A PIKACHU IN LOVE

Pikachu raced through the trees, driven by an eagerness of spirit to be with Pichi again. He wanted to have fun with her like he had the previous evening, and not be the little outsider he felt himself when in the company of the humans.

He felt she accepted him, and that was what he wanted right now.

As he followed the Thunder attack she was creating to lead him to her, Pikachu came across a large Berry Tree growing out of a fertile patch of ground and he stopped in his tracks. The berries were fresh and plump, and remembering how much Pichi loved them he thought she might like some. The small rodent Pokemon quickly shot a few down with a light Thundershock and gathered them into his short arms. He then went on his way.

Before long he found Pichi. The sweet little Pikachu girl was standing patiently by a wall of stone on a hillside, and upon hearing the approach of Pikachu her cute little face lit up, her pink cheeks practically glowing.

"<I figured you’d come!>" she squeaked happily. Pikachu grinned, holding his hands behind his back to conceal the Berries. This did not go unnoticed by Pichi, however, and she inquired, "<Whatcha got back there?>"

Shyly Pikachu looked down at his feet and made a circle with his toe. "<Oh, I just…well, I know how much you like Berries, and I…>"

That was as far as he got. Pichi heard that word and her ears straightened up. "<BERRIES? You brought me some---! Oh, you’re TOO nice!>"

She circled around Pikachu to get at the food and plucked two from his hands. Her eyes were bright with longing for her favorite food, and before she dug in she smiled at the boy Pokemon and cooed, "<Thank you very much! How incredibly thoughtful of you! I wish my trainer could capture you and bring you along with us. You really seem nice and considerate. I don’t meet many Pokemon like that, especially not the ones on my trainer’s team.>"

As the two sat and began to munch their food, Pikachu thought of what she had said. She was very kind, but he knew that he could never be with another trainer. How could he be? He loved Ash, deeply. Deeper than he had ever thought he could love a human trainer. The things they had been through together were the things of true friends, those who were always destined to be together forever.

Ash had saved him from Team Rocket more times than he could remember. He had saved Ash from wild Pokemon more times than could be counted. They had seen the most wondrous sights of the Pokemon world, from ancient extinct Pokemon to ancient prophecies coming to life, and the rarest of the rare Pokemon like Lugia, the Legendary birds, Entei, and as they had come to learn not long ago, Mewtwo, the genetically engineered Pokemon.

All of these no Pokemon could have imagined being witness to in their lives, but Pikachu had been blessed with the fortune of not only seeing some of these wondrous things, but thanks to his trainer being a part of them. Oh sure, Ash wasn't perfect, but he and Pikachu had grown together in their maturity and strength.

And friendship.

Yes, they were best friends. Better than best. So why was it Pikachu was feeling so distant from Ash? Why was he experiencing this empty heart right now? He looked at Pichi as she ate, wondered if she had something to do with it. Pikachu was growing up, just as Ash was. The yellow mouse knew that humans when they got older would often find a special someone, a soul mate who they would cling to and do anything for.

The thought had never really crossed his mind that Ash would ever one day become involved in a relationship…or, he thought, that he would. Pikachu thought seriously for a moment. Was that it? Was he lonesome and yearning for someone to fall in love with?

Nah, he decided. That was silly stuff. He loved people and Pokemon, but Pikachu was all about friendships, not relationships.

Pushing those thoughts out of his mind, Pikachu and Pichi finished their midnight snack. Pichi then rose and inquired, "<So, how about a walk? I’ve got a lot of great spots around her to show you. And if we have time, maybe we could go to our camps and meet each other’s trainers.>"

"<Huh?>" Pikachu questioned. "<Meet our trainers?>"

"<I don’t mean wake them up.>" Pichi added. "<I just meant for each of us to see who our humans are. I’m curious to meet your trainer, to see who it is that could train such a sweet Pikachu so well.>"

She smiled teasingly, and Pikachu blushed. He was never very good with compliments.

"<Oh, I suppose we could,>" he gave in, not wanting to disappoint Pichi. What harm would it do to just pop into camp and give her an introduction to Ash? Oh, sure , he wouldn’t be awake for it, but that was best in Pikachu’s opinion. He stood and they ran along together, Pikachu leading the way back from where he had come.

Within a matter of moments they were at the hedges surrounding the campsite, and under the dull glow of the moon Pikachu could see the smoking remnants of their fire, along with the three sleeping bags of the humans, all lined up in a row.

Ash and Brock could be seen in theirs, but strangely enough Misty was nowhere to be seen. Togepi slept soundly where it had been laid to rest, but there was no form inside of Misty’s sleeping bag. Pikachu thought this very strange. Misty was never the sort of person to disappear in the middle of the night…but then again, neither was he.

"<Which one is it>?" Pichi inquired, pointing between the two boys. Pikachu silently gestured for her to follow him, and she did so until he was standing beside Ash, about a yard from his face. Pichi looked at the sleeping boy, saw him lost in a world of dreams with no sense of the outside world or of the two Pokemon watching him right now.

"<Oh, he is a cute one,>" she said with a smile. Ash moaned in his sleep, almost as though he were remarking to her statement, but as was often the case it would take nothing short of a Twister attack to awaken this young Ketchum. "<He has adorable little Zs on his cheek. So how did you get together with him? Did he capture you?

"<No,>" answered Pikachu. "< I was captured as a Pichu by a man named Oak. He found me getting into the garden of Ash’s mother when I was little and hungry, so to keep me from getting into trouble he caught me and took care of me until I was a Pikachu. Unfortunately I was never very appreciative of what he had done for me, until later that is, and I was always getting into trouble. Then Ash came along. He was just starting his Pokemon journey and had come too late to the Oak’s lab to get his starting Pokemon. All the other staring monsters were gone, so Ash was desperate. The Professor did not want to give me to Ash, because he knew what a hand-full I would be for him, but Ash insisted and I became his Pokemon that day. But I didn’t care. I disobeyed his orders, made the trip difficult. I was determined to be an independent spirit and not have to rely on anyone. It wasn’t until Ash saved my life from a flock of attacking Spearow that I realized how much I needed guidance, and after that we’ve taught each other a lot, and have been the best of friends ever since.>"

"<Cool!>" Pichi chimed. "< That’s really great that you two are so close. I was just a lazy Pikachu when my trainer found me, doing nothing but laying around and eating to pass the time. She stumbled on me and sent out her Smoochum to nab me. It wasn’t too hard,>" she said with a laugh at the memory. "<I was so unaccustomed to fighting of any sort that I didn’t have any real idea how to defend myself. So for Faith it was an easy addition to her team, but afterwards, like you said, I couldn’t have been happier that my life was meant to be with her. She’s the best trainer a girl could hope for.>"

Pichi then looked over to Brock inquisitively. "<Is he one of your friend’s traveling buddies?>"

"<Yeah,>" Pikachu said with a little chuckle. "<That’s Brock, and believe me he’s one of the silliest humans I’ve ever known.>"

"<Why’s that?>" Pichi asked.

It was difficult to describe the personality of Brock in brief, but Pikachu eventually explained. "<Let’s just say one minute he could be straight and serious and doing something important like an adult, and the next he will be acting very strange and empty headed. If he met your trainer he’d probably try anything he could to get to her fall in love with him.>"

The girl Pikachu laughed merrily at that thought. It seemed to amuse her. "<Well, he’s going to have to be disappointed. My trainer already told her traveling friend that she loves him, and I just think it’s the sweetest thing! I never really thought humans could be too cute, but you should see them when they get to doing all that cuddling and kissey stuff. It’s so SWEET!>"

Pikachu smirked and shook his head. Some Pokemon had the weirdest opinions. "<Yeah, well, I’ve never really seen much of that sort of thing. My trainer hasn’t got a girlfriend or anything, but I guess Brock makes that up for him. Ash cares more about Pokemon training. That’s his life, and I think it always will be.>"

"<But what about your life?>" Pichi asked suddenly. "<Do you want to be a sport Pokemon all of your existence, or do you want to do something more with your future?>"

It was a stunning question for Pikachu, because really he had not thought of it quite like that before. Would he be contented to be Ash’s Pokemon forever? Would there come a time when he might wish to take on his own life and seek a new path in the world? He had never really thought of it before. He didn’t think he would always want to be a fighter. There had to be a point where that was put behind him. But then what would he do? Where would he go? Who would he be with?

It took some seconds for Pikachu to even be able to reply to Pichi’s question, but after a moment he finally said, "< I guess my future hasn’t been decided yet. All I know is that Ash has been good for me. We’ve helped each other out, we’re better friends than any I’ve ever known to exist, and we both want to succeed and win together. That’s our life, and that’s all we have right now. And, I guess that’s all we need.>"

Suddenly the Pikachu jumped as they heard a rustling coming from the nearby bushes that separated the stream from their sleeping grounds. Something was coming into the clearing.

Pikachu knew it could only be Misty. Wherever she had been she was back, and he definitely did not want her to catch him wandering about with another Pikachu. He didn’t want her telling Ash some story that she’d seen the boy’s Pokemon living a secret life at night with mysterious, unknown Pokemon. All Pikachu needed was Ash suspicious of him and drilling him for questions that he could not answer anyway.

He turned tail and ran back into the bushes from whence he and Pichi had come, and he was satisfied that they had cleared the campsite just in time to avoid Misty. Pichi was confused, and whispered in her high little voice, "<What’s wrong? Why are we running?>"

It was going to be hard to explain, but Pikachu tried his best. "<It’s just…the humans don’t know that I’m slipping away at night, and I’d prefer to keep them from getting on my back about it. It’s nothing really. Hey, how about you introduce me to your trainer now?>"

That plan seemed very agreeable to Pichi, so the two yellow creatures made their way along forest trails in a northeasterly direction, Pichi leading him all the way.

Back in the camp Misty was slipping a robe over her body. She was only wearing a swimsuit, and at the moment it was soaked. She had not been able to sleep, so she took Corsola’s Pokeball, grabbed her swimming suit and gave the Pokemon a little midnight swim in the river. It was very chilly, but the temperature did not bother Corsola, or for that matter Misty. She figured if the Pokemon could take it then so could she.

As she grabbed some dry clothes to go change into within the trees, Misty had been unable to miss the escaping duo of Pokmon. She had sharp eyes, and she knew well enough that one of them had been Pikachu. Where was that charged-up rat going? Why the secrecy? It was very mysterious, for it was not like Pikachu at all.

Beside her Misty heard Corsola sigh in weariness, so she returned the coral Pokemon back to its ball, and then looked back to the trees.

Misty was curious by nature, but she simply did not understand why Pikachu was skirting off tonight. It wasn’t like the furry little rodent. Ash may be in La La Land, but I sure as heck want to find out what’s going on with that Pokemon. It’s not safe to be wandering around without telling us where it’s going.

In truth Misty believed that nothing was unsafe for Pikachu, but she was nervous and concerned for the little guy, and if anything happened to it…she didn’t know what they would do. Ash would be devastated, Misty knew that she and Brock would be heart broken, and poor Togepi…

That settled it, Misty decided. She was going to find Pikachu and see just what it was up to. She pulled out Poilwhirl’s Pokeball and released the tadpole. It materialized before her, but she had forgotten the late hour and when Poliwhirl appeared it fell to the ground, still asleep.

"Oops," Misty slapped her forehead. "Sorry Poliwhirl. I forgot that some of my Pokemon actually need their beauty sleep. Return." Once back in, Misty pocketed the ball and just decided she would find Pikachu without the help of her Pokemon. How hard could it be? Ash seemed to have disaster written all over his face when it came to directions, but he knew almost by instinct how to find his own Pokemon.

Can’t be that hard, Misty decided, and she swiftly set off into the forest after Pikachu. Bugs or no bugs, Misty of Cerulean City had enough spunk to forget her fears just long enough to locate her little yellow friend.

Ten minutes later Pikachu and Pichi were passing through some of the thickest parts of the wood. The trees were ancient, older than most of the cities around them. In them families of bug and bird Pokemon had raised families for generations. The Butterfree of the region often decorated the largest trees with a webby sap during the summer months, creating a shining net that hung over the entire forest. People visiting could see many of the beautiful sights that the bugs created from the tall hills, and in the light of the setting sun the entire forest and countryside would come alive with a beauty of sparkling webs and dust from fluttering wings.

The two Pikachu had to cross a small running river in order to get to the other campsite, but a bridge of rock allowed for them to cross quickly and dryly. As Pikachu hopped from rock to rock, he looked ahead to see that Pichi was already on the other side, impatiently awaiting him.

"<Come on!>" she urged him. "<I want you to meet Faith. Hurry! Just hop those rocks!>"

With anyone else Pikachu may have been a little bit mad that they were pestering him and not letting him take his time, but with this girl Pikachu could only grin, stifling the giggles he wanted to laugh.

At last he reached the other side of the river with only dampened feet, and Pichi smiled excitedly. "<Come on come on!>" She was almost bouncing up and down now, and took Pikachu’s hand. She then performed a Quick Attack, zipping over the ground at a blinding speed with Pikachu dragging behind her. Pikachu held on for dear life and closed his eyes, until they came to a stop and Pichi released him.

"<Pika-Boy, meet Faith,>" she motioned towards a form lying on the ground beside them. Pikachu saw a young girl, a blanket pulled up to her shoulders and a pillow covering half of her face. But she was indeed beautiful, as far as Pikachu thought human beauty could go. She had golden hair, cut very short, and cheeks that seemed to glow pink in the moonlight. Her lips were upturned in a pleasant smile as she dreamed, and she breathed lightly like an angel sighing in contentment.

In truth Pikachu was impressed by her loveliness. She looked very sweet, and somehow the little Pokemon felt melancholy looking at her. He wondered if someday Ash would meet a beautiful creature such as this, fall in love with her and then change into an unrecognizable person. If he fell into this human disease of love, would he forget about his Pokemon training…and about his best pal, Pikachu?

How could it be avoided, Pikachu decided. It was the way life went. Someday, he knew, his boy would leave him. Changes came, people grow and start to think different and thus go different directions in their lives. How long would it be, Pikachu thought sadly, until Ash changed into the man he was soon to become, and left behind the remnants of his younger years?

And then what about me? Pikachu thought. Where does my life go after that?

These were things that the Pokemon had never really thought of before, and in truth he wished he did not have to think of them. They were depressing thoughts, not at all what he liked to think about. Either way, his thoughts were interrupted by Pichi.

"<Isn’t she beautiful?>"

Pikachu gazed again at the human girl and nodded. He noticed for the first time that a few yards away in a sleeping bag was a teenage boy, very good looking. So that was this girl’s boyfriend? Yes…Pikachu suddenly saw Ash’s face on that boy’s in his mind’s eye. What was it about these humans? Why did they need to fall in love? Why…?

What was wrong with this picture? Pikachu saw no reason why it should be having these thoughts. Why so angry about the humans need for relationship? But then it was obvious…Pikachu always wanted to be Ash’s number one friend. He wanted to be the only living individual that Ash spent his days with, laughed with, had his adventures with. Of course they would never have a love like boy and girl, but theirs was a very special love of friendship…a deep connection that grew from times shared and feelings proven towards that friendship.

Losing that intimacy was a frightful thought for poor Pikachu. He didn’t know if his heart could bear it.

Unfortunately his troubled thoughts did not go unnoticed. "<Hey, what’s wrong?>" asked Pichi in concern. She could see that something was weighing heavily upon him.

Pikachu slapped on a fake smile and said, "<Nothing. So, is this all you brought me across the river to see, or did you have something more interesting to look at than your trainer?>"

Pichi did not take the remark as derogatory, knowing that the boy was only being silly. So she looked about thoughtfully for a moment until an idea seemed to hit her like an Electric Shock to the head. "<I know! There’s a beautiful gorgeous valley just over the next two rises that’s chock full of flowers and Beedrill hives. The flowers are great for making little necklaces with , and the honey is very very sweet. I’ve tasted some. Come on! It’s the best thing we can do with our night! Come on come on!>"

Once again she was off like a shot, and Pikachu had to do his level best to catch up. Putting the humans behind him and just being able to play in the wild with another of his own kind was the most enjoyable thing he had done in ages. He loved it. He wondered why he ever stayed with humans. He thought back to how happy he had been when he had found that colony of Pikachu and had almost stayed with them.

But, then again, it was his love for Ash that had caused him to leave that group…

The yellow Pokemon quickly blocked the memories out of his mind and focused on following Pichi through the new groves of trees she was leading him into.

The hours passed, the moon traveled overhead, and the two Pikachu were gleefully playing in the shadows, forgetting time and the outside world completely. They made flower rope and necklaces for Pichi to wear. They ran in circles until the ground was so worn that they had created a ring of dirt. BY the time they were done it rather looked like a collection of crop circles. They ate anything that was sweet, from Berries to Beedrill nectar.

Finally it was getting to be 4 in the morning, and despite the hours and hours of fun the two Pikachu were finally beginning to get quite won out and indeed very sleepy. They walked slowly together, back towards Pichi’s camp, under the fading moon and they could see from afar the beginnings of morning as faint pinks began to paint themselves into the starry night.

They stumbled together under the song of the HootHoot, until Pikachu stopped and said in a sleepy voice, "<I need to rest my feet. It’s been a long night.>"

Pichi sat beside him and rested her head against his little shoulder. She giggled cutely. "<Yep, a long night…but a wonderful one.>"

She said that last part with such a sweet tone that Pikachu almost thought her another Pokemon for a second. But when he looked her in the face he saw that she was looking right back at him, her black eyes glinting like faceted diamond in the starlight. Pikachu suddenly thought something he had never thought before.

He stopped and gazed down at his feet, feeling embarrassed as these strange emotions coursed through him. He had never thought such things. What was wrong with him? Was this what made Brock such a weirdo, and were these the emotions that would someday make Ash forget him? Were these feelings of love?

No, impossible, Pikachu thought. He’d only known this girl two nights. How could he be attracted to her? He dismissed the notion and stood up, looking out over the valley below them. They had climbed a rocky hill with an old Chestnut tree on the top. The roots grew deeply into the side of the hill, running down like the tentacles of an Octopus, twisting and swirling.

"<What are you thinking?>" Pichi asked suddenly. Pikachu looked at her, and her face was soft and caring. He looked back at his feet and shrugged. "<I can’t say. Too many things to describe, really. I’ve…never really felt some of the things I’m feeling tonight, so how can I tell about them?>"

"<Try,>" Pichi insisted. She was not nagging him…she seemed genuinely interested.

With an effort Pikachu tried to think of all the proper fitting words that he could assemble to express his thoughts. But nothing was working. Nothing. His brain was like a massive blank file on a computer.

"<I…really don’t know how to express myself very well,>" he said in defeat. "It’s not worth it anyway. Forget it.>"

This was not good enough for Pichi. He had sparked her interest, and there was no way he was going to leave her hanging now. "<Oooooh, Please?>" she begged. "< I promise I won’t laugh at you.>" But Pikachu was not going to give an inch. He was simply too nervous. "<Nope. Sorry. I’m sorry if I’m being mean, but I can’t.>"

At this point Pichi had a mischievous little grin on her face. "<Tell me, or I’m going to tackle you off of this cliff.>"

Pikachu smiled. He couldn’t imagine her being that crazy just to have him talk about his feelings. Feelings weren’t THAT important to a female, were they? He smiled and shook his head, facing his back to her as he looked back out over the valley. "<Sorry. Not telling.>"

"<Oh yes you are!>" That was the last thing Pikachu heard before he suddenly felt her little body slam into his, and there was no hope of him being able to recover his balance in time. The two Pokemon went right down the gravely hill, rolling over one another and kicking up a good-sized cloud of dust particles. Pikachu could not believe that this girl would do something so crazy. From what he knew, girls did not DO these sorts of things! But down they went, and Pikachu could hear Pichi laughing as they descended. They bumped into a root now and then, but otherwise maintained a continual rate of dropping.

They finally stopped, and Pichi was giggling hysterically. Pikachu was more concerned about brushing off the dust that had gathered in his fur, not to mention the bruises he had now from hitting the rocks. Even he had to admit that by this point Pichi was stretching his patience a little with her child-like silliness. The girl laughed…and laughed, and wouldn’t stop. Finally she collected herself and drooped her ears in exhaustion. Pikachu thought perhaps it was time to call it a night.

But in a flash moment that simple moment of silliness turned around and became extremely dangerous. As Pichi picked herself back onto her feet, Pikachu heard an odd crunching sound, and too late realized that the rocks under her feet were sinking out of sight. With a cut off scream Pichi suddenly disappeared into an opening in the hillside as the rocks collapsed altogether. She fell into a black hole, and an opening five feet in diameter revealed itself within the hillside, revealing a cave of some sorts.

Panicked, Pikachu looked into the opening and tried to visually locate his friend. He heard her frightened and painful gasps from down below, and desperately the male Pikachu cried into the shadows, "<Pichi! Pichi, are you okay?!>"

He could hear her moving about down below, and her little voice traveled upward to assure him that she was not seriously hurt. "<Yeah, I’m okay…I think. I’m just shaken, that’s all. But how am I supposed to get out of her---AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!>"

Pikachu saw it the same time that she did, and his blood ran chilled at the sight. In the blackness of the little cave Pikachi could see absolutely nothing; save for two red eyes, illuminated on their own within the inky blackness. It was a terrifying sight. A deep growl filled the Pikachu couple with fear, but especially Pichi who was trapped down below with the thing.

Pikachu’s throat went dry instantly. He had to act fast. Without thinking he leapt down into the cave, hoping he didn’t land atop of Pichi, and once his feet touched solid rock he concentrated and performed a Flash attack. His body glowed an electric yellow, giving light to the lightlessness. The second they could see, the Pikachu were shown what it was that they were dealing with.

Crouching in the corner of this small burrow was a huge Ursaring. The Pokemon was like a mighty bear, with long, slick claws and a circle of yellow fur on its stomach. It was brawny, and vicious, and Pikachu knew very well from past experience with these Pokemon that if they did not get out of there that they would be dead.

But the opening was high above them, and it would take some doing to escape. The Ursaring was braced to attack, and it was not happy at all of being awoken in the middle of the night. The creature bellowed hatefully, a terrible sound that brought tears to Pichi’s eyes. She whimpered in fear and hid her eyes. Pikachu felt like doing the same himself, but front and center in his thoughts were of keeping her safe, and hopefully getting them out alive.

The Ursaring raised a paw, four razor sharp points extending from within it. It clenched its teeth together and prepared to bring the claws down on Pikachu. Desperately Pikachu fired a Thunderbolt, and the powerful turret of energy struck the beast square in the chest. It flung the Ursaring backward into the wall, but when the attack broke Pikachu saw that the bear was still standing, and was all the more infuriated.

Pikachu wished that he had enough time and space to get Pichi out of their trap and fight the Ursaring at the same time, but before he could even think of a way out the bear was on him again. It arched its claws over its head and brought them down. But speed being the Pikachu’s greatest asset saved them. Pikachu pushed Pichi to the side and just avoided being clipped by the claws, which having missed their target sunk into the floor.

Pichi screamed, and Pikachu prepared for another Thunderbolt. His hope was to keep dodging attacks, shoot the Ursaring enough times to wear it down and then take it out so that they could make their escape. The problem was that Pikachu had very little room to move in this Ursaring’s hibernating quarters, so being able to move around the creature and build up energy for an attack to pull off his plan seemed futile.

And so it proved. As Pikachu prepared to fire his Thunderbolt again, the Ursaring pulled a surprise move on him. Opening its toothy maw it roared hideously and then fired a Hyper Beam. The swirl of energies hit Pikachu dead on, and the little mouse was thrown out of the cave completely. The Ursaring followed, quite forgetting that Pichi was even there. It brought its great bulk out of the cave and balanced itself on the hillside.

Pichi was terrified, but she was more frightened for Pikachu now than she was for herself. So mustering up her strength she leapt the entire eight foot distance out of the cave and gasped when she came back outside and saw that the Ursaring was standing over the unconscious form of Pikachu. The yellow rodent was charred from the Hyper Beam, and it looked as if its energy had been spent from the attack.

The menacing bear snarled and reached out for Pikachu, grasping him in one of its massive paws. It brought the little limp body to its mouth, and looked quite prepared to break its bones with its teeth. Pichi had heard of such terrible things before. She screamed in terror, desperately building up energy of her own to fire at the ugly grizzly. But suddenly Pikachu sprang back to life, having faked his unconsciousness, and he shot a strong Thunderbolt right in Ursaring’s face,

The beast yelped as the hot sizzling power burned into its face, forcing it to reflexively release Pikachu. The Pokemon fell to the ground once more, and though tired Pikachu was on fire now, and would not rest until it had defeated this dangerous monster. With a fierce determination Pikachu had rarely shown before, he yelled in challenge and prepped himself on his hind legs. He then shot forward in a body slam, plowing into the Ursaring’s belly.

There was little effect to the blow, and more enraged than ever the bear blindly slashed at the air, hoping to catch Pikachu in the way of its attack. Fortunately for it, and unfortunately for Pikachu, the Slash Attack met its target. Pikachu was stunned backwards as the four claws tore across his face, and he fell in defeat.

"<Noooooo!>" Pichi cried in horror. It could not be this way! Her fear melted, she gritted her teeth and concentrated. The Ursaring took a brutish step towards Pikachu, but stopped when it heard Pichi creating an attack of her own. It looked back at her, snarling hatefully. It turned around to attack her instead, but it never made it. Pichi called down a gigantic lightning blast from the night clouds in a powerful Thunder attack, and the bolt hit at the Ursaring’s feet.

An avalanche began, and the Ursaring found itself slipping backwards, down the hill. Using her Agility, Pichi zipped around the creature and grabbed Pikachu, carrying him back up the hill to safety before the rocks slid too much. The Ursaring was not so lucky. It roared in its madness, and fell down in a shower of dust and rocks all the way down the hill. When the dust settled Pichi looked down and saw a mound of rocks, and only a limp Ursaring arm sticking out of them to show the creature buried beneath.

It was gone, and they had survived. Pichi collapsed into the grass atop the hill, the still form of Pikachu beside her. She was breathing hard, part in exhaustion and part in shock from all that had happened. But when her heart began to settle she looked at the unconscious face of Pikachu. He seemed asleep, at peace, unaware of the world around him, and it then fully hit the Pikachu girl to exactly what he had risked to save her.

He had put his own safety on the line to make sure that she was protected. He risked his own death to make sure she survived. Pichi suddenly remembered something her trainer had said a long time ago to her…

…No greater love has anyone than those that risk their lives for their friends…

Pichi began to softly cry, and she moved close to Pikachu and hugged him. She rested her little head upon him, listening to his weak heartbeat and she prayed for him to be all right. She could never forgive herself if he were to die. If not for her fooling around then they would not have been in danger at all. Pikachu could have died because of it.

Pichi continued to weep, and she whispered into Pikachu’s ear, knowing he could not hear her, "<Please be all right. Please…you have to be okay! I…I want us to be friends forever…I want Faith to meet you…I…I’m in love with you…>"

With that the little girl Pokemon felt her eyes grow heavy, very heavy, and she fell asleep with Pikachu in her arms.

Well now, what do you think? Ridicule me, praise me, I don’t care (well, okay, maybe I’d prefer praise). I just want them reviews. They are appreciated, and thanks to those of you who wrote me! I luv you people!