Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.
IrishDreamer4: How was the prologue? Good? OK? Review please. But no flames!
2nd Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon so don't sue me if I accidently say I do.
Recap: He lightly shook his head before cradled the figure in his arms. He gazed at the sky until his eyes started to slowly close.
"I promise we'll find a new home for us one day,"
He drifted off to a deep sleep before whispering, "I promise..."
Chapter 1: Invitation
~PKM~
A raven-haired teenager stood intensely at the end of the battlefield, his brown eyes burning with determination. Out on the field, a yellow mouse with brown stripes on its back and a tail like a lightning bolt was struggling to stand on its little feet. Its pink cheeks crackled with electricity.
The red-haired opponent stood at the opposite end of the battlefield, standing calm and cool compared to the fired-up teenager. His black cape flowed lightly behind him.
"Dragonite, Dragon Claw now!" he shouted.
The claws on the right hand of a large, pale-orange dragon started glowing white as it flew straight at the yellow mouse, ready to slash it's with its claws.
"Pikachu, dodge it!" The teenager yelled.
"Pika!" Pikachu leaped up and dodged Dragonite's attack, but then Dragonite slashed it with its other hand, sending Pikachu flying back to the ground. But Pikachu managed to flip backwards and landed perfectly on its feet as it landed.
"Alright, Pikachu! Volt Tackle, let's go!" The teenager shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Hyper Beam!" His opponent shouted just as loud.
"Pika Pika Pika Pika Pika Pika!" Pikachu shouted as it dashed toward the Dragon Pokémon at full speed, golden electricity surrounded its chubby body.
"Nite!" Dragonite grunted as it also charged towards the mouse with all of its speed as an orange ball forming in its mouth.
Just as both Pokemon were a few feet away from each other, the ball in Dragonite's mouth turned into a beam and Dragonite fired it at Pikachu. The Hyper Beam and Volt Tackle collided, causing a huge explosion, and smoke covered the battlefield. A loud thud was heard. Once the smoke cleared, Pikachu was standing on its feet, panting heavily and covered in dirt while Dragonite was lying on the ground on its back, with swirls in its eyes.
"Dragonite is unable to battle! Pikachu is the winner!" The referee shouted as he lowered the flag in his left hand.
The teenager and his opponent both ran towards their Pokemon. The teenager dropped to his knees as he picked Pikachu up in his arms and embraced it in a hug. "That was awesome, Pikachu! You were amazing, Buddy!" he exclaimed.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu cooed as it rubbed its pink cheek affectionately against its trainer's face.
"Great work, Dragonite." the opponent softly said to his dizzy Dragonite. He took out his Poke Ball and recalled Dragonite, "Now get some rest."
He stood up and looked at the pair before him. He smiled. Those two have a lot of history together. He and Pikachu were an unbeatable team, nothing can stop them. And he was surprised of how such a little Pokemon like Pikachu could have such great power more than a Raichu could have.
He slowly walked towards the two, with his hands in his pockets. "I gotta say, Ash, you and Pikachu have gotton stronger than ever. A lot more than I expected when you first came here for training."
Ash grinned as he started to carry his tired out Pikachu in his arms. "Thanks Lance. You were great too."
Lance still smiled. He headed for the main entrance, and then turned his head around to Ash, who stood right where he was. He was brushing off the dirt off Pikachu. "Come on. We better go and get our Pokemon healed."
Ash snapped his head in attention. "Oh right." He ran up to Lance, and they both headed out.
Later on, at the Private Elite lounge in the Pokemon center of Blackthorn City, the sliding doors opened to reveal a young nurse with Pikachu in her arms and her Chansey which was holding a PokeBall. The nurse was in a collared, light-pink dress with short puffy sleeves and was covered by a white apron with a bow folded in the back. The skirt part of the dress was bell-shaped, like a ballerina tutu. Her magenta hair was in pigtailed loops from under a white nurse hat with a blue medical cross that matched with her eyes, and her bangs were curled and came down to her forehead.
"Gentlemen, your Dragonite and Pikachu are fully recovered." The magenta-haired nurse said, cheerfully.
"Pikapi!" Pikachu leaped from the nurse's arms and into Ash, resulting him to nearly fall over. The magenta-haired nurse giggled.
"Thank you, Nurse Joy." Lance said gratefully as he took his PokeBall that contains his Dragonite.
"Yeah, thanks." Ash added after he regained balance.
"Not a problem." Nurse Joy smiled. "Always happy to help. So, is there anything else can I do for you?"
"As a matter of fact, there is," Lance spoke up. "Can you see if a message from the Pokemon League came in? Mr Goodshow said it should be in by today."
"Mr Goodshow?" Ash thought to himself. "I haven't heard from him in a while."
The last time he heard of Mr Goodshow was at the Sinnoh League, along with Cynthia, as she is the champion of Sinnoh.
"Of course." She said as she nodded before she and her Chansey left the trainers lounge. After she left, Lance, eyes closed and hands behind his back, walked past Ash. Ash, in curiosity about the message Lance asked for, followed him. He lay down lazily on the couch and Lance sat on a chair before him, sitting more neatly than Ash. Pikachu moved from his trainer's arms and sat on his lap instead.
"You're getting good, Ash," Lance spoke. "Really good."
Ash looked at him, confused.
"Good at what?" He asked.
Lance chuckled softly. "The battle, Ash."
Ash scratched the back of his head, a little embarrassed by his denseness and the compliment. "Oh right."
Lance chuckled again then folded his arms, his closed eyes matching the wise aura around him.
"Ash," he said, "There's something important I want to tell you."
"Really? Like what?"
"The Pokemon League is organizing a new league. A league which I think you been waiting for."
Ash looked at him puzzled. A league I'm been waiting for? What does that mean?
"What are you talking about, a league I'm been waiting for?"
"Three years ago, I saw you at the Lily of the Valley Conference. You changed since we last met. I never seen you battle when we first met but I could you were just starting out by your eagerness. At the conference, I see you battle with your Pokemon with great strength, respect, and love. After you lost and return to Pallet Town, I took you under my wing, teaching you and training you so you will be the master you want to be. Now, I believe you're ready."
His apprentice looked at him with mixed look of confusion and admiration. He smiled weakly. "Wow, thanks Lance, but I still don't understand what you mean by a tournament and that I'm ready for something."
"Hmp-hm, gentlemen,"
Ash turned to see that Nurse Joy came back and holding an envelope in her hands. It was white and sealed with a shiny gold lightning bolt stamp. He stared at Nurse Joy as she made her way over to him. She smiled at him and handed the envelope to him. Ash's amber eyes widened as scan the words written on the letter.
Hello, Ash Ketchum
I, Charles Goodshow, am writing to you to inform you about a championship taking place in a fortnight's time. The World Master Battle Championship as my intern, Leaf, dubbed as the winner of the championship will be determined the Pokemon Master. All trainers from all the Regions will come to win the ultimate title. Instead at a Region, the Championship will take place at an island called Avery Island, located south of Kanto, between the Sevii Islands and Orange Archipelago. Don't worry about the rules, their same as any other League. I know how much becoming the Pokemon Master means to you so this tournament will be an exciting and unforgettable event.
Best of luck, Ash
Now Ash's eyes are wider and his jaw dropped a little. He couldn't believe it. He never knew how much effect a simple letter about the tournament can do. The chance to achieve his lifetime goal has finally come! After years of travelling, battling and training…he's finally there.
"So, what you say, Ash?" Lance asked, breaking the silence. "Are you in?"
Filled with determination, he clutched his fists and pumped them in the air as he cried, "You bet I am! I wouldn't miss this for anything!"
"Pika!" Pikachu leaped up with his little paws in the air.
His teacher and Nurse Joy smiled. "Good. I'll let Mr Goodshow know. In the meantime, maybe you should head home and spend time with your mother. She would be very proud of you, Ash."
"Yeah, and I can't wait to tell Professor Oak and the others about this!" Ash paused for a moment before asking, "Would it be okay if my mom, Professor Oak and my friends come too? They supported me through my life. Whenever I lost a battle, they helped me go on and…I want them be there as I battle for what I'm fighting for."
Impressed, Lance nodded. "Not at all." He sat up and headed for the door. He stopped and turned to face Ash one last time. "I never been more sure than I ever been about any trainer."
Than he walked out and left a bewildered trainer behind. He shook his head and grinned. Pikachu leaped up to his shoulder while smiling its cute little smile. He looked back at the letter to where his heart skipped a beat at each word.
The World Master Battle Championship…Pokemon Master…ultimate title…an exciting and unforgettable event…
It took a few hours to get to Pallet Town, Kanto from Blackthorn City, Johto. First, Ash has to take a walk to the port, a boat ride over the sea, and then hitched a ride from a good friend of his…
"Yahhh! Charizard! Take it easy, will ya?"
High in the sky, Ash and Pikachu were hanging tightly onto Charizard for dear life. Charizard eventually slowed down and his wings were flapping softly at a fast pace. The sky started to turn a soft orange-pink, the sun was setting and a few stars appeared. Ash smiled at the scene. Pikachu nestled in his arms, half asleep.
Ash glanced up and saw a few houses in the far distance. He grinned.
"I see Pallet Town!" He exclaimed. "It just straight ahead!"
Charizard gave a loud roar and was off in full speed with one powerful flap of his wings. A strong wind blew over the fields below as Charizard bolted to a small house where the inside lights were on. Charizard flipped and turned in the air then glided down and landed on the ground.
Ash and Pikachu hopped off of Charizard. Ash stroked his fiery Pokemon. "Thanks pal."
The door to the house opened to reveal a woman with short, chestnut-brown hair pulled in a low ponytail with curled tips and Ash's bright amber eyes. A bright smile spread on her face as she ran outside towards him and flung her arms around him, very tightly. "Oh, Ash!"
"Mom! Can't breathe!" Ash choked out.
"Oh, sorry," Delia loosen her arms but still had a hold on him. Ash hugged back when he got his breath back. Delia kissed his forehead. "I'm so glad you're home. I haven't seen you for ages."
"I know, my training taken a lot of my time. But now my training has finally paid off!"
"Really? How?"
"I'll tell you inside. Your Pokemon might want to hear too, and besides, I'm starv-ahh!" Ash was cut off when Charizard pushed him aside, eager to chow down on Delia's good meals. Delia just chuckled and stroked Charizard's head as Ash defenceless lay on the ground.
Later on, Charizard hungrily chomped on its food outside while Ash and Delia were eating in the kitchen inside. As usual, Mimey was sweeping the floor as it cheerfully chanted its name. Pikabu and Jigglypuff, the one that used to follow Ash and his friends now adopted by Delia, ate their Pokemon food on the floor while Ash and Delia finish up cleaning the dishes.
"A Championship?" Delia asked after Ash told her everything. She clapped her hands together and smiled, "Oh Ash! That is so amazing!"
"I know, right? It's a pretty big tournament. Everyone will be there…Everyone! I better go and call them!"
Ash bolted out of the kitchen and to the living room, heading for the phone. But before he can reach any further, a flash of black and blue spun from a corner and pinned him to the wall. A blue jackal-like Pokemon held its black forearms on Ash's shoulders, a white spike stuck out on the upper-side of its wrists. Four black appendages hung down at the back of its head, a black 'mask' across its face, with red eyes, a third spike on its furry cream-coloured chest, and its bulky thighs are in the shape of shorts.
An oof came from Ash, having the air knocked out of him by Lucario, his late father's Pokemon. He only knew a little about his father until he came across Lucario on the outskirts of Pallet, on his way home from Sinnoh. From what he learned from his mother, Lucario was his father's, Aaron, partner and was extremely loyal to him. But when Ash was 4, Aaron passed away and Lucario ran away in sorrow. Now after much sense knocked into him from Ash, Lucario eventually let go from the past and moved on, now dedicated to protect the Ketchum family, or in this case, to keep Ash in line.
Grabbing Lucario's forearms, Ash raised them off his shoulders, thrusting them back. He brushed off the wall with an irritated look. "Lucario! Calm down, will ya? I was just yawn getting the phone." He yawned. His well-built figure slumped from tiredness. Lucario looked at him, somewhat softer than the usual seriousness, and motioned Ash to the stairs.
"Always looking out for me for dad, huh?" He smiled and rubbed Lucario's head, as Lucario "rahh'd" softly. "Fine. I'll do everything tomorrow. Come on Pikachu, time for bed."
"Pika!" Pikachu stuffed the last few pieces of food in his mouth and followed him. Lucario looked on until Delia kissed him on the head, startling him. She just smiled, proud of both her son and Lucario.
The next morning, Ash was sleeping, all curled up in the sheets and snoring soundly but the sunlight peeping through the curtains hit his eyes, waking him up. Though exhausted, he managed to get up, have breakfast, shower, brush his teeth and get dressed. He went downstairs, where Delia and the Pokemon are waiting on him. Pikachu immediately hopped to his usual place on Ash's shoulder. Now all set, Ash, his mother and their Pokemon headed for Professor Oak's laboratory.
After a walk up the hill, they finally arrived at the lab perched at the top. As soon they reached the door, it immediately open as something of white with a bushy mane of hair rushed out and embraced Ash in a hug.
"Ash!"
Ash looked down to see that the hugger was a cute, young girl with golden-brown hair in bushy waves, deep-sapphire eyes, and a white labcoat. A wide smile spread on his face as he remembered the girl as Molly Hale.
"Molly!" Ash hugged her back, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. Pikachu cooed happily as he was somehow sandwich between Ash and Molly. Ash grinned, "Ha, Molly! What cha' doing there at Professor Oak's?"
"The little missy wants to follow her dad's footsteps to be a professor so she's with me," A voice spoke up.
Now Ash looked up and saw, leaning on the door frame with a smirk, was his old rival, Gary Oak. His auburn hair has grown so long that it almost covers his eyes and one stubborn hair-piece stuck out and dropped down near his nose.
"Gary!"
"Hey, what's up Ashy-boy?" Gary simply said. Then a crash occurred from inside, along with some yells of 'like, look out!', 'Professor!', and 'Oh dear my!' Everyone ran inside, right to the lab part where three people were crowded around a table, a young man was trying to restrain something.
"Now, now, now," He reasoned to the fluffy thing in his arms. "I'm not going to hurt you. I just want you to calm down,"
"Like, be careful Tracey," A girl with a valley girl accent warned, "It, like, totally packs a punch!"
"She's right," An elderly man said, "One of its special abilities is delivering powerful punches with its curled-up ears so it's best to be very cautious with it."
"Grandpa, is everything alright in there?" Gary exclaimed as he and the others came to them. The thing in Tracey's arms punched him in the chin and leaped out. It jumped on the elderly man's head and flew right into Delia's arms.
Professor Oak sighed of exhaustion before smiling, "Oh everything is alright now that Buneary has calm down thanks to you, Delia,"
Delia took a better look at the little Buneary she was holding. Buneary was a small, cute-looking bunny-like Pokemon with long ears with pink insides. A cream fluffy fleece covered its lower body, feet and the tips of its ears, and a smooth chocolate colored pelt was on the upper half of their body. Buneary had small tan spots above their eyes, a small brown puff of a tail, and fluffy-tipped ears standing in different positions, the right was straight while the left was flopped over.
Buneary dug its head into Delia's chest, looking up with bright eyes as Delia cradled it like the natural mother she is.
"I think Buneary likes you, mom," Ash said.
"She certainly does," Professor Oak's turned to Ash, "Ash! It's good to see you again!"
Professor Oak looked the same as always except he replaced his red shirt with an orange shirt with a purple tie.
"Hi Ash!" Tracey smiled from the table. He haven't changed much either except for his clothes, a loose aqua-blue shirt, light-red shorts, blue/white sneakers, and his light red headband still on his head to keep his hair back. He was even wearing his own labcoat.
"Like, hey!" Ash's eyes widened when he recognized the valley girl as his old friend Misty's older sister, Daisy. Her wavy, dark golden hair cascaded down her back to her waist in a loose ponytail with a pink daisy fastened right above her right ear, and she was wearing a white jean jacket with a cotton-made pink tank, creamy-white shorts, and orange sandals.
"Daisy? What are you doing here?"
"I, like, have been hanging around for a while now, like, helping out with the Pokemon. I totally can't stay away from here," she explained, though the blush on her face as she glanced at Tracey made Ash think otherwise.
"So what brings ya back to Pallet Town?" Tracey asked.
"I came back so I can get all set for this championship I'm entering in two weeks,"
"You mean the prodigious World Master Battle Championship? I'm so proud of you." Professor Oak's face beamed.
"Thanks- Hey! How did you know? I only got the invite yesterday!"
"I called him and all your friends last night when Lucario sent you to bed. Brock, May, Max, Dawn, and Misty are really excited!" Delia informed.
"You must be pretty psyched," Molly said.
"You bet. I better get my Pokemon ready," Ash headed for the door to outside, with Gary and Molly in toll.
Later outside, all of Ash's Pokemon gather around him at the first sight they caught of him. Bulbasaur, Staraptor, Glisor, Torterra, Sceptile, Infernape, Pidgeot, Kingler, Snorlax, Heracross, Noctowl, Donphan, Muk, Swellow Tauros, Torkoal, and Glalie remained, while Totodile, Bayleef, Quilava, Corphish, and Buizel evolved to their final stages, Ferligatr, Meganium, Typhlosion, Crawdaunt, and Floatzel, and Gible evolved to Gabite. His Unova additions, Pidove, Snivy and Sewaddle, evolved into Unfezant (F), Servine and Levanny.
Still ever affectionate, Meganium tackled Ash down, only to be pulled off by Servine's Vine Whip.
"Wow!" Molly awed, "You have so many! How are you going to choose which six to bring?"
"I don't have to. When I'm at the championship, I'll just call the lab and switch my Pokemon around. I did it in the Battle Frontier."
"So you think you have what it takes to be in practically the ultimate match?" Gary smirked.
"I guess I'll do OK,"
Gary blinked, "Are you pulling my leg, Ashy-boy? You have been chasing this title ever since we were kids! And you're telling me that all you could is OK?"
"If you want to see me pumped up, you have to wait until the championship."
"I wonder if Marina will be there." Molly took out a magazine, where a picture of a girl with aqua-blue hair, fixed in pigtails, adorned the cover.
"Marina?" Ash repeated.
"She's this famous model from Johto and a Trainer/Coordinator as well! She always puts a good show when she battles. I only been to one of her shows but I think she's amazing!" Molly squealed, her eyes sparkling at the mention of her role model's name.
"As you could see, Molly practically worships her." Gary whispered to Ash. He smirked at Molly. "Calm down, Molly! You're turning into an obsessive fangirl."
Glaring, Molly hit him with her magazine. "I am not obsessive! I just look up to her, that's all."
The young professor rolled his eyes arrogantly as the young Hale continued to glare at him. Ash slightly laughed at the scene and turned his attention to his Pokemon. Pikachu was already having a conversion with Bulbasaur and Torterra.
He took a deep breath before announcing, "Ok guys, we got two weeks to train for the World Master Battle Championship. This is the biggest thing we ever faced, bigger than the Kanto, Sinnoh League and the Frontier. We been training side by side together, cheering each other on and we won all those badges. This is our chance to make it to the top, to be a Master. So are you with me?"
All his Pokemon cheered. Pikachu perched on his shoulder, rubbing his pink cheeks against his face in affection. The grin on his face couldn't be wider. He pumped his fist up, "Well then let's get training!"
He and his Pokemon raced out to the field. Gary and Molly dropped their act and looked on, smiling.
"Well, you wanted to see him pumped," Molly commented, as Gary crossed his arms and laughed.
Over the fortnight, Ash and the Pokemon trained all day until the night comes. As each day goes by, the excitement in Ash increased. The night before he and everyone else heads off, his long-lived friend Brock stopped by to go with him and his rivalry with Mimey over the attention of Delia sparked again.
On the next morning, Ash was in his bedroom packing his things for the trip. From his place on the top bunk, Pikachu watched him fold a black shirt on his bed and stuff it into his red backpack. He put his knuckles on his hips.
"There, all finished." Ash said, proudly. He reached to grab his new hat from the desk chair but instead turned his attention to three wooden-framed pictures. Ash smiled at them, his brown eyes soften.
The first one was his time in Kanto during his first journey. Brock was at the left, with arms on his sides, Ash in the middle with Pikachu on his shoulder and his arm around Misty, who was in the right with Togepi in her arms. Ash slightly blushed at the thought of holding Misty like that…The second was in Hoenn. May, Ash and Brock were in a row, throwing their arms up, smiling while Max was at the front in a Tah-dah pose and Pikachu was on Ash's head. The third and final one was in Sinnoh. Dawn was at the left of the picture, with a wink and a piece sign, Ash was again in the middle, with at Pikachu perched on his shoulder. Brock was at the right. At Dawn's heels, her Piplup had his 'fins' on his hips, stuck his head up high, as the proud, confident penguin Pokemon he was.
Now after three years, the whole gang will be together again in a matter of hours. Ash grabbed his hat and flung his red backpack over his shoulder. "Come on, Pikachu. We better get going!"
"Pika!" Pikachu leaped from the bunk and hopped onto Ash's shoulder, hanging for dear life as Ash rushed out of the room and hurried downstairs to the living room. By the door, Delia waited patiently, checking her appearance in the mirror. Lucario was leaning against the wall and Buneary.
"Mom, I'm set,"
Delia smiled. She was dressed in a short-sleeved, light-blue sweater that was open except for a dark-blue button at the top, a soft yellow long-sleeved shirt underneath, a long, white skirt and yellow flats. Ash noticed that hanging around her neck was a gold necklace with a heart-shaped ruby.
"Nice necklace, mom."
"Thank you dear. It was a gift from… your father, Aaron." Delia sighed sadly as she rested her fingertips against the ruby heart. Lucario hung his head low in respect. Delia reached out a hand to caressed Ash's cheek before pulling him in a hug. "He would be so proud of you."
Little tears fell from Ash's eyes but he kept a strong face. His eyes caught a glance of his reflection from the mirror. His raven hair still stuck up and messy under a new red/black hat with a gold-trimmed PokeBall symbol on the front. He now wore a red shirt with a black vest with a white inch-high collar and gold trim over it, his normal pair of blue jeans, black sneakers, and black fingerless gloves with a thin red trim at the wrists. On the back of his vest was a red PokeBall symbol.
Breaking from the hug, he looked up to his mother, a grin on his face though tears still fell. "We better get going now."
She nodded and they headed out the door. A car was parked outside the house where Professor Oak, Brock, Gary and Molly were waiting.
Professor Oak was at the driver's seat while Brock was beside him, nothing much changed about him except for his clothes. He wore a white long-sleeved shirt with streaks of blue on the sides of the sleeves, a navy short-sleeved jacket with black trim and white pockets over his shirt, a pair of tan pants, black wristbands and black/white sneakers.
Gary and Molly were at the beck, two seats behind Brock and Professor Oak. Gary wore a white shirt and a dark-grey jacket, both with a collar that opened slightly to show off a new black necklace with a silver gemstone, light-brown pants with pockets on the knees, a black/silver belt through its loops and dark-grey boots (think Blue in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver).
Molly wore a cyan fleece sweater kept together by a shiny marble button over a lighter cyan blouse, with a thin light-pink ribbon hanging loosely around the un-buttoned collar like a bowtie, baby-blue jeans and white shoes with a light-pink stripe across the sole. A long silver necklace with a white butterfly-shaped pendent she had on was wrapped around her neck in one elegant layer, and the rest hung past her chest and a white/red PokeGear on her left wrist. Her hair had grown past her shoulders and was in a low ponytail, under a poufy white hat tied with a blue ribbon into a big bow hanging at the left side of it and long, loose side-bangs covered the left of her eyes.
Delia and Ash got into the middle while Lucario hopped into the back with Gary and Molly.
"Ahh, now hit the road. Tracey and Daisy will take care of the lab while we're gone." Professor Oak said. Then he drove the car down the road.
The docks were crowed by people, mostly trainers eager to complete in the ultimate league. Four boats lined up at the pier, a small bridge connected them together. Somewhere in the bustling crowd, a boy tried to make through. He panted heavily. From behind, three figures, one standing at an up-to-knee height, eyed him…
Steering the car right into a space, Professor Oak stopped at a halt after an hour ride. "Come on, kids. The others will be waiting for us at the docks. Our ship is No.4."
"See ya at the ship!" Ash yelled as he immediately ran toward the docks, Pikachu hanging on tight. He fought his way through the mad crowd with much effort before halting before the No.4 ship. A breeze of sea air brushed against his face. He couldn't help but closed his eyes and let the fresh, salty sea air filled his nose. It was relaxing, refreshing.
But a sound of thunder snapped him out of his thoughts. Ash noticed that the weather had changed to a shocking thunderstorm, and the crowd and ship was gone, and so was Pikachu!
He was alone.
"Ash…Ash..."
At the call of his name, Ash turned to his left and saw a boy standing at the edge. He had spikey black hair hidden under a red and white hat and had a yellow mouse clutched on his shoulder. His blue jacket flapped in the wind. Ash's gasped when he caught his determined face.
"Is that…me?"
"Ash!"
Gasping, Ash blinked and everything was the same as before. His mother was holding on his shoulders, a worried look on her face.
"Honey, are you OK? You look like you were having a nightmare just there," she asked worriedly.
"I don't know what just happened," Ash ran his hand through his hair. It seemed too real to be a nightmare, he thought to himself, almost…familiar.
"Nah, I'm sure he's just nervous about the championship," Gary reassured.
"Ash! Hey Brock!" called a voice from nearby. The group turned to where the voice came from, where five familiar faces ran up to them. Pikachu, squealing in glee, launched out from Ash's shoulder and flew into one familiar face's arms where a Marill greeted him cheerfully from its place on its trainer's shoulder.
Ash blinked. "M-Misty?" he stuttered.
Misty shyly smiled. "Long time no see, Ash."
Along with her was May, Max with a Gallade with him, Dawn and surprisingly her fierce rival Ursula with a Gothorita holding onto her leg. But Ash kept his mind on Misty, his oldest friend. Somehow, his stomach twisted in a knot and he was in a trance at the sight of her.
Her fiery-orange hair was tied in its usual side-ponytail, with a little blue ribbon in it and has grown longer, just above her shoulders. She wore a red, lowcut shirt that was loose but well-fitted at her waist with short sleeves that flow outwards and a yellow tank was underneath, a pair of baggy blue shorts that hit just above her knees with a dark-pink trim at the ends, brown sandals, and a golden anklet on her right ankle. She also had a sapphire-blue, teardrop-shape gem on a black string as a necklace and red wristbands on her wrists.
"Ash? Ashy-boy, are you there?" Raising an eyebrow, Gary snapped his fingers in front of his face. Ash shook his head, back in reality.
"What?"
"Ya spaced out again," Gary then shot Ash a sly look. "Getting a certain thing for red?"
"No way!" Ash hissed quickly, his face burning red.
Gary opened his mouth to taunt again but was interrupted by honk, followed by the speaker.
"All passengers now board the ships for Avery Island. The ships are leaving in 15 minutes."
"We better get going, kids," Professor Oak said. The trainers followed him to the ship.
"No problem. We'll catch with each other on the ship, right Ash?" asked Misty as she ran up next to him, her green-blue eyes sparkled. Ash felt his heart beating at a faster rate.
Smirking, Gary was about to tease Ash again until Dawn accidentally stumbled into him, resulting her to fall in his arms. She looked up and her bright cobalt eyes met Gary's dark jade ones. Ursula looked over her shoulder and watched them, with an interested look. They stared at each other as a strange feeling struck them like a Thunderbolt. They both blushed deeply as Dawn let go.
"S-Sorry about that, Gary," Dawn stammered, brushing her hair out of her face, the blush still visible on her face as she ran off, up next to Ursula, who smirked.
"A little close encounter with the professor, huh?"
Embarrassed, Dawn tried to cover it up. "No no no! I just tripped, that's all. He's just a friend."
But Ursula didn't buy it. She wrapped her arm around Dawn's shoulders. "The blush says otherwise."
Dawn sighed. "How did you and I end up as friends anyway?"
Ursula just laughed and they walked off after the others. Despite her bad attitude and attempted sabotages, they eventually became friends after Ash and Brock left Sinnoh. They encountered each other when Dawn was at the photo shoot with Hermione and soon later, Ursula ended up learning under Hermione about Pokemon Styling while Dawn stayed in Coordinating under the training of Coordinator Master Wallace.
Remembering that brought a smile to Dawn's face. In spite of her arrogant personality, Ursula turned out to be headstrong, sassy, cocky, arrogant, confident, lively, feisty, stubborn, and somewhat protective. Somehow she turned to be a good friend.
Then Gary brushed up against Dawn but avoided eye contact, which earned a sigh from Dawn. This is gonna be a long trip…
Meanwhile, a young trainer about their age was patiently waiting at the bridge of Ship No.4. His loyal Typhlosion watched him as he glanced at his watch time to time, his foot tapping on the steel ground.
"Where is she? I hope nothing happened to her," Jimmy wondered, while his face was filled with anxiousness. He turned to his Typhlosion. "You don't think that she forgot about me, do you boy?"
Typhlosion blinked at him. Jimmy groaned, rubbing his fingers on his temples. "I'm over my head."
The reason for his anxiousness was because he was meeting his old friend Marina in two years. After the Raikou incident, they went their separate ways. For the last two years, Jimmy has been training under the Blackthorn City Gym Leader, Clair, while Marina went on to be the Pokemon Idol she wanted in Kanto. When word of the championship got out, he leaped at the chance. Then Marina called that since she was also entering, they should meet up. Though he wouldn't admit it, he always did have a few feelings for the cheery Idol, ever since they were little. But he could never admit it, especially to Marina…
"Jimmy!" A clear, cheery voice too familiar for him shouted.
Jimmy looked up to see a feminine figure in the crowd, heading towards him, waving an arm in the air. His heart quickened as the figure emerged from the crowd then dropped as she crashed into him, embracing him in a warm hug.
"Jimmy, I miss you so much!" She squealed excitedly. Jimmy felt himself melting at her lively teal eyes and upbeat smile.
"Uh-Yeah, hey Marina!" He tried to sound cheerful but end up groaning.
Marina didn't notice him groan. She let go of him to look at him, "Wow, Jimmy! You changed a lot in two years."
A blush crept onto Jimmy's face as Marina looked him up and down. His dark grey-blue hair was under a new yellow/black baseball cap turned backwards and the spike was longer, going over his dark-violet eyes. He wore a white shirt where the open collar and cuffs of the rolled-up sleeves were black while the slightly-longer shirt underneath was red, a pair of clean, dark-grey jeans, yellow sneakers with white stripes and boarders, and black inch-wide wristbands, with a red stripe across it, on his wrists.
"What you think of me now?" She twirled around, showing off a soft-navy short-sleeved zipped-up jacket that was cut off above her stomach and a light pink shirt with long sleeves that goes a bit over her knuckles underneath it, the shirt also had a white hood attached so it was like a hoodie, a pair of soft-navy pants with two light-blue swirly stripes on the bottom of the left leg, and light blue sneakers and small white socks on her feet. Her aqua hair was the same, still fixed in pigtails but grew longer, down to her elbows with a light-blue beret replacing her old bandana and kept her white/pink PokeGear on her right wrist.
Wow, she looks amazing! Jimmy smiled but then his smile dropped. But I can't tell her that.
"Uhh…You look nice." Although Marina smiled at the compliment, Jimmy felt guilty of not telling her how he really felt about her. Marina took his hands and led him down the lobby, Typhlosion followed in toll.
A boy slammed himself against the ship's steel wall, panting. His strong figure slumped against it. His baggy pants were torn and damp at the ends while a hat concealed his head, the visor blocking the sunlight from his eyes. It was difficult to make out his face with the visor's shadow covering him.
Something moved in the hood of his shirt, a squeak coming from it. He softly soothed it as it settled down. His eyes shifted around as if he was checking for something. He was completely alone, everyone has already boarded.
I better take my leave, He thought. But as soon he shifted his foot aside, three shadows jumped before them in a ridiculous pose, although the small one in the middle was slouching it shoulders down.
"Prepare for trouble!"
"And better make it double!"
"Here the mission so you better listen." The third voice sounded depressed, unlike the first two, which chorused with arrogance.
Oh great, He groaned. How did they find me?
He frowned at them, interrupting their motto, "Do you two halfwits ever give up?"
"To infect the world with deva-"
"Hey! We're not halfwits!" The green-haired one burst out. He glanced at his teammates, and then smirked in arrogance. "And besides, there are three of us, not two so you're the halfwit!"
"Who said all of you are halfwits?"
Before any of them could answer, he dashed towards them, jumping over the small middle one swiftly while the other two at the sides fell backwards from his force. He ran down the edge of the docks. His pursuers chased after him red in anger in their faces.
He turned at the corner. He stopped to a halt when he saw a man loading cargo. Fortunately the man didn't notice him. But his pursuers were gaining up. He had to find a way out.
Suddenly a strong force struck his head. His strong body weaken as he collapsed backwards, falling on something hard. His vision became blurry but he could see two pairs of white booted legs and cream-coloured paws. All he could hear was three voices.
"Where did he go?"
"The twerp can't outsmart us that easily!"
"Uh guys, he actually can outsmart us that easily. Remember the bridge?"
"Butt out of it, Meowth!"
"Shut up! The old man's coming!"
As the feet ran off, he could hear a whistle, a slam and his world went black…