know more today because nobody can stop talking about your mom and the professor’s escape.”

Nodding, Ash felt oddly relieved.  It was good to know he wasn’t the only one kept in the dark.  He then felt a little clawed hand pat his arm.  Looking down, he found Charmander looking up at him.

“If you need someone to talk to, I’m pretty sure everyone here at the lab is here for you,” said Charmander.

That’s right.  The Pokémon at the lab have always been friendly towards Ash and his pack.  Even if the older tenants were in on the secret, they didn’t harbor fear against him like the wild Pokémon did.  Though Ash was unable to travel, he still had plenty of friends.

“Until the end of the month,” remarked a new voice.  Looking around, Ash saw the source.  Three Pokémon, who were probably on patrol, were making their way down the road.  The one who just spoke was an orange insectoid with long legs and wide, white eyes.  Upon his back was a massive red mushroom with yellow spots.  It was a Parasect.

Parasect noticed Charmander and Squirtle giving him dirty looks and tilted his head.  “Too soon?”

“What does he mean?” asked Ash.

“There’s a rumor that we’re moving to a new lab in Vermillion City,” said Squirtle awkwardly.

Again, Ash felt his body freeze up.  New lab?

Another member of the patrol group, a Kingler, spoke up as the three made their way by.  “I’m going to miss this place.  Fresh air, good quality water, and it felt like we were doing important work.”

“It was good to have a professor you could actually talk to,” agreed the third member of the group.  This one was yellow with black, almond shaped eyes, a mousy face, and long claws.  Its back was covered with large, brown, scales which stuck out like spikes.  It was a Sandslash.

The Sandslash continued.  “Like, last time I was with my trainer I noticed some new ground type shampoo with mellower fragrances.  And I was thinking to myself, hey, I was complaining to the professor the other day about how bath supplies smell too strong.  I wondered if that conversation got translated into some paper which resulted in new products.  And I was like, wow, I might have made an impact.”

“I hope I get a chance for a sit down with the professor before we get transferred.  I’d like a chance to dispute some myths humans have about Parasects,” moaned Parasect.  He then chuckled.  “Get this.  Apparently they think the mushrooms on our backs control us which is redic-”

Suddenly, the Parasect’s pincers went limp.  He turned around and began scuttling towards the trees.  “Must.  Find.  Fungi nutrients,” he said in a zombified voice.

Ash wasn’t paying attention to any of this.  His mind was still stuck on “new lab.”  A new lab for most of the people he knew.  A new lab in a far off town.  A new lab away from him.

“Are you okay?” asked Charmander.  The lizard peered up at Ash with concerned eyes and a cocked head.  “You’re not looking well.”

“I…I’m going to see if anyone needs my help,” said Ash.  Before anyone could stop him, Ash fled away and onto the lab’s reserve.

The Riolu ran and ran.  He ran past the main lab, past the field of charcoal, and even past some Pokémon working on that field who tried to give him a friendly greeting.  Ash kept running until he found a large, hefty tree.  When he came to the tree’s trunk, Ash paused, brought back his fist, and punched into the trunk.

He kept punching and punching, every so often switching it up with a kick, until the tree was covered with dents.  It was only when Ash noticed how much he was damaging the innocent plant that he stopped his fit.  The Riolu placed one paw on the tree and tears began to roll down his cheeks.

“Ash?”

Spinning around, Ash found himself face to face with Pikachu.  Despite looking as though he was on death’s door the previous day, Pikachu seemed perfectly normal if a bit concerned.  The electric rodent moved cautiously forward.  “Are you okay?”

“Pikachu!”  The distance was closed in an instant.  Ash zoomed forward and scooped Pikachu up in a tight hug.  “You’re okay!”

“Ash!  You’re squeezing me!” Pikachu managed to gasp.

“I wasn’t sure if you were going to make it!” Ash continued.  His tail wagged so fast that it was whipping up a small breeze.  He continued to ramble.  “I shouldn’t have doubted you!  Of course you’d make it!”

“Ash!” Pikachu choaked.

“I’m sorry I ditched you to go after the professor,” Ash continued.  “I wasn’t sure what was happening to Gary, and I panicked.  I know it must have been tough under that box.  I’ll never leave you again!”

“Ash!  Cut it OUT!” cried Pikachu.  To send his point home, the mouse unleashed a powerful Thundershock.  When the attack ended, Ash was still standing though his fur was singed and his eyes were comedically wide.  Spotting this, Pikachu rubbed the back of his head.  “Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” said Ash.  He followed up by coughing out some smoke.

Later, as soon as Ash shook off the soot, the pair walked around the preserve.  They stayed away from the burnt debris from the full moon, letting the working Pokémon do their job.  Every so often, Ash would cast a wistful look at the field full of friendly Pokémon causing Pikachu to frown.  Pikachu looked up at Ash.  “So…what happened after I blacked out?”

Pausing for a moment, Ash felt Pikachu’s aura.  Though the mouse appeared calm on the outside, pity and curiosity swam underneath the surface.  Beneath those emotions was fear.  Lots of fear.  It didn’t feel like the usual fear a wild Pokémon would emanate around Ash.  Unlike the fear which drove most Pokémon to flee or attack in the case of the now missing Spearow, Pikachu’s fear seemed to spark and branch out when he made eye contact with Ash.  It wasn’t unlike the occasional sense of fear Ash felt from his mother around his own birthday.

“Ash?” Pikachu waved his tail in front of the Riolu.  “Earth to Ash.”

Ash snapped back to reality.  “Uh, you didn’t miss much,” he said casually.  “I went down, found Gary, we fought Professor Oak, the roots took me away and spat me out when the professor tried to make a giant plant monster to chase after Gary when Mrs. Charizard saved him, Mrs. Charizard blasted everything apart.”

Pikachu’s nose scrunched up in scrutiny.  “That doesn’t sound like I didn’t miss much."

The two walked a little longer before Ash stopped.  “Mom told me that Gary is right.  I’m a werePokémon.  When I grow up, I’m going to be like her and the professor.”

“Yeah, Mom gave me some of the details,” Pikachu murmured.

Once again, Ash cast a longing glance at the field full of Pokémon.  It was only going to be a matter of time before it emptied.  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Pikachu watching him with more concern pooling into his aura.

“Ash,” began Pikachu quietly.

“Things are changing fast, and I don’t know what I’m supposed to do,” Ash confessed.  “I know why I can’t go on a Pokémon journey, but that doesn’t stop me from wanting it.  That dream was all I had.  I like Pallet Town, it’s my home, that doesn’t mean I want to stay forever.”

Ash then turned his full attention to Pikachu.  It wasn’t just the lab Pokémon who were going away.  Soon, Pikachu would be kicked out of his mother’s home and go off to who knows where.  Ash put on a smile and his tail performed a slow, hopeful wag.  “I guess this means we’ve just got to enjoy each other’s company while we still can.”

At Ash’s comment, Pikachu’s ears folded back and his eyes cast their gaze towards the ground.  The mouse’s aura shifted as pity became the dominate emotion.  His lips parted and it looked like he was about to say something.

“This way!”

“No way!”

“Will you two quiet down?  I’m trying to think!”

Before Pikachu could speak, a trio of Growlithe came bowling out of the bushes.  The three were so engrossed with barking instructions and complaints at one another that when the leader spotted Ash and stopped, the other two crashed into him.

“Watch it!” snapped the head Growlithe.

“Give us a warning!” argued back another Growlithe.

“Yeb, my nove now hurtz,” mumbled the third Growlithe.  Her paw was brought up to nurse her nose which collided with the lead Growlithe’s rear end.

“Uh, you guys okay?” asked Ash, his conversation with Pikachu momentarily put on hold.

“No,” sighed the lead Growlithe.  “Have you seen the professor’s kid?”

“Gary?  No, not since yesterday,” answered Ash electing a groan out of all three Growlithes.

“So he’s disappeared again,” grumbled the lead Growlithe.

“Too bad that kid’s cursed.  He could have become a magician the way he disappears,” hummed one of the other Growlithe.

“Why are you guys looking for him?” asked Pikachu.

“Professor’s orders,” reported the lead Growlithe dutifully.  “The kid slipped out this morning and we’re one of the groups tasked with tracking him down.”

“We tracked his scent to the stream and lost him,” informed another Growlithe.

“Sounds to me like he doesn’t want to be found,” mused Pikachu as he crossed his arms thoughtfully.  “Maybe you need to change tactics.”

“That’s what I’m saying!” barked one of the other Growlithes.  She turned to her leader.  “We should use bait!  That kid is going to be hungry, and I don’t think he can hunt for himself.  Most human kids can’t do that.”

“I think he’s Pokémon form is an Eevee and they’re not exactly big time hunters either,” agreed the other Growlithe grunt.  “Except for like, tiny animals, but humans tend to turn their noses up at that stuff.”

“Fine, we’ll try bait,” sighed the lead Growlithe.  He then rounded on the other Growlithe and pointed at them with his nose.  “But neither of you are allowed to touch it!”

“Why?” coursed the other two Growlithe.

“Because last time we tried to hunt with bait you ate it!” shouted the leader.

The other two Growlithe bowed their heads in shame.  “We used pancakes,” mumbled one of the Growlithe.  “We never get to eat pancakes.”

With that, the Growlithe charged off to continue their search.  Ash wished them luck knowing they were going to need it.  Gary was hard to catch before.  Now that he was part Pokémon with the Run Away ability, he was going to be even more difficult.

“You know, maybe you should find and talk to Gary,” Pikachu suggested.  “From what I understand, the two of you are going to be stuck together.”

That might be tricky.  While Ash was able to work well enough with Gary last night, the times the Eevee snapped at Ash signaled that his antagonistic attitude had returned.  Ash wasn’t in a rush to see how the new wereEevee would treat him now that they no longer had a common enemy to fight.  Especially since As was the one who cursed him.

The conversation from yesterday was still fresh in Ash’s mind.  He could still remember being afraid to confessing that the was the one who bit Gary.

“It was the gas,” said Professor Oak at the time.  He didn’t look mad, just stiff.  The Leafeon’s eyes seem to stare past Ash and toward the remains of The Kennel, still computing what just happened.  “The gas was made to hamper a werePokémon’s energy and muscle control.  It still works on you in your regular Pokémon form.”

“Sam, are you okay?” asked Nidoking.  His tail coiled around the Leafeon, and his ears flattened back in concern.

“I didn’t bite him too hard,” Ash said uneasily.  He scooted around some dirt with one of his feet.  “And it was just last night, maybe there’s a way I can take it back?”

“No, there’s no way wot reverse it,” replied Oak.  His voice sounded dry.

Whatever invisible weight Ash felt like he was carrying, it’s mass seemed to double.  “Professor-”

The Leafeon raised a paw.  “You were at the wrong place at the wrong time, Ash.  I can’t fault you for that.  Just, just please continue being Gary’s friend.  He’s now a member of the pack and it will take some adjusting for everyone.”

Back in the present, Ash answered Pikachu’s suggestion.  “I’ll try and help.  I just hope Gary will let me.  I don’t want to be stuck with someone who hates me.”

Again, Pikachu’s ears drooped.  Seeing as the self-pity wasn’t getting him anywhere, Ash decided to change the subject.  “How are you family doing?  Mom didn’t get to their territory last night, right?”

“No, she didn’t get that far.  Jose is doing just fine,” informed Pikachu.  He became more hesitant.  “Mom told me…she told me to send you her best regards.”

Even if he didn’t have an aura sense, Ash could see that Pikachu was holding something back.  At first he wanted to press; however he decided against it.  He had enough to deal with at the moment and just wanted to enjoy a peaceful day with his friend.

Persian

Meanwhile, in an undisclosed location, a Persian strutted his way through a series of iron clad hallways.  Every so often he would pass by some humans wearing uniforms emblazoned with large, red “R’s” or another Pokémon.  Both humans and Pokémon made sure to give him a wide berth and some of the Pokémon even paused to greet the large cat.

“Good morning, sir!” squeaked a Raticate.

“Morning,” nodded Persian in a manner most composed.

“Looking good today!  Did you just get groomed?” kissed up a passing by Koffing.

“Get back to work,” hummed Persian, soaking in the praise.

As the boss’s right hand Pokémon, Persian enjoyed a special spot at the top of the social hierarchy of Team Rocket.  It was his job to intimidate any visitors who were graced with his master’s presence and act as the last line of defense if anyone tried anything funny.  Persian was proud to say that he wasn’t just a mere lap cat, though he did enjoy more than his fair share of pampering.

On slow days like today, Persian liked to take on some special chores to stretch his legs.  Walk around, check on the minions, give them a reminder that their boss is always watching.  Today, Persian was looking for a particular set of minions.

It didn’t take long for Persian to find his query.  The classy cat was making his way over a ceiling support beam when he noticed a certain, talking Meowth and his human partners.  Crouching, Persian listened in on the trio’s conversation.

“Humph, you’d think they’d hire an interior decorator by now,” huffed the female.  What was her name?  Bessie?  “How long are they going to make us wait?”

Persian snorted.  He had half a mind to slink off and nap for a couple hours before fetching the trio if that was her attitude.

“Didn’t Matori tell us that we weren’t supposed to be back until we found something valuable?” questioned the male human.  Was his name Jeff?  He looked like a Jeff.

“It seemed like dat, but she changed her tone after the boss overheard dat we found da Route One Monster,” mussed Meowth.  He folded his arms and thought for a moment until his face brightened up.  “Hey!  Maybe da boss was impressed by our discovery and wants to thank us in person!”

That seemed to brighten the two humans’ moods.  The woman pumped a fist.  “And with his backing, we’ll get some proper funds and equipment for a change!  No more working side jobs to scrounge money for robots!”

“And that’s just the start!” gushed the man.  “If we capture the Route One Monster, we’ll be on the fast track to the top!  Promotions!  Raises!  VIP party invites!”

“I think what you mean to say is when we capture da Route One Monster,” corrected Meowth.

Persian rolled his eyes.  How can a trio of losers have such inflated egos?  Bessie and Jeff were said to initially show some promise.  Both were masters of disguise, a basic requirement if you wanted to be a field agent, and both had shown to have a talent in mechanics and engineering.  Then it came time to put them in action, and they flopped.

It seemed that no matter where they were stationed they managed to bump into some kid who managed to foil their job.  At this point, Persian was firmly convinced his master kept these clowns around for the laughs.  Granted Persian never heard his master laugh.  There was the occasional amused chuckle, but no real laugh.  But Persian couldn’t think of any other reason to keep these wastes of spaces on staff, so comic relief it was.

Then there was the human wannabe Meowth.  His track record was pretty much the same as his human teammates.  Simultaneously promising and disappointing.  Persian supposed that he was slightly impressed that the smaller cat took his human sideshow act so far as to be able to walk and talk like a man.  Then again, what did all that effort get him at the end?

Now tired of eves dropping, Persian decided to finish his job and fetch the three for their meeting with his master.  With stunning grace, Persian dropped down in front of the trio.  His sudden appearance startled the three causing them to jump and scream in surprise.  Persian just smugly smiled.  He loved his job.

Meowth was the first to recover.  “Good afternoon, Persian,” said Meowth.  Though his word choice was formal, it carried far more venom than any of the other Pokémon who lurked around base.  “To what do we owe the pleasure?”

“Oh the pleasure is all mine,” purred Persian, soaking in the lesser cat’s obvious envy.  “I’ve come to take you to the boss.”

“Is dat so,” huffed Meowth.  He looked off, trying to look snooty.  “Guess da boss is bored with you already seeing as how you’re bein’ reduced to an errand boy.”

“Not at all.  I’m only taking a moment to stretch my legs,” Persian flippantly replied.  To emphasize his point, he stretched out his legs and back in the usual feline manner.  “Usually I’m cooped up in the boss’s office.  Listening to the latest plans, offering an ear for him to scratch when he needs to keep his hands busy, the usual.  It’s tough work being his right hand Pokémon.”

It took all his self-restraint to keep Persian from snickering at Meowth’s fuming face.  Meowth must have noticed the amused glint in the larger cat’s eye because he quickly recomposed himself.  The smaller cat folded his arms.  “Sounds like the expected level of work for a house pet.  Just cause you’re literally sitting next to the boss don’ mean you’re his right hand Pokémon.  That title belongs to the Pokémon who actually do the dirty work needed to keep this organization runnin’.”

“Pokémon like you?” smirked Persian.

“Obviously,” snipped Meowth.  “Unlike you, I’m putting in the time to capture Pokémon, fix machines, and, oh, let’s not forget, acting as the only Pokémon interpreter around here.”

“Only interpreter, right,” chuckled Persian.  A part of Persian wished that Meowth could somehow claw his way up the ranks just so that he could see the look on Meowth’s face when he realized there were more qualified interpreters at the boss’s beck and call.

“In speaking of interpreter, do you mind letting the rest of us in on your conversation?” asked Bessie, clearly annoyed at the language barrier.

“Eh, ignore him.  He don’t have anything important to say.  As usual,” said Meowth.  That comment earned him a smack in the back of the head via Persian’s tail.

“Follow me,” said Persian as he began walking away from the three.  He lead the trio through the base to a dark room in the back.

This room had no windows and very little light.  Not that Persian needed much.  Thanks to his feline vision, he could make out the lavish office furniture complemented by the high tech monitors hanging around the back wall.  Sitting in front of the monitors was a man in a large chair.  The man wore a business suit and had his dark hair sleeked back.

Persian proudly trotted forward and took his place at his master’s side.  “Ah hem.  Master, I have retrieved the three you-”

“We have answered your summons, boss!” said Meowth, cutting off Persian.  The two cats then proceeded to glare at each other for being so rude.

Bessie cleared her throat and straightened her stance.  “Giovanni, sir!”

“We are ready for whatever mission you need us for,” followed up Jeff.

With just a raise of his hand, Giovanni caused the trio to settle down.  He then spoke in his usual calm and cool tone.  “I want you to tell me what happened during your attempted robbery of the laboratory.”

“Of course!  Well, it all started when you sent us to the Pallet Town area.  We went right to work thoroughly combing the area around the town for that most rare and powerful Pokémon that no one else had been able to capture,” began Jeff.  “It was during our search that we found a lead.”

“Curtesy of yours truly,” supplied Meowth, standing tall and proud.  “I interrogated the local Pokémon populace and managed to procure some information most humans would overlook.  Namely in regard to a secret area in the local laboratory.”

“So, we hatched a plan,” continued Bessie.  “We snuck down to the deepest layer of the lab and took out the guards.  It was then that we confronted the Route One Monster.  She was big.”

“Nasty!” added on Jeff.

“And persistent,” chimed in Meowth.

Bessie took back the reigns of the story.  “We managed to fight her to a standstill.  However, even with our skills and equipment-”

“Which we are very grateful for!” said Jeff.

“She still managed to get the jump on us.  We barely managed to escape with our lives,” concluded Bessie.  She gave the master a deep bow.  “Sir, it is our opinion that this beast would make an excellent addition to Team Rocket’s arsenal.  We humbly ask that you lend us more resources and manpower to capture this Pokémon for your glory.”

For a moment, the master was silent.  He studied the trio with eyes that pierced straight through the room’s dim lighting.  Finally he spoke.  “Look at me.”

All three of the grunts straight at the master.  When they did, their bodies slackened, and their eyes grew wider.  Persian didn’t need to look up at his trainer to know the man’s eyes were now emitting a faint, red glow.  Giovanni spoke again.  “Tell me what happened.  The unexaggerated truth.”

Again, the three recounted their trip to Pallet Town.  This time, they sounded like a group of monotone drones.  This retelling added in certain details which did not cast them in such a favorable light.  As it turned out, they found out about the secret lab lair by overhearing some local Pokémon gossip, not through a well-organized interrogation.  This was after they nearly died by ticking off the local Gyarados.

Much to Persian’s surprised, it sounded like they were able to surprise the Pokémon guarding the lab.  Though it should be noted, it was only one Pokémon and a pretty old one by the sounds of it.  Then they were ambushed by a kid and a couple of his Pokémon.  Figures.

Like with the lab’s guards, the trio’s brush with the “Route One Monster” was not as clean as they tried to make it sound.  They were by no means on the same footing as whatever it was they bumped into.  If anything, it sounded like they only escaped because they were lucky the professor’s Pokémon (the true competent heroes of the story) took pity on them.

When their tale of the encounter ended, the three then began to talk about their phone call with Matori and their trip back to base.  Giovanni held up his hand.  “That is enough.”

Those words seemed to break the three out of their trance.  “That is?” asked Jeff.

“Go rest up in the lounge,” ordered the master.  “You’ll be given a new assignment soon.”

“Yes, sir!  Right away, sir!” coursed the three.  The all left the room with an extra stride to their step, feeling as though they did something to gain the master’s favor.

“Do you seriously believe any of that?” asked Persian as soon as the trio closed the door behind them.

“I ordered them to tell the truth,” replied Giovanni, leaning back in his chair.

The classy cat’s tail twitched.  By know he knew his master’s hypnotic eyes were potent, but they had their limits.  “What they think is the truth,” pointed out Persian.  “Have you ever listened to those three talk themselves up?  They could brainwash their tiny minds into thinking you’d want something as worthless as a rodent!”

“Perhaps,” conceded Giovanni.  He got up and walked over to his desk and began pouring himself a drink.  “However, I have reason to believe there’s some substance to these claims.”

The mob boss pressed several buttons on his desk and a couple of the screens lite up.  They displayed various articles from old newspapers and internet forums began to populate the screens.  Persian’s eyes narrowed as he studied the displays.  Giovanni did remember that Persian couldn’t read, right?  Seeing as how his master began to explain the articles, the answer was yes.

“The sightings for this monster date back almost a decade with eyewitnesses describing a large, violent, canine Pokémon.  The first of these sightings was at a festival where survivors claimed to have witnessed either a large Arcanine or a Lucario-like creature ripping the place apart.  For a while, people who lived in the area claimed to every so often hear odd noises or even see a large canine,” Giovanni narrated.  “There were even reports of hordes of Pokémon corpses which usually appeared after a full moon.  I believe these descriptors match a familiar monster.”

“You think the professor has been hiding a werePokémon pack?” questioned Persian staring at a blurry picture of a Pokémon skeptically.

“It seems likely,” replied Giovanni.  “I doubt an accomplished Pokémon researcher would miss such a critical discovery.  Even if it’s just an average Pokémon gone rogue, he should have been able to capture and contain it by now.  This implies that he’s either covering for the pack or could even be a part of it.”

That old man from the old radio show could be a werePokémon?  In Persians mind he could see an old werePokémon covered with grey fur and walking on shaky limbs.  Why bother going after such a worn down creature?  Even if he was an ex-champion, Team Rocket already had fresher blood.

Catching the look on Persian’s face, Giovanni smirked.  “Do you disapprove of my target choice, Persian?”

“Uh no, master!” Persian immediately responded.  He straightened his posture and wiped off any look of scrutiny that was on his face.  “I was just wondering how we were going to convince this man to join with us.  You know what they say about old humans.  They’re supposed to be stubborn and, uh, not very good a fighting.  But I’m sure your brilliant mind knows how we can work around that.”

“I am not interested in the good professor for his combat capabilities,” said Giovanni, answering Persian’s obvious concern.

“Right,” said Persian.  He silently berated himself.  Obviously, they weren’t looking to add a geriatric werePokémon to their operation.  That would just be silly.  “You want his research.”

“It may prove useful, though that all depends if any of his studies coincide with our goals.  Professor Oak is well known for his studies in human Pokémon relationships,” Giovanni hummed.

“Mm, not our concern,” commented Persian.

“Persian, do you understand why I started giving my grunts overt uniforms that link them back to me and have them recite a theatrical moto in the middle of their job?”

That change up in the operation did strike Persian as odd.  Back before his master received his new abilities, Team Rocket kept their heads lower.  They robbed Pokémon, ran casinos, financed experiments most others would consider unethical.  At some point after his master’s transformation, some of the grunts began receiving instructions to turn up the theatrics and wear more overt uniforms.

“Is it to promote group cohesion?” Persian asked slowly.

“It is for bait,” supplied Giovanni.

Persian cocked his head.  “Bait?”

“We won’t win a contest of subtilty with our current opposition.  Despite sharing my affliction, they’ve managed to remain secret through the centuries,” explained Giovanni.  It was at moments like this that Persian felt that his trainer was talking to himself more than anyone else in the room.  “I’ve already managed to garner their attention.  Now I just need to draw them out again.”

Persian suddenly felt uneasy.  Draw them out again?  Their first battle was bad enough.  Normally Persian and the rest of his team could rely on their master’s cunning to achieve victory, but the Noivern lord was too powerful.  For a split second, Persian considered protesting, until he remembered his master never did anything without reason.  “So you’re using the grunts to lure our the Noiverns so we can ambush them?”

“Not so such an ambush as a test,” muttered Giovanni.  He took a sip of his drink.  “Last time I made the mistake of treating the Noivern lord as a man with Pokémon powers.  I thought that because I had managed to remain untouched as a normal human I could topple him once I was on even ground.”

Yes, Persian remembered.  The fear when his master managed to find the Noivern clan’s darkest secret.  The exhilaration when his master harnessed the power.  The belief that they were invincible when the confrontation inevitably came to pass.

The narrow escape when Giovanni realized the sleeping dragon he was poking was more than proverbial.

“If I want to win this game, I need to know what my opponent is capable of firsthand.  Not through dusty old eyewitness accounts and fairy tales,” continued Giovanni.  “The fact that he hasn’t snuffed me out yet tells me that he is not all powerful.  But the fact that he has sent some of his agents to stop my own means that he won’t sit by passively.  He’s going to want to recruit more people to his inner circle, people who already know about the supernatural.  That way he can raise his numbers without exposing his true nature.”

“Which is why you’re zeroing in on Pallet Town,” said Persian, his ears perking in realization.  Of course.  If a famous scientist and former champion was already involved in the supernatural, why wouldn’t the Noiverns want someone like that on their payroll.  If Professor Oak wasn’t already with the Noiverns, they were going to try and recruit him.

Then again, this was all speculation.  Persian looked up at his master.  “But how will we know the Noiverns took the bait?”

“We send a scout,” Giovanni simply answered.  He pressed a few more buttons which caused the screens to switch from images of articles to the profile of one of one of the more elite Rockets.  In Persian’s humble opinion, sending this man might be overkill.  Then again, you should never play safe when messing with vampires.

The agent in question was a highly skilled thief and trainer.  He managed to fend off multiple of their agents before Giovanni, very much impressed by his fighting both as a trainer and a Pokémon, managed to talk him into joining.  Unlike the other members of the man’s pack, the man was not a born werePokémon and thus knew a life beyond the inhospitable desert his pack was stranded in.  The rest of the werePokémon were content in there self-imprisonment, but this man knew better.

He knew there were greener pastures worth fighting for.

There were several rings before the agent answered his com.  When his voice came through, so did the background noise.  Persian could hear the humming of multiple machines as well as the agitated shrieks of a loud bird which was barely audible over the howling wind.

The agent reported in.  “Giovanni, sir.”

“Report,” ordered Giovanni.

“The target is secure.  Unfortunately, it did not have the item we were looking for,” responded the agent.

“Good work,” nodded Giovanni.  “I am giving you a new assignment.  Use one of the copters to head over to Pallet Town and scout the lab.  Keep a low profile.  I’ll send Archer to oversee the transfer of your current acquisition.”

“Understood,” replied the man.  He then promptly hung up.  Short, sweet, and to the point

Persian took a moment to savor the bird’s cries.  As a kitten, Persian’s mother had told him stories of the ancient Pokémon who carved out the world and embodied nature itself.  She told him about how only the strongest Pokémon would be considered worthy enough to even lay their eyes on those legends let alone challenge them.

Now the scales were shifting.  It was only a matter of time before the old world order was torn a thunder, and a new power took over the vacated thrones.  And Persian had a front row seat.  While his master continued to pontificate on what to do next, Persian helped himself to a chair and listened.  It was good to be bad.

Pikachu

“Made it this far,” Pikachu muttered to himself.  “I just need to knock.”

Night had fallen and Pikachu could not sleep.  His mind kept racing back to Ash’s forlorn expression which never seemed to completely leave his face, no matter how hard the Riolu tried.  It was during this episode of insomnia that a thought came to Pikachu.  A possibility.  A crazy idea that Pikachu knew he had to at least look into or else he’d regret it.

Silently, Pikachu snuck out of his family’s den.  He knew his mother wouldn’t approve, but he was an adult now.  He had to start making decisions for himself at some point and now seemed like a solid starting point.

Soon, Pikachu found himself outside the front door of the laboratory.  He approached to knock before freezing.  For a brief second, his mind was flooded with images of the wereLeafeon and its wide jaws.

Fear gripped Pikachu and he turned to run away.  The mouse only stopped when his mind shook off the wereLeafeon and remembered the face of the sorrowful Riolu.  Hardening his resolve, Pikachu turned back and charged at the front door several times.

Knocks made, it was only a matter of time before someone answered the door.  Pikachu froze and stared in horror.  Staring down at Pikachu was the wereLeafeon.  It was reared up on its hind legs, gnarled, clawed hands opening the door, and peering at the smaller mouse with its wide, emotionless, glowing eyes.

“Pikachu?  You’re up late.  Do you need something?” asked the wereLeafeon, head cocked curiously.

Pikachu shook his head and looked back up.  The wereLeafeon was gone.  In its place was Professor Oak.  It was just Pikachu’s imagination.

“Uh,” Pikachu felt his ears lean back against his scalp.  He backed away at first but then caught himself and stood his ground.  “Can I speak with one of your Pokémon?”

Professor Oak stared at Pikachu for a moment.  At first Pikachu thought he would say no, then he noticed the man’s eyes.  Baggy.  Poor guy must have hardly gotten a wink of sleep.  Finally, he spoke.  “Sure, come in.”

The inside of the Oaks’ house was predictably larger than the Ketchums’.  It also seemed to be a bit livelier as Pikachu could hear a lot of noise coming from outside, most likely the Pokémon he saw earlier that day were still working on cleaning up and reconstructing the underground bunker.

Pikachu snapped to attention when he heard Professor Oak clear his throat.  “I understand that while transformed I attempted to do you harm.  I want you to know I am truly sorry and if you need anything else, just ask.”

“It’s okay,” Pikachu quickly replied.  He hadn’t forgotten his conversation with his mother, Pikachu knew the professor wasn’t in the right state of mind when he attacked.  That being said, he really didn’t want to be in the same room with the cursed human for any longer than necessary.

Reading between the lines, Professor Oak thankfully didn’t press the issue.  Instead, he lead Pikachu into his kitchen where the two found Mrs. Charizard chugging down a glass of water.  Professor Oak addressed her.  Without looking around, the dragoness spoke to Professor Oak.  “Nidoking is looking for you, Sammy.  I think he wants to talk with you about the shipments you ordered earlier.”

“I’ll see to him,” replied Oak.  “While I’m out, could you please attend to Pikachu?”

Now looking over at the two, Charizard’s brow raised when she spotted Pikachu.  “Up on your feet already?”

“Yeah, uh, thank you for saving me,” Pikachu said awkwardly.  He waited for the professor to leave the room before continuing.  When Pikachu refused to leave as well, Mrs. Charizard began to study the mouse.  In the wild, it would be considered a challenge to stand in the presence of an apex predator and refuse to leave.  Obviously, Pikachu wasn’t here to pick a fight.  This Pokémon seemed to be the only member of Professor Oak’s team that was available at the moment and Pikachu needed a huge favor.

Unsure how civilized Pokémon negotiate, Pikachu decided to start out polite.  “So, how are you doing tonight?”

Mrs. Charizard’s eyes narrowed.  “What do you want?”

Alright, looks like they were skipping pleasantries.  Pikachu straightened up and tried to look as serious and mature as possible.  “Can you please train me to fight werePokémon?”

Clearly, Mrs. Charizard wasn’t expecting that.  Her head reeled back, and her eyes widened in surprise.  She studied Pikachu before her eyes narrowed again, and she began walking towards the door.  “No.  Good night.”

“Wait!” shouted Pikachu.  He charged over to place himself between Mrs. Charizard and the door.  “You’re just going to turn me down like that?”

“I have no obligation to take you on as an apprentice,” snorted Mrs. Charizard.  “You’re small, young, weak.  All I’d be doing is putting extra effort into preparing some werePokémon’s next meal.”

“I’m not weak!” growled Pikachu with a defiant scowl.  He absolutely hated Pokémon who thought size was everything.  “You’ve never seen me fight!”

“You’re not strong enough to survive a bout with a werePokémon,” replied Mrs. Charizard dismissively.  “I know that much.”

“That’s why I want to be trained!” Pikachu pressed.

“Find yourself a human.  Preferable one that’s not cursed,” said Mrs. Charizard.  She stepped around Pikachu and began walking away.  “They’ll train you.  Maybe.”

At first, Pikachu was about to continue the shouting match.  He then realized that he wasn’t doing himself any favors, so he switched tactics.  Taking a deep breath, Pikachu settled down.  “Please, I want to help Ash.  He’s my only friend outside of the mob and I don’t want him to suffer alone.”

That caused Charizard to pause.  She looked over her shoulder making Pikachu think she was about to relent a little.  Instead, her glare just seemed to harden.  “Pity is a poor reason to dedicate your life to a cause.  Many a human and Pokémon got in over their heads because they felt bad enough to get involved in someone else’s affairs.  You shouldn’t get yourself killed because of an emotion.”

“What about you?  You were putting your life on the line to help me and my friends,” Pikachu pointed out.

“That was for the sake of my family living on this ranch and for Sammy,” Mrs. Charizard rebutted.  “I owe Sammy everything.  He’s brought me good health, fame, a husband, and thanks to his breeding program my bloodline has been assured.  It’s thanks to him I hold many privileges that most Pokémon would only dream off.”

“Ash saved my life!” Pikachu fiercely pointed out.

“He’s also going to end it if you’re not careful!” Mrs. Charizard shot back.  “Repaying someone for a good dead is not enough!”

“Well, what is enough!?” asked Pikachu.  If this old lizard thought she was going to out stubborn Pikachu, she had another thing coming.  “Does there even have to be enough?  Someone needs help and I want to help him!  Shouldn’t that be enough?”

Sighing, Mrs. Charizard turned back around and continued to walk away.  “Go home.  If you want to find a human so badly, find a trainer and challenge him.  If you’re strong enough, you’ll end up on someone’s team in no time.”

Pikachu’s glare hardened.  He wasn’t a fan of certain rodent stereotypes, but when push came to shove he wasn’t above stooping to a new low.  Time to play dirty.

“Alright, if I can’t help guard the werePokémon then I’ve decided what I want to do with my life,” declared Pikachu.  “I’m going to move into this lab as a pest.”

This announcement caused Mrs. Charizard to spin around.  “You’re going to what?!”

“You heard me,” said Pikachu.  He smugly folded his arms.  “I’m going to steal your food, burrow into your walls, chew on your electric chords.  The usual mouse stuff.”

As Pikachu listed the ways he’d fulfill his pest duties, Mrs. Charizard stomped up to tower over the mouse.  “If you want to be a pest, you better be ready for the consequences.  You’ll no longer be a visiting kid.  You’ll be my prey.”  Her lips curled back to reveal her sharp teeth.

“Okay,” replied Pikachu.  He closed his eyes, seemingly unbothered by the threat of being eaten.  “Just be ready to tell Ash what happened to me.  Poor guy doesn’t have a lot going on at the moment.  Sure would hate to be the one who has to tell him how I died.”

One of Pikachu’s eyelids cracked open to take a look at Mrs. Charizard.  The dragoness looked like she was about to blow a gasket.  Her body trembled with rage and heat radiated off of her skin creating an unpleasant smokey smell.  The veins in her eye bulged and her nostrils flared.

Then, much to Pikachu’s surprise, Mrs. Charizard burst out laughing.  “Come to the lab tomorrow at the crack of dawn.  Not a moment later.”

“You’re going to train me?” Pikachu asked, both of his ears perked.

“Train you?  No, I’m not going to train you,” purred Mrs. Charizard.  Her lips curled into a cruel smirk as she bent down to Pikachu’s eye level.  Even though she wasn’t breathing fire, her hot breath made Pikachu feel as though he was about to be set ablaze.  “I’m going to break you.”

Oak

While Pikachu and Charizard talked, Professor Oak went out back to check on the construction zone.  Though most of the burnt debris had been cleared away, the air was still thick with the smell of charcoal.  The grass had been completely incinerated leaving only a field of ash and dirt which would rise in small clouds as Samuel walked.

The Pokémon professor soon found himself stumbling thanks in no small part to a miniature earthquake.  There was a series of loud crashes emanating from the construction site followed by a bunch of angry shouts and more than a few expletives.  As soon as the quake died down, Oak rushed forward to check the site.

When Oak arrived, he found himself overlooking a massive, disorganized ditch.  All the Pokémon that were working on the site were busy digging themselves out of what looked like a rockslide.  Various ground and burrowing Pokémon were digging themselves out of the disaster zone, thankfully unharmed.

“Ah man,” groaned a Raticate.  “We’re back to square one!”

“What was that about?” grumbled a Golem who was shaking the dirt out from between his shell’s scales.

A Sandslash’s head popped out from the rubble.  “I think Dugtrio caused it.  HEY!  DUGTRIO!”

Sandslash’s call was answered by what looked like three Pokémon clustered together.  The three were rounded, brown heads with beady eyes and bulbus, pink noses.  All three were shivering, the wide look in their eyes indicating fear.

Frowning, Oak stepped down into the filled in hole and walked up to the shaking Pokémon.  “Are you alright, Dugtrio?”

Dugtrio jolted and turned to look up at Oak.  “S-sorry, sir,” said all three heads in perfect synchronicity.  “We were startled.  We didn’t mean to fill in the hole.”

Though he wasn’t feeling too happy about the setback in construction nor the endangerment to the other Pokémon volunteers, Oak couldn’t find it in himself to be angry with the mole Pokémon.  “It’s alright, Dugtrio-”

“No it’s not!” growled the Golem  “What’s the big idea?  You don’t see the rest of us dropping the earth on anyone else!”

“It was an accident!” defended Dugtrio.  “We were carefully carving out the dirt when we-we came across-across…”  The three left their sentence unfinished.  Instead they turned to face a section of the cliff that was more intact than the others.

Curious, Oak approached the area in question.  He was quickly joined by Nidoking who also regarded the area with curiosity.  The Golem, still grumbling about the landslide, came over and tucked his limbs into his shell.  The shell began spinning through the ground using the move Dig to unearth what freaked out the Dugtrio.  It didn’t take long for the rock tortoise to find his target.

Sticking out from the cliff side was a Diglett, the pre-evolved form of a Dugtrio.  A dead Diglett.  It stuck out sideways, its body flopping at an unnatural angle indicating it’s neck was broken.  The top half of its head was crudely ripped open allowing the dirty, rotting brains to flop out.

“That’s it?” asked the Raticate.  He gave Dugtrio a scrutinous stare.  “It’s just a corpse.  Haven’t you ever picked apart one of those before?”

“We are not scavengers!” objected the Dugtrio.  “We only ate bugs and occasionally bug Pokémon, but only freshly hunted ones.  We don’t go looking for rotting bodies!”

Not many Kanto Pokémon would.  Wild Pokémon tended to be very through when it came to eating a prey Pokémon.  If the initial hunter couldn’t finish a meal, it wouldn’t take too long for a scavenger or two to come along and polish the corpse off.  It was why Pokémon corpses were so rare to come across in the wild.  A predatory Pokémon knew its prey was every bit as sentient as it was and as such treated the remains respectfully by making sure that Pokémon’s death wasn’t wasted.

Most humans observed this phenomena and thought that wild Pokémon were just being opportunistic.  To be fair, it made sense from a survival perspective.  Why waste a meal when hunting a fresh kill meant going after a prey animal that could more than hold its own in a fight?  No one would have been able to guess they were observing a society avoiding a cultural taboo.  When Oak learned about this, he spent weeks trying to figure out how to publish his findings in a paper without sounding like a raving madman who claimed he could talk to Pokémon.  No such luck.

Now, while most Pokémon had never seen a corpse left to rot Samuel in fact had.  As a scientist he performed more than his fare shares of dissection and autopsies back in school as a part of his Pokémon anatomy course.  In fact, he still had a small section of his lab dedicated to preserving and studying deceased Pokémon.

Most Pokémon avoided that room like the plague, though there were some instances in the past when some had attempted to break in to liberate the cadavers.  At the time Oak thought they were just looking for an extra meal, now with the benefit of hindsight he wondered if they were trying to correct what they preserved as a disrespect to the dead.  In any case, Oak had made sure to make it clear to any uneasy Pokémon that he was not looking to desecrate the dead.  Just learn from them.

Nidoking bent down to sniff the Diglett.  “Skin’s burnt.  It was probably caught up in Charizard’s Blast Burn.  But, uh…”

“The ripped open scalp was what did it in,” finished Oak.  “This poor thing died before the explosion.”

Having followed Oak to school and sticking by him through his studies, his team had a tougher stomach for how humans treated dead Pokémon when it came to matters of science and medicine.  As Charizard put it: “Humans drew the short end of the stick in Arceus’s design.  Tinkering with things is what you’ve guys got going for you, so do what you’ve got to do.”

Despite Charizard’s reassurances, even she never exited her ball when they visited the Pokémon Body Farm.  It was a facility which was dedicated to seeing how Pokémon natural decompose in various conditions with grass Pokémon usually being the fastest to rot while rocks seemed to take decades.  Only Nidoking choose to occasionally come out to tour the grounds with Samuel.  At first the university tried to shoo the drill Pokémon away, thinking it was going to try and eat their specimens.  It was as Nidoking was curiously investigating a Steelix (the oldest corpse on the farm) that Oak had to explain to the facility that his Pokémon was well trained and would not mess with their studies.

Back in the present, Oak continued to study the Diglett’s skull.  It didn’t take a genius to figure out what happened to this little one.  Given how the dirt around it was looser than the rest of the dirt caked into the cliffside, Oak was willing to bet that after his other half ripped open the Diglett’s head it tried to flee into the ground before succumbing to blood loose.  Deep enough into the dirt to avoid the brunt of the Blast Burn, though not deep enough to avoid being cooked nor deep enough to avoid the cleanup crew.

A part of Oak wanted to track down this Diglett’s family or friends and let them know what happened.  Then again, anyone who was close to this Diglett probably put two and two together.  Attempts to make amends with people close to his victims had always been rocky.

As careful as Oak and Delia were to keep their curses under control, there were a few accidents over the years.  Back when they were first cursed, there was a breakout which resulted in the slaughter of a herd of Tauros.  Oak couldn’t tell the farmer the identity of the perpetrators for obvious reasons.  The best he could do was pay the man for the remains and make sure the uneaten meat from the herd didn’t go to waste.  Ever since then the local cattle made it a point to move to the opposite end of their field whenever they saw him coming.  Fair enough.

“If you need to take a break, nobody will think less of you,” Oak told the Dugtrio.  The three headed mole cast all their eyes at the ground in shame but ultimately took the leave and dived underground and out of sight.  Satisfied, Oak turned to the rest of the Pokémon present.  “In fact, why don’t all of you get some rest.  We’ll pick this up tomorrow.”

Reactions were mixed.  Some of the Pokémon didn’t need to be told twice and began trekking back to their preferred habitats.  Others cast Oak concerned looks before following suit.  Nidoking lingered behind and followed Oak when he headed back to the lab.

“I think that was the last corpse,” Nidoking guessed.  “We probably won’t have any more freakouts.  Probably.”

“I’m sure you’re right.  But I think everyone needs a break for the evening,” Samuel said while offering Nidoking a tired smile.

“Mm, that includes you too,” Nidoking grunted.

“I will, I will,” Oak dismissively waved.  “I just need to check a couple of things first.  Rework some of the plans, this cave in is definitely going to set ups back, check on my orders, see how the new gas is synthesizing, hopefully the quake didn’t break anything.  I should probably also check on Gary too.  He was in his room, though the boy has been stubbornly avoiding me.  I hope he at least got my note.  It is easier on your body if you transform before going to bed instead of changing while you sleep, learned that one the hard way-”

“Hey,” Nidoking’s firm voice broke Samuel out of his rambling.  The purple Pokémon gently placed a clawed hand on his trainer’s shoulder.  “We’re going to figure this out.”

“…We will,” sighed Oak.  He waited for Nidoking to vacate the room before grabbing a piece of paper off his fax machine.  As much as he wanted to believe they could build a brand new, completely escape proof facility within a month, he knew this project was far from fool proof.  Today was most likely going to be the first in a series of problems and setbacks, that was just how ambitious projects were.  Though Oak didn’t like it, he’d be a fool if he didn’t explore all his options.

Sitting down, Professor Oak typed up an email to the address that was given to him by the Noivern lord.

Victory Road

Deep inside the caves that decked the mountains near the Indigo Plateau, a hunt was underway.  Sniffing the ground of a particularly large cavern was a Pokémon not native to the area.  This Pokémon was a black canine with an orange snout and underbelly.  White horns grew from her head, and her back was decorated with white, rib-like ridges.  Her long tail ended in a triangular tip giving her a somewhat demonic appearance.  On her four feet were two pairs of Heavy Boots, items meant to protect her if her quarry decided to leave a few traps for her.

This Pokémon was known as a Houndoom, and she was sniffing around the former campsite of some humans who shouldn’t have been there.  Houndoom wrinkled her nose.  It didn’t take long for her to pick up these humans’ scents, these humans seemed to be carrying some large, foreign equipment which strongly contrasted with the smell of the trainers who would normally pass through these caverns with nothing more than their Pokémon and a backpack of camping equipment for their pre-league training.

“Have you found anything, Houndoom?” asked Houndoom’s trainer.

“Hard to say,” replied Houndoom.  “They were clearly here; I can smell their persons and equipment.  However I can’t tell which direction they went.”

“I take that as a no,” sighed the Houndoom’s trainer.  She gave her partner a quick glance which he understood was her way of asking him to translate.

The boy who was accompanying the Houndoom and her trainer gave the air a quick sniff.  His nose was nowhere near as powerful as a Pokémon’s in this form, though it was stronger than the average human’s.  “She said she can’t get a lock on their trail.  There’s a strong stench that heads off in three different direction.  They probably used some Weezings or Muks to mask the smell of what they were working on and where it went.”

“So we can’t use scent,” grumbled the Houndoom’s trainer.  The woman walked through the abandoned campsite and scrunched up her nose at the foul smell that wafted throughout the area.  She finally find what she was looking for and bent down.  “Houndoom, here girl.”

Houndoom was immediately at her master’s side.  “Yes, ma’am?”

“This was near the site where you’ve been doing an awful lot of smelling.  They were working on something here, right?” prompted the trainer, studying a strand of green hair that was a stark contrast to her own silvery-blue hair.

“That is my belief,” barked Houndoom.  Though her trainer couldn’t understand a word she said, her voice carried enough professional affirmation that the message got over the language barrier.

“Then let’s take a gamble,” smirked the trainer.  She reached into a pouch on her belt.  Some of the golden, rounded ornaments that hung from belt jingled as she fished around.  Finally, she found what she was looking for.  The woman brought out a small vial containing a clear liquid.  She smirked and removed the vial’s stopper so she could drop in the hair.  “Let’s try another tracking method.”

“If we use a tracker spell, we’ll be sacrificing the element of surprise,” noted the boy as he watched the hair dissolve in the vial’s liquid, his eyes narrowed.  He was not spellcaster, but he’d seen this spell enough times to know how it played out.  Once activated, the spell would zoom off towards its intended target only coming to a stop when it literally hit said target.

“Which is why I’ll be fighting Team Rocket.  I’ll serve as the distraction while you sneak around.  If they’ve already captured the legendary, you set it free while I keep them occupied.  If they haven’t then you get to sit back and watch the show with your usual sunny smile.”

The boy was about to protest, he would have preferred a bit more of a plan, however the spell was cast and the liquid within the vial transformed into a white orb of light.  The orb flew out of its container and down a tunnel, forcing the two humans and the hellhound to give chase.  As the boy followed the orb down the twisting tunnels and turns of the cave, he stuck close to the shadows.

Continuing to stick to the shadows, the boy hung back when the orb darted into a massive cavern.  Before the boy saw what was inside, he felt it.  A massive heat wave hit the trio making it feel like they were about to walk into a brick oven.

This heat was accompanied by numerous shouts.  Some complaining about said heat, some shouting instructions.  All were dwarfed by a loud, booming voice who made his displeasure known.

“Heathens!  Scum!  Release me for a proper battle and I may let you live!”

Within the chamber was a bunch of people in black uniforms, Team Rocket grunts.  They were all surrounding a contraption which seemed to look like a glowing platform that was holding up a group of giant, levitating rings.  The rings were intertwined and constantly giving off an electrical discharge making them look like a floating cage.

As chaotic as the scene was, what really drew the boy’s eye was what was in the cage.  It was a large, avian Pokémon with golden feathers and a long, sharp beak.  Fire flowed from the edges of its wings, back of its head, and tail which served as the source of the room’s intense heat.  It was Pokémon said to herald spring and the patron of the Pokémon League itself, Moltres.

The boy’s eyes narrowed in anger.  Clearly these goons couldn’t capture this legendary Pokémon the right way and had to resort to a contraption to hold it.  Painfully hold it.  Every so often Moltres would emit a pain screech when it tried to stretch out its wings against the electrified cell.

Just like the boy predicted, the tracker spell continued until it found its mark.  Turned out that hair belonged to a female grunt.  She yelped in surprise when the spell pelted her from behind and dispersed.

“Someone hit me in the back!” shouted the grunt.

“Sorry about that,” said Houndoom’s trainer.  She sauntered forward, capturing everyone’s attention in an instant.   Granted, part of that was because Moltres settled down slightly to watch her.  Enraged as the phoenix was, he was observant enough to notice the new human who was clearly not with the group that was holding him prisoner.

Unlike the black clade grunts, the Houndoom’s trainer wore a yellow tank top which showed off her midriff complemented by a pair of capri pants and yellow high heels.  She flipped her long, silvery-blue hair out of her face and smirked at her opposition.  Houndoom walked at her side, caring her horned head high.

“How about instead of your back we try for your face,” said the trainer.  “Houndoom?”

At her trainer’s command, Houndoom dashed forward and unleashed a powerful flamethrower towards the Rocket grunts.  The grunts screamed and scattered until the flames were stopped by a massive Sandstorm.  The heavy cave dirt flew through the air creating a sturdy barrier which kept the flamethrower at bay.  When the storm died down, it revealed two new individuals.

The first was a massive snake.  The snake’s body was composed of a series of metal boulders which would sometimes jet out into dull spikes.  The serpent’s head was broad and had an underbite which was filled with blunt teeth.  A Steelix.

Standing beside the steel and ground type was its trainer.  This person was an androgynous individual with long white hair which was mostly pulled back into a lose ponytail leaving a pair of bangs framing her face.  Unlike the grunts, this Team Rocket member had a white uniform.  She glared at Houndoom’s trainer with narrow eyes.  “I’d suggest you move along and forget what you saw here if you know what’s good for you.”

“It’s kind of hard to ignore this sideshow,” smirked the Houndoom’s trainer as she placed her hands on her hips in a cheeky manner.  In contrast, Houndoom kept her serious face, stepped forward and snarled at the Steelix.

While the Steelix was returning Houndoom’s snarl with a rumbling hiss, the white haired Rocket chuckled.  “I bet this unseemly group is nothing compared to the kinds of freaks you have to work with amongst the Noivern Clan,” she said.  She then looked Houndoom’s trainer straight in the eye.  “Karen.”

From his spot sneaking around in the shadows, the boy studied the Rocket.  Though Karen wasn’t a cursed human, she did have powers that most humans lacked.  This Rocket was probably high up the chain of command to know about her.  In fact, the boy suspected this Rocket did the bulk of the work capturing Moltres.

“You’ve done your research,” complemented Karen.  While Karen distracted the Rockets, the boy continued to slink even closer to the command console of the machine holding Moltres.  “Or at least SOME research.  If you knew all about me, you know what my kind do to people who are unwise enough to cross us.”

“Doubtful,” scoffed the Rocket.  “From what I’ve learned, fairy tales tend to exaggerate what your kind can and can’t do.  Your tricks take ingredients, time, and preparation.  You can’t cast anything on the spot.  That’s why you have a Pokémon partner.  You need your mutt to fight.”

“You say that as if I’m not a threat!” barked Houndoom.

“That’s because you’re not,” rumbled Steelix.

Deaf to the Pokémon’s barbs, the humans continued their conversation.  “You talk as if you’ve already beaten me.  Houndoom is one of the most reliable Pokémon I know.  I think she can take a couple of nasty Rockets, can’t you girl?”

To emphasize Karen’s point, Houndoom bared her teeth.

“I can relate,” smirked the Rocket.  Her eyes glanced up at Steelix.  “My partner is pretty dependable too.  Steelix.”

As though the Rocket gave the snake a command, Steelix slammed its tail into the ground.  This created a series of boulders which hurled themselves at Karen and Houndoom.  In response, both individuals dodged out of the way (an impressive feat considering Karen was wearing high heels).  Houndoom then leapt forward and tried to nail Steelix with a Flamethrower.  The steel snake dove underground, avoiding the attack.

A moment later, the Steelix resurfaced right next to Houndoom.  The force of the impact sent Houndoom yelping and flying.

“I suggest you get a new partner,” taunted the Rocket.  “A fire type who can’t hold its own against a steel type is poor excuse for its species.”

Despite the blow Houndoom received, Karen didn’t look any less confident.  “Strong Pokémon.  Weak Pokémon.  That is only the selfish perception of people.  Truly skilled trainers should try to win with the Pokémon they love the best.  Houndoom, use Nasty Plot!”

Houndoom’s eyes snapped open.  A cloud of dark energy formed around her head, raising her special attack.  The hound shot up to her feet.

“Flamethrower!” ordered Karen.

At her trainer’s command, Houndoom unleashed another blast of fire.

“Use Sandstorm to block the flames again!” ordered the Rocket.

Just like before, Steelix created another barrier of wind and sand.  Unlike before, Houndoom’s fire punched through the wall hitting Steelix.  Steelix roared in pain and the storm died down.

“Hit it with Iron Tail!” ordered the Rocket.

Steelix managed to fight through the pain from the fire blast to lift its tail.  The tail glowed with metallic energy and reached out to slam down on Houndoom.  The hellhound stopped breathing fire to move away.  She wasn’t fast enough and was hit.

“Get back on your feet and use Dark Pulse!” Karen shouted after her partner.

Houndoom managed to land on her feet.  Taking advantage of Steelix’s close range, she hit Steelix point blank with a series of rings of dark energy.

While the two continued their battle, the boy finally managed to sneak over to the console.  He was about to start working on it when he froze.  His ears twitched slightly, picking up some noise from behind.  The boy managed to dodge out of the way just as a meaty fist came down.

The boy managed to put some distance between himself and his attacker who now stood between him and the console.  The assailant was yet another Rocket in a white uniform.  Unlike the Rocket battling Karen, this Rocket was bulky.  So much so the sleeves of his jacket were removed to show off his muscles.  He kept his spiky, blonde hair short and glared at the boy from behind a pair of sunglasses.

“Did you really think we wouldn’t notice you slinking around?” asked the larger Rocket.  He cracked his knuckles and gave the boy a venomous grin.  “Or did you think that we’d be dumb enough to leave our catch unguarded?”

“You do look the part,” replied the boy.

“Snarky brat,” huffed the man.  He grabbed a Poke ball and lobbed it at the boy.  “Go, Skarmory!”

The ball unleashed a large bird, though not as big as Moltres.  This avian was covered in metallic feathers with red wings and piercing, yellow eyes.  The Skarmory’s head was thin with a beak full of sharp teeth and a crest sticking out of its head.

Seeing the Skarmory, the boy looked back and forth between it and the Steelix.  He then gave Moltres a quick glance.  Interesting Pokémon choices for this capture.

Acting on a hunch, the boy released his own Pokémon.  When he tossed his Poke ball it released a bipedal reptile with long arms and a long tail.  Most of this Pokémon’s scales were gray with the exception of the golden ones which lined the outside of its arms, the tip of its tail, front of its throat, and a large, round crest sticking out of its head.  Training wraps were worn around the legs and arms, binding the loose scales which tried to clang and jingle as the reptile moved.  Wrapped around its eyes was Black Belt acting as a blindfold.

“A Hakamo-o, eh,” mused the man.  “I think you need to rethink your type match ups, kid.”

“You’re either cocky or stupid,” agreed Skarmory.

Ignoring those two, the boy began issuing orders.  “Use Bulk Up followed by Dragon Tail.”

“Understood,” affirmed Hakamo-o.  He took a fighting stance as energy began to gather around him.

“Hit him with a Steel Wing before he finishes powering up, Skarmory!” ordered the man.

With a loud caw, Skarmory flew forward to slash at Hakamo-o with his sharp wings.  Just before his attack could connect, Hakamo-o moved out of the way.  Like an expert martial artist, the dragon’s movements were fluid and smooth.  Even though Hakamo-o couldn’t see, he seemed to be able to tell where his opponent was coming from and how to dodge him.

“Lucky shot.  Hit him again!” ordered the man.

“Met his attack with your own!” ordered the boy.

After making a sharp U-turn, Skarmory attempted another Steel Wing.  This time Hakamo-o gathered draconic energy around his tail and hit the wing back.  The two acts collided and the Skarmory was sent back.  However, it stayed on the field.

“Looks like you’re on your last legs,” remarked the boy.

“The battle just started!” snapped Skarmory who managed to catch itself from falling by rapidly flapping its wings.

“For what good it’s worth,” replied the boy.  “Dragon Tail has one of two effects.  If it’s used on a wild Pokémon it hits it away.  If the Pokémon has a Poke ball, it is switched out with a different Pokémon owned by the same trainer.  The only times this won’t work is if the trainer has only one Pokémon or if the other Pokémon in the party are fainted.”

The boy continued.  “Couple that with how none of the grunts stepping in to help and that the only Rocket Pokémon fighting are steel and I think it’s safe to say Moltres took out the rest of your Pokémon.”

While the boy monologued, Skarmory’s trainer watched him with a bewildered expression.  “Who are you talking to-wait,” said the man.  Behind his sunglasses, his eyes furrowed.  “You’re one of them aren’t you?”

In response, the boy snorted.  He’d been chatty enough, more than he usually liked.  Time to get back to business.  The boy raised Hakamo-o’s Poke ball to switch his partner out.

“Oh no you don’t!” declared the man, having evidently guessed what the boy was up to.  “Skarmory, use Spikes!”

Caltrops rained down on the battlefield from Skarmory’s feathers embedding themselves into the ground.  This gave the boy pause.  He could still switch out Hakamo-o, but not to the Pokémon he wanted.  Spikes was ineffective against flying types, which he did have in his party.  However that Pokémon was still pretty new to his party having just acquired it on a previous mission.  The Pokémon he wanted to switch into and would have to in order to get at the console might not be immune to the Spikes trap.

“I can stay in,” Hakamo-o volunteered.  “If you don’t think the new guy is ready for a proper fight, I can continue against this sparring partner.”

“Don’t act so comfortable,” cawed Skarmory.  When his trainer gave the command, he swooped into unleash a barrage of swipes and pecks at Hakamo-o using his Fury Attack.

“Counter with Brick Break,” ordered the boy as he put away Hakamo-o’s ball.  “Focus more on speed and blocking than power.”

Hakamo-o followed his orders to a T.  The martial artist dragon rapidly threw his scaly fists forward to meet each of Skarmory’s blows.  The force from each attack canceled out the opponent’s attempt to deal damage successfully shielding Hakamo-o and infuriating the Skarmory’s trainer.

“Pull back and use Sky Attack!” called out Skarmory’s trainer.

With a powerful beat of its wings, Skarmory flew away from Hakamo-o and ascended upwards.  He then dived down while a white and orange energy enveloped its body.  Meanwhile, Hakamo-o’s movements stilled, and the dragon listened.  Right before Skarmory could slam into him, a shield of bluish green energy halted the attack.

Suddenly, Hakamo-o stiffened, and he looked around at his trainer.  “Behind you!”

Heeding his partner’s warning, the boy looked around to find several Rocket grunts had surrounded him and were about to jump him.  Successfully distracted, Hakamo-o’s Protect shield dropped and Skarmory managed to break through and hit him.

At this point, the boy decided to go ahead and take the risk with the Spikes.  He took out another Poke ball and unleashed his next Pokémon.  The Pokémon who came out resembled a bird rendered by a computer that could only create angular 3D models.  Most of the bird was pink save for its beak, tail, belly, and wings which were light blue.  The computer generated Pokémon blinked at the grunts with wide eyes.

“Porygon, use Psybeam,” the boy quickly ordered before the Spike’s effects could distract his Pokémon.  By unleashing a second Pokémon, he was putting himself in an awkward position.  Two Pokémon on the field could leave a trainer’s attention divided.  Adding onto that, Hakamo-o and Porygon where fighting on two different battlefields further dividing the boy’s attention.

For now, the boy decided to focus on Porygon.  The type match up on Hakamo-o’s side of the field wasn’t ideal, but Hakamo-o was an experienced fighter who could handle himself for a little while.  Right now, Porygon needed the boy’s help.

Simultaneously, Porygon fired off his Psybeam while explosions from the Spikes attack went off beneath.  The beam of purple, psychic energy blasted the nearby grunts sending them flying back.  At the same time, the explosions hit Porygon chipping away at his health.

“Are you alright, Porygon?” asked the boy.

“Status update: alive and well,” responded Porygon in a monotone voice that sounded like it was coming form an old computer speaker.

“Hit the grunts again, use Recover, and get to work on the console holding Moltres,” said the boy.

“Affirmative,” droned Porygon.  The virtual bird shot out another Psybeam driving the grunts further back.  His form then glowed.  When the glow died down, all the singes and cuts from the Spike trap vanished.  Porygon then zoomed over to the console and phased into the computer, disappearing.

Now that his secondary Pokémon was safe, the boy could return his attention to Hakamo-o.  The dragon was still fighting, though he looked worse for wear.  Time to change that.

“Hakamo-o, do a Brick Break uppercut when you feel Skarmory close by,” called out the boy.

The dragon did so.  When the iron bird swooped down for another attack, Hakamo-o punched upwards hitting Skarmory in the jaw.  This threw the bird off his path, exposing his belly.  The boy took advantage of this.  “Follow up with a Dragon Tail.”

With a quick spin, Hakamo-o slammed his powered up tail into Skarmory sending it away.  Hakamo-o followed up by jumping in the air, spinning, and smashing his tail downward, sending Skarmory towards the ground.  Just before the two could land, a massive boulder from the neighboring battle came crashing into the two.

“Attila,” called over Steelix’s trainer.  “Stop playing around and take care of that child.  Young or not, he’s an agent for the Noiverns.”

Attila studied the boy with a grimace.  “Sure, Hun.  Just give me a pair of thick gloves.  I think this kid is a werePokémon.”

“Worried about capturing my partner’s rabies?” taunted Karen.  “Don’t be.  As fun as this battle’s been, we’re about finished.”

Hun responded to Karen’s snark with a cold glare.  “Neither me nor my partner is anywhere near close to fainting.”

“We have different win conditions,” smirked Karen.  “YOU need to beat us to a pulp.  WE just need to open the bird cage.”

Upon realizing what Karen was hinting at, Hun’s eyes widened.  She whipped her head around to find that the console to Moltres’s cage was sparking.  In a blink, the electricity sparking from the wings died down and the rings dropped to the ground.

All Hell broke loose.

Moltres released an angry, ear-piercing screech.  The flames that decorated the edges of its feathers flared out and almost completely consumed the cave.  The phoenix’s beak opened up breathing fire on the equipment and grunts below.  Anyone who wasn’t fast enough to escape was instantly burnt to a crisp.  Some of the flames got to close to the boy, eating away at the sleeve of his shirt.

“Steelix, Sandstorm!” shouted Hun.  She and the remaining Rockets knew it was suicide to stay in the presence of the enraged, living inferno.  By the time the sandstorm died down, the Rockets and their Pokémon had disappeared leaving only a patch of scorched earth.

Back over at the console, Porygon phased out of computer before it could be enveloped by fire.  The virtual bird floated over to his trainer and Hakamo-o.  “Task: complete.”

The boy nodded and picked up the Poke balls for his partners.  The flames that ate away at his sleeve died down revealing his arm which was completely unharmed by the fire.  “Good job, guys.”

As the flames from Moltres’s fury simmered down, the legendary regarded the remaining humans.  “You!  The boy with the blood of the cursed, come forward!” boomed the mighty phoenix.

Interpreter duties call.  The boy walked over to the hovering bird, unbothered by the immense heat he was giving off.  “I am here, Moltres.”

“Speak honestly,” commanded Moltres in an imperial voice which forbade any decent.  “My captors accused you of working for the Noivern Clan.  Is this true?”

“It is,” admitted the boy.

Houndoom stepped forward.  “Please spare these humans, Lord Moltres.  We have come to assist, not capture you.  I beg you to overlook whatever offenses the Noivern Clan has performed.  These are good humans.”

Though Houndoom spoke loudly and clearly, Moltres kept his attention trained on the boy.  The boy continued where the hellhound left off.  “If you don’t believe that, at least believe that it is in our interest to not allow our enemies to capture you.”

Moltres took another minute to study the two humans before closing his eyes and allowing his flames to calm down.  “…Very well.  I will allow you to live as a favor for setting me free.  Do not seek me out for I shall be less forgiving next we meet.”

His judgement rendered, Moltres dived down and flew through one of the larger passages leading out of the cavern.  The trio watched in an awed silence before Karen gave the boy a pointed clearing of her throat.

Right, interpreter duties.  The boy translated.  “He’s not a fan of our boss, but he won’t smite us as a reward for helping him out.”

“Ah, that warm fuzzy feeling you get when you do the right thing and are allowed to live,” said Karen.  Her job done, she turned back to walk towards the tunnel they came in through with Houndoom at her heels.  “Alright, let’s get out of here.  This cave has horrible reception, and I need to check my email.”

New Pokémon Stats!

Hakamo-o

Trainer: ???
Ability: Soundproof
Nature: Relaxed
Item: Black Belt
Moves: Protect, Dragon Tail, Brick Break, Bulk Up

Porygon

Trainer: ???
Ability: Download
Nature: Calm
Item: None
Moves: Psybeam, Aerial Ace, Conversion 2, Recover

Houndoom

Trainer: Karen
Ability: Flash Fire
Nature: Serious
Item: Heavy Boots
Moves: Nasty Plot, Dark Pulse, Flamethrower, Crunch

Steelix

Trainer: Hun
Ability: Sturdy
Nature: Naughty
Item: Focus Sash
Moves: Sandstorm, Rock Throw, Dig, Iron Tail

Skarmory

Trainer: Attila
Ability: Keen Eye
Nature: Quirky
Item: Razor Claw
Moves: Sky Attack, Steel Wing, Fury Attack, Spikes

AN: Remember that one episode where everyone was trying to get a Paras to evolve into a Parasect?  Upon reading the Pokedex entries I've come to realize our heroes may have doomed that poor bug.