A/N- Hello everyone! As I was writing this, I realized that I completely forgot about Max! He is there, but let's just say that he was really tired because he's younger than everyone else, and was simply too tired to bother. Or, you can imagine something up, I really don't care either way. All that matters is that he's there! That being said, please enjoy and don't forget to review!
Chapter Two
The sun had risen slowly over the Valley of the Lilly. A young Pokemon master in the making gently stirred in his sleep as the sun gently shone into his room and the starlys chirping in the trees with a beautiful glistening lake with little Pokemon swimming nearby. This scene was so peaceful and scenic that it made whoever was- "CHUUUUUUU!", "AARRGGHH!", thump... Never mind.
"Uhhh. Morning to you to Pikachu."
Ash begrudgingly got off the floor, glaring at Pikachu, then went into the bathroom to get ready for the day ahead of him. Most importantly, the awards ceremony which started in the evening. With that thought, excitement spread throughout his body, encouraging him to hurry up. So, Ash hurriedly brushed his teeth, put on his clothes, and rushed out of the bathroom.
"Let's go Pikachu!" Ash grabbed Pikachu and ran out of his room, towards the food court for breakfast.
As soon as he got to the food court, he looked around, searching for his friends. Once he found them, he walked over to their table.
"Morning everybody!" Ash almost shouted, his enthusiasm reaching it's peak.
"Morning?" Misty frowned "It's almost noon."
"Eh," Ash said with an accompanying stomach growl, "it's all the same as long as I get breakfast. I'm gonna go get some now."
He started over to the food lines to get his beloved breakfast.
"Don't worry about it Ash!" May waved him over to her "I've already gotten you your food, and saved you a seat next to me."
True to her word, May had plenty of pancakes, french toast, assorted berries, muffins, eggs, and bacon all stacked high on a plate.
"Wow, thanks a bunch May!" Ash beamed, as he walked over and sat down next to her before digging in.
None of his friends thought twice about his "eating", but the display caught the attention of several passers by. On person even walked into a pole while distracted by Ash's incredible display of poor manners and break neck paced eating. But, they did catch onto the fact that May got Ash breakfast. May had never voluntarily gotten anyone food before.
"Wow May," Dawn gave may a sly look "you've never gotten Ash food for him before. Did anything happen when you walked him to his room?"
Ash let loose all the food in his mouth, (which was a lot), having completely forgotten that his friends don't know about his new relationship with May.
"Oh, only just that me and Ash are now together." May calmly told everyone, like it was no big deal.
"WHAT!" was what everyone at the table cried out.
"Ash got a girlfriend!?" Misty shivered "it must be the end of the world or something."
"Haha, very funny Misty." Ash stuck his tongue out at her "We all know I could've gotten a girlfriend any time I wanted."
"Yeah right Ash," Gary shook his head, "I was beginning to think you didn't even know what a girlfriend was. Do you even know what to do with one?"
"What do you mean?" Ash asked, confused as to what Gary meant by, to do with one.
"Oh boy Ash," Gary leaned across the table and patted Ash on the shoulder with a smirk, "You have much to learn. Lucky for you, I'm the best there is to teach about this kind of thing. First, you have to assert your dominance. Just look at me, the head of my relationship. I can basically do whatever I want, and Dawn will do whatever I say. She's whipped! It's a win-win!"
"Oh really?" Dawn gave him a smile that was a little too sweet. "I can only imagine what you mean by that. Misty, if you please?"
"It would be my pleasure Dawn." Once again, Misty pulled out her trusty mallet, and smashed Gary with it two times. Once over the head, and once in a place no man ever wants to be hit. Gary fell to the ground crying about how he'll never have kids.
"Anyway," Dawn told Ash, not caring that her boyfriend was in currently in an immeasurable amount of pain "Forget what my idiotic boyfriend just told you. Since you don't know how to be a good boyfriend, and obviously Gary isn't suited to teach you, I'll do it!"
"Well, no offense Dawn," Ash quickly made up an excuse, not wanting to be trapped into Dawn's "lessons" for hours, "I think it would be best if I just learned as I went along."
"Fine. But don't blame me if May get's mad at you for being your usual dense self." Dawn pouted.
"Seriously though," Max gave Ash a confused look "why would you want to date my sister? She's mean and bossy and just weird, and you're awesome!"
"Maxwell Maple!" May glared at her younger brother "If you don't take that back and shut your ugly face, I will call mom and tell her that you won't behave yourself! Do you really want to go back home?"
"NO! Please, I'm so sorry, I take it back!" Max got down on his knees, head bent over, literally begging. "I'll do anything, just please don't make me go back home! It's so boring!"
"That's a good boy." May patted him on the head holding out her glass "now go get me another refill. This time I want an oran juice."
"Yes ma'am." Max meekly took the glass to get her the oran juice.
"Ash," May directed her attention to the befuddled boy "don't listen to anyone. I want you to stay as you are."
"Thanks May" Ash leaned over and gave her a peck on the cheek, earning him a small blush from May.
"Gross." Max mumbled under his breath, putting the glass down in front of his sister.
"So Ash," Gary groaned as he painstakingly got back into his seat "what are we going to do before the awards ceremony starts?"
"I know what I'm doing!" Brock ran over to the Nurse Joy and dropped onto one knee, grabbing her hand "My love! My love for you cannot even be outweighed by a Groudon! Surely you and I can-" Croagunk let himself out of his poke ball I time to stop Brock from terrorizing another Nurse Joy, jabbing him with a poison jab and dragging him out of the food court.
"Not… again..."
Everyone sweatdropped at the all too familiar scene before resuming their business.
"I don't really know." Ash stated contemplatively while rubbing his chin "Maybe just train my Pokemon, help fix some of the mistakes we made last night."
"Of course." Misty sighed "We should've known that it would have something to do with Pokemon."
Everyone chorused in agreement with her.
"All you ever think about is Pokemon Ash." Tracey told him "How you got May to like you is beyond me."
"I am not having this conversation with you all again," Ash got up, taking his tray with him "Now I'm going to train, and if you want to come with me, we aren't talking about this again."
"I'll come with you Ashy-boy." Gary got up to follow Ash "I want to check out your Pokemon up close."
"Me too!" Brock, May, and Max also got up. Brock also wanted to check out his Pokemon, but from a medical point of view. Max just wanted to see his idol/best friend train, and I think you can guess why may wanted to go.
They all followed Ash as he threw his trash away and left the food court. They walked down the hallway to the main lobby, and out the Pokemon Center.
"Here we are everyone!" Ash threw his arms into the air. "My secret training spot!"
Ash's secret training spot was in the forest not to far from the Pokemon Center. It was a big clearing in the woods, with a large pond off to the left, and a medium sized cave that jutted up from the ground about twenty feet from the pond. Ash was really proud of his spot. It had taken him hours to find a place suited for the mass destruction his Pokemon could cause, and had an environment suited for his different types Pokemon.
"I'm impressed Ash," Gary gave the place a look over "I wouldn't have thought that you would be patient enough to find a place as good as this. It's perfect."
Ash barely managed to ignored Gary's jab at his patience, yelling "Come on out everyone!"
Ash threw out his Pokemon, ready to get in a good training session before he had to leave. Five Pokemon materialized from their poke balls, with loud roars. It seems they were as pumped to get started as their trainer.
Ash began to get his Pokemon started with their training, "Pikachu, you go and blast as many boulders as you can with your thunderbolt. Let's see if you can break your record. Torterra and Sceptile, use your leaf storm and bullet seed to try and hit Staraptor. Staraptor, try to fly as fast as you can, while moving in a random pattern. If you get hit, you have to hit both of them with an aerial ace. Gible, you go swimming the pond to boost your resistance to water attacks. Jackson's Vaporeon really did you a number last night. We can't let something like that happen again."
"It's nice to see you taking your training seriously Ash. With the way you used to train, I'm not surprised that you lost in the second round in the Silver Conference." Max stated pushing his glasses higher up on his nose while they shone.
"I've told you before, it was the second round in the victory tournament!" Ash yelled, face to face with Max.
"This again?" May groaned.
"Come on you two." Brock pulled two the apart "Max don't go there again, and Ash, try not to get so mad. Alright?"
"Okay, sorry Brock." Ash and Max apologized together, rubbing the backs of their heads in embarrassment.
"Good." Brock nodded, walking over to where Ash's Pokemon were training "I'm going to watch your Pokemon train and take notes on their shape."
"Okay." Ash turned to Gary "Want to have a one on one battle? Just like old times."
"Ooh," Max was practically drooling with anticipation "I would love to see you two battle!"
"Sure." Gary smirked "It's always nice to put you in your place after you get a big win. It brings you back down to earth."
Ash and Gary walked over to opposite side of the clearing. Ash had one Pokemon left, so he gave Gary a minute to choose his Pokemon. Once he chose, Gary gave Ash a thumbs up, gave the poke ball a kiss and threw it over the field. "Go Arcanine!"
Ash threw his own poke ball "Infernape, you got this!"
The Pokemon were released onto the field, giving each other a death glare.
"Go Ash!" May cheered from the sidelines.
"Infernape, start off with dig, then use earthquake from underground!"
Infernape dug down into the ground, spraying dirt everywhere. Infernape screamed his name, and after a second, the entire field started to shake with tremendous force. The attack hit Arcanine, throwing him back onto the ground.
"Arcanine!" Gary yelled "Come on, I know you can get up!"
Arcanine jumped up. The earthquake obviously did a good deal of damage, but not enough to take the legendary Pokemon down.
"Good job!" Gary threw his arm towards Infernape "Use extreme speed into an iron tail!"
Arcanine gave a howl before he took off, almost moving faster than Infernape could keep up with.
"Infernape dodge it!"
As Arcanine flew in front of him, Infernape rolled to the side, barely avoiding getting hit.
"Arcanine, quick turn then use thunder fang!"
Arcanine, digging his paws hard into the ground, was able to turn around, hitting Infernape with thunder fang before he could react.
"Infernape!" May gasped, worried for the flame Pokemon.
"Got you Gary!" Ash told Gary with a wink "Infernape use counter!"
Gary's eyes widened "Arcanine let go of him now!"
Arcanine couldn't let go of Infernape quickly, and Infernape was covered in a red glow, sending Arcanine reeling back with massive damage. Arcanine managed to get up once again, tired, but he could still keep going.
"Arcanine, we need to play this safe! Wait for Infernape to attack then use protect!"
Arcanine got into a ready stance, watching his opponent carefully.
"Infernape, use flamethrower!"
Infernape threw his head back for releasing red hot flames in a spiral, directed at Arcanine. Before the flames could reach him, Arcanine created a green protective bubble that shielded him from the attack.
"Great job Infernape, now use feint!"
Infernape's fist started to glow as he charged up to Arcanine before protect wore off, and smashed his his attack into Arcanine, the feint allowing him to pass through as if the protect wasn't even there. Arcanine went down, swirls in his eyes.
"Arcanine no!" Gary ran over to his Pokemon kneeling down next to it. "You did great pal. You deserve a long rest."
Gary pulled out Arcanine's poke ball and recalled him. Getting up, Gary walked over to Ash and shook his hand. "Good battle Ash. Excellent technique."
"You too Gary. I hope for a rematch soon." Ash calmly replied.
The two rivals stared at each other for a second before bursting out with laughter.
After Gary calmed down a bit, he looked at Ash again and said, "I almost had you ya know."
"Did not!" Ash retorted "I was in complete control the whole battle."
"Okay Ashy-boy." Gary smirked "I was just messing with you."
"That was incredible Ash!" May and Max ran up to the two
"The way you went under the field to amplify earthquakes power was awesome!" Max beamed "No wonder you beat Gary in the Silver Conference."
Gary fell down anime style "Thanks for reminding me."
"Okay!" Ash sad, trying to save Gary from further embarrassment "Why don't we just train for a few hours until the awards ceremony?"
"Good idea Ash!" May pecked Ash on the cheek "Do you have any other good strategies you want to tell your girlfriend?"
"Sorry May," Ash waved his finger at her "but a good trainer never reveals his secrets!"
"Not even for me?" May gave him her best puppy dog face.
"Not even you." Ash crossed his arms and shook his head.
"Fine." May pouted.
"Now then," Ash pumped his arm "Let's get started!"
The sun was just beginning to set, and Ash and his friends were all tired, so they went back to the Pokemon Center to clean up for the award ceremony. Once ready, they found the rest of Ash's friends and family and started towards the main arena, where the ceremony was going to be held. Once they got there, they found their seats, and waited for Ash to be called down to the field.
Finally, Ash's big moment came, and the announcers voice blared through the loudspeakers "Would Ash Ketchum please report to the field!"
"Well," As stood up "that's my cue guys."
Waving goodbye to all his friends, Ash made his way down to the corridor that would take him to his crowning glory.
"You ready buddy?" Ash scratched Pikachu on the top of his head.
"Pika, Pikapi!" Pikachu cooed.
"Then let's go." Ash walked down the corridor, walking out onto the field. The crowd thundered. People clapping and screaming and cheering. 'All for me' Ash thought.
There was a big platform on the middle of the field, with Mr. Goodshow, the owner of the Pokemon League, and Cynthia, the Sinnoh champion. In between them was a small table with a golden trophy, with wings near the top, and a poke ball placed directly on top. Ash walked over, and onto the podium, stopping in front of the table, in between two of the largest faces of the Pokemon League.
"Ash Ketchum," Mr. Goodshow boomed "I have been watching your progress since you placed in the top sixteen in your first Pokemon League. Since then, I have watched you become a great trainer, earning higher and higher placings. And now, you've done it. You, are the champion of the Lily of the Valley Conference!"
The crowd roared even louder for their favorite trainer, but they soon quieted as Cynthia began talking.
"Ash, your battles were excellent. Truly, an outstanding performance. You gave the support your Pokemon need to maximize their power. And you guided them with certainty to secure victory. You have both passion and calculating coolness. Together, you and your Pokemon can overcome any challenge that may come your way. Those are the impressions I got from your battling. I'm glad that I get to take part in the crowning of the Valley of the Lily's new champion!"
The applause that followed was almost deafening, and it only got louder as Cynthia picked up the trophy, and stepped next to Ash. "You deserve this Ash" Cynthia handed him the trophy. Ash grinned as he took the trophy and held it up into the air.
"BOOOM"
An explosion went off on the field, near the podium, causing thick, black smoke to fill the stadium. Everyone ran to the nearest emergency exit as fast as they could. It took about fifteen minutes for all the people to get out, and once they did, it didn't take long for everyone to catch word of something big.
Ash Ketchum was missing.
It was estimated that around forty three people were killed, with another one hundred and thirty-two injured in the explosion. The only person missing, was Ash Ketchum. There were reports of Team Rocket being spotted in the stadium after the explosion, leading everyone to believe that Ash was being held as a hostage for ransom. After a week, no ransom had been sent to the league, so they sent G-men, rangers, police forces, anyone they could get, to search for the missing champion. After a month of no success, people started to worry. After two, some people started speculating that he was dead. Three months after the attack, Ash Ketchum was officially proclaimed dead by the League. The news hit everyone hard, as most of the world had seen Ash in some tournament or another, but it hit Ash's friends and family the hardest. They all fell into a deep depression. There was a funeral, and hundreds attended. Even Mr. Goodshow and the three champions attended. It took a long time, but most of Ash's friends managed to pull themselves out of their sadness, because it's what Ash would've wanted.
Only two people were unable to; Ash's mother, Delia, and Ash's girlfriend, May. Ash was basically all that Delia had left, and Ash meant everything to May. After a few more months, they both were still dangerously depressed.
Delia declined even further, and she lost the will to live. She died peacefully in her bed a few weeks after Ash was pronounced dead. This pushed May even further into her depression, as she, and all of Ash's friends, thought of her as their second mother. Her funeral was smaller than Ash's, though Mr. Goodshow and the three champions still attended out of respect for the lost Ketchum bloodline.
All of Ash's friends began to worry about May, and this worry intensified after she tried to take her own life. She would've died if Max hadn't have walked into her room and found her passed out on the floor with various medications strewn about her room. She was rushed to a hospital, where she made a lengthy physical recovery. After that incident, May was not allowed to be alone any more. May's parents and brother were the ones most often with her, and her friends stopped by to visit often.
It took three years, but May's friends and family managed to a functioning state, yet though she recovered, they knew that she as different.
She was plagued by nightmares, and constantly lost sleep, and she broke down at the mention of Ash's name. She never did much of anything and was irritable all the time. She had always loved to eat, but she barely ate. They all knew she had changed.
They didn't know if she would ever be the same again.
A/N- Well that ended on a darker note than I had planned. My ending is not as good as I wanted it to be, but oh well. Anyway, can anyone guess where I got Cynthia's speech from? (for the record, I don't own it).
Sometime soon I will be posting a poll for the two Pokemon you want Ash to have caught. I want him to have ten, and I already have the eight I know I want, but I won't say which ones! Stay tuned, the plot really gets going in the next chapter! So, I hoped you enjoyed it, and don't forget to review!
See y'all later!
DarkLucario98