Chapter 14: Dragon at the Lighthouse

Ash had been surprised to learn that Squirtle had been with Paul, but once Luigi explained it seemed more as though his improved attitude had led Paul to catch him in the first place. Luigi insisted that they follow Squirtle to release him back to his friends, and they'd done so with little incident.

Ash was sad to see Squirtle go, once again, but glad that he'd be among his friends again.

Without the problems of the Squirtle Squad, the group had managed to reach Bill's lighthouse later that day, and had taken a rest on the same beach where Ash had caught Krabby. Sadly, the Pokémon didn't seem to be anywhere nearby. Luigi and his Pokémon were off somewhere on their own, which gave Ash and his friends the opportunity to talk among themselves once again.

"The more we travel with him, the stranger he is," Misty said. "Ash, do you remember earlier, when I nearly fell off that cliff?"

"It's not nice to talk about people behind their backs," Ash said. "Didn't he save you, anyway?"

"It was only twenty feet! I would've been fine!" Misty snapped. "But, the weird thing is… I'm not sure how he even did it. One moment he was walking with you, two seconds later he was hanging of the edge by one foot and pulling me up."

"It's really not that strange," Brock said. "Ash does stuff like that all the time."

"Yeah, well, he's Ash," Misty said. "I've come to expect it from him, but Luigi doesn't seem the reckless type. And I'm not even sure how he pulled it off… How many people have that sort of strength and agility?"

"I can think of a couple," Brock glanced at Ash. "But, honestly, not many. He could just be lucky, or he might be a Pokémon in disguise, or something even weirder knowing how things tend to go around us."

Pikachu started chattering away, Ash listening to his best friend at full attention. Misty decided just to ask what was on her mind instead. "Pokémon? Does that actually happen, Brock?"

"It'd be a breach of conduct to name any specific individuals, but I've seen several in my medical studies," Brock confirmed. "Zoroark and Zorua are quite prone to it, for a number of reasons."

"Oh yeah, I met one pretending to be Nurse Joy," Ash recalled. "Pikachu says Bulbasaur thinks that might be it, and… Something else? Sorry, buddy, I'm not sure what that meant…"

"You think he's actually a Pokémon, then?" Misty asked.

"I doubt it," Brock said. "Usually, this happens with one that wants to travel. Luigi barely knows what he's doing, and just seems lost wherever we go. Latias was trying to hide, but I doubt that's it either. And I'm pretty sure I can understand what Pokémon are saying better than he does."

"Latias… Oh, right, I remember!" Misty said. "That's when Ash-"

"Don't talk about it," Brock said. "My heart aches every time I think back to that day."

"Pikachu, do you understand what they're going on about?" Ash asked his buddy. Pikachu did, but refused to explain anything to his trainer.

"All of my struggles, and Ash gets a pretty girl to kiss him before I do!" Brock wailed. "I shall never abandon my mission! Until the ends of the Earth, I will-" Croagunk released himself from his Pokéball, and Brock wisely chose that moment to shut up.

Ash was still entirely confused by the conversation, so he just decided to ask a question that actually made sense. "Should we go check on Bill?"

"No, he's a creep," Misty said. "Besides, none of the bad stuff that usually happens around us has been happening. Just fallen trees, rockslides, floods, cave-ins... Okay, that's a bad example, but we haven't had to stop and help anybody with some bizarre problem yet, and Team Rocket is nowhere to be seen."

"We did kind of skip Cerulean City," Ash said. "Didn't something happen last time?"

"That wasn't our fault!" Misty said. "The only thing we did there was deal with Team Rocket and my sisters, anyway. We've got more important things to do than worry about those idiots."

"I'm sure they'd be glad to avoid your unique brand of affection," Brock said. Misty glared at him, which Brock ignored, simply looking at the sky instead. "Anyway, it's getting dark. Bill would probably let us sleep inside, and think of the food we could have with a proper kitchen."

"… Alright, you win," Misty said. "Let's go meet the green-haired creep again!"

"He seemed pretty nice to me," Brock said.

Misty rolled her eyes. "You just liked having a real kitchen to use."

"That's fair," Brock admitted.

"Luigi was heading over there, anyway," Ash said. "He's probably already inside!"

Brock packed up the few things they had out, and five minutes later they were off for the lighthouse. Misty kept looking out to sea, wondering if they'd catch sight of the giant Dragonite again. Brock's thoughts were all on what food to make for Bill. Ash, on the other hand, was wondering if Bill would be wearing a different costume than last time. Maybe he'd be Pikachu this time!

Pikachu wanted to sleep, but knew from experience that nothing would come of it. Once they reached the lighthouse, he noticed something interesting about the door, and pointed it out to Ash.

"Huh… You're right, buddy, that's weird. Brock, Misty, look at this!" Ash pointed to one of the Pokémon images engraved on the door.

"That's Mewtwo," Misty said. "… How does Bill know Mewtwo? He lived in Johto, and I don't think Bill ever leaves."

"I really doubt Mewtwo's the type to just go see people, either," Brock said.

"Maybe it was the one in Unova," Ash said. "She seemed nicer."

"... Why would a Pokémon cross the Pacifid Ocean just to meet Bill?" Brock asked.

"A one-of-a-kind Pokémon, and you meet another one," Misty grumbled. "What doesn't happen to you?"

Seeing that none of the humans were going to get to it anytime soon, Pikachu jumped over and rang the doorbell, kicking off the wall and doing a backflip to lad right back on Ash's head.

Misty stopped grumbling to look at the mouse in disbelief. "You could just walk!" She hissed. Pikachu stuck out his tongue.

Bill's voice crackled over the intercom. "Who's there? Trainers? Come in, come in! I'm in a bit of a pickle here, and could use some assistance. I know what you're going to ask, but it's nothing difficult – just an extra pair of hands will do!"

"Um, alright," Ash said. "We were also wondering if we could stay for the night."

"Oh… Well, that could be… I don't know."

"I can cook for you," Brock said.

"Yes! My cook is on vacation, I've had nothing but tofu and Pokémon food for a week! The doors will be open in a minute, I'm just having trouble reaching the button."

"Who eats Pokémon food?" Ash asked, as the intercom shut off.

"You eat Pokémon food," Brock reminded him.

"That was Pikachu's idea," Ash said. "… Most of the time." Pikachu didn't defend himself, he knew it was true. The door did finally open after Ash said this, and the three trainers walked in.

Unlike last time, the room was well-lit. It was mostly empty, apart from a Clefairy perched on a desk. Clefairy jumped down from the desk, satisfied with itself, and came over to greet them.

"Hi!" Ash held out his hand in greeting. "How are you? I'm Ash Ketchum, and this is my partner Pikachu! We're from Pallet Town!"

"Hello!" Clefairy said in Bill's voice. "I'm Bill!"

"Oh, not again…" Misty muttered.

"That's certainly an unexpected turn of events," Brock said.

"Quite the mystery, isn't it?" Bill asked. "I was attempting to create an advanced costume, to further my research into understanding Pokémon better! You see, when in costume, I feel I can experience what it's like to be a Pokémon!"

"I think it worked too well," Misty said.

"Quite right! I'm not entirely sure how, but I've managed to become Clefairy!" Bill spun around, showing off every aspect of his Pokémon self. "Look! In every way, I am a Pokémon, yet I've managed to retain my ability to speak! Strange, isn't it?"

"Why would it be?" Ash asked, genuinely curious. "That makes sense."

"… Oh. None of this is strange or new to you?" Bill asked.

"Sorry," Brock said. "But we've seen this before, more than once."

"Wait, when was the second time?" Misty asked.

"It's a long story," Brock said. "Several legendary Pokémon were involved."

Pikachu piped up, saying something about stories he'd heard when he was young.

Bill looked at Pikachu. "Even when I'm one myself, I still can't understand a word they say…"

"Pokémon have a lot of stories about this sort of thing," Ash explained.

"You understood it!" Bill said. "Amazing! You… Yes, I think you can help me with a problem I've been having. You see, there's this Pokémon that comes over the water – The biggest in the world, I think. The only one of its species… One of a kind! 'I want to meet you,' that's what it said to me! I want to meet it. I want you to help me say, 'I want to meet you, too. I want to be your friend. Let's be friends'." Bill had a faraway expression.

"Okay, he's a bit odd," Brock admitted to Misty. "But you're definitely exaggerating."

Misty scoffed. "He's a stalker."

Neither Bill nor Ash had heard Misty and Brock's short exchange.

"Um, alright," Ash said. "… I thought your problem was the Clefairy thing, though."

Bill stopped and looked down at himself for a moment. "In my excitement, I'd actually forgotten. Yes, I've built a machine to restore me to my normal self, but I can't operate it from the inside. It's up at the top – Nowhere else gets enough power. Come, follow me!" Bill ran for the stairs, but soon ran into trouble as he wasn't the right size for them. Ash ended up helping him up.

"The stars are different," Luigi said, looking to the sky. "The moon is so much smaller in the sky. Nothing here is anything like it is back home."

He was sitting on top of a lighthouse he found, just looking to the sky and talking to his Pokémon.

"Clefairy… I'm very far away from home. I don't really know how I got here, or how I'm going to get back. I need to get to Vermilion City. That's where my brother is, and without him, I'm… I need to find him."

Clefairy patted Luigi's leg, saying something. Luigi still hadn't figured out the language, but he got the sense that it was reassuring him.

"Thanks… Bulbasaur, thanks for sticking with me, even though you don't really know me so well."

Bulbasaur nodded.

"My brother's not the only one out there, though." Luigi looked down, his eyes dark. "Bowser."

Bulbasaur was the first to speak up. Luigi didn't need to translate to know what he was being asked.

"Bowser is my brother's greatest enemy. Mine too, in a way, but Mario's the one he hates." Luigi took a deep breath. "Bowser is… Bowser is dangerous. More dangerous than anything you've ever seen. In just moments, he can reduce a mountain to rubble or a forest to ash. When his strength isn't enough, he uses powerful magic. He can crush an army without breaking a sweat. Gods fall before him."

Clefairy was shaking in fear. Bulbasaur was hiding it better, but was still disturbed.

"... His ambition for conquest started a few years ago. He came to Mushroom Castle, and demanded that the princess marry him. When she refused, he turned every last one of her subjects to stone. In just five seconds, he'd won. No one had even had a chance to stand up to him… no one, except for me and my brother."

Luigi was lost in his memories, now. At the time, everything he'd ever known had just been uprooted, and no one else could do anything about it. It had been absolutely terrifying.

"Through some stroke of luck, we threw off his spell. We took the fight to him. Working together, we were just able to defeat him. With the princess, we could restore the Mushroom Kingdom. But that wasn't the end of it. No matter what we did, we could never truly defeat Bowser. We can only hope he gives up before he destroys the world."

Luigi closed his eyes. "Do you see what I've been saying? You're my friends. If any of you see him, don't fight! Run! I can't have anything happening to you guys…"

Clefairy pulled itself close to Luigi. Bulbasaur was concerned, and moved closer to his trainer.

"I know, it's scary. I'm scared, too… Get in here, both of you." Luigi pulled them close to himself, holding them in a hug. "Whatever happens, I'll do my very best to protect you. You're my friends. If you want to leave, if things get too tough… Just go. My life is terrifying, exhausting, and hard. I'd never force it on anyone else."

One by one, they fell asleep while looking at the stars.

Unknown to Luigi, not all of his story had gone unheard. Ash, Pikachu, Brock, Misty, and Bill had all reached the top of the lighthouse and heard Luigi talking. They hadn't caught all of it, but they'd heard enough.

Bill was the first to talk. "Who was that? And why is he on my roof?"

"That's our friend, Luigi," Brock said. "I don't know why, or how, he got up there…"

"Did you hear what he was talking about?" Misty asked. "This Bowser guy… Well, I guess we know why he doesn't say anything about himself, at least."

"We've gotta do something to help him," Ash said. "We can't just let him deal with this on his own."

"Were you even listening?" Misty snapped. "To hear him say it, this 'Bowser' could probably fight a Legendary! Lots of them, all at once, by himself, and WIN!"

"Ash, I understand where you're coming from," Brock said. "We'll find some way to help. Your mom would kill me if I let you fight something like that… Not that it's stopped you yet… We need to find some other way we can help him."

"Yeah, okay…" Ash said.

Bill was bewildered. "You're doing this? But you heard him… You're just a child. Why?"

"Because he's a friend," Ash said. "Maybe he's a new friend, but that doesn't change anything. Friends help friends. Human or Pokémon, if one of my friends needs help, then there's only one thing to do."

"I'm starting to understand why Professor Oak thinks so highly of you," Bill said. "You're truly incredible. Would you… say that we are friends?"

"Sure," Ash said. Bill looked ecstatic.

"Well, then, friend… Why not get me back to normal, and then we can sit down to a nice dinner."

"Sounds good to me," Brock said. "I'll go down and get started."

"Excellent!" Bill said. He walked over to a machine, which of course looked like a teleporter from a sci-fi show. "Now, this is the machine I built. The controls are simple – Just press the blue button to control the door, and the red one to activate it. See you in a minute!" He hopped in, and Ash followed his instructions.

Soon, Bill was back to normal, green hair, strange smile, and all. He examined his arm. "Yes, it worked perfectly! Come along, children, let's see how your chef friend is doing in the kitchen." He ran down the stairs, leaving Ash, Misty, and Pikachu alone.

"You really mean what you said, didn't you?" Misty asked.

"Of course," Ash said. "He's a friend."

"Well… Then I'm in," Misty said. "Someone needs to make sure you don't get yourself killed."

"Pika!" Pikachu protested, placing one paw on his chest. "Pikachu!"

"You are nearly as bad," Misty said. "Come on, you two. Last one there is a rotten egg!" Misty ran after Bill, laughing all the way.

"Oh, no you don't!" Ash and Pikachu gave chase after her.

On the roof, Luigi slept, unaware of how much his friends now knew.

With a new dawn, came a new call to Professor Oak. Luigi had never come down from the top of the lighthouse, but Ash and his friends used Bill's phone to call the Professor anyway.

After some pleasantries, the professor asked about the mysterious boy in green.

"There were some problems with his registration," Professor Oak explained. "I've finally got time to deal with it. In short, though, I don't think he's been entirely truthful about where he's from."

"I agree," Brock said. "I think he's hiding from something, or someone, dangerous. We accidentally overheard him talking to his Pokémon last night."

"… He certainly seemed lost and confused that first day," Professor Oak said. "… If you're really concerned, would you tell me what you heard?"

Brock, Misty, Ash, and even Bill took turns relaying what they'd heard. Professor Oak asked questions here and there, but in the end was troubled.

"That shouldn't be possible…" Professor Oak said. "No Pokémon can do anything like what you described… Yveltal can petrify others, as I'm sure you remember, Ash, but not with that sort of scope or reckless abandon…"

"Hold on, Professor," Brock said. "I thought you didn't remember…"

"Oh, that's right!" Professor Oak said. "I meant to bring it up, but… This really was most troubling… Early yesterday morning, Delia was visiting me. She was concerned about Ash, and was insisting that I call you. Both of us came down with splitting headaches at the same time, memories of everything that transpired rushing back. Did anything unusual happen to you yesterday morning, Bill? Or you three?"

"Well, I was working on the Kabuto costume I told you about," Bill said. "And then I transformed into a Clefairy. A strange Pokémon also crashed outside, which I managed to push into my bed."

"What Pokémon?" Ash asked. Brock and Misty shushed him, even though they were both curious as well.

Professor Oak sighed, and held his head. "And you didn't call me to tell me about either of these things… Or check on the Pokémon?"

"Well, I didn't want to bother you," Bill said. "I did check up on it, though. It showed signs of exhaustion, stress, and sleep deprivation, but it wasn't badly injured. It looks like it's built for high speeds, so it probably just fell asleep while flying."

"What did it look like?" Ash asked.

"It was big and blue, with a red triangle on its chest," Bill said. "Smooth, glassy feathers. It looked like a cross between a dragon and a jet plane."

"That's Latios!" Ash realized. "He's a legendary Pokémon… But, why would he be here?"

"Bill, I think you should let Ash talk to Latios," Professor Oak said. "They probably know each other."

"… Yes, I think that would be fine," Bill said. "The room's just back there."

"Alright…" Ash said. "Come on, Pikachu, I'm gonna need you with me."

"PI!" Trainer and Pokémon left to go talk to the sleeping Legendary.

"... Now, Bill… What's this about being transformed into a Pokémon?" Professor Oak asked. "That seems like something to call about!"

"Well, Ash didn't," Misty said.

"To be fair, we didn't get to a Pokémon Center until after he changed back," Brock said. "… Sorry anyway, Professor."

"It's fine, for you three," Professor Oak said, a contrast to his demeanor talking to Bill. "Nothing seems unusual when it happens to Ash or his friends."

"… That puts my life in perspective in a way I'm not quite comfortable with," Misty said.

"You'll get used to it," Brock assured her.

Ash and Pikachu entered Bill's bedroom. It wasn't much – Just a bed and a messy desk, a few odd drawings taped over the walls.

Latios was snoozing on the bed, just as Bill had said.

"It's the same one from Alto Mare," Ash said, recognizing the Pokémon.

"(What's he doing here, though?)" Pikachu asked. "(I'll go say hi.)" The mouse jumped from Ash's shoulder straight to the bed, and started prodding Latios' shoulder. The Eon Pokémon began to stir, and whacked Pikachu off the bed when he saw him.

"(What was that for?!)" Pikachu did a backflip and landed gracefully on two feet.

"(Wait, you're Pikachu…)" Latios realized. The Pokémon levitated off the bed, and moved over to Ash. "(Sorry for hitting you, I thought you were that stupid Fearow… I've been looking everywhere for you two!)"

"(You've been looking for us?)" Pikachu asked, jumping back to Ash's shoulder.

"For us?" Ash was surprised. "But… Why?"

"(… That's not quite true…)" Latios said. "(I've been looking for… LATIAS! Where is she? You know where she is, don't you! What did you do with my sister?)"

Ash stepped backwards, not anticipating his anger at all. "Calm down! I dunno what's going on, but… Is everything okay?"

"(Hey! Calm down!)" Pikachu shocked Latios (Ash was also caught in it, but as usual didn't notice). "(We don't know. Why would we know?)"

"(She had a crush on your trainer,)" Latios said. "(With me coming back to life somehow, things have been crazy… When she vanished, I thought she ran off to find you. I've been searching for a week, I haven't even slept… I barely event stopped to eat… I was wrong, wasn't I? You don't know any more than I do.)" Latios' head drooped.

"(No, we haven't seen Latias… Have we, Ash?)" Pikachu asked.

"Latias? Oh… I'm starting to get it, I think…" Ash said. "… I'm sorry, Latios, but we haven't seen her anywhere. We could help you look, though! I'll never turn down a friend in need."

"(… All right. On one condition, though…)" Latios got a look in his eye, and Pikachu had a feeling he knew what was coming next. "(I challenge you to a battle!)" His stomach growled. "(… After we eat.)"

"(He's hungry,)" Pikachu said. "(Then he wants a battle.)"

"That sounds like a plan!" Ash agreed.

In the reviews, I've seen the assumption made that Bowser is a small-time comic relief villain who isn't too bright. While Luigi's assessment of Bowser might not be completely accurate (he's kind of prone to freaking out over things), he is right in saying that Bowser is a dangerous foe who can face almost anything.

I've never been sure what to think of Bill. Or what, exactly, he's researching. Anyway, he turns into a Clefairy here, like his game self. Just as in the show, he puts important buttons on the exterior of things he goes inside.

... Seriously, what's up with Bill? In the games, he created the PC system, which makes him important. In the show, it doesn't exist, so... What does he even do?

Also, I would like to note that Super Mario Odyssey is incredible.

Rocker On: The closer together they are, the better it works. Luigi got an idea of Mario's direction and distance, and that's about all he can do. Damian did something like that, yeah. I don't think I decided what. Paul's had a number of episodes. He did get a little better (not much), but here... Paul doesn't have his memories. I never really watched much of Johto. Just a few episodes here and there. I have watched most of the rest of the show over the past few years though. Eh... Nothing with Squirtle for now. There's actually some plans for that town a bit later on (as of right now Team Rocket is not involved), but for now... Squirtle just went home.