My head was absolutely pounding. Everything felt numb, from my legs to my cheeks, and my ears felt as if they were bleeding. I groaned as I cracked my eyes open to see a dark orange and purple sky. Dark clouds were just starting to disperse and I glossed over the majestic looking rainbow in the North in favor of closing my eyes again.

My attempt to soothe my shrilling headache only lasted about two seconds when I heard groaning from beside me. I almost groaned, but refrained. That would take way too much energy right now...

"Pikachu...?"

I didn't open my eyes.

"Are you awake...Pikachu...?"

I felt something tickle against my fur before a gentle pressure was applied to my skin. It was running through my fur and though my cheeks sparked from reflex, I almost relaxed under it.

Wait. Was that kid seriously...petting me?

"PiKA!"

"OW! Hey, what was that for-Pikachu!" Ash shrieked with joy despite the shocking I had just given him and, I'm sorry to say, I was then forced to open my eyes. I sighed and looked at the boy with annoyance. He was lying right by my side on the ground, covered head to toe in scratches and dirt. "You're okay!"

I rolled my eyes. "Of course I am. Who do you mistake me for, some weak ol' magikarp?"

"Hey, magikarp are actually really cool, okay?! But you were still pretty awesome yourself, so I guess you deserve a pat on the back for that." Ash had the audacity to grin at me.

"You guess? You guess?"

"Yeah, I guess." Ash waved me off before he looked around. "So, what happened with all those spearow, anyway?"

I rolled my eyes at the subject change. "How the hell am I supposed to know? Maybe they died. Or got eaten. Or ran away."

"Probably the last one," Ash said quickly, and I snorted. He looked around, as well as one could while lying flat on the ground of a muddy trench. A moment of silence passed. "...so, does this mean that..." he said as he averted his eyes from my own.

I narrowed my eyes. Damn, I hate when mons do that. Now I find out humans do this shit too?

"Does this mean..." he swallowed and rushed to his next statement, "that you're staying with me...?"

I stared. He stared back.

It was an honest question. I had decided a split second before we were about to die, so naturally he wouldn't know of my decision. Then again, did I even know what the hell my decision was?

Ash flinched. I sighed. Deciding not to question the thoughts I buried underneath the surface, I gave him my answer.

"Yes."

Ash froze. Then his eyes lit up with glee. "You mean-?!"

"Ugh, for the love of-yes, I'm coming with you! But-!" I glared at him to get his excitement under control. "-this does NOT mean we are friends. I'm giving you a chance, that's all."

Ash's eyes softened. "You won't regret this, I promise."

I didn't look him in the eye. "...whatever."

Ash opened his mouth to say something again but was cut off by a bird cry. I froze, the cry reverberating throughout my entire being. We exchanged wide eyed looks and looked toward the sky.

A large, golden colored bird that shimmered in the colors of the rainbow flew overhead. I felt the wind brush against my fur and my breath caught. The bird pokemon, or whatever it was, flew toward the majestic looking rainbow from earlier and vanished as quickly as it came.

I wasn't entirely sure why, but I felt my stomach turn at the bird's presence. Weird. Maybe I was just thinking of the fearow? It kind of looks like him, anyway...

I blinked as I tried to process my thoughts. Ash rubbed his eyes and stared. He turned toward me with an expression filled with elation and I groaned immediately. Here we go...

"Wow, that was so cool!" He said excitedly. "Did you see that thing, Pikachu? Do you think it was a pokemon? Have you met any pokemon like that before? It was awesome, right!?"

"Yes," I replied, rolling my eyes. "It was very awesome. Now can you calm the hell down already-?"

Ash's smile instantly fell off his face and changed to an expression filled with worry. "Pikachu, you're bleeding!" He scrambled to sit up and checked over me. I pushed his hands away from me with a hiss.

"I'm fine." I huffed, trying to sit up myself. When I found that I couldn't I checked over myself this time and felt my stomach turn when I realized there was blood on me. "Oh..." I felt lightheaded and nauseous at the same time and I didn't like it at all.

"Come on," Ash muttered and gathered me in his arms, despite my weak protests. "We need to get you to a Poke Center."

By the time we arrived at the nearby human civilization, it was already dusk. Ash had gotten into an altercation with a strange blue haired woman named Officer Jenny, on account of her assuming he had stolen me. Well, she was right to be suspicious, considering how the guy who'd given me to Ash in the first place DID steal me in the first place...hell, maybe if Ash had gotten in trouble, that professor would've too.

...hm. I'm going to have to put a pin on that...

Ash cleared up the situation by showing the blue haired woman a strange red device called a Poke Dex. Its name was Dexter and could apparently talk like a human. So, it backed Ash up by explaining that he was in fact my...trainer. I thought it was a strange device, but couldn't help but find myself drawn to it. Unfortunately, before I could pester it with my questions, Ash put it away.

The blue haired woman invited Ash onto a small vehicle that kind of reminded me of a car.

"What's wrong?" Ash asked, when I began squirming.

"I'm not going in that thing," I snapped, scanning the vehicle frantically. "You can't make me."

"Pikachu, we have to-"

"No!"

Ash cast a helpless look at the blue haired woman, who was frowning. She frowned. "Do you know what's wrong with it, young man?"

"No...I don't think he likes motorcycles for some reason..."

"...I see..." The woman's frown deepened. She looked over at me sympathetically, but then her expression hardened. "However, that pikachu is gravely injured and we can't waste any more time than we already have. You're just going to have to hold on to it tightly."

Ash's arms tightened only slightly and I felt myself begin to panic as he sat down on the thing. I frantically looked around and sent sparks to try and get them to back down, but my cheeks fizzed out. I let out a gasp, realizing that I couldn't use my electricity. My breathing quickened, the woman sat on the motorcycle, Ash held on to her, and the vehicle lurched forward before it set off.

Wait.

...there weren't any seat-belts on this thing?

I let out the breath I hadn't realized I had been holding. Then I glared at the blue haired woman. Stupid, stupid, stupid, bitch and her stupid "motorcycle" or whatever the hell it was called-

"Hey," Ash whispered. "What was that all about?"

I glared. Ash didn't seem phased in the slightest and continued prodding. "I can't help you if I don't know what's wrong. Do you not like motorcycles or something?"

"You don't need to know," I snapped, then turned away. Ash frowned and stroked my fur. I twitched, but was far too tired to fight with him, so the touch remained. I was pretty sure that I was going to murder Ash once I got better, regardless of if I was giving him a chance or not.

Everything afterward passed by in a blur. I was far too exhausted to deal with anything right now and eventually found myself dozing off when we arrived at the Poke Center. I awoke some time later to a rhythmic beeping sound. I cracked my eyes open to see that I was lying on a bed with strange wires attached to my arms and my cheeks. There was white bandages wrapped around my torso as well. I frowned and moved to take the stupid things off but was stopped by a hand grabbing my paws.

"PikaCHUUU!"

I instinctively let out a Thundershock. My face morphed into a scowl when I recognized who the hand belonged to.

"Ash." I addressed the human by name. He was on the floor, groaning in a lopsided position.

He sat up and his face brightened. "Pikachu! You're awake!"

"Obviously," I said dryly. "Now, why the hell aren't you letting me take these stupid things off?"

"You can't take the bandages off!"

"Not the bandages, stupid! I'm talking about these weird wires!"

Ash relaxed. "Let's wait for Nurse Joy first, okay?"

"Nurse who?" I demanded, reaching the end of my patience. "Okay, I'm not waiting for anybody, you asshole. I want these stupid things off of my freaking-"

The door opened suddenly and a chansey rushed in. A pink haired woman walked in after it. "I'm so sorry for the wait," the pink haired woman said as the chansey began to take off my wires. About freaking time. I glared at the pokemon through the whole process. "I had to help a child's oddish with some poisoning..."

"That's alright," Ash smiled. "So, is Pikachu gonna be okay?"

"Yes, don't worry. Pikachu should be able to make a full recovery. However...while most of the wounds were light and should be almost completely gone within a few days...others were slightly deeper. They could really end up hurting it if it doesn't take it easy, so look out for it, okay?"

I looked down at my bandages, wondering what in the world this lady was talking about. I felt completely fine. Hell, I felt better than fine! Clearly, the woman was deluding herself. From what I've seen, humans were very good at that, so it wouldn't be too surprising. Maybe I could shock her out of her delusion? It would help us both. That way I didn't have to be annoyed by her and she wouldn't be declared as delusional by society.

The woman spoke to Ash for a while longer, but I tuned them out and instead looked out the window. It was completely dark outside, the city lights illuminating the sky. Despite only seeing a part of it from the window, the city felt ginormous. The buildings looked tall from a distance. I couldn't even begin to imagine how tall they were up close. The way the lights practically lit up the sky...for a bunch of stupid humans, they seemed to know how to make things look nice.

Eventually, the woman left and I felt Ash's presence take its annoying ass place next to me. "What do you think? The city lights are really pretty, right?"

"I don't really care," I said with a toss of my head. "All the lights just distract from the stars, which are way nicer than whatever the hell humans can come up with."

"...is that what you really think?"

I didn't respond. I willed him to go away with my mind, but nothing seemed to be working. This pesky kid just refused to leave me alone.

Oh, yeah. This was him trying to become my so-called "friend". Right. Stupid me.

Stupid him for even trying, I thought bitterly.

Ash let his legs sway back and forth on the edge of the bed. It got annoying, so I politely asked him to stop. He did so upon seeing my sparking cheeks and silence fell between the two of us. At least until he began speaking again.

"Nurse Joy told me that you need to change your bandages in a bit. She also said I needed to give you a bath."

My ears twitched upon hearing that. The thought of a human giving me a bath...I shuddered. It was repulsive. Ash seemed to notice this and tried to reassure me. "I'll do it gently, I promise! I know you don't like feeling uncomfortable, right? I just need to make sure your bandages are always fresh. That, and, well...Nurse Joy had to quickly bandage you, so she only had time to clean around your wounds." He looked awkwardly at me. "You're kind of still dirty from all the mud..."

"I noticed."

"...so? Will you let me-?"

"No."

"But-"

"No."

Ash stared helplessly off into space for a moment. Then he cautiously spoke. "If I don't do it, then Nurse Joy is probably going to do it herself, and you don't know her. I know you don't trust me any more, but...at least you...kinda know me?"

It was the flimsiest excuse I've ever heard in my entire life. I hated the prospect of any human touching me, but at least I "kinda knew" this one. "Fine," I snapped, snarling a little. "You can change my stupid bandages."

"And give you a bath."

"Fine, whatever."

Ash tried to pick me up in his arms and I instantly began to object. "Hey, hands off!" I squirmed out of his grip. "I can walk just fine, you moron!"

Ash looked hesitant before he relented. He led me through the hallway outside of the room. I couldn't help myself and looked around. The place was bustling with other humans and pokemon, mingling in groups or eating alone. I couldn't help but curl into myself. The amount of people and pokemon here made my stomach turn.

We walked into a different room with white tiles everywhere and a white tub in the corner of the room. What was this place called again...? Oh, right, a bathroom. I recalled the pidgeotto speaking of it before. Their description of an office was incredibly glamorous. Their description of a bathroom was incredibly generous. This place didn't look like a palace at all. Not to mention it smelled strangely, like the room I was in before smelled, only stronger. My nose twitched with irritation as Ash pulled a lever and water came rushing out of the spout and into the tub.

"Okay, so now we just got to wait..." he muttered to himself before getting back up. He turned to examine me. "Have you taken a bath before?"

I gave him an offended look. "If there wasn't running water nearby," I growled, "I'd shock you."

"What!? Why?" Ash jumped in alarm.

"Because you asked a stupid question, that's why!"

"It was a perfectly valid question!" He complained.

"You mean it was a perfectly stupid question!" I snapped back. "Of course I've bathed before. Contrary to what humans may think, pokemon can actually keep themselves clean, you know."

"That's not what I-" Ash huffed. "I mean have you taken this kind of bath? Like one with hot water and bubbles."

...bubbles?

At my confused face, Ash nodded. I snarled at the condescending tone in his voice. "Thought so." He looked back at the tub, now filled to the top with water and steam rising from it, then went over to a cabinet. He pulled out a bottle of...something, and poured it into the water. Or rather, "squeezed" is a more fitting word, I suppose.

"Okay, done." Ash said proudly. I gave him an unimpressed look as he walked over to me. He held his hands out then hesitated. "Um...I just realized the tub's kinda deep..."

"So?"

"Er...I'd have to hold you, then."

I narrowed my eyes. "You didn't think about this before?"

"...no?"

I rolled my eyes in annoyance then shuffled over to him. "Fine. But the second we're finished, I want your filthy hands off of me, got that?"

"Right...got it." He bit his lip before gently picking me up and holding me inside the water. I expected cold water like what I was used to, but nearly shrieked when I felt hot water greet me instead.

It was unexpected but...it felt nice, somehow. Relaxing, even. Back in the forest, if you somehow managed to find a body of water to bathe in, you'd have to constantly keep watch for the next pokemon who'd be willing to kill you over it. There were only a few scattered ponds in Mountain-side and almost all of them had been claimed by incredibly territorial pokemon. I would always sneak into the pond nearest to me, regardless of whose it was. I had to look over my shoulder almost every second to ensure that nobody would sneak attack me from behind and turn the water red.

But this...this was...

"Do you like it?"

Ash's voice snapped me out of my thoughts and I tried to give him a glare, but failed. The water just felt so warm and inviting, I felt my muscles loosen up. "It's...it's...okay..." I muttered, trying to hide my growing blush.

Ash gave me a big grin and lathered some soap into my fur. "Let's get you cleaned up."

The next few moments passed by in silence and I was forced to admit that it was a rather blissful experience. Ash's fingers massaged my fur as he washed out all the grime and dirt. It was in gentle, circular motions that made me feel all gooey and warm inside.

If the opposite of hell actually existed, I was sure that this would be it. This was unlike anything I've ever experienced before. It was quiet, nothing filling my ears but the soothing sounds of the hot water splashing. Ash remained quiet too, and for that single moment I could forget the fact that a filthy human was giving me a bath.

Good things never lasted, however, and I felt Ash pull me out of the water. I felt my heart sink and I began squirming in Ash's arms. "Put me back," I snapped.

Ash frowned. "You can't stay in there forever. I need to change your bandages, remember? You'll open your wounds again if you stay in for too long."

That felt stupid to me and so continued to protest. Ash paid me no heed and pulled a cord from inside the tub. I watched helplessly as the water began to drain, feeling a lump in my throat. I wasn't sure what was wrong with me. What was wrong with me? It was a stupid human commodity, nothing more. It was nothing to get upset over...

I shook my head. No, I wasn't upset over that. It was the fact that Ash only chose now to shut up. Any other time he would talk my ear off, but only now does he decide to shut his damn mouth. Confident that this was in fact the reason for my general upset, I sent dark glares toward Ash as he dried my fur and carefully re-dressed my wounds.

However, he seemed to misinterpret my glares, much to my chagrin. "I can give you a bath later, if you really want. Just, you can't take it all the time, okay? It wastes a lot of water."

I tried not to perk up, though I felt elation rise in my heart that I desperately tried to fight down. I looked away and muttered, "Whatever, I don't care", hoping that was enough to placate the damn human.

Ash hummed to himself in reply and I mulled over in my head as to what that meant. I followed Ash outside, distracted. What was that supposed to mean? A human? Humming? Was it some sort of secret code I was supposed to understand? Was he mocking me? I growled at that. Nobody mocked me and got away with it-

I bumped into something and fell on the floor. I scowled at the small figure, almost twice my size in stature, and let off sparks in anger. The figure wore a trench coat, glasses, and hat, obscuring his image. "What's wrong with you?"

"Me?" The voice complained. "What da heck did I do? Yer da one who bumped inta me!"

I froze, suddenly realizing that the figure in front of me, against all reason, was able to understand me.

That's twice now...I eyed the figure with skepticism. He brushed himself off and leered at me, showing off his very feline-like eyes. I felt a twinge of instinctual fear that I simply couldn't explain. "Watch yerself, rat."

My fur bristled and I nearly lashed out at him if it weren't for Idiot Boy shouting my name. I glared at the retreating figure, trying to fight down that unsettled feeling, before I turned and ran after Ash, who was sitting on one of the many couches in the Poke Center.

Ash beckoned me to sit next to him and I hesitantly obliged. He seemed to want me to sit in his lap, but I chose to put some distance between us. Boundaries. This boy didn't seem to understand them. His face fell but he quickly recovered. "Who was that?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"...that guy you bumped into. Um...the short one with the trench coat and hat."

I shrugged. "How the hell am I supposed to know? That asshole just bumped into me then blamed it on me, as if it were my fault he wasn't watching where he was going." I muttered that last part. "That, and I guess you're not the only one who can understand pokemon."

Ash looked at me with an expression of disbelief. "What do you mean? That guy could understand what you were saying?"

"What else could I mean?" I replied hotly. "I asked him what was wrong with him and he got all offended for some reason."

Ash frowned, deep in thought. Then something flashed across his face and his eyes widened. "Wait. Backtrack. Pikachu, do you remember that spearow from earlier?"

"Kinda hard to forget," I snapped.

"I..." he groaned. "Man, I messed up...I slipped up when we talked to him, remember? I quoted him, word for word..."

"Yeah, I remember," I recalled. "You repeated what he said, to stop calling me a bad word or whatever..." The words tumbled out of my mouth uncomfortably for some reason but I shrugged it off. Maybe I was still feeling woozy from the incident itself.

"Did he seem surprised to you?" Ash asked seriously, and suddenly I realized what this was about. "Don't you think that's a little strange? He's from the Mountain-side, right? Pokemon shouldn't be used to seeing humans, let alone ones that can speak just like pokemon."

He had a point. I shrugged it off at the time, assuming it to stem from how he was the fearow's eldest son and often went to human civilizations for supplies or recon or whatever the hell the fearow wanted him to get, but...the eldest spearow seemed to be completely indifferent to Ash's ability to understand Syllabus.

I narrowed my eyes. The more I mulled over it the more I realized how strange it was.

"And that rattata you knew, too...she kind of just got over my whole thing pretty fast-"

"We don't need to worry about her," I deadpanned. "She's just a freak, that's all."

"That's kinda mean."

"I don't care."

Ash grinned. "Sure, you don't."

"I don't." I said firmly, feeling my frustration rise. Ash opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by a loud blaring sound.

I jumped at the sound, nearly letting out a shriek myself. "What is that?!"

Ash's brow creased. "An alarm. But why-?"

"Attention all citizens!" I identified the voice as the one belonging to the annoying blue haired woman from earlier. What the hell did she want now? Why was this woman making it her goal to cause me misery wherever I went? My frustration from before the alarm began blaring began to direct itself toward the woman, whom I promptly decided was on my hate list. Guess I knew who else to point fingers toward the next time I get in a pinch. "This is a Code Blue level emergency! Members of Team Rocket have been spotted near the Viridian City Pokemon Center. Please stay calm and keep your pokemon with you at all times-"

Ash stood up instantly and held out his arms. "Stay close to me," he ordered, and I glared at him. "Please, Pikachu. Otherwise, they'll make me put you in your Poke Ball and I know you don't like that."

I hesitated before jumping in his arms. I was beginning to notice an irritatingly omniscient pattern with this boy. It gave me mixed feelings, each battling the other out for dominance. I didn't want to deal with that, though. Not now.

Ash held me close to his chest and walked over to a long desk at the center of the room, where a large group of people were gathering, holding their pokemon close or putting them back into their Poke Balls. I shuddered as I saw a nearby sandshrew turn into a strange red energy that was visibly pulled into its trainer's Poke Ball. How could any pokemon actually enjoy spending time in those things?

"Nurse Joy!" Ash called out and pushed his way toward the crowd. The pink haired woman was seen urgently talking to the blue haired woman. An orange haired girl stood next to them with a stern look plastered on her face. She looked awfully young compared to the other two women. Was she their daughter or something? Were the pink and blue haired women mates?

I pondered that for a moment and realized that it certainly made a lot of sense. Blue plus pink made orange, right? I nodded vigorously. So that was their daughter. Not like I particularly cared, but at least I knew who to use as a hostage, in case...I don't know, just in case!

Ash almost made it toward the three women before a thick, dark smog filled the room. People began to panic, their voices overlapping in waves.

"Please remain calm!" The blue haired woman spoke into a strange device that made her voice resound throughout the entire area. "Stay right where you are and-"

She never got to finish her sentence. Somebody screamed and everyone's attention was diverted toward the center of the room.

There was a beat of silence, then I heard the very distinct sound of cracking glass.

My eyes widened. Ash's arms tensed around me.

Then every single glass pane in the Poke Center exploded.

Day early release, but this is because I have finals next week and really need to cram. Luckily, I have my winter break right after, so I can work on writing during that time. However, that means there won't be any releases until probably the first week of January.

Thank you for reading and please review! I'd love to hear your feedback! :)