Chapter 2: Tohjo Falls
It was early the next morning when Delia woke her son up, approximately five in the morning.
" Ash sweety, get up, I know you want to start early," said Delia in a motherly tone. At first Ash turned to face away from his mother and continue sleeping but then he remembered why she was waking him up this early.
" Oh crap! Thanks Mom," said Ash as he woke up Pikachu and got in the shower. About ten minutes later, Ash was dressed and he quickly gathered his supplies and Pikachu and ran downstairs. In the kitchen, Mimey and Delia were preparing pancakes for breakfast.
" Hey Ash, I made breakfast so you can eat before you leave," said Delia. Ash ran up to his mother, kissed her goodbye then took the plate of pancakes from Mimey.
" Thanks Mom, I'll eat these on the way there," said Ash as he ran out the door with Pikachu struggling to keep up.
" Wow, love really can make someone do crazy things," said Delia to Mimey.
" Mr. Mime!" agreed Mimey. Ash holding a plate of pancakes and Pikachu ran out of Pallet Town and onto Route One, heading towards Viridian City. In the tall grass, Professor Oak was studying a group of Rattata. He noticed the hyper young trainer running down the road with his yellow Pokémon following him.
" Hey Ash, how've you been?" Oak asked the charging trainer.
" Sorry Professor, no time to talk!" yelled Ash as he continued to run towards Viridian City.
" Hm... that's strange. I wonder what the rush is?" thought Oak to himself. He then shrugged his shoulders and went back to his research. Ash entered Viridian City and took a short break since he just ran a mile and a half without stopping.
" Whew, Pikachu I'm exhausted already," said Ash to the yellow mouse.
" Pika pi," responded Pikachu. Then Ash thought about Anabel again and started to run down the street to the west towards Route 22. Gary Oak was in the tall grass, researching as usual. He researched so much, he started to sound like his grandfather.
" Hey Gary!" yelled Ash as he continued running.
" What the? Hey Ash, I know your stupid but you have to know that Pallet Town is in the opposite direction," joked Gary. He knew why Ash was running. Gary's been in love before and he would've ran a marathon for his love interest also. He chuckled but smiled, glad that Ash finally lost some of his denseness and figured out a girl had a crush on him.
Ash knew he had to pass through the Pokémon League building to get to Tohjo Falls and he hoped nobody noticed him. He ran into some bad luck when he rushed through the lobby and bumped into the famous dragon trainer Lance.
" Hey Ash, funny seeing you here," said the spiky red-haired man.
" Oh hi Lance, I would love to hear about how you acquired all your Dragonites, but right now I'm in a rush," said Ash trying to speed up the conversation. Ash felt bad, he actually admired Lance.
" I wasn't going to tell you a story, I can tell that you have somewhere to be, do you want a ride?" asked Lance.
" Hell yeah, it sure beats running!" yelled Ash. Pikachu was more excited though, his trainer had him all tired out. Then Ash and Lance walked out through the building's back door.
" Go Dragonite!" yelled Lance. The orange dragon emerged from its ball and laid down, allowing Ash, Lance, and Pikachu to climb on its back.
" Where to Ash?" asked Lance.
" Tohjo Falls please," responded Ash.
" Well Dragonite, you heard the boy, fly to Tohjo Falls!" ordered Lance. The dragon took off South towards Tohjo Falls.
" Well Ash, what's bring you to this part of Kanto?" asked Lance.
" I'm trying to get to the Battle Tower to see the most beautiful Frontier Brain," responded Ash.
" Salon Maiden Anabel?" asked Lance.
" Yeah, you know her?" asked Ash.
" Sure do! She kicked my ass with just her Alakazam," said Lance.
" Yeah she's a tough girl, that's one of the reasons I like her," said Ash.
" Well I'd love to take you all the way to the Battle Tower, but being a member of the Elite Four here I can't be on the other side of Tohjo Falls," said Lance.
" I understand Lance, I'm grateful that you gave me a ride to Tohjo Falls," responded Ash. Then Dragonite began to descend as they approached the cave which housed Tohjo Falls.
" Here we are!" said Lance as Dragonite laid down so that Ash and Pikachu can get off.
" Thank you Dragonite and thank you Lance!" said Ash as he rubbed Dragonite's head.
" No problem Ash. Good Luck with Anabel, you'll be the perfect couple, I know it," said Lance.
" Thanks Lance," said Ash smiling as he waved to the dragon trainer.
" Dragonite, fly back to Indigo Plateau!" order Lance. In just five seconds, the dragon had taken off and disappeared behind a mountain.
" Looks like it's just you and me again Pikachu," said Ash. The two walked into the cave which was illuminated by the small amount of sunlight entering in through the cave's entrance. Ash walked through the cave, trying not to alert any Zubats. This cave was huge but Ash was making it through the cave with no problems. His determination to see Anabel again was motivating him. He was near the exit when he heard familiar voices.
" Prepare for trouble!" said a woman with red hair.
" Make it double!" said a flamboyant man with blue hair.
" To protect the world from devastation!"
" To unite all people within our nation!"
" To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
" To extend our reach to the stars above!"
" Jessie!"
"James!"
" Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"
" Surrender now or prepare to fight!"
" Meowth, that's right!" added their Pokémon.
" Team Rocket! What do you want?" asked Ash.
" What do you think twerp? Hand over Pikachu now!" ordered Jessie.
" Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" ordered Ash. The attack hit the trio but bounced off of them and ricocheted back towards Ash. He jumped out of the way narrowly dodging the attack.
" Haha, your attacks are useless because our new suits are made of rubber," said James with an evil grin.
" Crap!" yelled Ash. Team Rocket cornered him and in his haste, he forgot to bring his other Pokémon.
Meanwhile, in the Battle Tower, a young and energetic trainer was about to battle Anabel for the Ability Symbol. She was just called out her Alakazam when she sensed that Ash was in trouble.
" Oh no! Sorry but we need to reschedule this battle!" explained Anabel before using Alakazam to teleport to Tohjo Falls.
" Wait, come back!" yelled the trainer who was upset that he wouldn't earn the Symbol today.
" Anabel snuck into the cave and was behind Team Rocket. She managed to see Ash holding tightly onto Pikachu.
" Well Ash, are you going to hand him over?" asked Jessie impatiently.
" Never!" yelled Ash.
" Well then prepare for a world of pain!" yelled Meowth as he prepared to use Fury Swipes on Ash.
" Don't touch him! Alakazam, my friend, use Psybeam!" ordered the Salon Maiden.
" What!" yelled the Rocket Trio as they turned around to notice the Frontier Brain behind them. Their new suits may have protected them from electric attacks, but were useless against a direct hit with a Physic attack. They couldn't avoid it and the Psybeam sent them flying through the cave's ceiling and into the sky.
" Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!" yelled the trio as they disappeared into the blue sky. Anabel quickly ran over to Ash.
" Ash! Are you alright?" asked Anabel. She was trying not to cry, she couldn't be happier that Ash travelled all this way just to see her.
" Yeah I'm fine. Thanks for saving me Anabel," said Ash as he smiled warmly at her, causing her to blush. He stood up hugged her tightly causing her face to turn more red.
" No... No problem Ash," responded Anabel as she hugged him back.
" So I heard that a certain Frontier Brain came looking for me," said Ash.
" Yes, she did. She missed you and wanted to see you again," responded Anabel.
" Well it looks like her prayers were answered. Come on let's get out of this cave," said Ash as he started to walk towards the exit. Anabel quickly followed.
" Hey Ash, let's go have lunch at my house," suggested Anabel. Ash nodded in agreement.
" Pika Pikachu?" asked Pikachu.
" Yes Pikachu, I have ketchup don't worry," said Anabel. Pikachu sparked in excitement. Ash chuckled, then the two trainers continued walking towards Anabel's house, which was about two miles from Tohjo Falls. Anabel kept looking at Ash's hand.
" Should I take his hand? What if he gets scared and pulls away? Then it'll be awkward," Anabel thought to herself. Ash looked over at Anabel who was still looking at his hand. He knew why she was looking at his hand, so he took her hand into his. Then they made eye contact and both smiled and blushed at each other.
Finally, they made it back to Anabel's house.
" You and Pikachu can sit on the couch in the living room, I'll make us lunch. Would you like a cup of tea Ash?" asked Anabel.
" Yes please," said Ash. Anabel went back into the kitchen and came back out with two cups of tea and a bottle of ketchup.
" Here you go Pikachu," said Anabel as she gave Pikachu the ketchup bottle.
" Pika!" yelled Pikachu happily.
Then she put the two cups of tea on the table next to the couch then went back into the kitchen. Ash started to sweat because he was very nervous. What should he say to Anabel? He wanted to tell her his feelings about her but he didn't know how to say it. Then Anabel walked back out of the kitchen with two sandwiches. She gave a plate to Ash and then she sat down next to him.
" So how have you been Ash?" asked Anabel.
" These journeys are exhausting but I feel better since I'm here with you," said Ash smiling. Anabel started to blush again.
" Aw Ash..." said Anabel.
" How have you been?" asked Ash.
" Well to be honest, I haven't been that good but I am much better now," said Anabel. Ash put his plate on the table and leaned in so his face was close to Anabel's.
" I'm glad you're feeling better," whispered Ash.
" Should I kiss him?" thought Anabel to herself. She didn't know it, but Ash developed empathic powers soon after he left for Sinnoh. He knew what she wanted.
" Ash..." Anabel didn't have time to finish what she was going to say. Before she knew it, Ash's lips pressed against hers and his arms were around her waist. After a few seconds, he pulled away. Anabel just looked at Ash, shocked by the boy's courage. Ash didn't know whether or not she liked it so he assumed the latter.
" I'm sorry..." Ash began to say but Anabel put her finger on his lip.
" Thank you Ash, you've made me the happiest girl in the world," said Anabel. Ash put his arm around her and allowed her to rest her head on his chest. As they sat there, Ash got an idea.
" Is Scott still looking for a new Frontier Brain?" asked Ash.
" Yeah why?" asked Anabel. Then she realized why Ash asked ad she smiled.
" Now I'll always be near you," said Ash smiling. Anabel almost started to cry, she put her arms around Ash's neck and kissed him again.
To be continued...
