Chapter Four

BANG! The sound of thunder strikes resounded everywhere.

He had been right about the storm. It had merely a few days since he'd been going to the Professor's in search of a Psychic type Pokémon or a Fairy type like Chansey. Unfortunately it seemed his luck had run out as he never managed to find one before the storm set itself up.

BANG!

Looking out his window the wind loud and the rain pelting, the storm was worse then he thought it'd be. From what he could hear from the tv downstairs it was looking to be one of the worst storms in last century. And something was telling him it wouldn't be the last.

He groaned as he dropped himself on his bed, not minding the pain that shot through his body as he did so. Oddly enough it had been a few days since his last coughing fit his last had been when he first snuck out. It was a relief that whatever was causing it had decided to take a break.

But he almost missed it. The pain helped him forget the abuse he suffered, helped overwhelm the pain caused by the harm his mother inflicted. He stopped his thoughts there, there was no point in dwelling on it right now. He could think of it after he some finds a way to survive being trapped in the house with his mother for the next few days.

He shot a glance at the calendar above his head; 3 and a half months left before the Starters are sent out for new trainers. He had struggled asking the Professor that, watching other children talk about getting their first Pokémon for hours before practicing his act for another few. However he thought it was worth it as not only had the Professor told him when they would be ready, he was also told stories about his dad.

It had been a surprise that his dad had managed to catch Mew. An even bigger surprise that he managed to catch the three legendary birds. This also led to the discovery that normal Pokéballs couldn't hold the mythical or legendary Pokémon long unless they allowed it. He found it fascinating but only so much that it barely got his interest.

"ASH GET DOWN HERE!"

Ash shot up from his bed. It wasn't often that his mother said his name are spoke to him, other then to dismiss or belittle him. Turning his head to look at the clock he was only confused a moment before he realized why.

BANG!

'Ah so the power went out.' Hiding away his hat he walked quietly downstairs making sure to lock the door behind him. He had quickly changed the lock on the door when he was old enough to earn money so only he had a key, he could never be to safe around his mother.

Sinking in on himself in the shadows of the house he stood in front of her fuming form. "You worthless brat! A good-for-nothing just like your father! Make yourself useful and go check the power box!" He nodded dully which appeared to be the wrong move as she smacked him across the face sending him head first into the wall.

"SPEAK UP YOU WORTHLESS MUTE! HURRY UP!"

"Ye—yes mother." He croaked hoarsely which seemed to irritate her even more then how he addressed her. He hadn't spoken much for five years and even then it was to the barest minium and after he practiced his words to hide the lack of use. He didn't give her a chance to act on her irritation and slipped away from the inner house and out the back door.

BANG!

He flinched as the rain pelted his thin body. He was going to catch a cold if he stayed out her to long, he'd just gotten out and he was already soaked. He couldn't afford to get sick. Although he managed to steal enough food from the kitchen on occasion to keep his body looking just thin instead of the body of a malnourished and abused boy, all his hard work to keep it that way would be lost if he got sick.

With that in mind he raced to the power box on the side of the house checking other houses to see if their lights were on. If they weren't he'd have to suffer under his mother hands for something he couldn't fix. But his luck came back as the lights of other homes were still on.

He paused before the power box, it was open which was old. His mother also wouldn't waste her time to make an excuse to beat him, she never needed an excuse. Opening it he was startled by the smaller then average yellow mouse chewing on the wires. 'A Pikachu.' His mind supplied it was one of his favorite Pokémon, small lithe and fast extremely fast if taught correctly, not to mention his dad always had one with him.

The electric mouse glared at him and that was all he needed to recognize it as the one that watched him in the Forest behind the Professor's Lab. It was shivering and looked hungry likely unable to escape and the storm until it was too late, thinking back it was probably due to it following him around the forest as he searched for a Pokémon to heal his hands.

Looking at its sparking cheeks he was glad he had put on rubber gloves before coming out. Being zapped while he was wet wasn't a good idea. Maybe on a good day he could make it through a zap with no big injury and rather a burn or two but his body was still healing from his last beating not to mention the rain and if he who unlucky another 'attack'.

As he was contemplating what course of action to take however he heard the back door slam open and a shout, "WHAT'S TAKING YOU SO LONG, BRAT!"

He shut down his thoughts on safety looking apologetically at the yellow mouse which seemed so small the wind would blow it away. "Sorry but you can't stay there. I'll take you inside and get you some food but you have to hide in my shirt. Don't come out until I tell you to please." He lost his voice many times as he spoke, it hurt greatly forcing himself to talk so much without practicing the words to ease the pain.

He grabbed the mouse gently, it squirmed in his grasp as he pushed it under his shirt at his back, flinching as he felt a jolt run through him as the mouse lightly zapped him. Fixing the wires he watched the lights go back on before he locked the power box and started inside, the small mouse's tiny claws digging into his back.

Just as he closed the back door behind him he was met with a harsh slap on the cheek and his mother screaming at him, "GET OUT OF MY SIGHT! I DONT WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN TIL THE STORMS GONE!"

He took the chance to bolt upstairs knowing that his mother only ever looked at him when she was hitting him. Unlocking his door with haste and shutting it behind him he sighed as he listened to her rant about idiots and disrespect, before she was distracted by a phone call.

With a soft whisper, so quiet that it was almost lost in the howling wind and pelting rain beyond the window, to save himself from a bit of pain he spoke to the mouse, "You're fine now."

He felt it release his back and heard a soft thud of the floor. Without looking back he walked to the bathroom and grabbed two towels before stripping his clothes and changing into clean dry ones after he was dry. He then turned to the yellow mouse rolling itself around in the second towel and he couldn't stop the smile rising on his face.

When it noticed him however he turned away and dug through the things under his bed to find the bag of Pokémon food he'd stolen from his mother. He had been planning to use it to bribe a Pokémon into healing his hands but it didn't seem he'd get the chance with the storm so he might as well use it now.

Fishing out two handfuls with the rubber gloves he placed them on the floor by his bed, before going to double check that he locked his door. Confirming this he went over to his bed and sat down looking out the window listening to the rain, thunder, wind, and the crunching of Pokémon food.

Taking off his gloves and setting them in his nightstand, he paused his blank gazing when he no longer heard crunching. Suddenly curious he turned to look at the large yet small electric mouse.

It was staring oddly at his mangled fingers. "Ah." He spoke in understanding. His currently mangled finger definitely weren't pleasant to look at. Hiding them in his pajamas pockets he took in the sight of the yellow mouse, a male by the pointed bolt of its tail rather than the heart top females possessed. It was small for a Pikachu likely able to easily fit on his shoulder without a problem, it was also young he'd say no more then half a year old.

It made him wonder about its distrustful nature towards humans. He was startled out of his thoughts by a dip in the bed and a sudden fuzziness rubbing against his pocketed hand and by extension his arm. "Pika~"

Ash stared at the wild beastie that would zap him whenever he got close and would glare at him during his searches in the forest. He didn't understand what it was saying or what it wanted, and while he could guess it was happy he could never be sure. Clearing his thoughts and his throat he raised a hand form his pocket and pet the bugger's head, "You'll have to stay here until after the storm but after your free to go."

"Cha~~~" The little mouse practically melted against his hand obviously enjoying the attention, and the cute noise he made brought a smile to Ash's face as the two curled up under the covers.