Author's Note

Dawn's POV

"Dawn! Wake up!" I heard Mom shout. I groaned, rolling over in my bed. This was a mistake as the sun now had a direct path into my eyes. I blinked rapidly, squinting and trying to cover my face. Well, there went my chance to ignore her and go back to sleep.

My door was pushed open and Mom entered innocently. "Oh? You're up?"

I huffed, sitting up in bed. "Yes, I'm up. And your shouting had nothing to do with it," I said sarcastically.

Mom's lips twitched. "Well, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed. I guess if you're grumpy you can go back to bed. Your mail can wait."

I turned around involuntarily. I didn't get mail often. The last time I did had been a few weeks ago – a copy of the Poké Chic magazine in which Buneary had starred. We had gone for her photo shoot about a week before that, and not only were the pictures great, but it had turned out to be a lot of fun. Both she and I had been excited for the magazine to arrive – when it did, we were the talk of the town and, in fact, the entire fashion world for a short time. But after that I hadn't been expecting any mail.

"What is it?" I asked.

Mom frowned, turning a manila envelope over in her hands. "I'm not sure. It looks kind of official. There's even a logo on here, but it's not one I recognize."

I got up from the bed. "Let me see."

"Uh uh uh, not so fast, young lady. First brush your teeth, then have some breakfast, and then you get it."

I couldn't believe that she would do that to me. But even after my worst glares (which apparently Piplup found funny) she wouldn't budge, so I decided to just do what she said. Sometimes my mom could be so evil.

I brushed faster than a Rapidash and wolfed my food down faster than a Snorlax. My mom cringed a bit and muttered something about table etiquette, but once my plate was in the sink – no, the dishwasher – she handed over the envelope.

I took it and turned it over in my hands. Where the "From" address would usually be printed was the name "Future Trajectories, Inc." accompanied by the logo my mom had spoken of, a spaceship blasting off the Earth with humans and Pokémon visible inside.

I opened the envelope. Inside, there was but one sheet of paper, crisp and fresh as if it had just been printed. I pulled it out and found it was a letter. It read:

"Dear Dawn,

Future Trajectories, Inc. is pleased to announce the opening of its new venture: PokéCamp! PokéCamp is a program designed for the purpose of advancing Pokémon research and bringing humans and Pokémon closer together on the whole. The camp imitates a university setting: Pokémon trainers, coordinators, breeders, doctors, stylists, and researchers from all over the world will come together with their Pokémon and participate in activities designed to foster human-Pokémon interaction. Behind the scenes of PokéCamp, Future Trajectories, Inc. hopes to gather information about these interactions to advance the world's understanding of Pokémon and better fashion technology geared towards helping Pokémon and their trainers interact. For the first ever PokéCamp, we're inviting only the best and brightest in their fields from across the world, and we believe you're among those people. For your outstanding performances in the Sinnoh contests and the Sinnoh Grand Festival, we would like to extend an invitation for you to attend PokéCamp! The experience is free and all your expenses will be paid for. While the final decision to attend will be up to you, we believe even someone as accomplished as yourself has something to gain from the experiences and interactions you will have at PokéCamp! Remember, the best in all the Pokémon fields from across the world will be coming, and we're confident you'll find something here that will engage you. If you decide to come, simply register at the website listed below. We hope you do!"

The letter was signed by a name I couldn't discern. My mind was spinning. I'd been invited to a gathering of the best and brightest of all those involved with Pokémon from all over the world. I was giddy with excitement - it was an honor to be included among those ranks. And to get the chance to meet all those other people, to learn more about coordinating straight from the best, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Mom had taken the letter from me and she now put it down having read it. She smiled warmly, "Congratulations, Dawn! You certainly deserve it."

I smiled, hugging her. "Thanks, Mom. But shouldn't you have gotten one, too? You're a famous coordinator with a lot more wins than me."

Mom smiled. "That's sweet of you, Dawn, but this looks like frontline research. They probably want people who're actively involved with Pokémon right now for their information gathering, and I retired quite a while ago." She paused for a moment, looking at me. "Well, do you want to go?"

I thought about it seriously. It was a huge honor, and it sounded like lots of fun. On the other hand, I'd just gotten back from a long journey and I wanted to spend time with Mom. Was it fair to leave her and to just waltz out after I just came home? But then again, she'd made it clear that I could make independent decisions about my journeys. She just wanted me to have the best experience with Pokémon and coordinating that I could and she probably wouldn't appreciate me compromising that, even if I thought it was for her. It was an all-expenses paid trip, so there was nothing to worry about there.

And there was one thing that'd been nagging me. The letter had expressly stated that the best and brightest from all the fields from all over the world were being invited for PokéCamp. I had qualified even being merely a runner up in a major coordinating event. So, if that had gotten me an invitation, then for a trainer the equivalent would be a top spot in a major training event – that is, one of the league conferences. My mind started spinning again. That meant, for certain, that Ash would've received one of these invitations! And being Ash, he couldn't turn down an invitation to a gathering of such strong trainers – he would most definitely accept the invitation. Ash would be there…

"Yes, Mom, I'd like to go, if that's alright with you."

Mom beamed. "Of course it's alright." She moved toward me and cupped my cheeks in her hands."Ohh, I'm so proud of you, Dawn. Look how far you've come."

"Thanks, Mom. But I couldn't have done any of it without you." We stood like that for a moment, and I couldn't remember the last time we'd been like this. As much as I missed travelling, boy, was it nice to be home.

Mom stepped back suddenly and put her hands on her hips. Well, let's not delay." She pointed to her laptop on the table. "Let's get you registered."

The website listed in the letter was very professionally made and easy to use. It pointed me to a form with basic information I had to fill out. I submitted the form and then checked for the confirmation e-mail. I opened it up and found it contained an ID number that I'd have to present to get my PokeCamp ID as well as the location at which PokeCamp would be held. Method of transportation was apparently my choice, and I'd be reimbursed afterwards. I looked at the address. It was in Kanto! Ash's hometown was there. He could probably show me around, take me to his town, and we could spend lots of time –

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I was getting ahead of myself; I still didn't even know for sure if Ash was going. It would be hard, but I had to focus on taking this trip for my Pokémon and me, and just be pleasantly surprised if Ash was there, too.

I looked at the date listed for the start of the camp and raised my eyebrows. "Well, they certainly aren't wasting any time. The camp starts in a few days. That's barely enough time for me to get there."

Mom turned the computer towards her and started doing something. "Yeah, but most league conferences and regional festivals just finished, so the people these invitations are directed towards are probably pretty unoccupied around this time. There should be nothing barring anyone from just signing up right away and going over. Here, I'm booking your ticket right now. … And, there."

I looked over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow. Since it was all expenses paid, Mom had gotten a ticket on the most luxurious ship she could find. I shook my head, grinning. "Well, when's it for?"

Mom smiled. "This afternoon."

"WHAT? But I haven't even packed yet! I have to get my clothes and my combs and I have to pick out outfits in case there are special events and I probably have to pack my ribbons in case I need to prove that I should be there and I have to clean my Poké Balls and –"

Mom stood up and put her hands on my shoulders. "Dawn, you'll be fine. I'll help you with everything and it's really not that much if we work together. Geez, you weren't this panicked when you first left on your journey!"

I turned heel and headed for my room to pack. "Well, I knew before the morning of that I'd be going on a journey, didn't I? That might've been part of it." I said, flustered.

"Oh, come on. That's not it. Are you….nervous?"

I threw open my closet and started pulling out my travel gear. "What? Why would I be?" Please don't guess, please don't guess.

Mom was in the bathroom, packing toiletries. "Oh, I don't know. Maybe certain people will be there who you may want to meet very badly, just maybe?"

She guessed. Uggh, why did she know me so well? I finished pulling clothes out of my closet and started folding them into a suitcase. I decided to not even answer her as lying was a bad idea and telling the truth was out of the question.

She came out of the bathroom with the bag of toiletries in her hand and placed them in my suitcase. "You're hoping to see Ash, aren't you?"

I didn't answer. This time it was just because I didn't want my voice to crack. Mom giggled. "You know, you're right, he'll probably be there. But be careful. I hear teenage boys can get kind of wild at camp." I blushed and turned my face away under the guise of shining my Poké Balls.

"Well, I'll leave you to it, then." Mom said, smiling. "We'll leave for the dock in a couple of hours. If you need any more help, just call. But you should be fine on time… as long as you don't do too much daydreaming." I gave her my best glare as she left, which only seemed to make her laugh harder.

Sure enough, I finished packing on time and loaded my suitcase into the car. After lunch, Mom drove as we both sat in silence. When we reached the dock, the ferry was already there. I unloaded my suitcase and stood with Mom on the dock for a while. Then Mom hugged me.

"Be careful, Dawn, and have fun. Keep in touch." She pulled away from me, and I noticed a watery film on her eyes.

I gave my best grin. "I will. No need to worry, Mom." I gave her a quick peck on the cheek and took my suitcase, moving to board.

"Dawn!" I turned. She was looking straight into my eyes. "If he's there, no regrets this time, ok?"

I stood frozen for a second, then smirked. "You bet." We nodded to each other and I boarded the ferry. I waved until Mom was out of sight, and then made my way to the prow, watching the beautiful sunset and thinking over Mom's final line of advice.

Ambipom appeared from her Poké Ball and sat on the railing of the ship, covering my hand with one of hers. I smiled at her, and decided not fool myself anymore about my main reason for this trip. Sure, there were lots of new people to meet, but I was really just hoping to meet one I already knew.

I'm coming, Ash. This time, no regrets.