It was almost noon in another day on Densetsu Isle, and Ash, Pikachu and all of their friends were at the training area once more, preparing themselves and their Pokémon for the isle tournament which was almost two-and-a-half weeks away.
Right now, our heroes are back at their training regimen, still prepping up for the Densetsu Isle Tournament. And at this moment, Ash is one of them, giving it all he's got in a practice battle!
At the moment, Ash was in the midst facing off against Erald in a practice battle, using his Noivern against Erald's Pidgeot, as the rest of his friends and their Pokémon watched from the sidelines. Both Pokemon were flying in the air as they battled and up until this point.
"Pidgeot, use Whirlwind," Erald commanded. Pigeot flapped it wings and a strong gust of wind was sent towards Noivern.
"Noivern, dodge it!," Ash ordered. Noivern quickly flew aside and avoided the attack. "Now, use Supersonic!"
Noivern let out sound waves from its ears at Pidgeot, stunning it on the spot.
"Pidgeot, no!," Erald exclaimed.
"Now finish this with Boomburst!" Ash called out. Noivern's ears glowed white and he fired a blast of white sound waves at Pidgeot, hitting it on the spot and knocking it from the sky and to the ground.
At that, Kensi blew her whistle, signifying the end of the match as she declared, "Battle over! The winners are Ash and Noivern!"
"Alright, Ash!," April shouted as she and the rest of the group cheered from the sidelines.
"Pikapi!," Pikachu cheered as well, alongside Shinx, Bulbasaur and Eevee. Meanwhile, Erald's Pidgeot got to its feet as Erald tended to it.
"You okay, buddy?," Erald asked it.
"Pidgeot," it replied.
"You did great, now rest," Erald said with a smile as he returned his Bird Pokémon to it's Poké Ball.
"Great job, Noivern! You did it!," Ash said as he pet his Sound Wave Pokemon on the head affectionately.
"Noi-vern," Noivern responded happily.
"Now return," Ash said as he returned Noivern to his Poké Ball. He and Erald then met in the middle of the battlefield and shook hands. "Great battle, Erald!"
"Same to you, Ash!," Erald replied.
"Great? That was incredible!"
Stunned by the mystery voice, everyone looked to see Robbie and Kimmy Stone together in the training area. It was Robbie who had spoken.
"Robbie? Kimmy? What are you guys doing here?," Ash asked curiously.
"Just watching you battle," Kimmy said before squealing excitedly, "So when's the next one?!"
Everyone sweat dropped and chuckled at Kimmy's enthusiasim.
"Well, someone sure is spirited," Flynn snarked. Megan sighed with exasperation at her brother's comment.
"And yet, you say it like it's a bad thing," she replied.
Black As A Heart!: Part 1
Not much later, Ash and the others were talking with the mayor's two children about why they were at the training area.
"I see. So you guys like to watch others trainers as they train, huh?," Ash asked.
Robbie and Kimmy both nodded "yes" as the former said, "You bet. I love watching how Pokémon and their trainers work to better themselves. Plus it kind of inspires me on how I'll do my training."
"And same with me for when I become a trainer," Kimmy added.
"Well, that's really smart of you," Leo complemented.
"It's not really all that different of what you and Megan do with us, Leo," April pointed out. Leo adjusted his glasses sheepishly.
"I guess you got me there," he chuckled with a blush. Kimmy, meanwhile, seemed to take attention to Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Shinx, and Eevee.
"Hey, you guys don't mind if I…," she asked Ash, Alan, Megan, and Leo, and gestured towards their Pokémon. It took them a few seconds to figure out what she wanted.
"Oh, go ahead," Ash said, permitting her to play with Pikachu.
"Sure," added Alan.
"Knock yourself out," Megan and Leo said in unision.
"Pika/Shinx/Eevee/Bulba," said the four Pokémon, as they walked over to Kimmy and allowed her to pet them.
"Wow, they're are all so adorable," Kimmy said gleefully as she pet and scratched them all. She then looked at Pikachu. "Especially you, Pikachu, you're so cute!"
Kimmy then pinched Pikachu's cheeks, which caused him to shock her with a Thunderbolt, much to everyone's shock.
"Whoa, Kimmy! Are you okay?!," Kensi inquired to the young girl. Kimmy just tried to shake off the Thunderbolt as Robbie helped her up.
"Just fine," she replied.
Ash chucked nervously as he said, "Sorry about that. You see, Pikachu doesn't like having its cheeks pinched."
"Noted," Kimmy replied. "Sorry, Pikachu."
"Pika Pikachu," Pikachu replied in a forgiving tone.
"Double noted," Robbie added in.
"Hello?," called out a familiar voice. Everyone looked to see Ash's mother Delia standing there with a couple of picnic baskets in hand. Next to her was Mr. Mime and Fennekin.
"Mom! What brings you here?," Ash asked.
"I just figured you kids could use some lunch after all that training today."
"Mime Mime!," Mr. Mime said in agreement.
"Fenne," Fennekin added in.
"Well, thanks, mom," Ash responded with a smile. Kimmy then took notice of Fennekin and was soon starstruck by it.
"Wow, a Fennekin!," Kimmy said as she rushed over and attempted to pet it. But no sooner had she gotten near Fennekin that it became defensive and hissed at her, forcing her to back off in surprise. "Oh, um…"
"Sorry, Fennekin's still not so good with unfamiliar people," Delia told her.
Kimmy then remembered this as she said, "Oh, right. This is the same Fennekin that Ash and the others rescued, isn't it?"
"Right. If you want to gain it's trust, you've gotta take things slow," Erlad told her as he approached. He then took out and opened a can of some of his homemade Pokémon food and poured some into her hand. "Here, offer it some."
"O-Okay," Kimmy said as she then took the food in her hand and offered it to Fennekin. Fennekin slowly stepped forward and sniffed the food, before happily starting to eat it, much to the delight of Kimmy and everyone else. "Wow, it likes it!"
Megan was amazed as she exclaimed, "Wow, just like at the Pokémon Center."
"Yeah, Fennekin's opening up just like Eevee," Leo added.
"Well, all you have to do is gain the trust of a Pokémon and it can take you far," Kensi pointed out to them.
"And all it takes is a little food," April agreed. Suddenly, Alan's stomach began growling.
"Speaking of food, think we can chow down on what you brought, Mrs. K? I'm starving," he asked.
"Same here, Mom," Ash added.
"Pika Pika," Pikachu agreed.
"Of course, it's what I came here for," Delia said as she then turned to Robbie and Kimmy. "There's more than enough here, so perhaps you two would like to join us?"
"Sure!," the Stone kids said in unison.
Not too long afterwards, Ash, Delia, and the others had set up at a table outside of the training area with the food Delia had brought. As they finished setting up, Delia noticed…
"Oh, dear," she exclaimed.
"What's wrong, mom," asked Ash.
"Pika?," Pikachu asked as well.
"In all my excitement, I forgot to bring utensils for us to eat with."
"Well, no problem, whatever you brought, we can eat with our hands," Alan said confidently, until Delia showed him several dishes including soup and mashed potatoes. "On second thought, maybe not…"
"I could go get them if you want, Mrs. Ketchum," Megan volunteered.
"Yeah, I can go too," Leo agreed.
"And us, too," Robbie added in, volunteering himself and Kimmy.
"Okay. I'm sure you know where me and Ash's villa is. Professor Oak should still be there, so he should let you in," Delia said. "Be sure to get enough for everyone to use."
"No worries," Megan remarked as she looked towards her Eevee. "Come on, Eevee!"
"You too, Bulbasaur," Leo told his Pokémon as well.
"Eevee-Ee," Eevee yipped happily as it ran up to Megan.
"Bulba," Bulbasaur barked as well as it joined Leo. The four, along with the Stone kids, then started making their way back to the Ketchum/Landors villa. As they did, Fennekin then ran after them, and after catching up, cozied up to Kimmy's leg, which everyone noticed.
"Hey, there," Kimmy said.
"I think Fennekin's taken a liking to you Kimmy," April pointed out.
"I can tell," Kimmy replied as she looked down at Fennekin. "You wanna come with us?"
"Fenne Fenne!," Fennekin barked happily as it nodded "yes".
"Well, that answers that," Robbie said with a grin.
"Now come on, lets go hurry and get those utensils so we can eat!," Megan remarked impatiently.
"Right," Leo, Robbie, and Kimmy all said in unison. The four kids, along with Eevee, Bulbasaur, and Fennekin then set off for the Ketchum/Landors villa.
A little later, Leo, Megan, and the Stone kids had collected the utensils from the villa and were on their way back with their Pokémon to the others.
"Wow, Professor Oak is even more awesome in person," said Robbie. During their brief stop at the villa, Oak had demonstrated his knowledge of Pokémon and his poetic prowess to them on request.
"I knew he was a brilliant guy, but I underestimated just how brilliant," Leo pointed out with a smile.
"Yeah, I can see how Ash was right about him," Megan said.
"If you think that was amazing, you should see the lectures he does for us every year during the Festival of the Regions!," Kimmy pointed out. Leo and Megan became confused at this.
"Festival of the Regions?"
"It's always the last event before the tournament. It features people all of the regions of the Pokémon coming together to present their region's best Pokémon, food, culture, and traditions," Robbie informed the two.
"Wow, that sounds great," Leo replied.
"It is. Just wait until it comes around," Kimmy assured them. Just then, the four and their Pokémon all heard a commotion nearby. They glanced over to see Hatcher, Dibson, and Lavernia of the Power Players. The three were now picking on another trainer and his Wynaut.
"What did me and Wynaut ever do to you?!," the trainer snapped. "Leave us alone!"
"We will, as soon as you show us your Pokémon, and hand over your strongest!" Hatcher sneered.
"What… no way!," the trainer exclaimed. "I'll never hand over any of my Pokémon to you jerks!"
"Big mistake then, kid," Lavernia said with a mean look.
"Yeah, we'll just take them then! All of them!," Dibson added in. As the three began to close in on the trainer, they were suddenly halted by a Razor Leaf attack, which left them stunned and puzzled.
"Hey!," snapped a voice. The Power Players trio turned to see Megan Leo, and the Stone kids standing there looking very angry, with Eevee, Bulbasaur, and Fennekin with them, also looking just as angry.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the brother and sister of two of those goody-goody trainers!," Dibson snarled at Leo and Megan.
"I'm Erald's cousin, for your information!," Leo growled.
"Whatever," Lavernia said as she took notice of Robbie and Kimmy. "And they have the mayor's brats with them, too!"
"Who are you calling brats, you jerk?!," Kimmy snapped. At that moment, the trainer that the Power Players had been bullying took the opportunity to run. The trio saw this, but were unable to stop him. Angered, they turned back to the four children and their Pokémon.
"You little punks! You see what you did?!," Hatcher snapped at them.
"Yeah, we just saved another trainer from being pushed around by you lame-brains!," Megan responded.
"Eevee!," Eevee growled in agreement.
"Well, now you're all gonna get it for sure!," snarled Lavernia as she and her comrades drew Poké Balls.
"Well, then bring it on!," Robbie said as he drew a Poké Ball of his own and tossed it in the air. "Let's get 'em, Treecko!"
The ball burst open and let out Robbie's Wood Gecko Pokémon, who then stood battle ready with Eevee, Bulbasaur, and Fennekin.
"Let's show these brats who's boss!," Hatcher said as he tossed his Poké Ball. "Primeape, go get them!"
"Yeah, Heatmor, let's roast 'em!," Dibson added as he tossed his own Poké Ball.
"Arbok, Ariados, battle stations!," Lavernia called as she tossed her two Poké Balls. The four balls then burst open, letting out Hatcher's Pig Monkey Pokémon, Dibson's Anteater Pokémon, and Lavernia's Cobra and Long Leg Pokémon, who then faced off against the four kids and their Pokémon.
"Primeape, give those Grass types a Thrash!," Hatcher called out.
"Heatmor, hit them with Fire Lash!," Dibson ordered. Primeape stomped its feet, and then charged at Treecko and Bulbasaur, ready to punch and kick, while Heatmor's tongue became covered in flames and it lashed out with it at the two Grass Type Pokémon.
"Bulbasaur, dodge!," Leo commanded.
"You too, Treecko," Robbie tossed in as the two Pokémon dodged the attacks.
"Now, use Razor Leaf!"
"And Treecko, use Quick Attack!"
Bulbasaur shot out flying sharp leaves from his bulb at Primeape, while Treecko used zig-zagging speed and agility as it ran at Heatmor. Both attacks hit their targets on the mark, much to Leo and Robbie's happiness. Meanwhile…
"Ariados, String Shot! Arbok, Poison Sting!" Lavernia coached her Pokémon. Ariados spouted a web-like substance from its mouth, while Arbok fired a bunch of purple darts at Eevee and Fennekin.
"Eevee, dodge!," Megan called.
"Fennekin, you dodge too!," Kimmy shouted. The two Pokémon jumped and evaded both attacks.
"Now, Quick Attack on Arbok!"
"And Ember on Ariados!"
Like Treecko, Eevee used zig-zagging speed and agility as it ran at Arbok and tackled it, knocking it back. Fennekin, meanwhile, fired a blanker of small orange sparks at Ariados, hitting it, and causing a decent amount of damage, to the girls' delight.
"Ha! Not to bad for first time battlers, huh?!," Megan sparked with confidence. The Power Players, however, smiled wickedly, uneasing the four kids.
"Not bad, but not good enough either!," Hatcher snapped. "Primeape, Karate Chop on Eevee!"
Primape's arm glowed white and it flew in and chopped Eevee with with side of its open hand, sending it flying back.
"Eevee!," Megan screamed in dismay.
"Ariados, Poison Jab on Fennekin!," ordered Lavernia. One of Ariados's legs glowed purple and it jabbed Fennekin with said leg, knocking it back.
"Fennekin!," cried Kimmy.
"Heatmor, Fire Spin on Bulbasaur and Treecko!," Dibson commanded. Heatmor spun around and unleashed a spiraling vortex of orange fire from its mouth at the two Grass Types. Bulbasaur and Treecko were thrown back as they were burned by the inferno.
"Bulbasaur!," Leo yelled in horror.
"Treecko!," Robbie screamed in shock. All four of the kids' Pokémon collapsed, injured from their battle.
"Oh, no!," Leo exclaimed. He and the others then started to rush to their Pokémon when suddenly…
"Use Wrap, Arbok!," Lavernia said. Arbok then charged at Leo, Megan, Kimmy, and Robbie, and wrapped them in its coils. The four kids struggled to get out of Arbok's grasp.
"Let us go!," Robbie demanded.
"Not until we teach you brats a lesson about minding your own business!," Dibson snarled.
"And what better way to teach you all than by way of your so-called Pokémon!," Hatcher chuckled wickedly.
"Yeah, let's see you watch as your Pokémon pay the price for your meddling!," Lavernia cackled. All four kids gasped in horror at this.
"No!," Megan screamed.
"Stop!," Kimmy cried.
"Don't do it!," Leo snapped.
"Leave them alone! Leave! Them! Alone!," Robbie yelled at the top of his lungs. As Arbok continued to restrain the kids, the Power Players' other Pokémon surrounded Bulbasaur, Eevee, Treecko, and Fennekin, who were all struggling to their feet, injured by the attack.
"Now, get them!" Hatcher ordered. Primeape, Heatmor, and Ariados then jumped at the four Pokémon, who could only brace themselves for the coming attack as their trainers/caregivers could only watch in horror. But before the attacks could land…
KAPOWW!
Out of nowhere, two Shadow Balls and a Flamethrower attack knocked the three Pokemon away, shocking the Power Players and stunning the kids.
"Who dares?!," Dibson growled.
"I do!," said a familiar voice. Everyone turned to see none other than Flynn, standing with his Umbreon, Houndoom, Honchkrow, and Weavile at his side, and glaring very angrily at what he was seeing with his own eyes.
"Big brother!," Megan exclaimed, happy to see Flynn there. Flynn, however, continued to glare ferociously at the three Power Players as the incident suddenly triggered a flashback…
Flashback: A younger Flynn is being pushed around by a group of bullies while a younger Megan and two other kids Flynn's age (a boy and a girl) are being restrained by other bullies.
"Why don't you fight back, Scarface?!," taunts the leader of the bullies as the others laugh.
"Or do you want us to make you look even uglier than you are?," sneers another bully. The leader then pushes Flynn to the ground, and as Flynn recovers, his then chin-length hair drifts aside, revealing a large scar-like mark that covers a good part the right side of his face, reaching from the side of his eye socket to his chin. Megan and the other two kids gasp at this.
"Flynn, are you alright?!," Megan yells out.
"Don't worry, sis, I'm fine," Flynn calmly answers.
"Yeah, but from what I hear, your mom's not!," the leader sneers. "I heard she's gotten even sicker."
"Yeah, its probably because she can't stand how ugly her own son is," another bully adds in. Megan and the other two kids gasp.
"Shut up, you big fat jerks!," Megan snaps.
"Don't listen to them, Flynn," the boy tells Flynn.
"Don't let them get to you!," the girl adds. Flynn looks shocked at the bullies' insults about his mother, before his expression contorts into one of rage…
As the flashback ended, Flynn was now sporting the same enraged expression on his face in the present as he saw his sister and her friends being picked on by the Power Players.
"Nobody messes with my little sister!," he growled. "Weavile, Metal Claw on Arbok! Honchkrow, Night Slash!"
Weavile's claws glowed a silver and white color and grew to form bigger claws and it then slashed at Arbok, while Honchkrow flew upward and its wings glowed purple and it flew down and hit arbok with its wings. Both attacks knocked Arbok back, and forced it to release Megan and the others. The four then rushed over to tend to their injured Pokémon, as Flynn continued to face off with the Power Players.
"So back for some more, Dark Boy?," Dibson sneered.
"I could say the same for you, Hothead!," Flynn responded.
"Yeah, well let's see you take on these! Go, Hitmonlee!," Hatcher sneered as he let out his Hitmonlee, which then stood next to Primeape.
"Come on out and fight, Magmar!," Dibson called as he let out his Magmar which then stood next to his Heatmor.
"Front and center, Weezing!," shouted Lavernia as she tossed a new Poké Ball and let out her Poison Gas Pokémon, who then hovered near Arbok and Ariados. The four kids noticed this, and immediately became upset at it.
"Hey, that's cheating!," Robbie protested.
"So what?! This isn't an official match, we can do what we want! Now everyone attack!," Hatcher snapped. All seven of the Power Players Pokémon then charged full speed at Flynn's four Pokémon.
"Here they come! Get ready, everyone!," Flynn said, determined not to be brought down by their cheating. His Pokémon all stood strong ready to take whatever they could. But before the mass attack could hit anyone…
"Hyper Beam!"
A voice commanded seemingly from out of nowhere, and three Hyper Beam attacks then came flying in from the left, hitting all seven of the Power Players Pokémon, and causing a huge explosion. When the smoke cleared, all of the Power Players' Pokémon had been knocked out, much to everyone's surprise.
Just then, Raynard stepped up with his Luxray, Raichu, and Sandslash following him.
"Raynard?," Flynn gasped in surprise at seeing him.
"I saw you guys needed a hand, and figured I might as well, lend it," Raynard said. He then glared at the Power Players, who had called back all of their knocked out Pokémon. "And you three, get lost! Now!"
"Fine, but this isn't over! Mark our words!," Hatcher snarled as the three punks retreated. Flynn and Raynard recalled their Pokémon and headed over to tend to Megan, Leo, the Stone siblings and their Pokémon.
"Thanks, big brother. And you too, Mr. Winters," Megan thanked the two.
"Call me Raynard, or Ray for short, whichever you want," Raynard said as he looked over Bulbasaur and Fennekin's injuries. "Well, they don't look too banged up."
"Same with these two," Flynn agreed after looking over Eevee and Treecko's injuries. "You got any Super Potion?"
Raynard reached into a pocket in his belt, and pulled out a bottle and some bandages, as he said, "Never go anywhere without it."
The two boys then helped clean and dress the Pokémon's wounds as the four kids watched.
"Wow, so you guys know first aid?," Robbie asked in amazement.
"Of course. It's important to always have some knowledge of that when on a journey," Raynard replied.
Flynn nodded as he added, "Especially if you're in an area where there's not a closeby Pokémon Center."
"Well, thank you so much both of you guys," Kimmy said. "Hey, Ray, maybe you should join us all for lunch?"
"Yeah, Ash's mom cooked up some great food for us," Leo added. "And Erald's got some just as good Pokémon food!"
"Bulba-saur!/Fenne-kin/Ee-vee!/Tree-cko!," the Pokémon exclaimed.
"Hmm, that sounds nice," Raynard replied as he thought. "Okay."
"Then if you guys got the utensils you were supposed to, let's get back," Flynn said as he got up, and turned around. But as he did, the hair covering the right side of his face whipped away, briefly revealing the same large mark to everyone. Though all surprised (sans Megan), nobody dared to ask about it as they made their way back.
Later on, the group had returned to the others and the kids had explained to everyone their encounter with the Power Players and Flynn and Raynard's interventions.
"And those three jerks ran away with their tails between their legs!," Megan said as she cradled her Eevee, who had bandage on its leg from the battle.
"Well, it's just good to know you guys are all right," Delia added as sh held Fennekin, who had a bandage on its side.
"And sounds like you guys didn't do too bad for your first battles!," Ash remarked with a smile.
"Pika Pika!," Pikachu quipped in agreement.
"Thanks!," the four kids said in unision.
"Bulba-saur!/Fenne-kin/Ee-vee!/Tree-cko!," the four Pokémon said as well.
"Now that we have the utensils, let's eat already, I'm starving to death here!," Alan exclaimed.
"Shinx Shinx!," Shinx added. The entire group then sat down to eat. But as they did, Leo glanced at Flynn. Remembering the mark on Flynn's face, he was curious as to what it was, and figured he might possibly be able figure out why Flynn acted so distant all the time.
Who's That Pokémon?: This Pokémon has the ability to scale verticle walls with its feet!