Ash Ketchum, former human and currently inhabiting the body of a pikachu. This was the situation Ash was currently in. The boy looked up wearily at the sight he'd been seeing for the last part of the day: Pikachu's fuzzy rear end. He grimaced before tuning his look away from it. Ash had been following his partner as the pokemon lead him down what they hoped was the trail back to civilization. At least they hoped it was anyway. Truth be told, Ash had lost what little since of direction he had to begin with. Shrinking down to under two feet tall would do that to ya. The former boy had been content to just follow his friend, much too weary to worry about going the right way and such. He soon found his gaze travel back up to his friend's rump again, a red shade coming over the boy's face. It wasn't like he was "attracted" to Pikachu or anything like that. It was the fact that Ash had no real idea what he looked like. Since changing, Ash hadn't seen his new face or gotten that good a look at his own body. Pikachu was walking right in front of him and Ash found himself studying his friend like he'd never seen him before. The big tail with its lighting bolt like shape, the furry ears with black tips, the brown stripes across his backside, all of the pokemon's features. Ash had to assume he looked rather close to his friend. If Pikachu knew he was being eyed like this, he didn't show it. It looked like the electric mouse was too occupied with the cargo he was dragging with his tail. When they had decided to go, Ash had refused to leave behind a few vital items: his poke balls (since there's no way he'd abandon them out in the wild), his hat (mostly as a means to carry the dozen odd balls but also for sentimental value.) his boxers, (if he ever did get his body back, no way he'd be naked for too much longer) and lastly his old wristwatch. (solely for the fact Ash was afraid of loosing track of the days and time) Ash had intended to carry his supplies but after falling in the mud and dumping the poke balls twice, Pikachu decided to take over. Ash was still wobbly on his legs and not having his tail available to balance made walking much harder. Thus, Pikachu had served as the pack mule as Ash had slowly followed his friend though the forest.
***
Ash had tried to not pester Pikachu, but curiosity was getting the best of him. Just how long had they been going? The sun was very low in the sky, dusk settling in and the first few nocturnal pokemon were fidgeting and coming from their homes. "Pikachu? Can we stop now? It's getting dark…" Ash asked, his voice squeaking a bit. He hadn't realized it before but now, it came to him: darkness meant predators, and he was no longer at the top of the food chain. The idea made him shiver, and his new fur became somewhat erect. If this was fear or static electricity, Ash had no idea. Pikachu stopped walking and sighed a bit.
"Sure, *pant* I'm ready for a brake." he croaked, his voice raspy and dry. They had to have been going for quite a long time. The pokemon slumped up against Ash's hat and breathed deeply, Ash smelling the sweat and exhaustion on him. He felt much more guilty for making him carry his stuff. Ash pushed the thought aside, remembering his watch. He guessed they'd started around one or two'ish that after noon judging from where the sun had been. Ash realized he had never looked at the time earlier. The boy started to paw though the poke balls, finding the dirty green strap of his watch tucked under Charizard and Squirtle's poke balls. He lifted the item out and stared at the tiny electric display.
His mind was blank. The dashes and curves, nothing was clicking for him. Ash blinked in rapid succession, then rubbing his eyes. The symbols on the watch still made no since to his brain. Ash thought, and thought, and thought for all he was worth but he couldn't remember what any of it meant. His fur stood up on end alas he realized the truth.
He couldn't read. His knowledge of numbers was gone. Not thinking, Ash stared at the words written on the back. It was the name of the watch manufacturer and he knew that but the words themselves we just meaningless chicken scratch. He didn't know what they meant anymore. He couldn't read…
Ash wanted to scream. Not the shrill "Pikas" that were escaping his mouth. A human scream. His screaming. Ash couldn't think clearly, his mind only processing a few things at a time.
His words partly, jumbled and slurred with mindless shock and panic.
"NNO! NO! THIS CAN'T HAPPEN! I CAN'T READ! I CAN'T F**KING READ! IM A HUMAN! HUMAN! NOT AN ANIMAL! A HUMAN! I DON'T WANT TO BE STUCK LIKE THIS…I don't want to…be…stuck…" was the only thing he could make out clearly. He could also make out Pikachu's voice a bit, only spurts of it
"ASH! Calm down!…… ASH!……..Stop it!….down! Calm Down!!!"
His mind was swimming. He wanted to puke, to just curl up into a ball and die. He just wanted out of this nightmare. This was a nightmare… he was just an animal. A dumb animal….
Ash never did hear the approaching human, a pretty girl with blue hair tied back in a short ponytail. She was dressed in a pair of flared jeans, a white shirt with a dragon of many colors wrapping around her chest and back on it. Her midriff was also exposed, a belly ring catching the light . If Ash was still in any condition near human, she would have been a site to behold. She had heard the shrill shrieking, expecting to find another pokemon with a broken leg or wing thanks to the nearby highway.
A screeching pikachu was defiantly unexpected. The poor thing looked downright crazy. Bug eyed, running in a tight circle, screaming at the sight of itself. It was almost night now and the insane little thing would attract predators like a lightning rod. She also noticed a second pikachu, although this one wasn't as loony as its friend was. She felt rather sorry for the poor thing, having to see its friend like that. Her mind made up, the girl's fingers tugged an empty poke ball from out of her pants and clicked the button to enlarge it to full size. She thought about if she needed to weaken it first before trying to catch it, but she knew she wouldn't have to. The trainer inched forward a bit and firmly but gently tossed the ball at the pokemon's head. The ball smacked Ash square in the back of the head. His mind clawing itself apart, unconsciousness was a blessing. The pikachu flopped on the ground, the poke ball landing next to him with a thump. The device popped open, doing what Ash had done to many pokemon himself. His body went numb, his mind tucking itself away as his body disintegrated, loosing solid form. It was a rather painless feeling, not having a solid body.
Just a formless ball of energy ready for storage.
The mass of red energy was greedily sucked up by the ball, which snapped shut with a click. No struggle, no movement indicating escape. The pikachu had gone quietly, too mad to fight being captured. The second pikachu, now wearing a look of dumbfounded ness, squeaked out a soft "Pika." The girl softly walked up to the ball and pressed the button on it, the ball reducing to the marble like storage size. She deposited it into her pocket and studied the other pokemon. She guessed it was family to the other one. Maybe a brother or sister, maybe even its mate. She wasn't going to try and sex it in the middle of the woods at night. She did notice the soiled hat laying on the ground near them and picked it up, almost dumping the cargo inside. A hefty collection of poke balls, all full, along with some kid's boxers and a muddy watch. The weird situation was already being processed by the trainer's mind but she shrugged it off. It was cold and a bit wet, her dragon shirt not much protection from the elements. She'd rather be at home before trying to figure things out. She started to walk away, but something tugged her pant leg. The other pikachu was there, little tears welling up in its glassy black eyes. She had to be right the way it was looking at her. She bent down and petted its head, the pokemon obviously having been handled by humans before.
"Sorry little guy. Your friend is….umm…well, sick. I'll let him go in a few days ok?" she spoke, trying to sooth the animal. Now that she thought about the way the other one acted it may have to be put down. She started to get up again but the pokemon gave a sharp "Pika!" at this.
"I could capture you too you know…" she told it coolly. The pokemon snapped back, dashing into the brush with shocking speed. Amused, the girl stood up, knowing that her little idea would work. As the trainer walked down the dirty path towards home, she could hear the pikachu pursuing her, too good to be spotted however. She smiled a bit. She was always bringing strays home anyway, so another pokemon wondering around the yard wouldn't be a problem.