Here's the next chapter. Now, this is a pretty big hunk, that I understand, but still, just go with me on it, okay? So, we're going to get some introduction to our 'Louis' and 'Ray', and we'll also see how Butch's proposal to Dawn will play out. Let's just say Dawn's not going to be portrayed as Charlotte in full. We're going to see some BIG differences.
The next morning, Drew was sleeping inside the trunk, and was using a giant leaf he found as a blanket. However, through the hole in the tree, a Grotle nut flew in and hit Drew on the head.
"Up and at em'! The Feraligatr are gone!" May shouted, while Drew looked out of the hole to see that May had built a raft. She was putting the finishing touches on the raft, and then took off a branch to paddle with. "We've got to get back to Petalburg and break this curse we both brought upon ourselves!"
Drew then hopped onto the raft from their hiding place, took up a leaf to use as a Poké Flute, and then said, "I wasn't the one wearing a false crown."
"But I wasn't the one messing around with witchcraft." May remarked, smartly.
Drew ignored this, and he started playing his "Poké Flute" while May did the paddling, and then he said, "This is just for you to paddle by."
"Think you could help me out over here?" May said, annoyed, as she was putting in a lot of effort to row the raft, but was not having much luck.
Drew hesitated for a second, and then just kept playing as he said, "I'll just play a bit louder."
However, unknown to either of them, a pair of eyes came up from out of the water behind them, and started closing in on them.
"Hey, less playing, more…" May was about to demand, when she put on a face of fear when she saw their pursuer.
Drew noticed the Feraligatr open its mouth and come at them, causing both May and Drew to run at each other and hug one another for dear life, only for the Feraligatr to come out of the water and say, "I know that song! "No Friends Blues"!"
As Drew and May were hanging on to each other, the Feraligatr, who took out a trumpet from out of nowhere, started playing the song. Seeing as how the larger Pokémon had no intention of harming them, Drew then let go of May, with a smile, causing May to fall on her back, and then he said, "Play it!"
Taking out his Poké Flute, Drew started playing along with the Feraligatr, while May silently erected herself, looking at the two musical Pokémon in annoyance.
After the Feraligatr and Drew finished up their number, Drew started dancing with Feraligatr, who said, "Hey, where've you been all my life?"
"How did you learn to play like that?" Drew asked.
"Well, Petalburg Swamp is the top jazz school in the world," Feraligatr said. "Oh, what Barry wouldn't give to be jamming up there with the superstars."
"What's stopping you?" Drew asked.
"There was one time that I tried… Let's just say I've never seen so many Poké Balls at once before." Barry said.
Drew then sweat dropped; he caught on to what Barry meant.
Ay then jumped in, and said, "Well, it's been very nice to meet you, um, Barry, and thanks for not eating us, but we have to be on our way."
"Where are you heading off to?" Barry asked, as May went back to paddling the raft.
"To find someone to help us break this curse." May said, bluntly.
"What kind of curse are you talking about?" Barry asked.
"Hold on to your back scales," Drew said. "We're actually humans, not Politoed."
Hearing this, Barry just started rolling around on his back in laughter before asking, "You're not kidding?"
"My name is Drew. Prince Drew of LaRousse," Drew said, taking a regal bow. He then gestured to May. "And this is May, the Coordinator."
Drew then whispered, "Don't kiss her; seriously."
May overheard this, and a vein popped. She then threw her paddle at Drew's head, and then said, "I heard that, you rich brat! I'M not the one who caused this problem!"
"What are you talking about?" Barry inquired.
May then went over to Barry, and said, "Oh, I'll tell you! This moron got himself changed into a Politoed by a witchcraft man, and now…"
"WITCHCRAFT?!" Barry said, as he soon froze up and started looking around, nervous. "Like the kind Iris would do?"
"Who?" Drew asked.
"Iris! She's the witchcraft queen of the swamp! She's got all kind of magic, voodoo… All kind of dark magic!" Barry explained.
"Could you bring us over to her?" May and Drew said, simultaneously.
"Are you serious?! Go through the deepest, darkest part of the swamp, with poachers rampant, other Feraligatr around, and burr bushes?!... No way." Barry said, as he then leaned against a tree and began playing his trumpet again.
May hung her head in defeat, but Drew pat her back, and then he said, "Watch this."
Drew then leaned against the same tree, and said, "Well, Barry, it's too bad that we can't help you. Maybe if you were… shorter… No large teeth or jaws… You could play jazz to adoring crowds without giving them the impression you want to be caught."
Hearing this, Barry stopped playing abruptly, and then Drew said, "Too bad. Enjoy your solitude pal. See you later!"
Drew then went back to May, who rolled her eyes, and said, "Cute, but I highly doubt…"
However, Drew held up his pointer finger, and then pointed to his side. As if on cue, Barry asked them, "Hey, I just had an idea! What if I ask Iris to turn me into a human!"
"You're a genius, Barry!" Drew said, as he and May hopped atop Barry's head.
"Woo-hoo!" Barry said, as he then splashed into the water.
Soon, as Barry then rose up out of the water, swimming, he started playing his trumpet.
"If I were a human being, I'd head for Petalburg City! And I'd blow this horn so hard and strong, like no one has ever seen!" Barry sang to his new Politoed friends.
He then wiped his face with a wet leaf, singing, "You've heard of Louis Armstrong."
Drew was on a rock, watching, while May just climbed out of the water, annoyed, while Barry sang, "Mr. Sidney Bechet?"
Barry started dancing a little bit, before singing, "All those boys are gonna step aside, when they hear this ex-Feraligatr play, listen…"
Barry started playing his trumpet, and then May and Drew were enjoying the music, but as Barry did a trick by spinning on a branch, he fell into the water on top of his new friends.
Literally rising out of the water, with May and Drew atop his head, Barry sang, "When I'm human, as I hope to be…"
He then started to use a Torkoal, still in its shell, as a hat that he used to do a mini jig while singing, "I'm gonna blow this horn 'till the Miltank come home, and everyone's going to bow down to me!"
Barry bowed, throwing the Torkoal onto the branch. Its head came out, only for Barry to literally play the horn in its face.
Playing a makeshift Poké Flute, Drew sang, "When I'm myself again, I want just the life I had!"
He took some petals from flowers above, and spread them around, singing, "A great big party every night! That doesn't sound too bad."
May just groaned at this, knowing in the back of her mind that was probably what caused Drew to get into their situation to begin with.
"A Butterfree on my left arm," Drew said, and a Butterfree appeared on his left. "A Venomoth on my right."
As if on cue, a Venomoth appeared on his right. Soon, several Vivillon appeared on the sides, and Drew sang, "A Vivillon or two to hold the candles! Now that seems just about right, eh, Barry!"
The butterfly Pokémon then tossed Drew up in the air, and he sang, "Life is short, when you're done, you're done! We're on this earth to have some fun, and that's the way things are!"
"Sing it, brother!" Barry sang.
"When I'm human, and I'm gonna be!" Drew sang, as May hung on to Barry's tail, while he was marching and playing his trumpet.
Drew then danced a little, and was surrounded by the Bug Pokémon, while singing, "I'm gonna tear it up, like I did before, and that's the royal guarantee!"
"YOU," May said, chasing away to the girls. "Are going to try and get married to Dawn!"
"Oh, right…" Drew said, forgetting. "I guess I'll have to leave those poor girls with broken hearts."
May took away Drew's Poké Flute, and gave him a paddle to start rowing with, and then she started to sing, "Your modesty becomes you, and your sense of responsibility. I've worked off my butt for everything I've got!"
Drew merely started drumming with the stick he was given, while May sang, "And that's the way it's supposed to be!"
As she was rowing, May sang, "When I'm a human being, at least I'll ACT like one!"
She noticed all of the rocks and trees sticking out in the water, and then as May rowed around all of the obstacles, she sang, "If you do your best each and every day, good things are sure to come your way! What you give is what you get! My daddy said that, and I'll never forget! And I commend it to you."
However, behind her, Drew was drumming on his head with the stick he broke, much to May's annoyance.
"When we're human, and we're gonna be!" The trio sang.
"I'm gonna blow my horn!" Barry sang, as he did a trumpet solo.
"I'm gonna live the high life!" Drew said, playing his flute.
"I'm gonna do my best to take my place in the sun…" May said, as a shadow cast over her and then the motion suddenly stopped.
Barry had gotten stuck in a tree hole, and May used a feather to get him to sneeze, while she and Drew were singing, "When we're human…"
The sneeze's force literally blew them out so hard they were skipping across the water before making a large splash.
Meanwhile, at Dawn's villa, she was having some Miltank Milk with "Prince Drew" in the house's garden. Dawn was not really happy with the situation; she kept sneaking glances at Kenny, who, for some odd reason, was still wearing his mask, and insisted on staying at the villa to keep close to Dawn. She blushed, and then she turned her attention back to "Drew".
"Um… Prince Drew, your highness, I am terribly sorry about last night's Politoed incident." Dawn said, sincerely.
"It's no problem at all, Miss Dawn," "Drew" said. "When you're next in line for the throne, you need to be as poised as a Liepard, ready for the most unlikely and unexpected to happen."
"Drew" then leaned in to Dawn and wiggled his eyebrows seductively, while grinning, causing Dawn to sweat drop. However, his left ear grew in size, and Dawn, noticing this said, "Um… Your ear…"
Touching it, "Drew" then panicked a little bit. He ducked under the table and then looked at the talisman he was hiding, and saw that the blood was draining out from the grooves.
Butch sat back up, and covered his ear while pretending to swat at flies, and he said, "Ah… Hehehehe… Those insects…"
Dawn merely looked at "Prince Drew" with suspicion, and then soon, she was dragged up from her seat and then Butch pulled Dawn close to him.
"Mademoiselle Dawn, I can't ignore my beating heart…" Butch said, but soon, his butt inflated in back. He looked at it, and got nervous. "Anymore…"
Dawn was curious to see what was in back, kept moving around Dawn to distract her, and said, "Although our time together has been quite brief, it's been pure bliss."
"Um… Thanks." Dawn said, as she was soon dipped down.
She then got back up, and brushed herself off. However, her hat covered her face, just as Butch's facial shape turned back to normal, nose, and cheeks, and all.
"However, where are you…?" Dawn began, but…
Butch then tried covering up his face by hugging Dawn by her legs, and asked, "Will you make me the happiest man alive by becoming Princess of LaRousse?"
Dawn turned green at the thought, and as Butch soon retreated to try covering up his face with his shirt, Dawn asked, "You're serious?"
"As serious as malaria." Butch said.
"… No." Dawn said, crossing her arms.
"What?!" Butch asked.
"I've got my heart set on someone else. Besides, you're just too… regal for my taste. That, and you always seem to have this air of arrogance around you that I just don't take kindly to." Dawn said, as she turned her attention to Kenny, who was reading a book on a bench nearby.
"Ridiculous!" Butch said, just as his height increased. "You're refusing the position of a princess?"
"Look, I'm not the kind of girl who dreams of living a fairytale love story." Dawn said.
"Never in my life have I met a girl with such tastes! Think of the fame, the fortune!" Butch said.
"I'm wealthy enough as it is, and last time I checked, weren't you financially cut off by your parents?" Dawn inquired.
Butch recoiled; even Dawn knew the secret of "Prince Drew".
"Look, wealth isn't the issue here! I really have my heart set on you! I won't leave this estate until you agree!" Butch said.
"Then I hope you enjoy living here forever." Dawn said, as she started to leave.
"Want me to tell everyone back in LaRousse how you allowed wild Politoed to ruin the party?" Butch said.
"Beg your pardon?! I don't remember ever asking any Politoed to come and liven things up!" Dawn shot back, clearly upset.
"Then if you don't want me spreading rumors…" Butch said, as he took out a ring. "Will you have me?"
"I thought I already said 'no'!" Dawn said, walking away.
Butch groaned, and said, "You will marry me! Or I'm going to make sure your life is ruined."
"Fine! Okay, fine! I'll tie the knot with you, alright?! Just let me be!" Dawn shouted, as she ran off in tears.
Kenny overheard the whole thing, and felt horrible for two reasons. The first was that he cared about Dawn, too, and the second being that she was getting married to someone she hated, and because she was pestered in to it. He wanted to help…
He sadly walked away, depressed at the situation, but knew that Dawn did not say 'yes' because she honestly wanted to.
However, just as Kenny left, Harley came out of nowhere, and grabbed the talisman.
"NO!" Harley growled, as the blood ran out. Immediately, Butch was completely turned back to normal.
"Now what are we gonna do?!" Butch asked.
"Because someone let our Politoed Prince go, Biffy, I've no choice but to get assistance from my friends on the other side…" Harley said, albeit he sounded like he knew he would get into trouble.
Back in the swamp, Barry, May, and Drew were talking about their goals in life.
"So, these Contests you're going to be competing in, will they have every Pokémon you have on hand featured in them?" Barry asked.
"My Beautifly, Blaziken, those Contests will feature them all!" May said, hugging her knees in delight.
Drew's stomach growled, and then he said, "Man, now I'm hungry. All of this insanity, and I totally forgot to eat something."
However, a few Yanma soon flew by, and then Drew looked at them. However, he felt his tongue come out of his mouth once, and then he said, "That's strange…"
Drew then hopped into the water. May inquired, "What are you up to?"
"Quiet! You're scaring off the snack…" Drew said, as he shot his tongue at some of the Yanma, only to miss and tie himself in his own tongue. "Man, this certainly isn't easy."
Drew then got back up again, and then tried to get a Yanma again, only for him to unintentionally wrap his tongue around a tree branch, and then it pulled back on Drew's face, causing him to have the branch in its mouth.
May started laughing, when a Volbeat flew by her and then landed on a nearby dandelion, and started looking at the moon.
May's Politoed instincts kicked in again, and then her tongue came out of her mouth, too. She soon got scared, and said, "Oh, no! No, no, no! There is no way in heck, I am kissing a Politoed, and eating a Bug Pokémon, all in the same day!"
However, her tongue snapped out again, and then, against her will, May started going closer and closer to the Volbeat. Drew got the stick out of his mouth and then started going after the Volbeat too.
Once both Politoed were close to it, they both shot their tongues at the same time, only for the Volbeat to dodge it, and then for the tongues to be tied up; literally.
The tension then pulled both May and Drew together, causing their mouths to smack together. They then fell into the water, and then they both got up, playing a bit of tug-o-war with their tongues, both trying to get out of their situation.
"Hey, did you guys find any fo… Oh, dear…" Barry said, but then saw the situation his friends were in. "Don't worry, I can help!"
Barry then got started trying to untangle the tongues, but only worsened it, to the point that they were literally tied up to each other, their tongues wrapped around them.
Barry then said, "This needs a stick! Be back in a sec!"
Barry than ran off into the brush to try and find something to untie his friends.
"This is all because of you!" May said, upset.
"My fault, huh?!" Drew retorted, albeit both Politoed were talking nasally due to their tongues being tied up.
Soon, the Volbeat came down, and then said, "Hey, what's going on? Oh, look here."
He then circled the two Politoed and then said, "Oh, girl, looks like you and your man here went a bit overboard, am I right?"
"That's ridiculous!" Drew said.
"What do you mean 'my man'?! He's not my boyfriend or anything like that!" May protested.
"I'm the Prince of LaRousse!" Drew said, as the Volbeat flew up and looked at the knots.
"So I see…" The Volbeat said. "Let me shed a little light on your little problem."
He then grunted and soon his taillight came on, before said, "Perfect!"
As he flew over the Politoed, they closed their eyes in minor pain, as the bright light came out of nowhere.
"Don't worry, little lady. I won't explode, so trust me. I'm not an Electrode! All I have is my taillight! Girls love a guy with a bright light!" The Volbeat said, as he showed off his light.
Examining the knot, the Volbeat then said, "You really tied this good…"
He then dove in, and then after rattling around a bit, the Volbeat came back out, with a free tongue, and then yanked it, causing the two Politoed to be unraveled and then they fell into the water, on their backs.
"Whew… Thanks, um…" May said, but since she did not know the Volbeat's name, she stumbled on her words.
"Oh, where are my manners? My name's Brock! I don't recognize you two; new around here?" The Volbeat said.
"No joke," Drew said, getting up. "We're from somewhere very very far off."
"You're kidding! Are you two from Fortree City?" Brock asked.
"No…" Drew said. "We're actually humans."
"Yeah, Mr. so-called "Prince Charming" here made the big mistake of messing around with a witchcraft witch doctor." May explained to Brock.
"Well, there you go." Brock said.
"We were just on our way to Iris, because maybe she could…" May began, but…
"Whoa, hold on. Iris?" Brock asked.
May nodded.
"You're going the wrong way," Brock said. "What kind of Grotle nut-head told you guys to go this way?"
Barry then came out of the bushes, frightening Brock, and then he shouted, "I found one!"
May crossed her arms and then she said, "Barry… Brock here says you've been bringing us in the wrong direction."
"Well… I got confused with the topography, geography…" Barry said, trying to make an excuse for his lack of directional sense.
"First rule of the swamp: never take directions from a Feraligatr." Brock said, before whistling.
Many taillights from several Volbeat and Illumise started to light up, and then Brock said, "Don't worry; we'll help you get to Iris!"
"Wow…" Drew said, as he and May were admiring all of the lights from Brock's family.
"Hey, Forrest!" Brock said, as he woke up some of his friends. "Ready to get some music going?"
"Ready when you are!" Forrest said, as he got some makeshift instruments ready, and the playing started.
"Ready, let's get started, Suzy!" Brock said, as he got out an accordion and started to play.
The rest of the Volbeat and Illumise were then gathering together, and their lights were forming a beautiful trail of sparkling lights.
"Come on, now! Just follow the bouncing taillights!" Brock said, as he started off the number.
"We're gonna take you there, we're gonna take you there, we're gonna take you all the way down!" Brock sang, as he followed the path of lights his family had created.
May hopped after the Firefly Pokémon, but Drew was still dancing, so May pulled him away by the wrist to get him to start moving, while Barry was dancing to the beat of the Volbeat and Illumise.
"We're gonna take you there, we're going to take you there, we're gonna take you all the way!"
As the Firefly Pokémon were going through the mangrove roots, May and Drew were following them by hopping on the lily pads, and then through a log. Barry tried following them through there, too, but his head got stuck, and then continued dancing with the Firefly Pokémon as they kept going.
"Going down the bayou, going down the bayou, going down the bayou, taking you all the way!"
As all of the Illumise and Volbeat were dancing and moving while helping guide the way, Brock said, "We got the whole family!"
He pointed out two Illumise, and one Volbeat, and then Brock sang, "There goes Mimi, cousin Pudro. Hey, Grandma, your light's out!"
The older Illumise then clapped her hands and her taillight came back on.
"We're all gon' pull together. Down here, that's how we do." Brock sang, only to see that May and Drew were quite literally in the dark. "Me for them, and them for me, we'll all be there for you!"
He whistled again, and more Firefly Pokémon lit up their lights. May and Drew then started hopping happily, following their friends.
"We're gonna take you, we're gonna take you, we're gonna take you all the way down."
As the Politoed duo kept hopping, Barry sped ahead, as if on a jet ski, but then he sank when the area got dark.
"We know where you're going, and we're going with you. Taking you all the way!" Brock sang.
As the Pokémon then led the way with the lights by lighting up dew on the dandelions, while Drew and May followed them, and then Barry fell on top of several of the Volbeat and Illumise, and then his body was covered in lights as if he were wearing Hawaiian clothing, and then they all flew up in a spiral.
"Going down the bayou, going down the bayou, going down the bayou, taking you all…"
The Firefly Pokémon then exploded with each other, as if they were fireworks.
"Yeah, you know!"
As Brock led his family onwards, he sang, "Come on, everyone! Keep that line flowing, and those lights a'glowing!"
The Firefly Pokémon then led Barry, with both May and Drew on top of him, through the bayou.
That's that for this chapter. Okay, for those of you who have read the last chapter, I hope you all heard (or rather, read) my plea for a pink Vivillon and how to obtain one. Please help me with that, okay?