Thanks for reading the story and I appreciate everyone's interest! Ash will get a ghost-type Pokemon, but I have yet to think of which one or when! Also, there is a very, very high chance that I will make a quasi-spin off of this story and Ash will be older and Erika will be his girlfriend! Someone (who shall remain nameless) suggested that they look cute together. Tell me what you think of that idea!
I don't own Pokemon. Enjoy. (:
Day 20 (since the story started)
The past day had been a remarkably stressful one with the horror that occurred in the Pokemon Tower. But Ash's nerves had returned to normal once he had found out that Cubone and Marowak were both going to be okay. Cubone deliberately made the choice to follow Ash and the boy returned Feebas to Professor Oak where he would study and help train her in his lab. Marowak stayed behind and remained the faithful companion of Mr. Fuji; the old man was so pleased with the efforts that Ash displayed that he even gave him the Silph Scope to the boy. Ash felt greatly honored that he received such an item, but he also felt a bit jeopardized since Team Rocket could use this as another reason to attack the boy.
With the help of his PokeDex he found out that Cubone was level 19 and knew bone club, bonemerang, and headbutt, all of which were very impressive considering his current level. Ash even explored if any of his TM's that he had and tried to explore options to increase his range of moves. Seeing that he had rock slide and bubblebeam, Ash thought it would be neat to allow Cubone to know a move that more than likely would throw off his opponents into a state of confusion and taught the little ground-type bubblebeam, even though Cubone had a rather low special attack.
Ash used his PokéGear to determine that in order to make it to Vermillion City, they would have to make an L-shaped path by heading south along Route 12 and then turning west onto Route 11 and continue following it until they reached their 3rd gym battle. Ash and Erika were currently walking along the as-far-as-eye-could-see boardwalk route that made up Route 12. The path was made of heavily reinforced wooden planks and had a magnificent view of the ocean and plenty of trainers were commencing battle. Ash participated in a few battles and won some side cash, but Ash was more sympathetic towards the weaker ones and told them it wasn't necessary. Progress with Ash's foot was steadily increasing and the stitches were starting to dissolve like they were supposed to.
After a laboriously difficult journey from Lavender Town that lasted eight days (mostly really bad weather slowed them down a lot), Ash and Erika finally obtained the fruits of their struggle and arrived at the beautiful Vermillion City.
"We're finally here!" chuckled Ash triumphantly as he looked down at the city with the support of his crutches. Erika had seen the improvement with Ash's foot and believed that relying on the two apparatus was too tedious; after all, it had been well over two weeks since he got his foot cut and even the doctors said that it was healing faster than normal.
"Ash, there is something that I think we should evaluate," responded Erika as she clasped her hands together and held them by her waist.
"Oh? What is it?" he responded as he scratched his head.
"Your fo"ot. When I was first with you, you struggled tremendously to keep balance on your crutches, but now...I think that is time to get a professional opinion of whether or not you are capable of walking again. You will just be held back if you can't walk on your foot again and it worries me that a good person like you would, um...falter..."
Ash blinked for a few seconds and wondered if she started to doubt his potential. But, he knew that deep down inside she was expressing her best interest in him, so he shrugged off any suspicions and said, "I'm hoping today is the day. We haven't been to a Pokemon center since Lavender and I am really confident that my scar has healed enough so that I can walk without these crutches."
Ash and Erika started heading towards the Pokemon Center and Ash with few difficulties and Ash made his way to the counter. Nurse Joy accepted Ash's Pokéballs and healed them instantly.
"Excuse me, Nurse Joy?" asked Ash politely.
"Yes?" said the nurse with a calm smile.
"Your siblings in Viridian and Pewter City have been helping me with an on-going physical problem. I don't know if they have contacted you about this, but..."
"Are you that Ash Ketchum who appeared on the news?" she asked with a growing smile.
"Wait, I was on the news?" he asked with a confused look. "I haven't been near a television in eight days."
"Oh, yes, you were on this special about Team Rocket and individuals who have been acting like vigilantes to stop them," she said. "They said that you were aiding Mr. Fuji in Lavender Town while suffering a foot injury. I must say I am rather impressed that you were able to accomplish such a feat." She giggled awkwardly and said, "Sorry about the pun."
Ash and Erika laughed at it and then Ash said, "So, it's been almost three weeks and I was wondering if it was maybe time to get the stitches removed? I keep looking at them and it seems like they are disappearing into my skin." (I've never had nor studied how stitches work so forgive me if I am wrong.)
"Well, that is completely normal," said Nurse Joy. She then turned to Chansey and said, "Would you mind helping anybody who may come? I'm going to help out this boy for a second."
"Chansey!" said the elated egg Pokemon with a nurse's cap as she took someone else's Pokéballs and healed them. Nurse Joy lead Ash to a room that was not unlike the one he was in at Pewter City and she instructed him to take off his shoes and socks. She examined the bottom of his foot diligently and touched it in a few spots while wearing gloves.
"Mhmmm," she said as diagnosed the situation thoroughly. "It appears that the stitches have broken down and your body has absorbed the materials, indicating that the wound has finally healed."
"This is excellent news!" said Ash. "I can't wait to tell Erika. Do you think I will be able to walk today?"
"That may be a little be out of reach, but it is possible although I do not make any guarantees," said Nurse Joy. "We can first start by doing the preliminaries: applying pressure on the foot by standing up to see whether or not you have the potential to stand, and of course walk."
Ash nodded his head politely and took out his Pokéballs with a grin.
"What are you doing, Ash?" she asked with a confused look on her face and a tilted head.
"If we are going to do this, I want the support of my Pokémon, both morally and physically if needed," he stated as he let out all six. "That way, they can see their trainer and friend's improvement."
"That's a lovely sentiment and bond you share with your Pokémon, but I am sure that you may not need to rely on your Pokémon physically during this process," explained Nurse Joy. She pointed to the side and showed that there were physical therapy bars and said, "These are used for medium to large-sized Pokemon to help practice regaining their strength in their lower body in case there are severe incidents. It definitely should support your weight."
"When can we get started?" asked Ash as he felt a spark of energy course through his body. He let out all six members of his team and they gave him some space but were still carefully observing.
"Actually, we can begin now," she responded. She got a wheelchair and took Ash to a different part of the Pokemon Center that looked like a small gym. She placed Ash who was sitting on the wheelchair next to the bars and instructed Ash to hold onto to the bars. Dratini, Riolu, and Cubone began to make noises as if they were cheering Ash on while the other three stood there in careful observation of their master.
"I believe in you, Ash!" said Dratini telepathically where only he could hear.
"You can do it, master!" said Riolu as he wagged his blue tail.
Ash did not aim to disappoint anyone; he was more than confident that he could support himself up from the chair since using the crutches utilized a lot of upper-body strength.
"Take your time, Ash," reassured Nurse Joy in a sweet tone. Ash merely responded with a short nod and started to muster the strength to apply pressure onto his foot. After feeling that he had enough time contemplating his move, Ash put full force down onto his right foot and managed to bend his leg at a low angle; unfortunately for him, it sent a tremendous amount of pain into the bottom half of his right lower extremity and sighed in disappointment and winced a bit.
"I'm not so sure about this now," said Ash somewhat truthfully.
"This is a normal part of recovery, young man," stated Nurse Joy as she gave Ash a consolidating pat on the back as he started to pant. "I can certainly tell you that even strong Pokemon such as Machop sometimes have difficulties in recovery their strength after serious trauma, but the way that it seems for you, it does not look like a severe problem. Take a moment to rest and we can try again."
Ash looked over at his Pokemon and all six of them nodded. Ash tried again, but he got the same results as his first time and groaned in frustration.
"You just work at your own pace; there's no need to hurry," said Nurse Joy. "If you want, we can do this tomorrow. Where did you come from?"
"An eight-day journey from Lavender Town," he started, "but I wasn't alone. Erika, the indigo-haired girl that was by me, kept me company and made sure nothing bad happened."
Nurse Joy commented about how fortunate it was of him to not be alone and aided Ash again in his attempt to stand up again on his foot. The process repeated and still was unable to attain the results that he desired, although it was a bit unrealistic for him to be walking right after being temporarily off his feet for almost three weeks. He closed his eyes so that he could enhance his thinking and opened his eyes and said,
This is just a step in my path to become a Pokemon master. I will not let this minor incident hold me back from reaching my dream Dad, mom, watch over me as I set out to fulfill my dreams! And as if a miracle was bestowed upon him from a celestial figure, Ash stood up and put his weight on his feet and seemed to have no sign of pain whatsoever!
"You've succeeded in standing up!" said Nurse Joy as she clapped her hands with enthusiasm. "How are you currently feeling?"
"Amazing," responded Ash. "I feel like I have been enveloped in my inspiration to become a master and it is allowing me to stand up, although that sounds a little crazy."
"Not in the list bit," she responded as she rested her hand on his shoulder. "If you pursue something that desperately, you are sure to achieve as long as you remain optimistic."
"Right, let's do this," said Ash.
About two hours had passed and Erika was starting to worry about Ash since she felt that it would be a brief inspection by Nurse Joy, but apparently to her, something else was going on. The blunette had been dozing off every now and then to ward off the sleep from the vigorous journey from Lavender Town and the late summer heat, but she would occasionally wake up to see if Ash had come out. Seeing that nothing was going on, Erika resumed her brief nap.
About 20 minutes had passed and Erika had just woken up yet again and yawned loudly, so much that other trainers turned their attention to her. She opened her eyes and saw that Ash was directly in front of her and saw different colors surrounding him. Upon closer look, she saw that he was surrounded by his six Pokémon.
"Oh, hi, Ash," she said a bit drowsily. "What did they say?"
Ash chuckled since he could easily tell that she hadn't fully wiped away the slumber of her eyes and waited for her to catch his "trick".
"What, you haven't noticed yet?" he teased as he grabbed her shoulders and gently shook her to pay attention.
She giggled and said, "Ash, quit it! What's gotten into you?" She looked at him from head to toe and saw that he was completely freed from the crutches and the metaphorical shackles that was hindering his mobility. "You're...walking on both feet without your crutches! How did this happen?"
Ash told the situation to Erika and she was so happy that he no longer had to rely on the crutches and was finally able to walk on his two feet like a normal person that he was. The two of them then decided that it would be a good idea to get lunch since it was already 1:50 in the afternoon and they discussed the possibility of going to challenge the gym leader Lieutenant Surge.
"So, Erika," began Ash as he was consuming a bowl of egg drop soup (they were having Chinese-themed lunch), "do you think it is best to tackle the electric-type gym today, or should we wait until tomorrow? I'm fine with either decision. Maybe we could...I don't know...watch the St. Anne depart this evening?"
"That sounds nice, I would like it," she said.
All the sudden, a boy who was wearing a blue cap and jeans walked by them and said, "Ya know, if you really want to do something, you should visit the chairman of the Pokemon fan club up the street. He is an incredibly rich old man who loves bragging about his Pokemon and gives trainers parting gifts for listening to his long tales. I got a bike voucher that I am going to trade in at Cerulean City! That's where I'm going right now!"
"Be prepared for a long winding road, kid; we just got here from Lavender Town and we had to take a long trip from Lavender Town," explained Ash as he cracked his knuckles.
"Oh, haven't you heard?" said the boy. "The roads are open to Saffron again! They opened them two days ago because they found out who was responsible for the bombings."
"It was Team Rocket for sure, right?" said Ash.
"Yep, two grunts by the name of Jessie and James and their talking Meowth," said the boy. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get going. I have a nice journey!" And with that the boy left the Pokemon Center and Ash and Erika turned to look at one another.
"Someone must've bailed them out," said Erika in a worried fashion, "but then they got arrested again. Surely they will not be able to be set free for their heinous crime."
"They must be under the guidance of a boss or a higher figure," said Ash. "I think that everything will be okay...for now, at least. Are you still willing to go to the docks and watch the St. Anne depart?"
"Absolutely, but the ship doesn't depart until 5 p.m., and it is only 3," said Erika. "Let's meet that chairman first; maybe if you're lucky, he can get you a bike."
"Or maybe both of us can get one," said Ash with a shrug. Erika giggled and smiled.
Ash and Erika tried their best to navigate through Vermillion City but still struggled to find the chairman's house. As they were walking down the street, they saw a senile old man and several Machops and Machokes were jumping up in down on a concrete surface. It was a lot of force that it almost felt like a weak earthquake, but Ash thought that maybe he knew where this chairman's house was located.
"Excuse me, sir," said Ash. The old man flashed a hand signal and the fighting-type Pokemon stopped jumping so that he could hear the young boy.
"Yes, may I help you?" he said politely.
"We were just wondering if you knew by chance where the chairman of the Pokemon fan club is," said Erika.
"Sure I do," said the man. "Take two more blocks south and then three blocks to the west and it will be on the right side of the street."
"Thank you!" said Erika and Ash at the same time and they made their way in the direction that the man instructed them. They finally reached a house that was extremely large; it easily must have passed 4500 square feet (~418 square meters). Ash knocked on the door and a voice from the other side said, "Come in!"
They were greeted by an exuberantly ornate surrounding of fine decorations and furniture; it was nothing like Ash had ever seen.
"I wonder where this man is?" said Erika as she shrugged to Ash.
"Hello?" said Ash. The house was so spacious and open that his voice literally echoed off the walls.
"I'm in the dining room; it's to your right from the living room," said a voice. Ash and Erika began to walk in the direction that they heard the voice and the eventually came to a very large dining room that was about the size of 30 x 40 feet. There was a large mahogany table and there was a woman at one side of the table with a Seel sitting in a chair and across from her was a man who had a Clefairy.
"Welcome to my fan club," said the man at the very back of the table. "My name is Richard Smith and I am the chairman of the Vermillion Pokemon Fan Club!"
"I'm Ash and I'm all the way from Pallet Town," introduced the raven-haired male.
"My name is Erika and I am from Celadon City," said the blunette.
"Sure, I recognize you," said the chairman as he pointed to Erika. Erika blushed and Ash got a puzzled look on his face. "So, have the two of you come to listen to my bragging of my collection of beloved Pokemon? I'll reward you for your troubles so that you don't feel like you wasted your time here."
"No problem, I wouldn't mind filling up a few pages in my PokeDex," commented Ash as he scratched his arm and took out his red device.
"Before we do that, I would like to see your Pokemon, just to see what type of trainer you are," said Richard. Ash did not disagree and got all six of his Pokeballs and let them all out. Dratini, Riolu, Scyther, Clefairy, Zorua, and Cubone all came out of their Pokeballs and looked at the surrounding area. Clefairy saw the other Clefairy who was sitting next to the unknown man and began to talk.
"What a marvelous selection that you have!" said the chairman with a chuckle. "You have a wide variety of types for a trainer of your age. If you are aiming to be a trainer, you are on a good path! As a coordinator...eh, it is all up to the moves that they have."
"I have the goal to become a Pokemon master and prove to those who put me down in the past that I can do anything that I put my mind to!" said Ash triumphantly.
"A very reasonable dream," said the chairman. "Now, allow me to show you my well-kept Pokemon!" He took out three balls and let open one of them. "Behold, my beautiful Fearow." Ash took notice as the large evolved form of Spearow landed on a large perch and sighed. "Notice how well she keeps her plumage and the shape of her beak! A true beauty for this specimen." He continued to brag about his beloved flying type for about another three minutes until he got on to the next one which was a Rapidash which went on for about 8 minutes. "I finally have the one that I am sure that you would be most interested, young man, considering that you have a Dratini."
Ash looked at Dratini and she looked back at him with a smile. "Witness the grandeur of Dragonite!" He released a ball that was yellow and black (ultra ball) and let lose the final evolved form of Kanto's dragon. Dratini's eyes grew big and started to sparkle; she had never seen her final evolved form, just that of her mother which was a Dragonair. Ash had a great smile on his face; he had never before seen such a rare Pokemon, let alone the final form of the Dratini evolution. It gave him even more motivation as he took in eyefuls of the marvelous and mystical body of the orange/tan dragon.
"I take pride in my strongest Pokemon, Dragonite. I have had him since 1983 (thirty years ago from the story) when he was just a wee Dratini and I was a boy a little older than you. We have shared many adventures with one another and have never been separated despite the many obstacles that we have faced..."
Ash began to zone out slightly as the man began to continuously flatter himself and his Pokemon for all the achievements that they had fulfilled together and what not and kept going into thought of how magnificent if one day his own Dratini were to become a Dragonite. Sure, it would take a tremoundous amount of effort on both of their parts, but he knew that it would be worth it. Ash turned to see how Erika was faring with the boring oration of his life with his Pokemon. Ash could not help but admire in awe at the awesome physique that Dragonite had, and after what seemed about 10 minutes, the man finally stopped talking.
"Well, girl, what do you think?" said Ash as he patted the head of his serpentine dragon. She wagged her tail at his words. "This is what you will become someday. What do you think of that?"
"I think it is inspiration to continue training! I can't wait to battle at the gym tomorrow!" she said to her trainer's mind, but the only thing the others heard were high-pitch squeals of delight. Everyone at the table started laughing politely at how adorable she sounded and Ash petted her head and smiled.
"I would like to appreciate you for stopping by and listening to my bragging," said the chairman. "In order to compensate your time lost, allow me to give you both these!" He reached into his pocket and pulled out two slips of paper and said, "These are bike vouchers for the shop in Cerulean City. They are good for two months, so if you head in that general direction in the near future, you should definitely stop by!"
"Thank you so much!" said Ash as he and Erika were both about to turn for the door.
"Wait, take these!" said the chairman as he took out a small bag and handed Ash and Erika both two rare candies. "This is just in case you want to increase the rate at which Dratini evolves. It takes a lot of effort from the Dragonair to Dragonite phase, so think of this as a catalyst if you will."
Ash thanked the man once again and placed the candies into his pack while Erika did the same with hers. He began to think if it was best to use the five rare candies that had (he got three from Mt. Moon) but he didn't want Dratini to feel rushed to reach her final form. What was the proper thing to do? Ash once again showed his gratitude with a heart-warming "thank you" and he and Erika left. Ash looked at his PokeGear and saw that it was only 3:52 p.m., and it would still be over an hour until the St. Anne departed under the sinking sun. The two trainers made their way to a bench that was on the boardwalk looking the harbor and Erika said,
"Ash, have you thought about a good strategy for this gym battle? Even though you have a ground type that is immune to electric moves, they still are capable of using a different set of moves such as double-edge or body slam. None of your Pokemon seem to be able to inflict any status problems such as sleep or poison. May I suggest borrowing one of my Pokemon? After all, grass types less much less damage from electricity than most other types."
Ash took in great consideration of the offer that Erika provided and wondered if this really was a good idea to use the Pokemon that she raised.
"I...don't know if that's such a good idea," said Ash. "No offence,your Pokemon are great and all, but I would like to win with my own team, plus, they may not listen to me and it would be an embarrassment for both of us."
Erika gasped at this statement but then took into realization that since she did have these Pokemon for many years it would be hard to follow the command of a different Pokemon. "You're right. I should have considered that before even bringing it up."
"It's totally okay, really," said Ash as he put a hand on her shoulder. "Let's have a little something to refresh us on this hot day." He looked around and saw the perfect thing: an ice cream stand. "Let's get a cone of ice cream and share some for the Pokemon." Erika nodded at this suggestion and they went up the man behind the stand. Ash ordered a scoop of chocolate while Erika got an order of pistachio and Ash got a large sundae with assorted berries for his Pokemon to share. Ash's six Pokemon loved the creamy texture and the sweetness of the foreign treat and gobbled it all up. Cubone got some all over his skull mask while some of the ice cream got on the ears of Clefairy, Dratini, and Zorua. He knew one of the best ways to get rid of it: tell them to wade into the water so that the stuff would come off. Once that was done, Ash returned them to their balls.
After they finished the threw away all the litter and washed their hands by dipping them into the waters of the harbor.
"That was a lovely treat, Ash; I haven't had ice cream in quite some time," said Erika as she sat down on the bench.
"I'm glad that you liked it," he responded as he watched the sun dip further down into the sky; it was only 4:28 p.m. and it still seemed like quite a long time before the ship would sail. The two of them engaged in idle chatter until something completely unexpected happened. Ash turned around and saw that it was...
"Melanie!" said Ash with a gasp as the spoiled female placed her hands on her hip and scoffed.
"What a nice way to greet the victor at the Vermillion Gym," she said sarcastically as she flipped her hair back and laughed. "Tell me, Ash, have you even gone up against him yet?"
"No, and I'm glad that you won," said Ash sarcastically and with a thinning temper.
"No need to get jealous just because I'm not only richer, but a better trainer than you are," she giggled as she took her badge case out of her purse and flaunted it in front of his face. "See? I got it all by myself."
"I'm not jealous; I wouldn't waste that feeling on the likes of you," said Ash with a somewhat cocky smirk as he ignored her barrage of derisive remarks.
"Well, I do see that you aren't on the crutches anymore, so I can tell that you somewhat improved," she commented. "Why don't you put your body to work and catch this?" She took his cap off and earned a protest from Ash. She ignored it and with the aid of a breeze threw it out into the harbor 30 feet to the water. She laughed in protest to the sad look that appeared on Ash's face.
"Why did you do that?!" shouted Erika as she clenched her fist and held it out in front of her with smoke practically escaping her ears from anger. "You uncouth brat!"
"Say what you want, I don't care nor do I have the time for the likes you two. Have fun with your girlfriend!" Melanie laughed and walked away.
Erika just shook her head and was about to blow a gasket but Ash laid a hand on her and said, "Like she said, we don't have time for the likes of her. She's just the daughter of tycoons who clearly," he said with stress in hopes that Melanie would hear, "didn't show her love, the one thing this world needs to learn."
"Thanks for those words; if you hadn't stopped me, I would've really shown her how nasty I can get if the opportunity presents itself," confessed Erika as she wiped off a few beads of sweat.
Ash looked at his hat that was floating farther and farther into the water. It must have been at least 50 feet now and Ash felt that diving in the water was not the best thing; what if a wild Pokemon were to attack him? He felt that this was a job for...
"Dratini, come on out, girl!" said Ash as he released his dragon Pokemon. She looked around to see if there was any trouble but she wagged her tail nonetheless. He pointed to his hat and said, "Would it be okay if you fetched my hat for me, please? I'm sure you'd like to cool off in this heat wave." (A.N. So true where I live. D'X)
"Sure," she said that only could be picked up by his mind. She dived into the water producing a microscopic splash and began to swim towards the hat that was still drifting out to sea. She grabbed it with her mouth and returned to the dock.
"Thanks, girl, you're so awesome," said Ash as he took his hat from her and he helped her back up onto the boardwalk. Ash then heard an ear-splitting sound and saw that it was the horn of the St. Anne as it was making its department.
"Just in time!" said Erika. "I hear that the ship is going to this very distant region called Unova which is on a completely distinct continent. Maybe one day you will go there."
"What do you mean me?" said Ash. "I don't want you to go. Not if you don't have to."
"I..." started Erika as she looked into the gently rolling waves of the ocean, "can't hold that promise. I have family here and putting so much space in between us..."
Ash didn't say anything but he could tell that Erika was trying her best to think of an excuse; was it possible that she was hiding some sort of feelings from him? Ash did notice a lot things about Erika; even though he had known her about 20 days, he still knew practically nothing about her. Was she trying to cover up a secret life of some sort?
The two of them talked casually and watched as the St. Anne finally departed. The rest of the evening was relatively dull, but Ash couldn't help but wonder what was with Erika. He decided it was time to get some rest and prepare for the battle that he had tomorrow.
A.N.: Sorry there weren't any battles; this chapter to me seemed more to focus on character development, or at least I tried to. Please tell me if you think I did the right thing to heal his foot in this chapter. Realistically, his foot should be healed at the point in the story (does almost three weeks sound accurate?) I bet it was a little corny the way I wrote it, but I would like your opinion. Tell me what you think of the spin-off idea! If these story was in the anime, it would totally have the first gen graphics! Although it would be kinda weird to picture Riolu and Zorua with '90s graphics.
Sneak Peak for next Chapter: Ash battles Lt. Surge! Will he emerge victorious on his first go or got beaten like in the canon? Stay tuned and expect non-canon Pokemon for Surge!