Chapter 1

Ash looked down the hill at Pallet Town, its quaint houses and familiar scenery soothing to him after so long away. It had been two years since he lost at the championship once again and it had taken a lot to walk away from everyone. But he had been determined to do it. To become the best he had to go into isolation with his Pokémon, away from everyone else, away from the distractions.

'Pika! Pi!'

Ash smiled, it did feel great to be back. He couldn't wait to see everyone again. Leaving them behind had been the toughest decision of his life, but he felt it as something he needed to do to fully focus on his dream. He set off towards home with Pikachu on his shoulder, smile growing ever wider as he walked down the streets back to the home he hadn't seen in so long.

His mum had been devastated to hear his plans, especially as he had not been back for very long when he got back from Unova. But she knew there was no stopping him, so she agreed to let him go. After two years of only talking on birthdays and Christmas, he couldn't wait to see his mum in person again and hug her. It waws one of the things he had missed most about being home, probably second only to her cooking if he was being honest.

Ash swung open the door to find his mum sat on the couch, watching daytime TV. He heard spun around and a huge smile broke out onto her face once she saw who had opened the door. Delia Ketchum jumped off the couch and picked up her son in a vice grip of a hug.

'Oh Ash! I didn't know you were coming home!'

'Argh mum! You're suffocating me!'

'Oh sorry honey,' Delia laughed and put Ash down. He was impressed she managed to pick him up, 'Are you feeling good Ash?'

Ash smiled back at his mum. She was always so happy to see him, no matter how short a time he spent at home.

'I'm great mum. I've missed being home so much.'

'Oh I've missed you too honey. It's always more quiet when you're gone. You'll have to tell me all about what you've been up too!' she fussed over him as she said this, clearly checking for any injuries on him, 'You should've said you were coming home, I don't have enough food in the house to feed you.'

'Mum it's alright,' Ash laughed, 'I just have to drop some of my Pokémon off at the lab first. Then I can come back and tell you all about it.'

'Okay. Just promise to keep that Pikachu here, I haven't seen him in too long and he looks amazing now.'

'Cha!' Pikachu smiled at the compliment and jumped onto Delias' shoulder.

'I guess that settles that then,' Ash laughed, watching Pikachu settle in on its new resting place, 'I'm just going to drop the rest of my Pokémon off at Professor Oaks' lab then I'll be right back.'

After Ash dropped his things off in his room he set off for Professor Oaks' lab at the edge of town. As he walked up to the large, converted windmill and the surrounding fields he couldn't help but remember the first time he ever walked up here as a trainer. He had been so much different back then, so late he didn't even get the starter Pokémon he wanted, not that he would complain with how things turned out.

But now he was so much different, albeit still with the same oversleeping problem.

The two years away had made him and his Pokémon so much stronger. The training had pushed them further than anything since his battle with Tobias. The journey they had gone through had been a baptism of fire from the start, elevating them to a level ash knew they had never reached before.

He would have stayed in training longer, but he received a letter about the Pokemon grand Championship a few months ago and he knew that was the perfect chance to finally put all their training to the test. There was no way he was going to pass that chance up. He had taken all of his Pokémon with him when he left, and now he was here to return all but a few of them.

Ash reached the large elm door at the front of the lab and rang the doorbell. He stepped back and looked around at the woodlands and field that surrounded the lab. Not much had changed in this part of town since he first left ten years ago. Ash smiled as his mind wandered back to his earliest journey.

'Hello' a voice spoke through the intercom, bringing him back to the present, 'Who is it?' the voice asked.

'Hey Professor Oak, it's Ash.'

The line cut off, leaving Ash stood there puzzled. The next thing he knew there was a thundering on the other side of the door that sounded like a stampede. The door swung open and Ash had to do a double take, on the other side stood Brock, Gary, Misty and Professor Oak.

Ash laughed, 'I didn't expect so many people to be here.'

'Don't you dare laugh Ash Ketchum!' Misty yelled at him.

Ash blinked. Why is she mad?

'Err...' Was all he could get out before she cut him off.

'No! Don't give me that! 2 years and you don't call any of us once! Poor Dawn thought you'd died Ash!'

Ash looked around for any sign of a joke, but everyone had stone faces.

'You're joking right?'

Misty screamed and stormed away and up the stairs at the end of the hallway.

'Is there any chance I can come in?' Ash asked. He was tentative of saying anything else for fear of getting another tantrum from someone.

Professor Oak smiled at Ash, 'Sure. Why don't we go up to my living room and we can all catch up there.'

'Thanks,' Ash said trying to convey his gratitude over Professor Oak's kind reply. He wasn't sure how fragile the eggshells he was walking on were.

When they got into the living room Ash noticed Misty was nowhere to be found and he couldn't tell if he was happy or sad about that. He took a seat on one of the antique armchairs Professor Oak had with Professor Oak claiming the opposite armchair across the coffee table, while Brock, Tracey and Gary sat on the couch.

'So…' Ash paused, unsure of how to phrase his question, 'Are you all that mad at me?'

Professor Oak, Tracey and Gary looked at Brock, who took the signal that this was his question to answer.

'A bit,' Brock began, 'You have to understand Ash. You just went off without telling any of us then you didn't' stay in contact with anyone but your mum. When someone does something like that things go through your mind.'

'What do you mean?'

'Bad thoughts Ash,' Brock paused and cleared his throat, 'We all wondered if we'd done something wrong, or if you'd broken down. When we didn't hear from you for months on end it put a lot of us on edge waiting to hear something had happened to you.'

Well you did all leave me one by one Ash thought, It not like I wasn't justified.

'So where were you?' Brock said.

'Everywhere if I'm honest,' Ash told them, trying to keep his voice level so he didn't betray how he felt.

'It's going to take more than that for us to understand Ash' Tracey said, 'Why did you do it? Why did you have to do it that way Ash?'

Ash ran his hand through his hair and looked around at all of them. Professor Oak seemed to be looking at him with pity and that was the best he was getting. Tracey and Brock seemed a mixture of angry and disappointed in him, but there anger certainly wasn't at the same level as Misty. Gary only seemed curious, which Ash couldn't really understand.

'After I lost in the Vetress Confrence,' he told them, 'I felt I had taken a step back as a trainer. I felt for sure that was my year, and to fall shorter than I did from the Sinnoh league really hurt me.'

'You didn't tell any of us that,' Brock pointed out.

'I figured it was obvious,' Ash said. He took a deep breath and launched into the story he had prepared while he was journeying back.'

'It's complicated,' he began, 'This was something I had to do alone. All my life I had someone travelling with me and helping me along whenever things got rough. If I was serious about what I was going to do I had to do it alone. It was the only way I was going to reach that next level.'

'Why did you have to do it alone though? Was there another reason?' Gary asked.

Ash frowned at his one-time rival. That was the first question he had asked and it was a bit to precise for Ash to put it down to guesswork.

'I figured it was the best way to strengthen my bond with my pokemon. All of them.'

'All of them?'

'Every single one. I went on a search when I started getting them all back. Charizard, Squirtle, Pidgeot.'

'Butterfree?' Brock asked.

'I found him, but it wasn't fair of me to ask him to come. Bug Pokémon have a shorter life than others.'

'What did you do for training then?' Gary asked. This time Ash raised his eyebrows at Gary.

'A mixture of training. I travelled all over, making sure I could be prepared for any strategy. There was a lot to cover.'

'So you just made everyone stronger?' Tracey asked.

'Stronger and smarter. There was a lot I had to learn about each Pokémon, especially the new ones.'

Professor Oak perked up, 'You have new Pokémon?'

'I probably have about 50 on me right now, not including Pikachu. I think my mum wanted him to stay at home as insurance I wouldn't leave straight away again.'

'Can't blame her,' Brock muttered.

'Would you mind if I had a look at your Pokémon Ash?' Professor Oak asked, managing to diffuse any tension that rose from brocks comment.

'Sure. Do you want to go outside?' Ash opened up his jacket to reveal it lined with pokeballs, 'I don't think there's enough space in here,' he said with a chuckle. Professor Oak agreed and they all mad their way out to the field behind the lab.

Ash still hadn't seen Misty, but he promised himself he would sort that problem out later, once he was sure that everything else was taken care of.

He opened his jacket and whistled a tune. Simultaneously every pokball popped open, revealing his complete team.

'Is that Lapras?' Tracey asked, looking at their friend that had helped them across the Orange Islands so many years ago. Lapras squealed when it recognised Tracey and shuffled over on the grass to embrace him.

'How have you got a Tyranitar?' Gary asked Ash, who avoided the question.

'How many extra did you catch then?' Professor Oak said as he walked close to the group of Pokémon.

'I have 50 pokeballs on me at the moment, so I'd say I caught about six or seven extra.'

'50?! How did you manage to take care of so many?' Brock asked, letting his Pokémon breeding instincts take over.

'It was tough at first, especially with Snorlax and Muk, but we found a way to work it out.'

'So who's new then?' Brock said

Ash looked around at his Pokémon, running off a list in his head as he scanned through the group.

'Well there's Tyranitar obviously, he was originally that Larvitar we met in Johto. Then I picked up Lucario in Sinnoh when he was just a Riolu. I saved Espeon and Glaceon when they were in trouble from Team Rocket and Eevee rounds out their little family. I helped Absol out of a tight spot as well a few times then he decided to tag along for the ride, he's been a great help as well. Carracosta and Archeops I found by pure luck when I was doing something less than safe. Chansey took me a while to catch, but I went out of my way for him. He's been a huge help when we pushed ourselves too far.'

'They all look in amazing shape,' Professor Oak commented as he ran his hands through Staraptors fur.

'And so happy as well,' Brock added.

'They weren't at first. I think a few of them expected a vacation. But we got past that eventually.'

'You could put out quite an impressive line-up out here Ash, is that why you're back?' Gary looked over at him.

'Is that what you've wanted to ask Gary?' Ash said. He wasn't going to dance around the subject with Gary, It was clear what he wanted to know.

'Are you going into the Grand Championship?' Gary asked, drawing looks from the rest of the group.

'I accepted my invitation. What about you?'

'I haven't decided; my Pokemon aren't in battle shape, it'd take a lot of training to get prepared,' Gary said, playing the humble professor.

'We both know you keep them in battle shape Gary,' Professor Oak said, 'I thought you sent off your invitation last week?'

A flash of annoyance dance across Garys eyes.

'I guess I did,' he said, 'Must have slipped my mind.'

Ash looked at Gary, who has turned to pay a lot of interest in his Heracross, who was more than happy to be fawned over, no matter how insincere.

'Where is Misty then?' Ash finally relented and asked everyone. He couldn't do with having her mad at him for too long, it was too much hassle.

'I think she'll be by the pond,' Brock said, 'that's where she spends a lot of time when she comes her to think.'

'Will she be alright?' he asked.

'Eventually, you remember what she's like Ash. You can probably expect the same reaction from Dawn eventually.'

'What about May?'

'I couldn't tell that Ash, Brock told him while he devoted most of his attention to Tyranitar, 'I think she understood more than most of us why you might have done it after losing in the final of the Johto contest. But you were always like a mentor to her, to just vanish really hurt her and her life hasn't exactly been the smoothest ride these last two years.'

She should try walking a mile in my shoes Ash thought.

'I think,' Professor Oak said, 'That while you have made the right decision of you and your Pokémon in the short term, you probably failed to think about how much you affect the lives of those you touch Ash… One of the follies of youth,' he added.

Ash glanced around at Brock and Tracey, the lingering pain obvious. Have I been too harsh?

'I think I should head home,' Ash said, 'I don't want to leave Pikachu alone for too long. Are you alright to look after these Professor Oak?'

'Certainly Ash.'

'When Misty pops up let her know she's welcome round at any time. I don't want there to be any bad blood between us.'

'She's usually around at your house anyway Ash,' Tracey said, 'Her and your mum get on like a house on fire.'

'Brilliant,' Ash muttered.

'Thanks mum, that was amazing!' Ash sighed as he lent back in his chair, content with the first home cooked meal he had tasted in years.

'It was nothing Ash, Mimey helped with a lot of it as well. I figured you could do with some good food, you never were a good cook.'

'Pika!' Pikachu spoke up in agreement as he licked Ash's plate clean.

'Hey! You never complained while we were there!'

Pikachu pointed to the bottle of ketchup as his proof of the meal being better and Ash gave up. They certainly hadn't been living the life of luxury while they were away and he knew Pikachu was only messing with him.

'So how did it go over at Professor Oaks?' Delia asked as she gathered up the plates.

'I don't know. Brock and Tracey seemed pleased to see me, Misty not so much.'

'She'll be alright Ash, just give her a few days,' Delia told him, 'She's as stubborn as you are.'

'Apparently she's been around here a lot?' he prodded, waiting for his mums reaction.

Delilah flustered, 'A few times. Her sisters went on that world tour then you left as well, so she ended up hanging around here and pewter whenever she could clear away a lot of the challengers at the gym.'

'Do you think she was hoping I'd turn up?' Ash asked.

'Oh Ash,' his mum came over and hugged him; 'You can't keep feeling guilty over your past. Trust me its not good for you. You just have to learn from your mistakes.'

Mistakes?

'You think so?' Ash asked

'I know so. Its something everyone learns eventually. You'll figure it all out soon enough.'

'Thanks mum,' Ash smiled and hugged her back.

'Pika!' the electric mouse squeaked and jumped up to join in the moment.

A knock at the door interrupted the nicest family moment Ash had experienced in years, sending a twinge of annoyance through him.

'Do you want to get that dear and I'll get started on the washing up?'

Ash agreed and pushed himself up. He was glad she had Mr. Mime to keep her company when he wasn't here, otherwise he would worry a lot more about his mum.

he took a look to see who was at the door and was surprised to see Misty stood there. He thought it would have taken a lot longer for her to calm down, yet here she stood. Perhaps he wasn't the only one that had grown up in his absence.

He swung the door open with a smile and was whacked around the side of the head. Maybe he was wrong about the growing up.

'Two! Years! Ash! Two years!' Misty yelled, punctuating each word with another hit.

'Ow Misty! Calm down!'

'You still called even in Hoeen and Sinnoh! Why not now Ash?!'

Ash grabbed hold of Mist'ys arms and held her, staring he straight in the eyes.

'Because I couldn't.'

'Just going out to get some food dear!' He ehard his mum yell from the kitchen. She had clealy heard the yelling. Who wouldn't.

'Mime!'

Ash smirked as the door shut, his mum was a lifesaver sometimes.

'What do you mean?' Misty asked, Ash feeling the resistance to his hold drop.

'I had to do this Misty, for me Pikachu and everyone else. All the time I talked about becoming the best, this was the dedication I needed to put in.'

'By yourself though?'

'Can we just sit down and I'll explain myself,' he glanced at her hands, 'Without you hitting me.'

Misty blinked, 'Sure.'

Ash sighed as he sat down on the couch and looked at Misty. She was the first one to leave, sending him on this path.

'After I lost in Unova, I had to take some time off. I was top four before and somehow I had gotten worse. I only went away to try and get stronger, to get closer to my Pokémon.'

'But why didn't you call any of us? Let us know you were okay, or where you were.'

'It had to be just me. That was a condition. Can you remember when I first started out?' he asked Misty, who nodded.

'You and Brock carried me so much,' he said, 'I never would have made it without you in those first few motnhs. Then in Johto I finally started to take on more responsibilities. After you left it just kind of grew and grew, but I still felt something wasn't right. I went alone because I had too. It was the only way to get stronger.'

'Ash that's stupid, everyone knows you're one of the best trainers Pallet Town has had.'

'Maybe, but I'm better than that. I never set out to be the best in Pallet Town. I wanted to be the best period.'

'Oh Ash, why are you so stupid?'

'Hey!' he protested.

'If you had just told us we would have understood, instead you vanished in the middle of the night. Needing people doesn't make you weaker.'

But losing them does he added on in his head.

'Well I did meet up with Ritchie at one point in the Orange Islands. But that was it; I didn't talk to anyone else. What's up did I say something?'

Misty had gone bright red and her left eye was twitching. Ash sighed, he realised where he had gone wrong.

'So you met up with Ritchie, someone you've only spent a few months with, but you're friends aren't good enough to contact? Even after they supported you at your worst?!'

'My worst?' Ash looked at Misty confused.

'Save it Ash!' Misty stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind her.

Ash sighed. Things were going to be a lot harder than he thought.