Disclaimer: I do not own any character familiar and if I did own Pokemon, I would definitely not be slaving away at my current job.

Chapter 3: Pika, Pikachu

"I choose you, Pidgeot!"

"Pidgeot!"

As Ash and Pikachu climbed on to Pidgeot, the bird type took flight away from the airport. The Pokémon trainer holding Pikachu safe between his arms as he kept an eye out for the train station, remembering Gary's instructions on how to enter the region from the previous nights dinner at his home,

"What you have to understand is that the people of Motou are very private. This is not helped by the layout of the land. Now, there are two ways to enter, the first is by sea, but that would take too long for our purposes and Professor Crystal will get impatient. You do not want Professor Crystal to get impatient, because she sends her minion, ow, grandpa!, I mean her close friend to get you and let me tell you the insanity and trouble that comes with that guy will have us in the Pokémon Associations bad books for as long as it takes for Jirachi to wake up again. Not to mention Grand Line Harbour, but let us not go into that just yet.

"The other entrance is a tad complicated. You see, Motou region is a peninsular, meaning its surrounded by water on three sides with only one bottle neck land entrance. Furthermore, the other sides are surrounded by mountains, with the other end being the harbour, and no, you cannot fly over them.

"We have your plane ticket, but you would not be flown straight into Motou the way you did Unova. First, pick a flying type because you will be in for a long flight from the airport to the train station. When you arrive, show the conductor this letter and he will guide you to the train that will take you straight to Origin Town. Professor Crystal probably would not be able to meet you there, but you should recognize the suckers, ow, gramps!, that she sends. Seriously, they can't be missed."

Remembering his instructions, Ash searched the ground for a sign of the train station Gary had mentioned. He had planned on trekking through the forest but both Oaks were familiar with his wandering ways and had given him strict instructions on how he would travel,

I do not get lost the moment I set out from a town, and I don't get sidetracked by every person, Pokémon and shiny object that crosses my path.

Unfortunately for Ash, Professor Oak had involved Delia Ketchum into the discussion, which had led to the young trainer promising his mother he would fly straight to the train station on Pidgeot instead of hiking through the woods as was his usual preference.

The trainer was shocked out of his thoughts by a sudden screech as the bird Pokémon beneath him suddenly banked, descending towards a skyscraper in the middle of the forest. The building was the entrance to a track that was enclosed on both sides by the ocean before disappearing from view, even as Ash strained to see where the path led, only receiving the faint shadowed outlines of what he knew were the mountains that surrounded half the region.

The station itself was an enormous structure of steel and glass, with train tracks splitting it in half. From his position, the young teen could see the ocean through the glass, with the play of waves drawing his attention to another design of the station. The architect had commissioned patterns to be added to the glass in the form of glass tainted in various colours, so light, they were almost clear. The tainted glass was designed in the shape of Pokémon , mainly Legendaries, although the entrance teen could make out the starter Pokémon he had encountered in his travels as Pidgeot flew closer. The building was a gigantic landmark, built to attract the attention of trainers looking for it, and it was a long flight of admiring the play of light on the design of the station before the trainer and Pokémon were able to see more than the general structure of the infrastructure. As they approached, Ash could see various people running in the building, most of them congregating towards the tracks as a train began to appear fromthe path,

"Hurry Pidgeot, the trains hereeee!"

The shout turned into a scream as the bird Pokémon obeyed his trainer and dived towards the station, nearly crashing on the platform as the train pulled in. The force of the dive threw both trainer and Pokémon on the flying type's into a rolling spin that ended with a dazed Ash looking around groggily, with an equally dazed electric type staring dizzily in front on his lap, "Pika…, pikachu…"

"You can say that again Pikachu."

"Hey, kid, you what are you doing here? Only people from Motou can use this train!"

Glancing up at the irate guard frowning down at him, Ash searched his pockets as he stood up, habit allowing him to keep a hold of Pikachu while he searched his pockets, "Uh… I have permission. I'm supposed to see a Professor Crystal?"

The guard looked closely at the nervous trainer, even as he took the proffered letter. As Ash looked on, the suspicion on the man's face melted away to grudging acceptance as he studied the piece of paper in front of him,

"Well, everything looks in order, so welcome aboard kid. Just remember, no Pokémon the size of a human are allowed out on the train unless in an emergence. That means you have to return that bird back to its Pokéball."

The timid, "thanks mister," merely got the young man a suspicious stare from the guard as he handed the letter back to the trainer. Only with the recall of the flying type still on the platform did he turn around on the heels of his shoes, muttering darkly as he left the tense teen. As he disappeared into the boarding crowd, a Spinarak descending from an unseen alcove above to rest on his shoulder, did both trainer and Pokémon let out a relieved sigh as the tension left with him.

"Wonder what his problem was."

"Pikachu"

The electric mouse Pokémon chirped his name in agreement before squirming out of his trainers arms to run into the train, turning around at the door to call out again, waving insistently at its trainer. As if on cue, the trains whistle blew and the door began to close, startling the trainer into following his partner Pokémon's actions and scurrying on the train along with the last of the stragglers.

Looking around the train, he noted that it was a simple system, with seats lined alongside the walls of the train, facing inwards. The design allowed space for the passengers to mingle and move around freely through the carriage or grab onto the overhead hand holds to steady themselves as they chat or caught up with the people around them. Allowing Pikachu to climb onto his shoulder, Ash shifted his backpack as he began to look for a place to sit.

…

"Finally, home sweet home…"

"…. an actual battle style, not like Kanto…."

"… good to see sis again…"

"… can't wait … challenge our Elite…"

"… no Engineers, no Accountants… glad to go home…"

"… see scouts…"

Ash laid back and allowed the conversation to pour over him as he listened intently to what was being said. As far as he could tell, most, if not all, of the people in the train aside from him were originally from Motou region. Settling down, he did something that did not come easily to him but he had learned after exposure to both Brock and Cilan. The young trainer closed his eyes, stamped down his impatience to do something now, and listened.

The words of the other trainers flowed over him, most of them regarding how eager the trainers were to return home, but there were key words that caught his attention and he clamped down on his instinctive reaction of jumping up and interrogating the speakers,

"… Origin Gym… strongest gym leader…"

"Start… Igo…"

"Chance… battle Champion…"

"Red… Lance… kicked out"

"Dragon gym… Wu…"

"Crazy gun totting gym leader…"

"Fine then! Bring it on!"

Jerked out of his eavesdropping by the shout, the startled trainer spun, almost out of his seat, to stare at the two teens facing of in the middle of the compartment. The boy was wearing a cap similar to the watching trainers' (in fact, most of the males in the train had similar caps, the trainer noted in a distinct corner of his mind), a dark green travellers vest was thrown over a white shirt and a belt to hold Pokéballs also held up loose, dark green cargo pants. His opponent (for Ash couldn't think of her as anything else, what with the way the two were glaring at each other) had her wavy brown hair pulled back in a ponytail, her tank top covered by an open jacket and a pair of shorts finished the outfit.

Even as the other occupants of the carriage watched, both trainers called out their Pokémon, a space forming around them as people tried to get out of the way of the oncoming battle. As Ash watched on in trepidation a Darmanitan and Gabite appeared, nearly hunched over as they took the remaining space on the train, setting the locomotive rocking on its tracks.

Hey, they must have come from Sinnoh; that brings back memories. Wonder how Dawn is doing.

The Pokémon trainer was pulled from his memories of a courageous wild Darmanitan and a stylish co-ordinator whom was also the rival of one of his best friends. The worried murmur that arose was mirrored in the young man, battling with his usual excitement at seeing a Pokémon battle,

"Isn't that kinda dangerous?"

The soft words that escaped him was met with a snort from a nearby trainer,

"Ya think? Bet those two are from Domino, to do something as idiotic as battle on this train, especially the Darmanitan trainer, seriously, a fire type?"

Any additional question Ash could have asked was derailed as the two trainers began to battle,

"Gabite, just as we planned, now Dual Chop!"

"Whoa!"

The Pikachu trainer yelped as he almost lost his balance, the Gabite's jump had been in time with the sway of the train, causing the carriage to lurch dangerously to the side, even as the dragon and ground type leaped at the off balance Darmanitan. Only the Darmanitan's great arms kept it on its feet, as it tried to stumble its way out of the Dual Chop.

"Good job Darmanitan, now fight back by…"

"Hey you kids, what do you think you're doing?"

All sound and motion in the carriage stopped, save from the swaying of the train as it travelled along the tracks, rocking its motionless passengers as the guard Ash and Pikachu had seen earlier stalked towards the suddenly sheepish duo, the angry scolding loud enough that the passengers in the other carriages could probably hear,

"Do you think this is the Subway Train? Wait till you get to Domino if you want to Train Battle, now, recall those Pokémon before you flip this train over!"

The two sheepish teens had by then moved closer together, all arguments forgotten as they faced the wrath of the adult before them. Their Pokémon had likewise huddled slightly behind their trainers, too confused to act out.

At least the Pokémon they chose trust them enough that they wouldn't get out of control.

The thought was cynical but Ash had enough experience with trainers and disobedient Pokémon (not necessarily through any fault of the trainer), including his own Charizard to be grateful for that fact. Even as the two trainers returned the big Pokémon's back into their Pokéballs, and followed the guard to the front of the train for a write up of their actions and the attached fine, the atmosphere in the carriage had already returned to normal, with only an underlining amusement to the conversations an indication of the almost battle taking place.

He didn't notice he had fallen asleep watching the ocean until the announcement came that the train had arrived in Motou region.

"We have arrived at Motou region, will all passengers please exit the train. I repeat, we have arrived at Motou region, will all passengers please exit the train."

"Pikachu!"

"Don't worry Pikachu, I heard the first time round."

As the yellow mouse Pokémon took its customary position atop his trainers shoulder, Ash followed the crowd out the door and took his first step into Motou region.

…

As Ash was setting off for the Motou region, some old acquaintances of his were not far behind,

"Hear that James? An important mission in Motou region, this may be our lucky break."

"But Jessie, don't you remember? The boss said that any Team Rocket member found in that region would be dealt with. Permanently. And I don't think he meant it in a good way.

"Meowth, shut up you idiot, what the boss don't know wouldn't hurt him. All we gotta do is swipe Pikachu and maybe some of the juicy Pokémon dat Professor is prob'ly keepin' in her labs, and we are home free."

No one said they were welcomed acquaintances.

"But…"

"Oh James, stop being such a wimp. Meowth is right, all we have to do is get in and get out without being detected and with Pikachu."

"Ok, fine, even if that works, how are we going to get into Motou in the first place? That place has so many security checks that even the elite teams have trouble getting in."

"…"

"Actually James, getting in might be easier than you think."

"Eh, why you lookin' at me like dat? Jessie… no way, whatever ya thinking, I ain't gonna do it. Jessie… no, no, James help meeee!"

…..

"Dis is a stupid plan."

Meowth made sure he kept his words to a quiet mumble only the two Team Rocket members under the train could have heard, even as he kept up the appearance of a stray Meowth that was casually grooming his fur, occasionally begging for treats from the passing passengers. Using the skills their special training before the Unova region assignment had given them, they hand onto the mechanisms at the bottom of the train, safely out of sight of the guards and conductors, well the human ones that is.

"Quiet you, the brats already in Motou, meaning we have to get there before he begins one of those journeys of his and we lose him."

The two Team Rocket members were quick to silence their argument as an audible growl reached them. The Houndoom's which patrolled the platforms had arrived, growling at the suddenly hissing Meowth, who was beginning to doubt this cunning plan, or even if he would survive it.

Even as the growling Houndooms were restrained by their handlers, much to the panicking cat Pokémon's relief, another guard with a Spinarak on his shoulder had stalked up holding a strange device that looked like a cross between a scanner and a Pokédex. Before the small feline could even think of getting worried, a blue light had jumped from the handheld device and jumped back, turning the tips green as the light faded away,

"Its green, this is a stray, never was caught at that."

Huh? Worried, the Meowth eyed the device, which apparently mimicked Pokéball technology to the extent that it could read the digital fingerprint Pokéball's left on a Pokémon. This was top technology and these guys had access to it? Before the stunned Pokémon could make use of this bit of information, the growls of the Houndoom's rose in volume. Alarmed that they may be scenting his team hidden under the train, Meowth initiated the second part of the plan.

Hissing insults at the two dog Pokémon, Meowth fled through the open door of the carriage, burying himself under one of the many seats as he continued riling up the two fire types until they could only focus on him,

"Meowth, meowth, meowth" That the best you can do? I'm an unattached first stage and I'm claiming your territory.

There were times when Meowth wondered if a hidden skill all Team Rocket members attained was the ability to insult people to the point of inarticulate rage. Then again, the feline had to admit as the barking reached ear shattering degrees, it was probably something which contributed to the short lifespan of some of the teams. When you are hunting rare and powerful Pokémon, you do not want them raging for your 'blood broiled and served as sauce on your still beating heart', as the two Houndooms outside so elegantly put it. The female was particularly descriptive over what she would do with his tail and her pups.

Even as he debated attempting to go to higher ground, he heard the handlers drag the duo of to another part of the platform, while the third guard entered and tried to coax him off the train, only to receive a set of parallel scratches on the back of his hand for his troubles.

"Leave the poor Meowth,, he was probably scared within an inch of his life by those two."

Realizing another of the guards had returned, Meowth crouched down and started hissing again, only a part of it was acting. He'd be damned if Jessie and James got into Motou region without him, they are a team!

"I don't want no trouble on my train. Bad enough we get those youngsters, what if someone is using this Meowth as a distraction."

"Firstly my paranoid friend, that's a stray Meowth, secondly, any kid that sneaks into Motou will either toughen up or stumble out. Usually both…. teams… girls… blue…."

Meowth strained to hear the rest of the conversation over the rising din of the carriage, even as the words were lost over the chatter of the passengers boarding the train. As the train doors began closing he decided to catch a quick cat nap (pun intended) for the short journey into the peninsular. After all, a nice comfortable train ride after the effort he put in was just what the doctor ordered. The fact that Jessie and James, who had done nothing but hide, were in for a three hour trip that consist of hanging on to the bottom of the train while being splashed by salty water was just icing on the cake.

…

Meanwhile, in a certain town, an interesting conversation was taking place between a three individuals.

"Look, we're busy, why can't you do it?"

"I already told you, I need to prepare these Pokémon, and don't give me the 'I'm busy' excuse, I know the only thing you're doing is hiding from a certain someone. Who I will inform of your location eventually, but you can buy yourself some time by helping me out with this favour."

"What about the squirt?"

"Don't call him that. And he's helping the Scouts out with a poacher problem, and you owe me. Both of you. So don't make me resort to dire measures just to make you do this."

"… What time is the train arriving and what does he look like."

"He wears a cap and has a Pikachu with him."

"Anything more specific?"

"His name is Ash Ketchum and he's from Pallet Town."

…

"Well, we're here Pikachu, but I wonder where are the people we were supposed to meet."

"Pika, pika…"

"Well, at least we can check out the graffiti while we look."

The young teen and electric type were standing in the middle of the station, looking around for whomever they were supposed to meet, or barring that, a phone they could use to call Professor Crystal. As they did so however, it was impossible to ignore the train station they were in.

Unlike the station across the bottleneck, this station was built with bricks and cement, obviously a heritage building unlike its connecting sibling. The old fashioned building was not what caught the eye, but the sheer volume of graffiti that lined the walls. It was not the messy graffiti that he had seen on his trips but actual artwork, all painted as close s possible. As the awed duo traced the paintings, they saw a black and white realistic mural of soldiers at war suddenly lead into a modern art interpretation of the Mona Lisa. Next to it was a giant symbol of the Pokémon Association with various Pokémon using the symbol to relax or climb or play, connected to a life size view of a forest path, complete with hidden Pokémon.

"Amazing, isn't it?"

"Wah!"

"Pika!"

As absorbed as they were in the graffiti, both human and Pokémon had missed the approaching trainer, who merely grinned in apology, "Sorry for startling you, but you are new here, aren't you?"

"Uh, yeah… I'm actually from Pallet Town. Guess I stand out a lot, huh?"

Sheepishly rubbing the back of his head, Ash tried to place why the other trainer looked so familiar, when the voice finally clicked his memory, "Wait, you're the guy from the train!"

Taking in the common cap that was worn by almost every teenaged male he saw, worn backwards in the style Ash liked when he was getting serious, the hair tied into a shoulder length low ponytail, the Pallet Town trainer blushed at his own comment, wondering why he couldn't keep his own mouth shut, "Yeah, and I could tell you were a newbie to the region from your gawking of the train battle and our amazing graffiti. I'm Todd by the way"

"My names Ash, and this is Pikachu."

"Pika"

The two Pokémon trainers traded smiles and handshakes as they studied one another. Then the Pikachu trainer's head caught up with the topic before the introduction and his automatic reaction, "Wait, the train battle, does that happen often?"

"More than you think."

Before the confused teen could follow up on the enigmatic comment, the other trainer had turned his attention, and commentary, to the graffiti, "So, you like our graffiti, eh? Its actually encouraged by the locals ya know?"

"Huh?"

"Yeah, part of the funding from the train station goes to providing spray paint and paint cans for this. It's to encourage people to try and explore their talent and imaginations."

"Wow."

"Yup. The people from Motou region are extremely proud of it. If you look closely at the corners, you'll notice that most of the artworks have a signature. If people like the work, they might track down the artist and commission a piece."

Looking closer now, the teen could see what the other trainer was talking about. At the corner of many of the murals were signatures, but still, "Then why are there so many without signatures?"

"Oh, that's the local Smeargle's. There are a few families of them here, and they've claimed sections of the wall as their own. The vendors and shop owners like to feed them, and the freedom to paint on the walls encourages them to stay."

"Wow, thanks for telling me all this."

"Hey, no prob, its not often we locals get to show off anything from our region to outsiders."

"You don't get many outsiders here?"

As he spoke, Ash remembered his earlier thought of how most of the train passengers excluding him seemed to have originally been from Motou region.

"Yeah, we're a crazy lot, and our Champion and Elite Four and their gang are even crazier. Also, there is a lot of important research going on in various places around the region, and even more sensitive information is stored here. Rumour has it, that there is a library somewhere that has all the information that ever existed in the Pokémon world. So people who know about us rarely want to come, and for those who do, we have to make sure it is for legit reasons. This place is like no other region you've ever been to, from people to battling."

"Wow, thanks."

The other trainer smirked at the dazed look on the outsiders face, knowing his little info dump had barely scratched the surface. If this teen wanted to travel in Motou, he had a lot more to learn, "No prob, its nothing much for a fellow fan of our Champion."

"Wait, what?"

This time it was the Motou resident who looked surprised, "Well… the hat and the Pikachu… and you are from Kanto, I just assumed…"

"I've had this hat since I was a kid, and Pikachu was my first Pokémon."

"Pika"

"Oh, but our Champion wears a similar hat, that's why its so popular, and Pikachu is one of his main Pokémon, rumours say it was the first Pokémon he caught…"

Seeing the confused but interested expression on Ash's face, Todd began to feel there had been a huge misunderstanding, "You are from Kanto region, aren't you?"

"Yeah, what does that have to do with anything?"

"Aside from the fact our Champions used to be… friends?"

"Wha?"

"Yeah, Lance and Re…"

"Todd!"

Startled at the interruption, the two trainers looked up to see a silver haired woman waving her hands from the edge of the crowd. Her wavy hair fell to mid – back, with only a small tuff tied to the side of her head. She was wearing a deep maroon dress, held up by two frilly straps across the shoulders, "Is she your sister?"

The question got the teen an amused glance, one that he was intimately familiar with in the form of one Gary Oak. Ash had become adapt at reading the hidden words, especially since they boiled down to, Are you stupid?

"Do we look related? She's my teacher."

"Oh, sorry."

"Never mind, anyway, I got to go. If you ever make it to Fiore town, look me up at the school, ok?"

The last sentence was said with an undercurrent of amusement, even as Todd took off in the direction of the lady he claimed as his teacher. As the two met and the returning trainer was welcomed with a hug, Ash was reminded of his own welcome committee, or lack of it. Even as his new found friend was driven off, he mused to his long time partner, "Guess they couldn't make it or something. We better go find a phone and call Professor Crystal."

"Pikachu"

Grinning at the enthusiastic reply from the electric type, the teen held still long enough for Pikachu to resume his spot on his favourite shoulder before turning to find a phone. Or attempted to as a shout nearly bowled them over mid – turn, as well as startle everyone in the crowd and draw attention to the shouter,

"ASH KETCHUM, WE'RE LOOKING FOR AN ASH KETCHUM, ANYONE HERE IS ASH KETCHUM?"

The young man, looking slightly younger than Brock, wore a yellow cap backwards in the regions common style. Two tuffs of hair stuck out the gap in the front of the cap. He also wore a loose red jacket above a brown pair of shorts, and across his back he had a… pool cue?

Although, it was not the man that attracted the most attention but the gigantic sign he held up on a stick, with the words 'ASH KETCHUM' in bright, gold, sparkling, paint. Ash could feel the giant drop of sweat making its way down the back of his head, even as the teen called out once more,

"ASH KETCHUM, ARE YOU HERE? C'MON RED, GIVE ME A HAND HERE, ASH KETCHUM, ANYONE SEEN AN ASH KETCHUM?"

Even as the mortified teen began pushing his way to the loud mouth, he noticed the caller's companion cringe as some attention was brought to the embarrassed man. The companion was dressed in a similar cap, only in red, with more tufts of hair poking out the front. What Ash could see of his face, was mostly of it was covered by a hand, although the embarrassment was plain to see on his red neck. He had angled his body away from his companion, and was trying to fade into the crowd, hunching over even further as the shouting addressed him. It was obvious he wanted to be anywhere but near his loud companion.

Luckily, he was put out of his misery as Ash finally reached the as yet unnamed person, and clamped a hand over the next shout, frantically saying, "I'm here, I'm here. Stop shouting already, I'm here!"

A muffled, "Oh, thank Arceus." Met his proclamation from the companion, whom Ash could see, now he was closer, was a young man about Lance's age, a couple years older than his companion. Red, if one went by the yelling, wore a sleeveless red vest over a plain white T – shirt and loose grey cargo pants. He still kept his hand on his face, hiding his looks as the crowd still stared, murmuring and pointing.

Before Ash could get nervous from all the attention, his arm was grabbed by the other teen, even as the action was mirrored on Red. The still nameless teen that had caused all the embarrassment to his current companions, broke into a run for the entrance, dragging his companions out the doors and towards a jeep similar to the one Ash had seen Professor Birch use.

"Get in, get in."

"Wait, slow down. Hey! What's the rush?"

"Pi… pika!"

The electric mouse Pokémon agreed with his trainer as he struggled to maintain his position on Ash's shoulder during the rush through the crowd, "The rush is, Red here has probably been recognized already, and we want to get away from his adoring fans."

"Shut up Gold."

The confused Pallet Town trainer stared at Red and the now named Gold. The former had gotten behind the wheel and started driving while the latter had claimed shot gun after shoving Ash into the back of the jeep. The confused visitor was now holding his partner as he settled into a more comfortable position, the train station fading away behind the trio as he voiced his question, "I don't understand, why would he have fans? And who are you two anyway?"

The other two jerked in surprise as Gold turned to stare at him while Red relaxed, a confident smile settling on his face as he straightened in his seat. Using one hand to shove Gold back into his seat from his half risen position, he called back, eyeing Ash from the rear view mirror, "Well, we are friends of Crystal and she sent us to pick you up, but I guess you've figured that out. What you really want to know is…"

Using his hand, he pushed down Gold's head, wiping the smug grin on his passengers face, "Hey!"

"This brat here, is Gold, the best Pokémon connoisseur in the world…"

"Aww shucks Red, thanks."

"And I, am Red, the Champion for the region." There was a slight pause from the occupants of the vehicle as the sentence sunk in, before Ash jerked forward in excitement, "Really? Wow… well, I guess you know, I'm Ash, and this is my partner, Pikachu."

The trainer was startled back into his seat as Gold spun around again, this time sitting on his knees as he leaned forward over the top of the passenger seat to study Ash closely, "Uh… what?"

"Hey, I thought so!"

Turning to the driver of the jeep, Gold pointed at the very confused passenger and equally confused Pikachu,

"He's a mini Red!"

"Wha?"

"Gold what are you on about now? Do I have to bring Silver in again?"

"No, no, seriously, he looks just like you, only his cheeks are pointy!"

The irate Champion stopped the car and turned, hoping to stop his companion from talking, if only for a while, and took his first good look at the visitor they picked up from the station. In turn, Ash finally got his first look at Red, and for a moment, the both of them could only stare at each other in surprise, "See, see? He's a mini – Red! He even has a Pikachu."

Grasping for something to say, Ash lashed onto the first thing he could think of while mentally cursing his dear friend for not warning him about this (somewhere in Pallet Town, a spiky haired researcher sneezed, startling the Ponyta he was grooming into bolting), "You have a Pikachu?"

At the question, the surprise melted from the Champions face, to be replaced by a confident and prideful grin that would look familiar to any of Ash's own Pokémon, as it is, Pikachu jumped off his trainers lap to look back and forth between the two in amazement. This was replaced by astonishment it came face to face with another Pikachu in a beam of red light.

"Pikachu, meet Pika. Pika, Pikachu, now play nice, the both of you."