C. Cowboy: hope you like it so far! Ash is gonna get pretty much get a girlfriend in this one, and all you A/M fans out there, don't shoot me because it ain't Misty, trust me it's all gonna work out in the end, I promise. Now on with the show! P.S. I'd like to think Angelstars for proofreading this for me; thanks, Angel!

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or Spider-Man or anything of the like.

CHAPTER 2: Power And Responsibly

Ash and Pikachu made their way back to the campsite as Brock and Misty ran to meet them.

"ASH KETCHUM! YOU HAD ME…US WORRIED SICK!" Misty yelled in a combination of relief and anger.

"What does it matter to you?" Ash said coldly, catching Pikachu and Brock both by surprise. Even Misty was taken aback.

"It matters to me because I'm your friend Ash Ketchum, and… when did you get so big? We were eye to eye yesterday." Misty asked when she noticed she was looking up to Ash, her anger melting into confusion.

Ash just blinked for a second, before turning his back. "I hunch, anyway we should be in Goldenrod in an hour." Ash said coldly with everyone Brock and Misty just watching him questionably as he picked up his sleeping bag, "You guys coming?" he asked, shaking them out of their trances.

A few hours later…

"You sure you don't mind watching the Gym for me, Misty?" Whitney asked.

"No problem, we've been traveling almost non-stop for the last seven years. I could sure use a break and I'm sure Ash and Brock could too, right, guys?" Brock nodded a yes, and Ash just sulked. "It's just a month, and your family needs you. We'll manage." Misty said, reassuring her friend.

"You don't mind taking a break from your journey, Ash?" Whitney asked, turning her attention to the quiet pokemon trainer behind them.

"Nope. Besides Professor Oak and Mom are in town for a while, so I'll catch up with them." Ash said, giving a fake smile. Then, as if on cue, Daria Ketchum and Prof. Samuel Oak walked down the street toward them. Ash then, for the first time that day, smiled, "HEY, MOM! HEY, PROFESSOR!" Ash said happily as he ran to his mother and, as of three weeks ago, his future stepfather. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Gary walking behind him, and his eyes filled with hate.

"Gary…"

"Ash…" the boys exchanged, and Gary couldn't help but notice that Ash had grown since they last met. "Have a growth spurt, loser?" The whole group watched nervously as Ash and Gary glared each other down.

Whitney sighed in relief when her taxi showed up. "Well, gotta run! Take care of my Gym!" She then waved and jumped into the car, and it sped off.

"Look at the time. We have to go; we'll talk to you later this evening, Ash." Oak said as he turned

"Bye, my baby, make sure you have on clean you-know-whats tonight when you come in!" Mrs. Ketchum said, oblivious to the tension in the air. "Come along, Gary!"

Gary didn't leave Ash's gaze, "I'll be along in a sec." Once he was sure that his grandfather and Ash's mom were a safe distance away, he muttered, "Don't think for a second I'm happy about this, loser."

Ash just glared, "What's your problem? Don't you want your grandpa to be happy?" Ash suddenly felt a strange feeling in the back of his mind, making him feel as though he needed to step to the right, and as he did this, he missed Gary's fist by an inch. Gary tried again and still hit nothing but air. By now, Ash was getting irritated and threw what he thought was a weak punch. The 'weak' punch sent Gary flying through the air, a wall, and into a women's restroom. Seconds later, a scream sounded, and Gary shot out of the hole he made, followed by an angry, yet in Ash's eyes, attractive and familiar girl, around his age, with long, brown hair. It didn't take long for the wheels to turn on who she was, "MELODY!" the girl looked up, saw Ash waving, and completely forgot about the 'pervert', who had already made a dash after his grandfather.

"Ashy-boy? Is that you?" Melody asked.

Ash answered her with a hug, "It's been too long!" he said as she hugged him back. Ash then saw Misty oout of the corner of his eye, giving them a glare to end all death glares. "Mel, you wouldn't happen to be doing anything this evening, would you?" Ash asked nervously.

Melody blinked in confusion, "Um… no, why, Ash?"

Ash took a deep breath, and a part of him told him not to for the reason he was, "Would you like to go out with me tonight?"

Melody looked uncertain, "What about Misty?"

Ash just grimaced, "What about her?"

'Something must have happened between them' she thought to herself and smiled. To Melody's delight, Ash was officially free for the taking. "Sure, Tiger, I'd love to!" she then wrote her address down and handed it to him, "Pick me up at six, and don't be late!" she said, winking and turning to leave. Ash smiled triumphantly before turning and seeing the hurt expression on Misty's face. Misty just quickly turned her back and dashed into the gym, slamming the door behind her and leaving Ash shocked and Brock even worse than before. "Ummm…someone tell me what's going on…please?"

Later that evening, Ash slowly and nervously made his way to Melody's apartment. After five minutes and a number of deep breaths, he knocked on her door. In a moment, Melody came bouncing around. Ash could do naught but stare, "Whatcha think?" Melody asked, spinning around in front of Ash.

Ash's jaw dropped, she had an extremely short miniskirt and a tight V-neck top accenting her cleavage. "Umm…ummm…ya-you look…g-great, Mel."

Ash was planning on taking Melody to one of the small local restaurants, but soon forgot his nerves. While they ate, he managed to keep Melody interested by telling her about his travels and what he'd been through since the last time they saw each other, which she found very, very interesting. By the end of the night, they both were laughing and getting along great. They talked and laughed all the way back to her apartment door. Ash smiled nervously and lowered his eyes before thanking her, "Um…I really had a good time, Mel. We're going to have to do it again some…"

Ash's sentence was cut short as Melody wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips to his in a passionate kiss. "Call me tomorrow, Tiger." She said, pulling back and giving him a wink. All Ash could do was blink and muster a nod. After Melody closed her door, Ash literally did back flips down the hall. He then hit the elevator button and as he waited, he looked to his left and saw an open window. A large smile creeped across he face as he made his way over to it and looked out. He looked straight down six stories, and then to the next rooftop a good fifteen feet away. As he did, something inside him said he could make it.

Ash took a few steps back and took a flying leap. He didn't make it, but he did hit the wall. Ash slowly opened his eyes and looked down, and then at his hands, realizing that he was sticking to the wall. "Cool!" he said as he began to scale the wall. Once he got to the roof, he ran and leapt to the next rooftop and onto the one next to that, loving every second. He finally managed to find his Mom and Prof. Oak's apartment. He slowly crawled down the wall and opened the window, "Psst, Pikachu!" Ash whispered, waking his sleeping Pokémon partner.

"PIKA!" Pikachu exclaimed when he noticed Ash upside down outside the window. "Shush! Come on, let's have some fun!" Pikachu very uneasily climbed on Ash's shoulder and gripped with all four claws. Ash slowly crawled back to the rooftop and took another flying leap with Pikachu screaming his little head off. It was a wonder Pikachu didn't shock his best friend as they went.

Ash finally came to a large gap in buildings with Pikachu, now gasping for breath. "Hmm, how're we gonna make it? Think we can jump it, bud?" Pikachu's eyes went wide and he shook his head so fast that it blurred. "Ok… Jumping is out," Ash said, snapping his fingers and inadvertently touching his two middle fingers to his palm sending a long strand of webbing from his wrist, sticking to the ground. Ash held it and jerked back on it a bit, but couldn't pull the string from the ground. His eyes then lit up with an idea; he aimed his wrist at a billboard and touched his fingers to his palm again, sending a long string of webbing at his target. Ash then jerked it a time or two to check the strength, "Ok, Pikachu, HERE WE GO!" He yelled as he swung toward the billboard. Halfway through the air, he realized that he didn't know how to stop. Ash plowed full force into the hard surface and tumbled to the ground, landing with a loud, sickening thud.

"PIKAPI!" Pikachu yelled out, as he ran over to his master.

"Am I alright?" Ash asked if he heard right, "HELL YEAH, I'M ALL RIGHT! HAHAHAHA!" Ash laughed out loud, loving his new abilities.

Ash and Pikachu swung and played 'til five in the morning. They finally made it to his mom and her husband-to-be's apartment and slowly and sneakily walked inside and there was Daria Ketchum, just sitting there, glaring at him. "Ashley Ketchum, do you have any idea what time it is?"

Ash looked like a deer caught in the headlights, "Ummm…no…what time is it?"

Daria's glare intensified "Pikachu, would you excuse us." Pikachu did the one thing a faithful Pokémon should do in this situation: run from his master's mother.

"Traitor." Ash growled at the retreating electric mouse. "Ashley…" Ash looked up into his mom's gaze, "We have a lot to talk about. Have a seat." Ash gulped "Listen, I trust you Ash." Daria said, the tenderness returning to her face, "You're eighteen years old, and old enough to make your own decisions. Yes, I was worried about you being out late, but you've traveled the world since you were ten years old, so your tardiness isn't what I'd like to speak to you about."

Ash had a 'fear of God' look on his face, "T-Then what do…you want to talk about?"

Daria sighed, "Ash, I know Gary probably deserved to be beaten up today, but just because you can beat him up, does that give you the right to?" She asked, looking at him and pausing long enough for him to think and answer.

"…no" Ash said with a soft growl.

"Ash, you're changing. I know; I went through exactly the same thing at your age."

Ash smirked, "No, not exactly."

She sighed again, "Ash, these are the years when a man changes into the man that he'll be for the rest of his life. Just be careful who you change into. Remember, with great power comes great responsibility." Ash then let his temper get the better of him, "ARE YOU AFRAID I'M GONNA TURN INTO A BAD PERSON?" Daria gasped at his outburst, "I CAN TAKE CARE OF MYSELF, MOTHER, SO STAY OUT OF MY LIFE!" Ash screamed as he stormed to his room, passing the now awake Prof. Oak. Daria watched him go and when she heard his door slam, she laid her face in her hands and sobbed.

Ash threw himself on his bed. Pikachu looked over at him sadly. "Why'd I have to shoot my mouth off like that?" Ash thought about going to apologize, but his pride wouldn't allow it. He then turned on the radio to clear his head, but a loud booming voice came on, making Ash jump and jerk the knob to turn the volume down, "YOU THINK YOU'RE A BIG, BAD MAN? COME TO GOLDENROD CITY INTERNATIONAL ARENA FOR THE JOHTO BADMAN FIGHTING COMPITETION. LET'S SEE HOW BAD OF A MAN YOU ARE!" Ash turned off the radio and smiled at Pikachu, "Hey Pikachu, I got an idea…"

To Be Continued…