Little Lost Raichu

Chapter 3

A Castle Tour

Once again the white scenery, her family, and the rest of the herd made its return. This time, however, they were in the company of another creature. It was small, red and hot, a creature she remembered as ‘Magby’ whose control over fire provided the group with the precious heat.

After saying their thanks, Pichu and her companions bathed in the pleasant warmth while eating the gathered fruits. Some of the surrounding snow melted on the ground, and there was no blizzard to interrupt their feast. Not that even a strong blizzard would break through the heat produced by their friendly companion.

The group turned towards the source of the voice, noticing a tall creature. It stood on two long legs, wore thick clothing, and orange hair was protruding out from under its hat.

A mere glance at the tall creature told Pichu that it was a young girl, a human, yet despite her young age, she looked like a giant from their perspective. The girl wore heavy bronze boots which were specialized for climbing, green trousers to protect her legs from the cold, while a very thick jacket, a puffy white hat and gloves made up for lack of natural fur. Despite all the protective clothing, the human trembled and massaged her shoulders for additional warmth, certainly not used to the cold. She was breathing heavily, not used to the lack of oxygen this high up.

“I k-know that I’m not an official trainer… but I really want to become one…” the girl said between breaths. “M-My chance to start a jo-journey with a p-pokemon by my side was taken away from m-m-me, so I can’t challenge any of you f-for an official b-battle… to prove… my worth as a t-trainer.” She closed her eyes and grimaced upon feeling the cold breeze as it waved her hair.

Each member of the herd looked at the young human with a mix of curiosity and pity. None considered her a threat or were alarmed by her presence.

“I c-can’t prove m-myself as a t-trainer yet,” the girl said and raised her hand to her chest, gathering all her willpower for her speech. “That’s why I beg you for a chance! My mother was a skilled trainer and my father had experience in forming strategies. Should any of you agree to join me on my journey willingly…” she gulped, struggling not to shiver from the cold, “I’ll treat you as a partner and show you proper r-respect. I’ll make you strong, so pl-please… j-just g-give me… a chance.” She held her trembling hands in a pleading gesture. Her desperate stare was a hint that many pokemon refused her plea already.

The group murmured amongst themselves. Questions like ‘Should we trust her words?’ or ‘How can she prove her skills without a pokemon?’ circled from ear to ear.

<You don’t have a pokemon, then fight me yourself!> Pichu shouted and stepped ahead of the group as her tiny feet splashed on the melting snow. But why had she wanted to fight? Why would she challenge a creature so much bigger than her? They were both young, this was obvious, yet in terms of weight and size, the human had a massive advantage.

With a loud scream, Pichu unleashed bolts of electricity, which hit both sides of the girl and startled her as the result. A few tiny burns caused by the backlash of her own attack appeared on her cheeks. Like a boxer, Pichu started punching the air and glared at her opponent.

“Y-you want me to f-fight you?” the girl asked, receiving a nod of confirmation. “A-alright… If this is t-the only w-way…”

Pichu approached with firm steps, only to feel a paw land on her shoulder. She glanced back at the Pikachu and asked, <Mom, why are you stopping me?>

Pichu shook her head and gently pushed the paw off her shoulder. <I won’t trust a human who’s too weak or too afraid to face danger. If she can’t prove herself by leading her own pokemon to battle, she’ll have to show me her fighting spirit.>

<You were always so eager to accept challenges and get yourself into troubles.> Pikachu sighed and said, <Please, go easy on her. Humans aren’t fit for battle and there was desperation in her voice. Just play nice and try not to hurt her, alright sweetie?>

The following battle didn’t last long as the outmatched girl ended up shocked by electricity at least three times, once even tripping on the snow. Her kicks and punches kept missing. The size advantage didn’t seem to matter in the least as the battle was one sided from start to the end.

The tiny victor turned around and huffed in disappointment. She received a disapproving glare from her mother, no doubt for going too hard on the young feeble human.

The herd argued with each other what to do. Under normal circumstances, a trainer would nurse a wounded pokemon, yet this time the situation was reversed. A few Pikachu suggested to move the girl towards their hideout; a small cave with bedding made of gathered leaves to provide shelter from the cold until she would recover her strength. Even Magby agreed to protect the human form the cold. Their discussion was interrupted as a large nine-tailed yellow creature jumped from the higher ground, landing next to the unconscious girl as the snow spread and melted around its paws.

The Pikachu took a fighting stance while the Pichu hid behind them, gathered together and alerted by the newcomer.

The creature they knew as Ninetales picked the human up and placed her on its back while ignoring them. A few of its tails kept the girl from falling as it started to jump down from stone to stone in an impressive display of speed and agility.

Raichu’s eyes shot open, still remembering her dream as many questions were born in her mind.

She blinked and looked towards the source of the voice as a creature covered in purple scales sharpened in her vision.

“You know, when Twilight told me we were harboring a creature from the Everfree Forest, you’re not what I imagined. The name’s Spike by the way. Spike the dragon.”

<H-hello Spike,> Raichu said hesitantly, trying to gather her thoughts. She stretched herself. Her hunger, exhaustion, bruises and headache, all gone. Feeling well-rested and refreshed, like a reborn Raichu, she beamed and added, <My name’s Raichu… though I think I was a Pichu at one point.> She massaged her forehead. <Was this my name, or the name of my species? How can someone even change their species? This is really confusing! I hope it will make more sense once I’ll regain more memories of my past.>

“So you can only use words made of your own name. Starlight and Twilight warned me about it,” Spike said, a rolled checklist, quill and ink bottle present in his claws.

Raichu rolled her eyes, only now remembering that no one could understand her. Body gestures it is, she thought.

“I made you some breakfast.” Spike pointed at a plate on the table next to the bed. “Hay sandwich and a vegetable taco, I hope you like it,” he said with a sleepy tone before yawning and rubbing his eyes a moment later.

<Thank you.> Raichu took the sandwich and bit into it. Her smile vanished the moment she started chewing, replaced with a grimace as she struggled to hide her displeasure. While the bread on its own was fine, the main component called ‘hay’ didn’t impress her taste buds. She gulped and smiled sheepishly.

“Seems you don’t eat hay after all.” Noticing a shake of the critter’s head, he placed his hands on his hips and said, “It was worth a shot, try this one instead. I used corn, cheese and some vegetables as ingredients. Most species like them, or so I heard.”

Raichu nodded and placed her sandwich back on the plate before taking another dish. One hesitant bite being enough to tell her that the taste was to be average, no match for the chocolate and sweets, but nothing sour about it. After a minute of chewing and swallowing, she wiped her face and patted her belly. <Not bad.>

She glanced to the side at the young drake who was napping with his legs still on the floor and head on the bed. Curious, she stood up and poked the side of his head. <What’s wrong? Are you tired?> she asked.

“Huh, what, where?” Spike asked and looked around in confusion. “Oh, right.” He stretched and picked up his equipment from the floor, reading the checklist. “Twilight asked me to make you breakfast and give you a tour of the castle… yawn… Sorry about that, I’m not an early bird.”

Raichu took a few steps to the side and pointed at the pillow, gesturing with her other forepaw for Spike to climb up. <I wouldn’t want you to trouble yourself for my sake. Take a nap.>

“Are you asking me to sleep in your bed?” Spike asked, receiving a nod of confirmation. He shook his hand dismissively. “Thanks for the offer, but as tempting as it is, I need to keep up with our schedule. Twilight is very strict when it comes to her checklists.” He took a quick glance at the plate, picking it up as the only thing left on it was a bitten sandwich and crumbs. “Let’s go, I have a lot to show you.”

<Show me around? S-sure,> Raichu said and slowly stepped from the bed, following the young drake, taking two steps for each one of his. She stood up on the tips of her rear paws as her head level reached his nose. Usually I’m smaller than everyone else. It feels nice to meet someone of similar size.

The moment they were outside of the room, she noticed how Spike tried to close the door, encountering slight difficulty as one hand carried a plate while another held the rolled paper, ink and quill. A thought crossed her mind, They did feed and nurse me back to health. They even gave me shelter and helped me recover some of my memories. They’re all so kind and I’m nothing but a burden. Maybe Applejack was right, calling me a pest. Her ears drooped upon feeling a surge of guilt. She narrowed her eyes and approached, stood up on the tips of her rear paws and pulled the door, releasing the handle once the clicking noise told her that it was closed. With her attention on the plate, she took it and carried it herself. If I’m a pest, at the very least I’ll be a useful one.

“Thanks,” Spike said, patting Raichu on top of her head. He unrolled his checklist, sunk his quill in the bottle, and wrote, “Breakfast in bed, check. Next on the list, show Raichu rooms on the second and first floor.” He glanced at the critter and said, “Let’s go, there’s a lot to…” he paused, noticing Raichu’s intense stare focused on his checklist. “Is something wrong?”

Raichu blinked and shook her head. Was something about this piece of paper important? I couldn’t take my eyes away from it. She shrugged, following her guide while holding the plate. Her curiosity was at its peak as she was about to learn about the full might and beauty of her new home.

“This is a guest room,” Spike said, opening door on his left for a moment before closing it. Raichu peeked inside, seeing a bed with a table next to it, a few shelves for books and one window. She followed Spike towards the next two doors, one on the left and one on the right side of the hallway. “This is also a guest room.”

Raichu tilted her head to the side. Is it me, or does this room look identical to the last one? Now that I think about it, the room I slept in is exactly the same.

<Let me guess, a guest room?> Raichu asked, not expecting for the young drake to understand her anyway.

“I bet you think it’s a guest room, and you’d be correct,” Spike said as the critter rolled her eyes.

Raichu gazed ahead of the hallway, noticing a long line of doors on both left and right side. Her head drooped and her curiosity started diminishing. Whoever built this place had as much imagination as a tree.

“Open this one, you’ll be surprised,” Spike said after a minute of a boring tour.

Raichu nodded and placed the plate on the floor before reaching for the handle. Opening the room proved to be a mistake as the falling brooms caught her off guard and she jumped backward out of reflex.

Spike was about to chuckle at his successful prank, only for Raichu to pass by him at alarming speed and for the noise of shattering wood to reach his ears. He half-closed his eyes and peeked behind him hesitantly, afraid of what he was going to find. Noticing a hole in the wooden door, he peeked inside, facepalming at the sight of their guest now stuck in a damaged bookshelf.

“It’s fine, my fault for pranking you in the first place,” Spike said before pointing slightly up and to the left. “Luckily, you didn’t go for the window, or else you would have crashed through the glass and fallen outside from quite a height.”

She glanced at the pointed direction and thought, Forget about my health, the window being in one piece is what’s important. I can take the fall, but causing damage is the worst. She walked towards Spike while giving the poor empty bookshelf one last glance. Her ears drooped. Thus far, I’m nothing but trouble. If I won’t be more careful, they’ll kick me out for sure. She picked the plate up from the floor and followed Spike while walking on her rabbit-like legs, holding the plate as if it was the most delicate thing in the world.

The tour continued with little variety. The area proved to be a labyrinth with nothing but pillars and guest rooms. Feeling bored, she focused on recalling her recent dreams. During the fight with the human creature I attacked with electricity, but how did I do that? She raised a forepaw up to her face and bit it. This is bad. My destructive jumping is troublesome enough, but if I don’t figure out how to use electricity, I may seriously hurt someone. She heard more of Spike’s words and ignored them. To think that I would purposely challenge and hurt someone so young, more or less enjoy fighting as a kid. My mother must have been so disappointed in me for being a bully.

Raichu stopped herself a few centimeters in front of the stairs. Her eyes opened widely as she almost tripped with the plate in her paws being a potential casualty. She looked to the side at Spike and rubbed back of her neck. <Y-yes, kind of.>

Spike gestured over the large area from a small balcony, with two stairs leading down. The castle exit lay ahead of him, decorated with violet-blue trees and a pair of banners on either side. “This is the main entrance, the most spacious hallway inside this castle. There’s a kitchen next to the stairs, so try not to trip over while holding that plate, okay? I have enough cleaning to do as it is.”

Raichu nodded as she remembered this place from when she was riding Applejack and meeting Starlight for the first time. She bit her lip and took very slow and careful steps downstairs, her paws trembled slightly from the fear alone. She sighed in relief the moment her little hind legs reached the floor.

“The kitchen is over here,” Spike said as he opened the door next to the stairs, gesturing for her to come inside.

She followed, but stopped midway as she sensed another presence coming from upstairs. She looked towards the source, sensing a strong aura of guilt.

Starlight was staring down at her from the higher ground with drooped ears, massaging her arm nervously. “G-good morning.”

<G-good morning,> Raichu responded, not bothering to wave with her paw while still feeling uneasy whenever near this unicorn.

The two stared at each other for a few seconds before Spike’s voice called for Raichu from the kitchen. The critter turned away and scurried inside.

Starlight lowered her head. While she wanted to help the mysterious creature out of good will, her desire to prove and challenge herself had gotten the best of her. Breaking a memory seal created by powerful dark magic became so attractive that she forgot the principles her mentor taught her. In the end, regaining Raichu’s trust would take more than chocolate and an apology.

“Plan B it is,” she murmured before closing her eyes and tapping into her magical might. An aura around her horn came to life as she focused on a specific point of arrival. To salvage the relationship with the mysterious critter and earn her forgiveness, she needed an advisor, an expert in the field of friendship, but with a more direct approach than Twilight.

She vanished in a flash, reappearing in front of Sugarcube Corner. She approached the door and raised her foreleg, ready to knock, but didn’t get the chance, ending up startled by an explosion. The door opened on its own, revealing a confused, shakily walking Pinkie Pie, her mane and tail covered in cream.

“Heeeeey, Starliiiiiight, what brings you to Sugarcube Corner?” Pinkie asked before shaking her head as bits of cream landed on the unicorn’s face. “You can so easily magic up tasty stuff and you have a big kitchen at Twilight’s castle, so you can’t be here for cakes.” She stood on her hind legs and held her forehooves on her cheek. “Are you paying me a friendly visit? That’s almost as sweet of you as this cream from the exploding surprise cake I made a moment ago.”

“That’s not it actually,” Starlight said with her words weakening Pinkie’s endless enthusiasm. “More than once you bragged how you befriend everypony in Ponyville, and I need some friendship related help.”

“Why not ask Twilight? She’s the Princess of Friendship after all!” Pinkie said with a giggle before licking the cream from her mane, causing the unicorn to grimace in disgust.

“She’s... a little bit busy at the moment,” Starlight answered as her mind provided her with images of her mentor finishing a checklist for ten days in advance with various plans and research projects being set up all over the castle library. “So, can you help me?”

“Of course I can. I never leave my friends hanging,” Pinkie said, now bouncing up and down in excitement. “So, who’s your friend and what do you want to know?”

Starlight looked to the side and rubbed her foreleg nervously, her tone sad and regretful. “Let’s just say… hypothetically... if somepony tried to help a poor critter from the Everfree Forest recover from a memory loss, but went overboard and almost fried her brain instead… How can this pony apologize so that this critter won’t fear her anymore?”

Pinkie stopped bouncing and smiled sheepishly. She chuckled, but it was nothing like her usual cheerful laughter. “Well… I can tell you how not to apologize.”

“Meaning?” Starlight asked, tilting her head to the side as she stared at the party mare in confusion.

Pinkie stood up on her rear legs and started waving her forelegs in random directions, speaking in haste. “When apologizing, this somepony you mentioned shouldn’t repeat ‘I’m sorry’ over and over while chasing their friend like a maniac all over Ponyville, and he or she shouldn’t ignore their privacy and personal space and certainly shouldn’t destroy their property.”

Starlight raised an eyebrow. “That’s waaaay too specific. Let me guess, you’re speaking from experience?”

The party mare tapped her forehooves together nervously. “N-no… maybe… kind of.”

“It depends, who’s your friend and what does he like? I can’t come up with a friendship-saving-apology plan on the spot without data,” Pinkie said with a more serious tone.

“Data? You’re actually planning stuff instead of going with instinct and being randomly random?” Starlight asked.

“You have noooo idea how much info gathering and planning it takes to keep the entire town happy, though I’m also good at improvising. I may not look like it, but I’m actually a very fast thinker,” Pinkie said with a proud smile and raised chin.

“Fair advice, you should slow down your thinking speed from time to time so your logic can catch up,” Starlight suggested as Pinkie frowned at her remark. “As for this friend, I don’t know much about her, but I think she likes sweets. I gave her some chocolate already and it didn’t help much though.”

Pinkie’s eyes widened and sparkled. She swung her foreleg and said firmly, “You need to up your game a bit. Just leave it to your good old, friendly neighbour Pinkie Pie and your friend will forgive you in no time.”

Starlight smiled, her depression gone. “Now you’re talking. Whatever your plan is, I’m in.”

Many random bags and plates were located on the bottom part of the main table, and it took standing on the tips of her hind legs to notice a few eggs and a basket filled with vegetables. Lack of chairs meant that she would need to climb onto the table to take a better look, and she wouldn’t dare to do so without permission.

Examining her surroundings, she saw one large stove, a sink, and many shelves with numerous cabinets filled with food among them. She looked up and noticed pans hanging down from a pot rack.

Some walls and supporting pillars seemed to be made of stone and crystals, but others were covered by a blue wallpaper. Three green windows provided light inside this darkened kitchen.

“So, what do you think?” Spike asked with proudly raised head and his hands on his hips. “Are you Impressed, or are you impressed?” Making snacks and gem-related dishes proved so much easier in such a spacious kitchen, and keeping this place clean and organized filled him with pride.

Raichu was about to answer, only for her headache to interrupt her. Is there anything you like to eat? What’s your favorite taste? a young female voice asked in her mind as more memories resurfaced. They were inside a white spacious kitchen filled with standard accessories.

The kitchen seemed big enough to accommodate a large group but was certainly lacking imagination. There were no decorations and finding any color other than white proved difficult.

Being a Pichu in her memory, she jumped onto the table and pointed at a flour bag, but it was a sinister trap. A swing of her tiny tail pushed the bag into the human girl’s face the moment she was close enough, following it up with laughter. Once the white powder was wiped from the human’s face while revealing an unamused expression, Pichu’s laughter grew in volume.

Raichu opened her eyes and narrowed them in anger, anger at herself. I have no idea how I ended up in the kitchen with that human, but my behaviour was inexcusable. She slammed her paw against the side of the table, shaking it as a result. Is it wrong that I want to go back in time and give myself a solid spanking and long-lasting lecture?

“Calm down,” Spike said as he grabbed her paw. Raichu’s angered expression softened the moment she looked at his worried face. “You were spacing out and then became furious out of nowhere. Were you having some bad memories?”

A sad apologetic “Chuuu” escaped Raichu’s mouth as she turned to the side.

“Twilight told me -from her unnecessarily long explanation- that your memories should recover on their own, as well as from environmental stimulants. I suppose I’ll need to get used to it,” Spike said with a warm smile. He unrolled his checklist and wrote in it. “Show our guest the kitchen, check. Now to the basement.” He grimaced and shivered. “I hope you’re not afraid of spiders.” He paused, noticing that Raichu was staring at his checklist intensively. He glanced between his scroll and the critter before asking, “Your memories strike again?”

Raichu rubbed the top of her head, trying to recall a reason why was this scroll was so attractive to her. She approached and exposed her paws. <Can I hold those? Please?>

It took a moment for Spike to understand the critter’s gesture, putting the checklist and quill into her little paws. “Just be very careful, alright.”

Raichu nodded and studied the objects she was holding while reading the text. Just like before, she understood the meaning behind every word. Her eyes closed tightly. Now try writing ‘C’.... Don’t look at me like that. I know it’s boring and that you would rather train or play outside, but if we’re going to become true partners, we need a better way to communicate with each other. She opened her eyes, recalling short moments when the young human was teaching her how to write. The fact that her tiny body was only a bit taller than the pen she used to write was making such a task a bit difficult.

She gazed at her paws, which were considerably bigger than before, capable of holding and using the quill with ease. Noticing some free space on the scroll, she wrote with little letters and showed it to the young drake.

Spike took the checklist and read the pointed spot, and next glanced at the critter. “You can write?”

Spike smirked. “Cool. Twilight will be thrilled once she learns that.” He rolled up the scroll, but before he could pick up the bottle of ink and quill, Raichu already beat him to it. He smiled at her as she returned the gesture. “Let’s go.”

“Are you sure this is going to work?” Starlight asked as she pulled a small cart with covered cargo. The party mare was hopping next to her.

“Trust me. Once we’re done, you’ll be rewarded by a warm friendship hug.”

“I hope you’re right,” Starlight said, her eyes now on the large double door before her.

Spike braced himself, trembling as he glanced at the darkened corners of the basement. The scenery would be similar to hallways on the upper floors, if not for numerous webs and triple green lamps attached to the walls with spiders and insects crawling all over the place.

“I t-t-think… we’re d-done here… no need to explore it to the end, r-right?” He glanced behind at his companion and spread his hands in annoyance. “You can’t be serious!”

Raichu was sitting, supported against a wall, while observing several tiny creatures with more than ten legs crawling on her paw. Two spiders were sitting on both of her shoulders. She stared at her tiny companions with curiosity. Upon hearing Spike’s voice, she raised her head and looked at him. <Check this,> she said with a warm smile. <I think I made some friends.> The moment Spike facepalmed, Raichu asked, <What? Am I doing something wrong?> She stood up and presented her paws. <Do you want to befriend them as well?>

Spike flinched and smiled nervously. “N-no… y-you c-can play as much as you want... with you little f-friends… just far away f-from m-me.”

The tour continued until reaching the second floor as Spike and his companions ignored the guest rooms, heading towards more important locations instead. What was the point of tasting the same dish over and over after all when desert awaited?

Raichu kept walking with a smile and with two little friends keeping her company. A poisonous multicolored spider rested on her left ear while a black cockroach was sitting on her right shoulder.

Spike kept an understandable distance, questioning his companion’s friendship choices. He peeked at the checklist and murmured to himself, “Twilight’s room, Starlight’s room, and the room with the cutie map will have to wait. Twilight is already waiting in the library while preparing some tests for you. We’ll need to go there first to stay on schedule.” He rolled the scroll and gave Raichu an uneasy glance. “I must say, as obedient and cute as you are, you’re being a bit creepy.”

<Creepy, why?> she asked before chuckling in a squeaky noise. <Careful there, Mr Spider, it tickles.> She stopped in front of a crosspath, sensing a double presence. Her senses didn’t disappoint as a familiar pony walked from her right. It was Starlight with a suspicious covered cart. She sniffed, detecting food of some sort.

Raichu’s eyes were still on the cart as she approached it with slow steps. She pointed at it and asked, <What’re you hiding?>

Understanding the gesture, Starlight answered, “That’s an apology gift I made for you.”

Raichu glanced to the right, wondering if the hidden pony she was sensing had assisted Starlight in any way. The massive aura of excitement was difficult to ignore.

“Is that a spider? It looks dangerous,” Starlight said as she lit her horn, trying to levitate the spider away, but angered shouting from Raichu stopped her.

Raichu caught the falling spider with her paws and returned it to its rightful spot on her head. Her attention once again shifted towards the covered cart.

Starlight cleared her throat and, with a swift swing of her forehoof, she pulled the cover, revealing a stack of cupcakes, muffins and a large apology cake covered in cream with a strawberry on top.

Raichu’s mouth opened as saliva started to drop to the floor. Her eyes were wide and her tail flapped left and right in excitement. Despite a lack of memories, she could tell that it was going to be a delicious feast.

“I made these for you to apologize for the whole mess I caused. Enjoy,” Starlight said with a chuckle before walking backward, giving the critter the space she needed.

Raichu licked her lips and took a few steps forward, now being only millimeters away from the mountain of sweets. The cockroach walked down from her shoulder, climbing up onto the cart and digging itself into a cupcake, while the spider on her head turned around and returned to sleep, not showing any interest in the presented food.

Taking an example from her little friend, Raichu grabbed another cupcake between her paws and bit it. “Chuuu…” She took another bite and smiled warmly.

Pinkie peeked from behind the wall, interested in how well her plan was progressing. The fact that Starlight didn’t give any details about her friend only made her more curious. She half-closed her eyes and examined the critter feasting on the sweets. The first noticeable feature was that it was small, fat and fluffy, like a plush toy the size of a dog just begging to be hugged. Cute yellow dots on her cheeks were waiting to be nuzzled, while funny-looking ears and a very long tail added some coolness into the mix. The white belly being a perfect spot for some belly rubs. The smile and enthusiasm radiating from the creature’s face caused a warm feeling in Pinkie’s chest.

Pinkie’s forelegs started to tremble as she felt the urge to embrace the cute little sweets-lover. The fact that this critter had to live in the Everfree Forest and face all predators just begged her to ensure that it would feel welcomed and happy. It certainly called for a welcome party.

Raichu finished her second cupcake and looked in Pinkie’s direction, no doubt noticing her before she withdrew her head. <Stop hiding and join us!>

Pinkie didn’t need to understand the meaning behind repeating one’s name to know that her hiding spot was busted. After taking a slow deep breath, she put on a cheerful smile and hopped out from her hiding spot towards the critter.

“I see you had some help preparing those, Starlight,” Spike said before taking a blueberry muffin for himself.

Starlight lowered her head. “I just wanted to apologize, so I asked Pinkie for help,” she admitted. She lit her horn and levitated a kitchen knife and plate from the cart, cutting a slice of cake and placing it on the floor in front of Raichu, who seemed to be wary of her magic while not taking her eyes off the levitated knife.

“Go on, eat up,” Pinkie cheered. “We put a lot of heart into this cake, you’ll love it!”

Raichu looked between both ponies and nodded. She opened her mouth, and more drops of saliva started falling onto the floor. She gulped and grabbed the cake slice eagerly before pushing it into her mouth, biting and chewing it in haste. She closed her eyes and massaged her cheeks in pleasure as her imagination began to run wild with the image of cakes, sweets and strawberries raining from the sky, alongside a dreamy waterfall of cream and chocolate icing. Her paws trembled and her eyes sparkled in joy. In a rush of excitement, she jumped towards Pinkie Pie who spread her forelegs as an invitation.

Starlight bit her lip and summoned a barrier between Pinkie and the approaching doom as Raichu crashed flat against the blue surface, sliding down onto the floor. The spider fell from her head and turned to Starlight, considering how to repay the favor.

“What was that for?” Pinkie asked with offended expression, not liking in the least that somepony had prevented her from giving a warm hug.

“Trust me, you don’t want to be on the receiving end when she’s excited,” Starlight said with a saddened face, feeling jealous that she wasn’t the one on the receiving end of this hug and regretting that she had allowed Pinkie to tag along.

Raichu massaged her forehead and realized that someone was missing, not feeling any weight on her head. She looked left and right in panic, only to feel the spider climb up her back. She sighed in relief, happy her little friend wasn’t injured from the crash.

“Come here!” Without a warning, Pinkie appeared behind Raichu and grabbed her in a vice-grip hug, squeezing her belly with all the force she could muster. Raichu’s head was pressed against her chest.

Raichu didn’t resist, but instead embraced Pinkie’s neck and nuzzled her cheek. She grit her teeth in pain, but not as much from the hug, but rather from something that started building up inside of her.

Starlight turned away as her plan backfired. Applejack, Spike, Pinkie Pie and even two bugs ended up befriended by the fat critter while she was still excluded despite her attempts.

Raichu looked at the unicorn from Pinkie’s embrace, sensing an aura of jealousy and sadness. With a bit of a struggle, she slid out from Pinkie’s embrace and approached, but stopped halfway. As much as she wanted to cheer up the unicorn and show her affection, the fear she felt still lingered in her mind. While physical pain seemed like something she could ignore, the pain on her mind was another story.

Feeling the tension building in the air, Spike pointed at the entrance into to the library and said, “As touching as this scene was, we shouldn’t keep Twilight waiting. Trust me, it wouldn’t end well.”

Little Lost Raichu

by CommanderX5

Chapter 3 - A Castle Tour