Disclaimer: Nothing is mine but the creativity and storyline. All rights and characters go to original owners.


"Are you sure you've got that?"

"Yeah, Mom. I've got it. Thanks."

27th July 1997

Dear Diary,

So I moved out today! Hooray!

Haha – that rhymed.

"Okay, honey. Well, be careful."

"Always am, Mom."

Ash's Mom stood up on tiptoe to kiss Ash on the forehead (Ash had grew considerably tall since his youth days) and Ash smiled and nodded just once as he loaded his last box – marked, 'kitchen crap' – onto the moving van.

I knew I said that I was sick of Mom treating me like I was still a ten year old boy, but I was definitely going to miss her. I mean, if you didn't miss your mother when you moved house, you have a heart of stone! Which, of course, I don't.
Although that's a concept I've been debating regularly.

Of course, I wasn't moving far away from Mom. Just far enough to have my own space, but it's only walking distance if I want to visit her. It's perfect really.
But there was only one thing missing...

Slapping his hands together, and wiping the sweat from his brow, he turned to his mother and gave her a sheepish smile. "Well, I guess that's everything. Thanks for helping me, Mom."

She didn't reply, only grinned and reached out to give her son a loving hug.

"You take care of yourself, you hear me?" She mumbled shakily into his hair, and he rest his chin on her shoulder, closing his eyes, but he remained silent.

When they pulled away, his Mom blinked away her tears and beamed up at her son. He just gave her a shy smile back. The van driver became impatient, and revved the engine of the huge vehicle. Ash got the message, hugging his Mom one more time.

"I'll see you soon, Mom." He told her, and for a second he felt as though he was going off to be a Pokémon master again... Huh.

Ash walked away, waving absently to his Mom, who had glassy eyes now, and made no attempt to blink them away. Ash felt like crying again himself, but knew that now was not the best time. He lost sight of his mother around the edge of the van, and slowly crawled into the passenger seat.

Over across the other side of the road, the bushes rustled and a soft noise emitted them, as a small creature ran way.

"Pikachu."


Still no sign of Pikachu.
I keep glancing out my window, with no avail. I know that there's a bigger percentage chance of Pikachu never returning to see me again than it coming back to me tonight.
But the statistics didn't matter to me. I just wanted to see Pikachu. So badly I almost drew a picture of it in the corner of this page.
I just want my friend back. That's not too much to ask, is it?
I know I'm probably thinking too far into this. But I'd waited six years to open that Pokéball, and it's my birthday soon, and I can't bear turning twenty-one without my best friend there with me.
I don't even know what caused me to dig it up in the first place! But I didn't regret it – the only thing I regret is running away from Pikachu (both times).

Ash.

Ash sighed and looked around his new bedroom. It was large and roomy and – bare. Only his bed was in there, along with a few boxes marked, 'bedroom stuff'. He sat on the uncarpeted wooden floor, and looked around at the plain walls. His diary sat on his lap, he felt utterly alone. Silently, he got up and put his diary beneath his pillow, before sliding under the covers in his sweats. It took him a restless amount of time to fall asleep.


Meanwhile:

Ash! Pikachu thought, running as fast as it's little legs would take it through the empty streets of Pallet. It was about midnight, and Pikachu had been searching for this road for a long time. It was glad to get out of it's Pokéball, but it had had lack of exercise and was tired out easily. But it pressed on – determined to reach it's destination. Ash Ketchem's house. Pikachu had picked up his scent, and was on the path to his Mom's house.

It felt guilty for making Ash feel bad the other day in the forest, and it too had missed him very much. It also felt bad about shocking him; out of anger. Ash had just been happy to see it, and in truth, Pikachu had been glad to see him, too! But it was still angry about Ash abandoning it.

After a while, Pikachu got to the house where the scent was the strongest, and looked frantically around for a way in. The doors would be locked at this time at night, of course. But it was quite hot out, so maybe a window would be open.

And there was.

Pikachu wasted no time in trying to scramble in, and flew threw, landing in a heap on the floor. The light Pokémon made a quiet noise, not enough to wake Ash's Mom up. So it got up, and carefully made it's way around in the dark, trying to find the staircase.

It had went past the kitchen and living room now, and found them by an accident. He climbed them with minimum effort, and stood on the dark landing, looking around anxiously, trying to pick out a door to try first.

One door was open ajar, and a thin slice of silver light was beaming across the floor. This suggested that the curtains weren't drawn in the room.

Pikachu tried it, holding it's breath as it gently eased the door open. It looked in and...

It was Ash's room.

Crying out silently with joy, Pikachu jogged inside and hopped onto the bed. It hadn't expected Ash to be in there, of course. It'd watched as he and his Mom had loaded Ash's things onto a van, before Ash drove off to a new house. Pikachu wasn't fretting about where, of course. It could easily trace Ash's scent the way he'd traced it to get to Ash's Mom's house.

Pikachu waddled across the mattress and reached out beneath Ash's pillow, scanning it's little hand around the mattress. Ash's diary wasn't there.

Hmm... Pikachu thought, standing upright and leaping from the bed, landing with a soft thud on the floor. I wonder where it is, then.

Pikachu continued searching for at least an hour, in Ash's empty drawers, in his empty wardrobe, in old chests used for holding toys, even in a bag of clothes that didn't fit him anymore. But it couldn't find it anywhere.

Where would Ash hide something that he wanted no one else to find? Pikachu pondered, scratching it's head, blocking out the memory of the day Ash ordered him to get into his Pokéball and never come out.

And then it knew.

Pikachu ran out the room and down the stairs, flailing it's little arms around like a madman, before it jumped out the open window and into the garden again. Sniffing around at the grass, it found the scent it had wanted. Yes.

It settled beneath a small bush in the corner of a flower-patch, before urgently throwing the compost out the way.

Once Pikachu had removed enough soil, it saw what it was after. Carefully picking it up, it presented a piece of paper in his little paws. But then it quickly held the paper in it's mouth before dashing into the deserted street again and scanning the road for Ash's scent.


A/N: OK, a little boring, I know. But this chapter is up like I promised! :) Next chapter will be hopefully tomorrow, not today. I have homework I'm behind on :P

What is on that piece of paper Pikachu picked up? And why was it so eager to get it to Ash – who had buried it there in the first place?

Anyhoo ^_^ I hope you enjoy! Reviewers get to have a Pokémon of their choice deliver a secret note to someone they care for!

Kelly xxx