A/N: This is a Fanfiction based off a challenge introduced to me by the story "A Legend is Born" by kevin1984. (A Legend is Born is rated M. Please do not read if you are not comfortable with more mature themes)

The Guidelines are:

1. Smart Ash

2. Ash with Canon and Non Canon Pokèmon

3. Ash with fully evolved Pokèmon

4. Ash who has at least two legendary Pokèmon

5. Ash/Sabrina Pairing as it is rare

6. Ash is placed higher in the League tournaments

7. Story must include Pokèmon Movies, although they can be modified as you see fit

Wish me luck :)

A Trainer's Quest

Ash Ketchum opened his eyes and looked out the window to see that the sun was already high in the sky.

"Ah crap!" he cried, "I'm late!" The boy quickly rolled out of bed and changed into his usual outfit. He made sure to grab his official Pokèmon League hat from its spot on the bedpost. As he dashed down the stairs, he grabbed the bagged lunch that his mom had left for him by the door. He flung the door open and ran through town to the large ranch that was the home of Professor Oak's research lab.

"I'm really sorry I'm late, Professor!" Ash said as he entered the lab. The old man was in his study, no doubt waiting for him.

"It's alright, Ash," Professor Oak said, exiting the study with a book in his hand. "I was planning on giving you the day off since it's your birthday, anyway. Besides, it's been five years since you've been late so I think I can cut you some slack."

Ash smiled. He remembered the last time he had been late well. He had stayed up late on the day before his tenth birthday thinking about becoming a trainer, only to sleep in and be to be too late to receive one. Professor Oak hadn't been sure if he should trust somebody as irresponsible as Ash seemed to be with a Pokèmon after that blunder, so Ash had spent the next year assisting him in taking care of the Pokèmon of other trainers in an effort to convince him. It was during that time that Ash had discovered his gift. He understood Pokèmon more than most people, and could even see their thoughts if he focused hard enough. Ash had grown to enjoy taking care of the Pokèmon, and had taken a full-time position as the professor's aide the next year.

"Thank you, Professor, but you know I enjoy helping out," Ash said, smiling, "any small jobs?" The professor sighed. This boy was just as persistent as usual.

"Well there is a matter of a Pikachu that was sent from a Pokèmon Center last night. He has been panicking and attacks anybody who gets close. We have no idea what happened," he said. Ash smiled, "I'm on it."

Ash walked through the fields of Professor Oak's ranch, saying hello to the occasional Pokèmon that he had befriended. Reaching a small hut in the back of the property, Ash opened the door and walked inside. The hut was one of the breeding chambers that Professor Oak had set up for trainers who wished for their Pokèmon to breed. It was currently unoccupied, and Ash decided it would be a good place to store an unruly Pokèmon like Pikachu while he studied it. He enlarged the Pokèball and set it inside of the breeding chamber. It opened and the yellow mouse Pokèmon popped out.

"Pikaaaaa," the creature snarled, giving Ash a death glare. Ash smiled as he looked down at the Pokèmon.

"It's okay," Ash said, "I'm just going to study you for a little." The mouse snarled again, its cheeks sparking with electricity. Ash sat down on the straw floor and focused on the mouse located safely in the breeding chamber. He allowed the rest of the world around him to fade out. In Ash's mind, he could see all of the Pokèmon around him, outlined in blue energy around him. He looked at Pikachu. Its outline was different. It began to darken into a crimson red. Suddenly, Ash was thrown backward, knocking him back into the real world as he was slammed against the wall of the shack.

Pikachu growled as its tail glowed silver, forming a powerful Iron Tail attack. It smashed its tail into the wall of the breeding chamber, breaking the plastic casing around the chamber and the wooden wall of the shack. It then ran off, squeezing through a hole in the fence surrounding the Oak property and dashing into the distance. Ash stood up, rubbing his head. That had never happened before. More importantly, the aggressive Pikachu he had been charged with watching was now loose in the wild. Newbie trainers tended to try out their Pokèmon around here. If one of them tried to catch it, they could be seriously hurt. Ash ran out the door and jumped onto the fence, climbing over it. He had a Pikachu to find.

Ash sprinted at top speed to the lab entrance where he grabbed a pair of rubber gloves, his bike, and a Pokènav+ that was lent out by the lab. Ash knew exactly how to find Pikachu. He stood still and closed his eyes. He focused on the shape of the Pikachu and looked for that mysterious red signature. But the world didn't fade. His vision remained normal.

"Oh, great," he muttered, "what now?" Ash knew he didn't have all the time in the world. He hopped on his bike and rode down the road along the fence until he reached the point where Pikachu had escaped. Ash gulped. He never left Pallet Town alone. He never needed to with all the Pokèmon he got to see while working with the professor. It wasn't going to be easy but he had no choice. Ash pedaled in the direction he had seen Pikachu leave.

Ash wasn't having the most easy time. A few minutes into his ride he had to ditch his bike as it was getting caught in tall grass and rocks. He was lucky that a wild Pidgey that made its home on Professor Oak's ranch had followed him as it had saved him from a few tough spots against the wild bug types that inhabited the area. He was beginning to wish he had planned this out a little more as the extra time he gained by rushing had gained him nothing so far and the sun was beginning to descend in the sky.

Ash closed his eyes. The area around him began to fade into darkness and he could feel the energy of all the Pokèmon around him. He frowned. With all the distractions of the wild he couldn't see as far as usual. He couldn't even find which direction Oak's lab was in. Suddenly, something caught his eye. A blazing red shape among the blue. It seemed to be near a river as he could see many Magikarp and Goldeen nearby. He had found his Pikachu. Ash quickly allowed the world to come back into focus and dashed in the direction the Pikachu had appeared.

Ash slowed down as he could hear the sound of running water. He began silently sneaking among the trees, making sure to keep out of sight of the electric mouse that he knew was nearby. Peeking out from behind a tree, he saw it taking a drink from the river. He began to sneak up behind Pikachu, removing its Pokèball from his belt whilst doing so. Suddenly, there was a loud crack as Ash stepped on a twig. Pikachu turned towards the sound, its cheeks sparking with electricity. It sent a shock towards Ash, who was able to predict the attack and duck and roll out of its way. The bolt instead hit a flock of Spearow resting their wings in a nearby clearing. They all took off and flew directly towards Pikachu.

"Spearow! Spearow!" The flock called as they flew towards Pikachu, out for blood. Ash grimaced. He knew what he had to do.

"Pidgey! Use Whirlwind!" he shouted. The small brown bird flapped its wings and took off, blowing a powerful burst of air at the Spearow and knocking their flight off course. Ash ran over to Pikachu.

"Alright, Pikachu. I know you don't like me but right now but we need to run. You'll be safest in the Pokèball. I still want to be your friend but we can work on that once we find our way back to Oak's lab. So please. Just get in the ball," he said. Pikachu's cheeks sparked and it turned away from Ash.

"Come on, Pikachu. Please get in!" Ash pleaded. Pikachu still continued to refuse. A Spearow broke off from the main group, still battling a quickly weakening Pidgey, and dove at Pikachu, spiraling in order to turn its beak into a deadly drill.

"Look out, Pikachu!" Ash yelled, jumping in front of him and spreading his arms to act as a shield. Ash saw his life flash before his eyes. Then, everything seemed to slow down. Pikachu suddenly jumped onto Ash's shoulder and then off it, launching itself at the Spearow. Its cheeks began to spark as volts of electricity gathered into its paw, turning into a powerful ThunderPunch. It hit Spearow head on, knocking it out of the air and onto the ground. Ash blinked in surprise.

"Pikachu... you saved me," he said. Pikachu simply turned back and smiled.