Little Lost Raichu

Chapter 5
-

A Shocking Experience

Shopping, a simple task for everypony, yet not so simple for Twilight Sparkle. The aftermath of the battle against Tirek gifted her with a large castle which required large purchases of numerous items, quite unlike her previous humble home in the Golden Oak’s library. Twilight, her student and her assistant had to take turns in shopping and maintaining the large structure.

Her trip to the market was interrupted by the familiar faces of Apple Bloom and Scootaloo as they both stared at her with questioning looks.

“Can I… help you?” she asked hesitantly, feeling as if she had stepped onto a mine. While the ‘Cutie Mark Crusaders’ became more mature ever since they had started helping ponies, there was still the element of unpredictability lingering in those signature stares. Not knowing what to expect often drove her crazy.

“How’s the fluffy critter doin’?” Apple Bloom asked in concern, “Is she still hungry or hurt? Did she cause any trouble?”

Twilight chuckled and relaxed. “She’s healthy and well fed, I would even dare to say she’s a bit fat for her size.”

“Fat?” Apple Bloom asked. “But she looked like that when we found her, and she was starvin’.”

“Really?” Twilight asked, caught off guard. Was the wide size of her little guest a natural characteristic of her body? The nod of the filly confirmed her suspicions. “Regardless, she’s eating regularly and all her wounds have healed perfectly.” She looked to the side and added in an annoyed tone, “Well... she did have a minor headache caused by my student’s healing method, but it helped to damage the memory seal that was placed on her.”

Twilight shook her head. “No. She damaged the memory seal. It turns out that something or somepony sealed Raichu’s memories with dark magic, but she should regain them little by little. She’s very happy about it.”

Apple Bloom frowned and stomped. “Who would be so mean to do this to such a cute, innocent critter?! Ah would have a word or two with them!”

“Can we check on her tomorrow?” Scootaloo asked. “I’m kind of curious how she looks like ever since Apple Bloom mentioned her at school.” She looked to the side, raised her forehoof up to her face and murmured, “And I’m not the only one.”

Twilight nodded. “You can visit and play with her whenever you like, just not early in the morning. I plan to use an advanced sleeping spell on her tonight, and she’ll sleep like a stone for a few extra hours.”

“Because she asked me to, she wrote a request actually. Can you believe it? Turns out someone taught her how to write. Maybe she had an owner before, which would explain why she’s so tamed and obedient.” Twilight cleared her throat and continued, “Anyway… She has been dreaming about her past and now hopes to recover more of her memories this way. I accommodated her in a guest room on the second floor.” She gestured with her hooves as if trying to picture her next explanation. “When you come for a visit, go upstairs to the second floor, walk to the end of the hallway, turn left, and stop at the fifth door on the left.”

“Interesting.” Scootaloo rubbed her chin before whispering into her friend’s ear and adding, “Let’s go, Apple Bloom. We have… that pony to help with a… a cutie mark problem. Good day.” Both fillies smiled awkwardly.

Twilight kept watching as both fillies left her sight and vanished into the crowd. Suddenly, she felt familiar vibes, similar to when she told CMC about the love potion. After a moment of deep thought, she shook her foreleg dismissively and went towards the market area. The Cutie Mark Crusaders had changed a lot since then. Surely her instincts had to be wrong this time.

Following Twilight’s instructions and Spike’s guidance, the fillies made their way to the Raichu’s room and stopped in front of a wooden door.

Apple Bloom wore a warm smile reflecting her desire to visit her recently met pet slash friend, still curious about how the large critter was doing.

Scootaloo clapped her hooves in excitement as she gave a toothy smile, shaking her saddlebag in joy.

The moment Spike opened the door, the fillies ran in and looked around, searching for the critter. Their ears drooped in disappointment.

A large spider resting on a web in the corner of the room caught their attention, and they noticed a cockroach nested on the pillow a moment later.

“Oh, those two. They’re Raichu’s pets… friends... “ Spike explained, shrugging at the odd stares. “Don’t look at me like that. I can barely understand that furball myself.”

Scootaloo rubbed her chin, looking at the spider curiously. “Gross, maybe, but she deserves a few points for being radical. Not many ponies besides Fluttershy would have a spider as a pet.”

“But ain’t she Twilight’s pet now? How can a pet have a pet?” Apple Bloom asked.

“The better question is, where is she?” Scootaloo asked, now poking Spike’s hardened chest. “We asked you to lead us to her.”

“Not really,” Spike said, pushing the hoof away. “You told me the instructions Twilight gave you and asked if I could lead you here. I assumed you wanted to see her room.”

Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow. “Seriously?” She sighed. “Can ya please lead us to where Raichu is at the moment? Please?”

“Sure,” Spike said, gesturing for the fillies to follow him. “Library, here we come!”

The group stopped in front of the entrance into the library with Spike inviting them in with a gentle-dragon manner. The fillies took a deep breath and accepted the invitation.

Apple Bloom was the first to enter and look around in the spacious area, noticing Starlight reading at the main table in the middle of the room with a book levitating before her face. Next to Starlight was an open copy of ‘History of Ponies, Volume V’ supported on the table. After taking a few steps forward and narrowing her eyes, she noticed bronze paws holding the book on both sides. “Heya, Raichu. It’s me, Apple Bloom!” she shouted.

Raichu dropped the book and looked at the filly, displaying a wide, brightening smile. <Hello!> she shouted and waved energetically.

Scootaloo sat next to Apple Bloom and observed the critter with a critical eye. “So that’s the friend you spoke of? Didn’t expect her to be a bookworm.”

“Bookworm? Not really.” Starlight chuckled from her perch on a pillow. “Twilight thought that since she knows how to read and write, she would learn a lot about our culture from books.” She looked at Raichu and asked, “But you’re not a fan of reading, are you?”

Raichu smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of her neck, displaying a similar smile to when the alicorn convinced her to read. As boring as it turned out to be, she just couldn’t refuse those large pleading eyes. The wishful and excited voice of the princess only made it harder for her. Despite being perched comfortably on three pillows in order to reach the table, sitting in one place for so long was just… unfulfilling. Her legs begged her for a round of stretching and some solid exercise.

Starlight gazed at the fillies once more. “She’s more of an athletic type. Really fast and impressively strong for her size. Though there are still many abilities she doesn’t remember or can’t control, like her excited jumps.”

Raichu glanced at the repaired ceiling for a moment and rolled her eyes. Her own legs were still her best ally and worst enemy. She didn’t mind crashing headfirst into objects because it barely hurt her, feeling a headache at worst, but she didn't like causing collateral damage. She would take five strikes of a beast’s claws rather than send an innocent pony into a wall.

“Athletic?” Scootaloo asked, her little wings flapped and ears perked upward. She rounded the table and approached the critter, who stepped from the pillows. Both sat and looked at each other. While the critter’s head only reached Scootaloo’s chin, Raichu had a wider belly in comparison. Kind of reminded Scootaloo of herself from a few years ago when she was still looking for her cutie mark.

Taking the coolest pose she could muster, the filly rubbed her chest and said, “The name’s Scootaloo, nice meeting you.”

“That’s how she communicates. You’ll get used to it,” Starlight explained. “Just pay attention to her gestures or let her write on a piece of paper, and it will become easy.”

“So… what do ya think of her?” Apple Bloom asked, staring at her friend expectantly.

Scootaloo lowered her head, examining Raichu carefully from top to bottom. She poked the white belly with a hoof as the critter giggled in response. “Nice mix of fur colors. Those dots on your cheeks and shape of yours ears looks really good.” She rounded Raichu and examined her back. “Brown stripes, nice touch.” She picked up her tail, checking its length before swinging it like a whip.

Raichu closed her eyes and waited patiently. Kids are kids after all, and she would endure being treated like a doll for one.

Scootaloo lowered the tail and glanced at Apple Bloom. She stood on her hind legs, placed her forehooves on her hips and said, “After checking all her features, I can clearly say...” she smiled and patted Raichu on the shoulder, “that this critter looks really, really cool.” She sat and pointed at Raichu who turned around to look at her. “There’s nothing common and repetitive. Her colors, bronze patches on her paws, cool ears, yellow cheeks, bronze stripes and a lightning bolt at the end of her tail, this mix shouts awesomeness!”

Raichu blushed and hid her cheek behind a foreleg. <T-thank you… b-but I’m nothing special.>

Scootaloo narrowed her eyes and pointed at the poor excuse of a collar made out of a few lavender gems tied together with twine. “But this looks terrible on her. This clashes with her style and lowers her coolness level. Who even made it?”

"Twilight and I did. But we did it in a hurry," Starlight said with a forced smile. “It’s not meant to be elegant, but to absorb electricity.”

“Absorb electricity?” Scootaloo and Apple Bloom asked in unison, now turned towards the unicorn.

Starlight nodded. “She remembers using electricity in many battles against a taller creature, but she still doesn’t know how. She’s afraid that she would hurt somepony by accident, and so she decided to ask us for help.”

Scootaloo’s eyes sparkled as she swiftly turned towards Raichu and pressed her muzzle against her tiny button-like nose. “You can shoot electricity?!”

“That’s so cool!” Scootaloo shouted while hovering above the floor for two seconds. She grabbed the critter by her shoulder and announced, “We’re going to become great friends.”

Not wanting to be left out, Apple Bloom sat on the other side and nuzzled Raichu’s cheek. “Ah’m happy yer feelin’ better. Yer too nice to have yer memories taken. Wanna have some fun and play a game?”

Raichu was about to respond, but instead gritted her teeth and tightly closed her eyes. The moment Apple Bloom’s muzzle touched the yellow dot on her cheek, she felt something inside of her building up again. She let out her breath when the sensation left as quickly as it came, and slid from the ponies’ embrace.

“Let’s play hide and seek." Apple Bloom dove into the stacked pillows while covering her eyes. “Ah’ll count to fifty, ya both go and hide. One, two, three…”

Raichu nodded. Since the game was called hide and seek, the rules seemed self-explanatory. She walked on tips of her paws outside of the library with a perfectly darkened web-filled place in mind. On her last visit, she found a gap in the wall she could squeeze into, a perfect and somewhat dirty hiding spot.

Scootaloo was about to search for a hiding place, but stopped in front of Spike peeking into the library, no doubt to make sure that no book was messed up during their visit. She whispered a simple request into his ear.

"I don't know." Spike looked back and forth while fidgeting. "Why don't you all wait until after school?"

Scootaloo opened her saddlebag and picked up a small orange gem. While the size wasn’t anything special, it shone brightly in the weak light coming from a nearby window.

Spike licked his lips and took the gem into his grasp. “N-no… I can’t.” The moment Scootaloo revealed a second gem from her saddlebags, however, he said, “Deal.”

Spike groaned as he struggled to keep his sleepy eyes open. Ever since the appearance of Raichu, he kept having to force himself out of bed at far too early in the morning.

Darkness and mystery was present in every corner of the hallway with little candles attached to the walls being the only source of light. Though if the candles were lit, it might help.

“This seems like a very bad idea,” he murmured to himself while taking careful steps downstairs. With nearly no visibility and with Raichu weighing him down, he tripped over and fell down the stairs with a few loud thumps and yelps. Twice his scales collided with the steps and the other two times the creature in his embrace soaked up the fall. The last crash ended up with him pressing his full weight against the soft furball.

“S-sorry!” he shouted and quickly jumped from the orange living pillow before rolling her around. No scratches or marks were present on Raichu’s body while that blissful smile still covered her sleeping face. “Hope you won’t feel it in the morning… I mean, it’s morning now… you know what I mean.” He massaged his forehead. “Why am I even talking to you? I really need more sleep.”

He picked up the critter and walked towards the exit, heading for the school. While he was used to carrying heavy baggage for Rarity, it was going to be a long walk. “Twilight’s spell works too well. I wonder what kind of adventures you’re dreaming about.”

Being a Pichu again, she stood at the edge of the cliff, looking down in expectation of continuing part of her morning routine. No less than half a year had passed since her first encounter with the trainer-wannabe.

While the mountain she lived on was very tall with over two hundred creatures living on it, the rumors circled from ear to ear fairly quickly. It didn’t take long before word about a determined girl wishing to be a trainer became well known.

The young human girl was apparently climbing up at least three times a week, braving the cold and harsh weather despite her feeble body. Sometimes, she even punched and kicked a snow-covered wall or lifted random heavy stones. This amateur training or climbing didn't last long though, as she couldn't handle the cold for long or needed to bandage her injuries.

Only one month later, the girl started to challenge the tiny Pichu once a week, though not lasting long under her electric assault. Yet, she couldn’t blame the human for her determination.

Pichu’s parents and the electric-wielding herd she was part of warmed up to the human, respecting her determination and some were even cheering her on for her victory. The silly part was that she herself hoped to be defeated, but wasn't planning to hold back.

Another rumor that circled around was about a powerful Ninetales, a fire breathing fox who kept following the girl and rescuing her whenever she had an accident or was unconscious. When asked why he cared for the human while refusing to become her follower, he said nothing. When challenged for a battle, even water-type residents of this mountain fell to his power and speed, losing despite their obvious advantage.

What kind of mystery hid behind that silent flaming fox? This question still lingered in Pichu’s mind.

The following months didn’t change much. The human was just repeating her routine, showing a little progress each week. However… something changed two months ago.

The ever present desperation turned into determination as the human girl became bolder. Her depressed smile was replaced with a serious and excited one. Instead of climbing three times a week, she started doing so two times a day, even asking randomly encountered pokemon to train with her. The cold weather bothered the girl less and less, and each rematch showed massive progress.

Pichu took a deep breath of cold air and exhaled as white mist formed in front of her mouth. She looked at the snowy sky and wondered. Something is driving her. She’s training so much harder and fights relentlessly when outmatched. Pichu grinned. I like it. Maybe she’s worth following after all.

She took a few steps backward and took a fighting stance as bolts of electricity started to escape from her cheeks. Her eyes were focused on the human’s hand grabbing the edge of the cliff. It took only a few seconds before the girl pushed herself onto the solid ground.

The human girl glared back with narrowed eyes while taking a fighting stance of her own, raising her hands protectively as if she was a boxer preparing for a match.

Pichu observed the human with a smirk. It seems she adapted to the cold quite well, she thought, examining the human’s clothes. For the past two months the girl started to wear less and less, as if challenging the cold or trying to show her progress.

The gloves were no longer on the girl’s hands and a hat wasn’t present on her head. Instead of a warm fat jacket and trousers, she wore a shirt and short skirt. Most of her legs and hands were exposed to the merciless cold. Only six months ago, this girl would shiver under a weak breeze despite lots of heavy clothing protecting her, and now she stood tall and firm, unfazed by the strong blizzard despite wearing nearly no protection.

With a loud yell, Pichu shot bolts of electricity towards the girl, who dodged them with a swift roll to the side.

Evading attack after attack, the girl closed the distance to deliver a kick of her own.

Pichu felt the boot make contact with her tiny belly, sending her flying into a stone-wall with a resounding crack. She bounced against the stone and fell headfirst into the snow. She stood up and rubbed the back of her neck, preparing to repay the favor. Unlike the human, she didn’t train herself in order to give the feeble girl a fighting chance. Being unable to match the human’s speed and strength showed how much diference training and motivation can make.

Not even five minutes passed as Pichu started to struggle to even stand, now covered in bruises after a series of kicks and punches. The girl had a few bruises and burns of her own, but not letting them distract her even for a moment. Shocking her over and over for months helped her build some resistance to electricity. Now she’s enduring it.

Much to Pichu’s surprise, a red-white object was thrown in her direction. Was this it? Was she going to become this human’s follower and grow stronger under her leadership?

And most importantly, why was the noise of screaming kids and bell-ringing becoming louder and louder?

Raichu opened her eyes and looked around, quickly recognizing that she was no longer in her dream, nor in her bedroom, but instead was perched on soft grass, once again being her taller self. Ahead of her was some sort of playground and a large red building with pink hearts decorating each window. The bell tower was still making the loud noise.

Despite the annoying racket assaulting her ears, she found the scenery to be quite lovely. Spacious area with lots of tools to play with, flowers to sniff and… an army of little ponies running outside of the building.

She gasped, now staring into many pair of little eyes as the fillies and colts caught a glance of her. They gathered in front of her and stared back curiously.

Raichu glanced back and up, noticing Spike sitting on a small carousel. Did he bring her here without telling her? Was this meant to be a surprise? While she had known Spike for only a few days, she found the young drake to be very nice, diligent and trustworthy. He was certainly more helpful and useful than her troublesome fat self. I’ll need to trust him on this. She turned towards the ponies and took a deep breath, breaking the silence. <H-hello… n-nice to meet you all.> She blushed, smiling sheepishly.

The fillies and colts started talking with each other, making her somewhat nervous. Luckily, she caught sight of the familiar faces of Apple Bloom and Scootaloo who went ahead of the gathered ponies with a white unicorn by their side.

“Is she the one you told us about, Apple Bloom?” the unicorn asked, looking at the farm filly.

“She sure is. Her name’s Raichu by the way. Ah wanted to take ya to her yesterday, but ya were busy an’ all,” Apple Bloom responded.

“So you asked Spike to bring her here during the schoolbreak?” the unicorn asked.

Sweetie Belle facehooved and groaned. “You do realize this is a terrible idea.”

“I know it’s a terrible idea, but a fun one,” Scootaloo said, approaching Raichu and gesturing for the others to do the same. “Just take a look and you’ll see how cool she is.”

“Ah think she’s cute,” Apple Bloom said. She approached as well and gazed at Sweetie expectantly. “What do ya think, isn’t she the cutest’?”

Raichu didn’t dare to move an inch as she kept staring at the little ponies, hypnotised by their charm.

Their shapes were similar, but each of them had different color fur, and manes, and a different symbol on their rumps. They had little bodies, large curious eyes and innocent smiles.

Raichu’s paws started to tremble as one thought kept crossing her mind. They’re soooo adorable! So many fillies and colts stood before her, and every fibre in her body begged her to hug each and every last of them, nuzzling their soft fur, poking their muzzles and rubbing the top of their heads. But could she? Was she allowed to dive into the crowd and let herself loose in their embraces?

Sweetie Belle approached and rounded the critter, taking a moment of examination before raising both of her forelegs up to her cheeks. “I think she’s both cool and cute.” She displayed a wide smile and rubbed the top of Raichu’s head. “I would even say you’re adooooraaaableeee!” She sat and pointed at herself, nodding politely. “My name’s Sweetie Belle. Nice to meet you, little Raichu. I hope we can become good friends.”

Raichu held her paw on her chest, feeling as if her heart had tried to escape her chest, this time not out of fear though. She looked into the wide eyes of the white filly, overwhelmed by her warm smile and pleasant aura. <If I’m adorable? You’re super adorable!> she said, not that the ponies could understand her speech in the first place.

“But this collar you’re wearing is an abomination. Twilight should’ve asked my sister for help instead of trying to make one herself,” Sweetie Belle said as she reached towards the collar with her forehoof, but the critter evaded it by tilting herself backward.

Scootaloo turned around and addressed the crowd. “What are you waiting for? Hugs for everypony!”

Raichu took a step back, feeling a dangerous aura of excitement, which grew with each passing second. She felt the earth tremble under her paws as the fillies and colts galloped in her direction. Now was the time to choose; should she run before being overwhelmed, or should she embrace her sweet doom?

She spread her paws in a welcoming gesture, allowing the excited ponies to surround her from all sides. She displayed the widest smile ever since meeting the ponies, letting the fillies and colts embrace and nuzzle her from all around. This was like a paradise she never knew she would experience, and one she wished would last forever.

Raichu felt her tail being grabbed between at least six hooves. Two pairs of hooves grabbed her left and right paw, and two fillies embraced her belly from both sides. Before she knew it, she was being pulled in four directions as fillies started a tug of war of who would get to hug and nuzzle her soft fluffy fur. The many voices of young ponies interfered with each other and were lost in the chaos.

Raichu didn’t mind being pulled like a doll. If those fillies were hurting her with kindness, she would accept such a fate with glee. The problem started when the sensation she felt before was building in her once more. Sweat started to appear on her face, sliding down her cheeks and nose as something in her was growing in power, and the cheek nuzzling only made it worse.

Her breathing became faster and faster as she looked around in panic. Any attempt to withdraw from so many hooves would require pushing the little ponies away quite forcefully, but how could she use force against such cute little beings? Well… ‘little’ was a strong word since in a sense, she was smaller than each of them, but even without her memories she could tell that she was older than them.

Bolts of electricity started to escape from her cheeks and tail as the enhanced gems on her collar shone in bright yellow, absorbing the electricity.

“Should we… stop it?” Spike asked, now looking at Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, the only fillies who weren’t cramped together around the critter like piranhas devouring their prey.

“Ah must agree. They’re havin’ fun. Maybe we can play a game of tag with her till break’s over,” Apple Bloom suggested.

Raichu gritted her teeth as the surge of power became unbearable. Was this what she felt in her dreams? And most importantly, how could she stop it? She closed her eyes and wished deeply, Please, magical collar, don’t fail me… pleaseeee...

The collar shone even brighter as a few fillies started to stare at it curiously, but most ignored it as they kept hugging the critter or pulling her limbs and tail in their direction.

Sweetie Belle herself stood on the backs of two colts as she kept rubbing the top of Raichu’s head, only to close her eyes as electricity went through her entire body.

The fillies screamed in panic and pain as a crackle of electricity surrounded them all, not sparing even the grass.

Spike, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom covered their faces, overwhelmed by the bright light. Their ears twitched each time the noise of a filly crashing into a wooden wall or equipment in the playground reached them.

Raichu’s eyes were closed tightly as she failed to stop whatever was happening, feeling as whatever was surging inside of her body became weaker and weaker. Once she felt… normal… she opened her eyes and gasped. Before her was… a true horror she wouldn’t want to see even in her worst nightmares.

All the cute adorable cuddly little fillies and colts who showered her with affection and hugs were now lying scattered on the grass, everyone of them covered in burns of her own making with the smell of singed fur filling the air. A few ponies ended up head or flank-stuck in the wall of the building. A few colts lay next to the damaged or destroyed equipment. A pink filly with a tiara tattoo and grey filly with a spoon tattoo were stuck under a pole with a red ball attached to it, receiving help from a pink filly with hedgehog tattoo who lifted the pole with ease.

Even the grass she stood on was now burned as its unpleasant smell reached her nose.

Raichu raised her trembling paw up to her neck, trying to touch the collar that was supposed to prevent such scenario, only to touch her bare neck instead. She looked down, seeing gems lying in the burned grass, each gem shattered into several tiny pieces.

The noise of painful yelps reached her ears, each making her feel as if nails were piercing her heart.

The shocked fillies struggled to stand, some even massaging their damaged limbs.

Raichu held a forepaw on her chest over her aching heart. Her mouth was dry. Tears formed in her eyes and started sliding down her cheeks uncontrollably. This was a crossed-line for her, the worst end. The children of ponies who took her in and showered her with compassion were repaid with agony. She no doubt would be hated, punished, banished, but could they all hate her more than she hated herself?

In the end, fighting and hurting others was all she was good for, so in a sense, she was the worst of the worst. A tamed trained monster.

She didn’t bother to wipe her tears. Instead, she let them flow. She gave a slow glance at Spike and the only two fillies who were spared her electrical surge, who now stared at her in shock. Her senses picked up on auras of fear, which didn't surprise her in the least.

Raichu glanced at the violet pony with three sunflowers as tattoo, who was looking around and growling as if she was an enraged beast wishing for nothing but to tear apart the one who dared to hurt her cubs. The growing aura of anger being the most visible feature.

“W-wait,” Spike said, jumping from the carousel and tripping over in his haste. “She didn’t mean it!”

Raichu took one last look at the enraged pony and hurt fillies before darting away, running towards the town. Tears fell from her face onto the ground. While she wished for nothing but to apologize for her inexcusable behavior, what good would an apology do in the face of her horrible crime? The guilt weighed heavily on her aching heart as she was afraid to look into eyes of the poor innocent youth. What if she would hurt them again? Or if they yelled at her in hate with their cute voices? In the end she was a monster and a coward, unable to face her own faults.

Physical punishment… like she would fear that. No, she welcomed the thought of being punished for her actions. She wanted it deep in her heart and would accept it without hesitation, but the look of hate and disappointment in their eyes hurt more than even the hardest of hooves. Despite her blurry vision caused by tears, her attention focused on top of the Friendship Castle standing out among the smaller homes. Not knowing the town yet and afraid of returning into the beast-filled forest, it was the only familiar location she could escape to and hide in shame. The only location she knew with enough hiding spots she could use.

Little Lost Raichu

by CommanderX5

Chapter 5 - A Shocking Experience