Chapter 3: No Witching Around
The new morning arrived as Ash and Pikachu slept on the couch. Ursula woke to the sun and found her glasses nearby on a stand. She crawled out of bed, wearing a midnight purple satin nightgown, but also with red hair. Seeing her hair in a mirror, Ursula gasped. "I don't want him to see this already," she quietly teased. Grabbing her wand, Ursula quietly chanted a spell that turned her wild redhead back to down and blue. Alcor awoke to see his owner descend to see Ash and Pikachu asleep still. Watching, Ursula softly giggled to their innocent faces. "I wonder if this is what his mother saw before he started training…" She leaned down on Ash while Pikachu woke to the presence. He got a front row seat as Ursula pecked Ash on the forehead.
("Whoa…") awed Pikachu. Hearing Pikachu, Ursula turned to and petted the Pokémon's head. The kiss woke Ash from his sleep.
"Uh?" he groaned. Ursula smiled down on her new roommate.
"Debout!" she cheered. Ash looked confused to what Ursula said.
"Debout?" he repeated.
"It means 'Rise and Shine' in French," Ursula translated. "Come on, I'll get some bread and tea ready. Pikachu, do you mind an apple?" Pikachu shook his head before Ursula tossed an apple to him. Ash caught the apple and placed it by Pikachu. "You know, I still get goosebumps after you told me of the time you and Pikachu nearly parted ways for good so that Pikachu would be by his pack." Ash sighed to the story.
"It was never easy and I was thinking of what was best for Pikachu," he briefed. That's when a phone rang near Ursula who answered.
"This is Ursula!" she voiced.
"Good morning, Miss Callists," Miranda voiced. "I know this sounds… urgent, per se… but is Ash available?"
"Of course… I was about to have some bread and tea to start the day."
"Well, I'm going to need him in the office. His uniform is ready."
"Oh, that was quick… but, don't we only have-"
"Perish the thought and allow me to take it from here." Listening, Ursula nodded to Miranda's demand.
"Alright, I'll bring him over at once." She hung the phone up and turned to Ash and Pikachu. "Headmistress Miranda called. She wants to see you in her office ASAP." This seemed urgent to Ash who nodded. They left the tower as Pikachu still ate the apple. Ash was with Miranda in her office as she found a case and brought it out.
"I know this feels forced upon you, Ash," she started. "Luckily, circumstances tend to fill themselves when possibilities open. For you to be part of Luna Nova Academy, you'll need to look like you're part of it." Ash wasn't concerned about what Miranda had for him.
"Hey, I don't mind a new set of clothes," he acknowledged. "So, where are they?" Miranda opened the case before having a peek and closing it.
"I have it right here." Seeing the case, Ash smiled.
"Thanks!" Seeing his reach, Miranda pulled the case back.
"There's just one little problem, though…" Suspicion grew on Ash.
"What's that?"
"As you know, Luna Nova Academy is an all-girls school. We don't have boys enrolled unlike Appleton Academy which is elsewhere in the country." The realization made Ash gulp.
"Wait a minute… Does… this mean I have to…"
"I'm afraid so, dear." The realization made Ash sigh in discomfort.
'Here we go again…' However, Miranda had an idea.
"Now, don't fret too much… I can conjure a spell that will adjust the uniform. Before I can, it would be best to try it on yourself." Opening the case, Ash observed the witch's hat, witch's robe and boots. He groaned, sensing where the discussion had turned.
"Does… this mean that I have to…" A sly giggle from Miranda made Ash's face go red. "Oh boy…" As he took off his shirt, a crowd of students who met Ash gathered at Miranda's doorway. The door opened with Miranda leading Ash out in the witch uniform. The students gasped at Ash modeling their wear.
"Students, Ash will be working for Luna Nova Academy until further notice," Miranda announced. As the news began to sink in, most of the girls awed Ash's look as his embarrassed red face made him uncomfortable.
"He actually looks cute in that!" cooed Amanda.
"Who knows what he's got up his sleeve," Sucy sneered. Diana became a little concerned. Anne came in with tea in hand. Seeing Ash in a witch's outfit made Anne spray tea from her cheeks, coughing from her shock.
"However, this is only temporary," Miranda spoke as she shooed the students back. Then, she pointed the wand at Ash. "Now, Draziw noitamorf!" A beam came out of the wand, striking Ash before his outfit changed. The robe became a cloak and dress pants as a suit emerged from underneath what was once the robe. The awes of Ash's look in a witch's suit became awes to his newfound handsomeness.
"Looking good, Ash!" cheered Akko.
"Can I have this Ash over what he was?" asked Lotte.
"Ash, you look so ravishing in that!" awed Diana. Ash felt a little better now that he wore something suitable with himself. Pikachu also approved from Akko's arms. Anne came forward to Miranda rather upset.
"What is the meaning of this!?" she scowled. "Are you having him work with Luna Nova Academy!? The absurdity that you want-"
"Miss Finnelan, restrain yourself!" scolded Miranda. "I do agree that it feels like drastic measures, but he has done nothing wrong. In fact, didn't he save Miss Cavendish from injury?" Anne felt including Ash in the curriculum was jeopardizing.
"Luna Nova Academy is an all-girls school, not a boy within kilometers of the campus grounds!" she snapped. "Having a boy here is like a predator to a slew of prey!"
"Then, you must know how to send Ash and his Pokémon back home, right?" countered Miranda. "And besides, there's no way Appleton will allow him to be part of their curriculum." Anne scowled, but couldn't say anything. She walked away.
'I don't believe this!' she growled in her head. 'It's bad enough that the boy's last name bothers me, but the Headmistress wants him here!? What game is she playing!? Quidditch!?' After everyone started attending classes, Miranda had a list for Ash and Pikachu stood on the desk.
"This is a list of rooms with the teachers and items they need for each on that trolley," she offered as there was a cart full of different items for Ash to push out. Ash read the list that was offered.
"Miss Callistis, Miss Badcock, Miss Finnelan," he listed.
"There are some teachers who haven't seen you," Miranda acknowledged. "However, I did inform them of the situation presented… even if Miss Finnelan doesn't approve as you have seen."
"Yeah, I doubt we'll get along, even for Pikachu," Ash shrugged.
("Which does bite for us,") Pikachu agreed. That's when Ash had a question.
"So, what's this 'Appleton' that you and Miss Finnelan were talking about?" he asked. Miranda didn't budge at the question.
"You're interested in Appleton Academy?" she pondered.
"Just why you're going back and forth about it," Ash clarified. Miranda bobbed a nod.
"Appleton Academy is a prestige school in a different part of England," she started. "It's known for enrolling young people from affluent families, even politicians. They've had huge disdains for witchcraft, making us their arch-rivals. Heck, they've also housed torture devices during the infamous witch hunts back in Dark Era Salem." Ash and Pikachu gasped to the news of witch hunts.
"That doesn't seem fair to just hunt witches down like that!" snapped Ash.
"It is, and it wasn't fair for any woman or girl accused of witchcraft, even if they were a toddler," Miranda mulled. "Luckily, the laws are far more equal and crimes are fairer than before." Ash and Pikachu nodded before they headed out with the cart and first arrived at the first classroom which Ash knocked on the door and Ash brought out a vial of dust from the cart. Ursula answered the door.
"Hi, Ash!" she greeted. The class saw the boy and howled in excitement.
"He's visiting!" one student cheered.
"Hi, Ash!" another cheered. "Hi, Pikachu!" Ash and Pikachu gawked at the praises as Akko approached.
"So, you're working with this school," she briefed.
"I am," Ash confirmed. "I brought the stardust Miss Callistis wanted from Headmistress Holbrooke." He showed the vial to Akko and Ursula.
"Merci, Ash," Ursula honored. Ash and Pikachu blinked to the French from who he and Pikachu sayed with.
"It's thanks in French," Akko clarified. Ash nodded to the praise.
"So, what's this class?" he asked as Ursula petted Pikachu by the ears.
"This is the Astrology class," she answered. "Look up." Ash and Pikachu looked up to see scaled planets, including one that had a series of rings around it.
"Space class?" guessed Ash.
"The stars," Akko listed. "The planets, the formations… They all work around the magic of Luna Nova Academy." Ash giggled to the thought.
"That actually sounds pretty cool," he replied. After dropping off the stardust, Ash and Pikachu proceeded on and knocked on the next classroom.
"Who is it!?" an aged woman asked.
"I'm here to deliver the abacus you asked for," Ash replied. Opening the door, Ash and Pikachu spotted and gawked to an old and short turquoise-haired woman in a green cloak and rectangular glasses.
"You're Miss Badcock?" The woman saw the wooden scale with beads on steel rods parallel to each other.
"Oh dear…" she gulped. "How did I forget them again? Thank you very much for bringing it here. At least I don't have to go out and order a new one. Not only are they getting rather expensive, but I've been hearing they're obsolete with the new technology." She took the abacus from Ash.
"It's like Pokémon Training," he admitted. "Everyone does something different."
"It is true, but kids need to learn by quill and ink, not by computers," Badcock urged. Coming to the door was Lotte.
"Are you feeling better in that outfit's form, Ash?" she asked.
"It's still new, Lotte," Ash smiled. "I'm still in need to wear it for a while."
"Hey, at least you belong here," Lotte wished. Ash nodded before carrying on. He and Pikachu reached the next classroom and paused.
"Miss Finnelan…" he read. "Great…" Nevertheless, he knocked on the door with a couple of books. However, Diana opened the door and not Anne. Seeing Ash, Diana gasped to the sight.
"It's you!" she awed. "But… why?" Ash had the textbooks in hand.
"I was asked to deliver these to Miss Finnelan," he offered. The textbooks made Diana sigh.
"I see," she muttered as Anne came from behind. She took the books from Ash's hands.
"This resolves nothing," she scorned.
"Nothing even started," Ash countered with Pikachu growling back.
"As if you're the one who needs to finish it, Ketchum," Anne scowled as she dragged Diana from the door before slamming it in Ash and Pikachu's faces.
("What was that for!?") snapped Pikachu. Ash sighed, realization of how their relationship would go between him and Anne. ("Why does she hate your guts?") Ignoring Pikachu, Ash carried on as he arrived outside with a parcel. There, a tall brunette woman stood and confronted the pair.
"Stand up straight, kid!" she called to the two. She wore the uniform but had a cross of the witch's hat and aviator helmet with the brim removed and a pair of goggles over it. "You need to be firm when meeting your teacher!" Ash and Pikachu stood straight up before facing the brunette. "What's in the parcel?"
"It's what Headmistress Holbrooke got you for your class," he replied. The brunette opened the parcel and dug a hand onto it. She pulled out goggles like the one on her head.
"Good," she accepted. "Class will be prepared today. So, you're the boy that's been the buzz around."
"I am," Ash agreed. "It's Ash Ketchum." The brunette nodded.
"I'm Nelson, broom-flying teacher," she presented herself. "You need to stand straight to approach what's ahead. Got it?" Ash and Pikachu nodded, hoping not to anger Nelson. "Now, carry on." She left as Ash and Pikachu returned inside. That's when two girls spotted the boy and mouse.
"There you are!" one girl noticed. Ash and Pikachu turned to see two teenage girls meet up with them.
"He's way different from yesterday when he saved Diana," the raven-haired awed. "He's all casual!"
"That's true," the auburn-haired girl recalled. "But this is so much better that I love it! And this little guy…" She plucked Pikachu from Ash's shoulder. "This is one that gets a lot of love, huh?" She and Pikachu nuzzled to the Pokémon's delight.
"You say Diana…" pointed Ash.
"Yes, we're her assistants," the raven-haired brought up with blushing cheeks. "I'm Barbara Parker and she's Hannah England." Hannah came to Ash, hearts in her eyes.
"So, who's the hero for Diana, out best friend?" she asked. Maintaining what composure he had after Nelson, Ash straightened himself.
"I'm Ash Ketchum," he repeated himself. "You have Pikachu in your arms." Hannah looked to the Pokémon she carried.
"You're Pikachu?" she cheered. "You're softer than I wanted to believe!" Pikachu squealed to the compliment. "Of course, we have a hottie right here!" She used a free arm and hooked it around Ash's.
"Don't leave me out of this!" voiced Barbara as she hooked Ash's other arm. Ash felt cornered.
"Okay, this is… new," he gulped. "Not even Iris is like this."
"Yeah, I doubt this Iris is a witch like us," Hannah believed as she and Barbara dragged Ash and Pikachu to lunch where the students gathered. Akko, Lotte, Sucy, Amanda and Diana found the group together.
"Hannah, Barbara, what are you doing?" asked Diana. The group turned to the English representative.
"Introducing ourselves to our new boy toy!" teased Hannah.
"Hey, he's right now part of the Headmistress's active staff!" argued Amanda. "It sucks that you're not a witch like we are."
"Amanda, men can't be witches," Lotte corrected. "They can be wizards or warlocks." Ash scoffed to the debate.
"Hey, just be glad that Pikachu and I'm here and not this Appleton place the Headmistress brought up," he brought up.
"Agreed," Sucy sided. "Anyway, are there creatures in your world that are mushrooms?" Lotte gulped at the questioning before Ash spoke up.
"There are," he replied. "And in Unova, there are two: Foongus and Amoonguss." Bringing out the PokéDex, he revealed a white mushroom with a tiny face and arms with the head like the balls Ash had.
FOONGUS – GRASS/POISON – HT: 8" – WT: 2.2 LBS. - ABILITY: EFFECT SPORE
"FOONGUS, THE MUSHROOM POKÉMON," it registered. "THE HEAD OF A FOONGUS RESEMBLES A POKÉBALL. IT WILL RELEASE POISON SPORES IF A TRAINER TRIES TO CATCH IT." Then, Ash changed the picture to a larger gray mushroom with the arms like the Pokéballs like shields and the head twisted slightly.
AMOONGUSS – GRASS/POISON – HT: 2' – WT: 23.1 LBS. - ABILITY: EFFECT SPORE
"AMOONGUSS, THE MUSHROOM POKÉMON AND THE EVOLVED FORM OF FOONGUS," it registered. "AMOONGUSS LURES PREY BY SWAYING AROUND AND WAIVING ITS ARMS THAT LOOK LIKE POKÉBALLS." Sucy salivated to the two Pokémon.
"Now, I'll have to search around for them!" she sneered. "Oh, to have fungus with them!" Sweat drops formed on the others around the table.
"Sucy, only you…" shuttered Akko. Turning back to Ash, a question popped up. "We'd like to know about your world some more." Hannah wove her hand to Akko's idea.
"Maybe with a story," she suggested. Ash seemed interested to the thought.
"I mean, I've got a lot," Ash pondered. "Which one should I talk about?" Akko had an idea.
"What about this Lily that you brought up from Johto?" she brought up.
"Okay, I can go with that!" agreed Ash. "One day in Johto, my friends and I came across Lily, an upcoming Pokémon Magician. She had a Murkrow on hand to help. She wanted to create a spell which allows people to understand Pokémon's thoughts and feelings. We helped her along the way, even as three guys of Team Rocket tried to take her spellbook and Pikachu. Needless to say, they got none but Lily found all of the ingredients to make her spell… or so we thought." The girls blinked, not sure they knew what to brace for.
"What do you mean?" asked Barbara.
"When Lily had Pikachu do Thunderbolt to finish the spell," Ash continued. "It was a failure and I changed…" He finished by pointing at Pikachu.
("I remember that well,") he squeaked. The girls gasped to the finish.
"Wait, you mean Ash turned into you?" realized Akko. Pikachu bobbed his head.
"Also, Pikachu can use Thunderbolt?" gulped Diana.
"He used it after Sucy's teasing," Lotte briefed. Pikachu groaned to the first moments meeting the witches. Akko stood up, a wand in her hand.
"You know, we can at least demonstrate for Ash what we witches can do," she prepped. The other girls irked at Akko's attempt.
"Are you sure you want to do it here!?" questioned Amanda. "And now!?"
"It's easier to show than not to!" cheered Akko as she fired a beam at Pikachu. Struck, Pikachu's body began to glow and morph. Pikachu screamed as if he was in pain. That's when the morphing stopped and he looked almost human. Pikachu had human hands, human feet and the fur on his head grew spiky. Ash gawked at Pikachu's new look. The girls grew horrified.
"What have you done!?" snapped Hannah. Akko became terrified at what happened, as did Pikachu, unable to accept his new look.
("Change me back!") he pleaded. ("Change me back!") Miranda came by and zapped Pikachu with her own wand, reverting himself to normal. The Mouse Pokémon checked himself and sighed in relief.
"Miss Kagari, do not display magic like that until you know you can control it," she scolded. Akko bowed her head to Miranda, apologizing for her actions.
"I'm sorry!" she pleaded repeatedly. After six times, Pikachu's paw reached Akko and patted her arm. Feeling, Akko looked to Pikachu and picked him up to hug. There was peace. The day was long and Ash and Pikachu returned to the tower with Ursula.
"So, how was your first day of school?" she teased. Ash nearly fell over as he changed from the witch's uniform to a shirt and shorts.
"Miss Callistis, wouldn't I have been studying for it to be my first day of school?" he remarked.
"Yes, but to see the classes and what they do can help out." Alcor flew to Ash and rested on his shoulder, spooking him.
"Alcor?" Seeing her avian, Ursula became humored.
"Alcor seems to have a trust with you already, though not as quick as me." A caw was Alcor's rebuttal. "But, it does give me an idea." She wove her hand to the side and a broom flew to her. Ash realized the occasion.
"Broom-flying?" Confirming, Ursula nodded.
"Let's head outside." She held the broomstick up and offered Ash a seat. Ash sat on the floating broomstick before Ursula mounted herself. By her command, Ursula, Ash and Pikachu flew out of tower. It sped through the air and over the trees. Pikachu sat in front of Ash who sat in front of Ursula as they soared through the late evening skies.
'Witches… are pretty cool. Sure, there are some weird ones like Sucy, but the girls here are… pretty supporting. I want to pay them back. I don't care what I have to do. I want to do it.' Ursula wrapped her arm around Ash's shoulders as they flew. To Ash, this may be a getaway from his world, but it's a place to learn.
TO BE CONTINUED...