A.N. and Warning! This chapter contains dark elements because it describes Dratini's past and may be sad/disturbing for some viewers. Just a heads up. Moderate profanity in flashbacks and abuse. Not intended if you are sensitive to either of these. It will be the darkest/saddest chapter of the story; the rest will be happier, I promise.

"Ash..." echoed the voice through his head. He knew that it was not a human's voice, so he turned to Dratini in shock.

"Are you...no, you can't be talking; only Psychic types can talk via telepathy," stated Ash as the small dragon woke up and lay next to him.

"Well, indeed, you are right on that score, but there are some non-Psychics who are able to communicate telepathically; it is a very rare gift for not only the Pokemon, but for the trainer as well," she said to his mind.

"Why are you deciding now to talk to me through telepathy?" spoke Ash as he looked at the teal Pokemon.

"Because...you are special; there is something to you that you have not yet learned. I know what it is, but you have not yet discovered it," explained Dratini as she approached him and licked his cheek with her little tail wagging.

"How will I know?" asked Ash as he giggled at the wet tongue on his face.

"In good time, in good time," she said a lay down next to him, snuggled up in the freshly-made bed.

"Are you able to forecast the future, Dratini?" asked Ash as he patted her large head.

"No, just able to communicate via telepathy, though that would be cool if I could," she transmitted to his mind.

"I...like you a lot Ash, almost like you were one of my parents I never really knew," she said with a cute yawn.

"What happened to them, if you don't mind my asking," inquired Ash as he still massaged her semi moist head.

"Well, I was born thirty eight days ago on a hot summer day," she began as she turned her body where her back was facing Ash and looked into the darkness. "My mother and father were both Dragonairs at the Saffari Zone, and it was mating season; you see, we Dratinis hatch after just one week after our eggs have been laid. Anyways, before I had hatched, one day my mother was searching for food and spotted a fish a man with spiked hair was fishing and took the bait. She struggled furiously to get loose, but failed and was ultimately captured. My father, devastated that his mate was taken from him, took the bait and got himself captured but did not resist since he did not want to be separated by his loved one."

Ash could have sworn that his face began to tremble. Was he...actually crying?

"That's so sad, Dratini," he said as he hugged the Pokemon from behind. She accepted it by coiling her tail around his arm. "So what happened afterwards? I mean, you were just an egg when that happened."

"There was another Dragonair in the colony," she explained, "and she acted as my adopted mother. I loved her dearly, and I still think about her."

"So what made you want to get caught?" asked Ash in curiosity as he still patted her gently.

"Well, once I had turned a month old, I asked Dragonair if I could leave the colony. I wanted to see the other sites of the world, not live in the colony forever. Most of the Dratini's there choose to live there their entire lives, avoiding humans altogether, but not me. I could not wait to wait to get out and become a Dragonite one day and fly with my master. One day, this well-dressed man was fishing at the Safari Zone. He told me his name was Carl and I figured that he would be a good trainer since I sensed he had some goodness in him through my aura, but that was not the agenda he had in mind. He went back home to this mansion in this village not far off from Pallet town. Carl took me to his 14-year-old son Bobby and I sensed that he had an aura much different from his father. Of course, I became his Pokemon. Not long after I got put in my Pokeball, he took me to all his friends and bragged about how rare I was."

"Mhmm, keep going," urged Ash.

"Well, shortly afterwards, he begged for a match and so he got one. His friend sent out an Oddish and used Stun Spore on me, instantly paralyzing me. Bobby got mad that I wasn't able to dodge it. So the Oddish kept using absorb on me till I eventually fainted."

"I thought dragons had an edge over grass types," spoke Ash.

"We do, but this Oddish was probably at least 10 levels ahead of me and I did not stand much of a chance. Sure, I used Wrap and leer several times, but in the end I lost. He was infuriated and so embarrassed that such a common Pokemon was able to defeat a rare one. He felt his pride was damaged and he recalled me and returned home. Then..." Dratini's voice then became a bit stuffy because she was starting to cry.

"He beat me. He got a coat hanger and started beating me mercilessly for about 15 minutes, causing tears in my body and blood to spill, staining the carpet. I kept crying out to hopefully get him to stop, to let him gain consciousness of what he was doing, but he didn't; he shouted out names like I was a worthless piece of shit and that I should be ashamed to be a dragon type. He threw me against the wall and then picked me up and started slapping me repeatedly. I screamed the loudest I could until I heard a different voice approaching; it was his mother. She opened the door of his room and saw the scene and started screaming and crying. "How could you do such a thing to that poor creature!?" She slapped him across the face and pulled him by the ears and drug him out of the room and his dad saw me. 'Oh...my...Go-BOBBY!' Carl shouted and he picked me up in his arms. I heard lots of shouting and blows landing as his mom started to whip him with an extension chord to teach the brat a lesson about abusing Pokemon. Sobs echoed the house and profanity engulfed the air; I even heard him call his mother a stupid bitch and she accelerated the whipping, causing Bobby to cry and beg her to stop. I was crying in the warm loving arms of Carl and he started to cry, too. He knew he had to take action immediately, but the nearest Pokemon center was about 15 miles away. Carl he figured it would have been better to drop to a closer place: Professor Oak's lab."

She started crying and Ash patted her and kissed the back of her head to consolidate her and she let out more tears and a low "Draaaa" noise, sounding like a dragged out sob.

"That bastard," Ash thought; he never swore, but this was the most appropriate time to use a swear word he got from watching TV. "He better hope he never meets me, or so help me..."

"Please don't ever abandon me, Ash," pleaded Dratini with tears running down. "Forever be tender with me and love me; all Pokemon need love and I need a kind-hearted person like you to help me get through these emotional scars." She continued crying and leaned her head against his shoulder and he patted her head and hugged her.

"I promise that we will become the best of friends. I promise that no-one will ever come between us." He gave her a kiss and patted her head.

"Thank you, Ash, xiexie," spoke Dratini. She nuzzled against her trainer's arms and wagged her tail.

"Aww thanks, but what did you just say, Dratini?" asked Ash a bit confused.

"What I said was 'Thank you' in Chinese," she explained.

"But this is Kanto; we're in Japan," Ash said a bit puzzled.

"Yes, but my figure mother Dragonair is actually from China; her trainer was on a holiday and visited the Safari Zone. He decided to release her because he felt it was better for her to experience life in a protected habitat versus in the city where thieves lurk," explained Dratini. "She had been captured several time by gang members and figured that a place regulated by good humans would be a much better life. She still misses him and hopes one day he will return for her."

"People today, I swear," said Ash as she shook his head. "Why do people do that?" he said rhetorically, not anticipating the young dragon to respond.

"Xiao Ash, I'm very tired, I wish to sleep, if that's ok," the Dratini said to his mind. He assured her that she could by nodding his head slowly. She closed her eyes and began to fall asleep; however, this did not last long because she moved back to her original positioned at the foot of the bed when she heard footsteps approaching the door. Delia opened the door and watched the two of them sleep.

"Isn't that precious; a boy and his first Pokemon," she said with a chuckle as she gently closed the door, causing it to creak very quietly.

Ash struggled a bit to fall asleep because Dratini's words constantly echoed through his mind. She no longer said anything and was fast asleep, but he couldn't help but wonder what had drawn the mystical Pokemon to him.

"Oh well, better get sleep for tomorrow," he thought to himself and finally closed his eyes.

A.N. If you read the part where Dratini's mom was searching for fish, in this context it would be a literal fish like a bass, carp, trout, etc; I believe that actual animals cohabit with Pokemon, since there are some scenes in the anime. How else would they have eaten lobster on the St. Anne? lmao

Oh yeah, in case you were wondering, Xiao means little, a term adressed when talking to young people in Chinese. I know it seems strange, but I wanted to incorporate a little since I'm taking chinese in school and I love it! Don't get me wrong; I love a lot of aspects of Japanese culture, but I figured it'd be a little original if a small amount of Chinese was added to it. Which they did; Mienfoo and Mienshao totally sound Chinese. lol. Oh yeah, the winner is Riolu for the next Pokemon, so I will get to that when I can. Feel free to offer suggestions for future chapters!