Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon if I did Ash would win a league and age.

A/N: Okay finally starting the Silver Conference, but before that a little more character development for Cynthia and her distaste for her big city

On Plane from Sinnoh to Johto

A lone blonde girl sat in first class reading a magazine, she could feel eyes on her from all directions, especially the males. The girl was in her late teens and was dressed in a long black trench coat, her long blonde hair reached down to her lower back, and some strands fell down and covered half her face. The girls name was Lydia, and she was the current Sinnoh League champion. She was on her way to the Johto region, as Mr Goodshow had asked her to open up the Silver Conference with a battle between herself and the Champion of Johto Lance. Lydia had accepted the offer, but she had her own agenda too. She knew her little sister Cynthia would be at the Silver conference along with another that interested her. A certain Pokemon trainer who was the youngest ever winner of the Indigo League Championship, who had also conquered the Orange League, and beaten their champion. This trainer was also her little sister's boyfriend, and she wanted to meet him personally to make sure he was good enough for her little sis. There was only one way she could determine that, a Pokemon battle, if this boy was going to be her little sister's boyfriend then she wanted to make sure he was strong enough to defend her. The Sinnoh Champion suddenly felt someone near her seat and looked up to see a lady stood behind a small child, who was holding out a note pad and pencil nervously.

"Excuse me Miss, my son wanted to ask if you would sign his note book for him. He says you're a famous Pokemon trainer."

Lydia looked into the eyes of the little child and smiled, she then took the note pad and pencil. "Sure, and what's your name?"

The little boy was nervous, however he managed to say his name. "Douglas, I am huge fan of Pokemon and watched several of your battles, you're awesome especially your Garchomp."

Lydia jotted down the boys name and then signed it, and handed the pad back to the boy. "There you go."

The little boy hugged the note pad to his chest and then left with his mum, excited about not only meeting a league champion, but getting her autograph too. Lydia went back to reading her magazine, suddenly she heard the pilot speaking over the PA system.

"Good afternoon Lady and Gentleman, this is your pilot speaking, we will be beginning our descent towards Goldenrod airport very soon, so please fasten your seat belts and make sure your tray tables are up right and fastened securely. The weather outside is a mild 16 degrees and I hope you had an enjoyable flight, and thank you once again for choosing Swallow airways."

Lydia fastened her belt and then looked out of the little window she could see tiny building which were actually huge skyscrapers of Goldenrod City. She was finally in Johto, Mr Goodshow had informed her that she would be met at the airport by Pokemon league personal who would then escort her to where the Silver Conference was taking place.

Silver Town

Ash and the girls strolled through the busy streets that were littered with stalls, banners and other events all promoting the upcoming Silver Conference. They had arrived yesterday after training for three weeks in Kanto. News of Ash's victory over Karen had reached Mr Goodshow, who had asked to meet him today. They had already registered and were staying at the huge Pokemon Centre, that would house all trainers for the tournament. Ash had been taken by surprise when registering for the competition though. It seems you had to list ten Pokemon that you would be using in the competition, and these were then uploaded to the Silver Conference website, where everyone could read and find out about the various trainers competing along with their most recent accomplishments. Ash had taken a while to choose his ten, but in the end he had gone with Dragonite, Mewtwo, Pikachu, Snorlax, Suicune, Knuckles, Darkrai, Charizard, Gengar and finally his red Gyarados, three legendaries, and seven normal. Ash also felt he had good coverage across the entire field of battle. Ash had then asked if he would have to stick with these ten, but was pleased that once the Silver Conference reached the semi-finals then the trainers could use any Pokemon even if it wasn't registered in their ten listed on site.

Cynthia had also had a tough time choosing, but in the end she had gone with Garchomp, Milotic, Spiritomb, Togekiss, Charizard, Sylveon, Blastoise, Gyarados, Nidoking and finally her recent capture Gengar who she had caught in the woods at the Elite four training facilities.

Ash and the girls stopped outside a large building, and noticed two men dressed in suits, wearing dark shades were stood on either side of the main doors. Ash approached the door and suddenly found his way barred by the two men.

"This is a restricted building, only those who have permission may enter. Please present your credentials." Ash handed over the letter Mr Goodshow had sent him, he noticed one of the men examined it, and then pulled a small device which lit up, he shone the light over the letter, until a mark appeared. Ash hadn't seen the mark when reading the letter.

"Thank you Mr Ketchum, Mr Goodshow is expecting you, please enter and wait in the lobby, a member of staff will then escort you and your friends to see Mr Goodshow." The men then held open the door and allowed Ash, Sabrina and Cynthia to enter.

"Wow security is sure tight around here, then again this is a big tournament. I wonder what the Director of the Pokemon League could want with you Ash."

Ash shrugged his shoulders at Cynthia statement, he too had no idea why Mr Goodshow would call him here. The three teens sat down in the lobby and waited patiently, They didn't have to wait long for someone to escort them. Stood before them was lady dressed in a pink suit holding a computer tablet in her hand.

"Mr Ketchum, Mr Goodshow is ready to see you now. Please follow me." The lady then turned and started to walk away soon followed by Ash and the girls. The Lady led them up a few flight of stairs and then onto a large corridor with doors on either side. Ash noticed name plates on the doors, most of them were Elite Four members. He then saw one with Lance and right next to it a door that said Lydia. Ash suddenly was in deep thought, Lydia, where had he heard the name, Ash then got a picture of a girl on screen talking to him, she looked a lot like Cynthia but older. It then clicked Lydia was Cynthia older sister and the Sinnoh League champion. Ash could understand the Elite four of Kanto and Johto being here, but what was the Sinnoh league champion doing here. Unfortunately Ash had no more time to dwell on the question, they have arrived outside a set of double doors. Ash noticed their escort knocked and waited.

"Come in!" Mr Goodshow voice replied from within the room.

Ash and the girl followed the lady into a big spacious room. Inside there was a large wooden desk, and huge cabinets filled with trophies and on the wall pictures of past winner each holding a trophy and surrounded by their Pokemon. In the corner of the room was a large L shaped sofa positioned opposite two large arm chairs. Ash then noticed Mr Goodshow he was quite surprised the director wasn't dressed up in suit but green shorts and a red and blue jumper. Most of his face was covered by his long white beard, Ash also noticed he was wearing a red cap.

"Ah welcome Ash, it's good to see you again, and of course your lovely ladies. Please have a seat, would you or you lovely ladies like something to drink or to eat?"

Ash and the girls took a seat on the sofa, all three declined politely to refreshments. They noticed the Director then dismissed his aid, and sat down opposite them.

"Well Ash, I guess you're wondering why I have asked you here today, hmm. Well there is a couple of reasons, one is regarding your team for the competition, two is just a general catch up, and three is to talk about your recent accomplishments over the Elite four. I must say lad, you're making quite a name for yourself." Mr Goodshow then chuckled which caused Ash and the girls to be at ease a little.

Ash look towards the director. "I thought I was called here, because you were upset with me, about what me beating your Elite four."

Mr Goodshow laughed. "Oh no my lad it's quite the opposite actually, I wanted to praise you on your accomplishments, including beating several Elite four members, but we will get to that soon. First let us discuss your team for the competition. I viewed your profile just before you came in, I have decided to keep your file private from the public until we had an opportunity to discuss it."

Ash sighed in relief. "Thank goodness for that, I was worried that I was going to cause a problem with the legends I listed as part of my team, and that there might be some complains and trouble with me using them."

Mr Goodshow shook his head. "Even if they're legends their still Pokemon, but it is for that reason I have decided to withhold your profile from public view for now. Not only for your safety but for the safety of the competition in general. As you know there are many who would like to get their hands on those legendaries and if they were listed, then it might cause some to do something desperate to have them. It's for this reason that those Pokemon will be blacked out, and only the fact they're legends will be listed. Now regarding one of your team, Mewtwo I believe, I couldn't find any relevant data on it, and so it is a completely new species to me and the rest of the world. Where did you find it exactly?"

Ash eyes suddenly hardened. "You see Sir, Mewtwo is unique, he wasn't born by natural means, he was actually a project of Team Rocket. They managed to get some of Mew D.N.A and created a clone, which was stronger and smarter then the official Mew. If you wish I will swap him out, now that you mention it, then it wouldn't be fair to use a Pokemon that the league knows nothing about."

Mr Goodshow put his hands together. "After hearing the origins of its creation, then maybe that is best, so who will be your replacement."

Ash thought for a while. "Well you don't have any data on Mewtwo, but what about Mew, I did use her in the Indigo League, would I be able to use her?"

Mr Goodshow nodded. "Yes using Mew would be fine Ash, so I will have those pictures blacked out, and just list them as legendary Pokemon. Now onto your recent accomplishments, as you aware myself and others have been following your trainer career closely. You made little work of the gyms in Johto even the gym leader were surprised how strong you were, especially Claire, and she not easily impressed let me tell you."

Ash nervously scratched the top of his head. "Well I wouldn't say they were easy, but yes I didn't have that much of a problem."

Mr Goodshow nodded. "Indeed, which brings me onto my final point Ash, you have beaten three Elite four members, almost beating the league champion too. I know Agatha mentioned this to you Ash, but the Kanto League is desperately in need of its own champion. As the winner of the Indigo League you have the right to challenge the Kanto Elite four and from your track record I would say you have a very high chance of beating the Elite four and becoming champion."

Ash sighed, he might have known Mr Goodshow would bring this up. "Mr Goodshow, being the Champion of Kanto would be a great honour, and I am happy that you feel I could fill the void you have, but being a champion will hinder my progress in travelling to all the other regions, and experiencing the thrills and wonders of those new regions. There are still tons of Pokemon out there, and lots of regions still to conquer, along with a number of tournaments. I couldn't give all that up now just to become a regional champion."

Mr Goodshow body slumped, he had hoped he could convince Ash to take up the Elite four challenge and then to take up the position of Pokemon League champion, but it seems the boy had other goals in mind. "I see, well how about this, you take the Kanto Elite four Challenge, and if you beat it, then I will still allow you to continue on your journey, you won't have to stay here in Kanto, Lance would cover for you until you're ready to take up the position, however you would still have all the rights and privileges with being a regional champion."

Ash groaned, "Sir that wouldn't be fair to everyone one else, I want to take up these challenges on a level footing. Although the offer does sound good I have to decline for now. I hope you understand. Besides what about the winner of this year, I am sure they would be happy to take up the challenge of the Elite four."

Mr Goodshow sighed. "They already did, however they fell at the first hurdle. You're the only trainer I have seen that has been able to go toe to toe with the Elite four Ash. But if that is your decision then I will say no more for now."

Ash could see the director was a little upset, but what was he suppose to say, he didn't want the responsibilities of being a regional champion yet. Ash then remembered the name tag he had seen on one of the doors, he wanted to find out why the Champion of Sinnoh would be attending the Silver Conference.

"Sir I know this is none of my business, but as we approached this room, I noticed several doors each with the name of a member of the Elite four printed on them. There was also another name I noticed. Lydia, now I can understand the Elite four of Kanto and Johto being here, but why is the Sinnoh League champion here?"

Cynthia suddenly coughed on her water, and her head turned sharply, surprise written all over her face. "What! My sister is going to be here, but why, she has no business in Johto or Kanto."

Mr Goodshow lounged back in his chair. "Lydia has agreed to battle Lance in the opening ceremony of the Silver Conference. I thought it would be a good idea to kick off this years competition with a exhibition match between two champions."

Ash nodded his head, that made sense, after all both were champions, and both would be a huge draw for the crowd and add that little bit more excitement to the event. "Mr Goodshow is there anything else you wanted to discuss, it's been a busy day and I would like to get some rest so that I can start preparing for the tournament, after all it starts in three days."

Mr Goodshow chuckled. "No young man, that was all I wanted to talk to you about, but please keep in mind that offer I made. Now Susan will show you out, If your showing at the Indigo league is anything to go on Ash then I feel this competition will be very interesting."

Ash stood up and shaked Mr Goodshow's hand, and then noticed the lady who had escorted them to Mr Goodshow, had now arrived to escort them out. As they walked behind Susan Ash noticed a girl was stood outside one of the doors, by her side was a little travel suitcase, he also felt Cynthia grab his sleeve suddenly.

"Hide me Ash, I don't want her to see me." By Cynthia reaction the girl must have been Lydia and on closer inspections he could quite easily see the resemblance between the two. It looked like Lydia was having trouble with her key card. Ash noticed Lydia turned her head and approached Susan.

"Excuse me miss, but my Key card doesn't seem to be working, Oh hello, there, are you by any chance Ash Ketchum?"

Ash eyes locked onto Lydia, and noticed her grey eye was locked onto him, Ash assumed both her eyes were locked onto him, but one side of her face was covered by her hair, very much how Cynthia styled her hair. "So that must mean, my sister is around, hey you what are you doing, hiding behind Ash, aren't you going to greet your big sister?"

Cynthia moved out from behind Ash, and looked at her sister. "You might be happy to see me, but the feeling not mutual I assure you. Come on Ash, Sabrina let's go."

Lydia suddenly blocked the way out, Susan was busy trying to sort out Lydia's Key card. "Hold it right there you little brat! I came all the way over from Sinnoh to see you, and this is how you treat me!"

By this time Cynthia had grown more confident and was stood in front of her sister. "Oh don't give me that crap! We already know why you're here, so cut the crap about you're here to see me, the only reason you're here, is to take part in an exhibition match against Lance to open the Silver Conference, you can't deny it Mr Goodshow has already told us."

Lydia narrowed her eyes. "Listen here brat, yes I did come to take part in a match, but I also came to see how my little sister was, after all you're competing in the Silver conference and I wanted to support you. I had thought you would have grown up a little, but it seems you're still the spoilt little attention seeking brat you were before you left Sinnoh."

Cynthia suddenly lost it and slammed into her sister. The attack had been so sudden that both girls were now on the floor with Cynthia straddling her sister and hitting her. "You bitch! How dare you! The only one who got all the attention was you! Mum and Dad never had time for me, I wasn't spoilt like you. I was never bought a new toy, all I had was your broken hand me downs, and then when I had done something good, and achieved something, you always had to grab the spotlight and one up me. Grandma is the only one who understands what I went through, living in your poxy shadow, you bitch!"

Ash was trying to break up the fight between the two sisters, but as he did, Cynthia suddenly lashed out, and Ash slammed into the nearby wall and slumped onto the floor as his world suddenly turned black.