Disclaimer: ~doesn't that say everything I need to say?
Me: Whoo! Second update in one day!
Ash: Hey, Kit, can I kiss Serena in the story yet?
Me: No. Shush.
Ash: Aw, come on -
Me: Go play Pokémon games! I'm trying to write!
Ash: Fine...
...
"Max, how will you battle at the Rustboro Gym?" May asked, her mouth full of banana bread. "You only have one Pokémon - your Azurill. And you haven't even trained it yet!"
Max frowned. "Good point," he acknowledged his sister. "I'll just have to train Azurill now and catch two more Pokémon today! Then I can battle tomorrow for sure."
"You'd better get busy," Drew pointed out. "That's a lot to do in one day."
"I can do it!" Max assured Drew. Then he rushed out the door of the Pokémon Center, leaving behind his half-eaten breakfast. May slid his plate over to her and ate what was left.
"Okay!" May announced when she had finished Max's breakfast as well as her own. "We had better do some training, too!"
Drew nodded. Max sure reminds me of Ash, he thought. He winced. The raven-haired boy had become very close with May, and his death was the reason May had decided to stop competing in contests. Drew was glad he and Max had gotten her back into it - in fact, Ash seemed to be the last thing on her mind. His death had hit her hard, but she took it well.
Drew was proud of May for that. She didn't dwell on the bad stuff, and while Ash's death had sent her into a state of depression for a little less than a month, she pulled herself out.
"May... you really are an amazing girl," Drew said quietly, so only she could hear. May turned to him, surprised, and Drew immediately went red in the face. What the heck did I say that for?! He chastised himself.
"Th-thanks," May mumbled in response to Drew's comment. Was it just him, or was she blushing?
...
"So, ZuZu!" Max said eagerly. "What Pokémon d'you think we should catch first?"
"Zu!" ZuZu responded. "Zu, zurill zu!" It hopped off of Max's head and bounced off from some trees. Max laughed and raced after his new friend.
Max stopped when he saw ZuZu perched atop a branch about ten feet off the ground, just above a napping Treecko.
Max's eyes widened. He had wanted a Treecko since he was little - in fact, it was the Pokémon he'd have chosen as his starter, had he not found ZuZu!
"Whoa," Max breathed. He could see that ZuZu wanted to battle. The little Water-Type was crouched in what appeared to be a battle stance. Max nodded to the little Azurill and whispered, "Okay, use Pound!"
Along with Bubble beam and Water gun, ZuZu knew Pound and Tackle. Bubble beam and Water gun wouldn't be too effective, considering that Treecko was a Grass-Type, so Pound was a good move choice.
ZuZu yelled out defiantly and leaped into the air, raising up its tail, which began to glow. The bubble-like tail slammed onto Treecko, hard, and it woke up immediately. "Tree!" Treecko cried out as it was slammed backward. It stumbled, weakened considerably by the attack, and Max saw the perfect opportunity.
"Go, Pokéball!" Max yelled, as he chucked the red-and-white ball at the Pokémon. Treecko looked up in surprise as it was hit, and it disappeared in a red flash of light.
The Pokéball wobbled for a moment, and then there was a ding! and the Treecko was caught! Max grabbed the Pokéball and leaped into the air, holding it up. "I just caught a Treecko!" He cried.
"Zu, zurill!" ZuZu cheered.
Just like Ash and Pikachu, Max thought. His spirits were immediately dampened by the thought, but he shook it off. "I can't think about them," he muttered aloud. "I'll win this Gym battle, and I'll do it for Ash."
...
Misty scanned the rack of Pokéballs. Let's see, she thought. I'll go with Gyarados, Kingdra, and... Misty picked up a Pokéball with a sly smile. This one, she thought. My secret weapon.
As Misty stood up, she saw Violet guiding the challenging trainer to the pool, which served as the battlefield. Misty granted the girl a smile. She had golden hair, dusted with brown, and deep chocolate eyes. Misty decided she looked like she'd put up a good fight, but this was probably her first Gym battle.
Then Misty looked down.
There, walking alongside the girl, was a Pikachu. And a very familiar one, at that.
The girl noticed Misty's shock. "Are you okay?" She asked worriedly. Misty just stared for a moment, then nodded slowly.
"Y-yeah," Misty lied. "I'm fine. So, anyway, I'm Misty, and I'm the Gym Leader here in Cerulean City!"
The girl grinned. "I'm Emily, and I'm here to win a Gym battle." Then Emily looked down at Pikachu and added, "Oh! Um, and this is my Pikachu." Pikachu gave Misty what was sort of a knowing look, and that confirmed it in Misty's mind. But she had to be sure...
"Emily," Misty said carefully, "Where did you get that Pikachu?"
"Oh! Pikachu was my starter. I got it from Professor Oak. I dunno why it won't go in its Pokéball, though. It's kind of weird, huh?" Emily chatted.
Not for that Pikachu, Misty thought. That's not weird at all.
"Yeah, I guess it it weird." Misty lied. "Anyhow, let's get this battle started!" She expanded a Pokéball and tossed it up and down in one hand. "You ready?"
"You betcha I'm ready!" Emily pumped her fist in the air. The two girls walked over to the battlefield. Misty tossed her Pokéball into the air. "Go, Kingdra!"
"My first Pokémon is... Skitty!" Emily cried, tossing another Ball into the air. As the Pokémon came out in glowing flashes of light, Daisy, as the ref, announced:
"This is a battle between Emily, the challenger from Viridian City, and Misty, Gym Leader here in Cerulean! The Cascade Badge is at risk! This will be a three-on-three battle, and only the challenger may make substitutions! Battle, be - "
"Wait!" Emily yelped suddenly. "I, uh... I only have two Pokémon with me."
Daisy huffed. "Fine! This will be a two-on-two battle, and only the challenger may make substitutions! Let the battle begin!"
Misty was disappointed that she'd only get to use two Pokémon, but oh, well. Skitty was pretty weak. Kingdra defeated it easily with a powerful Hydro pump. Pikachu, however, was Emily's next Pokémon, and it wasn't so easy to beat. It was powerful and had a type advantage.
"Pikachu, Electro ball!"
"Kingdra, tackle!"
Misty's Kingdra didn't stand a chance. In an instant, it was out cold.
"Return, Kingdra. Thank you. Okay..." Against Pikachu, Misty knew her Gyarados was in trouble. Despite the fact that Gyarados was much larger, Misty knew very well Pikachu's power. So, she supposed, it was secret weapon time.
"Go, Psyduck!" Misty yelled, tossing her Ball into the air. Psyduck leaped out, holding its head, appearing clueless. Emily blinked, clearly shocked that a Gym Leader would choose such an apparently useless Pokémon. She shrugged it off, though.
"Okay, Pikachu, Electro ball!"
"Dodge it, Psyduck!"
In a flash, Psyduck was out of the way. Emily was surprised, and Pikachu even more so - considering that Pikachu had previously met Psyduck. It wasn't fast, it wasn't smart, and it wasn't powerful.
"See, Emily," Misty called to the young girl, "What a new trainer doesn't know is that special training can make a normally weak, stupid Pokémon into the strongest there is! Psyduck, Confusion!"
Pikachu was slammed onto the ceiling and dropped to the water with Confusion. It hit with a huge splash and a cry of "Pika!" but managed to clamber onto one of the floating platforms and stand, battle-ready once more.
Emily narrowed her eyes, and then she had an idea. "Pikachu, quick attack! Knock Psyduck into the water!"
Pikachu launched itself at Psyduck so fast, there was no time for it to dodge. It was knocked back into the water.
"Ha!" Laughed Misty. "You realize Psyduck has an advantage into the water?"
Emily grinned slyly, taking Misty aback. "Okay, now Pikachu... put your tail in the water and use Thunderbolt!"
Misty's eyes widened. "Psyduck, quick, out of the water!" But it was too late. Misty heard a cry of Psyyyyyyy! And Psyduck was rocketed out of the water in a huge explosion. "Psyduck!" Misty wailed.
Psyduck fell back down onto a floating platform with a thud. Misty could see Emily grinning, sure she'd won. But Psyduck didn't go down that easily.
As the Duck Pokémon stood up, Emily stared in shock, as did Pikachu. "My Psyduck's pretty strong, huh?" Misty said challengingly. Emily scowled.
"All right, catch Psyduck off guard! Iron Tail!"
Psyduck looked up to see the glowing metal tail slam down on its head. "Pssyyyyy!"
"Now Electro ball! Let's get this over with!" As Psyduck was holding its head in agony, the ball of electricity shot at it...
"Energy Ball, Psyduck!"
Psyduck's own ball of energy flew at Pikachu...
The two attacks collided in an explosion. When the smoke cleared, both Pokémon were still standing. Then Psyduck wobbled. It cried out and collapsed.
"Psyduck!" Misty yelled, hopping over platforms to reach her Pokémon. "I guess it was just to much for you, huh?" Misty gathered Psyduck into her arms and recalled it, and it disappeared in a flash of light. Misty then turned to Emily.
"Hey, nice job there, Emily!" Misty congratulated her. Lily walked in with a pointing bit of metal in her hand. She presented it to Emily. "This is, like, the Cascade Badge!" Lily said cheerfully.
Misty smiled at Emily. "You earned it." Then her smile faded slightly. "Can I... See your Pikachu for a sec?"
Emily took the badge and stared at it in awe for a moment. She turned to Misty, surprised at the question. "Y-yeah. Hold on a second." Emily hurriedly put the badge in her badge case and then called Pikachu over. "Hey! Misty wants to see you, I think."
Pikachu perked up and bounded over. It smiled up at Misty and she rubbed its head playfully. "Hey, Pikachu!" Misty said cheerfully. She picked up Pikachu in her arms. Emily looked as if she was going to object, but Pikachu gave a happy "Chaaaa!" and rubbed its cheek against her. Emily blinked. That's weird...
"Hey," Emily questioned. "How come Pikachu isn't using Thunderbolt on you right now? Do you... know each other?"
Misty blinked. "I... uh... well, no." She said quickly. "I guess I'm just... good with Pokémon or something." She then whispered into Pikachu's fur, "Pikachu, tell me what you need to tell me..." She had seen the look Pikachu had given her, and knew it had something to say.
Pikachu looked up, and its brown eyes locked on Misty's green ones. "Pikapi." It said solemnly, and Misty understood immediately.
She had heard from Professor Oak about Pikachu's depression. Upon seeing this Pikachu, she'd known it was Ash's, and it seemed somewhat anxious, yet not horribly depressed. Now, Misty understood why.
Pikachu's look and tone told her that there was hope. More so, the little Mouse Pokémon had clearly conveyed a message Misty desperately needed to hear: Ash was alive.
Staring, shocked, at the little Pokémon, Misty could hardly breathe. Pikachu leaped out of her arms and stepped over to Emily, and Misty nodded slowly at Pikachu, showing she had understood. After Emily left - clearly confused, but at least she didn't ask any questions - that shock melted into uncontrollable elation. Misty felt as if she were flying.
If anyone would know, Pikachu would. And Pikachu clearly did know, so Misty believed the little yellow Pokémon with all of her heart.
Ash Ketchum was alive. And Misty knew it. Every bit of Misty's mind, body, and soul believed that Ash was alive.
...
My first badge! This is awesome! Emily thought. She pulled out her PokéGear and typed a message, adding a picture of her and Pikachu, with Emily holding the Cascade Badge, which she'd taken just after she left the Gym. Then she hit send.
"Wow," she whispered aloud to herself. "He's going to be so excited!"
...
When Ash woke up, the first thing he thought was, Man, I'm hungry.
The second was, Where in the Distortion World am I?!
And the third was, Oh.
He remembered now - the shackles, him coming to the conclusion of being kidnapped, the steely voice in the shadows, the dart hitting him in the arm. They - whoever they was; Ash wasn't sure of anything at this point - must have knocked him and Dawn out with those darts so they could bring them here.
It was a cramped, dark little room. The floor was cold, hard and damp. The walls weren't much different. As his eyes adjusted to the light - or rather, the lack thereof - Ash could make out a small opening in the room that probably served as a door. However, it was barred shut and there were probably twenty-four different padlocks on the thing, not to mention an alarm system. Ash couldn't see the alarm system, but there had to be one.
Then Ash noticed a figure lying near him. Ash leaped to his feet and raced over to her. It was Dawn. Not that Ash expected anyone else, but he was glad it was her. If he and Dawn were separated, that would make this whole thing one heck of a lot worse.
Ash shook her gently. "Dawn!" He hissed. "Dawn, get up! Dawn!"
As Dawn sat up groggily and started to come to her senses, Ash could have sworn he heard something.
Pika! Pikapi!
Ash blinked. That was Pikachu's voice, but...
Ash shook off his confusion. He knew that Pikachu was out there, encouraging him to keep going, to get out and get back to his friends.
That was when the lights came on.
Ash blinked, his eyes now having to readjust. "Hey!" He yelled. "Who's there?!"
Then it was that voice again - that steely calm male voice; the voice of the shady figure. The voice only chuckled in response.
"What are you doing to us?!" Dawn yelled. "Let us go!"
"Oh, my darling girl," the voice taunted. "Havent you realized? You have been kidnapped. You are a big part of my plan, and I am by no means letting you go."
...
Trip thumbed through his texts on his Xtransceiver. As he did so, a new message popped up on his screen. Oh... it was from her. Trip smiled warmly. Texts from her were always a treat. She didn't text anyone except him, ever, unless her parents needed to get a hold of her, and whenever she did text him it was always a treat. He didn't love anyone more than he did her, and he guessed (or at least hoped) it was the same vice versa.
Trip expected a little joke or a funny picture or something like that. Maybe it was an update on her journey. Trip's smile widened as he read the message.
1st badge in kanto super excited! plus I got a pikachu 4 starter!
Trip was surprised that she'd gotten a Pikachu. After all she was from Kanto, so...
Trip's eyes widened. From Kanto. A Pikachu for a starter. That's... so familiar... But Trip shook off his thoughts. It was too late for that now. And regretful memories wouldn't make him feel any better...
That was when Trip saw the picture she'd attached to the message. He went a little bit pale. There was his little cousin, Emily, proudly holding the Cascade Badge... and there was a Pikachu in that picture. But it wasn't just any Pikachu.
No, Trip was fairly certain that was Ash's Pikachu in that picture. And as he typed a casual reply, Trip didn't say anything out of the ordinary to Emily or convey his shock - she clearly was oblivious to that Pikachu's past. He just typed, gr8 job! im so proud! keep knockin em dead emily, and then hit send.
Then Trip took a moment to collect his thoughts. What was Ash's Pikachu doing with a newbie trainer? What was that old Professor Oak thinking?
...
"Electivire, use Thunderpunch!" Gary yelled. Electivire raised its fist and electricity began to gather up in it, then slammed that fist down onto a rock. Normally, an Electric-Type attack such as Thunderpunch wouldn't have had much effect on a rock. However, said rock shattered under Electivire's fist despite the move type, proving how strong Electivire really was - and how much time Gary had spent training it.
Blastoise was also under special training, as were all of Gary's Pokémon. They were strong enough to pass the Gym Leader tryouts later that day, and Gary knew it, yet he wanted to be sure that they were at their best. Besides, it helped him concentrate on something a bit more positive than what he'd otherwise likely be thinking about.
Gary checked his Pokétch, which he had bought on a whim while in Sinnoh. It ended up coming very much in handy. The time was 9:32 a.m., which meant just an hour and a half until the tryouts began. Gary smiled - and that was a thing he rarely allowed himself to do, especially as of late.
His grandfather was probably right in thinking that being a Gym Leader would be good for him.
...
Lance paced the room. He was thinking about that boy, Ash Ketchum. The one whom he had been friends with. It wasn't for so long, of course, but they had known each other. Now that the boy was dead, well, it was a bit of a shock to Lance at first. Since they hadn't known each other especially well, Lance was not terribly heartsick, but it gave him grief to know that such a young boy had been killed. Of course, when the fire was discovered to be arson, it made things all the worse - now Lance had a criminal on his hands. The boy crossed his mind quite a lot, and he happened to be occupying Lance's thoughts right now.
Then the phone rang, shattering the Champion's thoughts. As the annoyingly cheerful voice rang out - Ring ring ring, Ring ring ring, Phone call! Phone call! - Lance stalked over and picked up. The screen flashed on and Cynthia's image showed on the screen.
"Cynthia." Lance acknowledged. He was surprised, but he took care not to show it. Lance never let anyone think he was caught off guard, providing a better political image of himself for sure.
"Lance," Cynthia said worriedly. "I've been meaning to tell you this for a long time... well, you heard about Ash Ketchum's death, right?"
"Yes, Cynthia. It was all over the media for two weeks, not to mention it's my region so I would probably know something of it." Lance replied, irritated.
"Okay, okay, but, well... there was a girl, Dawn Berlitz. She was shot and killed the night before Ash died, and..." Cynthias's voice cracked slightly as she spoke. Lance raised an eyebrow.
"Did you know her?" He inquired.
Cynthia nodded. "I - yes, we were good friends, actually." She said, biting her lip. "The thing is, those two were good friends as well. They traveled together for just over a year. And then, they both... died... writhing 12 hours of each other, so... well, isn't that... odd?"
This time, Lance could not hide his surprise. He slammed a hand down on the table, and his face conveyed utter shock. "What did you say?!"
...
Hi!
So, like my cliff-hanger? Now, don't get mad, that's just the way a story works! Here's a story's typical aspects: there's a nice big hill, a steep drop, then a slow incline, a couple of potholes, lots of sharp turns, and sometimes a cliff. So expect that and, again, don't get mad!
Anyway, Ash and friends are busy playing Pokémon Y (uh oh. I think I hear some yelling and smashing stuff. Ash probably just lost a Gym battle for the seventh time in a row with his Level 5 Froakie...) so I'm hoping we won't end up with yet another hectic conversation between those guys. So, yeah. If you were looking forward to that, well, maybe next time.
Oh, hold on, Gary just told me he... what?! Okay, never mind, I'm not putting that in. The clean version is that he doesn't really like this story. Well, poo you, Gary and all the others who wanna flame! You yelling at me IN ALL CAPS LIKE THIS won't change a thing - it's my story!
So, let's see. Um... REVIEWS MAKE ME HAPPY! And I think that's it, so I hope you enjoyed this! Another update is on the way tomorrow, I promise! (Or maybe even again today!)
(And maybe if you review, guys, I'll make the shipping get going sooner in the story. Maybe Ash can kiss Serena like he apparently really wants to. If you don't, I make no promises. But, I mean, 1,564 views and only 11 reviews?! Are you kidding me?! Talk, guys, TALK! And thanks to you guys who do review. Y'all are awesome. :D)
