# 77: Ponyta. Its mane is made of intense flames. If this pokemon feels threatened, the flame that makes up it's mane and tail rapidly increase in size and temperature.

Request from: CycloneThunder: I wonder what would happen if he ended up getting a Ponyta


Ash was looking at the pokemon around the professor's ranch. He had been late getting a pokemon, but oh well. Five years too late, but on his tenth birthday, he told his mother and the professor that, upon thinking it over, he said that his dream of being a pokemon master was that. Just a dream. A really impossible one.

Oak gave Ash permission to work on the ranch for a sum of money every two months, four years ago because the man had spotted Ash calming down a baby Squirtle after it had hit it's head on a rock, that had increased by about half of what he was being paid each year, not that he cared about that. What he did care about was caring for the pokemon.

His prized pokemon that he had been taking care of was a female Ponyta that had been abused and malnourished when it came to the ranch two years ago. Ash had been caring for it everyday for three months when it came to them, even sleeping with it in the stables at night to show it he would never hurt it. The Ponyta, that Ash had nicknamed Obsidian, would follow him everywhere when he was at the ranch after those three months.

Ash smiled at Obsidian as she broke up a fight between an aggressive Charmander, that wasn't taken by a trainer, that was picking on an older one.

"Okay Obsidian, I think they get the point." Ash said, adjusting his cowboy hat. It was a gag gift from his mother. He looked out at the prairie field in the corral. "I'm feelin' like kickin' up some grass." Ash said, walking over to the fence that had the riding equipment for Obsidian as well as his vest, riding boots and gloves. He exchanged his shoes for his riding boots before he turned to the horse and gave her a smirk, "what say you?"

Obsidian reared up on his hind legs and kicked out with her forelegs at the idea, neighing with excitement. She trotted over to Ash, standing by him and letting him doll her up with a saddle and reins. He took off his jacket and put it on the post that housed his vest, before putting said brown vest on over his short sleeved black shirt.

He got on her back just in time, because not two seconds later did a small band of young Tauros bust down the gate run down towards the town. He sighed with a smile before grabbing a robe off of the fence. "You ready for some cattle chasin'?"

Obsidian made a nicker of agreement. She reared up on her hind legs, kicking with her front, before setting her feet on the ground and taking off after the group.

Ash gave a shout of, "high ho, Obsidian! Yee haw!"

Long cattle wrangling short, the dozen and a half Tauros were wrangled and led back to the carroll, cattle drive style. Ash fixed up the fence the Tauros knocked down, and then rode Obsidian into town and helped repair the property that had been damaged by the Tauros- and receiving small bundles of sugary treats from some of the shopkeepers, and some books, one about other hoofed pokemon and a cookbook from one of the librarians- and got back to the lab before Oak got back from a conference in the Indigo League.

"Hey Ash." Oak greeted.

"Howdy, Professor." Ash said, giving Obsidian some pokechow he made himself.

"Anything interesting happen?" The old man wondered.

"Nah. Just the usual." Ash said, "just took Obsidian down to town to fix up a few things, and got some freebies." He offered a yellow square to the older man, "lemon square?"

Oak took it without a second thought, nodding his thanks after taking a bite.

A motorcycle stalled outside of the main gates, catching the attention of Ash and Oak. Into the gate stepped a woman in a dark blue cop uniform with light blue hair and black eyes. "Do either of you know Ash Ketchum?"

Ash raised a hand, "that'd be me, Officer Jenny."

The officer waved him off, "there's no need for formalities, Ash." The officer walked over to Obsidian and patted her snout, she then turned back to Ash, "call me old fashioned, but the Pallet Town branch of the Pokemon police would like to deputize you, make you the 'sheriff' of Pallet."

"Aw, shucks, miss. You don't want me." Ash blushed as he tugged at his shirt collar.

"Actually, it isn't up to us. It's the mayor's orders, and by popular demand of Pallet's citizens." A short Jenny, about his age, said, pulling a small case outside of her pocket. She pulled it out silver star and pinned it to Ash's vest. "You deserve it, because of all of the amazing things you've done."

Ash smiled, causing the younger Jenny to blush as she pulled away.

"Come on missy, we have to get back to the station." The older Jenny said, on the motorcycle. The younger Jenny sighed, walking over to the sidecar and sitting in it.

Ash walked over to the side car and asked, "would you like to join me for dinner? I've got a reservation at Archie's restaurant."

The younger Jenny nodded, "absolutely! My shift ends at eight." She pulled a piece of paper from her notebook and scribbled something down, before handing it to him, "it's my address. See you later tonight."

"It's a date then," the younger officer blushed as Ash grinned wider, "I'll see you then, miss."

The younger Jenny shyly waved bye as the older one started the motorcycle, "bye, 'Sheriff'."

"Bye." Ash said, waving as the motorcycle drove off.