Every rose has it's thorns, but what about a tulip? As Ash comes home from a long trek from Kalos, intent on facing the Indigo League again and fulfilling his dream of being a Master, a familiar face bumbles into his life, and Arceus is she cranky! But as his quest to re-enter and beat the Indigo League begins, an old wound is reopened within his family. Watch as two people that should hate each other, walk the path of love and hate.
1: Of Beedrill and Tulips
Ash stretched himself out on his bed at the Pewter City Pokemon Center, yawning loudly, and nearly unsettling his furry companion. "Piiii," the little mouse yawned.
"Sorry, buddy," Ash said, still yawning, "Man, it's been a long time since I slept that good!"
"Chu," Pikachu cooed in agreement.
The teen rolled off the bed and hit the floor to start doing push-ups. "Won't be long now, huh? Wonder what Mom and the others are doing right now? Think they'll be surprised?"
"Pika pika," Pikachu nodded whilst licking his paws to start cleaning his face.
After a while, Ash rolled over onto his back and started sit-ups, "Well, Professor Oak knows I'm coming, since I sent all my other Pokemon to him. It's gonna be great to actually stay in Kanto for a while." He said, and then jumped to his feet and started to dress. Pikachu busied himself by making the bed, instead of leaving it to Nurse Joy.
"Best thing about it is, this time, we got ourselves the home advantage." Ash comment as he picked up his backpack, a clinking noise coming from inside, "Charizard is gonna flip when he sees what we've brought him and the others. "
Pikachu lept to his shoulder as the boy made for the door. "Pika pi, chu pikachu?"
Ash nearly stumbled, "Oh, come on! Not that again!"
The little electric type just grinned at his trainer, "Pi pikachu pika cha!"
Ash rolled his eyes, "You know you're getting to be as bad as Mom?" He asked of his long-time partner as they made their way to the lobby, "Seriously, I'm still young. I've got plenty of time!"
Pikachu looked skeptical, "Chaaa?"
The raven-haired teen just sighed as he and the Pokemon made it to the lobby, and bid their farewells to the Joy at the counter and her Chansey. It was something that was sort of a custom now.
As for Ash's plight with Pikachu and, by extent, his mother, was something very simple...In all of his nineteen years, Ash had yet to become emotionally attached to a girl I.E. a girlfriend. Delia Ketchum was something of a mother hen when it came to Ash, and since he'd hit his late teens, she'd had grand dreams of him coming home from one of his journeys with and extra special girl in tow.
Misty had been her biggest hope. That hadn't gone over very well. Ash liked her fine, yes, but he felt more like her brother at times. And May, of course, his second female friend. They certainly shared a love of food, that was for sure. But she had been swept off her feet by Drew, not that Ash had minded. She was more like an apprentice to him at one point in time before she got into Pokemon Training.
Dawn Berlitz had been another hopeful Delia had taken a shine to...and Ash had to admit that she was one of the most attractive girls he'd traveled with. She was a great girl in his opinion, if anything a little clumsy, but who was perfect? But when Ash had last seen her, she was quite focused on her career as a Coordinator.
Ash sighed as he started down the road, She was a good one...too bad I didn't realize that until it was too late. He thought to himself. Thinking back on it, Dawn was one of the more likely girls he could haved asked out, not like Iris, though he liked her well enough, but she had a bad habit of calling him a little kid, even though he was a little older than she was. Besides that, she had a thing for Cylan.
And finally, there was Serena...she was...Ash shook his head. I can't believe I was that oblivious...but I guess I just never saw her like that. He thought, Wish I had. She was...Mom would have liked her.
Pikachu patted his shoulder, "Pika?"
Ash sighed, "Yeah, I'm fine, buddy. Let's go, I can't wait to see Mom again!"
Pikachu cooed as the teen started off at a run that would nearly put a Dodrio to shame. "Pi pikachu!"
=x=
Meanwhile, as our hero makes his way to Viridian Forest...
A branch snapped back in the face of a very irate blonde as she trudged her way through the thick underbrush. "Ugh! I can't believe this!" She growled, rubbing the welt forming on her face, "My luck can not be this freakin' bad after just one louse up in...ugh!" She slipped and fell to the ground, landing flat on her stomach, angry tears springing to her eyes. "Ever since that stupid incident in Johto, and then that fiasco in Unova, I've had the worst kind of luck imaginable. Hell, even those three losers are doing better than I was!"
The girl, appearing to be in her late teens, had blonde, curly hair that bounced around her face as she moved. She wore an old black T-shirt that was reminiscent of her old uniform without the large red "R" on the chest, and short skirt that was nearly too small for her. Her footwear was much worse, especially for the current environment. They were knee-high boots with high heels, which made walking on the soft ground difficult in more ways than one.
She rose and dusted herself off, "It's not fair!" She grumbled, "I was at the top of my game until Johto, and now I've got no job, no money or Pokemon..." she sighed and placed her back against a nearby tree and slid to the ground. "Life sucks..." She moaned and buried her face in her arms.
"Pie?"
"Huh?" She looked up from her arms and found a tiny green caterpillar looking at her, "A Caterpie?"
"Cater! Pie pie!" The little Pokemon said agitatedly, gesturing with its tiny arms
She raised her eyebrow at the little critter, "Look, I don't wanna play so shoo!" She said, gesturing tiredly for it to go. But the little Pokemon was adamant, and started tugging on her leg, trying to get her to move. "What is your problem?!" She yelled at the Pokemon, who yelped and scurried away. Thinking she'd done the deed of shooing it off, she returned to resting...until she heard a loud buzzing from above her.
She looked up and -
"Driiiiiill!"
"AAAAAAHH!"
From the bushes, the little Caterpie watched as the girl it tried to warn was picked up, and bound in silk strings as the colony of Beedrill awoke.
"This sucks! This totally sucks!" The girl yelled as she was spun around like a top, all the while have more and more thread sprayed over her from the large bees. Soon she was suspended about fifteen feet from the ground like a giant cocoon, tears streaming down her face like waterfalls. "Why me?"
Suddenly, a larger, meaner looking Beedrill dropped down in front of her, aiming it's stingers at her.
"I had to open my big fat mouth, didn't I?"
=x=
"Ahhhh, man this smells great!" Ash commented as he and Pikachu walked their way through the forest, "I can't believe how much I've missed this!" He stretched, taking in a large breath of air as he and Pikachu marched through the forest without so much as a care in the world. Pikachu cooed in agreement from the ground as he waddled alongside his trainer. This forest held a lot of memories for them.
Ash stopped a moment to admire an old stump, "That's where we met Pidgeotto for the first time." He commented, smiling at the fond memory of his old friend, and wondered if that flock of his was still around.
For a moment, he looked down another path, which would have led him to Annabel's tower. "Better steer clear of that area...that swarm of Beedrill might still - "
"HEEEEELP!"
Ash and Pikachu nearly jumped out of their skin when the cry came, and it was close! Without thinking about it, Ash rushed headlong into the brush, Pikachu close behind him. He kept quiet as he ran, hoping to avoid any detection from the Beedrill swarm in the area. Twice was more than enough.
As he crashed into an open area, he came face to...bottom with the victim. And what a bottom... Ash shook his head, "Are you alright?"
The girl, at least he hoped it was a girl, judging by the pink panties and the mostly shredded skirt, was dangling like a pinata by a thick cord of silk attached to the overhead branches, "Do I look alright?" The girl growled. "Please, you gotta get me down before they - "
"Shh!" Ash hissed, "Beedrill don't like loud noises around their nest, and we're right in the middle of it!" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a multi-tool, flipping the knife open, "Hold still, I'll have you outta this in a minute. Pikachu, keep watch and zap any Beedrill that might be near."
"Pi!" The little rodent said, his cheeks sparking.
Ash was quick to saw through the silken threads that were holding the girl aloft, and barely managed to catch her when they gave way, allowing the girl a small shriek as she fell into him. Ash clamped his hand over her mouth quickly, both of them looking around to make certain that none of the insects had heard her. Thankfully, from the look of the forms on all the branches, the Beedrill were all sleeping soundly.
That was when both of them got a good look at each other. To the girl, the boy looked vaguely familiar, like a face she had seen in a large crowd at one time, but not met. He was certainly handsome, much to her delight, and fairly muscular if the arms holding her were any indication of his physic. And he had the warmest brown eyes she'd ever seen.
Ash, however, was having a very different reaction. He was very close to having a coronary, "Domino?!"
The former Team Rocket ace blushed, "Do I know you?"
The raven-haired teen nearly bit his tongue. Damned right her knew her! "Uh, no, but I've heard a lot about you. You're a member of Team Rocket, right?"
"Used to be,"Domino hung her head, "They fired me after I hit a string of bad luck that hasn't quit following me..."
Ash started sawing through the silk still binding her, "That explains why you bumbled into one of the largest Beedrill nests in Kanto." He said as the bindings came free, "What are you doing way out here if you're not part of Team Rocket anymore?"
Domino rubbed at her shoulders to get the blood circulating again, "Looking for work, of course...I hear Professor Oak was a guy that gives second chances, so I thought I'd ask for a job at his lab and - "
An angry buzzing sound reached their ears. Ash looked up and cursed as an enormous Beedrill came barelling at them from above. He wasted no time in picking the girl up in his arms and sprinting out of the clearing as the dangerous Pokemon crashed into the ground, spears first. Pikachu aimed a half-powered Thunderbolt at the beast and charged after his trainer, leaping to his shoulder as he ran.
"That's no ordinary Beedrill!" Ash yelled as the large bee alerted the others, and soon the whole swarm was awake and after them.
"That's the one I was talking about!" Domino yelped as a hail of Poison Stings shot past them, Ash easily keeping out of their way, "It's the one that shredded my clothes!"
Ash snorted, "And Pikachu thought Brock was a perv.. "
"Pika pi chu pika cha!" Pikachu retorted.
"That's not funny!" Ash snapped, nearly losing his footing.
Domino looked at mouse clinging to his shoulder curiously, "You can understand it?"
"Him," Ash corrected, "And yeah, its something I learned a little while back from a friend of mi - ACK!" He rolled to the ground underneath a log to avoid an incoming Beedrill with its needles aimed at them, rolling back to his feet and, miraculously, finding that he still held onto Domino.
The larger Beedrill shot out in front of them, using U-turn to come right back at them, its needles turning a dangerous shade of purple. Ashe growled and primed himself, speeding up as the Beedrill came at him, then launched himself off the ground, and bounced off the trunk of a tree to vault over the surprised insect, and landing heavily, panting.
"Damn that thing is wicked fast!" Domino yelped, "Are you okay?!"
"Just hold on!" Ash said, looking back over his shoulder, "Pikachu, Thunderbolt, full power!"
"Pika!" His partner nodded, his cheeks sparking in determination, "Piiikaaaachuuuuuuuu!" His attack shot right at the swarm, the large leader in front. It swerved out of the way just in time, but the rest of the swarm wasn't so lucky, and took the bolt head on. The blast of electricity was enough to send the swarm running, but not the leader.
Ash stopped running, and grinned, "Great, now it's just this one. Easy!"
"Pika!" Pikachu lept from his shoulder, his cheeks sparking dangerously as the Beedrill hovered over them. And that was when Ash noticed something stuck to it's body. Two somethings.
"Is that a Keystone?" He asked upon seeing the familiar crystal, "And a...Mega Stone?!" And just like that, the tides changed again as Beedrill reached up and touched one of its stingers to the Keystone, and pushing it toward the Mega Stone. The reaction was immediate. A large round dome encircled the insect, and cracked, revealing a new threat. Though he'd never seen one before, Mega Beedrill was a dangerous Pokemon, especially when it now had five deadly stingers!
"Pikachu, Thunder!"
Pikachu rushed forward, charging his body with electricity, and making himself a target. When he neared, a larger bolt of lightning came crashing down from above and struck Mega Beedrill. The Pokemon staggered back, but didn't go down. Ash growled and set Domino down for a moment and reached into his backpack, "Come one, come one, where is it?!"
Meanwhile, the Beedrill's speed had increased to greater heights as it danced circles around Pikachu, who was trying to keep up with it as Ash directed him.
"Just keep dodging, Pikachu!" Ash yelled as he finally grasped his target, and pulled from his bag a Fast Ball, "Alright, match it with Quick Attack!" he yelled, and pikachu took off at blinding speeds, but the Mega Beedrill was still faster, and kept just out of reach, "Thunderbolt!"
As the attack shot out, this time the bolt clipped the Beedrill's wings, and sent it tumbling to the ground. "Now, Electro Ball!" Domino watched in awe as Ash's partner flew at the Beedrill, sparks flying from his tail, and unleashed his attack on the downed Pokemon. the attack exploded before Beedrill could get airborne again, and dust rose from the impact.
"Alright," Ash said, priming the ball as he saw the silhouette of the Beedrill, and threw. The Fast Ball struck home just as the Beedrill was coming to its senses, and disappeared inside the ball.
Domino held her breath as the ball began to shake violently, signifying that the Beedrill still had some fight left in it, but after a minute of fighting, the ball chimed, and the Beedrill was caught.
Normally, Ash would have rushed to the ball and picked it up, proclaiming that he'd made his catch, but the fact of the matter was that he was bushed. He sank to the ground in relief, "Thank Arceus that's over. How the hell did that Beedrill Mega Evolve on it's own?!"
"Pika," Pikachu said tiredly as he rolled the ball over to his trainer. He then looked over at Domino, "Pi pikachu?"
Ash grinned, "He wants to know if you're okay?"
Domino stood shakily, "Y-yeah, I'm okay...man you're one hell of a trainer!" She beamed at him, "I've never seen anyone duck Beedrill like that, and you were carrying me, too! How did you - ?"
"Chu pikachu pika cha!"
"Very funny," Ash grumbled at his friend, "It's not always my fault, you know?"
"What did he say?" Domino asked, feeling left out.
"He said its because we've had a lot of practice running from Beedrill over the years...and last time Pikachu got hit with a pretty powerful Poison Sting. He's still a little miffed about that." Ash said, falling back onto the ground and gazing up at the sky, "Getting dark. The beedrill won't follow us now, and we just caught their leader...we should be safe for now."
Domino looked down at herself, and blushed in embarrassment, "Um, look I know you're tired and all from saving me, and I'm grateful, don't get me wrong...but do you think we could keep moving...I'm a little...exposed."
He looked over at her to see her crossing her arms over herself in various places, trying to keep a little more modesty. In truth, Ash thought she was lucky. Her clothes looked like they had been given to a Bisharp, and they were still...well, she wasn't naked, that was a plus...wasn't it?
"Pihihihikahahaha!" Pikachu laughed, but it wasn't at Domino, but Ash he was laughing at, "Pipipi, chupika pi!"
Ash blushed, "Aw, shut, Pikachu!"
"What did he say?" Domina asked.
"He's pointing out that this is the first time I've rescued a half-naked girl," he said, glaring at the laughing Pokemon, now rolling on the ground in mirth, "Pikachu, one more laugh outta you, and no Ketchup for a month!"
"Pika!"
"I would! So help me I would!" Ash threatened, which immediately got the little mouse to shut his mouth.
"Uh, so can we still get moving?" Domino asked, now blushing furiously.
Ash sighed and got up off the ground, "Yeah, might as well, Viridian City's not far from here, so we can hit the Pokemon Center for the night."
=x=
Some time later found the trio bumbling tiredly into the Viridian Pokemon Center, much to the surprise of a sleep Nurse Joy and her Chansey. Ash asked her to take care of Pikachu and his newly acquired Beedrill, and all but begged for a room for the two humans, which the nurse readily provided, seeing the state of the two teens, and offered Domino a set of pajamas since her clothes looked...well, you get the idea.
After a small(ish) meal, Ash made his way to their room and crashed down on the bed, "Man, and here I was hoping for an easy way home...oh well, never does go that way, does it?" He said to himself.
He looked over at the other bed, seeing the sleeping form of Domino already dead to the world, and looking more pleased than anything at sleeping in a bed for once.
"Hmph, maybe she's not so bad?" Ash wondered, then stretched before kicking off his shoes and rolling over to get comfortable. Sleep soon found him, and he joined the former member of Team Rocket in sleep.
You wanna know what the most annoying thing in the world is? Hospitals. I hate'em. Where have I been for the past week? A hospital. Yup, that's why I haven't been updating any of my stories. Nothing serious, thankfully, just some old problems that won't go away. Anyway, since I was laid up for so long, I was brainstorming, and remembered that there were hardly any Ash/Domino Stories(what do you call this shipping?), so I decided, against my better judgement, to try it out.
Also, for those that are wondering about the Beedrill incident, I'll explain that in the next chapter...or professor Oak will :p
Like or not, leave a review, please!