Many thanks to Ri2 for his beta reading and advice.
Episode VII: A Thin Line Between Man and Pokémon
It was another day on the road to Blackthorn, and Ash and the gang were traveling through yet another mix of woods and hills, hardly different from the ones they'd passed through in the past few days. But at least they weren't lost…yet.
Of course, some people in the group had their own sense of (mis)direction and needed to be kept in line. "Now, Ash," Misty reminded him, "don't go off the path. We don't want you to get us lost again."
"Fine," Ash grunted noncommittally. "But I wanted to go and explore."
"Unfortunately, you lack the finer sense of direction that Pokémon have," Lokoko chided him. "You know the way through the forest, right, Brock?"
Brock nodded. "I want to get to a river that runs through this patch of woods before dark," he explained. "With the river nearby, it'll be the perfect place to set up camp."
"That's good," Lokoko said, nodding in agreement. "I can tell from the coloration of the leaves that the water here must be very healthy. Everything from the birds in the trees to the many bugs here and there must use the river for sustenance.
Misty froze. "Did you say…b..b…bugs?" she stammered. The others stopped and looked back at her. "Maybe we should take another route?" she suggested, glancing around anxiously. "'Blaze a trail', like Ash said, maybe?"
Ash looked confused. "Well," he admitted, "I did say I wanted to take a little detour to explore, but I'm fine with Brock's route."
"Still," Misty said, "I'm sure we can find a different path. Preferably one that avoids the forest entirely."
Brock sighed. "Misty," he said, "someday you're going to need to let go of that fear you have of…"
"Hey!" To everyone's surprise, Jessie stomped out of the brush. "We spent hours painstakingly digging a pitfall up ahead, and you just decide at the last minute to change your path? No, you're going straight, or else!"
"I doubt they're gonna take the route now anyways," Meowth said, popping out of a nearby tree. "Not after you blabbered about the whole thing."
"Then we'll just have to do things the hard way," James said. He ditched the obviously-fake bush hat and grabbed a Pokéball. "Come on out, Weezing." The grotesque, two-headed bag of noxious gas answered the call.
"You too, Arbok!" Jessie commanded, sending out her Pokémon.
The two sides stared each other down, waiting to see who would make the first move. "I found you!" someone unfamiliar called out of the blue.
The unexpected outburst drew both sides' attention to a new visitor. A pointed, brimmed hat covering her reddish hair, stars pinned on her vest, and a Murkrow flying beside her, the young girl seemed to have popped right out of a fairy tale. Never pausing for a moment, she charged forward, heading straight for Meowth. Unsure about the crazy human, Meowth hid behind his teammates, causing the girl to stop. "Excuse me," she said, "I just need a little dirt from your paw, Meowth."
"Hey," Jessie yelled. "We're having an important battle right now. So scram, kid!"
At this, the girl's expression hardened. "I see," she said in a seemingly-calm voice, before suddenly jumping to her feet with indignant rage. "So you've kidnapped this cute, innocent Meowth!"
Both sides stared at her in confusion. "…What?" Meowth said blankly.
The girl posed and drew out a star-pointed wand. "As the 15th heir to my school, in the name of Magic, I will not let this rest!"
Team Rocket just chuckled. "She must think she's one of those silly magical girls or something," James commented.
"We'll see how she likes a real fight," Jessie said. "Arbok, get in there!" Arbok lunged at Murkrow.
"Murkrow, use Swift!" the girl said. She waved a wand around flashily while giving the order. Murkrow spat stars out of its beak, forcing Arbok back. However, Weezing was already in position, and prepared to let loose poison. To their surprise though, the witch pulled out a potion. "Extract of Gloom, and laugh of Haunter: Make that Weezing spit out glitter!" She threw the vial at Weezing, and it exploded in a rainbow cloud. Weezing emerged from the smoke unaffected.
Or so it seemed, at least, until it tried to spew its payload on Murkrow. To its surprise, only colorful, harmless glitter emerged. "What's that girl doing?!" Jessie demanded.
"Looks like she's da real thing all right," Meowth said worriedly.
"Hang in there, Weezing!" James said. However, Murkrow quickly knocked Weezing back as well.
The witch then approached the team with a new, bubbling bottle in her hands. "The paint of a Smeargle and the kiss of a Politoed," she chanted, "just the thing to make you explode!"
"Hold on!" Jessie said, waving her arms desperately. "This is all a big mistake."
"Meowth's part of our team," James explained. "Isn't that right, Meowth?" They looked over at him expectantly.
Their teammate paused for a moment, and then, backing away from his partners, said, "Nope. Don't know a thing about dose two humans. Hurry up and save me!"
The two glared at him in betrayal. "You little…" Jessie didn't get any farther in her threat. The witch tossed her potion at them, and the resulting explosion sent them blasting off into the sky.
"Looks like Team Rocket – or most of us – are blasting off again!"
Meowth just smirked and mockingly waved a paw at the sky. "Bye-bye!" he said before turning back to the witch with an innocent expression. "Thanks, kid. I owe ya one!"
Lily happily hugged him in delight. "I'm so glad you're all right, Meowth!" she cried. "Now hold still. Just a dab of dirt, and then…"
"Hold on," Ash interrupted. He cautiously took a step forward. "You need to be careful. That Meowth…"
"Don't worry," the girl replied, "I'll be with your Pikachu shortly." She continued to gather dirt from Meowth's left paw, not noticing the other slipping into the pockets of her coat.
Once he had a potion in his claws, Meowth weaseled out of her grasp and took off. "Ha!" he says. "Dat'll teach ya not to trust a crook!"
"Wait!" she warned him desperately. "Don't open that one!"
Meowth just laughed. "Let's see what dis one does," he said, letting the magic out of the bottle. He regretted that a second later, as another explosion sent him away just like his teammates before. "WAAAAAHHH! Looks like I'm blasting off…on my own!" he wailed as he disappeared.
The witch stared up at the sky regretfully for a moment, and then turned eagerly to Ash, and the Pikachu beside him. Still trying to figure out what the girl wanted, neither was prepared for the girl to grab Pikachu in her arms, fondly pinching his cheeks. "A Pikachu!" she squealed. "The final part of the spell. Oh, thank you, Pikachu! Thank…"
Pikachu, annoyed at all the fuss, let out a bolt of electricity. Far from being deterred, however, the girl only smiled brighter than ever. "That's perfect," she said happily. "That's just what I need."
Ash just stared at her in confusion. "Maybe the Thunder Shock was a little too much for her head," he murmured.
"That's rich coming from the kid who has his Pikachu jumpstart his brain with thunder once in a while," Misty countered.
Finally seeming to notice the others, the girl straightened. "I'm sorry," she said. "We have not been properly introduced yet. I'm Lily, a Pokémon magician. And your Pikachu is just what I need, for my greatest spell yet!"
…
…
"Hey, guys," Meowth called up anxiously. "I said I was sorry about before, 'kay? So could you help me out a little here? Please? I'm kind of out on a limb here. Literally."
At the top of the cliff just a few meters above him, Jessie and James just coldly watched his struggle to hang onto the branch protruding over the very deep chasm. "Don't worry," Jessie said. "We made it up here, after all, even when it was just the two of us."
"Just make sure you don't fall," James called out. "We broke most of the other handholds getting up here."
Meowth tried to avoid looking down and focused on trying to get a better grip on the branch, but his paw was barely hanging on. And then, a Fearow of all things decided to rest on the branch for a little bit. Under the pressure, the branch began to crack. "Hey, shoo, scram!" Meowth yelled desperately. He tried to pull himself further up, but he only ended up bopping the bird on the beak. In annoyance, the Fearow blew Meowth away in a Whirlwind. This turned out to be a lifesaver though, as it carried Meowth up onto safe ground once more.
Or rather, several feet above safe ground, and once the wind died down, gravity reasserted itself. Crash! "Thanks a lot," he grumbled sarcastically as he pulled himself to his feet before his uncaring partners.
"Serves you right," Jessie snarled, "ditching us like that! 'Hurry up and save me!' my foot."
"Hey," Meowth insisted defensively, "I was just taking advantage of the situation. I thought dat maybe I could get close to that witch lady and steal something out from under her."
James scoffed. "I can see how well that worked out," he said.
"Maybe it didn't go like I hoped," Meowth admitted, "but I think my other little trick is still in the bag."
Jessie looked at him with renewed interest. "What do you mean?" she asked.
"Remember our little getaway surprise?" Meowth asked. The two nodded. "Well, let's just say dat, whatever she tries to make next, it's going to have a real bang!"
"And knowing the Twerps," James concluded, "they'll be right beside her when it blows."
"Perfect," Jessie said, determination returning to her. "We're never out until the show is over. Let's go back, find those Twerps and that witch, and teach them you can't make Team Rocket disappear!"
"Wobbuffet!" Jessie's Pokémon popped out of its Pokéball beside them. As it did so, Meowth felt the ground give way, as the portion of the cliff they were standing on collapsed. Forget potions and all that, Meowth thought as they plummeted down toward the hard ground below. What we really need is an anti-catastrophe charm!
…
…
"I see," Brock said, after hearing Lily's story. "You need Pikachu's Thunderbolt – and dirt from Meowth's paw – for some kind of magic spell."
"Yes," the witch girl eagerly said, "and I've collected almost all of the ingredients. I was lucky enough to catch a whiff of a Parasect's Stun Spore, and just yesterday I got the tears of an Aipom. But the spark from a Pikachu is the most vital part of the spell."
"Well," Ash said, "you don't have to worry about that now. We'll be happy to help. But, can we please see your spell in action?" Her magic tricks against Team Rocket had been interesting, and he couldn't wait to see what she could do with more time and effort.
Misty nodded eagerly. "I've always loved magic shows since I was a little girl," she said. "What kind of spell do you want to make?"
Lily's smile grew. "It's a magic I have wanted to try for some time," she said. "No one has ever managed to collect all the ingredients to cast it. According to my spellbook, the potion will let you read and understand the mind of a Pokémon."
"Really?" Ash exclaimed excitedly. That had always been a big dream of his. He looked down at Pikachu, and the two shared a look of understanding. He and Pikachu were best buds now, and he could usually tell what his friend was thinking. Still, the language barrier always created an issue. And with Pokémon he had just met, Ash would love to know them better. "Why don't we get started then?" he said. Pikachu stepped up, ready for action.
"All right," Lily offered. "Just let me get the spell set. I need a fire to heat up the ingredients."
"I can help with that," Lokoko said. Ninetales stepped forward and shot a brief gush of fame at some sticks, making a small fire in the clearing.
"Then we're all set!" Lily declared. She set her pot on the fire and began to pour in the ingredients, chanting as she did so. "Powdered Stantler horn, flower marked by the kiss of a Jynx…and dirt from a Meowth's paw." When the last ingredient was added to the pot, smoke began to spew out. Satisfied, she took a step back. "Good. Now it's time for the final step. Who wishes to be the first volunteer?"
"I do!" Ash said, running up.
"All right, Ash" Lily said. "Be ready with Pikachu's Thunderbolt." She spread out her arms and chanted again. "Shuckle's shuck, Random Muk! Stantler's Horn and all the rest, finish it off with Pikachu's best!"
On cue, Pikachu unleashed the Thunderbolt, letting the electricity surge into the cauldron. Ash waited for the sparks to have their effect, but then frowned. With his eyes closed, he could make out this faint ticking noise, coming from the direction of the prepared spell.
Ash's eyes snapped open in panic. "Everyone, look out!" he yelled. "Something's about to blow!"
"I'll get it out," Lokoko said quickly. Ninetales began to focus her psychic power on the pot.
"Wait!" Lily protested, but it was too late. The smoke turned into a whirlwind as a bomb exploded in the middle of the potion. The smoke crackled brightly with not only lightning but also psychic energy. Ash felt a jolt run through him, and then everything went black.
…
…
Brock coughed as he tried to peer past the dark smoke. He couldn't see Ash or Misty anywhere, but he did manage to finally spot Lokoko – her Ninetales form, that is. Although… Brock frowned. "Lokoko, are you okay?" he said. "I think the spell might have made you gr…" He paused, uncertain what to say. It was in general bad form to comment on a lady's size, but then again, maybe it was different for Pokémon? Besides, if this was a medical issue, he needed to get the answers…
"Brock?" Lokoko's human voice brought him out of his thoughts. "Is that really you?"
"Of course," Brock said. "I guess you finally managed to project your voice without an illusion." After all, he couldn't really see her human form anywhere; the closest thing was a slight glimmer over to the side, but it was probably just an aftereffect of the potion – it didn't match what he'd see of her at eye level.
"You mean you don't know?" Lokoko asked uneasily.
"Know what?" Brock asked.
"Hey, Brock!" Brock turned his head around full circle when he heard Ash's voice. "Can you see if the spell worked?"
"First things first, Ash," Brock said: "where are you?" All he could see was Pikachu, who was wearing Ash's trademark red and white hat for some reason. "And you might want to let me take a look at Pikachu – he looks a little…off right now."
"Pika!"
Wait, that was coming from behind him, not in front of him. Brock rotated his head around further and saw Pikachu getting up on his feet near Ninetales. But then who –? "…Ash? Is that you with the hat on?"
The new Pikachu's eyes widened in panic. "Oh, no, don't tell me it got stolen again!" He checked his head frantically and was relieved to find his hat. "No, it's still there. But it seems kind of a big."
"It's not something getting bigger, but smaller," Brock said. "Lokoko, let's find Misty and Lily and see if they can help Ash."
"He is not the only one with the problem," Lokoko responded.
"What do you mean?" Brock twisted his head around to speak to Lokoko, seeing her oddly large human form gazing down at him, only to freeze as something finally occurred to him. All this time, he'd been moving his head around…but he hadn't been moving his body around in sync! And then he saw a giant version of Lokoko's human form – what he had mistook for "shimmer" earlier – bending down toward him. What the heck was going on?
"Say, Brock, where you?" Ash said. "I don't see you anywhere."
"Hey, Ash," Brock said in a strained voice. "Are there any new Pokémon around here? Like one between you and Lokoko?"
"Yeah," Ash replied. "There's a Shuckle, I think? That's the Pokémon with all the holes that that one guy used for potions, right?"
"That's right!" Lily's voice came from a reddish-brown Murkrow that descended alongside a black-feathered one. "Shuckles are a marvelous cornucopia for mixing berries and other ingredients to make potions."
"You have a second Murkrow, Lily?" Ash asked.
"No, I think that's really Lily," Misty shakily said from over by the bushes. Brock glanced over and blanched. Of all the things she could have become…
"Come on!" Ash said while chuckling uncomfortably. "This is another trick, right? Even though the first one didn't work out."
"I wouldn't say that, Ash," Brock said unhappily as he regarded his friends new, bizarre form. "Take a look at your hands – or should I say, paws."
Ash tentatively looked at his yellow-furred paws and gaped in shock before starting to frantically run around. "What, I'm a Pikachu?! How is this happening?!"
"It's strange," Lily admitted in a slightly puzzled tone. "That's not how it's supposed to happen." She had set down her spell book and briefcase away from the cauldron when she mixed the ingredients, so she flew over and tried to open it back to the right page. "Oh my, this is much harder to do with feather and a beak," she commented.
As Lily fumbled with the book, Brock focused on his body, carefully lowering his slimy head into the shell and then poking it back out another of the many holes along the rocky shell. "Yep, I'm a Shuckle all right," he said. He had to admit, the body suited him pretty well, with a rocky exterior yet plenty of openings to mix different ingredients inside. But that thought made his eyes widen. "Hey, has anyone seen my backpack?"
"No, it doesn't seem to be anywhere around you," Misty said. "And come to think of it, my backpack vanished as well."
"Wah!" Ash's cry, louder than his earlier panic, drew their attention back to him. "That's not our only trouble, guys! Check your waists!"
"Ash, just what are you implying?" Misty said tartly.
"Our belts!" Ash shouted. "Where are they?!"
Brock stiffened in frantic realization. "Misty," he said, "Ash doesn't have the belt with his Pokéballs on him anymore, and I can't see yours either. Do you see mine anywhere?"
"No," Misty said worriedly, "I don't. Are they gone forever?"
"I don't think so," Lily answered as she waddled back toward them. "If the spell was supposed to turn you into a Pokémon, having a bunch of extra things on you would get in the way. For transformation spells like this, whatever was on you – except for that hat – is being kept in a closed space linked to you. Once you turn back to normal, everything should come back with it."
She then paused for a moment upon noticing the distinct red and white cap on Ash's now-Pikachu head. "Although," she confessed, "I haven't a clue how your hat stayed on like that. Do you think you could donate it to me, please? Maybe there's some kind of protective ward blessing it or…"
"No way!" Ash said defensively. Electricity began to spark from his body, and Brock groaned. Ash was sensitive about people taking his hat, and now he had the body of a temperamental Pikachu. Fortunately, Ash's Pikachu jumped between them and waved his little arms to calm down Ash. "Anyway," he said, "that'll just have to stay a mystery."
"Let's get back on topic," Lokoko said. "You said, 'this wasn't supposed to happen.' So what went wrong?"
"Ah, well," Lily said, chuckling uneasily, "I took an extra look at the book, and I may have made a minor error."
"What sort of error?" Misty asked.
"It turns out that the spell goes on to the next page. I missed it before because it was all smudged up so I couldn't read it; I thought it was just another one-page spell!"
"How'd you figure it out now?" Brock pointed out.
"Easy," Lily bragged. "My Murkrow eyes are much keener than my usual ones. I'll have to see if I can use this to examine some of Grandma's old books that got ruined in the big storm of…"
"Never mind that," Ash said. "What did it say about the spell?"
"Well, it turns out that the spell was meant for a more "direct" interaction with Pokémon than the first page suggested."
"I can see that," Misty said dryly. "Though I still can't understand Pikachu, or Togepi."
"Togi!" Despite Misty's new form, the fairy Pokémon still hugged her mother figure affectionately.
"That was a weakness that the spell was never able to resolve," Lily said. "But the witch who made the spell thought that, if they could find a way to make the spell last for more than just a day, humans could acclimate themselves to being Pokémon and learn the language from scratch." Ninetales nodded understandingly. "It's like how some Pokémon use their powers to take human form, like Lokoko," Lily added, causing Ninetales to stiffen.
"You knew?" Lokoko said.
Lily shrugged. "Whenever I look at you," she explained, "it's sort of like one of the illusion spells a friend of mine uses. Though I didn't know until now which Pokémon was making it." She then gazed at Lokoko excitedly, flying all around her to get a full picture. "This is so totally cool! It's not a physical manifestation, but the level of detail you put into this is amazing! And you must be really great at multitasking, too! Do you think you could teach me how to –?" She tried to take a closer look before Ninetales dismissed the illusion and moved it elsewhere, causing the Murkrow to crash on the ground.
"So, anyways, it's not permanent, then?" Brock said. That was a relief. This was an interesting body, but he didn't like having his usual Pokémon gone.
"Nope," Lily replied. "She tried to find a way to extend it indefinitely, but she never got it to work just right. The closest theory she got was that having an explosion go off when casting the spell might amplify the effect, but that kind of experimenting can go wrong if you're not –"
"Wait," Ash said. "An…explosion?"
"Why, yes," Lily said. "Why do you…oh." 'Oh' indeed. Given how an explosion was the reason behind this whole mess…
"How long do you think it will take to wear off?" Brock asked.
"I…really don't know," Lily confessed. "If there was extra energy to sustain the spell, weeks, months? I cannot say."
"Can't you use an antidote or something?" Misty suggested anxiously.
"You're right!" Lily said, perking up. "Every spell has to have a counter to reverse it. I just need to gather the right ingredients. Let me check the right book."
"So I guess we're going on a treasure hunt," Misty sighed.
"Don't worry, Misty," Ash said. "We'll be fine."
"Don't get too cocky, Ash," Brock advised. "We lost the packs with all our supplies, and with the rest of our Pokémon inaccessible for now, things are going to get trickier."
"Maybe," Ash said, "but I can't usually use Thundershock, can I?" He closed his eyes and shot a bolt out from his body to demonstrate – one that narrowly missed everyone else. His Pikachu shook his head despairingly. "Okay, so it needs a little work," Ash admitted. "But we can do this, I know it. It's just like training: we need to know how to use our Pokémon powers to their best ability."
"That reminds me, Brock," Misty said. "Do you happen to know what Pokémon I am? I know that I'm not a Goldeen or Horsea unfortunately, since I can move around on land, but there's still a lot of possibilities – Totodile, Poliwhirl, Corsola, maybe? The only thing is, I'm having trouble seeing myself."
Brock carefully considered the conundrum. "I don't know, Misty," he said. "I think it's something from another region, so you'd have to ask a professor."
"Ahh, I see," Misty said, satisfied for the moment. "Well, if it's a new Pokémon, at least one of us got lucky in all this!"
Not as lucky as you'd think, Brock noted. He was telling the truth – he had never seen that Pokémon before. On the other hand, he could have readily given a description. Only it wouldn't have helped the situation – quite the opposite, really.
"Well," Lokoko said, "I think that, going by your scent at least, I can narrow down your type to that of a B…"
"Now then!" Brock said loudly. "We need to help Lily collect the remaining ingredients for her counter spell. So let's get at it!"
"Right!" Ash said. He dashed out into the woods alongside Pikachu.
"Don't get yourself lost, Ash," Misty said as she followed after him. "We don't even know what we're looking for yet." Even so, Misty went off in pursuit, which was probably good for Brock.
Before heading out himself, Brock turned to Lokoko and Lily. "Listen," he said. "It is vitally important that neither of you even mention what Misty looks like right now."
"Why not?" Lokoko asked. "Misty has a big phobia toward bugs," he explained. "She gets scared out of her wits enough whenever she sees a Bug Pokémon, but if she found that she looks like a blue Spinarak…"
"I see your point," Lokoko said. "I could cast an illusion on her so she doesn't notice."
"Wouldn't help much at this point," Brock says. "She'd just notice that something had changed, and get even more curious."
"I guess it's a good thing I never got around to offering my other spell to Misty," Lily commented.
"What kind of spell did you have in mind?" Lokoko asked curiously.
"A beauty spell," Lily answered. "It gives you softer and smoother skin."
"That doesn't sound that bad," Brock said. "What's the problem?"
"Well…" Lily said as she twiddled her feathers, "it's a lower rank spell, so it really works by attracting Pokémon so they can use their own abilities. In this case String Shot to massage the skin."
"Wait," Brock said. "Isn't String Shot most commonly found with Bug type Pokémon?"
Lily nodded happily. "Bingo!" she said. "I thought that the Spinarak around here would be just perfect for the part."
Brock and Lokoko winced. "That…would not have ended well," Brock said.
"Anyway," Lokoko said, "I hope that this new spell of yours will work."
"Don't worry," Lily said. "How hard can it be? There's bound to be an Ursaring around here that we can gather fur from."
"An…Ursaring?" Brock asked nervously. His mind flashed to an image of the giant, overly-aggressive bear. He had a bad feeling about the plan.
…
…
"All right," Lily said once Misty had stopped Ash and everyone had caught up with them. Together with her Murkrow, the two of them had managed to carry along her potion briefcase, and now she began to carefully look through her inventory. "We fortunately have a Murkrow's feather as the stabilizer already, and I also had an essence of Gloom's perfume in my case, all ready to go for another spell in the works. Add in the Shuckle juice via Brock, and we only need four more ingredients to reverse the spell."
"Got it," Ash said. "So what do we need?"
"Ashes from a Cyndaquil or its kin, the whisker of a Magikarp, a Venonat's fuzz, and an Ursaring's fur," Lily recited.
"Too bad I can't call out Cyndaquil," Ash lamented.
"Yeah," Misty agreed. "That's going to be hard to find. We'll need to focus on something else first."
"How about the Ursaring?" Ash suggested.
"Unless we find one, let's hold off on that, too," Brock advised. "We should probably get used to our bodies before we try to take down an Ursaring." Those giant bears were strong enough to tear down full-grown trees in one swipe, and with most of the normal Pokémon down for the count it would be up to the trainers to make up the slack.
"That leaves…Venonat, right?" Lokoko said.
"Yes," Misty said, somewhat unhappily. "It's not the worst Bug, and I got kind of acclimated when we traveled with Tracey, so I think I can handle it without getting too scared."
"Pika," Pikachu spoke up.
"You're right," Ash agreed. "First we have to find something – anything!"
"You understood what Pikachu said now?" Brock said in surprise.
Ash blinked. "Huh? Nah, it just made sense to me," Ash said. "We've been through so much together, we start to understand how we each think."
"Wait, I see one!" Misty said.
"See what?"
"A Venonat! It's right above us in the trees." Sure enough, a Venonat was cautiously peering down at them from an overhanging branch. Its large, prism-like eyes stared at the group, no doubt scanning them to determine what to do next.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Ash said. "Let's catch it!"
Brock put one of his appendages to his face and groaned. "Ash…" As he feared, the moment Venonat heard a human voice talking about catching it, even though the words came from a Pokémon, it took off in a hurry, not wanting to be found by a trainer.
"Hey, wait up!" Lily said. "We only need a bit of your fuzz, Venonat!" Venonat stopped on another branch, but it didn't come down either. "Someone needs to go up and grab the fuzz," the magician said.
"I'll do it!" Ash volunteered.
"You sure, Ash?" Brock said.
"Of course!" Ash confidently. "How hard can it be?" The answer came a few seconds later when Ash tried to grab a hold of the trunk, only to slip and fall right on his head.
Brock sighed. "I told you," he said, "we're still getting used to these bodies. I'm guessing that paws work a little differently compared with human hands."
"Sorry," Ash said, his tail unconsciously twitching as he rubbed his head with a paw. "This is harder than I thought," Ash said. He flexed his paws experimentally, trying to figure them out. He was pulled out of his thoughts when Pikachu tapped him in on the shoulder.
"Kachu," he said as he demonstrated how to place the paw on the wood.
Ash followed suit and then grinned. "I get it now. Thanks, Pikachu. Okay, I'll get the fuzz in a jiffy!" Ash stumbled again a little farther up, but he managed to get right under Venonat, who seemed to have dozed off in boredom. "All right," Ash said as he pulled himself onto the branch. "Just a little more, and…"
Unfortunately, Ash then tripped over his tail, causing him to tumble into Venonat and send both of them crashing down to the ground. "Well, I got the Venonat," Ash said in a daze.
"But for how long?" Misty wondered. The Venonat now looked rather upset, and its body began to glow.
"Watch out!" Brock said. "I think it's using Psychic."
"Not for long," Ash said. "Get a load of my Thundershock!"
Misty, who had been helping Ash get back up, blanched. "Ash, no!" The ensuing lightning bolt fried Misty, and whizzed toward Venonat…only to miss and hit a tree behind it. An ominous creaking was the only warning the party had before one of the biggest trees in the wood crashed down toward them.
"Run – or fly – for it!" Lily said. They tumbled over themselves to get away, and just narrowly avoided the huge tree before it slammed into the ground.
"That was close," Ash said, panting to catch his breath.
"Too close," Lokoko said crossly. "I could have used my psychic powers to hold back the tree, you know? But then you pulled me into the stampede!"
"I guess we all need to learn how to work with these bodies if we ever want to change back," Brock said.
"And now we need to start all over again with the search," Misty complained, seeing that the Venonat had used the opportunity to flee. But then she paused as she heard the trickling of water. "Hey, I think there's a stream nearby," she said. Indeed, there was a large river just past the trees. "Magikarps are one of the most common fish, so it should be easy to find one," Misty said. "Just leave the fishing to me!"
Ash smiled, but then he faltered as something occurred to him. "Don't go near the water, Misty!" he shouted.
She turned around in confusion. "Why not, Ash?" she said. "I have the most experience with Water Pokémon, so even with whatever I am now I should be able to catch a Makiparp."
"Well," Brock said, stumbling for an answer, "you might be weak against water now – there are types like that, you know."
Yeah," Ash agreed. Like a Bug –"
"Not now, Ash!" Brock said.
While they argued, Misty turned back toward the water. "Don't be ridiculous," she said. "We all turned into Pokémon that reflect our inner hearts, so I must have some affinity with water." She stepped onto the water, and to her surprise and joy clung to the surface as if it were solid ground. "See?" she said, skating across the water. "I told you. Trainer or Pokémon, my specialty will always be wat…"
She paused, and Ash cringed, knowing it was too late. Taking advantage of her position over the water, Misty had glanced down to look at her reflection. Only, she was looking at the face of a blue spider with an almost hair-like crop of peach coloration and horn on top of its head. A cool Pokémon, in Ash's opinion, but still a Bug. And if there was one thing that could set Misty off… Misty stared down at her reflection, her face burning like a fuse about to go off. "B…B…Bugs!" she shrieked. Enhanced by her new form as a Pokémon, her scream pierced through the forest, causing everyone to duck and cover their ears.
By the time Ash and Brock got to the feet – paws – Misty was already skittering away as fast as her legs could take her, too confused to look where she was going. "Misty, come back!" Brock yelled. "It's okay, just calm down!" But Misty did not listen, and disappeared into the brush beside the river.
"Well, that could have gone better," Ash said.
"That is not our only problem," Lokoko said. She looked upward. "There's a storm coming, and you need to take shelter, Brock. Your shell will protect you from most damage, but you are especially vulnerable to water."
"And so are you," Brock noted. "Let's head back to the tree that fell down. I think we can make some decent shelter out of it."
"But what about Misty?" Ash said.
"She's probably long gone with the way she was running," Brock said. "We'll just have to hope that she can take care of herself out there, Bug or not."
…
…
Misty blindly dashed through the woods, but eventually had to stop to catch her breath. But the anxiety was still there, overpowering her. "Bugs…" she murmured. "Got to…get away. Get away." But she couldn't escape this time. Not when she was the bug! Drained of her strength, she plopped down in front of a tree and just sat there morosely, just wishing she could wake up from this nightmare.
However, she forced herself back up as she gradually realized her mistake of running away. Poor Togepi; hopefully Ash and Brock were taking good care of her. Misty knew that she needed to find her way back, but she didn't know the way.
And then she heard rustling around her, coming closer and closer. To her further horror, she saw that she was now surrounded by Bug Pokémon of all kinds. Spinarak, Weedle, Metapods…all kinds of bugs, right in front of her. Even so, Misty used the last of her strength to break away from them. Even as she felt the wind pick up and the skies darken, all that mattered was getting away from the bugs. But if she was a bug…could she ever escape? The water coming down was a relief, something familiar and comforting. Even if at the back of her mind she was noting that Bug type Pokémon were commonly vulnerable to water she was desperate enough not to care. Surely, even in this form, she could swim, right?
That's why, once she saw a stream of water up ahead, Misty leapt forward into a graceful dive, all ready to start swimming. It worked, sort of. On the one hand, Misty didn't feel any pain like a Bug type usually would from the exposure. On the other hand, she was having more trouble staying afloat than she thought she would under the circumstances. To make matters worse, the small trickle of the stream had turned into a deluge as the rain flooded the ground in a torrent. As the seriousness of the situation sunk in, Misty focused on manipulating her multiple arms, which she had tried to ignore, to move in coordinated swimming maneuvers she'd memorized years back with her sisters along Cerulean's north cape. But to her horror, her long, spindly legs lacked enough width and muscle to make any impact on the water.
Still, Misty wasn't about to quit just yet. She managed to lift her head up, and she saw that there were some trees with branches arching over the river. Perfect. Misty wasn't sure exactly what powers she had as a Pokémon, but she tried to concentrate in her stomach, and then she spat out…something. It hit the branches and caused them to fall into the water. Misty managed to grab a hold of one of the bigger chunks to stay afloat. Good, now all she needed to do was wait out the storm.
"Wee!" If Misty could blink, she would have. Even for a water lover like herself, this was hardly the kind of weather for people to be cheering in excitement. But when she heard the cry again, she glanced around and saw what was really going on. A wormlike Weedle was at the water level and desperately trying to hang on for dear life. It had stuck the needle on its head into the bark, but with the current the barb was being pulled loose. Sure enough, the piece of bark ripped off the tree, and unlike Misty's own piece of flotsam it was too heavy to carry the Weedle's weight.
The hairy bug managed to at least get its stinger free, but that was hardly going to help it now that it was being pulled downstream, right past Misty. Seeing the Pokémon in distress touched Misty's heart, bug or not. That's why Misty worked to move her makeshift raft just enough so that it caught the Weedle. "Grab on!" she urged, trying to ignore the creepy feeling of being so close to a bug – one as big as her now! It "helped" that she had bigger problems to worry about. The extra weight was finally sinking the stick, and Misty's desperate paddling with her legs wasn't helping. It looked like it was finally the end of the line for both of them.
However, Misty suddenly felt nothing but thin air beneath her. She opened her eyes again and had to resist the urge to let go and flail in panic. A team of Caterpies, all lined up on a tree branch overhead, were pulling the flotsam up to them with String Shot. And all around them in the huge tree was the insectoid swarm from before.
After they were lifted up into the shelter of the branches, Misty just sat there limply. She was past the point of screaming, and simply gaped at the Pokémon like a Magikarp out of water, her brain too fried at the moment to give any voice to her mouth. The closest one extended their appendages to touch her face. Going to eat me, going to eat me… To her surprise though, the touches on her head were soothing, and she calmed slightly, enough to reopen her eyes. Instead of the hostile, triumphant eyes she expected, they looked…almost concerned. She then felt an uncomfortable sensation of something wriggling against her body. She stiffened and saw that the Weedle from earlier was rubbing her affectionately.
Misty backed away from the bugs, but she stayed under the cover of the tree, knowing that the storm was far from over. Until then, it looked like she was stuck here. At least the bugs seemed to sense Misty's uneasiness and fanned out across the tree, leaving her mostly to herself for the moment. The only exception was the Weedle, which tried to crawl up to Misty again. "No, get away!" Misty snapped. The Weedle flinched, but complied. Before it left, though, it pushed a strange fruit toward Misty. She took a cautious look at it. It wasn't familiar to her, but she didn't have much choice right now. Hearing her tiny tummy rumble, Misty reluctantly bit into the tasty, juicy berry. The cherry-like fruit seemed to bring back some of Misty's strength, though she still needed to sleep if she wanted to really feel better.
That would be hard, unfortunately. Not because of the rain – that was a natural sort of ambience that never failed to soothe the Water Pokémon trainer to sleep. It was all of the darn bugs. Even if they were staying out of sight, she knew that they were still close by, just hidden by some branches and leaves. And she missed having Togepi to cuddle up with at night. If it wasn't for that Weedle being a Bug, she might have welcomed the companionship, but right now she felt a strange mix of loneliness and claustrophobia. But she'd have to make do. And, well, at least she had a covered place to spend the night. Misty lay down and closed her eyes, hoping that this would all have just been a nightmare when she woke up.
…
…
Really, Lokoko didn't understand why everyone was panicking. Yes, a storm was already upon them, with the wind really picking up and it looking like they were just seconds away from a downpour, but at least all of them were Pokémon now instead of weak humans. Things should be easy, right?
Apparently not, though. "Ash," Brock said, trying not to get frustrated, "just stand still. You keep knocking all the dirt back in, and I need to get the hole dug soon."
"Sorry," Ash said. "I just don't know what to do right now."
"Pika," Pikachu said to him comfortingly – but only for a moment, because then Pikachu needed to keep Togepi from wandering off again. After Misty panicked and skedaddled, Togepi got left behind in the confusion, and it was hard enough keeping an eye on the childish fairy without everything else going wrong.
"It's okay," Brock said. "Just leave it to me. This work is perfect for my type." Brock was right on that. Between being a Rock-type Pokémon and a Rock Pokémon gym leader, he certainly knew what he was doing. Which was why it was hard for Lokoko to say what needed to be said.
"Brock," she said gently, "I'm afraid that won't work."
"You're right," he said with realization. "The water will just leak back into the ground."
"So what should we do?" Lily asked. She and her (fellow) Murkrow looked worried as they huddled around her spell book and potion kit. "These are family treasures. I don't want them to get damaged."
"Do not worry," Lokoko said. "I think I can find a way around this. It's not the worst storm I have had to face."
"That's right," Brock said. "You're a Fire type. And the manor's actual roof was in tatters. How did you keep safe?"
"I used my psychic powers to push all of the rain away like a shield," she explained, "and I used my fire to keep me warm inside. Usually I had to take a long rest afterward, but I could hold out for a day if necessary."
"But wouldn't all the water pool up around you anyway?" Ash asked in confusion.
"No, it was not an issue," Lokoko said. "After all, the rain would just flow back down the mountain.
Ash smiled in relief, but then his eyes widened. "Hey, Brock," he said. "The water will still flow away from us here, right?"
Brock frowned. "No, it won't," he said. "With the forest here being relatively flat, and that river not too far away, we'll get flooded once the rain starts to pour."
Ninetales' illusion wavered. She hadn't thought about that, having spent most of her life in the mountains. However, she felt Brock's slimy appendage tap her comfortingly. "It's okay," he said. "We just have to use all of our individual abilities. I think I know what we need to do. But we'll all need to work together."
"What do you want us to do, Brock?" Lily asked.
"Lily," Brock said, "do you know any spells that can glue things together? Very solidly and securely, I mean."
"Why, yes," Lily said. "I can mix those spells up right and quick. Where do you wish me to apply it?"
"Not quite yet," Brock said. He turned to Ash and Pikachu…well, the first Pikachu. "Ash," he said. "I need you and Pikachu – well, both of you – to cut up some wood from the tree that fell over.
"Sure thing, Brock!" Ash said. "Um, but how?"
Brock had no eyebrows to furrow, but his Shuckle head paused for a moment in thought. "Try hitting it with your electricity until some of it breaks off," he suggested. "It's not the best technique, but it'll have to work."
"Okay," Ash said. "Ready, Pikachu?"
"Pika!" Pikachu sparked his cheeks in response.
Ash grinned. "Great! Then here goes! Thunderbolt!" The two Pikachus shot out lightning from their bodies. Pikachu's thunder, which resonated across his body, hit the fallen tree right on target. Ash's on the other hand, solely stemmed from his cheeks and shot out in two different directions. The first hit a tree – just not the one that had already toppled down. The other narrowly missed Lily's Murkrow.
"Careful, Ash!" Brock warned him.
"Sorry!" Ash said. "I'm still getting the hang of it."
"Well, just make sure you get plenty of wood," Brock said. "Lokoko, once we have enough wood, I need you to start levitating it, as if you were setting it in place as walls for a house."
"Oh, I see," Lily said with realization. "That was why you wanted me to use my glue. But how will I get it on once we build high enough?"
"Well," Brock replied, "it's a good thing that you and your partner can both fly now, remember?"
"Ah, yes," Lily said, scratching her beak in embarrassment.
"Ash and Pikachu are done with the first batch of word," Lokoko announced. Unfortunately, it wasn't the best cut of lumber, to say the least. Each piece was misshapen and jagged, with still-bright scorch marks left from the thunderbolt strikes. Still, Lokoko was undeterred. She'd managed to survive the mountains for centuries, so this was nothing in comparison. She began to carefully arrange the pieces in the air. "Any time, Lily," she said.
"All right, let's do this, Murkrow," Lily said. She carefully used her talons to pour a vial onto the key intersections, and then she began to chant. "Lickitung's lick, Shellder to Slowpoke sticks! A dab of dirt from Nidoking, and everything will hold fast and cling!" A sticky, honeylike substance began to ooze onto the wood and then hardened like stone.
"Good work," Brock said. "Keep it up." While Lokoko continued to levitate more makeshift shingles to Lily, Brock began digging into the ground around the ramshackle fort.
"What are you doing?" Lokoko asked.
"I'm going to build up a wall of earth to hold back any water that floods through," he said. "It should at least hold the water back long enough for us to build our fort high enough."
"I hope so," Lokoko said as she sniffed the air, "because the rain is about to start. A few stray drops fell, but she knew that this was only the beginning. Lokoko moved her real body inside the structure and called out to Brock. "You need to get in here, too. Once the water hits, you'll feel the damage."
"Just give me a second," Brock said. "I need to get the earth in place just right. And Ash," he called out, "try to move as much of the wood as you can into the interior; as long as we have the basic support in place, we can keep building up the defenses from inside."
"Got it!" Ash said.
From inside the skeletal shelter, Ninetales calmly moved piece after piece into place for Lily to cement in, but she kept an eye on Brock. He couldn't move very fast with his heavy shell, but he still managed to get the earth piled up to Ninetales' height.
"That'll do for now," he said. "If there's more wood inside, we can add in some supports to the roof so Ninetales won't need to levitate it."
"First you should get inside," Lokoko said, Ninetales having projected a smaller image of her inside the fort. "I don't know how much longer it will be before –" A loom boom of thunder cut her off, and it began to rain like a monsoon. Ninetales was already inside, and Lily and her Murkrow swiftly flew in through the gap between the roof and the dirt walls. But while Ash and Pikachu were able to jump up high enough, Brock realized that he could barely hop off the ground. Fortunately, just as things looked hopeless, Ninetales used her psychic powers to levitate him in.
"Phew," Brock said. "That was really too close."
"Don't let your guard down yet," Lokoko warned. "I did my best to arrange the wood, but the pieces were imperfect, so it was not like they could fit together exactly right." And sure enough, a few small leaks were dripping water inside.
"I'm sorry," Ash apologized.
"Hey, don't worry about it," Brock said. "I'll dig a hole into the ground to store some of the excess water. Ninetales, see if you can hold the water back just a little. And Lily, try to use a little more magic to seal the cracks and close up the remaining gaps on the wall.
"Yes, Brock," the two female Pokémon said.
Ash, however, still looked upset. "I just feel bad that I wasn't able to help much," he said. "I didn't know that being a Pikachu was so hard."
"Chu." Pikachu tapped Ash and pointed to his cheeks, then he carefully dragged his paws down.
"Wait," Ash said. "You start in the cheeks to get it started, and then you let it flow through you?"
"Ka!"
"Great!" Ash said. "I think I know how to use my electricity now."
"Good," Brock said, "but let's wait until morning to try it out. Once we've got the water handled, we can try to get some sleep."
"I wonder how Misty is doing," Lily said worriedly. As she looked down at the ground dismally, it was clear that she felt guilty about her magic spell causing all of these problems for her new friends.
"Don't worry," Brock assured her. "Misty's strong. We just have to have faith in her."
"And even if she's in trouble," Ash said without a doubt, "we'll go and save her as soon as we can. That's what friends do."
"Indeed," Lokoko agreed. Back at the mansion, once everyone had left, Lokoko had only maintained a semblance of control. Yet truthfully, every storm did its damage. But here, with everyone working together, they had managed to pull through. Perhaps this was what attracted Brock to the group, she thought, and was what was making her feel warm inside. It was…like she had her friends and family back. Even if she still had a longing for her old master.
"Lokoko."
She was snapped back out of her thoughts by Brock. Everyone else had tucked themselves down to sleep. "Yes, Brock?"
Brock smiled. "I have to say, you're one incredible person."
"What do you mean?" She had developed some unique powers to stay alive all these years, but it was nothing truly remarkable, not when it was all but an illusion.
"I hadn't really thought of it, even after seeing Meowth act so human all these years," he explained, "but it's really hard to adjust to a different kind of body that you weren't born for. Knowing that you had managed to learn to be so human, well, it gave me the courage to not panic in this new form. So thanks."
"You are the remarkable one, Brock," she said. "You're always so determined and smart. And your friends are too, in their own way."
"Yeah," he said, "all our friends are really special, huh?" Funny how he'd turned the comment right back on her. But, he was right. Everyone had their own talents. Even Lily, who had gotten them into this jam, had proved to be rather resourceful, with her wards continuing the hold the sticks in place even as the wind howled outside. And Lokoko could have sworn that the spell book of hers was in High Pokémonian – she was sure that all traces of that tongue had been wiped out in the wars, but instead it was still safe through a most unexpected patron. Maybe she should ask – but never mind that, for now.
The point was, everyone had something greater inside them. It's what brought her and her master so close together, after all, once she learned to look past his flaws. She just needed to remember to look for that hidden beauty in others, even herself.
"Well," she said, "sweet dreams, Brock." She saw that he'd already closed his eyes. The two Murkrows were roosting up by the roof, while over in a separate corner, the two Pikachu were cuddled around Togepi to keep her warm. The latter gave her an idea. Even while Lokoko's illusion remained stationary, her Ninetales self sauntered over to Brock and wrapped her tails around him.
"Hey, what are you doing?" he asked, opening his eyes in surprise.
"Hush," she said in the graceful manner she remembered the house's courtesans used. Well, with her voice at least – given that it was the Ninetales doing the actual massaging, it wasn't quite the same. "You humans are so used to your clothes keeping you warm. Ash and Lily have their fur and feather, but I imagine that your shell is cold as a rock. So just relax.
"After all," she teased lightly, "you do not want to pinch one of my tails by mistake, do you?"
"All right," he conceded as he withdrew into the shell, though not before rubbing his squishy head against her soft fur. She let her illusion fade away, and as she closed her eyes she heard him add, "Good night, Lokoko."
…
…
The faint sound of dripping water mixed with the glaring light of dawn woke Misty up. The storm had long since passed, and the water around the tree was receding back to the main river, but the water caught in the tree was still slowly slipping down from the leaves. Misty groggily smiled only to then stiffen and glance around uneasily. Were the bugs still here? She carefully walked along the large branch to check. Much to her relief, it appeared that she was the last one up. Moreover, since there was no more rain, the bugs had seen no further reason to swarm and must have scattered across the woods once more. "Thank goodness," Misty sighed. Of course, this meant that she was alone again, but Ash and the others had to be somewhat close by, she hoped.
However, Misty's spidery-like body stiffened when she felt something wriggle against her back. "Wee!" "Aaaah!" Misty squealed and jumped away, barely managing to keep from slipping off the tree. When she got her bearings, she saw an orange-colored Weedle slinking forward. "I thought they were all gone," she moaned to herself. To get away, Misty prepared to slide down the trunk, but she slipped and began to fall headlong toward the ground. "I hate being a Bug!" she shouted, before closing her eyes and waiting for the inevitable squash.
Misty opened her eyes and saw that she was being lifted up. Not much, but enough to get onto a low-hanging branch. Looking up, she saw the Weedle along the side of the tree with the remnants of a String Shot. "Thank you," Misty finally said. True, she had a lot to thank the Weedle for, even if it kept creeping her out.
Something then occurred to her. "You stayed behind to make sure I was okay, didn't you?" she said softly. The Weedle hesitantly nodded. It looked a little forlorn. "I'm sorry," Misty said, "but I'm not good around Bug Pokémon. But that was still nice of you. …Thanks."
She carefully slid down the rest of the way and looked around. "Now to find Ash and Brock," she told herself. "Too bad that I can't even get near the water – with all this rain, I could probably find Magikarp all over the place."
She turned head into the drier forest, but then the Weedle crossed her path and pointed its spike in another direction. "Wee!"
"You want me to follow you?" Misty said. The Bug Pokémon nodded. Misty sighed. Well, it wasn't like she really knew where everyone else was right now; she'd lost track of things during her panic last night. So she might as well let the Weedle help, even if she didn't know what it had in mind. "Fine," she grumbled halfheartedly, "lead the way."
The two of them moved alongside the receding stream. It was taking slower than Misty was used to, given how small both of them were, but eventually the Weedle came to a stop and looked at Misty expectantly. Misty skittered up to the Weedle and then saw what it had led her to: a beautiful lake. "So this is where the stream originates," she pondered. "It's beautiful. Thank you for showing me it."
She turned to leave, but the Weedle looked surprised and gestured back to the lake again. Misty wondered what it wanted, until she remembered about what she had said about Magikarp. "Ah, I see," she said. She looked back at the lake with a more discerning gaze. The lake was placid and calm, so she wouldn't have as much trouble with the current like she would have with the stream. Even so, that didn't solve her larger problem. "I'm really sorry after you went through all the trouble," she said, "but I don't know how to swim, so I still can't reach a Magikarp."
But the Weedle looked undeterred. Instead, it began to mime some sort of action, while intermittently pointing at the water. Finally, it started to click for Misty. "You want me…to just walk out on the water?" There was no way that would work. She'd just sink like a rock. And it's not like she could swim when all she had was these flimsy legs, and it wasn't like walking onto it like it was glass instead of water would change any…
Misty's thought process paused at that. Wait. Yesterday, when she first saw her reflection, she had walked out onto the water and looked down at her reflection. She should have just sunk into the water, but instead she had remained above it. And now that she thought of it, Bug Pokémon were some of the lightest Pokémon around, perhaps light enough to stay afloat like a leaf. Misty pushed away her fears about her current form, and instead began to analyze it from the viewpoint of a Water Pokémon gym leader. Yes, if her hypothesis was correct, then…
Misty delicately extended her legs onto the water and saw that she could stand on the surface. "I see," she said. "I can't dive or swim in this form, but I can walk on it instead. That would make it a little difficult to grab a Magikarp, though, as they were probably all beneath the surface, assuming there were any here at all. To Misty's surprise, though, she saw that a bunch of orange blurs were just below the surface. Sure enough, a whole school of Magikarp came up. "So many of them," Misty mused. "This must be their breeding ground here. So that's why you brought me here. Thank you, Weedle!"
"Wee!"
She then carefully approached the surfacing Magikarp. She knew that she didn't need to worry about them attacking – Magikarp were skim feeders who just absorbed nutrients into their open mouths while they swam instead of actively hunting – but she didn't want to scare them away either. She cautiously hummed a light tune somewhat like what Cascade sometimes made. On hearing it, a Magikarp turned its attention to her.
"Listen, Magikarp," Misty called out, "could you please hold still for a moment? I just need one of your whiskers." The flopping fish calmed down, and one of them moved toward Misty. If Misty remembered correctly, Magikarp whiskers easily regrew, so it wouldn't cause any pain to the Pokémon. But once the Magikarp was in front of her, Misty realized that she had another dilemma. The problem became clear when she reached out with one of her arms, only for that to cause her to lose her traction on the water. She barely managed to regain her stance. "I guess I'm going to need to use my horn," she finally said. After recalling how Weedle had used its own needle-like protrusion on its head last night, she pierced the long, pale yellow string and then yanked it off the Magikarp.
However, Misty felt something pull on her back. The Weedle, along with a number of its friends, were pulling her with String Shot. The Bug-related attack sent a jolt of fear through her, but she calmed down. "Thank you," she said.
"Weedle!" Weedle smiled happily.
Misty couldn't quite tell what Weedle had said, but she had a hunch it was something like, "What are friends for?" This had been a very strange adventure, but hopefully, once she found Ash and the others, things would get back to normal. Though the memories, and new questions about herself, would remain. Yes, despite everything that had gone wrong, things were looking up.
…
…
As light gradually pierced into the fortification, Ash awoke to see that the defenses had held firm through the night. And longer than just the night, her realized to his surprise once he peered out through one of the remaining holes in the shelter. Ash was used to the dawn waking him up when they were all on the trail so to speak, so he could tell that the light outside wasn't just from the early rising of the sun. "Huh," he said as he nudged Pikachu awake. "That must have been some storm."
"Yeah," Brock agreed. "I think it's just a little before lunch now; the clouds must have covered up the sun through the whole morning."
"Well, I hope you can cook in your new body, Brock," Ash said, "because I'm starving now."
"Ka!" Pikachu, having gently nudged Togepi awake, chimed in agreement.
Brock chuckled as he pushed his way out of the makeshift barricade. "I'll see what I can work up," he said. "I already have a good idea of what we can gather in the woods, and while I don't have my cooking supplies, with Nintales we can at least cook our food. The only trouble will be finding food that hasn't been dampened too much by all the rain…"
That sort of stuff was Brock's alley, so Ash ignored him for now and focused on Pikachu and Togepi. The latter was starting to tear up again, missing Misty. "Don't worry," he said. "I'm sure we'll find Misty soon."
"Exactly," Lily agreed. "Murkrow is a whiz at finding things, so I know he'll find your friend in a jiffy. I also told him to keep an eye out for the Ursaring and the other Pokémon we need to reverse the potion."
"Finding them only solves half of your problem," Lokoko said. "You also need to get the materials from them, too."
"That'll be easy," Ash said. "Me and Pikachu – well, both of us Pikachus – will take them down in a snap."
"Just like yesterday?" Lokoko quipped. "Oh, yeah," Ash admitted, slumping a little. "I'm not used to fighting in this kind of body."
"Well, your mission is not quite fighting," Lily pointed out. "I just need the specific items – if you can get them without having to beat them, that works, too."
"You're right," Ash said. He shared a smile grin with Pikachu. If there was one thing that both of them were great at, it was coming up with new ways to handle Pokémon problems – even if some people might call them crazy. "Come on, buddy," he said. "Let's start practicing so we're ready. I think we should start thinking of a new move – something that we could have used to break that wood last night instead of having to fry it."
"Pika!" Pikachu pumped his small paws in agreement.
A little while later, Ash paused in the middle of their practice when he caught a strange scent in the air. "What's that?" he asked. For some reason, Pikachu tensed, along with the other true Pokémon.
"What's up?" Brock asked Ninetales in concern.
"That smell is one that all Pokémon learn to recognize at a heartbeat," Lokoko said, "especially in the wild. It is the scent of a human, and more than that, a Pokémon trainer."
…
…
"Well," Misty said, "I guess this is it. I really need to find my other friends right now. Hopefully by now Ash and Brock had found the rest of the ingredients for the recipe and she could finally get back to normal. At least things hadn't been a total nightmare, though. She'd gotten to see the Magikarp up close in a way she never had before, after all.
She turned back the Weedle and managed to keep herself from visibly flinching. "I…you're a good person – I mean, Pokémon." Weedle nodded happily but then paused as an unexpected wind shot past the trees.
"There it is, Spearow!" someone called. "Quick, use Peck before it gets away!" A Spearow flew out and savagely started pecking the Weedle.
"Weedle, no!" Misty cried. "Leave him alone!"
The Spearow then turned its gaze toward Misty, and she prepared for battle against it. Human or Pokémon, she wasn't about to give up without a fight. But then it occurred to her that the voice from before was a human's. Which meant…
Misty dove away, tackling Weedle as she did so, just in time to evade a Pokéball right over her head.
"Dang, missed!" A young trainer, with black hair and a stout body that pushed against his blue t-shirt leered down at the two small bugs. "Let's forget about the strange Weedle; a Surskit all the way out here is rarer than an Omanyte!" He fingered another ball from his belt, and Misty felt a rush of fear run through her. Acting on instinct, she shot a Water Gun to knock the ball out of his hand.
"Hey!" the kid complained. "No fair, you stupid spider." Misty ignored his complaints and urgently tugged at Weedle, and then they were off in a sprint – well, the closest they could get to that at the moment – into the woods. "You're a clever little one, aren't you?" the trainer mused. "Still, you're not getting away that easy. Go and catch them, Spearow!" Misty looked back in fear and saw the Spear take off like a jet after them. If they couldn't find a way out of this mess soon, she didn't want to think about what would happen next.
…
…
"Great news!" Lily said after her Murkrow had returned. "Murkrow spotted Misty just a little farther up the river, right by a small lake.
"Good," Brock said in relief. "We're close, so even if she went back under the trees we should be able to find her with enough searching."
"Then let us go," Lokoko said. Her Ninetales self froze, though, as she sensed…something.
"What is it?" Brock asked.
"That scent from before," she said. "It's even stronger now. And…" She turned to Ash, sensing something else as well – not by scent but something different. A light blue energy, unlike the usual electricity, briefly pulsed on his cheeks, but before Lokoko could really focus on that he jumped up in alarm and the energy vanished. "Misty!" he shouted.
"What's wrong?" Lokoko asked.
"She's in danger," Ash insisted, already breaking into a run. "I just know it. Over this way! It must be that trainer you were talking about."
"Hey Ash, wait!" Brock shouted. "You don't know who you're up against!"
"That isn't the only problem," Lily observed. "What if the trainer decides to catch Ash, too?"
"Then his 'trainer' will have to show herself," Lokoko decided.
…
…
Right now, Misty thought, she'd take the storm from yesterday over her current situation. In both cases she ended up huddling in the trees, and at least then the rain wasn't directly out to get her.
"Wee…" The Weedle huddled in fear, and Misty pulled it closer underneath the leaves she'd hastily gathered.
"Stay quiet," she urged. "We'll be okay as long as he doesn't find us again."
Of course, that's when the Spearow landed on the branch right next to them. At least it didn't seem to notice them, or wasn't in a mood to care; Spearows could be contrary like that sometimes. "Any sign of them, Spearow?" the trainer called up to it. The Spearow paused for a moment before shaking its head in negation. Misty started to sigh in relief, before realizing that it probably wasn't the best idea under the circumstances. Fortunately, they didn't seem to hear her.
Of course, that was when she heard Ash yell, "Misty!" at the top of his lungs.
If she had hands and wasn't trying to keep a firm grip on the trip, Misty would have slapped her face and groaned. Ash, you reckless blockhead… And she knew that Brock and the others would be right behind him, making things even worse. Right now, with no apparent "master" in sight, they were ripe targets for the trainer.
The trainer smirked, especially when a second Pikachu – and Togepi! – came out of the bushes before they realized the danger. "This really is my lucky day," he said, sneering. "Gotta catch 'em all, I always say."
But then a stern voice rang out and said, "Stop at once!" Misty had to admit, Lokoko sure knew how to make an entrance. She strode out into the clearing with no expression of fear on her face. Well, at least on her human face. Given how Ninetales' tails were arched behind her, it was clear that she was worried, but at least she did not show it in her human form as she marched up to the trainer. "These Pokémon here are mine, and I am afraid that I must politely ask you to leave them be."
The trainer looked uncertain at first, and Misty thought that maybe he'd finally go away. But unfortunately, his eyes happened to dart down to Lokoko's waist. She was still using her traditional kimono attire, and said form lacked a Pokéball belt. "In that case," he said, "why haven't you called them back into their Pokéball yet?"
Lokoko's visage froze, as she now realized her mistake. Even so, she quickly regained her elegant poise. "They are all my dear friends," she said. "I do not see the need to keep them stuffed inside a ball all of the time. So I left my balls back in my cottage."
The boy looked unconvinced. "So you just happened to wander through the woods without any Pokéballs? Give me a break! What kind of trainer goes outside without having some balls handy to catch some Pokémon?"
Lokoko sniffed daintily. "Perhaps we simply wished to enjoy the nice weather, after the storm last night."
"Even if I believe that story," the kid said, "not all of these Pokémon can be yours." Brock, Lily, and her Murkrow had come out of the bushes by this point, and the trainer was gazing back and forth at the different Pokémon. "If you count the two bugs I was chasing before, that makes nine Pokémon you 'own'. And you can't fool me – you can only ever have seven Pokémon with you at once!"
Actually, Misty noted with a deadpan expression, the limit was six, but his point still stood. Still, Lokoko wasn't about to give up yet. "A couple of them were a friend's," she said.
"Fine," the trainer said. "Then you won't mind if I throw my Pokéballs at them, will you? After all, if they are 'yours', then surely they'll be safe from being captured."
"I cannot let you do that," Lokoko said. The air began to stiffen, and Misty felt a light tingling sensation as Ninetales' eyes began to glow in preparation for the attack. Misty got ready to jump into the fray as well, though she knew that it didn't look good. Ninetales was strong, but Misty wasn't sure if Spearow was the only Pokémon he had or not; who knew what else he might have at his disposal? And if his empty balls started flying, they'd all be in trouble – especially if one of them managed to catch Lokoko.
But then the trainer thought for a moment and instead gestured for Spearow to jump on his head. "How about we settle this as trainers?" he suggested. "Assuming you want to keep pretending to be one, that is."
"Very well," Lokoko said. "I accept your challenge. How many Pokémon do you wish to call to your banner?"
"Three's good enough for me," the trainer said.
"Then it will be three-on-three," she declared. She bowed gracefully. "I am Lokoko. May I ask who I am destined to fight?"
"The name's Nicky," he said. "And enough playing around. Let's do this! Spearow, go!"
"Go – umm…" Lokoko stumbled, unsure who to pick, until Brock, who had been next to Lily, waddled forward, stepping in front of Lokoko after having paused for a moment with Ninetales. "Ah, yes, I see – go, Brock!" As a part-Rock type, Shuckle was a good choice against Spearow. Then again, Flying types were strong against Bugs, which Shuckle also was, and Spearow clearly had the advantage of agility. So what was Brock going to do?
"Aim for the holes, Spearow!" Nicky ordered. "Its shell might be rocky, but it's a bug on the inside."
"Brock, use Dig," Lokoko commanded. Before she finished the sentence, Brock had burrowed into the ground, thus keeping him safe from Spearow. But that didn't solve how he was going to hurt Spearow when the bird was up in the air. And he'd need to come up to the surface to see where Spearow was before he could attack.
Then Misty noticed that Lokoko's visage had "frozen up" again. It remained at a single, unchanging expression. That sometimes happened when Ninetales was too focused on something else to keep more than minimal attention to her human projection.
Finally Lokoko's gaze suddenly hardened. "Rock Throw, straight up!" she said. A small hole appeared right under Spearow, and then a volley of rocks burst out and hit the bird head-on.
"What the heck?" Nicky said as he clenched his fist. "How'd you even know where he was?" So that was why Brock stopped by Ninetales before starting the battle, Misty realized. Ninetales used her psychic powers to sense where Brock was and then time the perfect moment for the attack. A little unconventional, but it was still mostly within the limits of fair play – and it wasn't like Nicky could call her out on it; besides, while this was just a fight to Nicky, a lot more was at stake for Brock and the others, so Misty was willing to let Ninetales work her magic like that.
Brock then dug back underground. However, Misty noticed to her dismay that this time Brock had left a small part of his shell visible from the surface, including one of the vents leading into his interior body – leaving Spearow the perfect opening.
Seeing this, Nicky smirked. "All right," he said, "now it's time for payback. Peck that moldy slime to bits!" Spearow landed on the top of the shell and poked its beak inside, only to suddenly flinch as a pinkish smoke burst out from the hole.
"Spearow!" Nicky cried. "What's wrong?" Spearow flew away with a stagger, and then it flinched in pain as a purplish liquid bubbled from its body. That's right, Misty recalled, Shuckles were sometimes used to mix potions together, and between that old man Brock had met once and Lily's own help, it looked like Brock had planted a little surprised in that particular vent.
"You…poisoned him?" Nicky said. "That's cheating!"
"It is perfectly legal for a Pokémon to carry a held item with them," Lokoko said. "I remember Brock telling me that."
Misty wasn't sure exactly what sort of witch's brew Brock had stored inside the shell, but from the looks of it Spearow was now poisoned – and it had already lost most of its health to the Rock Throw from before. Just one more hit, and it would be down, while Brock hadn't even suffered damage yet.
"'Brock' told you?" Nicky said mockingly. "Well, let's see how you like this!" He threw a second Pokéball and released a Quilava.
"So you're switching out?" Lokoko said.
Nicky just laughed. "Why would I do that?" he said. "Quilava, get in there and help Spearow! Use your Smokescreen to choke that Shuckle until it has to come up for air." Spearow flew out of range while Quilava's back heated up with flames, thus channeling smoke all over the place.
"That's cheating!" Lokoko protested.
"No it's not," Nicky said, waving a finger admonishingly. "We still have three Pokémon, so it's within the rules. But I wouldn't expect a sheltered lady like you to know the modern rules of battling."
That…was never part of League-established rules of any sort. Misty would know, being a gym leader. She opened her mouth to object adamantly, but remembered just in time to keep her cover. Brock might have still shouted, disliking both insults to Lokoko and people who broke the rules of battles, but with all of the ashes covering the battlefield he was hardly in the condition to speak. As the smoke finally started to clear, Brock could be seen on the surface, his head and other appendages stretching out in a vain attempt to get some air.
With its keen eyes, Spearow had already spotted him and swooped in for the kill. "That's it, Spearow!" Nicky said. "Quilava, use your fire to roast that Shuckle, too!" With both of those attacks at once, Brock would be toast.
Misty quickly turned to the Weedle and whispered, "Look, now's a good time for you to sneak away." When the Weedle looked at her uncertainly, Misty added, "Don't worry about me. I'm going to help some friends of mine."
She then jumped out of the tree and fired a Water Gun at the Quilava. Caught off guard and at point-blank range, Quilava took the full force of the attack. It crashed against the tree, already unconscious from the critical water damage. Unfortunately, Spearow hadn't reached Brock yet, so it was easy enough for the bird to divert course slightly to hit Misty. As she fainted, though, she made out another pile of rocks hurtling at Spearow. Good, she thought as things went black. That should even things out a bit.
…
…
Nicky stamped his foot in frustration. "No fair!" he shouted, but Lokoko calmly shook her head.
"That is perfectly within the set of rules you just outlined," she reminded him. "Was it not?" It was a good thing that she knew how to balance her illusion's image with her true self, so that while her human form remained calm, her Ninetales self grinned, baring its teeth with a predatory sense of satisfaction. It fit her view of justice well to see the child taken down by the own rules he invented.
But it wasn't over yet. She hoped that she could maintain the appearance of a trainer up through this final go. "Fine," Nicky bit out. "Last round. Send out your final Pokémon – and no dawdling this time around!"
Ash's Pikachu was going to jump up, but Ash stopped him and took his place. Ninetales frowned slightly. Given that Ash was still getting used to his Pikachu body, Lokoko really hoped that he knew what he was doing.
Once he was certain that Lokoko had chosen a Pikachu, Nicky grabbed a particular ball and threw it to unleash an Ursaring. The giant bear was at least half the size of the towering trees around them and leered down at the small mouse in its way. This…was not good.
However, Ash glanced over at Ninetales and smiled confidently, as if this made him even happier. Then he broke into a run. Rather than charging Ursaring, though, he simply ran circles and figure eights around the bear. "Some trainer you are," Nicky taunted, "letting your Pokémon run wild like that."
"Ash knows what he's doing," Lokoko said, hoping that she wasn't wrong. "I will stake my future on him in this battle."
"We'll see about that," Nicky said. "Ursaring, hit that Pikachu with your Hyper Beam!" Ursaring's mouth filled with light that then shot out in a powerful laser, but Ash was already moving out of its range of fire. Still, Lokoko didn't understand why Ash was just running around like this rather than attacking. And every now and then, he seemed to stall at one spot before breaking back into a sprint.
Then Ash tossed a bottle he'd been carrying in his mouth over to Lily. The Murkrow caught it and in turn tossed a new empty vial to him. Of course! Quilaval ash would work for the spell just as well as a Cynadquil's would, and there was plenty of ash still left from the last fight. Ash wanted to grab enough of it before it blew away. And now that she thought of it…
"Okay, Ash," she said. "Jump onto Ursaring and don't let go." Ursaring raised a paw to attack, but Ash leapt aside just as the arm slammed into the ground, and then he was running all the way up to Ursaring's head.
"Shake him off, Ursaring!" Nicky urged. Ursaring thrashed around like crazy, but Ash held on while also yanking out some of the fur. Finally, frustrated at the irritation, Ursaring swiped at its head to hit Ash. Having got what he wanted, Ash jumped off, causing Ursaring to hit itself instead.
Nicky gasped. "Ursaring!"
Having observed Ash's battles in the past, Lokoko knew what to do. Attempting to mimic Ash's boldness, she moved her hand up to her head and twisted (even though no hat was there) and said, "Now use Thunderbolt!" Electricity surged from Ash to the Ursaring, who was too cumbersome and exhausted to move out of the way. By the time the attack was finished, Ursaring was dizzy, and he fell to the ground with a resounding crash. Just in time, too – Ash had settled himself on the ground, a little worn out for his first battle as an actual Pokémon.
"Well, that settles things," Lokoko said. "Now, would you please kindly remove yourself from these premises and leave us all be?"
But unfortunately, instead Nicky drew out a big butterfly net. "I don't care!" he said. "You don't own those Pokémon anyway, so I'm just going to catch them now that they're bushed."
At this, Ninetales' tails began to stiffen. Lokoko had put up with the brat's constant whining and cheating to maintain her disguise as her friends' master, but now that he was still going to try to capture them, she was prepared to finally let loose her true power and end this irritating farce of a battle once and for all. At least his Pokémon were down for the count too, leaving just one cocky human to teach a lesson he'd never forget. But then a net came down over the battlefield and pulled her, and just about everyone else, into the air.
…
…
Being one of the very few Pokémon present to both have wings and not be winded from the fight, Lily's Murkrow was able to escape the trap. Sadly, not quite used to flying herself in this manner, Lily was unable to get out of the way in time herself. "What's going on?" she asked.
"Wahahaha!" The two humans and Meowth from yesterday taunted them from above in a Meowth-shaped hot air balloon.
"Looks like we really hit the jackpot this time," Meowth said, licking his lips greedily. "Sure, that dumb bird's not worth much, but think about it: a Shuckle, an Ursaring, a Quilava, and a…some sort of bug, not to mention some of the Twerps' Pokémon. The Boss will give us a promotion for sure!"
"I wonder what happened to the Twerps themselves, though," the blue-haired man said with a hint of worry. "They usually aren't too far away from their Pokémon."
"Who cares, James?" the red-headed woman said dismissively. "Now take us out of here, Meowth."
"You got it, Jessie," Meowth said. The balloon began to cumbersomely float away over the wood. Lily saw Murkrow following, but she didn't know if he would be enough to stop them.
Below, Nicky was also running in a desperate chance to keep up. "Come on!" he begged. "Give me back my Pokémon! Please!"
"Sorry, kid," Jessie said, "but you know what they say: finders-keepers."
"Exactly," James said. "If you want to complain, please address a letter to Team Rocket headquarters. Maybe someone will get back to you in a decade or two."
"Anyway," Meowth said. "So long! There's nothing any of ya can do to stop u…what the –?"
"What's wrong, Meowth?" James asked, noticing his change in tone.
"Up ahead!" Meowth said. Lily looked and saw what he meant. A swarm of Bug-type Pokémon, from Beedrils to Venomoths to Butterfrees, was flying straight toward them.
"Hey, who invited all the bugs?" Jessie demanded.
"Wait," Misty said, scrunched up next to Lily. "Is that…Weedle?" Sure enough, a small, orange-colored bug could be seen clinging onto the head of the lead Beedril in the squadron.
"Don't just sit there, Meowth!" Jessie said. "Put us in reverse!"
"I'm going, I'm going," Meowth grunted as he tried to change the balloon's direction.
Lily's silent prayers were answered, and the balloon began to move away from the approaching horde. Why did Lily wish for that? Well, she'd been watching Murkrow's pursuit, not that Team Rocket had noticed it, and now they were going right back to the crow. Her familiar flew up to the top of the balloon, and a hiss of air revealed that he had successfully punctured the balloon.
"Wah!" The balloon, along with the net carrying everyone, crashed into the trees. Team Rocket lay prone on the ground, but the net holding Lily and the other Pokémon held firm. Still, with Murkrow landing and the sound of the Bug Pokémon growing ever louder, the would-be thieves were finished.
Not that they had accepted that yet. "Go, Arbok!" Jessie said, releasing her purple serpent.
"You too, Victreebel!" James said, before getting swallowed by the giant plant.
Unconcerned with her partner's antics, Jessie pointed at the Murkrow. "Use Bite and swallow that bird whole!" she said, clearly fed up with the trouble he'd caused.
"Use Sucker Punch," Lily told Murkrow. The black-feathered bird waited for Arbok to come close enough, and then it ducked just slightly to the left and proceeded to strike Arbok right on the neck, sending it flying back to Jessie's feet. By now, Victreebel had gotten off of James and hopped forward to join the fight.
"Use Razor Leaf," James said. Lily smiled. Perfect!
"Well, Murkrow," she said, "you know what to do." Murkrow opened its beak and, one by one, caught the leaves without taking any damage. As Lily's trusty helping in collecting even the hardest of ingredients, Murkrow found it easy to intercept the leaves.
And better yet, Lily knew of a special little spell she could use. "The kiss of a Murkrow upon the leaves of a 'bel," she declared, "with the scales of an Arbok, come forth, we call you, our "vinest" spell!" Murkrow spat the leaves at Arbok. The leaves were too crumpled to cut anymore, but with Murkrow's spit on the leaves, they burst in a flash of green miasma as soon as they touched Arbok's body. Then a clump of the "vinest" vines burst from the ground and entangled the whole team.
"Hey, knock it off!" Meowth said. "I'm warning ya, we've only begun to fight…" His confidence wavered when he saw the Bug swarm land near them. "On second thought," he said, "mind having a little mercy for a completely innocent Pokémon like myself?" Unlike Lily, the Pokémon were not as easily fooled. Between a half dozen Twineedle attacks, some Poison Stings here and there, and a violent gust of wind, the team and their Pokémon were knocked skyward.
"Even without the Twerps they beat us," Jessie fumed.
"You know," James said, "I think that other Pikachu looked kind of familiar…"
"You can think about that later," Meowth said. "Right now, looks like we're blasting off again!"
Lily sighed in relief as they became just a twinkle in the sky, but then she remembered that they still needed to get out of the net. Someone began to unravel the net from the outside, but to her horror it was that trainer from before. And since Ninetales had stopped generating the illusion after getting caught in the net, their cover was ruined.
However, rather than try to catch them, Nicky just smiled and let everyone out. He hugged his Ursaring, Spearow, and Quilava before turning back to the party. After a moment of hestitation, he said, "Thank you. I just wanted to catch some Pokémon, but after seeing those Rockets try to take my own Pokémon away… Well, I still don't know what's going on with all you guys, but I don't really have the heart for anything else. He returned his Pokémon to their balls and then walked off into the woods, leaving them be.
"Well, at least that's done with," Brock said. "Lily, did you manage to hold onto the ingredients Ash got for you?"
"Yes," Lily said. "I kept them safe under my feathers. Now all we need is a Venonat."
"I think I know where we can find one," Misty said, glancing at the Bug Pokémon, which included a few Venonats.
"Perfect," Lily said. "I'll get started on the antidote." But then she hesitated. "Then again," she said, "now that we can change back anytime, maybe we could just stay Pokémon for a while!" It was so neat being a Pokémon she thought, and she'd only just started to explore the new possi…
"Get started, now," Misty told her, burning with fury despite being a Water and Bug type.
"Okay, okay!" Lily said quickly. Oh well, she'd just have to experiment more some other day.
…
…
As Brock and Lily worked on the potions that would cure them, Misty cautiously walked over to the remaining Bug Pokémon. Many of them had flown off once the fight was over, but some of them were still around, such as the Venonat they'd gotten the fuzz from, and a certain Weedle. Misty felt herself naturally stiffen in fear when their gazes turned to her, but she took a deep breath to stay calm. She was nowhere over her phobia, and she had a feeling that once she was a human again she'd start freaking out again, but for now, the feeling of a common bond kept her feelings settled. Enough at least so that she could do something she needed to do.
"Weedle," she began, "I…I just want to say to all of you: thank you. I was really scared and reacted poorly, but you came through and still helped us. So…take care." Weedle nodded, and its parent Beedril carried it off into the deeper woods.
"It's ready!" Lily announced. "Gather round so I can complete the spell – well, except for the Pokémon that were Pokémon from the beginning; I don't want to take any more chances of messing things up for more people."
But then Lily's expression turned thoughtful. "Though, I do wonder what might happen if a Pokémon got caught in the spell to reverse the spell that made a human to a Pokémon. Would they become human? Or would it turn them into a human and then into an entirely different Pokémon. Or maybe it would be a hybrid…"
"I…think I will pass for now," Lokoko said, moving both her Ninetales self and her projection well away from the spell zone. The other true Pokémon hastily followed suit.
Once they were by the cauldron, Lily dropped in the last ingredient and began chanting. "Ursaring's fur, dry the tears of the Aipom, and let the whiskers of the sea wash away the cat's dirt from its paws. Now, with Murkow's black and Pikachu's light, turn the spell around and make things right!"
A cloud of smoke engulfed them, and as things cleared up Misty saw that she was back to her normal height. "Oh, Togepi!" she exclaimed, wrapping the baby up in her arms. "I'm so glad everything's back to normal!"
"Not quite," Brock observed. As it turned out, Ash was still a Pikachu.
"I thought that this was going to reverse the spell?" Ash said.
"Don't worry," Lily said. "Since you were the intended recipient of the first spell, the magic locked onto you a little stronger than the others; I'm sure you'll be back to normal in just a few more days."
"That's okay," Ash said. "Actually, it'd be cool to be a Pikachu all the time!"
"What about becoming the world's greatest Pokémon master?" Misty pointed out.
"Who says you can't be the greatest and be a Pokémon too?" Ash insisted. "Lokoko did okay in her battle, so I know Pikachu and I would do great!"
Misty just shook her head. Some days…
Then Ash turned to Pikachu. "So how about we use the time we have left for you to show me what it's like to be a Pikachu? There's so much I want to know!"
"Pika-chu-pi," Pikachu told Ash, trying to calm down his excitement.
Looking down at him, Brock smiled. "Well," he admitted, "he has a point. Being a Pokémon gives you a new perspective on things."
Misty's eyes misted a little as she held a small strand of String Shot in her hands. "Yeah, it does, doesn't it?"