Hey guys, I'm back with another chapter! Enjoy!
Chapter thirty: Among the Storm
I feel warmth on my body. Sunlight hits my eyes. I face away from the bothersome light, but the other side of my body now receives the same warm feeling. I try to keep sleeping. I toss and turn but I eventually hear noises as well. The sounds of big city life and birds can be heard outside. Unable to fall asleep once more, I decide to give up. I open my eyes, yawn, and then stretch my arms outward. I look toward the bed: there's no sign of Orion or Rigel. I check the time on his nightstand: it's pretty late right now, it's probably late afternoon.
I start to hear faint music coming from another part of the house and I can swear it sounds like someone is playing a piano. I get out of the bean bed and leave the bedroom. As I walk down the stairs the music gets louder. I follow the sound and it leads me to the entrance of the sunroom where the twin doors are opened widely. The room, which is painted white, is surrounded by windows with no blinds or curtains. The view of the outside envelops the room. A small coffee table stands in the middle. To the right there is a white couch and to the left…is Rigel. He is playing on a grand piano and Orion is sitting on the side of the Piano next to him. The small Pokémon sees me as I walk into the sunroom. His ears rise before he sits up from his curled pose, and smiles.
"Well, look who it is." The Pikachu announces. This gets Rigel to look at Orion and then down toward me. He smiles and says, "Oh hey Lucas." He stops playing the piano.
With more curiosity than before, I walk closer to the piano and raise an eyebrow, "Y…ou…pl…ay…?"
Rigel shrugs, "Just simple songs. Nothing fancy really, I wouldn't call myself professional."
He turns the sheet music to the first page, "My mom, on the other hand, plays the piano really well. And I guess it helps since she's a music professor for seniors." He begins playing the song again, "I've been learning a song called 'Beautiful Dreamer' for a while but I've been away, so I'm trying to remember how the song goes."
Orion jumps down from the Piano and walks toward me, "Hey, you okay?"
I look around the room, "Yea, thanks for asking." I sigh, "It's such a nice day outside even if it's getting late."
"Sorry if we didn't wake you up earlier, but we didn't want to disturb you. You seemed so peaceful in your sleep." Orion then puts his arm behind his head and makes a hearty laugh, "Did you dreamt of Jen with her light brown hair again?"
I roll my eyes and ignore his attempt to embarrass me.
He turns away from me, "Come on, let's go outside and play!" He goes on all fours and runs toward a small door for pets, which is persuadably made just for him. He goes through it.
"I…alright." I say softly to myself, tilting my head before I follow him.
I am now outside as the sun hits my face again. But, instead of loathing the sun's rays as before, I instead tolerate its warmth because of the cold air outside. The ground near my feet is littered with leaves of various colors such as red and brown. The trees themselves are the same color just like the ones in the Viridian Forest. From where I'm standing, I can see a large pool in the middle surrounded by wooden chairs. To the left, I can see a fire pit and, like the pool, it's surrounded by chairs. To the right I see a shed and it appears to be locked. Basically, it's a large backyard and it's big enough to host a mini-marathon!
I hear footsteps as Orion runs toward me on all fours, cheerfully. Suddenly, with no warning, he jumps on me. I am forced into the grass before he jumps off me.
"!" I try to say.
Orion then rushes towards me again and starts hitting my ears and head with his paws. I get frustrated and try to shake him off which only gets him to pounce all over me. Finally, I push him off me and he runs away. Something inspires me to chase him all over the yard. From this, I discover that my ability to run on all fours is improving and I am finally able to make a decent effort; however, I still need improvement. I tripped, falling down hard on the ground. Orion heard me fall and smiles mischievously. He turns around and jumps on me once again which irritates me even more.
"Oh come on Lucas. Surely you can do better!" He crosses his arms on top of my head, teasing me.
I get him off me again and the chase resumes. As I pursue the Pikachu he looks back at me and doesn't realize the obstacle he is about to bump into. He looks back to see what's in front of him and suddenly makes a stop, allowing me to jump on him in return. I start to mess around with his ears and head just as he did but he immediately forces me off as well. I start running away as he chases me now; however, I am quick to realize that my speed, as always, is not up to par with Orion's. As a result, he smiles puckishly again before he tackles me like a linebacker. As I try to get him off me, he nibbles one of my ears.
"Come on Orion. That's enough."
"What's wrong Lucas?" He retorts before he resumes biting my ear.
"Get off!" I suddenly use electricity from my cheeks to try and force him off me. He jumps off.
Orion is unaffected by the electricity generated from me for obvious reasons. He laughs in response, proudly placing his paws near his hips, "Oh, so that's how you wanna play, okay."
I stand up and wipe dirt off my body, "Don't be absurd. Why would you and I battle?"
He uses quick-attack and suddenly appears in front of me before I have time to react. His spiteful deed almost causes me to fall on my back, "Why not? It's a chance for you to find out if you have what it takes to go up against me." He smiles before he turns around and walks away. My hands start shaking: the tone in his voice suggests that he is being serious.
I gulp with worry, "I didn't mean to zap you." I say, since I know I don't stand a chance against Orion. I don't even think my ability to (slightly) take more damage, thanks to the formula, would make the slightest difference.
"You're backing down?" He shrugs, "What a shame." My relief soon vanishes after he turns and faces me; his cheeks giving off electricity, "What if I give you no choice but to fight me?" He releases a small lightning bolt in my direction, I yelp in surprise before I narrowly miss his attack, "Orion, you're not seriously thinking about doing this are you!?" I yell back at him.
"Yup, I am." He retorts as he unleashes more lightning bolts toward me. I try to avoid his barrage of small ThunderBolts but I am eventually struck by one during the scuffle. I fall on my back. After catching my breath, I stand up, wiping leaves off my back. I'm surprised that I wasn't hurt by the attack, but then I remember that there's a reason for it.
"Gotcha."
I stomp my foot on the grass, "What the heck were you thinking!? You scared me!"
"I'm taking it easy on you Lucas. Try your best 'cause I know you won't beat me." Orion laughs.
I nod my head in agreement, "Okay Orion…if that's how it's going to be."
"Keep your eyes on me!" He uses quick-attack again and I am almost blown off my feet, yet he doesn't hit me directly, "Hey! I told you to keep looking at me." He swiftly passes by me several times from different sides as I try to grab him. Then, he begins circling around me very quickly as I try to stop him. Unfortunately, I soon pant with exhaustion and I can hear him laughing because of it. He finally stops near me and says, "I guess you still need a lot more practice!" He laughs as I growl. I run towards him but he once again moves away within a fraction of a second.
"Over here, lover boy!" Orion retorts. I take shallow breaths and wipe sweat off my forehead before unleashing ThunderShocks at him. He, of course, avoids them with no effort involved as he goes to different locations of the yard where nothing flimsy is in sight, "You have to do better if you want to impress Jen!" I grit my teeth hard as I continue using my electric attacks on him. Eventually, he sprints toward me, sidestepping any bolts that travel to him. I try one more time to get him but it narrowly misses when Orion moves his shoulder slightly back. The small Pikachu stops just a few inches from me, and I gasp as a result. He places a paw on my chest, "Tag, you're it." He says in a calm, casual voice. I slowly try to tag him back as he stands there and does nothing. And, as expected, he dodges my attempt and appears several feet away, waiting for me to tag him. I run to catch him but he continues to avoid any move I make toward him. I finally stop and collapse on the grass, "Okay Orion, I give up…I admit defeat." The smaller Pikachu snickers to himself as he walks to me. Tired from the scuffle, I spread my arms and close my eyes, panting excessively. Orion soon joins me and lies next to me.
"Don't worry Lucas. I'll get you in shape." He says without any hint of exhaustion between his breaths. We both stare at the sky for several seconds before Orion sits up and leans toward me, "I have a lot to learn myself."
"Yea, your writing is improving." I tell him.
Orion lies back down on the grass, "I hope I'll be able to speak to Rigel very soon."
"There's no guarantee it'll work the same for you, but we can try." I retort.
"We have to try really hard Lucas. I'm really anxious to start talking to humans!"
I sigh before I say softly to myself, "I am too."
A minute passes by and Orion turns his head to me, "How did you manage to start speaking to humans anyway?"
I shake my head, "Not sure, it just happened. Maybe it's because I learned how to pronounce human words again."
"It would be so much easier if humans could speak our language." Orion sighs.
"Though, it would be awkward to hear Rigel say 'Pikachu' every time he talks." I add.
"I know…that would be strange, but we do it instead of them." He says.
"Wait, what, so you know that humans only hear Pokémon say their names to communicate?"
"Didn't we have this conversation before?" Orion asks.
"I don't remember." I retort, "What I DO remember is that Pikachu only speak their name…at least they did when I was human."
"Rigel said that once. It makes sense though 'cause we're actually saying different variations of our specie's name right now Lucas, it's just that our ears understand the meaning behind it."
"That's interesting, so you guys learn the same way we humans do?" I sit up as well.
"Pretty much." Orion lies back down and puts his paws behind his head.
We then hear a door slide open and we look behind us: it's Rigel. He's carrying a small box with him.
"Hey, would you guys like anything to eat?" Rigel says while closing the door.
I sit up and raise an eyebrow toward Orion, "I am hungry after all that running." Orion chuckles softly to himself. We both nod soon after.
My stomach growls which cause Orion to chuckle even louder than before, but then as if on cue, Orion's stomach growls as well; this causes me to laugh back at him in response.
Our growls and giggles are so loud that Rigel is able to hear us. He reaches into his box and takes out a cake-like snack. We both stand up to inspect the item he is holding. I look at it while an intoxicating smell enters my nostrils. It immediately makes saliva run down from my mouth. I shake my head soon after and wipe the saliva off my lips before I move a few inches back. I lean over to Orion, "What exactly is that?" I ask Orion as he leans toward me as well.
"It's a cake, I'm sure you've heard of them." He retorts sarcastically.
I shake my head, "It's unlike any cake I've ever seen before."
"It's a Poké puff." He explains.
"Oh…so it's not a cake?" I ask, he doesn't respond. Orion starts giggling to himself, "It is…it's just cake for Pokémon and only for Pokémon. This one time, Rigel got sick after he tried a piece to see how it tastes like."
"I don't blame him, it looks good."
"Wait till you eat it." Orion smiles happily.
Rigel gives Orion and I Poké puffs. The color of Orion's Poké puff is orange while mine is light brown.
"I hope you enjoy!" Rigel says before sitting down on the grass next to us.
I hold the Poké puff with my small and clumsy hands. I expect myself to devour it relentlessly after taking it, but truth be told…I didn't know what to expect from eating it. I look to my left: Orion seems to be enjoying his just fine, maybe a little too much. Nevertheless, my hunger soon makes me give in to temptation: I grab the bottom with my hand and I take a very small chunk of pastry off from the puff with my other hand. I stuff it in my mouth slowly, ready to spit it out if any problems arise; however, I fall into a trance instead. The wonderful Oran berries I've eaten previously in the forest were above all else heavenly; however, Poké Puffs are a step ahead of them, it was taking my experience to a whole new level. My mouth tingles with unutterable flavor of sweets; my mind conquered with feelings of ecstasy and bliss. My entire body seems to gain a feeling of calm and control. Rigel takes notice of my expression and says, "First time eating them huh? All Pokémon do the same thing" He says after looking at Orion, "Poké Puffs are like catnip for Pokémon."
I gorge the rest of the Poké puff with delight. When I'm finished, I jump up and down, obviously pleased with the experience, so I immediately motion him to give me more. Rigel takes out another, "This is the last one, please share it."
I nod afterwards, understanding. I split the cake into half and give one half to Orion who happily takes it from me. We both smile cutely as we eat our Poké puffs. I can't believe I am thinking about this but I think that Pokémon food is tastier than human food! From what I've eaten after leaving the laboratory, it's been nothing but pure delight for me. I'm thinking it's because of my new taste buds and it's just that damn good!
Rigel reaches over to pet the both of us and, for a moment, I allow him to. He stands up after grabbing the box and reenters the house, leaving Orion and I alone again. We lie on the grass once again and sigh in comfort.
"I can't believe I'm starting to like this." I say softly but Orion hears me, "It feels good right…to be a Pokémon?" I close my eyes tightly and think about what he had just said.
We hear Rigel open the sunroom's door once again and he calls for us. We stand up and walk inside.
…
An hour passes by. Rigel's mother has returned home and is now preparing dinner. The three of us sit by the counter in the kitchen. Just as before, she was kind enough to let us sit on the chairs to eat alongside Rigel and her. Rigel's dad returns home soon before dinner and we all eat together. During chow, Rigel's dad reveals to us that he got into contact with Bill and will be available next week. At first I am worried about the long wait, but then my attitude changes when I realize this could be a good time to train with Orion and help with his English. After dinner, we watched television with Rigel and that's when we saw the news. According to the weather report, a thunderstorm is heading toward Viridian City and Orion knew exactly what was going to happen next: Rigel's father will take us outside.
"Alright Rigel, let's go put them in the shed before it gets bad outside." His father, hearing the broadcast from the other room, stands up from the kitchen counter and shouts.
Rigel picks me up as I groan, "The shed!? Come on!"
"It's not bad, you'll see." Orion says as he follows us outside.
Rigel's dad leads us outside and he unlocks the door of the shed. We all hear thunder in the distance, "It'll just be for a while Lucas." Rigel tells me as I keep my sour expression.
George, Rigel's dad, opens the door and turns on the light inside. I am surprised to see that the inside of the shed is actually quite welcoming: there's a chair with a lamp beside it, a window, a floor mat, several toys belonging to Orion, and a fan on the ceiling.
The human places me inside and Orion enters as well before George closes the door behind us shut. Now it's just me and Orion inside the shed with the outside beginning to get noisy from the storm.
"Rigel's dad is pretty determined." I say.
"Well, it's a precaution. Two Pikachu living in the same house is never good when there's a storm coming."
Orion smiles before he jumps on the chair to look outside, "I'm so excited! I haven't seen a thunderstorm here in a while!" He opens the window which makes me blink twice.
He turns to me and says, "Come on Lucas!"
"But…what if."
"He's not coming back out, trust me." The Pikachu says before I ask, "Why would we go out during a storm? Haven't we been in the rain enough…you know…with our escape and everything?"
"You'll like it, trust me."
I cross my arms, "The last time I was in a storm, a giant robot tried to kill me."
"Just come!" The Pikachu shouts as I roll my eyes, "Okay, fine!"
Orion squeezes through the window before I do the same, though with some effort. We are outside once again. Rain starts to hit my face and body. I begin to get soaked by the storm and I groan in response.
"I just love getting struck by lightning." He says as I stand next to him. The way he said it, so casual, as if getting struck by lightning was a normal thing to do, was so strange to me. Yet, I remember that Pikachu love to gather with other members of their species during storms.
"We should be in a safe distance from the house, come on!" He runs as I try to follow him. Pellets of rain hit my face as I do so and the wind prevents me from going any faster. Orion, however, is not affected by any of this.
Orion leads me to a fence and he goes through a small gap underneath as I follow. We end up in an area away from the house on a field untouched by the neighborhood. He sighs as I stare at him, "You do this often…do you?"
"How did you know?" He turns to me and smiles while closing his eyes.
Then suddenly, a loud crack of thunder is heard just above us and I jump in surprise. Orion is unmoved by the loud sound and says, "Nice, right?" My body shakes from the thunder.
"Are you ready?" He asks.
"For what?" I tilt my head in confusion.
"Um…to get struck by lightning?" He says casually.
I jump, surprised at what he said, and I look down at him with a traumatized expression, "What the heck, why would you ask something like that?"
"What?" He tilts his head in confusion but then nods to himself, "Oh…right. Well, it's perfectly normal for a Pikachu to get struck by lightning. It doesn't hurt us. In fact, it gives us a lot of energy and happiness when we come into contact with them. I mean, weren't you struck by lightning when the robot attacked you? Didn't you tell me this?"
"I don't remember, it could have been my ThunderShock." I retort.
"Well it's the same thing, silly. You won't get hurt I promise."
"This isn't small as your lightning bolts Orion, this is a lightning bolt from the sky!" I shout, with an anxious voice.
"Just calm down" He tells me, "Besides, I haven't had a recharge in over a month. Tonight is a great night to do it!" Orion responds as I feel sweat drop on my forehead, "It'll make us feel a lot better since we've been through a lot Lucas."
"Orion!"
"When I used ThunderBolt for the first time, didn't you feel a connection to it even though you weren't the one using it?"
"Orion, I don't know…"
"You can release all your anger, all your worries, Lucas. You're going to have to trust me, Lucas. Can you trust me on this…I promise it won't hurt." Orion says.
"Look." He steps away from me and brandishes his tail toward the sky and raises his arms in the air as well. In a fraction of a second, a bright flash makes me close my eyes before I see Orion's body engulfed by a large lightning bolt. He yells loudly before it disappears. His body is surrounded by small lightning shards afterwards. He opens his eyes and looks at me happily, "Come on Lucas, you can do this." He gestures me to come. I hesitate for several seconds before I give in, "I hope you're right about this Orion."
I walk to stand next to him and he looks up at me, "Okay, so…put your paws above your head and extend your tail upwards like this…" He demonstrates, "…and just let it happen."
I nod with worry, "Okay…"
I lift my arms and my tail towards the sky as Orion does the same simultaneously. Soon after, before I can react, a lightning strikes the both of us. I close my eyes and yell in fear but that is soon replaced by curiosity as my body begins to feel strange. We both lift off the ground for just a second as I suddenly feel energized. Feelings of nirvana overtake me. I open my eyes slowly as my feet touch the ground once again. All I can do is smile.
"I…I…"
"I knew you would like it!" Orion smiles too.
"I loved it! Oh my god! How could I have hated it!? It feels so…strange yet so…amazing! I can't believe how great that felt!" I shout as Orion jumps up and down in happiness.
"Come on, let's go for another one!" He says just as we hear another loud crack of thunder. Instead of reacting to the loud bang in fear, I welcome its sound. I continue to feel rain on my face. I sigh and I reach out towards the sky as Orion does the same, "Thank you Orion."
Another lightning strikes us.
