//------------------------------//
// Ch.10 - Joke’s On You, Pt.2 - Cold Welcome 
// Story: Little Lost Pikachu 
// by CommanderX5 
//------------------------------//


Little Lost Pikachu

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Chapter 10
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Joke’s On You, Pt.2 - Cold Welcome






“Yak smash!”

Pikachu leapt backwards, his small paws sinking into the powdery snow layered all across the mountain. While he refused to panic as a massive creature bolted towards him, the snow had captured him up to his neck, limiting his mobility. Thinking fast, he pushed himself higher using the tip of his tail and managed to find a patch of hardened ice. He leapt backwards once again, avoiding the beast’s sharpened horns and catapulting himself a safe distance away.

Narrowing his eyes, he attempted to observe his opponents through the raging blizzard. Both yaks were undoubtedly gigantic, twice the size of even Big Macintosh, and weighting two to three tons if he had to guess. Atop surprisingly thin limbs, they had a very bulky body shape, with powerful muscles highlighting each curve. Pounds of warm fur was wrapped around each yak, forming a bunched up beard with small snowflakes caught within their mass, like a fly in a web. Each step made the earth tremble beneath their hooves, and the rugged horns were certainly not for just looks. One horn alone seemed to be a few times bigger than his own body, and if hit with enough force, he was positive it would leave a mark.

One of the yaks had a darkened bronze fur color and was wearing a grey metallic helmet and saddle, his role most likely one of the Royal Guard. The other yak however had a lighter shade of bronze while wearing a flaxen saddle with many golden decorations littered among his saddle and fur. The most prominent was a set of intricate designs traced on his horn in a deep buttercup, one the others referred to as ‘Prince Rutherford.’

After their quick tour of the Yakyakistan… and a drawn out lecture about the many ways yaks were superior to other ‘common’ creatures, he and Nica told the yaks about pokemon culture at the campfire. They had no idea it would lead to them being challenged into a battle by the Prince himself with the yaks’ pride on the line.

“Yaks tough and strong. Yaks not fear the power of little electric-using pests.” Prince Rutherford stomped with both of his forelegs against the frosted ground and roared. “Pokemon battle to get stronger, yaks already strong, yaks won’t lose!” The other yaks gathered around the fire jumped to their hooves and began cheering and chanting, for both the Prince’s victory and the two startled pokemon’s defeat.

Pikachu glanced away from the towering form of the yaks, and peeked to see how his friends reacted.

Nica stood on the tips of her rear feet with snow coating her rear legs. Her ‘Iron Tail’ was raised before her like a katana. He saw small bolts of electricity sparking along sunny dots on her cheeks while her face displayed an intense level of focus. The translating collar was no longer present on her neck, tossed towards Starlight for safekeeping. I guess Nica’s in. She seems to be taking this battle very seriously, he thought, slightly surprised how easily the peaceful Raichu agreed to the battle.

He smiled with glee. It seems teamfight is more appealing to her. I can’t believe I’ll finally see what she’s capable off.

Starlight stood further away as she poked her adventurous hat, a smirk of satisfaction present on her face. Her role was the one of a novice pokemon trainer, a role she took seriously and certainly had fun performing. “I heard stories from Twilight about how… destructive… yaks can get when something or someone displeases them. I’m going to enjoy showing the prince what destruction in a living form really is.”

Behind Starlight rested a colossal mountain with a large fort nestled at its lower part within the frozen tundras embrace. A large audience formed of yaks were gathered in front of the wooden main entrance, observing the double battle from the higher ground. Loud stomping and cheering for the upcoming duel proved overwhelming as the Prince’s subjects were showing full support towards their temperamental leader.

Pikachu covered his eyes as a strong blast of snow and hail assaulted the mountain’s residents, blurring his field of vision. He grit his teeth, struggling to stand against the wind while his tail and ears flopped uncontrollably.

“Little pokemon better surrender before yaks crush them,” the prince goaded while dragging his hoof along the snow, not bothered by the freezing temperature in the least.

“Don’t underestimate how tough pokemon are. Pikachu, let's start this  with ‘Electro Ball’!” Starlight commanded while pointing a hoof at the yaks, only to raise a barrier to shield herself from the strong blizzard raging around her.

Pikachu shook the growing pile of snow from his back, while attempting to remember his past experiences. He had fought against many ice type pokemon, even dueled inside ice-type gyms, usually buried in snow, balanced on solid ice or frozen with the creeping sensation of ice forming from a well-aimed ‘Ice-Beam.’ He brought his attention back to the battle and closed his eyes, concentrating a growing mass of electricity through his tail. A sparking orb was formed, awaiting to be thrown.

“Yaks fear nothing, charge!” the prince called to his companion, refusing to acknowledge the ball of pure lightning pointed straight towards him.

Pikachu opened his eyes and gave a cocky smirk. He launched himself into the air and directed his attack towards the Prince’s face. The orb exploded upon contact in a flashy display, clearing away snow from the rocky ground in three-meter radius. Pikachu gasped as both yaks kept charging at him, his confident expression vanishing. The force of his attack didn’t even slow the prince down, much less do any real damage. The moment he settled from his jump, he felt a terrifying trembling under his little feet, which quickly turned into an earthquake, causing him to lose his balance and fall to his back. If they continued to fight like this, it wouldn’t be too far-fetched to imagine more than a few avalanches coming down to greet them.

“Pikachu, get out of the way!” Starlight desperately shouted, unable to actually do anything to help the fallen friend. Any support would do nothing but allow yaks to claim their victory over a cheating foes.

Easier said than done. He pushed himself to a sitting position with his forepaw, only to lay stunned in fear as his pupils shrunk to dots. In mere seconds he was going to be flattened by two creatures nearly twice the size of a Mamoswine, as well as twice as angry and eager to win. He braced himself for the flattening sensation and closed his eyes, only for his ears to perk up upon hearing the noise of ‘Iron Tail’ making contact with a loud thud, most likely a yak’s horn. A loud crashing noise followed, as well as a tidal wave of snow which swept him away, once again thrown off of his feet.

After a moment of digging through the thick powder, his head peeked out from a pile of snow as he looked at his once-charging opponents. The guard yak was lying to the side with the prince tossed on top of him.

<Sorry I took so long,> Nica apologized as she sank her tail into the snow and pulled him out. <I was distracted by the quake, trying not to lose my balance.> She smiled at him encouragingly. <But don’t worry, I got your back. Can’t just leave my hero hanging.>

Pikachu smiled back, a slight blush present on his cheeks. The setting couldn’t be more perfect. While he was no longer interested in facing her in combat, both due to her gentle nature and his own hesitance in upsetting the kind Raichu, an opportunity to fight side by side with the partner of the pokemon master filled him with an unadulterated joy. He stepped from Nica’s tail and took a fighting stance alongside the Raichu, his paws once again sinking into the snow.

The prince struggled back to his hooves and frowned. “Incompetent guard, got in way when I was about to crush little pokemon. Pests lucky.”

“S-sorry, Prince Rutherford,” the yak muttered in shame before standing up as well and bowing humbly. “It won’t happen again.”

“It better not,” Rutherford spat before turning towards them, a signal the battle was continuing.

Nica narrowed her eyes, fuming with untold anger. She approached Pikachu, untied his collar and held it against her, the lightning-marked gems dancing around her own neck now. “Hey! Stop picking on him. I hit you with my ‘Iron Tail’ from a side-angle to change your course, making you hit your ally on purpose. He did nothing wrong! Even so, you fell on him. How can you blame him for something so silly?”

“If I say it his fault, it his fault. Little creature should talk less, fight more,” Rutherford said before releasing a feral roar. He charged at them once again, seemingly oblivious to the blizzard that swirled around him.

Nica frowned at the leader’s arrogance. She quickly secured the collar back on Pikachu’s neck and took her previous fighting stance, calmly awaiting her opponent’s next move.

Pikachu looked at his partner with a grin. A growing excitement coursed through his body, one from the adrenaline of a challenging battle and one from the glee of performing his own showcase of skills to his guardian. If this was a dream, he didn’t want to wake up anytime soon.

“Pikachu, Nica, attack as one with supercharged ‘Thunderbolt’!” Starlight bellowed over the storm’s howls.

Pikachu clenched his fists, unleashing his electricity with a loud shriek. His guardian aided him with her own lightning, close to doubling the power, but not near strong enough to match Pikachu’s own raw attack power. Seeing a Raichu with a weaker special attack than my own is still so weird. It’s gonna take a while to get used to that. He observed as both yaks kept galloping at them despite being hit by both of their attacks. Burns appearing on the yaks’ fur indicated that they weren’t immune, leaving Pikachu positive this was a battle they could win.

“Yak smash!” both yaks shouted as they jumped up several meters. Though their only attack, it was a game changing one if landed head-on.

Pikachu and Nica jumped to the side in opposite directions, evading their opponents whose missed blow caused a massive splash of snow and a short-lasting quake. A short barrage of stones cracked from the rugged side, adding a rock-like hail to the blistering snow.

“Pikachu, use ‘Quick Attack’ and then follow up with an ‘Iron Tail,' against the guard!” Starlight commanded. “Nica, go after the Prince using ‘Volt Tackle’ and then nail him in the side with your own ‘Iron Tail’!”

Pikachu nodded before sending power into his tail, changing its color as he prepared for the implied combo. He then ran head-first towards his massive opponent. In his world, the smallest creatures could be the strongest, and it was time he taught these bullies a lesson. The yak accepted the challenge and sprinted at him, lowering his sharp horns. Not particularly in the mood to be stabbed, he ran to the bulky yak’s side, circling his opponent. With a sharp turn, he struck a clean hit on the left side of the yak with his head, and then slapped his face with ‘Iron Tail.’

With the blizzard once again growing in strength, Pikachu covered his face, a moment of distraction his opponent was more than happy to use after being barraged with heavy attacks.

His ears picked up the repetitive “Rai… Rai… Rai...,” a sound he remembered from his own time of performing the move. The moment he peeked from behind his forepaws, he saw the full weight of the yak descending above him, only for the gigantic creature to be pushed away by Nica, who struck him with a combination of ‘Iron Tail’ and ‘Volt Tackle’ with an explosion of electricity following in her wake. The moment Nica landed next to him, he questioned, “Thanks for helping me, but Starlight told you to attack the Prince. Why did you disobey her?”

<With my own speed and skills, I often covered for my trainer’s trouble in improvising during heated battles. She was an excellent strategist and planned for things I couldn’t have even guessed of, but when not given enough time to think out a solution, she freezes.> She took a quick breath, releasing white smog of air from her mouth. <I depend on my own intuition and make decisions during combat, based on what I think gives us the best chance of victory, but most importantly what I can do to keep my partners safe.>

She looked at the struggling yak and next at the unicorn far behind her. <Starlight gave a wise command, but I simply would rather protect you, given your stronger attack power. Not to mention, a good friend doesn’t let another get hurt.> She pointed at the sky, while hiding a slight flush filling her face. <More importantly, the weather is working against us, which makes you more vulnerable to their charges. You’re not at full strength yet after our long travel and numerous encounters with monsters. Keeping you from harm is my top priority.>

Pikachu nodded and asked, “Do you always focus on protecting your team members in battle?”

<Of course I do! My defensive style is mostly meant to keep others safe, since I never cared much about being the strongest. I may not be as powerful as you when it comes to offense, but shielding you is a role I much prefer,> Nica explained as she looked between both Yaks, who now attempted to corner them from both sides.

“What about the blizzard? It doesn’t seem to distract you at all, yet you’re not an ice-type,” Pikachu pointed out as he took a fighting stance on his four paws, preparing for the not-so-sneaky ambush.

<Aside from diligent training in multiple harsh conditions, I was raised on a snowy mountain, it comes with territory. There was snow blowing in my face before I even opened my eyes,> Nica answered before doing her best to stabilize herself and her partner despite the trembling ground. She raised one forepaw and bit her lip in concentration, summoning a transparent barrier in front of Pikachu as the raging rain of snow now battered him with a weakened force. <Do you trust me?>

“Of course I do,” Pikachu replied without a trace of doubt, only to feel Nica’s tail wrap around his belly and raise him above the snow. He felt the tip of Nica’s heart-shaped tail gently touch the red dot on his left cheek. His ears perked up as he felt electricity recharge his body, replenishing his once diminishing stores. She’s using her tail… to give me some of her electricity. Genius! He could see both galloping yaks charging towards them. If they missed, they would collide head on with one another, but either they didn’t care or didn’t even notice.

<One…> Nica mumbled under her breath, bending her hind legs. Pikachu was still wrapped in her hold, though he trusted whatever her plan was. <Two…> The yaks were getting closer, a bit too close for comfort, as Nica remained still. <Now!> Before Pikachu could register what was happening, she catapulted herself into the air, avoiding both foes with no time to spare.

The yaks were going too fast to stop, as they crashed horns upon horns. A sharp bang echoed through the crowds, the onlookers going quiet as they witnessed their leader outplayed by mere ‘pests.’ Nica landed on the prince’s massive horn. <Attack with everything you’ve got!> Nica shouted as she wrapped her tail around the curved spike she stood on, and then grabbed Pikachu with both of her paws to keep him stable.

Both pokemon unleashed pure lightning through the Prince’s bones, causing him to yelp in pain and jump around in panic. The yak prince shook his head, jumped in place and used all the tricks he could think of in attempt to shake them off, but the two stubborn pokemon could not, and would not be tossed aside. Sparks of electricity continued to fly.

<Don’t stop, I’ll keep us stable,> Nica promised, refusing to loosen her grip as her tail kept stretching from the constant use. Her paws trembled but held Pikachu in place despite the obvious difficulty.

Pikachu didn’t need to be told twice as he grit his teeth, continuously using his ‘Thunderbolt.' While the yak seemed to have a lot of strength, frantically leaping this way and that, Nica’s strong and unrelenting grip was more than enough to fight against it.

“Smash them, stab them!” the prince commanded in panic as he lowered his head to his guard.

Pikachu watched the dangerously sharp prong pointed directly towards him, as the guard began to charge as his leader ordered. In a split second, he felt himself pulled away from the horn’s trajectory, narrowly missing his face. Nica maneuvered themself back atop the Prince, now on his back, before sharing just enough electricity to replenish Pikachu’s strength.

<Those yaks are strong and seem to have plenty of stamina, but the prince is slowly losing the will to fight. He’s getting tired, though refuses to admit it,> Nica shared before withdrawing her tail. She summoned ‘Light Screen’ once more, weakening the blizzard around Pikachu. <Keep on the offensive while I distract them. Oh, and don’t fret about conserving power. I will try my best to replenish your reserves whenever possible.>

“On it!” Pikachu said with a nod before grabbing the fur of the yak with his paws. Clenching his paws around the prince’s coat, releasing bolt after bolt of damaging lightning. He watched as Nica jumped forward, leaping out of his sight, but returning through his hearing a second later.

“Get off yaks’ muzzle this instant!”

Pikachu’s ears drooped upon a hearing crashing noise.

“Stop getting in front of my hooves you incompetent guard! You’re fault the yaks’ lose!” the prince shouted.

<You’re the one who struck him while trying to hit me, don’t blame others for your mistakes!> Nica complained, though it came out uninterpretable to the hulking yak.

“Stop repeating your name and stand still!”

Another crashing noise followed, this one louder than the last.

“Incompetent guard dares to lay his horns against the prince!?”

<You got in his way you arrogant, selfish ruler!> Nica whined. <I’m so done with you. C’mon Pikachu, let’s finish this battle up fast!>

Pikachu smiled cheerfully, enjoying his team up with Nica even more than expected, which said a lot. She protected me from three powerful attacks, did her best to distract our opponents and recharged my electricity throughout the entire battle. She may be hesitant when it comes to hurting others, but when it comes to teamwork, she’s the master. It’s obvious she cares a lot, both about my safety and teaching this bully a lesson. With a loud scream, he unleashed more electricity, putting as much energy behind the attack as possible. The gigantic prince lost his balance and stumbled atop the snow. They may have a lot of durability and strength, but it’s no match for our teamwork. This will be over soon.





“Now that’s what I call a solid pokemon battle. Maybe once Twilight finishes working on the portal to your world, I can give this pokemon training stuff a chance,” Starlight said as she walked through the snow with two passengers resting on her back, leaving the fort and the defeated and embarrassed prince behind. She was looking forward to sharing yak’s defeat with her mentor and her friends.

“It’s not as simple as it seems. You need to keep track of the strengths and weaknesses of your team members and the pokemon of your opponent, memorize all pokemon types and so on. Many trainers could have amazing knowledge about Pokemon types and weaknesses, but if they’re unable to put that to use in battle, they can end up dragging the entire team down. That’s why I usually help Astra strategize through writing during battle,” Nica explained from Starlight’s back. A bouquet of blue flowers once again decorated her ear, slightly above where the collar rested, returned after the grueling battle with the stubborn prince.

Nica continued in a more excited tone, “And you need to be more innovative than simply telling us which attack to use. My trainer may be an expert when it comes to theoretical knowledge and creates long-term strategies, but she still struggles to improvise. Many trainers are better than her when it comes to using terrain to their advantage, such as Pikachu’s trainer. I’m certain it played an important role in them becoming such great heroes, even with such little proper training. Am I right?”

Pikachu looked back at Nica from a spot on Starlight’s hat while his own collection of blooming flowers were tucked away behind his ear. “Thanks,” Pikachu shyly said with a chuckle, still unused to his guardians constant praise. “Even so, his knowledge is still somewhat lacking. I always have to hold back a groan when he sends out pokemon with type disadvantages, when he has one with an advantage right next to him.” He climbed down Starlight’s neck and sat in front of Nica. “I must say, you’re one of the best pokemon I have battled with when it comes to teamwork.” He patted his own fur. “You didn’t let them crush or stomp me a single time, even if it meant taking a hit or two for me. Looking after me while defending yourself had to be very difficult. It requires skillful multitasking.”

Nica rubbed back of her neck. “Well… it’s not easy, but I much prefer it from hurting my opponents. I just like being a shield rather than a sword. It not only suits my fighting style better but my personality as well.” She closed her eyes and smiled warmly. ”Supporting my allies makes me very happy. It’s one of the only things I truly enjoy in these battles.” Her ears drooped as she looked to the side. “To be fair, I didn’t do even half the damage you did in that fight. Without you, the battle would’ve lasted forever.”

“A Pikachu and Raichu, a sword and shield. You make a cute team that covers each others weaknesses quite nicely,” Starlight commented. “That fight didn’t tire you both all that much. Ah ha, I know! How about a snowball fight?”

Starlight heard Nica’s cheer, only to watch from the corner of her vision as the pokemon jumped from her back and ran through the natural walls of snow littered around the snowy clearing.

“It’s been a while since I had a good snowball fight. I’m going to enjoy it,” Nica revealed as she gathered a stray clump of powder into a pile with her forepaws before patting the small parts of it into a multitude of round balls. Each globe she wrapped with the black part of her tail. She then placed the fifth snowball on the yellow edge of her tail while number sixth she held with her right forepaw. “Dodge this!”

Straight took a step back and raised her forehoof defensively, preparing her horn to pull up a shield if needed.

Nica stood on the tips of her rear paws, stretched her right forepaw backward, and then swung it at her. The moment Starlight leaped to the side to evade the snowball, she swung her tail, pushing the snowball which was balanced on the yellow heart-shaped edge.

The second flew straight towards Pikachu who was perched on Starlight’s hat. The little pokemon jumped into the snow with a little splash while the adventurous hat ended up sniped off by the snowball. It fluttered to the ground a few feet behind, quickly forgotten by the trio prancing atop the deep snow.

Nica started spinning before catapulting all four snowballs with incredible aim. Each one wrapped around her with tail was thrown one by one. She smirked as she watched them all fly true.

Starlight closed her eyes and covered her face with a foreleg. Two snowballs hit her face, while the other two struck her in the chest. She wiped snow from her cheeks and chest and lowered her foreleg, a wicked glint sparking in her eyes. “Impressive, but I have bad news. Now it’s my turn!”

With a grin, she levitated a massive quantity of snow, only to split it into twenty snowballs instantly with her magic. She sent first ten, one at a time at a rapid rate, requiring nothing more than a thought and command with her magic for each to be aimed and launched. Despite speed of her attack, Nica was a step ahead. No matter where she threw them, they all ended up evaded by Nica’s graceful leaps, which seemed to look more like a cheerful dance among the snow, rather than the ultimate snowball royale currently taking place. Starlight followed up by sending a volley of ten snowballs at the same time.

Without a cheerful jump this time, Nica leaped over the snowballs while snatching two of them with her tail. With a roll in mid-air, she threw both snowballs at her.

Starlight summoned a magical shield ahead of her to stop the assault.

“Barriers, no fair!” Nica complained, though she still held a smile on her face.

“Not barriers, just small shields. They don’t protect me from all sides, so I think they’re fair game,” Starlight answered before levitating several snowballs. The smirk on Nica’s face filled her with worry. The little tease was planning something. What she was planning, she needed to figure out.

Nica raised her forepaw and taunted. “Come at me.”

Starlight levitated snowballs at the long-tailed pokemon with greater speed than before, but was missing regardless. A few of her own orbs were captured by Nica, being held hostage as she planned to use them against her. Using levitation, she redirected her thrown snowballs to follow after Nica. “Let see you evade that.” Starlight took a step back in shock as Nica started to run at her, only to jump forward and slide on the snow using her belly like a penguin. Nica bypassed her by sliding under her belly while her tail pressed the previously thrown snowballs into her face. The levitated snowballs which were dead set after Nica, now nailed Starlight instead, hitting her face, chest and limbs.

“Got you! Hehe, you look like a snowpony!”

“How about you try your luck against someone smaller than you?” Pikachu taunted. Having been watching on the sidelines, he had more than enough time to create an arsenal of snowballs, lining them up behind him like soldiers following their leader into battle.

Starlight wiped the snow from her face before turning around, her attention now on both pokemon battling each other. Nica easily dodged one snowball while deflecting the second one with her tail. Pikachu leaped left and right to evade the two snowballs, using ‘Quick Attack’ the moment Nica threw a few at once with her tail. He had a single snowball in his grasp as he ran.

Starlight perched herself on a small white puffy pile while ignoring the snow raining down on her fur. If I understand correctly, pokemon trainers examine the battlefield and fighting pokemon with their full attention to come up with the best strategies while their pokemon are battling. I should use this snowball fight to practice it, if I want to be serious about this whole trainer thing. Who knows, maybe I’ll even have my own pokemon someday.

She examined the ongoing battle with her utmost focus. First, the terrain. The snow is quite deep and not easy to run in for smaller creatures. With their smaller legs, it is much easier to become trapped within the snow, which leaves them open to attack from foes. Nica has longer legs and seems used to the cold, but Pikachu is struggling against it. She gazed up. The weather also seems to favor Nica, considering how much this blizzard distracted Pikachu during the battle with the yaks. I’d say Nica clearly has the advantage in this aspect. She smiled proudly. Being a trainer started proving to be fun. Next, the pokemon themselves. Nica being bigger and wider is making her an easier target to hit, and Pikachu seems to be taking advantage of his smaller profile. They both also seem to be making snowballs of similar size, but with Nica’s bigger paws, greater strength and impressive dexterity, it allows her make them at a much faster rate.

Pikachu smashed an incoming snowball with his tail, and then threw the one he held with his paws. Nica leaped to the side, again catching his projectile and turning it against him. She threw the two snowballs she held in each paw before swinging her tail to throw the third. Pikachu leaped to the side, evading two snowballs, only for a third to splash against his face. He rolled on the snow for a second before shaking himself, eager to return the favor.

“Sorry. I didn’t throw too hard, did I?” Nica asked, concern momentarily blocking out the fun she was once displaying.

“Too hard? More like; too light. I thought the tail you pride yourself with would be way stronger than that,” Pikachu replied in a joking tone.

Nica shook her head before presenting her tail. “I always prefered speed over power, and a snowball fight is about hitting multiple times, not hitting hard.” She placed her forepaws on her hips and raised her head in pride. “I’m not an unbeatable snowball master for years for… nothing…” She lowered her forepaws and her ears drooped. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to sound arrogant.”

Pikachu rolled his eyes. “There’s a difference between being arrogant, and being prideful or playful.” His ears wilted as he gave Nica the look filled with pity. “Humility may be a virtue, but I would really like it if you showed that you’re proud of who you are, at least once.”

Starlight unconsciously tuned out Pikachu’s words as she looked between his and Nica’s tail. Pikachu’s tail can effectively destroy snowballs with quick swings, but Nica’s tail has a lot more utility. Not only can she grab Pikachu’s snowballs, but throw numerous snowballs at once with a lot of speed. Pikachu may use ‘Quick Attack’ to make up for his reduced mobility, but it leaves him stuck running in a certain direction for too long. He’s unable to make sharp enough turns to match Nica’s natural agility. There are just waaay too many advantages working in Nica’s favor.

“Starlight!”

“Huh, yes? Starlight mumbled, awoken from her thoughts as she was met with Nica’s pleading puppy look.

“Can you use ‘Ice Beam’ with your magic, and cover the ground with ice? Pretty please!”

Starlight rubbed her chin, thinking back to her arsenal of spells. She looked around and said, “There’s no water to freeze, but I suppose if I melted the snow first, I could freeze it with magic. So in other words, I can.”

“Perfect!” Nica shouted with a cheerful jump, soaring for a few seconds before landing in the snow with a loud splash.

“What are you planning?” Pikachu inquired as he shook the snow from his fur.

Starlight lowered herself down to the ground, aiming her horn at a flatter area of land. Her horn blazed awake with dormant magic. She emitted a wave of heat, melting the snow in the vicinity. She followed it up with a freezing spell before the water sank into the ground.

Pikachu smiled in satisfaction upon feeling the wave of heat caress his fur. While Nica didn’t react, most likely not feeling much of a difference, she still grinned in pleasure, ecstatic about the idea of ice-skating in this winter wonderland.

“Let’s go!” Nica shouted before grabbing Pikachu’s left forepaw with the bronze patch of her right forepaw. She gently tugged him along as she made her way to the newly installed ‘Ice Rink.’ As Pikachu struggled to maintain balance, she wrapped her tail around his belly, helping him until he found his footing.

“Have you faced situations where a pokemon has frozen a battlefield to their advantage?” Nica asked.

“Many times, why do you ask?” Pikachu asked.

Nica withdrew her tail and smiled. “Then I assume you’ve learned how to ice-skate. Try this.” With slow movements of her rear legs, Nica started sliding on the ice, standing on the tip of one rear leg while pushing herself forward with the other. With a little leap, she performed a triple spin in mid-air before landing on one leg, her forepaws stretched for balance while her body lowered. She performed a mock bow to her onlooker as if curtsying to a crowd of fans. With a quick movement of her tail, she changed her course, now sliding towards Pikachu.

Pikachu nodded before mimicking Nica’s movements, attempting to copy his new teacher’s instruction. With shaking limbs, he slowly crept forward on the ice, sliding a centimeter forward before stopping and repeating the cycle. After a few encouraging words from both Nica and Starlight, he gathered his fleeting courage and pushed himself harder, now gliding atop the frozen terrain.

“Nica! Starlight! Look, look! I’m doing it, I’m actually doing-” His excited chattering cut short as he lost his balance and slammed face-first onto the ground. Nica gracefully slid forward, gently picking up Pikachu and supporting his stunned body. Slight groans echoed from his dazed expression.

Behind the two pokemon, Starlight struggled to hold in her laughter, though failed spectacularly. Her chuckles could be heard by both pokemon as Pikachu slowly managed to reorient himself and stand up straight.

“That wasn’t funny!” Pikachu declared after he recovered, a massive blush covering his face. Nica pulled him across the ice, while finally cracking a slight smile.

“It was a tiny bit funny,” she whispered, managing to hold in her laughter much better than Starlight, who was still caught in a stream of endless giggles. Pikachu’s blush only grew as he realized how silly he must have looked failing so spectacularly in front of his guardian.

She gave a warm smile and pulled Pikachu along, holding him steady as he practiced gliding from paw to paw.

“Fine, I guess it was a little bit funny. Only the teeniest bit funny though,” he admitted, pulling Nica closer. They twirled for minutes, oblivious to the tundra’s harsh snows swirling around them.

Pikachu relectanly released Nica’s grip and once again tried to skate, making sure his balance was steady before attempting to move. He slid one paw forward, then the other, and slowly but surely began skating, occasionally using his 'Iron Tail' for a quick turn. Starlight recovered from her vicious giggles and cheered alongside Nica as Pikachu began to slide less like a rookie and more like a long time pro.

“Woohoo! Go Pikachu!” Starlight called, and levitated herself over to join the pokemon. Pulling out circle-shaped shoes from within her saddlebag, she placed warm mitts on each hoof, and brought out two extra pairs of snow-gear. An adorable blue scarf was wrapped around Nica’s neck, before a matching set of mittens adorned her forepaws. The last accessory, a pair of shoes, was denied.

“Thank you very much, but I prefer to skate with nothing. I found I can maneuver myself much better across the ice without paw-wear getting in the way.” She smiled and helped Pikachu put on his own gear. His own set was very similar to Nica's own but with a different coloration. Rather than her blue, he displayed a crimson red. He too refused the shoes, though a question who managed to make customised shoes to fit his little feet began to circle in his mind.”

“Let’s go!” Pikachu cried, eagerly returning to gliding back and forth with Nica now dragged behind him.





Starlight watched in awe as the duo skid across the ice, each matching the other like repeating a song from memory. They danced through the storm, danced through the blistering cold, and focused on nothing but the next step to come.

Starlight began attempting to slide herself, though it was much harder than she originally anticipated. How was Nica able to make it look so easy? She questioned, as the two pokemon glided by her with little difficulty. As they passed, Pikachu stuck out a tongue and squished his cheeks together, silently teasing her. With a smirk, Starlight tossed a snowball directly in his face and slipped away, whistling innocently.

Now that the two had continued their duet, she worked on her center of gravity. While skating, the hardest part was keeping balance, so if she mastered that, she should be able to master skating, in theory. It turns out, it was not that easy as she lost control, sliding across the ice towards a massive pile of snow, seemingly waiting for her to crash into. Unable to stop herself and too slow to summon her magic to come to her aid, she ended up trapped in the powdery mass. Her head emerged from the top of the pile with bits of snow now decorating her muzzle.  Looks like this is return of the snowpony. She chuckled to herself.

Glancing across the range, she spotted Pikachu gifting her a sassy smile as she dusted herself off. With a glum expression, she gave up and continued to gaze upon the two creatures for half an hour, as they themselves were lost within the tundra’s soothing melody.





With both pokemon once again perched comfortably on her back, Starlight continued her exploration with her two companions in tow. “So, should we continue exploring, or is there anything we can do before going back to Ponyville?”

Nica looked at the line of mountains in the distance, balanced herself on a single foot, and spread her forepaws in excitement. “Climbing time!”