Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or Harry Potter

BloodyKitsune: Well, a new chapter appears and you get a better look at Vali's plans for the future.

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Chapter 36

Inwardly sighing as she took another break from taking pictures towards the end of the wedding reception, Vali headed towards the edges of the party since everything was beginning to give her a headache after five solid hours of constant things to do. It had been fun, wonderful, and interesting to see everything come together after all the work they'd put in. It was just a lot of work though even with her pokemon assisting. Vali could feeling how exhausted Elrond was getting. When they were done for the day, it would definitely be nice to settle down and just enjoy having a break.

It was as Vali was walking over to one of the shady areas to take her break that she noticed a stranger. While many of Delia's friends were strangers to her, she had met many during the last days, but this stranger wasn't that familiar to her. He wore a long cloak that covered his torso and pants. The hood was drawn up keep his head covered. He wore worn traveling boots. A battle-scarred Pikachu sat on his shoulder looking out at the party with a wary eye. It's eyes darted towards her and it tugged on the man's cloak as she approached. The man turned to her and Vali spotted a face that she'd only seen in the sparse photographs that Delia had given Ash. Paler and more travel worn than in the most recent of said photos, Red Ketchum stood before her watching his former wife wedding reception. Red's maroon eyes peered at her as his Pikachu, Pika, seemed to judge her. She spoke as the two continued to simply stare at her, "Delia will be happy to know you accepter her invitation."

"I'd prefer her not knowing I came," Red's voice was softer than she expected though it was likely due to spending so much time alone, "I'd prefer not to bother her. Not on a day she's actually happy," Red looked away and Vali looked with him towards where Delia was grinning at Sirius, "He connects better with her. Something I failed at back when we were together thanks to how often I was away," He shook his head, "No, I won't interrupt when I'm actually able to see her smile,"

Red's Pikachu let out a soft sound and nuzzled him. Vali looked at the two for a moment before catching sight of Ash with his Pidgeotto nestled behind him, "If you're wondering, Ash is doing pretty good. He's raised his Pidgey very well."

"I can see that," Red murmured looking over at his son now, "I'm glad. You've been helping him a lot?"

"When I can," Vali replied earning a soft hum, "He's my adoptive little brother after all,"

Red eyed her, "You really think of him like that?"

"I do," Vali nodded with a stern expression on her face, "Look, I'm not going to tell you what to do, but I think you need to spend more time with him. He's asked Delia a lot of questions about you and she can't answer them all. You've probably got a good reason for being away all the time," She could see his Pikachu getting a bit antsy and angry, "I don't give a shit, but Ash? Ash needs to know you. Unlike me, he has both his parents alive just separated. At some point though, he'll stop asking about you and start resenting you for not being there,"

Red's Pikachu's cheeks began to spark as he growled at her only to pause when Red placed a hand on him. He gave her a considering look, "You're a bit ballsy, Kid. You know that, right?"

Vali snorted softly, "I've been told that a couple times."

"My son," Red said as he looked back at Ash, "He doesn't exactly need me," He nodded towards Sirius, "He's got your Godfather,"

"My Godfather? You've never actually met him then," Vali replied with a soft snort, "I love him to death, but he's not a father figure. An uncle figure? He can do that no problem, but he isn't a father," She gave him a glare, "Siri knows your still around, so he doesn't try to act like Ash's father. He doesn't want to overstep,"

Red didn't look away from Ash as he considered his words. Eventually, he spoke to Vali, "I'll think about it."

Vali shook her head lightly and decided she's had enough rest.

"So you're leaving tomorrow?" Steven looked over at Lance as they helped clean up after all was said and done.

Steven nodded as he picked up a bundle of flowers from the ground, "Yeah. Dad and I both have to get back to Hoenn. Dad has to lead to business and I have to get some training done before I challenge my first Elite. It'll be interesting."

Lance grinned largely, "Battling mine was fun. My next not so much especially close together. I've been fighting two sets at a time."

"You're crazy," Steven shook his head at him.

Vali spoke up from behind them as she carried some baskets towards them, "The best kind of crazy. Don't know if I'll battle two Elites for my Mastery rank exam or not, I haven't made the decision just yet. It'll be interesting to figure that part out when I finally decide."

"You want to become a two star master?" Lance asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Since you're eager to have me as one of your Elite, I'd better become a two star master," Vali replied as she set down the baskets in a wagon that had been set up for them to clear away most of the wedding supplies, "I'll probably manage it in another two years. Likely after hitting the gym circuit again and clearing the tournament,"

Lance looked at her with a small frown, "You think it really might take that long for you to catch up?"

"Such is life," Vali replied with a shake of her head, "Anyway," She looked at Steven, "So First Elite huh? Actually becoming a Master?"

"Yup," Steven grinned at her, "It feels good knowing that I'll become a master soon. I've got all the other requirements in the bag just need this one,"

"Send me a ticket to your Championship match," Vali asked earning surprised look, "I'll make sure that I come and see it,"

"I will," Steven promised as he dropped the flowers into the wheel barrow, "I'll also get you a plane ticket too-"

"Just worry about match ticket," Vali told him, "I'll worry about the plane ticket,"

Steven went to protest. Lance silenced him with a clap of his hands, "I'll be sending you a ticket to mine as well, Vali."

"Great," Vali grinned at Lance, "I can't wait to see both of your matches. It sounds so much fun!"

"So what do you think will happen?" Vali asked as she handed Steven a drink, "You're headed back and will be taking on your first Elite in a month after that, right?"

"Yeah," Steven took the drink as Vali slowly sat down, "You're headed to that ranch, right?"

"Tomorrow," Vali looked at him, "So I've got a question, it's about that Durant you caught back in the Safari Zone. I've been following your battle page and haven't seen it pop up,"

Steven hummed softly as they both sat together on the porch of Professor Oak's house, "He's not much of a battler. I worked hard with him and it didn't work out too well. Eventually, we worked something out. He prefers digging and working in the mines. So I've trained him to defend the Stone mines as part of my contribution to the family, he works with the pokemon and people there,"

"So basically, he and your Sandshrew are mining pokemon?" Vali asked with a laugh, "They're perfect for you,"

"Agreed. Have you found one that you'd have specifically for taking photos?" Steven asked earning a snort.

"No, but one of my repeat clients keeps telling me I need invest in a Smeargle," Vali grinned at Steven's surprised look, "Yeah. Apparently they don't just like painting, they do sculpting, photography, music, and a lot more,"

"Sounds like the perfect pokemon for you," Steven mused with a chuckle.

Vali shook her head, "Yeah, but getting one is tough. They're sneaky little guys and attempting to find one is troublesome."

"I might keep an eye out for one if you do the same for any steel-type pokemon you come across that seem interesting," Steven said earning a small laugh.

Vali nodded with a shake of her head, "Agreed."

"Going to set out?" Delia asked as Vali hefted her bag into the living room a couple days after the wedding.

"I've got a photoshoot," Vali told Delia as she set her bag down with a soft grunt, "I've almost finished my work on your photos from the wedding. I should have them in three days,"

"Oh, good," Delia looked relieved at that, "I'm glad to hear it," She looked at the bag Vali set down in the living room, "Are you just going for the day or a couple days?"

"Two days," Vali answered as Aragorn ran into the room carrying her scarf earning a smile from her, "Thank you, Aragorn,"

Aragorn wagged his four tails happily. Delia pursed her lips as Vali bent down to grab her scarf from him, "Two days in an unfamiliar place?"

"It'll be fine. Apparently the ranch is really beautiful and there is enough space out there that Arwen can run properly," Vali grinned as she thought about that part of the deal she'd worked out with the people at the ranch, "Besides unfamiliar places can be fun and are normal for me,"

"True," Delia sighed deeply, "I just wished that you would've stayed a bit longer,"

"I'll be back in two days," Vali assured her, "Granted, it will only be for a couple days before I have to head to the Plateau with Siri for my meet up with Blaine, but I will be back,"

"I know," Delia looked a bit awkward, "I am sorry, Vali. For putting so much work on you during the wedding and the craziness I inflicting on you,"

Vali laughed softly and quickly hugged Delia, "Already forgave you, I figured it was wedding stress and I didn't mind the experience of wedding photos. It was nice."

Delia hugged her back, "Thank you. Did you really enjoy it?"

"It was an interesting experience and I'm definitely going to be looking into getting a Smeargle," Vali commented as she pulled away, "Since they have artistic talents and have the ability to use cameras, it wouldn't be hard to teach one to be a photographer,"

"That's an interesting idea," Delia said with a raised eyebrow.

"Steven said he'd keep an eye out for one while I did the same for any interesting steel-types," Vali moved to grab her bag, "We'll do a trade once we both have them,"

Delia shook her head as Vali grabbed her bag, "That sounds like an interesting trade, I didn't think you'd do something like that though. You usually go out and catch the pokemon yourself."

"Normally, yes, but Smeargle are difficult to find on a good day," Vali heft her bag onto her shoulder, "I'm heading out though. If I'm going to make it to the ranch in time, I need to leave now,"

Delia nodded as Vali headed towards to the door, "I'll tell Ash that you said goodbye. Just be careful."

"I will," Vali waved as Thorin and Aragorn walked with her, "See you when I get back,"

The Purpleheart Ranch had a nice grouping of acres and beautiful grasslands. They had a gigantic barn and large corrals. The fields were filled were beautiful and heathy pokemon that had room to roam free. It was a wonderful place that Vali immediately found herself adoring. She got off Celina's back as a gray haired young woman popped out of the barn. The woman walked over as Celina flared her wings slightly, "Wow, that's Celina, right? She's so much more beautiful in person."

"Thank you, I'm Vali Potter," Vali said as she patted Celina on the side as the Pidgeot preened at the compliment, "And this is Celina as you guessed. The not-so little fox hopping down from the saddle is Aragorn,"

Aragorn hit the dirt with a slight thump. The gray haired woman smiled at the sight, "He's handsome and big for a four tailed. I'm Amalie Flemine. My sister told me you'd be here today. How are you doing?"

"I'm wonderful. I just had a wedding photoshoot with my Godfather," Vali replied as she grabbed her bag from Celina's back, "So where is this sister of yours?"

"Currently she's dealing with something in town, I can show you to your room," Amalie answered as Thorin released himself and Vali returned Celina, "And who's this?"

"Thorin. He was the Eevee I had with me during my tournament," Vali answered earning a soft hum.

"He looks wonderful. You groom your pokemon?" Amalie asked earning a nod.

"I groom them every day and every other week I tend to give them this 'spa' day," Vali follow Amalie towards the house that was on the property, "I totally pamper them and ensure they're relaxed to the point all our training washes off their backs. They look forward to it especially since the hardest training sessions always come right before the spa day,"

Amalie grinned at her, "It definitely looks like it works."

Loumine was a dark honey blonde haired woman. She was on the short side, but had a fire in her dark green eyes. Loumine had a sharp eyed Espeon for a pokemon partner. Vali offered the woman a light smile as Aragorn gave his fellow Eeveelution a small nod, "Loumine, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Vali."

"Wonderful to meet you," Loumine offered her a warm smile, "I'm so glad you made it. So would you like to get started?"

"Sure thing. Amalie already took me on a small tour when we set my Ponyta, Arwen, out with the other Ponyta," Vali replied as she held up her camera, "I've been taking a few shots already and just getting a general feel for the place. It's really beautiful here,"

"I'm glad," Loumine smiled at her as Elrond and the Espeon had a stare down, "Now I thought we could start with the gate out and pastures then some of our pokemon. Specifically the ones my sister has rehabilitated and our star pokemon, we could work out some other details later,"

Vali nodded as Loumine started leading the way towards a jeep, "So I'm thinking that I'd get pictures of all the people that work here, I'd have them alone then do a group shot with their pokemon, the pokemon alone, and one of them with their pokemon. I'd do the same with you and your family as well."

"That's a lot like what I was thinking," Loumine commented as they reached the jeep, "I thought we'd put a little blurb under each picture. Maybe you could talk about your experience here as well, it might convince other people to take a deeper look into us,"

"Sure, it might be fun," Vali nodded to her, "I could use a break from research paper,"

During Vali's photoshoot at the Purpleheart ranch, she met the two stable hands, Lucas Wright and Perry Dou. Lucas had retired from being a trainer at eighteen after failing to get higher than the top 64 in the Conference. Perry still tried her hand at the Conference, but was planning on changing regions next year. Lucas was a generalist while Perry specialized in Electric-types with a side hustle of in Ground-types. Vali offered to battle Perry before she left, but was turned down for the current moment. Amalie didn't actively train on the gym circuit, but had five badges with plans to get another should the opportunity come up. Eric Drom was the grandfather of Amalie and Loumine. He was also the owner of this ranch and had raised many equine pokemon in his many years. Despite his initial reluctance to allow a photoshoot, he was a warm man that cared for the pokemon of his ranch and any rescue pokemon that came into their hands.

Vali watched Arwen run with a group of Ponyta and Rapidash as they raced across the pasture. It was a beautiful sight and reminded her of the herd she'd gotten Arwen from. She heard the crunch of gravel behind her and Eric's voice call out, "It's a beautiful sight. My family settled here because of our pokemon being able to run like that. Your Ponyta is well taken care of. All of your pokemon are, but I'd notice a Ponyta above all else."

"Thank you," Vali said as she continued to watch Arwen run to her hearts content, "She and Balto can only really run at Professor Oak's ranch. When we're at the gym, it's hard to find place for them to run, but we work it out,"

"At the very least, you try," Eric replied as he reached her side, "Vali...I will admit that I'm not exactly the biggest supported of new things. It something that runs in my family, but I can see things from my granddaughters perspective," Vali looked at Eric and saw him offer her an apologetic smile, "I'm really sorry if I put you off on taking your photos,"

"You're good," Vali waved him off, "I've had worst receptions,"

Eric shook his head and looked back at the herds of pokemon, "That Ponyta definitely is a quick one even for a wild born, she looks like she'd been a good racer."

"Blaine's been telling me I should look into it," Vali replied as she spotted Arwen easily keeping up with the various Rapidash, "When I find the time, I'll consider it. Now that she's big enough for me to ride without straining her, I could do that,"

"Blaine? Gym Leader Blaine?" Eric goggled at her.

Vali nodded with a slight grin, "My 'master' so to speak. I'm training to become a fire-type master and he took me on as an apprentice."

"Well I'll be," Eric chuckled softly, "I hadn't known him to be able to teach,"

"He doesn't often apparently," Vali replied as Arwen decided to race over for an ear rub, "Enjoying yourself?" Arwen nodded with a soft huff of pleasure and nuzzled into her touch, "Good. Make sure to be nice to them too and listen if they tell you not to something, okay?"

Arwen nodded before bolting back over to the Ponyta and Rapidash. Eric laughed as he said, "You've got a good bond with her."

"With all of them save for Magby though I'm working on it," Vali said as she leaned against the fence, "He and my Houndour have a rivalry going that I'm struggling to deal with a lot. But they've got to work through it, they're the babies of the group. I'm just glad my Vulpix stopped joining in,"

Eric when to speak when Amalie came running up with a grin, "Hey, Vali! Want to come for a ride? We can go along some of the trails close by.

"Sure," Vali wouldn't mind seeing more of the ranch.

"Wow it sounds like a lot of fun," Lance grinned at her as Vali leaned against the railing by one of the paddocks, "I might have to come by at some point and actually see the place,"

"It's beautiful and my pokemon love it here," Vali smiled at Balto as he flopped on the ground in front of her, "It's relaxing when I'm not taking photos. I think that I've decided something for my future photoshoots. Whenever I go a place, I'll take the time to relax and enjoy it once I've finished my work,"

"Sounds like a good plane," Lance replied before letting out a sigh, "Man, I feel like I haven't relaxed in awhile even when my team takes a few days off,"

"I mean you're putting in as much time and training to face multiple Elite Four in a span of a few months," Vali offered earning a soft groan, "When you schedule your battles against the champions, you come to Cinnabar. You and your pokemon can relax for a few days. I'll give all of your pokemon spa days and ensure they are completely relaxed,"

Lance perked up at that, "That sounds good, it honestly sounds better than half the things I could do during the time I'm going to be spending in Blackthorn," Vali shook her head softly, "Before I forget, Vali," Lance grinned at her, "For my next break, I'm heading to the Charicific Valley with my Uncle on Clan business. Would you like anything?"

"If you could grab any fangs or claws, it would be awesome," Vali told him, "I finished my last research paper and Professor Oak is proof reading it for the final time,"

"So you're doing a paper on fangs and claws of Charizard?" Lance asked curiously.

Vali shook her head lightly, "More like studying the evolutionary line, I'm specifically using their claws and fangs to measure their growth."

"That's interesting," Lance looked at her curiously.

"With a Charmander, it has multiple of sets of sharp fangs at the front of it's jaws that grow and replace themselves constantly," Vali told him as she bent down to pet Balto, "You can tell how old they are by the rings in their teeth," Lance looked surprised, "Same with Charmeleon only they don't have as many sets of sharp teeth to pull and their teeth rings become more defined," Vali grinned bright, "Charizard only have a few sets of teeth. The rings become even more defined. Charizard also have longer teeth as well. The same can be said for their various claws well,"

"Wow," Lance shook his head, "I wouldn't have guessed,"

"It's amazing," Vali told him, "Just thinking about it, I might actually try to do papers on other pokemon,"

"I can't believe they're like trees with their teeth and claws measuring their growth," Lance commented with a laugh.

"Mhmm," Balto nuzzled into her, "So please get me quite a few teeth and claw samples, I'm going to need them,"

"No problem, Vali. I can probably grab you a few dragon-type teeth too. To do a comparison and maybe another paper later, ya know," Lance offered earning an eager nod, "I better get going though. I still need to pack,"

"Get packing then, I'm probably going to relaxing with Balto for a bit then head in to get some sleep," Vali replied with a slight grin, "Talk to you later, Lance,"

"Thank you so much, Vali," Loumine smiled largely at Vali, "It was wonderful to have you here and those pictures look amazing,"

"I agree. I look forward to seeing your updated website," Vali told her with a grin, "Once I get time, I'll put together an album and send it to you,"

"That'd be perfect," Loumine sighed in relief as Vali pulled herself onto Celina's back, "And you're welcome to come back anytime provided you call first,"

"I'd love to," Vali replied as Celina stood up with a slow trill, "We greatly enjoyed it. Balto and Arwen especially. They haven't been able to run so much unless we're at the ranch and even then, they can't do much,"

"Well just call me and we'll set something up," Loumine told while backing away a bit to give Celina more room, "Be safe on your way back to Pallet Town though. The summer isn't exactly the safest to be flying around these parts,"

"Trust me, I'll be safe. Celina's going to watch after me," Vali patted Celina's back as she pulled on her goggles, "See ya later,"

Vali held on tight as Celina tensed slightly before taking off. Vali was forced into the saddle for a few moments as Celina gained altitude. Celina leveled out after a few moments before once she'd reached cloud level and Vali smiled warmly as they sped toward Pallet Town. She closed her eyes for a moment to absorb the feeling and enjoy it.

"That's quite an undertaking, Vali," Professor Oak commented as they sat together at one of the lab tables, "It's a good paper to write and the fact you're already get samples is good,"

"Smaug's teeth samples are the first ones I have," Vali said earning an amused look, "I was wondering if you had any teeth from any Charizard, Charmeleon, or Charmander that have come into your care. Same for the claws,"

"I do have some," Professor Oak answered with a smile, "I can grab you some though make sure to return them,"

"I will," Vali promised as Professor Oak stood up and headed over to one of the cabinets, "Thank you for this,"

"It's no trouble. You're doing amazing well, Vali. You'll be able to obtain your mastery no problem," Professor Oak grinned at her, "Have you been planning on when you'll enter the conference?"

"In about two years," Vali answered causing Professor Oak to frown a bit, "I know what your thinking about my badges expiring. I don't mind it. The upgraded challenge will be more fun for my pokemon and me not to mention I've been really thinking about the delay rather seriously,"

"Oh?" Professor Oak came back with a jar of teeth and a jar of claws that Vali recognized to belong to the Charmander-line.

"Getting to train longer before we hit the conference again will be nice," Vali took the jars and carefully placed them into her bag, "I keep thinking about Steven's battles during our gym circuit and I'm just...I want to battle at that level. I know we can reach that level if we try hard enough,"

"You're already reaching towards it from what I saw towards the end," Professor Oak commented as he sat back down.

"We're getting stronger," Vali felt Thorin rub against her leg leg lightly, "Blaine's making sure of it. Professor, if we take the time to actually train awhile before hitting the circuit again, we'll be able to tackle the first two Elite's no problem,"

"If you're sure, Vali," Professor Oak looked concerned, "But the gym leaders will fight a lot harder this time around,"

"I know," Vali smiled lightly, "But that will be a lot more fun,"