PCE1

Summary: MewTwo and Reenie bond. For simplicity's sake, I will translate what all the pokemon are saying in this, unless the POV is someone who does not understand Poke-speak.

Chapter 1 Butterfly Kisses

As I took the little baby back towards my cave, I marveled at just how small, yet strong she was. The baby was so tiny, fitting in the crook of my arms, and yet I could feel something special within her. She did not struggle as I imagined she would. Most children would fuss at being held by a perfect stranger, especially one with a face such as mine. But this child… I sensed no fear from her, only wonder and… affection.

Such contradictions… Only one other human had ever had such a juxtaposition of characteristics, and it was to him that I owed so much.

Ash Ketchum.

I carried the infant back to my cave, where two of my most loyal pokemon, clones of a meowth and a pikachu, waited. They came every night to give me a report on the status of the others, despite their knowledge of my psychic powers. Still, they continued to bring the report every night and every morning. I never stopped them, nor asked them why they sought out my company. To be honest with myself, I enjoyed their visits. It was good to not feel quite so alone.

[MewTwo, what is going on?] Pikachu asked me. [We saw you go through the waterfall.]

[Was it humans?] Meowth added.

I considered my answer. Would they understand? "Yes," I responded after a few minutes. I lowered my arms to give them a look at the child still swaddled in a blanket. "She was abandoned outside our borders in a bush."

Reenie gaped at them and then back at me. She gurgled and burbled at us.

Pikachu was the first to get over his shock. Uncertainly, he grew closer to us and I sat down. Pikachu sniffed the baby and she sniffed back before she crossed her eyes and sneezed. It was a high, squeaky sneeze and Pikachu jumped back a bit.

Pikachu looked at me. [What are you going to do?]

"Well, I can't very well leave her out there alone. Only humans could abandon babies," I insisted. I was only doing this out of pity and a desire to get some sleep at night. "I am going to keep her. I will teach her to be good to pokemon." Once again the memory of Ash entered my mind. If even one human could show such a gregarious spirit, surely one taught from infancy could change the world! Perhaps his hope of humans and pokemon living together in peace and mutual respect was not such a foolish dream, after all.

Meowth finally came over to meet her. He examined her critically. [Well, whatever you do, she needs a bath first,] he said, cringing at the smell.

I took a whiff and crinkled my nose. The foul odor snapped me back to reality. "Agreed, but first things first."

Raising a hand, I guided a piece of parchment and a pen and made a list. I then handed it to Meowth and a few nuggets to Pikachu. "Take this into town, to a market, a get these items. Take the cart." Eager to help, the two went to obey.

I stood up and looked at the child, my nose crinkled again. "Bath time for you." Perhaps it was my tone of voice, tinged with both humor and disgust, but Reenie too wrinkled her nose. I laughed.

How long had it been since I had laughed? Had I ever done so before? Already, the small human was exerting her charms on me, and I couldn't help but be susceptible to them.

Conveniently, there was a small pond with its own tiny waterfall nearby where I undressed her and sat her in the pool. The water was only a couple of hands-breadths deep, and the child was able to sit up on her own. Far off in the distance, thunder cracked. The electricity in the air filled my dense fur with static. Soon, the storm would be upon us; I needed to do this fast. Carefully, gently, I carried her to the waterfall, dipping her hair beneath the running water. The leaves and mud ran out of it and into the water. She struggled lightly and whimpered.

"Now stop that. I'm being careful and you need your hair washed."

I frowned at her. She looked up at me and pouted but stopped struggling. Amazing how such a young child could read my facial expressions. Was she psychic? It seemed likely, but a gentle probe brought no reaction. How old is she?

I finally let her sit up again and had turned to look around us for something to dry her with when a splash of water hit my chin and chest. I looked down at her and saw a big grin and her crimson-colored eyes twinkling. "Is that a challenge?" I returned the splash gently. She erupted in high-pitched squeals that pierced my eardrums.

"Ouch! That's loud child." My paws automatically lifted to cover my abused ears.

"Owwie?" she cocked her head.

"Yes, it hurt my ears," I told her as I lifted her out of the water.

There was no other way to do it, so I lifted her and cradled the girl in the crook of one arm, and reached down to pick up her discarded clothing.

To my surprise, wet arms wrapped themselves around my neck and I felt a cold pair of lips press against my ear.

"All be'er," she said with a sweet smile.

I tried not to. I really did. I knew I should not encourage attachment, even though I now planned to raise her, teach her. But it was to no avail. I felt myself smile a little at her and when she returned it with a broad, innocent grin my frozen heart thawed a little. How could it be that my loyal pokemon who had fought and fled with me to this sanctuary have had no effect on me, but a child whose presence had lasted less than an hour have made me not only smile but laugh? It was both right and wrong. So, I tamped down on my rebellious emotions.

"Enough of that now, let us get you dressed and fed," I stated, my mask dropping again over my countenance.

I took her inside my cave to dry her. Unfortunately, her clothing was as befouled as her body had been, and therefore there was nothing clean in which to dress the child.

Once again, I was pleasantly surprised by her good disposition. Once I sat her within sight of the cave opening and told her to not move, she listened! Most young pokemon are not as obedient.

I went outside to the berry trees and I picked a small bunch of them back to the cave. I chuckled softly as I watched her play with her bare feet. The berries were, I had learned appropriate food for any pokemon, and I assumed that they would serve as a first meal for a young human as well. Worried that she might choke on whole berries, I mashed them well into a paste, first removing the large seeds, later to be planted. The child watched me fixedly. How unusual.

Once I finished with the berries, I brought the mush to her on a clean leaf. Curiously, she stuck a hand in it and looked at me.

"Eat it, it's food," I said, demonstrating the fact by popping a few berries into my mouth.

She licked the mush and shoveled the handful completely in her mouth with excitedly. I sat with her and watched her eat. Even though the berries were mashed up, I felt a need to make sure she did not choke.

After a few handfuls, she looked up and held up some to me. Surprised by her obvious offer, I accepted a bit of it and earned myself a big huge grin.

"You're cute," I finally admitted. She was. I could admit that without getting attached, I thought. After all, there are countless pokemon that I consider "cute."

After she finished her meal, we cleaned up again. How untidy these humans are!

She began to fuss and wriggle, which I interpreted as fatigue, so I fixed up a temporary bed of mast, a mixture of leaves and moss and soft grass. I laid her down, and it was not a moment too soon for as soon as she settled in, she yawned and her eyelids began to droop.

Quiet! At least getting her to sleep meant a return to solitude for me. Somehow, I now longed for and dreaded my loneliness, now that it had been breached, but a small cry called me back. She looked at me; her eyes filled with fear and uncertainty.

"Now what do you want?"

She reached out a hand. I knew what she wanted. I was not about to give it to her. If I gave in, I knew I would be stuck sitting by her every single night. I turned back around, determined to ignore any further cries.

But, then I remembered. I remembered waking up in a place that was unfamiliar to me. I remembered being scared to death of what would happen to me. Our situations differed only slightly. She was in a situation that I am certain would have left me traumatized if I had been her age.

Sighing with defeat, I sat beside her and petted her hair and cheek. Her tiny hand grasped one of my balled-fingertips. The fear fled from her eyes and was replaced with absolute trust. Reenie heaved a deep sigh, surprisingly large for such a small person, and closed her eyes again, smiling.

"I suppose I am stuck with you," I murmured to her. It was true, but, somehow I didn't mind. "I am not sure what kind of caregiver I will be. I have never cared for one as small as you. I just hope I am not making a mistake."

AN: Next chapter, 10 years later and the reintroduction of another familiar character. What Pokemon story would be complete without...