"Nearly there buddy". Ash said as he climbed the hill. His jacket fluttered in a light breeze behind him while the backpack he carried at his side seemed heavier than usual, weighted down with the Pokéballs inside. Behind him Pikachu was panting as they walked. The little mouse was happy to be travelling but Ash seemed determined to walk until there was nowhere else to walk! Pikachu was quite happy not to have to worry about that, thank you very much. As Ash reached the top he turned and saw his Pokémon still climbing.

"Come on Pikachu! Ash called. "I think we've found it for now."

"Pika!" the little Pokémon shouted back before a burst of energy carried him up the hill. As he reached the top he tugged at his trainers trouser leg. Ash smiled down at Pikachu as he knelt down, giving the Pokémon a route to his shoulder.

"What do you think Pikachu?" Ash asked as he swung the bag onto his back. "Think this could be our home for a while?"

Pikachu looked around. It was not the most hospitable of places he had to concede. The hill behind them was covered in grass but the small plateau at the top seemed to be more rocky than lush. Down the other side of the hill was a river which Pikachu nodded at approvingly. At least they would have water here and hopefully not starve if they ate fish. On the far side of the river was a small wood, something that would be ideal for firewood. He focused more on the top of the hill. A collection of boulders provided a sheltered area, while its location would make it hard to sneak up on. As a place to escape for a while and train in isolation, Pikachu had to admit it was pretty good.

"Pika, Pikapi, Pikachu." Pikachu said nodding to Ash. Ash grinned back at his starter and made a beeline for the boulders.

"We need to get everybody else settled in buddy." Ash said as he took his backpack off. "And I'm gonna need your help."

"Pika?"

Ash grinned, energy filling him once more. "I can't do it all myself Pikachu. Do you want to gather firewood or collect some food?"

Pikachu seemed to consider for a moment before pointing at the river. Ash nodded.

"You sort out some food then, I'll go collect us some firewood. Just one thing first."

Ash reached down into his bag and pulled out a Pokéball. He released it, causing Swellow to appear.

"Swellow, I need you to keep an eye on the campsite." Ash said to his Pokémon. Swellow let out a squawk of acknowledgement. "Brilliant." Ash said. He pulled four more Pokéballs out of his bag and fixed them to his waist before leading Pikachu down the other side of the hill towards the river.

As they approached it Pikachu started to consider the best way to get some fish from it. He considered just firing electric shocks into the water but feared the Pokémon that might come and attack him. As Ash looked around for a way to cross the water Pikachu sat down, considering it. If his attacks might bring a Pokémon out, perhaps a Pokémon could help him. He turned and bounded back up the hill, heading for Ash's backpack.

"Pikachu, where are you going?" Ash called. Pikachu turned and gave his trainer a thumbs up sign before carrying on up the hill. He reached the bag and started searching through it until he found the Pokéball he was looking for. Pikachu released the Pokémon. Buizel appeared looking around.

"Pika!" Pikachu said, causing Buizel to focus on him. "Pikachu, Pika, Pikachu."

"Bui" Buizel responded nd turned, heading for the water. Pikachu followed. As they approached, they heard Ash's voice.

"Hey, good thinking Pikachu!" He called. "I think it is shallow down here, I'm going to try to argh!"

Pikachu and Buizel turned to look at where the yell had come from. They saw their trainer sat in the river, his head and torso sticking out from the surface. Two things were apparent from a quick glance at Ash. He was right; the part of the river he was in was indeed relatively shallow. However that had not stopped Ash from managing to fall into it.

"Bui..." Buizel said shaking his head as Ash clambered to his feet, a grin plastered on his face. Pikachu just shook his head in amusement. His trainer was many things - caring, kind, willing to put others first. What he was not was well-coordinated. It was typical of Ash to manage to fall into a river.

"I was right! It is shallow!" Ash called back, apparently ignoring the fact that he was now soaked. "I'll be right back guys."

As the Pokémon watched, Ash waded his way across the river which was below his knees now he was stood up properly. As he vanished into the forest, Buizel dived into the river. A few moments later Buizel reappeared with a fish in his paws. He placed it on the side of the river and looked up at Pikachu who sent a small shock into it. The fish flopped around for a few moments before stopping moving. Buizel grinned up at Pikachu and dived back underwater.

By the time Ash reappeared with an armful of branches of varying sizes, Pikachu and Buizel had managed to create a reasonable pile of fish. Ash called out to them as he approached the river. Pikachu waved back before shocking Buizel's latest catch.

Ash raised the wood above his head as he stepped across the river, managing to keep his balance. He dropped the wood on the bank before clambering out of the water. Scooping up his prize once more, he headed for Pikachu.

"Pika." Pikachu said as Buizel deposited yet another fish on the bank. Buizel nodded before leaping out of the river and shaking himself off on the bank. Droplets splattered all over Pikachu, making him cast an annoyed glance at Buizel. Buizel ignored him as he swept up several of the fish and headed towards Ash.

"Let's head back up guys." Ash said as they came closer. "We can build a fire and cook these." He looked down at the two Pokémon before shaking his head sheepishly. "I don't suppose either of you are any good at cooking fish?"

Pikachu just looked at his trainer with a weary smile on his face. It was true, Ash was not a great cook. He was however a fast learner. After a few disasters shortly after they left Pallet Town, his cooking had improved drastically. It was now at the point where he was unlikely to set fire to the fish, even if it was probable that they would be overcooked. Ash was still learning how to judge when they were cooked and as he often said "I'd rather it was burned than we got ill from not cooking it properly."

As they reached the top of the hill Swellow swept past them towards the bank. Pikachu turned to watch the Flying-Type sweep up the remaining fish and carry them back up the hill towards them. Buizel deposited his in a pile and Swellow added his own collection. Ash pulled a Pokéball off his belt and released Quilava.

"That time of day again Quilava." Ash said as he started assembling the firewood into two piles. He then turned one of the piles into a respectable attempt of the shape of a typical campfire. Quilava nodded and waited till Ash was clear before lighting the fire pile with a small burst of flame. Ash smiled back at his Pokémon before scratching him behind the ears. Quilava let out a purr of pleasure before he realised that Ash was still soaked. Flames erupted from Quilavas back, warming the area up. Ash looked down with gratitude.

"Thanks." Ash said before turning to the fish. He speared a few of them on a stick he chose from the non-flaming pile before quietly sitting and cooking them over the fire. Pikachu and Buizel leaned up against a boulder while Swellow settled on top. Peace fell over the campsite as Ash focused on cooking.

It was a while later, and two more trips to the river to secure enough food to feed everybody that Pikachu next leaned back, well fed. He had been right, the fish was burnt but after eating like this for nearly two weeks he was getting used to it. Pikachu was grateful that Ash had only brought one Tauros with him, feeding all thirty would have been extremely difficult. The sun was just going down as Ash opened his backpack once more.

"Hey buddy, I know it's early but we should probably get some rest."

"Pika?" Pikachu asked. Ash smiled down at him.

"I know. But tomorrow we have some work to do."

Pikachu yawned slightly as Ash took the now dry jacket off and folded it into a pillow. Pikachu stood up lightly and stepped towards his trainer who reached an arm out to bring him closer. Ash didn't lie down immediately though, sitting in his sleeping bag with his back against a boulder. Pikachu sat in Ash's arms as they watched the last remnants of the sunset.

"This could be a good place for us Pikachu." Ash said as he stroked his Pokémons fur. Pikachu shut his eyes and just enjoyed the feeling of being close to his best friend. "We will stay here and train for a while." Ash's voice took on a slightly dreamy tone. "I mean, there have been a few times where we have really trained properly. Done fitness, worked on attacks. We always do it when we lost to a gym leader so that we could beat them."

Pikachu yawned as Ash carried on talking, unsure if his trainer was talking to him or not. If he was, Pikachu supposed he should probably still be listening, but he was very comfortable. Listening was effort. If it was important, Ash could tell him again in the morning.

"That training always made us stronger." Ash said, continuing to think out loud. "Much stronger. So that is what we will do. We will turn ourselves into the team we know we have the potential to be."

Pikachu yawned again, snuggling closer against Ash's chest. If they were going to be working hard in the morning, maybe sleeping now wasn't such a bad idea.

"So in the morning we'll make this place a proper campsite." Ash said. "Take some time, collect some food so dinner doesn't take hours. And then we'll start training. Runs around here, battle training, everything. And then we'll go back."

Ash's voice lost focus as he let his thoughts wander out of his head.

"Maybe when we go back we will win a tournament. Take a step towards being Pokémon Master."

"Pika..." Pikachu said sleepily. Ash looked down at his Pokémon with a smile on his face.

"Sorry buddy." he said. "I've been droning on. Let's get some rest."

Ash shifted his body down until he was lying down, his head resting on the jacket pillow he had made himself. The hard ground wasn't the softest bed that Ash had ever slept on but in the two weeks since he had left home he had slept on worse. Pikachu crawled forwards until his head was sticking out the top of the sleeping bag.

"Just think Pikachu..." Ash murmured, sleep blurring his words. "In a few months maybe we'll be ready to go back. But tomorrow... Tomorrow is the first day of our futures."

A/N

A nice quick story here. Some of these snapshots will be this length, some will be longer. Apologies if you wanted longer, but I will get there on this one. These are more fun writing rather than "A World Divided" which is being driven by the plot.

Great to see a couple of requests in reviews. I have read them all (as always) and I can confirm that I have plans for all the requests thus far. So bear with me and the stories will come. Eventually!

Iama2p