Thank you all for the support you've shown me this past year. 11,000+ views is A LOT, and I want to thank each and every one of my readers. You all coming back to read this story is the reason why I continue writing.

Now with that out of the way, I hope you have a Happy New Year's. I hope you all have good New Year's Resolutions. Mine is to finish this story.

Enjoy chapter 25 everyone!

Ash woke up, and immediately noticed a warm sensation on his side. When he turned his head, there was Dawn, all cuddled up to him, just like she had been during the past week. He immediately felt his insides heat up.

There it is again, that feeling in my chest. I really wish I knew what it was.

Ash then tried to get up, but to no avail, causing him to sigh. He looked over at the clock, and noticed that it was almost ten.

Hopefully she gets up soon.

Brock was already up, and had already eaten breakfast. He had just gotten into the room, and noticed that Ash was up.

"Hey Ash, you just get up?" He asked.

"Yeah, now can you do something about my, uh, situation? Please?"

"Sorry no can do. You know Dawn. She doesn't get up unless she wants to. You'll have to wait until she gets up on her own."

"Wasn't that May who never got up?"

"I don't know. What I do know is that you've been mentioning her a lot lately." Brock said. "Why is that?"

"I don't know. I guess I just miss her. It's been over a year since I last saw her, and I guess I just want to see her again." Ash replied.

"Hopefully Max is in the tournament, then if he gets to Driftveil, we can all be reunited."

"Max is in the tournament. I checked a few days ago. Whether or not he moved on is a different story."

All of this talking had awakened Dawn. She groggily opened her eyes, and immediately started blushing when she realized what she was doing. She quickly withdrew her head and arm from Ash's side.

The sudden feeling, or lack of feeling rather, caused Ash to turn his head to the side.
"Sorry," Dawn said. She was still blushing heavily, and was trying to hide it by burying her face in her arms.

"Like I said before, I don't mind. Unfortunately, that was the last night we'll be sleeping in the same bed, as I'm sure the cabin on the ferry will have two beds." Ash said.

Brock, noticing Dawn blushing, decided to test a theory of his.

"Dawn, you're blushing. Mind telling us why?" He asked with a mischievous grin on his face.

"Uhh, no reason! No reason at all! I'm fine, no need to worry!" She said nervously.

"Dawn, I know when you're lying. I'm your friend, you can tell me anything," Ash cut in.

"I-I'm not lying! Really!"

"Really, then why are you shaking, and why does it look like your hands are starting to sweat?" Brock asked.

"I-I uhh," Dawn was visibly shaking now. Why is Brock doing this? she asked herself. Then realization hit her. Arceus I'm stupid. He's trying to help me out. Now I just need to figure out what to say...

Brock noticed Dawn go quiet. I think she's caught on, now to see what she says.

Dawn, figuring out what to say, spoke like she was before so she didn't give anything away. "I, uh, guess it's because I uh, like being in close proximity to you Ash." She said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ash asked cluelessly.

That comment made Brock want to slap him. Really, you're that dense? How long is it gonna take you to outgrow it?

Dawn had the same reaction. Why is he so damn dense?

"Oh, uh, never mind. Come on, let's go eat breakfast so we can get a head start on packing or something." Dawn said, changing the subject.

"I'm up for it," Ash said.

"I already ate, so I'll let you two go down there by yourselves. Besides, I have a few things to do, and they will be much easier with you two gone." Brock said.

"What things? Flirting with girls and getting rejected like always?" Dawn asked with a smile.

"For your information, if Croagunk, I mean Toxicroak, stopped Poison Jabbing me, they would've said yes!"

"Uh huh, sure. Like that's the problem." Dawn said.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're too forward. Girls get creeped out by that. Next time, try and take a more subtle approach."

"Where's the fun in that?"

"The fun is in getting a date." Dawn then turned to Ash, who was simply sitting there, petting Pikachu. He had a confused look on his face as if he didn't know what was going on. Upon seeing him like this, Dawn sighed.

"Let's go eat, I'm hungry."

"I'm with you on that one." Ash replied.

"We'll see you later Brock, we're gonna go eat." Dawn said.

"Alright, see you later." He replied.

After they ate, they went back to the room, got ready for the day, then headed out to the mall to kill time.

Dawn and Ash were walking around the Vermilion Mall. They were simply killing time until they needed to get back to the room to pack their things.

The two were walking in silence, not heading in any particular direction. Ash, not liking the silence, decided to break it by bringing up events from earlier that day.
"So what was that all about back in the room?" Ash asked.

"Which part?"

"The part where you said that Brock is too forward. What does that mean?"

Dawn was trying her best to figure out a way to explain it to the dense boy. "It means that professing his undying love to any girl he sees creeps them out." Dawn explained.

"That makes sense. I mean, if what he's been doing for the past seven years isn't working, then why not change things up? Like you said, a more subtle approach would probably work."

"Wait, what did you just say?" Dawn asked with a bewildered tone.

"I said that a more subtle approach would work, just like you said.

Am I going crazy? Just this morning, he was acting like the densest person on the planet! Now he's talking about love, and he's not clueless! Jeez. Why is he so hard to figure out?

"Uh, Dawn, you zoned out on me." Ash said. After no response, he went up to her ear, cupped his hand, and shouted, "DAWN!"

The sudden noise in her ear immediately caused her to jump back.

"What!?" She demanded.

"You zoned out on me. What were you thinking about?"

"Oh, don't worry about it. Tell you what. Let's leave here and have a practice battle. I need to take my mind off a few things."

"Sounds good. Let's go."

"So, who are you gonna use?" Ash asked.

The two were standing on one of the practice fields near the Pokémon Center, and were about to begin their battle.

Dawn thought for a second, before pulling out a Pokeball. "Mamoswine, spotlight!" She shouted as she threw her Pokeball. The Twin Tusk Pokémon emerged in a shower of snowflakes, thanks to the seal on his Pokeball.

"Good choice. Luckily yesterday I brought this guy back from the lab. Boldore, I choose you!"

He threw a Pokeball, and the Ore Pokémon appeared.

"Alright, how are we gonna do this?" Dawn asked.

Ash sweatdropped. "Uhh, I thought you knew." He said hesitantly.

"Oh never mind. Let's just use that timer over there and set ten minutes. Sound good?"

"Yes." Ash walked over and set the timer to ten minutes. "Battle's over when one Pokémon is knocked out, or when time is up. Whichever comes first. I'll let you have the first move."

"Alright Mamoswine, let's start out with Ice Armor!"

"Boldore knock it off with Rock Blast!"

Mamoswine created an Ice Shard, and rather than firing it, he swallowed it. Immediately, ice crystals on his back formed, giving off the impression of armor made of ice. Boldore's appendage on the middle of his face glowed white, and he fired several rocks in Mamoswine's direction. They collided with the ice, breaking off pieces of it.

"Mamoswine, use Earthquake!"

Ash knew Boldore was too heavy to dodge, so instead he made a gamble. "Use your own Earthquake!"

Mamoswine reared up on his hind legs, and then slammmed down, causing a massive tremor. Boldore did the same, and the two attacks cancelled each other out.

Ash let out a sigh of relief.

Dawn was stunned. Surely Mamoswine is more powerful than Boldore?

Ash, seeing Dawn distracted, decided to press his advantage. "Flash Cannon!"

The appendage on Boldore's head glowed once again, and a silver beam of light emerged. It struck Mamoswine head on, dealing a good amount of damage.
Upon hearing Mamoswine roar in anger, Dawn snapped out of her trance.

"Ash Ketchum, you will pay for that!" She shouted angrily.

Uh oh Ash thought nervously. I'm not gonna like this...

"Mamoswine, use Icicle Crash, followed by Take Down!" Dawn shouted angrily.

"Iron Defense to defend against the icicles! Then use Rock Blast!" Ash commanded with a hint of nervousness.

Mamoswine created a ball of energy between his tusks, then shot it into the air. Once it got above Boldore, icicles started falling down on his body, which was glowing silver. The icicles broke on contact, making Boldore flinch. Mamoswine then charged towards towards the flinching rock type, shaking the ground along the way. He slammed into Boldore, causing him to fly up into the air.

"Fire your Rock Blast from above!"

Boldore recovered, and angled his body towards Mamoswine. The appendage on his face glowed white, and he started shooting rock from it, striking the ice type on the top of his head. Mamoswine roared in anger.

Hearing Mamoswine roar like that brought back bad memories for Dawn. She remembered how Mamoswine's anger had caused her to lose a contest back in Sinnoh. Her fears soon came true when she felt the ground shake from an Earthquake, courtesy of the pissed off Ice type. Boldore was still in the air, so he took no damage from the attack.

"Mamoswine, calm down!" Dawn shouted, hoping that her words would get through.

Shit. The only way for Mamoswine to calm down is if he's recalled into his Pokeball, or knocked out "Dawn, this battle is over! Call Mamoswine back!" Ash yelled.

Mamoswine was now charging towards Ash in a Take Down, and showed no signs of slowing down.

"Mamoswine, return!" Dawn held out the Pokeball, and pressed the button. A red beam shot out towards the charging ice type, but he dodged out of the way. This action was repeated every time Dawn tried.

"Ash, look out!" She yelled.

Just as Ash was about to be trampled, Boldore dropped to the ground and took the full force of the attack. As he was being pushed back, he dug all three of his legs into the ground, skidding to a halt. Mamoswine decided to keep on ramming him, and the best Boldore could do was use an Iron Defense to lower the damage.

"Boldore, do you trust me?" Ash asked. His question was answered by a cry of "BOLDORE!" Ash then cupped his hands over his mouth and yelled, "Dawn get back!"

Dawn complied, although she was confused as to what Ash had planned.

"Alright, Boldore, Explosion!" Ash yelled.

Boldore complied, as his body became enveloped in a white glow. Then a massive explosion followed afterwards, kicking up dust, debris, and smoke. Mamoswine flew back and slammed into a tree trunk in the distance, unconscious. Ash also flew back, landing several feet away. Dawn was outside of the blast radius, and had her eyes covered and back turned after Ash called for the attack. She slowly opened her eyes, and the first thing she saw was her unconscious Pokémon. She ran over to her fallen Pokémon and quickly recalled him. She walked back to the battlefield, when she remembered something. "ASH!" She yelled.

"Over here!" Ash called back.

Through the smoke, Dawn could see the body of a boy laying on the geound several feet away from where he was a few minutes earlier during the battle. She immediately ran over to where he was. Once she was there, she knelt down to face him.

"Ash Ketchum, NEVER do that again!" She scolded.

"I'm fine, thanks for asking." Ash said weakly.

"No you're not. You just got hit by an Explosion attack point blank, and you're all covered in scrapes. You could have died!"

"Dawn. I've faced countless legendary Pokémon, have been scorched by Charizard's Flamethrower whenever he greets me, and have been shocked by Pikachu's Thunderbolt countless times. This was nothing."

"Speaking of Pikachu, where is he?" Dawn asked.

"We left him with Brock back in the room since he was still sleeping, remember?"

"No, not really. Just promise me you won't do something stupid like that again."

"Sorry, no can do. Besides, Boldore did exactly what I wanted him to do. He stopped Mamoswine, didn't he?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Come on, we need to head back into the room so we can pack. Plus you can clean yourself up a bit."

"Alright." With Dawn's help, Ash got up. The first thing he did was run over to where Boldore was. Boldore was on the ground, knocked out cold. When he heard the noise, he started to stir.

"Hey bud." Ash said. "Thanks for trusting me. I'm gonna take you inside to the Pokémon Center so you can get healed, so take a rest." Ash took out a Pokeball and recalled his rock type. Then he and Dawn headed inside the Pokémon center, which was only a few feet away.

After leaving Boldore and Mamoswine with Nurse Joy, Ash and Dawn had gone back to their hotel room. They got inside, and Ash was immediately tackled to the ground by Pikachu.

"Pikapi!" He said excitedly.

"Hey bud, sorry for leaving you, but you were still sleeping. Where's Brock?" Ash asked.

"Right here. Now care to tell me why you look like you were just in the middle of an explosion?" Brock asked.

Ash started scratching the back of his head nervously. "Uhh, funny story actually. I uh—"

"Me and Ash were having a practice battle, when Mamoswine got out of control. Ash told Boldore to use Explosion, and he was standing too close to the blast radius." Dawn cut in.

Brock was seemingly satisfied by the answer. "At least you didn't get hurt. Now come on, you have to pack your stuff. After you get cleaned up."

"Okay." Ash was about to head into the shower, when his Pokenav rang. He looked at the caller ID, and his eyes widened. It was May.

"Hello?" He said.

"Hey Ash, long time no speak." May said.

"May! It's nice to talk to you again. It's been way too long! Listen, I'm packing for Driftveil right now. Can you call me back in ten minutes? I'd like to see you over video phone." Ash said. He was ecstatic that May was calling, and wanted to see her face to face.

"Yeah, sure. It would be great to see you again." May said.

Ash then hung up, and immediately bolted out the door to the Pokémon Center.
"Should we follow him?" Dawn asked.

"Nah, let him have his moment. Besides, someone has to pack his things." Brock said.

Dawn simply sighed.

Ash had just gotten to the Pokémon Center, greeted Nurse Joy, then headed over to the video phones. He regained his composure, and waited for May to call him. A minute later, the phone rang. He took a deep breath, then answered it.

"Hey May." He said.

There it is, chapter 25, hope you enjoyed it. It's a bit shorter, and a few time skips, but that's because I wanted to move the plot along, rather than dwindle on senseless filler. Next chapter goes to Jake and May, so stay tuned for that.

I just got a new 3DS for Christmas, so I need friend codes! If you want to battle, trade, or simply want it for the Friend Safari, add mine and PM me yours. I'll add anyone, but if you have an Excadrill safari, that's a plus. I am currently breeding my team, and I don't know when I'll be finished, so I may decline any competitive battles (I'll accept casual battles though). I'll let you all know when I'm done, but that won't be for a while.
3DS FC: 2423-3705-7798.
IGN (in game name): Jake
PM me yours after you add mine. I WILL NOT add it if you leave it in a review, only over PM. Also include if you want to battle, trade, both or want it for the Friend Safari.

Have a Happy New Year's, and enjoy the rest of your winter break if you're still in school. Once again, I want to thank each and every one of you who read this story. Like I said before, if you all weren't reading this, then I would have stopped writing this long ago.

As always, read and review everyone!