Chapter 54: I Don't Want to Know
Life went on as it usually did, crazy misadventures and all. It was only about half an hour after Pikachu and Buneary's talk when Dawn announced that she was ready to leave. Unable to withstand another wave of emotions, the ex-couple gave one more heartfelt goodbye before the bunny requested to be put in her Pokéball.
And just like that, Dawn and Piplup boarded a plane out of the region, though not before the penguin had his own little emotional goodbye with Oshawott. Somehow for the two prideful Water-types, the constant butting of heads had developed into a type of friendly rivalry that equated into male bonding because after briefly giving each other death glares, they started crying in each other's arms.
And so...things in Unova went back to how they were, with the league just over the horizon.
The tearful goodbyes didn't stop there however. Not long after Dawn had left, the gang had another harrowing run-in with another, more familiar faction of Team Rocket. This time, Giovanni himself had participated in summoning the Forces of Nature! After several close calls where things looked rather dire, in the end, Giovanni and the rest of Team Rocket retreated from the region and Meloetta had managed to calm the legendary trio. With that, the world was saved, another notch under Ash and Pikachu's belt by this point.
And when all was said and done, it came time for Meloetta to part ways with everyone. With the threat gone and the day being saved, the mythical sprite parted ways with Ridley back to her village.
Needless to say, Oshawott was once again devastated.
And so, the journey continued...on and on.
Ash and Pikachu...partners always with somewhere to be. It didn't stop with Unova, nor the next region or the region after that. This was what they wanted. To always travel the land and become stronger. New faces, friends and even enemies...
This was the life for them.
Even if for a certain mouse, there was a strangely vacant feeling in his chest. It was subtle...but it was there.
They continued onwards and saw faces of all sorts, friendly and amiable, hostile and frustrating, simple and enigmatic. They witnessed lands of all sorts, geographies and environments that they hadn't been able to conceive of before. They shared countless moments, some exciting and ego-boosting and others...not so much.
All the while, Pikachu and Buneary had done their best to stay committed to talking to each other any chance they got, often demanding that their trainers take a little bit of time out of their day if there was a working phone nearby. Because of this, they were always kept updated about where they were in their respective careers.
Inevitably and rather unfortunately, life only got more complicated for the duo and the calls became delayed and not long after that, neither were able to get in touch nearly as often. Still, whenever they had the chance, they never forgot the promise that they had made all that time ago in Sinnoh to stay in touch.
And thus the two parties managed to keep at it.
For almost an entire year.
In all that time, Pikachu had only become stronger, a far cry from the mouse who struggled with Roark back at the beginning of his Sinnoh journey. Since that fateful week in Unova, he had met and faced off against so many others, showing to everyone around him that there was something truly unique within him, a potential to go above and beyond.
As for Buneary, her modeling career had only continued to take off! With more opportunities arising, she and Dawn had made the strategic move of focusing on this rather than contest performances though when the time came, the bunny would always demand to be included and get the chance to show off the other skillsets she possessed.
Their routes became hectic and random. Going from one region to the next only to return to the previous region and on and on. Sometimes things would align pretty nicely and they would perform in contests and other events however as a whole, their journeying bore little resemblance to how it was before Buneary's new career began to flourish. All the while, her friends continued to give her much-needed support and such a unique career allowed for them to make connections that they'd never thought of before. From other models to fashionistas to rising stars in the contesting world, it was as if they had stepped into a completely new life.
The modeling gigs themselves started off fairly small. Not long after leaving Unova, Dawn received a call for Buneary to do a photoshoot for a magazine in the Johto region although it wasn't nearly as recognizable as Poké Chic. Soon after that, she took any job that was offered. From modeling in magazines to anything regarding fashion even if it didn't necessarily suit her style. Slowly but surely, she started to make a name for herself yet all the while, she was waiting for her big break. For now, she was working her hardest to show her versatility, unable to slow down lest she lose any chance of truly making it.
Buneary did her best to never let her progress get to her head. Even still, when she was getting ready to do another photoshoot for a prominent magazine, the bunny couldn't help but wonder what someone like Oshawott would think given his reaction the first time he found out about her job.
Strangely and - to the bunny's pleasant surprise - most of the profits from her flourishing modeling career actually went to her, which she thought was rather unusual. What was a Pokémon supposed to do with money? Granted, she really shouldn't have been so taken aback by it since it was simply how doing a job worked but still...
Regardless, both she and Dawn were convinced to open up a special bank account to which the increasingly-popular bunny had sole access to.
As the money slowly but surely began to pile up, the rabbit could take comfort knowing that if a contest or modeling job required rather special outfits, she could afford it if she wanted.
With their respective journeys leading them on separate paths, Ash and Dawn's parties did not see each other in the flesh since the bluenette got aboard that plane on Unova.
Focusing on his own progress, Pikachu didn't even so much as feign interest in another girl, a faraway feeling of faithfulness still in his heart, even after going through the rest of Unova and the next region afterwards. Interestingly, Ash himself had caught the eyes of a sweet girl named Serena during their Kalos journey, their moments together often silently observed by his starter. It was funny, their interactions much of the time reminded him of his own past with Buneary, the bunny never truly leaving his mind no matter how far they had traveled. Actually, the young trainer at times showed himself to be even more dense when it came to romance as the girl was not much more subtle and shy than Buneary ever was.
And after all of that adventuring, wins and losses, good times and bad, Pikachu refused to even entertain the idea of dating again, not allowing another girl to come close to his heart...
...Well that was until one fateful month in Alola when he was hanging out with some of the Pokémon from their friend, Kiawe.
The day was somewhat uneventful with the typical routine: training, a little bit of talking and hanging out with friends...
Things really picked up around noon when Pikachu sat around some hot springs with Kiawe's three Fire-types: Charizard, Marowak and Turtonator.
The discussion started as one would expect from the mouse, that being the upcoming league and perhaps what lied ahead for him and his partner.
When the conversation somehow turned to their accomplishments, it came time for Pikachu to reveal some things that were previously unmentioned, mainly their last journey through Kalos. Discussing some of the highs and lows of going through that region, Serena's name came up.
"(Woah, so Ash really didn't know that the girl liked him?)" Charizard muttered, an eyebrow raised.
Pikachu shrugged, his eyes closed and a smug smile on his face. "(Pretty much! I mean...maybe on some level. But yeah...pretty much.)"
Turtonator looked over to glance at the young trainer who was conversing amongst some of the other humans. "(Man, I guess training and battling really are the main things in his head huh?)"
Pikachu chuckled. "(Well I'm sure he knows by now. She did kiss him after all.)"
"(Really...?)" Turtonator asked, looking back at the mouse. The others appeared rather intrigued.
"(Mhmm...)" Pikachu said with a proud nod. "(Right before we parted ways.)"
"(Huh...neat.)" Marowak muttered, his paws on his hips. "(I guess nobody can be in the dark after something like that. Heck, not even you.)"
Pikachu blinked at him. "(Hey. What's that supposed to mean?)"
Marowak's eyes looked amused. "(Heh, I mean you and Ash are one and the same. If he was confused, chances are that you would be too.)"
The others nodded and muttered in agreement. Looking between them, Pikachu pouted.
"(Well...I'll have you know that I went through the same thing as him and I certainly wasn't as blind to it!)" He shouted.
The other three stood in silence and right away, Pikachu regretted his decision to speak up. As he saw the others' curious gazes upon him, he felt a shiver go up his spine, a feeling that he hadn't experienced in quite some time.
"(You mean...?)" Charizard said before his words trailed off.
Pikachu nervously rubbed the back of his head and looked elsewhere. "(Er...yeah.)"
"(For real?)" Marowak asked.
"(For real.)" Pikachu firmly said.
The Fire-types looked at each other for a moment before returning their attention unto him.
"(How long did it take for you to catch on?)" Charizard asked.
"(Well...not that long. A month...I think.)" Pikachu replied, trying to remember that time in his life.
"(Bet it didn't end with a goodbye-kiss.)" Turtonator snickered to which the others followed.
Feeling a tad incensed by that, Pikachu huffed and looked away, his arms folded over his chest.
"(Hmmph! I'll have you know that that happened way before we parted ways!)" He grumbled.
Although the mouse was looking away, he could hear the light laughter immediately stop. As soon as he did, he looked back over them and he saw them all rather surprised.
"(Wait...hold on.)" Marowak said, shaking his head to clear his thoughts.
"(Pikachu...are you saying that...uhhh...)" Charizard amusedly muttered, twirling his wrist.
Pikachu looked between them and nodded his head. "(Yeah...we dated.)"
The mask fully coming off, the three Fire-types practically gasped at that.
"(You...dated? You?)" Marowak asked, eyeing the mouse up and down.
"(Yeah.)" The mouse replied.
"(A girl?)" Charizard followed.
"(Yes.)" Pikachu said, annoyance clear in his voice.
"(You had a girlfriend at one point...?)" Turtonator asked.
"(Yeah. So what? What's so hard to understand about that?)" Pikachu grumbled, becoming increasingly incensed.
The other three shuffled around a little uncomfortably.
"(It's just that...I mean you never talk about that kind of stuff. It's just kind of hard to imagine it is all.)" Turtonator replied.
Pikachu merely looked at them and scoffed. "(I've been busy. I haven't had a lot of time to pursue that kind of stuff.)"
"(Busier than you were back then?)" Charizard asked.
Pikachu stopped himself. "(Er...yeah I guess.)"
"(How long was it? I mean you dating her and all?)" Marowak asked, now truly curious.
Pikachu eased up a little bit and looked up at the sky. "(I think...most of the time through Sinnoh so...I guess over six months?)"
"(Sounds serious...!)" Turtonator said with a smile.
"(It was.)" Pikachu said with a shrug.
"(But...not anymore?)" Charizard asked with some hesitancy.
Pikachu sighed and looked at them. "(Not anymore. We're doing our own things for now. It's kind of complicated, but...if it's meant to be, it's meant to be.)"
Charizard looked amongst the others and then turned back to the mouse. "(She couldn't come with your group?)"
Pikachu merely shook his head. "(She's got some things going on that couldn't wait so we couldn't travel together.)"
"(What things?)" Marowak asked.
"(Contests and modeling jobs)" Pikachu replied.
The others jerked their heads back a little at that remark.
"(Seriously?)" Charizard asked.
"(Mhmm...)" Pikachu muttered.
"(And you just let her go...stupid bastard...)" Marowak said under his breath.
"(Hmm? What was that?)" Pikachu asked, looking over at him only for someone else to quickly interject.
"(What about using those teleporter things? You know, for Pokéballs? She could visit you right away.)" Turtonator asked.
Pikachu glanced at him. "(Like at a computer?)" He asked and saw the turtle nod his head. The mouse shrugged. "(Yeah that could work but she would have to go right back. Those modeling jobs take her all over the world and she's only getting busier. Plus, Ash and I are usually traveling in the middle of nowhere so I mean...)"
The others muttered understandingly.
"(And a long-distance relationship was out of the question?)" Turtonator asked.
Pikachu sighed, not expecting so many questions of this nature. "(We considered it but it wouldn't be like what we had. Actually it might make things worse.)"
Marowak merely shook his head. "(Heh...I mean a long-distance thing would definitely be tough. If I were you, I would've gone for it but heck, I don't know the full story so what can I say...)"
"(What do you mean by 'make things worse'?)" Charizard asked.
Pikachu looked over at him. "(I mean, that kind of thing could put a strain on what we have right now and...I dunno...just make everything harder.)" He said as his voice got progressively quieter and he looked away to tap his fingers together. "(I mean, right now there's a chance we can get back together but if we tried that sort of thing, it could crash and burn...and then it would all be over.)"
The other three looked at each other. When they looked back, they saw the mouse's depressed expression. Collectively, seeing their friend's saddened demeanor compelled them to speak up.
"(Listen, I can't say that I know this sort of stuff very well...)" Turtonator started to say. "(To go from a normal relationship to long-distance...maybe it could've worked out if you tried something like that, maybe it wouldn't have...)"
"(I hear those types of things don't often work out.)" Charizard muttered to himself.
Turtonator rolled his eyes. "(Regardless, if you two care about each other and things are still good between you...I guess I can see where you're coming from.)"
Pikachu sadly nodded his head.
"(I can't...)" Marowak quietly scoffed. Then he perked up a bit when he thought of something. "(Wait...)" He said firmly, causing everyone to look at him. "(Is this the same girl you sometimes call?)"
Pikachu's breath caught in his throat and a light pink blush dusted his face. "(Er...yeah...it is.)" He squeaked, brushing his foot against the gray rocks.
"(Like I said...sounds serious!)" Turtonator happily said. His smile eased up as he saw the mouse's dour face. "(I mean uhhh...yeah.)"
"(Jeez...who knew Pikachu had so much game!)" Marowak laughed.
The mouse's ears straightened upon hearing that. "(Hey! It's not like that! I mean...she liked me first so we sort of went from there.)" He muttered.
Marowak suddenly took on a proud pose and lightly tapped his bone across his chest. "(Tsk, I think it's time to get back in the game my friend! Sinnoh was a while ago so maybe ease up a bit eh?)"
Pikachu quietly let out a frustrated exhale. It's not like he was wrong, it's just that the thought of dating someone else wasn't very high on his to-do list.
"(I don't know...)" Pikachu muttered before Marowak took a step forward. "(Listen man, if another girl comes by...why reject her? Give it a shot! Oh, and be confident. Women love confidence!)"
Charizard raised an eyebrow at that. "(Based on all the girls you've dated right?)"
Marowak leered at him. "(That's not important! What is important is moving on!)"
Pikachu waved his paws, hoping to quell the growing argument. "(Guys, I appreciate it and all but-)"
"(Confidence Pikachu!)" Marowak repeated, pointing his bone at the mouse. "(Lest another guy comes along to sweep her off her feet in which case, you knock him out!)" He proclaimed, swiping his bone and cutting the air.
"(That's a bit much don't you think?)" Turtonator muttered.
"(No way!)" Marowak yelled, turning to his teammate. "(You gotta fight for her heart! Right?)" He insisted before turning back to Pikachu and winking at him. "(Trust me, you'll thank me later!)"
Unable to really reply to that, Pikachu put on a smile. "(Thanks Marowak. I'll uhh...keep that in mind.)" He laughed.
A few weeks later, Ash's traveling crew of Kiawe and Mimo had stumbled across a rather unusual setting: Pikachu Valley.
There, the gang met a pikachu enthusiast named Pikala. To say that the girl was eccentric was an understatement. She was head-over-heels obsessed! Dressing up in a pikachu outfit and using the word "Pika" in every other sentence, she was definitely one of the more interesting faces they'd come across in a while.
Bumping into her leg, Pikachu found himself being picked up and the girl's cheek nuzzled against his. Upon making physical contact with him, the girl correctly stated that he was from Kanto based on his silky smooth fur that sparkled in the sun.
The day only got more interesting upon meeting the inhabitants of the valley.
There were dozens of them, twice as many eyes on the Kanto mouse who reacted with a smile.
Acting like his usual friendly self, the visitor took it upon himself to break the ice.
"(Hi there!)" Pikachu called out to his own kind.
He waited for them to react yet they continued to silently stare at him. A moment later, Pikachu's smile faltered and one of his ears drooped.
"(Umm...hello?)" He confusedly muttered. Still, they didn't respond.
Thankfully, the attention turned to the group learning the basics of understanding the vernacular of the electric mouse's language followed by Kiawe getting overrun by a horde of them rushing out of Pikala's van.
As the humans continued to talk, Pikachu looked over at the inhabitants who seemed more curious than anything. It had been quite some time since he had been around so many of his own species. Off the top of his head, the last time he saw a group so large was way back in Kanto!
Not wanting to miss the opportunity to socialize, Pikachu put on a smile and, while on all fours, he walked over to them.
He stopped in the middle of the crowd and looked around. Some of them stared at him with cautious eyes while others scoffed and turned away. From a few feet behind, he could hear Pikala mentioning how everyone was avoiding him, probably due to being from out of the region.
"(Uhh...hi there.)" Pikachu nervously said, rubbing the back of his head. His expression changed when he saw a female nearly prance in front of the crowd before slowly approaching him on all fours.
According to Pikala, who declared from behind, her name was Curly.
For the most part, she looked as their species typically did albeit with a more unique puff of hair atop her head and slightly longer eyelashes.
The girl, not showing any real hesitation, walked up to him and sniffed his torso.
"(H-Hey! What're you-!)" Pikachu yelped, not at all expecting that.
"(Hi there~)" Curly softly said, allowing her heart-shaped tail to touch his. A sudden crackle of electricity appeared as they made contact.
Right then and there, the Kanto mouse received images in his head thanks to Curly's electro-communication. In an instant, she introduced herself and welcomed him to their valley. She asked what a handsome stranger like him was doing wandering into their territory.
"(Ack! Woah!)" Pikachu shouted, jumping a foot away though the girl continued to smile at him.
Then, he heard another girl's voice and he turned only to see the females of the group slowly approach him as well.
Two of them likewise touched his tail and greeted him. Just like with Curly, they too sent electro-communications to his brain and they each introduced themselves.
Perplexed, Pikachu looked around and saw them smiling at him, muttering amongst themselves.
At first, he was confused. It had been a rather lengthy amount of time since he'd been on the receiving end of a girl's affectionate gaze, let alone several of them!
As embarrassing as it was to admit...he felt a tad prideful in that moment.
In fact, if he had to say it aloud, he'd never felt like quite a stud!
Pikachu smiled as he looked amongst the many girls surrounding them.
...
But when he looked between each of their faces...for a moment, he saw Buneary's.
Stopping himself, he briefly shook his head and when he looked back, the vision of her was gone.
Immediately, he felt a sinking feeling somewhere deep down although to make anyone worried, he kept smiling.
Jeez, maybe Marowak was right. It had already been a year since he and Buneary dated after all...
Man, was that correct? A year? Actually, it had been over a year since Sinnoh so it's been even longer! He hadn't really imagined he'd be in this sort of position yet here he was, in front of several girls who at least appeared interested.
So what was a guy supposed to do here? Things were so different with Buneary that this was new territory to him! What was...
...
...Marowak's advice...
Be confident.
Yeah...maybe he can try that!
"(N-Nice to meet you!)" Pikachu nervously said, rubbing the back of his ear.
Okay...time to test it out!
Quickly changing his pose, Pikachu confidently put a paw under his chin and he gave a proud smile. "(I'm Pikachu...!)" He declared in a slightly deeper voice. Then, he started doing several poses, flexing along the way. "(Wanna see some cool moves? I've been around town y'know?)" He declared, before standing straight, his arms up to his chest in another flexing motion. "(So how 'bout it?)" The mouse cooly asked before looking over.
This was great, now all he had to do was just take in their clearly-impressed reactions!
...
...Wait, why weren't they smiling?
Pikachu blinked as he saw that the girls in front of him were taken aback. To make things even worse, some had slightly appalled looks. One of them even shook her head.
Dropping the façade, Pikachu quit his pose and gave them all a confused look. "(Uhh...was it something I said?)" He quietly asked only to see them all start to walk away in silence.
Utterly dejected, Pikachu turned white as a ghost and he stood still as a statue. He continued to remain that way even after his friends sympathetically muttered their condolences from behind.
Well...that certainly didn't work. Why in the world did he take advice from a guy who hadn't dated anyone yet anyway? Granted, it's not like the mouse had many options to talk to about this stuff but still...what a disaster! Well, he supposed that he can-
Suddenly, Pikachu felt something touch his tail again. Startled, he gasped and looked behind himself only to see a male's smiling face.
"(Hello there!)" He said and with that, Pikachu looked around and saw the rest of the males gathered around him. Then they sniffed him too, much to his nervous chuckling.
At least this time, their reception was a lot more welcoming. So that was...something.
A few minutes passed after the "incident" and Pikachu stood by the humans; his fur now glossy thanks to sharing so much electricity with his Alolan colleagues. As Ash rubbed Pikachu's back, admiring his sheen, he commented on how many friends he was making here.
All of that was interrupted when he heard someone walk up to him.
Looking over, Pikachu saw Curly.
"(Hi again!)" She beamed before hopping over to him and offering her tail.
Curious himself, Pikachu offered his and another spark of electricity appeared between them.
Once again, she communicated to him through electro-communication. This time however, he sent his own response back.
In the blink of an eye, the two electric mice began to exchange more about themselves.
Pikachu described how he had traveled to many places and had met all sorts of people and Pokémon. He explained that he was a battler who had competed in leagues and strived to only get stronger.
As for Curly, it was more or less what the Kanto mouse expected. She had been born and raised in this valley with the others. She'd never been outside of this region yet she was intrigued by what was out there.
She even made a sly comment that it's why she thought he was a rather interesting guy given the fact that he wasn't from around here.
From there, an hour-long conversation passed between them yet in reality, it only lasted for one moment. They talked about their favorite foods and what sorts of moves they each knew. Curly seemed particularly impressed that Pikachu had known so many throughout the years. They talked about living in the wild or at least for Pikachu, how it was like those first few years of his life.
He described the legendary Pokémon that he had seen with his own eyes and as he did, Curly couldn't hold back her wonderment, having never seen one for herself. If Pikachu were to take a guess, he probably shattered the girl's world with talks of legendaries and world-ending scenarios that him and his friends had prevented time and time again.
Curly often repeated how much she wished that she could go out into the world to see such wonders herself. While she didn't say it out loud, Pikachu kept getting the feeling that the girl was unwilling to leave the valley and that this might simply be the life she was ultimately content with.
All the while, Pikachu tried being smooth by sprinkling in some humor here and there. Sometimes it worked, other times it went right over the girl's head.
The conversation finally ended when Curly laughed at one of his dumb jokes and gave the equivalent of a wink to him.
Then, they ceased contact and immediately heard the humans talking from off to the side.
"Isn't that cute!" Mimo happily exclaimed. "It's got a Pika-crush on Pik-Ash's Pikachu!"
"I think you're right!" Pikala gushed. "Their glossiness certainly makes them more Pika-friendly!"
Pikachu gulped and glanced over at them.
Oh boy. Was that...true? Then he looked at Curly's smiling face.
Well...it certainly appeared to be that way...her face wasn't unlike Buneary's whenever she flirted with him. Not to mention how she had talked to him in their little discussion. It almost sounded...flirty.
His stomach dropped. Was he...really ready for this? It's been so long yet it wasn't like he was betraying her by just seeing what happens with this girl right?
Deep down, the mouse was rather intrigued and yet...his feet had a mind of their own because they starting moving and before his mind could fully come to a conclusion, Pikachu found himself running away. As soon as he did, he heard Curly happily chasing after him.
From afar, Ash and the others shouted words of encouragement to him.
"Hey! Why're you running away?!" Ash laughed.
"But Curly really does seem to have quite a Pika-crush on your Pikachu~!" Pikala beamed.
As Pikachu ran, his mind raced and his thoughts started to slow down.
Hold on...why was he doing this again? What was the harm? It's not like there was anything morally wrong by just...checking things out...right? So instead of running away...why not just take a deep breath and see what happens?
He quickly came to a stop with Curly doing the same right behind him.
"(Gotcha~!)" She laughed.
"(Heh...yeah I guess so!)" Pikachu chuckled, fidgeting in place with a light blush on his face.
Suddenly, he felt a small bolt of electricity hit the side of his head. Startled more than anything, he turned to see where it had come from but he only saw the others minding their own business.
Huh...strange. It almost felt like someone was trying to get his attention.
Then, he felt a paw tap his shoulder and he turned to see Curly holding up a Lum Berry.
"(For you!)" She said.
He blinked before a smile spread across his face. "(Hey, thanks!)" Pikachu happily exclaimed and he started to reach forward.
Okay, this was actually going pretty well! If there's one way to a man's heart, it's through his stomac-
Another bolt of electricity shot out and propelled the Lum Berry away. Gasping, Pikachu angrily looked to see the culprit.
This time, he saw another male pikachu with dark yellow fur and the most insane haircut he had ever seen!
Curly immediately rushed up to him and started yelling.
"(Hey, what's your problem?! He's a nice guy! Lay off!)" She shouted only for the shiny male to scoff and turn away.
From behind, the humans muttered amongst themselves and Pikala stated that the male was named Boss who has had his own eyes on Curly for quite some time.
After a few more moments of pleading from Curly, Boss brushed her off to the side and began walking forward.
Pikachu's frown became determined. "(So that's it huh?)" He muttered to himself before proceeding ahead.
The two walked up to each other and in a moment of showing dominance, pushed their torsos against each other.
"(You have a problem with me?!)" Pikachu shouted.
"(Yeah, you're not welcome here!)" Boss yelled back.
The continued to butt heads before Curly pushed them away before shouting at Boss some more.
"(That's not fair! He didn't do anything to you! Stop trying to pick a fight!)" She yelled.
Pikachu, standing a few feet away from the other male, took one step backwards, then another.
"Just walk away. It's not worth it." Pikachu thought to himself before fully turning around to head off.
Then, another shot of electricity rang out and hit Pikachu on the back of his head.
Infuriated, Pikachu whipped his head around and glared at Boss who once again lightly pushed Curly away.
Alright...screw it. He's going all in!
Not wasting a second, the two sent out bolts of electricity which collided in midair. The sudden noise caused the rest of the pikachus to run over and watch them in a large circle.
The two ceased their attacks and stared each other down. The others started to chant words of encouragement, mainly to Boss, save for Curly who worriedly looked around.
The battle officially began when Boss rushed forward.
Pikachu channeled some electricity into his tail and he sent out several sparks yet he only managed to hit the ground as Boss quickly dodged them. The last shot kicked up a cloud of dust and the shiny male jumped through it. When he got to the other side, he looked around only to see that his opponent had disappeared.
Pikachu, having slipped away, snuck up behind Boss. According to the humans' discussions, the first one to bite the other's tail wins. He didn't need to fight to the death...just pounce on the opportunity!
When he was near enough, Pikachu opened his mouth to chomp on his opponent's tail only for Boss to catch on and back away.
"(Try this on for size!)" Boss declared as his body was suddenly enveloped in a bright golden energy. He rushed forward, the Volt Tackle almost blinding if one were to stare directly at it.
Pikachu, now on all fours, stayed perfectly still.
Boss continued to close the distance and all the while; Curly looked on sheer apprehension.
Pikachu took in a quick deep breath and he held his ground.
Just a little bit closer...
Pikachu furrowed his brow as Boss was no more than twenty feet away.
Aaaanddd...NOW!
The mouse jumped into the air and an orb of electricity gathered at his tail. Spinning in midair, Pikachu released it and the orb promptly expanded into an Electroweb which then ensnared his opponent.
Now on his back, Boss could only scream and flail in place as his tail stuck out from the webbing.
Seeing his chance, Pikachu calmly, and with a little smirk on his face, walked up to his opponent and lightly bit his tail.
Not wanting to show poor sportsmanship, the Kanto winner immediately dispelled the Electroweb.
Then Boss slowly got back up.
"(Aww man…)" He muttered before he looked over at Pikachu and gave a proud smile. "(Alright, you win!)"
Smiling back, Pikachu offered is paw. "(Everything good now?)"
"(Yeah, we're good.)" Boss said as he took his paw and was lifted to his feet. Then, to Pikachu surprise, he lifted his paw high into the air for all to see. "(The new guy wins!)" He declared, which was followed by the cheering and applause of the others.
"(That was great! Congrats you two!)" Curly beamed as she ran over to them.
And then...she touched her nose to both of theirs.
Completely floored, Pikachu and Boss gasped and turned away, furious blushes on their faces.
"(Aww man...! C-Can't let it get to me!)" Boss muttered to himself.
"(Umm...my pleasure!)" Pikachu stupidly said, a blissfully dumb smile on his face.
The other pikachus cheered and ran up to them to give their congratulations.
The celebration came to an abrupt halt when everyone took notice of a mimikyu in the center of the crowd. Then, three familiar-looking idiots appeared out of nowhere to declare their malicious intentions.
For a moment, Pikachu looked around and saw how literally everyone save for his friends looked completely dumbfounded.
Great. Even on a day as different as this one was, he can be sure to count on Team Rocket to show up on time...
After some typical back and forth fighting between Team Rocket and everyone else, the battling culminated with mimikyu expanding its body to capture all of the pikachus in the vicinity including Curly. The only ones who were spared were Pikachu and Boss. The only reason things stopped getting worse was because Pikala used her Z-Ring and had Boss perform Catastropika on mimikyu, releasing everyone while Team Rocket was blasted off.
Using Electroweb, Pikachu created a bounce pad for the others to safely land on. Curly in particular was propelled high into the air and Boss rushed forward to catch her in his arms.
Her eyes opening, Curly looked up at him and smiled. "(Thank you, my hero!)" She beamed before nuzzling into his chest, causing him to blush once again.
Watching the display from afar, Pikachu gave a little sigh.
The group stayed there the rest of the day with Pikala going through the extraordinarily long process of doing a roll call to make sure everyone was accounted for. As she did, Pikachu saw both Curly's name followed by Boss'. When they were accounted for, they hugged and Boss gave a proud smile to the others. Pikachu didn't want to say it out loud, but somewhere deep down he waited for the pain and disappointment to settle in.
The next day, the crew headed off, waving goodbye to Pikachu Valley and its inhabitants. They traveled as they usually did, often making small talk along the way. They finally stopped upon coming across a small lake. Feeling that it was a good time to take a break, they settled down for lunch. Surrounded by green mountains, it was quite a picturesque view to slow down and admire. Soon, the group decided to have some fun and proceeded to get in the lake, splashing and laughing the entire time.
Enjoying himself, Pikachu smiled as he dove from Ash's head into the water.
About half an hour passed and Pikachu found himself resting along the shore, waiting for the food to be ready. Feeling rather comfortable, the mouse looked up at the clear blue sky. Perhaps it was because he was content or that he was able to fully relax, but his mind began to wander to yesterday's events.
First he went over how he had utterly bombed at wooing those girls. Uggh...that was definitely the last time he's taking romance advice from anyone...ever.
Pikachu scrunched up his face a little as he went over things a little more. Let's see...he got rejected by nearly every girl and the only one who showed him any interest picked another guy.
So all in all, not the best day...but certainly not the worst.
Pikachu looked over and saw some of his friends still playing in the water while a few others talked along the shore nearby.
He looked back at the sky and he momentarily saw Curly's face. Then he immediately remembered how she had embraced Boss.
...
Huh...it was funny...
He was still expecting the pain and disappointment from that to fully sink in but...it just wasn't.
Okay, admittedly it did sting a little knowing that she chose someone else but aside from that...he was totally fine. Heck, he wasn't even all that torn up about it.
There was just...nothing.
A tad baffled, Pikachu sat up, folded his arms over his chest and furrowed his brow, looking hard at the ground in front of him.
...But why? Shouldn't he at least feel...something?
Pikachu's gaze wandered a little over the calm waters of the lake.
Granted, he had only known the girl for a very brief amount of time but it seemed like they had something going there for a bit. She did stand up for him against Boss after all...
Pikachu grimaced a little as he thought about it a little more.
Well if he really thought about it, what exactly was the long-term plan there? Try to give it a chance and then...what? Stay in that valley? Stop traveling with Ash? Hell, half of the inhabitants outright rejected him!
And why did they reject him anyway? He was one of them, so why was it so difficult to fit in?
Pikachu gave a frustrated sigh and closed his eyes.
It's probably because, although they were Pikala's pikachus, they weren't exactly trained Pokémon like him. If anything, they were probably more wild. And Curly was no exception to that.
He looked up at the sky in silent contemplation.
That made sense. After all, he's been traveling with Ash for a few years now, probably longer than when he had been a wild Pokémon, so of course he didn't exactly blend in with the rest. In the end, that would've just been another issue to handle if he had tried to pursue things with Curly.
Annoyed, Pikachu pinched the bridge between his eyes.
Marowak was right...he didn't have any game. How on earth did he ever have a girlfriend before?
Upon remembering a certain bunny, Pikachu quietly let out an amused huff.
Well...it was definitely different with Buneary...and not just with how things started out between them.
The simple truth was that while both girls like him, only one of them knew what she wanted. Buneary liked only him and was always faithful whereas Curly clearly had some reservations between him and Boss. Heck, she pretty much kissed both of them.
As for the whole "wild Pokémon versus trained Pokémon" theory, both started off wild but Buneary joined their group and quickly got into the groove of things while Curly on the other hand would probably want to stay with the others.
Pikachu sighed and lied on his back again, his arms behind his head.
They may have both liked him, but they were fundamentally different. Was that the reason for why he didn't feel much at the moment?
Well there was that and the fact that he'd only known Curly for less than a day whereas he'd known Buneary for the better part of a year before they parted ways in Sinnoh...and then again in Unova.
Pikachu calmly inhaled as he watched some clouds go by.
So...here he was. Confronted with a potential new romance and he was back on the road again.
He remembered what one of the last things Buneary said to him when they last saw each other in the flesh.
She wanted him to live his life and if he met someone...go for it.
Welp, he went for it and something told him that Curly wouldn't be the only one. For all he knew, sooner than later, he would meet someone else who perhaps didn't have as many incompatibilities as she did. Then what? Was there any real reason to not give it a chance when the time comes? What excuse could he come up with if another girl joined their group and had no problem coming along with them indefinitely?
Then, his mind floating and getting lost amongst the endless azure of the sky, Pikachu came across another thought.
What if Buneary meets someone? Or even more interesting, what if she already has? Would she be thinking the same things as him right now?
He blinked, watching a cloud in the shape of an unspecified bird float idly by.
Suddenly, he felt his heart fall down into the pit of his stomach.
Buneary...might have already met someone. That was a possibility...
Granted, they've been keeping in touch ever since Unova but not nearly as much as they used to. So...maybe she's already moved on.
Now utterly uncomfortable, Pikachu bolted right up and his eyes randomly darted along the ground.
It's almost been a full year since they've last actually seen each other after all...
A year since they hugged.
A year since he thought she had died.
A year since she brought him back his...his...
Pikachu's eyes widened as he suddenly remembered something. He whipped his head over and took notice of Ash's backpack resting against a rock. The mouse paused before he got up and walked over to it before rummaging through its contents.
It's got to be here somewhere. Where is it...?
Wait...aha! Here it is!
A little excited, Pikachu held up his letter bracelet high in the air. He lowered it down to his eye level and carefully examined it. It still looked as new as the day she had got it for him. Smiling, he slipped it on his arm and got a good look.
Still grinning, he walked over to the edge of the lake and watched as some of his friends continued to play in the water and for a moment, he wondered if she still kept the keychain that he had gotten for her.
Not really thinking, he used his other paw to gently caress the bracelet.
Then...he stopped.
Wait...why did he still have this?
He looked down at his arm and saw the heart symbol followed by the letters "BB" on it.
...All this time...and he's still carrying it around in Ash's bag? For what? When was the last time he'd even worn it? Was it since Unova? If that's true, why did he keep putting it in Ash's bag to take with them?
Completely beside himself, Pikachu's eyes wandered every which way.
Then, just like how the waters of the lake remained undisturbed, Pikachu's mind came to a sudden calm.
All this time, he'd figured that the reason he wasn't agonizing over Curly was because of their incompatibilities. Those were the main reasons right?
...
No...they weren't. They were only on top of something much bigger.
The real reason was that...he didn't love her. And while he felt a literal spark between them, it just...wasn't the same. Not with her...or maybe anyone.
She wasn't Buneary.
Pikachu's ears pricked a little as he noticed that his vision was becoming slightly blurry. Feeling the first tear go down his cheek, he felt his face and then closely looked at his paw. It was slightly wettened.
He grimaced at that. Why was he feeling so upset all of a sudden? They both figured that this was the best thing for them...
Him with his leagues going from one region to another and her with contests and modeling traveling to who knows where. There might have been a chance they could make it work...
...But then again, there was an even greater possibility that it would just end in complete ash.
Regardless of how confident they felt that this was the right decision, it didn't alleviate the strangely empty feeling the mouse was experiencing in that moment. Despite being surrounded by his friends...he felt alone.
He looked ahead and calmly walked to the edge of the water, the lower half of his body becoming submerged. Pikachu gave the others a side-glance and saw how nobody had taken notice of his sudden change in demeanor. He looked away, hoping that if anybody did, they'd think his tears were simply from being in the water.
Taking in a shaky breath, Pikachu looked at the mountains.
Jeez...in that moment it was clear that what he was feeling right now and the thought of Buneary dating someone else certainly hurt more than anything that had happened yesterday with Curly.
Gazing across the lake, Pikachu frowned.
He didn't want to know. As much as the curiosity was killing him and filling his ribcage with acid, he couldn't bear the thought of finding out.
All he could wonder was if she was feeling the same way.