When Two Fates Collide

by Core-AI

Betrayed by his closest friends, Ash leaves society and lives in seclusion. After living alone for 6 years, Ash returns when he receives an invitation to a tournament from Scott. Little did Ash know that this decision would present numerous obstacles which he would have to overcome or let the past consume him. Rayshipping-Ash X Cynthia pairing. Warning-contains lemon scenes.

4. Shocking Discovery

Chapter 4: Shocking Discovery

Note: I do not own Pokémon. Pokémon is owned by Nintendo and I in no way shape or form, claim in any way that I own Pokémon with this story. This story is purely made up for entertainment purposes.

"Speech with voice"

"Speaking with telepathy or aura bond"

'Thoughts'

"ANNOUNCER FOR TOURNAMENT"

IMPORTANT NOTE FOR ALL READERS! PLEASE READ BEFORE READING CHAPTER!

First things first, I would like to apologize for not uploading in a while. I had a string of bad events hit me out of nowhere which just made me unable to write. My mother got a fracture in her foot while University started for me so I'm still trying to get my schedule together as taking care of my mom while doing Uni is time consuming. I hope you all understand.

Next, I want you guys to know that I'll try to stick with a regular uploading schedule. Right now I'm thinking for working for an hour or so on the chapters whenever I can and hopefully upload every two weeks however for this month is may take longer to upload the next chapter. Therefore, I hope all you guys and girls are patient and wait for the next chapter. When my mom is fully healed I will stick to my two week uploading schedule.

Now that I got that off my chest, I would like to just say that this chapter doesn't include any battle action however it does include an Ash X Cynthia moment (For all the Rayshipping fans, this is for you.) I'm going to develop their relationship further before I start including lemons so hope you look forwards to that. Final note is that, this fic will include a lot of battle as you all will see when you read the end of the chapter however, I don't think I will have Ash face any evil or what not because I would like to get this story done as I want to work on 3 big fanfic projects that I have planned out.

Anyways, enough ranting. Enjoy the story and make sure to read the author's notes at the end…

"Hello Gold." Replied Ash in a cold yet calm tone.

An awkward silence then filled the hallway as Gold was shocked and dumbfounded as to why the trainer that has been living in a mountain for so long is doing in a public place. After overcoming his shock, he managed to ask "umm…Red what are you doing here?"

"The tournament."

"Wait…your participating?"

The young man simply replied with a simple nod. "No offense but why? Last time we met, it seemed like you were never planning on returning to society." Said Gold

"None of your business kid. Have you been training?" replied Ash in a cold, dark voice as he didn't want him to know much about his life.

The response Gold got, caused a frown to appear on his face but he expected as much considering how cold, dark and distant he was when he met him on Mt. Silver. Before, the teenager could response, Cynthia had come out of her room and called out to the young champion. "Hey Gold!"

Both trainers looked towards the source of the sound and saw the young blonde beauty walking towards them wearing a turquoise top with black trousers and black heels. The clothing held tight against her body and showed off her incredible bust which had caused Ash to blush fifty shades of Red.

Both Pikachu and Mewtwo noticed this and snickered as many evil thoughts went in their head at how much they were going to tease him. Gold then said "Oh hey Cynthia." Meanwhile, Red remained silent while gazing at the goddess coming towards them while thinking 'Man, after all these years, she is still beautiful as ever.'

Cynthia quickly noticed the three figures behind the Johto champion and recognized the man. She then asked "Oh… Red is that you? What are you doing here?"

"I have a hotel suite here since I'm participating in the tournament." Replied Red with a warm smile.

Meanwhile, Gold was once again shocked that Red had actually smiled and that he was treating Cynthia with respect while he usually got the cold shoulder.

Cynthia was confused that Red had been given a suite on this floor as it was only for champions. "Wait, how do you have a room here? This hotel only houses Champions, Elite four members, gym leaders and frontier brains and from what I know, you aren't any of those."

Ash just gave a warm smile before saying with some sarcasm "I know. Scott booked me a room here. Apparently I get to live in the luxurious champion suite."

Gold and Cynthia both became confused upon hearing this as they never new Scott doing this much for a trainer as they knew how many strings you have to pull to be able to offer a trainer a champion's suite.

"Really? That's strange. I never thought Scott would offer a trainer so much…" said Cynthia

After overcoming his shock of seeing Red act so nice, he managed to say "Um…that's weird. Anyways, to answer your question Red, yes I have been training hard. Don't think I will be so easy to beat like last time."

"I would hope not…"

"Um… Gold, what do you mean easy to beat like last time? Did you battle him?" asked a confused Cynthia.

"Remember when I tried to climb Mt. Silver to try and see if the rumours of the mountain were true?"

"Yeah, something about a powerful trainer said to live there."

"Well, after I became champion, I decided to check it out. I tried climbing the mountain but ended up falling at one point and injuring myself after fighting with the POWEFUL wild Pokémon. Red saved my life and after I recovered I battled him. I got utterly destroyed by his Pokémon. I didn't even manage to knock a single Pokémon on his team."

Cynthia was stunned to hear that a fellow champion was beaten so easily and was getting more impressed upon hearing all of this mysterious trainer's accomplishments. "Wait wait. Red, you are the mysterious trainer that was rumoured to live on Mt. Silver?"

He simply replied with a nod.

"Wow Red. You have truly accomplished some amazing feats." Said Cynthia.

"Thank you for the kind words." Replied the young man with a blush that went unnoticed by Cynthia but Gold was too dam perceptive for his own good.

"Are…are you blushing Red?"

The moment those words left Gold's mouth, Ash's blush vanished as he gave the young champion a death glare that almost made him shit his pants. Scared out of his wits, Gold decided it was best to leave before he was pummeled by the man. "N…never mind. I'm out of here!" He quickly bolted towards the elevator leaving a smirking Red and a giggling Cynthia.

"I guess Gold will never change… So Red I guess, I'll see you around." said the Sinnoh champion.

"I sure hope so."

With that Red made his way to his hotel room while Cynthia decided to head to the private training area in the hotel built specifically for Champions, Elite four members and frontier brains.

The moment Ash stepped into his suite, both him and his two Pokémon were dumbfounded by the beauty of the room. The suite was a shimmering, gold-white colour. The living room had leather sofas, a 60" T.V, a hi-tech computer, a glass table that sat on top of a white-coloured fur carpet. The trio, began exploring their suite and found that it contained a large bedroom with a king-sized bed, a luxurious bathroom, a mini swimming pool, a game room, a large kitchen with a humungous fridge that stored numerous types of food.

Once they were done exploring, Ash said "WOW! Scott has really out done himself this time."

"Yes Ash. I must admit, I'm amazed by this creative design and the beauty of this place. Very impressive human ingenuity."

"Oh, I sure hope they have Ketchup here. Come on Ash, check the fridge and see if they have any!"

Ash nodded at Mewtwo's statement and chuckled at Pikachu's theatrics. He went to the fridge and managed to find a large bottle of ketchup which the small yellow mouse started devouring as if he hadn't eaten in several days. The young man made his way back to the living room and noticed an envelope. 'I wonder what this is…'

Ash opened it and read the letter inside:

"Dear Ash,

If your reading this than you have obviously decided to participate in this tournament not that I doubted you would miss the chance to participate in the most prestigious tournament of the decade. Anyways, I hope your hotel suite is to your liking and you will be able to live there for the remainder of the tournament. One last thing I wanted to mention is the dinner gathering happening in the castle behind the stadiums. All the trainers are going to be gathering at the dinner party just to chat and have fun before the tournament begins. However, there will be a special party separate happening at the same time as that one and in this one only, champions, elite four members and frontier brains will be allowed to enter it. Although it is not necessary, I'm hoping you'll attend the special gathering with fellow CEF (Champions, Elite four members, Frontier brains) gathering which will be taking place the day before the opening ceremonies. I'll have a suit ready for you and will be in your room on the day of said party, once I get your measurements from your mother of course. Anyways, good luck and win the whole thing!"

'So Scott wants me to attend this party eh…well it's the least I could do after all he has done for me and since the special party won't be crowded, I guess it won't be so bad.' His thoughts were quickly broken when Mewtwo asked "What does the letter say Ash?"

"Apparently, Scott wishes us to enter a special party happening on the day before the opening ceremonies. I think I'll go considering how much I owe that man."

"I see…if it's alright with you, I think I'll stay away when the party comes around as I don't want to be around so many humans for so long."

"Don't worry Mewtwo, I understand. So Pikachu, do you wish to come with me to the party or…."

The young man noticed that Pikachu wasn't paying attention to the conversation and was still eating the ketchup while seemingly going into ecstasy. Both Mewtwo and Ash sweat-dropped at the sight while the trainer just made a mental note to ask him about this later.

After a few minutes had passed and Pikachu finished eating his ketchup, the trio exited the hotel suite and locked it as they didn't want to stay there. They made their way out and headed towards the stadiums and decided to have a look around to find a secluded area in the forest where he may be able to train without attracting unwanted attention while also not being too far away from the stadium so that he may easily reach his matches on time.

The trio headed East of the main stadium towards one of the mountains of the island. On his way through the somewhat thick forest, they noticed many different types of Pokémon that lived in the forest that seemed very high leveled. After about 20 minutes of walking past bushes and trees, the raven-haired man along with his Pokémon stumbled upon a large grassy clearing with a lake nearby sparkling like diamonds in the sunlight. A very large yet lone tree stood a few metres away from the lake and some distance away there was a cave that seemed to go through a small hill which was connected to the base of the mountain some distance away.

Trainer and Pokémon took in the fresh air of their surroundings and enjoyed the calm and serene breeze. Ash then asked Mewtwo and Pikachu "So how do you guys feel about this place. We can stay and train here throughout the tournament."

"This is an amazing place. I'm sure it will be wonderful to train battle here." Replied Mewtwo in a calm tone.

"This place seems really peaceful and relaxing and it will be fun to train here."

"I'm glad you two like it. Now time to bring out our family."

"Alright everyone let's go" shouted Ash as he used his aura to enlarge and throw all the poke balls from his bag and called out all his Pokémon.

Events that took place with Ash's 'Friends' after Max's humiliating defeat….

Max stood there surprised as to how easily his Pokémon were taken down by that mysterious trainer. All his friends ran towards him and tried to comfort him but the young boy just stood there staring down at the ground while hundreds of thoughts were going threw his head. He silently recalled his fallen Pokémon and walked towards the Pokémon center with his friends following closely behind him.

He handed his Pokémon to Nurse Joy, registered for the tournament and got rooms to stay in for the tournament before they decided to get a bite to eat while Max's Pokémon were being treated. While his friends were chatting with each other with smiles on their faces, Max was deep in thought. Brock noticed this and decided to get to the bottom of it. "Max's what's wrong. You have been awfully quiet for the past couple of hours."

The other's heard Brock's question and quickly quieted down, also wanting to hear Max's answer. Max sighed before he said "I was just thinking about my battle. I mean I was beaten so easily and badly. Maybe that trainer was right and I don't even deserve to be in this tournament."

May began to fume from hearing his and started to talk in a louder voice then usual "Max that trainer was a jerk! You shouldn't listen to him! You definitely deserve to be here with all the hard work you and your Pokémon have put in to come here to this tournament."

"Yeah! With a bit more intense training, you'll be able to beat that jerk in no time flat. I'm willing to bet that those were his strongest Pokémon and after some intense training you'll be able to beat him and go far into the tournament." Said Misty in a reassuring tone.

Max's self-confidence began rising upon hearing the encouraging words of his friends. "You guys really…think so?"

"Of course we do. Train hard and you'll sweep the competition. No need to worry."

"Yeah your right. I'm going to train really hard for the next few days and then no one will be able to stand a candle to me."

"Now, now don't get to confident Max. Me and misty here are in the tournament as well and we won't be easy to beat." Said Brock.

They all let out a laugh and the tension as well as Max's worries vanished into thin air. Max then shouted "Alright soon, its time for some intense special training."

After 4 days, the day before the party night….

During these past few days, every single person participating in the tournament were training hard to prepare themselves for some of the most intense battles of the decade, quite possibly the most intense ever. All throughout the city, wherever there were open fields, you could find trainers battling each other and training their Pokémon. Almost every single battlefield and open space was occupied.

Max and his friends always woke up early so they would be able to get a few battle fields to themselves so they could do some intense training as well as mock battles with each other as well as other trainers. Max's desire to beat that mysterious trainer and pay him back for that humiliating defeat fueled him all the time he trained.

The day passed quickly and the sun was starting to set in the horizon while Max and Brock recently finished a mock battle with his Pokémon. That's when he noticed Red walking by the battlefields. The young boy quickly ran over to his friends and pointed in Red's direction and said "Hey isn't that Red over there?"

All of his friends turned to face the direction he was pointing at and quickly noticed the young man walking towards the forest along with a cloaked figure, a Lucario who's fur was pure white like the snow and a Pikachu walking with him.

Dawn then spoke up "Yeah that's him alright but where is he going?"

"Who knows, but look at that white Lucario. It seems so well raised and well…beautiful." Said Brock, intrigued by the majestic creature.

May's temper began to rise upon hearing praise for the Pokémon trainer. "Why are you praising that jerk Brock? He's a pathetic trainer."

Misty then said "Relax May. You don't have to get so angry especially since Brock just praised the Lucario."

"That jerk doesn't deserve any praise."

Max ignored the conversation going between his friends and noticed Red's figure starting to head deeper into the nearby forest and spoke up "Hey guys, he's heading into the forest. Maybe we should follow him. He may be doing some special training and we might get to see other Pokémon he has."

They all looked at each other and after a moment of silence they nodded and started to head in his direction after recalling their Pokémon.

Cynthia's 3rd person POV of following Red….

Meanwhile, Cynthia was walking from the Pokémon center after she had her Pokémon healed and was heading back to her hotel to relax for a bit. She was near the east side of the stadium when she noticed Red walking in the distance along with a cloaked figure, Pikachu and a stunning white-Lucario. She saw he was walking towards the forest and decided to follow him with the desire to see some of his Pokémon after all the stories she had heard about him. Also watching him battle also peaked her interest.

The blonde beauty started making her way through the forest with Red barely in sight and unknown to her that there was another group of people also following the young man. The glow of the sun set lit up the forest and made all the leaves shine while also making the Sinnoh champion sparkle like a goddess.

She continued making her way through the forest until she eventually bumped into the other group of people also following Red.

Normal POV….

The Sinnoh champion and Ash's betrayers crossed paths and Brock quickly jumped to the blonde with lust-filled eyes.

"Oh Cynthia! It must be fated for us to be together with our path's crossing like this. Come with me and I will show you happ…OWWWWW!" said Brock as he was cut off with a very strong poison jab from his toxic croak who came out of his poke ball on his own. The toxic croak dragged the horny brown haired man away to recover from the attack.

While this was happening, Cynthia sweat-dropped seeing that Brock hadn't changed throughout the years but her mind was filled with rage upon seeing the group of people that caused the boy now man she loved so much pain.

The group called out in unison "Hey Cynthia!"

Cynthia replied with a voice filled with hate "What are you people doing here?"

This caused the group to wonder why she sounded so angry but also what was she doing here in the middle of the forest. Meanwhile an arrogant Max walked towards the champion standing a few feet away and said "We were just wandering around. So what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be training for the tournament because I'm going to win the whole thing and I hope you give me a good challenge."

Although Cynthia was usually a kind person and never bothered by arrogant trainers, this time she was downright pissed at seeing their faces after they turned their back on Ash and decided to give them a piece of her mind. "First of all it's none of your business what I do with my time and second of all are going to be facing powerful trainers in the tournament. From you battle with Red I saw a few days ago, you aren't going to make it far into the tournament at all."

At this point May and Misty were fuming at Cynthia's attitude while Max looked down for a moment when he was reminded of his humiliating defeat but looked back up a second later with over-confidence. "That was then Cynthia. I trained extremely hard the pass few days and now I'm going to sweep the competition and earn the title of Pokémon Master."

"Hahahaha. That's a nice joke!" said Cynthia.

"Just you watch. I'll smack that smile right off your face." Said an enraged max

Cynthia only smirked at the comment while May walked up to Cynthia and started to shout "WHAT'S YOUR PROB…" but she was quickly cut off by a voice in the distance.

"Lucario! Infernape! Let's go."

Everyone's attention turned towards where the voice was coming from and they made their way past a few bushes and trees and they came across a small clearing where a man stood alongside a white-coloured Lucario and an Infernape. Meanwhile a cloaked-figure and Pikachu stood at the edge of the clearing around 30 metres away from the group of people.

When Cynthia, May, Misty and Dawn saw the man that stood in the center of the clearing, a large crimson blush spread across all there faces. Cynthia managed to suppress her nose-bleed but the other 3 girls didn't manage to do so and a small trickle of blood came down their noses.

Brock who recovered from the poison jab was standing beside Max and both were looking at the fierce looking Pokémon standing in front of the man a few metres away. The Pokémon were radiating immense power which caused both the humans to slightly shudder in fear.

In the center-field stood Ash in his pants with his very muscular, toned, and defined body on show for the world to see (Think of Hasselberry from Yugioh GX but slightly smaller.). His bulging arms, firm six pack, big and strong pecs and his incredible back muscles were enough to have any girl fall head-over heels for him. He was in a defensive stance facing the two fighting type Pokémon with his knees slightly bent and his arms in front of him with his hands in a fist.

The young man then spoke up "Alright you two. Time to show me how much your training has paid off and see if you two manage to defeat me. Remember don't use any of your special attacks, just your physical fighting type moves."

In his aura bond he communicated with the four Pokémon on the field "It seems that we have the audience. Let's fight our very best. I want to strike fear into the hearts of those traitors…and maybe impress Cynthia…WAIT…I never said that."

Although the 4 Pokémon were filled with rage at seeing the people that betrayed him not including Cynthia, they couldn't help but let out a small giggle when Ash said that.

Pikachu replied "Sure lover boy! Now START THE FIGHT!"

Lucario and Infernape replied in unison "LET'S GO!"

Right then Lucario and Infernape ran towards their trainer. Infernape using a dual mach punch and Lucario using a dual brick-break attack.

When Cynthia saw this her heart skipped a beat and she started to panic when she saw the two Pokémon were about to attack their trainer and shouted "RED NO!"

Meanwhile the girls and Brock watched with anticipation and fear in their eyes as the Pokémon made their way towards their target with incredible speed. Max however was smirking as he saw this. 'Great now I will get to see him get pummeled by those two Pokémon.'

…Back to the fight…

The two fighting types approached their trainer and they simulataneously launched their attacks however, their target disappeared in a quick blur and the next thing they knew, they were swept off their feet when a foot came in from behind and knocked them to the ground. The duo turned around only to see their trainer standing above them quickly bringing his blue-glowing fists towards them. Both the monkey and the canine quickly rolled outwards and did a back-flip to get back onto their feet while the two fists slammed on the ground area where they are laying only a second ago.

When the fist collided with the ground, a shockwave was sent throughout the clearing and everyone there could feel the power that was in that punch. Ash stood up and said "What did I teach you two? Don't go charging in with an attack with out a back up plan in case it fails. Remember, never underestimate your opponent."

The two Pokémon nodded at this statement before they took battle ready stances, determined to beat their master and friend in this fight. The two Pokémon then decided to try a pincer attack, so Lucario ran towards his master with a power-up punch attack while Infernape ran behind Ash and started running towards his back with a dual brick-break attack.

Ash quickly realized what they were planning and instead of trying to dodge he wanted to see what they would do if he was able to deflect both their attacks. This in mind, he infused his fists with his aura and spun around a few times to build up momentum before one fist collided with Lucario's attack while the other collided with Infernape's attack. The trio were at a stalemate with their strengths being even, however, Ash smirked and jumped up and doing a perfect mid air-split while trying to hit Lucario and Infernape while they were distracted.

However, the duo was prepared for this and they managed to break off from their attack and brought their arms down to defend themselves. The force of the kick made the two Pokémon skid backwards a few metres while Ash landed on his two feet. They all shared glances at each other and smirked, loving the intensity of the battle. This time Ash decided to go on the offensive and started to run towards Lucario. In a mere fraction of a second the man was in front of Lucario and launched his fist towards the fighting type's chest. Knowing he wouldn't be able to dodge the attack, the canine brought his hands in front of his chest in an X shape and blocked the attack. The force of the punch made Lucario once again skid back.

Ash then spun around and launched a kick behind him as he noticed Infernape closing on him. Infernape had tried to taken advantage of the fact that Ash's attention was now on his partner so he thought, he could get in a sneak attack on him. Little did Infernape know that, he fell into his trap. The fire monkey had launched himself towards his trainer at incredible speed with one hand glowing white and the other hand glowing blue. In a few moments, Infernape was an inch away from Ash's back and before he realized it, the monkey felt a foot connecting with his face and the next thing he knew, he was on the ground.

The raven-haired trainer then said "Come, on you two. I taught you guys better then that."

Infernape managed to get back on his two feet after a small struggle and he looked over to Lucario and nodded his head. The canine got the message and then they both were surrounded by a red aura. Determined to show their trainer their strength they both launched themselves towards Red and started to use close combat. The trainer and the Pokémon started launching, deflecting and dodging many punches and kicks. During this time, they all had smiles on their faces as to them they thrive in the heat of battle and they love it.

…With Cynthia and the traitors…

Everyone was watching in awe as the Pokémon and trainer fought head to head and what shocked them most was that they were smiling while fighting. Brock then spoke up and said "Incredible. Red actually fights with his Pokémon."

The others were too shocked at the display before them to speak and simply nodded at Brock's comment. Max had many thoughts going through his head 'Man Red's training is so intense. No wonder his Pokémon are so strong. Maybe I can't win against him…. No I will beat him! Come on Infernape and Lucario, pummel that guy!'

Cynthia meanwhile was thinking to herself 'Man and I thought I trained intensely when I worked out with my Pokémon but Red actually trains and fights with and against his Pokémon. His love for battling far surpasses mine. But why do his hands glow like that…. could it be…. he's an aura guardian? With a hot sexy body, no less…no bad thoughts, bad Cynthia'. Her thoughts were broken when she saw Lucario and Infernape breaking off and standing beside each other facing Red

…Back to the trio…

After 10 minutes of using close combat and fighting non-stop with Ash, the trio were exhausted visibly panting and they knew they were reaching their limits. During these 10 minutes, the Pokémon and Ash had launched attack after attack, while some hit, many were either dodged or deflected. Many times Infernape or Lucario got in an effective punch in on Ash and made him grunt in pain but the muscular man had quickly retaliated many times and gave his own counter attack which had injured the duo fighting-types.

The two Pokémon now stood beside each other standing 30 metres away from Ash. Knowing the end was near, they both looked at each other and then looked at Ash and smiled at him before the trio nodded their heads. Ash then shouted "Let's finish this!"

Infernape and Lucario's right fist glowed a whitish-blue colour and it was surrounded by a blue aura, signalling they were using aura infused focus punch attacks. When Ash saw this, he knew they were pouring all their strength into this final attack so he decided to use his powerful fist attack as well. The man's hand glowed a very bright blue colour and it was surrounded by his aura which was spiralling around his fist; this was an attack called drill focus punch.

Once the trio collected and focused all their energy into their fists, they launched at each other at an incredible speed. There was incredible tension in the air as the trainer and the duo fighting-types were closing the distance between them. This caused everyone including Mewtwo to hold their breath as they awaited the collision to happen and see the result of this incredible attack.

In a few seconds, the each of Ash's fists, collided with one fist from Infernape and one from Lucario. The moment their hands made contact, an incredible shock wave of power was sent throughout the island causing the people watching the match to stagger and watch in amazement of the power of not only the Pokémon but also the person they were fighting against. The trio were locked in a stalemate as the two Pokémon were trying their best to overpower their trainer who was holding his own against the two.

After a few seconds of back and fourth struggling, Ash took one large breath and let out a huge roar before he used every ounce of his strength and pushed his fists against the canine and the monkey. They were hit by Ash's powerful attack and were sent flying back a few metres both landing on their back and were down for the count.

The moment Pikachu, saw this, he ran up to Ash to congratulate him and shouted "PIKA PI, PIKACHU" (Ash! Awesome Job.) To which Ash just smiled and gave him a thumbs up. He slowly walked towards the two downed fighting types and dropped to the ground and lied on his back. The trio then started laughing hard at the intense battle they just had "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Everyone in the group was shocked to see the trainer and Pokémon laughing so hard especially after the brutal battle that just took place. Dawn managed to speak up after overcoming her shock "How are they laughing after that. That battle was insane and who battles with their Pokémon?"

Cynthia decided to answer her question "They are laughing because they enjoyed the battle they just had. They seem to truly thrive during the heat of battle and its at that time when they are really happy. To answer your other question, I believe Red is an aura guardian." When Cynthia answered Dawn's question, she didn't have any hate or malice in her voice due to her sheer amazement at what had taken place before her eyes.

Ash heard this and decided to barge in on the conversation as well and shouted "Very perceptive Ms. Shirona. I see you have beauty as well as an intelligent mind."

Cynthia blushed at the compliment hidden partially thanks to her long golden hair, and made her way to the trainer along with the traitors. When the young trainer heard the many foot steps coming towards him, he got back up on his two feet along with Lucario and Infernape and turned to face the group of people coming his way.

Once they were standing face to face only a couple metres away from each other. Lucario, Infernape and Pikachu had anger on their faces once they saw the people that had caused their master and friend so much pain. Ash saw this and sent them a message through his aura telling them to calm down as he would handle this.

Cynthia then spoke up "Thank you for the compliment Red and please call me Cynthia."

Ash nodded at this before Brock decided to ask what was on his mind "Red, your Pokémon seemed very well trained and powerful, but why do you fight with them?"

The young trainer replied with a blunt answer "Training…"

"Okay… But how are you able to even fight with them? Usually humans can never fight against the sheer power of Pokémon." Asked a curious Misty.

"Aura."

"So Red, do you train like this with all your Pokémon?" asked the blonde beauty.

"Yes and no. I train differently depending on my Pokémon but I do fight against them to see how strong both of us are becoming. Thankfully, my aura enables me to fight against them." Replied Ash in a cool calm tone.

Max was then eager to find out all the Pokémon the man before them owned, to make sure he was prepared if he had to fight against him during the tournament. "So Red, can we see all your other Pokémon?"

The man ignored the snotty kid and kept on talking with Cynthia "So Cynthia, do you train with your Pokémon as well?"

"Yes, I train along side them to increase my bond with them and put in as much blood, sweat and tears as them." Replied Cynthia while she noticed Red Ignored Max.

"That's the best way to train. Your bond with your Pokémon is more important then anything else. You know…"

But before he could continue, a furious Max shouted "Hey listen to me when I'm talking to you!"

This caused Ash to smirk and said "No! I don't listen to pathetic trainers."

This caused May to explode as she had anger building inside her at how he was talking with her brother "What the heck is wrong with you! You act so nice around Cynthia but why are you a jerk towards us."

"Because I despise betrayers…"

They were all confused when they heard this and Brock asked "What do you mean Red? What did we do and how are we betrayers?"

Ash sighed and looked at Cynthia who had a confused look on her face. He then faced towards the people that caused him to go into exile and said "I know about what you guys had done 6 years ago."

The moment those words left the man's mouth, everyone was stunned to hear this but they all had guilt built inside them so they looked towards the ground. Misty then spoke up "Oh yeah! What do you know?!"

"I know how you betrayed a good friend of yours and caused him to run away. You caused the man so much pain and betrayed his trust for no god dam reason." Replied an angry Ash.

Misty then shouted out, unable to control her guilt and anger of her decision "WE WERE SCARED ALRIGHT. All the evidence had pointed towards him and there was no proof to support his innocence. We were scared that if we supported him, we would go to jail with him."

"Pathetic. You people are sorry excuses for friends."

This caused the traitors to look down and were filled with ore guilt and sadness then before. However, Cynthia couldn't stand this and broke into tears when she heard this. In her mind, she always thought she was the reason that Ash had to run away. When Ash saw this, he was also coming close to being in tears as he didn't mean to upset Cynthia when he said that so to rectify his mistake he walked close to Cynthia and embraced her with her crying head resting on his shoulders.

This surprised everyone, including Cynthia but what Red said next shocked them even more "Ash never, blamed you Cynthia. He never blamed you for this but he knew that you would feel guilty and think that you caused him to run away. So please don't hold this guilt as it isn't yours to bear, ITS THEIRS!" said Ash shouting the last part and glared at the others.

After a few moments, of silence where the only sound was the sound of Cynthia's sobs, she managed to lift her face from Red's shoulders and asked "W-wait…you know…Ash? Where is he?"

When she asked this, the others looked up at him hoping that they could tell them where he is and hopefully apologize to him. Red then thought for a second deciding on what to say. "I know him better then anyone else and trust me when I saw he doesn't blame you Cynthia. If you wish to know about where he is well the only thing I can tell you is that he is participating in this tournament and you all have already met him."

This shocked everyone to the core knowing that he was in this tournament. This caused Cynthia to be filled with happiness and embraced Red causing the man to blush very hard. When she was hugging him she thought 'why does he seem so familiar. I swear we have met before'. The blonde beauty then realized what she was doing and let go of him while also blushing scarlet red said "T-thank you so much Red. I have been searching him for so long."

"No problem Cynthia. You will find him very soon. Now, you people…" said Ash as he faced towards the other humans "LEAVE MY SIGHT. I CAN'T STAND BEING AROUNG PEOPLE LIKE YOU. LEAVE AND NEVER TALK TO ME AGAIN!" roared Red with extreme hatred and malice.

The group didn't even bother retaliating against the man or asking questions in their mind about Ash as they were too buried in their own guilt and shame that they just turned around and started walking away. Red and Cynthia watched as the two disappeared into the forest as a cool breeze blew and caused Cynthia's long gold hair to blow and graze Ash's face. He thought that he was in heaven when this happened as he was finally around the person he had unbridled love for but too scared to confront due to past events.

An uncomfortable silence filled the air which was soon broken by Ash as he said "I'm sorry for my outburst but I just hate people who betrayed another's trust for no good reason."

"It's no problem Red. You have no idea how many times I wanted to maul those people to the ground for what they did. I also hate those kinds of people…but I am curious as to how you met Ash and how is he doing right now."

"Well I can't exactly tell you how I met Ash…but you should know he is doing well and he misses you. Other then that I can't say much but don't worry, when you find him, all will become clear."

Cynthia's heart skipped a beat when he said that Ash misses her. 'Oh my god! Ash misses me. Why would he miss me, I mean I was then one who caused him to run. Even though Red did say that he never blamed me, I'm sure Ash hates me and Red's just saying that just to make me feel better. Oh Ash where are you? Please come back to me'

Cynthia snapped out of her thoughts and she noticed that the sun had set and it was night time. "Thank you for every thing Red. You have no idea how much you have helped me. Now we should get back to the hotel to sleep."

"It was nothing Cynthia. Don't worry about me, you should get back to the hotel to sleep. I like sleeping here with nature, its more relaxing. Even though Scott got me a champion's suite, I just don't feel comfortable there and neither do my Pokémon."

"Okay I understand. Well once again thanks for everything." Cynthia bowed before she walked towards the forest and made her way back to the hotel as she wanted to walk rather then fly on her Garchomp.

As Ash saw her figure disappearing into the woods Mewtwo had teleported from his spot to right beside Ash carrying his shirt and cape. He then asked "Ash, why didn't you reveal to her, who you were?"

"I'm just not ready to face her yet. I know we only have a couple days before my identity is revealed to the world but I need that time to get ready. I just hope she accepts me and my apology for staying away for so long."

"Don't worry master. She will accept you. Now we should get back to our training ground to get some rest. We only came here because you knew they were following us and you didn't want them to find out where we were staying."

"I know Lucario. Let's go…"

Next day during the evening in Ash's hotel suite….

Ash stood alone in front of his bead as his Pokémon including Pikachu and Mewtwo decided they didn't want to attend the party with him and stayed with their family by the clearing and decided to train. He was staring at the amazing suite that laid on the bed. The party time was approaching soon and Ash had decided to take a shower and fresh up so he could be prepared for the party. Ash put the suit on and made his way outside the hotel and started walking towards the large castle-like structure that stood behind the stadiums. There was a large bridge that led across a large body of water and stopped at a huge garden that stood just outside the castle. Many people could be seen from afar, talking to each other and enjoying the party.

As the young trainer made his way to the castle he could see many females blushing madly and giggling when he walked by as with his suit on, and his modern Adonis type looks and amazing hair, he could make pretty much any girl fall for him. However, he just ignored all this and continued walking and eventually made his way across the bridge and started walking through the party going on. There were several tables laid out throughout the garden which housed many different meals, and there were many decorations hanging at the top via ropes and with the stars sparkling along with the moon's glow, it made this party seem like the ones rich people go to. Ash caught the attention of almost every girl there as he walked by and made his way towards the entrance of the castle. He ignored all of them as his heart had already belonged to someone even if she didn't know it yet.

When he made it to the entrance, he saw that Scott was standing there in a black tuxedo and apparently was waiting for him. Scott noticed Ash walking towards him and said "Hey Red, I'm glad you decided to come to the party. Man its been far too long since we have last seen each other."

"I owed you too much not to come to the party Scott and I'm sorry we haven't spoken in so long. So where is the special party being held?"

"You don't owe me anything Red and I understand everything, you don't have to apologize. Anyways, the special party is being held in here. Come follow me." Said Scott gesturing towards the castle door. Scott told the guards at the front door who were preventing anyone who wasn't invited inside to go through. When the door opened, Ash was amazed at what he saw. A large door stood quite a distance in front of the main door. On the two sides were two curved stairs that led to the second floor of the castle. Many statues of poke balls could be seen at the side of the walls on the side of many doors that led to different parts of the castle.

Ash followed Scott as he walked to the large door between the doors taking in the incredible sight. Scott chuckled at his reaction as he knew, the young man had spent so many years in a mountain so this sight would probably surprise him quite a bit. The owner of the Kanto battle frontier opened the door and the two men stepped into the party hall. What Ash saw next literally made his jaw drop.

The room was huge and consisted of many intricately designed pillars around the perimeter of the room. On the two sides of the room, stood two long tables, covered in a white table-cloth, with many chairs and all sorts of food was placed on top. There was a small table at the very end of the room with about a dozen chairs equally spaced from each other and had several delicious sparkling dishes on top. There was a large crystal chandelier that hanged from the ceiling in the center of the room, and sparkled like a diamond. The center of the room was quite spacious so the people could gather and talk there and eventually dance.

As the raven-haired man continued to look in awe of his surroundings he also noticed that all of the most powerful trainers in the world had gathered here and were talking to each other. Ash was broken out of his thoughts when Scott said "Come on Red, let's go over to the champion's table. It'll be fun to talk with them."

"Umm…okay sure." Replied Ash with some uncertainty in his voice.

The duo made their way towards the small table at the end of the room and many girls giggled and blushed when they saw the handsome raven-haired man walk buy. However, the man simply ignored this as his eyes were set on a single figure that could be seen near the table talking with the champions of Johto and Kanto.

The moment Ash laid eyes on her, all his mind could think about was how this beautiful woman looked like a complete goddess in the dress she was wearing. She wore a black strapless dress that hugged her body tightly, showing off her incredibly huge bust. The bottom part of her dress become a skirt that stopped a little above her knees. The woman's pale like skin sparkled when the lights showered on her, showing off her incredible beauty. She wore black heels and her long golden blonde hair flowed down and hanged just a bit above knee level.

Scott noticed Ash staring at the beautiful woman and smirked. "You know Red; you shouldn't stare at Cynthia like that. Your starting to drool."

This caused the young man to quickly snap out of his zombie like state and was struggling to regain his composure. "I…I…I wasn't staring."

"Relax Ash, I was just joking around. But…you still have feelings for her…even after all these years huh?"

"Well…I…I" Ash sighed knowing that Scott read him like an open book and just decided to tell him the truth. "Yeah…I love her…but I doubt she feels the same way. Not after all that's happened. Besides, I'm sure she has found someone else after all these years."

"You will never know until you tell her Red. And as far as having someone else, I doubt it."

"Why?"

"Just call it a hunch. Anyways let's go over and say hi." Said Scott as he grabbed Ash's hand and started to drag him towards Cynthia before he had a chance to protest.

They reached the trio in a few moments and Scott then called out to her "Hey Cynthia. How's it going?"

Cynthia turned to face Scott and said "Oh hey Scott." She then saw Red standing there and blushed at the handsome man that stood before her. He wore a silver coloured suit with a white shirt underneath and a turquoise coloured tie. A set of black dress shoes completed the outfit. His hair was still in the regular 'Sir Aaron' style but it had some gel in it which caused it to sparkle a bit when the light rays hit it.

After a moment of checking him out, Cynthia managed to pull herself from her thoughts and greeted the young man "Hello Red. You look…quite handsome."

This caused Ash to blush 20 shades of crimson red which surprised Red and Lance that stood there in their black tuxedos. He managed to stutter out "T…t…thank you Cynthia. You look quite beautiful yourself."

Now it was the Sinnoh champion's turn to blush which was partially hidden thanks to her long blonde hair but was still noticed by her two fellow champions, Scott and Ash. An awkward silence came upon the group despite the loud chatter happening between the party guest all around them. Deciding to start a conversation Gold spoke up "So Red, glad you decided to join us in the party."

The man simply nodded at this comment which is when reality dawned on Lance as he was trying to figure out where he had heard the name Red before. In less then a second he spoke up "Wait…your Red? The one who took down Team Rocket, Plasma and Flare."

Again the man simply nodded at this which left Lance with so many questions he wanted to ask the man but was declined the opportunity when Scott spoke up "Lance, don't start asking questions. Red doesn't feel comfortable sharing his experiences. Now are you three enjoying the party."

The 3 nodded in understanding at Scott's statement as they had gone on their fair share of missions against certain criminal organizations and they know that what you see on some of those missions can leave you scarred for life and it wouldn't be easy to talk about what you saw. Cynthia then said "Yeah the party is wonderful Scott. I must say you and Mr. Goodshow have really outdone yourself this time. This party is the best out of all the ones you have hosted in the past."

"Thank you. But a prestigious tournament such as this one deserves a good party. The party after the tournament is over and we declare the winner will be even better."

"Yeah. The party after the tournament will be great especially after I'm crowned the winner." Said Gold in a confident tone.

Ash merely smirked at this and Scott decided to show some of his faith in Ash "I doubt that Gold especially with Red participating in the tournament. Not to offend anyone but I think Red has a very good chance of winning the entire tournament."

Lance frowned upon hearing this praise while Gold looked like this confidence was completely crushed but Cynthia knew why Scott had so much faith in the raven-haired trainer. Even if she saw him battling and training only once, she knew he had immense skill and power and she was hoping that they would get the chance to battle in the final stage. Lance then said "Wow Scott. You really seem to have a lot of confidence in Red. Do you think he can actually win the tournament even with all of us participating as well?"

This time Gold surprisingly intervened and said "Well if you knew his strength you wouldn't have asked that. Also considering the fact that he completely destroyed me when I challenged him a couple years ago, you would do well not to underestimate him."

Lance was surprised to hear that the trainer that beat him was actually destroyed in a Pokémon battle. Red decided to show his appreciation to Gold for his confidence in his strength which surprised him more then anyone else because throughout the time he lived with the young man in Mt. Silver while recovering from his injuries, he had always received the cold shoulder. "Thank you for the kind words Gold. I hope your training pays off and this time when we battle, you will give me a good intense battle."

After Gold had overcome his shock in hearing gratitude from Red he said "D…don't worry Red. I trained hard and this time, I don't plan on losing."

"Glad to hear that."

The five of them spent the next 10 minutes talking to each other on various topics ranging, from battling techniques and ways to raise Pokémon, to Lance almost getting on his knees begging Red to join the G-men as they could use more people like him. Almost everyone in the room sweat-dropped when they saw Lance begging Red but decided to ignore him and got back to chatting. That's when the music started and many men and women started to pair up with each other and walked to the center of the room and started dancing.

When the music had started a lot of thoughts started to run through Red's mind 'Hmmmm…Maybe I should ask if Cynthia would like to dance. Would she even say yes? Well…I guess there is one way to find out. Here goes nothing.' Ash then took a few steps towards Cynthia until he stood close to her and could smell her vanilla and rosy scent. Fighting his blush, he managed to get Cynthia's attention and asked her "Cynthia…would…you care to…have a dance?" while holding his hand out towards her.

Cynthia also started to blush at the sudden gesture and thought to herself for a moment 'Wow…he sure is handsome in the suit. I guess one dance can't hurt'. "Sure Red. I would love to dance." The blonde beauty took his hand as he led her towards the dance floor.

Red then shyly put one arm around her waist while he took his other arm and held onto Cynthia's hand as their finger's interlocked. Cynthia took her free hand and rested it on the young man's shoulders as they both started to move to the music. Although Ash was doubting himself on his ability to dance, he surprisingly got himself used to the beat and movement of the music and quickly found a good pace both were comfortable with.

The two looked at each other and started blushing madly when they stared into each other's eyes. Ash thought 'Wow…Cynthia looks so beautiful. She looks like a goddess. Her eyes…I could get lost in them.'

Meanwhile Cynthia was having similar yet different thoughts 'Wow he looks so handsome…and so familiar. His eyes…I swear I have seen him before. He looks and feels so familiar. Who is he?' Curiosity got the best of her as she broke the silence that had enveloped them after a few minutes of dancing. "Ummm…Red?"

"Yes?"

"Have we met before. I mean in the past. You just look so familiar and similar to…"

"Similar to who?"

"…Ash."

'Oh crap. She's starting to recognize me. I guess even after all my changes over these past 6 years, I guess my face still looks similar to what it did in the past. Should I tell her…no…I think its better if she found out for herself…but it won't be too leave some hints.' "Huh. Well to answer your first question, yes we have met in the past and as far as looking similar to Ash…you are the first to have said that but considering I haven't been around many people in the past few years, I guess that is to be expected."

'We have met in the past? I don't recall seeing him before but he seems so familiar. And why has he lived away from people for the past few years.' "We have met…it's strange…you seem familiar but I just can't remember where or when we met. If you don't mind me asking…why have you lived away from people for the past few years?"

Ash's expression immediately changed as the top of his head was covered by his fringe and he had a dark and depressing expression on his face. Cynthia noticed this and realized that she may have gotten to far and pried into personal matters. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry into your life."

"Its not problem. Its just a few years ago, I was betrayed by my close friends or at least I thought they were friends. After that I decided to live away from people." Said Ash with a fake smile on his face as he tried to hide the pain he felt.

'Betrayed by close friends…its just like what happened to Ash. I wonder if he is here today?' "That's the same thing that happened to Ash. I'm sorry you had to go through something like that."

"Don't be. It taught me valuable lessons in life and gave me opportunities to help people around the world. Despite me being frustrated at them for what they did, I can't help but feel glad that it happened as it have me the strength to help everyone."

"Wow…I can't believe you would look at this in a positive way. You know…Ash also used to be so energetic and positive like you. I just wish he was here."

"You know; Ash is here in this party."

This caused Cynthia to quickly jerk her head upward as she was staring at the floor going through the memories of the energetic raven-haired trainer. "Wait he's here where?" asked Cynthia as she started to look around the room to see if she can spot the trainer while also continuing her dance with Red.

Ash then leaned in closer to her until his lips were close to her ear and she could feel his breath which sent shivers down her spine. "He's is much closer than you think. You just have to look closely and carefully."

Before she could contemplate what the man just had said the music had stopped and the young man leaned back away from her ear and said "Well…I'm starving. Let's go eat Cynthia." All he got in response was a nod as they walked to the small table at the end of the room.

Red showed his enthusiastic side when he mentioned food which caused Cynthia to get lost in thought 'He's so much like Ash…getting so excited over food. But what he said…could Ash be here in the party? He said he was close by and I should look carefully but I can't see him anywhere. Could it be…I saw him already and just didn't recognize him? Ash where are you?'

Cynthia didn't even realize it but she had already sat down at the table while Red had gotten a boat load of food on his plate and was eating it but with good table manners. Cynthia couldn't help but notice his appetite and let her thoughts wander to the raven-haired trainer she fell in love with. She then started to think to herself 'Man Red seems so much like Ash. Wait…he did say that Ash was very close bye. Maybe he has been front of me this whole time and I haven't been able to see him. He said that he was betrayed years ago by friends just like Ash, his habits and personality although seem similar to Ash, they also seem much different and…he seems so much mature then him. Well Ash must have changed over 6 years. Could…could Red be…'

Her thoughts were cut off when Mr. Goodshow had come on the stage and made a speech.

"Hello everyone. Are you all enjoying the party tonight?"

Everyone all replied with "Yes!"

"Well I'm glad to hear it. Now I just would like to make a couple announcements and then you all can continue to enjoy yourselves. First of all, I would like to thank everyone for coming to this tournament and participating in it. The thrill and excitement of being crowned as a 'Pokémon Master' is something many if not all trainers work towards accomplishing and I'm glad that so many trainers have showed up to this tournament and I can't wait to see all the exciting battles."

This got many cheers of excitement and agreement from the crowd.

"The second and last thing I would like to talk about before we continue the party would be the changes in this decade's Champion tournament. As you all know, the previous Pokémon master had passed away a few years ago so the winner of the tournament won't get a chance to face them and compete for the title. Therefore, there will be some changes from the regular Champion's Tournaments we used to have. I will announce the changes tomorrow during the opening ceremony so everyone can learn about the changes at once. That and I hate repeating myself. Well that's all I have to say, now please continue to enjoy the party."

The crowd once again cheered for Mr. Goodshow and also clapped once the speech had ended. Everyone thought about what the changes were going to be but decided they would learn about it tomorrow and decided to get back to enjoying the party. The champions, Mr. Goodshow, Scott, Red and several other league officials ate at the champion's table and many made small talk while enjoying their meal. Cynthia decided to push back her thoughts and suspicions of Red for now and just decided to enjoy the party.

Suddenly, Mr. Goodshow's cellphone began to ring as he excused himself from the table and went to the corner of the room to take his call. By this point many people had finished their meal and had gotten up and cleaned themselves before they made their way back to the party hall to talk with each other. The regional champions, Scott and Red formed a group and were chatting amongst them after Scott had introduced the young man to them. Of course Red was met with many questions and comments to which he responded the best way he could.

Mr. Goodshow had finished his call and started walking towards the group, mainly Scott with a face full of anger and worry. Scott remained unaware of this until Mr. Goodshow had came up to the group and said "Scott we have a big problem on our hands."

This caused everyone in the group to turn towers the Pokémon League president with curious looks on their faces. Scott then asked "Charles, what is it?"

"Well…you…see." Charles then sighed and then explained the situation to them "You know the Ho-oh flame that we were transporting here to light the dish and signal the start of the tournament?"

"Yeah what about it?" asked a curious Scott who was growing concerned.

"Well, the chopper that was transporting the flame after it was lit from the source in Johto, got caught in a heavy wind current as it was approaching this island. This caused the chopper to lose control and crash land and luckily no one was heavily injured but the case transporting the flame broke apart and fell into the ocean."

"WHAT!" shouted Scott which caused everyone in the room to look at them. "You mean the flame is gone now. But the tournament starts tomorrow and we don't have time to make another trip back to Johto to get the flame."

Mr. Goodshow frowned knowing the gravity of the situation. "I know Scott. I don't know what to do know. We can either postpone the tournament, for a few days so we can get the flame again or we can start it without the flame."

This time Lance spoke up and said "But we have never done this tournament without Ho-oh's flame. Although, this might disappoint everyone, but I think we should postpone the tournament for a few days so we may start the tournament in a traditional manner."

This time Cynthia voiced her opinion "I agree with Lance. This is the most important tournament of the decade and we should start it like it always has been done. I think we should postpone it for a few days."

This time all the other champions nodded and voiced their agreement that postponing the tournament was the best course of action. Mr. Goodshow sighed and said "Very well. If everyone thinks that this is the best course of action, then I will postpone the tournament for the next few days until we get the flame."

While this conversation was going on, Ash was having a conversation with Lady Ho-oh.

"Ho-oh, I need to ask you something."

"Yes Ash what is it?"

"Well, there is a situation here. Apparently they start off this tournament by igniting a dish with your flame that will burn for the next month however the people that were transporting your flame ran into a situation and your flame was doused in the ocean."

"Oh I see. How may I help?"

"Well…during the opening ceremony of the tournament, I can call you out to ignite the dish with your sacred flame but I was wondering if your okay with that. I mean you have stayed away from humans for so many years and if I call you out then, you'll be in front of the whole world. Are you okay with that?"

"Well although I'm not entirely comfortable with it I'll do it Ash. You have done more for this world then anyone and have eliminated a lot of the evil that resides in this world. Everyone owes a lot to you and this will be a way I can say thank you for helping everyone and making me apart of your family."

"Please, Ho-oh you don't owe me anything, neither does anyone else. I'm glad that you became apart of our family. If you don't feel comfortable with this then I won't force you at all. It's completely your choice if you wish to do this."

"Your kindness, knows no bounds. I want to do this Ash. I will gladly help you."

"Very well. I thank you old friend."

Just as Mr. Goodshow was about to leave to make the announcement that the opening ceremony will be postponed for a few days, Red spoke up "Wait Mr. Goodshow!" This caused the regional champions, Scott and Mr. Goodshow to turn towards Ash. "I may have an alternate solution to your problem and there will be no need to postpone the tournament."

This caused everyone to be surprised as well as become very curious to know what sort of solution Red could offer to their problem. Mr. Goodshow then asked Red the question that was on everyone's mind "What's your solution?"

"I have another way of igniting the dish with Ho-oh's flame."

This caused everyone in the group to widen their eyes in shock as well as confusion. Scott then asked "How?"

"I'm sorry but I can't go into details but I ask that you all trust me. Just call upon me during the opening ceremony and I will be able to ignite the dish with Ho-oh's flame and the tournament will be able to begin."

Gold then asked "Why can't you go into details Red?"

"I just can't right now. You all will know when the tournament starts but for know I ask if you guys are willing to trust me."

Mr. Goodshow was about to say something but was cut off by Scott "Well I don't know what your planning As-Red, but I know you'll keep your word. I'm willing to leave it up to you if everyone else is."

Everyone become shocked to see that Scott had so much faith in the young man and while hesitant champions slowly nodded and agreed with Scott after a moments chatter amongst themselves. Mr. Goodshow then said "Are you sure about this Scott. Do you really think we can put this whole tournament on this young man's shoulders?"

"I fully trust Red and I have a pretty good idea on how he's going to help us but we'll find out tomorrow. Don't worry he'll fix everything."

Everyone was stunned when they heard this from Scott and wondered why he had so much faith in him. Although reluctant at first Mr. Goodshow gave in and decided to put his trust in Scott. "Alright I trust your judgement Scott. I hope this young man can solver our problem."

"Don't worry he will. Now that that's settled, we should get back to enjoying the party." Replied Scott trying to get everyone's head out of this problem and to just enjoy the rest of the night. That's when Scott realized an important piece of information that he needs to tell Red.

Scott then called Red over to a corner to talk to him. Cynthia noticed this and grew suspicious of what they may have wanted to talk about. Despite being a mature person and didn't want to intervene in personal affairs, she grew curious and wanted to see if what she was thinking was true. She walked closer to where Red and Scott where standing and managed to hear their conversation clearly despite all the noise in the background.

Scott said "Red, you do know what's going to happen tomorrow during the opening ceremony if you decide to help us out. Your identity will be revealed to the world. Are you sure your ready for that?"

"Well, it was going to happen anyway when I was going to battle so it doesn't make much of a difference. I guess the advantage here is I'll be returning with a bang."

"Are you sure about this? 6 years is a long time staying away from people and you're basically going to be jumping in front of the entire world."

"I'm sure Scott. I appreciate your concern and everything you have done for me but I think I'm ready. I just hope doesn't react to badly and doesn't hate me."

"Don't worry. I'm sure she'll understand. Anyways, I'll announce a press conference for you to take place after the preliminaries are over so you won't have to deal with the media for the next few days."

"Thank you Scott, it means a lot to me. I hope I'll be able to repay you someday."

"Don't worry about a thing. You have done more for the world then anyone will truly know and this is just my way of saying thank you."

Red nodded at this and then said "Well let's just enjoy the party for tonight. I think I may leave now. I want some proper rest and discuss this with my Pokémon."

"Alright then. Time to PARTY!" Scott shouted while Red just sweat dropped and proceeded towards the door.

…Meanwhile…

Cynthia was tuning in on the conversation and was completely shocked at what she just heard. She fit all the pieces of the puzzle together when she heard that Red had stayed away from society for 6 years and managed to figure out what was going on. Her thoughts were all over the place and her heart was beating as fast as if she was riding a roller coaster.

'It…it…it can't be Red…is…is Ash? Disappearing 6 years ago, betrayed by friends, Red saying he knew Ash better then anyone. It all fits. I can't believe after all these years…I finally found him.' She was snapped from her thoughts when she saw Red heading towards the door and leaving the party. She was contemplating within herself on what she should do.

'He's leaving? Should I go after him? What if…he's angry with me? Maybe that's why he didn't tell me who he was. He probably hates me. I made him run away and live away from everyone for 6 years. He has every right to hate me. No…I can't let that stop me. I have to at least apologize to him. I hope he forgives me…although that probably won't happen. Well I have to at least try…' She once again snapped out of her thoughts and looked towards the door and saw that Ash wasn't in sight.

She quickly made her way outside the large castle like structure to the other party that was going on and still didn't see Ash. Many people around were wondering why the Sinnoh champion was there and in such a hurry. She quickly ran through the crowd of people looking for the man that had stolen her heart. Once the blonde beauty managed to make it through all the party guests, she managed to see a figure in the distance walking off the bridge and heading into the nearby forest. She quickly ran after him.

After constantly running and stopping through the forest only to catch a glimpse of a shadow walking through the forest. Eventually she came across a large grassy clearing that stood by a large lake which sparkled as it bathed in the moonlight. A lone figure stood by the one tree that was standing near the lake. He was looking towards the moon and admiring the beauty of the night.

Little did Cynthia know that Ash had known that she had listened to their conversation and had fit the pieces together. As a result, he led her to where he was training as he wanted to get talk with her, while also telling all his Pokémon to go away from the clearing for a while so he had some privacy with Cynthia via aura bond. He wanted to talk with the woman that had stolen his heart and was the reason he was able to keep going through the 6 harsh years he was away.

Cynthia started to walk towards the man in the silver suit. She felt like she had walked for ages as she finally stood only a few metres away from the young man and it seemed as if he hadn't detected her presence. Cynthia held her hand above her heart and clutched it into a fist as if trying to gather the courage to see if the man she had been looking for, for so long had finally come back.

After, waiting for what seemed like an eternity, she finally managed to gather the courage to speak "A…A…Ash? Is…is that you?"

Although her voice was fairly quiet, the silence that filled the area which was only broken by the sound of the cool breeze hitting the trees made it as she spoke loud and clear. The man turned around and had a smile on his face. The words that left his mouth, his voice were the same things that the Sinnoh champion was dying to hear for all these years. "It's me Cynthia. It has been a long time hasn't it."

Once he had said that, all hell had broken lose for Cynthia. Her eyes watered and streams of tears started to come out of her eyes. The dam that had held back her emotions, her desires, her guilt, her love for the man before her had broken and she finally was able to let it all out. She ran towards the man and fell into his embrace. The force of the hug had staggered Ash a little but he managed to keep his footing and slowly brought his arms around her.

He embraced her and also let tears fall from his eyes. He had been waiting to see the person he loved for so long and although he never told her his feelings, he had a small hope that maybe she felt the same way. Both man and woman stayed in each other's embrace for quite a long time as they let loose their tears of joy and happiness, of sadness and guilt, and their tears of love.

Eventually they parted from the hug as they looked at each other and stared into each other's eyes. Even though both had blood shot eyes from crying so much they couldn't help but just stare at each other and be lost in one another. Eventually Cynthia started to talk "I *sniff* I can't believe *sniff* I finally *sniff* found you. I looked for you *sniff* everywhere."

Ash simply replied with "I know."

"I'm so *sniff* so sorry Ash. I'm sorry I blamed *sniff* you all those years ago. I *sniff* drove you away. I forced *sniff* you to hide for *sniff* all this time." Said Cynthia while she hangs her head in shame as she didn't have the courage to look into his eyes and say this.

Ash was somewhat surprised to hear that Cynthia was blaming herself for what happened all those years ago. Even though he told her when she knew him as Red that Ash never blamed her, she still felt guilty even though it wasn't her burden too bare. Ash took his hand and gently touched Cynthia's chin and brought her face up so he could look into her eyes. "Cynthia listen…I never blamed you for anything that happened. You were worried about your Pokémon. They were attacked and they almost lost their lives. It was only natural for you to be scared. You shouldn't blame yourself as this is not your burden to bare. It was those so called 'friends' that betrayed me in my time of need not you. So…"

"But I should have trusted you. I knew you weren't capable of doing anything like that and yet I blamed you. You had to suffer because of me."

"Its alright Cynthia. You were scared. I don't blame you now please just don't beat yourself about this. I can't stand to see you like this." Said Ash as he once again embraced her in a hug. Although Cynthia was a bit surprised at the sudden hug, she quickly returned it.

"Thank you Ash. I don't know how you can be so forgiving but…thank you so much."

They both stood there for a few moments enjoying each other's warmth. Cynthia listened to Ash's heartbeat while Ash took in her scent. Ash then pushed her from their hug and decided that he wanted to tell her how he felt about her. He knew that she may have found someone else in the past few years and that saying how she felt might destroy the friendship they had but he couldn't hold it in any more. The woman he loved for so long was finally in front of her and he had to tell her. Despite knowing the consequences of being rejected would tear him apart because of him being an aura master and guardian as they only loved one person in their lifetime and they would love them with all their heart and soul.

"Cynthia…I…I have something else I want to tell you. I wanted to tell you this for such a long time but I never had the courage to tell you but I can't hold it back anymore."

Cynthia looked at him and stared into his eyes, curious as to what he wanted to tell her for so long.

"Cynthia, the entire time, I lived in seclusion and faced one challenge after another, I sometimes wanted to give up and not continue any longer. But whenever I wanted to give up, I always remembered someone. She was the light of my life and always gave me strength to continue going. It was because of her that I have been able to get where I am. That woman is you Cynthia."

She gasped when she heard this as a few tears of joy threatened to fall out of her eyes. However, she managed to hold them back as she continued to listen to Ash's words that sounded completely pure and sincere.

"Cynthia, you are an amazing woman. You are a strong, self-confident and brave person as well as an amazing battler. But underneath that you are also kind, caring and a very gentle person who like me would do anything to help people in need. Also coupled with the fact that you have a body that makes you seem like a goddess is also another amazing thing about you but that really doesn't matter to me. I like you for who you are. I don't care about 'The Sinnoh Champion', 'The Champion of Champions' or 'The Deadly Angel'. I just care about you."

Ash then took a big sigh and decided to pour his heart and soul into what he said next. "Cynthia Shirona, I love you with all my heart. Always had, always will."

The moment those words left his mouth, Cynthia started to cry tears of joy. The very words she always wanted to hear were finally said. The man who she had also loved, confessed to her about his undying love for her. She couldn't hold it back any longer as she quickly brought her lips to his and brought him into a loving passionate kiss.

Although surprised at first by the sudden gesture, Ash quickly found himself lost in the kiss. Both Cynthia and Ash poured their heart and soul into the kiss. All their feelings were let out and they found everything else disappearing around them. All that mattered to them were each other and the kiss.

Ash could feel Cynthia's full, soft and sweet lips and savored their taste as Cynthia savored Ash's rough yet smooth and soft lips. Eventually he felt Cynthia's tongue pushing against his lips and he opened his mouth, giving the tongue permission to enter. In a fraction of a second, Ash's tongue met Cynthia's as they battled fiercely, each trying to overpower the other into submission but none succeeding. The emotions and love they had for each other was the fuel that gave them the strength to continue kissing for a long time. The tongues continued clashing with each other as it sent shivers of pleasure down both their bodies which caused both of them to moan into each other's mouths.

Although their desire to continue this for eternity, they were still human and had to break apart for oxygen. Both were visibly panting from the intense experience and they had only one word to say to each other. "Wow…"

After, they managed to catch their breaths, Cynthia decided to confess how she felt even though it was made abundantly clear through her kiss. "Ash…from the first time I saw you, I knew you were different. You were the most kind-hearted and self-giving person I had ever met. You helped anyone you could and had limitless love for all Pokémon. You also managed to use that love towards people as well and you always put others before yourself. Everything about you is something I adore. From your childish personality and immense love for battling, to your unbound love for Pokémon and people and now me. I have also kept these feelings inside me for all these years afraid you wouldn't accept me but not anymore. Ash Ketchum, I love you with all my heart and soul."

This time, Ash crashed his lips against Cynthia's. Although she was somewhat surprised at this, she also expected this was coming and quickly returned the kiss. This time their kiss was even more passionate and fierce then before as know they both knew their feelings and immeasurable love for each other. Cynthia's hands went around Ash's neck while his hands went around her waist as they brought themselves close to each other as humanly possible. Their tongues once again clashed with each other even more fiercely then before as they lost themselves in each other.

Eventually, they parted for oxygen while a string of saliva followed. They were panting heavily due to the length and intensity of the kiss. Once again they said the same thing in unison in response to what they just did. "Wow…"

Once Cynthia managed to collect her thoughts, she started a conversation between her and the love of her life "You, know I waited so long hoping his day would come…but I never imagined it would be…this good."

"Same here. I think I should tell you what I have been doing for the past 6 years."

"I would like that."

The couple then laid against the tree near the lake and started talking. Ash then spent the next hour talking about all that he had been through and what he had done while living in seclusion. Once he finished, Cynthia had tears rolling down her eyes as she was feeling guilty and sad at what Ash had been through. Ash wiped away her tears and said "Cynthia, please don't cry. I can never stand to see you cry like this because of me. I'm sorry I didn't come sooner."

"You don't have to be sorry for anything Ash. I promise I won't cry but I just can't shake the feeling that you had to go through so much pain because of me."

"Like I said before, I never blamed you Cynthia. This isn't your burden too bare."

"Again, thank you."

They sat there in a moment of silence with Cynthia's head resting on Ash's chest, taking in his warmth and smell while her long golden hair flowed on to grass. The silence was then broken when Ash asked the question that he had been dying to ask for so long. "Cynthia, would you like go on a date with me tomorrow after the opening ceremony?"

"I would love to Ash." Said Cynthia as she raised her head to stare at Ash and look into his eyes. They once again found themselves lost in a deep and passionate kiss. They soon parted and just laid against the tree before they let sleep takeover.

…The Next Morning at 7:00 a.m…

Cynthia's eyes fluttered open as she took in her surroundings and found herself laying against the tree near the large lake that was sparkling as the light from the rising sun hit the water. She noticed that the man she had slept with wasn't by her side. She started to think that everything that happened was only a dream 'Was that just a dream. But it felt so real…nah how could it be…its been 6 years since Ash came. Why would he come back now? I just wish Ash was truly back…' her thoughts were broken off when she felt a pulse of energy through the air which had an extremely soothing and relaxing feeling.

She looked around to find the source of said energy pulse and her eyes locked on to a shirtless young man sitting in a lotus form along with a white Lucario and an unknown pink and purple Pokémon. She walked up to them and once again felt another pulse of energy, this one being stronger than the last. She stood at the side and her eyes were locked on the young man and her sad thoughts that she had moments ago were gone only to be replaced with complete happiness. 'Ash…he's…he's really back.'

Although, she wanted to just jump to him and hug him, she restrained herself when she realized the serious look on Ash and the other two Pokémon's face. A few moments later is when she noticed the blue glow around the man and Lucario while a purple-pinkish glow surrounded the unknown Pokémon. Recalling that Ash, was an aura master from the story he told her, she decided to just sit down and stare at his face. She had been dying to look just look at him for so long and she finally got the chance. While watching him, she went over what happened the other night and how they confessed their love for each other. While remembering this, a large crimson red blush appeared on her face as she continued to be lost in blissful memories as well as the young man's face.

She didn't even realize that an hour had gone by since she sat down and that all of Ash's Pokémon had appeared behind them standing their enjoying the pulses of aura sent out by their master and friend. The trio then simultaneously opened their eyes and Ash's gaze quickly turned to Cynthia who was lost in her own little world. "Hey Cynthia. You sleep well?"

This snapped the blonde beauty from her thoughts as she got up and composed herself. "Yeah, best sleep I had in a very long time." Her eyes then wandered and got a good look at Ash's muscular and ripped body. Even though she had seen it before she couldn't help but blush and suppress a nosebleed. That was when she noticed the Pokémon army behind them and she looked in shock and amazement. "Are…all these your Pokémon Ash?"

Ash had noticed the blush and saw what she was looking at and couldn't help but smirk. Which was when he started to take in Cynthia's body which hugged her incredible bust quite tightly and he couldn't help but blush crimson red even more as he thought of what was underneath. Thankfully his mind didn't wander off into too many perverted thoughts, courtesy of Cynthia's question. "Yeah, these are my friends and family. Something you are a part of now."

Cynthia once again blushed at the fact that he made her part of his family. She quickly jumped at him and gave him a quick kiss on his lips. Taken by surprise, Ash asked "Not that I'm complaining, but what was that for?"

"For making me apart of your family."

"You always were Cynthia. Now how about I introduce you to everyone?"

"I would like that but first, can you put your shirt back on."

"Why, you don't like what you see?"

Cynthia blushed yet again at the question as she stuttered in her response "N…no...no…I…I…Its nothing like that. It's just…I wont be able to focus…if you don't put your shirt back on." Cynthia then leaned near this ear and seductively said "Your body is too sexy Ash and if you don't put your shirt back on, I won't be able to control myself."

This caused Ash to blush as he picked up his dress shirt which was on the ground and put it back on. He the proceeded to introduce Cynthia to all of his Pokémon. Cynthia was met with a very warm welcome as they all new how much she meant to their master and friend. Cynthia then realized the time and told Ash that she had to get back to her hotel so she could prepare for the opening ceremony taking place at 11:00. Mewtwo, teleported Cynthia to her hotel room, as per Ash's request, as he got himself ready for the rest of the day and left his Pokémon to do whatever they wanted.

After a few hours, in the main center stadium….

Ash was standing at the very front of the entire crowd of trainers participating in the tournament. As such he was very close to the stage where, Scott, Mr. Goodshow and the regional champions stood. They were all eyeing him, including Cynthia as they all still had curious looks on their faces as to how, the man with a Pikachu on his shoulders was going to solve their problem from yesterday.

Meanwhile, Ash was looking around the stadium taking in the sight and having the feeling of nostalgia of finding himself once again in the center of the world, ready to show his strength. He then talked with his Pokémon to calm his nerves and also to make sure Ho-oh will be ready for what is too come.

"Are all of you guys, ready."

All of Ash's Pokémon replied in unison "Yeah!"

"Its time to show the world our strength!"

"Yeah!"

"Ho-oh, its almost time. Are you ready?"

"I am Ash. In fact I'm so excited. Its been a while since I have been the center of attention."

Ash chuckled at Ho-oh's response because even, though she was a motherly figure to all his Pokémon, she still had the heart of a child and got quite excited from time to time.

That was when Mr. Goodshow tapped on the mike which got the attention of everyone in the stadium as well as all the people and Pokémon watching the tournament from around the world.

"Hello everyone and welcome to the Champion's Tournament taking place here, on the wonderful Sovereign Island." Everyone cheered at the statement as they were all excited for this tournament to get underway and see who the strongest trainer in the world is.

"Trainers, from around the globe will be competing here in our 7 stadiums to see who the very best is. This tournament only comes around once every 10 years so you can expect some of the most intense battles ever between all of the trainers gathered here today. Now before we get this tournament underway there are two things I would like to talk about. First things first, I will go over the rules of this tournament and the changes that have happened to this tournament due to the fact that the previous winner is deceased. The second thing is a problem we have encountered that would have caused us to postpone the tournament for a few days but hopefully will be solved today right here. That will be explained by Scott. For now, its time to let you all know the rules and how trainers will be matched." Everyone listened carefully to what the Pokémon League president said as they wanted to know the rules but were also curious as to what sort of problem that could have come up that might cause the tournament to be postponed.

Mr. Goodshow then started to explain the rules of the tournament to the world after he took a deep breath. "Of course like most tournaments this one will start off with the preliminary rounds but this time, things will be more brutal. The preliminaries will consist of 3 rounds where matched up trainers will fight in 3 on 3 Pokémon battles taking place in the 6 regional stadiums. Trainers must win all 3 of their matches to move on to the next stage which means 1 loss and your out." This got a lot of gasps and wows from the audience as well as the trainers as they knew they had to fight with their full strength from the very beginning if they wished to stay in the tournament.

After the crowd settled down, Mr. Goodshow continued his speech "I know this may seem tough but this is what this tournament is all about. To prove that you're the very best. Now, after the preliminary rounds are over, the double round will begin which will also take place in the 6 regional stadiums. In this round, two trainers will be paired with each other and will fight another pair in a 6 on 6 double battle which means each trainer will be allowed 3 Pokémon. There will be 2 matches in the double round and once again, one loss and your done. These rounds are mainly to weed out the strongest trainers and have them battle head to head in the victory round where the top 16 will show us their strength and battling spirit right here in the main stadium. In the victory round, the battles will be full 6 on 6 clashes of some of the worlds most powerful Pokémon so it will get very intense in here." This time the crowd and the trainers cheered and were getting pumped just imagining the intense battles that were going to take place.

Mr. Goodshow cleared his throat once again catching the attention of everyone as he conveyed the last and important piece of information he wished to share. "Alright, time for the last bit of information I need to inform everyone of before I hand things over to Scott. Originally, the winner of this tournament would face off against the previous winner in a full 6 on 6 battle to see who gets the title of 'Pokémon Master'. However, due to the fact that the previous winner has passed away we have decided to add a twist to the tournament. Since each champion represents the strongest trainer in their region, its only fitting that the 'Pokémon Master' title go to someone who can surpass them all in strength. Therefore, the winner of the tournament will face off against the champions in whatever order they choose and engage in full 6 on 6 battles. If the trainer manages to beat them all then he or she will gain the title of 'Pokémon Master' and get several other prizes. Even if the champions are beaten, their titles will not be taken as they have to take the regional elite four challenge. Any champion that is defeated throughout the tournament will still take part in this challenge. If the winner of the tournament loses to any of the champions, then they will still have one last chance to take the challenge again within the next two years to see if they can obtain the title." Once he finished, everyone started to talk with each other and discuss what they thought about this change.

After a few moments of chatting, Mr. Goodshow then shouted in the microphone to get everyone's attention so that Scott may explain the situation they face. "EVERYONE SETTLE DOWN! Now, I'm going to hand the mic over to my good friend Scott so that he may explain the situation we currently face and hopefully, it will be resolved."

Mr. Goodshow then handed the mic to Scott who cleared his throat and started to talk. "Thank you Mr. Goodshow. Now, I'm sure your all aware that we always start this tournament along with many others by lighting the dish with Ho-oh's flame." Scott got many nods from the trainers and audience. "Well a problem occurred with the chopper transporting the flame and was lost in the ocean. As a result, it will take a few days for us to relight our torch with the original flame back in Johto and after a discussion with our champions and Mr. Goodshow, we had decided to postpone the tournament for a few days so that we may acquire the flame and start the tournament in the traditional way."

This got a lot of groans and frowns of disappointment from everyone but they were quickly brought out of their depression as Scott continued his speech. "However, an old friend of mine has given us a way out of this mess so that we may start the tournament right away. Although, I do not know the how he manages to solve this problem I have a decent idea and if I'm right, everyone is in for quite a treat today. I would like to call the trainer to come up and solve our problem so that we may being the tournament. And…for the sake of suspense and drama, I'll state his name after he helps us." This got a lot of curious looks from many people as they waited to see what would happen.

Taking this as his que, Ash walked up and stood in front of the stairs that led to the dish which would hold Ho-oh's flame for the month that the tournament went on. Everyone watched with anticipation and curiosity wondering who this man was and how was he going to help them.

Ash took a deep breath and looked around and saw that everyone around the world had their eyes on him. Thankfully, Ash had already mentally prepared himself for being the center of attention and decided its time to get this over with. With the whole world tuned out, Ash grabbed fast ball that hung in the necklace he wore which held all the poke balls of his legendary Pokémon. He launched the poke ball and what he said next shocked everyone around the world. "HO-OH. LEND ME YOUR POWER!"

Out of the poke ball, appeared the Rainbow Pokémon who let out a majestic cry that boomed all over the stadium. Everyone's jaw dropped at the sight that this man held the legendary Pokémon of life that had been missing for the past 150 years.

"HO-OH! ALIGHT THE DISH WITH YOUR SACRED FLAME AND START THE CHAMPION'S TOURNAMENT."

The large peacock like Pokémon flew around and hovered in front of the dish before she let out a stream of a crimson, gold and rose coloured the flame. The flame hit the dish and lit up with the flame and with that the tournament officially began. The bird Pokémon flew down and landed beside Ash and rubbed his cheek with her beak affectionately before letting out a coo as Ash petted her. Everyone around the world was even more shocked and star struck then before as everyone was quiet contemplating how and why this legendary Pokémon listened to that young man and was showing so much love towards him. Silence filled the air as you could hear a pin drop as Ash recalled the Pokémon and thanked her for her courage and help via aura bond.

After, a few moments the silence was broken by Scott who was also shocked to see Ho-oh but was expecting it as he had a hunch that he had the majestic Pokémon on his team. The booming voice from the speakers startled everyone as their attention was turned to Scott who started talking "Well that was sure a sight. Who would have thought we would get to see the legendary Ho-oh in this tournament? Now I think this man deserves our thanks for helping us and making it so that the tournament can now begin. Please give it up for…ASH KETCHUM OF PALLET TOWN!"

AUTHOR'S NOTES! PLEASE READ!

I just want to talk about the 3 main projects I hopefully will do.

1st story: Ash's journey from the beginning in which he has a very dark past and overcomes challenges along his journey.

2nd story: This is about Yu-gi-oh GX where Jaden joins duel academy with a dark past but also already as the King of games which is unknown to all but a few people.

3rd story and probably the biggest and best one I plan on doing: This will be based on the anime Fairy Tail and the main character will be Natsu where he will go on a journey and overcome challenges and defeat his fears. The story will have some similarities to the story shown in the anime but it will also have considerable difference which will hopefully make it an exciting read.

For these stories I'm making a poll as I need help in determining the pairings between the characters. Please check the poll out and vote on who you guys think I should pair the main characters up with.

Once again sorry if this chapter is weak but it was the best I could do with my current situation.

Please review the chapter, and give feedback. Flames will be ignored while constructive criticism will be taken and incorporated into story if possible. Thanks for everything and Peace J