Here's the next chapter for your reading pleasure. I'm going to start adding music, so to speak, to the story. I feel that listening to the proper song during certain scenes will give you a better grasp of the scene that's going on. If ya can't listen to the featured song, then imagine you're listening to a similar song. This chapter's featured song comes from www.vgmusic.com. ::Cheesy movie voice:: And now, our feature presentation.
--------------------------
The Young Master's Quest Ch. 20: Welcome home, Prince Israel
Platinum City was an oasis of lights in a desert of darkness. The group feasted their eyes on the castle. It looked as regal at night as it does during the day.
'Home.' Izzy thought as he stared at the magnificent castle.
"Come on guys. Let's go to my house. I think we can all use a home-cooked meal." He winked at Misty & started down the hill they were on towards the city.
"Yeah. I gotta get something in mah belly fast." Ash said, holding his growling stomach.
In the city…
"There's the gym." Izzy said as he pointed to the fine establishment from across the street.
"I can't wait to battle the leader." Ash said.
"What makes you think he came back?" Brock asked.
"Well, it is past the prince's birthday, so it makes since for Ash to think that he came home." Izzy said & he went to a pay phone.
"Who are you calling?" Misty asked.
"My mom." Izzy replied as he dialed the number to his "house." After a few rings, the queen answered. "Hi Mom."
"Hi Izzy!" His mom said with an overly cheery voice. "So what's up? Where are you?"
"I'm the city." Izzy replied.
"The city!? Are you ok? What happened!?" The queen asked with a concerned voice. Izzy chuckled.
"Nothing happened. I'm alright. I just need a limo to take me & my friends home."
"Friends? You made friends? Are you sure they can be trusted?" Queen Maureen asked.
"Yes. They can trusted." Izzy answered.
"Do they know who you really are?" Izzy's mom asked.
"No. I plan to tell them on the way home." Izzy replied. "Do you think Dad will be upset?"
"Don't worry about your father. I'll deal with him." The queen said. "Tell me where you are so I can send the limo."
"I'm outside the park." Izzy replied.
"Which part?" Maureen asked. Izzy looked to his left & saw a statue of himself.
"I'm at my section, across the street from the gym." He replied.
Platinum Park is just as big as Central Park in New York. Lots of bug, grass, and flying type pokémon live there. It's divided into four sections, each belonging to one member of the royal family. King Israel Jr. controls the north section. Queen Maureen controls the south. Prince Israel III controls the west section. Finally, Prince Kalani owns the east.
"Alright. I'll see you soon." The queen said & she hung up. Izzy walked to rest of the group, who was still looking at the gym.
"My mom's picking us up to go home. The car will be here soon."
"Is your house far?" Brock asked.
"Not too far. Just a few miles." Izzy replied.
"I just thought of something. What'll we do about sleeping arrangements?" Ash asked.
"Well, Misty can sleep with me in my room." Izzy said smugly.
::WHAM!!!!::
"OUCH! I mean we'll think of something." He rubbed the lump on his head.
'Finally. I can go home.' Izzy thought. 'And soon, I'll have my gym match against Ash. Since Mom's sending a limo, I should tell Ash & Brock the truth before it arrives.'
"Ash, Brock. I got something to tell ya." He said out loud.
"What is it?" Ash asked.
"Well, it's like this…" Izzy started. Just then, the limo showed up. The driver came out & opened the passenger side door.
"Your ride has arrived." He said.
"Woah! It's a limo!" Brock exclaimed. Suddenly, Ash & Brock's eyes were on Izzy. He chuckled nervously.
'Bad timing.' He thought.
"Well, let's go." He went inside. The three remaining trainers followed him. The driver closed the door & went to the steering wheel. The limo then sped off.
Inside the limo, Izzy grabbed a drink from the mini bar.
"Ahh… Nothing like a frosty glass of Pepsi Blue." He poured the contents of the can into a glass & drank. Izzy's eyes then turned towards Ash & Brock. Their faces showed a surprised expression. Misty, on the other hand, was calm & collective. Izzy gulped the last of his drink.
"Guys, I have a confession to make. My name is not Izzy. It's…Israel."
"You mean that you're—" Ash started.
"Yes. Now please, no more questions until we get home." Israel said. Everybody was silent for the rest of the ride.
When the limo reached the castle's front gates, the driver beeped the horn. The front gates opened & the limo proceeded to the front door. As the limo drove up the hill, Ash, Brock, and Misty looked out the window, but they can only see darkness. When the limo got to the front door, the driver opened the passenger side door & the gang got out.
"Wow. It looks so much different than the last time I saw it." Israel said. He looked to where the limo was & saw a fountain. He was certain that they never had a fountain in front of the castle before.
It featured a gyarados statue. It was in a standing position. On the base of the statue, there were magikarp statues surrounding it. Water was coming out of the gyarados' mouth. Izzy looked at the front doors & saw search lights on the left & right sides of the doors. They were shining on the castle.
"I wonder why are there lights shining on the castle. Oh well, time to go inside." Izzy said as he & the rest of the group approached the doors. There was a guard at each side of the double doors, each holding a spear. When Israel reached his hand out toward the doors, the guards crossed their spears in front of him.
"What business do you have here?" The left guard asked.
"My friends & I wish to enter the castle." Israel replied.
"Only the royal family & elected officials are allowed inside." The right guard said.
"Well then, here's my ID." Israel said & he took out his pokédex. He pressed a red button and showed it to the guards.
"This pokédex belongs to Prince Israel of Johto." The electronic voice said as Israel's picture was displayed.
"Oh sir!" The right guard said. "We're terribly sorry for the mix up. Please forgive us." Both guards put up their weapons.
"You're forgiven. Now let us in." Prince Israel said.
"Yes sir!" Both guards acknowledged the prince's command. They hit their spears on the ground & the doors opened with a creak. The group of trainers went inside and the doors closed with a slam.
Close by, in a bush, the trio of trios was watching the entire scene.
"So the twerp was the prince of Johto the whole time." Jessie said.
"So dat's why we've been losing worst than eva!" Meowth yelled.
"It also explains the dragonite." James said as he was reading a field guide. "According to this, that twerp has every pokémon that's been discovered."
"Every pokémon? Even the legendary ones?" Jessie asked.
"Yep." James replied.
"Alright! We've hit the mother load team!" Jessie announced.
"How are we supposed ta get in there, Jess?" Meowth started. "Da joint is full of guards!"
"Not to mention the security system they probably have." James added.
"You just HAD to ruin my mood, did you?" Jessie asked. "If you chickens are that scared, we'll just plan for a little while."
Back at the doors, the two guards had heard the conversation that was going on.
"Hey Bob, did ya hear that noise?" The left guard asked his partner.
"You mean the whispering of two people and—" Bob started.
"Wobbuffet!"
"Make that two—pokémon conspiring to steal Prince Israel's pokémon?"
"Yeah." The left guard said.
"Nope." Bob replied.
Inside the castle…
Everyone but Israel & Sadie feasted their eyes on the great hall they were in. The floor was made from checkered tiles. A red carpet was stretching from the front doors to a pair of smaller doors made from the same material as the front doors. There was a flight of stairs leading to the second floor on each side of the stairs. At the top of the stairs, there were a bunch of rooms. To the left of the stairway was the living room and to the right of the stairway was the ballroom. The lighting was so superb that you'd think you were standing in a room of gold. In the background, you can hear the theme for Queen Ambi's palace playing.
"Welcome to Platinum Castle." Prince Israel said with great pride in his voice.
"So this is Israel's castle." Misty said in a thoughtful tone.
"Wait. You mean you knew about this the whole time!?" Ash asked.
"Yep." Misty grinned. "Jealous?"
Ash was about to say something when…
"Izzy!" Queen Maureen yelled as she, King Israel Jr., and Prince Kalani came in from the living room.
"There's my family. Remember, please try to have a professional attitude when around my parents." Prince Israel said as he walked forward.
"Yeah, sure." Ash said.
"Mommy!" Prince Israel yelled. Behind him, everyone else fell over. He started running toward his mother.
"Izzy!" The queen yelled as she ran towards her older son.
"Mommy!"
"Izzy!"
"Mommy!"
"Izzy!" They were about to hug when…
"Oh Izzy! I must meet your friends!" The queen strolled towards the others, causing Israel to fall & land on his face.
"So son, how are you doing?" King Israel asked as he walked to the prince.
"Well, I've been better." Prince Israel replied, still on the floor.
"What are you doing here, anyway? I thought you had left Johto." The king asked. Prince Israel got up.
"I wanted to battle this kid at the gym." He pointed at Ash, who was bowing before Queen Maureen.
"Oh, you don't have to be so formal." The queen said as the group got up. "Hello. I'm Maureen, queen of Johto." She shook Ash, Brock, and Misty's hands. They then introduced themselves.
"So, have you been taking care of my boy?" The queen asked. The group sweatdropped.
"Uhhh… I guess you could say that." Misty replied. The queen nodded.
"Well, you could stay here as long as you need to."
"Thank you, your highness." Ash said.
"Did you get into any trouble while you were gone?" King Israel asked.
"Well, I ran into these weirdoes from Team Rocket a few times, but things turned out ok." Prince Israel replied.
"Team Rocket!? You didn't use your legendary pokémon to beat them, did you?!" King Israel asked, a tad distressed.
"Relax. The guys I faced are pushovers. I didn't have to use my legendary pokémon to beat them." Prince Israel replied smugly. "Besides, I think my pokémon would die from boredom." He chuckled at that one.
"Whatever." His father said, giving up on his oldest son.
"Hey Israel, I got something to show ya." Prince Kalani said.
"Ok. Let's see it, then." Prince Israel replied. Kalani was starting to take something out of his pocket when Queen Maureen approached.
"Izzy dear, please show your guests to their rooms & then get ready for dinner." She said, much to Kalani's dismay.
"Alright." Prince Israel said. He then turned to his younger brother. "Show me later. Ok?"
"Yeah. No problem." Prince Kalani sighed & stuffed the object in his pocket. Prince Israel then walked up the stairs & turned left. Ash & the other two trainers followed.
'I wonder what Kalani wanted to show me.' Israel thought as the group reached three doors overlooking the living room.
"These are the guest rooms. Please put away your luggage & get ready for dinner. I'll return in a few minutes to show you to the dining room." He said in a butler-like tone of voice.
"Thanks, but where are you going?" Ash asked.
"I'm going to my room to put away my stuff." Israel replied.
"And where is your room?" Misty asked. Israel considered making a snide remark to reply, but decided against it.
"Upstairs on the eightieth floor."
"One more thing. Why didn't your mom just get a butler to escort us instead of you?" Brock asked. Prince Israel got in a thoughtful pose.
"You know, I have no idea. Maybe our butler was on vacation?"
"Heh. Whatever. Just curious. That's all." Brock replied. Israel & Sadie then proceeded to the elevators, which were by the guest rooms.
"The eightieth floor. Talk about a long ride." Misty said as she went inside the room on the right.
"Toge. Toge." Togepi chirped as the door closed.
"It must be real boring." Brock said as he took the left room.
"At least he's got Sadie to keep him company." Ash said & he walked in the middle room.
"Pika." Pikachu nodded as it followed Ash.
The rooms all looked the same. There were no windows. There was a fireplace on the left. Above it hung a portrait of the castle as seen during the day. There was a single person bed at the end of the room. The comforter was scarlet, as was the pillow. It had the royal seal on it. There was a dresser on the right. Aside from the fireplace, two lamps were the main sources of light. They were tall & had an orange lampshade. One lamp was by the bed & the other one was by the entrance to the room.
"Cozy." Ash said & he got to putting away his stuff.
In the elevator…
'So I love Jasmine, huh?' Prince Israel thought as the elevator passed the fiftieth floor. 'I must say—or rather think—I never expected it to be love. I do recall wanting to be around her whenever a function involving all the gym leaders was going on, so it does make some sense.' The elevator now passed the sixtieth floor.
'I should confess my love for Jasmine before it's too late and she gets taken, if she hasn't already been taken. There's also the matter of battling Ash. Now that he knows who I really am, I can battle him using my most powerful pokémon. Ohh! There's gotta be a way to take advantage of this situation. But how?' The elevator passed the seventieth floor. Israel looked at Sadie, who was on the verge on falling asleep.
'I also want to celebrate my birthday.' Just then, a plan started to form in the pokémon master's mind. 'Yes! Now I know what to do.' The elevator arrived at the eightieth floor. Sadie & the prince walked to his room.
In the hall, there were some suits of armor on display on the left & right sides. When Israel got to the door to his room, a lone guard stopped him & Sadie from advancing. Just like at the entrance to the castle, he showed the guard his pokédex. The guard immediately let Israel pass. The kid & his pokémon walked inside.
(A/N: This is where I get little too descriptive. Let's just say you had to have played Animal Crossing in order to know most of the stuff I'm going to talk about. ::Hears complaints of people who don't play AC:: Don't worry. I'll give ya a full description of almost everything.)
There were two black kings at each side of the entrance. On the left was Israel's regal bed. Opposite from the bed was his wide-screen TV. In front of the TV was a regal table, which had Israel's Gamecube on it. In front of the table was a regal sofa. To the left of the TV was a gold stereo. A computer was on the left corner closest to the door. A brown writing desk on the right corner closest to the door is where Israel does homework & writes in his journal every night. Across from the door was the balcony. On the left corner nearest the balcony, there was a model of the moon. Right next to the balcony's door was a telescope. A ranch table was sitting on the right corner nearest the balcony. On it was a Mario trophy, Luigi trophy, starman, and Israel's crown. Between the regal bed and moon model was a smaller bed on which Sadie slept at night. On the other side of the bed, there was a night stand, on which Israel's alarm clock was. Next to it was a regal dresser & armoire. Finally, the flooring was the Regal Carpet and the wallpaper was the Ancient Wall.
(A/N: Whew! Ok! This definitely wins the award for longest paragraph—in this chapter, anyway. Now then, it's time to describe the furniture for those who don't play Animal Crossing. First off, the black king is a life-size chess piece. The regal bed is a king size bed which has a yellow bed sheet, yellow pillows and a white frame. A regal table is white and has two green rectangles in the middle. A regal sofa, like the regal bed, is yellow on the inside & the frame is white. The gold stereo isn't completely gold. Only the main part is. It has two black speakers next to it. The moon model is life-size, just like the black kings. The ranch table is basically brown & it's square. A regal dresser has three drawers, is white, and has little crown symbols where the handles are. The armoire is just simply a white wardrobe. A Mario trophy is a gold statue of, well, Mario. The Luigi trophy's the same, except it's silver. The starman is the star from the Mario Bros. games. The Regal Carpet has a blue square pattern and the Ancient Wall has hieroglyphics on it. Now THAT was my longest note ever! In fact, it was longer than the above paragraph! x X)
Israel grabbed his crown and put it on so that the amethyst was shown on the front. Prince Israel was about to leave the room when he turned toward Sadie, who was behind him.
"It's a long way down. Are you sure you don't want to stay up here & get some sleep?"
"Meowth." Sadie nodded and she jumped into Israel's arms.
"Ok. If you say so." Prince Israel said & he petted Sadie. She started purring instantly. Israel went to the elevator & went down to the second floor.
When Prince Israel got off the elevator, he went to the guest rooms to see if his friends were ready. To his surprise, Ash & co. were waiting for him.
"Ready to go?" Prince Israel asked.
Ash noticed the crown and smirked. "Of course, your majesty." He joked as he, Brock, and Misty bowed to Prince Israel. Israel fell over.
"Don't do that!"
"What?" Misty asked.
"Bow before me. I just hate it when people do that." Israel replied.
"Why? Isn't that what people do when they meet royalty?" Brock asked, dumbfounded.
"No. Yes. What I mean is I just don't like making people bow. Just do it only if my parents are around." Israel replied. He straightened his crown.
"Ok." The others said.
"Now then, shall we dine?" Prince Israel asked as he started to walk. The rest of the group followed.
Prince Israel led them through the hall, down the stairs, and into the living room. From there, they went through a door under the balcony and into the dining room. When they went inside, the gang feasted their eyes on an impressive spread. Any kind of food you can imagine was lying there. Needless to say, their mouths were watering.
"Ah Israel. It's about time you joined us." King Israel said from the other end of the table.
"Yeah. I was starving!" Prince Kalani piped up.
"Hush child. Now Izzy, bring your little friends over and we'll eat." Queen Maureen said.
"So this is what you meant by 'a home-cooked meal.'" Brock said. Prince Israel gave a small chuckle & everyone went to sit by the royal family at the table.
"Finally! I can chow down!" Kalani exclaimed as everybody sat down. He immediately grabbed some random food, put it on his plate, and commenced stuffing his face. Everybody else sweatdropped.
"Please excuse my brother. His manners need a little work." Prince Israel said.
"A little? How could you tell?" Ash asked. Misty promptly covered his mouth with her hand. The king, queen, and older prince all laughed.
"Don't worry! It's quite alright." King Israel said as he got some food and started to eat. Everybody else did the same.
--------------------------
The group started to have dessert when Ash started to talk.
"So Israel, when will we battle?"
"In due time. I would like to enjoy the rest of my weekend without having to battle other trainers." The prince replied. He finished eating his mint chocolate ice cream.
(A/N: It's Saturday in the story. The royal celebration was on a Wednesday, the group went to the pokémon center on Thursday, they left for Platinum City on Friday, and they arrived in the city on Saturday night.)
"Izzy, can we talk?" Queen Maureen asked.
"Sure." Prince Israel replied & walked out of the dining room, followed by his mother.
"What was that about?" Brock asked when the door closed.
"I guess Mom knew that somethin' was up with my brother." Kalani replied.
"How did she know if anything was wrong with him?" Ash asked.
"Women's intuition?" Shrugged King Israel.
Outside the dining room…
"So what did ya want to talk about?" Prince Israel asked.
"You seemed kind of… meh in there." Queen Maureen replied.
"Meh?" Israel asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Meh." Maureen replied. "Want to talk about it?"
"Why did ya cancel the fireworks display?" Israel asked.
"You weren't here, so we didn't want to waste all that money." Maureen replied. "Why did you ask about the fireworks display and not the whole celebration?"
"Err… No reason." Israel replied, starting to blush. Maureen noticed it right away.
"Oooooooooooooooh! You were going to show off to a girl, weren't you?"
"Well…" Israel started.
"Who is it, then?" Maureen interrupted.
"If you must know, it was Misty." Israel replied.
"Misty? Dear, isn't she a little… scrawny to be your girlfriend?" Maureen asked. That question wiped the blush off Israel's face.
"Girlfriend!? She is NOT my girlfriend! I won a free dinner to Chez Turquoise and I invited her only because I wasn't going to go by myself or with any of the guys in our group!" He yelled. Big mistake as Queen Maureen gave him a nice big lump right inside his crown.
"You know better than to yell at me." Maureen said in an irritated tone.
"Ouch! Why is everyone hitting me in this chapter!?" Israel yelled again.
"Beats me." His mom replied, shrugging her shoulders.
"Right. Well anyway, I still want to have a birthday party." Israel said, getting back to the topic.
"Ok. When do you want it?" Maureen asked.
"A week from today." Israel replied.
"Is there anyone you want to invite?" Maureen asked. The prince thought for a moment.
"I want to invite the gym leaders of Johto & Sean. You can invite whoever else you want. You'll probably invite the media & the rest of our family."
"What's wrong with inviting your relatives & the media?" The queen asked.
"Nothing. Nothing at all." Israel replied, hoping to change the subject.
"Anyway, I'll get our team to set up the ballroom and we'll send out the invitations." Maureen said and she went back to the dining room.
'Excellent. That's one part of my plan down. Now to deal with Ash.' Israel thought as he too went back inside the dining room. When he got inside, everyone was gaping at him, or rather, at his lump.
"Not a word from any of you." Prince Israel said as he sat down.
First came a few snickers. Then some chuckles. And soon, the whole room, with the exception of the prince, was roaring with laughter. Israel laid his head on the table in defeat.
--------------------------
When dinner ended, Israel III led the rest of the group to their rooms.
"Tomorrow, I would like to take you guys on a tour of the castle." He said.
"That's cool. But why?" Misty asked.
"Quite frankly, I'm too lazy to keep escorting you guys around." Israel replied. Everyone else sweatdropped. "We'll start after breakfast. I trust you know the way to the dining room."
"Oh yeah. No problem." Ash said.
"Well, good night then." Israel said as he walked to the elevators.
"Good night." Everyone else said.
--------------------------
A/N:
Me: ::Eye twitching::
Izzy: Something wrong, boss?
Me: Twelve pages.
Izzy: Huh?
Me: Twelve pages. This chapter was twelve stinkin' pages! ARGH!!!
Izzy: Oh. Well then end the chapter already!
Me: - -'' What'll Ash & crew see on the tour? What will Prince Israel do about his situation with Ash? Find out on the next chapter of The Young Master's Quest!
Another thing, our featured song comes from the area known as Queen Ambi's Palace in The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages. Check it out & more video game songs at www.vgmusic.com