This story is loosely based off of the short story "Rosie's Pet" from Brian Jacques collection of short stories entitled "The Ribbajack and Other Curious Yarns."

Lycanthropy and Negaishipping

Once again, our heroes were walking along on their journey. However, something was bothering Ash. As they walked, he couldn't help but just stare at Iris. It seemed as if Iris was oblivious to it at first, but then, she suddenly turned to face Ash and expressed her annoyance.

"Quit staring at me!" Iris shouted.

"Ah! Sorry, sorry! It's just, well. . ." Ash scratched his head thoughtfully, "You remind me of someone, but I can't put my finger on it."

Suddenly, Axew popped out of Iris' hair.

"Ax-ew-ew!" he shouted.

Ash' eyes widened, "That's it! Zoroark!"

"Zoroark?" Cilan asked in confusion.

"Look," Ash said as he took out his Pokedex. He quickly brought up Zoroark's entry, and a picture of the Pokemon appeared.

"Zoroark, the Illusion Fox Pokemon, and the evolved form of Zorua," the Pokedex said, "Bonds between these Pokémon are very strong. It protects the safety of its pack by tricking its opponents."

"See the hair!" Ash said excitedly, "I once knew a Zoroark who carried her Zorua in her hair, like how you carry Axew in your hair, Iris! Isn't that cool!"

Iris didn't seem to be paying attention. She was just staring off into the distance with an unreadable expression on her face.

"Iris?" Ash asked concernedly.

"Pika?" Pikachu added softly.

"It's always been cloudy, these last couple of full moons," Iris said softly, "I've been lucky. . ."

"AXEW!" Axew exclaimed.

"What? Gah!" Iris whirled around to look at Ash and Cilan. She gulped nervously and said, "I mean. . .do I really look like a Zoroark?"

Ash held up his hands and said nervously, "No, no, no. You see, I was just looking at your hair, and-."

"Never mind. Just forget it," Iris said grumpily, and walked off ahead of them.

Ash just stood there and stared at Iris' back. Then he groaned and held his head. "Arrrrrgh! I'm such an idiot!"

"Take it easy, I'm sure Iris knows you didn't mean any harm," Cilan said, trying to calm Ash down.

"But I still hurt her feelings," Ash grumbled, "Now she'll never like me."

Cilan stared at Ash with a surprised expression on his face as he slowly followed behind Iris. "Well, that was an unexpected ingredient " he said, as he followed behind Ash in turn.

At the Pokemon Center they had stopped at, Ash sat poking a plate of fried rice with his fork. Cilan sat across from him, and Iris' chair was left empty when she had gone to check the weather via the PC in the building.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu said, clearly noticing Ash's dramatic loss of appetite.

"I can see you've lost your appetite," Cilan commented.

"Yeah. . ." Ash said without thinking.

Cilan nodded, "Well then, I think I know a way to lift your spirit!" He then jumped up and said, "It's Couples Evaluating Time!"

"WHAT!?" Ash gasped.

"Indeed! When it comes to compatibility between a man and woman, my evaluations are top notch!" Cilan declared proudly, posing with a hand over his heart.

"Cilan, what are you trying to say?" Ash asked nervously.

"Have you forgotten my investigating talents from the mystery of the missing Audino?" Cilan asked, "And besides, you did let that comment slip after that whole Zoroark incident."

Ash's eyes widened. "Aw man!" he moaned, and he pulled his hat down over his face.

"Don't loose heart yet. Open your ears and listen!" Cilan said dramatically, "You see, Iris is a fiery tenacious Dragon Master to be, like a spicy hot sauce of sweet tomatoes and rich peppers. You are a tenacious Pokemon Master to be, with a strong spirit that spreads hope, cheer, warmth, and good feeling! You're like a bottle of Bourbon whiskey, strong and pleasant! Together, you two are a Bloody Derby! Two strong flavors, competitive with one another, yet ringing out together in one strong, gorgeous note, with a bouquet and flavor that jolts life into all who see you together! A match made in Heaven!"

Ash took his hat off his face and stared at Cilan. "We're a match made in Heaven?"

Cilan nodded, "Indeed. I see it as you have your Pokemon battles, or your races, or when you swing on vines together. Both full of youth and life, and perfectly happy in each others company!"

"Pika-pika!" Pikachu chimed in happily.

"Wow," Ash said, then he smiled, "You're right!" but then he frowned, "But I hurt her feelings. . ."

"As I said, she must know you meant no harm. I'm sure she'll forgive and forget before long," Cilan replied.

Just then, Iris came back in, looking uneasy.

"Anything wrong, Iris?" Cilan asked.

Iris looked around nervously, "Um, nothing. Just that, I kinda like rain, and it's gonna be clear skies for a while."

"Uh, Iris?"

Iris turned to Ash, "Yeah?"

"I'm sorry about. . ."

"Oh, don't worry Ash, it's alright. . .er. . .but-."

Both Ash and Iris said at the same time, "Let's just forget it."

The two of them blinked, then laughed.

During the couple of days that followed, Cilan began to notice something. Both Ash and Iris were becoming very uneasy and nervous about something. Cilan knew what Ash was nervous about, but he was in the dark about Iris' uneasiness. At first, he had hypothesized that Iris had feelings for Ash that were becoming too much to hold back, however, something told him that it was something more. Not that Iris did not have feelings for Ash. Cilan actually had been picking up subtle hints on both Ash' and Iris' sides for quite a while before the whole Zoroark incident. But something about Iris seemed very strange lately.

The group was setting up camp, when Ash came over to Cilan and said, "Hey, uh, girls like sitting under the full moon, right? Don't they think that's romantic and stuff?"

Cilan nodded, "Yes, I'd say most would enjoy such a picturesque scene."

Ash nodded back, "Well, ever since what happened a couple of days ago, I've been planning on, well. . ." Ash gulped, and his face was blushing so much that he looked like a Darumaka, "There's a full moon tonight, and well. . ."

Cilan smiled and bowed, "Say no more, should I wake up and find you both gone, I shall go right back to sleep." Cilan suddenly straightened up and turned serious. His eyes flashed as he said, "However, hopefully you are not the type who would take advantage of a girl."

Ash blinked, "What do you mean 'take advantage of'?"

Cilan anime sweat dropped. "Well, you were oblivious on what the Cottonee were really doing."

"Am I missing something?" Ash asked.

"Pikapi. . ." Pikachu said, sweat dropping as well.

As Cilan began to prepare dinner and the Pokemon all played and conversed with one another, Ash built up his courage and approached Iris, who was sitting by herself, looking more uneasy still.

"Iris," Ash said.

"Ash," Iris replied.

Ash couldn't help but wonder why Iris was acting so strangely. She usually was never this quiet and reserved! What was going on?

"No awkward silences! Just keep talking!" Ash shouted in his brain. Unfortunately, his tongue felt paralyzed, so he had to force himself to say something.

"I really like your hair!" Ash shouted.

. . . . . .

"Uh. . .thanks?" Iris said nervously.

"You sure did blow it Ash!" one voice in his head said, but then another one, stronger than the first said, "No! It's okay! Go with that! It's like a Pokemon Battle! Adapt with the flow of things!"

Ash gulped hard and used all of his nerve to put a smile on his face, "Y-yeah! It's a really nice shade of dark purple! I really love it!"

Perhaps from his subconscious desires, Ash had put a little extra emphasis on the word love. Iris had picked up on it, and her eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"You are a moron, Ash! Why did you say the l-word for?" said the first voice, but then the other voice said, "It's okay, it'll get her thinking if she really likes you!"

Meanwhile, Ash's face was very red, and he was smiling ridiculously big, scarcely daring to breathe as Iris stared at him. She didn't look angry or scared. She actually looked curious.

"Ash," she said, then she glared at him seriously, "No being a little kid right now, Ash, I mean it-."

"Your eyes sparkle when you're angry. . ." Ash said automatically without thinking.

Iris' eyes widened even further, and the color completely drained out of Ash's face. Ash turned away and slammed his hand on his mouth and he beat himself up with words in his mind.

Iris' mind was a jumbled mess. She couldn't believe her rotten luck. Why did things have to be this way? Why did she have to be teased with things she knew she could never have?

"Dinner is ready!" Cilan called out.

Iris and Ash both looked over to where the meal was set up. Iris then looked over at Ash, who now had his eyes closed and was thinking hard. Ash let out a deep breath and said, "Iris, tonight, let's finish this up somewhere private, just you and me. Okay?"

Every nerve in Iris' body screamed out "NO!" Her brain told her that it was impossible, that it couldn't be done, that it would the worst possible choice to make.

"You. . .you can't like me, Ash!" Iris cried out.

"But I do, Iris!" Ash said, turning towards her, "What's not to like about you? You're exciting with awesome dreams and goals. You never give and always go for what you want. And you can stand on your own and your brave and. . .well. . ." Ash sighed and hung his head, "I get it. Why should you be with a little kid like me-."

"No! Ash," Iris interrupted, "I. . .I think you're an incredible guy. You never back down from a challenge and never give up, and I like that! It's just, well, I'm. . ." Iris hardened her gaze, "Alright, Ash. I'll meet with you tonight. Then you'll understand. But, let's not talk until then. I need to think about all this. Okay?"

Ash nodded, "Okay."

The two of them ate without a word. Afterwards, while Ash and Cilan tended to their Pokemon, Iris had vanished.

"She's probably waiting for me somewhere," Ash said nervously to Cilan, "I really think she likes me. I mean, she was nearly as nervous as I was. But I think I looked stupid. And it was like, she was afraid that I like her. Like, she was worried about me or something. . ."

"Relax, Ash," Cilan said with a smile, "Remember my evaluation? You two were meant for each other." Cilan looked up and said, "Look, it's nearly night. The full moon will rise soon, and then you two love birds can enjoy the romantic moon light."

Ash suddenly shouted out in frustration and did a double face palm, "Ahhh! I've never liked a girl before!"

"That's good Ash, first love is always the deepest," Cilan quoted.

"But what if I mess up, or make an even bigger fool of myself! Then she'll say I'm a little kid, and she wouldn't like a little kid, and then-."

"PIKACHUUUUUUUUU!"

Pikachu had used Thunderbolt on Ash, zapping him good. When the smoke cleared, Ash sat on the ground, breathing deep breaths. Pikachu ran up to Ash and crawled onto his lap.

"Pikapi," he said sternly, staring at Ash hard.

Ash looked back at Pikachu. Ash understood. He couldn't chicken out now, he had to man up. "Thanks buddy. I needed that," Ash said, then he got up and said, "Alright, here goes nothing!"

Ash soon found himself sitting on a large tree limb, staring at the full moon in the sky, surrounded by stars. He had searched around the forest for about half an hour, but he found no trace of Iris. Ash grabbed a nearby vine and stared at it. Iris loved to swing on vines.

"Where are you, Iris?" he thought to himself, "Do you like me back?"

A shadowy figure moved stealthy through the undergrowth, barely making a sound. It's dark colors cloaked it like a ninja in the dark woods. A flash of red could occasionally be seen, but its swift movements kept that from being a problem. Before long, the figure had made it to the base of the tree Ash was sitting in. The creature then made a mighty leap, landing silently on the limb Ash was sitting on. It silently crawled across the limb, making not a creak as it got closer and closer to the Pokemon Trainer.

It was very close now, inches away. The creature opened its mouth, revealing pointy canine teeth. It leaned in close to Ash's neck, and licked him with its large pink tongue.

Ash shouted out in fear as the sloppy wet tongue touched his bare skin. The shock cause him to fall forward off the branch. At the last moment, the creature reached out and grabbed Ash by the pants, pulling him back up onto the branch.

"Woah," Ash gasped as he got a better look at his rescuer, "You're a Zoroark."

The Pokemon nodded.

"Well, what is a Zoroark doing here?" Ash asked.

"Zor-arrrr!" the Pokemon growled.

"Well, thanks for the save," Ash said, and he gently touched his slobbery neck, "And the lick. . .I guess. . .but I'm looking for a girl named Iris."

"Zor-ar-zor-ark."

"She has dark purple hair, and a yellow and pink dress. . ."

"Zor-ar-zor-ark!" the black and red fox roared louder.

Ash jumped at the sudden increase of volume. He said nervously, "Look, I'm sorry if I'm intruding on your home or anything. I just-."

The Zoroark appeared to roll its eyes in annoyance. It then jumped down and waved a claw.

"Zor-ar-ar!"

"Do you want me to follow you?" Ash called out.

"Ar!" it roared back.

"Okay!" Ash replied, quickly climbing down the tree. Once on the ground, he quickly followed behind the mysterious Zoroark.

For nearly an hour, Ash and the Illusion Fox Pokemon were racing through the dense trees. The human and Pokemon were jumping over rock, bush, and stream. Ash had never felt so alive as he breathed in the fresh forest air. It seemed to feel different than it normally did. It had the coolness of night and the natural aroma of nature to. Plus, the faced paced movement caused him to breath deeper, truly appreciating the intoxicating power the fresh air of the woods had.

The Zoroark soon came to a tree and climbed it. Ash quickly followed and climbed onto the sturdy branch the Zoroark stopped at. The Pokemon grabbed onto a vine and gestured for Ash to do the same.

"You swing on vines?" Ash asked incredulously.

The Zoroark nodded, and was soon off, swinging through the air.

"Wait up!" Ash said with a smile, and he quickly followed behind the Zoroark.

It was a rather comical sight, the two of them smiling as they sailed without a care through the air. They would come to an occasional tree and run across a branch to the next vine. Like a fantastical jungle video game, they hopped and swung from tree to tree. Only they could feel their hearts pumping, their muscles working, and that wondrous night air flowing in and out of their lungs.

After quite a while, both soon came to a stop on a rather large tree. Ash watched as the Zoroark stepped to the very end of the bough, its feet balanced precisely on the narrow end. The Illusion Fox threw its head back and howled at the moon in triumph, looking quite majestic. Ash stared at the beautiful creature, awestruck. The Zoroark turned to Ash and winked at him, causing his heart to race for a brief moment. It then reached over and picked an apple off of the tree. It handed the fruit over to Ash.

"Thanks," he said as he bit into the large, juicy fruit. Ash suddenly began to notice how much this Zoroark reminded him of Iris. . .

Ash nearly choked on the mouthful of apple he was eating. He had entirely forgotten about his meeting with Iris!

"Oh no! I forgot about Iris!" Ash shouted.

The Zoroark rolled its eyes yet again.

Ash turned to the Zoroark to ask if it knew where Iris was, only to find it already gone.

"Wait! come back!" Ash shouted, and he quickly slid down the side of the tree. Too quickly, apparently, because he ended up falling off. Luckily, something soft broke his fall. Ash shook his head, and looked at what he landed on. It appeared to be a large white sack. Ash was curious to how something like that got out here, so he opened it.

Ash gasped.

In the bag, was Iris' clothes.

Ash slowly turned, and there stood the Zoroark, looking deeply saddened.

"Wow. . ." Ash gasped.

The Zoroark hung her head, eyes closed. Tears were already squeezing out of them. She shuddered as a sadness began to spread through her. However, she soon felt a gentle hand caressing her snout. She opened her eyes to see Ash very standing close to her.

"This is why you were worried all that time about the clouds and the moon and the rain, wasn't it?" Ash said.

She nodded.

"And when I said you looked like a Zoroark, that got you worried too. . ." Ash continued.

She nodded again.

Ash looked her up and down, taking it all in. He noticed the yellow hair scrunchie that was positioned where a Zoroark would normally have a blue band to keep its mane together. Ash then pictured how she looked during the day. Ash then smiled as he thought of all the fun he had tonight. . .

"Iris. . ." Ash said. He closed his eyes, thought hard, and said, "I want. . .to be what you are."

Her eyes widened in shock.

"I really like you, Iris. No matter what you look like," Ash said, "All the stuff we did tonight, it was the real you inside, coming through, even though you're a Zoroark. I. . . . .I love everything about you Iris! But I don't want you to be alone in this. We can be together in this, Iris. Imagine, the two of us, every full moon, whenever its not cloudy out. We have sort of a. . .Moonlight Date. . ." Ash blushed fiercely at this remark, and he could've sworn he saw the Zoroark blush through her black facial fur. "Then we'd be able to talk too!" Ash continued, "And . . . if you're gonna be my. . .girlfriend, don't you think we should be. . .on the same wavelength. . .kinda?"

The Zoroark breathed slow and hard as she and Ash stood face to face. It didn't matter how long they stood there. All that mattered was that the decision was eventually made.

She took Ash by the arm, and led him into a patch of bright moonlight, where the trees were parted. She then lifted his arm up to her mouth. She opened her jaws, revealing her sharp canine teeth. She gave Ash a nervous look.

"I'll still have two arms after this, right?" Ash asked warily.

She nodded.

Ash closed his eyes, "Go ahead. But make it quick."

Taking Ash's advice at face value, she bit down fast.

On that day, Ash discovered that pain could be pleasurable. Sure, it hurt, and yet something about it felt so good. It was as if the bite came with its own sedative. Ash's eyes rolled back as he let out a long gasp that sounded like air leaking out of a balloon. And yet, as he exhaled, he felt something else flow into him. It was as if the moonlight entered his body through the pores of his skin. The Zoroark let Ash go as he stumbled backwards into a thick bush. There was a strange rustling sound, coupled by an eerie red light that leaked through the bush. This was followed by the sound of clothing being taken off and thrown onto the ground.

In the twinkling of an eye, out jumped a male Zoroark, landing in front of the female. He gave himself a once over, wagging his tail and running a claw through his mane, stopping at the red band that tied the long red hair. The male smiled and let out a growling laugh. He then, pounced upon the female, giving her lick on the cheek as he pinned her down playfully.

The female gave a deep chuckle in reply and proceeded to tickle the male's chest. The male had to let go, allowing his mate-to-be to escape and run off, growling out a challenge for him to come catch her. He smiled, called out after her, and quickly took off on all fours.

A few weeks later; Iris, Ash, and Cilan were traveling once again.

The sleeping bags were set up and the Pokemon were all fast asleep.

"Alright. Not a cloud in the sky!" Ash said as he and Iris stared at the sunset.

Iris just smiled wildly and nodded.

Cilan nodded knowingly and said, "I take it you two are going out for another moonlit-night walk in the forest."

"You bet!" Iris said, quivering with excitement as Ash put an arm around her, "As long as it's clear out, we wouldn't pass it up for anything."

"Just stay out of trouble," Cilan said with a smile.

"Relax, Cilan," Ash said.

"Yeah, I'll take care of him," Iris said cheekily.

"Heeeyyy," Ash said in mock warning. Iris had to put a hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter.

As the couple made their way out of the campsite and a good distance away from basically anyone, Iris shot Ash a serious glance and said, "Remember, when we're changing, you stay in your bush and I'll stay in mine. No peeking!"

Ash appeared to look to shocked, "What! Why the heck would I do something like that?" Ash kept his expression for about five seconds, then he smiled and said, "After all, I'm just a 'little kid' aren't I?"

Iris just had to laugh out loud at this. She then leaned over and kissed Ash on the cheek.

Ash blinked and said, "Uh. . .Iris? I know I'm new at this, but. . ."

"What's wrong?" Iris asked nervously, her heart beginning to sink. Did he not want her kissing him?

"I just. . .well. . .I always heard that kisses went like this. . ." Ash completely shocked Iris by leaning over and kissing her full force on the lips.

Iris felt her resistance melt away completely as Ash gently held her around the waist. They didn't keep track of how long they stood like that, but when they finished, they were both out of breath.

"Did I. . .do it right?" Ash said as his heart pumped wildly.

"You're the champion!" Iris said breathlessly.

Ash blushed dark red, but then he got a familiar itchy feeling all over his body. "I think it's time now."

"Sure is," Iris said as she backed off into a bush. Ash quickly did the same.

A few minutes later, a pair of Zoroarks were licking each other's faces excessively. After which, they ran off into the woods for an adventure in the night.

THE END

IT'S NOT OVER YET! THERE IS A BONUS SHORT AFTER THIS! FAVORITE AND FOLLOW THIS STORY SO YOU'LL KNOW WHEN I'VE PUBLISHED THE BONUS STORY!