TheTalesOfFlameFan requested that I post this story here, along with a few others. To honor that request, I have chosen to do so.

This story was made when PMD2 was only just being revealed in Japan, so it's sort of a PMD1 1/2 thing I did. The beginning part was based on a real dream I had a few years ago when I first started this story.

I only have the first two chapters and half of the third chapter completed. I will post the first two chapters here. Maybe I'll get re-inspired to finish the third chapter later?

I hope you like it, TheTalesOfFlameFan! Enjoy!

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Yellow Rescue Team

Chapter 1: Dreams Do Come True

"YAAAH!" a voice screamed.

Bird Pokemon shot out from their hiding places in the treetops of the forest, cawing in alarm. Leaves and grass fluttered in the air as the autumn foliage was disturbed by the scuffle. A single Houndoom and a pack of five or six Houndour were growling in a clearing, barks of laughter escaping a few of them. The Houndoom smacked a paw forward.

A badly-injured Pikachu was sent tumbling into the center of the canine Pokemon's ring of thugs. He lay on his right side, ears pressed together close to his head. He was panting heavily and blood streamed from the claw marks he had gained, staining his golden fur a bright scarlet. His eyes were firmly closed and he was trembling, trying hopelessly to play dead.

"Get up, vermin," the Houndoom growled.

"…" The Pikachu tried to still his trembling limbs, failing miserably.

"I said get up!"

"YAAAH!" the Pikachu screamed.

The Houndoom had sunk his fangs into the yellow mouse's neck, picking him up from the leaf litter that covered the grassy ground. The canine shook him roughly, receiving another scream of pain. Houndoom shook him side to side, up and down. Shaking him up, the canine threw the Pikachu down with as much force as he could muster. He hit the ground with a satisfying 'thud' and remained motionless.

Silence reigned the forest for a moment. "Is he dead, boss?" one of the Houndour asked, nudging the Pikachu. "He ain't moving."

"He's playing," another Houndour said. "I say we finish him off now. He's not much fun to play with anymore."

"I agree," Houndoom chuckled. "Time to end this game,"

As the canine raised the claws of his right paw, the Pikachu opened his right eye partway. "No…" His voice was inaudible, though. None of his tormentors heard him.

"Now die!" The claws came down upon the Pikachu and blood stained the grass red. A loud scream tore through the forest, following by the howls of laughter belonging only to the canines.

"AAAAH!"

The raven-haired girl sat up quickly in bed, gasping for breath and clutching her covers to her chest tightly. Sweat ran down her face, followed soon by tears. She lowered her head and trembled. That dream again, she thought. It's that damn dream again. It's been two months, for crying out loud! Why do I keep having that dream?

"Katie, are you okay? I thought I heard screaming." It was her mother.

The girl, Katie, look toward the door. "I'm fine, mom. I just had a bad dream, that's all."

"The same one?"

"…Yeah,"

"We really should do something about that, dear. My doctor has told me reoccurring dreams can be a sign of events to come. Maybe this is just one of those dreams."

"You mean I'm going to see a Pikachu mauled by a Houndoom and a pack of Houndour?" Katie asked. "I'm not even in the dream, mom!"

"Maybe you're a bystander, dear. Now come downstairs once you're dressed. Breakfast is ready." The footsteps faded away, signaling her mother's descent down the stairs.

Stepping out from under the covers, a shiver ran through her as her bare feet touched the hardwood floor. Immediately jumping to the rug placed in the center of her room, she rubbed her arms to warm herself up. Pulling the drawers of her dresser open, she grabbed her clothes and walked to the bathroom to get dressed.

"Stupid dream," she grumbled, pulling the nightgown over her head and slipping on her shirt. "If this is supposed to be an event, then make it happen already! I don't need to keep seeing that Pikachu die every time I close my eyes!"

Stomping downstairs, she snatched some toast and opened the front door. "Dear, where are you going?" her mother asked.

"A walk," Katie replied. "Dad, can I take Blaze with me?"

"Your father left early this morning and took Blaze to work with him," her mother replied. "You can take Shocker with you, though. Just keep a tight grip on his leash, okay?"

"Deal! Shocker, come on, boy!" Katie called. An over-excited Electrike sped out of the living room, leash in his mouth, begging to go outside. After putting his leash on, Katie walked out the door with him. "Bye, mom! See you in a few hours!"

"Be sure to come back for lunch!" her mother called.

"Right!"

She jogged down the sidewalk and started jogging toward the forest on the edge of the neighborhood, Shocker pulling her along in his excitement. The forest was home to many Grass and Bug-type Pokemon, making it the perfect spot for beginning trainers to test their skills. Katie wasn't all that interested in Pokemon and refused to go on a journey. These odd dreams were only adding to her dislike of most Pokemon.

Katie stopped once she reached the edge of the forest. Rumor had it that a few children had vanished within the forest a couple years ago. Nobody found any trace of the missing kids and blamed the resident Ninetales for the kidnappings, hunting it down and eventually killing it. The Ninetales placed a curse on its assailants and all of them died within days of each other. The kids still remained missing.

"Okay," she muttered. "We'll do a quick run down the old trails and then go visit Derek's place. You'd like that, Shocker, wouldn't you?"

"Trike!" Shocker barked.

"I thought so. Let's go!"

The pair ran into the forest, jogging down the trails that were made centuries ago by their ancestors. Once they neared the heart of the forest, Katie noticed something. The newly-bloomed flowers were withered and dead. Fallen leaves shifted beneath her shoes, their green color gone and replaced by reds, browns, oranges, and golds. The forest looked as it would in autumn.

"But it's spring, not fall," she muttered. This is just like my dream, she realized. My dream took place in a forest during autumn. Could the event be happening now? But that doesn't explain this. Why has the season changed here?

Then she heard the barking, along with a loud scream. Without thinking, she dropped Shocker's leash and ran further down the trail. A thick veil of fog appeared ahead but she carried on, racing into it. The Electrike barked and tried to follow, only for the fog to mysteriously vanish. Katie was gone…

Katie kept running, listening to the screaming and the barking. She felt as if she was shrinking but she ignored the feeling. It was just the fog. She tripped, falling on her hands and knees. She crawled along nonetheless, the sounds growing louder. She was nearly there.

Finally, she peered out of a bush just as the fog lifted at long last. The Houndoom from her dream tossed the Pikachu to the ground, a loud 'thud' sounding. The Pikachu fell motionless but Katie could see him breathing. After a few seconds, one of the Houndour nudged him and…spoke?

Pokemon can't talk in real life! It's impossible! Katie mentally cried.

Then the Houndoom lifted his paw, sharp claws glinting in the fading light of the sun. "Time to end this game," he growled.

The Pikachu opened his right eye. "No…" he whispered faintly.

"No," Katie said softly. "No… No! Stop!" She burst out of the bushes and ran toward them, faintly aware that she was smaller than the canine Pokemon. Jumping to tackle the Houndoom, she saw something glinting in front of her face.

"Now d—YAAAH!" the Houndoom howled, leaping away as something sharp stabbed into his right side. His pack gathered around him, fear grasping them as their leader retreated back a few paces.

Katie landed in front of the Pikachu, red blood staining the sharp point on the front of her face. Spitting out the blood that got into her mouth, she glared at the Houndoom. "Leave him alone!" she cried.

Recovering from the shock of being attacked, the Houndoom pulled back his lips to show his razor-sharp teeth. "You and what army? Sure, you have the advantage over us in element but in the size and numbers department, we win paws down!"

Element? Size? Katie repeated mentally. What does that mean? Humans are bigger than these bozos…but why am I suddenly so much smaller than them?

"Run…away…" Pikachu groaned.

Katie turned to him. "Why should I? They'll kill you!"

"They'll kill anyone who gets in their way. Get out before they kill you, too." Pikachu begged. "They're right. You don't stand a chance!"

"Just watch!" Katie barked, turning to face the canines. "You think you guys are so tough? Try fighting against me and I'll show you who's boss! There's a reason humans are at the top of the food chain!"

"Why does that matter? Do you think you're a human, squirt?" Houndoom growled.

"Think? I know I am! I'm human!" Katie cried.

The pack fell silent. Then laughter broke out. They were practically howling to the heavens with laughter. "Human? You? What a laugh!"

"It's true!" Katie said.

"Did you hear that, boss? That Piplup thinks she's human!" a Houndour laughed.

"Maybe she hit her head or something!" another suggested, laughing with him.

"Grrrr! Shut…UP!" Katie screamed.

A nearby Houndour suddenly screamed, leaping away as water soaked his backside. Houndoom and the others instantly backed up as water shot at them. Opening her eyes, Katie saw water erupting from her mouth…at least, she was pretty sure the pointy thing was her mouth. It looked more like a bird's beak, though.

Then she came across a problem. She couldn't breathe! Choking, the beak closed and she stumbled backward. Crashing into the Pikachu's side, she regained the ability to breathe. Then she screamed as the Pikachu electrocuted everything nearby, reacting to her hitting his injuries.

"Retreat!" Houndoom shouted. He and his pack fled at top speed. They were gone in moments.

The electricity ended, causing Katie to collapse on her stomach. "What was that for?" she coughed, smoke emerging from her beak.

"For hitting my injuries!" the Pikachu snapped, painfully getting to his feet. "You shouldn't have done that. Now he's gonna come after both of us!"

"Well, someone had to help you! Maybe now those dumb dreams will finally stop!" Katie growled, sitting up. "Ow, my head! That hurt!"

"What do you expect? Electricity hurts water. It's basic knowledge." Pikachu said.

"That's what I don't get. I'm not a Pokemon! I'm human!" Katie complained. "And why did that mutt call me a Piplup?"

"Because you are one."

"No, I'm not!"

"Then I'll prove it. The river's this way, Piplup."

"It's Katie!"

"Fine, Katie. My name's Chu. Don't you dare make fun of me for it!" the Pikachu growled.

"Why would I?"

"Everyone else does it."

"Well, I'm not 'everyone else', Chu. I'm me."

"Whatever," The two continued on in silence until they reached the river. Splashing water on his injuries, the Pikachu pointed to the water. "Look! You're a Piplup, okay?"

"For the last time," Katie stomped to the riverside. "I'm not a Piplup!" Then she looked into the water. She was speechless. "…I'm a Piplup."

"Told you so," Chu said.

"I'm telling you! I'm human!" Katie cried. "Please, you have to believe me! It had to be that fog that appeared just before I rescued you. You saw it, right?"

"I didn't see any fog, Katie. I just saw you run out of the bushes recklessly." Chu replied. "Those Houndour were right. You must've hit your head on something."

"I'm not lying!" Katie fell down and began to cry. "I was human! This must be a dream! It has to be…"

"Uh… Are you okay?" Chu asked hesitantly, resting a paw on her shoulder.

"Do I look okay?" Katie nearly screamed, glaring at the Pikachu. Then it hit her. "This is your fault!"

"What?"

"I kept seeing you and those dogs in my dream!" Katie cried. "I kept wanting to help you but I couldn't! And now that I finally have, I'm a Piplup! What the hell did you do to me?"

"Hey! Do I look like Arceus to you?" Chu barked, clearly ticked off. "I didn't do anything to you! Maybe you just dreamed that you were human, Katie. Whatever the hell is going on in your crazy head, leave me out of it!"

Katie fell silent. Is he right? Did I just dream I was human? No, I had to be human! But…what if he's right? She looked at the ground. I'm lost in a world that I don't know anything about. I've turned into a Piplup…or was I one all along? This so confusing!

Chu noticed the look on her face and groaned. "Look… I'm sorry I was so harsh. I just… I just don't like girls, okay? It's complicated. If you want, I can get you to the next town and see if we can find your home. Until then you can…stay with me."

"Huh?" Katie looked up, having only heard the word 'home'. "You know where I live?"

"No, but you can stay with me until we find your parents." Chu muttered, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. "We can put up signs and have the rescue teams search for your parents."

"Okay," Then Katie noticed something. "Is something wrong with your eye, Chu?"

"Eh?" Chu's left eye was firmly closed, a single bloody cut running vertically from his eyebrow to his cheek. Turning away, he muttered something.

"Does it hurt?"

"A little," Chu admitted. "But it's nothing I can't handle! Nurse Chansey will take care of it when we get back to Pokemon Square."

"Okay,"

"So…this way, Katie. Stay close, though. There are lots of hostile Pokemon running around." Chu warned. "If we get in a fight, let me handle it."

Katie nodded. She and Chu reentered the forest, keeping a constant eye out for hostile Pokemon. Keeping to the beaten trails, the formerly-human Piplup started to realize just how small she really was. Even the bushes were bigger than her! Feeling even more vulnerable than before, she reached out her flipper-like arms and grabbed Chu's tail.

The Pikachu just barely managed to stop himself from shocking her. It was an instinct thing for him. As a Pichu, larger Pokemon tended to grab and pull at his tail to tease him. After realizing he could shock them with his tail, he used it to keep larger Pokemon away from him. Unfortunately, it didn't work against Houndoom and his pack…

Trapped in his thoughts, he didn't see the rogue Pidgey coming until Katie screamed. Snapping to attention, he prepared to attack when a cream blur knocked the bird Pokemon aside. A quick flash of claws and blood spattered onto the ground. A single bite and the Pidgey fell limp, dead.

"Great Arceus," Chu muttered. "Don't sneak up on people like that!"

Katie shivered, eyes locked on the dead body. Why? she thought.

A feline appeared from behind the Pidgey's body, feathers and blood sticking to her furry face. A golden coin was on her forehead and her whiskers twitched, eyes glittering with mischief. It was a Meowth, a female at that. Retracting her claws, she stepped away from the body and washed her face off with a paw.

"Sorry about that," she purred. "But someone had to stop this bird. Obviously, you weren't going to, so I had to."

"Who is she?" Katie asked. I hope she doesn't eat penguins.

The Meowth's ears twitched and she looked directly at Katie. "Who's your friend, Chu?" she asked. "You can tell me. I won't bite…much."

"This is Katie," Chu introduced. "She got lost in the woods and hit her head. She claims to be human, but we all know better."

"Indeed, we do." The Meowth giggled, her laughter sounding like a wind chime. "My name is Sabrina. Pleasure to eat—I mean meet—you."

"Enough cat puns, Sabrina. Where's Cassidy? I know she's here with you." Chu accused.

"I'm right here," a clearly bored Charmander said, stepping out from behind a tree. Katie immediately spotted the three parallel scars tearing vertically down her left shoulder. "You need some escorts going home? We'd be happy to help. No tricks, no charge."

"Sure. Whatever," Chu nodded. "I just need to get her home and find her family. She's lost."

"We'd be happy to help," Sabrina volunteered. "We do have connections to some of the best rescue teams out there, as you know. We'll find her family in a jiffy."

"Where's she staying until then?" Cassidy asked.

"Well, I was thinking at our place. Is that okay with you guys?" Chu asked. "It'll probably be for only a few nights."

"Fine by us," Sabrina replied. "I know Michael will agree but Raven's a mystery. I'll talk to Marco and Tim, too. Cassidy, can you handle the Troublesome Trio and their sister?"

"Sure," the Charmander nodded. "It's getting dark. We better go."

"Yeah. Let's move it," Chu agreed.

After walking in silence for a while, Katie finally decided to speak to their new companions. "So, you guys all live together?"

"For the most part, yes. We're all orphans, so the town stuck us together. There's plenty of room, though." Sabrina reassured.

"Most of us join the rescue teams whenever we want to. It's fun," Cassidy added.

"We're here!" Chu said, exiting the forest and entering a small town.

"Wow!" Katie cried.

"What? It's pretty small, if you ask me." Sabrina commented.

"It's huge!" Katie stated. She'd never seen a bigger town in her whole life! Even if me being a human was a dream, this place is bigger than my human home was!

"This way, Katie," Chu said, leading her to a large dome-like house that looked like a Kangaskhan. "This is the back of Kangaskhan Storage. Not only does she store items, she cares for us orphans, too. It's a tough job and she's the one who does the best at it."

Entering the house, they were greeted by a large female Kangaskhan. "Where have you kids been all day? I was worried sick! Oh dear, what happen to you, Chu?"

"I got in a fight…again." Chu muttered.

"You really shouldn't do that, sweetie. Who's your new friend?" Kangaskhan asked, noticing Katie.

"This is Katie," Chu said. "She got lost in the woods and bumped her head on something. I was thinking we could have the rescue teams look for her parents."

"What a splendid idea, Chu. We'll do that straight away in the morning. Now, let's get Nurse Chansey to care for your wounds, Chu. Sabrina, take Katie and introduce her to everyone while I'm gone."

"Okay! Come on, Katie!" Sabrina grabbed the Piplup's flipper-like hand and pulled her through a door.

Inside were eight other Pokemon. A Minun, Pachirisu, and Electrike were running around, laughing together under the watchful eye of a Plusle. A Murkrow was perched in the rafters above, seemingly ignoring everything around him in favor of silence. A Mudkip was swimming in a pool placed on the left side of the large room while a Growlithe ran through an obstacle course placed on the right side. A Torchic lay fast asleep in one of many nests made of hay, leaves, and grass.

"These are the other guys we have to live with. Those three Electric-types are Tyler the Minun, Trevor the Pachirisu, and Travis the Electrike. The Plusle watching over them is Taylor, Tyler's sister. The Murkrow is Raven, the Mudkip is Michael, and the Growlithe is Marco. Oh yeah, the Torchic is Tim. I think that's everyone," Sabrina said.

"And, as you know, I'm Cassidy and that's Sabrina. The Pikachu is Chu. Introductions are done." The Charmander proceeded toward the nests and collapsed in the one nearest to the Torchic, Tim.

"Sorry about her behavior," the Meowth muttered. "Unlike the rest of us, Cassidy can't even remember her parents. They left her here as an egg."

"That's…terrible," Katie said.

"I know," Sabrina nodded. "At least your parents must be looking for you. You're lucky."

"I guess so," Do I even have parents here? I must if I was dreaming about being human, Katie thought.

"You sleepy?" Sabrina asked.

Katie nodded and allowed the Meowth to lead her to bed. After settling in, Katie closed her eyes. What will tomorrow be like? Is this all a dream? Or was I dreaming from the beginning? After a while, she fell asleep. Katie was unaware of what the future held in store for her. If this was a dream, she definitely wouldn't be waking up anytime soon. Not for a long time…