A/N: A random idea struck me one night as I read through some Pokémon fanfics and I decided to test out how people felt about it. Read and tell me how you think it is, but it is a one-shot.
Summary: Years after a death of a close friend, Ash stands before the tombstone to show how he feels.
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon. If I did, then everyone would be the age they are supposed to be instead of assuming everyone is under the age of eighteen.
Treading lightly upon the grass and in no hurry for the first time in many years, Ash Ketchum of thirty-five stood in front of the tombstone of his most trusted friend. A bouquet of agrimonies mixed with several arborvitaes were tucked underneath his right arm as he stood before the modest tombstone that labeled where his friend was buried many years ago.
The tombstone was roughly two-feet tall and had only three lines inscribed upon it that could not even begin to capture the long life full of joy and laughter that had touched so many different people in different ways. It was a life that had changed not only Ash's, but every person's in the world as they had all looked up to Ash, his friends, and his Pokémon ever since he had won the title of Pokémon Champion of Kanto at the age of eighteen.
"Here lies Pikachu Ketchum. 1997-2020. Though he may be gone from the world, he still remains in the hearts of millions." Ash had lost count of the number of times he had reread those three lines, but each time he did they always brought a tear to his eye.
Though many knew the day would come, it was not as some would have expected. Pikachu's death was not at the hands of Team Rocket or any of their scheme's that doubtlessly cost thousands of dollars all in the hopes of capturing a child's Pokémon and had put their lives in peril at one time or another. It was not during an epic quest that held the fate of the world in the balance between salvation or destruction, something that still happened on occasion much to the chagrin of the Kanto Champion. It was not even at the hands of a young girl, whose bike Pikachu had ruined with a stray electric attack while injured, as he had done to many throughout his travels with. No, Pikachu had instead passed away in his sleep, a peaceful expression upon his face after Ash had bid it a quiet "good night" the night before as he went to bed with his wife, Misty.
The funeral had been a small one, Ash and Misty having invited their joined families as well as the friends that had been around Pikachu the longest such as Brock, Dawn, May, Max, Tracey and some members of their families that had played with the electric mouse during one of their many visits. It was a painful time, being the first death that any of them had experienced in a long time, but there was a sense of nostalgia as many began to remember some of the things that they had seen Pikachu do or did with the electric rodent. After the funeral was over, Ash and those attending were astonished to see thousands of fans standing outside of the cemetery where Pikachu was buried, police being forced to guard it in order to ward away any of the more 'committed' fans, all dressed in black and carrying signs showing their support to the trainer of the deceased Pokémon, and his family, all while showing their love for the most famous Pikachu in the world. A small smile reached Ash's lips as he knew Pikachu would have loved to see how many people both knew of him and had admired him to such an extent.
Before the funeral of his most trusted friend, he had spent many aching hours doing his best to pick out the proper flowers that would convey what he had experienced alongside him. Combing through several books, which took his wife completely off-guard the first time she had seen him with so many books that were not even remotely related to Pokémon, he felt as if there was nothing that could truly describe how he felt with the loss of his companion. After admitting how he felt to Misty about the choice of flowers, she gave him a sad, but understanding smile as she sat beside him and quietly showed him the meaning of the flowers that were now his choice to place in front of the grave every year.
Though many would never consider them flowers, arborvitaes, or cedar as many recognized, symbolized everlasting friendship. Ash smiled fondly as he remembered how often he had been by the side with his first Pokémon in a battle that had the odds stacked against them immensely, only to come out the victor. Many more memories of caring for the electric Pokémon, and memories of the few disagreements between the two sprung up in his mind clearly. Cedar was perfect for showing that even though he was gone, Ash would always think of Pikachu as his closest friend.
The other flowers that rested in the bouquet were something that would always remind Ash how Pikachu was the reason for not only his victories in his battles, but also the reason for his marriage with the tomboyish mermaid, Misty. A year after winning the title of Champion in a grueling match against Lance, Ash was doing a mandatory inspection of Kanto's Pokémon Gyms for the first time. Having already done the inspection of Pewter's Pokémon Gym, he felt excited to see Misty again face-to-face for the first time in many years. They had spoken several times through the years after Misty had first parted with Ash and Brock, though in many cases it managed to devolve into arguments over the topic of the day, over the phone, but actually talking to any of his friends in person beat talking over the phone by miles. Pikachu, sharing Ash's sentiments greatly, dashed off to where they knew the Gym to be the moment Charizard landed in front of the Pokémon Center in Cerulean City.
Being nowhere near as fast or nimble as Pikachu while they made their way through the crowd of people that walked through the city, it took a few minutes to catch up to his oldest Pokémon partner before he heard a familiar cry of "Pikachu-Pi!" Immediately knowing what the rough translation was, as Pikachu only referred to one person as such, Ash managed to make his way to the front of the Cerulean Gym to see the yellow rodent curled up happily in the arms of a familiar figure while he was stroked lovingly.
Ash had to admit that she had changed greatly over the years, having known her ever since he first started his journey to be a Pokémon Master. Before, she had always held up her shoulder-length orange hair into a side pony tail that made her round face seem much more childish than it actually was. Some time after they had parted ways, Misty's hair was let out of the restrictive elastic band that held her hair up, freely letting it drape over her shoulders in order to frame her sharp features that made many men in Cerulean, and even in many parts of the world that knew of her family, cry out to have her be granted the title of a 'Sensational Sister'.
She always seemed to have a fondness for sleeveless tops that showed her midriff and form-fitting shorts when she was younger, but now Ash couldn't remember the last time he had seen her without a one-piece swim-suit with a jacket draped over her shoulders when she was not in a body of water at the time. At one point Ash had been blunt enough to ask her why she always wore a one-piece only to have the Gym Leader reply, "I'm testing trainers to see if their worthy for the Cascade Badge, not to find out if their perverts or not!"
He smiled widely to Misty as he spread his arms wide. "Hiya, Misty! Geez, I can't remember the last time we met up face-to-face like this!" he declared as he moved in to hug his friend.
Setting down Pikachu, much to his disappointment, she then moved in and gave Ash a gentle hug in return as she did her best to hold back a blush as she felt Ash's body against her own for the first time in many years. Pulling back from the hug, Misty gave a small scowl and then gently gave Ash a swift jab in his right shoulder.
"That's because you never visit me any more! I get that you're the big champ and all that, but would it have killed you to swing by once in a while to visit me, even if it was just to say 'hi'?" she scolded her long-time friend.
Giving off a nervous laugh as he rubbed his sore shoulder, Ash was unable to defend himself from her as there was no real excuse for not visiting her for a whole year. Sure, before he became a champion, he was unable to take the time out of his travels, but afterwards he could have visited her at any time despite how little time getting reacquainted with many of his captured Pokémon and inspecting the Kanto Gyms took.
"I'm really sorry, Misty! It's just one thing led to another and I….. How can I make you forgive me?" he asked, having trailed off, but wanting to find some way to avoid the red-head's wrath.
"Make me? Ash Ketchum, you can not make me do anything!" she growled out dangerously, her green eyes narrowing as she seemed to bristle at the insinuation that he could command her to do what he wanted.
Holding up his hands in a peaceful manner, Ash immediately knew he was in for a world of pain if he could not find some way to appease her.
Pikachu had watched the two friends happily at first, overjoyed that two of his favorite people in the world were with one another once again, but soon he could feel that things were not going in Ash's favor. Ash always had a habit of igniting Misty's temper, but with the years also came a toll for the Champion in the form of his dwindling stubbornness outside of Pokémon Battles. Though everyone that had known Ash when he was younger said it was a good thing, it did not seem that such was the case as the conversation between the two was slowly dwindling into something much worse.
Having spent many years as one of the mediators for Ash's Pokémon, as well as whoever decided to become the trainer's traveling companion, Pikachu felt that it was not a good idea to electrocute the two into peace, as he had done many times in the past. Looking around left to right rapidly, Pikachu soon saw a young couple that was, likewise, involved in a heated argument only for the young male to take a deep breath and lead the young woman he was with into a nearby restaurant. Through the glass window from afar, Pikachu could easily see how the young couple seemed to relax slightly as they were seated which gave Pikachu a very rough idea how his trainer could easily abate the red-head's temper.
"-and then you had the nerve to-!" Misty's rant was soon interrupted as Pikachu soon trotted in-between the two and faced its trainer. The Pokémon made several wild gestures, which largely did not seem to go through to either person, before it began to tug on one of the legs of Ash's jeans to turn the Champion towards the direction of the restaurant. Pointing to the restaurant, Pikachu then shifted his arms to gesture to the young woman before him before pointing back to the restaurant. Pikachu repeated the hand motions many times before Ash's eyes widened in realization at what Pikachu was suggesting.
"What? Pikachu, I can't do that! Misty would never want to go on a date with me!" Ash exclaimed, lowering his voice as he knelt in front of his Pokémon in the hopes that Misty would not overhear him.
Surprise overtaking her briefly, Misty soon became irritated that Ash would assume anything from her and soon grasped his ear with one of her hands and pulled it so that he was forced into standing once more.
Irritation was clearly written on her face, but she spoke calmly as she avoided Ash's frightened stare. "Don't think I wouldn't like anything unless you know for a fact, or you ask me first, Mister. You will pick me up at six o' clock tonight and if you are late by even a minute then I am never speaking to you again. You got that?" she growled out the last words as her eyes met with Ash's just in time to see him frantically nod. Smiling brightly, Misty released Ash's ear as she took a step away from him. "Good!" she declared before turning away from the Champion and walking calmly into the Gym.
Ash stood before the Cerulean Gym for several moments, his ear throbbing painfully, his eyes wide in shock, and standing perfectly still in disbelief. Tilting his head in confusion, Pikachu wondered what was wrong with his trainer. Doing its best to catch Ash's attention, Pikachu soon became fed up with being ignored and lightly shocked Ash with a weakened Thundershock attack to snap him out of his daze.
Recovering quickly from the electric attack, having gotten used to being electrocuted by Pikachu long ago, the full force of the memories of what he had just done soon erupted in his mind.
"Aw, man! I forgot to inspect the Gym! Wait a minute….I have a daaaaaaatttttttteeee?" he cried out in a mixture of disbelief tinged with the barest hints of joy which had promptly caught the attention of many bystanders.
Ash chuckled at the memory from long ago as he gently placed the bouquet of flowers before Pikachu's headstone gently. Yes, agrimonies were perfect. If not for Pikachu, Ash would never have even thought of even dating Misty. Their first date had been hectic on all parties, but worth it immensely as the two enjoyed themselves greatly and made plans for another date. Another date was followed by a wedding many months after, the time in-between having been spent with several more coupled with everyone that knew them chanting out "I knew the two of you would end up with one another!".
"I'm glad I chose you, Pikachu." Ash said softly, several more tears finding their way to the earth beneath his feet, despite the fact that Ash never actually had a choice in his first Pokémon.
"Daddy!" a cry was heard as a head of red-hair raced through the cemetery, the person the head of hair was attached to soon latching onto his leg.
His daughter, Dianna Ketchum, looked up to her father before she let her eyes dart left and right in apprehension. Giving her a smile as he quickly wiped away his tears, Ash gently pried away his six-year-old daughter and knelt in front of her.
"Honey, what's wrong? Did your brother start telling those stories of Gengar again?" he asked her more out of amusement than anything, knowing how frightened his daughter was of Ghost-type Pokémon.
Nodding her head, she grasped Ash's hand and began to tug it towards the large and ornate gate that served as the entrance and exit to the cemetery. "Uh-huh! Mikey wouldn't stop! I wanna go home to Mommy now!" she said, with a quiver in her voice.
Chuckling softly, Ash soon held his daughter and lifted her up before having her sit on his shoulders as he shook his head. Ash's nine-year-old son, Michael, had become a terror to his youngest sister after his twelve-year-old daughter, Rachel, had left on her own Pokémon journey two years ago. It was hard on them all, but both Ash and Misty knew that one day, all of their children would soon leave them for their own journeys. It was in their blood to adventure off into the unknown.
"You shouldn't listen to everything your brother says. I met a Gengar once, and it just wanted to play with me." he chided her gently as his little girl held onto her father as he turned to face the tombstone once more.
"But Mikey says that if you stay in here too long, then a Gengar will snatch you away forever!" Dianna argued despite the absurd idea that her brother knew more than her dad.
"All right, all right. I was just going to say bye to Pikachu anyways. Do you want to say good-bye to Daddy's friend?" he asked her with a smile, though apart of him wanted to stay longer to reminisce about the old days with his first Pokémon.
Nodding her head happily, Dianna held out a hand to the tombstone, which she had long-ago assumed to be Pikachu, and gave it an open and closed handed gesture of good-bye. "Bye, bye, Pikachu!" Dianna said, her mood already beginning to lift at the mention of leaving the graveyard and going home.
Nodding in satisfaction despite the knowledge that his youngest would never truly know his oldest friend, he gave the tombstone of Pikachu a long a sad look. "See you next time, buddy." he said softly as he turned away from the grave and back to where his son was waiting for the both of them. Ash would have a word with him about scaring his younger sister and he would make sure that Michael would remember it for a long time.