A/N: Another chapter up in the same week?! I haven't done that in a while! Expect the last two chapters to be up rather quickly, also! Please enjoy this chapter! It has an unexpected face in here along with an unexpected Pokemon! I love doing things like this!
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon.
Chapter 21: Lapras on Ice
It was only one day until the start of the Orange League. Ash was really down to business with training his Pokemon for this event. He was on the beach of Pummelo Island trying to prepare all the Pokemon he had decided to use in the preliminaries. Only if he came out on top would he get a chance to challenge Drake, the leader of the Orange Crew. If he succeeded, it would definitely be the toughest match of Ash's so far to date. Nobody had beaten Drake in the last five years, but that didn't deter Ash from trying. Just like the trainer from five years ago, Ash had proven he wasn't just an ordinary trainer, not that an ordinary trainer could make it through the Orange League in the first place.
"Great, Haunter!" Ash encouraged as he watched the ghost type Pokemon glide underground in the shadows. That could be useful for several sneak attacks.
"I guess being away from you for so long has made Haunter good at avoiding things," Leaf said from beside Ash.
"Heh. Yeah," Ash chuckled. It had been awhile since he used the ghost Pokemon in battle. The prankster Pokemon had been ecstatic when Ash chose it as one of the Pokemon he would be using to compete in the Orange League.
"Haaaaaaaunt!" Haunter cried as it burst from the sand and used Shadow Punch at an invisible enemy.
"Anyway, thanks for helping me train, Leaf. I need all the help I can get for my upcoming challenges," Ash said.
"Don't mention it," Leaf smiled. "Serena is busy reading a fashion magazine with her new Fennekin right now so it isn't like she's up for doing anything. Besides, I'd rather train and battle with you than read about fashion anyway."
"You and me both," Ash replied. "Still, I'm really glad Serena found something she wanted to do. I have no idea who she met, but it was clearly someone who had a huge impact on her."
"Come on, Ash. You know she probably met Aria," Leaf muttered.
"Huh?" Ash questioned as he gave Leaf a weird look.
"Remember why Serena did Pokevision in the first place? So she could capture the attention of someone who could help her decide her career? Well, look what happened. Besides, she came back with a Fennekin, and Aria had a Braixen. I seriously doubt another person on this island had a Kalos native Pokemon with them. I can just tell," Leaf explained.
"Hmmm…well, I guess that makes sense," Ash shrugged.
"Heehee. You're so clueless sometimes, Ash," Leaf giggled.
Ash then turned to the other Pokemon he was training at the moment. Pikachu was practicing with Bulbasaur. Dragonite and Charizard were practicing aerial attacks against each other. Lapras didn't have a suitable partner to train with so Leaf had lent her Dewgong so it would have one. The dual water and ice type Pokemon were blasting several attacks back at each other trying to overpower its opponent. Ash was definitely glad that Lapras was trying its best, but he also didn't want it to overexert itself. Even though Lapras was definitely trying to train, it would still look back occasionally which made Ash wonder why.
"Hey, Lapras. Is everything okay?" Ash asked once Lapras glanced behind itself for what was probably the tenth time.
Lapras turned to see Ash had a rather concerned look on his face. It wasn't because he wanted it to continue practicing, though. Lapras could tell that Ash knew something was bothering it, and there was. Ever since they arrived at Pummelo Island, Lapras had been able to sense its herd nearby. It couldn't see them, but one could call it intuition. Today, however, the herd felt closer than ever before. If they came by, Lapras surely wouldn't want to miss it.
"Laaaaaa," Lapras replied and shook its head. It didn't want to concern Ash about the herd because there was a chance it wouldn't come at all.
"You know that if there is something bothering you, you can say so, okay? We're friends, after all," Ash told it.
Lapras nodded its head at that before it resumed training with Leaf's Dewgong. Truthfully, since its time with Ash, Lapras had grown significantly, not in size, but in maturity and attitude. Before it met Ash, it was a scared infant Pokemon that distrusted humans, but now, it knew that there were nice people out there. Also, it had become more independent and was able to be by itself on occasion like the time Ash had transferred it to Professor Oak's lab so it could take a break.
"I still think Lapras is distracted by something," Leaf whispered next to Ash, to which he nodded.
"Yeah. I'm taking a stab in the dark at this, but I think its herd might be close by. It's the only thing I can think of that would distract Lapras like this," Ash replied.
"Bleaaaah!" Haunter suddenly cried as it appeared between Ash and Leaf and bugged its eyes out.
Ash and Leaf yelped and fell backwards in the sand while the ghost Pokemon laughed its head off. That never got old. Despite Ash being used to Haunter's pranks by now, he still couldn't help but be startled when Haunter pulled something like that. Ash rolled his eyes but started to laugh, as well. The ghost Pokemon had to make up for the long time it had been at Professor Oak's lab. The Pokemon Professor had actually been relieved when Ash chose it. No doubt Haunter worried the poor Professor to death.
Dragonite had swooped down to check on Ash once it saw Haunter had scared him. It then gave an angry look at Haunter for frightening its beloved trainer again. Haunter was one of Ash's Pokemon whom Dragonite hadn't fully warmed up to yet. It was a little too weird for the dragon Pokemon.
"It's okay, Dragonite. Haunter was just kidding around. I'm okay," Ash told it as he and Leaf stood back up.
Dragonite gave a weary glance at Haunter before it flew back up in the air to train with Ash's Charizard. Ash was glad that Dragonite was attempting to communicate with his other Pokemon, but it still had some work to do with Haunter. He then turned to the ghost Pokemon who was grinning broadly at him and Leaf.
"Hey, Haunter. I think I'll pair you with Dragonite in our next training session so you two can break the ice a little. It would probably be good for both of you," Ash told it.
"Ha-ha-haunt!" Haunter laughed. After all, it had no quarrels with Dragonite even if the dragon Pokemon didn't feel the same way.
Ash smiled at the ghost Pokemon before he noticed that Lapras had been distracted again. It had lost longing look on its face and now appeared to be squinting at something. Ash was about to ask what was up before he saw Lapras turn around completely and swim off which left behind a bewildered Dewgong. The infant Lapras had an excited look on its face as it swam away. Ash and Leaf glanced off in the distance and could make out a dark outline.
"Do you think that's…," Leaf began.
"I think so," Ash nodded before he looked up towards Charizard and Dragonite. "Hey, Charizard! Dragonite!"
The two flying Pokemon came down from their training and looked at Ash expectantly.
"Let's follow Lapras! I think it may have found its herd!" Ash told them.
The Pokemon nodded as they turned around to let the two trainers get on. Ash got on Dragonite's back while Leaf got on Charizard. Ash then told his other Pokemon to keep training and that he would be back momentarily. Dragonite and Charizard then took off and followed Lapras as it continued to swim eagerly towards the dark outline in the distance.
As they got closer, the two could indeed see it was a school of Lapras that was swimming by. There were probably about fifteen of them. Ash and Leaf smiled broadly that Lapras finally seemed to find what it was looking for after all this time.
Lapras began to cry out to the school of Lapras in front of it. Upon hearing a sound from their kind, the Lapras turned and looked in surprise at the baby Lapras coming towards them. One Lapras in particular, who was a little paler in color than the others, got just as an excited look on its face and swam towards Ash's Lapras. The infant Lapras got tears in its eyes once it saw who it was. The two Lapras reached each other while the larger one rubbed its face affectionately against Ash's Lapras. It didn't take a genius to know that it was probably Lapras' mother.
"Awww, that's so sweet," Leaf cooed from beside Ash.
Ash rolled his eyes at Leaf's affinity for cute things, but he had to agree with her. One could only imagine the emotions going through the Lapras at the moment. They were separated a long time and were no doubt overjoyed. Ash decided he wanted to meet the mother of such a great Pokemon and flew down with Dragonite towards the two. Leaf followed him.
"Hey, Lapras!" Ash called as he waved from atop Dragonite's back.
Lapras turned towards Ash and cried out happily at seeing him. The mother, on the other hand, looked extremely wary and even had a look of fear in its eyes. It swam in front of its baby protectively and glared at Ash. The other Lapras in the school also looked nervous and surrounded Ash and Leaf on their Pokemon.
"Ummm…," Ash uttered at seeing the not so friendly greeting from the Lapras.
"That's right. Lapras are really wary of humans. Remember how Lapras treated you when you first found it? They may think you're trying to hurt it," Leaf reminded Ash.
"Oh," Ash realized before he gave what he hoped was a friendly smile to the other Lapras. "Sorry to startle all of you, but this Lapras is actually a really great friend of mine!"
"Laaaaaa!" Ash's Lapras said to the others and its mother. It swam over to Ash and Dragonite before it rubbed its head against his body to show he was okay.
"Hahahaha! That tickles Lapras!" Ash laughed.
The other Lapras visibly relaxed upon seeing the playful interaction between the two. They still seemed a little apprehensive but at least no longer looked like they would attack. Ash's Lapras swam back over to its mother and cried out to her before it motioned with its head to come meet Ash.
The mother Lapras hesitated for a moment before it followed its baby. The two Lapras made their way over to the raven-haired boy while Ash waited rather patiently on Dragonite. Leaf looked rather surprised that they were taking this so well. Ash's Lapras must have really convinced them that Ash wasn't a bad person.
Ash's Lapras stopped in front of Ash and rubbed its head affectionately against him again before it looked over at its mother a short distance behind it. The mother Lapras tilted its head in interest before it slowly closed the distance between it and Ash. It merely stared at Ash with an unreadable expression before it bowed its head to the water graciously. Ash smiled as he realized that was probably the mother's way of thanking Ash for taking care of its baby for so long.
"Oh! You're welcome!" Ash grinned before he added. "Your baby has been great! I've really enjoyed having it travel with me!"
"Laaaaa!" Ash's Lapras blushed at that. Yes. Ash said he enjoyed having it with him. Truthfully, Lapras was really glad it had traveled with Ash, too.
The mother Lapras nodded once more to Ash before it turned around and began to swim back to its herd. It then motioned with its head for it baby to follow it. Ash widened his eyes as he remembered that this was why Lapras was with him in the first place. They had been searching for its herd. Now that they had found it, there was no reason for Lapras to stay with Ash anymore. Ash looked over sadly at Lapras once he realized that. Did it have to go so soon?
"So…I guess we're parting ways here?" Ash figured.
The infant Lapras looked really conflicted at the moment. It looked longingly over its mother and the rest of the herd before it turned back to Ash. Lapras' herd was waiting expectantly for Lapras while Ash looked on, expecting Lapras to go with them. It turned out the baby Lapras wasn't quite ready to leave yet! It still had one thing it had promised Ash that it would do for him first
Lapras then began to swim towards its herd. It then appeared to be telling something to its mother who was listening attentively. Lapras then swam back over to Ash who put on a look of confusion.
"What's up, Lapras?" Ash asked it.
"Laaaaaa!" it replied to Ash.
Dragonite then turned around and made a few jabbing motions with its arms to let Ash know what Lapras was saying. Ash nodded his head at the two when he understood the message.
"I get it! Before you leave with your herd, you want to help me out in the Orange League!" Ash smiled.
"Laaaa!" Lapras confirmed.
"Well, how can I say no to that!? I'll gladly have you on my team for the preliminaries, Lapras! We'll make your mom proud!" Ash told it.
He then looked over at the herd of Lapras who looked at Ash and his Lapras for only a moment before they began to make their way to Pummelo Island. It seemed that they were willing to accept Lapras' request and would wait here until Lapras was through. Once they did, they would all leave with Lapras together.
Lapras smiled happily before it swam off with the herd to the island. Ash and Leaf nodded to each other before they followed the Lapras on Dragonite and Charizard. Ash was glad for the reunion Lapras had with its herd but was still a little downcast. If this was true, this time in the Orange League preliminaries would be the last time he used it. The thoughts made him sigh to himself.
"You're sad to see Lapras go, aren't you?" Leaf said sympathetically from beside Ash.
"Yeah, but I know it's for the best," Ash muttered as he watched all of the Lapras in front of him greet his in their own way.
Serena was alone in her rented room with her new Fennekin. The two were looking through a fashion magazine and trying to find some great designs for costumes for when they would perform on stage. So far, they had found some really good ones. However, 'really good' just didn't cut it for Serena and Fennekin. They had to look for the absolute best. Only then would they settle. With how much they were alike, one wouldn't think that Fennekin had only been Serena's Pokemon for two days.
"Hmmm…how about this one, Fennekin?" Serena questioned as she pointed to a costume that looked somewhat like an Eevee.
The fox Pokemon quirked its head at the costume as if it were thinking. After a few seconds, it shook its head and motioned for Serena to go on to the next one.
"Yeah. I just thought that one was okay myself," Serena agreed as she put an X though the costume with a pen and turned the page.
That was when Serena and Fennekin heard a knock at their door. The two turned in the direction in mild surprise as they thought everyone was out right now.
"Who is it?" Serena called.
"It's me," Ash answered from the other side.
Serena smiled that her boyfriend had come to see her. She put away the fashion magazine, to Fennekin's dismay, before she went over to the door and opened it. Serena had opened the door expecting to see Ash smiling right back at her, but that wasn't the case. He was smiling, yes, but it was a somewhat sad smile. Pikachu was on his shoulder while Togepi was on his other one.
"Hey, Ash. How did your training with Leaf go?" Serena asked.
"Oh. It went just fine. We all got some great work in. I think we'll finally be ready for the preliminaries tomorrow," Ash replied.
"That's right. There were a lot fewer people competing than I thought. There is only you and one other person. You only need to win one battle before you go against Drake," Serena said.
"Yeah. I guess everyone else who tried the Orange League couldn't beat all of the gym leaders. I mean, they were all exceptionally hard," Ash shrugged.
"Well that just shows how great of a trainer you are," Serena told Ash as she took him by the hand to lead him into her room.
The two then sat on the bed next to each other. Fennekin moved off to the side to get out of Ash's way while Pikachu hopped off Ash's shoulder before it helped Togepi down. The two then went over to greet Fennekin who gave a slight huff at the two. It still hadn't forgotten that incident where Togepi spilled its formula all over its fur.
"Now, Fennekin. Togepi is still really young. It didn't mean to do that to you. Both of you should try to be friends," Serena scolded slightly.
Fennekin looked at the two other Pokemon who were smiling at it. Togepi went over to Fennekin and began to rub its stubby hands on its fur. Fennekin sighed in contentment at how good that felt. Maybe its new trainer was right. It was just an accident, and Fennekin could forgive them. Fennekin then began to brush its tail against Togepi which caused it to laugh playfully. Pikachu also went over to the fox Pokemon and held out its paw for it to shake. Fennekin hesitated for just a moment before it shook Pikachu's paw.
"See? All better now!" Serena smiled before she turned to Ash who was also smiling at the scene. She then decided to address the sad smile she originally saw on Ash's face. "So Ash, what's wrong?"
"Well, while Leaf and I were training we ran into something," Ash replied.
"Something? Like what?" Serena wondered.
"Lapras' herd. Lapras is visiting with them right now," Ash answered, getting straight to the point.
"Really? That's good, isn't it?" Serena wondered.
"Yeah. Of course it's good. Lapras told me that it wants to compete in the preliminaries tomorrow before it goes off with its herd. That will be the last time I battle with it. I've really grown to like Lapras since I've had it," Ash sighed.
"Of course. I like Lapras a lot, too. It would need to be with its family, though," Serena said before she realized what Ash was getting at. "I see. You don't want Lapras to go, do you?"
"No. I don't," Ash admitted. "I thought when we first met that I would just help it find its family, but now that we've traveled, it's been part of our group, not an outsider. It fit in so well with all of us. I don't know, just the fact that I'll be watching it leave reminds me of the time I released Butterfree."
Serena nodded her head at that. It was a really tough decision for Ash to do that. In the end, however, they all knew that it was in Butterfree's best interest so it could start a family. By the same token, Lapras wasn't starting a family but still need to be with them.
"I wish there was a way for everyone to be happy. It sounds so selfish, but I don't want to release Lapras," Ash said and hated the fact that he thought that.
"You know, there is a chance that Lapras could end up staying with you," Serena tried to encourage. "It's been away from its family a long time. Maybe it will remember how much fun you two have had together. It's grown a lot since it met you, after all."
"Yeah. It has," Ash replied and let out another small smile. "Heh. When we first got Lapras, it was so scared, but it's proven how great it can be at battling…and racing."
"Oh, Ash. I know that however things turn out, it will be what Lapras truly wants. Just use it in the preliminary rounds tomorrow, and prove to yourself how much you've helped Lapras grow. Both Lapras and the herd have you to thank for that," Serena said as she gave Ash a hug from the side.
"Yeah. I will. I think I'll head back to training now. I've let Lapras relax the rest of the day so it can be with its family," Ash stated as she leaned into Serena's hug before he stood up.
"Okay, Ash. I'll see you later," Serena said as she took out the fashion magazine again.
Ash looked at the fashion magazine with a raised eyebrow. Serena had been looking at that thing for the past two days. Didn't they get bored of it? Well, who was Ash to judge? Serena had finally found her calling in life, and he certainly wasn't going to bring her down. He was happy for her.
"Hey, Togepi. Would you like to stay here with Fennekin and me to help us pick out some great costume designs?" Serena asked the young Pokemon brightly.
"Toge, Toge!" it replied, not really knowing what it was agreeing to. Fennekin looked a little wary, however. It highly doubted this Pokemon knew anything about fashion.
Ash rolled his eyes before he gave his reply. "That's fine. I'm sure Togepi will be a great asset."
"Well, you've spent your time with Togepi today so now it's my turn," Serena replied indignantly.
"Yeah. I know. I was just kidding. Come on, Pikachu," Ash called.
"Pika!" the rodent answered.
The two then exited the room as Serena watched them go. As soon as Ash closed the door, Serena heard an angry shriek from Fennekin. Serena whipped her head around and gasped when she saw Togepi scribbling around in the magazine they were looking at!
"Oh, Togepi! You weren't supposed to draw in that!" Serena cried as she hastily took the pen away.
"Toge?" the spike ball Pokemon questioned in confusion.
"Let's just find you some blank, white paper," Serena said with a sweat drop as she got up from the bed to look for one in the nearby nightstand.
Togepi turned and saw that Fennekin was glaring at it, but it didn't know why. It thought it was going to help its mommy.
"Welcome to the preliminary round of the Orange League, everyone! Which of these fine challengers we have here today will have a shot at battling Drake, the Orange League champion?!" the announcer called over a speaker.
The crowd erupted into cheering once the announcer said that. The stadium was just as full, if not fuller, than it was a couple of days ago when Aria had done her performance. Ever seat was filled with someone, and there were plenty of workers going around offering refreshments to the spectators.
Ash was standing inside of the tunnel as he waited for the announcer to say the names of the two challengers for him. He learned that the match would be against someone named Harrison. Ash didn't know a whole lot about the guy, only that he appeared to be older than him by a few years. One thing was certain, this Harrison guy must be an exceptional trainer to be the only other one who made it to the Orange League.
Despite his challenger's surely impressive battle skills, Ash still stuck with his decision to stay with Lapras. He figured this would be his last match with it, after all, and he was going to make it count. There would be no way Ash would let he and Lapras part on a loss like this. They were definitely going to win, and Lapras will be able to prove how strong it's gotten. They had Lapras' whole herd behind it if he remembered the talk from last night.
XXX
"So Lapras, are you psyched for the match tomorrow?" Ash had asked it.
"Laaaa," Lapras replied and nuzzled its face against his.
"Right. When we battle tomorrow, you'll be able to show your family how much stronger you've gotten. Then you'll be head of your herd before you know it!" Ash laughed.
He then cast a glance at Lapras' herd off to the side. They had decided to rest in a slightly more secluded area of Pummelo Island that would be away from most of the tourists. The good thing was the Lapras had a clear view of a large monitor that was on the island. It was a little far from the ocean, but the Lapras' excellent eyesight would allow them to watch their member battle tomorrow. Surprisingly, they had no qualms about that.
Lapras' mother swam over to its infant and wrapped its neck around it for a hug, which Ash's Lapras returned. It then turned and nodded to Ash to show it was trusting him with its baby to which Ash nodded back. Lapras' mother then let out a cry and motioned to the large monitor to let Ash and Lapras know they would be watching it tomorrow. Both Ash and Lapras smiled at that. They weren't about to disappoint them.
XXX
"Right!" Ash said to himself. They were ready.
"Ladies and gentleman! Thank you for waiting! The challengers appear to be ready so we will now present them to you! First we have Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town of the Kanto region and Harrison Hazuki from Littleroot Town in the Hoenn region!" the announcer yelled.
"Hoenn region?" Ash questioned in interest.
"Pikapi?" Pikachu asked from beside him.
"Oh. Sorry, Pikachu. That just sort of caught me off guard. I didn't think there would challengers from across the world coming here. I guess the Orange League is more popular than I thought," Ash replied.
"Pika," Pikachu nodded its head in understanding.
"Anyway, let's go!" Ash stated before he and Pikachu walked into the light from outside.
As the two stepped out, they could already see their opponent was walking out, as well. Harrison definitely appeared a few years older than Ash, maybe seventeen. He had light brown hair that was combed mostly throughout but still had a huge cowlick in the middle. He appeared to be smiling to Ash as they approached each other to shake hands. Harrison was the first one to hold out his hand.
"Hey there, Ash. As you could probably guess, my name's Harrison. Great to meet you!" he said.
"Hey. I'm Ash," Ash replied as he returned the handshake, glad that his opponent was friendly.
"So I just heard you're from the Kanto region. That's one of the few regions I haven't been to yet, along with Johto," Harrison commented.
"Yeah. I heard you were from Hoenn. I haven't been there yet, but I bet they have all sorts of cool Pokemon there!" Ash smiled.
"You bet! I'll even be using one today against you so you better be prepared!" Harrison told him.
"Really? Could you tell me what it is?!" Ash asked in excitement.
"Well, it wouldn't be any fun now if I did that! You'll see it soon enough," Harrison said with a thumbs up.
"Fair enough. Well, let's make this a great battle, Harrison!" Ash said.
"Definitely! I didn't travel all the way from Hoenn to lose so I'm going to give it everything I have here!" Harrison commented.
"Me, too!" Ash nodded as the two turned and went to their respective sides of the battlefield.
Far up in the crowd, Serena, Leaf, Misty, and Tracey were getting ready to watch the match from below. They had also been rather interested when they heard that Ash's challenger was from the Hoenn region. Serena, Leaf, and Misty thought a lot of great trainers must come from Hoenn if they recalled Tyson from the Indigo Pokemon League. He won it, after all.
"I've never been to the Hoenn region. Do you think this Harrison person has any Pokemon exclusive to there?" Leaf asked.
"I'm sure he does. I've visited the Hoenn region before. It's an extremely large lone region on the other side of the ocean. Because of the climate, there are a lot of Pokemon that only live there that you can't find in other places," Tracey told them.
"So Ash could facing against a Pokemon he's never seen before," Leaf muttered.
"I don't think that will be a problem," Serena spoke up. "New Pokemon or not, Ash can still win. He wouldn't be able to come this far in the Orange League if he couldn't."
"Toge! Toge!" Togepi agreed with its mommy.
Everyone else nodded their heads at that logic. No doubt Harrison would be a formidable opponent, but Ash could still do it.
"Alright! If the challengers would choose their first Pokemon, we can get underway!" the announcer shouted.
"I'll choose first if that's okay, Ash!" Harrison shouted from across the field. "I'll start off with Hypno!"
Harrison then threw his pokeball and let out the hypnosis Pokemon. Ash frowned slightly once he saw it as Hypno was a pretty powerful psychic Pokemon that also excelled at physical attacks, as well. Still, Ash knew he had the perfect counter for Hypno. It was a good choice for him to bring it to the match, after all.
"Go, Haunter!" Ash cried as he released the ghost Pokemon.
"Haaaaaaunt!" Haunter said as he came out. It then floated over to Ash and held out its disembodied hand for a high five. Ash smiled at it and went for it, but gasped when Haunter's hand disappeared.
"Haunter! I'm glad you're excited for the match, but this is no time for jokes!" Ash told it while he sweat dropped.
"Ha! Ha! Haaaaaunt!" Haunter laughed as it floated back over to where it was orginally to prepare for the battle.
"This will a two on two match. Whoever has one Pokemon standing at the end will be declared the winner and be able to face Drake! The first round will be Hypno versus Haunter! Are the challengers ready?" a referee asked from the side.
Both Harrison and Ash nodded. Ash took a glance at the crowd to see everyone had their eyes glued on the impending match. Ash had no doubt his friends were doing the same thing. It was then Ash noticed a slightly familiar face was in the announcer's box far above who was also watching the match. It was none other than Drake, the Orange League champion, whom Ash had met previously. Ash briefly wondered if Harrison was able to meet with him, too.
"Begin!" the judge declared.
Ash snapped his attention back to the match. It just began. Ash can worry about trivial things later on. Unfortunately, Ash's brief hesitation meant that Harrison had already gotten the jump on him.
"Use your Psychic attack, Hypno!" Harrison yelled.
A burst of psychic energy erupted from Hypno's pendulum and headed straight for Haunter.
"Fly out of the way, Haunter!" Ash hurriedly called.
Haunter floated in an arc out of harm's way long before the psychic attack reach it. It then began to laugh at how it was able to easily dodge the attack. Ash shrugged his shoulders as he couldn't really fault his Haunter right now. As long as it battled well, Ash had no complaints.
"Hmm…use another Psychic, Hypno!" Harrison said again.
"That's fine by me! Dodge it, Haunter, and vanish into the ground like we practiced!" Ash told it.
Haunter easily flew out of the way and arced around before it dove into the ground and vanished. All anyone could see now was shadow that was gliding around. It was moving quickly, not that it really mattered. Haunter would be impervious to any attacks Hypno could do to it right now. Unfortunately, that was exactly what Harrison wanted it to do as Ash would soon learn. Because Haunter was in the ground, it couldn't attack Hypno, either.
"You did exactly what I wanted you to do, Ash. I figured you might try to make good use of Haunter's ghost-tying for stealth. That's just what my Hypno needs to set up!" Harrison said before he yelled, "Hypno! Use Meditate and Nasty Plot!"
Hypno appeared to be concentrating very hard as it began to glow and got a creepy smile on its face. Ash grimaced as Harrison thought ahead and took total advantage of Haunter's inability to attack underneath the ground and used it to increase its stats. That was bad and certainly not something Ash had thought about. Haunter would never be hit by Hypno's attacks while it was underground and could use it to pull sneak attacks, but that didn't stop Hypno from setting up. That was pretty smart of Harrison to take advantage of a normally not good situation.
"Now get a Future Sight ready for when Haunter does come up! We can't attack it while it's underground so we'll wade it out!" Harrison called.
Hypno nodded and looked towards the sky to prepare the attack. However, Ash had to get Haunter to attack or there would be all sorts of nasty surprises waiting for it before long. He couldn't let this Hypno set up anymore.
"Use Shadow Punch, Haunter!" Ash hollered.
The shadow in the ground which was Haunter immediately made a beeline over to Hypno who was still calling forth the Future Sight. Haunter's disembodied hand appeared and then Haunter flew out of the ground and struck Hypno right across the face. The psychic Pokemon gasped and stumbled backwards, but Harrison still smiled as it had still finished setting up the Future Sight for later.
Ash decided he better limit Haunter's use to go underground right now if that just meant Hypno could use that chance to increase its stats more. It was a huge bummer that Haunter had learned a new technique but wouldn't be able to utilize it in the match very well.
"Use Shadow Ball!" Ash called.
"Counter it with your Psychic, Hypno!" Harrison yelled.
Both Pokemon launched their respective attacks which collided in midair and created an explosion. Despite Haunter's attack being super effective, it actually turned out to be Hypno's Psychic that kept going due to its power increase. The attack continued sailing through the air and struck Haunter which sent it blasting through the air before it landed on the ground and skidded for a while before it stopped.
"Haunter! Are you okay?" Ash asked it.
Haunter slowly floated off of the ground and panted before it nodded its head. It had lost its usual smiling face and traded it for a more serious one. It must have realized the danger it would be in with this battle if it wasn't careful.
"Use Psybeam, Hypno!" Harrison yelled this time.
"Not so fast! Sucker Punch, Haunter!" Ash countered.
Before Hypno was even able to get its beam out, Haunter appeared in front of the hypnosis Pokemon and delivered a big punch to its face for another super effective hit. Hypno stumbled back a little further before it seemingly smiled at the Haunter, along with Harrison. Both Ash and Haunter stared suspiciously at them for a moment before their faces lit up in remembrance.
"Future Sight's coming, Haunter! Get underground fast!" Ash yelled.
Haunter dove for the safety of the shadows before Ash even finished his sentence. However, it wasn't quick enough. A beam of light came from seemingly nowhere and struck Haunter right in its backside. Haunter cried out in pain, a rare thing for it, and was knocked onto the ground where it slid to a stop a few feet in front of Hypno.
"It looks like Future Sight takes another Pokemon by surprise at an opportune moment, folks! Despite the type disadvantage Hypno faces against Haunter, Harrison is still playing excellently to Hypno's strengths! One can easily see how he made it all the way to the Orange League!" the announcer commented.
"That's right," Ash remembered. The Orange League isn't a place for an average trainer. This guy must be seriously good to get here. If I can't think of a way to outsmart him and that Hypno, I'm going to lose. Harrison is playing to Hypno's strengths so what are Haunter's besides hiding in the shadows?"
Ash then saw Haunter had recovered and was slowly floating off of the ground. However, it ran into a huge problem. Hypno had started rocking its pendulum back and forth right in Haunter's face. It was using Hypnosis! The worse part was Haunter was actually starting to become enamored with it and watched it go back and forth. Haunter slowly began to lose track of the battle, much to Ash's horror.
Ash then frowned as he realized the only other thing he could think of that Haunter really excelled at besides hiding and battling were jokes and pranks. That really wouldn't help him in a serious battle like this. Wait, or would it? With a bit of luck, Ash may be able to get through to Haunter and let it in on his plan.
"Haunter, if you can hear me at all, I need you to do what you do best! You know what I'm talking about!" Ash hollered across the field.
Despite Ash's words, it didn't appear Haunter heard Ash. It was too busy watching the pendulum in front of Hypno. Its eyes were slowly starting to droop, and it began sighing in contentment.
"We have no idea what Ash meant by what his Pokemon does best, but one thing is for sure. Haunter is just about in for a nap time!" the announcer shouted.
"What could Ash mean? Why isn't he telling Haunter to do anything? He looks worried, but he's just standing there," Misty wondered.
"It isn't like Ash to just be frozen solid like that and watch his Pokemon go to sleep like that without finding some way to get out of it," Tracey commented.
"That's right! Ash doesn't just let his Pokemon go to sleep like that! I think I might even have an idea of what he meant by what Haunter does best," Serena added.
Haunter continued to watch the pendulum swing back and forth a few more times before it did the inevitable. It began to yawn. Still, Ash was doing absolutely nothing! He just stood there and watched!
"What's he up to?" Harrison thought to himself.
A couple of seconds later, Haunter fell asleep. It slowly floated back onto the ground where it folded its hands and rested its body on them. It then began to snore softly and began to form a snot bubble.
"Well, we can't say what Ash was thinking by not doing anything. One thing is for certain, Haunter is asleep and totally helpless!" the announcer thought.
"We'll see," Ash thought as he began to smirk, but not big enough for the spectators or Harrison to notice.
"Let's wrap this up with Dream Eater, Hypno!" Harrison called.
Hypno nodded as it began to have a red glow surround it. The red energy then floated over to Haunter where it wrapped around the ghost Pokemon. Dream Eater was always a great finishing move. It ensured that a Pokemon would be depleted of a lot of its energy and have it added to the user. Any damage Hypno previously had would be a thing of the past.
The red energy then began to transfer back over to Hypno where it prepared to feed on the health it had just sucked out of Haunter. It then noticed something was wrong. Why wasn't it feeling any better? Why were none of its wounds healing?
Harrison must have noticed this, too, as he put on a look of confusion. "Hypno, what's wrong?" he asked it.
Ash then broke out in a big smile while Hypno and Harrison were distracted. "Haunter! Use Shadow Ball!"
"What?!" Harrison cried.
Haunter snapped open its eyes and sprang up from the ground before it formed an orb of dark energy in its hands and shot it at Hypno. The hypnosis Pokemon's eyes widened as it saw the sneak attack come straight for it. The Shadow Ball connected, and Hypno cried out in pain as a small explosion took place.
"Great! Now finish this with Shadow Punch!" Ash called.
Hypno tried to stand up, but a shadowy fist appeared out of the ground and struck Hypno in an uppercut motion. Harrison watched in amazement as Hypno went flying into the air before it fell back down and landed on the ground with a thud. The judge ran over to Hypno's side and looked at it for a moment before he made his decision. Clearly, Hypno was knocked out.
"Hypno is unable to battle! The winner is Haunter!" the judge declared.
"What a strange but effective turn of events, folks! Haunter was only pretending to be asleep the whole time to lure Hypno into a Dream Eater!" the announcer shouted excitedly as the crowd cheered.
"Oh! I get it now! That's what Ash meant when he told Haunter to do what it does best. He was referring to Haunter's tricks!" Misty realized.
"I know. Ash shouted at Haunter early on while Hypnosis was still taking effect. That way, Haunter could still hear what Ash was saying and start the ruse. Still, I'm impressed that Haunter and Ash know each other enough to realize what the other meant," Tracey added as he rubbed his chin.
"That's Ash for you! You should know that by now!" Leaf grinned.
"Let's root for your daddy, Togepi!" Serena told it with a big smile.
"Togepriiii!" it cheered and waved its arms up and down.
"You did awesome, Haunter! I'm proud of you! I knew you heard me the second you sent me a small signal!" Ash called over to it before he added. "I've also seen you sleep enough to know you don't have a snot bubble, though it was a nice touch."
"Ha! Ha! Haaaaaunt!" Haunter laughed as it gave a thumbs up to Ash to which he returned.
"Keep up the great work!" Ash encouraged more.
"Pika! Pika!" Pikachu encouraged.
Harrison returned his Hypno with a sigh before he looked over at Ash. "Well, Ash, I have to say, that was pretty good. You and Haunter must have a great bond to be able to pull a ruse like that together."
"Of course. Haunter and I are great buddies! We know each other!" Ash replied, to which Haunter nodded.
"Against a tricky Pokemon like Haunter, I think I'll use a tricky Pokemon of my own," Harrison said as he presented a pokeball. "It's actually the Pokemon native to Hoenn that I promised to show you."
Ash couldn't help but frown slightly. He was going to go into this battle against a Pokemon he knew absolutely nothing about it. He was extremely interested in seeing a new Pokemon, though. However, it would serve as a serious disadvantage to him. He had studied the pokedex on Pokemon he had already seen to learn their strengths and weaknesses. On this Pokemon, though, he would be fighting completely blind.
Everyone in the stadium waited in anticipation as Harrison threw his pokeball. "Go! Kecleon!"
The pokeball opened up to reveal a rather bizarre looking Pokemon. It was green and reptilian-like and stood on two legs and had a long skinny tail that curled up. There were several markings all over it, and it had a red zigzag across its midsection. The Kecleon crouched down on its four limbs to show I was ready for battle.
"A Kecleon?" Ash muttered as he scanned it with his national dex.
"Kecleon, the color swap Pokemon. Kecleon is able to change its body colors to blend in with its surroundings," the machine informed.
"Color swap Pokemon?" Ash questioned as he looked at the new Pokemon in confusion and let his national dexes words sink in. "It can blend into its surroundings! We need to be careful, Haunter!"
"Haaaaanter," the ghost Pokemon replied with a nod.
"Kecleon versus Haunter! Let the match begin!" the judge yelled with a wave of his flag.
"You know what to do, Kelceon! Turn invisible!" Harrison shouted.
Kecleon nodded once before it did as told and faded completely from view which left an astonished Ash, Pikachu, and Haunter. The ghost Pokemon began to look for any signs of the Kecleon but weren't able to find any.
"Watch out, Haunter! Just turn invisible as well so it can't see you, either! We can even the playing field!" Ash hollered.
"Not so fast, Ash. Kecleon, use Shadow Sneak!"
Before Haunter was even able to turn invisible, it felt a presence behind it. The ghost Pokemon turned around to launch a counterattack, but a shadowy essence was already rushing towards it. Haunter was struck at close range and was knocked down onto the ground.
"Now use Psybeam, Kecleon!" Harrison continued.
"Get up, Haunter! You can do it!" Ash yelled, too.
Haunter tried to keep a look out from where Kecleon could be, but it still drew a blank. Suddenly, a Psybeam appeared from seemingly nowhere and struck Haunter dead on. There was an explosion and Haunter fell to the ground once more. This time it didn't get up.
"Haunter!" Ash cried, but got no response.
The judge ran over to Haunter and made his decision after a few seconds of waiting. "Haunter is unable to battle! The winner is Kecleon!" he declared.
"Haunter goes down, everyone! It put up a great fight against Hypno, but its tricks were no match for Kecleon's!" the announcer commented.
Ash stared in surprise for a moment as Harrison's Kecleon came back into view. Haunter hadn't even put a scratch on that thing. Kecleon could probably stay invisible the entire match if it wanted to. Kecleon probably had several wins under its belt. With an ability like that to turn invisible, and moves like Shadow Sneak to boot, it no doubt was a Pokemon that helped Harrison make it this far in the Orange League. Ash knew that if he wasn't careful with this thing, he would be in serious trouble. It didn't help matters that he had never battled a Kecleon before.
Ash then snapped his fingers a couple of times as he thought of his next Pokemon. He knew he had promised Lapras he would use it in this match. It would be the last time he would ever battle with it, and he wanted it to go out with a bang. However, this Kecleon was really strong and tricky. He wasn't quite sure if an infant Pokemon like his Lapras was up to the task to take on a Pokemon like this. He could use Pikachu whose speed would definitely help in this match, but that still wouldn't be fair to Lapras. Not to mention, its herd was supposed to be watching this match, too. What to do?
"Ash is conflicted on what he wants to do," Leaf noticed.
"Yeah. He told me, too. He said he was going to use Lapras in this match, but it looks like he's having second thoughts," Serena muttered in a worried tone.
"Ash Ketchum seems to be at a standstill, folks. It's like he isn't sure who to use against Harrison's impressive Kecleon!" the announcer said.
Ash took a deep breath. He has been in situations like this before. In the end, he and his Pokemon always seemed to beat the odds. Dragonite's battles when it was a Dratini were a perfect example of this. His Pokemon have proved time and time again how strong they were. It was Lapras' time to shine, and Ash wasn't about to let its last battle go to waste because of its inexperience. Lapras could still win! No. It would win!
"Alright, Pikachu. I'm using Lapras," Ash told it as he brandished his pokeball before he threw it into the air. "Go, Lapras!"
Lapras appeared from Ash's pokeball and landed with a thud on the solid ground. Upon seeing the transport Pokemon, the judge gave a nod and gave a signal up in the announcer's box,
An opening soon appeared in the middle of the battle field before it sunk into the ground. When it rose back up, there was a very large pool for Lapras to move around in so it could be more comfortable. Lapras then began to scoot towards the pool while Kecleon crouched down on its four limbs again to prepare.
"Ash has decided on Lapras, folks! We can expect great things from it, but will it be enough to take out Kecleon?" the announcer asked rhetorically.
"It will. I believe in it," Ash muttered under his breath to himself.
Once Lapras finished scooting into the pool, it swam to the middle and looked quite content. The judge took that as a sign that Lapras had been accommodated well and raised his flag in the air.
"The final match will be between Lapras and Kecleon! Begin!" he shouted.
"Go on and turn invisible again, Kecleon!" Harrison told it as his Pokemon did so.
"Dive underwater Lapras! It won't be able to hit you there!" Ash said.
Lapras gave a cry as it dove underwater, hidden away from the Kecleon, or so they thought.
"Your Pokemon can't hide in the water, either, Ash! Use Feint Attack, Kecleon!" Harrison called out.
Ash gasped as he watched a splash appear in the water from what he knew to be Kecleon jumping in. So that Pokemon could use a never miss attack like Feint Attack, too? This was a lot worse than he thought. There really was no hiding from this thing. It had all the tools at its disposal to make sure it was the only hidden Pokemon on the battlefield.
"Watch out, Lapras! It's coming for you!" Ash hollered, but he knew it was in vain.
A few bubbles soon appeared the surface before Lapras appeared and shook itself of the surprise attack by Kecleon. There was another splash from what was presumed to be Kecleon as it leaped out of the pool. So that plan was no good now.
"It's okay, Lapras! Just shake it off! We can still get this!" Ash encouraged.
Lapras shook its head and tried to look around for the Kecleon. It's family was supposedly watching so it had to win this.
Ash tried look around to see where Kecleon could be, too, before he felt a tug on his pant leg. Ash looked down and saw it was Pikachu who was doing it. It was pointing at something and was clearly wanting to Ash to notice it, too. Ash followed Pikachu's finger and squinted to see if there was something it could see that he or Lapras couldn't.
Ash looked a little harder until he noticed something a little off about the section of the battlefield where Pikachu was pointing. There was lone red strip that appeared to be hovering midair which was rather weird. Wait a second. Ash quickly pulled out his national dex and pulled up an image of Kecleon on it before he looked at it, and then he he looked back at the stripe. He then turned to Pikachu to which the yellow rodent nodded its head. That red stripe looked just like the one on Kecleon's stomach! That's where it was!
"Thanks, Pikachu," Ash told it as he pocketed the national dex and shouted out to Lapras. "Hey Lapras! We can know where Kecleon is at all times! Use Water Gun where that strip is!"
Lapras soon saw what Ash was referring to and quickly shot out a Water Gun from its mouth. The Water Gun sailed through the air and struck the Kecleon dead on. The color swap Pokemon was pushed by the Water Gun into a nearby wall where it guzzled water for a few moments and slumped to the ground. It then lost its invisibility upon being hit.
"Great hit, Lapras!" Ash smiled while Pikachu cheered from its side. So this Kecleon wasn't perfect, after all.
"Not bad, Ash. You found my Kecleon's imperfection," Harrison praised as the Kecleon stood up and turned invisible once more. "However, we have more tricks up our sleeve then that!"
Kecleon then began to dash in circles around the battlefield. It didn't look like it, but it was a surprisingly quick Pokemon. Ash let a sweat drop run down his head as he tried to keep up with Kecleon. Though its stripe never turned invisible, it was still hard to keep up with that tiny stripe without getting an eye strain.
"Use Screech, Kecleon, and then Shadow Sneak!" Harrison ordered.
"Use Ice Beam!" Ash yelled.
An earsplitting cry soon came from Kecleon which caused everyone around, especially Lapras, to grimace at the horrible sound. Before Lapras could even recover, though, it was struck by a phantom force from behind which caused it to cry in pain. Lapras turned around and shot out its Ice Beam, but Kecleon was already gone which caused the attack to miss completely.
Ash sighed at that. It seemed that no matter what he tried to do to that Kecleon, it and Harrison would always one up him. It didn't help matters that Lapras was rather slow and Kecleon was fast. The only place where Lapras would thrive in was the pool while Kecleon had a whole field to run around on. Still, even with Lapras' advantage in the pool, it wasn't like it could hide thanks to Faint Attack. This Kecleon was full of tricks, so he and Lapras needed to find a way to trick Kecleon like Haunter had with Hypno. It was the only way Ash could beat a great trainer like Harrison.
If there was some way Ash could get Kecleon into the pool and stay there, it would put Ash at a great advantage. Even though Lapras couldn't hide in the water didn't mean it couldn't fight back. Still, the plan Ash was thinking of did make him worry a little bit. It would no doubt be effective, but would his Lapras be able to handle it? He sighed and would need to make sure of that.
"Lapras! Do you trust me?" Ash suddenly hollered.
Lapras turned back around and looked at Ash in surprise at that question. Of course it trusted him. That was why it agreed to let him help look for its parents in the first place. It would also have to trust Ash if it was battling for him. Still, the look in Ash's eyes told it something different. It was as if he were asking Lapras something difficult that it was going to do. Lapras wasn't quite sure what the raven-haired boy had in store, but if it would help them win, it was willing to take that risk.
"Laaaaaa!" it replied before it turned back to look for the still moving Kecleon.
Ash took a sigh at this himself. He believed in Lapras and believed it could pull thought this. It was a move Ash recently discovered his Lapras could use through his pokedex. He had never ordered it to use this attack yet as it might put Lapras in danger, too, and that wasn't in his style. Still, the transport Pokemon seemed to know what he was asking of it, and they trusted each other.
"Lapras! Dive into the water!" Ash hollered.
Lapras did as told and dove into the water once more. As soon as it did that, Harrison nodded his head to the Kecleon.
"You still can't get away from Kecleon, Ash! Use Feint Attack, Kecleon!" Harrison called.
There was another blur of movement as Ash waited for the color change Pokemon to enter the pool. Once the obligatory splash was seen, Ash knew he had to act fast.
"Here we go," Ash thought to himself before he shouted, "Use Sheer Cold, Lapras!"
Only a couple of seconds after Ash had said that, a sheet of ice appeared inside of the pool. It quickly began to spread all throughout the pool Lapras and Kecleon were in before it reached all around. In a short amount of time, the entire pool was frozen solid!
Ash exhaled once that had happened. The move was already called, and there was no turning back now. He had to rely on Lapras' tolerance to low temperatures and pure strength now. This would be the ultimate test for both of them. He knew Kecleon didn't stand a chance now, but if Lapras had fainted, too, it would be a double knockout, and neither of them would face Drake.
"That was a very bold move by Ketchum, folks! It would take a lot of faith from both the trainer and Pokemon to try something like this! The only question is…will it pay off?" the announcer commented and made his voice sound suspenseful.
Thirty seconds had passed, and still there was no movement from inside the pool. The crowd had gone silent by now. All of them were on the edge of their seats as they waited in suspense for what would come out of the most previous move. Thirty seconds turned to a minute, and Ash was beginning to get a little worried. The judge had also walked to the edge of the pool and looked in to see if he could find any sign of movement in there. He then made an announcement to the two competing trainers.
"I'm sorry, but we cannot wait too much longer. Each of your Pokemon have exactly thirty more seconds to try to get out of the pool before I call the match a draw," he stated.
Ash and Harrison both gritted their teeth as they looked back at the pool and silently prayed for some sort of movement from them. Having to have their Pokemon thawed out of the pool wasn't exactly the ideal plan Ash had in mind. Besides, it would make him look like an irresponsible trainer, as well. Sure, the match would be a draw, but he would definitely be the villain here, and the crowd would most likely boo at him. He really didn't wish to go through something like that again after what had happened at the Indigo League.
The worst part of all of this would be what would become of Lapras. He could imagine the entire Lapras herd wanting to kill him for putting their baby in danger like that. Furthermore, what would Lapras think? Would it hate him, too? Ash was beginning to regret his decision. Surely, there could have been another way to take out that Kecleon. Sure, that was a great surprise that only he would think of, but it was still extremely risky.
"Come on, Lapras. You can do it," Ash thought.
Ash then let out gasp as he saw a vague shadow in the pool. The judge seemed to notice this too as he peeked inside briefly before he ran back to the edge of the field. Something was about to happen. Murmurs began to spread throughout the crowd as more and more people began to see the shadow get larger and larger. The shape was much too large to be Kecleon so that only meant one thing.
"Lapras!" Ash yelled as the transport Pokemon burst through the ice a second later.
Everyone gasped once that happened. Bits of ice flew everywhere and scattered around the field but not far enough to hit Ash or Harrison. Ash continued to watch as Lapras continued to work through the ice before it was all the way out. It then let out a cry to show that it was still good to fight.
"Way to go, Lapras!" Ash cheered as Pikachu and the crowd joined in.
"Oh, what a relief. That was way too close," Misty sighed.
"Yeah. Lapras is a part ice-type Pokemon so Ash was using that and Lapras' tolerance to subzero temperatures to survive it. He then had to rely on Lapras' great strength to work itself out of that heavy ice as Kecleon certainly couldn't. I'm glad it paid off," Tracey said.
"That's a little outside of what I'm used to seeing with Ash. I guess he is getting a little bolder with his crazy ideas," Misty giggled.
"He and his Pokemon never cease to amaze us," Leaf sighed.
"He sure doesn't," Serena agreed as she blushed and stood up from her seat with Togepi in her arms. "Let's go meet him outside the stadium."
"Okay, Lapras. I say we let Kecleon out, now," Ash nodded. "Use Body Slam!"
Lapras cried out and raised itself off the ground before it slammed its full body weight on the ice as hard as it could. The ice cracked significantly once Lapras did that. Lapras then did one more Body Slam which completely shattered the ice. There were now several small icebergs floating in the pool as Lapras dove back underneath. A few seconds later, Lapras emerged once more with something in its mouth. It only took a split second to realize it was Kecleon. Lapras then swam over to the edge of the icy pool and gently set the unmoving Kecleon on the ground.
The judge ran over to Kecleon and went to check on its condition. The color change Pokemon was clearly knocked out and showed absolutely no signs of waking up anytime soon. That was when the judge made his decision.
"Kecleon is unable to battle! That winner is Lapras! That means Ash Ketchum has won the match and can now advance to the finals of the Orange League and face Drake, the champion!" he announced.
"There you have it, everyone! That Kecleon was full of tricks, but in the end, Lapras was able to outsmart its maneuvers. Well done to him! We can all see how he made it this far now!" the announcer shouted in excitement as more cheers erupted from the crowd.
"Alright!" Ash cheered as he and Pikachu ran towards Lapras.
Lapras turned in Ash's direction and cried out happily as it pulled itself out of the pool to greet him. As soon as he reached it, Ash threw his arms around the transport Pokemon's neck and hugged it tightly.
"That was amazing, Lapras! You did excellent! I'm really proud of you!" he exclaimed.
"Laaaaa!" it replied as it nuzzled its face against Ash.
"Also, I'm sorry I asked that much of you. I hope you aren't mad at me," Ash said as he looked at Lapras somewhat guiltily
Lapras saw the look on Ash's face and shook its head. Pikachu also looked at Ash and made a slight translation for him. Ash saw Pikachu's movements and nodded his head.
"I see. You knew you could do it in the first place, and a test like this proved how much stronger you've become," Ash guessed.
"Laaaa,"the transport Pokemon nodded.
"Thanks, Lapras. You're the best!" Ash smiled as he hugged the large Pokemon again. "I know your mother is proud of you, also."
"Ash!" a voice called out to him.
Ash looked up and saw Harrison was approaching him. The teenage boy had already returned his Kecleon. Once he reached Ash, he held out a hand for Ash to shake.
"That was great match, Ash! It was definitely the most challenging battle I've had in forever. You really earned your chance to challenge Drake," he said.
"Thanks, Harrison," Ash replied as he returned the handshake. He then looked a little sadly at Harrison. "I feel sort of bad that you won't get a chance to challenge Drake, though."
"No. It's okay. The Orange League was fun, but if I lost to you, that just means I wasn't ready to face Drake yet, anyway. I still have four Orange League badges to show for it, though," Harrison shrugged.
"I see. That Kecleon was really tough, though. I bet Hoenn has some great Pokemon there," Ash commented.
"Oh, it does. You should definitely check it out, sometime," Harrison nodded.
"I think I'll take you up on that one day. I've never been to Hoenn before so I bet it would be a great place to travel to," Ash agreed before he switched topics. "So what are your plans now, Harrison?"
"I think I'll head off to the Johto region. That is one place I haven't been to yet and would love to see. I'll take the gym challenge there and compete in the Silver Conference," Harrison replied.
"I hear ya. I've never been to Johto myself. If I decide to travel there, maybe we'll run into each other again," Ash smiled.
"Maybe so," Harrison nodded before he added, "Just watch out. You won this time, but that means I'll be the one to beat you next time. You owe me another battle."
"Count on it," Ash smiled. "I'll take you on anytime, Harrison!"
"Sounds good!" Harrison responded before he turned around with a wave. "Well, I'll be seeing you, Ash. Good luck against Drake!"
"Thanks!" Ash called out as he watched Harrison leave.
He then turned to the crowd and saw everyone was still in their seats and were rooting for him. Ash blushed in embarrassment for receiving this much attention. No doubt there would be an even bigger crowd when he faced Drake, if it was even possible. Speaking of the Orange League champion, Ash spotted him in the announcer's box, and he was looking straight into Ash's eyes. Their gazes met and held for only a few moments. Drake then broke contact before he turned and walked away. A poke from Lapras remind Ash that it was still there. Ash smiled back at his Lapras before he hugged it again.
"Thanks a lot, Lapras! You did excellent! I'm proud of you," he said again.
Yeah. Lapras really did go out with a bang. It's time with Ash really did prove how much stronger it had become.
As Ash and Pikachu walked out of the stadium, they were immediately greeted by the rest of the group in the tunnel. Serena was first as she ran over and hugged Ash tightly.
"You did so great, Ash! Lapras and Haunter did, too!" she exclaimed.
"Yeah. It was them who were able to pull off those stunts. I just gave the command and believed in them," Ash smiled as he hugged Serena back. Togepi jumped up and down and hugged Ash's pant leg, as well.
"Here we have future Orange League champion, Ash Ketchum! How do you feel?!" Leaf asked as she held up an imaginary microphone for Ash to speak into.
"I feel great! Like I can take on anybody!" Ash spoke into it.
"Pika! Pikachu!" Pikachu cried as Leaf crouched down and let the yellow rodent talk into it, also.
"Well, Ash! Now that you're going to get your chance to battle Drake, I say we treat you to some great food!" Tracey suggested. By now he knew what grabbed Ash's attention.
"Come on, guys! You're already acting like I won the tournament. I still have to face Drake," Ash laughed before he added. "Still, food sounds good! I'll be sure to let Lapras and Haunter have the most!"
As the five friends began to walk out of the tunnel, they spotted a figure coming towards them. Closer inspection revealed that it was none other than Drake. The group stopped walking and waited for the young man to approach them. Ash had already met him once before, but the rest of them hadn't. Despite this, they still could tell who he must be.
"Drake," Ash muttered.
"Hi, Ash. I just wanted to tell you good luck in our match. I look forward to it," Drake said.
"Thanks, Drake," Ash replied.
"I think you are the most promising challenger I've had in quite a while," Drake continued.
"I do?" Ash questioned. He had a feeling he knew where Drake was going with this.
"That's right. You remind me a lot of only person to beat me in five years. As I watched you battle, your style reminded me a lot of him," Drake said.
"There goes that trainer again," Misty sighed with a roll of her eyes.
"Oh? You've heard of him?" Drake questioned as he looked in Misty's direction.
"We all have," Serena replied. "Do you know his name?"
"Of course I do," Drake nodded. "Since he was inducted into the Orange League Hall of Fame, we needed his name for our records."
"Just who was this guy, anyway?" Ash wondered. "We hear about him wherever we go in the Orange Islands. He must be a really great trainer."
"I'll show you," Drake replied before he added, "After we have our match. I can only bring participating trainers into the Hall of Fame. I'll let you bring your friends, too, though, as an exception."
"Alright," Ash agreed. He had been itching to know who it was. The fact that Drake and Luana told Ash that he battled a lot like the mystery trainer really intrigued him.
"In that case, I'll take my leave. Enjoy the day with your friends, Ash," Drake said as he turned around to leave. "I'll see you in two days in the championship."
With that, Drake walked away. The group stared after a while at Drake's retreating back. So far, they knew he had one extremely powerful Pokemon, his Dragonite. There was no telling what other kind of strong Pokemon he would have on his team. The fact that so few people beat him must mean he's among the elite. That trainer from five years ago did, however. That proved Drake wasn't invincible. If Ash reminded Drake of that trainer, that meant that Ash had a shot of beating him, too. He would just really need to bring his best skills with him.
It was almost sunset on Pummelo Island now. The group and their Pokemon had a huge dinner for Ash as congratulations to him for making it all the way to the Orange League championship. Now, however, Ash still remembered there was one thing he promised after the end of the match today.
Everyone stood on the beach as Ash had his Lapras out. Lapras' herd was not too far behind Lapras as they patiently awaited the baby Pokemon to rejoin them. Along with Ash, they were also extremely proud of the baby Lapras right now. It would make a fine member of their group. For a while, nobody said anything until Ash let out a sigh. It was time.
"Well, Lapras, it looks like they are waiting for you," Ash told it.
"Laaaa," Lapras mumbled sadly.
"As much as we loved having you with us, we know you're better off with your herd," Ash added.
"Though you were like family to us, too," Serena said to Lapras.
"Yeah. We'll miss all of those smooth rides you gave us throughout he Orange Islands, too," Misty giggled slightly. "Even I'll admit it was a lot better than my Gyarados!"
Lapras nodded again and turned to face its herd. There they were. Lapras had missed them so much. It longed every single day to see them since it got separated from them in a storm. Now that they were here, Lapras was of course overjoyed, but that meant it would be leaving Ash, too. It then turned back to Ash.
"La. La. Laaaaa," it cried softly.
"Hahaha. I can't come with you, Lapras. Our paths just happen to split here. I'll never forget you, though," Ash told it with a sad smile.
Lapras frowned at that. Yes. It knew that Ash wouldn't be able to come with them. That was just wishful thinking on its part. Still, Lapras had so much to thank the boy for. It had gotten so much stronger since it joined him. Before, Lapras had been weak and distrustful. This boy had shown it how to be strong, though. It hadn't just become physically stronger, but it had matured, also. It now no longer got scared so easily and could handle its own in tough situation as its previous battle had shown. It never would've found this strength so soon if it wasn't for Ash.
"Laaaaaa!" the infant Lapras' mother called out to it.
"See. Your mother is there," Ash muttered before he smiled despite the somberness he was feeling. "Go on! Get out of here!"
Lapras nodded before it lifted one of its fins and playfully splashed Ash with seawater. Ash gasped once Lapras did that and gave a mock look of anger at Lapras. Its mischievous side just had to show one last time, of course.
"Lapras," Ash scolded before he laughed as Lapras rubbed its face against him. "It's okay. I know you were just kidding around."
"Oh. We're going to miss you doing that, Lapras," Leaf said.
Lapras and Ash then stared at each other for a moment longer before Ash took a deep breath. He never liked saying goodbye, but sometimes he had to.
"Goodbye, Lapras," he muttered.
Lapras then turned and began to swim to its herd. As Ash watched it, he lowered his head and let the shadow of his cap cover his eyes. He then began to reminisce about all of the good times he had with Lapras. He remembered the day he found it with Tracey in the ocean and how it was so scared of him. Still, he had gained its trust and won the race against Cissy on Mikan Island, and of course, it won him his most recent win to get into Orange League championship. Lapras was an invaluable Pokemon.
Lapras reached its herd and had a few thoughts going through its mind, too. Now that it was back with its family, would it continue to grow stronger? It was the baby of the group again and would be reliant on them again. That would almost make all of the growing it had with Ash a waste. It was still young and had so many opportunities to get stronger. It missed its mother dearly, but if it stayed with them, would that inhibit its maturing?
Lapras soon reached its mother as the two gave an affectionate hug once more. Once it was done, it then cried out softly to its mother as if it were asking her a serious question. Lapras' mother looked taken aback for moment before it peered at Ash and the rest of the group.
"What's Lapras doing?" Serena wondered as she watched the scene take place.
Ash raised his head up from his thoughts at Serena's words. He was honestly surprised that they hadn't left yet. He saw Lapras' mother have a sad look on its face before it turned more understanding. Just was Lapras saying to its mother and the rest of the herd anyway? Pikachu seemed to understand what it was staying, and it grinned broadly.
"What's up, Pikachu?" Ash asked it.
Pikachu just shook its head and began leap up and down excitedly. Ash quirked his eyebrow at this before he turned and tilted his head in confusion. Lapras was actually swimming back towards him! The transport Pokemon soon reached him before it began to nuzzle its face against his and licked his face with it long tongue affectionately.
"Lapras! That tickles!" Ash laughed.
Once Lapras was done, Ash stared in confusion at Lapras for a moment. The Pokemon was staring into his eyes and had a resolute expression its face. It showed no sign that it was swimming back to its herd anytime soon. Ash's eyes widened when he realized what Lapras was implying.
"Wait a minute. Are you saying that you actually want to stay…with me?" he questioned in amazement.
"Laaaaaa!" the transport Pokemon confirmed with a nod.
"From being a Pokemon Watcher, Ash, I can tell that Lapras really likes you. You helped it mature and get stronger in ways it wouldn't get to if it stayed with its herd," Tracey told him.
"Is that true?" Ash questioned.
"Laaaaa," it replied.
Ash was filled with elation as tears came to his eyes. "Well, if that's the case, of course you can stay, Lapras! I'd love to have you as a permanent member of my team!"
Lapras grinned at before it reached down and brought its head beneath Ash. The raven-haired boy let out a yelp as Lapras flipped him onto its back. It then turned around and faced its mother.
The mother Lapras then swam over and hugged its baby one last time. It then looked at Ash and nodded its head. It knew the reason why its baby had chosen this boy. It wanted to continue to grow and get stronger. This boy could help it achieve that desire.
"Don't worry. I promise I'll take great care of it. You have my word," Ash reassured.
The mother Lapras nodded its head. The raven-haired boy had already proved it could be trusted. It lingered for only a moment before it cried out to signal to the rest of the herd that they were ready to leave now, to which the rest of them nodded.
"Wait. Was your mother the leader of the herd?" Ash questioned Lapras in interest.
"Laaaa," it replied in the positive.
"Heh. How about that," Ash commented as he watched the Lapras leave.
The Lapras continued to swim further and further way. Despite this, Lapras still had the resolute expression on its face. The fact that's mother didn't look back proved that it knew this was the best decision for its baby, as well. Maybe they would see each other again, but if they didn't, that was still okay. They had their goodbye, and Lapras could prove it could make it on its own again.
"We'll do your mom proud, Lapras! What do you say?!" Ash asked, to which it nodded.
"Don't forget you have your own mom to make proud by winning the Orange League, Ash!" Serena reminded.
"Yeah. We both have moms to make proud, Lapras. I say we don't disappoint them," Ash agreed.
"Laaa!" Lapras cried out. It was delighted of its decision to stay with Ash.
The group then turned back to the retreating herd. They were almost out of sight. Lapras had made a very important decision regarding its future. It chose to become stronger. Ash had to become stronger, as well, and he could do that by winning the Orange League tournament. He was now more fired up than ever about winning the tournament. Despite Drake's obvious power, Ash knew he had what it took to win. It was going to be the biggest match of his to date, and he was determined to win and do everyone proud, just like Lapras had done today.
Nah. It wasn't Blaziken that was Harrison's Hoenn Pokemon. It will still appear in the Silver Conference, though. Whoops. Was that a spoiler? Oh well.
Yeah. I still remember the poll where Lapras staying won by a landslide, but I still had to make it seem like it was going to leave and give it a legitimate reason to stay with Ash. A simple "they would miss each other" is really lame.
The Chikorita poll is closed! Boy was it was close! Within ten votes of each other, and a lot people voted. The winner was...Ash keeps Chikorita! HOWEVER!
With it being so close, it feels weird just simply going with the only slightly bigger majority. Actually, I kind of like the idea of Serena having Chikorita. Please enlighten me in PMs of why Serena or Ash should have Chikorita. Don't clog the review box with it please unless you're a guest! Providing good reasons for doing one thing or the other go a long way. If I find the reasons for Serena getting Chikorita in this fic are much greater than Ash, I may write that Serena gets Chikorita, after all. Of course, if nobody speaks up, I'll just go along with what the poll says. Despite the poll, it's ultimately still up to me as the author to decide what I want to write. The polls just let me know what more people want to read.
The Orange League starts next, and it has a surprise in it! Bet you can't guess what it is!
Chapter 22: The Orange League Champion
Answering the Questions:
Will Fennekin evolve?
Not until a really long time from now.
When do you plan on Ash getting his Aerodactyl back? Will it be cured of its instincts.
Before Hoenn, and yes, it will be 'cured'.
Why aren't you doing the other movies?
Because they don't really have an impact on what this series is about. They feel more like filler content than anything. Pokemon Ranger Temple of the Sea? Meh. I don't know. If some way I find a super good reason to do it that doesn't disrupt the flow of this story...maybe.
Will Wobbuffet be in the Johto arc?
Yes. That's all I will say on the matter.
Will the battle between Ash and Drake be decided between two chapters?
One and a half chapters, technically.
Speaking of which, is Fennekin the only Kalos Pokemon that will make an early appearance?
Besides Braixen, there will be a few Sinnoh and Unova Pokemon that pop up here and there, but they will be few and far between until Sinnoh.