Red's Adventures - Chapter 00
This is the story of a human boy—Red—who discovers to his horror that he is no longer in his original body. He wakes up in a cave, trapped in a body that prevents him from moving as he pleases. They quickly discover that he has become a baby Vulpix. He will have to learn to live like an animal, but with his memories of his human life.
Red's Adventures
Chapter 0 - Prologue
The first thing he felt was the cold. Not an ordinary cold, not the kind you get on a winter morning or from an icy wind on your skin, but a deep, intimate cold that seemed to have settled inside his body. As if his very bones were shivering.
He tried to open his eyes. The light blinded him instantly.
« A-ah… »
His voice broke into a high-pitched, ridiculous, strangled sound. He wanted to cough, to sit up, to bring a hand to his face… Nothing.
Why… can’t I feel my arms?
A muffled sound throbed around him. Slow. Steady. A warm breath bru
« ...No… » He opened his eyes again.
The cave was dark, lit only by a dim light filtering in from outside. The rock walls were close, oppressive, covered in moss and cracks. The air smelled of damp stone, earth… and something else., Something alive. An immense figure leaned over him.
Yellow, Gold, with Nine tails undulating slowly like frozen flames.
Two deep red eyes, shining with quiet intelligence.
“…A… Pokémon…” Panic erupted.
His heart pounded so hard he thought it would stop. His body tried to recoil… but instead, it only produced a pathetic little whimper.
« No… no, it can’t be… wake up… » The creature moved closer. He felt a soft, warm pressure as it gently took him between its paws and pulled him against its chest.
He waited for the pain but it didn’t come , instead, the rough tongue returned, meticulously cleaning him, as if each touch were… necessary.
« …She’s… licking me…? » He trembled.
Then he felt something else. Two small bodies against his. Warm. Trembling.
An uneven breath, a muffled whimper.
« They are like me. » And the realization hit him hard. « I’m… like them… » A cry rose in his throat involuntarily.
He was crying. His body was crying, with all its might, filling his lungs with air as if he had just learned to breathe. He tried to hold it back, ashamed… but he couldn't control it. A deep rumble echoed through the cave. That was… Soothing.
"Shh… gently, Red… everything's alright…" The voice was deep, maternal.
« She's talking to me ?… » Hunger arrived immediately afterward. Violent, imperious and impossible to ignore.
He tried to resist. He hated the feeling. It didn't ask permission. It didn't negotiate. It demanded. And when he tried to resist, his body reacted on its own: mouth open, paws seeking warmth, mind overwhelmed by a primal need.
« This isn't right. I'm human. I… »
But his body was nothing of the sort. When he finally gave in, when he tasted the warm milk, his mind screamed in disgust… while his body sighed with satisfaction.
« It's just a dream… » he murmured to himself.
The female—Krystal—cleaned him carefully, wrapping him in her tails when he trembled. And it soothed him. This betrayal frightened him more than the Pokémon itself.
I should be able to walk, to talk, to fend for myself.
And yet, every time she took him by the scruff of the neck to lead him back to the nest, a burning shame washed over him, but a part of him… relaxed.
Red couldn't understand how his mind could be so clear when his body was so… useless.
He thought, remembered, and reflected, but still, as soon as he tried to move, his legs trembled. As soon as he wanted to speak, only squeaks escaped his throat and every attempt to crawl out of the nest ended the same way : a gentle pressure on the scruff of his neck, the world receding, and the reassuring warmth of his mother's fur.
« Let go of me… » he mumbled, annoyed. Although only a small, high-pitched sound came out.
She didn't respond and licked him.
And despite all his shame, his body relaxed instantly. It's humiliating… but it's reassuring. Again, this thought terrified him.
The days passed. Then the weeks. Red learned to walk… slowly. His paws trembled, his muscles refused to obey. Coal and Ember — livelier, more confident — rarely waited for him.
Coal was the first to walk without falling and Ember the first to dare explore the cave to its very end. Red him followed. Always a little behind.
« Hurry up, Red! » Ember called, leaping onto a rock.
« Are you scared or something? » Coal added, sneering.
Red felt a burning irritation rise in his chest. « I’m coming! » A low growl escaped him.
The other two froze. « …Did you hear that? » Ember whispered.
Red blinked. « I… I didn’t do anything. » but his heart was beating too fast And his flames were flickering. Krystal watched the scene from a distance.
« Be careful, » she said simply. « Fire responds to emotions. »
Red lowered his ears. « So… even my anger is dangerous. »
Red was growing, and inevitably the time came when his mother's milk was no longer enough to feed him. The fish slipped out of the water and stirred weakly on the damp stone. Red stared at it. His snout twitched. A strange smell reached his nostrils — metallic, warm, enticing.
His stomach tightened.
« No. Stop. It's a living animal. » He took a step back… but his legs moved forward of their own accord.
« Why am I moving on my own? » Krystal watched him silently, without intervening.
The fish was beating weakly and weakly. « I can’t do this. I’m not like this. » A memory flashed through her mind: an aquarium, colorful fish, a child tapping against the glass.
« Mom… I… » His voice trembled.
« You’re hesitating, » Krystal said calmly.
« He… he’s suffering… » At these words, something rumbled inside him.
A dull irritation. His body hated waiting.
« The more you hesitate, the more you make him suffer, » she replied gently.
Red closed his eyes, his claws extended of their own accord.
« Stop… stop… I didn’t ask you to do anything… Why does my body want to kill him when I don’t want to? » His jaw snapped shut. A sharp crack. The world seemed to stop.
Red dropped the fish and immediately backed away, panting. « ...I... I did it... » He looked at his paws., they were trembling.
« I killed it... » His stomach, however, felt relieved. and this truth terrified him. He bit into the flesh.
Then his eyes widened. « ...It's good. » The warmth, the fat, the intense flavor... his whole body craved more. He swallowed another mouthful before he even realized it.
« Red? » He stopped abruptly.
« You like it, » Krystal said, without judgment.
« I... I shouldn't. »
« Why? » He remained silent.
« Because humans don't eat like this. Because it means I'm truly becoming a monster. » He wanted replies His ears pressed against his skull.
« I liked that… » he murmured.
Krystal approached and rested her muzzle against his.« There's no shame in following your body, Red. »
« What if my body is wrong? » This question made her hesitate. She looked into his eyes.
« Red, stop fighting your nature. You must learn to live with this truth, » she said finally. « Denying it will destroy you. » Red said nothing, staring into the lifeless eyes of the Magikarp he had just finished off.
The days were long, there wasn't much to do, and the three little Pokémon often liked to train for battle. They were now six months old.
« Come on, Red, try again! » called Coal. They were playing at battling. At least, that's what Red thought. When Coal tackled him to the ground, something clicked in his head.
A brutal heat exploded in his chest.
Enough, Flames erupted and Coal squeaked backward, his fur singed.
Silence fell, Red froze, panting.
« I...I didn't mean to... » Krystal appeared immediately, stepping in between them.
« That's enough. » She placed a heavy paw on Red.
« You lost control of your anger. »
« He hurt me! »
« And you could have burned him alive. » Those words struck him harder than any blow.
He recoiled, tears welling in his eyes. « I didn’t want any of this, I want my family… My real family, my real body… » he thought
« I didn’t mean to hurt him, » he whispered, weeping.
« It’s not what you want that matters, » she replied, caressing him with her tails. « It’s what you do when you stop wanting. » She rested her snout against his. “You must learn to know yourself. Otherwise, One day you will end up burning what you love.”
A little later, another event added to Red's misfortune.
That day, Red had ventured further than usual, near the bushes at the cave entrance. The air there was fresher, filled with new scents.
Something moved, and he froze when he saw the small Pokémon. A small Rattata timidly emerged from the grass, sniffing the ground. Red held his breath.
« Oh, it's not afraid... » The Rattata looked up, and their eyes met. Unexpectedly, the other Pokémon approached. Red sat down slowly, careful not to show its teeth.
« Hello... » it murmured. The Rattata tilted its head, curious. Red gently rolled a small stone toward it. The Rattata flicked it back with its paw.
Red burst out laughing. « See? It's easy. »
They played like this for several minutes. Red forgot his hunger, the danger, everything. Until a familiar scent reached his nostrils.
A shiver ran down his spine.
« Red. » Krystal's voice made him turn slowly. She was there, motionless, her red eyes fixed on the Rattata. Time seemed to stand still.
« Mom, wait—! »
Too late. The Rattata bolted, but Krystal leaped forward. A short cry, then silence.
Red remained petrified, helpless, merely a witness to the scene.
« ...Why? » His voice trembled.
Krystal placed the prey on the ground. « Because it was prey. »
« It was playing with me! »
« It was running from your nature without understanding it. »
Red felt a painful heat rise in his throat. « You killed it just because you could! »
She turned to him, surprised. « No. I killed it because we're predators, we have to eat. »
« I don't want to be that! » His flames flickered dangerously.
Krystal approached abruptly and placed a heavy paw on his forehead. « Calm your fire. »
He was trembling. « You're confusing kindness with denial, Red. »
« And you're confusing strength with cruelty! »
Silence fell. Krystal closed her eyes.
« I really can't understand where this obsession comes from, Red. » She stared at him, her gaze strange, not angry, not reproachful, just a mixture of incomprehension with perhaps a touch of sadness. « If you keep acting like this, one day you'll get hurt. »
She turned away and left with the Rattata into the cave.
A few months later, another confrontation took place between Krystal and Red. It wasn't the first, and it wouldn't be the last.
« You see them as friends. » Krystal's voice was calm, but sharp.
« Yes. »
« They'll always see you as a predator. »
« That's wrong! I can talk to them! Play with them! »
She shook her head slowly. « One day, you'll be hungry, and inevitably, one day, they'll be afraid. How do you think your 'friend' will look at you when you kill prey to eat it? »
Red growled, a low, involuntary snarl escaping him, and he froze.
« You see? » she said softly. « Even when you get angry... your body speaks before you do. »
« So what?! I have to accept being a beast without thinking? » The flames around his tail flickered dangerously. Krystal approached abruptly and placed a heavy paw on his head.
« Ohh my little boy, you're worse than that. » He looked up, surprised.
« You're a future Ninetales who thinks. And that's precisely what makes you dangerous. »
Silence fell again. « If you don't control your heart, it will control your flames and your other faults. I've explained it to you many times: a Ninetales can't afford to let its guard down. If your emotions explode and you lose control... then you'll suffer. »
Red looked away, trembling. « And if I don't want to be like this? »
Krystal sighed. « Then the world will break you. »
Two years had passed. Red was an adult, well... by the standards of other Pokémon. By the standards of a Ninetales, he was still just a young Kit.
He hugged Ember. Then Coal, and finally, Krystal.
« Never forget, » she said, resting her muzzle against his, « your heart is your strength… and your greatest danger. » Tears trickled down his fur.
« I’ll be back. »
She smiled sadly. « If you survive. »
Red turned away; the world awaited him. But he wasn’t ready. Krystal wanted to hold him back; perhaps she should have, but she saw him suffering, fighting against something within himself. Unfortunately, she couldn’t help him. She could only hope that someone else would.
And even then, she knew he would inevitably suffer. An argument she often used during their disputes: lifespan. Red would inevitably see his “friends” die of old age, if not something else.
« Oh, my poor little boy, you’re too kind to be a happy Ninetales… and too much of a Ninetales to be kind. »
Red's adventres
Prologue
The first thing he felt was the cold. Not an ordinary cold, not the kind you get on a winter morning or from an icy wind on your skin, but a deep, intimate cold that seemed to have settled inside his body. As if his very bones were shivering.
He tried to open his eyes. The light blinded him instantly.
« A-ah… »
His voice broke into a high-pitched, ridiculous, strangled sound. He wanted to cough, to sit up, to bring a hand to his face… Nothing.
Why… can’t I feel my arms?
A muffled sound throbed around him. Slow. Steady. A warm breath brushed against his face, followed by a rough, wet touch… A tongue.
« ...No… » He opened his eyes again.
The cave was dark, lit only by a dim light filtering in from outside. The rock walls were close, oppressive, covered in moss and cracks. The air smelled of damp stone, earth… and something else., Something alive. An immense figure leaned over him.
Yellow, Gold, with Nine tails undulating slowly like frozen flames.
Two deep red eyes, shining with quiet intelligence.
“…A… Pokémon…” Panic erupted.
His heart pounded so hard he thought it would stop. His body tried to recoil… but instead, it only produced a pathetic little whimper.
« No… no, it can’t be… wake up… » The creature moved closer. He felt a soft, warm pressure as it gently took him between its paws and pulled him against its chest.
He waited for the pain but it didn’t come , instead, the rough tongue returned, meticulously cleaning him, as if each touch were… necessary.
« …She’s… licking me…? » He trembled.
Then he felt something else. Two small bodies against his. Warm. Trembling.
An uneven breath, a muffled whimper.
« They are like me. » And the realization hit him hard. « I’m… like them… » A cry rose in his throat involuntarily.
He was crying. His body was crying, with all its might, filling his lungs with air as if he had just learned to breathe. He tried to hold it back, ashamed… but he couldn't control it. A deep rumble echoed through the cave. That was… Soothing.
"Shh… gently, Red… everything's alright…" The voice was deep, maternal.
« She's talking to me ?… » Hunger arrived immediately afterward. Violent, imperious and impossible to ignore.
He tried to resist. He hated the feeling. It didn't ask permission. It didn't negotiate. It demanded. And when he tried to resist, his body reacted on its own: mouth open, paws seeking warmth, mind overwhelmed by a primal need.
« This isn't right. I'm human. I… »
But his body was nothing of the sort. When he finally gave in, when he tasted the warm milk, his mind screamed in disgust… while his body sighed with satisfaction.
« It's just a dream… » he murmured to himself.
The female—Krystal—cleaned him carefully, wrapping him in her tails when he trembled. And it soothed him. This betrayal frightened him more than the Pokémon itself.
I should be able to walk, to talk, to fend for myself.
And yet, every time she took him by the scruff of the neck to lead him back to the nest, a burning shame washed over him, but a part of him… relaxed.
Red couldn't understand how his mind could be so clear when his body was so… useless.
He thought, remembered, and reflected, but still, as soon as he tried to move, his legs trembled. As soon as he wanted to speak, only squeaks escaped his throat and every attempt to crawl out of the nest ended the same way : a gentle pressure on the scruff of his neck, the world receding, and the reassuring warmth of his mother's fur.
« Let go of me… » he mumbled, annoyed. Although only a small, high-pitched sound came out.
She didn't respond and licked him.
And despite all his shame, his body relaxed instantly. It's humiliating… but it's reassuring. Again, this thought terrified him.
The days passed. Then the weeks. Red learned to walk… slowly. His paws trembled, his muscles refused to obey. Coal and Ember — livelier, more confident — rarely waited for him.
Coal was the first to walk without falling and Ember the first to dare explore the cave to its very end. Red him followed. Always a little behind.
« Hurry up, Red! » Ember called, leaping onto a rock.
« Are you scared or something? » Coal added, sneering.
Red felt a burning irritation rise in his chest. « I’m coming! » A low growl escaped him.
The other two froze. « …Did you hear that? » Ember whispered.
Red blinked. « I… I didn’t do anything. » but his heart was beating too fast And his flames were flickering. Krystal watched the scene from a distance.
« Be careful, » she said simply. « Fire responds to emotions. »
Red lowered his ears. « So… even my anger is dangerous. »
Red was growing, and inevitably the time came when his mother's milk was no longer enough to feed him. The fish slipped out of the water and stirred weakly on the damp stone. Red stared at it. His snout twitched. A strange smell reached his nostrils — metallic, warm, enticing.
His stomach tightened.
« No. Stop. It's a living animal. » He took a step back… but his legs moved forward of their own accord.
« Why am I moving on my own? » Krystal watched him silently, without intervening.
The fish was beating weakly and weakly. « I can’t do this. I’m not like this. » A memory flashed through her mind: an aquarium, colorful fish, a child tapping against the glass.
« Mom… I… » His voice trembled.
« You’re hesitating, » Krystal said calmly.
« He… he’s suffering… » At these words, something rumbled inside him.
A dull irritation. His body hated waiting.
« The more you hesitate, the more you make him suffer, » she replied gently.
Red closed his eyes, his claws extended of their own accord.
« Stop… stop… I didn’t ask you to do anything… Why does my body want to kill him when I don’t want to? » His jaw snapped shut. A sharp crack. The world seemed to stop.
Red dropped the fish and immediately backed away, panting. « ...I... I did it... » He looked at his paws., they were trembling.
« I killed it... » His stomach, however, felt relieved. and this truth terrified him. He bit into the flesh.
Then his eyes widened. « ...It's good. » The warmth, the fat, the intense flavor... his whole body craved more. He swallowed another mouthful before he even realized it.
« Red? » He stopped abruptly.
« You like it, » Krystal said, without judgment.
« I... I shouldn't. »
« Why? » He remained silent.
« Because humans don't eat like this. Because it means I'm truly becoming a monster. » He wanted replies His ears pressed against his skull.
« I liked that… » he murmured.
Krystal approached and rested her muzzle against his.« There's no shame in following your body, Red. »
« What if my body is wrong? » This question made her hesitate. She looked into his eyes.
« Red, stop fighting your nature. You must learn to live with this truth, » she said finally. « Denying it will destroy you. » Red said nothing, staring into the lifeless eyes of the Magikarp he had just finished off.
The days were long, there wasn't much to do, and the three little Pokémon often liked to train for battle. They were now six months old.
« Come on, Red, try again! » called Coal. They were playing at battling. At least, that's what Red thought. When Coal tackled him to the ground, something clicked in his head.
A brutal heat exploded in his chest.
Enough, Flames erupted and Coal squeaked backward, his fur singed.
Silence fell, Red froze, panting.
« I...I didn't mean to... » Krystal appeared immediately, stepping in between them.
« That's enough. » She placed a heavy paw on Red.
« You lost control of your anger. »
« He hurt me! »
« And you could have burned him alive. » Those words struck him harder than any blow.
He recoiled, tears welling in his eyes. « I didn’t want any of this, I want my family… My real family, my real body… » he thought
« I didn’t mean to hurt him, » he whispered, weeping.
« It’s not what you want that matters, » she replied, caressing him with her tails. « It’s what you do when you stop wanting. » She rested her snout against his. “You must learn to know yourself. Otherwise, One day you will end up burning what you love.”
A little later, another event added to Red's misfortune.
That day, Red had ventured further than usual, near the bushes at the cave entrance. The air there was fresher, filled with new scents.
Something moved, and he froze when he saw the small Pokémon. A small Rattata timidly emerged from the grass, sniffing the ground. Red held his breath.
« Oh, it's not afraid... » The Rattata looked up, and their eyes met. Unexpectedly, the other Pokémon approached. Red sat down slowly, careful not to show its teeth.
« Hello... » it murmured. The Rattata tilted its head, curious. Red gently rolled a small stone toward it. The Rattata flicked it back with its paw.
Red burst out laughing. « See? It's easy. »
They played like this for several minutes. Red forgot his hunger, the danger, everything. Until a familiar scent reached his nostrils.
A shiver ran down his spine.
« Red. » Krystal's voice made him turn slowly. She was there, motionless, her red eyes fixed on the Rattata. Time seemed to stand still.
« Mom, wait—! »
Too late. The Rattata bolted, but Krystal leaped forward. A short cry, then silence.
Red remained petrified, helpless, merely a witness to the scene.
« ...Why? » His voice trembled.
Krystal placed the prey on the ground. « Because it was prey. »
« It was playing with me! »
« It was running from your nature without understanding it. »
Red felt a painful heat rise in his throat. « You killed it just because you could! »
She turned to him, surprised. « No. I killed it because we're predators, we have to eat. »
« I don't want to be that! » His flames flickered dangerously.
Krystal approached abruptly and placed a heavy paw on his forehead. « Calm your fire. »
He was trembling. « You're confusing kindness with denial, Red. »
« And you're confusing strength with cruelty! »
Silence fell. Krystal closed her eyes.
« I really can't understand where this obsession comes from, Red. » She stared at him, her gaze strange, not angry, not reproachful, just a mixture of incomprehension with perhaps a touch of sadness. « If you keep acting like this, one day you'll get hurt. »
She turned away and left with the Rattata into the cave.
A few months later, another confrontation took place between Krystal and Red. It wasn't the first, and it wouldn't be the last.
« You see them as friends. » Krystal's voice was calm, but sharp.
« Yes. »
« They'll always see you as a predator. »
« That's wrong! I can talk to them! Play with them! »
She shook her head slowly. « One day, you'll be hungry, and inevitably, one day, they'll be afraid. How do you think your 'friend' will look at you when you kill prey to eat it? »
Red growled, a low, involuntary snarl escaping him, and he froze.
« You see? » she said softly. « Even when you get angry... your body speaks before you do. »
« So what?! I have to accept being a beast without thinking? » The flames around his tail flickered dangerously. Krystal approached abruptly and placed a heavy paw on his head.
« Ohh my little boy, you're worse than that. » He looked up, surprised.
« You're a future Ninetales who thinks. And that's precisely what makes you dangerous. »
Silence fell again. « If you don't control your heart, it will control your flames and your other faults. I've explained it to you many times: a Ninetales can't afford to let its guard down. If your emotions explode and you lose control... then you'll suffer. »
Red looked away, trembling. « And if I don't want to be like this? »
Krystal sighed. « Then the world will break you. »
Two years had passed. Red was an adult, well... by the standards of other Pokémon. By the standards of a Ninetales, he was still just a young Kit.
He hugged Ember. Then Coal, and finally, Krystal.
« Never forget, » she said, resting her muzzle against his, « your heart is your strength… and your greatest danger. » Tears trickled down his fur.
« I’ll be back. »
She smiled sadly. « If you survive. »
Red turned away; the world awaited him. But he wasn’t ready. Krystal wanted to hold him back; perhaps she should have, but she saw him suffering, fighting against something within himself. Unfortunately, she couldn’t help him. She could only hope that someone else would.
And even then, she knew he would inevitably suffer. An argument she often used during their disputes: lifespan. Red would inevitably see his “friends” die of old age, if not something else.
« Oh, my poor little boy, you’re too kind to be a happy Ninetales… and too much of a Ninetales to be kind. »