Hey guys! Sorry I haven't posted in a while, my hard drive got messed up and I had to save enough money to get it fixed! But I'm back and better than ever, and to reward y'alls patience, here's a Pokémon fic!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, nor any affiliated works. Pokémon belongs to Nintendo and GameFreak. This work of fiction is not intended to gain any profit whatsoever.

A Different Journey

Chapter 1

"Ash! Get to bed!"

Ten-year-old Ash Ketchum stumbled as his mother, Delia, broke him out of his fantasy. The Voltorb alarm clock he had been holding like a Poké Ball landed in her outstretched hand and opened, showing the clock face. "It's eleven o' clock, and you should be asleep!" she said sternly.

Ash sighed and flopped down on his bed. "But Mom, tomorrow I start my Pokémon journey! I can't sleep!" he whined. Delia's stern expression softened. "Well, if you can't sleep, you can at least get ready for tomorrow. Here, watch this," she said, picking up the TV remote and changing the channel to a documentary on Pokémon, hosted by Pallet Town's own Professor Oak.

Ash barely registered what the Professor was saying, deciding instead to think about what starter Pokémon he would choose. In the Kanto region, beginning trainers were given a choice between the three starters: Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle.

Suddenly, he heard a noise outside his window. Curious, Ash opened the window and looked out, but found nothing. He was about to close the window when he heard the noise again. 'Sounds like it's coming from out back,' Ash thought. He quickly snuck out of his room and silently ran to the back door, slowly opening it and stepping outside.

He heard the noise once more as he silently closed the door. 'It's coming from the woods,' he thought. Treading carefully, he made his way through the trees until he came to a clearing. Moving the last few branches out of the way, Ash finally found the source of the noise.

Two Pokémon he had never seen before were laying beneath a tall tree in the center of the clearing. One was blue and significantly larger than the other one, which was red. Both had thin wings, and skinny upper forelegs which connected to wider forearms with three claws at the end of each. They also lacked hind legs.

As if they could sense him, their heads shot up and the blue one slowly lifted itself into the air, taking a defensive position in front of the red one, wobbling slightly due to exhaustion. Suddenly, its red eyes glowed.

Ash suddenly found himself being squeezed tightly from all sides. He thrashed around, trying to get free, but he was stuck fast and the grip only tightened. Faced with the possibility of being crushed to death, he choked out his last hope.

"W-Wait! I want to help you!"

The pressure didn't let up, but it ceased getting tighter. Ash gasped as something invaded his mind, going all the way to the core of his being. After a few tense moments, the probe withdrew, and the pressure on Ash's body slowly lifted.

Ash fell to his knees, gasping for air. He had literally seen his life flash before his eyes; it takes a while to comprehend that kind of thing.

A soft cooing noise brought his attention to the red Pokémon, which was now floating slowly towards him with a slightly concerned expression. When it was close enough, it sniffed Ash curiously, as if it didn't know what to make of this human.

Slowly, Ash reached out a hand and gently placed it on the Pokémon's neck. To his surprise, he felt not fur, but feathers; a fine down that was thick enough to provide warmth to the Pokémon, but thin enough to maintain a sleek look and feel.

The Pokémon, thanks to his ministrations, was putty in Ash's hands. It cooed happily, pushing against Ash's hand. Suddenly it flinched, and Ash was reminded about their injuries.

"Wait here," he said to the two Pokémon, who had since settled back onto the ground. "I'll be right back with some berries and bandages."

Ash quickly ran back to his house to get some Oran Berries and some bandages. He silently thanked Arceus that he paid attention when his mother taught him some basic herbal medicine that he would need to know as a Trainer.

After grabbing the necessary materials, he quickly made his way back to the injured Pokémon. He took two flat stones and used them to crush the berries into a paste, which he then gently spread over the wounds. Both Pokémon sighed in relief as the healing properties of the berries worked their magic.

Finally, Ash took the bandages and wrapped up the more serious cuts. "There we go! Good as new!" he said. Both Pokémon sniffed the bandages curiously before floating over to Ash and nuzzling him happily, letting out gentle coos as the boy laughed and stroked their feathers.

"So this is what you were up to."

Ash flinched at the sound of his mother's voice. The Pokémon quickly floated behind him, peeking around his arms warily.

Delia Ketchum stood at the edge of the clearing in her bathrobe and slippers, arms crossed over her chest, with a serious expression on her face. Ash struggled to come up with a reply; he just needed something to stall his mother, however unlikely it may be.

Ignoring Ash's stammering, Delia closed the distance between them and knelt down so she was at eye level with the red Pokémon, who looked back at her curiously. Delia slowly reached out her hand, allowing the Pokémon to sniff it, then gently rubbed its head. The Pokémon cooed in delight and pushed against her hand, making her smile.

"Well now, you're a cute one, aren't you?" she said as she petted the Pokémon's soft feathers. Then she turned to Ash. "You might as well be truthful; I saw you sneak out with the berries and bandages," she said. Ash caved and came clean about everything while Delia continued stroking the red Pokémon.

"…and that's when you showed up," finished Ash, looking down at the ground. Delia looked at him sternly for a while, then smiled and used a finger to lift his head until he looked her in the eyes.

"Ash, I'm not upset. Normally I would be, but since you only did it to help these poor Pokémon, I'll let it slide this once," she said, wrapping her son in a hug before standing. "Come on, let's get you back to bed. We wouldn't want to be late to pick up our starting Pokémon, would we?" she asked playfully as they walked towards the edge of the clearing.

Suddenly, Delia stopped and turned back to the Pokémon, who were watching them leave with sad looks on their faces.

"Well, are you coming or not?"

This caught both Ash and the Pokémon off guard. "Mom? What are you talking about?" Ash asked, looking up at his mother in confusion. Delia smiled. "Well, it would be dangerous for two unidentified, injured Pokémon to stay out here in the open, wouldn't it?" she asked. "If they want, they can stay with us for a while."

Instantly, the Pokémon flew over and glomped Ash, sending him crashing to the ground with a yelp. Delia giggled. "I'll take that as a yes."

[Linebreak]

"Ash! Time to wake up!" called Delia the next morning. A resounding crash from upstairs told her that her son was definitely awake; more than likely, he had fallen out of bed.

Not three minutes later, Ash was downstairs, backpack in hand, ready to go to Professor Oak's lab to get his starting Pokémon. "Come back home for a little bit when you get your Pokémon," said Delia. "I have something I want to give you."

"Aww, Mom! Can't you give it to me now?" whined Ash; he hated to be kept waiting for stuff. Delia silenced him with a stern look. "No. You'll see what it is after you get your Pokémon," she said firmly.

"But…"

"Is that Gary making his way to Professor Oak's lab?"

Ash took off like a wild Rapidash; his rivalry with Gary Oak knew no bounds. Delia smiled as she watched the boy run off, a large cloud of dust billowing behind him.

[Professor Oak's Lab, Five minutes later]

Ash skidded to a halt just before he crashed through the doors of Professor Oak's lab. Poking his head inside, he called out to the Professor.

"Hey Professor Oak! It's me, Ash! I'm here to get my Pokémon!" he called. There was a thud and some muffled cursing, before a door opened and the Professor hopped out, holding his foot while tears of pain glistened at the corners of his eyes.

"Ash! You're early!" he exclaimed, looking at the clock. Ash rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Well, the early bird gets the worm! " he said. "Or in this case, the Pokémon." Oak laughed at the boy's pun and beckoned him to follow.

As they entered the laboratory area, the first thing Ash laid eyes on was the glass dome in the center of the room, under which there were three Poké Balls that held the Kanto starters. Oak opened the dome and took out the three balls, placing them on a nearby table.

"All right, Ash. Pick which one you want," he said. Ash looked intently at the three Poké Balls. After about five minutes…

"Professor," said Ash, "I don't really feel a connection to any of them. Are there any other Pokémon I can use as a starter?" Oak was surprised, but he hid it well. "Let me see what I can do," he said, and walked out of the room.

A few minutes later, he came back with two Poké Balls. "These are the only two Pokémon I have that don't have Trainers yet," he explained, handing the Poké Balls to the anxious ten-year-old. "The one on the right is a Pikachu, and the one on the left is an Eevee."

Ash stared at the Poké Balls in his hands. The one in his right hand, the one with the Pikachu, he didn't feel anything special. The Eevee on the other hand…

With a grin, Ash tossed the Eevee's Poké Ball into the air. It opened with a flash of light, with the Normal-type Evolution Pokémon materializing soon after. It looked around, confused, before it looked at Ash and cocked its head cutely. "Vee?"

Ash knelt so he was at eye level with the little Pokémon. "Hey there Eevee!" he said happily. The Evolution Pokémon just blinked at him. "Want to travel with me? I bet you're tired of this lab, aren't you?" At that, the Eevee yipped and nearly tackled Ash to the floor; she liked the Professor well enough, but she was curious about the outside world.

Ash laughed and stood, Eevee on his shoulder. "I'll take that as a yes," he said, and Eevee yipped an affirmative. Professor Oak smiled before handing him five Poké Balls and a red device that was similar in size and shape to a tall wallet. "Take these. Your Poké Balls and Pokédex," he said. Ash raised his eyebrow as Eevee cocked her head to the side. "What's a Pokédex?" he asked.

Ash knew he had made a grave mistake when he saw the gleam in the Professor's eye.

[Half an hour later…]

"…and that is why the Pokédex is an invaluable tool for any and all travelling Pokémon Trainers," finished Oak. "However, your Pokédex is special, Ash." Ash, who was busy playing with Eevee, looked up. "Special?" he asked. Oak nodded. "It's a prototype I made using data from the Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh regions," he explained. "Just use the scan function like so, and…" Oak pressed a few buttons on the Pokédex, which gave off a small chime.

"Eevee, the Evolution Pokémon. Its genetic structure is unstable, and it can evolve into seven different Pokémon depending on its surroundings. This specimen is female, and has the ability Run Away. Known moves are Tackle, Tail Whip, Growl, Sand Attack, Dig, and Shadow Ball."

"Wow," said Ash as he took the Pokédex. "You hear that, Eevee? You're really strong!" Eevee yipped happily at her Trainer's praise, nuzzling his cheek affectionately. Ash thanked the Professor before leaving the lab and running home, eager to see what his surprise was. Oak just chuckled as he watched the boy; he could remember fondly when he had that much enthusiasm.

Ash, meanwhile, made it to his house in record time. He snickered to himself as he watched Gary swagger up to his grandfather's lab like he owned the town. Taking his shoes off at the door, he walked in to find his mother holding a cardboard box roughly the size of a shoe box.

"Is that the surprise?" Ash asked, positively vibrating with excitement. Delia smiled and nodded, handing him the box. "Congratulations, Ash!" she said happily.

Ash opened the box to find two Poké Balls. Curious, he took them out and raised an eyebrow at his mother, who made a "go ahead" motion with her hand. Ash stared at the Poké Balls for a few more seconds, then tossed them in the air.

Instantly, the two Pokémon he had helped the previous night popped out, cooing happily when they caught sight of him. Delia laughed outright at the shocked look on Ash's face. "Surprise!" she cried. "They really wanted to stay with you, so I managed to find a couple of spare Poké Balls laying around," she explained as her son ran over and hugged her tightly. Releasing her, Ash took out his new Pokédex and activated the scan feature. "All right, let's see what you are," he said. The Pokédex made a chiming noise as it activated.

"Latias and Latios, the Eon Dragon Pokémon. These Pokémon have considerable psychic abilities from hatching. By folding their forelegs close to their bodies, they can overtake jet planes. Trainers tell them apart based on color; Latios, which are always male, are blue while the female Latias are red. No further information available concerning these Legendary Pokémon."

Ash and Delia's mouths dropped open. "L-Legendary Pokémon?!"

[Linebreak]

After the initial shock of having two Legendary Pokémon in his possession passed, Ash found it amazingly simple to convince his mother that he was responsible enough to care for them; she had no choice but to allow this, as Latios and Latias adamantly refused to be anywhere but with Ash at all times.

Ash was currently standing at the door, hugging his teary-eyed mother with Eevee on his shoulder.

"Bye, Mom! I'll call you when I get to Viridian City!" he called as he ran down the road. Delia smiled and waved, watching her little boy start off on his own adventure. Still smiling, she turned and walked back inside.

[With Ash]

Ash was happily walking along Route 1, with Eevee running circles around him, yipping excitedly, and occasionally sniffing something that caught her interest. Ash laughed when a Pidgey exploded out of some tall grass, sending Eevee rolling back to her Trainer with a startled yelp. Quickly righting herself and shaking out her fur, Eevee glared and growled at the offending bird, who cocked its head to the side and spread its wings.

"You want to battle?" Ash asked Eevee, getting a yip in response. "All right then; start off with a Tackle attack!" Ash cried. Eevee yipped and launched herself forwards, hitting the Pidgey with her shoulder, eliciting a startled squawk from the bird.

"Nice one!" praised Ash. "Now use Shadow Ball!" A small sphere of dark energy formed in front of Eevee's mouth, which she then shot at the Pidgey. The Shadow Ball hit the bird and detonated loudly and sent dirt and debris everywhere, forcing Ash and Eevee to cover their eyes. When the smoke cleared, the Pidgey was unconscious, its eyes unfocused.

Ash seized his chance. "Go, Poké Ball!" he shouted, heaving the ball at the downed bird. The ball opened and with a flash of light, Pidgey was sucked inside. The Poké Ball fell to the ground and twitched slightly, the button on the front flashing red. Ash and Eevee watched the ball with increasing anticipation; finally, after several agonizing seconds, the button turned white and the ball gave a small chime to signal a successful capture.

"Yes!" Ash cried, grabbing Eevee and hugging her. The Evolution Pokémon yipped happily and licked her Trainer's face as he picked up Pidgey's Poké Ball. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his Pokédex and scanned the ball.

"Pidgey, the Tiny Bird Pokémon. This Pokémon usually travels in large flocks, and frequently migrates to other areas. This specimen is male, and has the ability Keen Eye. Known moves are Sand Attack, Tackle, Peck, Gust, and Quick Attack."

Ash smiled and placed Pidgey's Poké Ball on his belt, resolving to find some berries and at least partially heal him before reaching Viridian City. As they continued walking, Ash scanned the Poké Balls containing Latias and Latios to see what moves they knew.

"Latias, the Eon Dragon Pokémon. Known moves are Psychic, Confuse Ray, Dragon Claw, Screech, Flamethrower, Double Team, and Mist Ball. Note: Mist Ball is a move unique only to Latias; no other Pokémon is capable of using it unless the move Metronome is used."

"That's awesome," Ash breathed, before scanning Latios' ball.

"Latios, the Eon Dragon Pokémon. Known moves are Psychic, Dragon Claw, Dragonbreath, Fire Blast, Agility, Double Team, and Luster Purge. Note: Luster Purge is a move unique only to Latios; no other Pokémon is capable of using it unless the move Metronome is used."

Ash grinned. His dream of becoming a Pokémon Master just got easier.

…Or so he thought.

Suddenly, something swooped down from the sky and slammed into Eevee, sending her crashing to the ground with a pained cry. "Hey!" yelled Ash at the offending Pokémon, a Spearow. "What the heck was that for?!" His Pokédex answered his question for him.

"Spearow, the Tiny Bird Pokémon. Unlike the more gentle Pidgey, Spearow are much more dangerous. They are very wild and will often attack other Pokémon and humans for seemingly no reason."

Ash grit his teeth as Eevee was sent flying by a Quick Attack from the wild Spearow. "Eevee! Use your Shadow Ball attack!" he cried. Eevee struggled to remain standing as she formed the attack and flung it at the Spearow. Unfortunately, due to her exhausted and injured state, it flew wide and missed its intended target, exploding off to the side. Spearow, sensing its advantage, flew up high and was surrounded by a white glow.

Ash paled. 'Crap, that's Aerial Ace,' he thought. Eevee was struggling to get up; she couldn't take another hit.

"Eevee, return!" Ash yelled, holding out Eevee's Poké Ball. With a flash of red light, the Evolution Pokémon was safely returned to her Poké Ball. Ash quickly flung out another ball, intent on ending this quickly. "Go, Latios!"

The blue Legendary Pokémon appeared with a mighty cry, eyes narrowed at the Spearow. "Use Luster Purge!" Ash commanded.

Latios opened his mouth and shot a large beam of purple energy from its mouth. It collided with the Spearow with an earth-shattering crash, sending up a thick cloud of dust. When it settled, the Spearow was, amazingly, still standing. However, it seemed to be on its last legs, and it knew it. Deciding to switch to plan B, Spearow faced a nearby tree and spread its wings. "SPEAROW!"

A look of utter horror crossed Ash's face as an entire flock of Spearow rose from the tree. Ash tried to turn and run, but he was knocked down by a Gust attack from the injured Spearow. The rest of the flock began to descend, pecking and clawing at every bit of exposed flesh. Ash cried out in pain, curling into a tight ball to protect his vital organs.

Suddenly, the flock of angry Spearow was scattered when an enormous explosion sent them tumbling. Fighting to stay conscious, he watched as an enraged Latios continuously attacked the flock, using Dragonbreath and Luster Purge interchangeably, as well as Dragon Claw when they got too close.

There was a burst of light from his belt, and he soon felt himself being nudged urgently by a panicked Latias. Grimacing from the pain, he slowly pulled himself onto her back, wincing the whole time; those Spearow were relentless, and he could no longer see out of his right eye. Long gashes on his arms, chest, and face oozed blood at a surprisingly rapid pace. Latias knew instinctively that if she didn't get her Trainer to a hospital quickly, he would bleed out and die.

With a cry to Latios to cease his attacks and retreat, Latias hooked her forelegs under Ash's legs to anchor him to her, then tucked her forelegs to her sides and shot off like an arrow, Latios following after a parting shot of Dragonbreath. Both Eon Dragon Pokémon raced across the sky, desperate to save their fallen Trainer.

[Linebreak]

Nurse Joy loved her job. Working at the only Pokémon Center that treated humans as well as Pokémon, she was always kept busy, and that was just the way she liked it.

But still, it came as a shock when two unidentified Pokémon damn near broke the door down when they swooped in, with a trainer on the red one's back who looked like he went through a blender. With a sharp whistle, she ran to the boy's side as a pair of Chansey wheeled in a gurney and slowly transferred the boy from the Pokémon, wheeling him into the operating room while preparing an IV.

A few minutes later, Joy announced to the distraught Pokémon that Ash would pull through. So great was the relief of the Eon duo, that everyone within half a mile from the center felt as if a great weight was taken from their shoulders; in reality, Latios was unconsciously exerting his psychic powers while waiting for news about his trainer.

The Eon duo made their way to Ash's room, ignoring the curious glances of other Trainers. Upon seeing their bandaged Trainer on the bed, both Legendaries promptly laid on either side of him and fell into a blissful sleep.

And there it is! Hope you enjoyed!

Two polls for y'all. First, Ash will be paired with someone, so vote on who it should be. Second, Ash will catch more Legendary Pokémon, but not for a few more chapters. Which one should he catch next?

Pairing:

Misty

May

Dawn

Serena

Cynthia

Bianca (No AshXLatias. Sorry shippers.)

Sabrina

Anabel

Next Legendary Pokémon:

Legendary Birds (Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres; any order)

Legendary Beasts (Suicune, Entei, and Raikou; any order)

Celebi

Mew

Deoxys

Rayquaza

Groudon

Kyogre

Manaphy

Cresselia

Darkrai

Dialga

Palkia