One-Shot Summary: This is the second to last one-shot of the series. Wow...almost done. Turn off the lights because the category is Dark. Rather hard for a choice but as the Bud Light commercial says, Here We Go!
Shipping: SpellShipper

Magician's Remorse

Misty, Brock, Togepi and...two Pikachus? Wasn't there suppose to be one? And why was one Pikachu wearing Ash's cap? Anyway, the group dashed to find someone who could help the situation the group was in, whatever that situation was. As they dashed, they suddenly spot a black witch's pointy hat. "Lily's gotta be nearby!" Brock hoped. Hope would be answered as they spot a redhead female in a rather sexy witch's garb. She was feeding her Murkrow.

"Lily!" Misty called out. The redhead heard the call and turned to the humans...only to be flabbergasted by the sight.

"Oh no..." she sighed. Brock and Misty arrived at her side, spent from all that running. "Don't tell me the spell hasn't worn off yet." The hatted Pikachu stepped up and bowed a frown.

"It wore off but then it relapsed," the Pikachu explained...hold on! Pikachu can't talk like a human! And what did it...or he mean by relapse?

"For some reason, the spell you put on Ash seemed to return to him and now..." Misty added. "I don't know what to do. It's not reverting back to his human skin." Lily picked the hatted Pikachu from the ground, frazzled at what happened.

"I was told the spell was temporary," she reviewed. "The fact that you're still in the Pikachu skin is baffling, Ash." Pikachu...no, Ash sighed in fluster.

"Tell me about it," he huffed. Lily dipped into her mind for some sort of solution with a smile. She had a trick up her cape.

"Well, you're in luck. I've been studying more of the manuscripts and may have a solution to your ailment." If Ash can be reverted to human, she could hold the answer. As she put Ash down, she dove into her bag of tricks, pulling out vials of chemicals and natural items. "Fortunately, I've been following the instructions to the letter...or symbol and have managed to create a cache of new antidotes and other potions. I'm more than positive that one of these will work." Ash was pumped. He wanted to be on two legs once more. "However, it hasn't been tested, so the results could go from better to worse. It could turn you into human or another Pokémon or you actually become a pure Pikachu. Who knows, it may turn any Pokémon into humans." All sorts of possibilities. Would Ash dare risk it?

"Lily, please!" That plea for help stoked Lily to do what was needed.

"Alright. Let's get to work!" She pulled out a vial of green liquid and handed it to Ash. Using both hands, he handled the vial and took a swig. Everyone waited for what could be the cure. However, they would be impressed but disappointed at the same time. BURP! That...was one big belch! That appeared to...not work. "So, that potion magnifies the output of internal gases within one's inner body." Sadly, it didn't seem to return Ash to his human form. Now what?

"Excuse me!" he apologized about the belch. Lily pulled out another vial, this having a bluish-green color. Let's see if this works. One sip. Instantly, the concoction was having an effect as Ash began to grow. It's promising. Ash was becoming human... Suddenly, Ash stopped and he was back...to his regular height. That was it? Ash was still a Pikachu...a large Pikachu. That didn't appear to work right, if at all.

"Well, that potion seems to be a growth potion. At least he's back to his original height." True, but he's still a Pikachu. As if that wasn't bad enough, one more belch extracted whatever was there and shrunk him back down. A failed try.

"Guess it needs a more stable ingredient," Brock theorized. Maybe... Ash frowned, thinking that this was a permanent curse. Pikachu tried to lift his master's spirits. Lily handed a white fluid to Ash. Maybe white was right. Ash wanted to do anything to be human again. With one gulp, all waited for the outcome. Just then, Ash turned away from Lily, almost frightened.

"Lily, get some clothes on!" he yelled! Misty became befuddled. Why would Ash request Lily to get dressed...when she's already clothed? Ash looked at Misty and Brock...but that made it worse. "Brock, Misty, please! Wear something!" Darting his eyes made Lily understand what the concoction was.

"It seems that Ash has yet to hit puberty," she pondered. "That potion gave him x-ray vision. That's why he thought we were naked." Even though the explanation was cleared, it didn't really help the other two. Brock grabbed Ash's pajama pants to see if maybe Ash's vision returned to normal.

"Tell me if you see your pajama pants," he instructed as he held the pants in front of Ash. Ash looked but couldn't see anything but trees. Shaking his head, Ash looked again...and there were the pants.

"Okay, I can see them," he began to calm. Soon enough, Ash could see normal again. Throughout the day, many mixtures and potions were attempted with more results than the Winter Olympics. None of those results contributed in Ash being human. He may have had human hands for a while and human legs. Mixing the two actually made the situation worse as it made Ash speak like a Pikachu. None of those were long-lasting but none actually made it human. Nothing worked like she promised. Man, the world was fixing it's anger on him. Night fell. All the vials and beakers were dry. So was Lily's work.

"I'm sorry, everyone," she began to cry. "I've tried everything!" The group felt sorry for asking the virtually impossible. Ash seemed to be stuck as a Pikachu for the rest of his life.

"No, we should be apologizing," Misty murmured. "We were hoping for more than we imagined from you." Lily sobbed in appreciation.

"It's getting late," Brock noted. "We should camp out and think about what to do. There's no way Ash can compete in the Silver Conference in his condition." Ash was upset but the truth hurt him just as much as seeing Lily's sad face. Everyone had gone to bed, wondering if Ash should now live a life of a wild Pokémon. What would Brock and Misty tell his mother? She'd be devastated with the news that her son is now a Pokémon. Ash couldn't sleep. He had to hate the fact that nothing can change him back. He wanted to be mad at someone. Who? Lily? Misty? Himself? But he couldn't. Everyone did their part. That's when he heard sobbing...from a distance. Hey, there's something about being a Pikachu that's positive.

"Lily?" he wondered. Hopping out, he scampered to the sobs...with a now-awakened Togepi on his tail. Ash arrived at the lakeside. Curled, Lily sat by the lake. The concept of her magic being useless seemed to be weighing heavily. "You alright?" You think she's chipper? The moping Lily glanced at the tiny trainer, reminded about her failures.

"I'm not," she sadly mumbled. "What am I suppose to do now? None of my potions, my concoctions, my magic..." Ash rested a paw...yes, a paw, not a hand...a paw on Lily, a sign of forgiveness. "To be honest, ever since Team Rocket smudged up the book, it felt like I was smudged up as well. There was nothing to repair the damaged writing. When I saw you again in the skin..."

"Lily, listen. There's still hope, right? You never gave up on being a magician and I don't want you to, even if it is on the brink of extinction." Guess being in the skin had given Ash some time to think. "This is an art you're trying to revive and you've possibly done more than your ancestors would think you'd do." Lily started to be...happy. His words sunk deeply into her heart.

"Thank you, Ash." She lifted Ash and...SMOOCH! It was a nice kiss-WHOA! What's with the light? For a few seconds, there was a shine of light. When it faded... "Oh my goodness!" What? The next morning, Misty, Brock and Pikachu awoke. This was about to be the toughest task for the group in telling Ash's mother about what happened to her son. That was until Togepi ran back in frantic. Misty and Brock wondered what panicked the egg. It was rare for Togepi to get wound up like this.

"What's wrong, Togepi?" Misty questioned. Togepi pointed back outside, trying to coax the group to look. Listening, the group peeked outside. There was...Ash! He's human! This was great news. He sat by the lake as his lap acted like a pillow for Lily. She was in peace. Excited to see Ash back to normal, Misty ran up to meet the new human Ash. "Ash!" Ash turned to Misty and yes, his face was of a human, too.

"Sh!" Ash hushed with a finger over his lips touched by a magician. "Lily's asleep." Misty wasn't worried about Lily. She was glad that Ash was returned to the human state she liked. However, she had to be wondering how if all of Lily's magical equipment failed.

"How did she do it?" Was it the kiss? Was it actually the concoctions that delayed the true nature of the visit? Ash wasn't one to hide secrets...but he wasn't sure about revealing the truth to her.

"There are some things that defy logic or understanding." Something Lily had to have told Ash in case that question roused. Togepi knew the truth but the egg wasn't wanting to speak. It was an interesting scene and Misty was only glad to have Ash on two legs than four...If she only knew about overnight.

END of DARK

(One more to go. It's a tight race with Ghost and Water but there may be an upset on the way. Who tops off this series of one-shots? Check out the final poll on the profile page.)