Lycan Mystery Dungeon

by PizzaSpino

Werewolf AU. Some humans get turned into Pokémon in order to save the world. Others were just at the wrong place on a full moon. Ash always knew he was unusual, not every boy can become a Riolu. But as his tenth birthday approaches he learns that his pack's gift is actually a curse.

4. The Riolu

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys Pokémon and creature features. Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri. Please support the official release.

Listening to as I lock the cages: Running with the Wolves (Aurora, Wolfwalkers Version)

Lycan Mystery Dungeon: The Riolu

The woods near Pallet Town were the ideal habitat for a wide variety of Pokémon. There were strong trees to take residence in, tall grass that was perfect for a predator to set up an ambush, and plenty of seeds and berries to stash away making the forest welcoming even to the smallest of Pokémon. In fact, one tiny Pokémon decided today would be the perfect time to go scurrying through the forest floor.

This Pokémon was a small, yellow rodent with bright pink pouches on its checks. Its diamond shaped ears were tipped with black as was the spiky pattern around the collar of its neck, and its jagged tail. This little Pokémon was named Pichu and it was having a wonderful time collecting nutritious Oran berries which had fallen onto the forest floor.

At some point during the Pichu's harvest its ears began to twitch. The Pichu froze and looked around. There was a patch in the tall grass that moved, but it was just the wind. There weren't any other Pokémon in the clearing, so it continued what it was doing.

Not a minute had passed when the Pichu heard another noise. This time it sounded more like the snapping of a stick. Once again the Pichu looked around. There were no movements in the tall grass. The Pichu's eyes narrowed, but it nonetheless continued its scavenging.

As the Pichu gathered food, a Pokémon in the grass stalked forward. It messed up a few times, but now it had gotten into the groove of moving across the forest floor silently. Only a few more steps, and that Pichu would be in his grasp. Carefully, carefully…

"Rawr!" The predator Pokémon leapt out of the tall grass and straight at the Pichu.

"Pi-CHUUUUU!" Just before the predator could snatch the Pichu, sparks flew from the little rodent's cheeks. The mouse generated enough electricity to zap the predator, sending it flying back with a pained yelp.

"Hey! No fair!" the predator Pokémon sat up from where it landed after the Thundershock. It was a Riolu, a Pokémon very rare in Kanto. This Riolu in particular had some extra fluff on its head and a pair of sideways, lightning-shaped markings on its cheeks. "You're not supposed to use attacks! That's against the rules!"

"Well, you used Quick Attack when we were playing tag yesterday," Pichu folded his tiny arms.

"I wasn't using Quick Attack!" protested Riolu. "I'm just that fast!"

Pichu's tongue stuck out. "You're nowhere near quick enough to catch me."

"Now, now children. Behave."

Stomping up to the arguing duo was a rather large and stocky Pokémon. She was covered from head to toe with tough, brown skin that had the occasional patch of platting save for her soft cream colored belly which hosted her pouch. The top of her head was covered with a thick, black plate with a pair of cream colored ears sticking out of the sides. Each of her limbs were tipped with powerful claws and a pair of fangs stuck out the back of her mouth. Fairly typical for a Kangaskhan.

Though Kangaskhan may have appeared intimidating at first glance, the marsupial was able to quickly break that image with her soft, red eyes and a warm smile. "Ash will be heading home soon and I don't think either of you want this day to end on an argument."

"Already?" Pichu asked, his ears drooping. "Why?"

"His mother requested that he return early today," Kangaskhan replied. She handed Ash a stack of neatly folded clothes. "She wants to make sure his chores are finished before they head over to the professor's tonight."

Now it was Ash's turn to look glum. "I thought she forgot about those," he mumbled as his tail fell to the ground. Nevertheless, he accepted the clothes.

"Well, let this be a lesson to you. A mother never forgets," Kangaskhan winked. "Now go and change."

Minutes Later

While Ash had barricaded himself behind several bushes to change, Pichu had gone back to looking for berries. Though he was a fair distance away, Pichu could still hear the transformation. He winced as Ash's bones cracked and popped while the skin made a noise that could best be described as stretching leather.

Pichu's fur ruffled signaling a shudder. How Ash was able to go through that process without screaming was beyond the little mouse. To his acute ears, it sounded like the Riolu turning human was being tortured.

"Psst, kid."

Pichu's ears shot up. He looked around wildly until his eyes landed on a brown bird with a sleek, red crest resting in a nearby tree. A Pidgeotto.

Immediately, warning sparks flared from Pichu's checks. Kangaskhan went to fetch Pichu's sister which meant that the mouse was on his own while Ash changed.

Seeing the Pichu's aggressive display, the Pidgeotto ruffled his feathers before descending to the ground. "Relax, kid. I'm not going to eat you. I just had lunch. I just wanted to tell you something."

"Do you think I look stupid?" Pichu growled. He eyed the bird's sharp talons and took a step back.

"No, you look like a really nice kid. Which is why I'm going to let you in on something," the Pidgeotto spoke in a low voice. He looked over at the bushes Ash was behind before leaning forward to whisper. "Stay away from the Riolu."

Though Pichu kept his distance, the sparks on his checks died down. "Stay away? Why?"

"Because he's not normal," Pidgeotto hissed. "That thing's dangerous."

"Ash? Dangerous?" Pichu rolled his eyes. "You've got the wrong Pokémon. Ash wouldn't hurt a Caterpie."

In all the time Pichu had interacted with Ash, never once did he see the clearly carnivorous Riolu hunt. Chase around other Pokémon, yes. But Ash never landed anything even close to a killing blow. The only time Pichu had seen Ash seriously attack another Pokémon was when they first met.

It was a couple months ago. Back then Pichu and his sister got separated from their mother in a Nidorina ambush. The pair were chased away from the rest of the Kangaskhan mob and found themselves cornered. Pichu made an effort to protect his sister, who wasn't old enough to fight for herself. But being a Pichu his attacks shocked him as much as they did the Nidorina.

The situation was beginning to look hopeless when a Riolu leapt out from the bushes and placed itself between the Nidorina and the two would-be prey Pokémon.

"Look, I'm not trying to prank you," the Pidgeotto muttered hastily. He shot the bush a quick glance before continuing. "That guy and the rest of his pack, they're not normal Pokémon. They're not natural period!"

By the rest of his pack the Pidgeotto probably meant Ash's mom and that old Leafeon Pichu saw once or twice. Pichu met Ash's mother on the same day he met Ash. The Nidorina didn't seem impressed with the front Ash put on to scare her away and attacked. The two began to tussle before a female Lucario wielding a picnic basket leapt into the fray and separated them.

The snarling Lucario placed herself in front of her son, stared down the wild Nidorina, and cheerfully offered the poison pin Pokémon some sandwiches. Though confused by this turn of events, the Nidorina ultimately decided to take the free meal. Better that than risk a fight with a Pokémon much stronger than a bunch of children.

In the aftermath of the battle, Ash and his mother were invited back to the Kangaskhan herd. Though most of the mob were cautious around the two, Pichu's mother welcomed the jackals with open arms. The two families had been friends ever since.

As for the Leafeon, Pichu's family bumped into him once while the old grass type was sniffing around some trees. Pichu's sister tried pointing out that the area was the hunting grounds for a large Arbok and the Leafeon might want to try and find a new territory. The Leafeon just smiled and said that he wasn't looking for food, rather he was trying to find places to hide "cameras" (whatever those were) for his studies. He then spotted Pichu and immediately struck up a conversation with Kangaskhan about Pokémon taking in and caring for other species. Pichu and his sister just snacked on their breakfast and tuned the adult's conversation out.

"Yeah, they're kind of weird," Pichu admitted with a shrug. "Doesn't mean they're dangerous."

The bushes began to rustle. Looks like Ash was done changing. Pidgeotto reached the same conclusion. He turned around and spread his wings. "I know you think these guys are your friends, but you can't let your guard down. I don't want to see you end up like those Spearow."

"There aren't any Spearow around here," Pichu frowned.

"Exactly," Pidgeotto said before taking off.
"Hey, Pichu. You still here?" Ash stepped out from behind the tree. Whereas before he was just taller than Pichu, now he towered over his friend. As a nine-year old human, Ash was a combination of scrawny and scruffy. His limbs were gangly which were contrasted by his hair which stuck out both sides of his head. Like his Riolu form he had distinguishing sideways lightning marks on his cheeks. In terms of wardrobe the boy was just dressed in the standard t-shirt and shorts one would expect of a kid on a warm afternoon.

Pichu gave the retreating Pidgeotto one last look before scampering over to Ash. "Here!"

Ash bent down to allow Pichu to climb onto his shoulder. Once Pichu was settled, the little mouse addressed his human friend. "So, what's so special about tonight?"

Ash began to walk towards Kangaskhan's den. "It's the full moon," he answered.

"What happens of the full moon?" Pichu probed.

"I can't sleep," Ash simply replied.

Pichu didn't look impressed. "That's it?"

"Pretty much," Ash grinned. "I don't know what it is, but I just feel really energized on the full moon."

Pichu frowned. That couldn't be it. There had to be a reason that Pidgeotto was so spooked. "What do you do with all that extra energy?"

"Mom takes me to the professor's laboratory so that Mr. Dragonite can babysit me," Ash explained.

"Babysit?" Pichu's head tilted. "They have a dragon sit on you?"

"No!" Ash laughed. "Babysitting just means they don't want me to be alone. Mr. Dragonite doesn't sit on me. He just looks after me. We play games, run around the ranch, and have practice battles."

A determined smile crossed Ash's face. "He always goes easy on me, letting me win. But one day, I'm going to be strong enough to take Dragonite on in a real match!"

"Wait a minute, if you're being babysat then were are the rest of your pack?" Pichu asked.

"I don't know," Ash admitted. "At some point Mom and Professor Oak go off somewhere with Mimey and Nidoking while I'm with Mr. Dragonite."

"And you don't know where?" Pichu pressed.

"Whenever I ask they tell me that I'll know more when I get older," Ash grumbled. "I'm pretty sure they're just hunting. They always smell like meat when they get back."

That was…suspicious. "Maybe the other Pokémon at the ranch know. Have you asked them?" Pichu suggested.

"All the trainer owned Pokémon are locked up in their balls on the full moon. When I ask them they just say they just talk about what a great sleep they had. Even the nocturnal ones," Ash sighed wistfully. "I've tried to ask the wild Pokémon, but they don't want to talk."

That tracked. Pichu never really thought about it before, but it wasn't just the Pidgeotto that avoided Ash. Whenever he and Ash hiked around the woods or looked for a spot to fish, any Pokémon who caught wind of them turned tail and ran. At the time Pichu thought nothing of it. While most Pokémon were civil with one another, there were still predators and the occasional territory battle. Pokémon getting fidgety around carnivores really wasn't outside the norm. But now with that Pidgeotto's warning in mind…

"Ash!" Pichu was broken out of his musing by the high pitched voice of his adopted sister.

Scampering up to the pair was a Kangaskhan that was shorter than Ash's Riolu form but bigger than Pichu. Unlike the older members of her species, she had light purple skin and had not yet developed a pouch. In her paws she carried a knotted mess of blue yarn.

"Hey, Josie!" Ash bent down to meet the young Kangaskhan. Josie was named by Ash's mother as a means to tell the juvenile and older Kangaskhan apart in conversation. "What have you got there?"

"It's a scarf!" Josie announced proudly. A while back Ash's mother brought Pichu's family a blanket as a gift to help keep them warm during cold evenings. Entranced with the quilt's array of designs and colors, Josie begged the woman to teach her how to make human arts and crafts. Amused, Ash's mother returned the next day with some yarn and large needles to start teaching Josie how to knit.

Ash accepted the wrap. "This is supposed to be a scarf? Ow!"

Pichu, having just gave Ash a small shock, shot his friend a scolding look before turning his attention to Josie. "This is better than the last one, Josie," Pichu said with a smile.

"Thank you!" Josie beamed. "One day, I'll be able to knit a real scarf! Then I'll be able to add it to the Kangaskhans' secret stash of treasures!"

"Secret stash?" Ash asked.

"It's a collection of old junk the older Kangaskhan keep," Pichu explained with a shrug.

"It's not junk! It's magical treasure!" Josie exclaimed. She then bowed her head. "But I guess I'm not ready to add to it yet."

"No way! Your scarf is awesome! In fact," Ash took the "scarf" and tried to wrap it around his neck. Pichu wisely jumped off avoiding getting tangled in the mess of yarn. Finally, Ash got the scarf around his neck, which now looked more like a messy mane of string.

While Pichu's paws came up to his mouth to muffle his laughter, Josie burst out in titters. "I'm defiantly not ready yet!" Josie concluded in between fits of giggles.

Before Ash could respond, a loud series of stomps announced Kangaskhan's arrive. "Ash," Kangaskhan said in a concerned tone. "What's that you have around your neck? You're going to choke yourself."

"Right, hold on a second," Ash proceeded to untangle the yarn around his neck. Tried as he might, all he succeeded in doing was making himself look like he had a Tangela stuck on his head. While both Pichu and Josie burst out in laughter, Kangaskhan just sighed and gently sliced the yarn apart with a massive claw thus freeing Ash.

"Alright, funs over," Kangaskhan said, claws on her hips. "Time to say good-bye. Ash needs to get his chores done before visiting the lab tonight."

"He's going to Prof. Leafeon's place!" Josie said in alarm. She looked up at Kangaskhan. "But there are monsters there!"

"Monsters?" Ash asked in surprise.

"Josie," Kangaskhan scolded the joey. "The Pokémon who stay at that lab aren't monsters. Some of them are just foreign."

"I'm not talking about the foreigners, Mommy," Josie said in a worried voice. "I heard from Venonat who said that the Venomoths once heard the howls of monsters near Prof. Leafeon's home!"

"You sure they weren't just the howls of a foreign Pokémon?" Pichu asked. From what he was told, the professor's lab was home to a bunch of Pokémon that were partnered with humans traveling all around the world. Surely some of them had odd voices.

Josie shook her head defiantly. "I said they weren't foreigners! Venonat said that the howls of the monsters were empty. They didn't have any words!"

"Josie!" Kangaskhan scolded. "Stop trying to scare the boys."

"I'm not trying to scare them!" Josie whined. "There're monsters at the lab, that's what everyone says! The Tauros's say that years ago, they were attacked by the monsters! And Diglett says that he sometimes hears footsteps coming from the lab. Footsteps that are neither human nor Pokémon!"

As Pichu listened to Josie's frantic warning, he kept replaying the warning the Pidgeotto gave him. 'They're not natural period!'

"Can I go with Ash tonight?" Pichu blurted out. The reaction to his request was immediate. Josie looked over at Pichu with shock and fear while Ash brightened up with hint of hope in his eyes. Kangaskhan stiffened.

"Pichu," Kangaskhan said in a slow and controlled voice. "I don't want you leaving the den at night."

Pichu's ears twitched. It was true that his mother didn't want him or Josie to leave their den after the sun went down as a general rule, but there was something in the way she said it this time that felt off. "I don't have to stay until night. Just the afternoon," Pichu bartered.

"I don't know," Kangaskhan said with a frown. "It wouldn't be right to impose."

"It's not imposing!" Ash jumped in. "Mom won't mind. I've been wanting to invite Pichu over for a while."

There was a pregnant pause as Kangaskhan mauled over the situation. Finally, she spoke. "Very well. You can visit for the afternoon. But I want you back here before dinner. Am I clear?"

"Yes Mom/Ma'am!" Pichu and Ash coursed.

Ash then looked over to Josie. "Want to join us?"

Josie turned around and folded her arms. "No way. If you guys want to be monster chow, that's on you."

The Path to Town

"And those are fences. Human's don't have a good sense of smell so we use those to tell where someone's territory begins and ends," Ash explained as he carried Pichu into Pallet Town. The little mouse had only seen human civilization from a distance making this his first proper visit.

For Pichu's part, he was busy looking around at the vast stretches of farm land with wide eyes. "Look at all the food!" he said in wonder as he eyed the crops. "How do you guys eat all of it?"

"We don't," Ash explained. "We keep some of it for ourselves, but the rest gets sold to other humans in other towns."

"Why don't they just eat their own crops?" Pichu asked while he leapt down from Ash's shoulder to get a better look at a field of daikon.

"Not every town has their own crops," Ash leaned on the fence to join his buddy in watching the gentle breeze sweep through the plant leaves creating small waves of green. "Some places are closer to the ocean, some towns are on top of tall mountains, and some places are large cities with buildings that touch the sky."

"No way," Pichu snorted in disbelief.

"I'm not joking," Ash said defensively. "My mom's got a whole bunch of pictures from when she visited other towns."

"Just pictures?" Pichu looked up at Ash with a tilted head. "You've never been there before?"

"No, I've never left Pallet Town," Ash sighed wistfully. His hands then tightened into fist. "But one day, I'll get to see it all."

"Hey, Ash!" Ash and Pichu's heads whipped around to see a small group of human children making their way over to them.

Ash grinned and waved at his classmates. For the longest time he was homeschooled and had to beg and plead his mother to allow him to attend the local school. Finally, his mother caved and Ash was allowed to attend class provided he follow four rules: maintain good grades, be on his best behavior, don't bite anyone, and never EVER shift into or tell anyone about his Pokémon form.

"Is that your Pichu?" asked a boy.

"You've already got your first Pokémon! That's soo cool!" squealed a girl.

"You guys think Ash is in charge?" Pichu scoffed and folded his arms. "I'd say it's the other way around. I am the better battler, plus I win all the games."

"Can I pet him? Or her?" another girl asked Ash.

"Hey," Pichu's ears fell in confusion. "Did you hear what I just said?"

"Sorry guys," Ash dropped his arm down to allow Pichu to scamper back up to his shoulder. "This Pichu's still wild. He just likes to play with me sometimes."

"Too bad," pouted the girl. "He's so cute!"

"Uh, thanks," Pichu said bashfully. He had repositioned himself on Ash's shoulder and was now modestly rubbing the back of his head. "But you don't have to ask Ash. You can just talk to me directly. I don't mind."

"Yo, Ketchum," just like the girls the boy ignored Pichu and continued to address Ash. "Remember to bring your cards tomorrow. We're holding a tournament after school."

"Cards? Tournament?" Pichu asked, still attempting to wedge himself into the conversation.

"Alright!" Ash pumped his fist. "Just you guys wait! I'm winning this time!"

"If you say so," laughed one of the girls. The group then departed. "See you at school!"

Ash returned his classmates farewells before continuing his walk back home. Meanwhile, Pichu watched the group of children stroll away with a look of confusion. "What was that about? Are all humans rude?"

"Sorry about that," Ash apologized. "They weren't being rude. Humans can't understand Pokémon."

"You can understand me," Pichu frowned.

"I can also turn into a Pokémon," Ash shrugged. "Me, my mom, and the professor are the only humans around here who can turn into Pokémon."

For a moment, Pichu studied Ash. "I guess that makes you guys really unique."

Ash scowled. There was something in Pichu's tone that sounded almost suspicious. "We're not unique," he said defensively. "There are tons of other people like us out there!"

"Where?" Pichu asked, ears perked in surprise.

"Uh, I don't know. I never met them," Ash admitted.

"Master Ash! Welcome home!"

Ash broke eye contact with Pichu to see that the pair had arrived home. Ash's home was nothing special by human standards. Two-stories, triangle, red roof, white paint, white picket fence, small garden to the side, the works, Sweeping the stone pathway that led up to the house was a Pokémon who resembled a clown.

The clown was humanoid in shape with skinny arms attached to large, white glove-like hands and skinny legs ending in black feet that curled at the toes like elf shoes. The Pokémon's main body was round and white with a red belly that matched the round shoulders and hips making the Pokémon look as though it was in the suit of a performer. Finally, the Pokémon's head was fairly human (if humans lacked noses) with rosy cheeks and a pair of wavy, dark blue horns that resembled human hair. It was also wearing a stark blue apron, but that was not natural to its species.

This Pokemon was a Mr. Mime, though this particular Pokémon was named Mimey. Much like with Pichu, Ash and his mother met Mimey while walking on the outskirts of town. The mime had attempted to steal some food from a shrewdness of Primeapes. Taking pity on the clown, Delia managed to redirect the enraged monkeys away from where Mimey was hiding. She then shared some food with the mime.

Mimey, who was not much of a fighter, would then turn up from time to time at the Ketchum household for a chat and hopefully a free meal. At some point down the line Delia roped him into helping her with housework in exchange for some food. From then it was only a matter of time before the mime became the Ketchum's housekeeper working for food and board.

"Your mother is waiting for you," Mimey said as he continued to sweep. He then spotted Pichu. "Oh! You must be Pichu! How do you do?"

"Fine," Pichu replied staring up at the Ketchum household in awe. He turned to Ash. "You live here?!"

"Yeah," Ash blinked. "Is there something wrong?"

"It's massive!" Pichu pointed an accusatory paw at the house.

"It's not that big," Ash shrugged.

"It's bigger than any den in the forest!" Pichu exclaimed. "What do you use all that extra space for?"

"Uh, kitchen, game console, couch, at least a couple bathrooms," Ash ticked the items off his fingers.

"What even is half that stuff?" Pichu asked, eyes still wide.

Mimey chuckled and leaned up against the fence. "Don't worry. Humans can be overwhelming and strange, but there is a method to their madness. Take this broom for example."

The clown held up said broom. "At first you think it's pointless. Why put so much effort into moving dust around? But then you realize that it actually feels good to clean. Therapeutic even. I am the feng shui and the feng shui is me."

Pichu looked over at Ash and silently mouth "What?"

Ash just scratched the back of his head with his hand in a very dog-like manner and shrugged. He allowed Pichu back on his shoulder before heading up to the door and inside the house.

Once inside, Pichu's head began swerving every direction. It seemed silly, but Ash couldn't blame him. The mouse did grow up living in tree holes and dens dug into the earth. A human home complete with furnishings would be pretty alien to the little guy.

"Oh! Ash, sweetie, what did I say about letting me know when you want to invite friends over!" poking her head out from the kitchen door was Ash's mother.

"I know, but Pichu knows about our powers," Ash reasoned. There was an incident a year ago when Ash invited a couple of his classmates over. Not expecting visitors, Delia had been working around the house in her Lucario form when the children walked in. Ash had to quickly lie that his mother was out and that the Lucario was just there because they were pet sitting.

"It doesn't matter if someone knows about our abilities or not. You should give me a heads up if you want a playdate," Delia scolded. "Especially when you are supposed to be doing your chores. I'm pretty sure I asked Ms. Kangaskhan to let you know that."

Ash flinched.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Ketchum. I can leave if you want," Pichu offered apologetically.

Delia's frown flipped into a smile. "You're not in trouble, Pichu. You just caught me off guard. You can join me in the kitchen while Ash cleans."

"Nope," Pichu put its paws on its hips. "I came here to help Ash with his chores and help him I will!"

"If you insist," Delia said before turning her attention back to her son. "Ash you only have one chore today. You need to clean your room."

"…You sure you don't need me to weed the garden or fold laundry?" Ash offered remembering how his room looked when he left that morning.

"It wouldn't get like this if you cleaned up after yourself more often," Ash's mother continued to lecture.

That wasn't Ash's fault! He was a busy guy! He had schoolwork to turn in, card games to play with his classmates, video games, and those were just his human obligations. As a Riolu he had forests to venture through, trees to sniff, rivers to jump in, holes to dig, more trees to sniff, he was a busy guy!

Catching the disgruntled look on Ash's face, Delia smiled. "You know, I was in your room earlier. I think I spotted a certain package you've been waiting for."

Immediately Ash's spirit lifted and he bolted up the stairs with Pichu gripping onto his shoulder. The boy raced over to his room to see that, just as his mom said, there was a package sitting on his bed. He practically pounced on the parcel before ripping it open.

Looking to avoid the debris of slaughtered package, Pichu leapt off Ash's shoulder and onto the bed. He received a surprise when he bounced on the flat surface. In a bid to regain his footing, Pichu hopped again and again. He kept jumping up and down until Ash caught him.

"Like my bed?" Ash teased.

"Guess I got carried away," Pichu replied Mareepishly. He then spotted a new piece of clothing sitting on top of Ash's head. "What's that?"

Putting on a satisfied smirk, Ash reacted up with his free hand to adjust his new hat. "This is the official Pokémon League Expo hat for this year!"

"Pokémon League?" Pichu questioned with a head tilt.

"Yeah! The Pokémon League is awesome! It's where a whole bunch of trainers, the best of the best, get together and battle with their Pokémon to see who's the best! They battle on all kinds of fields with different rules and to get in you have to fight a bunch of gyms and-" Ash started to explain. He stopped when he noticed that Pichu wasn't looking any less confused than he was before he started. Deciding to change tactics, Ash headed over to his desk. "Maybe it will be easier if I show you."

Once at his desk, Ash began digging through the pile of junk. As Pichu watched the shower of clothes and toys fly through the air, he gave Ash a frown. "You know, I think I can see why your mom wants you to clean this place."

"Here we are!" Ash victoriously held up a laptop before opening it up and bringing up a video. He then turned the computer around so that Pichu could get a better view of the screen. The video displayed a pair of Pokémon squaring off against one another. On one side was a large Pokémon who resembled a toad with a flowering plant on its back, a Venasaur. Opposite him was a blue and white Pokémon who looked like a bipedal frog with a spiral on its belly, a Poliwrath.

"And it's Venasaur verses Poliwrath!" came the voice of the announcer. "It looks like Venasaur is starting out with a Razor Leaf, but Poliwrath won't stand still! And would you look at that! Poliwrath is diving into the earth using Dig! Looks like Venasaur's trainer didn't count on that!"

"Whoa!" Pichu stared at the screen. He then leapt down onto the desk and looked behind the computer. "What is this? Where are they?"

"This is my computer," Ash explained. "I can use it to look up videos, play games, and a whole bunch of other stuff. But my favorite thing to do is watch Pokémon matches."

As the video continued to play, the boys watched more and more trainers and their Pokémon take to the arena to fight. Some Pokémon were big, others were unevolved, and some weren't even native to Kanto.

"This is all real?" Pichu asked in awe.

"Yep!" Ash grinned. "And the best part is I'm going to be turning ten soon. Which means I'll be old enough to compete!"

"Cool!" Pichu squeaked. "What do you need to do to get started?"

"I just need a Pokémon, some traveling supplies, a sponsor, and my parent's permission," Ash listed.

"And you have that stuff?" Pichu asked.

Ash's smile dropped. "I'm still working on that. I've told my mom that I'm want to go, but she's been stonewalling me."

Two years ago

"Mom!" Ash scampered into the kitchen in his Riolu form. "Can I join the Pokémon League!?"

Delia frowned as she stirred their dinner. "It's pretty dangerous out there."

"I'll get stronger!" declared the Riolu waving his paws around.

"I don't know, Ash," Delia responded. Ash could feel a flurry of unsettling emotions emanate off her. "I understand that you love watching battles on TV, but that might not be what you want to do with your life. Just give yourself sometime and think about it."

One year ago

"I'm sorry, Ash. I just don't feel comfortable letting a ten year old run around on his own with a bunch of fire-breathing dragons and large, venomous bugs."

A few months ago

"Honey, I know you're set on this but we can't always get what we want in life. I'm sorry."

This morning

"No," Delia said before Ash could even open his mouth.

Now

"Wow," Pichu mumbled. "Sorry."

"It's not fair!" Ash groaned. "I just want to go out and explore and meet new Pokémon! Is that so much to ask?"

"Doesn't your mom prepare food for other humans? Maybe she wants you to do that," Pichu suggested.

"That or start a farm or get a job as one of Prof. Oak's aides," Ash sighed. "It's like she doesn't want me to leave this town."

"Oh!" Pichu perked up. "What about the professor? He's part of your pack. Maybe he can give you permission!"

Ash sighed. "I tried. But…"

Last Month at the Lab

"Professor!" Ash scampered into the lab in his human form. "Can you sponsor me for the Pokémon League?"

"Have you spoken to your mother?" the professor asked without looking up from his microscope.

Now

"They're conspiring against me," Ash scowled.

Pichu walked over to Ash and patted his arm. "I'm sorry, Ash," he then looked around the room and spotted a box sitting in the corner. "What's that?"

Looking over to where Pichu was pointing, Ash brightened up. "Those are my Pokémon cards! Here, let me show you my deck." The two boys then spent the next half hour fooling around until Ash's mother came in to remind them that they were supposed to be cleaning.

Before long the evening approached and it was time to leave. As soon as the last dish was placed in the sink for cleaning (and Pichu was ripped away from his newly discovered love: ketchup) Ash and Delia retreated to their rooms to change. Moments later, a group consisting of a Riolu, a Pichu, and a Lucario exited the Ketchum household. Careful not to be spotted by any one out on a late night stroll, the group made their way to their first stop: the forest. At the edge they found Kangaskhan and Josie waiting for Pichu.

Before Pichu returned to his family, he turned to address Ash. "You know, Ash. Some of the other Pokémon are kind of suspicious of you because you're half human. But you know what? I think you've got it pretty good."

Ash's tail wagged. It was true. Maybe his mother was extra cautious with him and he did notice that wild Pokémon where pretty jumpy around him and the rest of his pack. But in the end of the day he was one of the few people who was blessed with the chance to experience the best of both worlds. Human and Pokémon. And he wouldn't trade that away for anything.

With Pichu safety back with his family, Ash and his mother began their walk to the laboratory. As he plodded behind his mom, Ash adjusted his new hat. Obviously it was designed with a human head in mind, but thanks to the strap in the back he could get it to rest snuggly over his cranium. The trick was getting it to fit in a way that didn't pinch his ears.

"Enjoying your new hat?" Delia asked, looking down at her son.

"Definitely!" Ash's tail wagged. He walked alongside his mother in silence for a few minutes, taking in the sunset before speaking up again. "Wouldn't it be cool if I wore this hat at the Indigo Plateau?"

Delia sighed. "Ash, you know my answer. We can't have everything we want in life."

"But why can't I at least have this!" Ash burst out. "Why can't I go out and see the world? Why can't I find Pokémon who don't hate me? Why can't I even have a chance to at least try?"

Ash would have continued with his rant, but was silenced when Delia pulled him into a hug. There were so many emotions spiraling around the two. Though his anger and frustration held strong, Ash could now feel his mother's emotions bleeding in: heartache and guilt.

"Ash," Delia spoke softly. "I know this is tough on you. I know I'm asking a lot from you and it's unfair. I promise that this will all make sense soon, but for now please grant me just a little more time. It doesn't seem like much, but I want you to continue enjoying being a kid just a little while longer. Can you do that for me?"

For his part, Ash had no clue what his mother was talking about. But through both her aura and her physical touch he could feel that she was hurting too. So, he decided to just let his irritability go and lean into her hug. "Okay."

Moments later the two jackals arrived at the laboratory where they met…

"Who's ready for some board games and Poke blocks!?"

Standing before the pair was not the professor. Instead the individual answering the door was a tubby, bipedal dragon. Most of its body was covered in orange scales save for a cream colored belly and antenna framing a short, orange horn. Sticking out of its back was a pair of small, teal wings. Each of the dragon's limbs from its rounded snout to its thick tail was rounded and chubby which, along with the dragon's bright smile, gave the dragon the demeanor of a huggable carnival prize.

"Hi Mr. Dragonite," Ash greeted the pseudo-legendary.

The dragon's warm, hazel eyes landed on Ash and his new headgear. "I see you've got a brand new Pokémon League hat!"

"Yeah!" Ash's tail wagged as he reached up to adjust his hat. "Our plan worked!"

"Excellent," Dragon's hands began to rub together manically. "While everyone else was content sending only one postcard we shot to the top of the list by sending in an army or postcards!"

"The fools!" Ash cackled as he rubbed his own paws together.

The Riolu and Dragonite then let out an evil laugh before breaking down into genuine laughter. When the laughter died down, Dragonite straightened up. "Seriously though, it looks good on you." Dragonite then turned to Delia. "And how about you, Delia? Word on the street is you had a bit of a kitchen fire at your job."

Delia's ears folded back in embarrassment. "It was just a small incident with a new cook. I can't believe you heard about it."

"In a town as small as this one me and the misses will soak up whatever fragment of excitement we hear," Dragonite replied. He reached down to start guiding Ash towards the living room when Ash spoke up.

"Where's the professor?" Ash asked looking around. The adults always went off a bit before midnight. It was way too early.

At this question, Mr. Dragonite's demeanor lost its bounce. The dragon's aura darkened and the bubbling optimism popped to reveal the puddle of sadness it had been covering up. His antennae flopped down and he took a deep breath. "Ah, that is, um, I'm sure you've heard about the accident. We got a call from the hospital earlier. Most of Sam's family didn't make it."

The atmosphere within the house plummeted. Though Ash never met them, he knew that Professor Oak had some family outside of Pallet Town. It was a relationship that always struck Ash as odd. He could feel a great deal of love and pride radiating off the professor whenever the subject of his family came up, but from what Ash heard visits were brief and sparse. Ash could tell from the professor's aura that he wanted to see them more, but when Ash suggested to the old man that he invite them over more often or that he should take longer visits he was told that the professor was a busy man and scheduling was difficult.

Things came to a head a few days ago when Ash stopped by the lab to see if he could help out with the Pokémon housed in the lab (the Pokémon at the lab were a lot more willing to hang out with him than wild Pokémon). When Ash went up to main lab he was informed by one of the aides that they received a hastily scribbled note that the professor's family was in an accident which left most of them hospitalized.

Curious, Ash eavesdropped on some of the trainer Pokémon housed at the ranch gossiping. From what he heard the last anyone saw of the Leafeon was him running off towards the far edges of his property. Ash tried to track the grass-type's trail only to be stopped by Mrs. Charizard who was, for some reason, burning down the field.

Ash attempted to ask the pseudo-dragon what happened by was immediately shooed away by the cranky old lizard who just stated she was "doing something important and didn't need little kids to get in the way" or something to that effect. With no leads, Ash just came to the conclusion that the professor had left town to visit his family and went on his way.

Upon hearing that Ash's pack was going to be doing their usual schedule of meeting up on the full moon, Ash assumed that all was well and that the professor's family was making a recovery. This theory was just stomped by Mr. Dragonite's words and emotions.

"Oh no," Delia said gently. She walked up to the dragon and placed a comforting paw on his arm. "I'm so sorry."

Mr. Dragonite gave Delia a small smile. "Thank you, Delia. I miss them, but I'll be fine. It's Sam that I'm worried about. He has not been taking it well."

"Then let's go see him!" Ash declared as he was about to walk into the lab to find the professor. He was stopped when Mr. Dragonite quickly grabbed him and pulled him to the side. "Upupup, I, uh, know that Sam would appreciate this, Ash, but he's not, um, in a good place right now. I don't think he'd want you to see him like that. Please give him some space."

Ash was about to protest, but ultimately sighed and complied.

Delia reached over to pet Ash. "I'll let him know you're here for him, Ash," she said. She then looked up at Mr. Dragonite. "I'm going to see Samael. I trust you have everything under control here?"

"Absolutely," Mr. Dragonite said. His face brightened up and he was able to put back on a mask of positivity. "Come on, Ash. You weren't the only one to receive a package today. I just got a new game of Hungry, Hungry Hippopotas. Do you want to play with me?"

Ash watched his mom walk into the lab presumably to meet with the professor. "Sure."

The Burnt Field

With Ash distracted by Dragonite, Delia headed out the lab's back door and kept walking. Usually the wide stretches of land were useful for housing the various Pokémon whose trainers left their extra party members with Professor Oak. On full moon nights they were useful for isolating Delia and the professor.

Before long Delia came up on her destination, a field that was burned to the ground. The Lucario was about to step onto the dead ground when she felt something wrap around one of her legs. Looking down she saw that some of the longer blades of grass had latched onto her and was how pulling at her leg. A quick swipe with a Metal Claw attack severed the plan and released her leg, but not for long.

In retaliation the rest of the surrounding plants began to swarm her. Delia found herself slashing left and right as the grass uprooted itself and started climbing up her.

"Get back!" roared a voice from overhead.

Heading the voice's advice, Delia threw herself onto the burnt, plant-free ground. The second she was away from the grass a massive plume of fire shot down at the land scorching the plants. Then, landing between Delia and the plant life was another dragon.

Like Dragonite, this dragon had a bipedal build with orange scales and a cream-colored belly. That is where the similarities ended. This dragon had a long neck and a fiercer face than Dragonite's soft features with a pair of slightly longer horns sticking out the back. Her wings were larger and her tail was longer ending in a torch of flames. When the dragon turned around to offer her hand to Delia, it was a skinner, more boney appendage than the Dragonite's.

"Thank you, Charizard," Delia said to dragon. This Charizard was more weathered than the other members of her species. Her scales had lost their shine and her eyes were sunken with one of them starting to glaze over. The dragoness's wings were also tattered at the ends, though they were still intact enough to allow for flight and create a strong enough gust of wing to blow off the remaining clumps of grass that were clinging to Delia.

"Troublesome things," Mrs. Charizard growled down at the animated plants. She blasted most of the remaining plants with another blast of fire.

"I don't know. They're actually kind of cute when they're not attacking," Delia noted watching a weed scuttle across the ground on its makeshift root legs.

Mrs. Charizard immediately slammed her tail on top of the weed. "You're not the one who has to deal with these obnoxious vermin," she growled. "I swear they grow back faster every year."

Back when they were first cursed, Delia and Samuel learned the hard way that containing a werePokémon was easier said than done. Thanks to the wereArcanine, Delia was well aware of the first obstacle: werePokémon could not be contained by Poke balls. Even in their regular Pokémon forms the balls refused to operate. The professor had made various attempts over the years to modify the Poke balls to account for the human-Pokémon hybrid, but to no avail. The closest he got was creating a ball that tased the werePokémon on contact.

The second obstacle was strength. The average werePokémon was physically stronger than their average counterpart which made holding them in a regular cell difficult. The bars to Delia's cell held enough voltage to fry a rampaging Snorlax and she still managed to break out on her first night. Never mind Samuel who, as a grass-type, was insulated against electric attacks.

Further complicating a werePokémon's containment was its typing. Just like regular Pokémon, werePokémon could utilize their elements to create attacks. Unlike your regular Pokémon, werePokémon constantly bled energy like a nuclear reactor undergoing a meltdown. It wasn't as noticeable with Delia whose berserker form which seemed to favor brute strength over her aura abilities (granted she hadn't found someone she'd need her aura for since the wereArcanine). However Sam's monster form seemed to have an effect on the plants nearby.

Whereas the wereArcanine constantly emitted heat, Professor Oak's grass typing seemed grant the wereLeafeon chlorokenisis. How this worked and to what extent nobody knew for certain as it only happened in his berserker form, thus the professor couldn't properly study himself. But everyone knew by now that if the plants were left to their own devices they would start trapping and attacking any poor soul that just so happened to walk through them. In order to prevent the plants from causing any potential hazards, Charizard had made it her duty and the duty of any other fire type willing to volunteer to incinerate the plant life around the containment unit before a full moon.

"What's going on here?" Nidoking had arrived on the scene carrying multiple large canisters.

"Where have you been?" growled Charizard. "The foliage has been getting uppity. Shouldn't you have tranquilized Sam by now?"

"I had to go get more gas," Nidoking grunted lifting one of the canisters for emphasis. "We've been burning through these canisters this week. First thing Sam's going to have to do once he gets himself together is synthesis more of this stuff."

"We're still going to have enough for tonight, right?" Delia asked, worry evident in her voice.

"Don't worry, we've still got plenty," Nidoking said. He strolled past Delia and Charizard and over to a metal door on the ground. He placed the canisters to the side and reached down to open the door. "We're nothing if not prepared."

Nidoking then began to lumber down through the door and out of sight, leaving the entrance open for Delia to follow. Charizard watched the poison type leave and shook her head. "Sammy," she sighed. "I don't envy you."

"We've gotten better at controlling the curse," Delia said comfortingly, patting Charizard on her side.

"This isn't about the curse," Charizard replied. She grabbed onto Delia's paw and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Right now, Sammy's living my worst nightmare. Every time a trainer chooses one of my children or grandchildren as their first Pokémon I feel so much joy. I'm happy that there are people who are able to see just how special each one of my hatchlings are. But at the same time…"

"You know how unforgiving the world can be and worry that they will find that out the hard way," Delia finished sympathetically.

"No parent should receive an invitation to their child's funeral," Charizard nodded.

There was a moment of silence before Delia began to walk towards the kennel door. "Charizard, could you do me a favor and grab Mimey for me? I'm sure there are more canisters, but just to be safe I'd like Mimey to erect some extra barriers."

"I can do that," Charizard said curtly. The dragon's wings then stretched out which created a series of popping noises.

Delia winced. "But if you don't want to I can go grab Dragonite and-"

That offer earned Delia a dirty glare. "I may not age as gracefully as dragon-types like my husband," she growled. "But the day I can no longer fly is the day I'm dead as dirt."

With that, the dragon took off leaving Delia to walk down into the kennel, closing the thick metal door behind her.

The "kennel" as it was called was actually an underground bunker that was built long before Professor Oak acquired the land for his laboratory. It was built like a labyrinth with branching hallways and large rooms that led to other passages. Before becoming cursed Oak just used it as the world's most convoluted warehouse. Now it had been repurposed to cage the most aggressive Pokémon in Pallet Town.

Having been down here countless times before, Delia knew which turns to take in the redundant subterranean structure. It didn't take long before she came across Nidoking hooking the canisters up to a large pump.

"Everything okay over here?" Delia inquired.

"We should be set for tonight," Nidoking nodded. "But I still think you should talk with Sam. He's been cycling in and out of his berserker form for the last few days. See if you can get him to calm down while I grab some more canisters. I'd like to save some gas."

The gas in question was adapted from an oral tranquilizer that had been used by werePokémon for generations. It was a mix of various berries and herbs that when ingested by a lycan would calm their emotions and reverse most emotion based transformations. It was less effective during the full moon as there was no stopping those transformations, but they still helped by putting the monster in a more manageable drowsy state.

Now, one would think the tranquilizer would be the perfect solution to the werePokémon problem. Unfortunately the tranquilizer had a massive Achilles' heel: its viability. The tranquilizer effects were strong but short lived. As a result your average lycan had to get creative on how to continuously administer the tranquilizer. Tactics ranged from dowsing a fresh corpse with the concoction or training a Pokémon to administer the medicine. These plans were also flawed as unless kept in a secure cage a werePokémon would always choose killing fresh prey over a perfectly good carcass and no trainer enjoyed the prospect of ordering their Pokémon to get close to a deranged beast.

To work around these obstacles, Professor Oak remodeled a section of the deepest part of the bunker into a gas chamber. The chamber would not only cage werePokémon, but regularly pump clouds of the modified tranquilizer into the room keeping its occupants pacified. Well, mostly pacified. Nobody should approach a werePokémon even if it is tranquilized.

A big part of this plan relied on Nidoking who not only had opposable claws, but the poison typing. As a poison type Nidoking was able to breath in the mixture without any negative effects which meant that he was the best choice to stay in the kennel in case of emergency. To this end Nidoking received training in mechanics and plumbing. He wasn't going to be building any houses or cars, but by this point he was the most familiar and qualified to keep the kennel running.

Descending further into the bunker Delia finally reached the containment room. Before she even opened the door she could sense a cloud of emotions emanating from inside. Anger and fear swirled through the air, but the most over powering emotion was grief. Taking a deep breath, Delia turned the knob and entered.

Once Delia opened the door Oak's aura hit her like a wave. It wasn't just his emotions, the room reeked of the scents of rage and stress. Accompanying the smells were the sounds of claws clicking against the floor and the growling of a large Pokémon.

Flicking the light switch, Delia could get a better view of the room. There were several large prison cells built into the walls complete with vents and flaps in the ceiling to drop items into the cells. Each cell was walled off from the rest of the room by thick, metal bars which would emit a painful electric shock when turned on. Delia knew the electrified doors wouldn't be enough to hold back a werePokémon, but they were a good deterrent to keep the drugged lycans away from the fastest exit.

In the cell closest to the door Delia could spot the source of the troubled aura. Seemed as though the professor hadn't completely transformed into his berserker state, but he was on his way.

Pacing around in the cell was a large Leafeon with a very pronounced muzzle filled with gnashing teeth. There was a light hunch in his back and its fur was a bit shaggier. Sprouting from random spots across the Leafeon's body were small, short vines which wiggled around making it look like the grass type had a bad worm infection.

"Professor," Delia called out to the monster. "I heard what happened. I'm sorry for your lose."

The Leafeon stilled for a moment before shooting across his cell to start snarling and snapping at Delia. There were multiple loud sparks and zaps as electricity jumped form the bars onto the Leafeon. It snarled and leapt back. After shaking itself off, the professor jumped back at bars and reached through them to swipe at Delia. There was an audible snap and one of the forearms began to stretch out while its paw stretched into clawed, almost human-like hands.

Not missing a beat, Delia took hold of the clawed hand before it could grab her. She held it comfortingly, though with a firmness that prevented it from slashing into her. "It's okay," she said soothingly. "You can take your time. We're here all night."

There were several beats where the monster Leafeon glared into Delia's calm eyes before he retracted his long arm and began to shrink. Within moments a normal Leafeon slumped onto the cold cement floor of its cell. "Delia," Professor Oak greeted in a hoarse voice. "How long have I been down here?"

"It's a full moon tonight," Delia informed the professor.

Oak covered his face with one of his paws. "So I've been down here for days. I can't believe I lost control of myself like that."

"It happens to the best of us," Delia replied sympathetically. The two lycans had gone to great lengths to keep their curses in check. Both of them were fortunate enough to be the bosses at their jobs and could adjust their hours as needed which came in handy when recovering from a tiring full moon night.

Delia herself didn't go into her dinner as much as she used to under the guise of being a mother, which was technically true. She did spend years raising and homeschooling Ash all by herself. It just so happened that her excuse worked well on days when she wasn't quite in the right mind.

One incident in particular took place when Ash was very young and came home from playing in the woods covered in cuts. Apparently some of the more rowdy members of the local Spearow flock had been picking on Ash for being a "freak" and ganged up on the puppy. Delia could still remember the raw fury she felt when Ash came home decked out in talon scratches and pecks, sniffing in a vain attempt to hold back the tears. It was while Mimey was treating Ash's wounds that Delia noticed that fur was involuntarily crawling up her skin. One minute she slipped into the bathroom to try and find where she put her tranquilizers, the next she was in the middle of forest surrounded by dead birds.

In contrast Professor Oak only seemed to transform under the full moon. This isn't to say that there had been no negative changes to his life. In order to lower the possibility of an accident Samuel had receded from his usual appearances on radio shows and lectures citing his old age as the reason for his reduced public appearances. Though the professor shrugged it off saying he was looking for more down time anyway, Delia knew that sharing his love of Pokémon during those venues meant a lot to him.

The bigger personal sacrifice for the professor was time with his family. Having seen how powerful parental instincts were thanks to Delia, Oak and his kid had decided to keep family visits to a minimum. Thus making him an odd distant relative as appose to the loving grandfather role he wanted to play.

"It's good that I didn't go," Oak mumbled settling his head between his paws. "I would have ripped the hospital apart like this." It sounded more like the professor was talking more to himself than to Delia.

"I'm sure they knew that you would have visited if you could," Delia assured the professor. The sad fact was that the best thing that Samuel could have done was cage himself. A human that was scared for the life of a family member in the emergency room knew to sit aside and let the doctors do their job. A werePokémon would have just identified the patient as a pack member in trouble and would do everything in its power to "save" said member. Even if said saving meant mauling the hospital staff and dragging the injured pack member away from the healthcare they desperately needed.

"Thank you," the professor replied half-heartedly. He then sighed. "There is another problem, my grandson. He's still alive."

"That's wonderful!" Delia wagged her tail. Her tail slowed when she realized why a hum of anxiety was emanating from the professor. "What's going to happen to him?"

Professor Oak didn't move. "I'm his only living relative."

Delia's tail fell. It looked like Samuel was stuck between a rock and a hard place. If he took his grandson in, he'd heighten the chances of activating his cursed half's parental instincts and Delia knew firsthand how powerful those were.

Then there was the secret aspect to being a lycan. Delia had really stressed to Ash the importance of keeping his Riolu side hidden from other humans. Given that children tended to have loose lips, she wasn't sure how compliant Oak's grandson was going to be.

On the other hand, with no other family members to take him in the child's only option would be to be put in an orphanage. A tough experience for anyone made worse by the knowledge that his own grandfather rejected him during his hour of need.

"Maybe there's a middle ground," Delia tried to reason. "Perhaps we can make an excuse, say that you're not healthy enough to take in a child and find a friend to house your grandson-"

Samuel's head immediately shot up and gave Delia a possessive snarl. His faced morphed and his lips pealed back revealing a maw filled with far more sharp teeth then a Leafeon had any right hosting. His eyes then slammed shut and his face returned to a normal Leafeon. "Sorry."

"No, I get it," Delia said softly. Her parental instincts had almost triggered a transformation on multiple occasions (thank goodness for the tranquilizer). Considering the reaction she just got for merely suggesting letting the kid live elsewhere, Delia got the distinct feeling that it would only be a matter of time before Samuel transformed and kidnapped/rescued his "pup" killing anyone who would try and stop him. "You know, I've become an expert on dealing with parental instincts. I can help you with them. Plus, if it makes you feel any better, your grandson will be the safest person from your berserker form."

There was a knock at the door and Nidoking stuck his head in. "It's almost midnight. Delia, you should get in your cell."

"Understood," Delia nodded. She stepped into the cage opposite Professor Oak's and locked the door.

Nidoking turned towards his trainer. "Are you okay, Sam?"

The professor gave Nidoking a nod. "A little better, thank you."

With a small smile, Nidoking left the room to turn on the electricity in Delia's cage and start the gas pump.

"Now then," Professor Oak sat up and straightened himself. "Since we are done discussing my problems, care to tell me what is troubling you?"

"Excuse me?" Delia's ears perked.

"I don't need aura empathy powers to know something is troubling you," Professor Oak said with a small smirk.

Delia sighed. "It's Ash. He's getting older and more restless. I was hoping that when he first wanted to become a Pokémon trainer that it would just be a phase, but he's still going strong."

"Oh, I'm well aware of that," Oak chuckled. "He's been popping up in my lab a lot lately offering to volunteer. I suspect that he's hoping that if he butters me up I'll give him a sponsorship behind your back."

Given that Delia found a chart in Ash's room graphing the pros and cons of each Kanto starter, she could defiantly believe that. "It's not just that. Ash is also getting more observant. So far he just smells the meat Nidoking feeds us during the full moon and thinks that we've been hunting. I've been keeping him away from werePokémon movies and stories, but it's only going to be a matter of time before he wisens up."

Delia gave her old mentor a pleading look. "Do you think it's time I told him the truth?"

"You're the boy's mother," Oak responded neutrally. "It's all up to you."

Delia sighed. She should have known she was going to get that response. Her head told her to just rip the bandage off and get it over with. Just tell Ash that he was destined to turn into a blood thirsty monster that had to be kept in isolation. The more she allowed the boy to believe otherwise, the harder it was going to be when he inevitably found out.

But Delia's heart stopped her. She could still feel the emotions of pure joy and naïve content from that afternoon when Ash was playing with Pichu. She couldn't' just take that away and replace it with self-fear and heartbreak.

As Delia mused, a sudden pain shot through her body. The Lucario doubled over clutching her stomach. Midnight had arrived which meant all rational thoughts would have to wait until tomorrow.

The Living Room

Back at the Oak Laboratory, the grandfather clock in the living room struck twelve. It was midnight, which meant Ash still had the second half of the night to keep himself entertained. At the moment, he and Mr. Dragonite were sitting across from each other at the coffee table locked in a battle of wits.

"Do you have any fives?" Ash asked, the fingers of his paw drumming against the table.

"Go fish," Mr. Dragonite responded.

Ash sighed and grabbed some new cards. He was so done with this game! Even inside this house he could feel the moon shining overhead. His body was practically exploding with energy and this card game wasn't cutting it!

Looking down, Mr. Dragonite could see that now Ash's back paws were tapping impatiently against the floor. Spotting this, Mr. Dragonite folded. "You know, I think we've done enough fishing for now. How's about a short walk-"

Ash bolted out the back door before Mr. Dragonite could finish that sentence.

Outside, finally! Ash took a deep, savory breath of night air. By now the trainer owned Pokémon were locked up in storage and most of the wild Pokémon had vacated the preserve in the back of the lab. Which meant he had the whole place to himself.

Not wasting a moment, Ash began to run. His feet trampled against the ground sending him shooting forward across the grass. The longer Ash ran, the faster he became. The air soared by his fur causing the appendages on the sides of his face to flap in the wind. He wasn't a flying type, but with his speed he felt like he had wings. Looking over his shoulder, Ash could see his babysitter flying overhead. A grin grew on Ash's snout. Time to see if he could out run a Dragonite.

Dropping to all fours, Ash headed into the forest. Blood pumping through his veins, Ash was able to direct his body to weave around the trees. His reflexes were fluid and his speed continued to pick up. Over roots, under logs, straight through bushes. Faster. Faster!

Feeling up to a tougher trek, Ash reared back onto his hind legs and sprung onto the trees. Using each trunk as a springboard, Ash leapt from tree to tree without losing his footing. He spotted a low hanging branch and grabbed onto it. Ash then swung into the leaves.

The Riolu proceeded to leap from branch to branch. As he jumped he felt the auras of multiple Pokémon nearby. Curious, he followed his senses and found a flock of purple insect Pokémon with big white wings. Butterfrees!

"Hey guys!" Ash greeted as he hopped by.

"Shoot, is it the full moon already?" asked one of the Butterfree.

"Let's get out of here!" said another.

Then as one, the flock of giant butterflies took to the skies. Ash leapt down from the trees and stared up to watch the kaleidoscope of butterflies take off in front of the full moon. The Riolu marveled at the sight and panted. That was a good warm up, but he still felt energized. Eyeing a large rock formation nearby, Ash took off again.

Ash's paws grasped onto the rock wall and began propelling upwards. As he gained momentum, he began leap up with energy and grace that would make a Gogoat nod in approval. When Ash reached the top he looked around. The forest, the water, the grasslands, the town, he could see it all. Mr. Dragonite was still flying overhead, but Ash was sure he gave the dragon a better challenge than he ever had. He was getting stronger, he could feel it.

Still feeling the moon overhead. Ash was about to take off again, but before he did he decided to answer an urge he had since the moon reached to the top of the sky. Taking in a gulp of air, Ash threw back his head and howled.

AN: This is Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, age nine with his birthday fast approaching. Like all adolescence he is about go on a Pokémon journey. But his exciting exploits of endangerment aren't going to be through Kanto, Alola, or Kalos. Instead he shall be venturing through the Twilight Zone.

And that's where we're going to leave this story for now. I'll still be releasing chapters every so often, but don't expect this to update as regularly as The Crest of a Master which I will now get back to writing…just as soon as I'm done with that Kingdom Hearts one shot.

Well this turned out to be more angsty than I originally envisioned. But in my defense, werewolf stories aren't horror stories. They are tragedies masquerading as horror stories. From the moment someone survives a werewolf attack to the end credits when they inevitably bite the bullet a werewolf's story is filled with anxiety and hardships. Larry Talbot, David, Karen White, these guys do not have happy tales.

But rest assured, I do believe in happy endings. I just also believe in making the characters work for it.

As you can see here we have some changes to the time line thanks to the curse. First of which is a positive change: Ash and Pichu meeting and befriending each other earlier. Given that Ash can talk to and become a Pokémon for almost his entire life I thought there was a good chance he could bump into his fated friend prematurely.

Downside is this version of Delia has become a bit overprotective given that she has experienced firsthand the burden Ash is doomed to bare and doesn't want him to get his hopes up on the dream of becoming a Pokémon Master. But she doesn't want to break his innocence by telling him exactly what he is just yet.

Another downside is Professor Oak's relationship with the rest of his family. Since they know that he can turn into a plant rage beast at the drop of the hat, everyone decided it was best to keep some distance. As a result, Gary is not going to be as close to his grandfather as he is in canon.

The more you know: both jackals and foxes have excellent night vision so they can see better than humans can in the dark. However night vision works by amplifying what little light they have, meaning they can't see in pitch black darkness. Thus the reason I installed lighting in the kennel.

Reader Response Recess!

Guest: Sorry, this story is going to go in a very different direction then what you're probably thinking of. I'm not a very good shipper.

The One Who Reads and Writes: Alright everyone, time to quarantine and mask up. Werewolves can't bite you if they're wearing a mask.

By pseudo-mystery dungeon I mean it's technically not a mystery dungeon but it's supposed to invoke that layered labyrinth crawling with enemies location. I plan to have some genuine mystery dungeons in the future. But they won't start popping up until after Ash leaves Pallet Town and you won't get a proper explanation for them for quite a while.

New Pokémon Introduced

Pichu: Electric, The Tiny Mouse Pokémon

Kangaskhan: Normal, The Parent Pokémon

Dragonite: Dragon/Flying, The Dragon Pokémon

Mr. Mime: Psychic/Fairy, The Barrier Pokémon

Charizard: Fire/Flying, The Flame Pokémon

Pidgeotto: Normal/Flying, The Bird Pokémon

Butterfree: Bug/Flying, The Butterfly Pokémon

Venasaur: Grass/Poison, The Seed Pokemon

Poliwrath: Water/Fighting, The Tadpole Pokemon
Next Time: New kid in town.