Ah, here we are, another chapter! I felt like it was high time Ash and Lance got to know each other a bit better too and well, things have to get to an end anyway, huh? Thinking of having Ash leave for Kalos in the next chapter or so but I don't know if I'll be able to get it out before next week Sunday. We'll see!
Enjoy!
He's breathless when he looks up, staring straight at a creature who is as dark as… nothing, actually. Ash has never seen a pokémon this black before. Zekrom is black too but this… this sucks everything in, it is void-black and it's so unbelievably beautiful. This, in all its glory, is Necrozma, hanging above him, looking creepy as fuck but somehow, it doesn't bother the boy as much as it used to.
"Greetings, Chosen."
"Hello, Necrozma."
"A human with manners. Ar'qeus has chosen well this time around."
And from the dozens of questions whirling around in Ash's head, the following comes out.
"Does It really handpick people every few generations?"
"It was never meant to be that way. The original Chosen was a pokémon," Necrozma answers simply, its unseeing eyes not giving anything away. "Let the past not get in your way. Instead, look around you and tell me where you are."
"… Not inside my room, that's for sure," the teen says as he looks around, blinking in confusion. "Oh but wait…" he adds when he recognises a tree he has seen in his dreams, a tree that couldn't possibly exist in real life because it's lit up in a million different colours. "Is… is this even possible?"
"It is."
Ash looks around even more now, he can't believe he is inside his Aura. It's so… bright and the colours of the trees, grass, air are so vibrant. It's nothing like the outside of the world he's grown up in but at the same time, he's unsettled because is he even meant to be here?
"Only you and those you trust will ever be able to venture within your Aura. This is the last stage of what I could possibly teach you."
"… What's the use for is? Is my body still in my room?"
"No," Necrozma answers. "This is an ultimate escape, venturing within your Aura stops your existence on earth for as long as you remain within it. Here, time will not pass but it will on earth."
"So… that means that, if I am inside a building that collapses or something that traps me, I will be able to go into my Aura and escape being killed?"
"You underestimate your own mortality. The idea is that you would protect your body and that you can run from an aggressor who holds power over you."
To Ash, this sounds like a very complicated way of teleportation but it sure would be handy in case he had to run from someone. Mostly because he can't run but then again, going into his Aura on his own doesn't sound too easy, if it was, he would probably have done it on accident already.
"You have. The tree is the same one you saw before."
"… Oh."
"Sit down and relax. You are safe here."
A weight Ash didn't know was weighing down on him seems to lift off his shoulders. For now, he doesn't trust anyone other than his pokémon enough to follow him in here. He wonders if Pikachu's already noticed he's missing but as if by magic, his pokémon is right next to him, looking as confused as he is feeling.
"Pikapi?"
"… Hi. Welcome, this is my Aura," he says and smiles. "You can wander around if you like. I mean, I doubt you can get lost."
"Chu!"
Pikachu darts off and leaves the teen feeling a bit lost. He didn't think that calling anyone in here would be so easy but then again, maybe he's just good at this? He hates being on his own anyway.
"Well done."
"… Thank you. Is this how it's supposed to be done? Calling people into my Aura, I mean?"
"There should never be a limit on imagination and there is no reason for you to follow another way if this is what comes naturally to you."
That sounded easy enough but if there's anything that bothers him in here, is that it's peaceful. As peaceful as it was in Pallet and that's something that will calm him when he's angry… But it will make him upset when he is calm and that's exactly what's happening. A strong gust of wind takes him off guard, especially when it causes Pikachu to barrel backwards into his arms.
"You pick on quickly. Good. Get angry."
The wind started picking up on strength, if only Riley's lessons were as easy as this, he would've mastered his Aura in no time. Asking him to get angry is as easy as asking him to hug a pokémon, after all. Soon enough, the colourful surroundings have turned an angry, pulsing red, the grass is a vivid orange that looks like it will leave a nasty burn if you touch it. The colourful tree of his dreams has become a deep, unhappy purple… a colour that reminds him of his mother's favourite shade of curtains. It's a colour called 'Cyber Grape' and thankfully, the curtains were too expensive so she didn't end up buying them but it's such an ugly purple, he hates it. As well as his mother completely ignoring him when he told her they wouldn't fit into her interior, only listening to the salesperson when the price for them was too high.
"Something is coming, brace yourself."
Ash didn't need to think, he held out his left arm and called out the shield that Riley taught him to use to protect himself. The hot pink and gold mess that is his Aura wrapped around him, Pikachu and Necrozma, all cosily trapped under the same bubble. The shield itself, while coloured, is a bit sheer so he could see the black mass approach. He could feel the sudden impact of it hitting the shield but it passed over, covering them in total darkness, only the gold inside his Aura shimmering menacingly.
"This is nice," Necrozma commented.
"Is it?" Ash bristled angrily, still unhappy with how they were now stuck in this black mist that he somehow created. He's so done messing things up.
"I did not expect your hatred to have this kind of a corporal form but it will disappear as soon as you calm down."
"Doesn't that mean I'm a bad person, though?"
"Hm? Good, bad, in between, what does it matter? In the end, a man who has swindled over sixteen families into poverty can still help an old lady cross the street. A good person can snap and hit someone so hard they end up in a hospital. Good or bad, it is all a state of mind. Caring, now that is different. And you do, or else you would not have spanned the shield to cover me."
Ash bends his head, he's ready to move on past the anger. All the hysteria about the shadow pokémon makes him believe that showing this side of him will only end up with him getting shunned for it. Riley's lack of faith is all part of his feelings towards this anger inside him, he can't show it to anyone unless he wants them to run from him.
"The weakness of others is nothing you should feel sorry for. If they cannot handle it, move on. Look, look at what your anger has become during these dark thoughts of yours. Look it straight in the eyes because this is you. If you cannot accept yourself for who you are, no one else will either."
The boy looks up and smiles sadly at the eyes that are looking at him. He knows exactly what these are, these are his insecurities. He remembers a time where he had run from Pallet, away from the judgement, away from the reputation he unknowingly got the day he was born. But Pallet and all the busybodies in it can't do anything to him now. He dares them to look at him and tell him anything he's not heard or realised already. Ash knows he's not perfect but he'll be damned if he won't try to compensate for his shortcomings.
The eyes blink at him once and slither away, revealing the bright blue and yellow sky from before again. Ash didn't realise he released the shield until he sees the colours without the pink and gold filter.
"Good. That is enough for today."
"… Is it?"
"You are capable enough, child, what you did could have taken much longer if you had the emotional capacity of a regular adult male. Maybe it is the abuse that makes all this easier, the anger is big, it is hardly anything you can avoid. Still, today, you accepted that it is there. Tomorrow, you will attempt to use it."
"Are you teaching me what Riley doesn't want to teach me? Is this what it is all about?"
"Riley? The Aura Guardian, you mean? Unfortunately, despite everything, he will never be enough to withstand your Aura should there ever be a confrontation. I intervened to make sure that this confrontation would never happen, you would never forgive yourself if you would hurt the Guardian and the last thing I would want is for you to think your Aura is a curse instead of the blessing it is."
Ash nods, he somehow feels better now that he knows that Necrozma didn't even budge when his anger surrounded the three of them. Pikachu never made an attempt to run either, he stayed dutifully on his lap, knowing that the comfort of him being there would eventually calm the anger. However, after Necrozma brings them safely back to his room, Ash feels that the pressure he felt on him before is gone. He blinks in surprise as he turns to Necrozma.
"Is this normal?"
"Your world of Aura is a pleasing place to be in, even in anger."
The boy nods, very impressed but figures that this is why Necrozma will teach him this at the very end. If time still passes and he remains in there for too long, getting addicted by the feeling of being there, he might never return and god, he doesn't want to do that too Lance. Imagine the man knowing that he went into the garden, only to find that he isn't there. Or in his room. Or anywhere in or out the house. No one will have seen him leave… God, the idea of making his uncle believe that he's been kidnapped, that he has disappeared without a trace…
"The understanding of what you can cause is what gives you an edge in mastering the technique," Necrozma says. "For now, I would advise you to take a nap and calm yourself down. Tomorrow is another day, I will see you then."
"Yeah. Thank you, Necrozma, for doing this."
The creature doesn't answer, it's already gone when Ash looks up. The teen plops his head down on the pillow, wondering if he'll ever understand what was so bad about his past that it gives him the right basis to defend himself on. Nevertheless, he's glad he hasn't disappointed Necrozma, in fact, he's amazed that the creature is so decent but then again, he's not given it a reason to be mad. It's all a bit weird but a nap sounds good right now.
Lance doesn't know what changed about his nephew but he seems to carry himself a bit differently. Surely it can't be because of the buddy system that got installed into the bracelet yesterday, right? They had to wake the boy up and Ash had seemed awfully calm about it. Even now, as it is the eighteen, the day that the teen's nightmare would have become reality should no one have intervened. The boy is sitting on the couch, watching a movie as he's slouched against Clair's arm. In turn, his niece's attention is fixed on the screen… until Ash speaks up near the end of the movie.
"Well, that's kind of silly. Of all the diseases, germs, bacteria and viruses on earth, the aliens die of a cold? From a kid? With all the radiation that's coming from the buildings, you'd think that any extra-terrestrial creature would drop dead the moment it lands here."
Clair's only response is to giggle and grab the teen in a sideways hug but Lance is just reminded why he doesn't like this movie. War of the Worlds has given him some vivid nightmares when he was much younger but leave it to his nephew to have a very practical view on this grizzly movie.
"I've never liked movies about war," he says but then again, it was watching movies or watching the report of the boycotted event Charles stubbornly wanted to happen despite everything.
"I don't even like wars," Ash answers.
"Oh?" Clair says, rather sassily. "Have you been in one, then?"
"I don't need to be in one to have grown up in a time where war was on TV every evening, where my own family were involved with it, where the friends of my family were fighting for the ideas of someone else. I'm smart enough to know that the only people who have seen a war end, are the people who have died during it. There is no such thing as a winnable war and blind faith in people or belief is just going to get you killed," the teen answers and Lance is taken aback by how serious the boy has taken the simple question. He's pretty sure Clair didn't mean anything by it but from the looks of it, she's impressed.
"That's a solid opinion right there," she says, eyebrows raised in surprise.
"How could I not have one? I was raised with the idea that, by the time I was eighteen or a bit younger, I would be fighting the same bloody fight as my parents and their parents were at the time. That this leader with no regard for human life would turn around and look at me, to join their mindless fight. There's a reason why my mother never allowed me to look at porn but let my neighbour teach me how to throw knives at the age of six. And at eight, I could shoot a gun and stupid me was happy with the attention I got."
"You can shoot a gun?" Lance asks, very interested in that because his adopted son is basically shaping up to be a perfect G-men.
"Yeah. You didn't see the assault rifle hanging next to my clothes?"
"A rifle!?" Clair exclaims. "I thought you were just talking about one of those small revolver thingies."
"Does it really matter? Those tiny thingies can drive a bullet through your heart the same way a riffle does," Ash says and then turns back to him. "Did you see it?"
"… Yeah, I took it, it's back in your closet too, in the bottom drawer… but I thought was a toy one."
"It's a bit heavy to be a toy, isn't it?"
"Ash, it's bright blue."
"Spray paint."
"What the actual hell did your mom thinks was going to happen, Ash?" Clair asks, hands in her hip and looking terribly accusing. "That the entire population in Pallet was going to end up being the resistance against a superpower or something?"
"They all thought Team Rocket was very scary and seeing they kept picking young kids up to become cronies as well, the people in Pallet thought it was a good idea to give the kiddies a knife and a gun."
"But a rifle?"
"Bob from down the road bought it for my tenth birthday, said I should keep my mom safe. He only did it because I was a good shot, Gary got stuck with the revolver."
"Never took the kid for someone to pull a revolver at anyone, though?" she says, completely flabbergasted by the reveal that Pallet isn't nearly as innocent as she thought it to be.
"Oh, he'll pull but he wouldn't hit you. The target was an arm's length away from him and he still hit the pole ten metres to the right. It'll have to be the element of surprise that needs to work in his favour… or maybe the Team Rocket member would die laughing, that's a possibility too."
Lance can't believe his ears, no one has ever told him about these things going on in Pallet. Still, the idea that Ash can defend himself with something else than his abilities gives him a different idea.
"I would like to see you shoot a gun, Ash," he says, just to check the boy isn't full of hot air with this story. "Thought I'll be taking the rifle out of the room."
"Sure, go ahead."
But as he goes to collect the rifle and sees that there are actual bullets in the thing, he makes a silent prayer to Arceus because he had flung a loaded rifle in a box, the safety wasn't even on! This thing's ready to fire and Lance doesn't feel great about it. Still, if Ash wants to, he can get him an actual gun license and he'll get the kid a nice and comfy automatic revolver he can keep for his own safety. But the rifle's going, what the hell.
The boy doesn't hesitate to take the gun from his hold either and Lance is glad for the distraction of the doorbell ringing because he can't get over the fact that his adopted son hit the target dead centre, proving he wasn't lying about Pallet or the fact he could shoot a gun. Clair is the one to go answer the door and he quickly puts the target and gun away in the safe box -it has an unpick-able lock so it's quite safe in his opinion- before anyone sees it and thinks he's teaching a minor how to shoot. If there is anything the man is actually confused about, is that Ash told them something so personal. He hadn't been asked, it just came flowing out… There's no way he can claim there isn't merit in the boy's opinion of what a war is, his heart squeezes uncomfortably with the idea of his boy going to some far-away country, possibly never coming back again. And if he does come back, half or even less of the person he used to be.
Somehow, though, Lance can't help but feel like Ash will be the last person to ever join a war. If it's not his common sense stopping him from doing something like that, his foresight and the idea of seeing what he loathes unfold before him will sure do the trick. Also, if he ever goes anywhere, he'll probably come in followed by claps of thunder with storm clouds rolling behind him and a couple of massive pokémon backing him up. Not to mention that he has a big mouth with good opinions, he's bad news for any opponent. Being an officer himself, he knows what moral can do to a group's success and if Ash would ever put his shoulders under a project, ho boy…
The desire to bury the teen under a lot of flurry pillows and blankets, just to hug the ideas and memories of such violence out of his head crept on him but as he goes back inside, Lance can't help but smile.
"Auntie! It's so good to see you!" Ash says, sounding excited. It has been a while since he's seen Agatha but Lance feel like she's here because of what Ash predicted today.
"I couldn't leave my favourite boy alone on this dreadful day, could I? How are you doing, Ash, you look amazing and look at you, you're standing! How amazing! Steven? Steven, look at this, he's standing!"
That the other Champion came along is somewhat of a bigger surprise but honestly, he should have seen it coming. The comments on the picture of Ash wearing the choker just didn't stop and Steven is indeed very excited about the prospect.
"I see it, Agatha, there is no need to grab me as firmly as that," the man quips and sighs in relief when Agatha released her death grip on her arm. "Whoa, I can feel my blood flowing freely again."
"Hi, Steven! It's been ages since I've seen you," Ash says, sounding just as happy as before, as if they hadn't been talking about guns and war at all. "How are you doing?"
"I am psyched over your Mega necklace, Ash," Steven says, looking very excited as he grabs the teen by the shoulder. "It looks so good on you and it would be an absolute shame if you couldn't at least use one Mega evolution before going to Kalos. So I brought you something, better be prepared for those nasty Gym Leaders, am I right?"
Ash's eyes get all wide when faced with the shiny marble and he hesitates to take it until Steven holds it a little closer, an invitation for him to take it.
"Is this a Mega Stone, then?"
"Yes, it is one from my home region," Steven says. "In the right conditions, it will allow any Glalie with a good bond with their trainer to Mega evolve."
"Glalie!" the boy says, face lighting up. "Can I try it out?"
"Of course-"
"Sure, you can use the indoor training room. You know, the one you've been using already, you have the key to that," Lance says quickly and whether or not Ash has caught onto his feelings, the teen nods happily.
"Okay, thank you, Lance," he answers, all smiles. "It's a good call," the teen adds when Steven seems confused as to why he wasn't allowed to finish his sentence. "Glalie is a jolly little fellow but he tends to forget he's an Ice-type and if he gets to learn that he's the first to Mega evolve, the first one of all my pokémon, he could get a bit excitable and possibly shoot a Flying-type straight out of the sky and not remember the damage he, as an Ice-type, can cause on said type."
"… That sounds like he's a bit of a handful."
"Nah, he's easy like a Sunday morning. Besides, we'll be doing it inside, it'll only be a problem if Dreepy comes phasing through the wall."
"Oh no, that'll be a super-effective hit," the Hoenn Champion utters and turns to Lance in horror.
"If he hits Dreepy, yeah. I'm still working on Glalie's accuracy," Ash answers and holds open the door to go into the corridor leading to the training room. "Are you coming with me, Steven?"
"Yes!" the man exclaims and follows the boy into the hallway.
Lance just has even time to roll his eyes before Agatha asks him if she should get some coffee going.
"Yes," he says. "Make it strong, we'll need it."
Steven is quick to trail back to the living room, he doesn't want to admit it but he's absolutely utterly useless to Ash right now. There is no way the boy's pokémon would listen to him, not even if he would call out his pokémon. In fact, the Glalie's stare went straight through him, the creature seemed highly volatile until Ash put his hands on it. He didn't want to be there when it Mega evolved but he also didn't want to leave the boy to face it on his own. Steven has seen Mega Glalie's before and there are a couple of trainers who have burst out crying after seeing their pokémon's new, more brutal and creepy form. Not Ash, though, the kid's first -and really dangerous- response is to go hug it. And then the scary-looking Glalie closed its mouth -Steven isn't sure whether that made it look less or more scary- to let out a sigh of delight.
As soon as Ash called out a Charizard, a battle started between the two with no warning. Steven walked out of the room as soon as he noticed that the two pokémon were indeed following commands… and that the teen next to him was commanding them non-verbally, with an excited grin on his face. He's not even sure whether Ash noticed he left but yeah… he's been a bit useless.
"Back already?" Agatha asks, looking at him in surprise.
"He didn't need my help," he says and shrugs. "I would be more in the way than I would be helping."
"As I said, don't get in between Ash and his pokémon. Professor Elm told me that there is a warning in his trainer profile that his pokémon are at a high risk of striking a stranger if their trainer isn't present. That's why a friend of Ash is at his laboratory, he's helping professor Elm's assistants to get acquainted with the pokémon," Lance answers.
"And you didn't think that was something I would like to know before going into the same room with him?"
"Steven, don't say that when I've told you that over the phone a couple of times but you were too busy thinking about what Mega stone you were going to give him to listen to me, I guess."
Steven admits that he indeed had been a bit excited about it but it's been a while since anyone in his surrounding could be introduced to Mega Evolution and he didn't have a Glalie anyway. Besides, Ash is one of the sole young trainers he has contact with and even that contact had been less than close. Now, however, he's quite determined to follow the kid around… especially if his foresight proves to be real.
"As I was saying before you came in, I don't want anyone outside right now. I've told Clair that too and she still decided to go shopping so that's out of her own volition but according to my calculations, the Shadow pokémon would fly right over Johto and would pass over Mahogany," Lance says and turns to Steven. "That's why I didn't want either of you outside and the fact Ash agreed with me tells me he knew so, sorry for having cut you off but I felt it was necessary."
"Doesn't that mean people will-"
"Lance! Lance!" Ash's voice cries out from the distance, though they can hear his hurried steps. "Lance!"
"What is it?" the man answers, jumping to his feet and flying through the door. "What's the matter, Ash?"
"Lance, it's gonna fire. It's gonna fire along the way, it'll hit Goldenrod!"
At this point, Steven could imagine that, if Ash wasn't right in front of the man, Lance would've let out an unholy series of swear words. In all honesty, it's good that the teen could tell them that this was going to happen but how the hell did you shut down an entire shopping centre? It's one in the afternoon, people would be sitting there, eating their lunch and the Goldenrod shopping malls have a lot of outdoor seating areas. The weather is pleasant too so the city must be teeming with people right now.
Agatha seems unsettled and while she graciously offers to keep Ash by her side, she puts on the TV while Lance is making some calls. They are halfway through some stupid talk show with families accusing each other of all kinds of things when suddenly an emergency broadcast interrupts the screaming people. The hair on his arms stands on end when Steven sees the Shadow creature, a Lugia, no less, appear above Cian Wood… Indeed predicted to go past Goldenrod and then, up to Mahogany, Blackthorn and then, finally, the Indigo Plateau. An interregional warning is broadcasted, the tornado alarms go off, releasing a chilling sound that makes him feel like he's a helpless child again.
He's a Champion but… useless against this. The mere news broadcast makes him feel sick and knowing that this is what the little fellow to his left had seen, makes him feel like buying a car and driving the kid around Kalos himself. It's not much of a journey, though and what good would it do to hold a kid as formidable as this on a leash? And yes, formidable because the boy doesn't even blink as he watches the news. Of course, he's probably seen this a couple of times, maybe even worse than it's already looking now. Ash, however, catches his stare and blinks.
"'s Not like I didn't warn them, did I?" he says.
Steven nods dumbly. He's not sure whether he would have expected a bit more emotion from the boy or if it's a good thing he's not crying his eyes out right now… but this isn't at all what he thought would happen.
"Don't worry about Mr. Goodshow. Riley left to go help him yesterday, he will be fine."
"How do you know?"
"Because Riley told me? Said he was leaving and wouldn't come back, said there wasn't anything he could teach me beyond what he'd already taught me and that he should follow his gut to wherever he was needed. I just gave his gut feeling a little push towards the Indigo Plateau."
"And what makes you feel like he'll listen to you?" Steven asks because he knows the whimsical man, there's no telling what he'll do.
"He's afraid of me. I'm not who he thought I was. I'm similar to what he thought I was but still very different."
That still doesn't explain why Riley would listen to a kid, the man's as stubborn as they come… but then again, if Riley has a suspicion of what Ash could do, did it scare him in obedience? The teen certainly doesn't look scary to him, though it's a little weird to see him fixed on the TV this way.
"Do you think this could have been avoided?" Ash asks, not turning to anyone in particular.
"No," Agatha answers when Steven comes up empty. "The first time, never. The second, however… I'm convinced that Charles will not put your prediction aside next time. Not after this."
"Next time…" the teen repeats, eyes still fixed on the screen.
"You are currently surrounded by people who have believed in you, Ash. You can't tell me that one blockhead's negligence will be enough to make you keep quiet if another accident will happen," the woman says, apparently having taken the boy's answer as a sign of regret.
"Hm?" Ash hums as he turns away from the TV. "Quiet? Never. I was more thinking that it'd be nice if there wasn't, you know, another accident like this in the near future. I really would like to sleep at night sometime."
They never got a chance to ask the boy if he was okay, Clair storms inside of the room with a shit-eating grin on her face, proudly carrying a pink and bright blue box in her hands.
"I made it," she says, victoriously.
"Congratulations," Ash answers dryly. "I hope the doughnuts will be good enough to have been worth risking your life for."
"Oh, come on, I'm back before half-past one, just like you told me to."
"Yeah, one minute before half-past one. Like I said, congratulations."
And just as the teen says that, the room is cast in darkness for a couple of seconds. Ash casually mentions that this was the Shadow pokémon and that they will hear a 'boom' in a bit because the shop Clair came from isn't closing even with the alarm blaring and as such, will be a target. The sound of an explosion indeed sounds out shortly after the shadow passed over the house and it sends shivers all over Steven's spine.
"How dare you make fun of this boy's ability like this?" Agatha bristles in an annoyed manner. "Do you have any sense of self-preservation, Clair?"
"But I wanted doughnuts," she says and shrugs. "Besides, I'm fine."
"The shop isn't," Ash comments. "And neither are all the people who also wanted doughnuts."
"… It's not like I killed them."
"Not directly but the shop remained open to cater to people like you," he says. "But don't let that stop you from enjoying those doughnuts, of course, despite everything, it'd be a damned shame if you didn't eat them."
"Yeah well, I will," she huffs and walks out.
She nearly bumps into Lance on her way out of the living room but the look on the man's face makes her leave even faster. Then again, he was the one to have seen Clair leave despite his warning as well.
"Tomorrow, she can go back to Blackthorn. And Riley is not coming back here either," Lance says and it doesn't sound like there is much room for discussion in the matter, he sounds quite definitive. "I don't need those two ruining the house while Ash is away and I'm mostly at work. Anyway, how are you holding up, kiddo? Are you okay?"
"Oh yeah, I'm good."
"I would have honestly thought you would've been more emotional about this, though," Steven says, feeling that this is the right moment to talk about Ash's lack of reaction to this terrible accident. He, after all, feels quite ready to go to the Indigo League himself but he's made a promise to Lance and there's no way he will lose this man's trust over something like this.
"You can lead the Ponyta to water but you can't make it drink," is all the teen answers.
'Oh,' he thinks and figures that this is something Lance made the boy aware of. It must've come as a big shock to Ash to hear that he wasn't believed, after all. Steven himself doesn't even understand why now, of all times, Charles decided that he couldn't be bothered by the very possible prediction of there being an accident whilst fully knowing that Orre is a sensitive subject to many, very aggressive people.
"I see," he says because he doesn't want to upset the boy by pushing boundaries. "Well, I do hope that the Mega evolution you now own is going to be helpful on your journey to Kalos, Ash."
"Oh, it will, it will, I'm sure of it," the boy answers, mood making a one-eighty turn all of a sudden, a huge grin appearing on his face… which oddly disappeared shortly after again. "Do you think I should ask the Gym leaders there if it's okay to use a Mega evolution during their fight? Or should I better not use it in there?"
"Unless they have a Mega evolution of their own, I would refrain from using it. I mean, it's alright to ask and if they agree, it's at their own risk and I am pretty sure that they will be quite charmed by the warning so honestly, I would say go for it. But know that the fight between an ordinary pokémon and a Mega evolution can just end up being unfair and being over with quite quickly but the results can be ugly. The difference in power is spectacular."
"If I didn't disturb the fight between Glalie and Charizard, I don't think it would have ended in the draw that it actually ended in," Ash says. "And I don't mean that it would have ended in Glalie's favour. He's younger than Charizard and the difference in power is visible. At least, for me, it is."
"It all depends on the strength of the pokémon you're Mega evolving, of course," Steven says, chuckling amicably. "You must have one hell of a powerhouse of a Charizard, then, to be able to withstand a Mega Glalie."
"Oh yeah, it helps that he's eager to prove himself. I mean, he's not going to boast about his power but he enjoys being told he's powerful, that is. And we've been through a lot, he isn't quick to back down from a fight, no matter the opponent."
"Then, perhaps, if you would like, we could have a battle sometime," he chuckles, smiling widely at the teen but he can feel Lance's stare burning holes in his shirt. "For now, maybe you could focus on getting a pokémon who has the right typing to get any advantage over mine."
"I'll keep it in mind," is all Ash says and somehow, it feels a little menacing, like this kid is going to man up and actually beat the shit out of his pokémon.
Steven tries to steel himself with the idea that the boy will have a bit of trouble but then again, the Pikachu on his lap and then the Charizard… If that one manages to Mega evolve, holy moly, he's going to have his hands full with that one. Nevertheless, Ash won't probably challenge him right away and now he's not sure whether that'll make the battle easier or more difficult.
"Would you actually want to be a champion, though?"
"Wha? You'd let me challenge you for that? That's not possible, is it?" Ash asks, turning to Lance and then back to him. "Don't I need to win an actual Hoenn tournament for that?"
"Yes, but that's not what I asked."
"I never considered it, I mean, I'm fourteen, who would want me to have reign over their region. Well, anyone but the Orange Islands, that is?" the teen answers and Steven is pretty sure he's joking until there's no reaction following up on the statement.
"… Wait, you are a Champion?"
"Not active, I mean, I just needed to put down a few guidelines and I'm sure a couple of owners of party boat and recreational water sports lovers aren't happy with me, as well as the companies hosting the events but yeah, I am."
"Well, I never… I'll tell Charles to invite you over to meeting too, it'll get loads funnier if you're there."
"I… I don't think it'd be a joke with good timing. I feel like Mr. Goodshow would be very apologetic to me, or at least, I hope so but yeah, that's not really something I'm looking forward to either. It'll be really awkward, I don't care if he believes me or not, not really, it's his own bane but yeah, if I'm right, there's going to be a very mad creature looking down on him this very moment. I don't know what he's thinking right now, though it'll probably be something amongst the lines of 'Oh shit' or something but I don't think it'll be nice to see one of his more personal failures sit right next to or worse, right in front of him," Ash says and he's nervously fiddling with the end of one of Pikachu's ears.
"I think it would be great fun," Agatha pipes up. "Nothing helps to keep you up to your toes than a young one reminding you of what could have been, am I right?"
"But it sounds so cruel…" the teen sighs.
"I'll make sure to jot that down in my file, actually, remind me, Ash. Also, why were you so surprised your new trainer card ended up being emerald green if you know you are Champion?"
"Actually, as I said, I'm not a reigning Champion, I'm like, more of a pain in the ass for people who want to put make it into a resort or at least parts of it."
Steven smiles at that and if he could, if he only was sitting close enough to the boy, he would've patted him on the shoulder.
"Have I told you I really like you already?"
"I dunno, maybe? Anyway, thanks, I like you too. I'll definitely take you up on the invitation for the battle someday but please, don't saddle me up with the Champion title, I'll never be able to handle the responsibilities of an entire region."
"I was planning on asking you to make it a friendly battle instead of a competitive one anyway so it's an easy promise to make," the man says amicable, pleased by how today has turned out -other than Clair and her bloody doughnuts, that is.
He'll leave Ash to gather himself, though, he wouldn't want anyone unprepared in front of him. That he would be fighting another Champion, whilst not a terribly involved one -which funnily seemed to run in the family, Red has never been invested in the function either- is just an added bonus. Man, he likes kids who just keep going forward, he's so jealous of their determination. He's never been determined to get anywhere but maybe he can compensate for that by the determination he felt to prove his father wrong. He's got somewhere too… not at the age of Ash but then again, this boy is only getting a bit of wind in his sails at this age too. Steven doesn't know what it's like to grow up in a family where no one is supportive of your dreams, no matter how much his father whined and complained, he's never but one foot in his way, his old man has always been there to help him. Still is, even after all these years.
With his err… love life differing from the norm, he doesn't think he'll ever be giving his old man grandkids -nothing's set in stone though- so maybe, if adoption ever comes up, he might get a few years of training out of dealing with Ash. Like, if he can deal with this kiddo, he'll be prepared for everything.
Lance isn't sure what exactly fired the teen up this time but his training sessions have left him with the idea he's going to definitely need to repaint that training room when Ash has left. Which is going to happen really soon too, he's wondering if the boy is going to approach him to help him pack, though he feels like that's something the teen will have managed to do by himself throughout the years.
By now, Clair's left to Blackthorn too, at least apologetic for playing with the boy's premonition like that. While it was a good test, it's not right, you don't play someone who only has the best in stock for you. Clair may be counting her lucky stars if Ash will tell her something's going to happen next time. Lance hasn't missed the apathy the teen has shown towards the accident on the day itself. It's the twenty-one of January now and there still hasn't been word from the pokémon league, nor has Ash mentioned it again. He's been re-blogging pictures of the pokémon, though, occasionally commenting on how cool it actually looked in the tags and that it's such a pity it's been put in such a state or else it would've made for a perfectly fine legendary pokémon to have flying around.
And the thing is, Ash isn't wrong, there would've been nothing bad about the Lugia appearing if only Ein didn't have those horrible ideas and that Orre wasn't filled with idiots who thought that the biggest fool's ideas were actually good ones. Still, the TV show that originally broadcasted the event, has also honed into the fact that something happened while all the Champions had boycotted the thing. Funnily enough, they haven't turned to the Champions -yet- but Charles has been hounded by people asking him what everyone knew that he apparently didn't realise the importance of in time. It's nothing short of hilarious and Lance wouldn't want anything except taking Ash with him to the pokémon league and letting the man apologise. Like, he doesn't need to go down on his knees and beg for forgiveness but a 'sorry' wouldn't be out of turn.
Still, it's clearly not bothering his kid so it's all good so far. He's counting his blessings that Ash has been so kind of Steven too, that's at least three of his own friends that the boy can live with so hallelujah for that. Then again, Steven adores children so it would have been incomprehensible if he suddenly didn't like Ash. Though it would lay in the line of Mr. Goodshow's stupidity, which Lance is thankful for that it's not something that's going to be a continuous thing in the boy's life.
Lance sighs loudly as he gets up from the couch he had sagged in earlier but perks up when he notices the silence that suddenly dawns on the house. His curiosity lures him downstairs, straight to the one-way window, to check if everything's okay. Seeing Ash being smothered in affection by all his pokémon brings a smile to his face and the man leans on the bannister, watching the teen hug his pokémon close. He's always been fond of people who respect pokémon but Lance knows that his bitterness comes from the fact that so few people have any respect, towards anything. Some people just want to see the world burn, for no other reason than their own satisfaction. He feels like that's a sad way of life and he couldn't be happier that Ash is one of the special people he very much enjoys being with.
"Meep?"
"Hiya, Dreepy," he greets and rubs the little dragon's chin as it comes to hover right in front of him.
The pokémon closes its eyes and stays where it is, which is a rare occasion. Dreepy's always been a bit weird and never stays around for long, especially not to receive cuddles. This time, however, the creature goes to lay on his shoulder and while it feels a bit strange, Lance finds himself enjoying the odd warmth there. He never thought the dragon would actually have body warmth but well, there it is, he can feel it alright. And it seems like, to Ash, the one-way glass is just ordinary because the teen's right next to him a couple of seconds later.
"Aww, he must really like you, uncle," the boy says and Lance can't help but mirror his smile.
"I think you gave him the idea to do this, though."
"You mind?"
"Not at all," he says as he lays his hand on Dreepy's head, which causes the small dragon to let out a very cute and soft 'meep'. Not at all like the purring that Ash manages to draw out of the creature but it's a sign of appreciation that Lance can learn to live with alright.
"He's really cute, isn't he? Is he native to Johto?"
"No, I got Dreepy as a gift from Leon, the Champion of Galar. They're native there, though they're quite rare. But this one is a baby of the man's Dragapult so we can expect great things to come from you, Dreepy, your mommy's a bit of a powerhouse, isn't she?" he says, lovingly stroking the Pokémon's head, drawing another long 'meep' from the creature.
"Dragapult, huh?" Ash repeats, a growing grin on his face. "I wonder if I'll see one."
Lance stays quiet at that, he doesn't want to tell the boy that Leon would be quite ready to show up any given time. As a matter of fact, he had to pointedly tell the Champion not to come to his house on the eighteenth because of the Shadow pokémon flying around heaven knows where. Otherwise, Ash would've seen the Dragapult from a lot closer than he would be comfortable with, of all things, Leon's dragon likes hugs and cuddles.
Ash doesn't press the matter and happily accepts Dreepy when the pokémon moves over to him for some cuddling. The man wonders where this love of pokémon comes from, he gets that one single Rattatta is enough for a lonely child to find some comfort in but that one Rattatta is in no way comparable to a Dragon-type. And yet, the teen has no qualms to wrap his arms around any type of pokémon.
'Well, that must just be his preference, then,' Lance thinks and leaves it at that. There's no reason to overthink the obvious, anyway.
Time passes, he's leaving for Kalos in two days and now of all days, Ash is called to go to the pokémon league. He doesn't really want to go, ever since getting these lessons to control his Aura -which were vastly different from Riley's lesson, Necrozma liked to put his own mind against him- he starts feeling weird. Every session makes him feel less angry with each passing day… but nothing is filling up the emptiness that was once occupied by his anger? He's happy but he's not as happy as he used to be. Too much has happened and his life has become needlessly complicated after his accident and perhaps the presence of people he knows but not necessarily trusts is what's making him feel like a stranger in someone else's house.
Ash figures he knows Lance well enough now, the man isn't complicated at all, just mostly exasperated at the entire world but there are a lot of people meddling with his life. By now, he's been to the laboratory to see his pokémon again a couple of times this week, the teen is still trying to fill the emptiness he feels with memories but it's not working too well. Now that the pokémon league has made an appointment for him for 'something', Ash is just as exasperated as his uncle. Not that he doesn't want to have anything to do with them but he could have done with another set of busybodies. Besides, he has a good idea of what they want from him.
His uncle isn't available to drive him, though, the car is in for a long-needed check-up which was planned last year -even before they met, go figure that one out, huh? Ash didn't know car mechanics suddenly became such booming businesses but yeah- so of all people, professor Elm offers to get him there.
"I've told him to mind his manners," Lance says, clearly trying to keep him calm. "He promised me that he won't road rage at all, it's early too so there probably won't be many cars out so please, try and smile a bit?"
Ash looks up at him with a raised eyebrow, which causes the man to sigh.
"Look, I know you're peeved, I get it. I might not know what it's like but surely you'll appreciate someone trying to make their wrongs right? For all you complain about not having been listened to for so long, I have. And in Mr. Goodshow's defence, he did raise security on a whim."
"According to Cynthia, the Lily of the Valley tournament was postponed for an entire week after Anabel claimed not to feel well upon arriving in Sinnoh that same week, which turned out to be a bit of indigestion caused by a bad potato," the boy simply says, Cynthia's being very vocal about 'Charles' stupidity' as she lovingly refers to it.
Lance looks a little lost as he shrugs, clearly not knowing what to do with himself.
"I'll tell professor Elm I appreciate that he goes to the trouble to get my ass to and back to the pokémon league, if that's what you're so worried about," he adds.
"I hope a little more than your ass goes there, if Charles does intend to apologise to you, you better be at your best behaviour, you hear me?"
"Yes, uncle," Ash answers automatically.
A car horn goes off outside, which is his cue to go. Lance gives him a wary look before Ash has the chance to trudge to the car. He feels like his shoes are filled with lead and he really doesn't want to go inside the car. It's not like he has a bad feeling, he's just not looking forward to people wheedling on and on about how wrong they were not to listen to him and how they should have done better, only to make the same mistake later on. He's not buying it… but still, he smiles at professor Elm when he gets inside the car.
"Thank you for taking the time to help me, professor, I hope it's not any trouble?"
"Not at all, I have a bit of business at the building you have an appointment at. It shouldn't take more than five minutes or so, which is why I have been postponing it but since you need a ride there, it feels like too good an opportunity to pass upon. That being said, I do wonder what kind of thing they need you for, to have an appointment like that, you will probably face someone important."
"I know, I dressed for the occasion," Ash says dryly, he hasn't actually dressed up but seeing Mr. Goodshow tends to show up in less than professional clothes, he might get away with it.
The joke passes over the professor's head, the man just barks out a little laugh and starts the car. The teen automatically grabs the handle to the side and snakes one arm around Pikachu's middle. While his buddy is strapped in the sporty-looking outfit that comes with being a pokéhelp - it's basically a small, black vest that closes with a zipper, with the words pokéhelp going across the back of it in big, yellow letters- he's not attached to him through his own version of said sporty looking outfit. It's all black, by the way, with a small area on his shoulder for Pikachu to sit on as well as a small device that he can use to attach Pikachu's vest to him.
It's good that he has braced himself, professor Elm makes a false start which makes the car jolt forward quite brutally. The man grins sheepishly as he starts the car again, apologises for starting in the wrong gear and gets going. Ash is just glad he stopped himself and Pikachu from being propelled into the dashboard but well, they're on their way. He just hopes that they will get to the pokémon league in one piece.
To his joy, nothing happens, it would have been terribly ironic if something had, actually, Lance is right about not many cars being on the road. Maybe they passed two or three on their way there but they were all going on the opposite side of where they were on so yes, Ash is pleased. Until he gets inside. Scratch having an appointment, there is someone to take him up wherever Mr. Goodshow is, namely Riley. Professor Elm is completely unaware of the situation, the man gives him a thumbs-up which he half-heartedly mirrors as he silently follows his former Aura-teacher deeper inside the building.
"Are you mad at me?" the man eventually asks.
"Are you scared of me?" Ash retorts.
"Well, I'm sorry for asking such obvious questions, then," Riley huffs. "I never wanted this to happen between us."
"Nothing's changed about me, I don't even know what you're worried about but go off I guess."
"Haven't I told you about my dislike for too powerful beings?"
"No. But of course, then it's totally logical for you to become the president of the pokémon league's personal messenger and bodyguard," the teen says, rolling his eyes at the irony of the statement.
"It's what you told me to do," the man retorts, which causes Ash to halt.
"Are you going to listen to me now too if I ask you to shut up?" he asks and now Riley is looking at him funnily.
"Are you okay, Ash?"
"… I guess that's a no, then. Yes, I'm fine, Riley, just keep walking."
The man nods but it takes another couple of seconds before he actually starts moving again. Ash notices that Riley keeps glancing at him but he keeps his face straight. His feelings haven't changed and his former teacher's presence hasn't influenced the fact that he doesn't want to be here. He would rather be at home, looking over the flight details of the plane ride to Kalos once more. While his uncle has promised him that his car will be there, Ash knows that he's had too much luck so far and even the smallest of accidents could lay in the way of him catching his flight.
"Please smile?" Riley asks and the teen gives him the driest of looks before entering the room.
He almost steps out again, he hadn't expected Mr. Goodshow to be right behind the door and is quite startled by the open-armed welcome. Ash doesn't know what he expected but it seems like the president is a lot more apologetic in a different way.
"Ash, I've been waiting for you, come inside," the man says, dropping his arms to his side when he notices that he's not jumping at the chance to embrace him.
"I… thank you, sir," he answers, a bit meekly, especially after he hears the door close behind him, meaning he's completely alone with the man.
He's not sure why this idea scares him a bit but it does. Still, he goes to sit in front of the president and starts kneading Pikachu's back to keep him and the pokémon calm. Of all the things attached to this vest, Ash hasn't forgotten the rule that gives his pokémon the freedom to fire at everything that feels like a threat to his trainer's welfare. And he knows that Pikachu doesn't like to see him angry.
"I, first of all, want to apologise for my response to your well-meant intervention. I believe it would have a different result if you would have come in myself, you see, Lance has had some issues regarding Orre and I am not inclined to accept such ideas from him, they could be seen as anti-Orre propaganda."
Ash nods, he's not sure how many people will respond pro-Orre after seeing the horrible accident on the eighteenth but maybe the fact that nobody got hurt will diffuse the situation a bit. His uncle is actually shielding him from the news too, so he's unaware of the public opinion as a whole, other than what he sees on social media -which tends to be a bit black and white.
"However, if you were in my shoes, would you have believed yourself?"
"That question betrays that you don't know me very well," he answers, he's seen enough to know anything's possible, including people spawning foresight abilities from nowhere.
"… I see. Will you let me get to know you better, Ash? I would like to prevent incidents like this in the future."
Again, Ash just nods and accepts the small, not at all subtle coloured card that's gently slid towards him. The mark of the pokémon league is stamped in it, leaving an indent he can feel on the back of the card too. Besides, it's completely gold-coloured, like it's actually worth something to hold onto. He guesses that this number isn't commonly acquired but still, why all the hassle? He would've paid attention to it too if it was just ordinary white-
'Stop it,' he thinks and wills himself to stop being so negative, it's just a card and it doesn't really matter what colour it is, he's got the number he needs to stop bothering people who can't help him.
"Thank you," the teen eventually says. "And I'm sorry too."
"What for? You've tried saving my life and then ended up doing it again, despite my stubbornness. Or are you not responsible for Riley's sudden appearance? Or the pokémon rangers' interference?"
The boy nods and watches the man warily, he hadn't expected the pokémon rangers to take things so far it would impress Mr. Goodshow. Ash doesn't know what they did, anyway, that part of the show has not been televised so no one but those present at the time could know what happened.
"I don't expect you to try and socialise with an old man like me but if you could, please, Ash, try and keep me informed about the possible misfortune that you foresee?"
"If given the promise that you'll listen, yes, of course."
"I do promise, I could have done without seeing the Shadow pokémon, though it's good that the event did happen, for otherwise, the Lugia would still be at large," Mr. Goodshow says and shrugs. "I need you to understand that there is a valid reason why I would never take Lance's word for things like these, Ash."
"I'm sure there is," the teen answers, giving the elderly man in front of him a dry look. "But I will never understand why you wouldn't take Cynthia or Steven seriously over this. Even if I know they are my uncle's friends, there should be no reason for you to think their opinion would be so biased, neither of the Champions I named went to Orre, neither has ever seen a Shadow pokémon up close. For them to start boycotting your event would mean they have their own, strong suspicions that something will happen. And honestly, your presence wasn't required, the Shadow pokémon would have popped up somewhere, at another event, I'm sure."
"… Perhaps so, yes. Sometimes, one is blinded by their own ambition."
"Then if you could stop making jabs at my uncle's expense, that would be appreciated."
"I take it that you enjoy living with Lance, then?"
"I do," Ash says, eyeing the man suspiciously. "I've heard about bets how he wasn't supposed to be able to cope with me, though. Which I don't appreciate, if I'm honest," he adds, sharply.
"Ash, my boy, your uncle was a very different man up until a few months ago. He had a foul mouth, cursed like a sailor, had the temper of a dragon and absolutely didn't want to hear anyone's opinion on whether his anger was justified or not."
"He was left behind in a hellhole. He has every right to be angry, don't think you can change my opinion. All those people you are quoting are not on my list of well-liked people."
"But Ash, you have had beef with Lorelei-"
"Beef? An entire Miltank, more rather. She doesn't just look my mother, she acted like the stupid cow my mom actually is too."
"… I was not informed of the reason for the fallout and I won't judge you for it but you appear to be a lot angrier over the matter than I thought. I was under the impression you and Lorelei talked about it?"
"I can still be angry that it happened."
"Quite," the man says and Ash is getting the impression that Mr. Goodshow is realising that they won't be getting anywhere at this rate. "Whatever is happening between Lance and you, Ash, I can tell you that I like it."
"Good."
"You are leaving for Kalos in a couple of days, I expect?"
"I am, yes."
"Well, should you need anything, anything at all, please tell me. There is nothing I won't do for someone who has my best interest at heart. I… you are a teenager, you will have different views of matters and people and you are entitled to your own opinion. But at least you do care and I can't verbally express how thankful I am that you tried reaching out to me through the only means you have, I will try to anyway. Thank you, Ash, for everything you've tried to do and somehow, despite being a teenager with very little connections, still managed to do."
The teen nods but tries his best to keep silent. Little connections, his ass, he's got plenty of friends and powerful pokémon. If he had really wanted it to, if he was sure he would not cause any harm to the legendary pokémon he would ask to help him, he would've asked them to fight by his side and face the Lugia. But he made a promise to Solana and there is no way he will ever willingly hurt any pokémon outside of normal battle damage. Ash knows damn well why the One-hit K.O. moves are controversial and why normal trainers are hesitant to use them in official battles. The pokémon league would never condone mistreatment of a pokémon and causing permanent harm falls under the category of serious abuse, no matter if it happened by accident. He takes pride in keeping his pokémon healthy and happy and while he has no claim over the legendary pokémon, he will feed them if they want to, will groom them if they wish him to and will hug them if they want that kind of attention.
Then again, this must not be the connections Mr. Goodshow means but to Ash, having political friends means having powerful enemies as well. He doesn't want to become involved in it but feels like he's made enough statements through his 'reign' as Orange Islands' champion that will have already labelled him as either a lost cause or someone to handle with caution.
"Thank you, Mr. Goodshow," he says eventually. "Could I possibly ask you to keep your… compliments about my uncle to yourself around me, though? There could be times where I will respond far worse to it than this, he's all I have left as a family and while I'm used to depending on one person in the past, there was always the mystery of my father, a strange security that if my mom didn't want me, I still had someone who didn't know me to go to. That mystery is gone, though, both my mother and father have kindly thanked CPS for taking care of me and left me in my uncle's care. If he indeed was such a cruel and brutal person as you claim, I doubt that Lance would have donated his blood to me without knowing about the family bond we have together. He had nothing to do with my case and yet, as soon as he heard there was someone in dire need of blood that matches his rare blood type, he came to help me."
"I don't have to tell you that bad people can do good things, Ash."
"He is not a bad person!" the teen exclaims and he has to stop himself from slamming his hand on the table, knowing that getting angry and showing aggression will have the opposite effect of what he's trying to achieve here. "You have no right to tell me that bad people can do good things if you mean that Lance taking care of a stranger is a good comparison."
"You are hardly a stranger to him, Ash."
"He took care of me because I'm a child. One with a mother who isn't sane enough to care any longer, with a father figure who only thinks of himself, a father who has lost himself, living in a town full of false pretences. I was just someone he had met on occasion to him and he still did all this."
"Clair could have given him the idea."
"I think I'm done here," Ash huffs as he shoves his chair away from the desk. "If you think that a childish woman who thinks that going out during a state of emergency to get doughnuts is smarter than a man who keeps those who just want to see the world burn away from him, I have nothing more to say to you. There is no way we could ever get to a compromise when your ideals are so far away from mine."
"Don't give up on me just yet, I can see you can talk to me as an equal and I appreciate that. Though I wonder why you're not scared of putting up a big mouth to someone with the power to suspend your trainer license."
"Oh, please, I've grown up with that threat, Mr. Goodshow," Ash chuckles, not the slightest bit intimidated. "Took me a couple of years to realise that it's an empty threat, even you are going to have to give a good reason to suspend me and me being an asshole doesn't mean nothing against perfectly normal and properly care for, unhurt pokémon. And I dare you to send an inspector over to New Bark, to prove me wrong."
"You're hard to impress," the man says and the teen sees his demeanour change. "I think I really like you, Ash. I like that I can trust you to tell me the truth. That's a rare characteristic to find when you reach a certain level of power."
"I've not backed down to a challenge, not even the one of learning to walk again."
"… Yes, that's… something I do admire as well. Promise me that you won't see me in a bad light just because our opinions vary."
"I can easily promise that when you promise to let me keep my opinion and to keep yours to yourself."
"Agreed," Mr. Goodshow chuckles and seems years younger all of a sudden, face lighting up with something Ash doesn't recognise. "This might not be what I imagined this conversation to have been like but I don't think I mind. I hope my help can be of use to you someday."
Somehow, Ash doubts that, he's usually up to his knees in a mess he's somehow created himself and usually never identifies it as a mess until it evolves into something far worse. But if that's really what the man wants, who is he to stop him from meddling? Still, as he takes his leave, still very confused about this conversation -he feels like he has been really rude but why does it feel like it was the right way to act?- he hopes that he won't need to bother anyone with the prophecy of another bad situation for a good while. A little voice in his head tells him that there are several regions worth of people who haven't heard of him, which also means that there is a certain good of criminals who could still feel like meddling with him, just because they don't know any better.
At any rate, he's convinced they won't be able to take him by surprise as he realises that the demeanour change he saw in Mr. Goodshow was the strong man act nearly every adult has tried to overpower him with. Ash doesn't know what would have happened if he apologised and acted meekly but he's pretty sure he wouldn't have enjoyed being controlled by the man who successfully riled him up. He would much rather be in this situation, having shown that he doesn't want to be controlled and that Mr. Goodshow is in his debt.
'I wonder what'll happen if I do just send him some silly message, I mean, he did say he wanted to get to know me better, didn't he?' the teen thinks and puts his hand in his pocket, the same one his phone is in.
In the end, he decides against it, he may have already crossed a line and he's better off being serious than being a little shit for no reason. Ash remembers Scott's meltdown over having needing to deal with Barry for a while, it doesn't seem like anyone in this building -or beyond it, maybe it's a pokémon league thing in total- has any patience with people who are a bit different from the norm. So with that in mind, the boy figures he better leaves the man alone until something serious comes up, playing with Mr. Goodshow will only end up with his ability being ignored and Ash doesn't want to become the boy who cried 'wolf', not when he hasn't got any control over his ability. For all he knows, there could be a master criminal hiding in the deepest alleys of Kalos and come out the moment he sets foot in the region. Ash doesn't think he's ready for that, if he encounters one too soon, pictures of him slapping the criminal in the face will appear in the papers. He won't have any patience for anyone who would lie blatantly in his face, he will smack them if they won't listen to him, if they won't bugger off and find someone their own size to bother.
Ash just wants to have a journey without trouble for once but he knows that it's too much to ask. It'll be different this time, though, he has contacts to fall back onto, he has his uncle to reach out to when things don't go as planned, someone who he can rely on to be there… Plus, his abilities. All the training he's done has proven that he hasn't lost his touch, in fact, Pikachu, Heracross, Krookodile, Glalie, Sceptile and Charizard all seem to have picked up on his Aura and after having Mega evolved Glalie, he's used the trick to connect with his pokémon. Not with Pikachu, he doesn't need to, the little pokémon has been there to see almost everything anyway and what Pikachu hasn't seen, Ash has already told him, during those long two months he usually spend home after coming back from a journey.
But now the remainder of his team all look at him with different eyes and the teen now also knows why Heracross is so determined to fight. He now also realises why Krookodile still wants to act so innocently or why Glalie wants to play with him. If anything, only Sceptile and Charizard are a bit trauma-free, the Grass-type is cool and trouble-free, just feeling the desire to fight as per instinct. And Charizard… Well, that was all on him. The behaviour issues were all the results of his way of training a pokémon who had been previously been abandoned, been told it was nothing special. Of course, the pokémon would grow under the attention of a trainer who gave him all the attention he had been denied of previously.
But in the end, Ash made the mistake of raising his voice at the pokémon, when it was young. It was innocent, the teen knows better than to shout insults at pokémon now but then… Thankfully, Charizard also saw his memories, saw were his innocent, stupid ways of showing love come from. They both had stared really long at each other before the Fire-type rubbed his chin lovingly over the boy's head, letting out a soft, mellow growl. Ash took it as a sign that Charizard understood and wanted to move on, leave the bygones be bygones and the teen is quite ready to do that now too. Maybe, if he gets home in one piece -you never knew if professor Elm's concentration lapsed and honestly, Ash knows the man would run straight into someone if he was convinced he has right of way, without regard of his own safety, even if he has passengers aboard- he can read his pokémon the book about the Kalos' cities.
Krookodile has already leafed through the book and has pointed at a place called the 'Badlands' with a large grin on his face. Ash knows why, there are rumoured to be sandstorms all over the place, something that only Krookodile will ever enjoy. Still, he's told the pokémon he'll try and visit the place if it's not too bad weather because the book also stated that, some days, the entire area is locked down because of the storms. He's not willing to risk his pokémon's life, there's sand on beaches as well, if Krookodile wants to dig holes.
'We'll see it when we get there,' he thinks. 'For all I know, the place isn't at all as bad as the name suggests.'
End of chapter twenty-two