Looking Back Chapter Three "It's something unpredictable, But in the end it's right. I hope you have the time of your life." -Green Day, Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) He still looked the same as always, Misty realized. Black hair spiked up in a mess half-hearted attempt, caramel-colored eyes bearing down at her with a faraway look in them. He still wore the battered red Pokemon League cap, but his pants and shirt were black in color, and his figure was definitely taller than before. A Raichu was perched on his shoulder, sparks cascading from its cheeks. "Easy," Ash bade it, but the mouse shook its head stubbornly and pointed at Misty. "Raichu," it said vehemently. Guessing at a translation, Misty retorted, "yeah? Same to you!" The Raichu leapt down from Ash's shoulder and bonked Misty unceremoniously on the head. "Raichu," it said, adding insult to injury. "Why you little-" Misty made a half-hearted grab for the mouse's tail, but Raichu was too fast for her. "And you!" the redhead turned to vent her anger on Ash. "Who the hell do you think you are? Ripping a Pokeball off her belt in fury, she chucked it as hard as she could at Ash. Ash dodged swiftly to the side, but the Pokeball opened to reveal something even more unpleasant. A Golduck emerged from the innards of the Pokeball, red eyes glinting in anticipation for battle. "Golduck! Disable!" Misty ordered. "Go!" the duck cried, waving its frontal appendages in a dance-like movement. Invisible psychic waves shot from its body like radiation; Misty could feel herself growing a little dizzy at all the power that Golduck was building up in the air. "Gol! Duck!" the Pokemon concluded shortly, moving its arms in a pushing motion towards Ash. However, Raichu leapt up in the direction of the attack, cheeks sparking angrily, body glowing as it activated the negative electrodes in the air, neutralizing the psychic waves. Golduck stopped, confused. It almost seemed to resemble Psyduck as it cocked its head to the side. "Gol?" "Agh, you're useless," Misty snapped, in danger of throwing one of her you're-so-worthless-pysduck rages. She recalled Golduck. Raichu landed in front of her, round eyes filled with amusement at the red-head's antics. Even Ash had to smile. "Misty, you haven't changed at all." "But you have," she snapped. "And-" Ash cut her off. "You don't understand what happened, Misty." "Yeah?" she answered dangerously. "Try me!" The taller trainer looked like he was about to say something, but stopped and shook his head. "See?" Misty said triumphantly. To her surprise, Ash gave a rueful smile. "Do you remember the day I left?" "Yeah," she answered incredulously, hand resting on a Pokeball in case he was trying to catch her offguard. "Well..." Raichu leapt back onto his shoulder and Ash ruffled its ears affectionately. "Pikachu and I went straight to Viridian. We were gonna go north to see what was up there, maybe explore a little and see if we could fine new Pokemon." He stopped and sighed. "Everything changed after that. "Ready to see some new stuff, Pikachu?" Ash asked his mouse Pokemon excitedly. "Should be cool to explore uncharted area." "Pi..." Pikachu reflected uncertainty, staring down at the trees that were passing by at an alarming rate. They were flying on the back of Ash's Pidgeot, the quickest and cheapest way to get north. "Sill thinking of Misty?" Ash guessed. The little mouse nodded. "Yeah... me too. I wonder if i did the right thing. But I just can't stay in one place for so long! I've been wanting to come up here for a while now." "Pi pikachu." the mouse accused. "I don't /know/ why I didn't bring Misty," Ash countered. "I like her. I really do- don't look at me like that! It's just that... I wanna travel alone, just me and my Pokemon, for a while. Hell, it's a guy thing, I guess." "Pikachu," Pikachu retorted curtly. Its cheeks sparked slightly, enough so that one of the sparks flew and hit Ash, giving him a shock. "Yowch, what was that for?" Ash complained. The northlands were nowhere short of amazing. In direct contrast to the tropical splendor of Orange Island, a layer of snow covered everything- from rock to tree to grass, giving the area a bleached but somehow still exciting effect. The cold had quite a savage bite to it, but Ash had prepared accordingly by bringing along a heavy coat and hat- and a scarf for Pikachu. Pikachu, however, completely rejected the idea of wearing it, claiming that it wanted to maintain its dignity. They planned to stay for a week, either until they found a settlement or their supplies ran out. Ash would simply fly back south on Pidgeot. But for now, there was an amount of exploring to do. The first thing they saw was a school of Lapras. Arching their long, majestic necks and crying out to the winds, they were preparing to migrate back south before the real cold set in. Ash hid behind a rock, watching, awestruck, as the Lapras swam slowly up to shore and scanned the area. There seemed to be an organized society of rank for the school. Excitedly, Ash made notes in his Pokedex. The largest Lapras was apparently the leader. Its cries were easily understood by the others. Snuffling softly, mothers nudged young ones into a group to be counted. One grown Lapras took charge of the young as the others swam off to look for food. "Hey Pikachu," Ash whispered. "Doesn't that one- the one eating the kelp- look familiar?" "Pikachu!" The mouse responded eagerly. Without warning, it leapt the rock and trotted up to meet the Lapras Ash had indicated. The Lapras recognized its former owner's Pikachu instantly. "Lapras!" It chirped. "Pikachu. Pika pika," Pikachu greeted. "Lapras?" the ocean Pokemon arched its graceful neck to look at the mouse. "Pikapi!" These words excited the Lapras greatly. Pikachu ran back to Ash, Lapras following. Before he knew it, something had grabbed the back of his shirt and lifted him up, placing him ceremoniously on Lapras' great shelled back. Two large purple eyes stared down at him. "How are you, Lapras?" Ash greeted cheerfully. Lapras answered, and Pikachu translated. "That's good. Good for you! Heading back to Orange Island, I suppose?" The days passed quickly. Lapras told Ash of a human settlement only a little bit further north than where he was. Everything was fine until the day the Lapras school was to leave. The school was feeding, and Pikachu playing with the young ones. Ash had been introduced to the school by Lapras, and they got along well. Ash now had an abundance of data recorded on Lapras schools that he was eager to show Professor Oak. Suddenly, a loud cry rang from further off in the ocean, renting the cold air and shattering it like ice. Similar cries soon followed consecutively. There were thuds and splashes- and even worse, gunfire. Ash had no idea poachers came this far north. He released Bulbasaur and Pidgeot, running to find the cause of trouble. A trio of black-clad men were riding a motorboat. They aimed heavy shotguns at the Lapras, hitting them in the shoulders, neck- anywhere. Blood sprayed and stained the ocean red as bodies fell with a loud smack of water. Ash paused, horrified. His Lapras swam up, urging him to climb aboard. Ash clambered on the hard, water-slick shell. "Pikachu, he ordered tersely. "Thundershotck the men- but don't hit the water." "Pikachu!" His Pokemon chattered angrily, resolute to stop the men. Unfortunately, one of the men spotted Ash's Lapras. he leveled up his shotgun and fired three consecutive shells right into its neck. Blood spurted everywhere. The Lapras gave one mournful cry and toppled. Cold fury running through his veins, Ash ordered, "Pidgeot, blow their boat sky-high. Bulbasaur, Pikachu. Solarbeam and Thunder when it comes down." His voice was colder than the wind and his eyes were two chunks of hard ice. "Pidgeot!" Pidgeot flapped its wings, faster, harder, until it created a great whirlwind. It blew the boat and men up into the air. As they came crashing down, a compacted beam of solar energy shot from Bulbasaur's bulb, and Pikachu sent a crackling bolt of lightning crashing down on the men and the boat. The two attacks made a brilliant flash of white light, blinding everything in a large parameter. When it cleared, nothing but splintered wood and the body of dead Lapras could be seen on the ocean. A series of crudely-made tombstones dotted the beach. The tide had washed up the bodies onto shore, and Ash had buried every one of them. The tide had also washed up the blood spilled, staining the sand a crimson red. The remaining adults and young had set off. Only Ash and his Pokemon remained on the cold, deserted beach. The Pokemon Master knelt down before one of the tombstones, made of fire-hardened wood. Upon it he had branded Lapras' name. Ash said nothing. Pikachu said nothing. The wind whistled shrilly, and the cold snapped at their bodies, but all the discomfort was ignored. The tide could be heard, washing up on the beach and back, the eternal sound bringing no one any comfort. Disclaimer: All names, the name Pokemon itself, belong to Ninetindo. I do not claim ownership to any of this stuff.