Hi, everyone! I'm back, with more Lagomorphshipping goodness! I'm still working on Another Road, just dealing with a tiny bit of writer's block. So, enjoy this! Also, I've made some art that inspired this story, so please check my twitter, Stumpyart, after you finish reading! I'd hate to spoil the surprise haha.
Please leave feedback, if you have a moment! It's appreciated!
"Aha! I've got you now, Pikachu!"
"You wish!"
Bracing himself to tackle his friend, Piplup raised his rear, his downy cape waggling behind him. Confident in the bit of momentum he'd stored, he leaped at Pikachu.
The mouse hopped backwards, moving well-out of Piplup's range. He watched the penguin land face-first in the grass, and laughed. "Better luck, next time!" He felt he was losing his balance, though, stumbling a few steps backwards.
"Why you…" Frustrated, the penguin growled, and then made a face. After a moment, he spit out a blade of grass. Blushing terribly, he charged Pikachu again.
Having trouble keeping his footing, Pikachu opted to fall on his bottom, tumbling into a backwards somersault to avoid Piplup tagging him.
"Ughhh!" Piplup whined, stomping his feet in a tantrum. "Stop being so slippery!"
"Oh, quit being a sore loser." Staraptor squawked, hanging over head. "No one'll want to play, when you're acting like that!"
"I'm not taking advice from a cheater!" Piplup scoffed, waving his wing dismissively. "Come down and play, like a real man."
"Cheater?" The Predator pokemon tilted his head. "This is just what I do naturally. Don't get mad at me, just because you can't fly."
That smart remark sent a furious Hydro Pump Staraptor's way. He startled, pulling swiftly out of harm's way. "This definitely isn't how you play tag!"
"What's that!?" Piplup cried, chasing after Staraptor in a blind rage. "I can't hear you, all the way up there! Maybe you should come closer!"
Meanwhile, Pikachu watched the scene unfold, a sweatdrop rolling down his forehead. "That's so like him… Oh well." He exhaled, sitting comfortably on his bottom in the grass. From here, he could watch the other pokemon scatter, hoping to avoid Piplup's temper tantrum.
"Not like I'm in the shape to play, anyway." What genius had decided on playing tag right after training, anyway?
...Oh, yeah. That'd been his own idea. "Way to go, Pikachu," he muttered sarcastically. He was feeling a tad exhausted, now. Brock had a special lunch in mind, today, too. So, they wouldn't be eating anytime soon.
What to do, with his free time?
Out of the corner of his eye, Pikachu spotted a nice tree, with plenty of shade. He smiled, and his ear perked up. Perfect.
Waddling his way over, he sat within the shade, leaning back against the cool bark. In the middle of the summer, this was a nice treat. He sighed, watching his friends in the distance. This was nice.
"Knock it off, Piplup! I didn't start this!"
"You totally started it - you froze my Hydro Pump!" Piplup fumed, butting foreheads with Buneary.
"I was just saving Staraptor from your little fit," Buneary defended, shoving Piplup's head back with her unrolled ear.
"No one asked you to," Piplup huffed, shoving Buneary's ear off.
"Actually, i did…" Staraptor settled in a nearby tree, shaking out moisture from his wing. As much as he hated to sacrifice his pride, he couldn't very well flee with wet feathers.
"You better not've hurt Pikachu," Buneary warned, side-eyeing Piplup with crossed arms. "Or, there's gonna be heck to pay."
"Oh, please. I think he gave up, anyway. I haven't seen him since someone opened his beak."
"Dude'sprobablytired," Pachirisu squeaked, still bouncing on her tiny feet. "Didjaseehimduringtraining? Whowantstoplaytagafterallthat?"
"He did seem kinda sluggish," Piplup admitted, holding his wing under his beak in thought. His eyes widened in horror. "I hope I wasn't too much for him!?"
Pachirisu snickered, and Piplup sent her a glare. "Shut up!"
"Anyways, I think I'm gonna check on him." Buneary looked about, using her coiled ear to guard her eyes from the sun. "Make sure baby boy's alright."
"You know those nicknames make him nervous," Staraptor remarked from above. "He might not be too happy if you were throwing 'em around."
"Oop!" The rabbit slapped her paws over her mouth. And, she'd been trying to be more considerate lately… "Well… imma make sure Pikachu's alright."
"Whatever you say, Romeo." Piplup replied, sitting down. After his tantrum, he was pretty tired, himself.
"Romeo's the boy, stupid!" Pachirisu laughed.
"If I get to be his knight in shining armor, then heck, I'll be Romeo! I don't care." Buneary shrugged. "Maybe he needs true love's kiss to break the spell of… whatever's bothering him."
"Now, you're just getting fairy tales mixed up," Piplup replied.
"Sorry we all weren't raised in a lil' lab," she replied, still scanning her surroundings. "Not all of us had books lyin' around to… oh! There he is!" Looking elated, she hopped off. "See ya!"
"What in the world's going on, over there?" Pikachu tilted his head, watching the group in the distance. Or, at least, he had been. The Hydro Pumps had ceased. Maybe Piplup had finally calmed down?
Despite the peace and quiet, he found he wasn't quite able to fall asleep. Despite being low on energy, he still felt a little on-edge. Maybe it was because he was getting hungry…? Or, maybe his curiosity was eating him up?
In any case, it was better than tripping all over and making a fool of himself, Pikachu decided, nestling into the rough bark behind him. It scratched the back of his head nicely, in the absence of Ash's petting.
...Huh. Maybe he was feeling lonely? Maybe he should've invited someone to come relax, with him. Someone not quite as boisterous as Piplup, right now, ideally.
"Pikachu?"
Speak of the devil. He wasn't alone! "Huh?" Opening his eyes, he spotted a familiar face. "Oh, Buneary!" He smiled. Some company would be nice. Unless…
Oh boy. Was she here to shower him in attention, again? He tensed, anticipating the incoming wave of affection. How would he manage it, this time?
Though, she'd been a little less overwhelming, lately. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.
"Uh… hello? Earth to Pikachu?" The rabbit waved a paw in front of his face. "You alright?"
"Oh.. oh- yeah!" He laughed, sitting up. "Sorry, I was spacing out. What're you doing here?" He swallowed, realizing that sounded awfully rude. "I mean, is everything okay?"
Buneary held a paw to her chin. He was acting a little odd… "Depends what ya mean by 'okay.' I just had to break up one of Piplup's fits."
"Oh, so you're why that quieted down!" Pikachu's eyes flashed with recognition, and he smiled. "Good job. I was a little worried about that."
"Someone's gotta break it up, right?" She winked, striking a pose. "At least when our leader is out of commission."
"Leader?" Pikachu blinked, and realization hit him. His face took on a bright shade of red. "Oh, c'mon! I don't know about that."
"Check out the ego on Pikachu! I never said I was talking about you," Buneary teased.
Pikachu suddenly felt like he wanted to crawl into a hole. "I-I didn't say it was me! It's just, I thought… well, you know. Since Ash-" He stopped himself. Oh gosh, he really sounded conceited, now. Maybe even chauvinistic!? Oh, no...
"I'm kidding!" Buneary assured, patting his shoulder with her ear. "Of course I meant you. Sorry to scare ya."
"Right… right, I knew that." Pikachu fiddled with his paws, trying to ignore the tomato-red flush his yellow fur had taken on. Still, the comment sounded nice, when it was in earnest… "I guess I am something of a leader, huh?" He smiled, resting his paws on his hips.
"You sure are! You really know how to…" Buneary trailed off, eyeing her friend up and down. "...Pikachu, are you puffing out your chest?"
"...N-no! What? Oh, come on… What would… What would give you that idea!? That's just silly!" Pikachu laughed. Sweat poured down his face, though, betraying him.
"Pikachu, you're still doing it." Buneary whistled. "But, hey, don't quit it on my behalf~"
He swallowed, and exhaled, deciding not to give Buneary anymore ammo. Arceus, did he set himself up for her fawning? Had he been doing that, the entire time he'd known her, without realizing it!?
He could only wonder, now…
"For real. Is everything okay, Pikachu? You're out here all by yourself."
"Er, yeah! I'm fine. Just tired," Pikachu admitted with a chuckle. "Training did more of a number on me than I counted on. So, I thought I'd come out here and get some rest."
"As long as that's all that is~! Glad I checked." Buneary grinned, showing off her two front teeth. Pikachu had noticed that a while back - and upon asking, yes, Buneary were herbivores. They did have a certain charm to them. They were kind of cute, even.
Pushing those thoughts out of his head, Pikachu smiled. "Yeah, haha."
Silence hung, for a moment, without much to say on either party's part.
"So…. y'mind if I rest with you?" Buneary finally asked. "I'm pretty pooped, myself."
"Oh, sure! Why not? Honestly, I was feeling a little lonesome."
"Cool!" Buneary chirped, then paused. Where was she supposed to sit, exactly…? He probably wouldn't like it if she barged into his personal space.
Realizing his faux pas, Pikachu scooted over, and pat the grass beside him. "Here!"
"Hehe, thank you!" Buneary did a curtsy with the fluff around her waist, and sat beside Pikachu. "Well, hopefully you won't be lonely, no more."
"I doubt it." Pikachu leaned his head back, and let out a pleasant sigh. "The fresh air is nice."
"Uh-huh," Buneary agreed, leaning back, herself. "Much as I enjoy all the hustle, it's good to kick back… come to think of it, I did a lot more of that, back when I was in the wild."
"Really?" Pikachu looked her way, somewhat surprised. "You always crossed me as a brawler who knew her way around a fight… no offense."
"Hehe, none taken." In fact, that comment put a pretty wide smile on her face. That was how Pikachu thought of her? Nice. "I was, but… not a lot goes on, down at Route 202, ya know?"
"Oh, yeah. Good point." The mouse chuckled. "I guess we just dragged all the commotion in with us. Sorry about that."
"You kidding? I'm glad you did! Seein' you, that day, really spiced up my life. I couldn't ask for a better crowd."
"Agreed." Pikachu turned to Buneary, and smiled. "Saw me? You mean when, well…"
That first meeting was a little embarrassing, actually Pikachu suddenly regretted bringing it up.
"When I first saw you," Buneary corrected. She didn't want to make him relive that experience. "Y'caught my eye pretty much right away, you looker, you." Ordinarily, she would have winked at him and pulled a cute pose. But, she was enjoying the moment's peace, right now, her eyes shut off to the world. She settled for a gentle nudge with her elbow.
Pikachu was grateful for Buneary's mercy, in neglecting to mention that one moment where he'd almost become roadkill. Instead, she'd gone right for the flattering. "Ahaha… yeah, I could tell." He felt bad giving such a simple answer. Anything else was beyond him, though.
"Y'sure? You looked pretty baffled. I'm calling your bluff~"
Pikachu pursed his lips, and crossed his arms. He hadn't been expecting that answer at all. "...Yeah, you got me," he admitted defeat. "I think I was just in awe at you, in general." Recounting what he'd just said in his head, he felt his heart skip a beat, and slapped a paw over his mouth.
Mew, that'd sounded like an awfully strong statement.
Yeah, in hindsight, any signals Buneary had caught from him were entirely his fault. Pikachu was a little disturbed at how much he was enjoying having that information, right now.
Buneary hadn't answered in a good couple of moments, particularly to a comment like that. Pikachu had to wonder what was up.
Truthfully, Buneary was pretty floored, herself. Stunned into silence, for once, she shuffled a little. "Ugh." She winced. "This darn bark's snagging my fluff… it's really annoying." She yanked her cottony fluff free from the rough surface, picking splinters from it. "Sunnuva…"
Pikachu was alerted by Buneary's fussing, and watched, frowning sympathetically. That looked awfully annoying… a thought struck him, then, that common sense told him to ignore. He didn't.
"Um…" He turned his eyes to his feet, twiddling his thumbs in his lap. "That tree seems to be a pain for you…"
"You're not kidding," Buneary muttered, smoothing out her fur. "Getting really tempted to ice and bust this-"
"You wanna lean on me, instead?"
"Eep!" Buneary squeaked, covering her mouth. Past her paws, Pikachu could see that her cheeks were burning pink. "A-are you serious, Pikachu?"
He wasn't. He couldn't be. His anxious heart was pounding, badgering him to say something else. He didn't. "Y… uh, yeah! Sure, I'm serious! I wouldn't be too good a friend if I just let you be uncomfortable, would I?" He reasoned, putting on a bright, kind smile.
"Ehehe…" Smiling from ear to ear, Buneary shifted in place, pondering how to approach this. "I've got to say, Pikachu, this is a side of you I don't see often."
"If you mean the chest thing, I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about," Pikachu joked. Humming under his breath, he adjusted himself, leaning back against the tree, with his tail poking its way out from behind him. "Here," he gestured, holding out his arm closest to Buneary.
Was Buneary dreaming? This felt way too good to be real. 'Screw it,' she thought, 'if it is a dream, might as well enjoy it.' She shifted her back away from the bark, wrapping her arms around Pikachu's torso. Despite being awfully fit, Pikachu was delightfully soft - a little chubby, even. She felt his heart pound rapidly against her paw, and giggled.
"That better?" Pikachu squeaked out, awfully nervous, all of the sudden. Being embraced like that was cozy, sure, but what if someone saw them!?
He yawned loudly, letting out a high pitched 'cha.' How much did he really care about the peanut gallery, right now? He was tired.
'Holy Arceus, that is adorable.' Buneary sighed, smitten. Getting comfortable, she nuzzled Pikachu's cheek. "Ah!" A sudden shock snapped through her body, making both of her ears stand.
"Whoops! Sorry!" Pikachu hastily apologized, rubbing behind his head. "I promise that wasn't voluntary… my cheeks, though… they do that."
"Sheesh. No wonder you pack such a wallop in a fight. That was just a spark." Buneary rubbed out the friz in her fur, adjusting herself. She rested her head against Pikachu's cheek, careful not to upset his electric pouch, again. "Volkner ain't got a chance against you."
"Haha, you think?" Pikachu was happy to keep the conversation going - it kept his mind off how much he was really liking this. Her forehead laid against his face, and the fluff atop her ear brushed his own ear. It tickled, a little. "I'll do my best. My electric attacks won't deal their best damage, there."
"That just means they…" Buneary yawned, moving to lay on her belly, preferring the grass to roots. "...they won't be able to zap ya too good, either. Not like you don't know the ins and outs of your own type, right?"
"I guess that's true," Pikachu agreed. He looked to the pokemon cozied up to him, and saw that her side was still brushing up against the bark. Clicking his tongue, he put his paw between her and the tree, and shifted his tail to wrap around her waist. "There," he declared, triumphant. "Now, you can rest easy!"
"Pikachu…." She stared dreamily. She felt like she was on flippin' cloud nine.
Did it only take a little privacy to bring out this side out of him?
By chance, their eyes met. The look of admiration in Buneary's eyes was unmistakable. Following Pikachu was the best choice she'd ever made - in the long run, and in the present. What a perfect specimen - an absolute gentleman. Just confident enough to inspire others, yet modest enough to stay charming. An ideal man, if there ever was one.
She really didn't mind tending to his nerves, if it meant having this opportunity.
Slowly drifting towards slumber, Pikachu felt his eyelids getting heavy. In his remaining moments of clarity, he was happy to share a nap with Buneary, if anybody. She was good company. Witty, down-to-earth, kind. And, though he probably wouldn't admit it to anyone, anytime soon, she was awfully cozy.
Getting shy, he dodged eye contact, letting his eyes fall shut. "Thanks, Buneary."
"Eh? For what?" She yawned again, nestling into his cheek, mindful of his pouch.
"Just for the company."
"Mmyeah. Anytime, Baby Boy."
Buneary felt Pikachu's heart pick up its slow pace,upon delivering the nickname. He didn't reply, but his tail coiled more tightly around her waist. She was going to assume he didn't mind.
"Pikachu!"
"Buneary? Come on, lunch is ready!"
Ash and Dawn wandered the route, each letting out a frustrated sigh.
"I hope they're alright," Dawn thought aloud. "Piplup pointed us in this direction, but…"
"I'm sure they're fine," Ash dismissed. "Just wish they'd let us know they were running off, first… it's not like Pikachu to wander too far before lunch."
"Yeah, but I'm not surprised that Buneary followed him wherever… oh, I think I see them!"
Following Dawn's eyes, Ash's face lit up in recognition. "Yeah! Hey, guys!" He called out, rushing towards the nearby tree. "Lunch is ready!"
"Come on," Dawn coaxed, "before it gets cold!"
Upon getting a better look, Ash came to a halt. "Uh, guys?"
"Ash, what's wrong?" Dawn quirked a brow. Upon catching up, she gasped, holding a hand to her mouth. "Oh my Arceus…"
"Hello? Earth to Pikachu?" Ash pursed his lips. "It ain't bedtime, yet."
"Shhh," Dawn shushed Ash, holding a finger up to her lips, which parted with a grin. This was just precious!
"Huh… I guess they're comfy," Ash whispered. At the base of the tree, their pokemon were huddled together, soundly sleeping. "That's new."
"I'll say… good for them." Dawn held a hand over her heart. The smile on Buneary's face was hard to miss.
"...You think we should wake 'em? I don't think they'll be happy if they miss lunch."
"Why don't we just save them theirs?" Dawn suggested. "It looks like they need the rest."