FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Another one of my old Pokemon stories, with some editing and spell checking done. Anyway, hope everyone enjoys going through some of my old work. All constructive criticism is welcome as always.

Most will probably realize this at the beginning, but for those who don't, this Chapter is told from Bulbasaur's POV. Also, to save myself and you some time, I'm not going to be writing what the Poke'mon are actually saying, just the translation. That'll probably be only for this chapter, though. If it's in stars, that's a translation for Poke'mon speech. Otherwise, it's normal speech.

Chp.4 Role Reversal.

---

*What makes you think you're a Poke'mon?*

*Well, I'm covered in fur, I have a tail and I've never been human. Why wouldn't I be a Poke'mon?!*

*You have been human, Dan! Don't you remember?* I asked.

*Dan? My name's Pikachu.*

*Pikachu?* What the heck... *But you're a Raichu Hybrid...*

*Raichu Hybrid?* He looked oddly at me. *What's that?*

*You, dummy!* Nidoran pointed out.

*Don't call me dumb. That's not nice...*

*Well, have you looked at yourself lately?*

*What do...* That's when he noticed his hands. He looked in shock at them for a few seconds, then ran to the side of the pool to look at his face. *No...no...NO!*

*What's wrong?* I asked.

*Everything!* He curled up into a ball, almost like he was trying to hide from himself. *Mommy...Daddy...where are you?*

*Oh no...* This was worse than I thought.

*What's wrong with him?* Nidoran asked.

*I don't know...it's like the mature trainer we once knew is now a shell of his former self.* I heard a sniff, then another. It sounded like he was...crying?

*This is not right...*

*Thanks for that brilliant insight.* I muttered. *Should we try talking to him?*

*He doesn't understand us, remember?*

*Hello! He's understood every word we said so far. I don't get it, but it seems like he suddenly gets everything we say, even though not a few hours ago, he barely understood a word we said.*

*Oh, yeah...* I felt like I was about to pop a vein. Nidoran obviously wasn't the brightest bulb in the box.

I walked over to my trainer, trying to figure out the best way to talk to him. Then again, how do you talk to a half-human, half-Raichu creature who thinks he's a Pikachu?

*Dan? Dan?* I thought about that for a moment, then tried again. *Raichu?*

*Sniff...yeah?...sniff*

*I'm not sure what's going on, but why don't you come with me, and we can go look for your parents. How does that sound?*

*I shouldn't go with strangers. Mom and Dad said not to go with anyone I didn't know. Besides, you might be the one who wants to take me away.*

*You're the strangest of us all, kid...*

*Nidoran!* I yelled. Turning back to Dan, I asked, *Why would I want to take you away?*

*I don't know. My parents were always talking about someone taking me away from them, andI don't want to leave them.*

*When did they talk about this?*

*Every night, for the past few weeks. They thought I was asleep, but I was never tired, so I stayed up and listened to them.*

*Really...* I glanced at Nidoran for help. He gave me a, "Like I have any clue what he's talking about?" look.

*Don't worry, I don't want to take you away. I just want to help you, that's all.*

*What about him?*

*Nidoran? He couldn't hurt a Caterpie, even with the type advantage.*

*Hey! I resent that!*

*Shh!* I hushed. *So what'd you say?*

Dan sniffed a few more times, sat up and straightened out his appearance. He had been crying, judging by the way some of his face fur was matted down, though he tried to cover it up.

*I...guess I should go with you. I don't even know where I am. How can I find my parents if I'm lost myself?*

*O.K. Let's get out of here before the cops come.* We ran out of the gym and into the forest just as the police pulled up. Dan followed us out on all fours, which was a bit odd to watch, but now wasn't exactly the time to complain.

*Now what?* Dan asked.

*We need to find Misty. Maybe she knows how to...find your parents.*

*Misty? Who's she?*

*She's the gym leader.*

*Is she a friend? I can't really remember much about my friends...*

*Yeah...she's a friend of yours.* Nidoran assured him.

That was great, but how to find her was the question. I couldn't see any sort of tracks on the ground, and my sense of smell stinks, as does Nidoran's. Maybe Dan could try, but he wouldn't know what to look for in his current mental state. And what if they just used a psychic Poke'mon to teleport? That was all I needed...

*There's a hole in the tree...*

*What?*

*The trees. There are holes in them...*

I was about to dismiss this as babbling when I looked up myself. The trees themselves didn't have holes, but there were large gaps of broken branches. The missing branches were on the ground, leaving a breadcrumb trail for us to follow.

We followed the giant holes deep into the woods. I wondered what could've made these holes, and what wanted Misty so badly, yet at the same time, passed over my trainer.

*Bulbasaur,* Nidoran walked close to me so we could whisper and not be heard by Dan. *What are we going to do if we can't fix...well...* He looked back at Dan, pityingly.

*Don't worry about it. We'll help him.*

*Yeah, but say we don't. What do we do with him, or ourselves?*

*Look, it's not going to happen, so don't think about it!* I didn't mean to yell. It's just I knew what he meant, and I didn't want to think of the possibilities if we didn't help Dan. What would happen to him? Sure, maybe he could act like a regular Poke'mon, but it'd be impossible for him to live like one. If anything, he'd probably be turned in to some science lab, or locked in some nuthouse with people who have real problems. He didn't deserve that.

We continued to follow the holes until they stopped near a secluded little building deep in the forest. I wondered what a building would be doing back here, but since the trail stopped here, it had to be more than the little one story building it looked to be. There was a pole on the roof that I could Vine Whip to, but there seemed to be no other way in.

*You two stay here. I'm gonna check this out.*

*Why do I have to stay? Because I'm too young?* Dan huffed.

*Too young? You're older than me...*

*No I'm not. You're at least 6 years old. I'm about a half year old.*

*A half year?* He thought he was a baby? That would explain his earlier reactions...but how? Must be a human or Hybrid thing that happens when they get hit in the head.

*No, Da...Raichu,* Nidoran corrected himself, *Bulbasaur's the only one who can get in. It doesn't have anything to do with age.*

*O.K....* he still sounded annoyed.

*Nidoran, watch him and make sure he doesn't do anything to get in trouble.*

*Sure.* I sent out my vines and wrapped them around the pole, testing it to make sure it could support my weight. I then slowly walked up the side of the building, pulling myself upward with the vines. I was glad the building was so short; even only a couple of feet up in the air and with a tight grip on the pole I still felt like I could fall very easily. It was a huge relief when I got my footing on the roof, using my vines to open a door on the roof and climbed down the stairs to the first floor.

It looked like a normal hallway as far as I could tell when I landed on the stairs. Grey walls, cheap carpet, and a couple of wooden doors that didn't seem like anything odd. Curious, I nudged open the closest door and peered inside.

"Hybrid experiment #04123 is responding normally to the new serum."

I ran under the closest thing to me, a table, and looked around. I could see a whole bunch of tables loaded with test tubes, burners and other science stuff. There were a bunch of men and women in white lab coats walking around, some with clipboards in their hands. The two closest to me were talking about something.

"It is? Good, we can't afford anymore screw-ups. You remember how bad Giovanni went after us when we lost all those Hybrids so long ago."

"I wish I could forget." One of them shuddered. "I still don't know what happened to that fool who suggested that if he'd bought the unbreakable glass, none of this would've happened."

"Rumor is he's locked down in one of the dungeons, and can never leave. He was lucky, too. Giovanni was in a good mood when he punished him."

"I'd hate to get on his bad side...but enough of this. You must see the progress of our latest Hybrid..."

"I will, but I have to check on our latest recapture. To think, she was the Gym Leader all these years."

Gym Leader? He must've meant Misty! I followed the man who was going to check on Misty out the door and far down the hall into another room. Thankfully, I'm small, and the hallway was unoccupied otherwise, so no one noticed me. He opened another door and stepped through, leaving it open enough for me to squeeze through.

"So, how is our little fish doing?"

"Alright, for now. She's still out from the earlier tranquilizer, but I think she'll be ready for the serum soon."

Misty was in Hybrid form, suspended in a glass tube filled with some bluish-greenish liquid. There was a mask of some sort over her face, and a tube from that mask that led to something that I guessed let her breathe.

"How much tranquilizer did you use on her?"

"About the same used to knock out a Tarous."

"Wow..." one of them whistled, "that much?"

"She's a real fighter. Our Kadabra had so much trouble keeping her in the dome it couldn't teleport back and take her with it at the same time, so it had to walk back and hold her in with it's powers."

That explained the holes in the trees. It probably levitated her in the ball, which caused all the broken branches. I looked around for a place to take cover, only to realize there wasn't anything to hide behind or under! I just hoped they didn't turn around.

"What's this one's special abilites?"

"Well, let's see..." one of them punched a few buttons on the computer in front of the tank. "Besides great swimming speed, being able to hold her breath for hours, and being hydrokinetic...she's supposed to be able to communicate with Poke'mon telepathically, though she'd escaped before we could confirm those reports."

"What about the other one?"

"The other one?"

"You know...the other one..."

"I don't know, really."

"That Raichu Hybrid we had to leave behind, you..."

"Raichu Hybrid?! You mean that one that escaped last week?"

"You don't know? Well, no one's here...You can't tell Giovanni, but the Raichu Hybrid was actually with her," he jabbed a thumb at Misty, "but since Kadabra was alone, and it was using all it's power just to hold her, it couldn't take him with it."

"Wait, how do you know this?"

"Well..."

Suddenly, before he could finish, a huge siren went off in the entire building, followed by an announcement.

ATTENTION! HYBRID DETECTED OUTSIDE THE FACILITY! CAPTURE AT ALL COSTS!

"Never mind! Let's get...huh?" They turned and spotted me as they started to leave. "Where did that come from?"

"I don't know. Nobody here trains a Bulbasaur. I doubt it's wild, either."

"It's a spy! Better take it out!"

"How? All I have is a Wartortle!"

"I don't have anything! Just grab it!"

They ran at and lunged for me, but they were slow and clumsy. I lead them on a run all around the lab, and they were totally exhausted within a minute. Finally, probably more in frustration than anything else, one of the guys enlarged and threw out a Poke Ball.

*Wartortle!*

"Wartortle...take care...of that...Bulbasaur!" he gasped, out of breath.

*A Grass-type! Are you crazy?*

*Desperate is more like it.* I charged and Tackled her (Wartortle was a girl) to the ground. Her shell took the worst of it, and she rolled back to her feet.

*Hey, that was a cheap shot!*

*Stop complaining and start fighting!*

I fired a pair of Razor Leafs at her, but she dodged one and shot the other one down with a Water Gun before turning it on me. I braced and took the blow, the water doing nothing other than refreshing me a touch.

*Nice defense,* I commented, *but you gotta work on your counters.*

*Don't be too sure you're going to win with your type advantage alone!*

*What, that's...*

<Bulbasaur?>

Huh? There a voice in my head! That's rarely good...

<Over here!> I heard the sound of rapping glass. I turned and saw Misty, her eyes open, hitting the glass that surrounded her with her fist.

*Misty, you're O.K.!*

<What...look out!>

It was too late. Wartortle knocked me back with a lucky Tackle, then got a quick hit in with her claws. I released a little Stun Spore, but she leapt back before it could do anything.

<Sorry!> Misty apologized for distracting me. <Look, there's not a lot of time here. I'm guessing Dan is around somewhere, and he sent you to get me. Looks like you have something else to take of first, but when you're done, get me out of this tube! I'm claustrophobic, and there isn't a lot of room here!>

*Sure, as soon as I take care of little Miss Whiner here...* I tried to Vine Whip Wartortle, but she Withdrew into her shell before I could connect with any of her more vulnerable parts.

<Wrap it up like you did with Staryu!>

Not a bad idea, I thought as I wrapped up Wartortle tight. She tried to get out, trying to force her head and limbs out as vines wrapped around her. I was holding her in tight, though I didn't know how long I could hold her.

"Wartortle, you worthless Poke'mon! Break out!"

*Nice trainer you got there.* I said sarcastically. Misty was still struggling inside her tube. Hmm; Wartortle shells are pretty hard, aren't they? I took the shell in my vines, bought it back and...

SLAM!

CRACKKKKK!

I repeatedly slammed Wartortle into the tube, forcing the glass to crack slightly. Her trainer didn't seem to want to get involved in any of this, even though I was pretty vulnerable at this point. I shuddered at the thought of being trained by someone like that.

*Ow! Hey, that really hurts!*

*Just one more time...*Sure enough, one more quick slam cracked a hole in tube, sending the liquid spilling onto the floor.

"NO!" The scientists yelled as Misty started kicking around the hole to make it bigger. With a little more help from me, she was free and gently leapt down onto the ground below.

*THAT'S IT!* The sudden anger in Wartortle's voice shocked me so much the shell slipped out of my vines and crashed to the ground. She went back to her normal position and glared angrily at her trainer.

*I've had enough of this! You don't pay any attention to me, other than to yell at me, I'm lucky if I'm even fed anymore; you don't care about me at all! Even when I evolved, you barely noticed, and now you send me out against a Grass-type?!" Wartortle cried, looking at her trainer. *I'm tired of this!*

With that, she shot a stream of water at her ex-trainer. He and the other scientist ran from the water, lighter equipment breaking or getting knocked to the floor. Large, electronic equipment began shooting off sparks as they were soaked. The pair of scientists took cover behind the remnants of the thing that held Misty.

"Let me give you some help there..." Misty closed her eyes and held out her arm, palm facing forward.

*What are you doing?* I asked. She didn't respond, and at first, I was really confused. Wartortle changed her aim to the tube, the water blocked from the men by it. Suddenly, the water, and I swear it's true, bent around the tube and hit the scientists. Even as they ran, the water followed them, no matter where they went, bending and twisting around corners and anything that could normally block it.

*Whoa...* I was in shock. This kept up for about a good two minutes, which was actually quite amusing. The alarm resounded during this time, reminding everyone of the Hybrid still outside. Wait...Hybrid outside the building?

*DAN!* I ran out into the hall, desperate for a way out. I followed one Rocket dressed in black out a part of the wall that lifted up when he hit a switch hidden in the wall.

All heck was breaking loose outside. Nidoran and Dan were surrounded by a ring of Rockets, some with rubber gloves, but they mostly seemed unready for this. They attacked the pair one at a time, like in a bad karate movie, and, just like a bad karate movie, they couldn't get either of them. If they went after Nidoran, he jabbed them in the leg the moment they would grab him. If they went after Dan, he fried them with a bolt of electricity before they even got within five feet of him.

*Don't any of these guys have Poke'mon on them?* Nidoran asked no one in particular.

*Guess not.* Dan replied.

Think fast, Bulbasaur. I had to figure out how to break them up...ah-ha! I settled myself and concentrated on creating seeds. I felt them start to pile up in my bulb, and I let them out one at a time. Leech Seed is not a very accurate attack, and normally wouldn't work so well against so many opponents. The first few were hit simply because they didn't see the attack coming, the seeds bursting into vines that wrapped them up and began draining the energy from their body. A few managed to dodge once they realized they were under attack, but caught a lightning bolt from Dan or Tackle from Nidoran soon after.

*Alright!* Nidoran cried as my Leech Seeds did their work.

*Cool...* Dan turned to look at what was happening, not seeing that a seed missed the Rocket behind him. She grabbed a large stick off the ground, charging at him and swinging. She connected with his head before I fired another seed and tangled her up too.

"Dan!" Misty came running out of the passage way as Dan sat on the ground, dazed for sure, but still aware. He held his head for a few seconds, then looked around, confused.

"Where am Rai? What happened?" he asked.

"Are you O.K.? You just got hit in the head."

"Rai did?" He still seemed clueless as to what had happened. "The last thing I remember, the gym Chu came down on my head...now I'm here. Raichu happened?"

"Didn't you come here to save me?"

"Rai...guess." He stood up and brushed himself off. "Ow...my head..."

"Come on. I should get back to the gym, and you should get some rest."

"Raichu." He agreed with a nod. Nidoran and I had to point out the holes we'd used as a guide into the woods, so they could use them as a way out.

By the time we returned to the gym, the police were there in full force, investigating every inch of the place. Dan and Misty spoke privately for a few moments before Dan started back toward the hotel. We followed him, paused outside for a few moments while he made a quick change back to human, then walked into the hotel. The clerk seemed surprised to see someone walk in with his Poke'mon so late. Dan made some excuse about night training before racing off to his room.

After he checked in, we went back to the room and went to bed. Dan took the bed, while Nidoran and I took up a spot on the couch. We slept peacefully for several hours, a bellhop knocking on the door later that morning serving as our alarm. He got no response as we woke slowly, and slid an envelope under the door before leaving.

"Morning, Bulbasaur, Nidoran." Dan yawned, stretching out.

*You got something here.* I looked down at the letter. It was a plain white envelope, not very big at all.

"Raichu?" He picked up the envelope and opened it, pulling out a piece of paper. He read it over for a minute, then reached into the envelope, pulling out a...

"Cascade Badge. Thank you, Misty." He knelt down and patted me on the head. "Rai guess I have you to thank, too. I don't Raichu a thing that happened, but Chu safe to say you did a lot."

*Well, maybe I did a little bit...* I said modestly.

*Hey, what about me?* Nidoran asked, joining the two of us.

"I'm sure you Rai a lot, too." He was about to pat Nidoran too when he remembered the horn, and instead stroked his back a little. After, we ate our breakfast and helped Dan pack up. He seemed to be kinda quiet for most of it, like he was really thinking about something. I tried to read the letter he'd gotten at one point, though after a few seconds it occurred to me I couldn't read. (Hey, I was only taught how to obey spoken commands.)

Dan never told us what was in the letter, even after we'd left the hotel and went to the Poke'Mart. I was concerned something bad happened, but when he said he'd let me and Nidoran get one thing of our choice out of the store, I kinda forgot about it.

*Bulbasaur, I want to ask you something.* Nidoran asked as we searched for what we wanted. I'd already picked out a huge bag filled with different types of candy for Poke'mon, and pushed it with my head towards Nidoran.

*What's up?*

*About what happened before. When and if Dan ever fully understands us, should we tell him what happened and how he acted?*

I looked up at our trainer, who had naturally went to human before coming in, grabbing some medicines for us and whatever else he thought necessary. Should we tell him what happened? I know we need to be honest with our trainer and all, but...I felt really uneasy about that.

*No.* I shook my head at the thought of what would happen, *He never asked for this to happen to him. I still don't know what was with all those Rockets that had Misty, but they're probably involved with our trainer as well. He doesn't need that to happen to him.*

Nidoran nodded solemnly, and then went back to looking. A minute later we bought up our stuff as Dan packed the last of everything into his bag. He paid for our things and put them in the pack as well.

Well, I thought, despite a few obstacles, we've made it out O.K. If we could make it through this, we could make it through anything.

*Dan, you dropped something!* Nidoran said. He had, indeed, dropped a Paralyze Heal on the ground, not even noticing it was missing.

"You can have your candy later, Nidoran!" Dan said before returning Nidoran into his ball.

*No, you dropped your Paralyze Heal!* I tried to tell him.

"You too, Bulbasaur!" Dan put away Nidoran's ball and pulled out mine. Well, I thought before I was returned to my ball, almost anything.