“You know,” Luna said, looking idly at one of her hooves, “where I come from it is considered rather uncouth to ambush royalty, and then declare that you will ‘beat you to a twitching moaning pulp’ for and I quote ‘smelling funny’.” She looked down. “Is any of this getting through to you?”
The twitching, moaning pulp of a Fearow let out a small wheeze.
“Yes, I see what you mean.” The princess nodded. “I am certain it has occurred to you by now that as the undisputed victim of this circumstance and the beating heart at the codes of law, that I have a number of means I might pursue justice for your unprovoked assault of my royal personage? It would be well within my rights to see you imprisoned for your crimes, or perhaps strip you of your valued plumage.”
The beaten bird Pokemon coughed weakly.
“Yet, as you say, it is also within my prerogative to exercise mercy, for I am not a benevolent dictator? It is thus that I hereby pass sentence of community service. To wit: you will serve the Equestrian community by aiding me, its ruler and representative, in my quest.”
Then came a twitch and a low groan.
Luna sighed. “To put it less formally, tell me where I can find a decent meal, something to drink, and some directions around here and I won’t leave you lying on this forest floor in your current semi-gelatinous state.”
Fearow sneezed.
“I thought you’d see it my way.”
Many miles distant, as the pale moon rose high overhead, Ash was picking up a new Poke Ball freshly emerged from a machine. He looked down at the unassuming red and white sphere, indistinguishable from any other of its countless kind, and smiled.
“Well here she is, Pikachu,” Ash said to the little yellow Pokemon by his ankle, “our newest friend.”
“Hopefully some time to think things out in her ball calmed her down a little,” said Professor Oak through the nearby video phone.
“You can say that again,” muttered Pikachu, the only one privy to the contents of her rant.
“Alright.” Ash pushed the white button to enlarge the ball. “Enough standing around, come on out and say hi!”
He tossed the Poke Ball casually into the air and in an instant it exploded into the all too familiar silver light. Pikachu watched, nose and ears twitching, as the newcomer took shape in front of him. As she stretched her wings he sized her up – he hadn’t really had a chance to before, what with the Houndoom and later her confused ranting into the video camera. The purple Ponyta-like creature was shorter than the white one with Team Rocket. That one’s face came up to James’ head, whereas this one only reached Ash’s chest. She was a little stubbier, her legs and neck noticeably less elongated. And her hair wasn’t flowing like the other ones’. Pikachu sniffed.
Smelled alright, though.
“Hey there, Twilight,” Ash said cheerfully, as she turned around to face them. “I’m Ash, and this is my buddy Pikachu!”
“Hi!” Pikachu waved one stubby arm.
“Pleased to finally meet ya!”
For her part, the newcomer was looking Ash up and down, a curious but neutral expression on her face. After a moment, she returned the smile.
“Likewise. You’re the ones I have to thank for saving me back in the forest, right?”
“Well it wasn’t just us,” Pikachu explained, scratching the back of his head. “But we did a lot of the work, yeah.”
“Well then, uh… thanks.” Twilight tapped her two front hooves together a bit nervously. “I – ahem – don’t mean to sound rude or ungrateful, but…”
“Aw come on, no need to be shy,” Ash interjected, bending over to get closer to eye level. “We’re all friends here!”
“Well… okay…” Twilight chuckled a little. “If you insist…”
Absolutely without warning, Pikachu found himself with a face full of wide-eyed purple.
“WHEREISPRINCESSCELESTIA?!”
“Gah!” Pikachu jumped, stumbling over backwards and barely resisting the instinct to shock whatever startled him. He almost fell over, but a hand caught his back at the last second.
“I gotcha, buddy.”
“Thanks.” Pikachu nodded, using his trainer’s arm to steady himself before turning back to look at Twilight. She was breathing heavily, a look of barely-restraining panic on her face. Pikachu backed up a step.
“Now… didn’t mean to startle you there… friend…” Twilight’s eyelid twitched. “But I gotta know… your trainer there said you’ve seen a white, rainbow-maned alicorn, right?”
“Alicorn?” Pikachu cocked his head.
Twilight gestured at her own body, never removing her unblinking stare from Pikachu.
“Ummm… yes?”
“And Professor Oak says that you’re always out of your ball, yes?”
“That’s right.” Pikachu nodded with more than a little pride.
“So you gotta know… WHERE IS SHE?!” Twilight’s voice went from a twitchy whisper to shouting without the slightest indicator. “WHERE IS PRINCESS CELESTIA?! IF YOU KNOW WHERE SHE IS I NEED TO FIND HER YESTERDAY!”
“Whoa, easy there.” Ash waved his hands for calm. “I know this is probably still weird for you but just try to stay cool, okay?”
Twilight completely ignored him, breathing heavily in a manner that uncomfortably reminded Pikachu of his few experiences with horror films. He backed up another few steps.
“Y-Yeah,” he managed. “We saw her twice.”
“And where… was she then?”
“With T-Team Rocket,” Pikachu managed, uncomfortable visions of himself as a hat dancing before his eyes. “Poke Ball Factory, a-around a week ago.”
“And… who… is…” she continued, sucking a deep breath between every world, “Team… Rocket?”
“J-Jessie, James, and Meowth. They’re a b-band of Pokemon thieves.”
“MY MENTOR HAS BEEN KIDNAPPED BY CRIMINALS?!!!” Twilight shrieked at the top of her lungs, bowling Ash and Pikachu over with the sheer force of it. “THE PRINCESS OF EQUESTRIA IS A HOSTAGE?! AND YOU LET IT HAPPEN?!”
“Hostage?!” Pikachu sat up, a new, fiercer look on his face. “She’s not a hostage! She’s an accomplice!”
Twilight froze in place, all previous fear and noise gone. The building around the three became deathly quiet. Pikachu suddenly realized that Oak’s face was gone from the video. And if it wasn’t just his imagination, the lights had gone down. And the wind had picked up. And the crazy purple Pokemon princess was advancing towards him.
“Are. You. Truly.” She took one step forward with each word, hooves suddenly. “Accusing. The. Loving. Kind. Wise. Wonderful. Brilliant. Incomparable. Omnibenevolent. Perfect. Shining star of Equestria OF BEING IN LEAGUE WITH CRIMINALS?!” She towered above Pikachu, a black and purple mass absorbing all light.
“Accuse nothing!” Pikachu found his courage, pointing up at her. “I saw her fighting for Team Rocket with my own eyes! She attacked me and Ash on their orders!” He rubbed his head. “Packed quite a wallop too.”
Twilight stood there, frozen in place. Second ticked by, neither human nor Pokemon daring to speak a word between them, barely even daring to take the shallowest breaths. Pikachu felt sweat trickling down the back of his neck.
“Omygosh!” Just as suddenly, the spell was broken. “Omygosh omygosh omygosh!” Tears were welling up in Twilight’s eyes. She hopped up and down on all four hooves. “What have they done to her?!”
“Pardon?” Pikachu cocked his head.
Twilight had already turned away from him.
“What could those fiends have possibly done to Princess Celestia?” Twilight muttered as she walked away towards the entrance. “How could anypony in the world, anyone in the all multiverse ever come up with something fiendish enough to turn Sol Invictus to darkness? This Team Rocket must be the most wicked group of devils that ever lived, if they could even begin to do that to her!”
“Uh, I don’t…” Pikachu began, but the princess wasn’t listening.
“They must have taken her while she was weak, burned her with the flames of those devil-dogs and shocked her with the strength of ten thousand thunderclouds to have even the faintest hope of scratching her will, her inner strength! They must have needed to invent new words just to describe the levels of pain they had to have inflicted on her!”
“Team Rocket doesn’t really-”
“But even that surely can’t compare to levels of intelligence and charisma they must have! Raw pain couldn’t hope to do the job alone, they must be the world’s foremost experts in psychological warfare and mind control to crack her mental defenses and usurp her will! All the manipulations of Starlight Glimmer herself would be as the mildest breeze compared to their raging hurricane of cunning and trickery!”
Pikachu sweat-dropped. “Listen, you really need to-”
“Crueler than Discord! More devious than Chrysalis! More powerful than Tirek!” Tears were now running down Twilight’s cheeks. “They have to be the most terrifying, brilliant, unconquerable band of villains in this universe! In all the universes put together!”
“Uuuuh…” Pikachu looked pleadingly up at Ash, who simply shook his head.
“Against such darkness, how can we stand?!” Twilight bumped into the wall but didn’t seem to notice. “HOW CAN WE STAND?!!!”
The alicorn princess banged her head into the wall and, for several seconds, simply wept. Ash and Pikachu just stared.
Eventually, Twilight stared blurry-eyed out the window into the starry skies above. “Who kn-knows what kind of h-horrible tortures they could be inflicting even now?” she sobbed.
Jessie and James smiled to each other as they slowly pulled their pokers from the brilliant orange of their fire pit. Both raised twin long, thin metal stakes right up to their faces. They turned them about slowly, inspecting every inch of the red-hot steel with careful eyes. Seconds ticked by in tense anticipation. When at last the two hardened criminals were satisfied with their work, they gave each other a small, smirking nod. They turned to face their huddled Pokemon with wide grins on their faces, the red-orange fire lending the two a truly fiendish aspect.
“Alrighty everyone, the wait is over!” Jessie announced.
“They’re finally ready!” James added. “Now who wants s’mores?!”
“I do!” cheered Meowth, Pumpkaboo, Inkay, and Celestia as one.
"Wobbuffet!"
“Great, that’s the attitude!” James put his hands on his hips, only just barely avoiding setting his pants on fire.
“Now who’s got the marshmellows?” Jessie asked.
“Right here!” Celestia psychically tossed the plastic bag out from its hiding place in her wings. Jessie caught it with her teeth. Somehow. “I kept them safe from the others!”
“Now let’s get this campout really started! S’mores and cowhorn biscuits, scarey stories and truth or dare!” James raised a fist, red-hot poker still clutched in it. “Who’s with me?!”
“WOOOOO!” cheered the Pokemon.
*shakes head* Celestia truly couldn't have been found by Better Team Rocket members. They've got hearts of gold, all three of em.(Even if Jessie's is buried under heaps of nasty). I just wish Ash and the others would realize this.
8321665
Well, James is the greatest pokemon character of all time.
8321665
I think they get glimpses every so often - like the second and third movies, for example...
Who knew Twilight could hit Rarity levels of dramatic?
8321676
Yet they conveniently Forget that those movies ever happened. The one time They tried to tell him about what they did, he didn't believe them. I say conveniently Because Mewtwo wiped everyone's memory in one of them, the Celebi Movie had like no interactions between them, and the other movies had similar cases.
8321673
Yes. Yes He Is. ...I miss Chimey Wimey. I still hope we're going to see her again.
8321665
The years they've spent stalking him to try and steal his best friend to deliver to their genuinely vicious overlord probably have something to do with why he doesn't.
Poor poor Celestia... sharing marshmallows and playing games with these malevolent thieves... how could they?
Ash, Pikachu, meet Twilight “Overreacting” Sparkle! That was really funny. Has she been secretly taking “light dimming, thunderous voice” lessons from Gandalf?
I can’t wait to read about Luna making contact with the populace and
using Canterlockgreeting them.Looks like the thousand of years old ruler of Equestria is having a refreshing trip with the trio and their pokemons (outside of the serious encounters), after so long time spent doing the princess job.
8321679
*meanwhile in equestria*
Rarity:*Shudders* .......I don't know why, but I feel as I've just been surpassed by somepony on something I'm good at.
And crazy Twilight is back. But that's part of what makes her adorkable.
Funny thing I'm sure if you give cake to Celestia, you can almost ask her anything.
Props also to Luna being a badass.
Alright Pikachu, your survival SOLELY DEPENDS on no one telling Twilight that YOU STRUCK CELESTIA FIRST! Just let no one tell her this and you will survive without getting a lecture prior to purple-doom!
Ahahaha
Looks like Luna might be having her own kind of army/gang of Pokemon and becoming the leader of the Pokepack, which I rather have than her having to become captured by a trainer/Team grunt or leader. Definitely beneficial to have against Lysandre.
Shall I recommend Keldeo/Swords of Justice as bodyguards?
8321723
*Twilight jumps on a rock and clears her throat*
Pikachu : “PIKA!” (”RUN!)
“Twi twilight twi lightwi twitwi, light twilight light light twi...
So in the pokemon world Celestia seems to be having a good time
Twilight full pyscho mode with lessons from rarity.
Luna is being Bada** and Cadence is ...?
8321723
Don't forget that the rat hit her. When she wasn't even facing him.
While she was berating Team Rocket for allegedly abducting her. Which he could plainly hear and chose to ignore that she wasn't acting on Team Rocket's behalf.
I wonder what will happen when next Ash and Team Rocket meet.
Twilight: Don't worry, Princess! I'll free you from these criminals! *Psychic*
Celestia: My little pony, these are not criminals. They want to protect the world from devastation! *Protect*
Twilight: What have they DONE to you?! How could you allow yourself to be brainwashed! *Evolves into Alicorn Rapidash; turns to Team Rocket* You heartless fiends! Release the princess at once! *Hyper Beam*
Ash: Twilight, you're not supposed to attack the Trainers!
(Anyone else expect "Princess Celestia Hates Tea" levels of craziness?)
8321838
...ooooh I just remembered...
Ash my boy, you are in so much trouble when Twilight learns that YOU ordered Pikachu to hit Princess Celestia!
8321803
sorry, pokémon only have Sun and Moon,
and Stars will most likly comeout around crismas.
Twilight finally meeting Celestia is going to be epic. For all kinds of reasons
Ah! Diplomacy, the pen is alway migthier then the sword.
8321690
If it's been years, how come he is still a child? What's your head canon on that?
8321891 No it won't. Platinum was the last one to get the third game...
Hahaha. Oh, Twi, it's the opposite. They're so incompetent that Celestia doesn't even realize they're villains.
If/when Twilight finds out that Pikachu and Ash struck first, I can only assume that Twilight will try to reduce them to a fine paste. Perhaps by then Luna will have met up with them though, and rein her in. She seems to be handling the situation best of all. Nice update.
Twi melodramatic clit-sucking was a little much. She's crazy but not that crazy
Thank you for coming back and working on this gem.
8321930
"It's like I always say, you get more with a kind word and a two-by-four than with just a kind word."
8321930
Well... She is carying a very big stick.
8321951
Am I so bad whit jokes that no one sees them.
Anybody besides me want to see Jessie James and Meowth leave team rocket and go to Equestria, with Celestia?
What? Princess Twilight Sparkle is evolving!
Princess Twilight Sparkle evolved to... Drama Queen Twilight!
8322132
And then they tell her how they treated Celestia in their first encounter, and she evolves into Twifire and learns Flare Blitz!
8322174
At that point even arceus winces in sympathy for them, due 2 the oncoming shitstorm
Oh man. Twilight is so very Twilight here.
Tortures indeed. The very ideas of marshmallows and scary stories fills me with existential dread. (I'd frankly love to see Ash and co stumble upon Team Rocket doing something cheerful and adorable like that. James really is a fantastic Pokémon trainer, heh heh.)
And yeah, Pikachu's omitting some rather key facts here. Which I'm sure Celestia will impart... oh dear. I have so much to look forward to. Thanks so much for the rapid updates!
8322257
Yet, Ash, Pikachu and co also saved Twilight’s life, which sure counts and may convince Celestia to forgive.
They are truly evil, yeah.
8322416
The initial attack seemed to be something that just annoyed Celestia. An apology would be enough to get her past that. The big problem now is that Celestia has seen Ash and co working with Lysandre. That's gonna take serious explaining, and depending on what happens with the dark balls in the near future, Celestia may or may not be willing to stop and listen to one.
Speaking of Celestia, I'm curious to see if her and Luna have legendary status (and the power to go with it). She's said that she gets significantly weaker at night, and even still she was able to fight on par with some of the most powerful non-legendary pokemon in the world. makes me wonder what she'd be capable of during the day...
Twilights in the field. Would it be reasonable to say she has average or even below Defense stars, but MewTwo Special Attack base stat due to her being the element of special attack, magic?
Looks like Luna is getting a much faster handle on the state of events in Pokeworld, due to not having time to be civilised to more recent standards relative to the more brutal history with the Castle in the Everfree? In fact, by this point she is starting to enjoy herself?
8322548
True. Ash would better send Twilight quickly in their next (and I suspect soon) encounter, before Celestia fries him and the others.
And what she’ll be capable of when she has reached her full potential... Lysandre will sue the day he crossed her!
I totally imagine Celestia mega-evolve and unleash a new attack only she’d have, that she’d call Solar Flare!
8321685
Could be that movie canon is separate from Show canon unless otherwise stated. Like how Digimon the movie is canon to the first 2 seasons what with the backstory of the first movie being mentioned in the show repeatedly and the movie finally showing the incident while the second movie is mentioned in season 2 as the DNA Digivolution thing is explained.
8321768
Princess Luna backed by the 4 Musketeers, that would be awesome.
That last part was so hilarious, as was Luna owning that Fearow.
Ah Twilight, never change. Also, she could probably use a hug or twelve to help her calm down.
On another note, I just remembered that I was hoping you would do something cute with Luna to subvert the obvious dark ball expectations. I think it would be great if she was held just outside the main story the entire time as she gets adopted by someone who wants nothing more than to love her and cuddle with her so she basically just gets a vacation while the others deal with all the chaos and plot.
8322083
Yeah, definitely. I seem to remember others calling for at least James to go with her earlier, but it's been too long to remember the details without checking.
Meowth: Why thank you. We don't get that enough.
I have just binge read every single chapter today. THIS IS AMAZING!
I don't know why Twilight is so worried...accusing poor team rocket of being evil when all they are doing is eating smores!
Lèse-majesté!
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8321891
There will not be a Pokemon Stars. In November we're getting Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, which will be Sun & Moon with a slightly different storyline. We've also got a pair of images that appears to be Solgaleo and Lunala merged with Necrozma.
To paraphrase Bugs Bunny "She don't know them very well, do She?"
Being tortured by s'mores...Team Rocket so has the better party...
Ah, dramatic irony. Well played!