"Hawlucha! High Jump Kick!"

"Luchaaa!" Hawlucha called as he threw a kick at a nearby rock. The rock was shattered by the force of the kick, crumbling into tiny pebbles.

Korrina grinned. Hawlucha would be a great asset to her once she became the Gym Leader of Shalour city.

Speaking of the gym… they would be back soon, and she couldn't help but think what her grandfather would have to say. She hoped he would be proud that she had finally achieved Mega Evolution… and yet she also dreaded what he would say when he found out that she was still unable to truly master it.

Would she even be able to master it? Her mother had talked about how Mega Evolution could be risky, and Rotom's information on the subject had done little to set her mind at ease. The memory of how Lucario had completely lost control upon Mega Evolving was still fresh in her mind.

Speaking of which, there was Lucario. They had been together for as long as she could remember. They were inseparable. And yet they had gotten lost, and she had no idea where he could be. It was scary, to be honest.

"Hawlucha?"

Korrina looked down to see that Hawlucha was now standing next to her, a concerned look on his face.

"Hey Hawlucha," she said as she crouched down to look at him. "I'm doing okay. I'm just… worried about my partner."

"Lucha?"

"Yeah," said Korrina. "I got separated from my partner, Lucario. Him and some other friends. We got attacked by a bunch of bad guys, and then we… kind of got sent flying out. So we're looking for him and some other friends."

"Haw, Hawlucha," Hawlucha said in understanding.

"He's a really strong and reliable Pokémon. Kind of like you, now that I think about it."

"Lucha," Hawlucha said, his face turning red.

"Yeah, you're welcome," Korrina said with a chuckle. "Anyway, I worry about him. I know he can take care of himself, but being away from him for so long… it kind of scares me."

Hawlucha frowned as he looked at her trainer. In the short time he had known her, she had always seemed so confident and energetic. But now she was showing a more vulnerable side of herself, one that was worried about a partner who was lost.

He then put his hand on her arm, taking her by surprise.

"Haw Hawlucha! Hawlucha!"

Korrina didn't really understand what he was saying, but she got the general meaning of what he was trying to convey.

"Thanks," she said, smiling once again. "And you're right. I can't give up yet!"

Hawlucha nodded. He was happy to see his trainer happy again.

"Okay!" said Korrina. "Let's find Lucario!"

"Lucha!" Hawlucha declared excitedly. He was determined to help his trainer accomplish any goal she might have. And he was also rather curious about her partner, Lucario.

"Well, you two look like you're ready to go."

Korrina and Lucario turned to see Brock, Pikachu, and Chespin all walking up to the two. Brock had clearly finished packing his supplies, and the two Pokémon seemed eager to head out.

"Yeah," said Korrina. "We're looking forward to finding Lucario and the others."

"Hawlucha!"

"Sounds great," the older trainer said. "I'll bet the others are looking for us right now. We should probably get going if we want to meet up with them."

"Yeah, I hear you!" said Korrina. "Let's get going!"

The group cheered as they set off. They didn't really know where their friends were, but they had a feeling they would find them eventually if they kept walking. After all, even though they had a tendency to get into trouble along their journey, they had just as much of a tendency to get out of it… eventually. Thus, they kept walking, certain that things would work themselves out eventually.

As they walked, though, there was something that was nagging at both of the trainers currently present.

"So..." said Brock, "last night was a thing."

Korrina's face turned red. She had been trying very hard to not think about the previous night.

"Uh… well... I guess it was."

"Yeah..." said Brock. "So... are we gonna talk about it?"

Korrina looked away, unsure of what to say.

"Well... you helped me and Hawlucha. And I appreciated that. A lot."

"Yeah," said Brock. "I get that. I just didn't expect you to do... that."

"I don't know why I did that, okay?" Korrina said, perhaps a bit too forcefully. Brock stepped back a bit in shock, and even their Pokémon looked up in surprise.

"Don't worry!" she said quickly. "Nothing you guys need to worry about! Just some discussions between trainers!"

Chespin and Hawlucha raised an eyebrow, though they quickly went back to walking. Pikachu shook his head and joined the others, leaving the two trainers alone to talk.

"Sorry about that, Brock," said Korrina. "To be honest, I've never really been that good with people. Before you guys, I mostly just hung out with Lucario. Mom was too busy with her Champion duties and her investigations to spend a lot of time with me. Verity sometimes spent time with me, but we've always had different interests, so she usually did her own thing. And Astrid..."

"Yeah," said Brock, "the less said about her, the better."

Korrina couldn't help but chuckle at that.

"Anyway, I think I get the picture," said Brock. "So, I'm guessing you didn't meet a lot of other people?"

"Yeah," said Korrina. "I've gotten better ever since I started on my journey. Meeting other trainers, winning all those battles, joining you guys… it's all been amazing. But I'm still learning a lot, and sometimes things happen and… I dunno, I just do what feels right."

"I see," said Brock, his face growing slightly red. "So… that felt right?"

Korrina silently prayed to Rayquaza that she would be swallowed up by the ground so she wouldn't have to answer any more questions. Alas, the earth beneath her remained undisturbed.

"I… guess?" she said. "I mean… you're really nice, and you're always so helpful to everyone. And you helped me a lot yesterday. So, in a way, I guess I felt like I needed to thank you somehow."

"Okay," Brock said, somewhat unconvinced by the explanation. Still, he looked downwards, unsure of what else to say. Korrina did the same, and the two of them walked silently, not quite able to break the awkward silence that had now taken over.

"Let's just agree to never talk about this again," Brock said finally.

"Yeah, just forget about it," Korrina said in agreement.

With that Brock and Korrina continued to walk down the path alongside their Pokémon. And both were quite determined to let that be the end of it.

Alas, both trainers had a sinking feeling that this would not be the last time that the incident of the previous night would be discussed.

"Piiidgeot!"

"Alright!" Ash said as Pidgeot stretched her wings. "Looks like you're ready to fly again!"

The bird Pokémon chirped happily as she gave a flap. She was happy to have regained her full mobility, and she was excited to go out to find Pikachu and the others.

"Your Pidgeot sure is a fine specimen," Meyer remarked. "It's good to see her healed up."

"Yeah," Clemont said as he observed Pidgeot. "She's clearly very strong, and I'm certain that her flying abilities are remarkable. How long have you been training her?"

"Well," Ash said as he scratched his head, "she was the second Pokémon I caught, so I've had her for a while. That being said, I actually let her go back to her original flock for a while to help with a problem they were having. But then she rejoined me right before we came to Kalos."

"I see," said Clemont. "So she's been trained by you, but also by nature. Fascinating."

The blond-haired inventor kept looking over Pidgeot, getting more impressed with each second. He then caught sight of the fossil tied around her neck.

"And this?"

"Some fossil that couldn't be restored," said Ash. "She likes it for some reason."

"Oh," said Clemont. "Interesting."

He then smirked as he pulled out a device from his backpack.

"And it seems like a most opportune moment to test out my most recent invention! The future is now, thanks to science! Clemontic Gear on!"

He then attached the device to Pidgeot's leg and pressed a button. He then pulled out a second device and activated it was well.

"Behold the Omnidirectional Super Sensitive Tracking Dish! It's specifically designed to enable a Pokémon to be fitted with a tracking chip, which will allow us to keep track of where Pidgeot goes. Thus, when she locates your friends, we will immediately know where they are!"

"Wow!" said Ash. "That is so cool!"

"Indeed," said Clemont. "The power of science is truly magnificent!"

After giving a quick look at the tracking chip and the tracker, Clemont looked up and gave Pidgeot a thumbs up. Satisfied, she squawked and spread out her wings. With a mighty flap, she pushed herself off the ground, flying off into the sky. Ash watched in awe, happy to see the bird Pokémon flying again.

"Do you think she'll find your friends?" Clemont asked.

"Of course she will," said Ash. "Pidgeot will find them in no time at all."

"Perfect," Clemont said as he looked down at his invention. "Now let's find them!"

Serena watched as her starter snuggled in Bonnie's lap. The little girl was absolutely fascinated by the little fire type, and Fennekin in turn loved receiving attention.

"You're such a cutie!" Bonnie said as she pet Fennekin's tail. "Yes you are!"

"Fenn! Fennekin!" the fox Pokémon said happily.

"You two really hit it off," Serena said as she sat down next to Bonnie. "You really like Pokémon, don't you Bonnie?"

"Yeah!" said Bonnie. "I can't wait to go out on my own Pokémon journey!"

"That sounds great," Serena said with a smile. "I bet you're going to be a great trainer!"

"Thanks!" said Bonnie. She then turned back to Fennekin and began to brush her ears.

"Hey, Serena? What's it like to be on a journey?"

"Oh, it's so much fun!" said Serena. "Me and my friends have been traveling together all over the place, meeting a lot of different people, getting to train all sorts of Pokémon, and having a lot of fun at the same time!"

"Fennekin!" Fennekin said in agreement.

"Wow!" Bonnie said in awe. "That sounds so cool!"

"I know," Serena said with a smile. "It really makes me wish that I had gone on a journey a long time ago."

"Really?" said Bonnie. "So what made you go now?"

"Well," said Serena, "to be honest, it's because of Ash."

"Ash?"

"Yeah," said Serena. "See, we used to be friends a long time ago. Then, we met again a few months ago. He had been on a journey of his own for a couple of years, and he… really inspired me."

Serena smiled as she remembered the events of the Silver Conference. The reunion with her childhood friend had been a surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one. And seeing him battle alongside his team had been truly unforgettable. So much so that she had cheered on him even when he was battling against Calem, her own cousin.

Ash was…

"Is he your keeper?"

Serena was snapped out of her thoughts by Bonnie's question.

"W-what?" she asked as she turned to look at the blonde haired girl.

"Is Ash your keeper?" said Bonnie. "Is he the one who's going to take care of you?"

Serena's face turned red as Fennekin began to laugh.

"What?! N-no! We're just friends!"

"Aw, come on!" said Bonnie. "You and Ash are perfect for each other! He really is a keeper if I ever saw one!"

"Bonnie!" said Serena, her face now burning hot. "It's not like that! At all!"

"Riiight," said Bonnie, clearly not convinced. "So Fennekin thinks so too?"

Serena glared at her starter, who was still rolling in Bonnie's lap laughing hysterically.

"I… Look! Ash and I are friends! Just friends!"

"Suuuure," Bonnie said as an amused smirk formed on her face.. "Well, if you don't want to do anything about it, be my guest. Just remember that if you don't go after him, sooner or later someone else is going to."

Bonnie pulled the now-calmed Fennekin off her lap and onto the ground, then got to her feet.

"Something to think about," she said as she walked away. Serena watched the younger girl leave, then turned to Fennekin.

"You could have at least tried to help me," she muttered. In response, Fennekin stuck her tongue out at her playfully. Serena huffed, but couldn't bring herself to be angry at the fox Pokémon.

"We'll see if I come to defend you when someone starts screwing with you," she muttered.

She then looked away and sighed. Her thoughts then drifted back to Ash. True, he was her best friend, and she'd always been able to count on him no matter what. But she'd always told herself that he was just that; a friend.

And yet, her relationship with Ash wasn't like what she had with any of her other friends. The fact that he had chosen to come to Kalos just for her was a pretty clear sign that he cared about her a lot, and, the fact that she had been so overjoyed to have him on her journey was something she had never properly considered before. Heck, she hadn't even known what she wanted to do with herself, and yet she happily followed Ash as he started his journey to challenge the Kalos league.

"Do I… like Ash?"

Hawlucha jumped through the trees, hopping from branch to branch. While it was hard to spot him within the leafy branches, Korrina and the rest of the group could still tell where he was, and he clearly was staying close to them.

"I'll bet Hawlucha will be great when you become a Gym Leader," said Brock.

"Chespin!"

"Pika!"

"Oh, definitely," said Korrina. "Having another fighting type on my team will be great for my Gym team!"

"Well, with a little training, I know he'll do great. And I think you'll be a great trainer for him!"

"Eh, I hope so," Korrina said, doing her best not to blush. "I guess I'll just have to keep training him and we'll see how it turns out!"

As the two continued to chat, they were unaware that they were being watched. However, Hawlucha was more perceptive, and he felt something wrong.

"Lucha?" he said as he came to a halt. He then narrowed his eyes and scanned his surroundings. His eyes then widened as a Shadow Ball flew towards him. In shock, he jumped away from the attack just before it hit and landed in front of the rest of the group.

"Hawlucha?" said Korrina. "What's wrong?"

Before the wrestling Pokémon could respond, a second Shadow Ball flew towards him. This time, he knocked it away before it could hit.

"We're being attacked!" said Brock.

"Pika!"

The Pokémon of the group immediately got into defensive positions. They didn't know who had attacked them, but they weren't going to go down without a fight.

"Alright!" Korrina yelled as she held her fists out. "Who's trying to attack us?"

"I don't know," said Brock, "but I have a hunch."

Sure enough, a pair of voices rang out.

"Prepare for trouble!"

"And make it double!"

A pair of familiar figures then jumped in front of them, followed by two Pokémon.

"To infect the world with devastation!"

"To blight all people in every nation!"

"To denounce the goodness of truth and love!"

"To extend our wrath to the stars above!"

"Cassidy!"

"And Butch, of course!"

"We're Team Rocket, circling Earth all day and night!"

"Surrender to us now or you will surely lose the fight!"

"Raticate!"

"Phantump!"

"Yup," said Brock. "These guys again."

"You bozos!" Korrina said angrily. "Why can't you leave us alone?!"

"Why should we?" said Cassidy. "You keep getting in our way!"

"Seriously?" said Brock. "You jerks are the only ones who ever get in anyone's way!"

"Pikapka!"

"Whatever!" said Butch. "We're here for your Pokémon!"

"You can forget it!" said Korrina. "Hawlucha! After them!"

"You too, Chespin!"

"Hawlucha!"

"Chespin!"

"Pikachu!"

Phantump and Raticate jumped out of the way before the three Pokémon could hit them. Phantump then sent out a volley of Shadow Balls towards the group, while Raticate jumped forwards with a powerful tackle. Hawlucha and Pikachu managed to dodge the attacks, but Chespin was not so lucky, as it was hit by Raticate. However, it was not enough to deter him, and the spiny nut Pokémon fired back a powerful Pin Missile attack.

"It'll take more than that to defeat us!" said Brock.

"Oh, we know," said Cassidy. "Trust us, we'll take care of that! Hyper Fang!"

"Energy Ball!"

Phantump fired off an Energy ball at Pikachu, who countered with a Thunderbolt. The two moves collided and exploded, knocking both Pokémon back. Meanwhile, Raticate clamped its fangs down on Hawlucha. The wrestling Pokmeon winced in pain, but shook it off before delivering a Karate Chop which caused his opponent to cry out in pain and release him.

As the two groups continued to clash, neither of them were aware of the large flying-type that had just taken notice of the battle. However, Pidgeot had no intention of allowing Team Rocket to take advantage of her friends.

"Piiidge!" she cried as she shot out a blast of heated air. The Heat Wave attack hit the Rocket Pokémon head on, knocking them back. Surprised, Brock, Korrina, and their Pokémon looked up, and grinned.

"It's Pidgeot!" said Korrina.

"Yeah!" said Brock. "Ash and Serena must be on their way!"

"Darn it!" said Butch. "We can't have the rest of the twerps interfering."

"Yeah, we can't!" said Cassidy. "Let Malamar out!"

"What?!" said Butch. "Are you crazy?! The whole reason we got into this mess in the first place was because of that psychotic son of a-"

"JUST DO IT!"

Not willing to argue any further, Butch released Malamar. The overturning Pokémon smirked with sadistic glee as it shot out a Psywave, knocking the rest of the Pokémon away… including its own allies.

"Well… at least he's enthusiastic," said Cassidy.

"Yeah," said Butch, the color slowly draining from his face.

Undeterred by the unexpected attack, Pidgeot lunged towards Malamar. The dark type smirked as its tentacles glowed with dark energy, and it jumped forwards. As the bird Pokémon slammed into it with a powerful Double Edge attack, Malamar laughed and unleashed its Night Slash at point blank range. Pidgeot winced, but did not yield.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Pokémon from both teams were continuing their battle. Raticate was now attempting to chomp on Chespin and Pikachu, while the latter had activated its Iron Tail and was swinging away while his partner whipped out a pair of vines. Not too far away, Hawlucha and Phantump were engaged in combat, though the former seemed to be having trouble.

"Lucha!" the red wrestler cried as his attack went right through his opponent, who laughed and fired a Shadow Ball into his face.

"Ha!" said Cassidy. "Your fighting type attacks are useless against ghosts!"

"Yeah?" said Korrina. "Well why don't you try this?! Aerial Ace!"

Switching tactics, Hawlucha rushed forwards and slashed at Phantump with his wings. The stump Pokémon cried out in pain at the super effective attack, causing his normal typed partner to look in his direction. However, this distraction gave Pikachu and Chespin the opening they needed, and they fired off a combination of Thunderbolt and Pin Missile which sent Raticate flying into Phantump. The two rocket Pokémon cried out as they collided, and they fell into a heap in front of their trainers.

"No! Phantump!"

"Raticate! Are you okay?!"

Meanwhile, Pidgeot was encountering a bit more difficulty than she had expected. Malamar was using its Psywave attack to block out her Hurricane attacks, and even send them back at her. Furthermore, the overturning Pokémon was extremely skilled with its Psybeam attack, Which Pidgeot was just barely able to dodge. Thus, the bird Pokémon was having a rather difficult battle.

To make matters worse, the tracking device on her leg was beginning to emit various sounds that were doing little to reassure her.

"Pidge?" she said as she glanced down at her leg. Unfortunately, Malamar took advantage of this distraction to grab her in its tentacles.

"Mal!" Malamar said evilly as Pidgeot cried out and struggled to escape his clutches. He then noticed the device on its avian opponent's leg. Curious, it used its psychic power to remove it from the bird Pokémon's leg. Curious, it lifted it up to its face to take a closer look.

The device then exploded.

Ash and Clemont had been following Pidgeot's progress on Clemont's device for a while, and the rest of the group had now joined them.

"Look!" said Meyer. "Pidgeot's stopped! It looks like she found something!"

"Maybe it's our friends!" said Serena.

"Yeah!" said Ash. "And they're not too far off!"

"Lucario, Cario!"

"Excellent!" said Clemont! I told you my Omnidirectional Super Sensitive Tracking Dish would be perfect for this situation! In a few minutes, we'll be reunited with your friends! Everything has gone according to plan!"

Unfortunately, the device chose this moment to begin beeping uncontrollably.

"Uh, Clemont?" said Bonnie. "Is your machine supposed to do that?"

"No, it's not," Clemont said with a hint of panic in his voice. "There's something charging extra energy into the system, which is causing the tracker to overload!"

"What does that mean?" said Ash.

In response, the device exploded.

As the smoke dissipated, the group was left covered with soot.

"Oh," Ash said before coughing out a puff of smoke.

"I think you might need to go back to the drawing board," said Serena.

"I just don't know what went wrong…" Clemont moaned.

"Yeah," muttered Bonnie, "it's a mystery."

Fortunately for Pidgeot, the distraction provided by the exploding tracker was all she needed. She slammed Malamar with a full powered Steel Wing, sending it flying downwards, right into the other members of Team Rocket. The group cried out in pain as they all collapsed into a heap.

"Aah!" Cassidy yelped. "What is going on?!"

"We're getting whipped around like Jessie and James… " said Butch.

Pidgeot was not done, however, as she flapped her wings with as much force as she could muster, unleashing a mighty Hurricane attack on Team Rocket. The duo and their Pokémon cried out as they were sent flying upwards.

"No fair!" they cried out as they blasted off. "This is only supposed to happen to those other bozooooos!"

"Phantump!"

"Raticate!"

The remaining Pokémon and trainers watched as Team Rocket vanished into the distance.

"They're never going to learn," said Brock.

"Pikachu, Pi."

"Chespin."

"Definitely not," said Korrina.

"Hawlucha."

They then turned to Pidgeot. Pikachu seemed particularly happy to see her, as evidenced by the fact that he immediately rushed up and jumped up onto her back.

"Pikachu Pikapi!" he said excitedly.

"Pidge Pidgeot," Pidgeot replied, happy to see her old friend once more.

"Pidgeot!" said Brock. "We're so glad to see you!"

"Yeah!" said Korrina. "So are Ash and Serena coming?"

"Pidge," Pidgeot said with a nod before nudging her head in another direction.

"Great," said Brock. "Then lead the way!"

A few minutes later, Pidgeot reached the site where Ash and Serena were waiting. Pikachu excitedly rushed off of Ash's back and jumped into his arms.

"Pikachu!" Ash said as he hugged his starter. "I'm so glad to see you!"

"Pikapi!"

"Ash! Serena!"

The two trainers grinned as they caught sight of Brock and Korrina. Excited, Ash, Serena, and Lucario all rushed towards them, and the whole group met together in a big group hug.

"Guys!" said Korrina.

"We were so worried about you guys!" said Brock.

"Oh, come on, Brock," said Ash. "You know I can handle anything!"

"Yeah," said Korrina, "well we're still glad you guys are okay!"

"Lucario!" Lucario said happily, ecstatic to be reunited with his partner.

For a moment, the four trainers and their Pokémon kept their embrace, enjoying the feeling of being reunited. Then, their moment was interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat.

"So, are you guys going to introduce us?"

Realizing that they were being watched, the group broke apart as Ash and Serena turned to their newest friends.

"Brock, Korrina, Pikachu," said Ash. "These are Clemont, Bonnie, and Meyer."

"Oh," Brock said as he walked over. "Hi, I'm Brock. I'm friends with Ash and Serena."

"Nice to meet you," Meyer said as he shook Brock's hand. "I'm Meyer, Gym Leader of Lumiose City. Of course, I've met Korrina before."

"Yeah," Korrina said as she walked over to the newcomers. "I've met Meyer before, seeing how he's another Gym Leader."

"True," said Meyer. "Though I don't believe I've introduced you to my kids."

He glanced over at his children, who regarded the new trainers with curiosity.

"So, you're Korrina?" said Bonnie.

"Yup," said Korrina. "And you must be Bonnie. You're such a cutie!"

"Aw! She thinks I'm a cutie!" Bonnie said excitedly.

Clemont chuckled at his sister, then turned towards Korrina.

"Nice to meet you, Korrina," he said as he offered his hand. "I'm Clemont."

"Good to meet you too," said Korrina as she shook his hand. "So, you're the inventor, aren't you?"

"Yup," said Clemont. "Also, I'm being trained by dad to be a co-leader."

"Nice," said Korrina. "You know, my gramps actually wants me to take over as Gym Leader one day.

As the two chatted, Bonnie looked at her brother, then at Korrina. She looked back and forth between them for a moment, then grinned as an idea came into her head.

"Yes! Korrina, you're a keeper!"

She then got on one knee and held out her hand for Korrina.

"Will you take care of my brother for me?"

The blonde haired trainer blinked at the young girl's request. Before she could respond, however, Clemont grabbed Bonnie and began to pull her away.

"BONNIE! How many times have I told you not to do this?!"

"But Clemont!" Bonnie complained. "You need someone special to take care of you one day!"

As the two siblings argued, the rest of the group watched in bemusement. Meyer just sighed as he looked away from the scene.

"Don't worry about them," he said. "They get like this a lot."

Having recovered from Bonnie's unexpected proposal, Korrina just shrugged.

"It's okay. It's not that much more embarrassing that Brock."

"Hey!" Brock said indignantly. "I am not that embarrassing!"

His friends turned towards him with a deadpan expression. To make matters worse, Rotom popped out of Ash's pocket.

"Oh, you are definitely an embarrassment to all of us, Brocko."

Realizing that there was no way he could argue out of this, the squinty eyed trainer turned away, a look of defeat on his face.

"I wish my siblings would do that for me…"

This last remark earned him several seconds of Rotom-induced pain.

A short while later, once Clemont had managed to restrain Bonnie, Korrina finally got her chance to show off her newest catch.

"So, this is Hawlucha, the forest champion," she said as the wrestling Pokémon struck a pose.

"Oh wow!" Bonnie said in awe. "He's so cool!"

"Yeah!" Ash said as he pulled out his Pokedex.

"Hawlucha, the Wrestling Pokémon. Although Hawlucha's body is small, its proficient fighting skills enable it to keep up with big bruisers like Machamp and Hariyama. While this is great for fighting, it's nasty if one of those bigger Pokémon falls on top of it!"

Hawlucha rolled his eyes, then turned to face Lucario. Ever since Korrina had mentioned him, he was curious about his trainer's partner.

"Lucha," he said, intrigued by the taller fighting type.

"Lucario," Lucario replied. He then struck a fighting pose, which Hawlucha mimicked.

"You think we should be worried?" said Serena.

"Nah," said Korrina. "I think they're both just getting a feel for each other."

Sure enough, the two stopped their poses and smiled at each other.

"I think they'll work together just fine," said Brock.

"Yeah," said Bonnie. "They're gonna be buddies for sure!"

Ash smiled. While the past few days had certainly been hectic, everything had worked out surprisingly well. Even though they'd spent some time apart, he was happy that they had managed to make several new friends in the process.

And they were about to make another.

"Hey Ash? Why is your bag glowing?"

Surprised by Clemont's question, Ash looked over at his bag, and noticed that there was indeed a bright yellow glow emanating from it. Intrigued, he picked it up and began to rummage around. Finally, he found the source of the glow. As he pulled it out, his eyes widened.

"Is that a Pokémon egg?" said Meyer.

"Yeah," he said as a grin spread across his face. "Guys! The egg is about to hatch!"

"Those two idiots failed again?!"

The figure snarled at the report lying on the desk.

"Why do I have so many incompetent trainers in my unit?! First those idiots with the Meowth, and now these two… Not even the Malamar I gave to Butts or whatever his name was can help salvage them."

The figure sat in silence, pondering what else could be done.

"And it always seems to come back to that group. The one led by the son of Red. A boy every bit as annoying as his father. "

The figure then grabbed the report and ripped it to shreds.

"Well then… If you want something done right… do it yourself."

A/N: Ominous ending!

Well, I've done my best to regain my enthusiasm for writing. I've been going through a rather tough situation recently (Which, surprisingly, has absolutely nothing to do with the current pandemic) which has kind of left me drained. Which I was already feeling even before that. So I've pretty much had to force myself to try and write something even though my heart's not quite into it at the moment.

Word of advice: If you feel you're having trouble in your life, therapy helps a lot.

Anyway, much like how I rationalized Brock not trying to flirt with Korrina due to her being a future traveling companion, I figure the writers did the same for Bonnie not immediately asking her to marry Clemont due to her being a (temporary) companion, and that would be awkward. But since Clemont and Bonnie aren't major characters in this story, well...

Anyway, some good news: The next chapter is one I've wanted to write for a long time, So I'll most likely be able to get it done reasonably soon. Don't expect too much from me, though. You know I'm not good at keeping a consistent schedule. Especially with my... issues.

Next time, we finally get to see what Ash's egg contains!