Deep within Viridian Forest, a certain trio was up to no good.

"So, do you think those twerps are in here?" said Jessie.

"Without a doubt," said James. "And once they cross our path, we'll ambush them and steal their Pokemon!"

"Clefairy, fairy!"

"Well, I can certainly get behind that plan!" said Jessie. "I can't wait for the boss to reward us!"

"I know," said James, "and I can't wait to see the look on the faces of those twerps!"

As if on cue, they heard a number of screams.

"Did you hear that?" Jessie said as she turned in the direction of the house.

"I did," said James. "That almost sounded like the twerps."

"Fairy, fairy."

The trio was then shocked as they saw Ash and his friends rush past them.

"Hey!" said Jessie. "What's the big idea running away before we can ambush you?!"

"Come back here!" James yelled. "You need to give us a chance to take your Pokemon!"

"Clefairy! Fairy!"

The trio then felt chills when they heard a buzzing noise. They turned around, and their eyes widened at the sight of the incoming Beedrill swarm.

"RUN!"

The trio ran off as the angry bug types chased them."

Was that Team Rocket?" said Mikaela.

"Who cares?!" Meowth said as he kept running. "Let Beedrill have them!"

The group was getting tired, but they kept running, not wishing to experience the wrath of the Beedrill. Unfortunately, there was trouble ahead.

"Watch out!"

Ash's eyes widened at the sight of a huge log right in their path. He stopped right in front of it, as did his friends. Realizing they had nowhere else to go, they began to panic.

"What do we do now?!" said Sam.

"Maybe we can go down there," Mikaela said as she looked down at the log. "I think we could squeeze through there."

Ash looked down, and saw that there was indeed a small opening beneath the log.

"Maybe," he said, "if we had just a bit of time."

"Yeah," said Meowth, "but I don't think we have that!"

The group watched in horror as the Beedrill finally began to close in on them. With the log blocking their route, and no other way out, things seemed bleak.

But before the bug type swarm could reach them, something unexpected happened.

"Vayanse a volar!"

To their surprise, a large brown bedsheet suddenly appeared between the two groups. Ash and his friends were stunned at this, but the Beedrill were clearly even more stunned. They attempted to sting at the fabric, but they weren't able to get past it.

Confused, Ash looked around, trying to see what was going on and who had saved them. He then found it as he looked behind him; standing atop the log was a boy holding a fishing rod, one that was attached to the sheet.

"What are you waiting for?! Move!"

Ash blinked, but quickly snapped back into action. Thinking quickly, he grabbed Meowth and shoved him down the hole. The other trainers followed suit, shoving their Pokemon down the hole. Then, Mikaela shoved her backpack in, and then squeezed her body into the hole.

"Hurry!" the mystery boy said. "I can't hold them off forever!"

Not willing to waste time, Ash immediately began making his way down the hole. As his friend went down, Sam turned back, and saw that the swarm was punching some very noticeable holes in the sheet.

"Coming through!" Sam yelled as he dived down the hole. He did his best to squeeze through the tight opening, and finally landed next to the rest of his friends.

"Please tell me next time you do something like that," Meowth groaned from the bottom of the pile.

"Well, I think it was fun," said Mikaela. "Right, Eevee?"

"Eevee!" the normal type said, clearly enjoying the situation far more than the others. Pikachu simply rolled his eyes at this.

As Ash chuckled at the display, he heard the sound of someone sliding down towards them. He was then met by the sight of their savior landing next to them.

"Don't make any noise!" the boy said in a hushed tone.

The gang closed their mouths as the buzzing sound grew louder and louder. They then watched as the swarm flew above them, seemingly oblivious to them hiding beneath the log. They held their breath as the bug types flew into the distance, still trying to find them.

As the Beedrill faded into the distance, Ash let out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks," he said as he got up. "You really saved us there."

"You're welcome," the boy replied. "I don't know what you did to make those Beedrill angry, but you really should try not to do it again."

The raven haired trainer blinked. There was something about the boy's voice that was familiar. While it wasn't common, he knew he had heard that accent before. And not too long ago, either.

His eyes then widened as he recognized him.

"Wait… I remember you!"

The others looked up at him, surprised by the declaration. The newcomer, on the other hand, had a more pensive look on his face.

"Yeah," said Ash. "You helped me find the gym!"

"Oh yeah!" the boy said, recalling Ash's request for information. "Did you have any luck with Giovanni?"

"No," said Ash. "The gym was closed."

"Oh," the boy replied. "Lucky you. He would have beaten you up pretty bad."

"I still think I could have taken him."

Sam and Mikaela looked at the boy with curiosity. He seemed to be somewhat younger than Ash, although that might just be because he was rather short; he certainly sounded old enough to be a trainer. His short blonde hair was covered up by a large straw hat, and he had brown eyes that seemed full of excitement. He was wearing a brown shirt and shorts, and somewhat worn out sandals. Finally, he was holding a fishing rod, which was clearly attached to the bedsheet he had used to distract the Beedrill.

"So, are we safe now?" said Ash.

"Por ahora, maybe," the boy replied as he began to fold up the sheet. "But those Beedrill will be back sooner or later. You should find shelter."

"Where?" said Sam. "We're in a forest, so it's not like there are a lot of places for us to hide."

"Why don't you come with me?" the boy offered. "I live nearby."

"You live in the forest?" said Mikaela.

"Yeah, me and my uncle David have a house in the forest. If you want you can hide there until the bugs leave."

"Well that works for me!" said Meowth. "Let's get going!"

The boy stared at Meowth for a moment. Before he could comment, Ash decided to chime in.

"Yeah, Meowth can talk. It's weird, but just roll with it."

"I… okay," the boy said as he collapsed his fishing rod and put it away. "Well, I guess we should get going. This way!"

The boy then began to walk off, with Ash and his friends following closely.

"So, do you guys think we'll be safe in this guy's house?"

After a short while following their new acquaintance, the gang was beginning to wonder if his house was the best place to hide from the bug types.

"Well," said Ash, "it's not like we have a better plan."

"Yeah, I know," said Mikaela. "But, like, he's living in the middle of the forest. Like, how do we know it's not just a shack or something?

"Veevee!"

"I mean, a shack would still be better than nothing," said Sam. "At least we'll have something between us and those bugs."

"Pika."

"But what if there are so many of them that their weight causes the shack to collapse on top of us? Or their stingers punch so many holes in the wall that it falls out and they just swarm in?"

Before anyone could respond, the boy spoke up.

"We're almost there! Look!"

The gang looked up at the boy's remark. There, a short distance away, was a small log cabin.

"Huh," said Mikaela. "That's not too bad."

"Yeah," said Meowth. "And no Beedrill in sight!"

Just as he said this, they were greeted by a familiar buzzing sound.

"You were saying?" Ash deadpanned.

"They're coming!" said Sam. "Run!"

The group began to run as fast as they could. Behind them, a huge mass of yellow bugs flew towards them, their red eyes focused on them.

"They're getting closer!" said Ash.

"Keep going," said Meowth, "we're almost there!"

Unfortunately, his leg got caught on a root, tripping him up

"Meowth!" Ash yelled. He stopped and turned around, ready to rescue his partner. Before he could do so, however, the mystery boy jumped past him.

"Yo lo agarro! You run!"

Ash watched in amazement as the boy took out his fishing rod and flung it forwards. The scratch cat Pokemon was caught and reeled in just before the horde could reach them.

"Agh!" Meowth said as the boy caught him in his arms. "What did you do that for?! I'm not a catfish!"

"Oh come on, Meowth!" said Ash. "At least you're safe now!"

Up ahead, they could see that their friends had already gotten to the cabin, and we're holding the door open for them.

"Hurry!" Sam called out.

You're almost there!" yelled Mikaela.

The two boys began to run even harder, while the Beedrill got closer with each second.

"Watch out!" Meowth said as one of them flew close enough to touch. As it swiped its arm at them, the boy was forced to duck. Fortunately, the attack didn't manage to hit him; however, his straw hat was knocked off.

"They're gonna get us!" Meowth screamed.

"Not today!" Ash said as they finally reached the house. The three of them jumped inside, then Sam and Mikaela slammed the door shut. The swarm attempted to force their way in, but the door held firm.

"We… did it," Ash gasped as he sat on the floor and tried to catch his breath. Around him, he saw the rest of his friends do the same, exhausted after having to outrun the berserk bug type horde. As terrifying as it had been, they were at least safe now.

Smiling, he turned towards their new friend, the boy who had saved them.

It was then that he noticed something odd.

"Wow, you… have really long hair."

His friends looked up in surprise. Without the hat, they could now see that his blond hair was much longer than it had initially appeared; indeed, it was tied up into a ponytail, one that had most likely been wrapped up and hidden under the hat.

"Is there something wrong with my hair?" he asked.

"No, that's not what we meant," Meowth said quickly. "It's just… it kinda makes you look like a girl, or something."

"So? I am a girl, you know."

The rest of the group stared in silence, their eyes opening wide.

"You're a girl?!"

The boy - girl - tilted her head in confusion.

"What? Did you think I was a boy?"

Ash and the rest of his friends tried to answer, but didn't know what to say. Fortunately, before they were able to embarrass themselves, an unknown voice made itself known.

"Maria? Is that you?"

The blonde girl grinned as she got up and rushed to the source of the voice.

"Tio!" she said as she hugged him. "You won't believe what just happened!"

"What… who are they, Mija?"

The gang looked up at the newcomer. He was a rather stocky, short man with black hair that was mostly hidden under a blue cap. He was wearing a blue fishing vest over a black shirt, white pants, and blue boots. While he seemed surprised at their presence, he didn't seem to be hostile. If anything, he seemed somewhat protective of the girl.

"It's okay, Tio David," she said, quickly reassuring him. "I found them being chased by some Beedrill, so I brought them here so they could hide until they called down."

"Beedrill?!" the man said in shock. "Are you okay, Mija?"

"I'm okay, Tio," the girl replied. "But I had to do something, right? I couldn't let them get hurt!"

The man sighed, then smiled at his niece.

"You're so cariñosa, Maria. I just hope it doesn't get you hurt one day."

The two relaxed in each other's arms, enjoying each other's company. They then broke off to look at the newcomers.

"Well, I certainly didn't expect guests," the man said. "But if my niece says you can stay here until those bichos go away, that's good enough for me."

"I… guess that's good," said Ash. "Thank you for letting us stay here, sir."

"You're welcome," the man said. "And please, call me David. David Bosqueverde. And, I believe you've met my niece, Maria Bosqueverde."

"Hola!" said Maria.

"It's nice to meet you both," said Ash. "My name is Ash, and this is Meowth."

"Hey there!"

David blinked, but Ash cut him off before he could comment.

"Yeah, he can do that. You just have to get used to it."

"I see," said David.

"Yeah," said Sam. "Anyway, I'm Sam, and this is Pikachu."

"Pika pika."

"And I'm Mikaela!" said Mikaela. "This is my buddy, Eevee."

"Eev-Eevee!"

"It's nice to meet you all," said David. "I know our home is muy humilde, but I hope you'll feel comfortable here until those Beedrill get tired of chasing you."

"Don't worry, it looks really comfy," said Mikaela. "It sure beats being stuck in some shack in the middle of nowhere!"

Ash and his friends laughed at this, while the two forest dwellers stared in confusion.

A/N: This chapter was going to be a lot longer, but I've written a lot more than usual recently, and I wanted to post something while I have some momentum going.

Just FYI, David's name is pronounced Dah-veed, as is would be in Spanish.