Chapter 2
"Burnt"
"Squirtle! Squirtle, squirtle!"
'Ash! Ash, wake up!'
"Pikachu…"
'Wake up, Ash…'
I tried to open my eyes, but just the tiniest bit of motion created such a terrible pain…I whimpered softly…
"Pikapi?"
'Are you okay?'
…It hurts…
"Pika?"
'Ash?'
I felt something cool flow over my back and down my sides…I relished that feeling, although it only felt good for a short while…
"…Bulbasaur?"
'…Is he gonna be okay?'
"Pikachu…"
'I hope so…'
"Squirtle? Squirtsquirt?"
'Ash? Are you awake?'
I think so…
"Ba…"
'What…?'
"Pikachu?"
'Can you move?'
……No.
"Ka!?"
'What!?'
If I try to…it hurts……
"Pikachu……"
…Better not move then.
I tried once more to open my eyes. I tried to ignore the pain as my vision gradually became clearer…
"Pikapi!?"
'Ash!?'
I could see Pikachu, Taper, and Bulbasaur directly in front of me. Behind them were Persian, Pidgeotto, and Sandslash…I couldn't see anything else very clearly…Just keeping my eyes open was tiring…
Where are we? I asked.
"Bulbasaur," Bulbasaur replied.
'In the woods.'
"Drrowzee, droww…" Taper added.
'I made sure we went someplace where no humans could find us.'
I turned my head. I could feel my skin crack from the movement, but I wanted to see everything else…
To my right, Charizard was lying on the ground. The flame on its tail was still burning, but it was slightly smaller than usual…It had its head hidden behind its wing. Kingler and Muk were looking after it.
I dropped my head onto the ground. I had gotten tired of holding it up…I closed my eyes.
What happened…?
"Squirtle, squirtle……"
'The whole place blew up……'
That was what I was expecting to hear…
How'd we get out here?
"Pikachu…" Pikachu said, "Pikapikaaa…
'You teleported most of us out of there……but you weren't fast enough to get out before it blew up…'
Was it just me?
"Pikachu…Pikapikachu…Kachu…"
'No…You were just hurt very badly…Charizard too…'
Persian wasn't doing so good either, Taper said.
…Pikachu? How did you…?
"Kachuuu…"
'Just got lucky, I guess…'
"Squirtsquirt…Squirtletle?"
'We didn't wanna try a Pokémon Center before you woke up…What about now?'
Pokémon Center?!
I tried to get myself into a sitting position, but I only ended up hurting myself even more.
…I'm not going to a Pokémon Center… I said.
"Bulbasaur! Bulbabulbasaur…"
'But you should, Ash! That isn't a normal wound…'
What do you mean?
"Bul……Bulbasaur, bulbabulbasaur……"
'Well……Normally, it's very hard for a Pokémon to become poisoned and burnt at the same time……'
What…?
"Pikachu…"
'You should go, Ash…'
"Squirtle, squirt."
'Charizard too.'
…We're going to Pallet.
"Pik!?"
"Squirtle?"
What are you doing, Ash!?
I never wanted to save Dr. Gray in the first place……I just want to go home……
"Pikapii…"
'But Ash…'
So can we?
……I guess we can……
I felt the now-familiar Teleportation aura surround me, and that time, I didn't have to do any of the work.
* * *
Not too surprisingly, Brock, Misty, Billie, and Richie were staying at my house…As soon as Mom saw me, she rushed me off to get washed up, treated, and properly rested. No one else had any idea how relieved I was to have someone start bossing me around again…I had started to miss it while I was staying with Mewtwo…While she was doing that, she also told Charizard to go to Professor Oak's right away so it could get a proper treatment. I think Brock helped out the rest of the Pokémon.
…It felt good to be in my own bed, even if it was a little bigger than I remembered it……
"Ash, how could you let this happen?" Mom asked, as she continued to rub my skin to help it heal faster.
I didn't do it on purpose, I reminded her.
"I know that……but you really should be more careful……If it had been any worse, I don't think you would be here right now……"
……I've been through worse, Mom…
"But how much more can you take, Ash? Think about that before you get yourself into these dangerous situations……I don't want to lose you…"
…You won't……I promise… I told her.
I was serious about the last part……Mewtwo had told me about the average lifespan of a Mew……It said Mews could live for centuries……and then some……It was kind of scary, really…
There was a gentle tapping at the door, and an orange-haired head peeked in.
"…Mrs. Ketchum?" she asked timidly.
"Yes?" Mom asked.
Misty let herself in the room. Behind her were Billie, Richie, and Pikachu. Their eyes widened when they saw me.
"Ash! Are you okay?" Richie asked.
Yeah… I said.
I don't think they believed me……
"Taper told us what happened……" Misty said.
"Pikapi!?"
'Ash!'
Pikachu jumped onto my bed and looked at me.
"Pikapi, kachu?" it asked.
'Are you sure you're okay?'
Yeah…I'm fine, I said.
"Chu…"
'If you say so…'
"Ash…have you…seen yourself yet?" Richie asked.
No… I said.
"That explains it," Billie concluded.
Huh? Why? Explains what?
"Well, Ash…You don't look good at all," Misty told me.
"All right. That's enough now," Mom said, "Time for you to go. Ash needs his rest. Bye…"
They reluctantly turned and left.
What was that for? I asked.
"You don't need them telling you how bad you look……It's not good for your health."
……Let me see… I said quietly.
"Ash……"
Let me see!
"Pika…"
'Ash…'
I knew she didn't want to, but she picked me up and brought me to the mirror in my room so I could get a good look at myself.
I immediately understood why she hadn't wanted to show me……I didn't look at all like myself……What hadn't blackened by fire was brown or red or pink…It wasn't the normal Mew pink either. It was the pink that you see when you open up a scab that had been on the brink of healing before it was interrupted. Most of the non-black portions were red though, where irritated burns had started to bleed…The only part of me that was its normal color were my eyes…
"You see?" Mom asked, "That's why I didn't want them talking to you like that…"
"…Mew…"
"Come on now. You're going to get some sleep now. This will take time to heal, and it's not going to do any good to have you wandering around out of bed."
"………mew…"
'………okay…'
Mom put me back in bed.
"Get some sleep, okay?" she said.
"Mew…"
'Yes, Mom…'
"Good…I'll see you later, okay?"
"Mew…"
'Okay…'
She left my room and closed the door behind her.
"…Pikachu?"
'…Ash?'
…………Yeah?
"Pikachu, ka…"
'Get better soon, okay?'
…Sure will…