Plotbunny, please live…
Disclaimer: I really, really, really wish I owned pokemon. But it belongs to Nintendo and Satoshi Tajiri and Shogakukan Comics. I do own this piece of writing, and it’s non-profit and does not infringe on copyright.
Notes: <> for telepathy, ** for thoughts, italics if a pokemon talks
Chapter 4
“So you and Rudy want to travel with us?” Ash asked, when he and Crystal flew back to Pallet late in the afternoon.
“Yes, what did you two do?”
“Shopping.” Ash said shortly.
Misty raised an eyebrow, noticing the absence of a mountain of shopping bags. “Really!”
“What? Not everyone shops like you do.” Ash said. He barely avoided the mallet strike that followed.
Hey! Stop that! Pikachu yelled, shocking Misty.
“Ash! How dare you attack my girlfriend?”
Pikachu shocked Rudy as well for good measure.
“You know, I think we retreat.” Crystal said.
“Good idea.” Ash ran inside the house, grabbed his backpack and sleeping bag, and was back outside with Crystal and flying away on Charizard before the two recovered.
“… That was fast. What now?”
Misty shrugged. “We find them.”
“So you need the King’s Crystal to find your father?”
“Yes, and my mother. I haven’t seen my parents in years…”
“Poor Misty.” Rudy said, kissing her. “I will help you.”
Even if it means taking an innocent life?
Even so.
He loved her too much.
“Ash? Why are we going to Viridian?”
“Misty won’t go there.”
Crystal frowned. “Why?”
“Well, she hates bugs, and the area is crawling with pokemon of that very type.” Ash said proudly.
“I see…”
“Especially the Beedrills. Her loud screams always attract them.” Ash trailed off as he remembered his battle with the Beedrill, and his Butterfree, who was now gone.
“Ash?”
“I’m all right, Crystal.” Ash said, as she looked at him worriedly. “I’ll be fine.”
He shouldn’t scare her.
Butterfree was happy with his mate, and wasn’t that what really counted?
Of course it was.
Maybe he’d see his first captured pokemon again someday…
They spent the night camping out, which wasn’t too bad, even though Crystal put her sleeping bag right next to his to keep warm, but it wasn’t bad.
It was kind of nice.
Bulbasaur and Squirtle just kept smiling as if they were keeping some big secret… what was it?
He couldn’t figure it out.
Still, she looked cute when she slept.
Ash stopped. * Did I really just think that? *
That was true enough. She was cute. But he wasn’t sure if he loved her. She was interesting to be around, and didn’t hit him, that was good too.
Crystal murmured something in her sleep and turned.
Ash smiled, and then went to sleep too.
The next morning, they trekked into Viridian forest, where Ash caught every species of bug pokemon that inhabited it.
“Ash?”
“Hmm?”
“Well, if you’re this good, why didn’t you catch any other pokemon?” Crystal asked, watching him transfer a newly caught Paras to Oak.
Ash blushed. “Well, circumstances were in the way.”
“Well, you’ve got Paras, Beedrill and its 2 lower forms, and Venonat. Why now?”
“Maybe I just wasn’t confident. No, that’s not it.” Ash said. “For some reason in the past, every time I tried to catch a pokemon, it turned out to belong to someone else.”
“Really? What bad luck, that.”
Ash nodded.
Crystal put down her binoculars. “I don’t see anything else though.”
“Me neither…”
They had not walked more than ten minutes when all of a sudden, a sword interposed itself in front of Ash’s nose.
“HALT!”
“Samurai!”
“Ah, it is you, Ash Ketchum. Shall we have a rematch?”
“… All right.” Ash said.
“You know him?”
“Yes, I beat him before.” Ash said a shade arrogantly as Samurai looked huffy.
“Barely, Ash, barely. Now let’s begin!”
Samurai sent out Metapod!
“You still didn’t evolve it?”
“Why should I?”
Ash sweatdropped; remembering his Butterfree. “No reason. Charizard, Flamethrower…”
That was a very fast kill.
Crystal clapped.
Samurai’s eyes popped out in hearts as he saw the girl in white. “Oh, who is yonder fair maiden?”
It took Ash a few seconds to figure out what he was saying. “Her name’s Crystal. She’s traveling with me.”
He then blanched as Samurai pulled a rose out of nowhere and presented it to Crystal. * What’s with him? *
“Please, I beg to court thee!”
Lance looked disturbed. “Um… no thank you.”
“Wait! Aren’t we battling?” Ash cried.
Samurai frowned. “I won’t lose this time! Pinsir, attack!”
Charizard toasted Pinsir in even less time than Metapod. The Venomoth that followed as also quickly dispatched.
“Sorry, not interested.” Crystal said, as she followed Ash on the road to Pewter. Samurai sighed.
“Oh, Alas…. Fate is so cruel….”
End Chapter
Completed 6/9/04
I don’t think I liked samurai much…
Some of the pokemon Ash catches are only for the pokédex…