Hey, everyone! Thanks for all the favorites, follows and reviews! I can't say enough times how humbling it is and how much you all motivate me to continue writing!

I have decided to split the rest of the story into two endings, but don't worry, both endings will end in advanceshipping!

Enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.

Ending #1

Chapter 14

Ash grunted as he tried to move the boulder aside. He was beginning to tire out, and he couldn't feel his legs anymore, due to the pressure of being stuck in between the boulder and the canyon wall. Blood began to trickle down his leg, and he knew he had to get out of here, fast.

"Piiika!" Pikachu tried to help Ash by pushing rock, only to find that it didn't budge. No matter what, even with both Ash and Pikachu's efforts to move the boulder, it still remained where it was.

With one last push, Ash exhausted himself, feeling sore and numb all over his body. He looked up into the sky to the edges of the ravine to see if May was on her way, but he couldn't see anything from where he was positioned.

"May, where are you?" Ash wondered, panting and feeling weak.

A few more minutes passed, and Ash was beginning to feel nauseous and lightheaded. Sweat dripped down his forehead, and he reached for his Pokéballs on his belt. Grabbing a Pokéball, he chucked it into the air to reveal Corphish. The lobster-like Pokémon blinked a few times before noticing the terrible state Ash was in.

"Corphish Cor!" It exclaimed in worry.

"Don't worry, just use Bubble Beam on the boulder so it will break." Ash said weakly.

Corphish obliged and shot several bursts of bubbles from its claws, onto the boulder, breaking it down into small rocks and freeing Ash. Because of the blast and shattering of the boulder, Ash ended up getting a few cuts over his already injured leg. Ash didn't seem to react to the cuts, for he felt pleased from being no longer trapped by the large rock.

Ash breathed a sigh of relief and tried to stretch his legs, only to find that the leg he was caught on couldn't move and was mostly stained in red. Pikachu and Corphish were noticeably shaken by the amount of blood loss, and they tried to assist Ash while he was limping.

Ash looked up from the canyon and scouted the walls, looking for an easy way up. All he was greeted with was the steep, sharp features of the rocky wall, and, overwhelmed, he clutched the back of his head.

"Now, how do I get out of here?" he asked aloud.

"May..."

She continued to cry into her hands, sniffling loudly and hating herself.

"May...May..."

Tears flooded down from her eyes, dripping onto her clothes. She cried her heart out, and she felt completely hopeless in this mess. She desperately wished that this was all just a nightmare, that she was safe and sound in her room, in the comforts of Ash's arms.

"May, get a hold of yourself...take deep breaths, and you will be able to think better."

The tears slowly came to a stop, and May managed to suppress her whimpers. She withdrew her hands from her eyes, and she lowered them to her chest. Closing her eyes, she focused on her breathing.

"Breathe in...one, two, three,...breathe out. Breathe in...one, two, three,...breathe out."

She could feel her heartbeats steadying out, becoming less rapid, and she opened her eyes to find that she was not as worried and anxious as before. Getting into a meditative state, her thoughts ran back to her conversation with Drew. She heard his horrendous plans, and she realized how flawed those plans were. She looked around to see if her rival was nearby, but she couldn't see or hear him.

"He was bluffing the whole time." May concluded after several minutes of meditation, "There was no way he could keep watch on me this whole time. All he wanted to do was get my emotions and judgment clouded and have me listen to his commands, just to have me crush my own heart." May sighed, "Drew, what happened to you?"

May then remembered that Ash was still stuck in the pit, so she immediately shot up and ran in his direction. She had to be wary, though, just in case Drew decided to pop up and sabotage her again.

"...screw that. He won't." May thought, knowing that Drew wouldn't be able to see, or even care, that she was running back to save Ash.

May neared the edge of the canyon and saw that Ash, Pikachu and Corphish were looking for a way up the pit. Seeing a somewhat stable way down the canyon wall off to the side with protruding rocks to grip onto with hands and feet, she ran towards the spot and climbed down. Deciding to save time and reach Ash faster, she leapt off near the bottom of the wall and landed on the ground with a loud thud. Because of the echo of her feet after landing, Ash heard her and turned his head. He immediately brightened up and limped his way to her.

"May!" He exclaimed, "I was beginning to get worried! Do you know a way out of here?"

"Ash, I think the best way out is if I carry you up the side of the wall and to safety." May said, then noticed his eyebrows furrowing, "if we use our Pokémon to carve a way out of here, they might unintentionally make things worse and cut us up from the sharp rocks, or worse, accidentally make the walls of rocks collapse on top of us."

"Okay, I understand." Ash said, "Are you sure about carrying me up, though? It's about thirty feet up to safety."

"Yes, I'm sure. Just grab onto me and don't let go."

Ash nodded and made his way to the wall with May's assistance. Ash returned Corphish to its Pokéball, and Pikachu clung onto Ash's shoulder. Lowering her back so Ash could wrap his arms right below and across her neck from behind, May began her climb. It was tough, to say the least, but she couldn't stop right there. With effort and resilience, she slowly ascended up the wall, panting heavily and gripping tightly onto sturdy rocks.

Ash desperately wanted to climb up on his own in order to give May an easier time, but his blasted leg was too injured to do anything. He simply held his breath and tried not to move around as not to cause unnecessary trouble for May.

After scaling about twelve feet up, May felt herself tiring out, and her arms were begging for rest, but she ignored their desperate pleas of stopping.

"Gotta...do this...for Ash." She panted as she scaled the wall. "I can't...let him...down. I can't. He's saved me enough times...and now I have to save him."

Suddenly, as she gripped onto another rock above her, the rock crumbled, causing her, Ash and Pikachu to dangle on one rock. The adrenaline kicked in, and she looked around frantically for a way to continue climbing before she would lose her grip and cause them all to fall.

"Crap, crap, crap, crap!" May thought as she struggled to carry the weight of Ash and Pikachu, "Don't look down, don't look down. Just focus on reaching for that next rock..."

May stretched her arm out as much as she could, reaching for a rock that was a few feet above her. Her arms were shaking, and Ash and Pikachu held their breath from fear and shock. It was a wonder how May hadn't already lost her grip and fall, but seeing how determined her expression was, Ash knew that May wasn't going to give up anytime soon.

As May's free hand inched closer and closer to the next rock, her fingers were trying to stretch as much as possible and grasp onto the surface. May licked her lips in nervousness, and, soon enough, her fingers wrapped onto the rock and gripped tightly onto it.

"Yes!" May thought, then focused on climbing again, "Can't celebrate, yet. Not until we make it out of here."

Pulling herself up rock after rock, May saw that the top was soon enough within an arms reach. She planted her arms firmly onto the soil of the canyon edge, and after expelling the last of her energy, she climbed over the side, lowered Ash off her back, and rolled onto the ground in exhaustion.

Ash crawled his way towards May to see if she was alright, having strained her muscles to carry all that weight.

"May, are you alright?" He asked, shaking her shoulder.

May shot up and looked straight at Ash's blood-soaked leg.

"Ash! We have to get you to the Pokémon Center. Now!" May struggled to get up onto her legs and feet.

"May, don't worry about me, we need to find Drew!" Ash tried to convince her. Upon mentioning her rival's name, Ash noticed how disturbed May looked. "May, what's wrong?"

May shook her head.

"Ask me that later. For now, we have to get you to the Center." It was then and there that she noticed the small pool of blood already collecting in the grass around Ash's wound. Without hesitation, May ripped her bandana off from her hair and immediately wrapped it tightly around his leg.

Ash stared in a shocked expression as May tied a knot to secure the bandana around the wound. After dealing with the blood, May knelt down to wrap Ash's arm around the back of her neck, and she held Ash around his waist to give him stability and support. Standing up, May assisted Ash in walking through the forest, back the way they came from, while Pikachu followed closely from behind.

Breathing heavily, and without stopping to rest, May led Ash out of the forest, through the meadow, and into the Pokémon Center. Nurse Joy, who was monitoring a computer at the front desk, spotted them and noticed Ash's inability to walk with one leg, as well as how that same leg had a blood-soaked bandana tied firmly around it.

"Oh my! What happened?" Nurse Joy asked, staring at Ash, "Never mind that, let me get you to a room, so I can check up on you."

Nurse Joy took the reigns from May, and led him away into a hallway. May stood there, watching them go, and before she knew it, the exhaustion caught up with her, and she collapsed onto the ground.

May woke up to see that she was in a standard hospital room. The room was rather dark, save for a dimly lit lamp that sat on a table beside her. She tried to sit up, only to find herself unable to, due to enervation. She heard the door handle turn, and she saw Nurse Joy walk in.

"Nurse Joy!" May acknowledged.

"Hello, May. You might be wondering how you got here." Nurse Joy said as she stood beside the bed, "After you got to the Pokémon Center, you collapsed from exhaustion, and we immediately brought you here. We did a quick check up on you, and the good thing is that it seems you just need some rest."

"How long was I out for?"

"You've been unconscious for a couple hours, and seeing as how it's night time, you must be hungry."

"Wow, its night already?" May thought, "Time sure does go by quickly." Suddenly, she remembered why she was here in the first place.

"Oh, Nurse Joy! How is Ash doing?" May asked with concern.

"Your friend is currently resting in another room," Nurse Joy smiled, "we were able to patch up the gashes and cuts on his leg, and he should be able to move his leg after resting for the night."

"May I see him?" May asked.

"Miss, you have to rest, now." Nurse Joy frowned, "Your body is still fatigued, and if you move around, you'll only slow down the rate of gaining back your energy."

"I'm sorry, but I need to see him." May shook her head, "He means the world to me, and I have to see for myself that he is okay."

Nurse Joy stared at May, contemplating if she should let her visit Ash in her condition. As May stared back, Nurse Joy saw the resolve and sincerity in her eyes, and she knew she couldn't deny her from seeing Ash.

"Alright, you may see him. He's staying in the room across from us." Nurse Joy said, "Just be sure to not disturb him when you walk in." She turned away and walked out of the room, down the hallway.

May turned onto her shoulder so she could use her arm and push herself off the bed, and she slowly stood up while leaning onto the wall for balance. Wobbling her way over to the door, May turned the handle and left. Entering the hallway, and with Ash's room just a few feet away, May hurriedly wobbled to his room. She silently crept into his room and closed the door behind her. In front of her was the peaceful sight of Ash sleeping, with Pikachu napping beside his pillow. A desk lamp dimly illuminated next to them, as to provide a quiet, peaceful atmosphere, and she saw her now-clean bandana resting on the table.

"Ash..." May whispered, a warm smile growing on her face. She walked over to his bed and looked over his sleeping figure. Brushing his messy hair away from his face, she caressed his cheek and kissed him on the forehead. She noticed how Ash seemed to smile in response to what she did, and she couldn't help but feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Spotting a chair off to the side of the room, May brought the seat next to Ash and held his hand. As she caressed his hand, she saw Ash slowly opening his eyelids, looking straight into her eyes, and smiling. For a while, they simply looked at each other in the dimly lit room. Ash brought his free hand to May's side and clasped her hand, giving her all his gratitude and thanks for getting him here to safety.

Two grumbles erupted from both of their stomachs, causing them to giggle and laugh. Seeing that it was about time they ate, May stood up, while Ash tried to sit up in bed. The moment Ash tried to get out of bed, he felt stinging in his leg, prompting him to lay back down. May noticed his reaction, causing her to be concerned.

"Ash, if your leg hurts too much, I can help get your food for you." May suggested, holding onto his hand again.

"N-no, I'm fine-gah!," Ash denied, wanting to get up before feeling a sharp pain in his leg again.

"Ash, it's okay if you stay in bed," May reassured him, leaning over him, "I'll grab large plates and fill them up just for you, so don't you worry!"

"Okay," Ash complied, then reached up to peck her on the lips before blushing, "thanks...for everything."

May giggled and waved goodbye to Ash as she walked out the door. Right before she closed the door, she faced Ash and blew a kiss towards him, causing him to redden even more in the face. May stifled her laughter and closed the door, heading down to the cafeteria.

Receiving permission from Chansey to bring food to Ash's room, May selected a plethora of meats, bread and pasta, packing them up on a plate that screamed for relief from all the sustenance. Figuring that Pikachu could use a meal, May brought a ketchup pack and a muffin with her before returning to Ash's room. Seeing as how both her hands were full from her and Ash's plates, she had to use the grip of her shoes to turn the door handle and open the door. Upon entering the room, May saw that Ash was playing with a now woken-up Pikachu. She set her plate on the table beside the bed, and she handed the other plate to Ash. She also gave the ketchup and muffin to Pikachu, earning a playful rub on her hand with his head.

Ash immediately dug into his plate, eating ravenously. Seeing how happily he and Pikachu ate, May chuckled and was about to dig into her own food before thoughts of Drew's heinous schemes infiltrated her mind. Her face fell, and she lowered her utensils as she kept thinking about how Drew had attempted to make her, under her shock, grief, and hysteria, break off her relationship with Ash and effectively breaking both of their hearts.

"May? What's wrong?" Ash asked, sensing the sudden drop in her mood. He lowered his utensils and looked worriedly at her, while May looked him in the eyes with distress and anxiety.

After quickly scouting the door and windows to see if they were completely shut, May decided that it was time that she told Ash and Pikachu about her encounter with her rival.

"Ash, there's no easy way to say this, but..." May took a deep breath, "when I was looking for a way down the pit to help you, I ran into Drew."

Ash's eyes widened, a smile breaking out. He was happy that May was able to complete the mission early, and he wanted to hear about what happened.

"May, you found him?" He asked, "Were you able to talk to him about...you know...how we are here for him and how we care about-" Ash noticed how May's face became even more solemn as he rambled on, "-him? ...May?"

"Ash," May choked out, finding it harder to speak as she recollected her memory with Drew, "he...he's gone mad. He hurt me...he said terrible things to me...and he absolutely hates me."

Ash's watched as May tried to contain her tears. He saw how her lips were quivering, and he wanted to reassure her that everything was okay, that Drew doesn't really ha-

"He told me I had to break your heart!" May shouted out in anguish and frustration, before lowering her voice, "he said that...because I caused him so much grief and suffering, that he wants me to feel that pain."

A single tear rolled down her face, something that Ash thought was a heartbreaking sight.

"He told me...he told me to-" May made a choking sound, "-to make it seem like I don't love you anymore, to lose your trust, so I can be tormented by my own actions and lose my sanity. And he threatened that if I didn't listen to him, if I try and sneak behind him and tell you all this, he'd go after Max, and he'd do something terrible to him."

Ash stared at May, processing all this new information. Was Drew really...insane? It seems like it, and it is certainly unforgivable that he'd try and attack May like that, and-

"May!" Ash set his plate aside and grabbed onto her shoulders, "if you are telling me all this, aren't you endangering Max?"

"I made sure that all the doors and windows were shut tight, so there was no way he could hear. Plus, it's virtually impossible for him to monitor my every move, so I'm sure we are safe for now." May said.

Ash nodded, then sat in silence. As he went over what May had told him about Drew, he took May's hand in his and started playing with it, stroking her palm and the back of her hand. May knew Ash was just trying to comprehend what was going on and let him continue to grasp her hand. Then, Ash pulled May off of her chair and brought her into an embrace, surprising May.

"Thank you...for telling me all this." Ash said, resting his chin on her shoulder, "it must have been very difficult retelling what happened, and it must have been tough to think about succumbing to Drew."

Ash let go of May and looked straight into her eyes.

"And I want to thank you, so, so much, for being brave out there and carrying me out of the ravine and guiding me through the forest to safety, even though you must have been completely drained out. Thank you...for your resilience and kindness."

Ash leaned forward to plant a kiss on her lips. Although short and simple, his actions spoke many words, words of unconditional love, trust, and affection.

"Ash, I would do anything to make you happy and safe." She smiled, "After all, you're the one who usually saves me from something."

"And I would promise the same for you, for I can't imagine life when you are upset or depressed." May began laughing, confusing Ash, "what's wrong? Is it something I said?"

"Oh no, it's nothing, really," May suppressed her giggling, "but you're really cheesy, you know that?"

"Hey, you were also pretty cheesy!" Ash complained, causing May to howl in laughter, "hmph!" Ash playfully whipped his head around and crossed his arms, avoiding May. May's laughter died down, and she tugged on Ash's arms to try and gain his attention.

"Come on, Ash, I was just kidding!" May whined, prying his arms from where they were crossed below his chest. May then resorted to her cutest, high-pitched voice, to try and get Ash to look at her, "Ashy, pwease? I'm sorry for everything, I was kidding and wanted some fun."

"Dang, she's good," Ash thought, trying not to submit to May's cute, child-like voice, "I don't know how much longer I can hold up on this."

"Ashy," -sniff- "can you pwease forgive me?"

"Crap, this is a losing battle." Ash thought.

May saw how Ash's head was slowly turning her way, and she knew she won the battle. Deciding to tease him just once more, she managed to a get a few tears to roll down her face. That did it. Once Ash finally looked at May, his demeanor fell, and he quickly cradled her in his arms, trying to soothe and comfort her.

"May, it's okay, I forgive you." He said, slowly rocking her back and forth in his arms.

May smiled in victory as she closed her eyes and enjoyed the attention and care Ash was giving her. As she was cradled by Ash, drowsiness began to seep through the fortitude of warmth and relaxation, and after many minutes of resisting the urge to sleep, she fell into a peaceful slumber.

Ash soon realized that the girl in his arms was asleep, and he positioned her right beside him in bed. Seeing as how Pikachu had already finished his dinner, Ash let him eat the rest of his plate.

Ash looked at the clock to see that it was pretty late at night, so he decided to get some shut-eye as well. Turning off the desk lamp, he let sleep overcome him.