Author's note: Welcome back; there are just a few things I want to go over before it begins. First, obviously my message in the last season was meant to be taken with a grain of salt. The second is that the storyline for this season may seem forced or unnecessary, but I've had the idea for this season for quite some time; I just needed the right moment. Enjoy the story!

The Journey 4

It was a lazy Saturday at the Ketchum household. Xavier's father was out for work while he and his three best friends were home alone in their room. One month had passed since Mel had lost her memory, though ever since then, the other three had explained the events more than enough times to catch her up to speed.

Mel had gotten more accustomed to her new form over the days, and she had even discovered and refined some newfound abilities that come with a mechanized body. With help from Tera, she had learned to control her new strength and her improved senses. However, as far as the other three were concerned, she was the same Mel they had always known and loved.

"Wow, this is really interesting!" Shouted Tera, looking up from a book she hadn't taken her eyes off of for a really long time.

Everyone had wondered what could possibly have immersed her so much in reading, as they all knew Tera was never the type to completely indulge in something that didn't seem productive. Though she has been known to read from time to time, they've never seen Tera so interested in a book. Her reading material often came from Strudel, who herself enjoys similar hobbies to Tera's, and as such owns a lot of books on miscellaneous topics, but she could never find the time to learn to understand written English. Since she can't read, she simply gives Tera her books in hopes they'll be of more use to Tera than they are to her.

The three looked up at Tera to see what she was reading. Tera didn't entirely mean to say that out loud, but her friends' curious faces prompted her to elaborate anyway.

"It's just a book on supernatural phenomena; you guys probably wouldn't care about it." She said.

"Well, what are you reading about?" Asked Xavier, trying not to be unsupportive or apathetic toward his friend's interests.

"Well, this section is about how there's belief that those who have been to the spirit world before have the ability to travel between there and here at will. But, it might not make much sense to you guys." She explained.

With their curiosity satisfied, they all began to go back to their Saturday funk. But then, Ty said something that grabbed everyone's attention: "Wait a minute, Mel's been to the spirit world!" As soon as what he said sunk in with everyone, they all slowly turned their heads toward Mel. She looked around the room to see everyone staring at her.

"Wh... What? What are you saying?" She stammered.

"Well? What was it like?" Asked Ty. Mel continued to hear pressuring exclamations asking her to describe her experience.

"Uh, um, I don't really know. My memory of the place... It's as if it was just... wiped. All I remember about being there is that I had been there. I don't know if there even is a spirit world. What if I had just simply disappeared when I was in that volcano?" She said, fearing the disappointment that she had potentially caused.

Tera, upon hearing this, turned to Xavier and Ty and briefly asked, "Should we?"

"It's worth a try, it'll give us something to do." Replied Xavier.

"Yeah, I've been really bored lately. Let's do it." Added Ty.

Mel, who had no idea what everyone was talking about, spotted Tera waving to her to follow her out the door, with everyone else behind them. With her curiosity enticed, she hurried to catch up.

They had walked to the side of the house, which had a large grassy area and was being covered with direct sunlight, not too bright or overbearing but just enough to give a sense of relaxation and peace. Mel sat up against the wall of the house, facing the other three who were all in front of her, with Tera being the closest.

"Alright, I've read that entering the spirit world is a very personal and surreal experience." Said Tera. Mel smiled a little, understanding that this was all in good fun, as in playing with a ouija board at a slumber party.

"Now, close your eyes and clear your mind." Tera instructed. Mel obeyed, and she emptied her thoughts. She found that this was much easier to do than she had expected, given the environment they were in.

"Now, all you need to do is try and feel the spirit world around you and focus on trying to connect yourself with it." She continued. Mel did as she was told and tried to find what she had seen a long time ago.

After a bit of inactivity, Ty suggested something. "Try focusing on what you still remember about it. There has to be something you still remember, something you're still connected with." Mel tried, but she just couldn't. After a while, she had spent a lot of time in her own mind, and she had finally felt like she could connect. After she finally opened her eyes, she discovered she was still right where she started.

"Nothing, huh?" Said Xavier. Mel shook her head, once again in fear of causing disappointment. None of them could say they were surprised, as they never actually believed such a place could exist, but at least they could say they had done something interesting that day. They all went inside and back into Xavier's bedroom. It didn't take very long for them to return to doing nothing.

Eventually, nightfall came and they all quickly became very tired. Ever since Xavier had adopted three pups, he had needed to make changes to his own room to accomodate their needs. He tried looking for items at the pet store, but he felt very uncomfortable with the idea of using them, as he really considers them all best friends, not at all as pets. Mel, Ty, and Tera sleep on an old comforter Xavier had found, which was laid out underneath his bed.

As each of them turned in for the night, Mel laid down but couldn't stop thinking about the spirit world Tera had talked about. What if it was real after all? What if there was life after death? Could that mean it was possible to communicate with everyone they've ever lost? All these questions buzzed in her mind, and she had difficulty falling asleep at first, but she eventually found herself dozing off.

Her eyelids shut slowly, and once they did, a brilliant, brief flash of white light startled her awake. She jolted upwards, hyperventilating. As she frantically looked around the room, she saw that no one else noticed, as they were all still asleep. She quickly brushed it off as some sort of a dream. She fell back asleep when it happened again. She snapped back awake, but was slightly more calm this time. She was very confused, and she had no idea what was going on or why this was happening. She sat upward, staring at nothing, breathing heavily for a very long time, when she finally thought about trying to go back to sleep again. She didn't even have to fall asleep for it to happen again. This time, however, was different. She felt the light completely engulf her, and she was overcome with brightness, and when she woke up, she had no idea where she was.

Mel could feel her heart racing at light speed inside her chest. She was still breathing heavily, and she continued to turn her head erratically, desperate to get her bearings. She was standing on what felt like stone or concrete. She couldn't see very well, as her surroundings were shrouded in a white mist. She looked up and noticed a bright blue sky with a bright, shining sun. Under all of her wonder as to how she got to where she was, she was wondering how it was sunny out when she last remembered it being nighttime.

Mel looked down at herself for a brief moment, but was dumbfounded to discover that she no longer had any metal in her body. Curious, she also lifted her paw to her eye, and soon discovered that her scar was gone, too. She had no idea what to make of this; she wasn't entirely happy about the transformation, but she wasn't disappointed. She just felt neutral.

As she continued to look around, she noticed something a few yards away: a white staircase, going up into the sky. Without thinking, she walked toward it. As she took her first steps in the place, she noticed she had suddenly became a lot lighter. She felt as if she were on the moon, and that she could jump ten feet into the air.

As she walked forward, she found that the mist was cool to the touch, and it felt like a nice, cool breeze as she continued forward. When she reached the base of the staircase, she noticed that the steps themselves appeared to be made out of the mist, giving a sort of dry ice look. She gazed upward to where the stairs might be leading, but found nothing but clouds in the sky. She stepped onto the first, and the feeling was indescribable; it were as if she were walking on air. Climbing the stairs was a lot easier than she had been anticipating, and with how light she was, she could leap upward with grace. The whole thing to her seemed oddly familiar.

As she neared what appeared to be the end of the staircase, she could now see where they were leading: to a giant platform, a massive cloud in the sky that she could see was what the mist was coming off of. When she finally reached the top, she saw something truly remarkable.

She saw dogs; way too many to count. Big ones... small ones... there was a whole whirlwind of activity on the cloud, completely invisible from the bottom. The cloud itself stretched out seemingly indefinitely in every direction. It was easily enough to take her breath away.

She had to stand back and contemplate if what she was perceiving was real. Perhaps this was all a dream. As she was thinking, something happened that would throw all of her doubts away. She spotted someone very familiar walking lightly and elegantly toward her in the distance. Instinctively, she stepped onto the cloud and walked toward them. But when she got close enough to make out a face, her heart melted when she saw who it was.

"Blake!?" Mel shouted with tears of joy. She ran to him and squeezed him as hard as she could.

"The one and only!" He responded, hugging her back.

"Oh, Blake, I've missed you so much! I have a lot to tell you and a lot to ask! But first, where are we?" Asked Mel

Blake laughed a little and responded, "Mel, we're in the spirit world!"