Who's That Pokémon?: This Pokémon has the ability to scale verticle walls with its feet!

The answer: It's Treecko!

Later, Ash, his friends, and their Pokémon had finished their lunch, and were starting on dessert.

"Man, Mrs. Ketchum, how'd you get to be such a great cook?," Alan asked, gleeful over the food.

"Yeah. Me and Kensi, our mom's cooking pales in comparision to this," April exclaimed. Kensi glanced at her sister.

"April," she said with concern over her sister's choice of words.

"Just giving a complement."

Delia chuckled at this as she replied, "Well, it's what we mothers do for our children."

"And no one does it better than you, Mom!," Ash remarked.

"Pika-Kachu!," Pikachu agreed.

"It sure is great to have someone here to remind us of the comforts of home," Erald pointed out as he turned to Flynn, Leo, and Megan. "Don't you guys agree?"

"You bet!," said Megan with a grin.

"Mmm-hmm!," Leo agreed also with a grin.

"Indeed it does," Flynn said with a half-smile.

"It almost reminds me of my mother's homecooking, back in Sinnoh," Raynard remarked. Leo, meanwhile, stared at Flynn, still unable to get what he saw off his mind. He wanted to ask Flynn about it, but was fearful of the reaction he might get from the gloomy but critical trainer.

Finally, after a few moments of thought, he decided he couldn't wait any longer and asked, "Hey, uh, Flynn?"

Flynn looked at Leo and replied, "Yes, Leo?"

"Um, I have to ask…uh…um…uh…"

"Well, spit it out already!"

"Um…what's up with that huge scar on the right side of your face?"

Megan gasped as everyone then looked at Leo and Flynn together. Flynn could only sigh at this as he looked at Leo.

"So you saw that then, huh?"

Leo nodded "yes" as Ash then spoke up.

"What's he talking about, Flynn?," he asked.

"This," Flynn replied as he then moved his bangs out of the way, revealing the large mark on the side of his face. Everyone, even the Pokémon (sans Flynn's) gasped at this in awe.

"Whoa. What's up with the scar?," April asked, still in awe.

"That's a good question," Alan replied.

"First of all, it's not a scar. It's a birthmark. I've had it since the day I was born," Flynn remarked. "And second, it's got quite the story behind it."

"Yeah, it's been something that my brother has been really touchy about talking about," Megan said to everyone.

"Really? How come?," Ash asked curiously.

"Well, you see-," Megan started to say, but Flynn cleared his throat, cutting her off.

"I will tell them," Flynn said sternly to his sister before turn to his friends. "It goes back to when I was just a little kid."

Flashback:

In Azalea Town a few years prior, at a kindergarten, a younger Flynn with shorter hair and his birthmark visible is being pushed down and taunted by a group of other kids. Flynn looks visibly agitated.

"The other kids would tease and bully me all the time for it. Especially this one kid, Tanner."

"Oh, yeah, he was the worst," Megan added. "He liked to call Flynn all kinds of names, Scarface, Two-Face, Half-and-Half, etc."

A spiky dark green-haired slightly older boy steps up looking smug. But then, two more people step up, and they are shown to be a boy with short black hair, and a girl with medium length dark-blue hair, and both stand with Flynn to defend his honor.

"The only friends I had were Isaac and Gina. They were the only ones who didn't make fun of me or think of me as some kind of a freak."

Tanner and the other kids, while initially surprised, soon came to become menacing towords Isaac and Gina, as well as Flynn.

"Of course, that also made them targets for Tanner and his group. They would call us all kinds of mean names and things. They'd play pranks on us. They'd push us around and even beat us up sometimes."

The scene then changes a montage of Flynn, Isaac, and Gina, being bullied, pranked, pushed around, and beat up by Tanner and the others.

"Even Megan would sometimes get caught in it, even though I tried my hardest to protect her."

The scene shows brief glimpses of Megan in every flash of the montage before fading to white…

Back in the present, the group was pretty surprised and sympathetic.

"Wow, sounds like you had it hard," Ash replied sympathatically.

"Pika," Pikachu agreed.

"Yeah, how'd you cope with all that?," April asked as well.

"Well, I had Megan, and my friends, and of course the rest of my family, but there were two who really helped me stand out," Flynn replied. "The first was our mom..."

Flashback: A younger Flynn and Megan are being tended to by their mother following their bullying. Their mother is comforting the both of them.

"She always encouraged me to never let people's mean words or actions hurt me, and that deep down, they're scared of what they don't understand, such as my birthmark.

The scene then shifts to Flynn and Megan's father trying to use several Pokémon to encourage his children to stand up to Tanner and their other bullies by fighting back, but their mother objects to this, encouraging their children to stand up peacefully but strong.

"It was similar to our father, except she encouraged us never to stand up by using force unless absolutely necessary."

"Sounds like a very wise woman," Delia remarked.

"Oh, my mom was."

Later, the Black family (including Flynn and Megan's grandparents) is shown having a good time together like a normal family with Flynn's mother as front and center.

"She was stern, but wise, cheerful, and caring too. You would never would've guessed how sick she was."

Sometime later, a slightly older Flynn rushes home to find his family at his mother's bedside. She is shown to be weak, but smiles at the sight of her son.

"My mom had been ill for a long time, and although she was able to control it for most of the time, it eventually got the better of her."

Flynn's mother is shown to watch Flynn on TV with the rest of the Black family as her son competed in the Johto League. Later, she is shown to have passed away and her family has held a funeral, with Flynn and Megan both mourning.

"She started took a turn for the worse just before I began competed in the Johto League Silver Conference, and passed away not long after the tournament ended. It was a dark time for me and the rest of my family."

"Wow, Flynn… I'm so sorry," Ash said sorrowfully.

"So am I," Delia added, just as sorry for Flynn.

"Pika/Fenne," Pikachu and Fennekin added as well.

"Yeah me too. I can't imagine what that's like, losing a parent," Alan put in.

"Shinx," Shinx agreed sadly.

"Same with April and me," Kensi added in as April nodded in agreement.

"Or me," Raynard remarked.

"Or us," Robbie and Kimmy added in unision.

"Treecko," quipped Treecko.

"Well, I don't know myself, but Leo does," Erald informed everyone.

"But that's for another time," Leo quickly said.

"Bulbasaur-Saur," Bulbasaur added.

"Thank you everyone," Megan told the group. "But you know, Flynn's always said that the one good thing that came from this was that Mom lived long enough to see him compete in his first Pokémon League Conference tournament."

"Yeah. Even though I didn't win, knowing she watched me compete really meant a lot," Flynn added.

"I know what you mean by that," Ash said as he glanced at his mother. "So what was the second person who helped you during all the bullying?"

"Actually, it was my Umbreon."

Everyone became puzzled at this revealation. How'd Umbreon help Flynn during his youth?

"Your Umbreon?," Leo asked.

"Care to elaborate on that further?," Kensi added in.

"Well, it goes back to when when I was younger and it was an Eevee…"

Flashback: A younger Flynn is walking down a street in Azalea Town along with Isaac and Gina. All are looking disheveled after being picked on by Tanner and his gang again. Just then, they see a Tyrogue, Mankey, and Machop picking on and beating up an Eevee.

"You see, one day, after me and my friends had endured another day of hardship from Tanner and his goons, we came across an Eevee being picked on similar to how we had been."

Angered at this, the trio forcefully chase off the three Pokémon and tend to the Eevee, eventually bringing it back to the Black household. Flynn, his friends, and Megan all worked to help it recover.

"We couldn't stand seeing Eevee going through what we had, so we chased off the bullying Pokémon and took it to my place. We all worked to help it recover, even Megan."

The scene then shifts to Flynn standing over a recovering Eevee looking on with concern and determination.

"I saw a lot of myself in Eevee, and I vowed to work to help make both it and myself stronger."

A montage of Flynn and Eevee training together is then shown. It ends with Flynn challenging Tanner to a Pokémon battle as Isaac and Gina watch on.

"Eevee apparently sensed my determination and decided to take the same vow. From then on, we trained and trained, and when I felt we were strong enough, I challenged Tanner to a battle."

Flynn and Eevee are then shown battling Tanner and his Persian. Despite a hard fought battle on both sides, Eevee wins with a direct hit with a Shadow Ball.

"He put up a good fight, but in the end, me and Eevee won."

Tanner is then shown begrudgingly accepting defeat and shaking hands with Flynn. Flynn is then shown receiving his starter Pokémon, a Totodile, from Professor Elm (Isaac recieves Cyndaquil, and Gina receives Chikorita), and then battling and officially capturing Eevee.

"After that, he and his boys stopped picking on me and my friends. Not long after, I became a trainer officially and battled and captured Eevee."

Eevee is then shown much later on with Flynn at night training when it suddenly glows with evolution and evolves into Umbreon, much to the delight of Flynn.

"And then while we were on our journey through Johto, it evolved into the Umbreon you see before you!"

Back in the present, Flynn then continued as he said, "And Umbreon's evolution is what drew me to Dark Type Pokémon, and from then on, I vowed to be the greatest Dark Type Specialist Trainer I could be."

"Wow, that's one heck of a goal," Ash exclaimed. He couldn't help but to feel much admiration for Flynn now.

"Pika," Pikachu added in.

"And an impressive story to boot," Erald quipped.

"Indeed," Raynard said, impressed by Flynn's story. "You seem very strong for a Dark Type trainer."

"Well, why don't you see just how strong I am for yourself?," Flynn asked with a grin. "How about you and me have a battle, Raynard?"

There was a stunned pause. Almost everyone was surprised at Flynn's request to battle Raynard.

"Wow, you really want to battle Raynard, Flynn?," Ash asked.

"Pika Pika?," Pikachu added.

"Yeah, he's a former Sinnoh League Champion," Alan pointed out.

"Shinx," Shinx agreed.

"And he's beaten two of Sinnoh's Elite Four," Leo added in.

"Bulbasaur-Bulba," agreed Bulbasaur.

"All the more reason for to want to beat him," Flynn added with a small smile. "He's strong, but not invincible."

Raynard stood up, as he said to Flynn, "In that case, Flynn, I accept your challenge. Once we're finished here, we'll use the training area's battlefield."

"Wow, now that's something I can't wait to see!," Robbie said with enthusiasm.

"Me too!," Kimmy cheered in agreement.

April, however, looked concerned about Flynn's decision to challenge Raynard.

"You um, sure you really want to go through with this, Flynn," she asked.

"Of course, now quit asking," Flynn snapped snarkily.

"Geez, just wanted to be sure…"

"That's my big brother for you. He knows what he wants," Megan sighed.

"Eevee," Eevee sighed too.

"Well, I know I want to see you guys battle," Ash said. "You guys both give it your best."

"I'll save my best for the tournament, but, I'll give a sneak preview with Flynn," Raynard said.

"Same with me against you," Flynn responded.

Later on, after everyone had finished lunch, Delia had returned to the Ketchum/Landors villa, and Ash, Pikachu, their friends (and their walking Pokémon, including Fennekin who had decided to stick with Ash and Pikachu for a while), and the Stone kids had all gathered together in one of the battlefields of the training area. Ash and the others watched as Flynn and Raynard shook hands and headed to opposite ends of the battlefield.

Erald stood by as referee, as he said, "Okay, the match will be a double battle. Each trainer will use two Pokémon. The battle will be decided when both of one trainer's Pokémon are unable to battle. Now choose your battlers."

"Weavile, Mightyena, front and center!," Flynn called out as he tossed two Poké Balls, which burst open, releasing his Sharp Claw and Bite Pokémon out onto the field.

"Lucario, Luxray, come on down!," Raynard declared as he tossed his own two Poké Balls (a Premier and Luxury Ball to be exact), which burst open, letting out his Aura and Gleam Eyes Pokémon out onto the field.

"Wow, so Weavile and Mightyena vs. Lucario and Luxray," Alan observed.

"I wonder how this is gonna play out," Robbie asked in curiousity

"Well, statistically, Raynard's Pokemon have the type advantage, particularly in regards to Lucario," Leo pointed out.

"Maybe, but my brother trained both Weavile and Mightyena very well," Megan interjected.

"Megan's right, type advantage isn't everything in a battle," Ash added. "Let's just wait and see how things go."

"Now, battle begin!," Erald said.

"Mightyena, Weavile, Dark Pulse!," Flynn called. From their mouth and claws respectively, Mightyena and Weavile each blasted a beam of black and purple circles at Raynard's battlers.

"Lucario, counter those with Bone Rush!," ordered Raynard. Using its paws, Lucario created a light green bone of energy and rapidly spun it around, countering the double Dark Pulse. "Now Luxray, Electric Terrain!"

As Lucario jumped up, Luxray stomped its paws on the ground, causing the battlefield to become electricfied.

Seeing this, Flynn commanded. "Quick, jump up and dodge it!"

Mightyena and Weavile both jumped and dodged the attack, just before the electrifying of the battlefield reached them.

"Time to go offensive. Mightyena, Fire Fang on Lucario!"

Mightyena's mouth then became filled with flames and it lept out and bit Lucario, causing major damage.

"Now Weavile, Ice Beam on Luxray!"

Weavile opened its mouth and a light blue ball formed from it. It then fired at Luxray, hitting and freezing it. On the sidelines everyone was amazed.

"Wow, Flynn's really going for the gold with this battle," April pointed out.

"Yeah, that Fire Fang attack did some major damage to Lucario," Ash added.

"Pika!," Pikachu yipped.

"Not to mention, Luxray's frozen soild too," Kimmy added.

"Fenne!," Fennekin barked.

"But the battle's just getting started guys, so don't get to excited just yet," Kensi advised. Back on the battlefield.

"Luxray, use Discharge and break out of there!," Raynard called. Luxray's body soon coated with electricity and the electric power shattered the ice, freeing it."Now Lucario, Aura Sphere!"

Lucario then formed balls of blue aura energy with its paws and blasted them at Mightyena and Weavile.

"Dodge it, guys!," Flynn commanded. Both Pokémon dodged the attack. "Now Weavile, Metal Claw!"

Weavile's claws turned to metallic silver and it ran in to slash Lucario.

"Quick Luxray, Thunderbolt!," Raynard yelled. Luxray charged itself up and unleashed a stream of electricity, hitting Weavile on the mark.

Flynn gritted his teeth as he ordered, "Mightyena, Feint Attack!"

Mightyena ran to Luxray's right side as it watched and then vanished. Luxray appeared puzzled until Mightyena suddenly appeared on its left side and attacked it, knocking it down.

"Luxray!," Raynard exclaimed in surprise.

"Wow, looks like Ray's picking up steam," Leo said from the sidelines.

"Yeah, but Flynn's not going down without a fight," Ash added.

"You can say that again!," Megan said excitedly.

"Weavile, Quick Attack on Lucario!," Flynn ordered. Weavile ran zigzagging at rapid speed at Lucario.

"Lucario, dodge and use Force Palm!," Raynard commanded. Lucario dodged Weavile and then put its palm on it before firing a huge light green blast that sent Weavile flying back.

"Weavile, no!," Flynn gasped. "Mightyena, Dark Pulse!"

Mightyena began to charge another Dark Pulse attack, but as this happened…

"Luxray, Thunder Fang!," called Raynard. Luxray's mouth filled with electricity as it jumped forward and bite Mightyena before it could unleash it's Dark Pulse attack. This not only cancelled out the attack, but also left Mightyena paralyzed.

"Mightyena!"

Ash, observing from the sidelines, said in observation, "Mightyena's paralyzed!"

"Pika!," Pikachu exclaimed.

"Not to mention Weavile took a lot of damage from that Force Palm," Robbie added.

"I think it's all over from here!," April added.

"Me too!," Kimmy added. Megan was distraught at the prospect of her big brother losing the battle.

"Oh no, Flynn," she said silently.

"Eee," Eevee said as it looked up and saw Megan upset.

"Now to wrap this up," Raynard said as he then commanded. "Lucario, Aura Sphere and Luxray, Thunderbolt!"

Lucario and Luxray unleashed their dual attacks at Weavile and Mightyena, hitting them and sending them flying back to the ground, where they were both knocked out.

"Weavile and Mightyena are unable to battle! Lucario and Luxray win! The victor is Raynard!," Erald declared.

Some of those on the sidelines such as Ash, Pikachu, and the Stone kids cheered for the end of the battle. Others like Megan looked somber over the outcome.

"Weavile, Mightyena, return," Flynn said with a small smile as he returned his Pokémon to their Poké Balls. "You both did great. Now get some rest."

Looking as stoic as ever he then walked over to Raynard, who had just returned Luxray and Lucario to their Poké Balls.

"You put up a good battle," Raynard told him.

"Likewise," said Flynn with a small grin which then turned into a serious look. "But rest assured, I won't underestimate you again."

Impressed by this, Raynard nodded and the two shook hands respectfully. Everyone else then gathered around them.

"That was awesome you two!," Robbie exclaimed in excitement.

"Awesome doesn't even begin to cover it!," Kimmy added, equally excited over the battle.

"Yeah, pretty good for our first non-called battle," Alan threw in.

"Shinx, Shinx!," Shinx barked. However, Ash and Pikachu looked over to see Megan still sitting looking despondent over her brother's defeat, with Eevee nuzzling her in comfort. Ash then headed over to her, with Pikachu following close behind.

"Hey Megan, what's wrong?," he asked. Megan looked away in sadness.

"Nothing. It's just…," she started to say. "I was really kinda hoping Flynn would win."

"Yeah, I know how you feel. Losing not all that fun. And neither is seeing someone you care about lose either. But you know, the best thing you can do for Flynn right now is show some support for him, like any good friend or sister would."

"Pika Pika," Pikachu yipped in agreement with Ash.

"Eevee-Eev!," Eevee barked as well, comforting Megan. Realizing that Ash was right, she, still carrying Eevee in her arms got up and walked over to Flynn, who soon noticed her.

"Hey big brother, I'm…sorry you lost," she said.

Flynn gave a small smile and pat her head as he replied, "Don't worry about it. It happens."

Just then, everyone two loud calls coming from above. They looked up, and they saw two large and familiar Pokémon flying over them. The first was silver-white and blue and resembled a dragon and a bird. The second was red, gold, and green, and resembled a peacock and a phoenix. Everyone almost immediately recognized the duo as they flew over them.

"Is that–?," Leo started to ask.

"Lugia and Ho-Oh," Ash said finished for him.

"The guardians of the seas and skies," Flynn added.

Back at the villa, Delia, Oak, and Mimey saw the two legendary Pokémon fly over them, and were amazed by the sight.

Elsewhere, Ellie was exiting a boutique, when she and many other bystanders saw both legendary guardians fly over, and became mesmerized by the sight.

At that moment, Mayor and Ms. Stone, along with Burke and Connie were exiting a meeting when Lugia and Ho-Oh flew over. All of them were pleased at the sight.

The members of the Power Players were hanging out when Lugia and Ho-Oh flew over their hideout. Some members were amazed, while others, such as Seamus and his father, weren't all that impressed, and looked rather envious.

In the woodlands of the island, Team Rocket was resting when Lugia and Ho-Oh flew over them and their mobile command center. They were startled by the sight and soon tried to scramble so they could catch the two, but to no avail.

Back at the training area, as the two legendary guardians disappeared over the island's mountains the group was astonished at what they'd seen.

"Wow, Lugia and Ho-Oh," Alan gasped.

"The Johto Tower Duo themselves," Raynard added.

"Shinx," Shinx echoed.

"That's not something you see everyday," Megan added.

"Well, that happens a lot during this time of year," Robbie informed everyone. "Legendaries from all over come to this isle, and they love to make their presence known to all."

"Yeah, and some of them even let people play with them," Kimmy added.

"And just when I thought seeing those two again couldn't come at a better time," Ash said.

"Again?," April asked curious about this. "You mean you've seen Lugia and Ho-Oh before?"

"Yep. The day me and Pikachu left on our journey together, we saw Ho-Oh fly over us. And later, we encountered Lugia and helped it save the world."

"Really, Ash?," Leo gasped at this revealation.

"Bulba?," Bulbasaur echoed.

"You helped Lugia save the world?!," Megan, Robbie, and Kimmy asked Ash

"Fennekin?!/Treecko?!/Eevee?!," Fennekin, Treecko, and Eevee echoed as they asked Pikachu the same question

"Yeah. I've encountered lots of Legendary Pokémon during my travels," Ash said with a grin.

"Pikachu!," Pikachu replied as well.

"You must have a strong connection with the Legendaries then, Ash," Kensi suggested.

"Or maybe he's just a really lucky trainer," Erald guessed. Ash only smiled at this.

"Either way, just seeing them makes my resolve to become a Pokémon Master and win this tournament even bigger!," he told everyone.

"Mine too, Ketchum. Mine too," Flynn said, as he, Ash, and everyone else continued staring at the mountain top where they'd last seen the two legendaries fly towards.

A look into Flynn and Megan's past, a battle between prospective rivals, and the sight of two Legendary Pokémon have built up this day for our heroes. But now, their resolve to train hard and win is now even stronger as the path to the Densetsu Isle Tournament continues!

To Be Continued…