Spring Regionals, The 11th. [Present Year]
He sat uncomfortably on a concrete ledge, too small for his body to relax against, but large enough for him to cling onto without too much effort. It wasn't the ideal spot to sit himself on - nor did it offer anything beyond its awkwardness. But it was a spot to sit in; the only one left he was willing to take.
The outer lobby of the colosseum was filled to the brim with traffic. Passing audience, competitors, nurses, secondary judges, and even peddlers bustled through the 'open' area with their own agendas. Standard and ready-made seats were all taken by tired patrons. Food benches were occupied by hungry customers. And clear zones for standing were near non-existent within a flood of passing footsteps. There was only room to walk, only room to push through the crowds.
It was the Spring Regionals, a time of renewed trials and newly-formed journeys. For those who would begin their adventures, this was the time to scope out their upcoming challenges and competitions. For those who have travelled far and wide, this was the time to remember why they began their journeys in the first place. For those who have earned their reputations in battle, this was their time to prove themselves once again worthy of the Championships. And this was the perfect place to do so.
The Golden Silver Cup held in Johto was a world-famous competition. Only 2nd-place winners and Championship runner-ups would be allowed to enter its halls as competitors. All those officially entered would gain the opportunity to compete for the Golden Silver Badge - a badge that would bestow its holder competition-rights in the Championships, without having the perfect victory ratio initially required.
Locals, in humor, would refer to the Golden Silver Cup as the "Loser Cup", as only those who fell just short of their goals entered its battle brackets. In seriousness, however, the Golden Silver Cup was known as the most anticipated tournament in the Johto Spring Regionals. Having already tasted the bitter flavor of near-victory, its entrants were the best the Battle League had to offer in disciplined and desperate Trainers. Disciplined to know what they had done wrong and why. Desperate to right their wrongs, and to never wrong again. A tournament holding nothing less in such determinations would mean an endless spectacle of epic battles, fueled and fed by pure, limitless will. In that, the Golden Silver Cup never disappointed. Both competitors and audiences alike would leave its halls with satisfaction in their excitement-tingled blood. And the peddlers would leave its grounds with full pockets. By the end of the well-known "Loser Cup", all came out as victors.
Victory. A strange concept to his mind. There had been many times when he was called a victor despite having never won in the challenge he was given. There had been many times when he was given the blessing of victory after having won through only a gamble. There have been countless times when he was victorious over those who he had already lost to. Victory was always given to him, after many battles, and after many non-battles, yet victory was the furthest concept from his grasp. He wondered what victory truly meant, if he never gained what he wanted most in its conclusion.
What he wanted from its end, he wasn't fully sure. But he knew there would be no true satisfaction until he could attain it for himself.
He thought such things, as he shifted himself again in his uncomfortable 'seat'.
It wasn't ideal, but the seat would do. It was a place to sit in, the only one he was willing to sit in. There was another seat. Around the corner and down a few steps of the way. He saw it clearly. It was a perfect seat. How it could have been open, he wasn't sure. And how it could have been left open for anyone but himself, the only one to have noticed it, he wasn't sure. Why he did not take the fated resting area for himself - was the only thing in his mind that he was sure of.
Beside his miracle seating, sat a girl, a young woman. One that he knew. Knew very well. Though from a family of blue eyes and blue hairs, there was no possibility of mistaking her for her relatives. She dressed a certain way, held herself in a certain way, and spoke in a certain way. A certain way that he would have never known if he hadn't become directly involved with it - for years - more years than he could correctly count.
Her name was Dawn. And fitting to her name, her personality was one that would blossom out of the darkness, filled with hope and readiness of what was to come. It was an unmistakeable trait that he knew her for.
He couldn't face her now. If her eyes had locked with his, that feeling in his chest would burn once again. It had been years since he last saw her, and though she had grown and changed in that time, the feeling inside his chest when he caught glimpse of her had never changed. The feeling sparked when he recognized her, the feeling flared when he passed by her, and the feeling dimmed when her down-set eyes lost its chance to recognize him.
That perfect seat meant only for him, was placed mockingly beside her. He refused the bait in awkwardness, and took his consolation prize of an awkward 'seat'.
It wasn't ideal, but it wasn't next to her. For that, Ash was thankful for.
Winter Regionals, The 08th. [5 Years Pre-Present]
"Cold." Ash breathed out his first word since his arrival.
Iris peeked her head out of the thick blanket layers and shot a glare at the shivering young man in front of her. "Th-That's what I've b-been saying!" she stuttered loudly, shivering herself, "Why d-di-di-did you choose this place to meet up?"
"Because it was nearby. If I went somewhere else, I'd be sidetracked completely." Ash defended himself. He reached over and grabbed one of the blankets Iris hid under.
"N-No! I-I'm freezing enough as it is!" Iris fought back with a scarf-wrapped limb, grabbing the blanket and pulling it back into her possession. "Get your own!"
"I didn't bring any! The heater was working in here before!" He pulled the blanket back into his possession.
"Then let's go s-somewhere else!" She pinched it between two limbs and yanked in return.
"I already reserved the seats here! And none of the other restaurants had enough seats for everyone!"
"Then pick another city! W-We'll just re-reschedule!"
"No way! It took me forever to - AH!"
In their tug-of-war struggle over the contested blanket, the two failed to notice their shifting positions threatening their center of balance. With a loud thud, Ash and Iris tumbled onto the marbled-tiled floor, kicking and sliding their chairs away in the process.
"YEE!" Iris yelped in reaction to the bitingly-cold floor touching her legs. Her limbs pinched the edges of her blankets and rolled their layers around her exposed area. Cocooned back in her bastion of warmth, she gave a relieved sigh.
"It's nice in here." Ash sighed with her.
"Wh-What are you doing in here?! Get out of my blankets!"
"It's cold out there!"
"That's your fault! Not mine!"
The two struggled again, pushing instead of pulling, for space in the blankets rather than the ownership over a single one. Sitting closest to them, a man shook his head and poked at the rumbling fabrics. "Guys, don't fight in the restaurant. It's rude. Not to mention immature."
Ash popped his head out. He gave a mischievous grin. "I'm not fighting. I'm just getting reacquainted with Iris. And her blankets. By the way, nice to see you again, Cilan."
"Nice to see you too. You too, Iris. It's been a while."
"Close it! Close it! You're letting the cold back in!" Iris's bared hand, free from its scarf gauntlet, shot out of the opening Ash's head poked out of and slid the blanket over his face. "Nice to see you too." she responded to Cilan's greeting without showing her face, "How's your gym doing? Your brothers?"
"Our gym's doing great, actually! Chili, Cress, and I cooked up some interesting new challenges for the next coming seasons! There's this one tantalizingly flavorful idea -"
The Pokémon Connoisseur began his excited discussion of the revitalized Striaton City Gym, a Gym he shared ownership with his brothers. Ash took that as his cue to leave. He pulled away two layers of fabric and made an opening. Before he could crawl out, a scarf was wrapped around his neck. The scarf belonged to Iris.
He was kicked out of the blanket fort and its gates were shut behind him. Though the scarf given to him was warm enough to keep him from complaining. Ash smiled, nudging the blanket fort in thanks.
With a casual air, he pushed himself to his feet and returned the moved chairs back to their original placements. A pair of hands appeared beside him, scooting away his hold as it carried the chair that had belonged to him. His chair was set behind him, inviting him to sit down. He did so with a 'thank you'.
"You're welcome." the helper said. "It's been a while, huh?"
Misty stepped to the side of him, greeting him with her presence. She stood awkwardly, unsure whether to hug or wave at him as a physical greeting. Her hand reached down, settling with a handshake.
His hand shook hers. "Yeah!" was his simple, ecstatic response. "How was your trip here?"
"A luxury, actually. Gary insisted I ride on his private jet. The food on the flight was superb. You need to try it sometime."
"Whoah, really? Is Gary here?"
"No, Research-Head got his Head stuck in Research again. He told me to give you his regards and apologies. And that 'he'd be there for the next one'."
"He never shows up for any of them. Then again, neither do you. This is only the second one you've popped into, right?"
"Yeah, the other one I went to was the tiny one back in Kanto. I really can't leave that region these days. I've been busy with my sisters back at the Gym. We're doing a major overhaul over there. Cerulean City won't be the same when you come back to visit. If you ever do visit, that is."
"Sorry. I've been busy too." Ash apologized with a laugh.
"Not busy enough to miss out on setting up these little reunions, though."
"If I had time to visit everyone when they say I should, I wouldn't have made these reunions in the first place."
"I guess you have a point. So any old faces in particular showing up for this reunion?"
Ash and Misty conversed with eager curiosity. It had been the first time they had spoken to one another since their last meeting two years ago, in a previous Roads Travelled Reunion, held in Viridian City.
The 'Roads Travelled Reunion', or 'RTR' for short, which Ash had named and claimed, was an annual event he held for all the friends and acquaintances he had met throughout his journeys. Many former travel and battle partners would demand Ash to visit them in their new homes or jobs, but his working goal to become a "Pokémon Master" would never lend him the time or convenience to do so. To finally end the constant pokes and prods sent his way, he created the RTR - a reunion for everyone he had met to meet and greet one another, to catch up, and tell tales of what they had been up to since their last meeting. It also inadvertently gave them a venue to advertise themselves to new faces. And with Ash continuing his journeys without a clear end in sight, the number of 'new faces' would grow and grow with each annual reunion.
What had once been a small event meant to satisfy "I miss you"s, had gradually become a private convention where social, business, and even romantic connections were made and thrived within.
This year's event, attended by many old faces, new faces, and a few rare returns, was no different than any other. The beginning hour had started in awkward silence, which burst into a loud commotion after Ash initiated his first greeting, then was followed by everyone's personal receptions, which would soon be organized with games and competitions. Just like the year prior, and the year prior to that, and so on. It was a joyous holiday that everyone looked forward to, as it not only gave them the chance to see Ash again, but it also gave them the special chance to see everyone else again.
Even with their relationship holding more depth and meaning than most others in the restaurant, Misty and Ash found themselves impatient to individually meet with the others, rather than spend a majority of their time speaking exclusively to one another. Misty dearly wished to talk to Angie and see how her Day Care business was holding up. Ash was determined to introduce his new travel partners Serena, Clemont, and Bonnie to Professor Oak. Without voicing these desires to one another, the two cut their dialogue decidedly short, promising each other that they'd continue their talks later in the party. And with a wave, they went their separate ways across the restaurant.
They would not see each other again until a video call a week later.
Inviting his three friends to follow him, Ash led a small expedition to the other side of the restaurant.
He passed by a table filled with men and women dressed in red jacketed uniforms. The Pokémon Rangers Solana, Jack Walker, and Kellyn talked amongst one another, along with a few unfamiliar Rangers that had been invited to the Reunion as guests. Jack gave him a curt nod and smile. Ash returned the short greeting.
He would never find time to converse with the Rangers tonight.
At the end of one table to his right, the Gym Leader Maylene and Arena Tycoon Greta were challenging one another in a exhausting push-up contest. Greta lost immediately when she attempted to wave 'hi' towards Ash. He apologized with a laugh and waved back.
Later in the day, he would be dragged into a wrestling competition by the both of them.
A group of Nurse Joys who had found a rare time to be away from their jobs occupied a selection of tables that Ash passed between. He couldn't tell them apart, excepting one who was obviously darker in skin tone and wore an athletic uniform, but he greeted them all the same with a smile. Brock was amongst them, praising each of them sequentially for their beauty and personality, though he was kindly rejected with each try. Busied in his flirts, he never noticed his old travel companion call for him. Ash only shrugged his shoulders in understanding.
In a few hours, Brock would finally notice him, and by then most of the Nurse Joys would have already left the party early.
Behind him, Clemont and Bonnie were thrown off focus by a blast of electricity. Lt. Surge's Raichu was showing off the voltage levels of its Thunder. The two stalled to watch the show.
The distraction would keep them lost to Ash until the party's end. And Lt. Surge's careless release of his pokémon would be the cause of the party's end. Pokémon were prohibited from the restaurant's grounds without a license.
Serena had noticed the siblings' absence, but found no reason to warn Ash of it immediately. She, instead, took her lone opportunity to walk beside him, closely. The intrusion of his personal space neither surprised nor bothered Ash. Or he's pretending not to care, she curiously thought.
He hadn't noticed it at all. All around him, old friends and rivals shot "hey"s, waves, and comments his way. Many of whom he would have too little time to talk to in the day. He responded to each with individual answers, declining their on-the-spot invitiations until he could finish what he set out to do originally. Only his destination, the table located at the rear corner of the restaurant, seated with men and women in off-white labcoats, and a single woman dressed in bright, casual clothing, could come first in his personal attention.
"Mom!" he shouted in call. A few teasing remarks were thrown at him from nearby seats. He ignored them. "Mom! I'm over here!" he called again.
"Ashy-deary!" Delia Ketchum shouted back gleefully as she stood from the table she shared with the Professors. Her hands clapped together loudly. "Oh my! My little Ashy has a girlfriend now?"
Several spit-takes were heard around the restaurant.
Ash turned to his left and found a pink-faced Serena latched quietly to his arm. The surprised look on his face forced Serena to let go instantly, her face burning an even brighter pink. A howl of encouragement, followed by some laughs, echoed around them. Once again, Ash ignored it. "N-No, mom! She's just my new travel friend! Her name's Serena!"
'Another female travel companion for Ash' was introduced to the party, an expected development for many - as the boy from Pallet always seemed to have one girl join him in his travels. 'Another girlfriend appeared' some mentioned, referring to the fact that each girl that travelled with him had, at one point or another, fallen for him. 'Another girl to be disappointed' others whispered, mocking the fact that, in the end, Ash never seemed to have any interest in anything beyond pokémon or pokémon battling.
All jokes about the 'girlfriends' were kept in hushed tones. If either Misty or Iris, the only 'ex-girlfriends' to be found in this year's RTR, heard the jokes, the joke-teller would leave the party with a black eye and a bruised lip.
Topics over the 'girlfriends' were popular. The histories they gained with Ash, the stories of their own adventures, and the merits they earned with their pokémon were always interesting to learn or be reminded of for the listening audiences. Serena, 'the childhood love', as many now referred to her in quiet as, was given special attention in the topics due to her revealed history with Ash. To many people's surprise, she had met him long before most others had. Stories were told, bets if 'she will be the one to make Ash turn' were made, fun was had. With her introduction, the partygoers of the RTR had welcomed Serena with open arms.
For Ash, it was 'mission accomplished'.
Though he quickly wondered after where Clemont and Bonnie had disappeared to.
He eyed the room in searching curiosity. Hands were waved to get his attention, but none of them belonged to the Lumiose City Gym Leader or his sister. From one end of the connected rooms to the next, he scanned the tables from different angles, eager to find them and introduce them too to his mom and Professor Oak. His search came to a sudden halt when his eyes stopped at the sight of a family of blue eyes and blue hairs.
Only one person in his immediate memories owned that combination of natural colors. And that one person had never attended any of the Roads Travelled Reunions.
"Dawn?" he voiced his thoughts openly.
"Hm?" he didn't expect an answer, yet there it was, "Ash?" Turning away from the table, a table that was far closer to where he stood than he realized, a particular girl of long blue hair and brightly-lit blue eyes shifted in her seat to face him. The girl's curious gaze turned into beaming surprise. "Ash!"
Dawn lept from her chair and hugged the boy from Pallet Town. Her family whistled in teasing. She shushed them, then introduced them as her cousins, and of course, her mother.
Visually, to Ash, her family looked nearly identical to one another - aside from the length of their hairs and what clothes they wore. It was difficult for him to tell them apart. Except for Dawn. There was 'something' about Dawn that made her stand out obviously amongst them. He assumed that 'something' was his familiarity with her that he gained in their travels. Whatever that 'something' was, it made Dawn the center of his attention.
Ash grinned widely in their reunion. Like Misty, he hadn't spoken to Dawn in years, though the amount of years compared was drastically different. He hadn't spoken to Misty in two years. For Dawn, it was four. And where Misty remained relatively the same over the years, making it seem as if not a day had passed since their last meeting, Dawn had changed significantly, to the point of non-recognition. It was only her 'something' that let him know that it was undoubtedly her. "You... You look so different!" he attempted to compliment, though the try came out awkwardly.
"Thank you." she knowingly took the words as the compliment it was meant to be, "A lot of things happened since we last talked. A lot of... interesting things, you could say. Though I'm sure they're not as interesting as what's happened to you. You look very 'different' too. Not in a bad way at all."
The two cheerfully conversed at her family's table. There was a lot to catch up on. There was a lot to catch up on with everybody, but for Ash and Dawn, their interests focused solely on each other. His mission to find the siblings would be left unaccomplished, as he himself had become distracted as well.
Ash had missed Dawn. He had missed everyone that was in the restaurant that day, but Dawn had a special place in his longing memories. Of all his female travelling companions he had made in his journeys, Dawn stayed as his companion the longest. Though he hated to compare, this fact made Dawn more memorable to him than May, Misty, or Iris - as irreplaceable in his memories as Brock was and is. It was a comparison not made by personality or behavior, but simply by time. The time he had spent with her was filled with quality, but made permanent with its quantity. When he thought back to previous adventures or times of rest, images with Dawn would be the first to appear in his mind.
Like a limb suddenly removed, he often wondered where she was in his groggy morning thoughts. Even the time quality spent with Iris and Serena couldn't yet remove that instinct. He wondered if 'that' was that 'something' that Dawn owned.
That 'something' made her the center of his attention. And it made her unforgettable.
For the rest of the day and night, the two would spend every event in each other's company.