Celadon's New Blossom
Ash put the finishing touches on fixing his hat as he stood waiting near the outskirts of Celadon City. The outfit he currently wore was the Luvdisc-themed overalls outfit that he had bought about a week ago thanks to Misty. Even though it was clearly designed for a girl to wear thanks to the coloring and style, he had to admit that he liked it. This was mainly due to the fact that the outfit had a bit of a boyish appearance to it, even if it did leave him looking as if he were a tomboy.
Over the past week, he had been hard at work dealing with the various facets involved with his new life as 'Ashley'. By now, he actually had a better grasp on his kyudo lessons, and could shoot an arrow most of the time without too much of a hassle. There were still times where he lost control while trying to put the arrow in place, but that was something slowly being dealt with. He was also getting steadier and more accurate, though it was clear he still had a ways to go before it became more natural.
Tea Ceremony and Flower Arrangement were two things that slowly brought him closer and closer to learning way more about tea and plants, as well as the art therein, than he thought he would ever thought he would. He had to admit that after getting into them, both activities were rather relaxing, and it also boosted his ego and pride whenever he managed to do a successful arrangement or preparation of tea and obtained praise for it.
When he wasn't working on any of this, or working at the perfume shop or helping out at the gym, he put some of his other time into working on actually training his Pokemon and getting a little more understanding of their capabilities and what they could do. It even provided a great opportunity to get to know Krabby and spend some time with it. It also became apparent to him that Primeape and Pinsir had managed to form a bit of a rivalry in the short time they knew each other.
"Dew!" Budew let out, ducking down into his traveling bag, right before poking back out as if it were playing peek-a-boo with Pikachu, who stood on the ground waving his tail at the young plant Pokemon. Budew expressed some interest in learning how to battle after watching various training sessions. However, still being rather young, it couldn't really do much at the moment but absorb energy and release stun and sleep spores. It could also unleash a pollen that caused others to sneeze with a runny nose.
The small plant Pokemon proceeded to do it once more, this time facing Ash, who couldn't help but laugh a little. He had decided to let Budew rest in his bag during the trip to Fuchsia so that it could get its first look at more of the world around it. "Looks like you're really energetic today, huh?"
"Ash!" The trainer turned around upon hearing the familiar voice of Misty, and saw both her and Brock towards his direction. "Oh! You're wearing that one outfit from the other day."
Brock tilted his head as he observed his younger friend. "It looks good on you, but all of this Ashley business is causing me to forget you were ever a boy." His ability to spot these kind of things was still muted whenever it came to the blond. It also didn't help that as far as everyone was concerned thanks to the League, Ash was now fully registered as a girl.
"... you're not going to end up hitting on me eventually, are you?" Ash asked, looking visibly weirded out at the very notion of something like that ever happening.
"Absolutely not!" Brock waved his hands while shaking his head quickly. "You two know I don't go after every single woman I spot!"
Misty placed a hand before her mouth, looking amused. "Just every single girl who is mature. What if Ash ended up- ow! Hey!" She grimaced as Brock placed his fist on her head and gave her a rather firm noogie. "Okay, okay! You have preferences!"
"Can we stop talking about Brock's preferences?" Ash asked dryly with what was clearly a sign of hope.
"Gladly." Brock nodded quickly.
Misty rubbed the top of her head in annoyance. "Sounds fine to me." She noticed Budew poking its head out from the bag and was over to it in an instant, squatting and fawning over it. "Awww, so you're letting Budew ride in your bag? That's so cute!"
"Dew..." It squirmed slightly, no longer outright nervous around Brock or Misty, but still shy when dealing with most others besides its trainer and Pikachu. It managed to give a tiny smile.
"You're doing a great job raising it, Ash." Brock gave it a quick glance over. "Very energetic and healthy. I was worried you wouldn't be able to take care of it."
"So was I!" Misty let out. "I had a lot of visions of him fumbling about trying to deal with it."
Ash sagged in defeat, getting pouty. "Couldn't you have at least had a little more confidence?" Pikachu hopped up onto his shoulder and nuzzled his cheek to cheer him up. "Well whatever. Thanks for agreeing to go to Fuchsia with me." Having Brock and Misty there with him in case he got into some trouble and needed help would be nice. He didn't want a repeat of Saffron in any way.
"Are you kidding?" Misty asked, standing back up. "I was getting the itch to do a little traveling again. There's still so much of Celadon to explore, but getting back to nature will be nice again!" At least, as long as they don't end up hopelessly lost as usual.
"Same" Brock nodded. During the past week, he actually helped out at the Pokemon Center... when he wasn't trying to flirt with Nurse Joy or the other women who visited. Helping out was actually good practice for learning more tricks that would be helpful as a breeder. Though if Ash is going to be spending a bunch of his time in Celadon, then perhaps it'd give him a wonderful opportunity to go back and learn from Suzy.
Misty took a moment to think about their destination. "What was it that the Fuchsia Gym specializes in? And how are we getting there?"
"Erika told me the gym was a Poison Type gym, and also ninja themed!" The wide, childish grin he displayed only caused his friends to stare at each other, wondering just how much trouble would come from it. "And Erika told me that the fastest way to get there would be going left of Celadon." He pointed in the direction. "Other than that, we can go south but need to cut through some mountains. The longest path would be cutting through Saffron and either going south to Vermillion or further east to Lavender, then following the path from there."
The last option sounded like it would take forever, and Misty really wasn't interested in getting hopelessly lost any time soon. "Why would going west be the faster route instead of going south since it seems more direct?"
Ash coughed into his fist at the question. "The path is just... um... it has less obstructions in the way!" It was clear he was trying to dodge the answer. "So we just need to go that way!"
Brock became lost in thought as he worked on trying to figure out their destination. After a moment, it finally dawned on him. "I got it! Going that way will get us to the Cycling Road that connects near here and Fuchsia!"
The answer caused Ash to sweat, realizing what was coming.
"Oh yes, that's right. The Cycling Road!" Misty crossed her arms. The structure provided rental bikes to those who didn't have access to their own bike. However, this also brought forth another subject. "I wouldn't have to worry about renting a bike if someone hadn't-"
"Tutu!" Ash spouted out quickly, causing Misty to halt in her speech and blush with some embarrassment.
Brock was ready for the two to go at it for the umpteenth time, but was caught by surprise when that one word caused Misty to go silent. "What's this about a tutu?" He asked, not wanting to be left out.
Misty waved her hands. "Nothing at all, Brock! Don't worry about it!"
"Oh, that's right!" Ash was next to Brock in an instant. "You weren't there when me and Misty went shopping the other day, right?" He pulled out his phone and quickly brought up a picture despite Misty's objections. "Misty was stuffing me into all kinds of embarrassing stuff, so I managed to get her to agree to wearing some things in return!"
The picture Brock saw was an embarrassed Misty standing in a maid outfit and looking to the side. The blond had clearly snapped it at the perfect moment. He had to admit that it was kind of amusing to see the girl in such a state. The hairs on the back of his neck bristled, however, causing his head to turn. "A- Ash?"
"You should see her in the ballerina outfit, though!" Ash was clearly too engrossed in showing the older boy the images that he missed the worried tone.
"Ash, you might want to put that away." Brock added with more urgency.
"Huh? Why Brock?"
"ASHLEY KETCHUM!" Misty's shout, as well as use of the name 'Ashley', broke the boy in question out of his fun, causing him to slowly turn his head to see a rather furious Misty, seemingly almost glowing. "Give me that phone, now!"
"You can't have it!" Ash yelled as he took off running, with Misty close on his heels as Pikachu struggled to keep hold of his trainer's shoulder. Budew had quickly ducked into the bag for safety. This left Brock standing behind in the dust, scratching his cheek as he watched them run off. Only one thought crossed his mind.
"I wanted to see the ballerina picture..."
The trip to Cycling Road took less time than it initially would have thanks to the group having ran a good chunk of the way there. By that time, they were clearly exhausted, and collapsed near the wall of the structure while trying to regain their breath.
"I- huff- don't care about the phone any more." Misty panted, having plopped down onto her butt to give her legs a rest. "You just better delete those images and not show anybody else."
Ash waved his hand, resting his head against the wall as he sat next to her, Pikachu working on trying to fan the both of them with a towel. "I'll get rid of them after you get a bike again." Thanks to his job at the perfume shop, he was on his way to earning enough to do just that. "Jeez... you know I'm working on that, so why can't you lay off on mentioning the bike?"
"Old habits... and maybe teasing you is just so much fun?" Misty managed to reach over and poke the blond on the cheek while smirking.
"Oh come ooooooon." Ash whined childishly in annoyance, blushing. "It's only fun for you. I'm the one working my butt off here. You'll get your stupid bike eventually, and then you can stop whining at me about it."
"I do NOT whine." Misty shot back with indignation, but her features softened after a moment. "... and you're right. You are trying to pay me back." She never even expected the boy to ever do that, and resigned herself to just constantly reminding him occasionally just to see his reaction. It was petty of her, she realized. Reaching, she placed her arm around her friend's shoulder. "Thanks, Ash..."
"Hey, what's gotten into you?" Ash asked in embarrassment, feeling that this was a weird turn in how Misty would normally act.
"What, can't I just thank a friend for them going to so much trouble?" Misty asked with a huff. Her lips then turned into a smirk. "No need to be so nervous, girlfriend."
"Girlfriend? Hey!"
"What? As far as everything goes, you're now a girl." She was clearly having some amusement with this. "And we even went shopping together. It's nice to have another girl friend to talk to." She laughed as she dodged a grab from Ash, hopping back to her feet. "Feeling a little touchy there, girlfriend?"
Blushing and growling in embarrassment, Ash got back to his feet and chased a laughing Misty around the area. "Get back here!"
"... those two have way too much energy." Brock muttered as he rested to regain his own breath. Pikachu worked on fanning him next.
Eventually, the trio stood before the entrance to the Cycling Road. The entrance consisted of a small building like structure that acted as a double arch. The side of the roof had the name 'Cycling Road' on it, and to the side was a garage entryway. If one were to look into the grage, they would see a series of panels along the floor, and a simple computer console with a few buttons.
One thing was missing, though, which Ash decided to point out. "Hey, where are the bikes?"
Brock was about to explain when a video screen activated, showing a pre-recorded message of a lovely young woman, as if it were voice activated to reply to such questions. "Allow me to answer.. The bikes owned by the Cycling Road that are rented out are kept in a small storage facility close by. In order to obtain a bike, you need to use this computer to teleport one of them onto the pads on the floor. When you're done with a bike on the other side, you stick it back on the teleporter and send it back to the storage facility."
Hearts popped into Brock's eyes. "Just who is that amazing beauty?" It was a shame he could only see her as a video image. "She's got to be even more lovely in real life!"
"Or maybe she's all wrinkly and old now." Ash blurted out, since there was no way to know how long ago this was made. "With saggy skin and long bony fingers." He wiggled his fingers for emphasis.
Brock shivered all of a sudden and slumped, no longer feeling invested in in his latest 'crush'. "Thanks a lot for driving a knife through a young man's dreams, Ash!" He let out, tears streaming down his cheeks.
'He'll get over it in a few minutes.' Ash thought as he activated the computer console and teleported a bike in. Much to his dismay, the bike that materialized in was pink... with a little basket in front. "Just my luck..." He muttered, rolling the bike out of the garage. He could have traded it for another bike, but despite his annoyance, he kind of found himself growing accustomed to the color by this point. He didn't LOVE the color, but he could deal with it.
On the bright side, the basket meant that there was a spot for both Pikachu and Budew, allowing them a good seat for the trip. The latter of the two looked around in clear awe from its spot in the basket.
"Hey Ash," Brock walked up next to him with his own choice of bike. "Have you been watching the broadcast of this year's Indigo Plateau Conference?"
The blond nodded quickly. As Gary had informed him a few days prior, the tournament for the Indigo League began a couple days prior, and the event was currently being televised over the next few days as it showed several preliminary rounds. Reporters also spoke with various trainers, with many of them being considered top contenders or returning participants.
"Some of the matches are really amazing." He answered. There were many points while watching a match where he was glued to his seat and expecting someone to have a certain victory, only for it to turn completely around in the end. "But I bet I'll be able to defeat them all by this time next year!"
"Looks like somebody still needs to learn modesty from Erika." Misty smirked as she walked up to the Cycling Road arch.
"Shush!" Ash answered with a blush. He could be plenty modest. It was just that not being around Erika or the other girls at the gym, and being around his friends at the moment, allowed him to feel a bit more relaxed and dwell less on such things. "Let's get a move on!" He wanted to get his next badge as quickly as possible.
As they made their way along the bike path, the land eventually gave way to water. The bridge they were riding along was positioned between the sea and the entry way to what would lead to the Vermillion Harbor. If one were to look, they would see various aquatic Pokemon and animals breaching the water below. Up above in the air, seabirds – which included Wingull and Pelliper – glided about while occasionally diving into the water.
"The sea air feels so nice!" Misty shouted with clear glee. Being a Water Pokemon trainer, it was only natural for her to be so fond of a scenario like this. Being able to catch a glimpse of all the Pokemon in the water was nice as well.
"It's alright." Ash answered as his nose twitched. Due to working around so much perfume, he was a lot more sensitive to smells now than he was previously. The sea air was fine, but as they continued on, he was forced come to a quick stop as he held his nose. "Urgh... what's that smell?!"
"Pika?" Pikachu looked up at his trainer in curiosity.
His friends stopped, and Brock was the first to answer. "What? I don't smell anything other than the sea."
Ash looked around, turning his head towards the left. As he did, he caught sight of what was possibly causing his discomfort. "It's that place!" He shouted, pointing towards what appeared to be a close by factory town that was pouring out lots of dark smoke. The water around it was actually divided from the rest by netting to prevent too much grime from getting to the rest of the water.
"I can't believe a place like that is even allowed to operate..." Misty pulled out her map guide and glanced it over. "It looks like it's called Gringy City. It used to be populated, but they built more and more factories, causing people to leave. The place has been receiving a lot of sanctions lately from the government for all of the pollution it keeps putting out."
Due to Ash's insistence that they get away from the smell that was bothering him, the trio proceeded to continue on their way along the path. It was smooth sailing from there, until they got to around halfway across the bridge and came across a bit of a road block that came in the way of a group of bikers that seemed content in making a barrier with their bikes.
"Hey guys, look!" One of the bikers adjusted his jacket and stood up. "Looks like we finally got ourselves some visitors trying to pass."
Another laughed. "Hopefully they have the money to pay the toll! The guy probably does, and the redhead might. Though looking at little blondie here, I wouldn't be too sure."
Ash glared. "Whaddaya mean by that?!" Pikachu shared the glare, and Budew attempted to mimic the look.
"What toll? There shouldn't even be one." Brock added.
The biker ignored Ash's outburst. "Shows how much you know. We're in charge of this bridge, and so we put up a toll. If you can't pay it, then you'll just have to turn around." He rubbed his fingers together, signifying money.
"We aren't paying you anything."
"Misty's right!" Ash nodded as he attempted to ride through the bikers. Their outright dismissal of him gave him no desire to even deal with them. "We're going to Fuchsia and you can't stop us." As he attempted to do so, a few other bikers surrounded him, with one grabbing his shoulder.
The bald one holding onto his shoulder smirked, wagging a finger. "You shouldn't be disrespecting your elders, little girl. That's not how the REAL world works, so maybe you should go back home and continue playing dress up?"
"Tangling with trainers like us isn't a smart move for a cute little thing like you. You might get your hair messed up, a scratch on your soft and smooth skin, or even chip those cute little pink nails of yours." Another biker grabbed Ash's hat off his head and ruffled his hair.
"That's it!" The blond yelled out as he punched the guy, grabbing his hat and putting it back on his head. "Pikachu, thunderbolt!"
Pikachu, incredibly happy to oblige at the moment, hopped into the air and let loose his electric attack, which caught all of the biker's surrounding Ash. They yelled out in surprise, and quickly collapsed as soon as the attack ended.
"Ashley!" Misty hissed, grabbing onto his arm. "Are you sure that was a good idea? They're going to get angry!"
"We could have tried talking to them some more." Brock added.
Ash scratched his cheek, realizing his mistake only a bit too late. "I... uh... just wasn't thinking?" Hooboy did he hope that Erika never got wind of this little incident.
The bikers, after twitching for a few, got back to their feet and surrounded the trio. They were looking rather angry as they started to pull out their Pokeballs, but a voice caused them to stop in their tracks.
"What do you all think you're doing?" It came from a small little structure to the side of the bridge that acted as a rest point. The owner of the voice stepped out, revealing them to be a young woman with dark purple hair. The left side was shaved short while the right side was long and draped over one of her equally purple eyes. Her leather jacket rested over a red halter top, and her legs were covered by a pair of hastily made jean shorts. Knee length black boots encased her feet. "Getting this rowdy over some kids?"
Brock was next to her in an instant. "A voice of reason! Someone of your beauty would definitely understand what's going on! What's your name? Can I have your number?"
"Winda" It was all she said as she pushed Brock to the side and walked up to Ash, getting face to face with him. "From the sound of things, you're quite the tough little cookie for someone who looks, and even smells, like a pampered little princess."
"Chu..." Pikachu glared up at the woman, sparks tingling in his cheeks. Budew, meanwhile, attempted to hide behind him, feeling as if the lady was a bit scary.
"Nice Pikachu. It looks strong, but just how much of a battler are you, Princess?"
Ash wondered in annoyance just what it was with people calling him 'Princess'. He could at least understand the girls back at Celadon, but it seemed incredibly eerie when someone he never met before decided to insult him by calling him Princess just like that. "Tch, I'm an awesome battler." He answered, pushing the thought out of his mind. "I've got four gym badges, and my name is Ashley Ketchum, not Princess."
"Four badges, eh?" She looks back at her fellow bikers. "You punks hear that? The little Princess has some experience. What's that they say about not judging a book?"
A unanimous cry of 'yes boss' was heard from the group, and Winda turned her attention back to the young blond. "So, miss 'I have four gym badges', how about you and I have a little battle? You win, and your group can pass without issue."
"That sounds good to me!" Ash answered quickly before Misty or Brock could stop him.
"But if you lose," Winda continued, "I get to take your precious little Budew there." She pointed at the Budew hiding behind Pikachu.
This caused the boy to instantly pause. "What? No way! You aren't getting Budew! Why do you even want him?"
"Pika!" The electric mouse shared the same glare as his trainer.
"No real reason. I just think it's a fair trade." Winda didn't want to acknowledge it was because she thought Budew was adorable, especially not in front of her group. "But if you're too afraid of losing to me, Princess, then I understand."
Ash froze, finding himself in a rather huge quandary. On one hand, he did NOT want to stake Budew on anything. On the other, he was just accused of being a coward if he didn't agree to the terms. His pride was being put on the line!
"Don't risk Budew, Ashley." Brock frowned, before skipping over to Winda. "I'll be brave and put myself on the line~" He was quickly pushed backwards by the woman.
Misty looked directly at her friend, realizing how he was when his pride was challenged. "You wouldn't do such a thing, would you?"
"I..." Ash stared down at Budew as the little Grass Pokemon stared back up at him. He could tell that the little guy didn't fully understand the situation and what was happening, but he could sense the worry. Even if he won, he would have still been a pigheaded fool to agree to such a thing. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath before looking up at Winda. He made his decision. "No." Not only would he be disappointed in himself IF he lost, but he could just see Erika's disappointment when she found out, whether he won or not.
Both Misty and Brock were surprised by the answer, but relieved to know that he didn't let his pride get to him just this once.
"So you admit to thinking you'll lose to me, huh? And here I was thinking you were a tough cookie, but it seems you're just a soggy banana." Winda shrugged her shoulders. "Call me disappointed."
"I KNOW I'm not going to lose! I'm just not going to stake one of my Pokemon on a battle. Doing so would be dumb." He looked to the side, mumbling. "But not as dumb as your hairstyle."
It was Winda's turn to glare. "I heard that. Fine, let's battle. One on one battle with no substitutions. If you call back your Pokemon, you lose. You win, you can go." She pulls out a Pokeball and gives it a toss, releasing the Pokemon from inside.
"Kro!" The Krokorok let out, crossing its arms and giving a smug look.
"What is..." Ash pulls out his pokedex.
"Krokorok, the Desert Croc Pokemon. Krokorok is native to the Unova and Kalos Regions. The membrane covering its eyes allows it to see heat signatures."
Reading up a little more, Ash noted that it was a Ground and Dark type. "Ground, huh? I got just the thing." He pulled out a Pokeball and tossed it out, releasing his choice for the battle.
"Kukiki!" Krabby snapped his pincers, staring up at the Krokorok, foam bubbling from his mouth. The crab Pokemon was currently in the blond's roster from the training practice the previous day.
Winda raised an eyebrow. "That's a rather tiny Krabby you have there." She shrugged. "It's almost a shame, really. Krokorok, end this quickly with Thunder Fang."
"Kro!" The crocodile Pokemon opened up its mouth as it charged towards Krabby, electricity crackling within its mouth!
"What? It can-" Ash shook his head to concentrate, not expecting a ground type to be able to have an electric attack in its arsenal. "Krabby, leap up onto Krokorok's head and Stomp!"
Krabby weren't amazing jumpers as a whole, but they still possessed some strenght in their legs. As such, the small crab was able to leap above his opponent's head before it could bite him. As it came down onto the crock, his foot shimmered as he landed a strong downward kick that sent Krokorok's head smashing into the concrete.
Winda gives a brief frown. "Krokorok, spin around and deliver a Payback!"
With amazing fluidity, Krokorok spun around in a fantastic mimicry of the well known crocodilian death roll. However, unlike the actual thing, the croc Pokemon's claw glowed darkly, mashing against Krabby as it completed its turn and sending the tiny crab skidding.
"Krabby! Are you alright?" Ash asked in concern. He never used it in an actual battle, so maybe this was a mistake.
"Kushishi..." Krabby answered as he got to his feet, wobbling a little. He snapped his claws as bubbles foamed from his mouth. He wasn't about to lose in his first actual battle with his trainer, especially not after training with her. He wanted to show her he could be depended on.
"Kukishi!" He loudly shouted as a bright glow surrounded his body, which began to reshape itself.
Misty stared in surprise. "Is Krabby..."
"It's evolving!" Brock finished. "In its first battle, too!"
Ash and Pikachu just stared in awe as this happened. Perhaps all that training paid off in allowing Krabby to reach this point?
Budew also stared, but for him, it was due to this being the first time he had witnessed an evolution, and even learning of such an occurrence. To him, seeing such a thing was amazing, and caused him to wonder if he could eventually evolve as well.
"You've gotta be kidding me." Winda muttered, hands on her hips. It just wasn't fair to have a Pokemon evolve during a battle like that. Granted, if it occurred on her behave, she wouldn't complain. "Krokorok, get in there fast and Thunder Fang it before it finishes!"
Krokorok nodded and lunged at the evolving opponent. However, it was too late as Krabby – now Kingler – finished his evolution. In response to the oncoming croc, the crab lashed out with his oversized claw. Krokorok was caught by the backhand and found itself launched away and over the edge of the bridge. "Krooooooooooo!"
"Krokorok!" Winda shouted as she scrambled over to the side of the bridge and raised the Pokemon in question's Pokeball. The beam shot out and hit the falling sand croc, summoning it back into its ball right before it hit the water. The gang leader sighed out in relief before slumping in defeat. "Well I guess I lose that one."
Ash laughed as he glomped onto Kingler. "You're amazing, Kingler! Look at you! You evolved! Though I kind of wished we could battle a little more so I could see how strong you are now." Well, there was always next time they battled, he reasoned.
"That's what I call a lucky break." Misty muttered, but was rather relieved.
The rest of Winda's gang, however, wasn't as pleased with the outcome. "That wasn't fair!" One yelled as they surrounded Ash's group.
"Winda would have won for sure!"
"We won't let you embarrass her like that, you brat!"
"Er... um..." Ash sweated at being surrounded. "Look, we can probably talk this out, right?"
Budew frowned at the people making his trainer so uncomfortable. Opening up his bud, he unleashed a stream of pollen at a few of them, causing them to suffer a bout of intense sneezing with tears leaking from their eyes.
Brock tugged at his shirt collar nervously. "I think that kind of made things a little worse." The other bikers definitely didn't seem happy.
Before the bikers could do anything else, Winda stomped a foot. "That's enough you clowns!" The shout rendered the whole group silent as she walked over to Ash. She was clearly annoyed with her loss, but realized it was just that. "You win, Princess. You and your friends can go."
"Really?"
"A deal's a deal, girlie. However, next time we meet, I expect another battle." Reaching out, she pulled Ash's hat down over his eyes. "I won't accept that some pampered little princess is a better trainer than me, you got that?"
Ash pushed his hat back up. "I'm not a pampered little princess! And I won't accept any defeat from someone like you." He pulled down his eyelid and stuck his tongue out.
Winda laughed. "I think I like you, kid." She stepped out of the way and barked an order at her gang while smirking. "Get in line and make a path for the little princess and her entourage gang!"
The other bikers quickly did as they were told as they split up and stood in two straight lines, creating a path to allow the three to continue through.
Recalling Kingler, and putting Pikachu and Budew back into the bike basket, a blushing Ash quietly pedaled his way passed the group, followed by Misty and Brock directly behind him. The former of the two caught up and moved along his side.
"... don't say a word, Misty."
"I couldn't possibly imagine what you're talking about." The girl answered, feigning ignorance. "I mean, there is no way I could bring myself to cause problems for the lovely Princess Ashley." She quickly sped off ahead of him. "You should be more trusting, girlfriend!"
"Get back here!" Ash yelled, his entire face red in embarrassment now. "What did I ever do to deserve thiiiiiis?" He whined.
"It's not all bad, Ash." Brock pulled up next to him. "Think of how lucky you are to be able to make friends with so many lovely women!" He holds up a fist, looking ahead. "Ash, you must tell the women you meet about me if you meet any while I'm not around. Let them know that there is a handsome guy on the lookout!"
Ash said nothing as they continued on their way.
Finally, after a spell of uneventful biking, the trio reached the opposite side of Cycling Road. The whole trip from one side to the other had taken less than a handful of hours thanks to it being a near straight pathway. Thankfully there were a few rest points along the way. If they had gone the path south of Celadon, it likely would have taken a while longer due to various obstacles in the way.
After disembarking from their bikes and sending them back to storage via the teleporters, the trio took a moment to stretch their bodies and rest. Once revitalized, they continued on their way towards Fuchsia. Being even closer to his goal, Ash was positively jumping in excitement.
"Gonna get my fifth badge soon!" After that, he would just need three more badges! He was so going to be ready by the time the next league conference.
"Just remember that the gym is a Poison Type one, Ash." Brock rubbed his chin in thought. "You don't have any Pokemon that are weak to Poison, but you also don't have any that are strong against it either."
"Poison... poison..." Ash ran the word through his head, attempting to recall the type chart Erika had him read over. "You're right. Though since none of my Pokemon are weak to Poison, it should go a bit easier." Well, there was the risk of actually being poisoned to worry about. Reaching down, he patted Budew, who was back to resting in his bag.
"Hey, what's going on over there?" Misty pointed, causing the rest of the group to look. "It's some kind of construction, but for what?"
True enough, there was an area roped off as construction workers went about their job. Strong Pokemon such as Machoke and Gurdurr were also helping with the building and moving of material. What was clear was that whatever they were working on had a long silver brick walkway with stone pillars.
Ash, interested in knowing what was going on, ran on over to the rope. "Hey! What are you guys building?" His question went unanswered due to all of the workers being unable to hear him over the noise. Before he could try and ask again, a voice spoke up from nearby.
"They're building something that will help bring excitement to this region."
Ash turned to see a somewhat tubby man with curly brown hair and a pair of sunglasses. His outfit consisted of a blue tropical shirt, white shorts, and a pair of white shoes. A large, toothy grin was plastered across his face. To the blond, he felt like he was a guy who was rather friendly.
"Who are you, and what do you mean it'll help bring excitement?"
The man adjusted his glasses. "The name's Scott, young lady, and what you see before you is just the latest masterpiece in the expansion that will be known as the Battle Frontier. This is the soon to be Battle Pike."
Ash instantly turned curious. "Battle Frontier?"
"I think I've heard of that!" Broke spoke up. "The Battle Frontier is a series of 'expert battle facilities' that originated in Hoenn a while back."
Scott snapped his fingers and pointed at Brock. "You got it! The Battle Frontier was doing rather well in Hoenn, and has since started to branch out into the other surrounding regions. Kanto is the next logical step."
Misty decided to ask a question. "What is it that you do exactly?"
"Well," Scott began, "each facility is home to a Frontier Brain, who is a very strong and recognized trainer. You can think of it as almost like a Gym Leader in a way, but they are steps above, but also still steps below the skill of an Elite 4 member. If you win against them, you are awarded a Frontier Symbol for your accomplishment. There are seven symbols in all."
Ash's eyes sparkled at hearing about all of this. Strong trainers? Symbols being given as proof that you defeated them? That was right up his alley! "I wanna challenge the battle frontier!"
"Pika-pika!" Pikachu's cheeks sparked in determination.
Scott glanced directly at Ash, as if examining him and his ability. "When did you become a trainer, young lady?"
"Um... in April, so over three months ago. I already got four badges too!"
"I see." Scott nodded, crossing his arms. "Sorry, but no."
"What? Why nooooooot?" Ash whined. "I'm a great trainer!"
The man shook his head. "You're still a trainer fresh in your journey. The Battle Frontier is a place for more experienced trainers. Besides, the Frontier Brain isn't even here right now." He gave him a toothy grin. "Maybe later after you're more experienced. Try to take part in at least two regional leagues or so first, kay?"
The young blond pouted, but nodded. "Alright..."
"By the way, what's your name?"
"Huh? Oh, I'm Ashley Ketchum."
"Ashley, huh? Well, I hope to see you again someday, Ashley." Waving, he walked off to his car and proceeded to drive off.
The Battle Frontier. It was something that Ash would keep in the back of his mind. Maybe someday he'd be able to challenge it and see just exactly what it was like for himself.
"Alright! Fuchsia city!" Ash shouted out as the trio entered the city. It was clearly smaller than both Celadon and Saffron, but still had its share of some large business-like buildings and a few districts. Before finding the gym, however, they needed to make a quick stop at the Pokemon Center, mainly to get Kingler checked over.
The Pokemon Center was deeper into town and towards the center. As they reached the town square, the group noticed a small grassy area designed like a Pokeball. In the very center of the grass was a large, lovely fir tree. Volbeet and Illumise danced in a pattern around the tree.
The sight of the Bug pokemon caused Misty to shiver slightly. Still, she had to admit that the view was lovely.
As Ash made his way into the Pokemon Center, he collided with someone who was rushing out at the same time. This caused the young trainer to fall backwards onto his butt. Pikachu caught up to him to see if he was okay. "Hey! Watch where you're going!" He got back to his feet and dusted himself off, as well as made sure Budew was alright.
"Watch where I'm going? You should watch out as well!" The girl shouted back, rubbing her head. She was a young girl maybe around the same age as him. Her hair was dark purple and pulled back into a spiky ponytail. Her clothing consisted of what clearly looked to be a ninja-inspired outfit, and she even had a red flowing scarf around her neck. "If you were my target, then you would have been done for!"
"What are..." Ash blinked. "Wait, you're a ninja?"
The girl nodded. "You got it! I've been training to be a kunoichi ever since I was a little girl. My father is the best ninja in the world." She got to her feet and dusted herself off before giving a pose. "I'm Janine, the daughter of Koga, the Gym Leader of this city!"
"She's about as loud as Ash sometimes, too." Misty whispered to Brock, who stifled a reply.
"Really? I'm here to challenge Koga! You can show me where the gym is." Forgetting his annoyance from the earlier collision, Ash's eyes sparkled as he stared at the kunoichi.
"Well, I could, but do you think you're worthy of facing my dad? He's an amazing trainer." Janine crossed her arms and puffed out her chest. "I don't know if you would stand a chance."
"I bet you I could do so without a problem."
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah!"
Both of them stared each other down, and Misty thought they were going to get into a fight. However, the staring came to an end as Janine gave the boy a thumbs up.
"I like your spirit! I'll take you to my father's gym. What's your name, anyway?"
"Ashley Ketchum of Pallet Town."
"Ashley, huh? Got it! I'll take you to dad once you think you're ready enough."
Misty face-palmed. "They're both knuckleheads."
"Why is the gym out here in the forest?" Brock inquired as the group followed Janine away from the city proper and into the woods surrounding it.
"Simple, the Fuchsia Gym doubles as a ninja mansion for training others in the art of ninjitsu. It's also really old and was built when the city was just a tiny town." Janine periodically bounded off of the bark of trees as she went, earning awed looks from Ash, who wished he could do such things. "Dad doesn't want to move because the spot holds a lot of history and significance."
Brock nodded in understanding.
The group soon had their glimpse of the Fuchsia Gym, which did indeed have the appearance of a traditional Japanese mansion. The wall surrounding the property separated it from the cliff side it rested against. Despite being old, the place was obviously well kept and in good shape. Making their way through the entry gate, Ash gave a slight shiver, feeling as if they were being watched.
"You weren't kidding. This place really is old." The blond spoke as his eyes scanned the interior. "It kinda feels weird too."
"Feels weird?" Janine blinked. "What do you mean by that?" Did she underestimate the girl in assuming she didn't have anything special about her?
He shook his head. "I dunno. Something just feels kinda off. I've been getting these kinda feelings off and on lately." Maybe he was becoming a psychic like Sabrina. That would be kinda neat if it were the case.
"It's probably just an increase in common sense." Misty supplied, placing her hand on a wall, and almost falling through as it rotated. "Wha?! What's with this wall?!" She yelled, regaining her balance.
"It's a ninja mansion, so of course there would be secret entrances and traps all around." Janine answered in a matter-of-fact manner.
The water Pokemon trainer turned nervous. "Ah... traps?" Suddenly she wasn't so sure about coming here.
Hearing the sound of something shuffling, Ash turned his head to see a Venonat shuffle into the area. "Hey... that's a Venonat." He had witnessed a trainer use one against Erika a couple days prior. He completely missed Janine's happy look at seeing it.
Venonat waved an antenna to Janine, recognizing her. Though it looked at Ash and the others and tilted. They didn't really look all that smart, so maybe it would have a little fun. "Ven ven!" It hopped as if taunting the blond trainer before turning around and wiggling its butt before running off.
"Wh- hey! Get back here now!" Ash shouted as he rushed after the Bug Pokemon in annoyance. No way was he letting it get away with that.
Janine muttered under her breath, shrugging. "No control at all. I said there were traps."
Misty, Brock, and Pikachu glanced at each other before quickly following after, hoping to keep their friend from getting hurt!
As Ash ran down a hallway, there was a sudden 'sense' that flashed through his mind, as if something dangerous was close. Reacting instantly, he jumped backwards... and collided into Misty and Brock. Pikachu had managed to dodge, and watched Budew giggle from the safety of Ash's bag.
"A- Ash! What do you think you're doing?!" Misty rubbed her rear where she fell, wincing. "Why don't you watch where you're going?"
For his part, the blond appeared sheepish. "Sorry. It's just that I felt as if something was going to happen if I continued running."
"That's because it was! Look!" Brock pointed ahead of them to a missing panel on the floor. Within the panel was a Voltorb, crackling with electricity as it stared at them.
"A Voltorb?" Ash asked, standing up. He had a Voltorb clock at home, though he was certain it got busted in his sleep. "What's that doing here?"
Janine walked up to them. "I tried to tell you. This place is booby trapped. My dad owns a bunch of Voltorb, so you need to watch out when you move. If not, well... you'd have to be really foolish."
"Foolish?" Ash scoffed as he stepped to the side of the Voltorb, placing his hand on the wall. "I managed to avoid a trap, so I think I'm smarter than that." The spot on the wall he touched pushed inwards, and from the ceiling dropped a rope with a small object attached at the end of it. Before Ash could question what it was, or Janine to give a warning, it exploded in a very bright flash of light. "MY EYES!"
The rest of the group managed to turn away, with Budew ducking into the bag. Ash, however, wasn't as lucky as he rubbed his eyes. "I've been blinded!"
Brock was concerned. "Maybe we should leave for now and come back later." Some medical attention was also likely needed.
It was then that Ash spoke back up, looking around. However, his eyes were still closed. "... hey, what's wrong with the lighting? Is this some kind of trick?"
Misty tilted her head. "Nothing is wrong with the lighting."
"Whaddaya mean? Everything is all weird. It's all black, and you are all weird white blobs." He frowned, clearly not realizing his eyes were still closed. This must be some weird thing with the flash device.
Before anybody could say anything, Venonat reappeared over the corner, and Ash took off after it. Worried, the group was close behind. As they rounded the corner, they saw him come to a halt in the middle of the hallway, touching a hand to thin air. He then turned and ran towards the wall that turned out to be a hidden path.
"... she's actually kinda neat." Janine muttered, knowing full well there was an invisible wall right there, and the girl somehow realized. Not only that, but she was able to pinpoint a hidden entrance in no time. "But how is she doing that with her eyes closed?"
The others shook their heads, clearly confused on the matter. It was then that a series of THUNKS were heard slamming against wall. Worried, they charged on through, only to see Ash having ducked low to the ground. Turning, they saw a series of shuriken embedded into the wood paneling, causing Brock and Misty to sweat nervously.
"Ah ha, so someone who appears to have some skill has come!" A voice, clearly feminine, announced. The owner of the voice hopped down from above, revealed to be from a young woman with dark green hair tied in a ponytail. Her ninja outfit was a light pink. "I'm impressed. Any other person would have had their clothing pinned to the wall."
"Auntie Aya!" Janine shouted happily, waving to the woman.
Aya waved back. "Hello Janine. I wasn't expecting to see you so soon today, and you brought some friends."
The younger ninja nodded, pointing towards Ash, who was sitting up. "She's come to challenge dad for-"
She never got to finish as Brock made his way over to Aya, lovestruck. "That electric pink suits you perfectly. Janine never said she had such a lovely and beautiful aunt. How about-" He quickly found himself pushed to the ground by the kunoichi, who crossed her arms and held him at bay with her foot.
"Challenger, huh? Well my brother isn't here right now, so I'll be glad to test her to see if she's worthy." Aya smirked, Venonat walking in. "I was impressed by her dodging, but I wonder how she is at battling."
"Koga isn't here right now?" Ash asked with disappointment, still not realizing his eyes were closed. "Then who is hiding behind that wall over there, and what did your flash bomb do to my eyes?!"
Everybody was silent, including Aya. "Nobody is hiding-"
"Very impressive, young lady." The wall spun around, revealing Koda. "To be able to perceive my location even though I was erasing my presence, especially with your eyes closed." He was actually shocked that the girl had managed to do that with such ease.
"... eyes closed?" The blond was silent at the revelation. After a second, he opened his eyes and looked around. "Hey! Everything is normal looking again!" His shout caused Misty and Brock to just stare. Wow, did he ever feel silly for thinking that there was something wrong with his vision. Though why was he able to sort of see with his eyes closed in the first place?
"Very curious." Koga rubbed his chin in contemplation. The girl appeared to possess some degree of skill, especially with her eyes closed. However, it also seemed as if she were unaware of it herself. This interested him greatly. "You say you are here to challenge me, young lady?"
At the mention of challenge, Ash jumped to his feet. "Yeah! I'm Ashley Ketchum, and I'm here to challenge you for the Soul Badge!"
"Well then, I'm sorry to interrupt the battle you were going to have, Aya, but my interest in testing this young challenger has surfaced." Aya bowed to him and stepped to the side, allowing Koga some room. "I welcome you to the Fuchsia Gym, Ashley, and I accept your challenge." Not only did he want to test the child's battle skills, but he also wanted to inquire more about her strange skill in reading her surroundings.
"Alright!" Ash clenched his fist. This was what he was waiting for!
Author's Notes: This ended up a long one.
Kanto Anime world geography is complete and total bunk, making it somewhat difficult to really get a handle on some things. In the anime, they went South of Celadon, and along the way encountered some mountains. Maybe they encountered some water. Gringy City might be close to the Vermillion Bay/Harbor. At the same time, the question of just how long it would take via the paths is also something to question. I dunno if the cycling road would take that long, or... whatever. I tried working with what I could.
The anime had the bike bridge in the Bridge Bike Gang episode, but it wasn't between Celadon and Fuchsia. Then in the Battle Frontier arc, they showed the actual Cycling Road, but it was clearly situated between Lavender and Fuchsia. As such, I'm just going to go with the idea that there could be two 'Cycling Roads' in the anime. It's honestly better than constantly obsessing over the details of crappy geography and trying to make sense of it.
Krabby's evolution here. Considering it did evolve during the League after one battle, it's not too out there that it evolved here, especially after having some training.
And sorry guys. No Muk for Ashley. I do wish that I could have included it in the story.
Also, in the anime during the Battle Frontier arc, Fuchsia City was shown to be somewhat abandoned near the town square, and the fir tree having lost most of its needles. However, after time travel shenanigans involving May, Squirtle, and Meowth, the place was lively. I considered what I would do with it, and decided it'd be neat if things here were progressing on a 'corrected Fuchsia' timeline. Time travel is all kinds of nonsense.
Next time will be the Fuchsia Gym battle.
Also a link to Ash's current outfit is in my profile.
