Hello, hello, what do you know. I feel SOOOO terrible, but that's normal! Okay, so this is a strrrraaaannnge pokemon fanficcie that i wrote last year that is pretty long, actually. Maybe if someone wants more, i can hand it out... but otherwise...

okay, notes, notes, notes.

Pairings : a little MayxAsh fluff in the first few chappies... (not a big fan, sorrrrrrrry). other pairings are much later. (or was it just later?)

so nervous...please leave reviews?


KABOOM! The noise echoed over and over again in May's head.

Ash! she thought, knowing that her friend was on that hot air balloon when it exploded.

He had only jumped on to try and save Pikachu, for the poor yellow pokémon had lost his memory. Meowth had found him and filled his head with all new memories, making Pikachu really believe that he was a part of Team Rocket, and that May, Ash and the others were his enemies.

But when Team Rocket was about to make their getaway, Ash jumped onto the balloon.

James, not wanting a pretty pissed off trainer anywhere near him and the newly acquired Pikachu, had foolishly ordered Pikachu to use Thunderbolt. And the balloon exploded.

May ran furiously behind Max and Brock, watching Ash falling…falling… He couldn't die, it just wasn't possible.

The three were nearing a river when May heard a loud splash! She knew instantly that Ash was in the river somewhere, but where? She hoped he didn't drown.

"Come on!" shouted Brock, running downstream. "I think I see him!" And he poured on his speed, making it to a fairly shallow part of the river. Once he spotted Ash, floating lifelessly in the river, he dived in.

May stood by the edge of the river with her brother, holding her breath.

"Hey, look!" Max suddenly exclaimed, pointing to a lump of wet yellow fur a few feet away from them.

"Pika…pikachu…," Pikachu said, coughing. He then noticed the others and stood straight up. "Pika!" he said menacingly, sparks flying from his cheeks.

May and Max backed away, Max commenting, "I guess Pikachu still can't remember anything."

Just then, Jessie, James and Meowth splashed on shore.

"At least…we had something…softer than the ground this time…," Jessie sighed.

"It's a wonder we nevah die after all those falls!" Meowth replied.

"Ah! Pikachu!" James exclaimed, running over to the mouse pokémon. "I was so worried!"

Pikachu jumped on James's shoulder and cooed cutely.

James scratched Pikachu under the chin and looked to May and Max curiously. They appeared to be…what? Afraid?

"Ha-ha!" he laughed. "Yes, you should be scared, because now we have Pikachu! You shouldn't mess with us and our plans ever again!" And with that, he happily led Jessie and Meowth away from there, probably to find another one of their bases.

May turned her eyes back on the river. She could see Brock making his way back to shore with Ash, but was having a hard time.

And now I wish I had a water pokémon, she thought. But as soon as the thought sank in, she got another idea. She grabbed a pokéball from her bag and threw it.

"Bulbasaur, I choose you!"

Bulbasaur appeared in front of her, looking up questioningly.

"Bulbasaur, I need you to use Vine Whip to carry Brock and Ash out of the water!" May said quickly, and the pokémon hurried to comply.

Max nodded approvingly. "Good idea, May!"

But Bulbasaur wasn't having a lot of luck lifting both Ash and Brock out at the same time with his not-fully-developed vines.

"Forget about me, I can swim myself!" Brock called out to them. "Just take Ash!"

May nodded and gave new orders to her Bulbasaur.

After Brock and Ash were on shore, May looked to Ash worriedly. "You sure he's going to be okay?" she asked Brock.

Brock nodded. "Of course. He's just unconscious from the fall, but he wasn't in for too long. He should wake up soon."


So that night they made camp. Ash still hadn't woken up yet, so he was in the tent, snug as a bug in a rug while the others were eating dinner.

May had to admit that she was terribly scared about Ash. Almost dying, she knew.

"…Do you guys think Ash will really feel better when he wakes up?" Max asked.

"Absolutely," Brock answered. "He just needs a little rest to recover from the fall."

"That's not what I mean," Max said carefully. "What I really meant was…… Ash is still going to be upset about Pikachu…isn't he?"

Brock sighed. "Of course he will be. Those two have been together forever. Ever since Ash began his pokémon journey a few years ago…" He smiled slightly. "Those two were as determined as hell to win at every gym. And they're both so stubborn too. Did he ever tell you guys about how he and Pikachu defeated a Raichu once?"

Max's eyes widened. "Really? That's so awesome, Pikachu must be real strong!"

May, on the other hand, was confused. "What's a Raichu?"

"The evolved form of Pikachu, of course," Max replied matter-of-factly.

"Huh." And May pulled out her pokédex.

"Raichu—the mouse pokémon. The evolved form of Pikachu. If it stores too much electricity, its behavior turns aggressive. To avoid this, it occasionally discharges excess energy and calms itself down," the pokédex whirred.

May returned the pokédex to her bag. "Wow."

Brock smiled as memories of Ash and Pikachu resurfaced in his mind. "I remember when Ash, Misty, Pikachu and I were traveling, when we ran across a Hitmonchan. Ash was determined to beat it at its own game, so he began teaching Pikachu some moves. They were actually pretty good… But they don't call them fighting pokémon for nothing!" He looked to the intrigued May and Max. "Those two pulled off so many tough wins, I can't even remember half of them. They were just so awesome together."

"Wow," May said again. She thought of all that had happened that day… Pikachu's and Ash's friendship torn to shreds because of Team Rocket… Now Pikachu is working with Team Rocket without a care, while Ash was miserable. Her eyes watered as her own memories of Pikachu came up in her mind.

She was about to turn away from the two others, so they wouldn't see her cry, but was interrupted by a flash of white.

"Naaaaah!"

May sweat dropped. "Skitty, you let yourself out of your ball again."

Skitty jumped on her lap and cuddled his head into May. "Nahh!"

Brock looked up. "Yeah, I'm done putting the pokémon food in the bowls, so you can let your other pokémon eat, May." And with that he grabbed his own three pokéballs. "Lombre, Forretress, Mudkip, it's dinner time!" The three pokémon began to eat, while Max fingered a few other pokéballs.

"Well, here goes nothing," Max said, grabbing the pokéballs and throwing them in the air. "Grovyle, Swellow, Corphish, Torkoal! Come on out and grab a bite!"

Ash's pokémon came out in front of Max and began to eat immediately, not even noticing that Ash himself wasn't even with the rest of them.

"Beautifly! Combusken! Bulbasaur!" May threw her last three pokéballs. When she was done, she turned back to the others again, knowing that the same thing was on everyone's mind. When will Pikachu get his memory back?


Blurry. Everything was blurry. Why? What happened? Wait—it's beginning to clear up…

Ash blinked open his eyes and found himself inside the tent. Confused, he tried to remember what had happened.

Oh, yeah. Team Rocket's balloon… Pikachu…, Ash thought. He shook his head. No! It must have been a dream. Pikachu didn't get amnesia! He's probably outside with the others right now! And with that, Ash pulled himself to his feet and walked out of the tent, going over to where he spotted the others.

Brock noticed him first. "Hey, Ash, you're awake! Come on over here and get some dinner!"

So Ash seated himself on the grass between Brock and May, but his eyes were searching for his best friend…Pikachu…

He forced a laugh. "I had the most terrible nightmare," he told the others. "Pikachu lost his memory and went to work for Team Rocket." He looked around again. "Where is Pikachu, anyway?"

Brock stared at him. "Um, Ash…? That wasn't a nightmare. It was real."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, back up there for a second. I'm pretty sure it was just a dream…right? No, that's right, I know it. Pikachu would—"

"It was real, Ash, real," Brock said firmly.

"But…but… Then what happened after I fell into the river! Don't tell me Pikachu drowned in there!"

Brock shook his head. "You were knocked unconscious. Pikachu made it out okay, but then he left with Team Rocket."

Full realization hit Ash like a wave. He slammed a fist into the fairly sized rock near him, ignoring the pain. Ash then got up and began to walk away.

May's eyes widened as she saw Ash hit the rock without even flinching, but then spoke up as he started walking away from them all. "Wait, Ash! Where are you going?"

"Away. To think. I'll be back later," he replied, going off into the woods nearby.

"Torkoal torkoal!" Torkoal exclaimed. He and the other pokémon didn't hear about what happened to Pikachu at all, but Torkoal was worried that Ash just went into the woods like that… Who knows when wild pokémon might jump you. So the faithful turtle pokémon trotted on in behind his trainer.

Ash walked on in, past all the bushes and trees, and when he came to a small clearing in the woods, he fell to his knees and clenched his fists, thinking, No, this can't be true. Pikachu's going to remember. He's going to snap out of it! And when he does, he's going to come back…

He could remember the scene earlier that day, when James had ordered Pikachu to Thunderbolt him. Pain had racked Ash's entire body, driving him back. He had never known how much it hurt to have Pikachu's Thunderbolt used on him. He was used to Pikachu shocking him, but Thunderbolting him was a completely different matter.

"…Pikachu…," Ash breathed. He'll come out of it, I know it. He's probably beating up Team Rocket right now for what they did to him… Feeding him all those lies…

"Koal, torkoal!"

Ash looked behind him to see Torkoal coming up beside him.

"Tor?" Torkoal asked.

Ash sighed. "You don't know what happened to Pikachu, do you, Torkoal?"

Torkoal stared at him questioningly. "Koal? Torkoal, torkoal."

So Ash told him the whole story, starting off when Team Rocket first appeared that morning, and ending when he fell into the river.

Torkoal stared at him blankly, mouth agape, when Ash was done with his story. The pokémon seemed to be digesting the story. But once it hit him, tears spouted from his eyes. "Tor tork tor…koal…kooooooaaaaaal!"

When the fire pokémon stopped crying, he looked at Ash sympathetically, not saying anything, but trying to comfort him nonetheless.

Ash rubbed him on the head. "It's okay, Torkoal. Pikachu is going to be alright. He's gonna get his memory back, okay?" But it sounded like he was really trying to convince himself that what he just said was true. "Why don't you head back to camp? I'll be along later. I just need some time alone…"

"Tor…koaaal!" Tears sprang from Torkoal's eyes again, but he walked away, leaving Ash alone with his thoughts.


May spotted Torkoal walking back out of the woods, head hung low, apparently feeling sad. Torkoal trudged over to the other pokémon and collapsed, tears spilling from his face.

Ash must've told him what happened. Well, we all know that Torkoal is really sensitive…, May thought as she saw Mudkip walk over to Torkoal.

"Mud? Mudkip? Kip, mudkip!" he asked.

Once the words were out of Mudkip's mouth, Torkoal let loose a mouthful himself, obviously telling the small water pokémon everything that happened to Ash and the others that day, even though Mudkip already knew most of it.

But right now, May was just worried about Ash. She could just spot traces of blood on the rock that Ash hit, and she could just imagine the cuts on his knuckles… He didn't even eat dinner. She was wondering if he would be okay…

He will when Pikachu comes back. I mean, Pikachu can't lose his memory for good! May sighed. Well, at least there's a bright side to all this chaos.

She then found herself wondering when they would reach Lilycove City. Brock said that it wasn't too far away, and that they should be there tomorrow, but… May didn't know if Ash wanted to continue just yet. He might want to look for Pikachu, even though he would probably be at one of Team Rocket's many bases…

We'll get him back eventually. Pikachu just needs some time to find his old memories, May thought, trying to reassure herself again.

But that's all she could manage right now. Reassure herself, hope for the best, keep faith.

I might be able to handle it for a while, but what about Ash?


"And dat's your life story, Pikachu!" Meowth exclaimed to the little yellow mouse pokémon.

"Pik pikachu…"

"What do yah mean, yah can't believe it? You're a hero among us! Best Team Rocket membah evah! But remember… It was Meowth who taught yah everything yah know…" Meowth wiped a fake tear from his left eye. "You were my best student ever… Look how much you've learned…"

Pikachu cocked his head to one side and smiled. "Pika, ka."

"No problem, buddy! At least yah know where you really belong!"

"Pi chu ka pi kachu ka pik ka…"

"What? You said you really feel like yah belong here? Well, yah should! You're always gonna belong here!" Meowth changed the subject. "But more importantly, yah now know how dangerous those twoips are."

"PIKA PIKA!" Pikachu shouted angrily. "Chu…pika pika…"

"Look, I know yah wanna Thunderbolt 'em till they die, but—"

Sparks began fly from Pikachu's cheeks. "Chu pika ka pikachu!"

"The twoip with the hat? What about him?"

"Pikachu, pika, pika!"

"You feel like you and him are born enemies? Yah wanna kick his ass?" Meowth asked, deeply pleasured. Revenge. How sweet it was… What could be sweeter than beating your rival with the one pokémon that he used to beat you? And since Pikachu is—was—the twerp's best friend, it just made the whole thing that much sweeter.

Pikachu nodded vigorously.

Pikachu can really be a kind-hearted pokémon. He's gotta be the nicest, bravest, strongest pokémon I've evah met! Meowth thought. But when he gets angry, he really gets angry! Good thing Meowth turned him against the twoip! He inwardly congratulated himself once again. He was really beginning to feel good about himself. Yep, I'm top cat alright!

He gave Pikachu another smile. "Well, we'll try 'n let yah go at him when we see those twoips again, okay?"

"Pika…" And with that, Pikachu walked away, satisfied with the answer.

Once Pikachu was out of hearing range, Jessie and James came up to Meowth.

"What did Pikachu say?" Jessie asked. "He isn't getting suspicious about us, is he? Does he show signs of remembering…everything? Anything?"

"You're not gonna believe dis, you two, but Pikachu says he wants to kick his old trainer's ass," Meowth answered calmly, folding his arms across his chest and smiling.

James's face showed surprise and maybe a little confusion, but Jessie's face looked like she was deeply and completely pleased with this fact.

"But won't Pikachu regain his memory once again? It can't last forever, right?" James inquired, not wanting to wake up one morning to a Pikachu who had his memories fully restored.

"Actually…," Meowth began. "I'm beginning to think that if we keep filling up Pikachu's head up with phony memories, his chances of gettin' his real memory back would gettin' smaller and smaller!"

Jessie clapped her hands happily. "This is just too good! Finally something goes right!"

"Yes, but when will we give Pikachu to the boss?" James queried, a thoughtful expression crossing his face.

That statement caught both Jessie and Meowth by surprise. Of course they had to hand Pikachu over to the boss…but…

"We will give Pikachu to the boss! …Just not yet," Jessie said. "How many times has that twerp made us blast off? He needs a taste of his own medicine! I'm going to keep getting revenge on him until I'm satisfied!"

Wobbuffet popped out of no where and added, "Woooobbuffet!"

James and Meowth knew they really had to get Pikachu to the boss, but Jessie's idea sounded much better, so they both nodded in agreement.


It was not until late at night when Ash walked out of the woods himself. He could hear the crickets chirping in the distance. The campfire that Brock had made had been put out hours ago, and since Ash couldn't spot his three friends anywhere, he assumed that they were in the tent, asleep.

Well, I'm not going to barge into the tent and wake everyone up, Ash thought. And it's not like I'm going to fall asleep out here, where the mosquitoes will eat me alive…

He shrugged. I guess I can explore the area some more… I'm not really tired anyway. I can't get to sleep with…with Pikachu on my mind…

He just couldn't stop thinking about the small yellow pokémon. Every time he blinked, an old memory of him and Pikachu would pop up. So many good times… And it was all gone. Pikachu was the only one he could really confide in. He could tell him anything that was on his mind. And Pikachu would always understand…always…

Ash shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts, and strode off into the woods again. It's not like he had anywhere else to go.

He found a small pool of water in the middle of the forest, and he decided to stay here for a while.

So he sat himself down, resting his head in his hands, and his elbows on his knees. He closed his eyes, telling himself that he was just resting his eyes for a minute. He wasn't going to fall asleep…

But even as he thought that, he drifted off…

"Hey! Pikachu!" Ash called, coming out of the bushes, with May, Max and Brock behind him. Pikachu was right in front of one of Team Rocket's bases, and Team Rocket was a few feet away from him.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked, turning to look at him.

Team Rocket spun around and stared at Ash. "The twerps!" the cried in unison.

"It's Team Rocket!" Max said.

"I was so worried about you, Pikachu," Ash began, stepping forward.

"Pi? Pika?"

"Hey!" Meowth interrupted. "Don't forget, we're your buddies! Those twoips are bad people who only wanna hurt yah!"

"Pika!"

"That's not true!" Ash protested. To Pikachu, he added, "Hey, don't yah remember, buddy? It's me."

"Pi…pika…," Pikachu said, looking unsure.

"He's a liar!" Meowth shouted from behind Pikachu.

"Pika! …Pi!" Pikachu took one last look at Ash, and then turned his back on him and went over to Team Rocket.

"Wait! Pikachu!" Ash said, not believing his eyes.

Pikachu stopped right near Jessie. "Pika!"

"What's going on?" May asked, but Ash could just barely hear her. There were too many thoughts spinning through his head at the moment.

"They're up to something…," Brock stated.

Ash began to step closer and closer to Pikachu. "You don't remember who those guys are, do you?"

"Prepare for trouble, that's not your concern," Jessie began.

"Make it double, things have taken a turn!" James added.

"To protect the world from devastation."

"To unite all peoples within our nation."

"To denounce the evils of truth and love."

"To extend our reach to the stars above."

"Jessie."

"And James."

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, or prepare for a fight!"

"Meowth, that's right!"

Pikachu knew his cue and back flipped next to the other three. "Pika pika!"

Ash was confused and hurt. "But…Pikachu…"

"We did it, we did it!" Jessie exclaimed happily.

"All good things come to those who wait," James said, arms folded across his chest, apparently pleased as well.

"And waiting is one thing we do right!" Meowth added.

"How could Pikachu…become a member of Team Rocket?" Max inquired, but he received no answer.

Ash took yet another step towards Pikachu. "Pikachu… Come on, those three are our enemies, remember?"

Pikachu sharply turned his head away from Ash. "Pika pika!"

Jessie began to laugh. "I love it! It seems as what goes around does come around!" She leaned toward Ash, placing her hands on her hips. "This is for all those times you made us blast off."

"Okay! Time to let those twoips have it, Pikachu!" Meowth pointed at Ash as he said this.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed.

"How many times have I dreamed of this moment?" James asked. "Pikachu! Thunderbolt Attack! Let's go!"

"Piiika…CHUUUUUUU!" Pikachu let out a bolt of lightning.

Ash screamed as the Thunderbolt hit him head on, flinging him back and bringing three cries of "Ash! No!" from the others.

Jessie squealed. "Brilliant!"

James was giddy after the direct hit. "It's good to be alive!"

Ash got up slowly. "I don't understand it… Pikachu doesn't remember me," he said softly to himself.

"Pikachu! Use Thunderbolt now!" Meowth ordered.

"Piikachuuuu!" Another Thunderbolt flew from Pikachu.

Ash screamed again, the intense pain ripping through him. But what hurt him even more was that it was his Pikachu that was doing it to him… His best friend… Hurting him… Ash flew back and landed on the ground.

"Oh no!" Max cried out.

"Pikachu, stop!" May shouted, sounding worried and afraid.

Ash pulled himself into a sitting position. "Pikachu, it's me…" But Pikachu wasn't going to listen…

No…Pikachu…no, you can't just forget about me… You can't join Team Rocket… Pikachu……!

Ash awoke with a start, breathing heavily.

He knew what happened in his…nightmare…was real. It was exactly what happened earlier that day… It was all true, painfully true.

"Oh, Pikachu," Ash whispered, his eyes beginning to sting. He then quickly sniffed, fighting back the tears that threatened to rip through… He wasn't going to let himself cry now.

When he got Pikachu back—and he would get him back—he was going to seriously kick Team Rocket's asses for what they did to Pikachu.


that's it! ... now what did i want to say? Oh, yesh, the dream sequence was from the episode. (Cept for the thoughts), soi DO NOT OWN IT. I don't own Pokemon either! I only own my stupid ideas for fan fiction.

Do you want more?

Do you dare click on that button below?

(by the way... in much, much, MUCH later chapters, we deal with character death. squee! I mean...oh, what a shame... not that i hate the character, i just like putting my favorite ones threw hell... oh, that doesn't sound good, does it?)

til next time... maybe?

-Kaisa