Chapter Eight: A New Bond

*Author Note - Hello, and welcome at Chapter Eight! Oh, the Romance is in the story... sigh. We hope you like this Chapter! Thank you for the review, we appreciated the effort you put in it. I also liked Kirby!

Disclaimer: We do not own Pokémon. We repeat. We do not own Pokémon. If you think we do own it, read our Disclaimer again until you think we don't own it.

Chapter Eight: A New Bond

Pikachirate's Point Of View

It was around midnight, and the party was finally over.

At a certain time, the Squirtles started using the balloons as training targets. Mew thought she should teleport more balloons to the ship. Every inch of the ship is now covered in balloons.

But that was a problem for tomorrow. I was looking at the stars at the moment. They worked in a really calming way. I had – finally – the time to really think about the whole situation.

Chansey was right, I did enjoy the party. Especially the dancing part. Pichu was a real good dancer. It was nice to dance with her.

Come to think about it, I would miss her when we would exchange her for the ransom. But it was the only option.

A life on a pirate ship was very dangerous, it wasn't a life for a Princess.

Pichu's Point Of View

I just left the party, and was heading towards, well, Pikachirate's and my room. The reason I left, was because it was late.

The problem was, I had too much energy left from the thrill of my first party – even if it is to celebrate my kidnapping, so the reasons were doubtful – and I had a great time.

I enjoyed listening to the songs that Pikachu played at the party. We did not even talk. I was lost in the beautiful melodies so much, that the time flew. The sun was long gone, before I even realized it.

The best thing was probably when Buneary took Ditto over. Dancing with Pikachu, on that song… was wonderful. I was even surprised that Pikachu could dance. I wondered where he learned that.

A thought came to me. Pikachu could be charming, when he wanted. A blush surrounded my red cheeks. Well, he was less intimidating when he was not mad me.

Thinking about Pikachu made me feel… I could not describe it. He was really intimidating most of the time, but his other side was kind… and caring…

I really had too much energy. Way too much.

I did not know what to think anymore. And, since I could not sleep, I started to walk around the room.

I was walking, and walking… I sighed. I needed something to focus on. My gaze crept up, and I was looking at the sky through the window. I began staring at the sea.

But I could not see the sea through the balloons.

The balloons all had bright colours, radiating joy. And the way they were… moving across the water… It was really hypnotizing.

I guess I was losing track of the time because of it. Must have. Because in an instant Pikachu was in the room. I had no clue how.

"Sorry for slamming the door, it just closed by itself," he whispered softly. I became confused. He just spoke… so sweet.

"Um, what time is it?" I asked. I really lost track of the time. A Princess should not lose track of the time…

He looked around, I did not know why, because there were no clocks in his room. "It must be around three in the morning," he answered, still looking around aimlessly.

"Okay… Maybe I should go to bed, then…" I said. His head jerked towards me.

"Weren't you already? Around four hours ago?" he said suspiciously. I hesitated. I did not know what to say. I could not say that I was thinking about him. It would be awkward.

I glared. "I woke up. Since you slammed the door, you idiot!" I said angry, and with a small undertone saying 'Do not answer, you idiot!'

He did not speak the language of glares, so he protested. In an accusingly tone! "But you were already standing by the window!" He raised his voice. "That means you were awake!"

I frowned. "No, I was not."

He put his arms on each other. "Yes, you were."

I closed my eyes in frustration, and hissed. "No, I was not." This idiot, how can he even be Captain? "So if you would excuse me, I am going to bed. Goodnight." I raised my head, and walked to the bed with small, elegant steps.

I leaped into the bed, and put the covers over my head. Pikachu could not see my face this way, but I could not see his, either.

I knew it was un-Princess like, but, at the moment, I could not care less. Pikachu grumbled a few things - I could not specify what he said - and jumped in the hammock.

There was silence.

I was still filled with energy, but if I would make a movement, he would know I was awake. At least, if he was awake. Since I had nothing to do, I counted from zero to nine hundred. Only fifteen minutes had gone by, which meant I could continue counting.

The counting did not help. I just did not get tired. I lost the count many times, so I just gave up. I would have to think up of something else to kill the time.

I wanted to give myself a face palm. Why did I not think of my kidnapping? And the exchange? I would be back in my country soon, only to leave moments later for The Land of Yellow. I did not even know if my country sent note back. But I was assured that they would. My father would reason that it is the best option for the country. And then I would have to leave 'The Lightning Shadow'.

They only had me for the money - accidently, but it was true - and I found out that Charmander was a spy. Since Charmander was - is - a spy for the pirates, he is probably a lot stronger than I am. I sighed, I was bad at reading Pokémon.

I threw the covers back, and got out of the bed, making sure I did not make any sound. I headed to the door, and tried to open it - it was locked. I thought about the hide place for the key, but, as I already said, I am bad at reading Pokémon.

So I used my only way out. I took one suspicious glance at Pikachirate - he was sleeping - and I pushed the window open. It went easy, just like the first time. I snatched the blanket before jumping to the rope. I climbed up to the deck, and ran around. It was odd, as there was no one. No one.

I could only see the water in the moonlight, surrounding us. I was a bit disappointed, since it would have been the perfect escape. I looked up, towards the shining Moon. I could see many stars, giving some light in this early morning.

I lied down onto my blanket, and put the covers around me. I was naming every constellation I saw, it was comforting to have something known with me. I was feeling down, again. But I was certain that I was happier here, than I would be in The Land of Yellow.

"Hey, Pichu, what are you doing out here?" My heart started to race, but I was glad it was not Pikachu. I looked at Buneary, standing there like a perfect secretary. She did not look sleepy at all. She continued. "I thought I would be the only one here..." She went through her notes, not even seeing the words.

I coughed. "I could not sleep, so I climbed out of the window. I did not want to stay in that room for another second." She nodded, she even looked up from her notes.

"There's no need for tears, Pichu," she said, as she handed me a handkerchief. The tone she used was comforting. I blew my nose, and she gestured me to go down the deck. I walked next to her, and she did not see me as 'The Princess'. She saw me as Pichu. We entered her small room, but I felt more at home here than I ever felt in my old room, in the castle.

"Well, you can sit on the bed, since I only have one chair. My workplace is not here, so I never needed more," she uttered. She moved her chair, stood on it, and picked a key from a top shelf. She opened a drawer, and looked for something in the back of it. "Sorry for the wait, but I got something for you. It will make life here more interesting, and you can look back at your time here." She held yet another notebook in her hands. But this notebook had a lock on it.

It was beautiful. It was a soft red, and had different coloured flowers with an irregular pattern on it. She gave me a white pen, and to my surprise, I even liked the pen. I did not like the colour white most of the time. I thanked her. "Thank you, Buneary. This is the best present I ever got," I said. I was grateful, I never had anything that could defeat this present.

She smiled. "You're welcome. Shall we go to the crow's-nest? The warmth never leaves it, and you can get your inspiration from there." She gave me a choice. And I was thankful for that.

Pikachirate's Point Of View

I sat up quickly, just like I did days ago. But it was now in the afternoon. After a party night. I was sure that no one else took some responsibility, because everyone partied last night. I got out of the hammock, and saw that our hostage was gone. Again. Why does she tries to escape so often? It is annoying.

I drank some water, just because I was thirsty. I looked around in my room, and saw that my blanket was missing. I sighed, as it would not be the first time that Mew stole something. I unlocked the door, and went up to the deck. I was one of the few who went to bed early. My Crew was still asleep, but I didn't feel the urge to wake them up.

There is my blanket! I ran towards it in joy, it has kept me warm so many times... I was just happy to see it back sound and safe.

But Mew didn't do that. It must have been someone else. I looked around again, trying to find someone... But I didn't find anyone. I went to the kitchen, hoping to see one of my Crew, but they really stayed up too late. I was disappointed, and started to feel... Friendless.

When I got back at the deck, I heard a sound. It was coming from the crow's-nest, and Pokémon were speaking in high tones. I went up to it, but I didn't make it to the top. A notebook made sure of that.

"Captain! What are you doing here? We were busy with giggling, and talking about girl stuff! Don't you even dare to listen to our conversation ever again!" Buneary was fast, already standing next to me. "You didn't think that I would be like you and stay in bed 'till the afternoon? I'm the secretary. I got a reputation, even more than you have." She and I were at the same place. No one respected us. Okay, I'm way overreacting, but they don't know how hard it is!

I raised my hands in defence. "Sorry, I didn't accuse you of anything, so don't make any assumptions," I answered smoothly. She sighed.

"Fine, I'll check the messages that came in at night," she said, and tried to walk away. I didn't let her.

"What do you mean, didn't you see them already? You were already awake, weren't you?" Or was she sleepwalking? It's plausible...

She shook her head. "I was keeping Pichu company." I turned my stare at Pichu, who was waving. Like Mew would do.

"Well, I will leave you two alone, then." She was gone with that sentence.

Pichu didn't stop with waving, and I wasn't sure of what to do. So I stared. Finally, she spoke. "Good afternoon, Captain. Have you slept well?" She looked at me expectantly, eager for an answer.

"Uhm, yeah, I slept just like normal." I finished our conversation with that. I really didn't know anything to talk about.

She looked away, and focused her gaze at the sea. I was just standing, hoping for someone to break this silence.

It was Buneary who broke it. "Captain! We got an important message back! It's from The Land of Leaves. They agreed to our terms, and want a neutral location for the exchange to happen."

Esmeralda (Pikachirate's Point Of View)

I remember the day when we found our youngest Crew Member, Esmeralda.

There was a storm at sea, a very dangerous one, but we managed to survive it. Days after the storm, we saw a ship, floating on the quiet water. We decided to board the ship and look around, only to find one thing left unbroken.

An egg. We brought it back, feeling sorry for the other Pokémon who were on the ship, but we saved one of them.

Chansey took care of the egg, together with her daughter, Happiny. We didn't have a Fire-Pokémon at the ship. They could not survive if they fell in the sea, so they became spies. We didn't know how Chansey made the egg hatch, but she did.

A cheerful Bulbasaur hatched from the egg, and ran around. Mew was being kind towards it, and played games with it.

This Bulbasaur was a born pirate.

A Pokémon born at sea, standing firmly on the deck
She is the pirate without pain from the outside

The only home she ever knew, was 'The Lightning Shadow'
No one ever hurt her, she was the innocence of the ship

If you ask a Crew Member about it, they would phrase it like this

She walks around blindly, being the sun that shines

*Author Note - That was it for this week, guys! This chapter was finished at 1:30 AM so there could be some mistakes in them that need to be changed. Next to that, I wave more when I'm tired, so what Pichu does isn't weird, she is just ultra-happy tired. We would be happy if someone would review, as we get inspiration for the next chapters. Sorry for what we said last week, but we really felt down, as it was one of our favourite moments. (^_^)*