This chapter is mostly filler, and it mainly focuses on Chloe observing Ash's and Goh's dreams. It is similar to JN020.
Note: This chapter was rewritten on January 27, 2021. There aren't any major changes to the plot, but it is recommended that you reread it if you read the old version of the chapter.
The old version had 2,491 words, and the new version has 3,466 words.
Chapter 2: Reaffirming Your Dreams!
"Come on!" Goh shouted to Ash and Chloe who were lagging behind. "At this rate, we'll never make it to Anistar City!" Ash, Goh, and Chloe were currently on Route 16 in the Kalos Region. They were sent by Professor Cerise to learn more about Mega Evolution. After an encounter with Professor Sycamore, they decided to head to Anistar City to learn about the Sundial and its connections with Mega Evolution.
Ash sighed and responded, "Goh, I know you really want to get there so we'll have time to go to the Glittering Caves, but we're too far away. We might be able to make it to Dendemille Town before nightfall."
"Can we at least take a break?" Chloe panted as she was walking slowly. "Unlike you two, I don't travel that much, and my legs are sore from all the walking!"
"Eevee!" Eevee agreed as she watched how tired her trainer was. They had been walking for a while, and they needed a break.
"Pika!" Pikachu groaned. Even though he didn't walk, he was tired of perching on Ash's shoulder, and his stomach rumbled. He was hungry, and he really needed to eat.
Goh looked at Ash's and Chloe's tired expressions and sighed, "Fine. We'll take a short lunch break and try to make our way to Dendemille Town first. This looks like a good place to rest." Ash, Goh, and Chloe sat down on some rocks and brought out their sandwiches to eat. Ash and Chloe also gave Pikachu and Eevee some Pokémon food from their backpacks. While Ash, Goh, and Chloe were munching on their sandwiches, a pair of eyes was watching them from the nearby tall grass.
"Pum!" it said. It was curious about the three humans, and it was also very hungry. The sandwiches looked delicious, but the humans were holding it. Then, it had an idea! It would scare the humans away and quickly eat the sandwiches. "Pumpkaaa!" it strained as it began to use the move Astonish on the unfortunate trio.
Unaware, the group continued eating, until a dark and chilling face formed in front of them. The face was pure black, and it had glowing pink eyes. The eyes were huge, and the figure grew larger and larger. A sinister smile formed on the face, and a red aura surrounded it. Shocked, the three dropped their sandwiches and gradually began walking backward. Pikachu and Eevee was also frightened by the face.
"W-W-What's that!?" Chloe stuttered as she looked at the scary face. "I-Is it a monster? What does it want with us?"
The face lurched at them, and the trio screamed and ran into the nearby trees to hide. Pikachu and Eevee did the same, and they were all huddled together. They waited and waited for the face to come, but it never did. Bravely, the three decided to take a peek and begin talking with one another.
"Is it gone?" Goh asked as he peered back at the road. "I don't see it anymore."
Ash slowly crawled forward with Pikachu, until he stopped. He whispered back to Goh and Chloe, "I see something ahead! It's eating our sandwiches and the Pokémon food, but it doesn't look like the face. Besides, I doubt a face needs to eat."
"Maybe it's a Pokémon!" Chloe suddenly said as she started crawling with Goh. "That's the only plausible explanation, but we need to get closer." Carefully, the three crawled and crawled, until they were close enough to see the figure clearly for the first time.
Ash gasped as he recognized the figure. "It is a Pokémon! It's a Pumpkaboo!" He recalled Team Rocket's large Pumpkaboo and noticed that the Pumpkaboo eating the sandwiches was rather small.
"Pumpkaboo?" Goh asked as he began to scan the strange pumpkin-shaped Pokémon with his phone:
"Pumpkaboo, the Pumpkin Pokémon. Pumpkaboo's eyes can glow, which lights the way for travelers. They often sleep in the ground."
Goh looked through more information about Pumpkaboo and finally stumbled upon something. He exclaimed while showing the phone to Ash and Chloe, "Pumpkaboo can learn Astonish! It must have used it to scare us away, so it can eat our food!"
Chloe observed the Pumpkaboo as it continued eating their food. "It must be really hungry," she quietly said as he pointed her finger at the Pokémon. "This is a bad thing. What should we do?"
Goh grinned as he grabbed a Pokéball. "The only thing to do," he said as he prepared to throw the ball. "is to catch it!" He then threw his Pokéball in a straight line at the Pumpkaboo, yelling "Pokéball! Go!" However, the Pumpkaboo noticed this and quickly dodged out of the way. The Pumpkaboo looked mad, and it shouted "Pumpka! Pumpkaboo!"
"It's going to fight back," Ash warned as he looked at Pumpkaboo's angry expression. "Goh, you'll need to battle it if you want to catch it."
Goh nodded at Ash's comment and released Cinderace. "Cinderace! Pyro Ball!" he commanded as he pointed toward the Pumpkin Pokémon.
Cinderace started to kick a rock with its foot, and the rock soon became engulfed in flames. Then, it quickly launched the flaming rock at Pumpkaboo. However, Pumpkaboo swiftly dodged it and began fighting back. "Boo!" the Pokémon said as it shot out a stream of leaves at Cinderace.
"That's Razor Leaf!" Ash said as he watched the leaves fly closer and closer to Cinderace. "Be careful!"
"Grass type moves are weak against Fire types!" Goh confidently exclaimed with a grin on his face. "Cinderace, burn the leaves with your Blaze Kick and aim for Pumpkaboo!"
Cinderace's foot burst into flames, and he leaped forward toward the incoming leaves. It quickly diminished the Razor Leaf attack and collided with Pumpkaboo. Pumpkaboo was thrown backward, and it wailed "Pumpkaaa!" from the pain.
"Now's my chance!" Goh shouted as he grabbed another Pokéball. "I'm going to use a curve ball! Pokéball, go!" The Pokéball flew out of Goh's hand and hit the injured Pumpkaboo. Pumpkaboo was sucked into the ball, and it fell onto the ground. The ball shook, until it stopped.
"Pumpkaboo's data will be added to the Pokédex," Goh's Rotom Phone rang.
Goh laughed and high fived Cinderace with his hand while Cinderace used his feet. "We did it!" he chuckled as he looked at his phone. "We caught another Kalos Pokémon!"
"Awesome job, Goh!" Ash congratulated as he began to pick up his backpack. "Let's continue on our journey!"
Pikachu hopped onto Ash's shoulder and yelled, "Chaa!" He was ready to go as well.
While Chloe was picking up her backpack, she was deep in thought. "Goh is already working on achieving his goal, but I still haven't found mine yet," she pondered. "Maybe I should ask him more about his goal."
"Eev?" Eevee worriedly asked at her trainer. She noticed that Chloe had a stern expression on her face and was anxious. Was Chloe alright?
Chloe stopped thinking and saw Eevee's worried expression. She bent over and picked Eevee up. "Don't worry, Eevee," Chloe reassured with a smile. "I'm alright." The trio continued their way to Dendemille Town, but Chloe was still thinking about Goh and his goal.
About half an hour passed since the Goh's catch, but Chloe couldn't stop thinking about her future. "What is my meaning in life?" she mused. "If I don't find one soon, I'll be left behind. Many kids already know what to do." She looked at the boys and saw that Ash was currently talking to Goh about all the different Pokémon in Kalos. She realized how happy they were, and it made her feel worse. She was worried what Ash and Goh might think about her. Would they laugh at her for not having a dream? Would they look down at her? She was thinking so much that she didn't realize she stopped walking.
"Chloe? Are you alright?" a voice suddenly said. There was a tone of concern in it.
Chloe looked up and saw that Goh was speaking to her. "You had a serious expression on her face. Do you have something to say?" he asked.
Eevee chirped, "Eevee!" and nodded at Goh's words. She also saw that Chloe was bothered about something.
Chloe sighed and decided to ask the question. She was still worried, but she needed to try. "Goh," she began with a nervous expression on her face. "Why do you want to catch all Pokémon, and how is it related to Mew?"
Goh smiled at her and replied, "Mew contains the genes of all Pokémon! If I want to understand Mew, I'll need to understand all Pokémon. I want to form a bond with as many Pokémon as possible, and the best way to do that is to catch them! After all, the future is in my hands!" He said the last part while he raised his clenched fist in the air.
Chloe nodded at Goh's words, but she continued asking, "Don't you feel overwhelmed though? How will you catch Legendary Pokémon?"
"I trust in my Pokémon, and they trust me," Goh immediately responded as he looked at his Pokéballs that were hanging on his belt. "Besides, if I don't try, I'll never catch a Legendary! I almost caught Zapdos once, and I'm confident that I will achieve my dream one day."
"Don't forget about me!" Ash interrupted. He was listening to their conversation, and he wanted to join in. "My dream is to become a Pokémon Master. It's not an easy goal, but I am getting closer and closer to it."
Chloe turned to Ash and became curious about him. She heard Ash talk about being a Pokémon Master, but she still didn't know how Ash was planning on achieving his dream. "What's the next step for you, Ash?" she timidly asked while touching her hair. "Does it involve more battling?"
"You bet!" Ash shouted as he raised his fist in the air. Pikachu did the same thing as well. "My goal is to battle Leon in the Pokémon World Championships. He's the strongest trainer in the entire world, and I want to defeat him! It may not be easy, but never give up till the end!"
Chloe was shocked by Ash's goal. "Defeating the world's most powerful trainer?" she thought as she looked toward the ground. "It is more realistic than catching every Pokémon, but that is still an extremely difficult goal. I can't believe Ash and Goh aren't discouraged." Thinking about their goals made her feel even worse. Even though they were now close enough to see Dendemille Town, she wasn't looking forward to the future. Before she knew it, she suddenly blurted, "How do you all have these dreams? When did you come up with them? I still don't have one, and I don't know what to do."
Ash and Goh stopped and looked at her with confusion on their faces. Chloe was beginning to worry. The worst of her fears were starting to come true. She panicked and thought as her body began to shake, "What are they thinking? Are they going to view me differently from now on?" Suddenly, Ash laughed and replied with a warm smile, "Chloe. The world is a big place. You may not have a dream now, but I know you will find it. I believe in you. I knew two other people would didn't know what to do, but they eventually found their dreams on their adventures."
"You do?" Chloe quavered with shock. "You really think I will?" She was surprised that they supported and respected her. Even Pikachu was nodding at her!
"I do!" Goh answered as he placed his hand on Chloe's shoulder. "Regardless of what you'll do, we'll support you. Don't forget that your Pokémon will help you too! As long as we have each other, there's nothing you'll need to worry about!"
Chloe nodded at Goh's response and spoke with confidence, "You're right, Goh." She looked down at Eevee and gently told, "Eevee, I may not know what to do in my life yet, but we'll discover it together. Deal?"
Chloe's Eevee nodded and happily said, "Eevee! Eevee!" as it jumped up in the air. She too was hesitant about the future, but she trusted her trainer. She would support Chloe, and she would be there for her.
"Good," Goh spoke as he looked away from Chloe and Eevee. "Also, we're here! I can see the Pokémon Center. We'll rest in the it, and tomorrow, we'll be able to go to Anistar City! We can also tell Cerise everything that we learned so far! We are one step closer to unlocking the secrets of Mega Evolution! I can feel it!"
Ash stepped forward and grinned. "Then, what are we waiting for?" he burst while adjusting his hat. "Let's go!" He prepared to make a run to the Pokémon Center, but the sound of his Rotom Phone stopped him:
"A Pokémon World Championships participant is nearby!"
Ash and Pikachu looked at the people around them. "This is an official battle announcement," the phone continued speaking. Then, Ash spotted his opponent. A middle-aged man wearing a suit and a Chesnaught was approaching him. He had a Rotom Phone in his hand, and he grinned at Ash. "My name is Rob," he introduced himself with an unmistakable tone of confidence. "And I see that you are in the Great Class as well. Care for a battle?"
Ash looked at him and smiled while he raised his hand in the air. "I accept!" he grinned.
"Pikachu! Pikachu!" Pikachu exclaimed as well as he glared at the Chesnaught.
As soon as he said that, a Drone Rotom appeared. The Drone Rotom hovered between the two trainers and said:
"This is a battle between Rob Baker from Dendemille Town and Ash Ketchum from Pallent Town. It will be a 1 vs 1 battle. Begin!"
"Pikachu! I choose you" Ash ordered.
Rob haughtily stated as he touched his blond hair, "Chesnaught, it's time for you to shine!"
"What's going on?" Chloe asked as she was watching the two Pokémon. She seen Ash trained before, but she never saw him actually battle.
Goh looked excited. There was a wide grin on his face. "It's one of Ash's battles! They're awesome to watch! I can't wait to see what tricks Ash has up his sleeve!" he babbled.
Rob gestured to his Pokémon and commanded, "We'll finish you in one move! Use Rollout!"
"Pikachu! Deflect it with Iron Tail" Ash ordered as he swung his arm toward the Spiny Armor Pokémon.
Chesnaught curled into a ball and began to rapidly spin. It rolled toward Pikachu with a high speed, causing the dust from the ground to fly into the air.
"Pika!" Pikachu yelled as it charged toward his opponent and struck it with his glowing white tail. The impact forced Chesnaught to stop its charge, but it was trying to overcome Pikachu's strength with its spin.
"Your Pikachu's Iron Tail is strong," Rob commented with a sneer on his face. "But not strong enough! Stop spinning and use Body Slam on the rodent!"
Chesnaught rapidly uncurled itself and slammed its body onto Pikachu, throwing Pikachu off balance. "Pika! Chu!" Pikachu said as he slowly got up from the ground.
"Quick Attack, Pikachu!" Ash shouted as he thrust his right hand forward.
"Bulk up!" Rob responded while he faked a yawn.
Chesnaught roared as its body glowed red from the Bulk Up. Pikachu quickly slammed into Chesnaught, causing damage, but it wasn't enough. Chesnaught was still standing, and Pikachu was straining against its large body.
"It's over for you. Your little Pikachu is no match for me," Rob lifted his arm and spoke with a smug expression. "Finish it with Hammer Arm."
Chesnaught prepared to lift its large arm to strike Pikachu, but it winced in pain and stopped halfway. There were sparks on Chesnaught's body, and Chesnaught wasn't moving at all.
"What's happening!?" Rob exclaimed in worry as he watched his Pokémon. For once, he no longer looked calm, and his eyes were wide with surprise.
"Looks like your Chesnaught is paralyzed from Pikachu's Static Ability," Ash smiled in response. "Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"
Pikachu jumped up in the air and yelled "Chuuu" as it launched a series of electric bolts toward Chesnaught. Chesnaught bellowed in pain from the attack and collapsed onto the floor. However, it slowly got up and glared at Pikachu.
"Ches!" Chesnaught roared. It wasn't going to give up. A small Pikachu couldn't possibly beat a large and tough Pokémon life itself.
Rob grimaced and yelled, "Pin Missile, Chesnaught!"
Green missiles shot out of Chesnaught's body with high speed, and they were directed at Pikachu. Despite this, Pikachu stood his ground and nodded at his trainer, waiting for Ash's command. Chloe noticed this and was impressed by Pikachu's trust in Ash. "He trusts Ash even though the attack is coming straight at him," Chloe mused with awe on her face.
"Alright!" Ash proclaimed as he pointed toward the missiles. "Let's win this! Electroweb and jump!"
Pikachu released a large and yellow Electroweb, and it stopped the approaching Pin Missiles. Then, Pikachu swiftly ran up the web and jumped from it. He was now midair, and he was approaching Chesnaught.
"Chesnaught!" Chesnaught exclaimed with fear in its eyes. Pikachu was now right above it, and he had a good window of opportunity to strike!
"Finish this with Iron Tail!" Ash ordered as he pumped his fist into the air.
"Doidge it!" Rob yelped, but the large and heavy Chesnaught was too slow against the small and light Pikachu.
Pikachu spun, and its tail landed directly on Chesnaught's face. After dealing the attack, Pikachu jumped off Chesnaught, and Chesnaught fell onto the ground.
"Chesnaught!" Rob shrieked as he ran over to his knocked-out Pokémon.
Drone Rotom looked at the collapsed Chesnaught and announced:
"Chesnaught is unable to battle! Pikachu and Ash are the winners! Based on this battle, Pokémon World Championships rankings will be updated!"
"Pikachu!" Ash laughed, and he ran over to his Pokémon to give him a high-five on his tail. After doing that, Ash eagerly pulled out his Rotom Phone and saw that his ranking raised from 381 to 367.
Goh rushed over and remarked, "Congrats, Ash! That was an awesome battle!"
"I agree!" Chloe stated as she approached the boys. "That really was amazing. Using Electroweb to stop and missiles and allowing Pikachu to jump toward Chesnaught was really clever"
"Eevee!" Eevee chimed in. She also thought that the battle was good.
Ash nervously scratched his nose and laughed. "Thanks, guys! Now, let's go to the Pokémon Center. We have a long day tomorrow!" he declared.
The trio walked toward the Pokémon Center. Today was a great day for Ash and Goh. Goh caught a Pumpkaboo, and Ash was one step closer to his dream of battling Leon.
It was now nighttime in Dendemille Town, and the trio were sleeping on their beds in a room inside the Pokémon Center. Ash, Goh, Pikachu, and Eevee were snoring from their eventful day, but Chloe was still awake. She was thinking about how confident Ash and Goh was and how their Pokémon trusted them. She was glad that she decided to go with the boys. She learned more about their dreams today, and they encouraged her that she would find her dream one day. Without a doubt, their support would help her find hers. Eventually, she began to close her eyes and slowly drifted to sleep. The last thought she had before becoming unconscious was "If I want to find my dream in my life, I'll need to work together with my Pokémon."