A/N Oh Luna, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late, I'm La-

Updated/edited on the 8th of September, because I did a horrible job the first time around.


Flight was awesome.

Ash missed his previous body, sure. But, while he couldn't be a trainer, or compete in pokemon battles due to his lack of skill with his new body, he still couldn't help but enjoy the situation, at least a little. After all, while flying on the back of Charizard or some other flying Pokemon was nice, nothing was as breath-taking as flying himself.

The eddies, the currents of air, just... everything. Nothing felt more natural, more... right, as he did when in flight. Sure, Pikachu made some very large complaints, and he did still feel his previous worries press against him in the back of his mind, but, whenever he did another quick flip, or danced happily over the light, carefree air currents that pushed lightly against him, he couldn't feel bad. how could he, when the sky was there to comfort him?

Sure, they've been flying persistently for 8 hours, continuing their journey across the absurdly long chain of islands, but Ash simply couldn't help but continue to look forward to the continuing flight; the open air felt like a long lost friend, and Ash couldn't deny it's call, nor it's company. Even Pikachu, after Ash stopped doing some of his more... aggressive stunts, started getting into the movements, sometimes requesting a particular move or off-the-wall maneuver, which usually ended up being some random motion that, in reality, didn't really merge together as well as they thought it would, in their head.

But Ash couldn't complain. All he needed was the wind in his ha-erm, feathers, and the thrill of the wind rushing past him, and he'd happily do as his starter asked. Ash smiled, letting loose another happy shout, and dived towards the water, pulling up parallel to the ocean, skimming the waves with an extended claw. Sure, He had to shoot right up to avoid a large wave, but he still felt pride in his quickly improving control.

"So, what are you gonna do once we get this sorted out?"

Ash pulled up further away from the ocean, before looking back over his back to his starter. What were they gonna do? He gave the thought a single moment, before giving his starter a noncommittal shrug, smirking a bit as the motion bounced his starter a bit. "I don't know. Hopefully, I'll get changed back, but... er, if I don't, Maybe just go home. I can't really journey like..." Ash gestured to himself with a wayward claw, "This. Plus, I'd get to hang out with all of you guys for a bit."

"I... well, I haven't seen most of my pokemon for a while, and I really miss them. I just would like to see everyone again. Maybe even learn some cool moves from them, learn what it's like to see the world from their eyes."

The mouse gave a single nod in understanding, and gave a moment of silence before he nudged his partner. "So, we aren't going to Altomare?"

The young dragon couldn't help but recall the pokemon's continuing joke, and forced back a blush, quickly shaking his head in denial. "No! No, I..." He watched as the electric type's smile grew, and he scowled. "You're not gonna let it go, are you?"

Pikachu smiled in amusement, and only pulled himself closer to his trainer's back, not bothering with a response.

The youth rolled his eyes, and frowned in irritation at the residual warmth still gracing his cheeks. He thought for a moment, before looking back, attempting to meet his friend's eyes. "So, if we can't go to Pallet, what would say we do?"

The electric starter scratched at his small chin for a moment, before giving his trainer a shrug. "I'd say the sky's the limit. We've made friends all around the world, and not just human ones. We could go on a mini-vacation. Visit all those friends you've promised to see again. But, if you don't wanna do that, I just say Pallet, or maybe Hoenn."

"Why Hoenn?"

Pikachu smiled a bit. "I like warm places, but not the tropics. Hoenn is perfect for that. But, it's your choice."

Staring unhappily at his starter, Ash pouted a bit. "And why do I have to make all the choices?"

"Because you're the trainer, the mode of transport, the one in trouble, and, in a pokemon sense, the legendary. Take your pick."

The young legendary growled unhappily; Pikachu was coddling him again. He hated that, and got enough of it from his Mom. He didn't need his friends to join in. "I still think you should choose."

Pikachu shrugged with a small smile. Ash always was easy to manipulate. "Well then, I say Vacation. First stop, Altomare."

Ash blinked, before putting a claw to his face in exasperation. He walked into that one. "Fine, fine."

The pair flew for several more moments with no noise coming from the pair, and all that they could hear was the sound of the wind. Pikachu couldn't help but sigh happily, it was moments like these he treasured.

"Why do you want to get me to Altomare so bad?"

Pikachu blinked, and shifted a bit to get a better look at Ash. "Well... She's a Latias. You're a Latios..."

Ash blushed a bit, and scowled.

"Not like that!" The electric type started, putting up his paws in defense. "I mean, she'll be able to help you figure yourself out. Do we know any other Lati that can help us?"

Ash shook his head awkwardly.

"Then she's our saving grace. And, if, in the end, you guys kick it off, It's just a bonus!"

Ash gave his starter another glare, and the pokemon simply chuckled. Ash was easy to tease, too.

But, before the starter could continue with his amusement, his eyes were suddenly blinded by a bright rainbow light. "Wah! Ash! Stop-it!"

Almost as fast as the light appeared, it was gone. "What? I was just practicing my "essential" Lati skills." The dragon offered with a smirk. The starter rubbed a bit at his eyes, before frowning.

"Ya nearly blinded me!"

Ash shrugged, his smug smile never leaving. "Well, I just wanna learn it before we get there... in case, you know..."

Pikachu grumbled, and sighed unhappily. He was hiding his assault under the pretense of logic and safety. He had no argument, and Ash knew it. "Grrr... Fine.

Ash smiled perhaps a bit too brightly for the electric type's comfort, and the bright, rainbow-esque light returned with a vengeance. Pikachu couldn't help but wince, and put his paws in front of his face in a futile attempt to block to sudden, very bright light. "Too bright!"

Ash scrunched his face up in concentration, and lowered his energy output. Ash's feathers stopped glowing, and, instead, became slightly transparent. Pikachu stopped shielding his face, and looked at the young dragon, mindlessly noting the waves he could see through his faded, somewhat transparent head. "Well, that's better than last time."

Ash frowned a bit, and shook his head. "I wish I could figure this out."

A small yellow paw patted Ash's somewhat transparent neck, and Pikachu looked toward his best friend. "Well, just, er, keep trying. Why not give it a tiny bit more juice? You're pretty close to being completely see-through this time, maybe you just need that last little push."

Ash nodded, and tried to increase the amount of power he poured into it, before beginning to glow again. Pikachu cringed a bit, and Ash, in a panic, quickly lowered it some more. Slightly less transparent than last time. He growled unhappily, and tried to use a bit of his bleed off energy from his wings into the attempt, instead of from his core reserve. Ash grew glassy for a moment, before beginning to glow again. He quickly reeled back a bit of his energy, and resumed his somewhat glassy appearance. Pikachu looked at him, and couldn't help but whoop. "You got it! ... Kinda. Still, it's a lot better than what you had."

The young dragon bobbed his head up and down happily in agreement, and lifted up a claw. He could easily see through it, and, while his outline was still there, if he stood still, he could possibly hide.

Pikachu patted Ash happily on the side of his wing, which caused an unwelcome shudder through Ash. "You did well. Now, I think I see the next island coming up."

The youth forced back the unwelcome feeling, and instead let his happiness take it's course, and grinned gleefully. He even did a small flip, almost losing Pikachu in the process. The starter wasn't happy about that, and gave him a whack with his tail in recompense. "Give me some warning next time!"

Ash just gave his starter a smile, and the pair shot toward the island. It'd been a hour since the last island, and he was getting hungry. He couldn't help but rub his suddenly growling stomach; hopefully, there would at least be some berries there. But, as the pair got closer, Ash noticed that the island was big. Very, very big.

Too big. After a look to the left and right just to see if he could see the end of either coast, he was sure that this wasn't just some island. "Pikachu, I think we're there!"

Raising an eyebrow, Pikachu couldn't help but question his trainer. This was the third 'I think we're there!' He'd been given on this trip, and he found himself hesitant to agree. "How do you know?"

Ash felt a smidge of excitement bloom in his gut, and simply smiled in return. "That's way too big to just be a island."

The starter squinted his eyes, and looked, quickly noting the very large landmass. "That is pretty big, let's get closer."

Ash obliged, and sped up a bit more. The pair quickly made landfall, and, after passing over a decent sized forest, the pair spotted a small city. "I think that is Lacunosa!"

The young dragon quickly shot forward, excitedly aiming for the forest boarding the city's outskirts. The pair then landed with little fanfare, and the electric type jumped off his mount, stretching a bit. "So, I hope you're up for a waiting game."

Ash scratched at his head. "What? Why?'

Pikachu sighed, and looked at his often dense trainer. "Well, we got here in two days."

Ash nodded happily.

"... Flying really fast."

Ash gave another, more hesitant nod.

"Er, so?"

Pikachu face palmed, and looked at his trainer. "Well, there is no way they could have got here before us. Even if we literally went around the entire region following these islands, Iris said we had four days at least before we got here before we left. So, that means..."

Ash slumped the instant the realization hit him. He really just wanted this to be over. "That we beat them here by a couple days..."

Pikachu nodded, and patted his trainer on his side. "It's alright Ash. It'll be over soon, and we'll figure this whole transformation thing out. Then, we can see if, when we get home and you're still a pokemon, if Brock can make us some of his Pokemon food. Cilan's is good, but Brock's is ten times better."

Ash gave a small, hesitant smile at this, and a similarly begrudging nod. "Alright... So, what do we do now?"

Pikachu scratched his head, and shrugged. "I don't know. Know any traveling games?"

Ash snorted at the joke, and shook his head. "Not any we haven't been doing for the past two days."

The electric type smiled, and looked in the direction of the town. "Well...We could try and go into town, and find the Pokemon center?"

Ash thought about it for a moment, before simply nodding in agreement. "And, what? Just say we got separated from our trainer?"

Pikachu nodded, and gave his trainer a smile. "Ash, you didn't tell me you had a sneaky streak."

The legendary shrugged, and returned the grin. "Well, I kinda recall having to dress up as a girl to get a Gym badge, so... This is kinda like that."

The starter just smirked, and nodded. "Well, 'Miss' Ash, let's go."


"Crap-crap-crap-crap-crap!"

Ash couldn't help but somewhat high pitched squeal a bit as he ducked, avoiding a large flamethrower which instead struck a nearby building. How did this go so wrong, so fast?

Oh, wait. Everything always seemed to go wrong this quick. Ash just seemed to be cursed.

All the pair did was bump into someone. And after bumping into that someone, who must have been the most pompous and ill tempered trainer in all of Unova, they found themselves at odds with said trainer's pokemon. Apparently, she had no qualms with fighting a "Trainer's" pokemon, while the trainer was in absentia.

And then, after they escaped the trainer's surprisingly apologetic Marshtomp, they quickly got a blast from the past, in the form of Team Magma. Ash distinctly recalled hearing about them breaking up, and after hearing about that supposedly messy affair, seeing their presence in Hoenn, their home region, would've raised his brow in surprise. But, in Lacunosa? Ash was certain that fate was deliberately screwing with him. There was just no way.

As such, he wasn't very happy. And while he had been wanting a chance to test out his fighting skills, Ash found that it was difficult just trying to focus on fleeing; his starter was the one who had to focus on defense. And they were barely managing that, too.

And Pikachu knew this. He growled internally, cursing their luck, as he let loose another thunderbolt, aiming it at the side of the now somewhat abandoned street. At least everyone had the sense to leave the area; It'd be ten times harder if he had to screen his shots to avoid others. The attack quickly hit the side of a building, and, as planned, sent a cascade of rubble onto the pair of their pursuers. The Magmar, the one who was closest on their trail, grunted as it was knocked to the ground by a particularly large bit of rubble, but the Team Magma member quickly jumped to the side, avoiding the falling debris easily, and threw a ultra-ball at the pair. Pikachu quickly deflected it with his tail, and shot another Bolt at the human, knocking the female grunt off her feet. But, almost as fast as she was knocked down, she got back up.

He never understood how humans were so frickin' durable.

"Ash! Let's get out of here!"

The young dragon nodded, and gave a wary glance at the sky. Maybe, this time, it'd work. He shot up, and quickly tried to take off towards the sky, but, before he could reach the safety of the clouds, he was quickly knocked back down towards the ground. Again. "Going somewhere?"

Ash bounced off the ground, but quickly jolted back up, giving a livid glare as he spotted his current Nemesis. A Latias that kept shooting him down every time he tried to escape the city. He had no clue where she came from, what she wanted, or why she could so easily out-maneuver him when all her movements seemed to slow, but regardless, she kept him effectively corralled in the city. If he could get into the open air, he was pretty sure he could outpace her, but, stuck in this city, she'd continue to play with him like a Meowth with a wounded Pidgey.

The Latias gave him a somewhat flirting wink, and the young Lati couldn't help but growl at her angrily. He was taunting him again. She was worse than Bayleaf; At least she didn't keep him corralled in a city. He didn't know what was worse; The fact that she kept him from escaping, or that she kept flirting with him all the while. But, either way, he knew that she was quickly getting on his nerves. "Oh, don't get too angry, little Sky-dancer. We're not like Aqua, We'll let you live~"

All she got in response was another glare. She kept on referring to events, groups, and people who he honestly had no clue about. He didn't know what happened on the island of Marannu, but she seemed plenty happy to continue referencing it, as if he was there.

"Shut up!"

Pikachu, on the other hand, said nothing, simply matching his trainer's glare, before sending a thunder up to meet her, forcing her to dodge, and fade back into invisibility. Ash decided to take the chance, and quickly shot forward, going back onto the larger main street, where a couple Police officers were fighting against a group of Magma members. He was sure that they would win, The police outnumbered the Magma members two to one. But, The Magma members were better. It'd be a long fight, and Ash wasn't sure he'd last until the end of it.

But, before Ash could ponder more on his situation, a tap on his shoulder from Pikachu pulled him from his thoughts, and Ash quickly jetted forward, accidentally clipping a Magma member with his wing. Maybe, if he got enough speed, he'd just be able to jet out. He Pushed as hard as he could, but, as he met the sky, he was quickly repelled again, and the Latias reappeared. "Oh, I can't let you do that. I wouldn't be able to catch you if you got in the sky, and where's the fun in letting you get away?"

Ash gave the flirty female a glare, and growled again. "What do you doing this for?!"

The Latias put a claw to her chin, making a somewhat mocked thinking pose. She was teasing him. Again. "Ooh, I don't know, the Survival of our species?"

The young dragon blinked. He... honestly had no clue what she meant by that. But, before he could form another response, He was forced to dodge an attack from a grunt who broke away from the fighting, and mindlessly struck the man with his wing, sending the male flying. He shot away from the dazed grunt, and looked back up to the Latias. "What do you mean? That makes no sense!"

The older Latias looked somewhat surprised at his question, but after a moment, her face quickly lit up in genuine amusement. She laughed a bit, and floated somewhat closer.

"Wait... you don't know?"

Ash dodged another stray attack, and continued his ever-persistent glare. The Latias floated out of reach, but, to his surprise, her body faded, and reappeared directly in front of him. Without hesitation, she slowly ran a claw down the side of his face, causing him to flinch. Pikachu taken aback by her sudden proximity, and tried to prepare a Thunderbolt, but the Latias quickly punched the electric mouse with a claw, sending him sailing off of his trainer's back. "I've helped catch many Lati before, but you, you're a lot cuter than most."

Ash couldn't help but blush, and his body screamed at him to back up. But as he tried, the Dragoness' claws quickly grabbed at his jaw line, and held his face in place. "Oh, so, so innocent. Not even knowing of the slow, painful extinction of our species..." She said in a low tone. It almost sounded... moaned out. Ash's blush grew, and he started to feel... dirty. A countless inappropriate thoughts ran through his head, blocking any signals he tried to send to his limbs. "Magma wants to help, you know. They've been collecting Lati, making sure that, when they win, we still... exist."

She rubbed his cheek gently with a claw, pulling his face closer to hers. "Aqua kills us on sight. But, Archie has always been a short sighted pragmatist. Always willing to do what it takes to get what he wants, but never thinking about the future. Maxie, well, knows that he'll need someone to keep the 'great one' happy. After all, that's what Arceus made us for..."

She leaned in, and put her mouth to his ear, and whispered lightly. Ash couldn't help but freeze. His mind was completely clouded. "Might as well do our job."

She then moved her face in front of his, almost inches away; He could feel her breath on his nose, and, for a second, he wished to make her breath... His. "You know, I haven't been claimed... and, while you're young, I think we'd make beautiful children..."

Ash felt his face burn brightly. Was she... serious? Maybe... He should accept her offer. She was beautiful, and, maybe-

"Get away from him, you BITCH!"

The older Dragoness quickly looked to the side, and immediately found a electrified Iron Tail right between her eyes. Her head quickly shot straight down into the dirt, and she bounced a couple feet away, before sliding to a stop. She simply sat there, twitching from the electricity.

Ash quickly looked over, and spotted his starter sitting there, sporting a light bruise on his cheek and panting, and looking positively livid. The young dragon's mind quickly cleared up, and, after a quick shake of his head, he moved forward toward the starter, but he turned around at the sound of a slow clap. He looked to his left, and saw a newcomer; a woman dressed in a red hoodie. She wasn't here earlier. "Good job. Few have ever bested Novia, even with how soft she can be. However, as of now, I'm your opponent."

Pikachu quickly shot forward, nimbly landing in front of his trainer. "You've got to get through me, first!"

Ash looked nervously between the newcomer, and the fallen Latias, who was starting to regain her faculties. "Pikachu, Now's our chance, we can run!"

Pikachu, however, shook his head. He had enough. "No! Now they've pissed me off!"

Ash winced at the tone. Pikachu lost it. The thought of simply grabbing Pikachu and flying off without his consent rushed through his head, but before he could act on it, his starter moved first.

Pikachu quickly sparked his cheeks, and shot a bolt of Lightning towards the Magma member. The woman quickly leapt back, doing a stylized backflip before pulling out a pokeball and throwing it. A large dragon appeared; A Charizard. "Charlie, Fire Blast!"

Pikachu and Ash shot in opposite directions, and the large pillar of flame shot between them. Pikachu leapt forward, swinging a quickly formed Iron tail into its neck, and it was knocked backward a bit. Ash, on the other hand, found himself facing the Latias, Novia, who had recovered, and rushed for him terrifyingly fast.

"Hello again." She joked. Ash ducked quickly, avoiding a claw swung for his head, and he desperately swung forward with a clumsily made dragon claw to try and block her other claw. She easily dodged, and cuffed him roughly in the back of his head. He fell onto the ground roughly, and groaned as he held the newly formed bump. That'd hurt tomorrow. Novia quickly appeared at his side, and lowered down to the ground, looking him in the eyes. She gave him a disarming smile, and gently cupped his cheek with her claws, and lifted his face to hers. "I wasn't lying when I said you were cute." His mind suddenly clouded again, and a terrifying urge appeared. He wanted to throw her to the ground, and-

"I always liked Sky-dancers, Their faces were always... softer. Cuter."

To his surprise, she gave a quick lick to his cheek, making him erupt into another heavy blush. It took all his willpower not to do what his body was screaming at him to do. He honestly didn't know what was going on. "Maybe I'll just claim you myse-"

"Slaking! Punishment!"

Before Ash or Novia could react, a large Slaking burst from an admittedly already destroyed building, and shot forward, it's large hands grabbing a very surprised Novia by the neck roughly, and smashing her twice into the ground. Ash couldn't help but blankly stare in surprise, and watched as it threw her straight into the ground before it and then grabbed her by the wing, and flung her into a pile of rubble. Ash quickly regained his wits, however, and backed up, surprised by the ferocity of the attack and admittedly terrified at the sudden appearance of another possible foe, but, instead of the pokemon attacking him, it continued on towards the Latias, who sat dazed in the rubble. She saw the large pokemon move towards her, and shot a quick dragon breath at it, pushing it back a bit.

Ash watched in surprise, and was only forced to look away when he heard some noise coming from the entrance point of the newcomer. The Young male blinked as a man calmly walked out, and immediately recognized him. Norman.

Alright. Reality was literally off it's medication. Magma being in another region he could almost accept. But Norman? Not even close.

He decided to let that thought end there, however, and looked over to his starter, who was fighting a Charizard, and, while doing spectacularly, was still losing, due to his preexisting exhaustion. He forced himself up, and, with naught but a split second of contemplation, shot forward with all he had, ramming the large dragon with his shoulder. He easily knocked it off it's feet, and Ash felt a pang of pain in his side. He winced, but continued, using the one true move he knew how to use, dragon claw. He quickly gave the large dragon a uppercut in the side, forcing it several feet away and rolling it a bit, but it quickly got back up. Pikachu quickly rushed over to Ash, and spoke, panting. "Ash, we *pant* Got this."

Ash nodded, and looked towards the now equally haggard Charizard. But, before the pair could move forward, a Vigoroth Jumped in front of them, facing the Charizard. "You two! Trainer wants you safe, now!"

Ash looked towards Pikachu, who looked at Ash. Ash nodded tiredly, and grabbed his starter before he could complain, not one to look a gift ponyta in the mouth. The pair spared one last look at the now fighting pair of pokemon, and moved towards the Gym Leader. The instant they got close, Norman gave them a strange look. It was... cold.

He was normally so warm. Guess the fight made him serious.

"You two, stay with me. It's not safe." Ash just gave a numb nod, while Pikachu mumbled 'Well, duh' under his breath.

Pikachu then looked over to Ash, and frowned in worry. Ash came first. "Ash, you *pant* Ok?"

Ash frowned, and thought for a moment. "I'm... not sure."

Pikachu nodded wearily, and leaned up against him. At least he was honest. "That-*pant* was your first attract, wasn't it?"

Ash winced. So, that was what attract felt like? "Umm... Yeah. Is it always that bad?"

The electric type took a couple deep breaths, and sighed. "Sometimes. She didn't... do anything, while I wasn't looking, did she?"

Ash shook his head. "No, but I-"

Pikachu shook his head, and frowned a bit, still breathing heavily. "That's normal, Ash. Trust me, almost anything you could have possibly thought would be probably considered normal."

The young dragon sighed unhappily, and stared at the ground. "Ash, learn from this. As a trainer, attract is a move that can help you, and turn the tide in a battle." Ash nodded. "But, in the wild, it can destroy relationships, scar pokemon, and can even get someone killed. The bond between mates is strong for some pokemon, and the move attract can often destroy that bond, or cause the pokemon's mate to attack the user, and aim to kill."

Pikachu growled a bit in irritation; this wasn't how Ash should've learned that. However, now wasn't the time to complain. "There are reasons why there aren't many pokemon who learn that move naturally. And those reasons are also why there are even fewer that are considered common."

"Slaking, finish her with giga impact!"

Both Pikachu and Ash jumped, not expecting the man beside them to shout. The pair quickly looked over to the battle they were ignoring.

Ash watched as the large sloth shot forward like a rocket, hitting the already tired Lati dead center. Dust rose, and Ash watched nervously as Slaking slowly trudged out of the smoke, quickly realizing that he was dragging a wounded Latias with him. Ash winced, and watched as the sloth pokemon drug the injured Lati to his trainer, and threw her to his feet. Norman looked down to it sadly, and sighed. "Magma, you corrupt even the most gentle natured pokemon."

Norman knelt down, and put his hand to Novia's neck. "I'm sorry, Lati, but you're gone too far. You tried to give up your own kind to others, for nothing but your own selfishness, and desire to support those you work for. And betrayal has no standing among family."

Norman then opened his mouth, but, before he could speak, looked to Ash. He stared at him for a second, before nodding to himself. "Latios, you will pass judgment on her. You are the one who she attacked, you will choose her fate." Ash blinked for a moment, before slowly floating over to the wounded Lati. What would he do? She tried to corrupt him, bent his thoughts and... desires at her own whim. To be honest, he was angry, furious, nay, Livid. Ash continued to stare for a moment, and felt his anger grow. She warped his mind, twisted his desires for her own use. That was something that sickened him to his core.

But... as he continued to look at her, sitting there, panting weakly, his anger died. She wasn't to blame, it was those she followed. But, she also followed them willingly.

After one last moment of deliberation, He decided. He lifted his arm, and moved it to her face.

And flicked her firmly on the nose.

"Bad."

The Latias blinked owlishly, and Ash looked back to Norman, and smiled. Norman actually gave him a small smile in amusement. "Dragon, you'd protect the kin that betray you?"

Ash unhesitatingly nodded. Pikachu sighed, and shook his head, but he had a smile as well. Ash was Ash, and you could never change that. Norman stared for a moment, before releasing the breath he held. "Alright, Latios. I'll spare her." Ash choked a bit; Was that the stakes they were using? Life and Death? Literally?

Norman knelt back down to the Latias, and looked her in the eye. "Latias, Know this. You are going to be transferred to interpol. They will be your new masters, be you willing, or not."

The Latias continued to pant weakly, before looking at Ash. He remained in front of her, standing between her and Norman, and she made her decision. After a moment, she looked back to the Gym Leader, and nodded weakly. Norman accepted this, and looked to Ash. "Alright, Lati. You got your wish. She'll be kept safe."

Ash couldn't help but smile, regardless of the circumstance, and nodded happily. "Thank you."

Norman smiled further at the gesture, and nodded. "Slaking, pick her up. You two, please come with me. I'll keep you safe, for the time being."

Ash nodded and leaned down, allowing Pikachu to tiredly crawl onto his back. The adrenaline was wearing off, and Ash now felt very tired. Probably didn't help that it was nearing nightfall, and that they had a very early morning.

The group hadn't even began moving, however, when a police officer appeared. "Norman? Thank Mew. Three of the Magma members ran, once we caught the Admin. She attempted to leave after your Vigoroth defeated her Charizard, but got hit by a stray attack, and broke her leg. She's at the hospital under guard, and we've declared a state of emergency."

Norman sighed unhappily, and nodded. That would mean a ton of paperwork. "Alright. Tell the mayor I'll be down in a minute. I've got a pair of Lati here."

The police officer looked surprised for a second, and looked at Ash, as if noticing him for the first time. "Oh." Was all he said. He glanced at the young legendary for a second, before smiling. "So, he's what the bastards wanted?"

Norman nodded, and sighed. "Yes. Now, I got to get them somewhere safe."

Still smiling, the police officer nodded, and looked to Ash. "I'm sorry for your troubles." Was all he offered.

Ash stared right back, and gave a awkward nod. Norman continued his walk, and, after another moment of confused staring, Ash followed, wondering what their destination would be.


It turned out to be the Petalburg Gym. Ash couldn't help but stare in absolute confusion, but, after a moment of blankly staring, he finally came to a realization. "Hey Pikachu?"

His starter, who, upon spotting the Petalburg Gym, just put his face in his paws, and had yet to remove them. "*Sigh* Yes, Ash?"

Ash looked over to Pikachu, and sighed in sheer exasperation. Please... no. "... I think we went the wrong way."

The electric type couldn't help but moan in anguish, and, after a moment of internal turmoil, looked over to his trainer. Ash looked at the electric type hopefully, as if he could just deny it, and make the reality less aggravating. But, he was quickly disappointed. "Yes Ash. Yes we did."

Ash groaned after the confirmation, and began glaring futilely at the offending building. The building was to blame, he just knew it. He continued to glare, and his look gained Norman's attention. "Er... I apologize for the lack of decor, but... it's not that bad, is it?"

Ash normally would've said something to reassure the Gym leader, but frankly, he wasn't in the mood, and instead, nodded. "Yes, it is that bad."

Norman's shoulder's slumped, and he sighed. "Well... I, er, will get a decorator to fix it."

Ash nodded, a frown still plastered on his face, and grumpily entered through its doors, where he immediately spotted by a young, suspiciously familiarly looking boy. He couldn't help but blink in surprise. Max?

"Hey Dad, what was the emergenc... A... A Legendary."

Ash couldn't help but sit there awkwardly, almost smiling at the amazed expression Max held. But, before his smile could form, Max rushed up, and grabbed his wing, sending a surge of irritation through him. Ah, yes. This was definitely Max. He forced his irritation from his face, and tried to give the youth a welcoming smile.

He failed. Everything was just too much, too fast.

"Max! Don't crowd the Dragon!"

Max jumped slightly, before backing up, and looking at his father, who was walking toward them. "I was just doing what Ash would do..."

Norman sighed, and shook his head. "Maybe, but I'm sure Ash would know better than to grab a strange Latios' wings."

Max frowned, and huffed, and both Ash and Pikachu felt their irritation ease. Yup, this was Max.

"Either way, keep him company until I deliver this pokemon to Interpol."

Max gave a mindless nod, not even looking at his father. He was, instead, transfixed on the young dragon.

It was then that Pikachu made himself known, and made a loud greeting. Max blinked in surprise, before looking at the mouse. "Pikachu!?"

The electric type nodded and quickly jumped off the dragon's back and onto Max's shoulder, giving his cheek a rub against the young boy's. Max laughed at this, and gave the mouse a hug in return. "Pikachu, what are you doing here? I thought you were in Unova, with Ash!"

Pikachu shrugged, and Max went silent for a moment. "Wait.. is that Latios Ash's?"

Pikachu thought for a moment, thinking of carefully balancing the pros and cons, before simply nodding, figuring that he might as well, and screw the consequences. Max grinned manically, and whooped. "Ha! I knew it! I always told Drew Ash was going to be the best!"

Max grinned happily, and hugged the dragon, getting a grimace from the sore Dragon. "Ash is so awesome!" Max froze immediately afterward, and looked at the young Sky-Dancer. "But, please don't tell Ash I said that. He'd get a big head."

Pikachu couldn't help but smile at that, and nodded in amused agreement. "Yep. There'll be no living with him after this."

The trio happily sat there for a moment, but, before a conversation could form, Norman returned, and the group immediately quieted. Norman looked from Ash, to Pikachu, and finally, to Max. "So, dragon. I'll say this now. You can't stay. The Latias has already been sent to the interpol pokemon facility via a police poke-porter, and I cannot, nor will not, protect you."

Ash and Pikachu looked at each other, and Max looked like he'd been slapped. "But dad, these are Ash's pokemon!"

Norman blinked. He honestly didn't know that, but, in the end, it changed nothing. "And Max, why would Ash of all people, send a Latios and his Pikachu halfway across the world, instead of keeping them with him? Ash is smart; he must know of the three teams after Lati, and that neither the Latios nor his other pokemon are safe with him. He's sending them somewhere that is safe, probably to Altomare."

Ash's ears perked up at this. Safe? Why did there need to be somewhere that was safe? "After all, he has to think of his own pokemon, and his family too. Having a lati could get them all killed. But, if that's Ash's Pikachu, I'd say he refused to leave him on his own."

Norman knelt down, and put a hand on Max's shoulder. "Ash would never abandon a pokemon in need, you know that."

Norman then looked back to the pair of pokemon, and continued. "So, I cannot risk my own family to harbor you. Pikachu, I could easily, and would, if it was only him, but a Lati, even one who belongs to a dear family friend, I cannot. There is no hiding a Pokemon that large, and that rare. And it isn't fair to you, to keep you locked in a basement. I'm sorry... But... you have to leave."

Ash felt nothing but confusion. Norman was a pokemon Gym leader. What could scare him into refusing protection to someone?

Max frowned unhappily, and yelled. "But dad!"

Norman turned and glared at his son. "Max. You were not alive when the three teams attacked Celadon. Those were dark days, and, to be honest, I'm sure they could do it again. A city block was nearly destroyed today, and it was only five magma grunts and a lower squad leader that did it."

Norman sighed unhappily, and his glare lessened. "If any of the groups knew we had a Lati here, at the Gym, in the heart of Hoenn, they would do terrible things to all of us. They might kidnap May, burn the house to the ground, or simply barge in, and take it. There are things we can, and cannot do. And protecting a Lati from Magma, Aqua, or even Whirlwind is something we cannot do on our own, even if we wished to."

Ash froze slightly. Why did the name Whirlwind sound so familiar...?

Max wouldn't have it, though. "So, why not send them to interpol, like you did with that Latias?"

Norman sighed. "That Latias was a Team Magma pokemon. Interpol will try to rehabilitate it, and, if they succeed, will send it somewhere safe, like Altomare, or the Safari zone. It's just easier and safer for them just to fly the hour to either one."

Ash sat there for a moment, the conversation putting a toll on his mind. Being a Latios was dangerous? He looked over to Pikachu, who still sat on Max's shoulder, and a thought came to him. Pikachu, his best friend, was in danger too. He didn't know why he was a Latios now, but he wouldn't endanger his friends just by being where they were. It only took a second for him to make up his mind, and he turned around, and without a word, left the building. Pikachu almost didn't notice, until he looked over to Ash, and noticed he was almost out the door.

Pikachu growled, and leapt after him. Ash better not be doing what he thought he was.


"So, where are we going?"

Ash couldn't help himself and jumped a little. He didn't expect Pikachu to follow him outside so quickly. He quickly frowned, and gave Pikachu a small glare. "I'm going to Altomare."

Pikachu nodded in agreement, and gave the Latios a smile. "See? I told you that you lurved her."

Normally, Ash would've blushed, but right now, he couldn't find himself embarrassed, and simply rolled his eyes in response. "Alright then, if we're going to Altomare, when do we leave?"

Ash shook his head unhappily. He should've just flew off when Pikachu spoke. "I'm going right now. And you're staying here."

Pikachu raised an somewhat confused frown in response. It seemed pretty fake."And why would I do that?"

"Because it'd keep you safe."

The starter frowned, and shook his head. Ash was still as dense as a sack of nickles. "And who will keep you safe?"

Ash shrugged. "Me."

Shaking his head, Pikachu couldn't help but sigh. "Ash, how many times have you recklessly ran ahead to something that should've killed you? Because, to be honest, I've lost count. The point is, you're terrible at keeping yourself safe."

"Doesn't matter, you're not coming."

And, before Pikachu could respond, Ash shot off.

"And how do you plan to stop me?"

Ash nearly stalled, and looked back, spotting a yellow Pikachu on his back. "Pikachu!" He couldn't help but growl.

The starter smiled a bit, and shook his head. "What, you thought that I couldn't use agility? You know how fast I am. Either way, Even if you ditch me, I'll make my way to Altomare on my own. I'll swim if I have to. You're not getting rid of me, whether you want to or not. In fact..." Pikachu added, "It might be safer for me to just stay with you. You don't have to worry about me drowning while trying to swim across an ocean, after all."

Ash growled again, and continued flying east. Pikachu smiled, and patted his trainer on the top of his head. "Hey, look on the bright side, Altomare is only an hour away, according to Norman, the almighty evil dragon slayer. Unless, you wanna fly faster."

Ash didn't respond, and continued flying. Pikachu rolled his eyes. If Ash was going to continue his angry moping, this was going to be a quiet trip.


A/N Alright! This chapter, the one I've been dreading since I started this story, is finally over! I apologize for the wait, most of that was due to the destruction of my previous laptop, which, while simple enough to replace, also forced me to reconfigure all my stuff onto my new laptop, along with the honeymoon stage of "Hey, this thing can play Civ 5 and Fallout New Vegas! And it's not my gaming desktop! Yay games!" that I went through for three days.

Also, if anyone wants to be my Beta, which, after looking over the last chap, I decided that, I will never get up to snuff, just PM me. I'll accept the most fitting candidate.

(EDIT: I got a Beta! He's the amazing Syrup-Waffle!)

In other news, the next chapter finally has Latias in it! I can't say how big it will be, though, and, while I already have an extremely important scene of that event written up, (Which I'll give you a taste of in a moment,) I can't really say how much will be between this chapter, and that point. It could be a standard 2k words, and there'll only be a chapter, or, my muse can make it 15k words, and two/three chapters. Who knows?

Alright, here is the (hopefully) next chapter's sneak peak!

Pikachu then looked over to Latias for a moment, contemplating his choice of words. After a moment, he found them. "So, Latias, as I tell you our story, I have a question for you. What happened?"

Latias couldn't help herself as she gave the electric type a blank stare. She had been enraptured by his tale, and the completely unexpected question broke her facade a little. "What do you mean?"

Pikachu continued to pet his sleeping trainer's neck, but his eyes met nothing but hers. "I may not have lived a long life, but I have experienced more than most. I have helped save the world on countless occasions. I have fought gods, saved realms, and spat in the face of all seven of the greatest sins. And yet, rarely have I seen someone go from being Kind, loving, and cheerful, to cynical, territorial, and colder than Kyurem's ice. So, I ask you again, What. Happened?"

Latias sat there quietly for a moment, and her eyes floated past the glaring electric type, and passed onto to the sleeping dragon he sat protectively in front of. She sat in complete silence for a moment, before finally formulating a reply, returning the electric types glare with an icy one of her own. "Pikachu, let me tell you a story."