2.

If man could be crossed with the cat, it would improve man but deteriorate the cat. – Mark Twain

Pikachuu collapsed in a snow-bank, the warmth of his overheated body melting a little snow. The little squirrel panted hard, utterly exhausted, unable to move another step. All around him the snow fell gently, slowly filling his tracks, loading up upon the branches of the softwoods, so they would slowly bend down with the weight; and finally the snow would slide off, landing amongst the roots. The sun was only just beginning to rise, providing little warmth and not enough light to penetrate the dark cloak of night. The only sound was of Pikachuu’s heavy breathing, and the only thought in the animal’s head was his master’s name: Satoshi.

He buried his head miserably in the snow, sulking at his misfortune. How could Satoshi forget him, how could he leave him alone in the middle of Takiwa Forest? He would die in this cold. Die all alone, with only the frightening dark night for company…

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Nyasu lifted his muzzle to the ground, snuffing the snow for any hint that the rodent tracks he spotted belonged to the Pikachuu owned by Satoshi. The scent that came to his nose was blissfully familiar and he recognized it instantly. His hunch was indeed right!

The cat had fled to the forest to drink the serum in peace, far away from Kojiro and any attempts on the part of anybody to stop him. Finding the tracks only made Nyasu happier, for it meant that his plan would spring joyfully into life faster than he could have thought possible. What a joyful coincidence!

With a gleeful smile, Nyasu bolted through the snow, the test tubes held tight in his forepaws, his hind-paws kicking up huge clumps of powdery snow. The snow rained down harder; filling his paw-prints much quicker than it had filled Pikachuu’s not long ago.

:=:=:=

The first sensation, the one that woke Pikachuu up, was the cold. Cold, down to his bones, chilling the blood in his veins, numbing his senses. The second sensation was far more subtle – although he heard no sound, no suggestion of someone out there besides him, he knew he was being watched. The squirrel made an effort to lift his head, propping it up with his forepaws, his eyes flickering across the ring of maples surrounding the clearing, paying attention to one in particular. Their outlines were hazy, looking like child’s scrawls through the thick nimbus of snow that threatened to hide everything. Dawn had arrived, but Pikachuu hardly acknowledged or even noticed this. He stared at that one maple for all he was worth, every hair on end, his eyes showing the fear he had in his heart.

Part of the maple seemed to drift away from the rest of it, like how one ameba splits into two, both the same, but drifting off on two separate lives. Pikachuu knew something was coming for him. The shadow, white like snow but a darker brown in parts, crept behind the snow-bank, seeming to vanish. Pikachuu sat tight for a few seconds, not daring to breathe, not daring to blink, not even daring to think. Then, suddenly, a noise sounded softly near his left ear. Instantly, he whirled his head around, glaring about, hoping to discern the spy from the many dark shadows he saw in the vicinity. But all hope of discovering him or her was lost as the snow thickened even greater, lowering visibility to zero.

Crawling on his belly, much too cold and tired to even stand up on all fours or even on his haunches, Pikachuu attempted to escape. He knew, whatever it was, would most definitely get him. But somehow, there was comfort in attempting escape, attempting to run from fear, crawling on his belly like an Ekans.

But there was no avoiding the inevitable. Jaws clamped around one of his hind-paws like a vice, teeth digging into flesh. Pikachuu knew a defensive attack was hopeless. He couldn’t aim in this snowstorm, and the scent of his own fear masked all others.

With a jerk from his attacker, Pikachuu felt himself being yanked sideways, pain shooting up from his hind-paw up to his brain. He felt as his body hit a rock, and, bruised, bloodied, and beaten, fell into unconsciousness.

:=:=:=

Nyasu felt terrible.

Pikachuu lay unconscious in the snow before him, his muzzle hanging open, his fur bloodstained. The cat gently took the small creature up in his paws, kissing the top of his head. "I’m sorry I had to do that to you," he whispered, carefully looking the little squirrel over to make sure the wounds were not too severe. "But I had to. It’s the only way I could ever get this serum I have down your throat." Setting Pikachuu back down, Nyasu made his way back to the maple, to the test tubes that lay underneath. Grabbing one, the cat darted back, placing Pikachuu’s limp form up against his chest. Slitting the Parafilm cover with a claw, Nyasu poured the contents of the vial into the creature’s slack jaws, tilting its head back to insure it would be swallowed. Tossing the empty test tube into the snow, the cat, Pikachuu in his arms, retrieved the other vial of serum from under the tree.

The wind blew furiously through the forest, and Nyasu knew that he that he needed to find shelter – and fast. It was bone-chillingly cold outside; drinking the serum could wait until he and found a safe place out of the elements, not only for himself but for Pikachuu as well. The little animal had been quite weak when he found it; he did not know how much longer it would last without shelter…

With a deep snuff, Nyasu tried to detect the odors of a cave – the scent of calcium, of water, of moist rock. But not only was Pikachuu right under his nose, giving off a scent of blood, there was also other scent interference – petrol, and other pollution, and the strong scent of Takiwa City. But he could not go there, he knew, to hide out in the streets and risk the chance of anybody finding him in the midst of transformation, no matter how wonderful it was. He must concentrate harder…focus…

Suddenly, he caught the unmistakable scent of cave – a warm draughty air scent, calcium, dripping water, stagnant pools filled with sightless fish and insects. He headed towards where the scent of cave was coming from, nose working overtime. Raising his head for a brief moment, Nyasu sat, thinking of the wonder and joy that would surely await him once the serum achieved its delightful effects. In the backdrop of his own thoughts, forest noises continued, unabated by the heavy snow. The stream burbled underneath the ice that encased much of its length, the wind whistled softly among the spruce needles, creating a soft sound that only a sharp-eared creature, such as Nyasu, could detect, and every once in a while, a much stronger gust would make the tree branches shake heavily, sending piles of snow and scattering of needles to the forest floor.

The early dawn light streamed in amongst the trees, creating strange dappled patterns on the pale snow below, and also on any object down there. Many conifer trees stood tall and proud, like the sentinel lighthouse situated among the pounding ocean breakers. The little light there was never remained still, refracting off snowflakes and scattering them off to other parts of the wood.

Despite the disturbance from the scent of the nearby city, Nyasu, head held high, up and active again, was able to find the cave all right. It was situated in a clearing of the forest, broken only by the stream rushing through it on its way to a great far-away river. The cries of various Pokémon resounded among the immense spruce trees, and, barely paying attention to them, trotted to where the cave scent was the strongest. Nyasu found it in a moment, even though it was half-hidden by leafy plants curtaining the opening like a screen.

The cat faced the vines, barely visible despite the fact that they were right in front of his muzzle, and managed to wrestle through them. Finally he broke thought, his paws touching the cool stone floor of the natural shelter.

Without hesitating an instant, Nyasu set Pikachuu’s limp form down upon the ground, and, hardly stopping to tear away the parafilm, drained the test tube in one swallow. Instantly a terrible drowsiness fell over him, and, every drop of energy draining from his body, instantly fell asleep.