Hello everyone and Merry Christmas (early that is). I've come up with a Pearlshipping Christmas Story and I hope you all will enjoy it. As always, I do not own Pokemon or any of the characters. Now please enjoy.
One Last Christmas
Traveling in the Sinnoh Region, Ash, Brock, and Dawn head over to a Pokémon Center to rest for the night. Their walk to Sunnyshore City has left them exhausted, considering the fact that Route 222 was pretty long indeed. With Ash's eighth gym battle coming up, there was no way he could let up on training. Despite it being dark outside, the trainer headed for the doors to begin his training. "Hold it right there mister" a blue haired coordinator stopped Ash. "Where do you think you are going right now?" she asked sternly. Dawn puts her hands on her hips while lightly tapping her foot on the ground waiting for a response from Ash.
Looking at Dawn, he found it weird that she would knowingly prevent him from training. Well then again it was dark but at the same time, that has never really been a problem. Deciding that honesty was the best policy, he figures he might as well tell her the truth. "I'm going to train for my next gym battle" Ash states while he waits for Dawn's response.
The coordinator's eyes open wide. She knew Ash was a dense person but this is borderline blind. "Can't you see by all the decorations that a very special day is coming up" she points to the red and green orbs randomly lying around.
Immediately Ash panics. He better not mess this up again. "Umm happy birthday" he blurts out remembering that he still had to get Dawn a gift.
In that instant, Dawn planned on making Ash regret he said that. "Oh come on Ash, I'm not some self centered person who expects the whole world to know my birthday" she said to the teen hoping he would feel guilty. Indeed, she succeeded into guilt tripping the trainer. Laughing at his expense, she decided that she has had enough fun. "It's almost Christmas silly" she playfully pushes him.
Not long after, the two friends hear the doors to the Pokémon Center slide open. They see Nurse Joy walk in backwards while directing a group of guys carrying a Christmas tree. "This way, and be careful where you step" she told the group.
In that group, Ash and Dawn see one of their friends helping. "Brock!?" the two said confused. Wasn't he putting up the decorations?
"Hey you two don't mind me. I'm just here helping Nurse Joy" he said. To Brock's friends, his calm behavior was out of the ordinary. Helping the rest of the guys, they all managed to put up the Christmas tree in the lobby of the Pokémon Center. "And now I'm off to see what Nurse Joy thinks about the tree" the breeder said as he went off to find the nurse who was busy attending injured Pokémon.
With Dawn as his partner, Ash begins decorating the Pokémon Center. There was no way he would be the only one of his friends to not help with the decorations. Ash, being his fearless self, decided that he and Dawn should handle all the wall decorations. He was handed a mistletoe and told to hang it near the Christmas tree. "I think this is a good spot" he said. With Dawn holding onto the ladder, Ash managed to hang the decoration in the entrance to the lobby near the tree.
Dawn of course had a mischievous smile and decided to taunt the trainer once more. With Ash down from the ladder, "You know, they say those underneath the mistletoe have to kiss. Otherwise, it's bad luck" she explained.
Ash began blushing a light shade of red. "So this mean that we have to…" his blush intensified. "Kiss" he said in a low whisper. Clearly he understood Dawn's explanation.
Dawn found Ash's blushing and his whisper quite amusing. But she also thought it was cute how he whispered the word 'kiss' as if it was forbidden. "No need to worry Ash, it's not really bad luck at all" she told the trainer. Despite her original intention of taunting the trainer, a part of her wanted Ash to follow the tradition. Throughout their journey, she developed a crush on the Kanto teen. With Ash's eighth gym battle coming up that meant their journeys together was ending.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Ash was glad he didn't have to go through with it. Looking at Dawn, for some reason she seemed a bit down. Before he had a chance to ask what was bothering her, they heard a familiar voice near Nurse Joy's desk. "The tree is up and you're smiling. The decorations are up and you are smiling. Nurse Joy, I know of another way to keep you smiling forever" Brock began his usual proposal to Nurse Joy.
"Croaguuuuunk" the poison type screeched as he jabbed his trainer in the ribs.
"If you're laughing, you're smiling" Brock weakly said as his Pokémon dragged him off to an unknown place.
Both Ash and Dawn couldn't help but laugh at their friend Brock. Even if he knows the results of every encounter with Nurse Joy or Officer Jenny, he never gave up. Seeing as how it was almost midnight, Ash and Dawn decide to head to their room. Hopefully Croagunk already took Brock there so they wouldn't have to search for the breeder.
Sure enough, they find Brock lying on the ground as soon as they return to their room. "Pip pip pip" the water type chanted as he lightly pecked Brock. It seems the breeder was out cold for the night. Pikachu also joined by lightly tapping Brock with his tail. Still nothing.
While the two Pokémon were busy trying to wake up their friend, both Ash and Dawn realized this would probably be their last Christmas together. Just that thought alone was enough to silence the room. "Hey Dawn" Ash began to speak getting Dawn's attention. "This is probably our last Christmas together. How about we make it the great one?" he asked.
Dawn simply smiled. Of course she wanted this Christmas to be a special one. "What is it that you have in mind?" Dawn asked. Although she loved the idea, she had no clue as to what Ash was planning.
Since they began traveling, they always enjoyed each other's company on the holidays. To them, that was more than enough to enjoy Christmas. This time however, Ash decided to make it a bit more personal. "This year let's get each other a gift. I'm sure Brock would love that idea too" Ash explained.
Clearly Dawn liked the idea of putting some thought into a gift. "Alright Ash, we'll exchange gifts on Christmas" Dawn agreed to Ash's plan. Even if she had no clue what she wanted to get the trainer, she had two days. She figured that one be more than enough time to find him and Brock a perfect present.
With that out of the way, the two friends went to sleep. Unfortunately for Brock, he was going to spend the night on the ground since he was too heavy for Ash to pick up.
Morning time came and while Ash and Dawn had their plans for the day, they still had to let Brock in on the details of the Christmas plan. After telling the breeder what they planned the night before, Brock immediately left the room to begin his search. "Brock doesn't waste a minute when it comes to his friends" Ash said.
"He probably went to look for Nurse Joy knowing him" Dawn said guessing the real reason why he left in such a rush. "Well Ash, I'll see you later" she said as she walked off to search presents for her friends. "Let's go Piplup" she told her starter Pokémon.
"Dawn wait" Ash called out. Dawn stopped hoping everything was alright. "I was wondering if you could help me with Brock's gift" he shyly explained. For some reason or another, he had a hard time asking for help with a gift for someone who he considers his brother.
"You mean you don't know what to get Brock?" Dawn asked in disbelief. And here she was thinking that Ash and Brock were the best of friends.
"It's not that" Ash replied much to Dawn's relief. He pulled out a stack of pictures and a photo album. "I was kind of hoping that you could help me arrange all of these pictures of our past adventures. I would do it myself but I want to have enough time to look for your gift too" he explained. Knowing Christmas was only one day away, he knew time was not on his side.
Much to Dawn's surprise, Ash already had a present for Brock. Feeling bad for doubting the trainer, she agrees to help. Besides, this would be a chance to learn of other past experiences the two shared. "What is it that you want me to do?" she asked unsure how she could actually help.
Quickly Ash began separating the pictures. "I'll separate the pictures and put them in the order they need to be in. I want you to place them in the album" he briefly explained. Not sparing another moment, simply because he wanted enough time to search for a gift for Dawn, he separated the pictures into three piles. The first of which was from their journey with Misty. The second pile consisted of their journey through the Hoenn Region with Max and May. And last but not least, the third pile was of their current journey through the Sinnoh Region with Dawn.
With clear instructions from Ash, Dawn managed to place the pictures in the photo albums with relative ease. Although she wished she had some time to look over the pictures of their past adventures, she knew they couldn't waste too much time. One thing she did notice however was how small the pile of pictures from their current journey was. "Looks like we didn't really take many pictures together" Dawn mentioned getting Ash's attention.
Immediately the trainer stopped and realized the same thing. He briefly thought for moment as to why they never took many pictures as opposed to his past adventures. "I guess we were having too much fun to really do anything else" he replied truthfully. Thinking back to his previous journeys, this one was filled with its great moments and its bad moments. For better or for worse, they always managed to overcome any obstacle with a smile.
Thinking back to their journey together, there wasn't a single day she wished would just go by. Traveling with Ash and Brock was almost like living life as if it was your last day. Every day was always an adventure no matter how small. Looking back into the photo album, most of the pictures were mainly of places they visited and Pokémon they have seen. One picture however caught her attention. "Hey Ash, I thought you didn't know what a mistletoe was?" she asked looking at a picture of him and Misty underneath the mistletoe. From the looks of it, Ash was just as clueless as ever while Misty on the other hand appeared ready to go through with the holiday tradition.
Knowing the tradition behind the Christmas ornament, thanks to Dawn, Ash's face become slightly tinged in red as he turned away from Dawn to avoid eye contact. Clearly he wasn't as dense as people thought he was. "Umm well, it was kind of an accident" he explained in a low voice hoping Dawn would drop the topic with such a brief response.
Unfortunately for Ash, Dawn had no plans of letting that moment go. Had Ash not responded in a shy manner, she could've easily let it go. Now however, she would tease the trainer to no end. "What's the matter Ash? Did you have cold feet when you heard you had to kiss Misty?" she jokingly asked. Looking at Ash, he just remained quiet but this time, his face was no longer its normal color. It was instead replaced with a dark shade of red she has never seen on Ash before. Either way, she found his expression amusing nonetheless.
With Brock's present finished and out of the way, Ash leaves the room to begin his search for Dawn's present. "I'll see you later Dawn. Let's go Pikachu" he said as the electric type jumped onto his shoulder. The two left with Dawn and Piplup knowing they had plenty of time in the day to search for a gift. "You know Pikachu, I thought finding a gift for Dawn would've been a lot easier" Ash admitted as he realized he had no idea where to begin.
Like Ash, Pikachu was also in the same boat as his trainer. He had no idea what would be a suitable gift for Dawn since she seemed like the person to be happy to receive anything. One thing he noticed however was Dawn's behavior. Lately she has been acting quite strange around Ash.
"You know buddy, I'm sure you noticed but Dawn hasn't been herself these past few days" Ash said out of nowhere getting Pikachu's attention. He had no idea what could be the cause of it but he certainly hoped he wasn't part of the problem. But one thing was for sure was that she loved teasing him about the mistletoe tradition which he found quite annoying at times. "If this is going to be our last Christmas together, let's make it one to remember" he proudly said. With that, both Ash and Pikachu ran off into Sunnyshore City to find Dawn a present.
Back in the Pokémon Center, Dawn was busy thinking of what she should get Ash and Brock. She decided to start with Brock's present first. Since he was more a practical person than Ash, finding Brock a gift would be much easier than Ash. If nothing else, she could always set him up on a date with Nurse Joy or Officer Jenny. "Hmm now that I think about, I could get Brock a nice suit that would get anyone he wants in his arms" she told her Piplup. The water type agreed. He knew Dawn had an eye for fashion and poor Brock could really use the help.
Now that only left Ash. This time however she found the trainer a bit hard to read. If it's Ash receiving the gift, he would accept it no matter what it was. But she certainly didn't want to give him something random. If she was going to give him something, she wanted it to be something memorable for the two of them. The only problem she now faced is what kind of gift would do just that. "Why does finding a perfect gift for Ash have to be so hard Piplup?" she asked her starter rhetorically. She threw her arms back onto the bed in frustration.
The Penguin Pokémon sat next to his trainer doing his best to offer support. That of course wasn't much. "I can think of a good reason why finding a present for Ash is much harder than you expected" Brock said surprising the two as if he appeared from thin air.
Dawn took a quick second to regain her composure. She hadn't expected Brock's appearance. And what was this that he could think of a good reason why she couldn't find a good gift. "What exactly do you mean by that?" she asked unsure how the breeder would respond.
Brock was going to be direct to Dawn on the few things he noticed recently. "You haven't been acting like yourself lately" he begins. He notices Dawn visibly flinch. It seems even she was aware of her strange behavior. "I may not know what is running through your head, but I think it may have something to do with how you feel about Ash" he let out. It didn't take long for him to receive a response.
"The thing is I'm kind of upset that our journeys will end and Ash won't have something to remember me by" she sadly admitted. Although just by saying that, she could tell she wasn't being entirely honest with herself.
Brock could also see that she wasn't being completely honest. Whether she realized it or not, a special bond has been formed between the two. "I have to say, other than me, you are the closest friend Ash has" he began once again. With Dawn listening closely, he continued speaking. "By the way you two train, spend time together, and interact with each other, it would be crazy to think neither one of you has developed feelings for the other one" Brock told Dawn. It seems Brock wasn't anywhere near as dense as Ash was.
Now that Dawn thought about it, a simple crush was probably putting the way she felt about Ash lightly. Still though, she couldn't deny that there was obviously something there. Even if Brock didn't help much with deciding a gift for Ash, she certainly had something to think about. "Thanks for the help Brock" she said to the breeder. "But if you'll excuse me, I think I need to go look for Ash's gift" she said as she left with Piplup.
Back with Ash, his search for Dawn's present led him to a bike shop. Seeing as how Pikachu destroyed her old bike, which wasn't much of a surprise when he found out, he felt this would be the perfect gift for the coordinator. Looking at the price tags however, he found they were way out of his reach. "Well Pikachu, looks like we have to look for something else since this is way too much for us to even think about" Ash stated as he began walking out of the store.
As he was leaving, the shop owner overheard his conversation with Pikachu. "Hold it young man" the shop keeper walked over towards Ash. "It's seems my bikes weren't able to put a smile on your face. If anything, they did the opposite. Is there any way I can help change that?" the man told Ash. It was clear that he had one goal in mind, customer satisfaction.
In that moment, Ash had the urge to ask the man to lower the price of his bikes. But even he knew that was asking for too much. "I appreciate your kindness, but I couldn't possibly ask you to do what I want you to" Ash truthfully replied to the shop owner.
Judging by Ash's response and his expressions, the shop owner could tell this bike meant more to him than just a method of transportation. "I don't mean to intrude into your life but is this a gift for someone else?" he asks. If this was the case, he would be more than willing to work with Ash.
Ash didn't want to be rude and leave without replying. "Yeah, Pikachu over here destroyed a bike that belonged to a close friend of ours" he replied. Pikachu on the other hand lowered his ears remembering that fateful day.
Growing even more curious about the story behind the destroyed bike, he decides to continue asking about that fateful day. "If you don't mind me asking, can you please explain how exactly the bike was destroyed?" The shop owner hoped it wasn't because of some argument and the bike just happened to be a victim of revenge.
Ash found it strange that a man would be asking questions about a bike. Then again, he was the shop owner of a bike shop so it only made sense he would be curious about bikes. "To make a long story short, Pikachu and I were coming to the Sinnoh Region when a couple of bad guys tried to take him from me. The two of us were separated after that" he said from his experience. "But once we were separated, Dawn found Pikachu and tried to catch him thinking Pikachu was a wild Pokémon" he recalled what Dawn told him about her first encounter with Pikachu. "Needless to say, Pikachu didn't like that and used Thunderbolt on her Piplup only to end up frying her bike" the trainer finished. Pikachu meanwhile was busy looking at other bikes. Hopefully these wouldn't end up having the same fate as Dawn's.
Sure enough, the shop keeper had questions of his own. "As amusing as your story was, the Dawn you are talking about wouldn't happen to be Dawn the coordinator from Twinleaf Town now would it?" the shop owner asked. If it was who he was thinking, he could probably help Ash out.
"That's the one" Ash replied.
"So you must be Ash Ketchum, the trainer travelling with her who is going to compete in the upcoming Sinnoh League" he added earning a strange look from Ash. Immediately he knew why he received such a face. "If you're wondering how I know all these things, I like to keep tabs on trainers with a lot of potential. They are the ones that have exciting matches" he told Ash hoping the trainer didn't see him as a stalker.
With that out of the way, Ash could breathe easier knowing there wasn't a stalker on the loose. "I'm sorry to cut this conversation short but I need to find Dawn a gift before tomorrow" Ash said as he once again walked towards the door.
"If a bike is all you need, I'm willing to make a deal with you" the shop owner said before Ash stepped outside. Getting Ash's attention once again, he continues with his plan. "I have to ask, how much does Dawn really mean to you?" he began giving Ash something to think about.
The trainer however did not hesitate one bit with answering. "She is my best friend" he proudly replied. Why else would he go through so much trouble for just one gift?
Ash's response certainly wasn't what the shop owner was looking for but he'll take it nonetheless. "There's a city wide tournament taking place soon. It's called The Battle of Christmas Eve. If you enter the tournament and win, I'll give you any bike of your choice for free" he told Ash his plan.
As much help as that would be, Ash couldn't accept the offer. "I appreciate the offer, but I can't take it" he began to explain. "If I can't get Dawn a gift by myself, then I shouldn't really be getting her anything to begin with" he finished.
The shop owner simply laughed. Ash certainly was a stubborn fellow. "Relax, by winning the city tournament, it will tell me just how much you really care about your friend. Plus I love watching great battles which is why I keep tabs on potential trainers" he explained.
Taking in every word the shop owner said, Ash accepted his offer. It's not like he would find anything else with the time he had remaining. That and it would be nice to have a few battles before he decided to challenge the Sunnyshore City gym leader. With that, Ash and Pikachu went to register for the tournament.
Back with Dawn, she just finished getting Brock his present. "Well Piplup, I hope this fits Brock the first time" she expressed her concerns. She did her best from memory to judge a size that would fit the breeder. "And now it's time to get Ash a gift" she said still not knowing what to give her friend.
In a shopping center in the middle of Sunnyshore City, Dawn had endless possibilities. Sadly though, she didn't have that much time. She looked around to see if there was anything that would possibly get Ash's attention. "Oh man Piplup, why does this have to be so hard" Dawn complained to her Pokémon.
Piplup hated seeing his trainer in a terrible move. He only wished he could actually help Dawn rather than just lay down stomach first on her head. Looking up, he sees a shop that specializes in rare Pokéballs. "Pip pip piplup" the Penguin Pokémon frantically pointed at the shop.
"Hmm a Pokéball shop. It certainly looks promising" she told Piplup. Figuring the worst that she would risk is a few minutes of her time, she walks in as Piplup suggested.
"Hello there and welcome to the Pokéball Emporium here in Sunnyshore City" the salesperson greeted her. The female clerk motioned Dawn over. "From the looks of it, I can tell this is your first time in this store" she pointed out. Dawn simply nodded before she continued. "Well worry not, I'll take care of you. So how can I help you?" she asked.
Dawn took a quick look around. Being used to designing clothes, she could quickly look around without being overwhelmed by all the various assortments of Pokéballs. "I'm looking for a gift for a friend of mine" she simply said hoping the salesperson could really help. Taking a closer look however, she somehow felt as ease with the strange woman. Something about her felt awfully familiar.
Immediately, the salesperson noticed who she was talking to. "Wait, you're Dawn, the Pokémon Coordinator from Twinleaf Town am I right?" she asked hoping that the person she was talking to would be who she thought she was. Dawn simply nodded confirming her suspicions. "Oh my, it's quite a pleasure to have you here. I'm actually a big fan of your so please, let me know how I can help" she went on again.
"What kind of Pokéball do you think would be good for a Pokémon Trainer who wants to be a Pokémon Master" Dawn asked. Looking around however, most of them appeared as if they were regular Pokéballs painted over with designs. If she was going to get Ash a Pokéball as a gift, she was going to be sure it was every bit useful as it was personal.
Hearing the description that Dawn gave, the salesperson knew the gift was for. "If it is a gift for Ash Ketchum, then you might want to look over here" she led Dawn over to a smaller selection of Pokéballs. "These various Pokéballs are made to do a certain task and only that. For example, this Dusk Ball is perfect for catching Pokémon in caves and dark places" she explained. The salesperson put the Pokéball down and grabbed a blue Pokéball with a net around it. "This is a Net Ball, it is perfect for catching bug and water types" she continued explaining.
Looking through their collection, Dawn saw one in particular that stood above the rest, literally. "What about that purple one with an 'M' written on it" Dawn pointed to the strangely colored Pokéball.
"That right there is the Masterball. It is capable of catching any Pokémon without fail" she gave a brief description. One thing the salesperson dreaded however was the moment when she would ask for the price. She would hate to crush her spirits but she had to do her job.
In that instant, Dawn knew that would be a perfect gift for Ash. She doubted the trainer would ever use such an item, knowing his attitude towards catching strong Pokémon only, but it would make an excellent gift nonetheless. "How much for that Masterball?" she eagerly asked.
The salesperson simply sighed. She didn't have trouble turning most people away since they simply searched for such an item for one reason, power. Dawn on the other hand was different. Her humble attitude and her intentions painted a different picture. Not wanting to say the price out loud, she wrote it down on a small sheet of paper and handed it over to her.
Dawn quickly opened the slip of paper before she froze in place. "Oh man, there is absolutely no way I could ever dream of buying anything like this in my lifetime" she thought to herself when she saw the steep price tag.
Piplup meanwhile waved his arm in front of his trainers face. There was no way to snap Dawn out her little trance. Piplup took in a deep breath, "Piiipp lup lup lup" he chanted as he used Bubble on Dawn.
"Huh wha…" she woke up from her little day dream. Immediately she remembered why she was stuck in her little trance. Rather than showing her disappointment, she put on a smile. "Thank you for all your help. But it looks like I won't be getting Ash anything from here" she told the salesperson.
The woman gave her a sad smile in return. Out of everyone she had to turn away from buying the Masterball, Dawn was the most disappointing. Even though it wasn't much help, she had an idea to help Dawn have a possibility of obtaining the Masterball. "Listen, I know this might not help much but they are having a tournament today. The winner of the tournament will receive a gift card that can be used to buy any item at participating stores. It's called The Battle of Christmas Eve" she explained. Dawn grew curious and continued paying attention. "It just so happens that this store is a participating store" she added.
Dawn's eyes instantly lit up. "You hear that Piplup, looks like we have a chance of getting Ash a Masterball after all" she cheered while holding her starter Pokémon.
The salesperson couldn't help but smile along with Dawn and Piplup. If there was one thing that the two were capable of doing, it was bringing joy to others. "The rules of the tournament are simple. You are only allowed to register one Pokémon and it has to be native to the Sinnoh Region" she explained the basic rules. There was one downside however. "But you have to hurry. I'm not sure when registration ends and the tournament begins" the salesperson let out.
Hearing this, Dawn spared no time as she left the Pokéball shop in a rush. "Thank you and I'll be sure to drop by later even if I lose" her voice echoed as she ran out.