Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any shape or form, but if I did, Ash would have gotten treated way better, and he would've learned Aura instead of being regressed to being a newbie all the time with each region. Yes, as with my other stories, I am indeed having Misty's parents die when she and her sisters were little instead of them abandoning the four sisters.

Guest reviewers:

Duck: Oh, that is a good idea, and I will do it, just much later, since I have so many stories right now.

Chapter 12: An old friend returns

At the Cerulean Gym, there was uneasiness inside the Gym between the three Sensational Sisters and the Water-Type Pokémon that resided in their home. "I'm starting to become worried," began Violet as she prayed nothing terrible had happened to Tracey and Misty since they were visiting Ash. Then again, the three were the ones who suggested it because it wasn't exactly healthy to remain cooped up in one place almost 24/7.

"You're feeling that way too, huh?"

Violet then turned to her sister Lily; she too had the expression of fear because part of her didn't want a repeat of what had happened to their parents. "Yeah, I mean sure we were the ones who asked Misty to look after the Cerulean Gym while we traveled the world… now I'm starting to wish we didn't," she replied to the violet-haired girl.

All Violet did was nod her head, thinking about the very moment when they contacted the Viridian City Pokémon Center after hearing how their sister returned from Johto with Ash and Brock. "If we had known that our little sister was actually developing feelings for Ash sooner than, maybe we could've found a way to pull some strings to let her continue traveling," she informed Lily as the two of them then noticed that Daisy was joining them.

"Hard to believe something like that would happen, then again it wouldn't be the first time," began Daisy as she reflected upon what their mother Julia told her years ago about how she met their father Kirk, which led to the two falling in love with one another.

"Huh?" wondered Lily as she and Violet turned towards Daisy, somewhat confused about what their blonde-haired sister meant when she said that. "What do you mean?"

"To be honest, I always knew Ash and Misty would end up together someday as the way they acted when she arrived at the Gym just when we were going to give him the Cascade Badge actually felt very familiar," she explained to the two, raising their curiosity even more than ever. "From what I remember, mom told me that when she met dad, she actually didn't like him at first."

"Wait, mom said that?" asked Violet as she was left speechless at hearing this revelation. Even Lily didn't know what to say when learning this, but they knew Daisy was one who knew more about romance than the two of them even before starting her relationship with Tracey.

"Yes, I couldn't believe it at first either when I learn that and I was little at the time too," answered Daisy, giving a sad smile as it seemed that Ash and Misty's relationship slowly blossoming wasn't just by mere coincidence as they initially thought. Still, instead, it's like history was repeating itself. "In a way, that moment with our sister before her battle with Ash was showing she's actually becoming more like our mother."

There was nothing but silence coming from Lily and Violet; the more they thought about it, the more it started to make sense. "I had no idea that our mom was actually like our baby sister when she was that age," said Violet as she took this in, but she still smiled. As they were now all reflecting upon the times, they should've been there for Misty and how they had caused Misty to leave on her journey to become the greatest Water-Type Pokémon Trainer. But they knew that this also ultimately led Misty into meeting Ash when he started as a trainer.

"I just hope that our baby sister is okay," Lily said with a smile forming on her face thinking about Misty, and was hoping she would get in touch with them soon.

Daisy nodded, agreeing with her sister, hoping that Tracey would also call her right about now. "Yeah, I know the feeling, but I'm sure that everything is okay," Daisy said, looking at her two sisters. "I'm sure Ash is looking after our baby sister."

Meanwhile, Ash and the others were now looking at Iris, seeing she was thankfully still passed out when Ash shocked her. However, they are happy to see that Iris was no longer transforming into a hybrid, but how would she take it.

Ash sighed as she then looked at Mallow and Anabel. "I have no idea what Iris will do when she wakes up, so we need to all get ready for anything," Ash said, frowning as she then looks to Cilan.

Cilan sighed, looking at Iris before turning his attention to the Pikachu girl looking at him. "Yeah, don't worry, Ash, I'm hoping that she will still have her mind."

Anabel saw the look that Cilan had and knew this was something he hated to watch. "Look, she's not fully transformed, so Iris should be okay, Cilan."

"Yeah, look, I hate what's going on, but we still need to find Tracey and the others who might be within this forest and tell them to leave," Ash said, looking back to Mallow and then to Anabel.

Anabel nodded, knowing that they had to act fast before they changed as well. "So Mallow, what Pokémon have you become?" Anabel asked as she knew that they never got an answer.

Mallow smiled and soon laughed, knowing that Iris cried, stopped her from telling them. "Oh, right, sorry about that; yeah, you see, this Pokémon I've become is from my home region. I'm a Steenee now."

When hearing this from Mallow, they all looked at the girl from Alola, shocked to discover this new Pokémon. "Wow, Alola sounds like an amazing place Mallow."

Mallow smiled, knowing there is a chance she might never see her home region again as she looked at her arms. "Yeah, it is, but I guess I might never get the chance to see it again now," she said as she sat down on a nearby log.

Everyone was silent at this as they turned to look at Iris. "We need to find out what's doing this," Cilan said, speaking up as both Ash and Mallow looked to Cilan.

Anabel soon nodded her head as well, knowing that they can't give up without finding what's causing this in the first place. She knows that they needed to discover what's transforming everyone within the forest into Pokémon hybrid girls and then destroy it. "We need to look for what's doing this you lot."

"But Anabel, how can we find it?" Mallow asked, looking to the still transforming girl with concern. "We have no idea what to even look for or how to stop it."

"I hate to say it, but Mallow is right. Even Carol and Lisa have no idea what caused this to happen to them," Ash said, knowing that they needed to watch their backs. "But that's not the worst thing," Ash said, now thinking about the other female hybrids living within this cursed forest.

"What could be worse than turning into hybrids?" Mallow asked with a huff in her voice.

Ash looked at Mallow with a frown on her face and looked around them, making sure they are alone. After checking to make sure no hybrids were listening in on them, Ash decided to speak up to her friends. "That our minds could go before we find what's doing this, or the other hybrids that live here find out what we're doing."

Hearing this caused the others to grow more concerned at what Ash told them, which meant they all needed to be even more careful now. "We will find out what's doing this and end it," Cilan said, speaking up as his friends all looked at him.

Anabel bale smiled before she nodded her head in agreement with Cilan. "Yeah, you're right, Cilan. We'll find a way to undo this and make sure that this never happens to anyone else."

"Okay then," Ash began as she looked at everyone she knew that they all needed a plan before finding what caused them to become hybrids. "Let's first find the rest of our friends."

Cilan nodded, but he wished that they had a map to know where they should head. "Okay, then we need to wake Iris up first," Cilan said as he moved closer to the girl.

"Yeah, but still watch out, Cilan. We have no idea how she will act when she finds out what's happening to her," Ash said, warning Cilan, knowing that they still had no idea if Iris was still herself.

Cilan then nodded, knowing that Ash was right, as he backed away a little from Iris and watched her beginning to wake up, as Iris looked around. "Ow, my head..." Iris said, groaning as she rubbed her head.

"Iris, are you okay?" Cilan asked, looking at the dragon trainer seeing the concern in her eyes.

However, Iris looked behind and noticed her tail and wings and sobbed. "No, why did this have to happen," she said as Ash moved over to her.

"Iris, look, I know this sucks, but you need to make sure that you don't panic. It could cause you to start transforming again," Ash said, warning her with a worried look.

Iris looked at the Pikachu girl and nodded, knowing that if she began to panic, her transformation would start, and this time, Ash might not have the chance to stop it. "Okay, Ash, I understand," Iris said, making sure she didn't panic.

Anabel smiled as she looked at Ash; despite all that's happened to everyone Anabel still loved Ash, and she didn't care if she was not only a girl. She didn't care if Ash was now a Pikachu hybrid, Anabel still loved Ash, and she knew that she wasn't the only one.

Mallow smiled as well, looking at the Pikachu girl before hearing something talking to her. "Come on, you should mate with Ashley and Anabel; you know that you want to Mallow." the voice seductively whispers in her ear. "Forget about being stupid old humans and embrace your new life here within the forest."

Mallow began shaking her head, wanting to get this voice out of her head, knowing it wasn't anything good. "No, I won't leave me alone!" Mallow thought as she pushed the voice away.

Ash looked at Mallow and knew what was going on as she soon heard the voice in her head. "You see, Ashley," it began with glee. "There is no fighting this, so why don't you go back to how you were before?"

"Because I know this is not how we're are supposed to be, as stupid female hybrids," Ash thought, speaking to the voice within her mind knowing she wasn't going to let it take over again. "I won't give in to you no matter what. I'll keep on fighting and save my friend from this damn forest."

However, Ash thought that she would hear something from the voice that they wouldn't want to change back, or that it couldn't happen. "Oh, Ashley, you still don't understand. It would have made it better if you stayed like your mates, but I guess you have to be that stubborn, I guess."

Ash only scowled at the inner voice; she was sure that she wouldn't let this forest and its cures win if it were the last thing she would do. "I won't lose; I can't lose."

As this was going on, Gary Oak and her Umbreon were starting to make camp at another part of the forest, although the spikey-haired trainer from Pallet Town still couldn't stop thinking about the fact she was transforming into the hybrid right now. "How am I going to explain this to my grandfather," she muttered to herself, cursing at the current predicament she has gotten herself into right now.

Nearby, Umbreon looked at his trainer and observed the form he was now in with concern on his face the more he examined her. 'Just try to stay calm,' he told Gary, knowing that it wouldn't get them anywhere by panicking but then again, the brown-haired young trainer turned Pokémon Researcher wasn't one actually to panic anyway.

"I know that I can't help but think about the voices I heard… especially when I was transforming."

There was nothing but silence coming from the Dark-type looking at her, still unsure what to say regarding the voices Gary mentioned to him. "Then there's that girl who wanted me to become her mate to take into account," she continued as she remembered the encounter with Zoey earlier and wondered what she looked like before becoming a hybrid. "I wonder what happened to her beforehand. I mean, there wasn't any sign of a type of gas or anything else that could cause this."

'You're right about that,' added Umbreon after thinking this through and how his trainer made a very valid point, it made them frown the more they reflected on the moment at hand. 'Did you hear any voices you recognized?'

All Gary did was shake her head, knowing it didn't sound like Misty, Dawn, or even Jessie or Cassidy, not even Ash's mother, Delia. "Sadly no, although I have a feeling that whoever spoke to me most likely had a hand in what happened," she told her Pokémon with a frown on her face as she knew there must be more to the forest than they initially thought.

After hearing this made Umbreon frown, even more, praying that the transformation that his trainer had gone through wasn't permanent, nor would there be any negative side-effects the longer she remained in the form in question. 'I see…' he spoke as it seemed he hoped there would be a way to find out more about this forest and potentially finding Ash or the others. 'What do you suppose we do?'

"To be honest, I'm not entirely sure right now," she replied to her Pokémon, hating the fact that she's even like this, to begin with, and mentally cursed whoever was responsible for it. Another thing she wondered was whether Ash or his friends had also suffered this fate themselves, and if the same process could affect Pokémon as well. "Normally, I'd know what our next course of action would but right now, I have nothing."

"Oh, come on now, being like this isn't so bad… in fact, it truly makes you look even better than before."

"Not again…" Gary started grinding her teeth together the moment she heard the very same voice who spoke to her when she started becoming the hybrid she was right now. "What do you want now?!"

"Isn't it obvious?" asked the voice with a small pout, sounding somewhat hurt with the way Gary was talking to her. "I just wanted to see how you're adapting to your new body."

"Huh, obviously not well!" snapped Gary, not in the mood right now as she already had enough to worry about without this female voice attempting to make Gary think otherwise to enjoy what's happening when there are more important problems that needed addressing. "Just look at what I became!"

"I am aware of that, but over time you'll start to enjoy it more," said the voice as it's clear it was hoping to see Gary eventually succumbing to the effects of the transformation. "Think about what I said, Gabrielle."

Gary didn't like the name she just received from the voice, even though she had become a female because of the transformation she went through. "My name's Gabrielle; it's Gary… Gary Oak, and don't you ever forget that!" she yelled in anger, but this time, there was no response, which meant the voice decided to give up for now. "I already had to go through enough changes happening to my body. I don't need to change my name too."

Nearby, Umbreon approached his trainer again upon noticing the expression she had, which was never a good sign. 'What's wrong?' he asked her, which caused the female hybrid to turn towards her Pokémon again.

"That stupid voice again, it couldn't have found a worse time to try and mess with my head again."

Umbreon didn't say a word; all he did was continue looking at Gary. "Look, it's time we got some rest… maybe it would help give us a better chance at planning things out more," she suggested to her Pokémon, and combined with the fact it was getting late anyway. Gary knew there's no sense in starting an argument, so their only option was to rest up before continuing their trek.

Knowing it's for the best, Umbreon decided to find a place near his trainer to rest up but wanted to make sure he's near enough so he could provide maybe some assistance to her if needed. 'Good night, Gary,' he said to her.

"Good night, Umbreon."

Although she still thought about what happened earlier on, it didn't help thinking on the matter too much, and she slowly closed her eyes. "Right now, I just hope nothing else goes wrong…" she told herself mentally as she dozed off into a peaceful slumber.

"No, I haven't heard anything from Ash or Gary lately," commented Professor Oak from his Pokémon Lab in Pallet Town as he was having a conversation with his friend Delia Ketchum. "Not even Tracey made contact ever since he left for the Kalos region, something that's actually making me worried."

"Ash hasn't called either, so I have no idea where he is or what he's been doing," Delia replied to her friend, thinking about her son and how she's showing concern for his well-being especially given that there's the matter of three thieves still coming after him. "They say no news is good news, but I do worry about him."

Oak only remained silent, especially as he knew how Delia felt when showing concerns for all of their respective family members. "I know that feeling all too well," he said to the brown-haired woman, especially given how he could imagine how Daisy must be feeling right now. "I've heard from the Cerulean Gym that Misty had gone there to check up on Ash."

"Wait, are you sure?"

"Yes, her sisters did give her permission to go there much like they did when she previously decided to pay Hoenn a visit," explained the Pokémon Professor, remembering what Misty told him after her return from the home region. Not to mention there's the fact Misty had to say goodbye to her Togepi, which had evolved into Togetic during that whole ordeal. "She mentioned that the tearful farewell with Togetic actually brought back memories of her parents dying."

Hearing this made Delia's eyes widen in shock. "Her parents are dead?!" she asked him in complete disbelief.

"I wish that I was making all this up, but apparently I'm not," he explained to his friend, remembering the last conversation he had before the events with the Mirage Pokémon and even when Ash eventually decided to take on the Battle Frontier. "Turns out they died when she and her sisters were little, something they truly didn't want to bring up to us even to this day."

Delia started taking in everything that Oak revealed; throughout the time Misty traveled with Ash in Kanto, the Orange Islands, and Johto, this happened to be one thing. "I see…" she said after a moment of silence; she partly knew why Misty never told anyone about what happened during her childhood since it wasn't something anyone would want to bring up at all. "Hopefully, nothing bad happens to her or even to Gary or my little boy…"

Oak again knew that feeling all too well; after all, it does make him concerned for Ash, his friends, and Gary whenever he didn't hear from them. "Maybe it'll be okay; they have their Pokémon with them, so they should be fine," he tried his best to assure her. Then again, he remembered when they joined with Ash, Tracey, and Misty at the Orange Islands following the events with Lawrence III before the eventual battle Ash had against Drake at Pummelo Island. "I mean, it's not like the world is any danger or anything."

"But still…"

"Try not to think about it too much, okay?" suggested Oak, especially as he was hoping he would be successful in assuring Delia that everything would turn out well in the end. Even his Rotom saw the expression she had on her face, knowing that she cared for her child-like any mother did, and partly wondered about what's happening with Ash and his friends in Kalos at this point. "Who knows, we might get a call from Ash before we realize it."

Delia soon had a smile on her face knowing that Oak was right, so she shouldn't worry that much about her son. "You're right Professor, I know Ash is okay," Delia said, knowing she just needed to wait for her son to call her.

Oak nodded to his friend, then looked outside, hoping to hear some news regarding Ash and the others, whether from Gary or Tracey. "I really do hope there actually isn't anything to worry about…" he thought to himself, hiding the grim expression that he had since it had been quite some time since he last interacted with Gary and Tracey.

Meanwhile, Clemont and Bonnie had stopped to rest. The two siblings were still shocked that they were losing so many of their friend's thanks to this forest. Bonnie taking deep breaths, soon looked to her brother with fear forming in her eyes. "What are we going to do, Clemont?" Bonnie asked, hoping that her brother had an idea.

Clemont looked at his sister and then to Zack's Swampert, seeing that they are at least safe, but none knew how long that would last for thanks to the residents that live here. "I honestly have no idea Bonnie," Clemont said before rubbing his head.

'We can't stay here,' Zack's Swampert told the two siblings hoping to find Iris Cilan and the others. 'We have no idea if any hybrids are watching us right now,'

Bonnie nodded as she was trying to fight back the tears now; all she wanted right now was to go home. "I want to go home, big brother," Bonnie said as she looked to Clemont.

Clemont looked at his sister; he hated what's going on and wished this didn't happen. "We will, Bonnie, we will," Clemont said as he looked around, knowing that while he wanted to find his Pokémon, he needed to get his sister out of this cursed forest.

However, the three could soon hear the giggled as Bonnie began to move closer to her brother in fear, knowing what the giggling meant. All three looked at the hybrid girls would come from, as they didn't like this as Clemont moved to protect Bonnie.

"Stop playing games and step out. We know what you are!" Clemont yelled as he gave a glance to Bonnie and smiled. "Don't worry, Bonnie, I won't let you become one of those things."

"Aww, you're no fun at all," the female voice said, disappointed as she stepped out from her hiding spot.

Once she stepped out what looked like a Hatterene hybrid, and she wasn't alone either, as the three noticed Gallade and a Gardevoir along with other Pokémon. Swampert looked at some of the Pokémon, knowing they are all of Zack's Pokémon; all of them are now Hybrid girls.

"Swampert, I'm so happy that we found you," the female Gallade said with glee in her voice as she jumped for joy, but while she was doing this, her breasts bounced up and down. "Now we can all be together at long last."

"Who are you," Clemont asked, looking at the two seeing some human hair on them; Clemont looked at the other hybrids seeing no hair on them.

"Aww, that's sweet; you have no idea who I am," the female Gallade giggled, looking at Ash's friends. "I can't blame you for not knowing who I am, after all. My human name used to be Zack, but after my rebirth, you can call me Zoey. T,"

Hearing this, Swampert, Bonnie, and Clemont looked at Zack, now called herself Zoey. T in horror, they had lost yet another friend thanks to this forest.

"Ashley sure is taking a long time," Misty said as she looked to her fellow lovers, knowing that it shouldn't take Ashley this long to get Anabel.

Hearing the concern in Misty's voice May hugged her while smiling at the Azumarill hybrid. "I don't know. She might be having a hard time if finding her, or they could be having some fun together."

Standing to her feet, Dawn nodded as well, knowing that Anabel most likely had all of her Pokémon with her to stop Ashley. "Yeah, but I have no idea why Anabel wants to fight this," Dawn said with a smile as she began to giggle.

Serena and Lillie smiled as they crawled over on all fours. "Hmm, well, I know that I can't wait to have another sister mate to join us," Serena said with a grin as she looked at Lillie.

"Yeah, I mean, I know she'll love once she sees and feels how good this new life can be," Lille added as she looked at Serena and kissed the honey blonde girl.

Carol and Lisa then looked at each other with grins forming on their faces. "But we just need to wait and see," Carol said while Lisa nodded, knowing that it was pointless running away.

"Yeah, I'm so happy that I was changed," Zoey said as she began making her way to Dawn and looked at her friend, now lover. "Hmm, I might have wanted Gary, but I think I have something better now," Zoey said as she moved closer to Dawn, while the others watched and smiled.

Dawn giggled as she watched Zoey moving closer to her until she was face to face with her former rival, now lover too. "Aww, Zoey, I'm happy that you get to join us too. I think that this has all worked out for the best, and if Gary does show up and changes, I hope you stay with me and us."

Zoey smiled at this as she nodded, and without saying anything else, the Buizel girl jumped into Dawn's arms and began kissing Lopunny girl with their breasts rubbing against each other.

Watching as Zoey and Dawn began kissing each other, May and Misty looked at each other and smiled, knowing that this forest had helped them in so many ways. "Well, since they are making out Mist, how about we do it while we wait for Ashley?"

Misty soon giggled as she looked at May and then jumped on the girl pushing May to the ground as the Azumarill girl smiled and then brought her lips onto May's. "Hmm, May, I love the taste of your lips," Misty said as she continued kissing May as right now, she didn't want to stop kissing her.

They weren't the only ones as Serena and Lillie found themselves continuing to kiss each other as well, although they, much like the other girls, were starting to feel rather lonely due to Ashley having left. "I do wish that Ashley was here to rejoin us," began the honey blonde-haired girl, wondering what's taking the raven-haired Pikachu hybrid soon long as it wasn't like her to be gone for this long.

"I'm sure she'll be back soon enough, and besides, she would want to be there for when our children are born after all," Lillie assured Serena, giving her a bright smile in the ensuring process.

"Yes, you do make a good point there, but it does worry me that she's not back yet. What if something happened to her that we aren't aware of?"

At Team Rocket HQ, Giovanni was waiting on the news from the task force he had sent to the Kalos region, especially regarding the rumors he heard about the forest. "What's taking them so long?" he asked with a scowl on his face as it was clear he's starting to lose his patience at this very moment and wanted results, more than what he could say for Jessie, James, and Meowth due to their incompetence.

"Maybe something might be giving them some trouble," came the voice of Matori, one of Giovanni's highest ranks members, as she looked at the screen. "Then again, it is doubtful that we'd be receiving any kind of resistance not since what happened at Johto and even Unova."

The leader of Team Rocket scowled, not too pleased with being reminded about what happened especially at Unova since Ash, Iris, and Cilan ruined his plans for the Forces of Nature in that region and the fact he felt like he had seen the boy before but couldn't figure out why. "Was it that necessary to bring that information up, Matori?" he asked coldly.

"My apologizes, sir," said Matori, bowing down to her superior and then turned back towards the screen as it's clear that they weren't aware of the reason for the task force to be held up this long. "Now that I think about it, I have received a report that Jessie, James, and Meowth were in the Kalos region."

The moment he heard the trio's names, Giovanni turned towards the woman standing next to him with the scowl still being on his face the whole time. "Is that right?" he asked, remembering the moments where he heard about them being in Hoenn, in Sinnoh, and even the Decolore Islands, yet they never once been able to set up shop in those regions.

"Yes, although I do have to wonder… why did you have them as part of Team Rocket for this long despite their incompetence?"

All Giovanni did was scoff. "I often wonder that myself, especially since I was half expecting them to end up in a situation where they can no longer cause us any problems," he replied secretly hoping that something terrible would happen to the three. Sadly when they were in other regions, though, much to Giovanni's disappointment, it never happened as they always came back alive.

Even Persian didn't care much for the trio or what happens to them. Given how they never once been able to accomplish a significant goal as they failed at all missions, the tasks leading up to the events with the Forces of Nature non-withstanding or counting in his eyes as the trio are failures. "Now that I think about it, I wouldn't be surprised if the task force hadn't come up with an idea to get those nitwits out of our hair for good by now," Giovanni continued, not even bothering to look at Matori.

"I see," she said to her superior, then another thought came to her mind. "If I may ask, how come you never sent Butch and Cassidy to perform the task when you knew full well Jessie, James, and Meowth continued to mess things up?"

"Butch and Cassidy, unfortunately, have other things to deal with at this moment," Giovanni told her before frowning, hearing their names. He kind of wished that he did send them given how they were more capable of handling critical mission tasks than Jessie, James and Meowth were, although the trio had done something right when they were in Unova before the failed mission with the Forces of Nature at least. "It's doubtful that they'd be available for it, nor would they be pleased with the idea of having to work alongside Jessie, James, and Meowth."

Matori stayed silent for a moment, thinking this through and knowing that Giovanni made a very valid point. "I understand," she replied to Giovanni. "Shall I head for the Kalos region then? To make certain everything is going according to as we have planned, I mean."

"No, not yet," said Giovanni as it was clear that Matori was one of his more useful minions, and it wouldn't be exactly fitting if she went there just to be defeated or even go missing. "For now, I need you for something… important in the future."

There was nothing but silence coming from Matori, although she's well aware of what Giovanni meant for something important since they rarely ever talked about it as now wasn't the time to do so. "Sir, I…" she tried to speak up only to be interrupted by Giovanni again.

"But nothing; I trust the task force would be more than enough to accomplish the mission even if those idiots are with them, and besides, it helps to give them something to do in Kalos aside from mess things up like they always do."

Once again, Matori didn't say a single word, and after a while, she bowed down to him. "Very well then, let's only hope that whatever they find, it'll benefit in what is to come," she said with a frown.

"It will, I'm certain of it, and it'll make up for us having been unable to use the Forces of Nature," Giovanni replied with an evil grin on his face, unaware of what exactly resided in the forest. Still, he believed that it could help Team Rocket's ultimate goal if it's possible to control. "If there's any consolation, I've sent Delibird to keep an eye on the task force and those idiots. That way, we'll be that much better informed of what lies within the forest."

Although Delibird was, after all, meant to be Jessie, James, and Meowth's direct deposit, Delibird still had other uses outside of that specific task. "Are you sure that's wise?" he heard Matori ask of him, not questioning her superior's decision, but at the very least, they'll know what's happening in the Kalos region should anything happen to the task for they sent there.

"Why not? After all, it gives Delibird something to do since it's clear that I refuse to take any chances, especially with Jessie, James, and Meowth being present there."

After taking some time to take it in, Matori knew Giovanni made a very valid point on the matter and especially as he started petting the head of his Persian. "There's nothing to worry about, I'll be certain of that," he went on, knowing how important this mission was, and he refused to see it ruined by anyone whether it be the incompetence of Jessie, James, and Meowth or otherwise.

'And if there was anything that dared to interfere with us or our plans. They're going to live to regret it,' added Persian deciding to have his say on the matter and remembered the moment he easily bested Pikachu in their battle back in Unova, wishing he could go to Kalos and do so again.

Giovanni only smiled, knowing the power would soon belong to him. "I will have an army," he thought, but he knew that he needed something to keep the hybrids in line.

Matori also smiled as she looked at her boss, knowing it was only a matter of time. "You're right, sir. I just hope that nothing gets in the way."

Giovanni nodded at what Matori said, still worried that the three fools would somehow mess everything up as they have always done. "No, not this time."

Meanwhile, back within the forest, Ash, the others stopped to rest and eat all of them, knowing they needed it right now. "This sucks," Iris said with a dissatisfied look on her face.

The others all nodded at this as they could see Iris looking at her still human hands; Cilan watched and became deeply worried for her. "Iris, we'll find out how to undo all of this," Cilan said with a warm smile.

Iris looked at Cilan with a weak smile, hoping that he was right; her gaze then looked over to Ash and Mallow and then to Anabel. "Soon, I will end up like Mallow and Ash, but how long do I have?"

The others all looked at her, each one of them feeling sorry for Iris right now. "Hey, Iris, can you use your wings?" Ash asked, looking at the girl as the Pikachu girl soon got an idea.

Hearing this from Ash, she and the others all looked at the Pikachu girl wondering why she was asking this. "Umm, why Ash?" Iris asked as she looked at her wings; she wasn't sure that she could even use them.

Taking a breath, she looked around before Ash looked to her friends; she hopes that the plan would work. "Well, if you could fly up in the air, we might know how big the forest is," Ash said, looking at Iris, hoping this plan would at least work.

"That might work in finding the others before they all start changing or losing their minds," Cilan said as he then looked at Iris, who was still unsure.

Mallow was now looking over to Iris, and then her attention looked at Anabel and Ash. "I think it's worth the risk in finding out. I mean, none of us are flying type Pokémon," Mallow told her, knowing that both she and Iris could be running out of time.

Iris looked at the others as she sighed; she knew that they were all right as she looked to Mallow, wondering how long her mind will last. "Okay, I'll do it, but you need to keep your eyes open."

Taking a deep breath, Iris opened up her new wings and started flapping them to gain momentum before taking off into the air. The others only watched as they all looked at Iris, hoping she would see something that can help them out.

Anabel looked at Mallow and Ash as she made her way over to the two. "So, are you both still feeling okay?" Anabel asked since she still had no idea when they might lose their minds.

After all, Anabel had no idea how long Ash's human mind might last, but she knew that Ash was also going to fight what's happening. "I mean, with everything that's happened, I wonder, is your mind okay?"

Ash sighed and nodded; so far, she hadn't heard that voice in her head for a while, but the Pikachu girl knew it would come back soon. "Well, I'm doing okay so far, nothing happening with that thing whispering inside my head."

Mallow looked at Ash with a smile until she heard a voice inside her head once again. "You need to help her out," it said to Mallow with a whisper. "Look at the pain Ashley is in right now."

Mallow closed her eyes, trying to push the thoughts that are coming to her mind. "Shut up and leave me alone!" Mallow yelled at the voice, not wanting to hear it anymore.

The others all looked at Mallow, seeing that there's something wrong with her, and they watched as she placed her hand on her head. "Oh no, please don't tell me that..." Ash said, looking at Mallow as she rushed over to help her. "Mallow, come on, you need to not listen to the voice."

"Aww, come on, Ashley, let her become free. Then you two and Anabel can have some fun together," the voice inside her said whispers seductively to the Pikachu girl, wanting Ash to give in and stop fighting this.

Anabel didn't like this; she knew that something was going on with them and wanted to help them out in any way that she can. "Ash, Mallow, what's the matter?" Cilan cried out, seeing something is happening with the two.

Ash looked back as she was able to fight off the voice better than Mallow is right now, and the Pikachu girl was going to make sure no one else would lose their minds. "Don't worry about me. We need to help Mallow before we lose her!" Ash cried out with some fear in her voice.

Mallow still had her eyes closed as the voice continued to whisper to her in letting go of her humanity. "Come on, Mallow, you need to let go, and look at how sexy Ashley is?" It told her again, as Mallow looked over to the Pikachu girl.

"No, I won't; this isn't right!" Mallow thought as she tried to push the voice away. Mallow could tell Ash was moving over to help her, but she was becoming worried that she might harm the group. "Please don't; I can hear that voice in my head."

"Mallow, you can fight this. Look at me, I did," Ash began hoping that he can help her before it's too late.

"Just look at her, wouldn't you want to mate with her? I mean, look at how sexy she looks," the voice said with another whisper. "I've already told you that they both need freeing from their human lives."

Opening her eyes, she looked over to Ash, seeing what the voice was saying. "Ash does look sexy as a Pikachu girl," Mallow said with a whisper, one that the others didn't hear.

Ash heard Mallow say this and was now becoming more worried as she gripped Mallow's shoulders. "No, Mallow, don't think about it; you have to fight it!"

Hearing this, now coming from Ash knowing she was trying to help, Mallow's eyes shot open, and she held her head in pain, still fighting off the voice. "No, get out and leave me alone!"

Anabel and Cilan both watched, hoping that Mallow can win this battle going on within her mind right now since the hybrid didn't know Ash had her mind.

Ash then pulled Mallow into a hug, hoping to help her fight off the voice she is hearing. "We know you can beat it, Mallow," Anabel said, looking at the girl feeling sorry for her.

"I'm okay now," Mallow said with shaky breaths and tears running down her face as she looked at Ash and smiled at her. "Thank you for helping me, Ash. I was so close to losing my mind."

Ash sighed, thankful that she had saved Mallow and that her mind hadn't become like many others within the forest. "We need to leave this place and soon," Ash thought now, hoping Iris would get back here and soon.

Then again, he and the others knew that Iris wasn't very good with actually flying, so she's going to need some time to get used to her new form, but on the other hand. Everyone needs to be careful as staying in their new forms for too long would mean there's an increased chance of fully succumbing. "I just wish I knew what we should do next…" Ash muttered to herself with a frown on her face, more so given how she hated feeling useless like the times she had gotten separated from Pikachu before this.

"Ash…"

"Huh?"

Seeing this got the attention of Anabel, Mallow, and Cilan as they noticed Ash's expression on her face. "Is something the matter?" asked the green-haired male from Unova, worried about his friend's well being more than ever. That and combined with the fact there's the chance of him eventually becoming the next to become a female hybrid and not knowing how or when it would occur.

"I don't know, I could've sworn I heard something," Ash replied to her friend from the Unova region, although there was something about the voice that sounded familiar to her and yet couldn't put her finger on it for some reason.

"Oh?" wondered Mallow as she, too, was confused by what Ash meant. However, she was still blushing because she was getting held by the Pikachu girl in question earlier on. "Was it anyone that you were familiar with?"

"Well," began Ash, having a feeling that he knew who the voice was and especially since it was someone whom he thought he would never see again too. "You can say that."

The remark made Anabel, Mallow, and Cilan even more confused than ever until they and Ash felt a slight wind blowing in their direction. When they turned around, they bore witness to a bipedal, canine-like Pokémon, with fur that is predominantly blue and black. The Pokémon possessed a short, round spike on the back of each of its forepaws and a third on its chest; it had red eyes, a long snout, and ears. It possessed cream-colored fur on its torso and blue fur on its thighs that resembled shorts. It had a medium-length tail of the same blue color as well. It stood on its toes rather than on its entire foot. It has developed four black appendages that hang down from its head, which rise when Lucario reads or manipulates aura, a special energy that it senses. "A Lucario?" began Cilan as he and Ash both recognized the Pokémon almost right away.

Examining the group for a few seconds, the Lucario sniffed Ash and then opened its mouth, revealing two pairs of pointed teeth, one in the upper jaw and one in the lower, in the ensuring process. "It's been a long time, hasn't it, Ash?" began the Aura Pokémon upon recognizing Ash despite her current situation.

No one said anything until Mallow was the first to speak. "Did that Lucario just talk?" she asked, left utterly shocked because never in her entire life has she ever met or even interacted with a Pokémon that could actually talk and especially one that wasn't a female hybrid either.

"You're not the only one who heard it," commented Cilan with a frown on his face; then again, it did bring back memories of the times he saw the talking Meowth that accompanied Jessie and James throughout Unova and the Decolore Islands. "Funny, because the only other Pokémon I know of that could do so was that Meowth we've seen with Team Rocket."

"Wait, a talking Meowth?!"

Cilan nodded his head to Mallow, part of him still thinking back to the encounters with the trio even to this very day. "I'll explain later," he told her, and his attention was back towards Lucario, especially given how it seemed to be glancing at Ash as well as know him or her personally. Anabel, on the other hand, suspected there might be a connection between the two, which the Pikachu girl wasn't telling them though it seemed it might provide some assistance in their desire to undo what the forest had done to them and the others.

"You know who I am?" wondered Ash, although something immediately clicked into the back of her mind since this Lucario was indeed talking. There was only one who had the capability as she remembered having met said Pokémon at Cameron Palace. "Wait, are you… Sir Aaron's Lucario?!"

Remaining silent, Lucario nodded his head; although he was dead, that didn't mean he couldn't come back to the land of the living to see how Ash and his friends were doing. "Took you long enough," said the Aura Pokémon in a somewhat sarcastic tone, but he's glad that the Pikachu girl was doing well, even though she and some of her friends had a situation on their hands.

The Team Rocket task force continued watching the moment Brook and Blissey were making out. "This is going to be good," began the leader of the group, especially as it would be interesting to see them exacting revenge on one of the trainers who interfered with their plans at the Johto region. "How are the preparations going?"

"So far, so good, and they don't suspect a thing."

"Good, then best we make sure that they don't spot us until we're ready," informed the leader as he wanted to make certain neither Brook nor Blissey heard them. After all, it was better to be safe than sorry should there be a chance of the plan failing.

"If it's the pitfall plan, I hate to break it to you; it's not going to work out," came Meowth's voice as he decided to inform his and his human partners in crimes' superior about the thing they've used many times before. "Trust me; we tried it so many times that I've honestly lost count."

However, this only earned him, Jessie, and James, a dark chuckle. "Did you think we'd actually stoop to something so pathetic?" he asked them in a sarcastic tone. "Besides, our plan is something that'll actually work."

As expected, the trio didn't take the insult well, but at the same time, they looked at Brook and continued having a chill down their respective spines. "You know, I'm starting to regret speaking up right now…" Meowth thought to himself, fear still inside of him the more he thought about what happened.

James decided to clear his throat since it was clear there needed to be something he had to get off his chest. "If you'll excuse me, Jessie, Meowth, and I need to talk in private," he told the leader of the Team Rocket Taskforce and the grunt that stood next to him. Not to mention the purple-haired man knew the expressions on Jessie and Meowth's respective faces ever since they found out one of the female hybrids was none other than Brock himself.

Nothing was being said from the leader or the grunt as they watched the trio leaving to find a place to talk alone, though it would give the rest of them at least time to properly plan out how to acquire the hybrids of the forest. "Uh, James, what's up with you?" Jessie asked with a confused expression on her face, even though part of her had a feeling she knew what it was.

"Well, there's the fact that one of the twerps, the older one who we encountered the most besides the one with the Pikachu, is now like this," James replied to his female partner in crime as he wanted to get the unrest inside of him out before anything else went wrong. "If that's the case, then what if the other twerps went through that same sequence?"

Jessie and Meowth didn't say a word for a brief moment, thinking about it until the male Scratch Cat decided to speak up. "Come on, James… don't say stuff like that!" he said.

"I'm serious," said James as he still feared the prospect of becoming a hybrid himself, and that was something he didn't want to happen. Much like how he's praying not to die either, especially given how he had a lot he had yet to do in his life before his time eventually came. "I mean, what if we get transformed next?!"

"What are you saying?!"

"Think about it. One of the hybrids is the older twerp from our home region of Kanto, right?" James asked of Jessie and Meowth, knowing that even they didn't want something like this happening to Brock or the other trainers, they've followed up till now. Then again, he didn't want such a fate to happen to the Pokémon Trainers either. Regardless of how many times their plans ended in absolute failure.

On cue, Wobbuffet came out of Jessie's Pokéball, which only served to irritate her more and more whenever he did so. "Wobbuffet!" he said whenever he popped up.

"See, Wobbuffet knows what I'm talking about!" added James as he was glad to see Wobbuffet agreeing with him despite the fact the rest of Team Rocket is more interested in acquiring these hybrids for their leader Giovanni. Despite the fact they were once human and not even caring if they all suffer the same fate as those who entered this forest did. "Seriously, what makes you think we're safe from this potential fate?"

Jessie was going to yell at James, but she began thinking about what he just told her. Deep down, Jessie knew that James was right; she could already see the concerned look forming on his face.

"Hey, maybe we should just leave," Meowth said, looking over to where Brock was seeing the Rockruff girl in a fit of giggles. Hearing this caused all three to look at what caused Brock to giggle until they all saw it with their own eyes.

The three noticed the other Pokemon that belonged to Brock; all of them had transformed into Anthro like Pokemon and smiled at their lover. The trio spotted Ludicolo girl sucking on Brook's breasts, making that Rockruff girl yelp and howl in pleasure.

The trio was all thankful they hadn't met a fate like Brock. "Oh boy, this is becoming more messed up," Meowth said as they noticed Brock's Sudowoodo join in with this mating session.

"Well, at least he has someone at last," James said, hearing the girl-like giggles coming from Brock right now. "Well, I should say she has girlfriends now."

Jessie and Meowth both nodded, hearing what James was saying while also knowing what Team Rocket is planning right now, as the trio stared at the task leader. "Okay, we shall capture them and all others in this forest," the leader said, smiling at the others.

The female next to him nodded. "Yes, sir, they will aid Giovanni," she said, looking at the hybrids and the activities they are doing right now.

The trio looked at the other members and wanted to ask something that's on their mind. "Umm, do you mind us asking how we are going to capture them?" James asked, looking at the two.

The two smirked, hearing this before looking at the three. "Oh, we have the means to get all the hybrids in this forest," the leader said before looking to the female Team Rocket grunt.

"No worries, sir, I know what to do," the female Team Rocket Grunt said, smiling before her attention turning to the hybrids that are still mating with each other. "I'll capture the ones here while you find the source that's changing people here."

The trio looked at the task force leader, seeing the smile, which caused the three to become more concerned. "Oh, Brook," they all soon heard Blissey cry out, making the three all frown once more.

Ash was still shocked to see Lucario was here. "Lucario, how are you here?" the Pikachu girl asked, now hoping he can help. "You died. I watch you die, Lucario."

"Wait, can he help us?" Mallow asked with hope, but seeing what had happened to Iris and the battle with her mind, Mallow was beginning to think it's impossible.

Lucario nodded as he looked at the four seeing and sensing the fear within Mallow. Ash saw Mallow's look and knew how she felt, as Anabel was also thinking this over within her head.

"Can you help us?" Ash asked, wanting to know the answer as well. "I mean, I'm not sure how much time Anabel has before her transformation reached its end, or it's finished."

"Ash, I'm okay," Anabel said, seeing the looking at Ash had on her face knowing that he is still worried about her right now. "I can't leave until we find out what is doing this to everyone here."

The Pikachu girl just looked at Anable as she sighed. "I know that, but the last thing I want is more people becoming hybrids," Ash said as she sat on the ground.

Anable smiled; she knew that Ash was growing more worried. "I know that you are worried about us, but we'll end this threat together and save the people here."

Cilan nodded, looking at Ash, but he was getting worried for Iris right now, knowing she was still undergoing her transformation. "Please be safe out there, Iris, and come back soon," Cilan thought.

Ash soon took notice of the look that Cilan had on his face, and the Pikachu girl knew what was bothering her friend right now. "Hey, I know that you're worried about Iris," Ash said, looking at Cilan, still seeing the concern.

"Umm, Lucario..." Mallow began as she looked at the dead Pokemon that is standing before them. "I mean, do you even know what is making us and others change?"

Lucario said nothing at first, as Ash and the others all looked at him, waiting for the answer he might have. "So, do you know what's doing this?" Ash asked as she looked at Mallow, hoping she can keep her human mind.

Lucario nodded, looking at the four knowing that they needed to get told about this forest, but Lucario watched at Anabel, seeing she was still transforming and knew she would full change soon. "Yes, I will tell you all I know before I must leave. Since my time here is short, Ash."

Hearing Lucario mention this had caught their attention. "Well, can you tell us?" they all asked the Pokémon, as Lucario nodded, now ready to tell them what this forest was and how to stop it.

A/N Okay, I am so damn sorry it's taken so long to update this chapter. Sadly I have been fat to busy to write anything else down for Anthro Forest. Why well, I have been busy fixing up past chapters for my other stories.

Moving on from that, I hope that you enjoyed this chapter, and also Lucario showing up to give Ash some insight about this forest. However, you're going to have to wait and find out in the next chapter.

No fear, I plan on updating again much sooner next time. At least that's what I'm hoping for my dear readers. So please keep on reading to see what will happen next.