"Jacob, Is that you?"

I smiled. "Mom, dad, it's you." I then walked over to them and hugged them both. My mom's fur was a slightly lighter shade of yellow and her cheeks were a pinkish hue. She was definitely a good two inches shorter than I was and had a heart-shaped indent on the back of her tail. These were the distinct features that a female Pikachu held out from a male.

"Yeah, it's us all right." my dad mumbled. I let go of them and took a step back, adopting a serious look on my face.

"Did Team Thunder do this to you?" I asked.

Mom shook her head. "No, it was Mew. He knew that they'd be after us, so he hid us." She looked up at my bandaged head, frowning. "Jake, what happened to your head?" She gently brushed the bandage with her paw as she said that. My dad had the same deep frown of concern on his face.

"Oh, it's nothing, really. But why aren't you freaking out right now like dad was? How can you stay so calm!?" At first, I replied calmly, but as I continued to talk, my voice climbed up to frustration.

My mom sighed. Obviously, what she was about to tell me was something she was avoiding for a long time. "Jake... I have wanted to tell you for a while, but every single time I tried, I just... I couldn't do it."

"Tell me what?" I ventured, my curiosity getting past my anger.

"I wanted to tell you that... I was never originally a human. I was born as a Pichu, raised as a wild Pokémon... Until I saw your dad. Even though he was a human, I instantly fell in love with him. I wanted to be with him, no matter what the cost was. I eventually found and asked Jirachi to turn me into one." She paused, taking a quick break to breathe. "I spent my first months as a human with Mew, who taught me how to be one. I then looked for your dad, and we married three months after dating."

I opened my mouth to reply, but the words caught in my mouth, unwilling to go any farther. I was confused, which stalled my mind that was trying to process everything that I was told. Then, I noticed that the Raichu was awake.

"Kiara, don't tell me you're hitting on another Chu. You know how your father feels about that." He said in a somewhat deep voice. Despite his age, he was fit and extremely muscular, something that would definitely impress any creature- human or Pokémon. He was also a good one foot taller than I was, adding a to the intimidation he gave me. His tail waved back and forth angrily as he gazed into my eyes, unwilling to avert them. I folded my ears down and started to back off, a sign known to most Pokémon of total surrender and retreat.

"Pa! I'm over that. I can't have another mate because I'm devoted to Scott." My mother defended herself.

The Raichu sighed heavily. "Then who are these Pokémon? Do you even know them, Kiara?"

"Yes, father, I do know them. This Chu is my son. The Eevee over there is a friend of his."

A look of relief and joy came over the Raichu's face. "Ah, well, in that case, we better give some proper introductions. My name is Elden." He looked at me once more, adding with a smile, "You better start calling me your grandpa."

Bailey stepped forward shyly to greet him. "It's wonderful to meet you, Mr. Elden. My name's Bailey."

I then took my turn. "This... This is so hard for me to sort through, but It's nice to meet you, grandpa. I'm Jacob."

Grandpa Elden then stretched out his tail towards me. I stood there, confused. Noticing this, he said, "Do you not know what a tailshake is?" I shook my head. "Boy, what world did your mom raise you in? Come here, let me teach you."

Before I had the chance to reply, he grabbed my front paws and pulled me towards him. As he told me to grasp his tail with my own and shake it, I finally understood what it was.

"Oh, I understand how. It's pretty much a handshake." My grandfather gave me the same confused look I had used earlier. "It's practically the same greeting that humans use, except they use their hands instead."

"Kiara, this boy of yours, Jacob, was a human? Why didn't you tell me?" Elden asked. Right then, I realized something. He was calling my mom Kiara, not Scarlet.

I looked at my mom with an inquisitive look on my face. "Wait, your name is Kiara?"

My mom looked down in shame. "Yes, it is. I had to come up with a different name to cover the fact that I was a Pokémon. I heard someone say the name Scarlet, and I instantly took it as my own."

My dad rubbed her back, trying to soothe her. "Hey, sweetie, I think it's a wonderfully beautiful name. And I didn't care that you were a Pokémon, to begin with, now did I?"

Right then, my PokeNav started ringing. "What in Arceus' name is that?" My grandfather asked in alarm.

"That would be something known as a PokeNav. You can talk to people that live far away from you through it. Ah, it's Red. He's probably worried about me." I replied as I answered the PokeNav.

Grandpa looked at it with curiosity in his eyes. He gave a startled jump as Red spoke. "Jacob, where are you? Is Bailey with you? I'm worried sick about you guys!"

"We're with my parents. But location wise, I honestly don't know where we are." I answered, then quickly added, "Don't worry about us, Red. We'll be fine."

Through the other end, Red sighed. "Okay, just try to get back to the apartment. Goodbye."

"See ya later, Red." I hung up.

Mom was looking at me as if I had two heads. "You mean that you're sharing an apartment with the Red?"

"Who else?" I said. "Anyway, I rented the apartment because our house burned down. So, er... Do you want to come with me? I believe that there's still enough room for you guys."

My mother sighed. "I don't know. I want to stay here to give my father some company. But if he wants to go, then I will." After she had said that, all eyes were on Elden, who seemed to be having some trouble deciding himself.

He hesitated, as if he made up his mind but he wasn't sure if it was the right decision. "I, uh... Sure, why not? I'd like to see what it's like to live in a human den. I-I cannot stay for long, thoug. I am the Elder of this village."

With all that, I winked at Bailey. For a minute or so, she just gave me a blank, confused stare. When I realized that she had no clue why I winked at her, I mimicked myself adjusting the headdress that Jirachi always wears. She got the gesture and then said, "Oh my goodness! Jake, I can't remember the way back to the apartment. Do you?"

Shaking my head, I replied: "No, I don't. Maybe I should have brought a map or something with me."

"Oh, I sure wish we all were back at the apartment!" she said in an exaggerated tone.

My mom and dad grinned and shook their heads in disbeleif, knowing what was about to happen. However, Grandpa Elden was left in the dark, confused by the events that were - and were about to be - unfolded. "Wish granted!" I said, maybe a bit too loudly.

Once again, the scene around us melted away and was replaced by the oh-so familiar living room that I've gotten used to past the few days.

"Jacob, Bailey! There you guys are!" Red exclaimed as he looked out of our room and ran over towards me. We embraced for a moment, then he stepped back, taking a look at the others. "Who are these three?"