Ash stepped outside after the League had ended and Serena had gone to sleep in their Pokémon Center room. The prize money was sent to his home, and he was 'cordially invited' by Bertha onstage to take on the Champion's League in Kanto, something that only a few years back was only a distant dream.. His trophy was placed carefully in his bag beside Serena's by their bed. But what was he doing up so late?

Well, as it turns out, he had been sent a message from a friend, though this 'friend' didn't exactly say who they were. All he said was to meet him outside the Indigo Plateau at 10pm, alone.

Clearly Ash was suspicious right off the bat, so he came out sporting all of his pokeballs but with Charizard out and by his side, as well as Pikachu of course.

He sat down on a bench, and waited for the other party to arrive. It took about a few extra minutes, but Ash was put at ease when he realised he could recognise the face instantly.

"Hey!" he exclaimed loudly, getting up. "It's you!"

Standing in front of him was a friend he made in Kalos, who had a ginger afro and an affinity for photography. Trevor.

Trevor smiled nervously back at him. His usual demeanor. "Surprise! But actually, that memo I sent was really suspicious, so I'm glad you actually gave me the benefit of the doubt."

Ash chuckled. "Yeah, I took out Charizard thinking it was a trap... Wait, where'd Charizard go?"

He turned around quizzically, to see his Charizard staring down another one.

Ash groaned. "No, Charizard! Get back here, that's a friend!"

Charizard, still facing the other with glowering eyes, lumbered back to Ash's side.

"Anyway," Trevor continued, "I have something to give you. I don't use it at all because I completely stopped battling now, but I can tell you you're gonna give it more use than I ever had."

Ash tilted his head to get Trevor to continue but the latter only reached into his bag and pulled out to objects which he placed in each of Ash's hands.

Ash choked. "Wait, for real?!"

Trevor nodded. "Really. I was gonna give 'em to Professor Sycamore otherwise."

Ash grinned hugely. "If you're sure, then thanks a lot, Trevor! I'll be sure to put it to good use!"

Trevor returned his smile. "Then he looked at Ash, unsure. "Hey, can i ask you for a favour?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Can I take a picture of your Pidgeot?"

Ash facepalmed but couldn't help but grin. "Sure, why not. Still working on that photo album?"

"Yeah!" Trevor paused and looked at Ash questioningly. "By the way, where's Serena?"

"She's probably fast asleep." Ash said. Then he added, "I hope so, at least. I don't wanna worry her about where I went or anything."

"Well, tell her Shauna, Tierno and I said hi!"

Trevor turned to leave. "You two seem like a perfect couple, though."

Ash smiled. "Thanks. I... I really can't believe it myself. But this has been the best year of my life. I owe it to her."

Trevor waved and walked off, leaving Ash to his thoughts.

With nothing else to do that night, he returned Charizard and headed back to the Pokemon Center to see his sleeping girlfriend again.

He tucked himself in beside her and fell happily to sleep.

Hey, everyone, Jay here! I bet some of you are wondering, why did you include this tiny segment as a separate chapter? Well, the answer is pretty simple. It felt nice to end last chapter so wholesomely but I needed this important segment to go between now and when Ash challenges Red (yes, that's right, I'll be skipping the Elite Four mainly because they're just a game buildup before the champion). Ash needed to receive this gift from Trevor so that he could take on Red. By now it might be obvious what that is, but it'll be confirmed next week..!

Anyway asides from that, I want to explain myself for last chapter because it was so long. let's break it down into the parts you may be wondering about.

Why bring Ritchie back? The reason for that was that I so do not like making OCs in fanfictions. It's hard enough to give them a personality that people will care enough to like, so that's why you saw Jeison and Stephanie (made up and based on both me and the friend who introduced me to Pokémon) get as little mention as i could. Ritchie is a character you all know from the OG days. His character development is already laid out on a plate, and it would be fitting to see him take on Ash as a rematch, so I made it happen. fanfictions have the word 'fiction' in it for a reason (Though I damn well wish amourshipping had continued...)

Reviews:

Magic135: I like the idea of Ash having an Eevee, I wonder what it'll evolve into.

Whew, I'm glad you said that. I cant lie, I wasn't sure if that scene was too forced, but I also really wanted Ash to catch an Eevee. It helped for Serena to have one herself :)

Be sure to write me reviews if you have any critics, questions or even praise, because even if I don't reply to them all, let me reassure you that I read them all, and I mean that. Those reviews mean a lot to me.

So anyway thank you for reading and i will see you in the next chapter! It's gonna be a big one.