Hi everyone,

Sorry about the wait! Things have been a little hectic on my end. I know I'm saying this a lot, but truly, it has been an extremely hectic year!

Here's the update, hope you like it!

Chapter 47

Seeing Max awkwardly hug Daisy for the first time, May couldn't help but wink at Iris, whose smile was bigger than a Meowth's. It hadn't surprised her just how supportive the Unovan woman was, especially at the idea of the Oak reunion which was happening in the cafeteria of the Pokémon Centre at this moment. She saw Brock's eyes flicker between them all, a contemplative look on his face and knew the man was deep in thought.

'Brock knows,' Ash's voice chuckled in her ear, surprising her.

'Did you tell him?' Iris scowled, her maroon eyes narrowing dangerously.

Hearing this, the black haired man flailed, 'what? No, of course not! What do you take me for?'

'We're not exactly keeping it subtle, and Brock's always been smart,' May chuckled, enjoying the interaction between her friends. It had been far too long since she'd last seen Ash as moody as he was, a sure sign that Misty and Iris were ganging up on him. Normally she would have scolded them, but it was far too entertaining to watch the man struggle.

'Sup, sexy?' Gary mused as he wrapped an arm around May's shoulder.

Hearing this, May blanched as she pushed him away, poking her tongue out at him in disgust. Sure, she knew the man did it to rile her up, but it was still disgusting.

'I just came to tell you that Drew's been showing signs of getting out of the coma. But if you didn't want to hear some good news,' Gary shrugged, appearing perfectly nonchalant as he pretended to leave the room.

'Why are you telling me this and not Brock?' May frowned, crossing her arms sceptically.

'I may have bribed him to let me be your brilliant hero,' Gary chuckled as May heard the distinctive sound of a camera shutter.

'Are we being watched?' May blinked at Iris, who frowned in response.

'Probably. There are quite a few characters of interest here. There's Ash and Iris, both aspiring Champions, myself, Gym Leader, May, another Gym Leader and aspiring Top Coordinator. Brock, pokémon Doctor extraordinaire. Gary, the aspiring pokémon Researcher and prodigy grandson of the renowned Professor Oak, grandfather of Daisy, another aspiring Top Coordinator. Besides, Brendan and Orlando Birch, Solidad, Harley, Misty, Steven Stone, and, of course, Wallace are all staying at the same Centre as us. The only mysterious figure is Wally, and he's related to Wallace,' Cilan's voice mused as he stood beside Iris, eliciting a dark glower from the woman.

Noticing the purple haired woman glare at the man in faux anger, May couldn't contain the smile as her eyes flickered between the two.

'What are you laughing at?' Iris glowered angrily, though May waved the notion off, her mood drastically improved by the news of Drew.

'You forgot Lisia,' May giggled before leaving the two with her cousin to interrupt Max and Daisy.

'So, did she tell you the good news?' May grinned at her brother, who blinked in response. May, however, knew that Daisy was aware of this revelation—Gary couldn't keep any secrets from Daisy, she'd seen that in Kalos.

'I haven't had the chance to!' Daisy winked as the doors to the cafe opened up.

'Hiiii everybody, did everyone get the news?' Lisia's upbeat voice boomed across the sparse cafeteria.

'What news?' Max frowned as May grinned.

'Drew's brain has registered new activity! He's showing subtle signs of waking up!' Lisia danced around the room, seemingly more cheerful than required.

'May, doesn't it make you happy?' Lisia beamed as the remainder of their group arrived into the room.

'What makes May happy?' Misty questioned as she and Steven glanced at May.

Hearing this, May's face flushed as she considered the words her friends had said about Steven's emotions for her. She wasn't sure of she was going to tackle that, especially given their close friendship.

'Drew is showing signs of waking up!' Ash beamed, not seeing Gary and Brock subtly signal for him to be silent.

'Really? That's great news! It sure makes me feel better about my loss!' Misty beamed at her friend, whose eyes were trained on Steven's. They were best friends. Where no one else would have noticed the subtle tightening of his lips, or the slight strain around his eyes, she did.

'I suppose,' May flushed as her family's eyes flickered from one Hoenn Trainer to the other.

'May, Daisy, Max, outside. Now,' Gary scowled before stalking out of the room, appeal oblivious to the sound of the camera shutter.

Seeing her close friend glare after Gary, May shrugged apologetically before following her cousin out of the room.

'May, he is going to cause problems. What's going on between you two?' Gary frowned as the foursome grouped in a secluded spot ta the end of a deserted hallway.

'Nothing. He's a good friend of mine,' May grimaced, glancing at her brother.

'A good friend that's smitten and jealous of any man who is near you?' Daisy mused as her knowing eyes were on the flushed brunette before her.

'They dated, it didn't work out, now he wants her back,' Max reported, not even blinking as his companions gasped.

'Max! You promised to keep it quiet!' May hissed as Gary laughed, 'hohoho! My cousin is a little Vulpix! I knew she had the good old Oak charm! So, how many men have you strung along, then?'

'Gary!' May squealed as Daisy sent her brother a warning glance.

'I'm going to pretend I didn't just hear you say that. Especially since it doesn't resolve the situation we have. He's a champion, not many guys will have the confidence to compete with that,' Daisy began, frowning at the others to keep them silent.

Gary, of course, didn't get the memo. With a smirk, he said, 'then they're weak. Letting a title get between you and anyone.'

'Gary, you have far too much confidence, testosterone and arrogance for you to follow the rules. Besides, we always knew that you like to test the boundaries of acceptable social discourse,' Daisy retorted without so much as pausing for contemplation.

'She just used social discourse in everyday speech! May, I think I'm in love!' Max gasped, his eyes widening in disbelief as he struggled to keep the giant grin off his face.

'She's family, of course you love her!' May snapped back irritably. If she'd declared her love for Gary she would have been scolded profusely. But no, Max was always allowed different things to her. Ok, that was a lie, but she was going to roll with it anyway.

'Back to the point at hand. May, I don't think you should be anywhere alone with him just in case people get the wrong idea. You're an Oak and that means much more publicity than before. I'll lend you a book on it when I can,' Daisy winked at her cousin, who grimaced in response.

'Now, let's grill Misty on her battle,' Max chuckled as he ushered the others back into the room.

'What do you mean, May is stronger than me?' Misty spluttered in disbelief as the Oaks returned to the room.

Hearing this, May grabbed Daisy's hand in alarm, her sapphire eyes meeting Brendan's ruby as Iris and Cilan desperately tried to appease both parties.

'You heard me. The coordinator gave me more of a challenge than you,' Steven shrugged back as he ignored Cilan's murmurs for him to back down.

'Steven Stone, who do you think you are to spread such lies about me?' May scowled back as she stomped up to the man.

'What are you going to do, beat me?' Steven sneered back, surprising her with the venom in his voice.

Blinking, May glanced from the Hoenn man to her Kanto friend. When Misty didn't even send her a reassuring smile, May turned to walk out the door. She knew better than to stay with anyone when they were being as vindictive as Steven was.

'Leave her!' She heard Misty snarl, but ignored it. With a strangled sob, she walked towards a nearby body of water in the forest. Whatever had happened between Misty and Steven left her questioning the genuineness of her friendships with them both.

Releasing Blaziken, May let out a strangled sob as she wrapped her arms around her friend's small frame. She didn't want to think about any of it, especially given how often she had to force a smile.

'May?' She heard a familiar voice call to her, though ignored it.

'May, don't cry. You know she didn't mean it,' Ash's voice whispered as he pulled her into a hug, taking her easily from her starter pokémon.

'Didn't she?' May whispered as she scrubbed at her cheeks.

'Well, yeah. She's champion and you're not, right?' Ash grinned again, not seeing May wince at the question.

When the brunette didn't respond, he glanced at her in confusion. Parting his lips, he hesitated as he saw her scrub at her eyes.

She saw realisation dawn in them as he glanced at Blaziken. The pokémon stood defiantly, apparently unaware of his own prowess.

'Hey May, can I ask you a question?' Ash muttered, glancing at the young woman slightly.

'You just did,' the younger woman winked back, trying to force some of her usual cheer.

'It's not about whether you're champion or not. You'll tell me when you're ready and I won't judge you. You're my friend, and that's all that matters to me,' Ash smiled at the younger woman, almost setting off her tear ducts again. Quickly, he continued, 'I just need to know if you could help me catch a pokémon for Misty. I'm thinking of telling her I'm interested, but I don't know how to.'

'Get her a Luvdisc, Ash. They're the rendezvous pokémon and she's a romantic. It'll make her feel better, especially since it's a water type,' May smiled at him, feeling a wave of gratitude for the man. Ash was often accused of being thick, but he could be extremely thoughtful at the most unexpected times.

'Have you seen them before?' Ash questioned, arching an eyebrow at her.

'Yes, with Gary and Drew. We were underwater and there was a group of them,' May shrugged as her thoughts once again fretted over Drew.

'You might want to let him know Gary is your cousin. I'd hate for him to think there's something going on between you two,' Ash chuckled, grinning as May pouted in disgust.

'He told me shortly after he told you. He was happy to be reacquainted with family, and I'm happy you're both getting along,' Ash chuckled at May's stubborn pout.

'Do you have a flying type?' May questioned at the man, who blinked at the sudden change in topic.

'Yes, why?' Ash questioned as calmly as he could.

'We need to go out in the open sea for this one,' May winked at the man before pulling out her Xtransceiver.

'Gary can I borrow Aerodactyl?' May questioned once the man had answered.

'Where do you need to go?' Gary questioned almost instantly.

'I want to see the Luvdisc and was hoping to borrow your flying type to get to that little island,' May muttered shyly, hoping her cousin would not have any ideas about her relationship with Ash.

'Do you want me to come with you? I mean, I know you're going there to reminisce seeing them with myself and Drew,' Gary murmured, his tone more affectionate than she'd ever thought he would show for her.

'No, thank you, you stay where you are. I have a friend who's willing to come with me,' May whispered, her voice shaking slightly at her immense gratitude for her cousin.

'Well, you know my number if you need me,' Gary mused as May couldn't help but smile at the man through her device.

Hope you liked it. Once again, I'm sorry about how long it took me to update!