Midsummer Dreams
By Trish.
A/N: I don't own Pokémon. I don't own Puck - Mr. Bill Shakespeare does. I do own this story. Plus the Pokémon's speech will be in italics.
Chapter One: He's Baaaaaaack!/ Vignettes (Okay - so I can't always find a suitable Shakespearean Quote to twist)
The first golden rays of sunlight peeped over the hills and slowly spread over the lovely little valley that lay beneath Indigo Plateau. Lush leafy forests began to come to life as its various inhabitants stirred at the coming of a new day. Pidgeys cooed good morning as a lone female Teddiursa snuffled around in search of a breakfast of honey.
A family of Furrets were feasting on a hoard of berries when they were startled by a sudden flash of light. The creatures dived for cover, and peered out from their hiding spot. There lay on a ground a tiny figure. It didn't move, so the male Furret crept out of hiding to investigate. He approached the "thing" and sniffed. It looked like a human and yet didn't smell quite like a human. The Pokémon knew that humans were never that small and that they also did not have wings like this creature had.
Puck stirred and looked up to see two huge brown eyes looking at him. "Gaaaaaaaaaaah!" he shrieked as he scrambled backwards until he hit a log. He saw a long brown creature that looked like a weasel, only much cuter, sitting in front of him. "What in heaven's name are YOU?" he gasped.
"I'm a Pokémon. A Furret to be exact", the creature answered. "I could ask you the same thing - what are you?"
"I'm a fairy or sprite if you like. My name's Puck." As he introduced himself, Puck felt a sense of dejá vu come over him. The creature had said he was a Pokémon. Pokémon. Where had he come across that name before? Ah yes, Puck had met creatures like this two years before, when he came into the Pokémon world by accident. He had messed up a spell and ended up in a world where hundreds of marvellous creatures called Pokémon existed side by side with humans. He had lots of fun creating havoc with some humans too. So….he must have uttered the same spell - because here he was again.
"My Good Sir," Puck addressed the Furret. "Could you direct me to where any humans are, please?"
The Furret nodded. "Sure. Follow me." The Pokémon scampered through the forest until they reached a road. "See this road? This road leads to what the humans call Indigo Plateau. The Pidgeys say there are some huge buildings there. That's where the humans are."
Puck thanked the creature and started to fly along the road. To where the humans were. To where the fun was.
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Ash Ketchum and Gary Oak stood together on the side of the stage as President Goodshow finished his spiel to declare the first annual International Pokémon League Convention open. Ash knew that Gary felt as apprehensive about this event as he was. They had every reason to be.
For this Convention was the brainchild of the two best friends and former rivals from Pallet. They had often discussed how much easier it would be for people if they could gain all the information they needed about Pokémon and the Pokémon Leagues from the one place at the one time. So they came up with the idea of holding a convention with all the major League competitions represented - Indigo, Orange, Johto and the Master League. The world's top Pokémon scientists, watchers, breeders, doctors, nurses and rangers would also be invited. Major corporations, like Silph Company, that invested in the Pokémon industry would likewise be there. In short, everyone that had anything to do with Pokémon would be brought together under the one roof, so to speak. The Convention would be held for a set period of time so that as many people as possible could attend.
The League embraced their idea with enthusiasm and the preparations for the convention went ahead. It was found that the ideal time to gather all the Gym Leaders from the different Leagues in the one place was during the off-season in the summer months. The logistics involved in organising such a large event was mind boggling to say the least. But at long last, here they were as the President declared the Convention open to the public.
The massive crowds outside the Stadium cheered as the ribbon was cut, and the first members of the public began pouring into the structure. The two Masters turned to each other to see an identical look of relief mirrored on the other's face. "Well," Gary began. "There's nothing we can do now except hope it turns out okay."
"Yeah." Ash nodded his agreement as they came down off the platform to be greet by his mother and stepfather, Professor Oak, Jessie, James, Meowth and Pikachu.
"That was a wonderful speech, sweetie!" Delia smiled as she crushed her only child in a bear hug. "I'm so proud of my little baby!"
"MOM!" Ash wailed as soon as he could breathe. "Would you stop embarrassing me in public? I'm not a little baby any more! I'm twenty-six for crying out loud."
His mother loosened her grip a bit. "I know that, dear. But it seems like only yesterday when you were brought home from the hospital." She released him and clasped her hands together as her eyes began to mist over. "You were just the cutest, sweetest, little baby! My little pumpkin was so adorable!"
Ash went bright red and glared at Gary who snickered with laughter - until Delia grabbed him in a great big hug. "And Gary! That was a wonderful speech as well! Little Gawwy-kins was such a cutie as a baby too," she gushed.
"Gawwy-kins?" was the collective response from the former Team Rocket. Now it was Gary's turn to squirm in embarrassment as Ash smirked at his friend's discomfort.
"Yes. Gary had trouble pronouncing the 'r' in his name when he was little," Professor Oak spoke up with a grin. "So he always said that his name was 'Gawwy'."
"GRAMPS!" Gary wailed. "You're embarrassing me as well!"
The two young men then glared at Meowth and Pikachu who had collapsed on each other from laughing too much.
"It must be a universal rule among mothers and grandparents to embarrass their offspring," Ash's stepfather Steven quipped. "My mother still calls me her little 'baby boy' and my grandparents used to dig up all these embarrassing stories about me when I was little." He draped a friendly arm over the two boys' shoulders, "So remember boys, you are not alone in this."
Ash grinned at the older man. In his opinion, his mother's marriage last summer to tall, handsome, dark-haired Steven Taylor was the best thing to have happened to her in a long, long time. This was the second marriage for both of them - the Silph Company executive had lost his wife and son in a car accident ten years ago. His mother radiated with happiness - the last time that Ash could remember her being this happy was before his father had died.
Ash was on the best of terms with his mother's new spouse. They had hit it off right from the start, soon after Steven had become like a big brother/father figure to the young trainer. Someone to talk to, and someone that would give him sensible advice on dealing with women, unlike Brock. When they had announced their engagement, Ash had no hesitations in calling him "Dad".
"Looks like this Convention's going to be a huge success," Steven continued. "You two boys should be proud of yourselves. I wouldn't worry about it any more. Nothing bad is gonna happen."
I hope you're right, Ash thought silently. He waved as his parents and the Professor moved off into the crowd.
There was a moment's silence until Gary spoke up. "Y'know Ash, even though I regard your mother as a second mom, there are times when she can be….."
"Really embarrassing? Tell me about it, " Ash finished for him.
"Come on you two, I wanna take a look inside!" Jessie was tapping her foot impatiently.
The four friends finally moved towards the entrance as Meowth and Pikachu scampered at their heels.
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Brock stood behind the counter of the Pokémon Breeders Association Stall, amazed at the huge turn-out on the first day. The rock trainer checked his watch, in half an hour he would be finished with his shift here and had to make his way over to the Pewter City Gym stand and help out his father and brother.
Brock had been looking forward to this event for weeks. Not only would he get a chance to catch up with some old acquaintances but he would also have the chance to learn something new along the way. But the real reason he was looking forward to this event had nothing to do with Pokémon, but had everything to do with hormones. Women. There were guaranteed to be hundreds, thousands of beautiful women and girls at this convention. Somewhere out in the crowd was the one woman or girl for him.
He attempted to smooth his spiky hair a bit and quickly checked his appearance. He had agonised last night over his outfit. He wanted to look his best and to let the women know that they should watch out - 'coz Brock the Rock was in town! The breeder was dressed in a red short sleeved shirt and khaki pants. Very nice, he thought happily as he flashed his best smile at a couple of girls that walked past. I am the MAN! If he played his cards right, no woman would be able to resist the Brock charm, and he would be the one they would be queuing up to see. Not Ash, not Gary, Tracey, Richie, Danny, Rudy, Drake, Falkner, Bugsy or Morty. No man but him - Brock. This was gonna be a great two weeks…..
Meanwhile a few stands down, Misty was helping out her sisters at the Cerulean City Gym stand. The four Sensational Sisters hoped to convince as many people as they could that Water Pokémon were the best type to have. They had a bet going with her old friend Brock over which element type of Pokémon was the best - Rock/Ground or Water? Both Gyms had to keep tabs on the numbers of people that they managed to sway over the duration of the Convention. The Gym with the greatest number would win. If Cerulean lost, Daisy had to go out on a week of dates with Brock. If Pewter lost, then Brock had to be the Sisters' personal slave for the week. Daisy, like, did so not want to go out with Brock, so the Sensational Sisters just had to, like, totally win.
They had plenty of people around their stand - mostly young men who wanted nothing more than to have a photo taken with one of the four beautiful Gym Leaders. Misty checked her watch - in an hour she'd have to make her way over to the Pokémon Medical Association, as she was now a fully qualified Pokémon Doctor. And if one Doctor Proctor attempted to flirt with her again, well she'd let him know that she was already spoken for.
"Excuse me, miss," a small voice piped up. Misty looked to see a young boy peering over the counter. "I'm gonna be a trainer in a few years. Could you tell me what type of Water Pokémon I should get?"
So Misty extolled the virtues of the various Water Pokémon to her young audience. "So, as you can imagine, Water Pokémon are definitely the best," she finished.
"Don't believe her, kid. Electric types are the best. My electric Pokémon can beat hers any day," a familiar voice said from behind her. She whirled around, retort at the ready, when she saw that it was Ash who had spoken. He was standing next to Violet, Pikachu on his shoulder, with a cheeky grin on his handsome face.
She gave him a thump on the arm. "Be quiet, you!" she growled and then turned back to the child. "Don't pay attention to him. He doesn't know anything about Pokémon." The boy's eyes widened and the red head giggled at the expression on the others' faces. "I'm only joking," she hastily reassured the child.
Misty turned to Violet, "Excuse us for a few minutes," she whispered before she grabbed the Grand Master's hand and led him from the stand in order to spend some time together. She snuck a look at him as they walked outside the stadium to the small garden nearby. Ash looked incredible, dressed in a casual white shirt slightly open at the neck, black pants and a navy blue blazer which complimented his chiselled good looks and his warm, twinkling, dark brown eyes. His thick black hair was now always kept short, which made him look even better. And he no longer wore the beloved League Cap.
Misty suppressed a giggle as she remembered how he used to look when they first met. A rather short, slightly built young boy with wild, thick and rather long spiky black hair hidden under a cap. A boy who couldn't care less about fashion, who wore the same type of clothes every day. Blue jeans, sneakers, black t-shirt, blue sports jacket, green fingerless gloves, and the cap.
That attitude started to change when he won the top title when he was sixteen. He now was a public figure, and had to maintain a professional image as the face and number one trainer of the International Pokémon League. The League insisted he meet with their image/fashion consultant, and slight changes began to take place. Jessie also played a role in his transformation. Jessie took pride in the knowledge that she had good taste in fashion, and Ash was in constant daily contact with her, as she was his personal manager and agent. She was like a big sister to him, and he must have looked to her for guidance on what did and did not look good on him.
Now, the tall, twenty-six year old Pokémon Master made regular appearances in the "Best Dressed" and "World's Sexiest People" lists. Despite his image change, he still maintained that it was 'the inside which is the most important' and only followed four rules when it came to clothes. Stick to dark colours, keep it plain, keep it simple - and above all was he comfortable wearing it? He had developed over the years, a nice, toned, muscular build which made him look good in almost anything, and he had the confidence to carry it off.
Misty had also changed. The scrawny, ten year old tomboy had blossomed over the years into a stunning twenty-six year old beauty. Her figure had filled out nicely, with curves in all the right places, and her red hair now flowed down to just past her shoulders. She, too had changed her wardrobe over the years. The cropped yellow tank top, small denim shorts and red suspenders no longer existed. Today she wore slim black pants teamed with an emerald green halter neck top, which brought out the colour in her eyes. Her long hair was swept up on both sides with a green hair clip.
The couple reached their destination, then Ash turned to her with raised eyebrows. "So…," he drawled. "I don't know anything about Pokémon, do I?"
Misty smirked at her boyfriend. "I couldn't resist it, Mr. Pokémon Master. But if you like, I'll say I'm sorry."
"You don't look it."
"Okay, then. I'll prove it," Misty said. She reached up and gave him a long, soft kiss on the lips. "How's that?"
Ash wrapped his arms around her waist and drew her close. There was a mischievous gleam in his dark eyes. "Hmmm…I may need more convincing."
The red head smiled. "Oh, really? Well then, how about this one?" And with that, she pressed her lips against his in a hard passionate kiss, and wound her arms around his neck as he began to kiss her back.
They finally separated after a few minutes, both in desperate need for air. "Now, I'm convinced," Ash remarked as he caught his breath.
Misty lay her head on his shoulder. "So how did the Opening go?" she inquired.
"It went all right. Boring as most openings are. Same dull speeches," he answered.
"Maybe you should have opened with the line, 'Friends, Romans, Countrymen….." she started to say.
"Lend me your ears? I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him," the dark-haired trainer finished for her. "Yeah, right."
"You quoted Shakespeare to me the night we finally admitted our feelings, remember?"
"Remember it? How could I forget it?" Ash felt that he would never be able to forget the events that happened two years ago. He was stalked by females of both the human and Pokémon species, Brock fell in love with his mother, the Professor turned into a little boy, Misty's mallet failed to work, and he spouted lines from Shakespeare's works as if he had lived during that time. And all of it was caused by the magic spells of one lost little mischievous sprite.
"I wonder what happened to that little trickster?" Misty wondered.
"I don't know and quite frankly I don't care," Ash answered. "Come on, we'd better go back, otherwise Violet might think we've run off and eloped." And so they started back towards the Stadium.
Speaking of the little devil, Puck had at last reached the Indigo Plateau after getting sidetracked once or twice. The Pidgeys had spoken the truth - huge buildings were everywhere he looked. And there were so many humans about! The sprite noticed that the majority were entering a huge oval structure, and decided to follow them.
A wondrous spectacle greeted Puck's eyes. Small huts/stands were gathered in orderly rows with masses of humanity filling the spaces in between. Large banners and colourful bunting decorated the stands, and the babble of voices indicated to Puck that the humans were here to have a good time. He flew to another part of the huge structure. Here there were more of the little stalls, but the difference was that delicious smells of cooked foods wafted in the air.
The small sprite left the Stadium and settled at the very top of a nearby tree. He knew that he really should get back to his world. He knew that if he stayed here to have fun, Calliope would be sent to cart him back to where he came from. Plus Queen Titania would have him punished.
However Puck was never one to pass up an opportunity to have some fun. This was a golden opportunity - so many humans were all in the one place. It would be hard for them to pinpoint the exact culprit - which would be him. So he decided to stay, and pondered over the tricks he might play. As he settled back on a small leaf, he repeated his favourite phrase, "Oh Lord, what fools these mortals be!"
To be continued…..
Author's Note: No fun and games….yet. No cameos either - they will start next Chapter! So, to all those special peeps out there (you know who you are) - don't start throwing things at me yet (Dodges various flying objects). Okay - if you wanna be that way - FINE! (Brandishes an Anti-Egg Weapon)
Got to set the story up properly…. Anyway….everyone knows the drill. Read & Review! I love reviews and any flames get fed to the Taz Devils. I don't bite. I'm a very nice person - really I am…. ^_^
