Ash paled. "What."
"Arceus," Aurian muttered. "This isn't good."
Michael sighed. "And the award for 'Understatement of the Century' goes to..."
"Oh, shut up," the female trainer replied. "There's no time for sarcasm."
Ash found himself grinning, despite the dire situation they had just been dropped into. "You, arguably the most sarcastic member of the GM, telling us to cut the humor? Ironic."
One fiery glare from the blue-eyed girl silenced him.
"She's right," Michael replied, crossing his arms. "We need a plan."
"We can't form one just yet," Ash answered. "We need more information from Dragon Master before we act. I think that Blue and I should tail the Rocket operatives, and find out what their goal is. Once we can, we'll take them down and call for backup in getting them back to headquarters."
Michael frowned. "That's actually a pretty decent plan... but where do I fit in?"
"As your commander," Aurian pondered, "I want you to stay low. Since you gave us a hand back in Johto and are going by your real name, you could be a potential target if spotted. Be careful. Break."
The three went back towards their protégés, who were still arguing over cloud shapes.
"No, that definitely looks like a Rapidash, if you ask me," Noah stated, crossing his arms under his head.
"I see a Zebstrika," Max countered. He heard the older trainers' footsteps and grinned.
"Boys," Maddy muttered, rolling her eyes.
"Hey guys, you're just in time! We were gonna go over there and ask you- does that cloud look like a Rapidash or a Zebstrika?" Max announced, removing his glasses and polishing them on his shirt.
Ash frowned, his feigned crimson eyes deepening. "Rapidash."
"Zebstrika," Aurian offered.
Michael grinned. "Suicune from the side."
The other five trainers sat in shock at the accuracy of Michael's statement.
"Problem solved," the redhead countered. The group of six started laughing.
"What now?" Noah asked.
"Well," Ash stated, "it's around lunchtime. You guys hungry?"
A growl from the trainees' stomachs reverberated throughout the clearing, drawing more laughter from the group.
"Let's go," Aurian stated. "Don't want the good tables to be taken!"
As they made their way back towards the Center, Max had an idea. "Hey Red, what's your family like?"
Ash smiled, knowing exactly what the rookie was thinking. "Dad went off on his own journey when I was about three and a half. My mom works odd jobs around town and helps my neighbors with a catering business when times get rough. No siblings- just me."
"Blue?" Maddy asked. "What about you?"
"My dad used to be a semi-pro trainer. He won a couple of League competitions back in the day, and was my inspiration to be a trainer. Mom is a Breeder- tons of Pokémon ran around my place. My little brother is waiting for his tenth birthday. He wants to go challenge the Sinnoh Battle Frontier. I've got a close cousin who's a Ranger in Almia- Kate. You'd like her, I think."
"Michael?" Noah offered. Torlan yawned from the boy's lap.
"Live with my Mom, a researcher, and my little sister, Jovi, in Orre. Jovi's about to turn ten. She's got her sights set on winning a Grand Festival or two after getting out of Orre. Dad... Dad's kind of a sore subject around my place. He passed of a heart attack when I was six. Jovi was just a baby, but I still miss him sometimes."
"What about you guys?" Ash asked in an attempt to lighten the now gloomy mood. "Any siblings?"
Max grinned. "Well, of course you guys know my older sis, May. My dad's the Petalburg City Gym leader, and my mom keeps him on track. We've got a few cousins over in Fiore and Kanto, but they don't visit us much."
"I've got one older brother and three younger sisters," Maddy responded. "Life is crazy back at my place. My brother, Patrick, is off in Unova preparing to challenge his sixth gym- Skyla, I believe, is his next challenge. My younger sisters- Kylie, Katherine, and Katrina- are identical triplets. They all want to do different things- train, coordinate, go to Ranger school. They're only five, so I doubt that their goals will stay the same."
"Just me," said Noah. "My parents only wanted one child. Dad works for Silph Co, and my Mom runs a resturant in Cerulean City. They were away from home a lot, so I played- well, as much as I could with my chair- with the local Pokémon."
The Center appeared just as Noah finished his sentence. The group of six grabbed a table, rearranged their chairs so Noah could be comfortable, and placed an order for vegetarian burgers- no one really wanted to eat Tauros meat- with a friendly Chansey.
As everyone chowed down, Ash felt a tap on his shoulder, and turned around to find Misty waiting there, her arms awkwardly crossed.
"Hello, Miss Waterflower," he responded. "Would you like to join us?"
She nodded. "Please, call me Misty. I'd love to."
With much shuffling of chairs, the orange-haired newcomer joined the trainees and trainers, who exchanged happy greetings.
"Has your trainee arrived yet?" Michael asked.
Misty shook her head. "No. She said she may have to cancel, since her mom just got really sick. Poor girl- I was really looking forward to meeting her. She seemed so sweet through all the video calls we exchanged. Bummer."
"You can help train us! We need all the help we can get," Maddy responded while pointing to the two younger boys of the group, who had started a belching contest. Aurian laughed and patted her trainee on the back.
"Boys will be boys," Misty muttered. Ash laughed, remembering the times he and Gary did that during his childhood days. As he laughed, Domino and her grunts appeared in the Center, grabbed four to-go orders of food, and left.
The Cerulean City Gym Leader noticed how both her crimson-eyed and new blue-eyed acquaintance kept a careful eye on the group of four- particularly the girl in the center with a tulip printed on her cap. The blonde looked so familiar... why couldn't she place her?
"So," Ash asked, crossing his arms behind his head as Pikachu continued to nibble on his burger, "What now? Opening ceremonies are tomorrow- what happens after that?"
"There's a giant screen in the main stadium," Misty answered. "They reveal the brackets for the first half of the competition- up to the top 40, I believe. They'll establish the actual rules- double, single, triple, or rotation- right before the brawl begins. There are gym leaders, Frontier Brains, even a few Colisseum Leaders thrown in the mix. Let's hope that none of us meet up too soon."
The competing trainers nodded as they cleaned up their area and left.
As the newly enlarged group started wandering around the island, Aurian noticed two somewhat familiar faces conversing by the blue roofed Pokémart.
"It's Paul and Gary," Aurian whispered to Ash. "What should we do?"
"I say we go introduce ourselves, apologize for what went down yesterday," the black-haired trainer replied. By the time he had completed his sentence, Misty was yelling "Gary! Hey, Oak!"
The sandy-headed trainer turned around and grinned. "Yo, Mist! What's up? You competing?"
"Yeah. I got here yesterday, and ran into May Maple's little brother, who was hanging out with this group, so I decided to join in. How's Umbreon? It's been a while since I last saw him. And what are you doing battling? Shouldn't you be researching?"
"He's doing well, thanks. As for the competition- Gramps said that I was working too hard, and needed some time off. He registered me before I even had a chance to protest," Gary laughed. "Sounds just like him, doesn't it?" Gary turned towards Ash and Aurian and frowned.
"Aren't you two the people who beat us into the ground yesterday?"
At Gary's words, Paul turned around sharply, and glared at the two patonai.
"Yes. Yes we are," Ash replied. "We really shouldn't have gotten involved in your feud, and I'd like to apologize for my friend here," he continued, pointing at Aurian, who awkwardly waved.
"That's no excuse, though," Paul snapped. "Meddling will get you nowhere."
"Look, all I wanted to do by coming over here was to apologize and start over," Aurian rebutted while extending a hand. "I'm Blue. Blue Katrian. And you are?"
Paul looked away and rejected the handshake. "More worthy than you. Paul Shinji doesn't accept losses- especially those caused by girls."
"Excuse me?" Aurian countered, raising an eyebrow and crossing her arms, which was never a good sign. "You're saying that girls and ladies can't be good trainers?"
"Girls are soft- weak, even," the plum-headed trainer replied nonchalantly. "They're better off being Coordinators or Breeders, where they belong."
Aurian smirked. "Then how did I kick your sorry hindquarters into the ground yesterday?"
"You had help."
"I would challenge you to another battle right now, but that would be foolish of me. There's no point in scuffling a day before the opening ceremonies."
"Wimp."
Ash knew that if he didn't stop the two of them now, Aurian would most likely lose control of her temper and blow their cover, and most likely start a fist fight. Even if things did come to that, he knew that his patonai could easily take Paul, but that certainly didn't need to happen. "Whoa there, Blue. That's enough. Anyways, I'm Red Aronshu. Nice to meet you, Gary..." he trailed off, giving his deadliest glare towards the other trainer. "Paul."
"Red."
"Michael!" the red-headed trainer interjected, causing the trainees to laugh. "Come on guys, lighten up! We can settle all of this," he motioned wildly around to Paul, Aurian, and Ash, "on the battlefield."
Blue nodded as she turned around and walked away from her new rival. "You're right, Michael." She turned back over her shoulder towards the purple-haired trainer. "You'd better watch your back. One of these days, your Grumpig-headed viewpoints will come back to haunt you."
The group of seven walked away, with Ash keeping a hand on Aurian's shoulder.
Once they were a safe distance away, Aurian let out a short scream.
"Gah! He's so insufferable, stupid, thick-headed..."
Noah smiled. "Hey. Once the brackets are released, I'll run some calculations and see if there's any chance of you two meeting up before the top 40. If there is," his smile deepened, "ruin him."
"Heck yes," Max responded, punching the air. "He's so wrong! I've met plenty of really good girl trainers!"
Maddy scratched her head and looked towards Aurian. "I was about to bring up the point of Champion Cynthia, but you seemed to be handling it quite well."
"I've met Paul before," Ash said, crossing his arms. "Saw him run away with his tail between his legs after he was completely dominated by Cynthia herself."
"Maybe that's why he has a grudge against girls," Michael offered. "Got beaten by one, can't forget it?"
Misty bit her lip. "Definitely a possibility, but his problem is probably deeper than that."
"I'm not one for psychological analysis when I don't have enough information," Aurian interjected, "so I'll hold off and see what I can find at a later time. And Noah, I will drive him into the ground, no worries."
Gary watched the group of seven walk away as Paul started to walk off. An idea came to him, and he poked Paul in the shoulder.
"You think that Blue girl is attractive, don't you?"
Paul screeched to a halt. "What?"
"Come on," Gary offered. "Those eyes, right? Beautiful one second and filled with deadly malice the next. And that hair- Arceus, sure is shiny, isn't it?"
"I hold no romantic attraction towards Blue Katrian."
"Then why did you remember her last name?"
Paul flushed red and stayed silent.
"I KNEW IT!" Gary exclaimed, starting to do a little happy dance in the middle of the street. "Paul's in love with Blu-e, Paul's in love with Blu-e!"
The 'infatuated' purple-haired trainer slammed a hand over Gary's mouth, effectively silencing him. "Shut up."
Gary pulled Paul's hand off of his face and grinned. "If it helps, I think she's attractive, too, but Misty is most definitely more my type. I've always had a thing for red/orange hair."
"Why haven't you asked her out?"
"She's still hung up on Ash Ketchum. I mean, come on, it's been practically three years since the dude dropped off the face of the Earth. She can find a new guy to fancy."
Paul maintained his stony silence and started walking towards the Center. "I need to train more- after I heal up."
Gary, completely aware of Paul's reluctance to address the subject, smiled. "Ahaha, yep. Same here."
The two trainers headed to the Center as dusk started to approach, unaware that a certain Pewter City ex-gym leader had watched what went down and overheard their entire conversation...
As the sun went down, Misty joined Red, Blue, Michael, Maddy, Max, and Noah for marshmallow roasting under the open sky. She did have to admit that Red knew how to make a mean s'more, as he had insisted on making each of them one of his signaturely toasted variants. And Arceus, it was good. She licked the gooey remains of her graham cracker, chocolate, and puffy sugar sandwich off the tips of her fingers, and watched quietly as the trainees burned their marshmallows and started flinging them into the fire- created by Ash's Typhlosion- just for fun.
"You've been quiet lately," Blue pondered, dropping down to sit next to the orange-haired trainer. "What's on your mind? Something's worrying you, eating away at your consciousness."
"How'd you know?" Misty responded.
Blue shrugged. "I notice these kinds of things."
Misty sighed. "My friend that I accidentally mistook Red for would've loved this. He'd be burning marshmallows right along with Max, Maddy, and Noah. I really miss him sometimes- he was kind of like an annoying little brother that you still loved at the end of the day. He just... vanished, without a trace. I've talked with his mom, and she has a vague idea of where he is, but she was sworn to secrecy, apparently. Does he know that it's killing the rest of us to not know where he is?"
"He's got a good reason for doing so," Blue thought out loud. "Have you ever thought of it that way?"
"I've tried, but it hasn't worked. Ash would never turn his back on his friends- this just isn't like him."
Blue grinned. "This Ash- he might be a little closer than you think he is," she said with a wink. As the curly-haired trainer disappeared off to chuck a marshmallow at Michael's spiky hair, she wondered what, exactly, the girl meant.
"Hey!" Michael exclaimed, interrupting Misty's thoughts. "Who stuck this on my head!"
Blue laughed as she started running, leading Michael to start chasing her. "Not my fault that I have good aim!" the girl exclaimed, spinning to change course. Red was in hysterics the entire time, laughing so hard that he forgot about the half-roasted marshmallow on his stick. It dropped off the makeshift roaster and was engulfed in a small whoosh of blue flame.
The antics continued as the sky turned to a deep indigo, with stars and galaxies peeking out from behind the clouds. A single sliver of the moon remained, and provided just enough light to see by as Ash, Aurian, Max, and Michael walked Misty, Maddy, and Noah back to the Center.
"We really need to do this again," Misty announced with a grin. "Tomorrow night sound good?"
"Yeah!" Max responded. "As long as there's s'mores, I'm in!"
The rest of the group chuckled at Max's love of food as they said their goodbyes until the next morning. Michael had decided to stay with Ash and Aurian in the event of an emergency, and set up his sleeping bag as everyone else prepared for bed.
Ash was still awake long after Pikachu and Max started snoring, and stared up at the sky. He knew that sleep just wouldn't come tonight- too many things on his mind.
He quietly exited his sleeping bag- but not quietly enough. Pikachu blinked once, twice, and gazed up at his trainer as Red pulled on his G-Men issued navy blue and black hoodie.
"Piiiiiiiikaa?" he asked.
"Going for a walk. Want to join me?"
The little electric rodent nodded as he jumped up onto Ash's shoulder. He made his way towards a lake that wasn't all that far from the campsite. As he plopped down on a rock, he heard footsteps approaching behind him. A blaze of blue appeared between his hands, but he let the aura evaporate when he saw that it was his patonai. She sat down next to him and shot him one of her signature looks- one eyebrow raised, her blue eyes inquisitive.
"I keep thinking about the Sinnoh League Incident," Ash blurted, resting his forehead in his left hand. "Arceus- if I had been stronger, I would've been able to help so much more..."
"Your 'Mon were passed out from the effort of defeating not one, but two Legendaries. While I did admire the effort they put out to face that Darkrai after your official battle, you had no chance at winning. Your 'friends' had no right to break you down because of that. You told me yourself that you lived under unrealistic expectations for the first five years of your journey. Didn't you?"
The black-haired trainer nodded. "Yes."
Aurian sighed. "Why are you still concerned, then? You've got your priorities in order now."
"It's just... I don't get why Misty is so on edge whenever my name is brought up."
The inquisitive look in Aurian's blue eyes turned to annoyance. "She cares for you, you idiot! Didn't you hear her say that she misses you?"
"Oh."
Silence overtook the clearing, and the only sound heard by either trainer was the sound of small waves slapping the shores.
"I never realized..."
"That's because you're denser about these sorts of things than a Golem, Shadow," Aurian replied, using Ash's shorthand nickname.
Ash grinned. "Hey Braveheart, you still like me anyways, don't you?"
Aurian paused, tapping her fingers against the rock. "I'm your patonai. I'm forced to."
"Hey!"
Pikachu started giggling at the two's banter, but then went quiet. His ears perked up and started twitching as he tugged on Ash's sleeve.
"Pikapi. Ka-ka-pichu."
Aurian stayed silent as she extended her hand out to the side. A sapphire mist started to emanate from her palm, and started forming itself into a pommel, a grip, then an elegant guard, a blade, and finally resolved and solidified itself into a short sword: an eleven-A model, according to both her father and her G-Men instructor. Her other hand went straight to her belt, and hovered over Yuan's Pokéball.
Ash finished creating his Aura blade, which was a little longer and darker in color than his patonai's, and then held still, letting his tracking skills assist Pikachu in finding out the locations of possible adversaries. Cerulean flared behind his eyelids, and laid itself out, night vision style, into his surroundings. Four humans started shifting forward, Pokéballs in one hand and weapons in the other.
How many do you see? he asked Aurian through an ancient Guardian process called Kōkani, which allowed nonverbal communication during combat. Supposedly, it was created by Sir Aaron of Rota, and then passed down through his many students to their fellow Guardians until the method replaced the crystals scattered around Rota itself.
Five. There's one behind a tree that you missed. Ash swore he could hear Aurian smirking. Each one has four Pokéballs. Do they know that we're here?
Not sure. Do they have any weapons? Ash replied, holding his blade in a defensive stance.
The voice in his head paused. Pretty sure that the one that looks like Domino has her standard Black Tulips. The other four have a pair of nunchuks, a sword, two daggers, and a bow and quiver of arrows. If they are looking for us, we need to go incognito. Hoods up?
Ash grinned. Hoods up.
Both trainers flipped their hoods on top of their heads and secured them so that all their opponents would be able to see were their eyes- one pair of crimson, one pair of blue.
Ash knew that he had been in this kind of situation many times before- back to back with Aurian, one of the few humans that he trusted with his life, and had only his personal Aura skills and his training repertoire at his disposal. They had worked their way out of worse situations than this, but even being surrounded by five people could have disastrous results.
May the Aura be with you and serve you well, he thought in Aurian's direction.
He tensed as the rustling from the bushes intensified, and five forms burst out from the greenbelt...
(A/N): Hello, and thank you for reading Chapter Eight! I'll be responding to reviews from here on out!
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