Pokemon fic: Chapter 004
Wow, I don't think I've ever been this diligent with a fic before. Or with anything...
Granted, the mood was helped along with the sudden urge to play/finish Heart Gold Soul Silver, but still!
Oh, before I forget. Disclaimer to all the Pokedex entries - these were taken word for word from the Pokemon Yellow pokedex. Reference is Serebii.net. There was an entry in one of the previous chapters as well, but not really all that sure I mentioned that I didn't come up with these blurbs.
On the Start of a Whole New Journey
Chapter 004 ~ Good to See You
Satoshi skipped more than ran down the road back to his house. After all, how could anyone not be elated after having received their first Pokemon and entrusted with a top priority mission! (Here, Satoshi felt the need to exaggerate the job to himself - after all, saying, “Bring back whatever new stuff you can find,” didn’t sound very important to him.) He was almost down at the base of the hill and prepared to turn a left when he heard footsteps coming up from the road ahead.
Actually, it wasn’t so much the sound of someone walking towards him that stopped him in his tracks as the voice of the person talking, probably to someone walking with him.
Shigeru.
He heard a quiet skidding sound behind him and, confused because he hadn’t passed anyone on his way down, he turned. The trainer managed to keep a wince in as he realized that he had completely forgotten about Pikachu because the Pokemon wasn’t in his ball. “Sorry, Pikachu. I’ll go a little slower next time.” He even managed to make the apology sound a little sincere.
For days, Satoshi had been imagining the day he would be traveling with his Pokemon, but never in any of his dreams did a problem Pokemon who didn’t want to go into his ball feature anywhere. He supposed this was just something he was going to have to get used to.
Pikachu snorted, nose curling to show that it didn’t really care one way or another whether its trainer ever decided to be considerate or not. Crossing its arms, it turned away with its eyes closed as Satoshi, seeing no point in interacting any more with the recalcitrant rat if it wanted nothing to do with him, turned his attention back to his rival.
His relationship with Shigeru was a strange one, in his mind. Despite the fact that they were the same age, the slightly older boy was more or less the town bully who was also the model kid in everyone else’s eyes. And, though Satoshi wasn’t scared of him, every confrontation with Shigeru always made him nervous.
He clenched his hands and unclenched them a few times, working out the tension, noticing that they were slightly grimy from sweat and dust. Grimacing, he wiped them on his pants before he adjusted his hat so that the brim was lower, hopefully hiding his eyes under the shade.
Maybe today no eye contact would equal no conflict?
“Hey look, it’s the runt of the town!”
Apparently no such luck.
Satoshi sucked in a deep breath. “You’re only a few months older. That’d make you a runt too!”
Shigeru was going to open his mouth to form the same retort he always did to this age-old quarrel, but then he spotted the little yellow Pokemon next to Satoshi. Pikachu was still facing away, although occasionally it would turn back slightly, one eye peeked open as though trying to see who this new person was while feigning disinterest.
Shigeru smirked. “So, is this the new Pokemon you got from Gramps?”
Satoshi nodded. “Why, who’d you get?” While the Professor certainly tried to be fair and treated him like he were his own grandson, he couldn’t compare with the man’s blood relative, who occasionally received small favors. He wouldn’t have been surprised if Shigeru had a Pokedex of his own, now that he thought about it, but he wouldn’t ask. Why bring himself down lower by actually finding out?
Another curl of the lips. Satoshi idly wondered if one day, his rival’s face would just be stuck that way. “An extra-nice one from Gramps. Way better than that Pikachu you’ve got there.” The Pokemon’s name was said dripping with such condescension that even the yellow rodent, who had probably understood nothing else, whipped its head around to stare at the boy in disbelief. Shigeru scrutinized it before nodding. “Yeah, that’s the one. I’ve seen it before. That’s the one that’s always shocking Gramps and running around wild. It never goes back into its ball either.” He looked back at Satoshi and laughed. “So Gramps gave you the reject, did he?”
Pikachu stepped forward, little forearms gesturing wildly as it pointed at Shigeru angrily. “Pii Pika-”
But at the same time, Satoshi also took a step forward in a pose similar to that of his Pokemon. “Don’t talk that way about Pikachu! It has its own reasons for not going back. Don’t talk about it like that when you don’t know anything about it!”
“Oh? And I suppose you do.”
“I’m its trainer!”
“Then how about a battle, trainer?” With that, Shigeru reached to his belt and took out the only Pokeball he had attached. He pressed the button in the middle, and the ball enlarged to fit perfectly in his palm. “This’ll be the perfect chance to show you who’s the better trainer!”
“I accept!” Satoshi looked down at Pikachu, who looked up and met his eyes. “Ready for your first battle?” To his great relief, the rodent nodded eagerly. Pikachu was probably only fighting because Shigeru had insulted it, but he wasn’t going to call it to question.
Satoshi looked up just as Shigeru called, “Come on out!” and threw the ball.
The object hit the ground and popped open, and the customary light soared out before revealing the Pokemon. It was small, with long brown ears and huge black eyes. A large tuft of cream fur rested at the base of its neck, so fluffy that it almost covered the entirety of the fox-like creature’s small body. It stood on all fours, furry tail upraised in a stance similar to the one Pikachu had taken against Satoshi just earlier.
Satoshi stood surprised. Eevee were supposedly really rare and coveted amongst pet owners because of their “cuteness,” but they were also highly prized among trainers, the reason being apparent in their moniker, “the Evolution Pokemon.” He had seen them on TV before but had never laid eyes on a real one. Feeling that this would be a good opportunity to start on his “Quest for Knowledge,” (Yes, let’s decide on that name. That’s actually kind of epic-sounding.) he reached into the package he was still holding and unwrapped the Pokedex before pointing it at Shigeru’s Pokemon.
The text that appeared after a moment’s beeps and boops from the machine wasn’t any new information, much to Satoshi’s disappointment. “Its genetic code is unstable, so it could evolve in a variety of ways. There are only a few alive.”
At the sight of the instrument, Shigeru raised his eyebrows. “Oh? You’ve got one too? Funny, I thought I got Gramp’s only one…” Before his thought could go down that track though, he shook his head. “Ah, who cares. I’ll just have to find more Pokemon than you, that’s all. Are you going to stare at the screen all day or are we going to fight?”
“Oh, right.” Satoshi looked at Pikachu, on the ground near his feet, and ahead at the Eevee, who was growling slightly, and then down at his hand. He had always imagined doing this, but it was so weird without throwing a Pokeball of some kind. Why was he even bothering with this? Abruptly, he pointed forward, hand shaking slightly as he hesitated, knowing this looked kind of odd. “Go Pikachu!”
But when he looked down, he realized that his Pokemon had already run forward while he had still been thinking about what to do. When its name was called, Pikachu’s ears twitched a little and rolled its eyes, something Satoshi couldn’t see from his angle.
Shigeru laughed under his breath - for what reason, Satoshi could imagine easily. Even in just the first few seconds of the match, his rival seemed to have the upper hand, and they hadn’t even done anything yet!
“Go, Eevee! Tackle!”
With a shrill “Eeee!” Eevee charged forward. Pikachu stood its ground, looking ready to brace for impact.
“Pikachu! Thundershock!”
The voice seemed to startle the yellow Pokemon and it looked up … just as Eevee struck.
Pikachu was sent flying backwards a few feet, sliding against the dirt on its back. It quickly regained its footing, shaking its head to clear it from the impact.
Exasperated, Satoshi tried again. “Pikachu, Thundershock!”
This time Pikachu snapped its teeth shut with a clack. “Pii, Pika Pikachuu!” Without looking back, it shook its head vigorously some more.
But more importantly, it didn’t attack.
Satoshi grit his own teeth. What was going on? Why wouldn’t Pikachu attack? It looked like it wanted to, and it had wanted this fight, but-
“Eevee, another tackle!”
He looked up, and he caught his rival’s eyes. Oh yeah, that cheat definitely knew what was going on. “Pikachu, jump over it!” he yelled, arm pumping up and over in an arc in imitation of a jump.
This time, Pikachu listened. It charged forward and leapt, higher and further than Satoshi had thought it able to, given its short stubby hind legs. But over it went, and it landed with a small puff of dust, swerving to face its opponent again.
“Get him this time!”
Shigeru’s voice rang out sharp and clear, and Eevee followed its orders with the same enthusiasm his trainer gave them.
“Again! Go!” Satoshi shouted, but this time Pikachu stared straight back at him, uncomprehendingly. “Go!” He swiped his arm furiously to the side, and when the canine Pokemon approached, Pikachu sidestepped the attack.
Satoshi covered his eyes with his hand in exasperation. So Pikachu, for some reason, responded only to gestures. How was he going to tell it to attack then?
Suddenly, a loud “Chuuu!” interrupted his thoughts, along with the crackle of electricity. Surprised, he looked up. There, Pikachu was on the ground, and Eevee was running circles around it (Had he missed hearing an order from Shigeru?). The little brown Pokemon was beginning to pant, but it continued to run, pursued closely by electricity. But Pikachu never hit it, its attack going round and round in circles after the Eevee.
“Pikachu, what are you doing? Stop moving and stay in one place!”
For some unknown reason, though Pikachu couldn’t have understood any of that, Pikachu indeed stopped. But although Eevee gave a slight squeal and skid to a stop, just then Shigeru called out, “Now’s your chance! Tackle again!” and the Pokemon switched directions, running straight towards the yellow rodent.
Pikachu stood panting, glaring at the incoming impact all the while with sparks of bolts shooting out of its flushed cherry-red cheeks. Satoshi clenched his fist, knowing that, at that moment, anything he said would either just distract Pikachu or wouldn’t be comprehended by it. He flinched when the attack hit, and he could almost see Pikachu flying backwards before it even happened.
And happen it did, with a soft thud. Pikachu rolled over, ears laid back against its skull as it tried to get its legs under itself. Once - the front leg slipped.
“Eevee, charge at him one more time!”
Twice - and it slipped again.
Shigeru’s Pokemon made to charge forward, but suddenly it jerked, falling to the ground on its face. “What the…?” startled its trainer, but a quick glance down at the fallen Pikachu hardened the boy’s gaze. Unlike Satoshi, he knew what had happened.
It was only on the third try that Pikachu managed to stand. And its trainer didn’t waste a moment. “Go! Attack! Shock him with everything you have!” Satoshi yelled furiously. His scowl broke into a grin when he saw that his Pokemon understood the order, or at least the tone he had used, as sparks gathered around the rodent again.
“Chuuu!” Again, a powerful blast of electricity, and this time it hit Eevee dead-on.
Satoshi twitched as the pain-ridden squeal from the Evolution Pokemon assaulted his ears. This is a battle. This is a battle. This was something he had always wanted and had always been waiting for the opportunity to take part in.
Just as he was getting ready to jump for joy and rush forward to congratulate Pikachu on its first victory, however, the attack fizzled out, and Pikachu collapsed, exhausted.
Remnants of electricity still wreathed Eevee, but even as it panted heavily from pain and fatigue, it made its way onto its feet … and steadied itself.
After a short while of silence, Shigeru nodded to himself and raised the Pokeball he had returned to his belt during the battle. “Return, Eevee.” A jet of red light shot out from the center of the ball, and in a flash, Eevee was gone.
Meanwhile, the Satoshi ran forward and approached his fallen Pokemon. When his hand got close, though, he felt a small shock and quickly withdrew, surprised. He turned when the other boy talked. “You’ll want to be wait a bit. That’s the first time I’ve seen a Pikachu do it in real life, but I’m pretty sure it can do to you what it did to Eevee.”
Satoshi turned around. “Did what? What are you talking about?”
Shigeru raised an eyebrow before sighing in exasperation. “Of course. Why did I expect you to know?” He shook his head before continuing, “Your rodent there is shooting off static electricity. Normally it wouldn’t matter, but since he fainted in battle, he’s still in battle-mode, so I guess he’s probably going to shock anything that gets close. I wish I’d gotten that Pokedex moment. Ah, can’t win ‘em all, I guess.” He chuckled. “Good luck getting your guy to a Pokemon Center like that, by the way.”
“What? I’ve never heard that befo-”
“There’s a lot of things you haven’t heard of before, stupid. But…” Shigeru shrugged, “I’m feeling generous. You should be glad. I was originally thinking of making you do a dare, but I’m not in the mood for it anymore.” With this, he turned and walked down the path without so much as a wave, continuing as though he had never met Satoshi on the way.
Satoshi was taken aback by the fact that this guy who had taken the chance to rub his victories in his face every single time was giving up the opportunity to do so, but he quickly drew his attention back to Pikachu, who was still lying on the ground in very much the same position he had been since the end of the match. He tried to get closer, but the sparks drove him away again.
This isn’t getting anywhere. With that though, the boy took a deep breath before diving forward and cradling Pikachu fully in his arms.
It wasn’t quite as bad as when the electric rodent had shocked him with all its might, granted, but it was almost as bad. Different, too. While the first had been a sudden punch to the gut, this time the feeling of numbness was like a snake, creeping up on him so gradually that he only noticed when he tried to move again. The feeling came and went, and during one of those times when it ebbed, he shook Pikachu a little, hoping to jolt it from its sleep. “Hey, Pikachu? Wake up, will you?”
At first, there was no response, but after four or so tries, the mouse Pokemon finally stirred, face contorting in what was first a grimace, then a few bleary blinks upward. Another blink, and it jerked, eyes open wide as though silently asking why the hell he was in the human’s arms.
Satoshi sighed. “Good, you won’t shock me accidentally now. Hopefully not on purpose either.” With that, he got up, Pokemon still in arm, and waited. When the temporary paralysis washed away again, he took a few steps forward, heading towards the nearest railing by the side of the road so he could lean on it.
It took a while, but he finally reached it. Another shock awaited him, but that was quickly gone, and he was glad to find himself with more mobility than before and much less of that annoying lack of feeling.
“Come on, Pikachu, let’s get home.”
The walk away from their first battle, and first loss, was slow and arduous, with Pikachu drifting back to sleep in his arms, more relaxed now - and while that was good, it also made it more of a dead weight. Despite this, though, Satoshi felt his heart lighten as he got closer and closer to his house, where his mother was sure to be waiting for all the “great” news and, more importantly, with dinner and a soft bed.
Granted, the mood was helped along with the sudden urge to play/finish Heart Gold Soul Silver, but still!
Oh, before I forget. Disclaimer to all the Pokedex entries - these were taken word for word from the Pokemon Yellow pokedex. Reference is Serebii.net. There was an entry in one of the previous chapters as well, but not really all that sure I mentioned that I didn't come up with these blurbs.
On the Start of a Whole New Journey
Chapter 004 ~ Good to See You
Satoshi skipped more than ran down the road back to his house. After all, how could anyone not be elated after having received their first Pokemon and entrusted with a top priority mission! (Here, Satoshi felt the need to exaggerate the job to himself - after all, saying, “Bring back whatever new stuff you can find,” didn’t sound very important to him.) He was almost down at the base of the hill and prepared to turn a left when he heard footsteps coming up from the road ahead.
Actually, it wasn’t so much the sound of someone walking towards him that stopped him in his tracks as the voice of the person talking, probably to someone walking with him.
Shigeru.
He heard a quiet skidding sound behind him and, confused because he hadn’t passed anyone on his way down, he turned. The trainer managed to keep a wince in as he realized that he had completely forgotten about Pikachu because the Pokemon wasn’t in his ball. “Sorry, Pikachu. I’ll go a little slower next time.” He even managed to make the apology sound a little sincere.
For days, Satoshi had been imagining the day he would be traveling with his Pokemon, but never in any of his dreams did a problem Pokemon who didn’t want to go into his ball feature anywhere. He supposed this was just something he was going to have to get used to.
Pikachu snorted, nose curling to show that it didn’t really care one way or another whether its trainer ever decided to be considerate or not. Crossing its arms, it turned away with its eyes closed as Satoshi, seeing no point in interacting any more with the recalcitrant rat if it wanted nothing to do with him, turned his attention back to his rival.
His relationship with Shigeru was a strange one, in his mind. Despite the fact that they were the same age, the slightly older boy was more or less the town bully who was also the model kid in everyone else’s eyes. And, though Satoshi wasn’t scared of him, every confrontation with Shigeru always made him nervous.
He clenched his hands and unclenched them a few times, working out the tension, noticing that they were slightly grimy from sweat and dust. Grimacing, he wiped them on his pants before he adjusted his hat so that the brim was lower, hopefully hiding his eyes under the shade.
Maybe today no eye contact would equal no conflict?
“Hey look, it’s the runt of the town!”
Apparently no such luck.
Satoshi sucked in a deep breath. “You’re only a few months older. That’d make you a runt too!”
Shigeru was going to open his mouth to form the same retort he always did to this age-old quarrel, but then he spotted the little yellow Pokemon next to Satoshi. Pikachu was still facing away, although occasionally it would turn back slightly, one eye peeked open as though trying to see who this new person was while feigning disinterest.
Shigeru smirked. “So, is this the new Pokemon you got from Gramps?”
Satoshi nodded. “Why, who’d you get?” While the Professor certainly tried to be fair and treated him like he were his own grandson, he couldn’t compare with the man’s blood relative, who occasionally received small favors. He wouldn’t have been surprised if Shigeru had a Pokedex of his own, now that he thought about it, but he wouldn’t ask. Why bring himself down lower by actually finding out?
Another curl of the lips. Satoshi idly wondered if one day, his rival’s face would just be stuck that way. “An extra-nice one from Gramps. Way better than that Pikachu you’ve got there.” The Pokemon’s name was said dripping with such condescension that even the yellow rodent, who had probably understood nothing else, whipped its head around to stare at the boy in disbelief. Shigeru scrutinized it before nodding. “Yeah, that’s the one. I’ve seen it before. That’s the one that’s always shocking Gramps and running around wild. It never goes back into its ball either.” He looked back at Satoshi and laughed. “So Gramps gave you the reject, did he?”
Pikachu stepped forward, little forearms gesturing wildly as it pointed at Shigeru angrily. “Pii Pika-”
But at the same time, Satoshi also took a step forward in a pose similar to that of his Pokemon. “Don’t talk that way about Pikachu! It has its own reasons for not going back. Don’t talk about it like that when you don’t know anything about it!”
“Oh? And I suppose you do.”
“I’m its trainer!”
“Then how about a battle, trainer?” With that, Shigeru reached to his belt and took out the only Pokeball he had attached. He pressed the button in the middle, and the ball enlarged to fit perfectly in his palm. “This’ll be the perfect chance to show you who’s the better trainer!”
“I accept!” Satoshi looked down at Pikachu, who looked up and met his eyes. “Ready for your first battle?” To his great relief, the rodent nodded eagerly. Pikachu was probably only fighting because Shigeru had insulted it, but he wasn’t going to call it to question.
Satoshi looked up just as Shigeru called, “Come on out!” and threw the ball.
The object hit the ground and popped open, and the customary light soared out before revealing the Pokemon. It was small, with long brown ears and huge black eyes. A large tuft of cream fur rested at the base of its neck, so fluffy that it almost covered the entirety of the fox-like creature’s small body. It stood on all fours, furry tail upraised in a stance similar to the one Pikachu had taken against Satoshi just earlier.
Satoshi stood surprised. Eevee were supposedly really rare and coveted amongst pet owners because of their “cuteness,” but they were also highly prized among trainers, the reason being apparent in their moniker, “the Evolution Pokemon.” He had seen them on TV before but had never laid eyes on a real one. Feeling that this would be a good opportunity to start on his “Quest for Knowledge,” (Yes, let’s decide on that name. That’s actually kind of epic-sounding.) he reached into the package he was still holding and unwrapped the Pokedex before pointing it at Shigeru’s Pokemon.
The text that appeared after a moment’s beeps and boops from the machine wasn’t any new information, much to Satoshi’s disappointment. “Its genetic code is unstable, so it could evolve in a variety of ways. There are only a few alive.”
At the sight of the instrument, Shigeru raised his eyebrows. “Oh? You’ve got one too? Funny, I thought I got Gramp’s only one…” Before his thought could go down that track though, he shook his head. “Ah, who cares. I’ll just have to find more Pokemon than you, that’s all. Are you going to stare at the screen all day or are we going to fight?”
“Oh, right.” Satoshi looked at Pikachu, on the ground near his feet, and ahead at the Eevee, who was growling slightly, and then down at his hand. He had always imagined doing this, but it was so weird without throwing a Pokeball of some kind. Why was he even bothering with this? Abruptly, he pointed forward, hand shaking slightly as he hesitated, knowing this looked kind of odd. “Go Pikachu!”
But when he looked down, he realized that his Pokemon had already run forward while he had still been thinking about what to do. When its name was called, Pikachu’s ears twitched a little and rolled its eyes, something Satoshi couldn’t see from his angle.
Shigeru laughed under his breath - for what reason, Satoshi could imagine easily. Even in just the first few seconds of the match, his rival seemed to have the upper hand, and they hadn’t even done anything yet!
“Go, Eevee! Tackle!”
With a shrill “Eeee!” Eevee charged forward. Pikachu stood its ground, looking ready to brace for impact.
“Pikachu! Thundershock!”
The voice seemed to startle the yellow Pokemon and it looked up … just as Eevee struck.
Pikachu was sent flying backwards a few feet, sliding against the dirt on its back. It quickly regained its footing, shaking its head to clear it from the impact.
Exasperated, Satoshi tried again. “Pikachu, Thundershock!”
This time Pikachu snapped its teeth shut with a clack. “Pii, Pika Pikachuu!” Without looking back, it shook its head vigorously some more.
But more importantly, it didn’t attack.
Satoshi grit his own teeth. What was going on? Why wouldn’t Pikachu attack? It looked like it wanted to, and it had wanted this fight, but-
“Eevee, another tackle!”
He looked up, and he caught his rival’s eyes. Oh yeah, that cheat definitely knew what was going on. “Pikachu, jump over it!” he yelled, arm pumping up and over in an arc in imitation of a jump.
This time, Pikachu listened. It charged forward and leapt, higher and further than Satoshi had thought it able to, given its short stubby hind legs. But over it went, and it landed with a small puff of dust, swerving to face its opponent again.
“Get him this time!”
Shigeru’s voice rang out sharp and clear, and Eevee followed its orders with the same enthusiasm his trainer gave them.
“Again! Go!” Satoshi shouted, but this time Pikachu stared straight back at him, uncomprehendingly. “Go!” He swiped his arm furiously to the side, and when the canine Pokemon approached, Pikachu sidestepped the attack.
Satoshi covered his eyes with his hand in exasperation. So Pikachu, for some reason, responded only to gestures. How was he going to tell it to attack then?
Suddenly, a loud “Chuuu!” interrupted his thoughts, along with the crackle of electricity. Surprised, he looked up. There, Pikachu was on the ground, and Eevee was running circles around it (Had he missed hearing an order from Shigeru?). The little brown Pokemon was beginning to pant, but it continued to run, pursued closely by electricity. But Pikachu never hit it, its attack going round and round in circles after the Eevee.
“Pikachu, what are you doing? Stop moving and stay in one place!”
For some unknown reason, though Pikachu couldn’t have understood any of that, Pikachu indeed stopped. But although Eevee gave a slight squeal and skid to a stop, just then Shigeru called out, “Now’s your chance! Tackle again!” and the Pokemon switched directions, running straight towards the yellow rodent.
Pikachu stood panting, glaring at the incoming impact all the while with sparks of bolts shooting out of its flushed cherry-red cheeks. Satoshi clenched his fist, knowing that, at that moment, anything he said would either just distract Pikachu or wouldn’t be comprehended by it. He flinched when the attack hit, and he could almost see Pikachu flying backwards before it even happened.
And happen it did, with a soft thud. Pikachu rolled over, ears laid back against its skull as it tried to get its legs under itself. Once - the front leg slipped.
“Eevee, charge at him one more time!”
Twice - and it slipped again.
Shigeru’s Pokemon made to charge forward, but suddenly it jerked, falling to the ground on its face. “What the…?” startled its trainer, but a quick glance down at the fallen Pikachu hardened the boy’s gaze. Unlike Satoshi, he knew what had happened.
It was only on the third try that Pikachu managed to stand. And its trainer didn’t waste a moment. “Go! Attack! Shock him with everything you have!” Satoshi yelled furiously. His scowl broke into a grin when he saw that his Pokemon understood the order, or at least the tone he had used, as sparks gathered around the rodent again.
“Chuuu!” Again, a powerful blast of electricity, and this time it hit Eevee dead-on.
Satoshi twitched as the pain-ridden squeal from the Evolution Pokemon assaulted his ears. This is a battle. This is a battle. This was something he had always wanted and had always been waiting for the opportunity to take part in.
Just as he was getting ready to jump for joy and rush forward to congratulate Pikachu on its first victory, however, the attack fizzled out, and Pikachu collapsed, exhausted.
Remnants of electricity still wreathed Eevee, but even as it panted heavily from pain and fatigue, it made its way onto its feet … and steadied itself.
After a short while of silence, Shigeru nodded to himself and raised the Pokeball he had returned to his belt during the battle. “Return, Eevee.” A jet of red light shot out from the center of the ball, and in a flash, Eevee was gone.
Meanwhile, the Satoshi ran forward and approached his fallen Pokemon. When his hand got close, though, he felt a small shock and quickly withdrew, surprised. He turned when the other boy talked. “You’ll want to be wait a bit. That’s the first time I’ve seen a Pikachu do it in real life, but I’m pretty sure it can do to you what it did to Eevee.”
Satoshi turned around. “Did what? What are you talking about?”
Shigeru raised an eyebrow before sighing in exasperation. “Of course. Why did I expect you to know?” He shook his head before continuing, “Your rodent there is shooting off static electricity. Normally it wouldn’t matter, but since he fainted in battle, he’s still in battle-mode, so I guess he’s probably going to shock anything that gets close. I wish I’d gotten that Pokedex moment. Ah, can’t win ‘em all, I guess.” He chuckled. “Good luck getting your guy to a Pokemon Center like that, by the way.”
“What? I’ve never heard that befo-”
“There’s a lot of things you haven’t heard of before, stupid. But…” Shigeru shrugged, “I’m feeling generous. You should be glad. I was originally thinking of making you do a dare, but I’m not in the mood for it anymore.” With this, he turned and walked down the path without so much as a wave, continuing as though he had never met Satoshi on the way.
Satoshi was taken aback by the fact that this guy who had taken the chance to rub his victories in his face every single time was giving up the opportunity to do so, but he quickly drew his attention back to Pikachu, who was still lying on the ground in very much the same position he had been since the end of the match. He tried to get closer, but the sparks drove him away again.
This isn’t getting anywhere. With that though, the boy took a deep breath before diving forward and cradling Pikachu fully in his arms.
It wasn’t quite as bad as when the electric rodent had shocked him with all its might, granted, but it was almost as bad. Different, too. While the first had been a sudden punch to the gut, this time the feeling of numbness was like a snake, creeping up on him so gradually that he only noticed when he tried to move again. The feeling came and went, and during one of those times when it ebbed, he shook Pikachu a little, hoping to jolt it from its sleep. “Hey, Pikachu? Wake up, will you?”
At first, there was no response, but after four or so tries, the mouse Pokemon finally stirred, face contorting in what was first a grimace, then a few bleary blinks upward. Another blink, and it jerked, eyes open wide as though silently asking why the hell he was in the human’s arms.
Satoshi sighed. “Good, you won’t shock me accidentally now. Hopefully not on purpose either.” With that, he got up, Pokemon still in arm, and waited. When the temporary paralysis washed away again, he took a few steps forward, heading towards the nearest railing by the side of the road so he could lean on it.
It took a while, but he finally reached it. Another shock awaited him, but that was quickly gone, and he was glad to find himself with more mobility than before and much less of that annoying lack of feeling.
“Come on, Pikachu, let’s get home.”
The walk away from their first battle, and first loss, was slow and arduous, with Pikachu drifting back to sleep in his arms, more relaxed now - and while that was good, it also made it more of a dead weight. Despite this, though, Satoshi felt his heart lighten as he got closer and closer to his house, where his mother was sure to be waiting for all the “great” news and, more importantly, with dinner and a soft bed.