Author's Note

I am by far no expert in the world and lore of Pokemon, having stopped playing the games and watching the anime after the second generation of Pokemon, and so am only vaguely aware of what is current canon based on what I know through my pre-teen daughter, who asked me to write this fiction for her. This is why this story has only implied sexual content- which, honestly, isn't my go-to style of writing, but she was so insistent that I write a Gary/Ash ship story for her. At the moment I have no intention of adding any sex scenes to this story as I want to keep it as close to the original as I can.

"Ash?"

Ash Ketchum stirred in his sleeping bag, turning over and away from the male voice trying to wake him up, "Leave me alone, Gary, I'm trying to sleep…" A few moments passed before he realized what he had just said and, with that realization, he quickly sat up with a gasp, only to have a hand clamped over his mouth to muffle his shout.

"Shh, you'll wake the others," Gary Oak whispered, putting a finger to his lips before nodding to the forms of Brock and Misty asleep across the dying campfire in their own sleeping bags.

Ash was still shocked to see his rival way out here in the forest, especially without his entourage or his red convertible in tow. Nodding his head, he waited until the hand over his mouth was removed before asking in a much quieter voice, "What are you doing here, Gary? How did you find us?"

"I'm staying in a nearby cabin and was out for a walk to clear my head when I saw your campfire," he explained simply, a small smile hinting at the corner of his lips. Ash couldn't quite put his finger on it, but something seemed different about Gary; he seemed much calmer, less tense. Looking up into Gary's dark eyes, he was even more confused to see a deep sadness and loneliness.

"But that doesn't-" Ash rubbed at his eyes, so confused, but was quickly interrupted by Gary placing a long, slender finger against his lips to silence him once more.

"You always were a thick-headed one, Ashy-boy," Gary softly chuckled, looking and sounding much more like himself once again before the dark, somberness returned and he sighed, looked down at the ground he was kneeling on before looking back up into Ash's eyes, "Look, I don't have much time. I… have to get back before the others know I'm gone." He had been kneeling beside Ash's sleeping bag when he first attempted to wake up the aspiring Pokemon Master, but now he was practically crawling inside the sleeping bag with Ash as he leaned closer in, "I want to tell you something… Something I have been wanting to tell you for a long time but never had the courage until now."

Ash's heart skipped a beat as he felt Gary inching closer and closer, and his mind began to reel with the possibilities of what Gary was going to say next, 'I must be dreaming… this has to be a dream… oh god, please don't wake me up yet…' Clearing his throat and trying to reel himself in, he swallowed nervously and asked, "O-oh? And what's that?"

Moving his hand from pressing against Ash's lips to cup his cheek while the other slid down to his hip, Gary pulled Ash against him and looked deeply into his eyes before whispering, "I love you…" And then his lips were on Ash's and everything else seemed to disappear around them, leaving only the two of them alone in the world.

Ash didn't know how long the two had been in each other's embrace, lying together in his sleeping bag enjoying the afterglow of lovemaking, but he felt his time with Gary was coming to a close. He didn't want it to end. He would have been happy to stay like this for the rest of his life as if time had stopped and they wouldn't have to go back out into the world.

Just as he feared, it wasn't long before Gary turned his head to look down into Ash's eyes and that dark look from before had returned. "You really have to go?" Ash whispered, resting his hand on Gary's bare chest as if that would hold him down and keep him by his side.

Gary smiled, but it didn't quite seem to reach his eyes as he reached down and, taking Ash's hand in his own, lifted it to press a kiss to Ash's palm before looking into his eyes once more, "I have to. They'll be expecting me."

Ash sighed softly and nodded somberly, "I understand…" He helped Gary gather their clothes they had strewn about in their passion as quietly as he could, not wanting to push the incredible luck he had by accidentally waking his traveling companions now.

The pair dressed in silence, Ash stealing glances at Gary when he thought his old rival wasn't looking, and he couldn't help but smile. He only wished that he didn't have to wake up from his dream…

"I want you to have this."

Ash looked up in surprise at the now fully dressed Gary and the item he held out to Ash in his hand. "What is it?" He asked curiously, trying to figure out what it was by just looking at it, but was only able to discern that it was wrapped in a fine linen handkerchief with the initials GO monogrammed on it.

"A gift," Gary responded simply, taking Ash's hand and placing the covered item in his open palm, "Just promise you'll open it only after I have left? I don't want to see you getting all emotional on me, Ashy-boy."

They both shared a muffled chuckle, and Ash nodded, still curiously turning the item over and over to try and figure out what it was, "Sure, I promise, but-"

He was interrupted by the sound of his Pokegear going off and Ash jumped in surprise, "Gah!" He turned back to his sleeping bag and the backpack sitting beside it, fumbling to grab the still loudly ringing Pokegear and turn it off before it woke the others.

But it was too late. Misty and Brock sat up in their sleeping bags, both rubbing their eyes sleepily as they looked across the dead campfire at Ash.

"What's going on?" Misty yawned, stretching as she blinked sleepily, "It's not time to wake up yet!"

Finally finding the offending item in his pack, Ash quickly flipped it open, calling back over his shoulder to the others, "No, you're right, I'm sorry. Just go back to sleep; it's nothing!" Turning back to his Pokegear, Ash looked surprised to see it was Professor Oak calling. "Oh, hey, Gary, look, it's your grandfather calling," he smiled, turning to look back at Gary, but his smile faltered as he realized that Gary was gone.

"Did you just say Gary?" Brock asked, looking curiously around the camp for any sign of the man, "Gary Oak?" Misty, who had just laid back down, curiously sat back up and looked between Brock and Ash before looking around, too, her eyebrow quirked questioningly.

"No, no…" Ash looked back to his Pokegear, confused as to why Gary would just disappear like that without saying goodbye, "You must have misunderstood. I gotta take this." Standing up, Ash took a few steps away from their camp and answered the call, "Hello, Professor Oak, good morning."

"Ah, Ash, I'm glad I could finally reach you," Professor Oak's voice seemed strained and tired, missing its usual chipperness Ash was used to, and it made Ash feel uneasy for some reason, "I've been trying to reach you for a while now."

"I'm sorry, Professor, I was… asleep," Ash could feel a heavy pit beginning to form in his stomach and he wasn't sure what was causing it, "Is- is everything all right?"

"No, I'm afraid not, my boy," Professor Oak sighed, sounding even more tired and drained now, "I actually have some bad news."

"Oh? Anything I can do to help?" Ash offered, turning to look back at the other two, who were still sitting up, watching him curiously from their sleeping bags.

"I'm afraid not," the Professor took a moment to gather himself before continuing, "I'm afraid that there has been an accident at the Sayda Labs. Dora called about three hours ago to inform us that…" Ash felt that pit in his stomach sink into his feet as he realized what was going on, his fears quickly confirmed. "There was a tunnel collapse during an excavation, and… Gary was caught underneath it. They were able to retrieve his body and its-"

Ash didn't hear the rest of whatever it was the Professor was trying to tell him as the Pokegear slipped from his hand to fall into the grass at his feet. Pikachu, who had been asleep this whole time and had only just woken up, sleepily looked up at his trainer with concern.

"Ash?" Brock and Misty called, but Ash didn't hear them either as he looked down at the handkerchief-covered item Gary had given him.

With trembling hands, Ash slowly unwrapped the handkerchief, only to drop to his knees, tears streaming down his cheeks as he looked down at what he had uncovered.

In his palm, resting on the monogrammed handkerchief, was a broken half of an old Pokeball… the match to the broken half he had tucked safely away in the bottom of his backpack.