As always thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Like I mentioned last time, this update creates the basis that the rest of the story builds off of. So I hope you enjoy it.
"Good thing I grabbed one of the key cards to the room before we left," Dawn said to the Pokémon on her head. "If Ash went someplace besides back to the room, it would have been a little hard to get the staff to get me a key to the room of the new Sinnoh League Champion."
"Piplup." Nodding the Penguin Pokémon completely agreed.
Unlocking and opening the door to their room, Dawn quietly entered.
"Ash, you in here?"
Looking around the lights were off, but walking further in she found him sitting out on the balcony, gazing out across the water with Pikachu on his lap. The moon was just starting to come up above the horizon and the number of stars was steadily increasing in the vast sky.
"Hey Ash," the coordinator said to him, walking out to the balcony as well. "Mind if I join you?"
Looking up at her with a small smile, Dawn could finally see his face clearly. To her relief he didn't seem either sad or mad.
"Oh hey Dawn," he said to her. "Sure I don't mind."
Taking a seat in the chair next to him, the coordinator tried to read what was on his mind but Ash just sat there staring out at the ocean while slowly scratching Pikachu's head.
"Ash, are you mad at me?" Dawn finally asked, if nothing more than to break the ice.
"You mean for what happened at dinner? I can't say that I'm happy that you kept on inferring that I love May but…"
"So you seriously believe that you don't love May?"
"I keep telling you, I don't!" Ash snapped back at her. "But for some reason I just can't get the idea out of my head."
"I'd say that's because you are probably starting to doubt yourself when it comes to that topic," she told him with a smile. "While I don't know as much about you two as Brock does, the way that you talk about her and how much you talk about her says it all."
"I've also explained that though, it's because traveling with her and Max was only a couple years ago so I remember them easier than say my travels with Misty. Besides, you have always been more interested in coordinating than league battles so, again, I tried to remember more things about May than Misty because of their battle preference."
"And I don't doubt that may be true. But again it comes to the way that you talk about each, which can speak volumes by itself."
"Just what do you mean by that anyways?" Ash asked her.
"It's hard to explain, but just the tone in your voice as you talk about them can tell what you actually feel. Kinda like how when Misty had a crush on you and she emitted those feelings in a tsundere type of fashion."
"Wait, Misty had a crush on me?" Quickly turning around to look at Dawn, Ash had a look of pure surprise on his face.
"Whoops, guess you didn't know that about that one yet," the blunette giggled. "Forget I said anything."
"How can I now?" Ash groaned. "And how did you find out about that? Assuming it's true I guess."
"Like Brock said, he can be rather observant at times. But I would have assumed that you knew that by now considering some of the things he told me. It seems that Misty even mentioned that she wanted to marry you at one point, and supposedly you were right next to her when she said it."
"When did she say that?"
"If this is seriously what I have to work with, this is going to be even harder than I thought," Dawn groaned while rubbing her temples.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing," she said, waving it away. "Okay then, I have a simple quiz for you. How do you look at Misty? Basically give me a quick description of her."
"Huh? Why?"
"Just do it Ash," Dawn told him is a slightly more forceful tone.
"Alright fine, well she's about a year older than I am and a little shorter than me; she has red, almost orange, hair that she always kept in a side ponytail and green eyes. She was the first person that I met when I started out from Pallet Town and while she can have a very bad temper at times she's a kind person once you get to know her. In fact for the longest time she blamed me for the destruction of her bike, and used that as her reason to follow me at first. She and her sisters are the leaders of the Cerulean Gym, and probably because of it she has a bit of an obsession over Water-Type Pokémon, Tentacruel in particular. I have a lot of good memories with her and still consider her to be one of my best and irreplaceable friends, almost like family."
"Okay that's good," the blunette said after he seemed done, taking a few mental notes in the process. "Let's see, now how about me?"
"You?"
"Yeah, imagine that you are now going to describe me to someone. Don't worry about hurting my feelings or anything, just say what comes to mind."
"I still don't understand why you're making me do this," Ash complained. "But I'll go along with it for now I guess. Dawn, you're about five years younger than me and still very energetic. You have blue hair that you, and well, I have no clue how you actually get your hair like that to be honest."
"It takes a good amount of work in the morning," Dawn explained with a light cough while trying to hide the start of her blush forming. "True beauty is an art form. Continue."
"Umm, where was I, oh yeah. You have blue hair and it matches your blue eyes. But you do have a tendency of being too protective of your hair and you have sometimes get that odd grin of yours that means you're plotting something, and to be honest it kinda freaks me out at times. I met you the first day that I came to Sinnoh. You were helping to protect Pikachu from another one of Team Rocket's attacks after we got separated, although if I remember correctly sometime around there Pikachu fried your bike as well. But you were very enthusiastic about coordinating and you were also good at coming up with original ideas to help you accomplish your dream. You're another of my great friends although and I see you kind of like a younger sister at times. Overall you're fun to be with and I'm glad that we were able to spend time together."
"Thanks Ash. Alright and finally, describe May."
"That'll be an easy one," Ash told her with confidence. "May is a coordinator like you and a couple years younger than I am. She has long brown hair which she keeps most off to the side of her face and the rest hidden under a bandanna, and along with deep blue eyes that sometimes seem to smile as much as she does she catches a lot of attention at the contests she's gone to. Like you and Misty I met her the first day I was in Hoenn, and again it was due to an attack from Team Rocket, and I wound up frying her…bike… I just noticed that I have an odd way of introducing myself to people as I travel," the trainer concluded, dropping his head down in embarrassment.
"Don't worry Ash, everybody has their quirks," the blunette reassured him while trying to hold back her giggles.
"Pika pika Pikapi."
"Yeah but there are still a few that I'd rather not have." Taking a deep breath, he continued. "Well, now that I think about it I really didn't get to officially meet her until later that day, after Pikachu had recovered. Surprisingly she didn't actually seem to care that her bike was destroyed, she only brought it up once near the beginning but it wasn't completely directed at me and she didn't use it as a reason to force me to accept her as a new traveling companion. And after everything I had to deal with in terms of Misty, I was quite happy to see that she didn't react in the same manner. May is a little clumsy at times but is one of the nicest people that you'll ever meet. When we first met she didn't seem to care about Pokémon all that much and was just more interested in traveling with me as I went around Hoenn. But as time went on she started to open up to them and eventually I could see her get excited about getting more Pokémon or be able to work with them. In fact she decided to go against what everyone thought was going to be her passion and became a Pokémon Coordinator even though she had very little idea as to what it actually was like. Although it took a little help from me to get her together, she eventually was able to become one on the top coordinators around. Placing high in the two Grand Festivals that I watched and probably doing just as well this year too. Unlike you and Misty though she has a tendency to cry depending on the situation, especially after a big loss, but it's just that she has a big heart and is quick to get down on herself. Yet with only a few reassuring words, she's back again looking at you with that contagious smile of hers. In the end though, I'm extremely proud for everything that she has done. She's also the daughter of the Petalburg Gym leader and has a little brother named Max who traveled with us as well. Along with you, Brock, and Misty, she is one of the best friends I have."
"Okay then, I think that pretty much helps solidify my thinking," Dawn finally said after Ash had finished.
"What do you mean?" He asked, looking back at the blunette. "You just asked for me to explain them and I did just that. How can you say that I love May with from a short explanation?"
"I will admit that I can't completely say that you love her from just this little experiment. What I can say though is that you think more about her than the other two girls you've been around the most."
"I still don't think that you can say that after something as trivial as asking for somebody's description."
"It would be pointless to argue with you Ash with you being as dense as you are when it comes to things like this."
"Hey!"
"All I can do is tell you what I see," Dawn continued, completely ignoring his outburst. "The rest you have to find out by yourself. Just remember that I'm not trying to tease you about this Ash. Okay, so part of me is but that's not the point. The point is that you need to figure it out yourself whether I ask you about it or not. After thinking it through completely and you still decide that your feelings for May are simply that of friendship, then that's that I guess. But both Brock and I feel that if you truly think hard about it, you'll probably find that it may be more than that."
"I still don't think that it'll change anything but you probably won't get off my back if I don't, won't you?"
"Nope," the coordinator told him without hesitation.
Groaning, Ash flopped back in his chair. Almost unconsciously the trainer slid his hand into his pocket and started to fiddle with the ribbon in there.
"I'll let you be for now," Dawn said as she stood up with Piplup. "But before I do I want to leave you with two questions that you should ask yourself. First; ask why you always carry the Terracotta Ribbon with you."
After hearing her comment Ash quickly started to jerk his hand back out of his pocket, but after a knowing look from Dawn he sighed and just put it right back in.
"Second; you need to figure out exactly what makes May different from all the other girls you've met while traveling. And not only Misty and myself, think of as many as you can and just start comparing. By the end I'd be willing to bet that you'll find more than you can imagine. I don't expect you come up with an answer to either question anytime soon, and even if you do I don't need to hear it, but in the mean time I'll be in the room watching the other Grand Festivals."
Walking back into the room and closing the door behind herself, Dawn left Ash alone with just Pikachu out on the balcony.
"I still think that they're overreacting Pikachu," Ash finally said. "But after everything that she's said, I just can't get this out of my head. It was probably the way that she said it in that she didn't seem to have an ounce of uncertainty. You know me probably just as well as I know myself Buddy, what so you think? Do I actually like May more than a friend? Do I really love her?"
"Pika," the Pokémon told his partner while shrugging his shoulders.
Pikachu knew that there was a something between his trainer and May but like Pikapi he didn't understand the concept of love. But unlike Pikapi he didn't understand it because it was more of a human idea than a Pokémon one. Sure, trained Pokémon took on far more human traits than wild Pokémon but he wasn't sure if that was one of them. For a Pokémon it was still more about finding a mate to be with, and if they wanted to stay together longer then that they would have to enjoy each other's company. For him at least, he knew that he did enjoy the company of certain Pokémon more than he expected at times. Even to the point of going out of his way to at least be near them.
"You too huh?" Sighing again, Ash just looked back out across the dark water while scratching Pikachu's stomach.
"Chaaa…"
Lying back to give his trainer easier access, the Pokémon virtually melted into his touch.
With his other hand Ash pulled the ribbon out of his pocket and held it out in front of him.
"I just don't know Pikachu. Why do I carry our ribbon around everywhere? Sure I consider it my good luck charm, but even if I tell Dawn that I doubt that'll be good enough for her."
"Pikachu pika chu chu."
"You're right, that's probably what she would say. So now I just have to figure out why it's my good luck charm. She didn't even give it to me as a gift like Misty did with her personal lure, we won it together. Is that the reason?"
Not hearing an answer from Pikachu, Ash once again looked out toward the water.
"Hey Buddy, maybe you can help me with this question."
"Pi?"
"I know that you seem to like May's Eevee quite a bit, so how does that feel to you? I know it may not be love, but at this point I'll take any help I can get to figure this out."
Even with Ash still lightly scratching his stomach, Pikachu stiffened instantly at the mention of her name.
"Pikaka," he laughed nervously.
"You don't have to worry Pikachu," Ash reassured his partner. "I think Dawn closed the door to make sure that we got privacy out here. You know I won't say anything said here to anybody if you don't want it to."
"Pikachu," the mouse said as he relaxed again. He felt kinda bad doubting Pikapi like that, but he never really considered his thoughts on the matter for himself, let alone explain it to someone else.
So, like Ash, Pikachu started to tell his trainer what he knew about his attraction to Eevee, hoping that it would at least be of some help to the boy.
After he was done, Pikachu slinked back into Ash's lap, glad that his fur would hide the fact that his face was heating up and probably turning a light shade of red at that point from slight embarrassment talking about that.
"Well we can agree on something at least Pikachu," Ash said with a bit of a chuckle. "They do hold a different place for each of us because they are girls. Because one of the few things I know for sure is that the way I feel about May as a friend is very different from how I feel about Brock as a friend. And the fact that you feel like a protector for her is similar to how I sometimes feel about May, but of course it's not because I saw her hatch out of her egg and grow up into an impressive Pokémon right before my eyes. Metaphorically I could say the same, but definitely not literally."
Feeling the heat become more intense, Pikachu just buried his head further into Ash.
"Pikachu Pikapi."
"Sorry Buddy, but I am trying to figure this out for myself as well. As for just wanting to see her smile, now that I think about it, even though I love seeing all my friends happy and smiling, she is one that I want to do everything I can to keep seeing her smiling and never with a frown."
As he said it May's face came forth in his head, turning around to look at him with a bright smile crossing her lips.
Shaking his head, Ash just leaned back again groaning.
"Why does this have to be so complicated?" He complained. "I know what I'm saying but at the same time I don't know. As for the rest of the things you said Pikachu I think those are more limited to just Pokémon and not humans so I can't really relate all that well to them." Seeing that he was still curled up in his lap while hiding his face in the trainer's stomach, Ash started to gently rub Pikachu at the base of his ears, and after a few moments a soft coo arose from the embarrassed Pokémon. "Thanks Buddy, I know it probably wasn't easy for you either but I'll take any help that I can get for this."
For nearly three hours Ash sat out on the balcony, slowly petting Pikachu and looking out to the water as his other hand continued to hold the Terracotta Ribbon. The entire time his brain continued to try and sort out what memories he could recall between him and May. And the more he thought about it, the more confused he became, but at the same time the more he started doubting himself because of the confusion.
It wasn't until a big yawn finally forced its way up that he left his spot. Pikachu was already fast asleep on his lap, lulled to slumber long ago by the cool wind and Ash's relaxing touch.
Walking inside he set the Pokémon down on the bed next to his pillow. Looking over to see that Dawn was already asleep herself, Ash went about his usual nighttime routine and crawled under the covers himself.
It was almost like a movie. Ash could see the picture moving before him and hear everything that was going on around himself, but he had no control.
It looked as though he was in an old temple of some sort, and water was pouring through every opening around them, filling the ancient place quickly with the rushing liquid.
"I know this place."
He wasn't alone, he saw Pikachu there. And so was May and Manaphy. They were running, trying to find something. After a few anxious moments, they apparently found it. It looked almost like a large dark green water heater with a door and small window.
"Yes, I do know this place."
Watching his hands open the door, he then guided May and Manaphy gently into the capsule and placed Pikachu into her arms.
"Pikachu, take care of them for me," he told the small yellow Pokémon.
"Ash, wait!"
Before she could do anything, he closed the door and latched it from the outside.
"Ash what are you doing?" May yelled at him while pounding on the plexiglass window of the door.
"Pikapi!"
Picking up a light blue crystal, he looked down at the three.
"May, I have to go put this back. So please don't move from here, no matter what." Saying those few words, Ash felt himself start to run back the way they came.
"This is the Sea Temple. Out of everything, why am I remembering this?"
"I need to put this back," Ash found himself saying. "And even if I don't make it at least May and Pikachu will be safe."
"That's right, I did that to make sure that they were safe," he thought as his body jumped down into the water, heading for the Sea Crown. "And I almost died while doing it. Out of all the stupid things I've done over the years, this was the closest I ever came to really dying. I can't even remember how I actually survived this."
Watching as he accidentally dropped the crystal and went deeper down after it, Ash could start to feel the burning in his lungs as they started to scream for fresh air, and yet his body continued to move. The crystal had lodged itself in one of the many designs around the Sea Crown and just as he freed it and started back up to put it in place, the pain hit again. While it wasn't nearly as excruciating as he remembered, Ash could still see darkness start to overtake his vision as the rest of it became distorted and blurry. As the picture faded completely he heard another voice.
"Please Ash, don't give up. Just don't give up. Please be strong, I know you can do it."
"That's May's voice," he told himself. "I completely forgot about that."
As if in response to the voice, the picture returned and Ash felt his body move once more to swim up, grab a breath of fresh air, and return to slide the crystal into place.
"Did I regain consciousness because I heard May's voice?" He asked himself as the picture once again started to fade on him while the Sea Crown began to glow brightly. "But why? And why was I hearing May's voice right when I was about to die?"
When the color came back, he found that the scene changed completely and Ash was suddenly being held in somebody's arms. Looking around he found himself in a small body covered in yellow fur and a lightning shaped tail.
"Pikachu?"
It didn't take much longer to figure that he was in May's arms, and she currently looked to be very excited. All around him Ash saw the Sea Temple returning to floating on top of the ocean as the water poured back out of the structure.
"This is Ash's doing, isn't it?" He heard May ask.
But as the realization came to her, the brunette began to look around frantically and the once happy look quickly became one of worry.
"It can't be… No way…"
Collapsing to her knees, he could see her eyes start to well up. As the sniffling began, the trainer could feel May start to squeeze harder onto Pikachu's body out of desperation.
"It can't be," she repeated in a near whisper. "He couldn't…no, he wouldn't leave us like that. He just wouldn't…"
Ash wasn't sure if what he was watching was what really happened or not, but he could feel the pain start to well up in himself from watching May. It started in his stomach but quickly spread to his chest. To his surprise the pain was almost worse than what he felt just before blacking out from nearly drowning.
Not knowing if it was his own doing or what Pikachu did, but Ash felt himself cuddle into May in an effort to try and calm her. In response she nearly broke into tears as she held him even tighter.
"No May, I would never leave you like that," he found himself thinking as he rubbed his head up against her. "I promise."
Before Ash could even comprehend why he said that, a bright light burst forth from the waters below them and he could see himself flying out inside of the beam.
"Ash!"
May's face changed completely at the sight of him, sure she still had a few tears in her eyes but her smile was back and she was nearly laughing in relief.
As he watched his body start to fly off after Phantom, the happy face of Manaphy appeared before him. Before touching Pikachu's head with one of his tentacles and Ash's world going black once again, Ash could have sworn that the Seafaring Pokémon mouthed a single word, 'Papa'.
Okay so the movie flashback wasn't 100% accurate, even if I am a fan of Manaphy calling Ash 'Papa'. One thing I am happy to say, and the devoted AdvanceShipper inside of me agrees, is that May's reaction, while extended a bit, is comprised almost entirely of canon material. It's made from a slight compilation of both the raw and dubbed versions of the film along with the manga adaptation. Hope you liked this update, the next will be up as scheduled.