It help already having written the second chapter if you want to get it out fast, which I did. It's a little shorter than last one, but I had a good point to finish it. Enjoy!
Disclaimer. I don't own Pokemon.
"Hurry up, the ship will be arriving any moment now!" Bianca called, fully aware that her friend had heard her. After meeting up in the garden, a little late though, courtesy of herself, they were quickly heading towards the port, Latias getting distracted a little too many times on their way there. "I can see it already!"
'I'm coming! But if you had been there in time, this would not be a problem.' Latias shot back, slightly annoyed at her friend.
"Come on, it was only by a few minutes. It wouldn't have even mattered if you hadn't been distracted on your way here. So don't you put all the blame on me." Bianca argued, not giving in the least.
'So now it's my fault?'
"Whatever, get ready to draw something instead," Bianca silenced her, a pencil in her hand as she carefully looked out at the ship docking. Standing a little higher, Bianca, and Latias, could see everything happening below them. "Hey, it's not every day you see a trainer with a Pikachu on his shoulder."
Hearing those words, Latias' head moved like it never had before. 'He's back!'
"Good morning. We will be docking in Altomare in less than five minutes. I, and the entire crew, thank you for travelling with us and hope to see you again. Have a nice day."
The morning had passed without incident, except that Pikachu decided that he needed an entire bottle of ketchup, and now Ash, Brock and Dawn were watching as the city of Altomare got closer and closer.
"It's so beautiful!" Dawn exclaimed, leaning over the railing and staring at city as it got closer and closer.
"It sure is." Ash responded smiling, the city already having impressed him the first time he went there. Seeing it in its full beauty was something otherworldly, the sun lighting up the entire city in a way that many people couldn't describe.
"You will have to show me everything as soon we get to our hotel rooms."
"Give Ash a break. How about we first settle down before we show you some of the many things?" Brock came to Ash's rescue, remembering something. "If I remember correct the Tour de Altomare is sometimes this week. Wouldn't that be something for you two?"
"This time I'm going to win though, last time I ran out of luck," Ash joked, Brock laughing along with him. That had been one of the more interesting moments during their stay. "It wouldn't surprise if I ran out of luck again though."
"If anyone is going to here, it's going to be and Piplup." Dawn chimed in confident, Piplup cradled in her arms. A minute later and the passengers were flowing of the ship, spreading out and giving the friends some space.
"It's good to be back. This will be an, hopefully, enjoyable stay. Right buddy?" Ash asked Pikachu, nuzzling Ash's cheek before looking around like all of them were. "Hey, isn't that-"
'You're back!' a rather feminine voice shouted, if it could be called that, and nearly tackled him to the ground. Ash couldn't be more happy that he had at least done some exercise, else he would now be on the ground with a girl on top of him. Having escaped, Pikachu carefully looked up at his trainer from his new spot, and carefully looked at the girl who was hugging Ash. Being a Pokemon, Pikachu didn't only rely on what he saw when it came to something like this, but also his smell. While his trainer probably had an idea who it was, Pikachu knew instantly.
"Who is that?" Dawn asked, not sure what to think at that moment, noticing that another girl was running towards them, nearly looking identical to the one who was hugging Ash, except her hair was a lot shorter.
"I'm not sure, but I guess we will find out eventually." Brock responded, shaking his head at the scene in front of him. He had expected it, but maybe not exactly like this. He knew how much Ash had been liked by their friends here, especially by Latias, but this was something completely different.
"Hey, everything's alright." Ash assured Latias, Bianca standing not too far away watching, in a similar way to Brock, as the scene unfolded in front of Brock. It wasn't something you saw everyday.
'Do you know how much I missed you?' Latias started, her head now on Ash's chest as she nearly started crying. 'Do you know how often I wondered if you would keep your promise?'
"I know that I should have come back such a long time ago, and I don't know in what way I can make it up to you," Ash had already an idea where this would be going, but he would gladly do it for Latias. "I'll do anything you want."
'Anything I want?'
"Anything you want." Ash knew what would come, and he was not sure if this was the best way of doing it. Looking at him with big eyes, Latias didn't hesitate and grabbed Ash's hand before pulling him along.
"Hey, we better follow them!" Dawn said, following Ash and Latias with her eyes, ready to go after them, but Brock put a hand on her shoulder.
"Let them be, I am pretty sure I know where they went so we'll catch up with them anyway." Brock stopped her, nodding in the direction of Bianca. "Let's talk to her instead. Hey Bianca!"
"Hey there Brock," Bianca greeted back, having stood back for a while, now walking over to them with a big smile on her face. "I really didn't expect to see you here, or Ash for that matter."
"Well, I didn't expect to be here either until yesterday." Brock joked, thinking back to how they had planned to stay another day after Ash's victory and then heading back to Twinleaf Town and back to Kanto from there.
"It doesn't matter, it's great that you're here," Bianca stated, beckoning them to follow her. Leading them away from the port and into the city, Bianca couldn't let them be on their own anymore. "How about you stay with me and grandpa? He surely won't mind you staying with us, and I can't let you live in one of those overly expensive hotels."
"We'll take you up on that offer," Brock thanked her smiling, seeing that Ash had dropped his bag, so she picked it up. "Before I forget, this is Dawn, a friend of mine and Ash from Sinnoh."
"It's nice to you Dawn, I'm Bianca. Now, let's head over to the house so you can drop off your things, then we can go looking for Ash, and see where he got dragged of to."
"Latias, give me my hat back!" Ash shouted, chasing a giggling Latias who had managed to snag his hat, once again. Pikachu was just sitting on the ground, watching Ash chase Latias. He remembered last time they were, and it hadn't been any different really.
'What if I don't want to?' Latias wondered, her giggling continuing, waiting for Ash to nearly catch, before speeding off again. 'I think it suits me better anyway.'
"I know that it suits me well, so give it back." It was a fact, because how silly wouldn't Latias look with his hat on? Wanting to prove him wrong, Latias stopped flying and threw the hat up in the air, letting it land on her head. Turning around, she ended up facing up facing Ash who stopped dead in his tracks at the sight.
'So, how do I look?' Ash didn't know what to say. He had expected her to look rather silly with his hat, but she actually looked really cute with it, a thought Ash didn't have very often.
"You look great."
'Really?'
"Really." Ash responded, looking away a little to hide his blush. Deciding that they had played enough, Ash simply sat down on the spot, Pikachu joining his trainer as usual, took his place on Ash's shoulder.
'Aww, are we done already?' Latias whined, looking at Ash with her big eyes, hoping to convince him to continue playing with her. It was hard to resist, but in the end Ash didn't give in to Latias' big eyes. Patting on the ground next to him, Latias didn't have to think if she wanted sit next to Ash or not. Transforming, clearly the more practical form for this, Latias leaned onto Ash and rested her head on his shoulder, forcing another blush from the trainer and a gulp. He had rarely been this close to a girl, and on those rare occasions it hadn't really been an option on his side. That his heart was beating heavily wasn't helping his cause, and he slowly put his arms around Latias.
'Why am I feeling this? I know that I missed her, and I didn't have a problem with being close to her last time, so why now? Should I maybe say something, or should I just let her be? She looks rather serene, and cute, right now.' Ash wondered, stopping slightly at the word cute. Did he really think Latias was cute? Sure, his hat didn't look bad on her.
"Ash!" Dawn called, the voice easily recognizable, and soon she could be seen, Brock and Bianca behind her. Seeing the girl again, Dawn really wanted to know who she was, and why she looked identical to Bianca. "Maybe you can tell me now who she is."
'I'm Latias.' Latias simply said, not hesitating to tell who she is. If she was a friend of Ash she knew she could trust them.
"Isn't- isn't Latias a Pokemon?" Dawn asked, surprised that a human would be named after a Pokemon.
"So far I know, yes." Ash added smiling, knowing that Dawn didn't understand who, or what, Latias really was yet.
"Wait, you mean to me tell that she is a Pokemon?" Dawn couldn't believe it, a golden glow surrounding 'Latias' who slowly changed form into what she knew was a Pokemon. "Wow."
"I know right? It's rather amazing." Brock stated, carefully watching how Ash interacted with Latias. He could clearly see that they were close, but that wasn't a difference from last time, they were already close back then. Slowly walking over to Latias, Dawn could only starting to stroke her in amazement. She had seen her share of legendaries together with Ash, but never a Pokemon that could transform into a human girl. Cooing into her touch, Latias pushed her head further into Dawn's hand, enjoying the feeling. In the end she was Pokemon, so she would always enjoy something like this, even though she was quite a bit human.
"We actually came to fetch you for dinner, if you got the time for it." Bianca spoke up, everyone looking at her. Smiling a little sheepishly, Ash had completely forgotten about time and wouldn't have noticed until his stomach would have said something eventually. "Let's go then. Grandpa should be done by now."
"Sounds great." Ash said, his stomach finally making itself known, something that everyone could laugh about, especially Latias, who nudged him from behind towards the exit.
"It has been a long time since we've had guests. Since last time you were here nothing big has happened, so this will be a nice change," Lorenzo told them, sitting at one end of the table, Bianca sitting on the other end and the rest of them in between. "While it is quite a bit of work, I also have to say it was enjoyable to having prepare this feast.
"This wasn't really not necessary. We would have been more than content if you would just have allowed us to stay here." Brock responded, speaking on behalf of Ash and Dawn as well. Originally they had planned to stay in one of the hotels, but after some convincing, there was simply no way for them to not take up Bianca's offer to stay with them.
"It's no problem at all," Bianca assured him, smiling at the thought that they could see themselves as a burden, "We're more than happy to have you here, and take care of you. It's the least we could for you helping our city."
"Now, how about you tell us about your victory at the Lily of the Valley Conference? We managed to watch it, but Latias sadly missed it. And who better to tell her about it than you?" Lorenzo wondered, Latias clearly excited at the prospect of Ash telling her.
"It wasn't anything special really," Ash started, scratching his head. "In the end Pikachu pulled through and secured me the win."
"Oh, don't come with that. We all know that it was more than special." Dawn said, enjoying the food a lot. She had to admit that it was rather unique, but far from bad. Watching Ash eat was something special as always, and Brock and Dawn could only shake their heads at their friend's display while Latias, Bianca and Lorenzo were just staring at him.
"Does he always eat like that?" Bianca whispered to Dawn, receiving a simple 'yes' in response. Only listening half to Ash's retelling, Dawn was more interested in Latias, watching her closely, and how she clearly was more than just interested in what Ash was saying. For a moment, Dawn's attention wasn't on Latias, or Ash, and she listened to something Brock and Bianca were saying. As she returned her attention to Ash, she saw that he was missing. Looking for Latias, Dawn noticed that she wasn't there as well.
"Hey, did anyone notice where Ash and Latias went?" Dawn asked, looking around the table.
"They probably went back to the garden, and you should leave them alone," Bianca told her, shaking her head as Dawn was about to leave. "Give them some space Dawn. You can fetch them later if you really want, but wait until tomorrow if there's anything else."
"It's just nice to finally relax, after a year of travelling and non-stop battling." Ash admitted chuckling, leaning against one of the many trees in the garden. Latias, in her true form, softly rested her head on Ash's lap, Pikachu giving her some space and sitting on Ash's shoulder.
'I can understand that.' Latias sympathized, glancing at Ash, who rested his against tree with his eyes closed, his breath relaxed and calm.
"So, what are we going to do tomorrow?" Ash didn't really had any plans for his visit, except seeing Latias again. "I had hoped that you, or Bianca, had planned something."
'I don't know, I think Bianca said something about exploring the city.' Latias responded, Ash petting her head, cooing at the same time.
"Hey, do you think I could participate in the Tour De Altomare?" Ash wondered, thinking back to how it went last time. Not exactly as he had planned, but it had been fun non the less.
'Sure!' Latias was excited, this time Ash wouldn't get any help from, unless he needed it.
"Well, now I just have to decide who I want to use," Ash pondered, Floatzel being one of his options, Corpish another. Maybe he should give Totodile another chance, considering it wasn't his fault that they lost last time they were in Altomare. "How about you choose who I should use? We can go to the Pokemon Center and then I can let you meet everyone and you could decide."
'No. You're the one racing, so it should you be, and your Pokemon, who should decide.' Latias assured him, pushing her head into Ash's hand as a sign that he shouldn't stop petting her.
"What more could we do tomorrow?" Ash wondered, staring at the clear sky, the sun slowly disappearing behind the horizon. "Just walking around the city won't cut it for an entire day."
'Dawn would sure have no problem with it, even though she seems also like a rather restless person,' Latias admitted, slowly lifting her head from Ash's lap. 'Hey Ash.'
"Hmm?" Ash barely answered, his mind already far away.
'I missed you, and it's so great to have you back.' Latias said, Ash now looking straight into her eyes.
"I missed you too Latias, more than you can imagine. Now, how about we turn in for today? I want to be up early tomorrow so I don't miss the race," Ash responded smiling, giving Latias a quick hug before standing up. "Goodnight Latias."
'Goodnight Ash.'
"Hey Brock, could I ask you something?" Ash inquired, leaning against the doorway between their room and the balcony, Brock standing outside and enjoying the cool air.
"Sure, but don't you think Pikachu can help you more?"
"Not with this Brock, and I don't even know if you're the best person to ask." Ash shook his head. While Brock never had success, he seemed far more knowledgable than anyone he had ever met on the topic.
"So, what is it about? I could most likely guess, but I want you to tell me." Brock was quite confident in what Ash was going to ask, and a topic that he had hoped to avoid for a while longer. After today, Brock knew what could possibly happen. He knew the consequences, and was one of many supporters to fully remove laws concerning it.
"How do you know if you truly love someone with all of your heart, and not just that you have a simple crush or something like that?"
"That's a hard one. But I think I have an answer for you. It's something you just know, and it will become clear as day and night under certain circumstances. You will know it, and hopefully if your object of affection feels the same," Brock answered, not directly telling how Ash would know. It was something he could, and would, more than likely find out. Than came the problem of how the rest of the world would handle it, especially with Ash being the Sinnoh League Champion. "You should sleep over it, maybe you already know your answer by tomorrow."
"Thanks Brock." Ash didn't know why he ever doubted Brock. He had personally never seen him succeed, but he never gave up. Maybe he would know tomorrow, maybe not.
"No problem Ash. Now let's head to bed, Dawn should be finished by now."
"You think so? Doesn't it usually take longer?" Ash didn't believe that Dawn could actually be done already, considering she often took twice as much time.
"Just take my word on it Ash, she will be finished."
"Hello there Latias." Lorenzo greeted her, Latias slowly opening her eyes and looking down at Lorenzo from her spot on the branch.
'Oh hey Lorenzo,' Latias softly greeted him back, flying down from the branch, and hovering next to Lorenzo. 'What are you doing out here, this late?'
"I thought we could talk a little, seeing that you have been, and will be, rather busy," Lorenzo explained, walking over to the bench and sitting down on it. Even though it was already dark, there was only a light breeze, thanks to it being summer. Transforming into her human form, Latias sat down on the bench, staring at the stars together with Lorenzo. "How do you feel about Ash being back here in Altomare?"
Latias didn't really know how to respond, but the question was simple. 'I feel amazing. I haven't felt like this since last time he was here.'
"That is good to hear. Bianca and I were worried that you would never return to your old self. But, seeing you like this washes away all my doubts," Lorenzo said smiling, his expression slowly turning serious. "There's another reason why I am here. There's something we have to talk about."
Noticing the serious expression on Lorenzo's face, Latias knew that it was something important, Lorenzo rarely looking this serious. 'What is it about?'
Changing his mind, Lorenzo knew that this was something he could still talk to Latias later about, so he changed the direction. "Tell me, how do you feel about Ash?"
'How I feel about Ash?' Latias wondered, her hair gently flowing with the wind. Maybe she should cut it, or simply imagine how she wanted it to be, so she would look like Bianca again. 'He's a great friend-'
"That's not what I meant Latias, and you know it."
'I like him, more than you could possibly imagine.' Latias told Lorenzo, her heart beating faster as she was thinking about Ash.
"I can imagine, and just so you know, you have my full support if that is your decision. I could care less about that stupid law."
'What decision?' Latias asked, before it dawned on her and her face turned dark red and she had to turn away from Lorenzo. 'You know what I think about that! I just need to tell him, eventually.'
"It's up to you Latias, and I will support you no matter what you choose. But keep in mind, Ash won't stay here forever. He's not someone who can be bound to one place for a longer time, not yet at least."
'I know, but I don't know if I can tell him already.'
"Don't worry about it, you will know when the time has come," Lorenzo said, standing up and glancing at his watch. "It's time for the old man to turn in for today. Goodnight Latias."
'Goodnight Lorenzo.'
I don't know, but has the actual focal point of this story being brought across yet? I hope it has, and if not it will definitely be next chapter. Concerning chapter length, this will be be the minimum and chapters will trend towards 4000 words, around 5000 if I feel like it and I'm doing well. Next chapter will be up at latest by next Sunday, possibly earlier, but no promises. Thanks for reading!