Yellow lay on her side, facing away from the window. The sheets were cool against her face, but sleep wouldn't come for her. Her mind kept circling the same questions: if Ash came back, what would she say? Would she forgive him? Maybe it was her fault after all, and she had driven him away. Would he even come back? Was he avoiding her due to...
She turned the words in her head, trying not to sound bitter and possibly ask for forgiveness for her fault. She did not want him to turn away again.
'Please come back, ' she thought with unshed tears in her eyes.
The steady hum of the ceiling fan and the faint antiseptic clinging to the air were the only things in the room that made the hospital feel quieter than usual at this hour.
So lost in her thoughts was she that she never noticed the door opening, her mind unconsciously registering it as a nurse checking on her.
Tick...tock...
Her mind started to register the faint, slow, deliberate footsteps, soft but heavy enough to carry in the stillness. Then there was the smell of something metallic, as if she had smelt it before somewhere.
Tick...tock...
She only stirred when the moonlight spilt across the floor and the room dimmed, as if blocked by something.
Furrowing her brows, she called softly in a voice rough from disuse, "Nurse?"
Tick...tock...
On not getting an answer, she rolled on her back and turned towards the window - and froze.
A figure stood between her and the moonlight, its outline sharp against the pale glow. In one hand, raised slightly, was a knife. The blade was wet, catching the light in a cold gleam. Dark stains marked the man's robe, the fabric stiff in places where it had dried.
The wind from the window blew the robe.
Tick...tock...
The knife was raised higher.
She saw the man underneath the robe and saw something that brought her mind back to the Viridian Forest, back to the moments she would have liked to forget. For a heartbeat, she couldn't move, her mind refusing to believe what her eyes saw.
The knife started coming down, and her primal scream tore out of her before she could think, raw and jagged, the sound scraping her throat until it burned. Pain flared in her neck, her voice breaking halfway through — but the sound still carried, echoing down the corridor and spilling out into the night beyond the hospital walls, drowning out the screech of fury.
------------------------------------------
"ROOWWWW!"
The descending knife hand was attacked by a Spearow, making the man stop and nearly lose his grip on it, before he was hit in the back.
"PIDGEO!"
The man was sent tumbling, boots skidding across the floor.
Yellow tried to scream again, but it broke into a fit of coughing — harsh, tearing coughs that ripped through her throat like claws. Pain exploded in her neck, white‑hot and blinding, as if the half‑healed wound had been torn open from the inside. She tasted copper, felt warmth trickle down into her collar.
Her hands flew to her throat, fingers pressing against the tender flesh as if she could hold it together. Each cough was a convulsion that stole her breath, her chest heaving in shallow, desperate gasps. The sound that came out was wet, ragged — and then, suddenly, nothing at all.
Her mouth moved, but no voice followed. Only a thin, breathless rasp escaped, swallowed by the pounding of her heartbeat in her ears. Panic flared, but through the blur of tears she saw them — two furious shapes planting themselves between her and the man. Spearow's feathers were flared, Pidgeotto's wings spread wide, both glaring at the intruder with murder in their eyes.
She was scared and curled into herself a little and just wanted all of it to stop.
Tick...tock...
-----------------------------------------------
The man didn't move from the window. Moonlight poured around him, turning his outline into a black cut‑out against the pale glow. The wind through the open frame tugged at the hem of his blood‑stained robe, making it sway in slow, deliberate folds.
Tick...tock...
Four Poké Balls burst open at his feet, their red light flaring across the floor before fading to reveal a Rattata, a Zubat, a Raticate, and an Ekans. Even in the dim light, something about them was wrong — their eyes were glassy, their movements twitchy and too fast, muscles bunching and releasing in jerks that made their shadows stutter on the walls.
Tick...tock...
Spearow's screech split the air first, sharp and furious. He dove at the Rattata, wings snapping open mid‑strike. The rodent met him with a blur of motion, teeth snapping so close Spearow felt the rush of air against his breast. Spearow twisted away, talons raking across its flank, but the Raticate was already charging in from the side, claws gouging the floorboards.
Above, Pidgeotto intercepted the Zubat, the two colliding in a flurry of wings and teeth. The bat's screech was high and unsteady, its movements erratic but unnervingly precise — like it didn't care if it hurt itself as long as it hit. Pidgeotto battered it back with a gust, but the Zubat looped around almost instantly, slamming into her side again.
The Ekans slid forward, scales rasping against the floor, striking at Spearow with unnatural speed. Spearow darted upward, narrowly avoiding the fangs, only to have the Rattata leap for his tail. Pidgeotto swooped low, slamming into the Rattata with Steel Wing, sending it skidding — but the Zubat was on Pidgeotto's back in an instant, biting down hard before being shaken off.
Through it all, the man didn't flinch. He stood framed by the window, the moonlight catching on the knife in his hand. Then, with a sudden step forward, he slashed upward. The blade flashed silver as it cut across Spearow's right eye in a shallow but bloody line.
Spearow's scream was raw, a sound Yellow felt in her chest. The bird reeled, one wing dipping as it fought to stay airborne.
"PIDGEO!" Pidgeotto's cry cracked with alarm, its focus snapping to its injured partner.
That heartbeat of distraction was all the man needed. His arm flicked, and the knife spun end‑over‑end through the moonlight, the blade flashing with each turn as it cut across the space between them — aimed straight at Yellow.
A shout came from outside.
Tick...tock...
Yellow's eyes widened as the knife got closer and closer to her. She was scared, just like the first time when a knife was used on her. She was frozen in place and watched in dread as the knife inched closer through the air towards her.
Tick...
A yellow ball flew through the open window on her bed to uncurl and turn to hit and swat the flying knife away by using Iron Tail.
Tock...
The glass window shattered behind the man with yellow-golden stars, and a figure drop-kicked the man from behind.
The man stumbled forward and dropped a few feet away before regaining his bearings to stand up and face his attacker.
Yellow looked at the person who entered the room as a Pokémon jumped down from him on the floor and the yellow Pokémon stood guard in front of her looking at her attacker.
Tears started coming to her eyes as hope blossomed in her heart.
There, with the moon shining softly in the background, with an Eevee at his feet and the glowing red eyes of a slowly flying Butterfree at his back and the curtains gently swaying in the night breeze, was a grave and determined looking Ash.
Tick...tock...
-------------------------------------------------------
Ash sat in the Pokémon Center lobby long after Nurse Joy had left him alone. The hum of the ceiling lights and the faint scent of disinfectant reminded him too much of the hospital. His elbows rested on his knees with hands clasped and eyes fixed on the floor.
He kept replaying that last visit in his head — the words, the way Yellow had looked at him, the way he'd walked out. He'd told himself it was better to leave it alone, that he was correct and, in the right, but whenever he thought about it, his mind always went back to how he had found him and how she was looking at him after finding her uncle. The last part was enough to break his false resolve while he thought with despair at how it looked to her.
The person who had saved her from nearly dying, had even taken care of her while they might be attacked because of her, been with her as her only pillar of strength while she was breaking down after finding her uncle dead, and had saved her again, had left her because she did not want violence.
'I messed up.'
'That's the understatement of the century.'
'How do you think I should ask her for forgiveness?'
'Not my problem. You messed up, so you should fix it by yourself. Be glad that you actually understood it, even if I know that you are dense with emotions, otherwise I would not have been able to forgive you.'
Ash physically winced at that.
'I am sorry. I am a really bad person, isn't it?'
Ash could hear Roshi sigh inside his head. 'You are just a kid now, but that was uncalled for from your end. You have been under a bit of stress up to now, so, rest. Promise me that you will always think about what you are going to say to anybody and think of the consequences for a bit. You will go and talk to her, okay? Everything else is all up to you now.'
With that, Roshi had stopped talking to him and he remained in complete silence in the lobby. He decided that he will talk to her.
Ash sat there for a while longer, letting the silence settle over him. The lobby felt too big, too empty. Eventually, he pushed himself up and went to the counter to collect his team when Chansey returned with their Poké Balls.
He stepped outside into the cool night air before releasing them. One by one, they appeared in soft bursts of light — Pikachu blinking up at him, Eevee stretching, Pidgeotto and Spearow shaking out their wings, Butterfree's wings catching the lamplight in a faint shimmer, and Chansey smiling and looking at him like always.
They were confused upon being called out and looked at him expectantly.
Ash took a breath. "I owe you all an apology," he said, his voice low. "I've been pushing you guys too hard. I told myself it was for training, but… truth is, I was running from something. From someone." His gaze dropped for a moment before he met their eyes again while Pikachu and Eevee looked at him with widening eyes. "That's not fair to you. You've been giving me everything, and I've been too wrapped up in my own head to see it."
Taking a deep breath, Ash continued, "I want to make it right. We are going to visit Yellow now, okay guys?"
There was a chorus of soft cries — not loud, but warm enough to ease the tightness in his chest.
"Well, it was nice of you to actually apologize to your Pokemon, but I am sorry to pop your bubble of thought."
They all turned to look at Nurse Joy who was looking at them with unimpressed eyes. She continued.
"The visit hours of the hospital are over; you cannot meet her now. And before you protest, even if the Joy family lets you use the Centre's rooms free of charge, I am still the one who manages the Pokémon Centre. My Pokémon Centre, my rules. Now, go inside and to your room."
Ash and the Pokémon tried to protest, but Nurse Joy's narrowing eyes convinced them otherwise.
With a sullen look, Ash returned his Pokémon to their balls and returned back to his room under Nurse Joy's eyes.
-------------------------------------------
The room felt too small.
Ash lay on his bed staring at the ceiling, the dim light from the street outside cutting a pale stripe across the wall. Pikachu and Eevee were curled at the foot of the bed, their ears twitching every so often as if they could hear the thoughts rattling in his head.
He'd promised himself he'd talk to her. Tomorrow. But tomorrow felt too far away.
Slowly, he sat up. Pikachu's eyes opened at once, Eevee's head lifting to watch him. He gave them a small nod to call them to his side, and they padded over without a sound.
A soft flash of light, and Butterfree appeared, wings flapping quietly in the dark. Ash slipped on his coat, opening it a little to let Pikachu and Eevee climb inside to settle against his chest.
With a whisper, he said, "Keep quiet, guys. Butterfree, think that you can lift us and put us through the window on the ground outside?"
Butterfree nodded and trilled in agreement.
Butterfree's eyes glowed faintly blue, Confusion wrapping around him in a gentle, weightless grip. With the cool night air rushing in through the open creaking window, Butterfree lowered him to the ground outside in a slow, and careful arc.
All of them shared a quick grin — a silent agreement — before heading toward the hospital.
Behind them, the Pokémon Center door clicked shut. Nurse Joy, keys still in hand, had just turned in time to see something disappearing into the shadows. Her frown deepened, and she followed at a measured pace to confront the one who had sneaked out. She already had an idea to who was responsible for this.
-----------------------------------------
Near the edge of the hospital grounds, Ash called out Spearow and Pidgeotto. He pointed towards one of the windows on the second floor and said to them, "Alright you two, can you go there and check on her to see if she is awake?" They launched into the night without hesitation, wings cutting through the still air.
Calling out Chansey next, he told her about what they were doing and asked her to use Heal Pulse on Yellow if she was still hurting in her throat. She began to nod, smiling — then froze, eyes fixed on something behind him.
Blinking at her and feeling dread pooling in his stomach, Ash slowly turned around to see Nurse Joy standing there, her smile too sweet to be anything but dangerous. "And what," she asked in a voice like honey over steel, "are you doing out here at this hour?"
He stammered, trying to respond while Pikachu and Eevee were inching away from him — when it came.
A scream, raw and jagged, tore through the night that made his chest tighten and stomach drop. Yellow's scream. It was followed by Spearow's cry, sharp with fury.
They froze for a heartbeat, the sound hanging in the air. Then Ash snapped out of it. "Butterfree — Confusion!"
Butterfree's eyes flared, Confusion wrapping around Ash as Pikachu and Eevee scrambled onto his shoulders. Nurse Joy reached for him, but they were already lifting off the ground. Ash's mind flashed to the hours he'd made Butterfree train to lift heavy loads — and for once, he was grateful for every second of it.
The looming hospital edged closer as Butterfree carried them to the window, he had pointed at previously. When they were a little distance away, he saw Spearow and Pidgeotto trying to fight four Pokémon with Yellow cowering in her bed when a man, who was standing near the window shot his hand upward with something that shone in the moonlight. Spearow's pained screams followed soon after.
They were a few meters away from the window now. He took Pikachu in his hand.
They saw as the man threw the knife in Yellow's direction, aiming for her.
The hatred and anger at the man, and the desperate need to protect Yellow made him unconsciously tap into his aura with a faint heat in his arms, and a pulse in his chest, which let him connect unconsciously with his Pokémon. Snarling, with all his might, he threw Pikachu who got what he needed to do after Ash's aura shared with him the orders. The throw was clean, and powerful. Pikachu sailed through the open window, landed on the bed, turned around and deflected the thrown knife with Iron Tail.
"Swift," he growled out and Eevee obliged. Butterfree threw him to the window. Eevee's attack hit the glass of the window, shattering it. He oriented himself to enter and drop-kicked the man, the impact jarring his legs, sending the man stumbling to the ground with a grunt, before he recovered and looked at him.
-----------------------------------------
The world was a blur of motion and noise — until he was there. Ash.
She stared at him, framed by the moonlight, his coat shifting with the night air, eyes locked on her with a focus that made her chest ache.
She tried to say his name, but the moment she forced sound through her throat, pain ripped up from the half‑healed wound. The taste of blood filled her mouth, warm and metallic, and she coughed hard, spattering red against her hand.
Her vision swam. She saw his expression harden, his shoulders squaring as he turned away from her — toward the man.
------------------------------------------
Ash landed in a crouch after the drop‑kick, boots skidding on the floor. The man stumbled forward with a grunt, catching himself on the bedframe.
For a heartbeat, the room was still.
Tick...tock...
Ash's eyes found Yellow's. She was curled against the pillows, wide‑eyed, her breath coming in shallow pulls. Relief flickered there — and something else, raw and uncertain.
She opened her mouth as if to speak, but the sound caught in her throat. A wet cough tore through her instead, and a thin line of blood slipped from the corner of her lips, stark against her skin. Her hand flew to her neck, eyes squeezing shut in pain.
Tick...tock...
Ash's chest tightened. The faint copper scent hit him, and his jaw set hard.
The man straightened, the crowbar hanging loose in his grip, and for a second Ash's eyes tracked only the weapon. Then he saw it — the patch on the man's chest, half‑hidden in the folds of his shirt.
A blood‑red 'R'.
Tick...tock...
The sight hit him like a blow. Viridian City's Pokémon Center — the smoke, the gas, the Rockets swarming him. The Viridian Forest — the ambush, the way they'd moved like they knew exactly where he'd be. And Yellow's uncle… the way she'd found him, the stillness in her eyes.
The pieces slammed together in his head. This wasn't random. It was them. It had always been them.
Heat flared in his chest, his aura thrumming in time with his heartbeat. His grip on the sword tightened until his knuckles whitened.
The man's glassy eyes didn't change, but his stance shifted — a soldier's readiness warped by something unnatural.
Ash's voice came out low, steady, and dangerous.
"Team Rocket."
--------------------------------------------
The man's eyes were wrong.
Flat. Unblinking.
They locked on Ash with a predator's stillness, the blood‑red 'R' on his shirt catching the moonlight. His grip on the crowbar was loose but ready, the kind of hold that said he knew exactly how to use it.
Ash's aura thrummed in his chest, hot and steady.
Tick...tock...
"Pikachu, Eevee — with me. Butterfree, Pidgeotto, Spearow — take them!"
Four Poké Balls burst open at the man's feet. Rattata, Zubat, Raticate, and Ekans hit the floor in a blur of twitching limbs and glassy eyes. Their movements were jerky but fast, like their bodies were running ahead of their minds.
-------------------------------------------
Spearow, still flying with that slight tilt from his injured eye, let out a ragged shriek and dove. The Rattata shot under him with a burst of unnatural speed, teeth snapping for his legs. Spearow twisted sharply mid‑air, scattering grit in a sudden Sand Attack that made the rodent skid sideways, blinking hard against the sting.
A rush of air brushed Ash's cheek — Pidgeotto, cutting in to meet the Zubat. Her wings beat so hard the air seemed to ripple, throwing the bat off course. It shrieked, spun, then tried to dart in low — only to be met with a gleaming Steel Wing that smacked it into the wall with a dull, satisfying thud.
High above, Butterfree hovered, compound eyes locked on the Raticate's erratic, lunging charge. Ash's voice cut through the noise before he even thought about it. "Butterfree — Electro Web!"
The crackling strands shot forward, wrapping around the Raticate's legs. It roared, thrashing hard enough to snap some of the threads, but the moment's delay was all Eevee needed. The little fox darted in, both hind legs slamming into its ribs with a sharp Double Kick that made the bigger Pokémon stagger.
A hiss sliced through the chaos. Ash turned just enough to see the Ekans sliding low, fangs bared, heading straight for Pikachu. "Agility — Iron Tail!"
Pikachu blurred, the snake's strike biting into empty air, and then his tail came down like a silver hammer on the serpent's head. Ekans recoiled with a furious hiss, but its eyes stayed locked on him, coiled to strike again.
-----------------------------------------
The crowbar came in fast — a blur of metal aimed squarely at his ribs. Ash yanked the sword up in both hands, the clang of steel on steel exploding in his ears. The jolt shot straight through his arms into his shoulders, making his grip clamp too tight. The blade wavered under the pressure, and he had to grit his teeth to force it back.
Tick...tock...
The man didn't give him a breath. He pressed forward, every movement sharp, deliberate — like someone who'd done this a hundred times before. Ash's own steps felt clumsy in comparison, boots scuffing against the floor as he fought to keep his balance. He'd only ever used the sword to block Pikachu's Iron Tail in training, and this was nothing like that.
Tick...tock...
He let his aura do the thinking his body couldn't, reacting more on instinct than skill. A sudden dip of the man's shoulder — a feint — almost slipped past him. Ash jerked the blade up just in time, the follow‑up swing smashing into it with a force that rattled his bones. Pain flared in his shoulders, but he twisted with the impact, letting it spin him half‑around before driving his weight back into the man, shoving him away.
Tick...tock...
Somewhere behind him, wings beat hard and the air shifted. A rush of wind tore through the room — Pidgeotto's doing — and the high‑pitched screech of the Zubat was whipped away with it. Ash didn't dare look; the man's crowbar came in low and fast, and he barely got the sword up in time to block.
Tick...tock...
The clang rattled his arms to the elbows. He shoved back, boots scraping for purchase, catching only flashes of the fight at the edges of his vision — Butterfree's powder drifting like gold dust through the air, Spearow's sharp cry as he struck something solid, the thud of a body hitting the floor.
Tick...tock...
A hiss cut through the noise. Pikachu's electricity cracked in answer, the smell of ozone sharp in Ash's nose even as he ducked another swing. A heavier impact followed — Eevee slamming something into the wall — and then the deep, meaty whump of Pidgeotto's Steel Wing connecting with force.
Tick...tock...
Ash didn't need to see it to know his team was holding their ground. They'd trained for this — to read each other, to act without waiting for orders when things got messy. Right now, all he could do was trust them and keep the man in front of him from getting anywhere near Yellow.
Tick...tock...
------------------------------------
The man came at him again, crowbar arcing high. Ash caught it on the flat of his blade, the clang ringing in his bones. His arms screamed from the repeated shocks, sweat slicking the hilt until it threatened to slip from his grasp. He shifted his stance, boots squealing against the floor, and shoved back hard enough to make the man give half a step.
Tick… tock…
It wasn't much, but it was enough. His aura thudded in his chest, urging him forward. He lunged — not with the clean precision of a swordsman, but with the rough, desperate swing of someone clawing for space.
Tick… tock…
Steel hissed through fabric. The edge of the man's cloak and shirt split, fluttering to the floor — and with them, something small and metallic clattered across the tiles.
Tick… tock…
'ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! MOVE, ASH, MOVE! THAT'S A—'
Roshi's voice tore through his head, raw with panic. Ash's face drained of colour.
They had to get out. Now.
Tick… tock…
Still fending the man off, he barked, "Pikachu — Thunder Shock, my way! Butterfree — wide‑range Sleep Powder, now!"
Even mid‑battle, the tone in his voice made them obey without hesitation.
Tick… tock…
Ash twisted aside at the last second, hiding the device behind his leg. The Thunder Shock cracked past him, slamming into the man and hurling him back. Ash bolted for the bed, Butterfree already above, scattering a golden haze after blasting the Zubat with a Confusion that sent it spinning.
Tick… tock…
He reached Yellow and hauled her into his arms.
Tick…
An Ekans lunged from the side. Ash pivoted, clutching Yellow tight as Eevee's Swift lit the air, the stars slamming the snake into the wall.
Tock…
"Move out! Butterfree — extraction!"
Tick…
His team, finishing off the last of the slowed enemy Pokémon, didn't question it. If Ash sounded like this, it was bad.
Tock…
The fliers were first through the window.
Tick…
Pikachu and Eevee reached the sill just as Ash got there with Yellow in his arms.
Tock…
Pain lanced through his back — a Poison Sting from the Ekans, striking from the shadows.
Tick…
Butterfree's String Shot snapped around Ash's torso, yanking him and Yellow toward the shattered window. Pikachu and Eevee scrambled ahead, fur and feathers flashing, while Pidgeotto and Spearow cut sharp lines into the night sky.
Tock…
The open air swallowed them whole. Ash's stomach lurched with the sudden drop, wind screaming in his ears. Yellow's weight pressed against his chest, her breath warm and fragile as he locked his arms tighter around her. Pikachu and Eevee clung close, their bodies trembling against him.
Tick…
Below, the hospital grounds spread into shadow — grass and gravel paths, the pale skeletons of trees planted in neat rows, all rushing up to meet them.
Tock…
Butterfree surged forward, wings a frantic blur, spitting heavy cords of silk that snapped between the nearest trunks. The makeshift web shimmered faintly in the moonlight, swaying like a net strung by fate itself.
Tick…
They hit hard. The silk sagged under their weight, bouncing them cruelly, knocking the breath from Ash's lungs and slamming pain into his back. Pikachu and Eevee tumbled in beside him, claws scrabbling for purchase.
Tock…
The web stretched and held, lowering them just enough to spill into the undergrowth below. Twigs cracked, leaves tore — and then, at last, their feet found solid ground.
Extraction complete.
BOOOOM!
The world behind them erupted. Fire burst from the hospital's broken ribs, glass shattering outward in a storm of molten light. The blast rolled over them in a single, concussive wave, rattling the branches, tearing leaves free in a rain of embers.
Ash moved without thought — curling around Yellow, shielding her with his body as shards and heat pelted down. His ears rang, his vision blurred, and still he held her close.
The phantom tick… tock… lingered in his mind, as if the clock itself had stopped at the moment of survival.
-----------------------------------
(AN: Sorry for the late update. I think that I got too invested in writing this chapter. And there was no electricity and wifi for the last 12 hours.)