"Man...that was pretty badass." said Pikachu.
"Thanks. Could you tell that I was nervous?"
"Assuming I didn't already know you were a little wimp? Nah. No chance. Your secret is safe with me." He hopped off of Ash's shoulder and walked back to the path they had taken. " I kinda wish there had been a fight, though..." he thought, more to himself than to Ash.
Ash laughed as he walked forward.
"Ash?" said Bulbasaur in an uncharacteristically small voice. "Please wait for a minute. I want to talk to you about something."
"Okay. Sure." He turned. "Hey Pikachu! Go check on Squirtle! Bulbasaur and I are gonna have a talk!"
"Can do!" shouted Pikachu as he ran down the path and out of sight. Ash turned to Bulbasaur.
"So what's up?" he asked.
"Well...I want to confess something. I didn't ask for your help because I needed it. In fact, that's one of the easier arguments to resolve around here."
"Then...why did you ask for it?"
"I...I wanted to see if you'd...I was scared that you had changed."
"What do you mean?"
"Ash, now that we can talk, I'd like to tell you something about myself that you probably didn't know." Bulbasaur said. "I'm actually a very spiritual Pokemon. You see the titular bulb that's always been on my back?"
"Yeah."
"Well, it really means a lot to me. I mean, besides the fact that it's been growing there since I was born. I've always regarded it as the...spiritual mark of the Earth Mother. I've always regarded myself, and other Bulbasaur, Ivysaur, and Venusaur, as disciples of her." He turned and gazed thoughtfully at the sunny clearing. "You see, I, and the others that listen to my sermon, believe that all living beings are connected to one another. We believe that everything from the grass under our feet to the most powerful of Pokemon are connected. Humans too. We also believe that we are connected, like spokes on a bicycle wheel, by the central spirit of the Earth, who we have deemed the Earth Mother. She controls all of nature and, by extension, influences all of our lives. All she asks for is simple respect for her creations from her children."
Bulbasaur shifted awkwardly in place.
"I'm sorry, but I don't open up like this a lot."
"It's alright, Bulbasaur. I'm not one to judge."
"Thank you..." he said. "Well...I've believed in the Earth Mother ever since I was born. I ended up being an orphan most of my life, but it was the only thing that I remember my mother telling me. When we first met, I wasn't really that used to humans, understandably. To Pokemon, being captured by a trainer from living in the wild is a little like puberty for most humans. It takes time to adjust to the changes, but we all usually agree that we're a lot better off with our Trainers than we were in the wild.
"Growing up with you, I always used you as a frame of reference for what I though of humans. You were always so considerate and thoughtful about nature on your own. I thought that maybe you followed the Earth Mother too, at first, until I realized that you were just naturally like that. I mean, Brock, Misty, and Tracey were too, but you were always the one I looked up to the most.
"After a few years with you, I began to realize things about humans. Since you were my model human, I always just assumed that other humans were just as respectful to the Earth Mother as you were. I slowly learned that this was not the case. In fact, what I saw showed me that most humans actually don't care about nature's gifts in the slightest. They simply take, and take, and take, and take and never have second thoughts about giving back. I began to realize, basically, that the world was a very big place full of inconsiderate people.
"That's the main reason I stopped traveling with you and the others. I loved you all like family. Hell, you ARE my family. But even being around you all couldn't distract me from the blasphemy against the Earth Mother I was always seeing around me. I couldn't shake the constant feelings of disgust and sadness. I had to come back here and stay on the ranch. I may be simply avoiding my problems, but at least I can sleep at night here. And I can teach the other Pokemon about the Earth Mother. If they want to hear, of course."
Bulbasaur turned back, his eyes welling up with tears.
"I guess what I'm trying...trying to say is...thank you, Ash. Thank you for being such a good person. Today, you showed me that you hadn't changed a single bit since we last saw each other and for showing me that...there's always hope in a world that seems too dark to be lit again."
One of the tears quivering on his eyelid fell to the ground. He raised a foreleg to wipe his eyes off.
"I'm sorry...I don't usually get so emotional. I'm...just let me..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Ash sat on the ground and pulled Bulbasaur over to him. Bulbasaur turned toward Ash to accept the hug.
"You're welcome, Bulbasaur." said Ash, shedding a few of his own tears. "Thank you for believing in me."
"You're welcome." said Bulbasaur, sniffing. "And thank you for being the best friend I've ever had, Ash."