Chapter nineteen is here! Enjoy some ghostly shenanigans, people. ^^
Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon! If I did, Ash would have pokemon types of every kind.
''Meloetta'' Speech
'Meloetta' Thoughts
When Pikachu opened the large, creaking door of the tower, a layer of dust flew in the air, making his nose itch. The place smelled moldy, like it hadn't seen sunlight in decades. It was noticeably colder inside as well; the wind howling through all the cracks probably playing a role in that regard. The main room, surprisingly, was very clean besides the unhealthy coat of dust that lingered the floor.
Pokemon tower was just as Pikachu had expected, though; it scared him to death. No electricity meant limited sight. Of course, he could always create some himself, but there was no way he was going to waste his precious energy on something mundane like that.
''Marill? Are you here, sprout?'' Pikachu called loudly. The hallways echoed his voice further into the tower, but no response came. The place was deserted, but the electric rodent knew better than that. He had no choice but to go in further. Carefully, he watched his steps, warily eyeing his surroundings as if somebody was about to jump him at any second.
''I swear, if something happened to that sprout, these ghost better take my soul. It could never be worse than what Meloetta has planned for me,'' he muttered.
A shiver went up Pikachu's spine when he heard faint giggling in the distance, making him gasp audibly; all his senses were on high alert in an instant. ''I take that back, I rather face Meloetta's wrath. At least it'll be swift.''
Walking further into the tower, he soon noticed his mind was playing tricks on him. Images of Marill appearing in front of him while he wasn't even there, ghostly voices making his fur stand on end, and kitchen utensils clanking harshly together before falling on the ground making him very anxious.
''Wait,'' Pikachu told himself. ''Those kitchen utensils are not a fiber of my imagination,'' he realized. Not far from him, a door led to a dining room, which oddly emitted light. Probably candles that somebody lit.
''Marill? Are you there?'' Pikachu called cautiously, inching closer to the dining room. Another loud crash was his answer; something made out of glass shattering on the cold, hard floor in a million pieces. The electric rodent almost jumped out of his skin, but calmed his growing nerves considerably quick afterwards. Gently, he pried open the door, ready for whatever was on the other side.
Electricity danced from his cheek pouches, a scowl on his face as he eyed the cozy dining room carefully; it was a stark contrast from the rest of the tower. To his surprise and amazement, a large table was neatly covered with a fine cloth. On top of it was the finest cutlery and plates he had ever seen. Fresh food, still boiling hot, wafted their enticing aromas through the room while the flames of the candles danced and licked at the wax, creating heat and a very lovely view.
''What is all of this?'' Pikachu questioned. This was a very odd sight. It was like the place expected guests and was ready to serve them all, only there was nobody. Pikachu couldn't even spot the broken items that shattered on the ground just a moment ago; the floor was as clean as Ash's home.
''What is all of this, indeed,'' a mischievous voice spoke up in a ghostly tone. He giggled, making Pikachu narrow his eyes.
''Who are you?'' the electric mouse questioned, looking around the empty room to spot the owner of the voice, without much success.
''Me?'' The voice laughed, revealing his ghostly features as he floated through the floor in front of him. The Haunter grinned. ''I'm one of the ghost residents of pokemon tower.''
Pikachu was very vigilant. Ghost pokemon were known for pulling tricks. He had no intentions of getting into any trouble.
''Listen, Haunter. I'm looking for somebody right now. If there's something you need from me, it'll have to wait.''
Pikachu was about to ignore the ghost pokemon by turning his back to him, but the Haunter laughed obnoxiously and floated after him. ''Oh, you lost somebody? Don't tell me,'' he paused for dramatic effect, ''It's your little nephew who just hatched today?''
Immediately, Pikachu turned around abruptly, his eyes staring daggers at the ghost. ''Where's Marill?'' he spat venomously.
''Ah, I see I have your attention now. Don't worry, he's fine. The poor pokemon got lost and knocked on our door for shelter,'' Haunter told Pikachu in an exaggeratingly, sad voice, wiping his nose. ''What unresponsible adult could leave such a tyke unattended in the cold night of Lavender? It's horrendous!'' He laughed again; a laugh that had Pikachu growling and gritting his teeth.
''Stop playing games with me! Tell me where he is or else I have to resort to violence.''
Haunter tsk'ed. ''All right, fine. Look, I would love to tell you where he is. But, you know, that'd be boring. You lost him, so now you have to earn him back by playing a little game with me.''
Pikachu gave a dark scowl. ''Are you deaf? Didn't you just hear what I said? You've got exactly five seconds to hand him over!'' he replied dead serious.
However, the ghost pokemon flat out ignored the electric rodent's last statement with a mischievous glint in his eyes. ''Riddle me this, Pikachu. I can be the sun, I can be sand, and I can also be a bird. What am I?''
Before Pikachu could zap him with his Thundershock, the Haunter disappeared, his ghostly laugh echoing through the room.
''Get back here, Haunter!'' Pikachu roared, his patience having run thin. However, no answer came. He was stuck with a stupid riddle he didn't even know would help him in his endeavor to get Marill back. Moreover, he realized to his horror that he was stuck inside this dining room too. The door he came through didn't budge in the slightest. He was utterly trapped.
''Oh Arceus, I'm so screwed!''
Twenty minutes had passed. Pikachu started to grow very worried for Marill's safety. He was wracking his brain for the correct answer, but so far, he had no luck. He deduced the answer had to be somewhere in this room, but the problem was that it was a big dining room, full of items. Searching the place would take him hours. And he had no idea what he was looking for in the first place.
'Good grief. What can be the sun, sand and a bird, all at the same time? Think, Pikachu, think!' he thought while twiddling with his tail. 'Is it something on the table?'
He looked at all the food, ready to be eaten. He hadn't taken anything of it yet, though. Pikachu wasn't a fool. Still, it was unlikely the answer was something edible.
'Maybe it's glass? Glass is made of sand, and you can make a bird and a sun out of glass. That must be it!'
Pikachu walked forward and grabbed one of the glasses filled with wine. ''Are you glass?'' he answered.
The next moment, the glass shattered in his paw, spilling wine everywhere. Pikachu cursed loudly. He was quite startled, and to be honest, pretty pissed off.
''You think is funny, Haunter?'' he screamed. ''When I get my paws on you—''
The electric rodent sighed loudly; getting mad now didn't accomplish anything. A big clock in the back was slowly ticking, showing Pikachu it was getting pretty late.
He twitched his ears every time the sound reached his ears, annoyed with the constant ticking. ''Ash could be back at any moment now. Why does this stupid clock have to mock me so much?''
It was then, that Pikachu got a moment of clarity. With wide eyes, he approached the large, wooden clock. ''Are... are you a clock?''
The clock stopped ticking. For a moment, nothing happened, until the clock creaked loudly and opened slowly. Inside, Marill was sleeping peacefully, unaware of what was going on.
''Oh, thank goodness, Marill!''
Pikachu released a breath he didn't know he was holding. Gently, he held the small Aqua Mouse pokemon in his paws. ''Don't worry, sprout. I'm getting you out of here.''
''Congratulations, Pikachu,'' Haunter praised, appearing behind him. ''I knew you would—''
The cheeky ghost couldn't end his sentence. Pikachu had more than enough. With a focus that would put a Kadabra to shame, he hardened his tail to steel like proportions, and slammed it forcefully against the Haunter's cheek, sending him flying through the room until he crashed against the dinner table, spilling plates of food and glassware everywhere.
Wordlessly, Pikachu left the room with Marill, getting his message across loud and clear. It was obvious that Haunter had hypnotized his newly hatched nephew and lead him to Pokemon tower just to mess with him. 'Serves him right,' Pikachu thought.
''We're back!'' Ash called out joyfully.
''Pika!'' his starter pokemon greeted, giving his trainer a hug and a nuzzle.
''Hi, Pikachu!'' Ash laughed. ''Did everything go okay? How's Marill?''
The electric rodent nodded his head and beckoned the raven haired trainer over to the bed where the Aqua Mouse pokemon was currently sleeping in.
''Aw, look at him. You did great, Pikachu! I'll make sure to reward you with another ketchup bottle for your hard work.''
''Cha!''
Meloetta giggled at the scene. She flew over to Pikachu, and gratefully kissed him on his cheek. ''Thank you,'' she said honestly. Her eyes told him everything he needed to know.
With a faint blush, Pikachu nodded his head. ''It was no trouble.''
Sylveon, in the meantime, was watching Marill with excitement. ''When's Dragonite going to meet my little brother?''
''The next time when Ash is going to use Dragonite, sweetie,'' Meloetta promised. ''That shouldn't be long. Both need to train. We still have a long way to go with Dragonite, too. He's improving, but it's going to take a while before he has his power output in control fully.''
''But I can play with Marill tomorrow, right?''
Pikachu chuckled. ''All that you like, squirt. All that you like.''
''Yay! I'm so happy. Tomorrow is going to be the best day ever!''
So there we have it! Did you guys like it, love it, hate it? Review, please. I read and reply to every single one of them! Next chapter, Marill's training and first battle. Until next time. ^^
~Syrup-Waffle