Sausage notes: Y'know, I haven't said it yet, but don't trust the story's rating (at the time of writing, lol)!
After chatting with a buddy, I decided that the personalities fit too well for an M-rated setting... so why not? Expect the story to go through my usual blend of shenanigans. You can thank/curse me later! :D
For now, though, enjoy the little date of sorts!
Last time: Buneary is extremely awkward, awake and ready to mingle, so Pikachu takes her out to the woods like a chad.
Chapter Two: Date On The Cliff
Now away from the camp, Pikachu and Buneary were walking through the forest, paw in paw.
Buneary practically had a spring to her step, which sent a smile to Pikachu's lips. He liked it when she was happy like this, even if it often came with an awkward dose of affection towards him. Her glee was contagious, clearly!
On passing some trees, Pikachu hissed in pain as his arm brushed against a branch that agitated his bandages. "[Damnit, ow,]" he muttered, nursing his arm.
"[Oh no, are you alright!?]" Buneary asked in alarm.
He gave her a reassuring smile. "[Yeah, I'm alright, thanks... Just feeling the effects of that stupid battle against Paul, still.]"
"[Aww, oh no...]" she replied, frowning sadly.
"[Man, I won't lie, if I ever see that guy, I'll be tempted to put him in bandages. What a humiliating defeat.]"
After sounding like she'd barely held back an amused snort at his threat towards Paul, she continued. "[Well, it's okay. I mean, it was a really tough looking battle. You all got messed up real bad.]"
"[Well, thanks.]" He smirked, figuring out a way to mess with her. "[I mean, the way you're saying it makes it sound like we did pretty crappy, but...]"
She gasped in horror, and her irises shrank to pinpricks. "[No! No, no, no, no, th-that's not what I meant! I-I just meant that, uh, they, uh, were... really strong, and stuff! I-I mean, you're really strong, too, but they were... N-No, I mean...!]"
Pikachu snickered mischievously. Okay, she was a little fun to mess with, he had to admit. "[Naw, naw, it's alright! I was just joshing ya, gal!]"
Her rambles petered out. She blinked at him. Her face reddened more than it had previously. "[I-I... knew that...]" she grumbled. She cleared her throat and let out an awkward laugh. "[You're so funny, Pikachu! Haha!]"
Pikachu chuckled again before letting out a breath. This girl really needed to break out of her shell.
His smile perked up at that thought. Yeah, maybe that's what he should focus on around her. Trying to make her loosen up a bit. Perhaps he should even try flirting back?
He shuddered lightly at the thought. Ugh, well, that was easier said than done. He could flirt. Before Buneary had come along, he'd used to flirt with Aipom and Tracey's marill, after all. It'd never gone anywhere, because he'd never quite felt like he could gel with them enough to try anything committed, but still.
However, with Buneary being as awkward as she was, he couldn't help but wonder how it would end up going if he flirted back, even as a joke. After all, he still wasn't sure if he wanted to pursue a relationship with her quite yet, as cute as she was.
Well, maybe if he told her he was joking afterwards, it would be fine! Then who knew? Maybe she'd finally be comfortable around him!
He tried to think of something to say to the rabbit next to him. She was biting her lip and looking off to the side, seemingly lost in thought.
He took a breath and balled his fist. Well, here went nothing! "[So, gal!]" he started. "[Anyone ever taken you out on a date before?]"
She gawked at him with widened eyes, her face going an even deeper shade of red than before. "[W-What!? Uh... n-no? I-I mean, uh...]" She seemed to regain her composure somewhat as she winked at him. "[Not unless you want to, uh... count this as a date! I mean, I wouldn't mind one with such a h-hunk~ Eheh.]"
He snorted and winked back. "[I'll bet you'd like that, wouldn't you, gal?]"
She faltered, clearly not expecting a similar response. "[Uh... I... y-yeah! I mean, if you wanted it, anyway...!]" she replied, going more demure as she continued.
"[Heh! Maybe, who knows~?]" He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "[I mean, if I don't date a cute girl like you in time, someone else is bound to, eh?]"
He saw her brain short circuit in real time. "[I, you, we, uh... eheh...!]" She snatched her fluff to her face so fast that he didn't even see her paws move. "[I-I... that's... eeep!]" Her face became swallowed up by her fluff.
He couldn't stop himself from laughing. Wow, that had been way more extreme than he'd been expecting! Oh man... "[D-Don't worry, gal, I'm only teasing ya! No need to freak out so much!]" he reassured, stepping away.
She paused. She peeked over her fluff at him. "[... S-So... you're only... joking?]"
"[Yeah, don't worry. I saw an opportunity to be cheeky and I took it. Don't go getting too worked up, will ya?]"
She continued to stare. She let out a small chuckle, which soon grew in volume to match her stretched smile. "[Oh... v-very funny! That's really funny of you, Pikachu! Who knew you were such a jokester! Hahaha...!]"
Pikachu pulled a face, but tried to hide it. "[Heh, you got me.]" Tch, for crying out loud. Still not quite comfortable with him, it looked like...
Clearly, he needed to try harder.
Holding her paw again, he continued through the forest with her. Though her blush was gone, she seemed quieter than before. Maybe she was still recovering from the heart attack of earlier.
"[So... that circus act you put on with Dawn and the others to cheer Ash up was pretty sweet!]" Pikachu said, trying to start up some idle chitchat.
She smiled eagerly at him. "[Oh, you liked it?]" she asked excitedly.
"[Yeah! Who knew you guys had such talent? Clearly, all that contest practice is paying off!]"
Blushing again, Buneary put a paw to her cheek and looked away. "[Teeheehee, aww, shucks, well, y'know...~ Anything to help~]"
Pikachu smiled at the cute sight. He grinned when he thought of another flirt to try out. "[Though, y'know, I've gotta say... sometimes, it felt more like it was me you were trying to cheer up, instead of Ash...!]"
"[W-Well...]" Buneary mumbled bashfully, "[it, uh... d-did it help?]"
"[It sure did! With how hard you tried... it almost felt like you were trying to convey some hidden feelings through the act...!]"
He heard her practically choke on her likely dry throat. "[I-I-I didn't... I-I...]" She brought her fluff up to her face again. "[... W-Well... I... eep!]" Her face became completely hidden behind it.
Pikachu snickered. With how unsubtle she always acted, and how much she sheepishly flirted with him all the time, it was strange how nervous she was about just saying how she felt straight up. Clearly, she needed a helping hand. He was determined to break her out of her shell yet!
"[Wait... are you... joking again?]" Buneary murmured, peeking at him through her fluff.
"[Yeahhh, a little,]" he admitted. "[Knowing you, I bet you had everyone's happiness on your mind, really, eh?]"
"[... Uh... I guess, yeah...]" she mumbled, letting her fluff fall. She was smiling, though she seemed to be grimacing, too. "[Haha! You... jokester...]"
He tilted his head. Huh... that was sort of a weird reaction. He was so used to her forcing out a laugh, or trying to flirt, that this more subdued reaction threw him off.
... Maybe his plan was slowly working? Yeah, maybe! For sure, he'd be cracking that shell of hers wide open any time soon!
They continued walking, going past a fair few more trees as they did. As they passed a cluster of them in a row, Pikachu suddenly heard something above.
He stopped, curious. Buneary also stopped next to him, ear extended.
"[You hear that, too, gal?]" he asked.
"[Yeah!]" Buneary replied. "[I think... someone's above us?]"
"[Huh...]" Pikachu listened intently.
It sort of sounded like... soft... moaning? Almost like a girl's sensual response to something.
He blinked. Oh...
He looked over at Buneary. It took her presumably innocent mind a second, but when she seemed to get it, it showed all over her face. It was red as all hell, and her eyes were wide enough for someone to land a plane on them.
"[I guess... someone's having fun, huh?]" Pikachu quietly asked, letting out an awkward chuckle.
"[Y-Y-Y-Yeah...!]" Buneary replied, gulping hard.
"[Ohh, baby, you like it, don't you?]" a man's recognizable voice said from above. Clearly the one causing the girl to make such intimate noises. "[We can go all night, don't you worry.]"
Pikachu blinked. He put a paw to his face. Oh for crying out loud... he definitely knew who that was...
Buneary let out a soft gasp of shock. "[Is that... S-Staraptor!?]" she asked.
"[This isn't the first time he's done this shit, believe me,]" Pikachu mumbled.
"[... R-Really?]" Buneary muttered. "[I never noticed him, do, uh... y'know. This.]"
"[He sneaks out at night to do it. Well... and sometimes he finds girls to play with at day, I guess, but only when Ash is busy.]"
"[... Uh... w-wow...]" she muttered, her face only growing more red.
He chuckled. "[Apparently, he's even had some fun with a stuffed toy Team Rocket used to distract him, once. 'Smelled really nice', he said.]"
Buneary snorted out a small giggle. She bashfully covered her mouth with a paw, after. "[W-Well, um, I guess it happens.]"
"[Hey, why does she get all the fun?]" another girl's voice started from above.
"[Yeah, when's it our turn?]" another girl said.
"[Oh, don't you worry, ladies,]" Staraptor replied. "[You're all in for a treat. In fact... here's a teaser...!]"
Both girls yelped in surprise. They began to let out sensual noises of their own, while Staraptor let out an amused murmur.
"[Oh, what, he has more girls up there?]" Pikachu snarked. Lucky bastard.
"[He's certainly, uh... 'active',]" Buneary added awkwardly.
"[You got that right,]" Pikachu chuckled. Honestly, he didn't really approve, but whatever got the guy's whistle wet at the end of the day, he guessed. "[Let's leave him to it. The last time I shouted at them to get a room, he flew down and smacked the hell outta me.]"
"[O-Oh, um... y-yeah...]" she replied, apparently not knowing what to say.
Pikachu led Buneary away by the paw to a less lewd part of the forest. After a fair bit of walking, he let out a sigh. "[Well, sorry about that.]"
"[Haha, n-no worries,]" Buneary replied. She paused contemplatively before winking. "[Uh, haha, y'know, uh...]" She paused. She gulped and bashfully turned her gaze away. "[Wait, n-never mind.]"
Pikachu snorted in amusement. Had she seriously considered trying to turn the situation into a way to flirt? He would've been impressed - even though he doubted she was about to ask for anything dirty - but it was clearly too much for her.
... Ohh... Pikachu's lips twisted into a smirk. If this wasn't the best way to bring her out of her shell, he didn't know what was!
"[Naww, it's alright, gal,]" he said, bringing her attention back to him. "[I mean... if you're that interested in sleeping with me, maybe I wouldn't object~!]"
Buneary stopped so fast she nearly fell over. She stared at him with a face red enough to make her look like some sort of shiny. "[Wh-Wh-Wh-... Wh-...]" she choked, barely able to get a word out.
Cringing internally at his own antics, Pikachu quietly took a breath and continued. "[That's what you were about to say, right? So, how about it?]" He pointed to a nearby bush. "[We can go in there and have as much fun as we want! Whaddaya say?]"
Looking at her face, Pikachu was reminded of those old cartoons where steam would pour out of a character's ears to the sound of a train whistle. That wasn't quite what was happening, but looking at how slack her jaw was, he could easily picture it in his head.
"[I... we... b-b-but...]" she stammered. She hid her face behind her fluff, her vest and her ears at the same time.
He strained to hold back his cringe and his laughter. Man, he was a bit too good at this. It felt good after all the flirting she'd ever done, though!
Deciding to keep the ball rolling, he scooped her up to carry her in his arms, making her squeal lightly. "[Alright, it's decided! Let's get in there and make like rabbits, gal!]" he chimed with a cheeky grin, slowly advancing to the bushes. He took wide steps, because the whole ordeal was embarrassingly making him 'stir'. Even though it wouldn't be seen - because of the special fur covering that kept him decent - he hoped she wouldn't notice its subtle bulge.
"[W-Wait! B-B-But we never even dated, yet! I-I don't... D-Don't we have to...! Ohhh...!]" she rambled, crossing her legs.
He began to struggle with holding back his laughter. "[Haven't dated yet, huh?]" he teased. "[What're you trying to say?]"
She choked on a gasp. "[N-N-No! That's... I-I mean I don't know, I-I...!]"
He couldn't hold back anymore and began to laugh. Her utterly awkward reaction was the best one he'd ever gotten out of anyone! "[Alright, no, that's it. I'd better end it here before I make it even worse.]"
She paused. She meekly uncovered her bright red face. "[... H-Huh? You're not doing... things?]"
He gently let her get back to her feet. "[Naww, I was just messing around to see how you'd react. Haha, I really got you good, huh?]"
Buneary turned to stare at him, utterly dumbfounded. He hoped she would show a bit of whatever her true self was, though expected her to just do the awkward forced laughter she was fond of.
Instead, she just pulled a strangely tired expression, ear drooping. "[Oh... haha...]" she muttered. "[Joking again...]"
The reaction completely threw him off guard. "[Uh... eheh, yeah...]" he mumbled, a bit lost for words. "[You weren't actually, um... hoping for me to do anything, were ya?]"
"[N-No!]" she yelped. Catching herself, she cringed and seemed to avoid his gaze. "[Uh... n-no...]" She rubbed her arm. "[You've just been... teasing me a lot tonight, haha...]"
Pikachu's eyes widened in understanding. Ahh, so... his teasing was doing something, it seemed. He'd hoped it would result in her being more open to bantering with him, or being more teasing back, or... well, anything that wasn't this seemingly sad response. Had he done something wrong?
"[Uh... I guess so,]" he replied, feeling dumb for not knowing what to say.
"[Y-Yeah...]" She looked off to the side for a second. "[Maybe I should just... I dunno, go back to get some sleep, or something. Lord knows Dawn's gonna have lots of training for us to do, haha!]"
She started back toward camp. Seeing her begin to leave made him start to feel guilty. Jeez, maybe he really had gone a bit too over the top with things.
"[W-Wait, Buneary,]" he started, catching her attention again. "[Look, sorry. I really was just messing. Uh...]" He glanced around, hoping to see something that would inspire his next words.
Through a parting that led out of the forest, he saw a hill in the distance. It was overlooking the evening sky, which was quickly turning to a darker orange. Faintly, he could see the retreating sun.
He smiled as an idea struck him. "[Hey, I'll make it up to ya! For real, how's about a, um... y'know, a small date?]" he suggested eagerly.
Buneary's eyes lightly narrowed incredulously. "[Um... is this... is this another prank?]" she asked cautiously.
He shook his head. "[No way, I mean it! No more screwing about! We'll watch the sunset, and chat until we get tired, just the two of us! How's about it?]"
She stared at him for a second, as if gauging him. After a short while, her eyes lit up when she seemed to realize that he was being serious. "[Y-You mean it? Just... us two?]"
"[Yeah! Interested, gal?]"
Her mood did a drastic one-eighty, as she was now bouncing on the balls of her feet in pure giddy joy. "[Okay~!]" she said, clapping her paws together. She stopped to offer him a wink, her face going a faint shade of red. "[I guess it's almost like... a date, huh? Heehee!]"
Pikachu chuckled, pleased that his quick thinking had worked to cheer her up. "[Yeah, that's what I said, gal. Let's go!]"
Buneary blinked. Her face went redder still as she smiled sheepishly. "[Uh... haha, yeah, um... l-let's go!]"
He held his paw out, allowing her to grab it enthusiastically. With that, he led her towards the hill overlooking the sunset.
TO BE CONTINUED!
Finished - 13/04 (April)/2023
Word count: 2,766
VGS2's sausage notes: Oh Pikachu, you scamp! You'd better not mess up again, y'hear me? What would that rabbit think? XP
Fun mistake of the day #1: "[Clearly, all that contest practice was paying off!]"
(It was, but it isn't anymore!)
#2: 'Instead, she just pulled a strangely tired expression, ear deflating'
(I'd be fed up too, if my ear needed blowing up again. I wonder if she has a leak that needs fixing, somewhere?)
#3: 'With that, he lead her topwards'
(Is he taking her to Heaven? Uh, in a non-sexy way? XP)
Well cheers for reading, my fellow PikaBun enjoyer! :P Hope you drop a comment and come back next time for some more!
Until then, though, tata for now! c: