Pokémon Trix: Tales of Soot and Ash

by Ohirume

Imagine a version of the Pokémon world where Ash Ketchum came into possession of the most powerful device in the world of Ben 10. Now imagine that written by some psycho. Yeah... Pokémon/Ben 10 crossover, sort of. Weird censoring. Tell me what you think. Due to this websites regular glitches/breakdowns, chapters will ALSO be posted on DeviantArt. Username: Ohirume1

59. Ch 53: Double2 - K-9 Training & Todd

**If you're being harassed by these ******** google ads, turn on Reader View. Activating it and results vary by device.

I am so sorry that I cannot offer any help beyond saying that**

Omega: *flips page before nodding* Huh. A K-9 unit training academy.

Nuevo: *relieved sigh* Finally something norm- *perks up, deadpans, and looks at Faux* The dogs shoot lightning, don't they?

Faux: *raises brow* What? The only Electric-type attack a growlithe can use is Wild Charge. That's an impact-based move.

Nuevo: … *facepalms*

Illavera: *looks down thoughtfully* Growlithe … *perks up* Wait, isn't that the same species as James's dog?

Mizuro: *smiles* Oh, right! Growlie! … *eyes widen* Wait, don't those breathe fire?

Nuevo: … *deep breath ending in an annoyed sigh* Yup…

I don't own Pokémon or Ben 10.

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Double feature 2!

Part 1: My K-9 Academia

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Electra flinched and started coughing as she put a paw to her throat.

Soot snickered before pushing a canteen closer, "Here."

Electra frowned, took the canteen, unscrewed the cap, and started drinking. After pulling the drink container away, she sighed, "This is a lot tougher than I thought."

Soot smiled, "Well, it takes a lot of practice. Trust me."

Electra grumbled as her ears drooped, "I know. I know. I just wish it'd go a little faster."

Soot smiled softly and patted her on the back, "You can't expect instant results. This is a kind of training, after all. You'll get the hang of it in due time."

Electra smiled softly and nodded, "Thank-"

"Up up up." Soot interrupted with a raised claw and a grin, "Like we practiced."

Electra chuckled, "Right." She looked back at Soot and-

"SPEARRRRR- Row!" A spearow in the forest cried out upon waking up only to be hit with an apple core thrown by another of their kind.

Soot smirked, "Not bad. You're learning faster than expected."

Electra rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, "Well, I've got a pretty good teacher."

Soot grinned, "Yvel right, ya do."

The Dark-type looked east and found the sun slightly higher up than when they started. She smiled and looked back at Electra, "Let's go ahead and head back. Dad should be back too normal by now."

Electra perked up, "Oh, right! The new form!" She smiled excitedly as her tail wagged, "How insane do you think this one will look?! Do you think it'll have water abilities like a vaporeon?!"

Soot snickered, "If it were that easy to narrow down, dad wouldn't have Quick Attack." She raised a brow; still smiling, "Though, since when were you so interested in the non-Pokémon?" She smirked slyly, "Have you actually found something to obsess about more than humans?"

Electra glared and pouted sourly, "Not funny. You know humans are still my favorite." She smiled, "But that's kinda why I like the non-Pokémon, too. Because they're so insanely similar to humans!"

Soot raised a brow while staring in confusion.

"I mean it." Electra replied before she started counting on the digits on her paw, "They all speak human, they have mostly the same figure as humans, they can't understand Pokémon, and that, uh …" She frowned and cleared her throat, "the … thing you told my brother and I about at the tribe."

Soot sweat dropped while smiling nervously, "Yeah. Really not what you expected a toilet to be for, huh?"

Electra groaned as her ears drooped, "Don't remind me." She smiled brightly and pointed at Soot, "But you see what I mean? Even with their crazy abilities and the way they look, they're all still so much like humans. It's almost like they're humans with types, right?"

Soot perked up and her eyes widened. She looked down thoughtfully and muttered, "Humans with types?"

Electra blinked in surprise before frowning, "Soot?"

The Bite Pokémon snapped out of it and looked at her with an apologetic smile, "Sorry. It's nothing." 'Though, we might have a new theory.' She smiled normally, "Let's hurry back. We don't wanna worry anyone."

Electra smiled and nodded, "Ka." She jerked before pouting in annoyance.

Soot snickered.

.

*Later that day

'Come to think of it,' Soot thought, 'she was kind of close with the whole "melting" thing.' She glanced up thoughtfully, 'Maybe that's why dad chose that name.'

Continuing on their journey to Cinnabar Island, Ash and friends found themselves walking through a forest trail … again. Though not everyone was feeling their best.

Namely Ash who had a hand on his head and a tired frown on his face.

Misty smiled nervously and sweat dropped, "So, uh, no hard feelings for leaving you stuck as a puddle, right?" She stopped, blinked, and deadpanned, "Y'know, part of me still can't believe I just said that."

Ash chuckled softly before looking at her, "Don't worry about it. If Acid Armor's personality was really as bad as you said, I probably might've done the same."

Soot smirked, "But now we know. Never bring up defense around him."

Pikachu and Clefairy nodded while standing on Ash's shoulders, "Agreed."

Brock smiled, "I'm just happy you're not mad."

Electra nodded before looking up thoughtfully, "Still, there's something I don't really understand about Acid Armor."

Soot looked at her in confusion, "Hm?"

Electra looked back at her, "Well, that device thing that lets him move. Why do you think he needs it? Muk can move around just fine, right?"

Ash translated for Brock and Misty before glancing at Electra with a raised brow, "Well, sure. But Acid Armor is humanoid. Pokémon like the grimer, slugma, and sandygast lines can't form working legs."

Electra looked at him, "But they can still move. You said you were completely stuck without that metal thing, right? Like you couldn't even slither?"

Ash and Soot perked up in surprise before sharing a look. Pikachu and Clefairy did as well. Brock and Misty looked at them in confusion.

Soot noticed and translated. The Gym Leaders perked up as well.

Brock looked down thoughtfully, "That's … actually a really good point. If a grimer or sandygast really don't have any trouble moving on their own, why does Acid Armor?"

Soot looked up at Ash, "Dad, what did it feel like when you couldn't move?"

Ash put a hand to his chin, "Well, if I had to put a word to it, heavier. Like a Pokémon in the area had just used a Gravity that was five times more intense than should be possible."

Misty raised a brow, "So, regular gravity was keeping you from moving when you didn't have that device?"

Ash looked down thoughtfully, "Y- yeah … that sounds about right."

Brock looked at the others; feeling unsure, "So if the earth's gravity is too much for Acid Armor, what does that mean about it?"

Soot frowned, "Or any of the other non-Pokémon, for that matter?"

Everyone else looked at her before looking down in a mild daze.

Misty perked up and looked back when her backpack shifted. The drawstring slid open as Togepi popped out and yawned while stretching his arms.

The Spike Ball Pokémon looked at Misty with a smile, "Morning meema." He perked up and frowned worriedly upon seeing her expression, "Meema?"

Misty smiled softly and reached back to pet him, "Everything's fine, sweetie. Don't worry."

"Stop thief!" A familiar voice called out.

Everyone jerked and looked towards the voice in shock. A large man with a huge bag on his back ran through a nearby bush and into the clearing. He noticed the group out of the corner of his eye and turned to face them; revealing a pistol in his right hand.

Brock, Misty, Pikachu, and Clefairy tensed up and grimaced. Electra and Togepi noticed their reactions before looking at the man worriedly. Ash and Soot's eyes widened before narrowing. They shared a quick glance.

Brock put up his hands, "L- look, we don't want any-"

He was cut off and flinched when he felt Ash's Intimidate trigger. He and Misty quickly covered their eyes. The man stared at the group fearfully and started trembling.

Without wasting a second, Ash kicked off and broke into a sprint towards the man; leaving Pikachu and Clefairy to drop from their perch. The Electric and Fairy-type landed and looked ahead in surprise.

Before the thief could react, Soot jumped out of the ground and put her forepaws onto his chest to shove him back. His eyes widened even further when he lost his grip on the firearm and felt the bag come off his back; both having phased through him.

Ash backhanded the falling weapon to the side, pivoted, and grabbed the bag. He skidded to a halt behind the man, set the bag down, and turned off Intimidate.

The man fell to his back right before Soot placed her forepaws on his chest. The man grimaced upon seeing the mightyena glaring daggers at him.

Brock and Misty perked up as the scared feeling went away and looked at the scene in surprise. Electra and Pikachu were already staring in shock, and Clefairy and Togepi were staring in awe.

"woah…" Misty said.

Ash sighed in relief before glancing over at the weapon. He stared at it for a moment before perking up in surprise and looking at the bag.

"Hold on!" The thief said frantically while looking at Ash, "This is all a big misunderstand-"

"Quiet." Soot said sternly; causing him to look at her in shock, "We already heard Officer Jenny. You're not going anywhere until she-"

"Uh, Soot?" Ash called out.

The Dark-type stopped and looked over at Ash. She perked up in surprise when she found him kneeling down in front of the weapon with the now opened bag lying next to him. The confusing part is that the bag was full of laundry.

The trainer looked at the canine in confusion, "This gun's fake."

Soot jerked and blinked in shock, "Heh?"

A whistle sounded from the direction the 'thief' came from. Everyone looked around in shock as a dozen growlithe ran into the clearing. Six of them surrounded the Gym Leaders and the shoulder riders, four surrounded Soot and the man she was pinning down, and one moved to stand on either side of Ash; all growling.

Soot quickly but carefully got off the man before glancing at him, "You were saying something about a misunderstanding?"

"Freeze!" Someone shouted.

Everyone looked over as two male officers ran into the clearing.

One cop ran over to prop up the downed man, "Hey, you alright?"

He sat back up and put a hand to his head, "Yeah, I'm not hurt. Just startled, really."

The cop looked at Soot. She tensed up and chuckled nervously; ears drooping.

The other cop glared and pointed at the trainers accusingly, "What do you think you're doing interfering with our work?!"

Brock jerked in surprise, "Wait, what?! We thought he was a crook or something!"

The 'thief' stood back up and looked at them; deadpanned, "I'm not actually a crook."

The cop who went to help him gestured to him, "He's a cop who's helping us train the K-9 police unit."

Ash tensed up immediately and looked around at the growlithe, 'K-9 unit?!' He shook it off and looked at the 'thief' while scratching his cheek nervously, "Oh. Sorry about that."

"Yeah, our bad." Soot said; startling the non-disguised cops slightly, "We thought you were the real deal."

"That's all the more reason you should've stayed out of this." Officer Jenny said.

Everyone looked over yet again as Jenny walked into the clearing. Brock perked up in surprise.

Jenny glared, "If any of this were real, you could have been in serious-" She stopped, perked up, and blinked in surprise, "Wait, Ash?"

The other cops, one of the growlithe, and everyone in the group -minus Brock- looked at her in surprise.

Ash blinked, "Uh, yes?"

Jenny smiled, "Hah! I can't believe it." She looked around and held out a hand, "Growlithe, stand down. These people are friends of mine."

The surrounding growlithe stopped growling and sat down without a second thought. Though one glanced back at Jenny in confusion.

The disguised cop looked at her in surprise, "Wait a second. Jenny, you know these trainers?"

She smiled back at him, "Yeah. They're the ones who helped me chase off those poachers in the preservation area and helped Tomo reunite with his birth parents."

Faux, Pike, and Gem: *perk up in surprise* Wait, what?

Shadow Pearl: *hand to chin* I do not recall that being the case.

The group -minus Electra, Togepi, and Brock- looked at her in shock as she continued, "I even heard from my third cousin, twice removed that they helped out at the hospital from that truck crash a while back."

The three cops looked at her in shock before looking at the trainers.

Electra blinked in confusion, 'Preser- what now?'

Togepi tilted in confusion.

Soot blinked in surprise before shaking it off, smiling, and walking up to her, "Freaking Yvel, it's been a while."

Jenny knelt down to pet her, "Yeah. I can't believe I ran into you all out here. Y'know, especially given the" She glanced at Ash, brought up her right wrist, and tapped it with a finger, "timing."

Ash chuckled a bit before smiling at her, "Yeah, no kidding. It's good to see you again."

Jenny smiled back, "Likewise." She waved at the Gym Leaders, "Hey Brock! Hey Misty!"

Misty and the Pokémon blinked in surprise before smiling and waving. Brock smiled and waved happily; albeit with a light blush.

"Wow," The Water trainer mumbled, "same Jenny from back then, huh? Go figure."

Brock perked up and looked at her in confusion, "Wait, you couldn't tell it was her?"

Misty, Pikachu, Clefairy, and Electra looked at him in shock.

"Y-" Pikachu stuttered, "You could?"

"I, uh," Togepi stuttered, "I still have no clue what's going on."

Misty looked down at him, smiled, and petted him, "I'll explain later, sweetie."

The six of them then made their way over to Jenny, Ash, and Soot.

Jenny smiled around at the group, "So what have you all been up to since we last saw each other?" She looked at Electra, "I mean, my cousin did say you had a second pikachu," She looked at Togepi and tickled his tummy with a finger, "But she didn't mention this little cutie."

"Priii!" Togepi laughed.

Misty smiled and petted him, "Well, this is Togepi. I found his egg in Grandpa Canyon before we met your cousin. He hatched about a week later."

Brock gestured to his Electric-type, "And this is Electra. She joined us a little while after we ran into you."

Electra smiled at the cop, "Pika!"

Jenny scratched the Electric-type under the chin, "Well, it's nice to meet you, Electra." She looked at the male Fairy-type, "And you too, Togepi."

Electra smiled blissfully in response and Togepi waved.

The cop looked at Misty, "And Grandpa Canyon, huh?" Jenny smirked and put a hand to her chin, "I don't suppose you were there during that thing with the aerodactyl, huh?"

Soot perked up in surprise, "Um, yeah. Same exact day, actually."

Ash raised a brow, "But wait, how do you know about that? I thought your relative at the dig site claimed it was all a dream."

One of the male cops walked up with a raised hand, "That would be because of me. I found a picture in an issue of 'Pokémon Times' and showed it to everyone."

Nuevo: *deadpanned* Pokémon Times…

Omega: *presses button on a remote as a videogame minun cry sounds out*

Seishin: *smiles* Hey, it made a comeback!

Ash and Soot's eyes widened, 'Someone took a picture?!'

Brock gulped nervously, "U- um … what was the picture about?"

Jenny continued smiling, "It was this really cool action shot with an aerodactyl fighting this really strong looking dragonite with a-" She stopped, her eyes widened, and looked at the watch, "green disk…" She stared at Ash in pure shock, "on its chest…"

The cop looked at Jenny in confusion before looking back and forth between her and the trainers.

Soot sighed in relief, "Oh, thank Arceus. It's just that."

Pikachu smiled, "Yeah. What a relief."

The cop looked at the Bite Pokémon in confusion.

Ash rubbed the back of his head while smiling sheepishly, "But, yeah. We have a lot of catching up to do."

Jenny blinked in shock, "Y- yeah … seems like it." She smiled and pointed a thumb back, "Well, how about you all come back to the training academy with us so we can catch up? You can join us for dinner."

Ash smiled, "Thanks. Sounds good."

.

*not-so-distant tree

"Woah…" James muttered while looking through a pair of binoculars, "hate to say it, but not bad twerp."

Jessie frowned; also looking through binoculars, "So, the Jenny from back then." She pulled the scope down, "Meaning she would have two reasons to arrest us if we're caught."

Meowth frowned; binocular-ed as well, "Plus it's lookin like she knows da truth about da Phantom, too." 'Not sure what she meant with the time thing, though.'

Growlie frowned and not because he was the only one without binoculars, "Which also means he probably won't have any issues transforming while she's around."

Meowth pulled the binoculars down and blinked in surprise, "Oh … right. I didn't think of dat." He translated for his teammates.

James removed his binoculars and sweat dropped, "Right…"

Jessie put down her scopes and frowned before glancing at James, "Maybe we should skip this one."

"Agreed." James, Growlie, and Meowth said in unison.

.

*K-9 academy

Jenny walked back over to the table with a small tray with various drinks on it. Ash, Brock, Soot, Pikachu, Clefairy, and Electra were already eating from their respective plates/bowls, Misty was bottle feeding Togepi, and two of the male officers who ran into the group sat across from them.

The third cop was tending to the growlithe. Not counting the one sitting next to the empty seat and who kept an eye on the newcomers.

Jenny placed the tray down in the center of the table before sitting down in the empty chair, "You all seem to be enjoying yourselves."

Clefairy nodded happily; still chewing.

Misty nodded, "Yeah, thanks." She pulled the empty bottle away and placed it back in her bag before setting the hatchling on the table.

The Water trainer pulled her plate closer before looking at Jenny with a raised brow, "Hey, so, not that I'm not grateful that you're here, but … why are you here instead of at the preservation area?"

Jenny looked at her with a smile, "Oh, this is actually my primary position. Part of the training program involves my family rotating every so often to make sure the growlithe will take commands from any of us. My second cousin and I just happened to of switched when you came to the preservation area."

Brock stared in surprise, "Huh ... That actually makes a lot of sense."

Soot sweat dropped, "Still, the fact that we got here after you switched back is kinda nuts."

Jenny smiled, "Yeah. Lucky, right?"

The group sweat dropped before sharing a look and chuckling nervously.

Jenny propped her head up with a fist, "So what brings you guys out here, anyway?"

Ash smiled, "We're on our way to Cinnabar."

Jenny perked up and blinked in shock, "Wait, still?"

Soot snickered, "We decided to take a few detours. Y'know, Safari Zone, Neon City, Princess Festival, and uh … yeah." She smirked.

Jenny blinked in surprise, "Huh."

The cop no longer in the thief costume was looking down thoughtfully and glanced at Ash before looking down again.

Ash noticed and looked at him, "Everything alright?"

The man snapped out of it and looked at him, "Sorry. I've just been caught up on your performance earlier."

Soot raised a brow, "Performance? You mean when we took you down?"

The other cop chuckled before pointing a thumb at the other cop, "Probably. Charlie here is our self-proclaimed evaluator. He likes to give pointers during training and gets on our nerves sometimes."

Charlie glared at him, "Hey, I've gotten better at holding back on the actually trivial stuff and you know it." He looked back at Ash, "Anyway, I've been thinking over how you and your migh- uh, Soot managed to apprehend me. There's one part of it all that's bugging me."

Ash raised a brow, "Which is?"

Charlie looked at Soot, "Well first, I feel like I should mention your takedown. It was admittedly impressive for a rookie. You managed to disarm and restrain me without causing any harm or unnecessary intimidation. Normally, we have the 'criminal'" He said using air quotes, "where a padded vest until a growlithe gets to that point."

Soot smirked and shrugged, "Yeah, well restraining you just seemed like the best course of action."

Charlie nodded, looked at Ash, and frowned, "What's bugging me is your approach. It was downright reckless. Whatever one of your Pokémon did to stun me may have been effective, but you followed by running right at me. If that wasn't an exercise, you'd have been in serious danger."

Ash smiled sheepishly, "Oh, uh … actually, that was intentional. I was trying to stay in your line of fire."

The male cops and growlithe flinched, and their eyes widen in shock. The Gym Leaders, Jenny, and all the other Pokémon -except Soot and Togepi- tensed up slightly.

Soot sweat dropped, 'Here we go.'

"Excuse me?!" Charlie blurted out.

Ash looked at him with a frown, "Look, I know what could've happened, but I had my reasons." He held up a finger, "First, I only had a few seconds to assess the situation."

The cops all perked up in surprise.

Ash continued, "Given the huge bag and the fact that I hadn't heard a gunshot within the last half-hour or so, it was likely you were involved in a store robbery rather than something more violent. Soot was already planning to dive underground to tackle you so I just had to divert your attention, help ensure you wouldn't be able to retaliate, and get the stolen goods away undamaged."

The male cop who was not Charlie's eyes widened, 'Just?!'

He put up a second finger, "Second, and much more importantly, my friends were all right behind me. They wouldn't have been able to get out of the way fast enough and I can take a hit a lot better than them. Someone charging at you is almost always going to draw the most attention."

Brock and Misty looked at Ash in surprise before sharing a look. Electra looked at Pikachu and Clefairy curiously. The pair shrugged in response.

Charlie blinked in shock, 'Who the Yvel is this kid?'

The unnamed cop frowned, "Wait, so you were acting as a diversion and a … shield?"

Ash nodded.

The evaluator cop snapped out of it and frowned, "K- kid, you know what you're talking about when you say 'hit', right?"

Ash nodded again, "I do." He looked at the man sternly, "But I don't like it when my friends get hurt."

The other cop looked at the trainer worriedly before looking at the woman next to him. Jenny noticed and shrugged with a sad smile.

The door to the room opened and everyone looked over as the third officer returned from taking care of the other growlithe.

The man sighed while rubbing the back of his neck and mumbled, "Freaking Yvel, those puppies can be a handful."

Growlithe sweat dropped.

The cop looked around the room and pointed back, "Hey, guys? It's getting late. We should probably hit the hay soon."

Charlie perked up, "O- oh, right." He stood back up and looked back, "You two coming?"

Jenny waved back while smiling, "We'll turn in a little later."

Growlithe looked at them before looking at the male officers, "Grow grow-grow, growl."

Soot looked at the cops, "He said he's staying, too."

The cop at the door shrugged before waving, "Well, goodnight then."

The other cop waved back, "Night."

Charlie left and closed the door behind him.

"So…" The cop said before looking at Ash with a raised brow, "that watch actually turns you into Pokémon?"

Everyone in the group flinched and they stared in shock.

Soot glared at Jenny, "You promised to keep it a secret."

Jenny deadpanned, "Oh, calm down. Will's a special case. You can trust him."

Ash sweat dropped, "If you're sure…" He perked up and smiled, "Still, that does make things easier."

Will looked at him in surprise, "What do you mean?"

"Well," Ash said before perking up in realization and looking around the room. He smiled after a second, 'No security cameras.' He looked back at the pair, pulled a red case out of his jacket pocket, and grinned, "there's something we wanna show you."

Brock and Misty looked at him before smiling.

Misty grinned at the officer, "Trust me when I say you'll never forget it."

Will perked up and blinked in surprise before looking at Jenny. Jenny looked at him and shrugged. Growlithe glared at Ash apprehensively.

.

*Multiple green flashes later

Growlithe stared around the room in absolute shock. Though, his attention was mostly on the cops.

"Woah…" Jenny muttered while staring at a hand mirror in shock and rubbing one of her cheeks.

Will was staring at another mirror in pure shock while feeling one of his ears, "Oh my Arc…"

Jenny looked around at the Fairy, Bite, Spike Ball, and other Mouse Pokémon who were snacking on a bowl of Pokémon food, "So what happened at the preservation area was like a cake walk for you guys."

Ash sweat dropped while smiling nervously, "Well, I wouldn't take it that far. I did jump off a cliff during that."

Growlithe, Jenny, and Will jerked and looked at the hat-wearing pikachu in shock.

Brock smiled and held out a paw, "I think 'routine' better describes it. Like when we were trapped on the Saint Anne."

The Auburn eyed pikachu looked up thoughtfully, "Oh, yeah. I heard about th-" She flinched and looked at the group in shock, "Wait! You were on that?!"

Misty smirked while propping up her head with a paw, "Yeah… Sometimes, I'm worried we've gotten too used to crazy."

Pikachu snickered, "Yeah, no kidding."

The officers flinched and looked at the natural Electric-types in surprise.

Will blinked in shock, "Woah."

Jenny blinked as well, "Huh…" She looked at the Fire-type, "Hey, Growlithe?"

Growlithe tensed up and looked at her, "Y- yes?"

Jenny blinked in surprise before smiling at Misty, "Okay, I see what you mean, now."

Misty grinned, "I know, right?"

Brock smiled before looking at Will, "So how do you and Jenny know each other, anyway?"

Soot sweat dropped and deadpanned, "Especially well enough that she trusts you with our secret."

Will snapped out of it and looked at them, "Oh, I'm her fiancé."

Brock immediately tensed up and froze right as he was about to put a piece of food in his mouth. Electra noticed and looked at her trainer in confusion.

Ash blinked in surprise, "Oh … Okay, yeah. I guess that's not a bad reason."

Togepi blinked in confusion, "What's a fiancé?"

Clefairy scratched the side of her head, "I'm confused too. I thought that scary Jessebelle human was one."

Soot looked at her with a smile, "Sort of. Same meaning, different spelling. The girl version has an extra 'e'."

Ash looked at her as well, "A fiancé and a fiancée are people who are engaged to be married."

Clefairy leaned closer to Pikachu and whispered, "Is it me, or did those words sound exactly alike?"

Pikachu sweat dropped, "Nope, not just you."

Electra walked closer to her trainer and waved a paw in front of his face, "Brock?"

Togepi blinked in confusion again, "Mar-ride?"

Soot looked at her, "Married. It's a human tradition. It involves a ceremony where two humans 'officially' pledge their love for each other, or something." She shrugged, "Really, it's just an extra step that humans made between saying they love each other and mating."

Will immediately flinched and blushed heavily.

Jenny snickered, put a paw on his back, and whispered, "Oh like we haven't talked about it. I've heard you thinking out loud about baby names."

Will looked at her in surprise before smiling sadly, "You heard all that? I wanted to surprise you."

Jenny started leaning in closer to him, "You know you've gotta try harder than that to hide something from me."

Will chuckled sadly and glanced away, "I know…" He looked back at Jenny, smiled softly, and started leaning closer as well.

Ash, Soot, and Misty's eyes widened as the couple closed their eyes and started moving in to share a kiss. Right before they did, a loud clap rang out right next to their ears.

"PI!" The pair screeched while covering their ears. They looked at the source in shock.

"Yeah, sorry." Ash said as he pulled his paws apart, "But you're gonna wanna hold off on that until you're human again."

Soot smirked, "That is, unless you want your first kid to be a pichu."

Will flinched and looked at the Dark-type with a heavy blush, "E- excuse me?!"

Growlithe looked at the Bite Pokémon in shock.

Misty snickered, "Yeah. It caught us off guard, too."

Ash tapped his throat, "A mouth-to-mouth kiss is how Pokémon reproduce. There's an extra tube in a Pokémon's throat called the reproductive esophagus."

Jenny perked up in realization, "Oh. Okay, that actually explains why the kangaskhan looked so excited when they saw Tomo's parent's kiss that one time." She sweat dropped, "And why some covered their baby's eyes."

Soot snickered, "Yup. So one wrong smooch and you two get a biological hatchling."

Will smiled nervously, "Okay, warning recei-"

"H- hatchling?" Growlithe said in surprise before looking down thoughtfully, "Like a younger sibling?"

Jenny and Will immediately perked up in surprise and looked at him.

Growlithe didn't notice and smiled, "I always thought meemas' first hatchling would be human. But a pichu?" His tail started wagging, "I'd be even more like an older sibling that way. I could probably even teach them a few moves." He perked up and glanced away with a raised brow, "Wait, can I learn anything that I could teach to a-"

"Growlithe?"

The Puppy Pokémon snapped out of it and smiled at Jenny and Will, "Yes, mee-" He jerked and his eyes widened at the sight of the two pikachu looking back at him in surprise, "ma…"

"Growlithe," Will said in a mild daze, "do you … see us as your parents?"

Growlithe tensed up and glanced away, "I, uh- w- well, um- I-" He looked at the pair worriedly, "is that … not okay?"

Jenny perked up and waved her paws, "No no no! Growlithe, that's not a problem at all! It's just … well … unexpected, really."

Will nodded slowly, "Yeah … but, I mean," He looked at Jenny, "I guess we did raise you from an egg."

Jenny looked at Will and smiled softly, "And we've had you for as long as we've been a couple." She chuckled softly, "I guess we are kind of like-"

She stopped and perked up when she heard a series of asynchronous beeps.

Brock snapped out of it as his, Jenny's, Misty's, and Will's Lenses all flashed red. Misty grumbled before standing up and jumping down from the table.

Brock looked at the cops before clearing his throat, "You're not gonna wanna be on the table in the next few seconds. Trust me." He put the piece of Pokémon food in his mouth and jumped down to the floor.

Jenny and Will perked up and shared a look before jumping off the table.

Four red flashes erupted around the table and the four humans stood back up. The couple looked down at themselves curiously. Misty stretched happily as she picked up Togepi again.

Brock grimaced, spat out the piece of Pokémon food, and stuck out his tongue in disgust, "Ugh. How the Yvel can our taste buds change that quickly?"

Pikachu snickered.

Growlithe walked up to Jenny and looked at her, "Growl?"

Jenny smiled softly, kneeled down, and put a hand to his cheek, "Yeah. I guess we've been a family longer than I thought."

Will smiled and kneeled down too, "And I guess now we don't have to worry about how you'll be around the kids." He perked up and shook his head before smiling softly, "I mean, around your little brothers or sisters."

Growlithe smiled at Will brightly as his tail wagged. He pounced the man and cuddled him, "Thank you, meema!"

Will looked down at the Fire-type in mild surprise before smiling softly and petting his back. Jenny reached over and petted him too. In the meantime, Pikachu ran over and gathered up their inactive Lenses and Brock and Misty took their seats again.

After a moment, the cops stood back up and took their seats again. Growlithe rested his head on Jenny's leg and smiled at her.

Will looked at him with a kind smile before looking at Ash and perking up in surprise, "Wait, how come you're still a pikachu?"

Jenny and Growlithe looked at him surprise before looking at Ash as well.

Ash perked up and held out a paw, "Pi, chu pi ka ka pika-chupi pi kapi ka pi Pika kapi ka chu pichu." He scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "Pi chu chupi ka pichu ka pika."

The humans all stared blankly before looking at Soot.

Soot sighed, "He said, and I quote, 'Oh, the watch has a fifteen-minute time limit and the Lenses only have six minutes. I'm still working on upping the limit.'" She glanced at her father harshly, "And y'know you could've changed back before saying that, right?"

Ash snickered before jumping down, flashing green, and reemerging as himself. He took his seat again and smiled at the cops, "So, what'd you think?"

Jenny smiled softly, "I'm not even sure how to describe it."

Will nodded, "Yeah. I mean, experiencing what it's like to be a Pokémon is one thing, but" He reached over to pet the canine, "actually getting to hear what Growlithe was saying? It's …" He looked at Ash with a smile, "It's revolutionary."

Ash chuckled and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "Thanks. I put a lot of work into them."

"No, I'm serious." Will said excitedly, "If you showed these to the rest of the world, it could change the course of Pokémon training forever. You'd become famous overnight!"

Ash and Soot perked up before frowning and sharing a look. Brock, Misty, Pikachu, and Clefairy looked at them apprehensively. Electra and Togepi blinked in confusion.

Jenny frowned, "What is it?"

"Thing is," Soot said as she looked at the cops, "we've already had more than our fair share of the spotlight. And not in a good way. Yvel, we still run into people who think dad's some prodigy because of my Inheritance. If everyone found out about the watch, we'd get swamped even worse than back then."

Will frowned, "Well, sure but-"

"Not to mention what would happen if the world learned the truth about Inheritance." Ash interrupted.

Will perked up in surprise, "What do you mean?"

Ash glanced at Soot sadly, "When Professor Oak announced Inheritance to the world, we were swarmed with people wanting to learn about it and wanting to replicate it. Some would go so far as trying to make me trade or sell Soot." He clenched a fist, "To sell my own daughter."

Ash took a deep breath, "They only stopped after all the attempts to replicate it failed." He looked down sadly, "If the whole world found out how easy it actually was to get an Inherent Pokémon- if they found that I was the key to it…" He trailed off.

Brock and Misty frowned worriedly before sharing a look. They smiled sadly, moved their chairs closer, and each slung an arm across the watch user's back. Pikachu and Clefairy jumped up to Ash's shoulders and nuzzled him, and Soot laid her head in his lap. Electra ran up and jumped onto Brock's shoulder. Togepi ran up to Misty who scooped him up and held him tight.

Ash looked around at them with a sad smile. He looked at the cops, "Look, I know what the Lenses could do for the world. What they could do to help so many people and Pokémon. And I want to be able to share it." He looked down again, "But I don't want to go through that. I especially don't want to put Soot, mom, or any of my friends through that."

Ash took a deep breath before looking down at the watch, "I don't have a safe way of sharing this beyond a small group." He smiled softly, "At least, not yet." He looked at the pair at the other side of the table, "I want to work out a plan to make it happen." He petted his hatchling, "But my first priority is keeping my family safe. And, for now, that means keeping the watch and everything about it a secret."

Soot smiled softly and nuzzled up against his chest. Pikachu and Clefairy nuzzled his head again; causing the boy to chuckle lightly. Brock, Misty, and their Pokémon smiled softly.

Will frowned and looked down shamefully, "I see … I'm sorry for being so pushy."

Ash smiled sadly, "It's fine. Thanks for understanding."

Will smiled back, "Thank you. Though, I kind of wish we could make it up to you for letting us use them."

Jenny perked up, "Oh!" She smiled at Ash and raised a finger, "What if you and Soot joined the growlithe for tomorrow's training session?"

The group, Will, and Growlithe perked up and looked at her in surprise.

"Okay, but why though?" Soot asked.

Jenny grinned, "Honestly, I just wanna see you two in action." She smiled normally, "But I actually think this could be a nice experience for the two of you. Remember when I mentioned the Pokémon Ranger thing?"

Electra raised a brow, "Ranger?"

Jenny smirked, "Also we can record the training and I can spread the word with my family. It could help out in case you accidently get mixed up in police business. Like proof that you're capable of handling yourself or that your involvement won't be an issue."

Ash, Brock, Misty, and Soot perked up in surprise. Soot and Ash shared a look.

Will sweat dropped, "Okay but, realistically, how often could they get mixed up in something like that?"

Misty sweat dropped while smirking, "Do you want us to make a list?"

The male cop jerked and looked at her in surprise. He looked at the other guys. Ash noticed and shrugged while smiling sheepishly. Brock tensed up slightly and glanced away.

"…" Will looked at the Cerulean trainer, "I'll take your word for it."

Jenny smiled at the father and daughter, "So how does it sound?"

"I mean," Soot said before looking at Ash and smiling, "something like that could come in handy. You have to admit, we're lucky we've never gotten in trouble for getting involved."

Ash smiled back at her, "And this could be a nice way to experience a new kind of training."

Jenny's smile brightened a bit, "So is that a yes?"

Ash and Soot continued sharing a look for a moment before smiling and nodding.

They looked back at the officer and Ash gave a thumbs up, "Yeah. It sounds like it could be fun."

"Yes." Jenny whispered triumphantly to herself.

Will sweat dropped, 'fun … oh boy.' "Well, if you're sure." He shook it off and smiled, "In that case, I'll fill everyone else in first thing in the morning so there's no confusion."

Soot smirked, "Thanks."

Will looked at Pikachu with a raised brow, "So, I know we're kind of past this, but do Pokémon really not have any concept of marriage? Not even a ceremony or something?"

Pikachu raised a brow, "Does trying to impress the girl count?"

Soot snickered and translated.

Jenny blinked in surprise, "Uh…"

Clefairy stared in confusion before looking at Soot, "Is this married thing really that special?"

Soot shrugged, "Well, the ceremonies are pretty extravagant. The couple rents out a nice and/or meaningful place, they get a boatload of gifts from friends and family, and they get a cake that's usually bigger than me."

Clefairy's eyes widened in shock, "Giant cake?!" She immediately pointed at her trainer, "Ash, get married!"

Ash tensed up, inhaled his drink, and started coughing. At the same time, Soot broke out into laughter and fell out of her seat. Everyone else looked at the pair in confusion; half not knowing what Clefairy said and half not getting why it was funny.

Mizuro: … *flinches and eyes widen* Wait a ******* second! *points at Ohirume* I just realized you almost added in a-

Seishin: *slaps hand over Mizuro's mouth* Save it for the comment responses.

Nuevo: *sweat drops* If anyone actually mentions it … or realizes what the **** we're talking about, for that matter.

.

*The following morning

Jenny opened the door, brought the whistle up, and inhaled deeply. She stopped and blinked in surprise when she found Ash and Soot already awake and stretching. Pikachu and Clefairy were begrudgingly stirring awake and yawning. Everyone else was still sleeping in their beds.

Ash perked up, looked towards the door, and smiled while whispering, "Oh, good morning."

Jenny blinked in surprise, "Um … morning. I didn't actually expect you to be awake already."

Soot smirked and sat normally, "Yeah, well I noticed a training schedule in the hall yesterday." She sweat dropped, "Though, I gotta admit, four-thirty caught me off guard."

Ash put a finger to his temple, "I set up a mental timer during a lucid dream so I wouldn't wake up the others."

Pikachu grumbled, "You didn't seem to have a problem waking us up."

Clefairy yawned.

Jenny blinked in surprise again, "You can do that?"

Ash nodded; still smiling, "Yeah. Integration from a new form I got a while back."

Jenny blinked yet again, "You can gain new forms?"

Ash frowned as his eyes widened, "…" He looked down; still wide eyed, "Wow. I really was bad at explaining stuff." He looked back at Jenny and held up the watch, "Yes, when a Pokémon touches this thing, it's scans their DNA and I gain their form. The non-Pokémon -like Frenzy Plant- just kind of appear in it every so often. We're still not sure where they come from. And I gain new abilities through Power Integration when I get something new, like the translation thing."

"Huh." Jenny said before looking at the Gym Leaders, "So should I go ahead and wake them up?"

Ash looked at Brock and Electra on the bunk above his and then looked at Misty and Togepi on the bunk behind him, "Um…" He looked at Jenny again, "Maybe just turn on the lights. I'll start getting ready and wake them up if they're not up soon."

Jenny shrugged, "Alright." She flipped on the nearby light switch. Brock, Misty, and Electra tensed up a bit and frowned uncomfortably. Togepi remained undisturbed in his retracted state.

Jenny grabbed the doorknob, "Be outside in twenty."

Soot smirked and put a paw to her head, "Ten-four, Jenny."

Clefairy looked at Soot in confusion, 'Does she mean fourteen?'

Jenny smiled before closing the door.

.

**Short Skip**

After everyone else begrudgingly woke up, Ash and Co. made their way outside to the K-9 academy's obstacle course.

Brock and Misty sat at a nearby bench with a half-asleep Pikachu and Clefairy sitting next to them. Togepi dozed off a while ago and was currently sleeping in Misty's arm. Electra was the only one among them who was fully awake and was currently looking around the course in awe.

Ash and Soot were doing some warmup stretches. Jenny, Will, and their growlithe stood next to them as Will fiddled with a video camera.

Charlie stood off to the side with the other eleven growlithe sitting in a group beside him. The last cop was off duty today.

The self-proclaimed evaluator sweat dropped, 'I almost thought he was kidding.' He glanced at the trainer and Bite Pokémon, 'Still, if yesterday's any proof, this could be interesting to watch.'

One of the growlithe looked over Soot for a moment before smirking and nudging the growlithe next to him, "Hey, check her out."

"I know, right?" The other Fire-type said while smiling, "She sure looks powerful. Maybe we could get to spar with her later."

The first growlithe jerked before glaring at the other one; deadpanned, "Is that seriously the first thing that came to mind for you?"

The second growlithe looked at him in confusion, "Huh?"

Growlithe sighed and looked at Growlithe as he sat next to him, "Can you believe this guy?"

Growlithe tensed up, blushed, and glanced away, "Uh, y- yeah…" He looked at the mightyena again; still blushing.

Growlithe perked up in surprise before smirking at Growlithe slyly, "Wait. Sibling, do you have a crush on her?"

Another of the growlithe overheard and tensed up a bit.

Growlithe flinched and looked at Growlithe in a panic, "N- no!"

Growlithe continued smirking.

Growlithe frowned and glanced at the Dark-type before looking at Growlithe again, "W- well…"

"Ha! That's rich."

The brothers tensed up a bit and glanced over at another of their kind.

The growlithe smirked cockily, "You actually someone like her would be interested in a runt like you?"

Growlithe glared at him, "What was that?"

Growlithe looked at his brother worriedly, 'Uh oh.'

"Oh, like it's not obvious." The growlithe continued smugly, "Why would someone like her even bother to notice the weakest growlithe here? Especially with me here?" He held his head up proudly, "Afterall, I am the next of us in line to evolve."

Growlithe started growling as his muzzle began flaring from Fire Fang, "Why you-"

Growlithe looked at his brother and held out a paw, "Sibling, don't-"

"Hey! Knock it off!" Charlie said forcefully with a loud clap; startling the Fire-types, "No fighting!"

Growlithe frowned before canceling the attack, Growlithe sighed in relief, and the third one glanced away. Brock, Misty, and the Pokémon with them perked up from the outburst and looked over.

Soot glance at them with a raised brow, shrugged, and then looked at the cop, "So what do we have to do in this class, anyway?"

Jenny smiled, "To start, you two will run the obstacle course with Growlithe and I. We're testing for physical abilities, so no moves will be allowed in any way." She glanced at Ash and smirked, "Or other abilities for that matter."

Ash smiled sheepishly, "I get what you mean but some of Power Integration involves my physical abilities. I can't turn those off."

Jenny looked at him, "Well, sure. But I mainly meant no transforming or shooting fire."

Ash sweat dropped, "I wasn't planning to in the first place."

'Oh, dear Arc. Finally.' Will thought while sighing in relief; catching the attention of the other four. He smiled and held up the camera, "Alright. I'm ready when you are."

Soot smirked, "Alright." She started walking over to the starting line, "Let's do this."

Ash, Jenny, and Growlithe followed her. Will walked over to others and brought up the camera. The quartet stopped at the starting line and got into running stances.

"Ready!" Jenny called out, "Set! Go!"

Soot pounced forward and broke into a sprint immediately as Ash kicked off. The pair shot ahead of the cop and Fire-type instantly.

Jenny, all of the growlithe, and Charlie's eyes widened as they did so. Will grimaced as he tried to keep up with the camera.

Brock sweat dropped, "They could stand to hold back a little."

Pikachu chuckled nervously, "I think Ash is holding back since Soot's keeping up with him."

"Go Ash and Soot!" Clefairy cheered.

The watch user and Bite Pokémon approached a large wall a moment later.

Soot raised a brow; still running, "Climbing wall?"

"Probably." Ash answered, "Though, I'm not seeing any footholds."

Soot smirked, "Well, I've still got an option." She shifted her eyes and jumped straight at the wall; intent on phasing her claws into the board to climb up. The Dark-type's claws, instead, bounced off the wall.

"Huh?" Soot muttered in shock before falling back and crashing to the ground.

"Soot!" Ash blurted out fearfully. He ran and kneeled down next to her, "Are you alright?! What happened?!"

Soot groaned as her eyes shifted back to normal, "Good question." She stood back up, shook it off, and looked at the wall in confusion. She walked up and looked around to the other side.

The Bite Pokémon flinched, and her eyes widened in shock when she found about a dozen familiar paper slips placed around the wall, "What the?! Why the Yvel is this thing covered in specter seals?!"

"Well, we can't make it too easy!"

Ash and Soot perked up and looked back right as Growlithe and Jenny came up to the wall.

The pair jumped up to the wall and did a brief run up it to grab the ledge. They pulled themselves over the wall and landed on the other side.

Jenny looked around the wall while smirking, "Your inherent abilities may not be moves, but they are something you won't be able to use sometimes. If you can't tackle a problem without them, then you'll be in a lot of trouble."

Soot gave the cop a deadpanned look, "Okay, but couldn't you have just added 'no inherent abilities' to the rules you told us about earlier?"

Jenny continued smirking, "It's easier to convince someone this way." She disappeared behind the wall before her and Growlithe continued down the track.

Soot groaned before jumping and running up the wall in the same way Growlithe did. She jumped down to the other side.

Ash watched her for a moment before nodding, "Okay." He jogged back before kicking off and breaking into a sprint towards the wall. When he got close, he kicked off and jumped high enough to grab the top of the wall with one hand, hoisted himself over the wall, and fell down to the other side all in one swift motion. He landed in a crouch right next to Soot.

Jenny glanced back and smirked. Charlie's eyes widened in shock and the Pokémon all stared in awe.

"Woah." Will commented as he continued filming.

Misty sweat dropped while smirking, "Why am I not surprised?"

Soot looked at Ash, "So Acid Armor made your joints a little springier, huh?"

Ash looked at her and shrugged, "Well after stretching, at least."

He stood back up and the pair continued down the track. They came up to a huge patch of grass with a mesh of barbed wire spanning it. Jenny and Growlithe were already halfway through it.

Ash and Soot sweat dropped and shared a glance.

.

*Jenny and Growlithe

The pair made it through the obstacle with ease and stood back up.

Jenny smirked and glanced back, 'Alright, so how do they handle this-' She stopped and perked up in surprise.

Growlithe noticed and looked back as well. He found the duo less than a quarter of the way through. Both were slowly trudging through the grass while looking around the wire cautiously.

The Puppy Pokémon sweat dropped, 'Huh, they do have limits.' He looked up at the Officer, "Meema."

Jenny snapped out of it and looked at him, "Right. Sorry." She turned and continued through the course with Growlithe.

.

**Short Skip**

The remainder of the course consisted of an agility A-frame, an agility seesaw, a series of hurdles, and walking a balance beam where the 'beam' was a pipe. In that order.

By the time Ash and Soot cleared the barbed wire crawl, Jenny and Growlithe had already cleared the A-frame. They also cleared the seesaw during the time period that Ash made by obsessively examining Soot for cuts and/or patches of torn out fur; much to her annoyance.

Eventually they started their run again, cleared the agility equipment effortlessly, jumped over the hurdles two at a time, and shot past Jenny and Growlithe who had made it to the balance pipe.

Illavera: *sweat drops* Don't you think some people might get upset at you for abridging … *squints* uh, four-sixths of the course?

Ohirume: *sighs* Yeah yeah, I know. But I couldn't think of any ways to make the rest of it … interesting or detailed.

Pike: *raises brow* You mean like the putting out fires stuff?

Ohirume: … *sighs* yup. But in my defense, the original episode only showed the wall and barbed wire portion. It didn't even hint that there was anything beyond those.

Now the four runners were sitting at the bench with the others around them. Though Electra was more focused on the camera that Will let her mess with … after he took out the cassette.

Ash and Jenny each had a bottle of water and the canines each had a bowl.

"Nice one." Misty said as she patted Soot's back; making her flinch slightly, "You guys dominated that course."

"Yeah!" Togepi cheered happily.

"You won big time!" Clefairy said happily as she and Pikachu stood next to Ash on the bench.

Pikachu smirked while looking at Ash, "Though you kind of fell behind at that whole grass crawling part."

Soot translated for Pikachu.

Ash glanced at him with a smirk, "Oh? You wanna try running the course, then?"

Pikachu tensed up and glanced away, "I- I'm good."

Will smiled sheepishly, "Yeah, that was impressive. I'm kind of shocked about how well you did."

Jenny sweat dropped while smiling, "It's actually a little less shocking after seeing Ash's real top speed."

Will and Growlithe perked up and looked at her in surprise.

Charlie flinched and looked at her before looking at Ash in shock, 'He wasn't moving at top speed?!'

Jenny looked at Charlie, "So, anyway, what do you say about their performance this time?"

Charlie snapped out of it and looked at Soot and Ash, "Well in terms of speed and stamina, I'd say you had Jenny and Growlithe outmatched from the start." He sweat dropped, "Normally I'd critique you for rushing it, but neither of you seem worn out in the slightest. So, I'm honestly not sure what to think."

He shook it off, "For the obstacles themselves, Jenny had the advantage. But you were admittedly impressive for the most part. Though, maybe a little rough around the edges."

Will glanced at the evaluator, 'Huh, less blunt than usual.'

Clefairy looked at Pikachu in confusion, "Edges?"

"It's an expression." The Electric-type answered.

Ash smiled at the cops, "I'm not really surprised. I'm guessing all of the growlithe have been running this course for most of their lives. And Jenny's played a part in training them."

Soot smirked, "The most we've ever done is battle training and basic exercise. " She looked at Jenny and sweat dropped, "Though, you might have a point about the abilities thing. First thing that came to mind for the wire crawl was phasing through it."

Ash cleared his throat, "And my first thought was about cutting it."

Charlie looked at Ash in confusion, "What? How? You didn't have your Pokémon with you."

Ash perked up and glanced away, "Yeah…" He shook it off and looked at the cops, "So what's part two of this training?"

Will looked at him, "Combat practice." He pointed a thumb back, "Soot can spar with some of the growlithe and Jenny asked me to set up some training equipment for you around the corner. I'll also be there to supervise."

Electra's ears twitched.

Ash gave a thumbs up, "Alright." He looked around at his friends, "Any of you wanna watch?"

"Pika!" "Fairy!" Pikachu and Clefairy called out while raising a paw/hand.

Electra smiled excitedly and raised a paw, "Me too! I wanna see the equip-tent!"

"Equipment." Soot corrected before translating for the trio.

Misty smiled, "I'll stay here and watch Soot."

Brock smiled and nodded, "Same." He looked at his Electric-type, "And, Electra, remember what we said about climbing on stuff."

Electra pouted and crossed her forepaws, "Ask if it's okay too, first."

The breeder smiled, "Good." He glanced at Soot who nodded in response.

Ash smiled, "Alright then." He looked at his Dark-type, "Soot, play nice."

Soot grinned, "Crunch all of them in the throats. Got it."

The growlithe all flinched and looked at her fearfully.

Ash rolled his eyes; still smiling, "Very funny."

One of the growlithe perked up and looked at another of his kind, "Wait, is she speaking human?"

The other growlithe deadpanned, "You only just figured that out?"

The first growlithe perked up and blinked in surprise. Four other growlithe in the pack sweat dropped.

Pikachu and Clefairy jumped up to Ash shoulder's before he started following Will. Electra ran after them.

Jenny glanced at Soot warily, "You really were joking about the Crunch thing, right?"

Soot smirked, "Well, duh. I don't even know that move. Besides, I prefer Sucker Punch."

Charlie looked at the pack, "Alright, Growlithe, we need one of you to volunteer for a sparring match."

One of the growlithe smirked and raised a paw, "Growl."

One of the other growlithe glanced at him angrily while his brother frowned worriedly.

Charlie smiled, "Good." He motioned for the canines to follow, "Move over to the field."

The growlithe glanced back at one of the brothers, "Watch and learn, runt." The other brother gritted his teeth as the mightyena's opponent started walking over to the field.

Soot smiled, 'Huh. He actually looks pretty tough. Maybe this'll be a good work-'

The Fire-type passed by her and whispered, "Don't worry, babe. I'll go easy on you."

Soot twitched. The Cerulean and Pewter trainers noticed before frowning and sharing a glance.

Soot took a deep breath before walking over to the field to stand across from her opponent. Everyone else moved to the sidelines.

The growlithe looked around while smiling cockily, "Y'know, maybe this training nonsense isn't the best for us to get to know each other." He looked at Soot; smile remaining, "How about we just call off this dumb little thing? Afterall, I don't wanna hurt that pretty muzzle of yours."

Soot's eye twitched.

Brock frowned worriedly, 'I've got a bad feeling about this.'

The growlithe smirked, "Better yet, how about you and I head inside. I'm sure my kennel has just enough room for-"

"Okay, sorry, but" Soot interrupted while smiling happily and raising a claw, "hold that thought." Her eyes shifted to the banette design.

The Puppy Pokémon flinched and his eyes widened as she disappeared on the spot. He started looking around in confusion.

"Play Rough." Came a whisper from behind.

Before the growlithe could look back a thick white cloud shrouded him. Everyone flinched as they heard Soot clobber away at her opponent via the Fairy-type move.

The cloud faded a moment later to reveal the growlithe laying on his side and staring in shock at the grinning inherent Pokémon who had him pinned under her forepaws.

Soot moved closer to the ear of her pinned opponent and whispered, "Y'know, it's actually safer for you this way. If my dad found out about what you said, you'd be lucky to walk-" She snickered before smirking wickedly, "sorry, crawl away with your tail still attached."

The Puppy Pokémon grimaced and started trembling. He yelped once before fainting on the spot. Charlie and the growlithe all stared in shock.

"Yay Soot!" Togepi cheered.

Misty stared blankly, 'What the Yvel did he say to her?!'

Jenny sweat dropped, 'I thought we already made a rule about the inheritance thing…'

Growlithe stared blankly before whispering to his brother, "So about your crush-"

"I'm good." Growlithe jumped in.

One of the growlithe looked at him before she sighed in relief.

Soot got off the Fire-type before looking at the others; still smirking and banette-eyed, "Alright, who's-" She stopped and perked up when she noticed something out of the corner of her eye and then looked over.

Everyone else noticed and followed her gaze.

Brock stared in confusion, "Wait, what are you doing here?"

.

*Ash, Will, Pikachu, Clefairy, and Electra

Will flinched and stared in surprise as Ash drove one of the tackle dummies to the ground … again. Pikachu and Clefairy stood next to the cop and Electra was trying to move a baseball-sized medicine ball that the growlithe use. She was still trying to figure out how it was so heavy despite the size.

"Alright Ash!" Pikachu and Clefairy cheered. Electra perked up and looked over curiously.

Ash stood back up and smiled at them, "Thanks guys." He started stretching, "I have to admit, these things are really useful. I wish we had these back home."

The cop smiled nervously, "I'll, uh, give you the number for the store we get our equipment from." He kneeled down next to the dummy and sweat dropped upon seeing a now-loose seam, "Granted you may have to get the set made for machop."

Ash looked at him in surprise before looking at the same spot on the bag. He sweat dropped, "Oh. Sorry."

"It's nothing that can't be fixed." Will said before standing up and pointing a thumb back, "Although, how about we skip the punching bags and move on to a treadmill."

Electra perked up, 'Treadmill?'

Will raised a brow, "Jenny said you could run like thirty miles or something, right?"

Ash smiled, "Forty-five, actually. Before we ran into Jenny, it was forty, but my record remained at a half-hour."

Will's eyes widened in shock, "Wait, what?! You can run forty-five miles in a half hour?!"

Ash looked at him in surprise, "Huh?" He perked up upon realizing what he meant before waving his hands and smiling sheepishly, "Oh, no. Sorry. I meant I can run forty-five miles per hour for as long as half an hour."

Will deadpanned, 'That's still too unbelievable.' "I see…" He shook it off, "Well, luckily you can't wear out a treadmill in that short of a time frame. So, let's go ahead and tell the other's we're heading inside."

Ash smiled, "Alright."

"Ji-ggly-y-puff Ji-ggly-y-y-puff."

Everyone perked up in surprise and looked back towards where everyone else was.

"Ji-ggly-y-puff Ji-gglyyy."

Will blinked in surprise, "What the Yvel?" He tensed up and yawned.

"Ji-ggly-y-puff Ji-ggly-y-y-puff."

Ash stared in confusion, "Is that-" He started running towards the source.

"Ji-ggly-y-puff Ji-gglyyy."

Will looked at him in tired surprise before following sluggishly. Pikachu followed while Clefairy lied down, and Electra curled up next to the fallen tackling dummy.

"Ji-ggly-y-puff.

Ji-ggly-y-puff."

Ash rounded the corner and stared in surprise, "Jiggly-" He stopped and perked up when he heard snoring and looked back to find Will and Pikachu asleep on the ground.

"Ji-ggly-y-puff Ji-gglyyy." Jigglypuff opened her eyes and flinched when she found her audience fast asleep. She immediately inflated with an angry pout and reach for the cap on her 'microphone'. She failed to notice the green flash shine from behind her.

"Jigglypuff?"

The Balloon Pokémon perked up in surprise and looked back to find a familiar male mightyena walking over to her. She smiled brightly and ran over to him, "Ash!" She stopped in front of him and smiled excitedly, "You're not asleep! So that means you heard my song, right?!"

Ash sweat dropped and smiled sheepishly, "Uh, y- yeah. I'm immune when human, remember?"

Jigglypuff blinked in surprise, "Immune? …" She jerked and her eyes widened in shock, "Oh crag! I was using Sing again, wasn't I?!" She slumped forward sadly, "I really thought I had it this time…" She perked up in realization, "Oh, wait. That means I was using it at that canyon too, doesn't it?" She frowned, 'All of them weren't just being rude.'

Ash smiled sadly and put a paw on her, "Yeah, sorry." He smiled, "Y'know, if you wanna stick around with us, I know someone who might know a way to help with that."

Jigglypuff perked up and looked at the Bite Pokémon while smiling determinedly, "Nuh uh! I wanna figure this out on my own! I made that my goal and I'm sticking to it!" She started running back towards the entrance and called out "See ya later!" as she disappeared.

Ash sweat dropped, "Uh … bye?" He looked at the unconscious group and hit the symbol on his chest to switch back to human, 'I guess training's on hold…'

.

**Time Skip**

By the time everyone woke up, the sun had already started setting. So, the class was cut short. Jenny, Will, and Growlithe gathered at the front entrance to see the group off. Charlie took all the other growlithe inside.

Ash smiled sadly, "Sorry Jigglypuff kind of ruined the class."

"Hey, it's fine." Jenny said with a smile while waving, "It's not like you brought her here, right?"

Soot sweat dropped, "Well, you're not wrong." She perked up and smiled, "Still, thanks for letting us join in the class. It was pretty fun."

Will sweat dropped while smiling nervously, "I bet it was…" He shook it off and looked at Ash, "And rest assured, I'll get to work on sharing the video around the force." He grinned, "Who knows? One of the higher-ups might try to make you a cadet."

Ash chuckled, "Very funny."

Will sweat dropped, 'It wasn't a joke…'

Ash smiled normally, "And sounds good. Thank you again for doing this."

Will smiled, "It's my pleasure. I mean, especially after you let us use those Change Lenses. It was" He looked down at Growlithe. The Fire-type smiled up at him.

Will smiled softly and looked back at the group, "It was unforgettable."

Jenny smiled softly, "Yeah." She moved closer and pulled her fiancé into a one-armed hug, "I couldn't agree more."

Brock sweat dropped and glanced away. Misty noticed and patted him on the back. Electra watched curiously before patting the back of Brock's head.

Ash smiled, "It was no trouble. I was happy to share them."

Soot looked at the cops, "Still, we can trust both of you to keep them a secret, right?"

The pair stood back up and Will nodded, "Of course." He looked at Ash, "And I wish you luck in finding a way to make them public. I'd be lying if I said I won't be anxious for that day."

"Thank you." Ash said; still smiling.

Will smiled and held out a hand, "Well, it was nice meeting all of you."

Brock tensed up and shook his hand; smiling nervously, "U- um, yeah. It was nice meeting you, too."

Jenny smiled as well, "Feel free to come back and visit sometime." She grinned, "Who knows? Maybe I'll see you all again during another rotation."

Soot snickered, "Knowing our luck, that might actually happen."

Misty and Pikachu sweat dropped while smiling, "Yup."

.

.

Omega: Well, that was … anticlimactic.

Ohirume: *sighs and scratches back of head* Yeah, over half the original episode got taken over by Team Rocket attacking the academy.

Nuevo: *jerks and stares in shock* You're exaggerating, right?

Seishin: *Harry The Handsome Butcher voice* Nooope! *normal voice* They drove a bus through a wall.

Omega, Mizuro, Illavera, and Nuevo: *stare at Seishin blankly*

.

.

Part 2: *SNAP*

.

Continuing on their journey and a few days after leaving the K-9 academy, Ash and Co. stopped to take a break in a park on the outskirts of a small town.

Ash, Misty, Pikachu, Clefairy, and Soot sat at a bench while snacking on some rice balls. Brock was standing at a table across from the bench; making said rice balls. Electra sat on the table and watched her trainer curiously and Togepi was in Misty's arms.

The Spike Ball Pokémon bit down on the rice ball in his arms and smiled happily, "Pwiiii!"

Misty frowned, "Togepi, remember what I said about chewing and talking with your mouth full."

Togepi looked up at her, started chewing, and swallowed a moment later. He smiled at Misty, "Okay meema." He went back to eating.

Misty smiled softly; still looking at the Fairy-type, "Y'know, I'm still kind of amazed he's eating solid foods already. Just a while ago, he still needed a bottle."

Soot swallowed and looked at her, "Well the fast-maturing thing isn't just limited to intelligence. Most Pokémon are able to eat solids around a few weeks after they hatch. Though, the time frame usually depends on their species. "

Ash swallowed before smiling as well, "Still, it is pretty impressive that he's already at that point. Baby Pokémon usually take a little longer than this."

Misty smiled and petted her hatchling, "You hear that, Togepi? Sounds like you're advanced."

Togepi nuzzled Misty happily, "Yay!"

Ash couldn't help but smile softly. He perked up when he heard some grass rustling and looked over curiously. His eyes widened when he saw something glint.

Everyone at the bench flinched when Ash sprang to his feet, brought out the claws on his right hand, and fired the claw from his middle finger at the grass.

"AH!" Someone shouted fearfully. Everyone except Ash tensed up, stood up, and looked towards the grass in shock.

Ash glared at the grass, "That was a warning shot!" He pointed a finger gun, "Show yourself or the next one hits something other than the-" He stopped and tensed up as the clairvoyance schematic finished. He sweat dropped, "Uh oh."

Soot shot him a confused glance before looking ahead again.

A boy stood up from the grass with his hands in the air and a shocked look on his face. He had light brown hair and black eyes, wore dark brown glove, blue shorts, brown shoes, and a striped t-shirt that was two different shades of red.

He was also holding a camera that had Ash's claw tearing into the lens.

Soot deadpanned, "A camera…" She looked at Ash; still deadpanned, "Hey dad. I know you don't like paparazzi either, but that seemed a little excessive. Don't ya think?"

Ash retracted his claws and groaned while pinching the bridge of his nose, "I get it. I messed up."

Brock looked at him, "What did you think it was?"

Ash groaned shamefully, "A scope..."

Misty sweat dropped, "You might need some down time."

Brock waved at the boy, "Hey, sorry about that. Our friend overreacted." He put a hand to his chest, "My name's Brock." He gestured to his Mouse Pokémon, "This is my pikachu, Electra."

Electra waved a paw, "Chu."

Misty raised a hand and held her Spike Ball Pokémon, "I'm Misty and this is Togepi."

"Togepriii!" The hatchling chirped happily; oblivious to the tension.

The Bite Pokémon smiled, "Name's Soot." She nudged her head towards her teammates, "They're Pikachu and Clefairy."

"Pi." "Fairy." The shoulder riders said while waving.

Ash waved while smiling nervously, "Ash. Sorry about that."

"I, uh- I'm Todd…" The boy stuttered while looking at Ash in shock.

Ash blinked before sweat dropping, "Right. I guess I owe you an explanation." He brought up his right hand again and sprouted the four remaining claws; startling the photographer, "It's the gloves. They add these projectile, retractable claws to my fingers."

Todd flinched as his eyes widened further, "Say what?!" He ran closer, "Where the Yvel do you even get gloves like that?!"

"I made them myself." Ash said casually before retracting the claws, "And, before you ask, they only work for me."

Todd stared in awe, "Woah."

Brock smiled, 'Looks like he's calmed down.' He looked at Todd with a raised brow, "So, Todd, why were you hiding in the grass like that?" He sweat dropped, "With a camera..."

Electra perked up and looked at the device in Todd's hand curiously, 'That's a camera too?'

Todd perked up and looked at the breeder, "Oh, I was trying to take a picture of the mightyena."

The mightyena sweat dropped, "My name is Soot."

Ash smiled, "And you could've just asked if you wanted a picture. This isn't the first time this has happened."

Todd smiled, "I didn't want Mightyena to know I was taking it's picture. I didn't want it to look posed."

Soot deadpanned and Ash sweat dropped.

Todd smirked, "You see," He grinned, held up his camera, and proclaimed, "I am the number one Pokémon photo master!"

Misty and Pikachu stared blankly, 'Where the Yvel did that come from?!'

Soot deadpanned, 'Is that even a thing?'

Togepi looked up at Misty in confusion. Electra and Clefairy blinked in confusion.

Brock sweat dropped while smiling nervously, "I see…"

Todd smirked and crossed his arms, "So you're having trouble believing it, huh?"

Ash blinked in confusion, "No one said-"

The photographer grinned and put a fist to his chest, "Well then, come over to my place and I'll show you!" He looked at his camera and sweat dropped, "Also I need to fix this."

Ash tensed up before smiling nervously, "Sorry again. If you want me to pay for a new lens-"

"No, it's fine." Todd interrupted while looking at him, "I've had startled Grass-types attack me with Bullet Seed and Razor Leaf before, so I've gotten pretty good with a repair kit." He gestured for all of them to follow, "Now, come on. My house isn't far."

Todd turned and started walking back through the tall grass.

Misty sweat dropped, "Anyone else getting some Gary vibes off him?"

"Hm." Soot muttered with a frown, "I get what you mean, but he's seems more, um …" She looked up thoughtfully, "what's the word I'm looking for?"

Pikachu deadpanned, "Decent."

"That's the one." Soot said.

Ash looked back, translated for the humans, and then shrugged, "I think we could at least give him the benefit of the doubt, for now."

Everyone else looked down thoughtfully, "Fair."

.

*Todd's house

"Woah." Soot said in surprise while looking around at a wall, "So … Todd might have a legitimate reason to be a little cocky."

Pikachu stared in surprise, "Yeah, no kidding."

Practically covering the wall were various wildlife shots with all kinds of different Pokémon. And a few rare ones, at that. Namely the kangaskhan playing with their hatchling, a chansey offering its egg to something out of frame, and an eevee grooming another one.

"Woah." Misty said in awe while looking around the wall, "Look at them all. They all look so cute and carefree."

Brock smiled, "It's incredible. I've never seen pictures like this."

Electra stared in awe, "Insane. It's almost like we're looking through windows."

Clefairy looked around curiously before landing on a picture and flinching, "Um, Ash?"

Ash glanced at her before following her gaze. His eyes widened when he saw a from-below shot of a braviary flying alongside a pidgeotto; the former with a small glint on his chest, 'When the Yvel did-' He looked back and pointed at the photo, "Todd, where did you take this one?"

Everyone else looked at Ash in surprise before looking at the photo. They all tensed up at the sight.

Todd looked over before smiling, "Oh. I saw those Pokémon flying around the mountain range outside Fuchsia City. I'm still surprised I was able to find a Unovan Pokémon all the way out here in Kanto."

Brock smiled nervously, "W- well, maybe they have a foreign trainer?"

"Yeah, maybe. But enough about those." Todd said with a grin while holding up an issue of the Pokémon Times. He pointed a thumb to his chest, "You're looking at the only person to ever get a picture of a wild aerodactyl battling a dragonite!" He opened the magazine and placed it on the table, "See for yourself!"

Everyone perked up in surprise, walked over, and crowded around the page. It depicted Ash in dragonite form firing a Dragon Rage at Aerodactyl as he narrowly dodged the attack. The watch's symbol was half-visible on the Dragon/Flying-type's chest due to the picture of him mostly being a side view.

Ash blinked in surprise, "Oh, so you were the one who took that picture." He sighed in relief internally, 'Thank Arceus, the watch is less visible than I thought.' He glanced back at the other picture of him, 'On both of them…'

Todd smiled and pointed at him, "So you have heard of me!"

"Nope." Soot said while looking at the picture, "We just heard about this from a friend. We hadn't seen it before now."

Todd slumped forward for a second before shaking it off and smiling, "Still, you have to admit this is an amazing shot, right?!"

Brock smiled, "Yeah, definitely." He looked at Ash, "I kind of wonder how Aerodactyl would respond to seeing this."

Todd perked up and looked at him in confusion.

Soot snickered, "He'd probably think the 'mirror' is broken." After a second, she perked up in realization, "Wait, have we shown him mirrors yet?"

The photographer looked at the Dark-type; still confused.

Ash looked up thoughtfully, "Well he has seen his reflection in water before. But, no, I don't think he's seen an actual mirror."

Misty smiled, "Still, it shouldn't be that hard to explain."

Todd stared at the group blankly, "Wait, what are you all talking about?"

Ash looked back at him while smiling, "Oh, sorry. That's actually my aerodactyl in the picture."

"WHAT?!" Todd blurted out in shock; startling the group, "Y- you have to be mistaken!" He pointed at the picture frantically, "This aerodactyl burst out of a cavern in the ground while battling this dragonite! Even if you do have one, it couldn't be the same one as this!"

"No, that's definitely my aerodactyl." Ash said while looking at the picture again, "We were there too, and he joined me after we all woke up from Jigglypuff's song."

Todd stared blankly before glaring, "Oh yeah?! Prove it!"

.

*Backyard

Ash proved it.

Todd stared at the Fossil Pokémon in bright eyed awe before he started running around and snapping more pictures of him. Aerodactyl watched the boy curiously as he did so.

After a moment, Todd perked up in realization before looking at Ash, "Wait a second! What about the dragonite?! Did you catch it too?!"

Ash frowned and scratched the back of his head, "'Fraid not. My charmeleon jumped in and Dragonite escaped." He smiled, "On the upside, Charmeleon did evolve into Charizard during that battle. He and Aerodactyl have actually grown pretty close since then."

Aerodactyl raised a brow, "Wait, what? That not what happen."

Pikachu looked at Aerodactyl, "Ash doesn't want that many humans knowing about his watch, remember? So, he can't say that he was that dragonite."

Aerodactyl sweat dropped and frowned, "Oh right. Sorry."

Clefairy smiled and patted Aerodactyl on the leg, "Don't worry. You'll get the hang of it."

Todd smiled, "Still, it's incredible how two people could be brought together by a single photograph." He grinned, "It's funny, really. You catch the aerodactyl and no one knows who you are. But I take it's picture and I'm world famous."

Ash sweat dropped, 'Not sure if I should be insulted by that or thankful that he doesn't know us.' "Uh, sure." He shook it off before raising a brow, "Anyway, I forgot to ask earlier. Why were you trying to take a picture of just Soot?"

Todd tensed up and frowned, "W- well… I, uh-" He slumped forward, "I can't tell you…"

Soot raised a brow before she perked up, "Oh. Were you hired by someone?"

Todd flinched and looked at her in shock, "How the Yvel did you know that?!"

Soot smirked, "I didn't. You just told me." She smiled normally, "But, in all seriousness, we've had stuff like this happen before."

Brock sweat dropped, "You have?"

Ash smiled and nodded, "If it's a confidentiality agreement between you and a client, then we understand. We won't pry." He sweat dropped, "Granted, we'd still feel more comfortable if we at least knew why they wanted the picture."

Misty glanced away and mumbled, "Twenty Poké that it's some Phantom Child nutcase like that Pokémon Lovers Club in HopHopHop."

Pikachu sweat dropped while deadpanning, "I don't doubt that."

Togepi and Electra looked at Misty and Pikachu in confusion. Clefairy and Aerodactyl looked around in confusion as well; having not heard what Misty said.

Todd blinked in surprise before smiling, "Well, thanks for understanding."

Soot grinned, "Eh, no problem." She raised a brow, "So, I know you can't say who this is for, but can I ask what they want? I mean, if it's just a standard picture, I could smile or do some kind of pose or … something."

Todd frowned, "That's not what I had in mind. I don't want my pictures to involve poses, special lighting, or some set up background." He smiled, "It's like those pictures you all saw inside. Those Pokémon were living happily in their own natural habitats." He clenched a fist, "Those are the kinds of pictures I want to take the most. Pokémon as they should be seen."

Brock, Misty, Pikachu, Clefairy, Electra, and Togepi smiled softly and Aerodactyl cocked his head.

Ash smiled as well, "Huh. That actually does sound kinda nice."

Soot frowned, "But I'm not sure how easy a 'natural' shot would be for me. "

Todd looked at her worriedly, "Why's that?"

"Well, I was raised by humans for just about my whole life." Soot said, "My instincts have gotten pretty dull and my mannerisms are too human-like. Yvel, I probably look most natural when-" She stopped and perked up in realization.

Ash noticed and smiled at her, "You have something in mind?"

Soot smiled at him and nodded, "Maybe." She smiled at Todd, "What if it was a mid-battle shot? Like the one with Aerodactyl."

Todd blinked in surprise, "What?"

Aerodactyl perked up and looked at her as well.

"Battling is something you'll naturally find a Pokémon doing." Soot said; still smiling, "The only possible factor would be in my battle-style. And that would just go over most trainers' heads. Besides, if you really want the shot to be candid, there may not be a better option. I shouldn't lose focus from a heated battle unless something really hectic happens."

Todd stared in surprise before looking down thoughtfully, "A mid-battle shot…" He smiled excitedly, "Yeah! That might just work!"

Ash smiled, "Alright, then we just need an opponent."

Pikachu and Clefairy tensed up and shared a nervous glance.

"I battle Soot!" Aerodactyl called out with a smirk and a raised claw. Everyone except Todd jerked and looked at him. Todd perked up and looked at the group in confusion.

Soot blinked in surprise, "Really?"

Aerodactyl looked at her with a determined grin, "Primeape, Charizard, and others say you strongest on team. Wanted to battle you for while now. See who really stronger."

Soot blinked again before smirking, "Fine by me." She looked around and translated.

Ash's Mouse and Fairy Pokémon sighed in relief.

Ash smiled and crossed his arms, "Alright. Looks like we have a match."

Todd smiled excitedly, "Perfect! I'll go get my stuff!" He ran back inside.

.

*Distant bushes

"Perfect." Jessie whispered excitedly, "It looks like that Todd kid has them right where he wants them."

James grinned excitedly as he laid next to her, "And he's even got them fighting each other. He must be a master at manipulation."

Meowth smirked, "Once he gets dat mutt, da Phantom'll have no choice but ta turn himself ova."

Growlie sweat dropped, "Still, if he's some kind of renown thief, why was he taking so many pictures?"

Meowth looked at him, "Well he showed us dat photo album of all da Pokémon he captured, rememba?"

James smiled at Growlie and nodded, "It's probably some kind of portfolio for his poaching career or like a memorabilia thing."

The Puppy Pokémon sweat dropped, "Then why the Yvel would he show it to elderly people?"

.

**Flashback**

"You must help us." Jessie said in a desperate tone. She wore a white wig with a bun, spectacles, and a red shawl with yellow fringe over a purple blouse, "We really need you to capture this mightyena." Meowth sat in the chair next to her and wore a red collar.

"Oh, please." James followed in the same tone. He wore a gray wig and mustache and blue suit, "This mightyena is so important to us." Growlie sat next to him and wore a blue collar.

Todd picked up the pictures, "Mightyena?"

Two pictures depicted Soot with her back turned and where only half of her was visible in the frame. There was also a third one that was just Togepi laughing at a tree. Granted, the third was taken when Soot was playing 'invisible peekaboo' with the hatchling.

Todd sweat dropped, "Wow, these pictures rot."

Growlie deadpanned, 'Did he have to say that out loud?'

Jessie put her hands together, "Please. Grant this old woman one last wish before she passes on."

James brought up a kerchief to his face and started sobbing. Growlie propped himself up on James's leg and started licking his cheek.

Meowth glanced at the canine for a second and sweat dropped before nuzzling up against Jessie, 'This feels so weird.'

Todd looked at them curiously before looking down at the pictures again. After a second, he smiled and looked back at the four of them.

The boy stood up from his chair, "Don't worry! I'll take the job!"

James smiled hopefully, "You mean you'll do it?"

Todd put a fist to his chest, "I'll capture the mightyena perfectly."

Jessie smiled somberly, "Oh, thank goodness we found you before it was too late."

James wiped his eyes with the kerchief, "We're very grateful." He perked up and looked at Todd, "But we'd appreciate it if you'd not tell anyone that we've been here."

Todd nodded, "No problem. I would never reveal my clients' identities."

.

**End Flashback**

Growlie continued frowning, "For that matter, why did we wear disguises if he's a criminal too? Couldn't we have just met with him as ourselves?"

Meowth raised a digit on his paw, "Well, because-"

"Give it a rest, already!" Jessie whispered harshly; startling the three guys, "Whatever the reason, he took the job! Just accept that and move on!"

James, Meowth, and Growlie looked back ahead, "Yes ma'am."

.

*Battlefield

"High speed, compact camera!" Todd said while holding up a camera that was smaller than the one he used earlier. He then swiftly spun an extendable lens onto it, "Adjustable, mid-range lens!" He clipped a strap onto the camera and slipped it on, "Neck strap!" He reached back before pulling out and slipping on a pair of clear visor glasses, "Wind resistant visor!" He placed a hand on the tip of the lens, "And finally," He swung his hand out dramatically with a black disk in his palm, "lens cap, off!"

Clefairy, Electra, and Togepi smiled and started clapping.

Pikachu stared blankly, "I have no idea what just happened."

Todd pocketed the cap, took a knee, and brought the camera to his face, "Ready when you are!"

Misty sweat dropped, "Is all of that really necessary?"

Todd nodded while looking ahead determinedly, "This could be a quick-paced battle, so I need my fastest and smallest camera to make sure the pictures come out as clear as possible and that I can adjust my aim at a moment's notice." Everyone perked up in surprise as he continued, "I won't be that far away, so a long-ranged lens will make adjustments more difficult. But one of them is a Flying-type, so a short-range lens won't work either. And from what I saw at the canyon, Aerodactyl has immense firepower. If I lose my grip or I'm forced to close my eyes due to wind, it'll make taking the picture that much harder. Asking the Pokémon to hold back would lessen the authenticity."

Ash, Soot, Pikachu, and Clefairy just stared at the photographer in shock.

"Um," Misty muttered, "wow."

"Insane…" Electra muttered in awe.

Brock stared in shock, "I never realized how much preparation could go into photography."

Todd nodded again, "If you want a professional shot, standard equipment just won't cut it. It takes a lot of planning to really make sure things go smoothly." He glanced at them with a proud smirk, "Anyone can just point a camera and shoot. But if you want real results, you need to be prepared and then some."

Ash blinked in surprise, "Huh." He shook it off and looked over at the Bite and Fossil Pokémon as they stood across from each other.

The trainer smiled and clapped once, "Alright, you two! I want this to be a nice, clean battle! It'll be freestyle based with the standard ruleset!"

Aerodactyl looked at his trainer with a raised claw, "Uh…"

Ash pointed at him, "It's over when one of you is unable to battle!" He sweat dropped when Aerodactyl cocked his head, "Unable to battle means knocked unconscious!"

The Rock/Flying-type straightened, smirked, and nodded, "Understand!" He looked at Soot and moved into a fighting stance, "Hope you ready to lose. I not holding back."

Soot smirked and moved into her fighting stance as well, "That makes two of us. You're goin' down, scaley."

Aerodactyl perked up and blinked in confusion, "Who Scaley?"

Soot sweat dropped, "Well, uh … you. It's like a smack talk nickname."

The Fossil Pokémon raised a brow, "But name not Scaly or Nick."

"That's not what-" Soot said before sighing, "Y'know, just forget I said anything." She glanced at the others, "We're ready!"

Aerodactyl perked up and moved back into his fighting stance.

Ash raised a hand, "Then," He brought it down forcefully, "Begin!"

Soot and Aerodactyl's eyes narrowed. Almost immediately, both gritted their teeth.

Misty blinked in surprise, "Wait, does Aerodactyl have Intimidate too?"

Ash's eyes narrowed, "Not Intimidate. Pressure. It means Soot has to put more effort into attacking Aerodactyl. She'll only be able to pull off half her usual amount; rounded down."

Brock frowned, "Sounds like trouble."

"Yeah, it is." Ash said before smirking, "But the ability does have a loophole."

The Gym Leaders and shoulder riders looked at him in surprise. They flinched upon hearing a metallic sheen and looked back ahead to find Aerodactyl flying towards Soot with Iron Head. Soot was running towards him as well.

Before they could connect Soot jumped, formed a Shadow Ball in each paw, and detonated them to propel herself over Aerodactyl. Everyone's -except Ash's and Todd's- eyes widened as she did so.

Aerodactyl smirked and put his feet down to skid to a halt. He cut off Iron Head, lit his right wing up blue, and swung a Wing Attack at the Bite Pokémon above him.

Soot smirked, 'Clever.' She formed a Shadow Ball on her hind paw and detonated it to swerve around to face the wing. She opened her mouth, ignited Fire Fang, and clamped down at the Flying-type attack.

An explosion erupted from the pair and engulfed them in dust. Aerodactyl stumbled back out of the cloud while gritting his teeth. A scuff mark could be seen on his right wing.

Soot shot back out of the cloud and detonated two more Shadow Balls from her forepaws to backflip once and skid back to a halt. She smirked and moved back into her fighting stance.

Aerodactyl glared determinedly and opened his mouth as a fire ball formed and shot forward. The fireball burst out into a 大-shape as it approached Soot.

Mizuro: *stares blankly* … Is that the Japanese symbol for 'big'?

Seishin: *smiles* Yup.

Nuevo: Why?

Ohirume: Ask the anime.

Soot lied down as the attack shot by above her. She stood back up and charged Aerodactyl.

The Fossil Pokémon's eyes widened slightly before he smirked and charged up another Fire Blast.

Soot smirked, 'Predictable.'

Aerodactyl fired the attack at the Dark-type once she was about a foot away. She responded by blasting above him with another set of Shadow Balls. Aerodactyl looked up in surprise as Soot managed to rotate in the air and detonate two more Shadow Balls on her hind paws. She shot down onto Aerodactyl's back as the pair became engulfed in white smoke from Play Rough.

The smoke faded as Soot delivered a pair of Sucker Punches to Aerodactyl's head and launched herself back.

"Aero!" The Fossil Pokémon cried out as he stumbled back and put a claw on his forehead.

Soot skidded back to a halt. She grinned slyly and sat down, "I'll admit that Iron Head into Wing Attack fake out was impressive. But you're gonna have to think a little more strategically if you wanna pull one over on me, bud."

Aerodactyl shook his head rapidly and looked at Soot in confusion, "But, I not know Fake Out." He reached around.

Soot groaned and hung her head, "That's not what I-" She looked ahead and flinched before narrowly dodging a rock. She blinked in surprise before looking ahead to find Aerodactyl soaring at her with Wing Attack.

Soot let out a brief chuckle, "Huh…" She glared determinedly before shooting towards him with Shadow Ball again.

"Wait. What's Soot doing?" Brock asked anxiously, "She knows Aerodactyl has Pressure, right? Why isn't she using her attacks more sparingly?"

Ash smiled, "Look closer."

Pikachu squinted. After a second, his eyes widened in shock, "Wait a second! Soot doesn't look anymore worn out than normal!"

Clefairy stared in shock, "But I thought Pressure was supposed to tire her out faster."

Ash grinned and whispered, "Not exactly." He glanced back at the Water trainer and Breeder, "This is the loophole I was talking about." The pair looked at him in surprise as he continued, "Think about it, what has Soot hardly done so far?"

Misty looked at him in confusion before looking back out at the field. Her eyes widened in realization, "Attacking him. She's mostly just been moving around and blocking."

Ash snapped, "Bingo. Pressure may seem like an entry-activation ability that hinders the opponent immediately, but it's actually continuous. Pressure only works when an opponent targets a Pokémon who has the ability or when they use a move that alters the field. Status moves that exclusively help the user aren't affected." He smirked, "And that's the loophole. Targeting and intention."

The trainer looked at the field again, "So long as you don't actually try to attack an opponent who has Pressure, you're unaffected by it. Meaning certain move applications are free to use normally. Our maneuverability tactics are among them."

"Woah." Brock and Misty muttered in surprise.

Pikachu and Clefairy looked at their trainer in awe, and Togepi looked at him in confusion.

"Insane…" Electra muttered in awe.

Todd's eyes narrowed; his focus on the battle remaining unchanged, 'Huh. You learn something new every day.'

Aerodactyl swung Wing Attack at Soot while she was suspended in front of him. Soot grunted as the attack struck and flung her back.

The Bite Pokémon skidded back and just barely managed to jump out of the way of another Fire Blast. She stood up, looked ahead, and tensed up upon finding Aerodactyl already charging her with Giga Impact; too quickly to dodge.

Soot sweat dropped while smiling nervously, 'Okay… Might've been underestimating him a bit.' She clenched her claw into a fist and fired a Sucker Punch at the incoming Normal-type attack. Literally.

Todd and Aerodactyl's eyes widened in shock as Soot detonated another Shadow Ball between the zipper teeth on her scar and propelled the physical, Dark-type attack ahead. Aerodactyl's attack overpowered the limb near effortlessly and shot it away. He skidded to a halt and glared back at Soot.

He jerked and stared in shock when he couldn't find her, 'What?!' He started looking around the field, 'Where she go?!'

Aerodactyl's eyes widened in realization before he looked upward. His eyes widened even further when he saw Soot free falling towards him and holding her left forepaw to the side. A Shadow Ball three times the normal size was sitting on the pad.

Soot grinned wickedly as the wind rushed past, "Alright! Nice to see those lessons paying off!" She swung and threw the sphere down at Aerodactyl.

Aerodactyl grimaced while staring in shock, 'Bad! Really bad! Stuck on recharge, so can't attack or dodge!' His eyes widened a bit, 'Can't … attack or … dodge. But maybe…' He glanced at his arm and moved it slightly before his eyes widened. Aerodactyl grinned, "Can't attack or dodge," He brought up and crossed his wings over his face, "but can still brace!"

Ash and Soot's eyes widened in mild surprise.

Ash smiled softly, 'Huh. He figured it out on his own.' His smile saddened as he glanced to the side, 'Still…'

Aerodactyl's smirk faded when another round of explosions sounded.

"ro!" He coughed as something struck him in the gut; forcing him to put his arms down. He glanced down to find Soot's detached leg sitting on the ground in front of him.

Aerodactyl stared in shock before smirking, 'Strongest teammate.' He looked up at the approaching Ghost-type attack with a determined smirk, 'Guess I need more training.'

The attack struck and detonated violently; forcing everyone in the area to shield themselves. The wind stopped a moment later and everyone looked back at the field.

The dust slowly faded to reveal Soot panting heavily while standing on all threes and Aerodactyl lying in a crater with his eyes swirling.

"Aerodactyl is unable to battle!" Ash called out with a raised hand. He gestured to the Dark-type with a smile, "Soot wins!" He ran onto the field immediately after saying it. Brock followed him.

Soot sighed in relief and fell to her stomach, "Oh, thank Arceus. That last one took everything I had left."

"Yay, Soot!" Clefairy called out as she jumped the canine and hugged her head, "You won!"

Togepi mimicked Clefairy, "Yay, Soot!"

Misty walked up, smiled, and put her hands on her hips, "Guys, come on. I'm sure she's plenty tired, as is."

Pikachu smiled too, "No doubt. That battle seemed intense."

Electra smiled brightly, "It was so insane!"

Soot chuckled softly, "Thanks."

Todd looked over at Aerodactyl. His jaw dropped and he removed his visor when he saw Ash carrying the Pokémon over on his back. Brock walked alongside him with Soot's leg in his hand. He took a picture of the scene.

Ash noticed the boy's reaction and looked at him, "Everything alright?"

"Uh," Todd muttered while staring blankly, "y- yeah…"

Brock walked over to Soot, kneeled down, and handed her her hand, "Here you go, Soot."

Soot smiled, "Thanks Brock." She grabbed the appendage with her mouth, moved it back into place, and zipped it back on.

Todd watched curiously.

Ash looked at the photographer, "Did you get the picture?"

Todd snapped out of it and looked at him, "Oh, uh, yeah. A few." He smiled and held up the camera, "I just have to get them on the computer and print them out, now."

Misty smiled and shot up a fist, "Alright, mission accomplished!"

"Woo." Soot said tiredly with a raised claw.

Todd smiled, "Thanks again for letting me do this. How about I make some pancakes to celebrate?"

Everyone perked up and looked at him in surprise.

Ash blinked, "Really?" He smiled, "Uh, yeah. That sounds pretty good."

Misty smiled, "Yeah. Thanks Todd."

Brock smiled and held up a hand, "But, how about I help? It'll be a tall order with all of us. Besides, you should probably finish those pictures asap in case the client calls."

Todd perked up, "Oh, good point." He gave a thumbs up, "Thanks. I'll come and help after I'm done."

Electra blinked in confusion before looking at Soot, "Wait. You can make cakes with pans?"

Soot snorted, "You'll see."

.

*Team Rocket in the bushes

Jessie smiled nervously, "He's getting ready to grab her … right?"

Meowth stared blankly, "It don't seem like it."

James frowned worriedly, "B- but why?! The Phantom Child was completely worn out! He even took the picture and everything!"

Growlie sweat dropped, "I might have an idea on what's going on." He glanced at Meowth, "Could you re-read that article, real quick?"

Meowth reached around, pulled out the magazine, and opened it, "I- it's right here! 'Todd Snap is one of da best at capturin' Pokémon' See?!"

James looked at the page and his eyes widened, "Meowth, there isn't a period at the end of that sentence."

Meowth raised a brow, "Yeah, I thought that was weird too. Ya think a famous magazine would be better at" He tensed up and his eyes widened, "fixin' … typos…"

Jessie's eye twitched, "Meowth, turn the page."

Meowth gulped, complied, and muttered, "'on film…'"

Jessie glared at him, "Louder."

Meowth frowned, "'Todd Snap is one of da best at capturin' Pokémon on film'."

Growlie sighed, "Yeah. That kid's not a poacher. He's a photographer."

Meowth gulped before, begrudgingly, translating for the Fire-type.

"Meowth…" Jessie muttered while glaring at him furiously.

The Scratch Cat Pokémon flinched, stood up, and held up his paws defensively, "N- now, Jess. Let's not do anythin' rash."

Jessie stood up and clenched a fist, "I'll show you rash!"

Meowth jumped and started running away from the female Rocket Agent while screaming.

Jessie chased after him, "Get back here!"

James sighed before standing back up and walking in the opposite direction. Growlie followed him.

.

**Short Skip**

On account of Aerodactyl not being able to fit in the house, everyone decided to make the small celebration a picnic in the backyard and brought out all of their Pokémon to join in. Almost all of them were tearing into the breakfast food ravenously, and Electra, Pikachu, and Clefairy wouldn't stop squealing and 'cha'-ing in delight.

Todd was currently inside working on the photos.

Misty looked at Soot, "Hey, so, what was that thing you did at the end of the battle?"

Soot swallowed and looked at her in confusion, "What do you mean? I've made Shadow Balls way bigger than that."

Misty waved a hand, "No, not that. That flying punch thing."

Soot raised a brow.

Misty glared, "You know what I'm talking about."

Soot glanced away with a sly smirk, "Maybe… Though, it might help if you were a little more clea-"

"It's something we thought of after Maiden's Peak." Ash jumped in.

Soot glared at Ash, "Killjoy."

Ash smirked before continuing, "During that fight, Gastly was able to freely move Arlequin Yin's detached arm without the puppet holding it."

Electra perked up and looked at Ash in confusion, "Arle-what?"

Soot sighed before looking at the humans, "I can't move my arm when it's detached, but I can still attack from it. That last shot was just some well-timed propulsion."

Brock sweat dropped while looking at Soot, "So, you can essentially attack from two places at the same time?"

The Bite Pokémon frowned unsurely, "Well, sorta. My arm wouldn't have anything to keep it stationary so I can't aim Shadow Ball. Propulsion is the only way to make the freaking thing move without being touched, but it takes a ridiculous amount of timing and concentration to form and burst the Shadow Balls just right. For now, it's only good for quick jabs."

Brock nodded, "Oh."

"Hey, guys!" Todd called out from inside; catching their attention, "I just pulled up the pictures! Come look!"

Ash, Brock, Misty, and Soot smiled, got up, and moved inside. The rest of the Pokémon decided to stay outside and continue eating.

The quartet walked over to Todd and crowded around the computer.

The first shot depicted Soot suspended above Aerodactyl with a Shadow Ball on her hind paw and the Rock/Flying-type swinging Wing Attack at her.

The second showed Soot's detached forepaw shooting towards Aerodactyl's Giga Impact.

The third had Aerodactyl and Soot swinging a Wing Attack and Sucker Punch at each other simultaneously.

And the fourth was of Soot free falling with the giant Shadow Ball.

Behind the main four, were also a few pictures of Soot and/or Aerodactyl in their fighting stances and them trading blows. Though, some had some unfortunate blurs.

Brock stared in shock, "Woah."

Ash blinked in shock, "Yeah. I didn't even notice you taking them."

Todd grinned cockily, "Yeah, I'm just that good."

Soot sweat dropped, 'Same attitude, I see.'

Everyone at the computer perked up and looked back when they heard a phone ringing.

Todd got up, walked over, and answered, "Hello?" He smiled, "Oh, it's you! You'll be happy to know that-" He stopped and perked up in confusion, "What? What do you mean you don't- But what about-" He stopped again and sweat dropped, "Well, if you're sure… Alright. Bye." He hung up, "Well that was weird."

Misty frowned, "Is everything alright?"

Todd looked back, "Oh, uh, the people who hired me to take the picture just said they don't want it anymore."

Soot frowned, "Ah, what? After all that?" She pouted sourly, "The nerve of some people."

Ash frowned sympathetically, "Still, sorry. What does this mean about your pay?"

Todd smiled, "Oh, don't worry. I wasn't getting paid in the first place. This one was a charity thing." He looked back at the phone with a raised brow, "Or I thought it was…"

Misty raised a brow, "Weird." She shook it off, pointed a thumb back, and smiled, "Still, no point in letting the pancakes go to waste. How about you come join us?"

"In a bit." Todd said with a smile, "I still do wanna get these pictures printed out. Y'know, just in case they call and change their minds."

Soot shrugged, "Suit yourself."

Brock smiled, "But don't take too long. The pancakes will get cold."

Todd smiled and gave a thumbs up, "Got it."

Ash, Soot, Misty, and Brock walked back outside to the picnic table and Todd got to work printing out the photos.

As the printer whirred, Todd looked at the back door curiously before looking at the computer. He pulled up a web browser, typed 'Mightyena with zipper on leg,' and clicked the first link.

Todd perked up and blinked in surprise, "Phantom Child?"

.

*Outside; moments later

Brock looked at Misty, "Can you pass the-"

Everyone flinched when the door slammed open and looked over to see Todd in the doorway.

Todd ran up to Ash and practically shouted, "You met the Phantom Pokémon?!"

Ash and Soot flinched before groaning. Everyone else looked at the pair worriedly.

.

.

*****Pseudo-Comment Response*****

From Ohma flame (Trix chapter 58):

Rock wrecker ruckus...

I'm both extremely underwhelmed by the lack of creativity and impressed by how sweat drop inducing that is

Omega: *grins* HA! I think you're starting to get on my good side, Flames.

Ohirume: *grumbles* Yes, I know it was bad, but I thought an alliteration gag would be fun.

Nuevo: *glances at Ohirume with a sly smirk and a raised brow* Sure, but that was what you came up with?

Ohirume: *glares at Nuevo* Well, what else could I have put?!

Seishin: *Ohirume's voice* Regarding the results of the Rock Wrecker rampage regretfully ruining the regimen,
*grins; normal voice* And that'd be where Meg's glare cuts in.

Ohirume: ... *crosses arms and pouts* I was tired at the time, alright?

...

Seishin: *smirks at Ohirume* So we're seriously not going to address the fact that I -one of the characters in your head- am somehow better at alliteration than you?

Ohirume: *glares at Seishin* I work better by learning from mistakes!

.

From Guest (Trix chapter 58):

Intelon,now?

Ohirume: ... Y- you mean Inteleon?

Look, I don't know why your posting the names of Galar Pokémon (assuming you're the same person who posted that Dragapult and Stonjourner review for chapter 43), but you're not making any sense.

.

From A Guest (Trix chapter 58):

Since in a way linked moves are a thing in your fic, couldn't they use agility (or Sunny Day) solar beam to fire quicker?

Ohirume: *chuckles sheepishly and rubs back of head* Sorry, I'm afraid that's not the case. Link Attacks don't exist in the Pokémon Trix continuity ... at least, not to that extent.

Faux: *smiles* Link Attacks are about using multiple attacks at the exact same time. The result ranges from a mash-up of the attacks to something new entirely.

*holds out claw* For example, *grins* Link Attack! Night Sphere! *claw flares from Night Daze as an Aura Sphere appears on the Dark-type attack* The attack also adopts a new name from the parts.

Luke: *pulls Bone Rush off back* And it is not entirely exclusive to the build process.

*holds out staff and eyes narrow* Link Attack! Metal Rush! *Metal Claw immediately juts out of Bone Rush tip; creating a spear. Props spear against shoulder* This would be an example of the unnatural combination.

Seishin: What the Pokémon in Trix's world are doing is just putting the attacks together. Like in the anime. It may not sound different, but it is.

Pike: *raises digit on paw* The difference is that they're creating the attacks separately. Bulbasaur's Hidden Powder is done by setting up Sleep Powder in his bulb and then creating a Hidden Power around it before firing. Trix calling out "Hidden Powder" is just him giving a code-like command.

Laura: *smiles and nods* It's the same with Soot's explosive 'Will O' Wisp' and Trix's Refrigerated Hyper Voice. They set up the Fang move before unleashing/creating the other part. This is also why Soot's 'Will O' Wisp' only ever forms in her mouth.

Ohirume: *raises finger* Now, I'll admit that a Pokémon in Trix's story could do something immediately before starting Solar Beam to assist with the speed up. Because consecutive attacks are a thing, unlike in the mainstream games. But, unfortunately, a speed-bumping move wouldn't be something that can help with that.

The reason Bulbasaur can't do this is because he doesn't know Sunny Day or another move to help. Because of my four-move-limit concept, he'd have to forget one of his current moves to learn something that can help.

Also sorry for the "can't wait to read next chapter", I was excited.

Ohirume: *smiles and waves* Oh, I'm not upset about that one. Saying you're excited about a new chapter is something I'm fine with.

*sweat drops* It's the ones that ask for a chapter to be posted or complain about it not being posted yet that get on my nerves.