The Ash Connection

by I am Lu

A string of violent attacks at the hands of a mysterious Pokémon has caught Lance and the G-Men off-guard. Little about the motive is clear, other than Ash Ketchum is somehow a factor. His friends and rivals now must confront an important question: Is he really the fabled Chosen One? Set during BW. Multiple pairings, including Pokeshipping, Contestshipping, and Ikarishipping.

26. XXIII: In Which Nando Gives His Blessing

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Chapter XXIII: In Which Nando Gives His Blessing

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June 16th, 1998. Late Evening. Shamouti Island.

Ash stared into the darkness, until his eyes started playing tricks on him and chalky, faded outlines of colorful circles began dancing on the ceiling. It hardly made sense. He should have been exhausted. He should have been asleep. Misty and Tracey were asleep. Pikachu and Togepi were asleep. Why couldn't the same happen for him?

Every time he thought to himself, 'OK, I'm going to fall asleep... now!', images of the past day and a half began playing again in his mind, like a movie reel. The arrival of the storm, the Shamouti people's celebrations, Melody's song, the three elemental orbs he had retrieved, the battle between the Legendary Birds, the rising of the great Lugia from the depths of the sea, the prophecy... It was so fantastic, so surreal, that he couldn't fully accept it had really happened.

Ash blinked away the hallucinations and turned on his side, thinking perhaps a change in position would help him sleep. It didn't. He turned on his other side. That didn't work either. Then he tried facedown, but it just made his neck hurt.

"Ketchum, stop moving. It's making the bed shake."

Ash was surprised to hear Misty's groggy voice from below. Then he remembered she had taken the bottom bunk that evening, and he dipped his head over the side, squinting at her. He could only make out her vibrant red hair in the dark room.

"Misty, you're awake?"

"Yeah, thanks to you."

"Oh... sorry..." Ash returned to lying flat on his back, staring at the ceiling. "I guess I just can't sleep."

Misty was silent for a while, and Ash presumed she had dozed off again. Then, she spoke.

"I guess that's not surprising."

Ash furrowed his eyebrows and looked down at her a second time.

"Huh? What do you mean by that?" he asked. He heard the covers move and watched her hair scrunch up. She was shrugging.

"You know.. after everything that happened today..." she began, her voice trailing off for a moment. "You've probably got a ton of adrenaline still in you, and it's keeping you up."

"Adrenaline?" Ash puzzled. "What's that?"

"It's..." Misty paused, trying to conjure up a definition. When nothing came, she grew frustrated and added, "Whatever, don't ask stupid questions. You should know what adrenaline is anyway."

"Hey! It's not a stupid question!" Ash protested. "My mom says there is no such thing as a stupid question!"

Misty let out a frustrated sigh, pressing her hands up against her forehead and giving the conundrum some more thought.

"Adrenaline... is..." she started slowly, "... when your heart begins to race, and you feel a little light-headed. Your palms might start to sweat a bit, and you breathe faster than usual—or not at all. You feel it when you're scared or really excited or nervous. You feel it during a Pokémon battle or when you have to talk in front of a bunch of people you don't know. Sometimes you feel it when you kiss someone you like a lot."

"Oh." Ash flopped his head back down on his pillow. "... Kissing feels the same as a Pokémon battle?"

"That's what you got out of this?"

"Sorry! It just seems weird."

"How?"

"I dunno... just that Pokémon battles are so cool, and that kissing seems kind of gross."

"Gross? How could it be gross?" Misty scoffed. "Kissing is a hundred times better than a Pokémon battle!"

"How would you know? Have you ever kissed anyone?"

"I-I..." Misty stammered. She could feel blood rushing to her cheeks. "I just do, OK?"

"Well, whatever," Ash dismissed. "Adrenaline, huh? Well, I was scared, excited, and nervous today, so that's like a triple whammy. When does it go away? When do I stop seeing pictures when I close my eyes? I really gotta get to sleep. My mom said she wanted to have breakfast with us tomorrow before she goes back to Pallet Town with Professor Oak, and she'll get really weird if I looked like a zombie."

"You'll sleep eventually," Misty consoled. "The adrenaline won't stay forever. I don't know about the pictures, though. That's something entirely different."

"Yeah..." Ash turned on his side again.

Misty sensed her friend's uneasiness and asked, "Ash? Is something wrong?"

"I'm fine," he assured her. "Just thinking."

"About what?"

"The prophecy. You think it was real?"

"Well..." Misty drawled, "... you did kind of save the world, so there's that. Also, your name is in it. It doesn't really get more specific than that."

"I guess so," Ash conceded. "I can't be the only Ash in the world, though. The world didn't really turn to me. No one except you and some other people even know it was me."

"But are there any other Ashs that would've done what you did?" Misty asked. "Maybe the whole world didn't turn to you, but you saved it anyway. That's got to mean something, right?"

"Maybe..." Ash mused. "I mean, I'd do it all over again if I had to."

Misty felt her breath catch, and she found that she couldn't say anything in response.

"I wouldn't want to, though," Ash continued.

Misty managed to push out a short, strained chuckle and add, "Why not? Last night, after the ceremony, you were gung-ho about being the Chosen One."

"But that was before Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno started fighting," Ash replied. "Collecting a bunch of glowing balls isn't that hard. Collecting glowing balls while a bunch of really powerful Pokémon are attacking one another is a bit tougher. Besides, I was worried about my Pokémon and you guys and everyone else. I didn't want anything bad to happen to you if I messed up."

"You were the one that almost drowned," Misty pointed out. She meant to say it casually, but it was still too soon. Her voice wavered.

Ash didn't miss a beat before saying, "I'd rather drown a dozen times than watch my friends get hurt."

March 4th, 2002. Late Afternoon. Lake Acuity.

"Sunflora, use Synthesis."

Sunflora's leaves, which were pressed flush against Leaf's wound, began glowing white. Ash's empty gaze, however, remained fixated on the face of his unconscious friend. After Nando met up with the group at the station, he immediately took them to the Pokémon Center and began caring for the ailing G-Men agent. Most of the teens stayed at Leaf's bedside, watching and waiting.

The glow of Sunflora's leaves eventually dimmed, and she pulled them away, and all that remained was a long, pinkish scar across Leaf's abdomen.

"It will continue to heal with time," Nando said, "but it will never disappear completely."

"Arceus Nando," Zoey breathed. "That's incredible. Where did you learn to do that?"

"It was not I who learned," Nando corrected. "It was Sunflora."

"Will she be OK?" Gary asked.

"Yes, I believe so," Nando answered. "She just needs her rest. It appears she's been through a lot. You've all been through a lot—today and these past couple of months."

"Good." Trip entered the room and leaned against the door frame. "Conway plugged in Leaf's laptop and pulled up the files he downloaded onto his flash drive. You all should hear about this."

A few uneasy glances were exchanged among some. Others, like Misty and Cilan, knew exactly what Trip was talking about and were the first to follow him. Both Gary and Ash lingered behind a little longer, however, and Trip pressed his lips together before approaching.

"She'll be fine, Ash," he said plainly.

"It's not that easy," Gary interjected. He was sitting on the edge of the bed. "Ash and I have known Leaf since we were babies. You've known her for several months. To be honest, you are not as emotionally impacted by this situation as we are. Basic stuff, really."

Trip appeared annoyed that the researcher had borrowed his catchphrase and retorted, "You don't think this whole thing has been upsetting to me? To any of us? Look, you can stay with Leaf if you want." Trip then looked pointedly at Ash. "I just want him."

Ash blinked, mildly surprised, but said nothing. Trip let out a long sigh.

"I know you had your whole emotional meltdown about how you think you're not the Chosen One," Trip began, "but this is really important to me. All things considered, you owe me at least this."

Ash didn't need to be pushed any further.

"All right," he agreed before heading out the door. Trip was about to follow, but at the last moment, he turned to face Gary again.

"It's obvious you care a lot about Leaf," he started slowly, "so I'm sure you understand the sacrifices she made for Ash because she thought he was the Chosen One. We've all made sacrifices. If you still believe, then this is not only important for you, but for her, too."

---

The group began to gather in the downstairs lobby. Conway sat in the middle of one sofa, his legs crisscrossed, with Leaf's laptop balanced on his knees but anchored by his hands on the keyboard.

Ritchie sat across from him, a small towel slung around his shoulders. He had recently taken a shower and changed into a fresh set of clothing while Nurse Joy took his blood-stained apparel, promising to do her best to clean them.

Once Trip and Ash arrived, the discussion could begin. Ash couldn't focus though, and he rubbed his left temple with a single hand while staring absently at his shoes. Misty's lips tightened as she watched him.

"So, what is all this you have to show us?" Drew asked. He sat between May and Iris on the ground, with one leg pulled up under him.

"Well, as some of you might have already heard or guessed," Conway began smoothly, "while waiting in the Command Center, Candice, Ritchie, Cilan, and I—mostly I—gained access into a server called Project Legendary. Now, from what I've heard, Silver has already told you a bit about this project, but what I found on this server paints a more complete picture."

Gary came down the stairs and folded his arms, listening as he fell back against the wall. His arrival was so inconspicuous, however, that no one noticed it.

"First, let's give this project some history," Conway continued. "Team Rocket's interest in Mew began sixteen years ago when an agent named Miyamoto began pursuing Mew, recording its cries, taking notes, and eventually trying to capture it. She died in her efforts, and Project Legendary began eight years later in 1994 based on her findings. There are several lab reports that show Team Rocket scientists began experimenting with cloning that year. There are also some photographs and field notes regarding an ancient worshiping ground for Mew. These field notes were completed by someone named Dr. Blair."

Paul's eyebrows shot up.

"What was that again?"

"What?" Conway was thrown off by the interruption.

"The researcher's name was Dr. Blair?"

"Ah... yes." Conway nodded. "There are several field notes taken under his name throughout most of February and early March in '94. The strange thing is, after that, it stops. Dr. Blair's name never shows up again, and there's nothing on Mew for years."

"It's not strange," Silver spoke up. "I explained this once before. Project Legendary hit a dead end for a while because a researcher dropped out."

Paul pressed a hand to his face, thinking, but he said nothing.

"Didn't they get another researcher, though?" Dawn asked.

"Yes," Silver affirmed.

"In early '97," Conway added, putting two and two together. "And his name was Dr. Fuji. That's when I first saw his name in the documents I found. In the years between '94 and '97, however, Team Rocket continued developing its cloning technology without much success. Most of the clones didn't live long or never became functional beings. Then Dr. Fuji came on, and his team found a fossilized eyelash of Mew. Now they just needed to perfect their cloning technology, but..."

"They were out of funding," Silver finished. "When things fail, it costs a lot of money. I remember it was a problem, because my father had to stop paying some field agents. He eventually secured his investor, though. What you're saying is nothing new."

May exchanged a tentative glance with Drew. He was frowning, but he was handling hearing such better than usual.

"Give him just a chance to finish, Silver," Dawn gently chastised.

Conway grinned.

"Thank you, Dawn," he said before clearing his throat to continue. "And so Mewtwo was finally created—but he escaped. He destroyed the lab in which he was born, but Giovanni found him and presented himself as a friend. That's when he began harnessing Mewtwo's power and trying to control him. Well, Mewtwo didn't like that, so he escaped again and destroyed most of the Viridian City Gym, where the original Team Rocket base was located. It took more than a year before they found him again. Now this is where it gets interesting, because it's when Ash Ketchum enters the picture."

"Mt. Quena, right?" Barry inquired. "That's when Ash helped Mewtwo escape from Giovanni."

"Right," Conway affirmed. "But the big questions have always remained: Why did they expand their interests beyond Ash, Misty, and Brock? How did May and Zoey and Paul and everyone else fall on Team Rocket's radar? Where does the Shamouti prophecy fit into this, if it does at all? The files Team Rocket kept of you—the 'hit list,' as Iris put it—do give us some answers, some of which we had always assumed.

Misty and Brock were added not only because they were there on Mt. Quena, but also because they were traveling companions of Ash. Obvious, right? The same essentially stands for Tracey, May, Max, Dawn, Iris, and Cilan. All added because they were traveling companions. Then we have Gary, Ritchie, and Paul, who were added because they had significant rivalries with Ash. Drew, Zoey, Barry, and Kenny are the oddballs additions, because they mainly know Ash through association with May and Dawn, so why were they included? Misty mentioned this briefly on the train, but it really was simply unfortunate timing. Zoey, Barry, and Kenny's files all have a single note: 'Present at the Twinleaf scene on December 21st, 2001.' Drew's file says something similar, but it also talks about how he protected May and Max and that he was spotted again in Viridian City on December 24th, 2001."

"Holy smokes," Ritchie cut in suddenly. "Wasn't that the night Drew went to get jelly-filled donuts for Ash?"

"Yeah, I think so," Zoey said with a nod. "Arceus, they were close."

"A little too close for comfort," Cilan agreed, mildly disturbed. "I suppose that makes Lance's plan to have us die in that bus crash very well-timed."

"OK..." Gary finally joined the rest of the group, sitting among them. "While this is all completely pertinent information, there are still a few holes. It seems pretty obvious we were tracked, but... why? Yes, Ash helped Mewtwo escape. That definitely put him on Giovanni's bad side. But to go this far for someone who was, at the time, only 11? To track him and his friends for almost five years? That's not just paranoia. It's over the top."

"Precisely." Conway adjusted his glasses. "But you should know better, Gary. Those holes, after all, were the very basis of Leaf's theory that the Shamouti prophecy was somehow involved. It would be over the top if Ash was just a regular, bold-blooded 11-year-old to Giovanni. He wasn't, though. He was the Chosen One. Leaf's theory is absolutely correct."

Conway pulled up Ash's file and turned the laptop around to show everyone. The red 'DECEASED' sign was slashed through his photo as it was for so many others. A red dot, indicating high priority, was next to his name.

"The notes section on his file reads, quote: 'Highly capable trainer who foiled Mt. Quena mission in January 1999. Christened 'Chosen One' by natives of Shamouti Island in the Orange Archipelago in 1998,'" Conway said.

"Arceus," Drew muttered under his breath before adding in a normal voice, "But how is it possible they knew about the Shamouti prophecy? Leaf has said before that no one except the G-Men and those who were there to witness Ash save the world knows he did it. We only know because Leaf told us about it."

Ash perked up, and his eyes widened as realization hit him. Pikachu, who was on his trainer's lap, looked up at him curiously.

"And... And she's not wrong," Ash added.

"What do you mean?" May inquired, tilting her head.

Now everyone's attention was on Ash.

"When I met up with Proton," Ash began slowly, "he said I was the one 'those two Rocket agents' had been tracking for years. Who are the two Rocket agents that have been following us for years?"

"Oh Mew," Misty said sharply, reaching Ash's same conclusion. "Jessie and James. We've seen them and Meowth from the very beginning—and they were there when the Shamouti isles were attacked."

"And they never stopped," Dawn appalled. "They followed Ash from Kanto to Johto to Hoenn to Sinnoh to Unova, right?"

"Right," Iris affirmed. "Cilan and I ran into them several times with Ash."

"Wait, wait, wait," Trip interjected suddenly. "Time out. Let me get this straight." He looked at Ash. "You've had a duo of Rocket agents following you around for almost five years, and when all this first began, you didn't even stop to think for a moment, 'Hey, maybe these guys are the reason Team Rocket has been after me and all my friends'?"

"To be fair," Paul began, "I have run into those Rockets a couple times, and I can attest that they are a couple of the most incompetent human beings on the face of the planet."

"Agreed," Dawn said with a nod. "I just don't think any of us even considered them... a threat? They were bad people, but in a goofy kind of way."

"They're Team Rocket members," Trip said, exasperated.

"They're relatively harmless, though," May persisted. "I mean, yes, they tried to steal our Pokémon—a lot—but they sometimes even helped us out. They were more of a thorn in our sides than anything."

"All right," Silver sighed, frustrated. "Are you all seriously trying to defend the actions of a couple scumbag Rocket agents? I don't care if you think they were comedic or whatever. For months, you've all wondered why Team Rocket had it out for you, and those Rockets are your answer. They sold you out."

Silence.

Ash looked distracted again. Pikachu climbed onto his trainer's shoulder and nuzzled his cheek.

"Conway," Trip broke in, "continue."

"Well, ah..." Conway took a moment to reorganize his thoughts. "So skip from January 1999 to December 2001. Team Rocket successfully captured Mewtwo again, and by then, they had built this list of people they need... well, out of the way. I'm sure most of you know the story from this point. Giovanni sent Mewtwo to Cerulean City, Petalburg City, Veilstone City, Twinleaf Town... but if the objective was to kill you, Mewtwo failed. Why? Because Giovanni still couldn't control Mewtwo. He could contain him, but he couldn't bend his will to his. There needed to be a way for Giovanni to fix that. Enter Meloetta."

"What's a Meloetta?" May inquired.

"Meloetta. The Melody Pokémon. Its melodies are sung with a special vocalization method that can control the feelings of those who hear it," Conway recited the Pokédex entry from memory. He then added, "It's a Legendary Pokémon found in Unova."

"And from that dex entry, it sounds like the perfect Pokémon to use if you want to manipulate someone into doing your bidding," Kenny mumbled.

"It's not so simple." Everyone's head turned as Nando entered the room. "I have heard many legends of this Meloetta. It has been my greatest dream to hear its song. Yet, this song is not controlling in its purest form. Music guides emotion. Meloetta does the same. She can guide you to happiness or sadness or-"

"-submission?" Iris suggested. Nando shook his head.

"I already explained-" the minstrel began, but Conway cut him off.

"-Nando's right, actually," he said. "There is no song of Meloetta's that can force obedience. At least, none that have ever been studied. But, what Team Rocket did was record Meloetta's voice and then manipulate so it could control Mewtwo. The completed sound bite was implemented into new earpieces in Mewtwo's suit. Team Rocket also created a smaller device that plays the same high-frequency song, except it attaches to the neck. That's how they managed to capture Moltres... and now they're going to make a new capture."

"A new capture?" Drew inquired.

"Yes. You see, it appears that Giovanni originally intended to capture all three of the Legendary Birds, but Mewtwo only brought him one."

"Sounds like there's still some fight in him," Misty mused.

"Maybe," Conway conceded. "The point is, Moltres alone doesn't quite achieve the effect Giovanni wants. Temperatures are indeed dropping at record-breaking levels, but that has been the extent of it. When Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno were all fighting several years ago, the world's weather patterns were a complete mess. Violent storms in odd places, restless seas—people died. It's my guess that Giovanni wanted to recreate this chaos and use it to overpower the G-Men and take Lance's seat by force."

"The Championship title doesn't work like that," Paul scoffed. "Giovanni's plan is severely flawed. You don't become Champion by way of a military coup."

"It's obvious you're blind to the politics of the G-Men, then," Silver said derisively. "A decade or two ago, it would have been a completely delusional plan. It still is, but the meaning and power behind the Championship is different. It's a position of political power, not honor or pageantry. A modern Champion is the equivalent of a dictator, and that kind of power can be wrestled away by force."

"Lance, Wallace, Cynthia, and Alder are not dictators," Iris protested.

"Debatable." Silver shrugged. "They are the lesser of two evils, though. If my father attain's Lance's power, I can assure you it will be a lot worse."

"So is the intention to capture Zapdos and Articuno, too?" Zoey asked.

"No, actually," Conway corrected, adjusting his glasses. "It appears he's improvising. The world is turning cold without Moltres's flame, so he's sticking with the theme of ice. His next target is Kyurem, a Dragon/Ice-type Pokémon."

Iris breathed in sharply, her fingers curling into her jeans. Cilan furrowed his eyebrows, glancing at her.

"When is he going to capture it?" Dawn asked.

"I don't know."

"What will he do with it?" she pressed.

"I don't know, either. I can guess that the next Ice Age will be coming a lot faster than science originally estimated, however."

"What-"

"-That is literally all the information I have, Dawn," Conway said honestly. "We could spend all night speculating what could happen, but it wouldn't change a thing.

"Exactly," Trip agreed, "which is why we need to take action."

He turned his head toward Ash, and the rest did the same. Ash straightened up, but frowned.

"Ah... Trip..." he began carefully. "I promised I would hear you and Conway and all this out, and I did. Misty, I heard you, too. I am listening, and I really do appreciate the faith. I guess it's a compliment in a way. But I don't have anything to offer you guys. I haven't offered anything to you guys anyway, except trouble. I just don't want to do it anymore."

The disappointment that hung in the air was evident. Ash closed his eyes and tightened his grip on Pikachu, hanging his head.

"Well," Gary said, clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth, "I guess that's that."

He then disappeared back up the stairs.

March 4th, 2002. Late Afternoon. Snowpoint City.

Lance kept a hand pressed to his mouth as he looked out the window at the city below. The last few hours had been spent wordlessly. Alder and Wallace had chatted for a bit, but for the most part, everyone sat in silence. Lance knew Steven had spent much of their down time watching him.

"Madam Champion," began a younger G-Men agent whom the Champions had brought along, addressing Cynthia as he entered the room. "We've just received a message from the Lake Acuity Pokémon Center. The fourteen children have arrived safely."

"Is there any news on Leaf?" Lance asked in a low voice.

"Yes, sir," the young agent replied. "According to Nurse Joy, she had a laceration across her lower abdomen and perhaps a minor concussion. They're not sure. Gary and some of the children were saying she was speaking incoherently earlier, which would suggest yes."

"Excuse me, 'they're'?" Lance inquired.

"A man named Nando cared for her."

"Great..." Lance mumbled. "Well, how's she doing?"

"She's recovering, sir. She's going to be fine," the agent answered. "Also, we'll be landing in several minutes, so the pilot requested that you buckle up."

Cynthia smiled, relieved.

"Thank you, Aron," the Sinnoh Champion said, and the agent nodded before leaving. "Well, there we have it. They're safe."

"Let's not be hasty to say such," Lance admonished as he pulled on the strap of his seat belt and secured himself.

---

Candice could finally breathe when she heard the sound of a plane outside.

She had endured many prodding questions from her fellow gym leaders and regional Elite Four members, who were confused as to what had happened and why Cynthia had called them there. All they understood was that the situation was serious, and that Team Rocket was likely involved. Candice did not deny their speculation, but she had received specific instruction from the G-Men leadership not to reveal any 'sensitive information.'

The vagueness of their order rendered her completely silent. What qualified as 'sensitive information'? The fact that Ash and the thirteen other trainers were alive? The location of the Sinnoh base? How did it matter anyway? Everything seemed to be falling apart around her, and because she could say nothing, she acted as though she were too shaken to speak. It was humiliating in its own right.

A plane, however, meant the arrival of Cynthia and the other Champions, who would surely straighten everything out.

She and the other trainers respectfully rose to their feet when the Champions entered Candice's living room, Fantina having let them in. The five-month pregnant Cynthia was the last to amble inside, and she was quickly met with the same questions Candice had heard.

"Cynthia, what's going on?" Lucian's tone was hurried, almost demanding, but he managed to remain respectful. "This has all been so mysterious to us, and no one seems to have any answers. Has another Team Rocket base been found? If so, why the sense of emergency? We took a few days to gather to take down the Hoenn base. You asked us to be here in six hours!"

"I'm sorry that this has been so distressing," Cynthia sincerely apologized. "Yes, there is another Team Rocket base near here. The situation is urgent because-"

"-Cynthia," Lance abruptly cut her off. "Candice, let's talk in private"

Cynthia was irritated by the subject change, but Candice leapt to her feet and nodded before leading the Champions into the kitchen. Cynthia apologized again to her gym leaders and Elite Four members before Lance shut the door, cutting them off. Cynthia's lip twitched. Wallace frowned, watching her. It was clear her extraordinary patience was finally wearing thin.

Candice, meanwhile, could feel her hands start to shake, intimidated. The air was tense, and Candice knew she was in the wrong. A matter as serious as the location of a Rocket base should have been reported immediately to the G-Men, but instead, Candice had chosen to support the rogue pack of trainers in their now-failed mission to save Moltres and Mewtwo. She wondered if doing so would compromise her position as a gym leader and, feeling her knees go weak, sat down at her small two-person table.

"Have you told them anything?" Lance asked, sitting across from her.

"Sorry?"

"Did you say anything about Ash and the other beings alive?" Lance clarified.

"No." Candice shook her head.

"OK... good," Lance mused. "Where is it?"

"The Ampharos Train," Candice answered quickly. "I mean, below the Ampharos Train. Team Rocket owns the Ampharos Train. The base is connected to its command center."

"Oh my," Wallace appalled. "Are you sure?"

"Yes." Candice nodded. "I can take you there."

"We'll arrange for that soon," Cynthia interjected. "Thank you, Candice. You're excused."

Lance sent Cynthia a nasty look, and Candice, her bottom lip quivering, stood up. Cynthia, sensing Candice's anxiety, gently touched her shoulder.

"It's OK," she gently reassured her. "Everything's going to be fine. You're not in trouble."

The perceptive intervention helped Candice relax, and she tentatively asked, "Where are Zoey and the others? Are they OK?"

"Yes, they're all right," Cynthia answered. "They're in a Pokémon Center at Lake Acuity. Lance, Wallace, Alder, Steven and I will be discussing options as to what we do with them next, but they're fine."

"Thank you, Cynthia." Candice was a bit teary-eyed as she hugged the Champion. Cynthia chuckled and affectionately wrapped an arm around the girl. Her pregnant belly made the sweet gesture a little uncomfortable, but it was appreciated nonetheless.

As soon as Candice had left, Lance spoke up.

"Cynthia, I was not done," he said. "There are many things I still need to talk to her about."

Cynthia's expression turned serious before facing the Indigo Champion."

"Oh, yes you are." Steven raised an eyebrow, though Wallace and Alder were more surprised. Cynthia was angry. "Lance, this is my jurisdiction. The decisions made here lie with me."

"I'm not trying to walk over you, Cynthia," Lance retorted.

"What was that in there, then?" Cynthia demanded. "Cutting me off like that in front of my own gym leaders and Elite Four? It's embarrassing, it undermines my authority, and I won't stand for it."

"I didn't want you to say anything compromising."

"And so what?" Cynthia persisted. "So what if they know Ash is alive? They deserve to know. They're here. They're making a sacrifice. They're probably going to know within 48 hours anyway, so why not now? If we wait, if we keep them cut off, we'll alienate them."

"It matters if you still want to keep Ash and the others safe," Lance fought back.

"I trust them."

"You trust too easily," Lance criticized. "Four years ago, I was in relentless pursuit of Team Rocket, and the entire time, their leader was right under my nose. One of my very own gym leaders, Giovanni Paul, was the man I had been seeking for so long. You don't think the same is possible here?"

"I know my gym leaders. I have a relationship with them. I would know if there was a problem. You, on the other hand, are not at all emotionally invested in your gym leaders, and that's precisely why Giovanni got away with it."

Lance growled and stood up again.

"Emotions. You let your emotions and empathy take over you, and I swear, it will come back to bite you at some point if you can't learn to separate your job from your personal feelings."

"That is the way I chose to run my branch of the G-Men organization," Cynthia replied firmly, "and I accept the consequences of that."

Lance flinched, realizing she was referring to their conversation regarding Solidad and Chris last month.

"That's enough you two," Alder interrupted. "Fighting never gets us anywhere."

Both Lance and Cynthia stood down, taking a moment to calm themselves. Wallace watched Cynthia in awe, though. Watching the Sinnoh Champion stand up for herself was always an incredible show.

"What are we going to do about Ash and the others?" Cynthia asked after a long moment, subdued. "We can't leave them at the Pokémon Center forever. We don't know what Giovanni's doing, but we certainly don't want Mewtwo and Moltres wreaking havoc upon them."

"I know," Lance replied. "I'm not entirely sure yet."

"If I may," Wallace suddenly interjected, "I have a suggestion. Cynthia?"

Cynthia was surprised but pleased by the respectful deference to her. Lance remained expressionless, and Steven half-smiled. It was a small social courtesy, but it made a large impact and reset the entire playing field—in his wife's favor.

"Please, let's hear it," Cynthia said.

Wallace took a quick, silent breath.

"We could send the Fortree City Gym Leader, Winona, to Lake Acuity to pick up the children. She can operate an aircraft," he explained simply. "She'll take them to a safer location, and it will be a completely private operation. Everything will be within our control."

"Private—except for the fact that Winona would know," Lance grunted.

"I'd trust Winona with my life," Wallace replied. "She'll take care of them."

"Well, I like it," Cynthia said. "Let's do it."

Lance appeared unsure, and Steven furrowed his eyebrows. The former Hoenn Champion cast a careful glance toward Alder and quickly realized the Unova Champion would not, as usual, take a side. He then looked back at Lance standing across from his wife and Wallace. The balance was equal. Something had to give.

"Lance," Steven began calmly, decidedly using any last shreds of influence from his former title to tip the scale. "It will be all right. I know Winona, too."

Lance frowned.

"All right," the Indigo Champion gave in with a grumble. "Wallace, call Winona. We'll have her take them to Dragon's Den—where they should have been all along. I'll contact Clair and tell her to expect them. We'll also need to warn Nurse Joy."

Lance left immediately after saying that, and Cynthia let out a long, happy sigh before turning to Wallace.

"Thank you," she said. "I appreciate what you did more than I can put into words."

"Oh Cynthia, I didn't do much of anything..." Wallace replied.

"You two contested Lance and won," Steven slid into the conversation. "That is something. Congratulations. You've just entered the world of politics."

March 4th, 2002. Early Evening. Lake Acuity.

Nurse Joy was in a frenzy.

Her particular center had never accommodated so many trainers before, and feeding them would be quite a task. One of the teens, a tall, green-haired male, offered to help, but she politely refused. It wouldn't have felt right to accept help from one of her guests, especially after all the hardships they had endured. Thankfully, Chansey was there to help chop the vegetables with her stubby hands.

When she heard the phone begin to ring, she let out a stressed sigh but picked it up anyway. Phone calls were now too important to ignore.

"You've reached the Lake Acuity Pokémon Center location," she recited her usual greeting. "How may I help you?"

Silver happened to pass by the very moment she answered, and he narrowed his gaze. She had gone through a few phone exchanges since their arrival, and he could only guess to whom she was talking. He rounded the corner, found another phone, picked it up, and pressed it to his ear.

"Hello, Nurse Joy. You're speaking with Wallace Reyes. I called to give you a bit of a heads-up."

"Oh... What's happening?"

"Tonight, a woman named Winona will be coming to your center by plane to take the children to a safe location. We didn't want you to be alarmed."

"I see."

"However, Lance requests that you give the children no indication of this. They've demonstrated some... impulsiveness over the past several months, and we wouldn't them to try to leave before she arrives."

Silver hung up. It was all he needed to hear. The G-Men were coming.

March 4th, 2002. Evening. Sinnoh Team Rocket Base.

Petrel had never seen Domino cry.

In fact, Petrel had never seen any emotion other than anger out of her. She was angry now, but it was a different brand of anger than he had ever seen. It was fury that came with the feeling of utter betrayal and disappointment, the kind that made a person want to scream but instead led them to tears. So there she sat against the wall outside Proton's office, her arms wrapped around her legs and her mascara running.

"After everything I did for Team Rocket... after the years of dedication... this is what I end up with," she mumbled with a sniffle. "I came here looking for a home, and I thought I found it. I guess not, though."

Petrel frowned. He could relate. He'd joined Team Rocket for similar reasons.

"You and I, we could probably get out ourselves," he gently suggested.

"And abandon everyone else here? If we did that, we'd be no better," Domino muttered bitterly. "I will hold true to what I've always been taught was the most important value of this organization: unbreakable loyalty to each other. If the Sinnoh base goes down today, then I'm going down with it."

Petrel stared at her for a long moment, then he turned and slid down against the same wall, sitting beside her. She cast him a quick glance before looking forward again.

Time passed. Domino and Petrel could hear a break-in upstairs.

March 4th, 2002. Evening. Lake Acuity.

"Are you done with this?" Misty addressed the question to Conway as her hand hovered over Leaf's laptop, which was closed and lying flat on a coffee table in the lobby. After an awkwardly quiet dinner, the group split into several smaller factions. Gary returned to Leaf's bedroom. The agent still had yet to wake up. Ash took Pikachu upstairs, declaring he wanted to be alone. Drew, May, Trip, Iris, and Cilan also went upstairs. Dawn, Zoey, Barry, Kenny, Conway, Ritchie, and (perhaps most surprisingly) Paul remained in the lobby, recounting their fantastic tale to Nando. Silver was nowhere to be found, though few were concerned.

"Yes, go ahead," Conway answered. Misty pulled out the flash drive and handed it to him before sitting down and booting it up.

"What do you want it for, Misty?" Dawn asked curiously.

"I want to do some more research on Meloetta," Misty answered simply.

"I could help you with that," Nando offered. "No need to sort through the misinformation of the Internet."

"Well..." Misty trailed off. "Do you know where to find her?"

Paul looked at the redhead with raised eyebrows. Everyone else was similarly surprised, understanding the implications of such a search. Kenny, however, was especially intrigued, and his lips twitched into a half-smile.

"Ah, a tricky question," Nando mused. "Meloetta is very shy. She keeps away from cities and roads and all manners of human civilization and noise pollution, so very few people have heard her song, much less seen her. There is no established location for her."

"Great." Misty sighed. "Not what I wanted to hear..."

"However," Nando continued, "there have been a few sightings in White Forest. Tall grass, long, winding trees that twist into the sky... it's a haven for Pokémon."

"White Forest..." Misty mumbled to herself before pulling up an Internet browser and typing it in to the search bar.

"Wait, wait," Kenny began with a grin. He leapt off the couch on which he was sitting and crossed the aisle to sit beside Misty. "Are we on the same wavelength? Are you thinkin' what I'm thinkin'? 'Cause if so, that's awesome."

"I don't know, Kenny, what are you thinking?" Misty asked, amused.

"Meloetta's dex entry. It said her songs can control how people feel. If her songs—even if manipulated—can control Mewtwo, maybe there's a way her music could free Mewtwo," Kenny answered.

"I guess we are thinking the same thing then," Misty replied.

"Wait, really?" Dawn's eyes lit up. "Do you seriously think that could work?"

"Huh," Ritchie pondered aloud, slowly nodding his head. "Hey, Nando, as our resident Meloetta expert, what do you think?"

"I wouldn't say I'm an expert."

"Still, what's your opinion?" Zoey asked.

"Well, let's see..." Nando was silent for a long moment as he turned the idea over in his mind. "I don't know if any of Meloetta's natural songs could completely reverse any sort of unnatural control, but... I suppose her melodies could soothe a controlled Pokémon, giving them some space in their clouded mind and perhaps a chance to regain their own free will."

"I really don't see the point of having this conversation," Paul interjected suddenly. "Ash is unwilling. Why get into this?"

"Why is everything hinged on Ash?" Conway joined in, too. "You all have brought yourselves this far without Ash's help. I've heard the story of your journey, and now I've had the chance to be a part of it. Ash is dead weight that you've been dragging around. You don't need him."

Misty narrowed her gaze, irritated, and Dawn sighed.

"It's not so simple," the blunette said.

"Oh, but it is," Conway replied with a shrug. "I'm sorry. I don't believe in divine forces. Ash being the Chosen One is an invention of your minds. Yes, I will admit you've had amazing luck for which the statistical chances are improbable, but really?"

"To answer Paul's question," Misty said after clearing her throat, brushing Conway off. "Ash will change his mind."

"How can you be so sure?" Zoey wasn't doubtful; just curious.

"Ash said something that made me sure he would: that he didn't want to do it anymore," Misty replied. "'Want' is the key word. Ash has never liked being the Chosen One. Actually, that's wrong. He liked it for the first three hours, but after everything went south, he didn't 'want' to do it anymore. But he still did it anyway."

"Out of obligation?" Barry blinked. "Kind of a weird way to go about it, don'cha think?"

"No, it's not obligation." Misty shook her head. "If he had done it out of pure obligation—responsibility—then he would have failed. In fact, I think that's what Ash's main problem has been these past couple months. He's been traveling with us, vying to save Mewtwo and Moltres for the wrong reasons. There's no power in empty obligation."

"I'm not sure I completely understand," Zoey admitted.

"I do," Dawn said with a nod. "Despite his boyish—sometimes boorish—personality and drive to challenge gyms and become a Master someday... Ash's existence revolves completely around his friends, family, and Pokémon. He's not happy if we aren't, and he draws on us for support and faith when things get bad. I suppose he became so scared that something would happen to us, though, that he lost that. I mean, Ash was all about saving Mewtwo and Moltres at the beginning, ready and raring to go. This has been a long, draining journey though. I think as time has passed, everything just started weighing heavily on him... and it put him into a bad place."

"You hit the nail on the head, Dawn," Misty commended. "You see, normally when Ash saves the world, it happens within the span of two days, so it's a huge whirlwind of adrenaline and courage. But now we've been going on and on for more than two months now, and it's worn him down."

Paul was still unsure.

"You really think he's going to change his mind?" he asked.

"I don't think it," Misty answered. "I know it."

Paul continued to stare at her for a while. Then, he stood and crossed the way to her sofa, as well.

"All right," he said. "Let's take a look at this White Forest then."

---

"Two months," Drew began, shaking his head. "Two months dealing with all of this for no reason, and you knew all along?"

"Yes." Trip nodded. "Is there a problem with that?"

"No, I just..." Drew paused to think over his words. "... I can't decide whether you're a complete idiot or a saint."

"I'll take the second one," Trip said with a smirk. "Probably an exaggeration, though."

"Yeah, but..." Iris started, "for all the frustrations we went through—with each other and with Ash—you had that in your back pocket the entire time. Ash probably feels terrible now that he knows."

"Despite what you may think, it's not my goal to make Ash feel terrible," Trip replied. "I didn't mention it for that reason."

"Another question," Drew interjected. "If you already knew you were never on that list, why did you come along?"

Cilan frowned and glanced at Trip. The blond wasn't fazed by the question.

"I have a complicated situation with my parents. I just wanted to leave," Trip replied coolly.

"Ah. Actually, I really do get the whole 'bad parents' problem. I had a poor relationship with my father, and I left home for reasons related to it," Drew explained. "Now, I want nothing to do with him."

"That so?" Trip raised an eyebrow. May was also looking at her rival curiously.

Drew nodded before adding, "I'll make you a deal. If you tell me about your parents, I'll tell you about mine."

"No deal." Trip didn't hesitate. "Sorry, I'd rather not get into specifics."

"All right. That's fine." Drew shrugged.

"If it's any consolation, Trip," May began sweetly, "I'm really, really glad you did come. I've appreciated having you here, and your presence has mattered."

Trip stared. Then, he let out a half-chuckle before glancing away with a smile.

"May?" he began simply.

"Yes?"

"Don't ever change."

May turned pink, embarrassed, but she nodded anyway. Drew couldn't help but smile at her, too, and he rubbed his hand up and down her back a few times before letting it drop off to the side again. Cilan raised an eyebrow. There had definitely been a change in the rivals' relationship, and he was sure he was not the only one who noticed.

"Well, I'm going to bed," Iris suddenly announced, standing up.

"Iris, it's not even 9 p.m. yet," Cilan pointed out.

"I know. I just..."

May tilted her head.

"Are you all right?" she asked. "You've seemed a little off tonight."

"I'm fine," Iris insisted. "It's just... been a long, physically and emotionally draining day. We were up at 4 a.m. this morning, and we've been going ever since. I think after two months, I just need to breathe."

"Now that you mention it, I am a little tired, too," Trip admitted.

"Perhaps we should take this as our cue to leave and get some rest, then," Cilan suggested. "Tomorrow will be a new day."

Several goodbyes and a few other part gestures were exchanged—May outstretched her arms to Iris, and the two shared a brief embrace—and soon, May and Drew were alone. Neither were in any hurry to leave each other, though. Drew adjusted himself on the chair on which he was seated, while May played with her hair, brushing a few loose strands out of her face with her fingers.

"So..." she began shyly. "What was that with Trip?"

"What do you mean?"

"You were ready to tell him and Iris and Cilan about you and your father," May explained. "It's not bad by any means. It's just interesting, since I couldn't get you to say a thing about it for months."

"I suppose when you tell one person, it becomes easier after that," Drew replied. "I don't know. I guess telling you made me realize how stupid it was hiding it."

"It wasn't stupid to hide it," May said. "You weren't ready to say anything, and that's not stupid."

"It was, though," Drew insisted. "Over time, I became less concerned with Giovanni finding me and more about how people would perceive me if they knew—but that's just irrational if you're around people you trust. Like you, and everyone else here, too. I've never really had friends before, and I do now." He paused before adding, "And that's kind of cool."

May beamed at him, and Drew became flustered saying such things. It was unlike him, unlike the image he had painted of himself. His mouth tended to run a little bit around May, though. He needed to stop letting that happen before he said something far more embarrassing.

"Anyway," Drew quickly changed the subject, "how's your lip doing?"

May blinked and subconsciously touched her mouth. The swelling had gone down with the compress, but the area was still sensitive. She hadn't had the chance to look in a mirror yet to check out the damage for herself. She wasn't sure she wanted to, though. Seeing a horribly bruised bottom lip wouldn't do anything good for her self-esteem.

"It's all right, I suppose," she answered. "It's good you guys showed up when you did. He probably would have gone further if you hadn't."

Drew felt anger begin to simmer underneath the surface again, but he took a moment to breathe and cool down. It was done. It was over. It wouldn't do him or May any good to get upset over the incident.

"Yeah..." Drew looked away. "I'm just glad you're OK now."

May lowered her head, though her eyes remained stuck on him. The brightness of her blue irises remained untouched even in the dim atmosphere of the room, and it—along with the fact that she was now touching his hand—redrew his attention. His gaze flickered down briefly and then back up.

In retrospect, bringing up May's lips was perhaps not the best idea if Drew's goal was not to let his mouth run.

"Is something wrong?" May asked innocently.

"No," Drew lied, turning his head.

May wasn't convinced.

"Are you sure?"

Drew let out a long breath. He wasn't frustrated with her—far from it—but his uncertainty as to how he should proceed was frustrating in itself.

"Do you want me to be frank?"

"Sure."

Drew locked eyes with her once more.

"I really want to kiss you right now," he began, and May's breath caught, "but I'm restraining myself because I don't want to hurt you."

May said nothing for a while, because she wasn't sure how to respond. Was he joking? No, Drew's humor was dry, sarcastic. He sounded genuine when he said it, so this was no matter she could simply laugh off before excusing herself for bed. Then what? Was she supposed to continue sitting there staring at him until he finally broke and kissed her anyway, or was she supposed to initiate? If she remained quiet for too long, then he might leave—which she didn't want, because she definitely wanted him to kiss her.

"Well, don't."

Her invitation was all he needed. His hand reached out, tilted her chin up, cupped her cheek, and brought her closer to him so he could very gently press his lips to hers. Despite his tender considerations, the light pressure against her bottom lip still stung—but May hardly minded, and she, feeling brave, touched the end of his jaw and deepened the kiss.

She inhaled sharply when he pulled away, feeling mild pain begin to pulsate beneath her bruised lip.

"Sorry," he said, sensing her discomfort.

"Please don't apologize," she breathed before pulling him in for another kiss.

---

Ash was half-asleep when he heard a knock on his bedroom door. Pikachu, who actually was sleeping, perked up and looked at the door and then back at his trainer. Ash was too tired to remember he didn't want to see anyone, so he called for his visitor to enter.

The raven-haired boy felt more awake when he realized it was Silver's silhouette standing in the doorway.

"Silver?" Ash scrambled to sit up. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to say goodbye," Silver answered shortly, and Ash's face fell.

"Oh..."

There was a brief flicker of sympathy, perhaps regret, in Silver's eyes, but his hard expression remained unchanged.

"You should know," he began, "I normally don't do this. Say goodbye, I mean. I usually just leave and let people notice I'm gone later."

"Well, you can just leave," Ash replied quietly. "I understand. You came for our father and not for any other reason. Since we're not doing that anymore, it makes sense that you wouldn't stick around. You don't have to try to make me feel better by saying goodbye. I know you've never seen me as your brother and that you probably never will. It's OK."

Silver's lips tightened.

"Of all the people here," he started, "you're the only one who will really miss me. It would stick with me if I didn't formally end it. I made that mistake once, and I won't do it again."

Ash slowly raised his head in a nod. He wasn't so sure about that—being the only one would miss him—but he didn't bring it up.

"Thanks, I guess."

Silver was silent for a long moment.

"It was nice meeting you, Ash," he said. "Maybe we'll meet again someday."

The red-haired male then turned back toward the door, and Ash laid down, facing away from him. Pikachu crawled up next to him. Ash just wanted to go to sleep, to forget for several hours, to drown out his problems in his dreams. At the last moment, however, Silver's hands caught on the frame of the door, and he spoke again.

"Do you want to know why I don't see you as my brother?" he asked. "Initially, it was because I didn't think blood mattered, because family is not shared genetics. I still think that. But straight from the get-go, you showed that you cared about me unconditionally, and I didn't get that. Then, today, I suddenly realized you're that way with everyone, and that I had liked it—you caring—but it didn't feel so special anymore."

Ash blinked and sat up again, this time with Pikachu in his arms.

"It's not your fault." Silver's back was still turned toward him. "I know that's the way you've been designed. I guess it just caught me off guard. You caught me off guard, and it almost changed me. Almost."

Ash frowned.

"Did... Did you think I was the Chosen One, too?"

Silver knew he shouldn't have said anything. He ripped open new threads, though, and he had to sew them back up if he wanted to stick to his original intentions.

"Hearing all these stories about you—how you recovered Latios and Latias's Soul Dew, stopped Dialga and Palkia's fight, protected Victini..." Silver began slowly. "I was curious to see what would happen, how things would unfold. I didn't realize it until recently, but I was ready for you to amaze me. I was thoroughly underwhelmed. That's why I said 'almost.'"

Ash's jaw tightened.

"Yeah, letting people down is kind of my thing now," he said.

"The sad thing is that's your own fault," Silver muttered bitterly.

"I'm just a regular 14-year-old kid, Silver. All those things you just mentioned... sure, they sound fantastic when someone tells you the story, but if you were me, you'd know I just got by on mostly luck and a bunch of adrenaline," Ash retorted. "There's nothing special about me. I like video games, Pokémon, and I don't remember to change my underwear every day, no matter how many times my mother reminds me that I should."

Something clicked, and Silver narrowed his gaze.

"You know," he said, facing Ash again. "I don't agree with everything Misty said. There will be some who do, and some who don't—and it's clear you're one of the ones who don't. But there is something to be gained from her speech: a different perspective that you won't even acknowledge."

Ash appeared bemused, but he said nothing.

"You're not a regular 14-year-old kid, Ash," Silver said. "People are naturally drawn to you, and why shouldn't they be? You're good-hearted through and through. You treat those around you with respect and love, even if they don't deserve it. You give second and third and fourth chances to everyone except yourself. You would do anything—risk everything—for the benefit of people you care about."

Now Ash was surprised that Silver was offering such high commendation, when he usually acted like he wanted nothing to do with him.

"When you say you're not the Chosen One, what you're really saying is that you're not some holy figure picked by an enigmatic god for the sake of accomplishing great things," Silver continued. "And you're right. There is nothing divine about you. But, genuine kindness and mercy are rare qualities to find, and you have them. Those qualities have attracted a group of people with stories and backgrounds that run as deep as yours, but you remain at the center, tying everyone and everything together. You're not the Chosen One because some prophecy chose you. You're the Chosen One because your friends chose you, and they are waiting for you to take the lead."

Ash set Pikachu onto the bed before rising to his feet.

"How?" he asked, shaken.

"The same way Leaf got us this far," Silver shrugged. "Trust yourself and rely on the people around you. It's all in or all out, kid."

With those final words, he left, shutting the door behind him and leaving Ash in darkness.

---

Leaf's world was hazy when she stirred for the first time in several hours. A thin, misty film had spread across her eyes, and she couldn't make out where she was or remember what had happened. Her head rolled to the left and she noticed that Gary was at her bedside, though he'd dozed off.

Then, she felt the sharp pain in her gut, and she gasped in a breath of reality that cleared her head and vision.

"Ash!" she yelped, and Gary nearly fell out of his chair, surprised by the sudden awakening. "Why is he alone? Where is everyone else?"

She sat up, but the abrupt movement sent another powerful ripple of pain through her lower abdomen, and she bit on her fist to prevent herself from screaming.

"Leaf!" Gary exclaimed once he regained his senses. "You're finally awake. Ash is fine. We-"

Leaf was not paying attention. Her attention was now focused on the awful throbbing in her core, and she lifted her shirt to see what was ailing her. When she saw the pink scar, she sucked in a shaky breath.

"Wha-what?" she stammered. "What happened? How long have I been out? Arceus, I-"

"-Leaf." Gary grasped her shoulders, trying to ease her. "Just calm down."

"Gary, how many weeks has it been?" she asked anxiously. "How long has it been since we were at the Sinnoh base?"

"It hasn't even been a day yet."

"Then how do I have this giant scar on my stomach?"

"A man named Nando and his Sunflora helped seal it up," Gary answered. "Do you remember anything? It's OK if you don't. Nurse Joy said you showed some signs of a concussion, and that can accompanied by amnesia. I already have a lot to fill you in on. I just need to know where to start."

Leaf stopped to focus on her breathing, bringing it to a normal pace rather than ragged, panicked gasps. Gary waited patiently, allowing her the time to process her memories.

"I remember..." Leaf closed her eyes. "Domino. I fought Domino. Oh Mew, is Ivysaur OK?"

"Yes." Gary nodded. "Conway cared for her, and Nurse Joy finished the job. He's back in his Pokéball."

"Nurse Joy? Where are we?"

"We're in a Pokémon Center at Lake Acuity."

"What time is it?" Leaf was trying to reorient herself.

"Um..." Gary checked his watch. "It's a little bit past 9:30 p.m."

"OK. OK..." Leaf closed her eyes again. "The Ampharos Train... I remember that. Was there a Nidoran anywhere?"

"No." Gary appeared confused.

"Oh. Well, was Lance here? Did you talk to him?"

"No," Gary repeated.

"I guess I must have dreamed all that, then." Leaf swallowed, now trying to sort out a timeline—what was the past and present. "You were there, though. Did you get my apology?"

"Your... your apology?"

"Yes. I thought I apologized to you."

Gary furrowed his eyebrows, thinking. Now that she had mentioned it, he could recall Leaf mumbling a couple despairing 'sorrys' to him in her deluded state on the train.

"You did," he said with a nod. "I'm not sure what you were apologizing for, though."

"For the awful way I treated you on the day of my mother's funeral," she elaborated. "I didn't mean it. I don't actually hate you."

Gary's confusion turned to bafflement.

"This is a really weird time to be bringing that up, Leaf. That was more than five years ago," he said. "I'm serious when I say I have a lot of things to tell you. Important things."

"Just entertain me for a little while, will you?" Leaf said, exasperated. "You know it was the reason we were never friends again. You, Ash, and I all just... drifted apart after that."

Gary sighed and rubbed a forming headache away.

"Leaf," he began calmly, "the fight we had during your mother's funeral is not the sole reason the three of us stopped hanging out together. The drifting apart began long before then, when we were too young to understand it was even happening. You and I had never really gotten along, especially after my parents died. We were terrible to each other, and we were both terrible to Ash. Ash was just so... naïve that he didn't see it, but he tried so hard to keep us from falling apart. The funeral was just the last straw for us. After that, nothing Ash could do would salvage our friendship."

Leaf frowned, and her gaze fell.

"Don't get that depressed look," Gary half-grumbled. "We would've straightened it out long ago—I mean, Ash and I eventually made amends—but you practically vanished after you left Pallet Town. I ran into you maybe once or twice, and I never saw you again. You never entered the Indigo League."

"And you didn't even care that I didn't, did you?" Leaf muttered. Gary leaned back but said nothing. "You didn't care that I was gone. You didn't worry about where I was or even question it. No one did. We wouldn't have made up back then."

"Well, we're making up now, aren't we?" Gary persisted. Leaf's lips tightened, and she looked up at him again. "The past is over and done with. We can only worry about now. Regarding you and I... I had never been so scared as I was today. It's true that up until this mess with Giovanni and Mewtwo, we hadn't seen each other in years. But now that you're back in my life, I realize I don't ever want you out of it again."

Leaf wasn't sure what to make of that line. She looked down and brushed her fingers through her messy brown hair. She realized he'd watched over while she slept in that room, and now she was beginning to remember his presence with her on the train in more detail—and the implications made her nervous.

"Anyway," Leaf began, deciding she didn't want to push the topic any further, "you can tell me about all these 'important things' now."

"Do you want the skinny?"

"Sure," Leaf mumbled halfheartedly.

"All right." Gary straightened up. "Well, we didn't get Mewtwo and Moltres. Turns out Giovanni is actually at a base in Unova that Silver previously wasn't aware existed. Ash accidentally revealed to Proton that we're alive. Giovanni now has plans to capture Kyurem. Ash had a huge meltdown and told everyone he doesn't think he's the Chosen One, and you and I apparently missed a rather riveting speech by Misty explaining why she still thinks he is. Oh, and Trip never snagged a spot on Giovanni's kill list."

Leaf stared, though her eyelids fell. Gary sighed. It certainly was not the news she wanted to hear. There was a lot it, and it was all bad.

"OK, I'm going to need the thicker version of that," she said after a moment. "But first..."

"First?"

"I'm hungry." Leaf threw the covers off her. "We're in a Pokémon Center, right? Then there should be a cafeteria somewhere, and I will be mad if there isn't food. I kind of want to eat my feelings right now."

Gary let out a chuckle. It wasn't that funny—especially when he considered that she was trying to hide her disappointment with humor—but he couldn't help it.

"I'm sure there's some leftovers from dinner," he told her, and she nodded before attempting to get out of bed. His eyes widened, and he added, "Leaf, maybe you shouldn't-"

She let out a pained, shaky breath, and she would have collapsed had Gary not swept in and grabbed her. Her arms hung limply over his shoulders as he adjusted himself, pulled his chair closer, and sat down again while still holding her up.

"You had your abdominal muscles slashed through," he said, his hand gently weaving itself through the hair on the back of her head. "You're not going to have a fun time getting up and moving around for a while."

"I noticed," she mumbled into his shirt.

"Would you like me to carry you?"

"That will not be necessary." Leaf pushed herself off his chest.

"Are you sure? I can, you know."

"I'll be fine, Gary." She tried to stand again but was unsuccessful. She then slung a single arm around his shoulder. "... OK, you can help me get down the stairs."

He chuckled—and this time, it really was funny—as he wrapped an arm around her waist and helped her up.

March 4th, 2002. Late Evening. Near Opelucid City.

"Arceus, it's cold..."

"Quit your complaining. It ain't that bad. Man up."

As the group of twenty or so Rocket agents ventured deeper into the dark cave, the temperature continued to steadily drop. The crunchy snow beneath their feet gradually transformed into a glassy ice that warranted greater caution—already, an agent had slipped and required some medical attention, which was difficult to give in the weak light of a Lampent.

"Did you hear that?" an agent asked anxiously.

"You're just imagining things," his co-worker replied.

Imagination, however, couldn't bare its jagged teeth and emit a series of low growls that reverberated off the walls. The pack stopped, terrified, as a pair ominously yellow eyes opened, and the beast's icy breath dried their throats and eyes.

An avianous screech from behind broke the Rocket agents' out of their frightened stupor, and Moltres soared above their heads and toward the beast. The fire on the Legendary Bird's wings illuminated the area and revealed the target: Kyurem, who snarled upon the arrival of his opponent. He immediately swiped at the Flame Pokémon with Slash, but Moltres dodged and unleashed a Fire Blast—an immediate direct hit.

The force of Moltres's flames forced Kyurem into the ground, but he remained determined. However, just as he was about to retaliate with Ice Beam, an unknown force suddenly restrained him. He was lifted into the air in a pinkish glow and slammed back into the ice and rocks more forcefully. It was then that Mewtwo, in full armour, appeared and attached his Master's device to Kyurem's neck.

March 4th, 2002. Late Evening. Lake Acuity.

Iris's despairing, terrified screams woke the entire floor, and Cilan was first to fall out of his own bed, stumble outside of his room, and hurry into hers. He found her in a cold sweat and thrashing in her sleep. Axew was at her side, trying to wake her up, but failing.

"Iris! Iris!" Cilan cried, managing to shake her awake. When her eyes flew open, he asked, "What's the matter?"

She began crying, and she threw herself into him.

"Mainē usē dēkhā. Mainē Kyurem ko dēkhā," she sobbed into his chest.

"What about Kyurem?" Cilan picked up on the one word he could understand.

"Mainnē usē dēkhā," Iris repeated. She was mildly disoriented in her frantic state. "Kyurem unkē kabze main hai."

Before Cilan could gently remind her that he didn't speak Hindi, other trainers began pouring into the room.

"Iris, what happened?" Dawn inquired in a hurried, concerned tone as she sat on the bed's edge and tenderly touched Iris's shoulder. Iris said nothing in response and instead turned and latched onto the coordinator, burying her face in the Dawn's shoulder. Dawn appeared confused, but wrapped her arms around her terrified friend. She then looked toward Cilan, but he merely shook his head with a frown, unable to offer an explanation.

---

Silver's head jerked up when he heard Iris's screams echo through the hallway and down the stairs. He was on his way out, but her cries stopped him, and he stood motionless for a long moment, unsure of what to do or how to react. His initial instinct was to run back upstairs and check out what had happened, but he had to remind himself that he was trying to break off from the group. Continually concerning himself with their problems was not helping him do that.

As he weighed his options, Leaf and Gary stumbled out of the kitchen. The moment he saw them—or rather, the moment they saw him—Silver cursed himself.

"What was that? Who was that?" Leaf's arms were crossed over her belly with her hands clutching her waist, and her breath was heavy with discomfort.

"Iris," Silver muttered begrudgingly.

The agent exchanged a tentative glance with Gary, and she staggered forward, attempting to head up the stairs herself. She sank to her knees in pain by the third step, though her hand still firmly grasped the wooden rail.

"Here, let me just..." Gary offered a hand, but she waved him off.

"No, no," she insisted. "I can do it."

She dragged herself up a fourth step and gave up.

"OK, you can carry me now," she mumbled, defeated.

Gary smirked and lifted her up from beneath her legs. Silver watched the two ascend the stairs before turning back toward the Pokémon Center's main entrance. He could hear the rumble of a plane outside. Nurse Joy heard it, as well, as she entered the room. Her hair was down, and she was wrapped in a pink shawl, obviously just having been awoken. Yet, she appeared conflicted, overwhelmed. She had a girl screaming upstairs and another arriving outside.

"Winona's here, isn't she?" Silver asked.

Nurse Joy looked at him with wide eyes.

"How did you-"

"-Don't worry about it," Silver muttered bitterly. "You take care of your guest. We'll take care of ourselves. We've done it for two months now."

He went back up the stairs.

---

"Kyurem has been captured."

Gary and Leaf made it into Iris's room just in time to hear this declaration. It had taken a couple minutes for Iris to regain her senses and convert back to English, but she was still shaken. Axew was in her arms, acting as a source of comfort, and she remained wedged between Dawn and Cilan.

"How do you know?" Leaf asked from the back of the crowd. Everyone turned, shocked to see that she was standing—much less awake.

"Leaf!" May exclaimed, relieved. "How are you doing?"

"Never mind that," Leaf dismissed. "Iris, how do you know?"

Iris swallowed and took another moment to collect herself.

"I... I saw it," she breathed. "I saw it happen. I saw Mewtwo and Moltres and the Team Rocket agents, and I heard the song. The terrible, twisted version of Meloetta's song. I remember hearing it and then feeling so... empty. And scared."

"A young trainer sees through the eyes of a troubled, god-like Pokémon while they sleep," Silver said casually as he strolled into the room. "Now where have I heard that story before? Don't tell me you're all going to begin hailing her as your new Chosen One."

Ash stared and let out a bewildered breath upon Silver's return. Even Pikachu was mildly surprised. Both believed the trainer had left long ago. Silver's eyes briefly connected with Ash's before he looked back at Iris.

"It is pretty similar," Drew remarked.

"Ash had a connection with Mewtwo," Iris mumbled in response. "Is it so hard to believe that I have a connection with Kyurem?"

"Do you?" May asked.

"In a sense, I suppose, yes," she answered vaguely. "I don't understand it myself."

"Yet another thing that probably should have been shared with the team long ago," Paul commented dryly. "This really is a good case of déjà vu."

"Everyone has things they prefer to keep to themselves," Dawn said quietly. "I would've expected you'd know that, Paul."

It was a dangerous line for the female Twinleaf coordinator to cross, but her point was made, and it resonated with more than one person. Drew hardly blinked, but May's hand discreetly reached for his, and their fingers entwined. He then looked down and smiled at her. They, of course, had already had this discussion. Trip shifted slightly from where he was standing and sighed. Gary and Leaf couldn't look at each other. Ash's gaze fell, and Silver pressed a hand to his face. Zoey was watching Barry, who was watching Paul, who was looking at Dawn with the strangest mix of disdain and respect.

"Well," Kenny broke the awkward tension, tearing his gaze away from Paul and Dawn, "I guess the big question is now what do we do?"

Ash knew that question was indirectly addressed to him. He could feel from the way Misty was looking at him. He closed his eyes and sucked in his breath.

"... We go to Unova," he said, and a few happy, surprised breaths followed. Paul's bottom lip twitched into a smirk, and Misty was positively beaming. She exchanged glances with both him and Kenny.

"I don't know if any of you still think I'm the Chosen One," Ash continued slowly, "and maybe it doesn't matter one way or another. But for you guys who still believe, I want to take back my last sorry and give you a new one—I'm sorry that I have been a terrible Chosen One so far. I really, really am. But it's gonna be different this time. I'm ready now, and I'm sorry that I wasn't before. It's gotta be all in or all out, though, right?"

He reached over his shoulder and patted Pikachu on the shoulder. Leaf straightened up, allowing herself to smile, too. Suddenly, the pain in her gut didn't feel so terrible.

"I'm glad you're ready, Ash, because I sure am," she said. "I hope everyone else feels the same?"

Her question was met with a clear, perhaps even cheered affirmation from everyone—verbal or otherwise—until Conway spoke.

"How do you plan to get to Unova?" Dawn recognized the change in his language—the 'we' to a 'you'—and she knew she didn't need to ask him to clarify. He had discounted himself.

It was quite the conundrum. Luckily, it was one they didn't have to dwell on for too long. A polite knock on the door frame drew in the attention of all seventeen trainers, though they (except one) expected to see either Nurse Joy or Nando. Winona's presence, therefore, came as a surprise.

"Winona!" Ash immediately recognized her.

"What are you doing here?" May asked.

"Hello Ash; May," Winona regarded, knowing both of the trainers. "I'm sorry to break up this meeting, but I am here under orders from the G-Men. I've been instructed to take you to safety."

"To safety?" Ritchie inquired. "Where?"

"Dragon's Den in Johto. Clair, the Blackthorn City Gym Leader, will take care of you from that point."

"Of course," Zoey sighed, exasperated.

"Well, while we're thankful you came all the way out here, there's been a change in plans," Gary said frankly, and Winona cocked an eyebrow.

"Excuse me?" she asked. Silver moved away from the door and reached into his bag, pulling out one of his Pokéballs.

"You see, I was the one who told Candice to call Lance," Gary elaborated, "and I did so in a very scary moment in which I thought one of my best friends was at risk of losing her life. As you can see, though, she is standing right here next to me." He gestured to Leaf, and she raised her eyebrows. "It was a poor decision. Lance's services are no longer needed."

Winona sputtered incoherently for a moment, utterly baffled. She had never heard such a brazen response to the G-Men authority.

"Y-You can't just-" she began, but she was quickly cut off.

"Your services, however, are needed." Silver had inconspicuously let out his Alakazam, who in turn used Hypnosis, and Winona jolted upward before her eyes turned dull. Leaf sent him a rather appalled look. Others were similarly shocked, unsure of what to make of the sudden move.

"You will take us to Unova," Silver finished firmly.

March 5th, 2002. Midnight. Unova Team Rocket Base.

"Kyurem has been captured, sir," Pierce told Giovanni over the line. The Team Rocket leader's lips curved into a smirk upon hearing such news.

"Excellent," he said. "Was there any damage done that I should be aware of? Any dead agents? Mewtwo and Moltres are OK, of course, right?"

"No one died, sir," Pierce answered. "An agent was mildly injured, but nothing more. The mission was over fairly quickly once we reached Kyurem. Moltres and Mewtwo are both fine. I have several men assigned to watch over them."

"I trust you'll keep it that way until I arrive."

"You're coming, sir?"

"We simply don't have the facilities here to house Kyurem. I will be going there myself in the morning. We will have to set our plan of attack into motion then."

"Are we going to the Indigo Plateau, sir?"

"There's no need for that." Giovanni's Persian meandered into the office and rubbed up against his Master's leg. He reached down to pat the Normal-type on the head. "They'll come here."

"How can you be sure, sir?"

"I imagine either Domino and Petrel will let something slip. It's no big matter. I have amended our plans for that, and when Lance comes, he'll be our target."

---

"James? Meowth? Are you awake still?"

The trio was, much to their relief, passed over for the mission to capture Kyurem, and they now lied in their beds, waiting for morning and the news whether Team Rocket had successfully acquired the Dragon-type Legendary, or whether twenty agents had frozen to death. Jessie wasn't sure whether the Village of Dragon's Elder's warnings were true or not, but she certainly did not want to take any risks. Freezing to death would be an ironic way to go out, considering her mother's story.

"Yeah, I'm still awake, Jess," James yawned from the opposite bed.

"Same here," Meowth added. He was curled up at the bottom of Jessie's feet, and he stretched his claws out. "What's da matta? Is sumtin' bothering you?"

"I suppose I've been thinking..."

"I thought you always said thinking was dangerous."

"Only when it's you two doing it," Jessie scoffed. She paused for a long moment, before solemnly continuing, "I've been thinking about why I joined Team Rocket. Why we all joined Team Rocket. For me, after my mom died, I swore never to join... then I just kept bouncing from job to job, trying to find purpose, trying to find a place in the world."

James propped himself up on his elbow, looking at his partner. It was rare she ever grew this pensive or melancholic. It was rarer she ever expressed it to anyone. All this meant he knew he had to listen.

"I finally decided I had no choice and joined Team Rocket," she continued. "James, you couldn't stand your family so much that you ran away and cut yourself off from your inheritance, meaning you needed a job—and being the spoiled brat you were-"

"-Hey!"

"-You didn't know how to do anything, so you joined Team Rocket. Meowth, you joined after you were rejected by your love and treated like an outcast by your own kind."

"What's da point of bringin' up all these bad memories?" Meowth asked, depressed.

"It's just... we all joined with the promise of wealth, of happiness, of home," Jessie mused. "Seven years later, we're still poor. We're not exactly happy. And the only home I've found is among you guys, but that's you—not Team Rocket. We run into any other Team Rocket agents, and they treat us like dirt. We follow the Boss's every order, almost without question, and nothing's changed in seven years. I don't know. Maybe I'm just talking crazy. What do you guys think?

"Jessie, I tink it's too late to be havin' this kind of emotional crisis," Meowth grumbled.

"No, I understand," James interjected. "I've been thinking, too. Not so much about that, but I guess my brain's got some more food to munch on for a while."

"What have you been thinking about, then?" Jessie asked.

"The twerp. Er, Ash," James replied. "He's alive. They're all alive. It just makes me think back to that day, when Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno were attacking each other."

"The day we played the good guys?"

"Yeah."

"I tought we also agreed not ta talk 'bout dat day, eider," Meowth commented.

"But why not?" James pressed. "We were happy to do it. Jessie has a point. Nothing we've done for the Boss for the past few years has made us happy. Following the twerp around... recording Meloetta's song... finding out about Kyurem... none of it's made us happy. It's just made us sad or tired or scared. With Ash alive, don't you wonder... ?"

"Wonder what?" Jessie prompted.

"If we're on the wrong side?"

March 5th, 2002. After Midnight. Nuvema Town.

Emily was getting along well—at least, as well as she could in her circumstances.

Rather than spending her time recovering from the awful shock that her only son, the light of her existence, was dead, she returned to wasting her days worrying about him and his travels, as she had when he first set off for Professor Juniper's lab and began his journey.

She had not said a word to anyone about Trip being alive. She had no one to speak to anyway, aside from her husband. She mostly spent her days absently washing the dishes over and over and over again until her thin, bony fingers pruned from the soapy water. She watched the news during this time. Her husband usually wouldn't let her turn on the television when he was home. The noises gave him a headache.

Even now, she was watching a rerun of the 10 p.m. news, which was reviewing information media relations for the G-Men had released regarding the apparent fall of a second Team Rocket base—this one in Sinnoh. Emily knew it was late, and she wished she could be in bed, but she had always made a point to welcome Jack home since their marriage—even if he came home past midnight.

Suddenly, she heard her husband's car rumble into the driveway, and she scrambled out of the kitchen to turn off the television. She then went to wait in front of the door, pushing her messy hair behind her ears and smoothing down her apron.

The door flung open, and her husband stalked inside.

"Welcome home, sweetheart," she said with a quick smile. "You're home earlier than usual. Didn't you go out with the guys tonight?"

"Yeah," Jack mumbled in response, brushing past her and heading into the kitchen. "We had to cut it short, though. Dan's making the drive up to Humilau City tomorrow, and he needed to get to bed at a decent hour. His son just earned his eighth badge, and they're going to celebrate."

He reached into the cabinet and pulled out a bottle of vodka. He didn't bother to mix himself a drink, as he usually did. Instead, he poured it into a shot glass before downing it. Emily frowned, fussing with the edge of her skirt. Jack was particularly sensitive to the topic of children now, and these conversations always turned sour in the worst of ways.

"I-I'm sorry," Emily apologized. "I know that must have been hard to hear about. It's hard for me to hear about."

Jack nodded sadly.

"Our son..." He trailed off. "A brilliant young man. He would've had his eighth badge by now, too. He would've been preparing to enter the Unova league now. He would've become Champion. He would've..."

Jack gripped the edge of his glass tightly before throwing it toward his wife. She yelped and jumped out of the way. The glass shattered, and the alcohol splattered against the wall.

"He would've been alive if it weren't for you!" he screamed, heading toward her. Emily fell back, and she began breathing in panicked gasps.

"I-I-I know, I was just trying to protect him, Jack!" she defended. "I thought he was in danger, and you with your outdated, xenophobic notions of other regions-"

"-What did you say?"

She hit the ground when he slapped her. She had learned by then that the faster she went down, the quicker these beatings ended.

"Everything I do is to protect him!" she sobbed after he kicked her in the gut. "Everything... I... do..."

"You haven't protected anything!" he screeched back. She tried to escape, but he grabbed her by the hair and pulled her back. "You can't even protect yourself."

It was a trigger. After so many months of silence, she remembered that she did have the ability to protect herself. With a few words, she could give herself control again. And for a woman who had control over nothing more than the cleanliness of her dishware, that notion became very appealing, almost romantic, as her head began to bleed.

"Trip is alive!" she screamed. "Trip is alive!"

March 5th, 2002. After Midnight. Lake Acuity.

"I told you," Misty celebrated as she ambled down the stairs alongside Paul. "I told you Ash would change his mind."

Both were carrying their bags. After Silver's uncomfortable stint with Winona (most of the trainers were trying not to think too much about it), they had dispersed to quickly pack their things and get going. They had important places to be; important things to do. Winona had returned outside to start up her plane again. Silver had followed with Alakazam, trying to prevent Nurse Joy from finding out what he'd done to her. So far, she remained oblivious and had even offered Leaf some pain medication for the trip.

"You did," Paul conceded.

"Yup, yup," Barry jumped between the two with a grin. "Out of all of us, you've always been the one to know him best, Mist!"

"Now it's a matter of whether he delivers or not," Trip commented. He was waiting at the bottom of the stairs with his own bag.

"He will," Misty assured him with confidence.

"Yeah, you know you're one of the people who made this all possible, Trip!" Dawn called from the sofa.

"Please don't give me that much credit."

Ash was the last to enter the room with Pikachu on one shoulder and his backpack slung over the other.

"Is everyone here?" he asked. He was anxious, but also excited. Adrenaline was in his blood again. "Are we ready to go?"

"Yup," Leaf answered before downing several pills with a wash of water.

"Then we're off," he said, and he immediately headed toward the center's entrance. Iris slowly rose to her feet to follow. She had come a long way since she first woke up, but she'd remained quiet for a while. She wasn't nearly as excited as everyone else.

"Wait there."

Everyone froze. Nando had entered the scene.

Zoey inhaled deeply.

"It's OK," she told everyone. "You go ahead and get settled on the plane. I'll catch up with you in a few minutes."

Her peers thus continued on their way, though at a quicker pace. Zoey slowly turned toward the minstrel, who calmly strode toward her. They waited for a moment in silence until everyone had left and they were alone.

"I will not lie for you," Nando said simply. "When the G-Men come, when they ask questions, I will answer them truthfully. I will tell them what you have done and where you are going."

"I know that," Zoey said. "No one's asking you to lie. How did you know?"

"Your friend's screams also awoke me," he answered, "and I overheard your meeting from my room, since it happened to be the one next to hers. I did not seek to join you, because I felt that you all had a deep connection with each other that I should not intrude upon. It was a very personal conversation for all of you. You really do have a remarkable story. I'm sure there will be many who will want to read it."

Zoey appeared uncertain regarding the purpose of his tangent.

"It is for these reasons I will not stop you," Nando finished, and Zoey's eyes widened.

"I..." She shook her head. "Thank you, Nando."

He nodded and took a step away from her.

"Best wishes on your journey to Unova."

.

.