"Togekiss, Pachirisu, Ambipom, spotlight!" Dawn called, tossing her Pokéballs up into the air. Her three Pokémon appeared, with Togekiss and Pachirisu facing Ambipom across the stage.

Dawn took a deep breath. "Pachirisu, Electro Ball."

Pachirisu reared up and fired a yellow ball straight at Ambipom. The Normal-Type smacked it with one of the hands at the end of his tail, hammering the ball straight back at Pachirisu. Pachirisu rolled out of the way and fired another ball, which was batted back with ease.

"Keep it up Pachirisu." Dawn called. "Togekiss, use Shadow Ball!"

As the two attacks raced in towards Ambipom, he simply batted them straight back at his two opponents. They dodged and continued to attack, getting closer each time.

"Double the attacks." Dawn ordered.

Pachirisu and Togekiss started firing attacks twice in quick succession. Ambipom continued to bat them back with ease, redirecting a Shadow Ball and an Electro Ball at each of his two attackers each time they fired.

"Togekiss, make it harder."

Togekiss soared into the air continuing to fire attacks. Ambipom continued to redirect the attacks at both of them.

"Ambipom, fire them upwards."

Ambipom started to redirect the balls coming in at him into the air, allowing them to fire up and then drop back down to be batted into the air again.

"Togekiss, Psychic."

Togekiss stopped firing Shadow Balls and his eyes glowed. The Shadow Balls started to dissipate, while Pachirisu started attacking as fast as possible. As Ambipom batted the attacks upwards, they flew straight back down again. Soon Ambipom was keeping a dozen attacks in the air. Dawn drew a bat from behind her back and nodded to Togekiss. The Jubilee Pokémon swept forwards and picked up Dawn, lifting her into the air. Ambipom started batting the Electro Balls towards Dawn who used the bat to smash them back at her Pokémon.

As the attacks rushed between human and Pokémon, there were gasps and applause from the audience. Dawn ignored them, focussing on the appeal. There was a final flurry of attacks, which Dawn batted back confidently before she leapt from her Pokémons back to land on the ground and bow. Her Pokémon moved to her side and bowed, taking the applause from the stadium.

"An impressive display of control from both Dawn and her Pokémon to put on a wonderful appeal, characteristic of one of the greatest coordinators in the world!" The announcer called. "It is up to May to put on an appeal of similar ability."

May stepped onto the stage, gulping slightly. Although she had gone up against Dawn several times in the last few years, this one was different. For one thing, the crowd was close to the size that they would usually see at a Grand Festival even though it was a single exhibition match. All the pressure was on her and Dawn. And if she lost, Dawn would not let her forget it. They had agreed to this match to decide between them, as so many Grand Festivals had been inconclusive. Dawn's appeal had been brilliantly received, so she had to better it. She had spent months working on her choice, including and removing things, trying to perfect it. She had taught her Pokémon moves specifically for this appeal. Drew had been brilliantly supportive, helping her fine tune parts of her work. She smiled, looking up into the crowd to find the face of her husband. She knew she had been lucky. To find love relatively young, and for it to last. Although she was on the stage alone, she was there with her husband. While her friends didn't want to choose between her and Dawn, she knew that he would choose her every time.

"Blaziken, Glaceon and Skitty, time to shine!" May shouted, hurling three Pokéballs into the sky, and her three Pokémon landed in sparks of light.

"Glaceon, Skitty, use Ice Beam. Blaziken, take off."

Glaceon and Skitty immediately started covering the stage with ice, leaving only the area around May in the very centre. Blaziken's powerful legs caused him to soar far above the stage, before twisting at the apex of the leap.

"Blaziken, Ember. Glaceon, keep up the Ice Beam. Skitty, first position."

Skitty immediately started to chase her tail while Glaceon fired an Ice Beam at her. As soon as it struck, Skitty froze in position, allowing the ice to start to creep up her tail. Blaziken took aim from above, and fired a single spark of fire at Skitty as the ice continued to cover her. Blaziken dropped down alongside the fire, landing just before it struck Skitty who was almost completely frozen. As Blaziken hit the ground, legs either side of Skitty, he kicked off immediately once more, causing the stage to shudder from the impact. Skitty leapt forwards, breaking out the front of the ice, which Glaceon immediately replaced to complete a sculpture of Skitty with the Kitten Pokémon on the outside. Before the final part of the statue was completed, the flare from the ember dropped inside and stopped, illuminating the ice from the inside.

There were gasps from the crowd as they realized what May had done. An almost perfect replica of Skitty had been formed, with light flickering out from it. Glaceon had captured the playful expression on Skitty's face perfectly, the determination to catch her tail and the delight at being able to play. It was almost lifelike, a perfect display of skill from Glaceon.

"Skitty, position 2." May said, the confidence now evident in her voice.

Skitty adopted a fighting pose and the Ice Beam struck again, freezing Skitty once more. As Blaziken reached the apex of the next leap, he spun in the air and began to drop, firing another ember down. Again, Blaziken landed with perfect accuracy, the impact of the landing doing just enough damage to the ice to allow Skitty out, before Glaceon repaired the damage and held the ember on the inside.

"Skitty, final position." May called.

Skitty sat back on her haunches, her tail sticking straight up into the air. For the final time, the ice froze a life-like statue of Skitty, with an ember from Blaziken held inside. As Blaziken leapt into the air once more, Glaceon leapt forwards, sliding across the ice. On the other side of May, Skitty did the same thing, both of them skating in a circle around their trainer.

"Blizzard!" May called. The two Pokémon continued to slide, but both fired their Blizzard attacks into the air, causing the air above them to become a swirling snowstorm as the two attacks mixed. Blaziken fell straight through the storm and as he approached the ground for the final time, May called her final command. "Flamethrower!"

Blaziken landed next to May, and turned his head towards the sky, firing a weak Flamethrower directly upwards. The flames mingled with the snow in the air, caught by the winds from the two Blizzard attacks. The Pokémon continued their attacks for a few moments until May clapped her hands once. The attacks stopped instantly and Glaceon and Skitty leapt to their trainer's side. The four of them, one human and three Pokémon stood as snow swirled around them, mixed with flames, with the three perfect ice sculptures gazing out into the crowd, the light inside each flickering as it slowly died. Slowly, in complete synchronisation, the four in the centre of the subsiding vortex bowed.

There was silence for a moment before the crowd rose to its feet as one to applaud May. She bowed again and again, and then waved to the crowd as she walked away from the stage.

"That was absolutely incredible!" The announcer exclaimed. "May Shu comes out with one of the best appeals I have ever seen! The combination of the playfulness of her Skitty, the power of her Blaziken and the skill of her Glaceon has created something truly special! Ladies and Gentlemen, we aren't judging the appeals tonight but that would blow almost every appeal I've ever seen out of the water! Even May's great rival looks stunned by that appeal!"

The cameras panned to Dawn who was on her feet, applauding with the rest of the stadium, forgetting that the person she was applauding so loudly was her rival.

Up in the stands, Gary turned to Drew who was grinning from ear to ear as he applauded.

"Did you know what she was going to do?" Gary asked.

"Of course." Drew answered, flicking his hair. "I helped her plan it. Was it good?"

"Good?" Brock said in disbelief. "It was incredible! How long did you spend planning it?"

Drew laughed. "A while. A very long while."

"It was worth it." Sam said. "That was insane."

"Thanks." Drew said. "Make sure you tell May that, she'll appreciate it."

"Better than Dawn's?" Misty asked with a grin on her face.

"I'd say yes." Sam said, with Brock and Gary nodding.

"But don't tell them that!" Brock said smiling.

Across the contest hall, a figure in black sat back down on his chair. On the chair next to him, Espeon curled back up, having stood on her haunches to get a better look.

"That was incredible." Espeon said excitedly. "How long do you think she spent preparing that? It was beautiful!"

"It was impressive." Ash murmured.

"Only impressive? I've never seen you get so into somebody else's work before." Espeon teased.

Ash let out a hint of a laugh, knowing Espeon would hear it. "She has come on a long way from when I was her teacher. She is a remarkable coordinator."

The two sat in silence for a long moment before Ash spoke again. "There's your answer."

"My answer?" Espeon asked.

"You've often asked why I don't go back to my friends, after Mum accepted me in an instant. That is why."

"I don't understand."

Ash sighed. "May is happy. Her life is good. She's a successful coordinator. She's married. She has friends. What would me returning add?"

Espeon sat in silence, not knowing what to say. It was true, over the last five years she had tried to get Ash to talk to his old friends. In that time he had taken on seven students, all of whom knew his name. He had somewhat opened up to each of them, but Espeon knew there could be more. It now looked like it wasn't going to happen.

Suddenly Ash stood up.

"Where are you going?" Espeon asked.

"We're leaving." Ash said quietly as he turned for the exit. "I've seen enough."

"There are still battles though." Espeon argued.

Ash turned back to look at his Pokémon. "Espeon, we need to get on. We stayed and watched the appeals, but we need to get back home. We have work to do and a man to track down."

Espeon nodded before following her trainer out of the door to get out of the box.

"So when are you going to ask?" Brock said to Gary. The two of them were a short distance from the rest of the group as they waited for the battles to begin.

"We're going out for dinner tonight." Gary said. "I'll ask then."

Brock nodded and looked back out across the contest hall, before speaking again.

"I assume you'll be calling Delia?"

Gary turned to look at his friend. "Why do you ask?"

"When she left, she left with your grandfather."

"Who I haven't spoken to in months." Gary said. "And it appears you know that?"

Brock smiled. "Misty talks."

Gary shook his head ruefully. "I shouldn't be surprised. But yes, I will be calling Delia and hoping she has some insight into Gramps."

"Do you have any way of contacting him?" Brock asked.

Gary shook his head. "He contacts me, but he keeps saying he is out of reach so there is no point me trying. But he meant everything to Delia, I'm hoping she'll have some way of reaching him."

"She probably does." Brock said quietly. "It's the only thing I can think of that keeps her looking so cheerful."

Gary nodded, then glanced over Brock's shoulder to where Sam was walking towards them. He turned to the young trainer.

"Impressed with the appeals?"

Sam nodded. "Their Pokémon are stunning. I'd love to see what they are like in a proper fight though."

"You'd win." Brock said. "Your Pokémon are used to taking stronger hits, and attacking with power instead of aesthetics."

Gary nodded in agreement. "It is why it is so difficult to go from coordinating into battling or vice-versa. Pokémon are trained to do one or the other, and Pokémon who can do both are very rare."

"I'm sure I know a few Pokémon that could do so." Sam said.

Before either Brock or Gary could say anything, Sam turned back towards his seat as May and Dawn reappeared on stage, ready for the first of their three battles.

Mellanie arrived back at the house from her run, panting heavily. She always seemed to train harder when she was here. Although it was slightly lonely training here without anybody else with her to train with, she didn't mind. In her training under Ash she hadn't minded training by herself for a lot of it. Before she could give any instructions to her Pokémon, she heard footsteps coming from the house. She looked up to see Ash stood looking down at her Pokémon.

"Just finished exercise?" He asked.

Mellanie nodded. "Ash, I was thinking about Professor…"

Ash held his hand up. "Time for a practice match. You against Aggron."

Mellanie grinned. She remembered the first time that she had gone up against Ash in a practice match after he had agreed to train her. She had expected to be thrashed, and in truth she had been. But Ash hadn't called out a single command throughout; instead standing next to her while she faced off against one of his weaker Pokémon. He had talked constantly, discussing ways she could tackle attacks, or improve. That evening they had gone over every aspect of the fight, discussing how she could improve and where her strengths were. Over the years she had fought well over a hundred fights against Ash, but he had never changed his teaching. He always let his Pokémon fight by themselves against her, while he talked about her strategy. Over time Mellanie had worked with her own Pokémon to fight without her guidance, although she never had the courage to let them battle in big matches like Ash did.

She lined up across the field against Aggron who grinned down at her. On a less terrifying Pokémon it might have been cute, but Aggron's grin was simply intimidating. Mellanie turned to Ash who was stood a few feet away.

"How many Pokémon do I get?"

Ash considered it for a moment. "We'll say three."

"Any objective for me?" Mellanie asked.

A smile tugged at Ash's face. "Make Aggron move."

Mellanie nodded, her mind on the fight to come. It was something else that Ash often did in their battles. Both of them knew that Mellanie wouldn't be able to defeat any of Ash's Pokémon. She was a formidable trainer, but he was in an entirely different league of his own. He often set different tasks for his tutee to focus on, something that was not only different but usually had a lesson in it. Mellanie wondered what it would be for Aggron. Her opponent not moving would be an interesting challenge.

"For this, my first Pokémon is easy. Totodile, you're up."

Ash nodded as Totodile appeared. Across the field Aggron sized up his substantially smaller opponent with a beady look. He had faced Totodile enough times to know that his opponent hit harder than his size made it seem.

"Totodile, start us off." Mellanie ordered. "Use Water Gun."

Totodile fired a burst of water at Aggron who simply looked at it derisively. The attack hit him squarely in the chest, and Aggron didn't even seem to notice. Mellanie blinked in surprise; she knew that Aggron was tough but Totodile was still a fairly hard hitter. To completely ignore an attack was surprising. She turned to look at Ash who returned her gaze, his face completely neutral.

"What the hell?" Mellanie asked. "How did Aggron ignore that?"

Ash looked at Mellanie for a long moment, before turning his gaze onto Aggron. "Let her off this time Aggron. Next time her concentration wavers, end it."

Mellanie looked at Ash in shock. "What do you mean? Isn't this a practice match?"

Ash nodded, his gaze still on Aggron who appeared to be waiting for a signal. "It is. And it is practice for real matches. If you turned away in a real match like you have now, it would end very badly. Now turn your attention back to this battle."

Mellanie spun, fury etched onto her face. "Totodile, if he's going to be like that, use Hydro Pump."

Totodile threw his head back and unleashed a torrent of water across the battlefield, straight at Aggron. Aggron gazed at it, and crossed his arms, bowing his head to take the attack. There was a glint off Aggron's armour just before the attack hit. As it ended, Aggron stood up once more, shaking his head slightly. Across the field Mellanie and Totodile stared in shock.

"Wake up Mellanie." Ash barked. "Thus far you've been distracted, taunted into a risky attack and have attempted to take on an armoured Pokémon at long range. Think, if Aggron can simply shake off your attacks, you need to increase the strength."

Mellanie nodded, uncertain of what to do. This wasn't like the usual battles; Ash seemed to be almost angry at her strategy so far. She turned to Totodile.

"Close the gap, and start attacking as much as possible. Wear Aggron down."

Totodile leapt forwards, another water attack surging from him, an attack that Aggron almost dismissively beat aside with one arm. As he closed the gap, Totodile fired another Hydro Pump, the power stronger now he was closer.

"Mellanie, you know he can't attack as powerfully while moving. If you want to break Aggron down you'll need a strong attack from close range."

Mellanie didn't answer, focusing her attention fully on Totodile. "Totodile, stop and attack now." She called. As soon as Totodile stopped, another attack surged out, stronger than the last. Aggron looked at Ash who nodded. Aggron threw his head back and fired a Hyper Beam straight down at Totodile, dwarfing the size of the Hydro Pump. Totodile couldn't dodge and was sent flying. Ash held out an arm as the Water-Type flew towards them, and Totodile arced towards it, being caught by the Pokémon Master. Ash held him out towards Mellanie who was looking on in shock. Ash put Totodile down and turned away.

"This match is over."

"But…" Mellanie stammered. "I have two more Pokémon…"

Ash started to walk away. "I have to head out again. I'll be back tonight, when we will discuss Professor Oak and this battle. And if you can think of why, we will discuss why it was so brutal."

Mellanie watched the man she considered to be her father stride away, vanishing into the forest that surrounded his house. She turned to Totodile who was stirring on the ground next to her. "I'm sorry." Mellanie said, kneeling down next to her starter. "I don't know why he was so aggressive, but I should have been more careful…"

"Yes you should." A voice said in Mellanie's head. "Ash did warn you that if you slipped, he'd end the fight. And having Totodile just stop and attack was stupid. You are better than that."

Mellanie turned to find Espeon prowling towards her. The teenager gazed at the Sun Pokémon, before slumping to the floor.

"It's okay." Espeon said, rubbing herself against Mellanie. "I warned him that you weren't ready, but he thought you were."

"Ready for what?" Mellanie said, her voice trembling. "Ready to be shown how much stronger he is?"

"No." Espeon said, sympathy radiating from her. "For you and all of his students, Ash has… protected you. It is hard to explain, but he does it for all he cares for. Wherever you go, there is always somebody watching, looking out for you. He does it for all of his Pokémon as well. It is because he cares that he can protect you. Unfortunately, he doesn't need somebody that he has to protect. He needs somebody who can stand up for themselves, who can operate without the safety-crutch that he gives."

"Why?" Mellanie asked tentatively. "What has happened?"

"Professor Oak. The last time we lost somebody like this, was at the Silver Conference five years ago. We cannot permit a repeat, and if it is anything like it was then, it could get bad. Ash can't be watching out for you at the same time as dealing with what is coming for us."

"Is something coming for us?" Mellanie asked.

Espeon nuzzled her for a moment, before turning to Totodile who was back on his feet. Espeon turned to move away, leaving a parting message.

"I have no idea. And that is what worries me the most. If Ash can rely on you to the end, there will be no turning back and your relationship with him will be changed forever. If he can't, then despite him being surrounded by people who care for him, he is alone."

"How do I show him that he can rely on me?" Mellanie called after Espeon who was padding towards the house. There was a flicker of purple as Espeon's tail vanished around the corner, but one last thought reached Mellanie before the link was broken.

"If you have to ask, you aren't ready."

Mellanie stared into the house for a long minute before turning towards Totodile who was looking at his trainer with a worried gaze in his eyes. Mellanie put her fingers to her lips and she whistled loudly. Her Pokémon broke away from their training to surround her.

"Alright guys." Mellanie said, her voice still trembling slightly after Espeon's revelations. "Training for today is over. We have until Ash gets back to find out what he needs. It is time to repay him for everything he has done for us."

Ash stood on top of the building, his cloak billowing around him slightly. Through the gloom of the evening he could see the figures of his old friends sat inside a restaurant. As Ash watched Gary laugh, he smiled slightly to himself. Whatever he tried to tell himself, he knew that Samuel Oak vanishing was not accidental. It was a deliberate act, but by whom he didn't know. Espeon slunk into sight at his feet.

"Are you satisfied yet?" She asked. "He doesn't know anything about Professor Oak."

"Then what was wrong with him earlier?" Ash asked quietly.

"I don't know." Espeon said. "How long are we going to wait here? You should be talking to Mellanie."

Ash sighed. "You were right Espeon. She was not ready. We go into this alone once more."

"You are never alone." Espeon said, rubbing herself against his leg. "No matter what, we will never abandon you."

"I know." Ash murmured. "But how many others will? I have a terrible feeling about what is coming."

"You faced threats alone before. Why is this any different?"

"Because anybody who can snatch somebody like the Professor like this is capable of so much more. And without knowing anything about them, I cannot counter them."

"But when they show what their plan is you can…"

"Espeon, do not be naïve." Ash said, the slightest hint of censor in his tone. "You saw five years ago how fast public opinion can change. This won't be a private fight."

Espeon fell silent, unsure of what to say, and Ash didn't push the conversation further. He continued to gaze out across the city, as his friends left the restaurant far beneath them. Gary, Brock, Misty, Max, May, Dawn and Sam all turned and headed down a street. Ash watched them go, not saying anything to Espeon. As they reached the end of the street, he saw Gary and Misty break away from the group and head towards the seafront. As Ash watched, they went behind a different building and he lost sight of Gary and Misty.

Without saying anything, Ash leapt forwards, further than any human could usually jump. He landed on the next building, his progress making virtually no noise. Alongside him Espeon moved silently, keeping pace with her master. As they reached the edge of the next building Ash jumped again without hesitation. This continued until he reached a building that he could see the waterfront from. In the near dark, they could see two figures moving out along a beach. Ash knelt, his gaze never leaving the two friends he had left behind years ago.

"Why are we out here?" Misty asked Gary as they walked slowly along the beach, his arm around her waist.

"You mean you don't like spending time with me?" Gary asked teasingly.

Misty laughed. "I do. I just thought you might want to go to the hotel instead."

"And spend more time with Max? I'd rather be with you out here." Gary said, a slight edge to his voice. Misty heard it and turned to regard her boyfriend with a piercing gaze.

"Gary, what's wrong?"

Gary took a deep breath. "I've been thinking."

"Always dangerous." Misty quipped, but Gary didn't laugh. "Sorry, go on."

"I've been thinking." Gary said again. "I may have to visit the Pokémon League soon."

"Why?" Misty asked, confused.

"Because they are the only ones who I would expect to be able to help me find Gramps." Gary said quietly, turning to look out across the sea, his hands drifting into his pockets. "I haven't heard from him in a while, and I don't know how to contact him."

"Surely he'll contact you eventually, like he always does?" Misty asked, not understanding. "Why does this need to be soon?"

"Because," Gary said, turning to face Misty. "I hope he'll want to be here." Gary took his hand out of his pocket. In his hand was a small black box, almost invisible in the darkness that surrounded the two of them.

"Want to be here for what?" Misty asked, unable to see the box in Gary's hand.

Gary smiled, and leaned in to kiss Misty. As he drew away he slowly knelt on one knee, holding the box aloft. As she saw it, Misty felt the breath catch in her throat.

"Gary… Is that…"

"Red." Gary said, cutting across Misty. "I've known you for years. For the last five years we've been together, and I scarcely have a bad memory of my time with you."

Misty stood in silence as Gary talked, hardly able to breath. "Gary…"

"Let me finish" the researcher said quietly. "I know that you once loved Ash, and that accepting that he was gone was difficult. And I know how hard it was for you to open up to me. But you did. You opened up and trusted me. And on the day that you first told me that you love me, I promised myself that I'd never let you down."

Tears were now flowing down Misty's face, dropping down onto the sand at her feet. Her entire body was rigid, almost as if she'd been shocked by a Pokémon and couldn't move.

"I love you Red. I can't imagine spending my life without you; I can't imagine not having you with me. I love you more than I ever thought I could love anybody."

Gary flicked the box open to reveal a ring inside. It was in the shape of a Gyarados, chasing its tail, its serpentine form twisted into a band. The eyes on the Pokémon were tiny gemstones, dull in the absence of light. The quality of the work was evident in the detail on the Pokémon.

"Misty Elizabeth Waterflower, will you marry me?"

Misty looked down at the man who knelt before her, a ring proffered, his face filled with hope and longing. For a long moment she couldn't move, before her muscles came back to life. She reached down and drew Gary to his feet, before pulling him close and kissing him. As she broke away, she smiled at him and said one word.

"Yes."

A/N

This will a shorter, briefer note, mostly just answering a couple of reviews.

Jessica Jayme Bell – Happy birthday! Hope you had a good day, and I'm glad the chapter was a good present!

DarkZeta – You are one of many who have asked about a pairing for Ash. I have a few ideas, but I'm undecided as yet. So I'll answer your half question with a half answer!

A few of you pointed out that May is typically called Maple, not Shu. Well… Sorry to disappoint, but if you're still unsure why go read this chapter again. Kudo's to the one person who worked it out.

On the note of that, a few of Ash's old friends are appearing to pair off. I understand that some people won't be pleased to see Gary and Misty, but it needs to happen for plot reasons. Feel free to guess why.

Till next week,

Iama2p