Ending the Search

A/N: So... been a while. If you want to, skip this, it will be along note. Just wanted to say I have been away from writing for a good while, and I was already considering rewriting As Time Passes. I admittedly take some pride in it and call it my magnum opus, as it's the fic that broke me into the Pearlshipping and, honestly, fanfiction dot net community. However, now with how long it's been and how much I have learned since I made it, I want to 'fix' some parts I don't particularly like (I was in freaking high school when I wrote it. Now I look at that lemon scene, cringe, then look at the ages of Dawn and Ash and want to smack myself silly). I also want to fix some things story wise. I feel I condensed too much into one single chapter with no proper leadup or explanation as to how or why things happened leading to Mt Silver, which, in the anime, is actually where the Silver Conference is held. Yeah, completely forgot that like a dingus. So I'm going to fix that while still keeping the location as a nod to the Red battle in GSC with a little prequel chapter to explain it.

That's where we're at now.

There WILL NOT be anything post gen 4. I'm not trying to dismiss gen 5-8 fans (I actually really loved BW/B2W2) but I don't want to change things so drastically, so, as much as I hate AU... Consider this an AU where Gen 4 was the end of the series when it came to new pokemon. Hate saying that, but otherwise, I'd have to change too much and it would barely be what it was before.

Oh, and I'm aging them up. NO smut if they are under 18. Ash is 22, Dawn is 18.

Thank you, and enjoy

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Callused fingers ran gently across the smooth oak of a rustic grand staircase, tracing small glimmers of ocean blue. Before sapphire eyes, defined foot prints glowed up the stairs, and throughout the large foyer. Glancing up, a few deep blue locks drifted over the young lady's face from the shift, gleaming with a greasy sheen in the moonlight that creeped through tattered curtains, clear disregard compared to her usual standards of appearance.

She didn't mind, though. She had been on the road with little rest or chance to fix her appearance for months now. She thankfully, however, had quite a useful, if not rather persistent partner assisting her in her endeavors. Endeavors to find a dear friend...

Endeavors to find the man she once, and truly believed still, loved.

"He was here... No doubt now," she lightly giggled as she felt the energy of her friend jolt from behind her, "Seems he stayed for a while, too."

The man behind her composed himself after a small sigh, "Never will be used to your ability to feel people coming, you know." He smirked as he heard another giggle, however mirthless, come from the young lady before him. She stood composed, her shoulders high and broad, lacking in no sense of confidence despite how long their search had turned up fruitless. He couldn't understand where she kept pulling that drive to continue from. "I found some notes in the study just down the way. There were only a couple dates but..."

She turned to face him, tilting her head slightly in curiosity. His voice choked slightly at the rather cute display. She may have abandoned her usual black top and pink skirt, choosing for a more accessible and mobile form fitting black shirt with a blue 'X' over her bust, straps on the sleeves to easily shift between short and long sleeve. Sewn pockets and tough protective padding in her tight blue jeans still showed her lady like shapes and curves prominently, especially with how many cuts and tears they had gained from many falls in her journeys. She may not be taking care of herself as she used to, but small moments of her dropping the serious façade like this, letting her old curious self through, warmed his heart, "He was putting his strategies down and seemed to be dissecting every little detail that could go wrong. Handwriting never improved after all these years, but the last page in particular is messy." He handed a stained sheet to her, which she began to look over.

"Someone else found him before we did, then..." the blunette sighed, noting the urgency in his wording, the spilled drink staining the page clinching her suspicion. "At least we have a small lead on when he left, we can try to minimize the search location some."

Grunting, the man shifted uncomfortably, "Let's hope this time we actually catch up to him. I'm really eager to see you return to your old self, Dawn." He flinched as she looked up into his eyes, her eyes softening momentarily before gleaming with mischievousness. He stayed still as she sauntered up to him, raising a hand to his face slowly.

"Gary Oak... is that concern I hear in your voice..." She allowed a gentle smile to crest her features, "Or perhaps some jealousy?"

He clenched a fist in annoyance then loosened, slapping her hand away dismissively, "I am just tired of seeing you so crestfallen, Dawn. I have accepted that only finding him will bring you back to normal." He explained, knowing his eyes betrayed the hurt he was trying to cover as she shrugged and walked past him towards the chateau's entryway, though his blood ran cold when she spoke again.

"Thank you Gary. Really, I mean it," said the blunette quietly, almost in a whisper, "These past few months have been just as hard on you as it has me," she felt him turn to face her, sensing the shift in his aura, "For more reasons than one..." she finished and pushed her way through the heavy wooden doors into the chilled night air of Eterna Forest.

Gary stood staring, digesting her words for a few moments before relaxing into a sigh. "Damn aura users... things were so much simpler when we first started out, none of this nonsense with special abilities, easier to travel just one region." He was shaken from his complaints at a vibration in his pocket. Reaching down, he pulled out his pokegear and gazed at the number. Unrecognized.

On a private phone that not even scam callers can get the number to.

Bringing the device up, he clicked the answer button, rather curious to know who it could possibly be, "Gary Oak speaking."

A confident female voice, dripping with eagerness, rang from the phone's speaker, "Mount Silver. That is where your mark is."

Gary's eyes widened, not from the location mentioned, but because the voice struck a nostalgic cord in his mind. He knew this voice, he just couldn't place it, "Mount Silver? Why would he return to where this whole ordeal started? Why the Silver Conference?"

He cringed outwardly as the girl on the line giggled cutely, "No, not the conference. Below the conference." The gears turned momentarily before Gary made an audible 'oh', bringing more mirth from the girl, "There's the brains that Professor Gary Oak is known for."

Gary had not heard of anyone entering that god awful abomination of a cave in years. Only his grandfather had the ability to grant permission to access it. The Pokémon around and inside were far too powerful for even top trainers to handle, to the point that it was guarded heavily by league security personnel. No one, by air, ground, or underground, was able to get past them. But that meant that his Grandfather would have known and was hiding it... or perhaps someone else?

The gears in his mind continued to grind away as he desperately tried to remember who this mystery voice belonged to. It was so familiar, and he felt if he could place a name, he could figure out the missing piece to explain how someone could get into Mt. Silver without Professor Oak's approval. "Who is this? Who are you?"

A few moments of silence followed before an audible exhale, the confidence in the woman's voice disappearing. "Someone who is tired of lying, to protect someone who is now sickeningly obsessed with fixing an accident. Everyone makes mistakes... Mine was allowing him to wallow in his." Her voice resumed it's catty tone as she finished, "Hurry now, get your crush going. He's waiting."

*Click*

Gary glared at the phone, not just due to that last jab at him, but because of her cryptic answer. Who was protecting... He glanced up to see Dawn, leaning against the center frame of the doors of the entryway, "I'm guessing you heard all of that?" he pocketed the phone and nervously scratched the back of his head when she nodded, "So... I guess we may have a final lead. We may finally be able to find him, and bring him back home."

Dawn's serious eyes softened at his tone. She could hear the hurt in his voice. That last comment definitely struck him where it hurts. "Yeah... and then things can go back to normal. Finally..." she said quietly, before perking up a little, letting her mask fall slightly to try to cheer her friend up, "Come on. We need to go talk to your grandfather. It's time to bring this mopey manchild home." She smiled as Gary's face seemed to brighten and nod, though as she turned to walk out once more, she felt his aura shift again, but decided to let him have his thoughts privately.

Gary glanced down once more to his pocket. The memory may have clicked in place, but he couldn't be sure. He did recognize that voice, but after a decade and a half, he couldn't believe how little it had changed. There's no way... Leaf? She went off the grid years ago, after she decimated the league, abandoning the Champion title back to Lance because she didn't want to be stuck in one place... She's one of the inspirations for me... for many trainers.

For Ash.

A/N: God that ambiguity hurt to keep up. I hope this was a good prequel to explain the opening of the original a bit more. Sure as heck wasn't the original plan when I made it, but now, again, I wanted to expand and improve what I build before. As said, I will be trying to remake the whole 36 page original chapter, breaking it down into probably 3 chapters instead, maybe 4 depending on how that god awful battle goes since I am going to put waaaay more detail into it. Thanks for reading, everyone.