Different kind of Soulmate ch2

"Pika! Chu, pika kachu!"

"Fine, alright. The drop combined with my head start was unfair. But so was faking being attacked and drowning, and then giving me a water-conducted shock!"

"Chu…" Pikachu had the grace to be ashamed. "Pipika, pikachu."

"Just because you've given me worse doesn't mean it didn't hurt! And although I have become partially immune to electricity thanks to you that was still a pretty nasty jolt."

"Pipika…pikachu chu pi pichu Pikapi."

At that, Ash's face softened. "You're my best friend, Pikachu, and I would do anything for you. Just don't pull that trick again; it might make me hesitate when you really are in trouble."

"Pipika…pichu, Pikapi.."

Ash grinned and ruffled Pikachu's fur. "Yeah yeah, I love you too, you're forgiven. Now where's that pie?"

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed, sniffing the air in hopes of smelling pie.

Ash rose from the couch, Pikachu leaping back to his shoulder, and wandered into the kitchen. There, on the fridge, next to a crayon drawing of a Squirtle Ash drew when he was 6—"Why does she still have that?" Ash complained to Pikachu for the millionth time—was a note in his mother's handwriting.

Gone to the Professor's, wasn't sure when you'd be back. Come over when you're done, I'm sure you're bored, and your pokemon miss you. Oh, and I brought Mr. Mime with me,so don't worry about him.

-Mom

Ash shrugged, momentarily dislodging Pikachu, and said, "Well, I guess we're off to the lab, then. No time like the present to get our directions, I suppose."

"Chu…" Pikachu replied with a definite lack of enthusiasm.

Ash reached up to give Pikachu an ear scratch, eliciting a cooing "cha" of pleasure. "Come on, buddy, it won't be that bad. What's the worst they can say? Besides, it's not such a crazy idea and they know we've been bored out of our minds for months."

"Pikapi…" Pikachu shook her head slowly at his forgetfulness.

"You know something I don't?"

"Chupi."

"…'Maybe'? Whatever, you'll see, they'll be fine with it. They'll completely understand, and we'll be off and running as fast as you can say your name."

"Pikachu."

"Not funny."

(o. o)-/

"Absolutely not."

"Professor…!"

"Ash, that mountain is dangerous! Only the best mountain climbers dare attempt it! You have no experience in that field and it would be suicide to go!"

"Fine, then I'll get a pokemon to fly me up and—"

"Not possible. The air is too thin at the top to allow any sort of physical exertion. No, your going is absolutely out of the question."

Ash could only stare. This was not going at all like he had expected. Although judging from Pikachu's hysterical laughter at his dumfounded expression when the Professor had first shown resistance, the yellow pokemon had been expecting it. He supposed that this was what she had meant by that 'maybe'.

Oak had revealed that the highest mountain in the world was located near Lavender City, and that the full moon was less than a week away. That gave Ash very little time to get to his place unless he wanted to wait another month, which was certainly not happening. At the first his mother had seemed disturbed but resigned at the idea of him going, and remained so, knowing that her son had to do something to relieve himself of the boredom.

Professor Oak, however, was proving to be difficult. He maintained that it was a suicide mission that he was in no way going to approve. To Ash's disappointment he remained firm, even after most of the shared dream was revealed. Oak's thought was that although it was very interesting, it was not so unheard of for two people who spend a lot of time together to have similar dreams. Never mind that it had never before happened to Ash and Pikachu in their 10+ years of constant companionship, it was still a likely possibility.

Ash sighed. He was at a loss. In desperation he turned to Pikachu, hoping that by some miracle she would have an idea. To his great surprise her ears perked up at his whispered plea for help and with a twitch of her tail, she fled from the room.

"Pikachu!" he called hopelessly after her retreating form. When he received no response, he sighed again and shook his head. "What is she up to now…?" he muttered under his breath before turning once more to the others. He had to trust that his pal had thought up some sort of plan and just keep them talking until she got back.

(o. o)

Pikachu dashed through the grass, eyes alert for a telltale bush of brown hair which would signify her prey. Suddenly the field sloped downward and the grass was above her head, cutting off any chance of sighting her goal. Pikachu paused, and standing up on her hind legs, peeked over the top of the grass. It was times like these that she thought maybe being a Raichu wouldn't be so bad…

Pikachu immediately clamped down on that thought, sparks shooting from her cheeks unconsciously. She had only to remember the battle against Lt. Surge to recall all her dislike of the evolved form of her species. She shook her head forcefully against any thoughts about the advantages of being a Raichu, reminding herself that she was stronger now, faster, that she and Ash together had beaten two who should have been stronger…

"Pikapi…" she whispered quietly to herself, and sank down again on her haunches. It was because of Ash, she realized, that she had been able to come this far, had been able to become stronger than any Raichu. Likewise, she was certain he realized that he owed much of his success to her, but Pikachu knew he could never fully understand how much he had done for her. The nightmare that had haunted her every day since she was captured until she met Ash, was that she would end up with a cruel, unforgiving trainer. One who would force her to remain inside a pokeball, who would make her dislike being in the outside world if it meant being around them. That nightmare had festered while she was inside her pokeball, just waiting for her new trainer to arrive. It was one of the reasons she was so afraid of the balls, a fear not helped any by her freedom with Ash.

Instead of her nightmare, she had wound up with Ash, and her travels since had convinced her of how truly lucky she was; not only of having such a great trainer, but of being so close to him as well. Pikachu loved her Pikapi with all her heart, and she knew her feelings were returned. Her travels had also shown her that not many pokemon could claim the same relationship and contentment with their trainer.

A branch snapped suddenly to Pikachu's left and rudely disrupted her thoughts. With lightning reflexes, she spun around and jumped back, narrowly avoiding being pounced on by a sleek persian almost five times her size. The persian sat, all dignity, its tail lashing angrily. Pikachu crouched low to the ground, ears flat against her head, and allowed sparks to shoot from her cheeks to show her annoyance.

"What is your problem?" she hissed, the words of course coming out in various twists of 'Pikachu'. "You could hurt someone doing that!"

"That was the point," the persian sneered, its words coming out in a string of purrs and growls. "Or are you so ignorant as to be unfamiliar with the concept of a battle?"

Pikachu was so shocked she forgot her anger for the moment. Her ears pricked up and she rose slightly from the ground with curiosity. "You mean you would battle without a trainer? You enjoy fighting that much?"

"Enjoy it? Please." The persian favoured Pikachu with a long pitying look, like the look someone would give to a person who believed the sky was purple. "I live for it. We all do. It is our reason for being alive, to fight others and grow stronger so we can fight even more. The sooner you accept that, young one, the more likely it is you will survive."

"Young?" Pikachu was once again surprised. Being over ten, she was hardly young by Pikachu standards. She cocked her head in confusion, ignoring the rest of the cat's speech for the moment.

"Yes, you are young, for all that the young like to think themselves old. You cannot be more than three years at best." The persian continued to stare at her condescendingly.

"Huh." Pikachu resisted the urge to analyze this comment as meaning more than a simple mistake by a pokemon that had probably only seen one Pikachu in its entire life, and focused on the present. She turned over the cat's previous statement in her mind. "So you actually believe our purpose for existing is only to fight?"

"Of course not," the persian replied, maintaining her condescending attitude. Pikachu was baffled; she had thought she had understood it. "We exist also to serve the humans, and to dedicate our lives to whatever cause they decide is worthy."

"That's not true! Trainers are our friends! They care about us, and we're not their slaves like you seem to think."

"And see how the youth proudly display their ignorance!" The persian laughed cruelly at Pikachu's defense of the humans. "No, all we are to humans are tools, to be used and discarded. How long has it been since you've seen your trainer? How long will it be until you finally accept that he has abandoned you? For me, it took two years before I realized that he was not coming back. I have been here five years now, and have not seen my trainer since that day seven years ago when he ripped me from my forest home. No, trainers are not our friends; they are our slave-drivers."

"My trainer is my best friend and I am his; and that will never change, no matter what you may think," Pikachu stated firmly, ignoring the rustlings of unease in her stomach. The persian's story perfectly described her old nightmare of a bad trainer. And while Ash was different, and very special, she could not ignore that he had done much the same with many of his old pokemon, at least before he became the Master. Although he had never left any alone for as long as this persian had been abandoned, he had left some at Oak's for quite some time, so long in fact that Pikachu herself had almost forgotten about them. Pidgeot came immediately to mind; she had been reclaimed some months after Ash became the Master, and although the bird had been happy to see her trainer again, Pikachu could tell she had become a bit feral and was wary of the human who used to be her friend. She was better now, but Pikachu sensed there was still a lingering resentment about being left for so long, and even now Ash and Pidgeot were not as close as they had been.

"Believe what you will," the persian said finally, and with only a single lash of its tail for warning, sprang from a standstill directly toward Pikachu. Pikachu, though surprised, leapt agilely out of the way.

"Fine," Pikachu declared, incensed enough by the persian's words to agree to a battle. "Let this battle decide whether trainers are the friends or enemies of pokemon."

Gathering her energy, Pikachu paused, and the persian, seeing an opportunity, attempted another pounce. As soon as the cat jumped, the little yellow mouse rocketed from the ground like an uncoiled spring, leaving a silvery trail of energy behind her. The persian saw the attack and attempted to twist in midair to avoid it. Pikachu, however, saw the evasion coming, and latched onto the persian's tail as it flew by. The big cat landed softly on all four paws, seemingly unconcerned. Pikachu gave it an evil smile that made it hesitate as it was lifting a paw to swipe at her…and in that moment of hesitation, Pikachu let loose the thunder in her heart.

"CHUUUU!" The electricity built up in the pokemon's body exploded outward, frying the attached persian. When Pikachu decided the cat had learned its lesson and cut off the flow of electricity, the other wobbled on its feet, let out one pitiful mew, and collapsed. Pikachu leapt clear and stared at the cat. She crept closer, studying the persian intently, worried that she had overdone it.

Suddenly a huge paw lashed out, and Pikachu again reacted with lightning reflexes and jumped away. The persian leapt to its feet, swayed, seemed about to fall down again, then hissed at Pikachu and dashed away through the grass. Pikachu sat back on her haunches, satisfied.

"Whoa!" Pikachu's ears perked up at the sound of a human yell from the direction the persian had gone. "What the…?"

Gary Oak stumbled into the little clearing of stamped down grass Pikachu and the persian had made, looking confused and worried.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu yelled, overjoyed to have her quarry find her.

"Pikachu?" If anything, Gary looked more confused. "Well, I guess that explains the flash I saw…and if it was you I suppose the persian deserved it." Pikachu nodded happily, and he frowned as something else occurred to him. "But if you're here, then where's Ash?"

"Pikapi pikachu pika pika," Pikachu explained, then darted quickly into the grass and out again, hoping Gary would get the idea. She repeated the process for good measure.

"Okay, you know I don't understand Pika-speak like Ash does. But I should follow you, right?" At Pikachu's encouraging nod, he waved his arm around vaguely. "Lead the way then."

"Pika!" Pikachu happily set off through the grass, keeping a pace Gary could match. She sighed in disappointment, knowing a race was too advanced for him. On the bright side, though, it wasn't far to the lab.

(o. o)-/

Ash turned to look behind him hopefully as he heard the door to the lab open. To his surprise Gary walked in, followed closely by Pikachu. On seeing him, Pikachu yelled a quick "Pikapi!" and dashed toward him, jumping up to his shoulder and giving him an affectionate nuzzle. Ash grinned and gave her a small scratch.

"We spend way too much time together, you know that?" At his friend's soft question, he explained. "Well, you're acting like you missed me, and you were gone what? Fifteen minutes?"

"Chu," Pikachu whispered, giving him a tiny shock as a rebuke for suggesting such a thing. It didn't hurt at all, and was actually more energizing than anything. His grin widened and he mentioned the energizing effect to Pikachu.

"Chu." Pikachu gave him a more forceful shock, one that definitely stung.

"Okay, okay, I give. We don't spend too much time together."

"Chaa," Pikachu cooed in satisfaction. The last thing she wanted was to spend more time away from her Pikapi, not that they were ever really apart currently. But that was the way she liked it.

"Hey. Lovebirds. Over here." Ash and Pikachu both turned towards Gary and gave him identical glares. He shrugged. "Eh, it caught your attention, didn't it?"

Ash sighed and put a hand to his forehead. "Yeah, I just don't want to argue with them anymore. They're giving me a headache." They were now Oak and his mother. Having seen a possibility of changing the mind of her son, his mom had joined in shortly after Pikachu left. She was slowly being more convinced of the dangers by Oak even as Ash was trying to convince them both how safe it would be. When she had joined in, he would have given up were it not for Pikachu's plan. Even so, arguing with both of them was like beating his head against a brick wall.

"What are you arguing about?" Ash quickly explained and Gary nodded.

"So Gramps," Gary began, turning to Oak. "Basically you don't want Ash to go on this little quest thing because it might be dangerous, right?" Both Oak and Ash's mother nodded. "Well, I think he should go."

"Gary—" Gary quickly cut Oak off before he could start to argue.

"Wait. The way I see it is that Ash's previous journeys have been way more dangerous than a little mountain climbing. And I know you're going to say that it's more important now that Ash remain safe and available for challenges, but let's face it. He's not going to get any for a while, and I could easily fill in for Ash-y boy here if someone does come." Gary ignored the nasty glare from Ash and continued, focused solely on Oak. "Plus, now that he's the Master, he's able to take care of himself, right?"

"Well, yes, but—"

"Also, this journey was called for through a shared dream by some mystical weirdo, right? Don't you think she would make sure they at least get there? And she mentioned them as the Champions, didn't she? You know Ash never bought the whole prophecy thing, and if he didn't, it's a pretty safe bet Pikachu didn't either. So why would they both have a dream about some woman who was convinced they were actually prophesized heroes? That's gotta give her some credit towards being real. And I know you believed the Champions thing. You can't pick and choose what to believe. If you're going to buy into the supernatural mojo, you have to go for it all. It was your conviction that has Ash bored out of his mind and challenge-less, by the way. It's the least you can do to let him check this out. It could be something important."

"But…"

"And, let's not forget what could be discovered! This journey might lead him to discover a whole new land! Think of the research opportunities, Gramps!"

"Well, I admit there are beneficial aspects…"

"So then, what d'ya say? Give Ashy boy a chance?"

"I suppose with the proper precautions in place it wouldn't be too risky…"

"Thanks Gramps!" Gary flashed a smile at the Professor, then turned and winked at Ash. "The trick is to not let him talk," he whispered conspiratorially.

Ash could only shake his head in silent awe. He had watched as Gary had broken down Oak's resolve step by step, never giving an inch. Even though Ash had argued many of the same points only minutes before, Gary's steamroller style of arguing had done something Ash couldn't have managed. His old rival listed out his arguments in a smooth, sensible procession, never letting the other get a word in edgewise, and had made it less of an argument than an explanation; an explanation that was set out to be so logical that only a fool would want to argue with it. And, once Oak was down, Ash's mother easily swayed back to her original resigned opinion.

"Heh, I know, I'm amazing," Gary preened, guessing correctly at the direction of Ash's thoughts. "If you're lucky you might get half as good someday."

Ash was too impressed to take offense. "You really are more of a researcher," he told his former rival. Following that thought to its logical conclusion, Ash grinned. "You're gonna be great."

"Thanks," Gary replied, matching Ash's grin. "The way I see it, I got some catching up to do; you're already great."

"Yeah, well, that's just because you started late," Ash pointed out, brushing aside the compliment. "If you had chosen to be a researcher from the start, I'm sure I'd have been left in the dust."

"Nah," Gary said solemnly, shaking his head. "I needed to get that out of the way first. Besides, where would my confidence be without being able to stomp you all those times?"

"Hah! As if you ever needed any help with confidence! You had your own cheering squad!"

"No, no, no," Gary again shook his head, this time with mock gravity. "Don't you see? They were only there to cover up for my crippling lack of self-confidence."

Ash adopted a supportive expression and gave Gary a pat on the back. "There, there, friend. I believe in you."

"Thanks." Gary and Ash stared at each other for a moment and simultaneously lost the battle to remain serious and burst into laughter.

"Pika pika, pikachupi!" Pikachu chirped happily from her perch on Ash's shoulder. Wiping laughter-induced tears from his eyes, Ash gave Pikachu a smile.

"Hey," Gary said, not wanting to be excluded. "What'd she say?"

"She said she's glad we're friends again." Ash paused, then grinned at Gary. "I am too."

"Me too." Gary grinned back at Ash, much more seriously than before. He paused, then, "You're a good friend, Ash."

"You are too. Thanks for the help back there," the Pokemon Master added, gesturing toward Oak.

"No problem. What are friends for?" They exchanged grins once more, then a sound made them both turn towards Ash's mother. They found her sniffing and wiping her eyes. Concerned, Ash took a step in her direction.

"Mom? What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she said, smiling at them both. "It's just…you've both grown so much."

"Mom…"

"I'm so proud of you both. I know you'll become even greater than you are now."

"Thanks Mom." Ash smiled at his mother, touched where he would have been embarrassed only a few years ago.

"Yeah, thanks," Gary added, pleased despite himself.

"Now, Ash," Oak interrupted, once more making his presence known. "Although it seems I have agreed to this mission, you will need to take some basic precautions. Come with me, I have some things to give you. And bring Pikachu."

"As if she would let me leave her behind," Ash chuckled. "Let's see it then!" Oak nodded and walked deeper into the lab. Ash followed happily, his mind occupied only with his success.

(o. o)

Ash soon learned that Professor Oak's definition of 'basic' was very inclusive. He left the lab bogged down with so much gear he could barely walk. And it wasn't just him; Pikachu trailed along behind him dragging a bag almost twice her size. Her grumbling complaints from behind him mixed with the nasty sounds the bag was making as it was dragged over the lumpy ground.

The problem, besides the fact that they could barely walk, much less climb a mountain with all the equipment, was that very little of it was useful to survive. Most of the equipment was for research purposes only. Gary had (hopefully unknowingly) set off a time bomb when he mentioned Ash could discover a new land. Professor Oak had not been able to decide what he would need, and had eventually given it all to Ash with the implied message that the trainer would eliminate what was unnecessary—which was, in Ash's opinion, all of it. Unfortunately he had still needed to haul the stuff out of the lab to put the Professor's mind at rest. Equally unfortunately, his mother had gotten tired of waiting for them to come out and had left earlier, leaving her unable to help them with their load.

Judging them to be halfway home, Ash groaned and collapsed on the ground. He sat there, panting, as Pikachu laboriously made her way over to him and, with a similar groan, collapsed on his stomach. For a moment the two lay there, staring up at the blue sky and the floofy white clouds. Ash was reminded of doing the same just that morning, and was for a moment stunned that it was still the same day. He sighed, tired but strangely exhilarated after so much action.

"Look, that one looks like a Charizard," he said to Pikachu, trying to find something to take their minds off their exhaustion. He was sure he would be able to sleep for at least a year after today.

"Pikachu, pika pi-pikachu." Ash laughed.

"You're insane. How is that a Tentacool?"

"Piiika, pi-pikachu, chu pii chaaa," Pikachu explained, waving her paw around vaguely to accompany her words. Ash laughed again and placed both hands behind his head in a more relaxed position than the random flop he had been in previously.

"Whatever, pal. I still don't see it."

"Pika," his friend grumbled. She shifted around as well until she was lying on the ground with her head on his stomach to look up at the sky. They lay there for a while longer, one occasionally pointing out a cloud that looked like something, the other always disagreeing. After a while the wind picked up by a tiny bit and the clouds began to move faster. Although Ash remained oblivious, Pikachu picked up on it. Her tail twitched in uneasiness and she sat up, ears twisting in the wind. Ash also sat up in response to his friend's uneasiness.

"Pikachu? What's up?"

"Pikachu-pi pi pikachu," Pikachu replied, still staring at the sky.

"A storm? You sure?" Ash was unconvinced, but he had learned to trust Pikachu in these matters. He dragged himself to his feet and once again shouldered the huge bag. "Well, let's get home then."

"Pika," Pikachu agreed regretfully, and, gripping the handle of her bag in both paws, began to walk slowly and painfully towards the house. After a moment Ash followed, happy to let his friend lead the way.

The pair stumbled through the door of the house just as the gathering storm clouds had begun to make threatening noises. Ash tossed his monster bag inside, narrowly missing Pikachu, and slammed the door quickly before the gusting wind could cause too much chaos. He then slid down the door to sit on the floor, panting. Pikachu similarly slumped against his leg, also breathing heavily and eyeing Ash's bag suspiciously, having been almost crushed by it recently.

"Piii…" the mouse breathed, annoyed and completely exhausted by their journey. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to regain some semblance of steady breathing and avoid dwelling on the final dash they had been forced to make at the end to avoid the rain. She couldn't find a part of her body that didn't hurt or wouldn't hurt as soon as it recovered from the numbness.

"I know," Ash moaned with sympathetic pain. "Ow." He attempted to move his arm and failed miserably with a painful groan. He glared fiercely at his bag, convinced it had grown at least thirty pounds heavier during the trip just to spite him. He attempted to kick at it for revenge but his leg, like his arm, refused to cooperate.

"You know, pal," he began, "we're going to have to move at some point."

"Chu…" Pikachu tried to give him a small shock for suggesting such a thing, but it came out as a tiny burst of static that got absorbed completely by his pants. Ash laughed but it quickly turned into a groan of pain. This, in turn, caused Pikachu to laugh, with similar effects. Ash's only response to Pikachu's experience was a grimace.

"This is sad," Ash observed, after a length of time had passed and they still hadn't moved, despite their breathing having returned to normal. "Hey, shouldn't Mom be around?"

"Pikachu pi," Pikachu sighed, slumping even more in an effort to show her trainer just how incredibly opposed she was to the idea of moving.

"You're right," Ash sighed, defeated. "She's probably sleeping and we shouldn't wake her just because we're too pitiful to get up and move ourselves."

"Pika, pi-pika pi," Pikachu defended, too tired to actually put any emotion into the argument.

"You know it's true," Ash argued back, equally dispassionate. "This is pitiful. Come on, we'll leave this stuff here and just go straight to bed. At least you don't have to change."

"Pika…!" Pikachu was so disturbed by this proposition that she found the strength to put some emphasis on her words.

"It's only one flight of stairs, Pikachu, how bad can it be?" Now determined, Ash staggered up from his sitting position, forcing Pikachu to move as well.

Famous last words, the yellow pokemon thought as she reluctantly followed her optimistic trainer.

Pikachu was proved to be correct when, thirty minutes later, the two staggered into Ash's room and flopped down on the bed, completely exhausted. The stairs, even with long and frequent rest breaks, had sapped the last of their strength, and Ash gave up his plans to change and brush his teeth with little resistance. Both pokemon and trainer, the two Champions of the world, fell asleep within seconds of hitting the pillow.