The big flying boat dropped lower as it approached Petalburg Bay, slanting a little as it slipped across the wind before turning into it to make landing easier.

It skimmed over the spit of land that defined the bay, scattering a flock of Wingull as it headed south, then flared a little and touched down on the rippled water with a long, drawn out splaaaaaaash.

Engines still burbling, the half-aircraft-half-boat turned, riding the swell, and headed slowly towards the nearby pier to tie up and offload.


"All right!" Ash grinned, as the door opened. "We're here!"

He sniffed the sea air, then got out of the way so May and the rest of the Maples could follow him down the gangplank.

"Home again, home again," Norman smiled. "I'm glad we decided to move here last year, it really is a beautiful place. Not as sooty as Olivine, and not too busy either."

Max had a different opinion. "Agh! I forgot how fishy it smells here!"

His family chuckled good-naturedly.

"Well, we should get going," Norman added. "You're setting off tomorrow, right?"

"That's right," Ash confirmed. "I was going to make sure I had Latios, too, to have a good talk with him before we're off on the road."

He frowned. "I'm still thinking about that idea of yours, Mr. Maple..."

"Ash, given how much you're going to be seeing of both my children over the next year, you should probably get comfortable with calling me Norman," the Gym Leader admonished.

"Right," Ash said. "What should we do for the rest of the day?"

"Well, Max and May both need to register officially as trainers and get their cards," Caroline pointed out. "Maybe you could take them to Littleroot. I think you could borrow Norman's bike-"

"Bad idea," May and Ash chorused.

"Pikachu destroys bikes," Ash explained. "How far is it?"

"Well, a few miles..." Norman frowned, looking up at the sun. It wasn't setting yet, but it was getting low in the sky. "Maybe you should do that tomorrow morning, and just spend the evening discussing Pokémon and what your plans are."

"That might be a good idea," Max agreed. "Oh – Ash, what Pokémon do you have with you?"

He looked a little uncertain. "I'm trying to practice thinking in terms of tactics-"

"Oh, right," Ash nodded. "Yeah – okay, I've got Pikachu with me-"

Pikachu said something neither Max nor May understood.

He said that he wouldn't be surprised if Ash forgot Pikachu was there, despite his being on his shoulder, Kris reported promptly, and the siblings chuckled a bit.

"That's cruel, Pikachu..." Ash sighed. "Okay – aside from him, there's Entei, Mawile, Lucario, Dexter of course, and Houndoom. I'm expecting Pidgeot overnight, I'm going to pick up Latios later and Larvitar tomorrow morning."

"...and Ash just ignores the Pokémon limit completely," May sighed. "Champions think they're above the rules, don't they?"

"I'm not planning on using more than six in a battle, if that's what you mean," Ash replied. "Besides, Pikachu doesn't count because he doesn't use a Pokéball, and Dexter doesn't count for basically the same reason..."

"That still only puts you at seven," Max pointed out. "And they're not very good excuses anyway."

Ash shrugged.

"Ash," May said, remembering the other thing she'd been going to ask. "Would it be better if we started practising that thing you said you can teach people? The... Pokémon-y understand-y thing?"

"Yeah!" Max agreed. "That'd be great! Using Kris to translate works, but it feels all clunky."

"Actually, you're right!" Ash nodded thoughtfully. "I guess we should get started on that-"

There was a grumbling sound.

"...after dinner?" he added, sheepishly, and there were chuckles.


"Okay, ready?" Ash asked.

Both brother and sister nodded. Blaziken did as well, having invited himself, and over in the corner Watt played with Mawile.

(Max's Electrike had changed his mind on his preferred name. Again.)

Ash smiled, and then closed his eyes. He took a deep breath, and let it slowly out.

A pale blue fire danced at his fingertips.

"This is Aura," Ash explained, bringing his hand up. "I know you guys saw it at Cameran Castle, as well as a few-"

He paused.

"I forgot to go to the tournament again..." Ash sighed, with a shake of his head.

"Ash?" May asked pointedly.

"Oh, right..." Ash nodded. "Anyway. This is Aura. Now, I've got... kind of a lot of it."

"Yeah, I remember..." May agreed. "Wait – weren't there those special gloves? Did you get those? I remember seeing you in them..."

Ash nodded confirmation. "I took them off so you can get a better look," he said. "They only work for me, so that way of getting better isn't an option... but yeah, that's one of the first things I did."

"How did you get so good?" Max asked. "Did you actually start Aura training in Unova?"

"No, I didn't," Ash told him. "It was between the end and going back, Sir Aaron taught me."

"...I know he's dead, but when has that ever stopped you," May muttered. "Right. Training from a dead hero, got it. So, how do we get to do this?"

Ash sat himself more comfortably. "Firstly, you need to understand what Aura is. It's kind of like an expression of life energy... hey, feel this."

He held out his hands, and Max took the left one.

"How does it feel?" Ash asked, as May took the right.

"Tingly," Max said, frowning. "It's like... pins and needles, but in a good way. And warm – really, really warm, but not uncomfortable."

"Yeah," May agreed, a bit distantly. "Ash, is this what it feels like for you whenever you do it?"

"Well, there's warm and tingly, yeah," Ash agreed. "But I've kind of gotten used to it – I had to to be able to use a useful amount."

He frowned for a moment. "Okay... now, close your eyes. Concentrate on that feeling."

Ash pushed a bit more Aura into his hands, the glow getting brighter as he did so, and May's eyes opened for a moment in surprise.

"Keep them closed," he reminded her. "And keep breathing deeply – in and out, staying relaxed. Now... think of a really happy moment. Something that always makes you smile."

True to his instructions, smiles spread over both their faces. Ash closed one eye to check how it was going, and considered.

"Remember exactly how it happened, every detail," he said. "Everything you can think of about it, from the really important bits to the tiny little details that stick in your mind."

Ash slipped his hands gently out of those of his friends, and fought back a grin as he saw the almost invisible blue lights dancing there.

"Now," he went on. "Aura can be used to tell how people are feeling, that's most of how the translation works. So – push that lovely warm feeling towards my hand so I can feel it."

The blue glow strengthened, and then Max frowned.

His eyes flew open, and he looked at Ash – then down at his hand.

His blue Aura light vanished as he did, winking out as his concentration went, but he'd seen it – and that was what mattered.

Ash quickly put his finger to his lips, signalling for Max to remain silent. May hadn't noticed yet...

"Good," Ash told her, after a moment, as the blue light faded slightly from her palms. "Now, think specifically of Blaziken."

"Already doing it," May said, a little distantly. "You said to think of a good moment..."

Blaziken was clearly touched.

"You've had him as a Pokémon for a few years," Ash reminded her. "And in that time, I bet you've come to know a lot of the ways he expresses himself... even come to understand some of what he's saying."

May nodded. "Yeah, I kind of do..."

Ash pointed at Blaziken.

"Thank you, May," Blaziken said. "For everything."

May gasped, eyes opening. "I... was that my name? I heard it – I understood it, and not just because I know what Blaziken says for..."

She stopped, looking down.

"Ash, when did you take your hand away?" she asked.

"About twenty seconds after I told you to close your eyes," Ash informed her. "You were getting a fairly steady glow there – so was Max."

"I – that's..." May frowned. "If it's this easy-"

"It's not," Ash interrupted her. "There's a reason I took your hands at first, I was kind of training your body to recognize Aura. It was quite tiring to produce enough that you could feel it... and you're getting the streamlined version."

He frowned. "That was really good, especially getting some of what Blaziken said – but I'm afraid now we get to the hard part, which is the more general practice."

Lucario came out of his Pokéball with a flash, and nodded to them. "Evening."

Max giggled at how prosaic that suddenly seemed.

"Lucario's not just able to use the Aura translation trick himself," Ash explained. "He's also able to control the extent to which it works. It's kind of... if there's a certain amount in the connection, then understanding happens – so Lucario's going to start off doing most of the work, so it's easy for you to understand him. Then we're going to push until it's harder."

"Did Misty and Brock find it this hard?" Max asked.

"I found it that hard," Ash told him. "And harder. It took ages until I could understand any Pokémon, but I hadn't worked out this trick yet – Tracey was the first person I did it on."

May nodded. "Right... and it's Pokémon we know well first?"

"That's what makes the connection easier. Though..." Ash frowned. "Actually... Blaziken, I guess I should offer to teach you the opposite side of it. Suicune decided to learn, but it took a month or two..."

"I think I will pass, for now," Blaziken decided. "I will certainly remember the offer, though."

Watt came bounding past in pursuit of a stick, grabbed it, and brought it back to Mawile. He threw it with a flick of his head, and Mawile spun around to catch it in her head-jaws.

"That's pretty cute," May smiled, then shook her head. "Right. Let's keep going."

"Very well," Lucario said. He cleared his throat, and spoke again, and this time May frowned.

"No, sorry, only got Lu-rio-car there."

Again.

"...no..."

"May, remember – deep breaths, and try to relax and focus on that feeling," Ash reminded her, and she nodded.

There was a crack.

"Sorry..." Mawile winced. "I think the stick fainted."


"Okay, Latias," Latios said, smiling. "I'm off – wish me luck!"

"Good luck, brother," Latias told him, and impulsively gave him a hug.

Latios relaxed into it, smiling, and returned it. "I'll miss you, sister," he whispered.

"I'll miss you too," Latias agreed. "We don't get nearly long enough together, even with this setup."

She sighed. "Well, I'm sure Ash would be fine with us changing things around a bit... but it's fine for now."

Latios nodded, and the two separated.

"See you soon," Latias said, and her brother nodded. "And don't forget the Latiosite!"

"Got it right here," Latios told her, picking it from behind his neck to show where he kept it.

With that, he picked up the transponder, and pressed the button he'd been told to before Returning himself back into his blue Cherish Ball.

A flash, and he was spirited away south to Hoenn.

Latias sighed sadly. Maybe once both of them were a bit better trained it would be possible to have time 'off'...

"Latias?" Bianca called, into the gathering gloom of the garden.

Latias turned and headed over. "What is it, Bianca?" she asked – then shook her head; Bianca wouldn't understand her, of course.

Being around Ash had spoiled her.

As she rounded a line of bushes, Latias smiled on seeing her friend – then skidded to a halt in mid-air, shocked.

There was another Latias floating in mid-air next to Bianca.

"What?" she asked, shaking her head slightly and checking that, yes, that Latias was still there. "What the-"

"Hi," the other Lati said, a little shyly. "Uh... someone said you lived here?"

"Yeah!" Latias confirmed with a nod. "How – who told you – what's going on?"

Bianca indicated the woman standing next to her, and Latias swung her head to pay attention to her, as well.

She looked a lot like a Joy.

"I'm Latias' trainer," the woman introduced herself. "We were told about this place by Misty Water-"

Latias relaxed. "Oh, that explains that," she smiled. "Sorry, this all took me a bit by surprise... I've never actually met any other Eon Pokémon besides my brother."

"I'm the same," the other Latias agreed. "I guess there's just not that many of us... well, nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you!"

"I'm glad they're getting along well," the Joy smiled. "Would it be too much trouble if I stayed a few days? I've had a busy schedule recently."

"I'm sure Latias would be glad of the company," Bianca smiled, and got a confirmatory nod from the Dragon-type. "Her brother's just headed off to their trainer, so..."

"You have a brother?" Joy's Latias asked. "What's he like? Is he anything like my brother?"

"He can be really stuffy," Ash's one said... then giggled, unable to help herself.

"Wow, my brother's the same! We're really similar!" The newcomer then frowned. "Or it's just how older brothers are..."

"That sounds more like it."

"So, what do you do?" Bianca asked.

"Oh, I'm with the Gym Inspection Agency," Joy said, as the two Latias started having a more in-depth conversation. "Latias has gotten me out of trouble a few times... basically we look in on gyms to make sure they're properly running, and I've had to do all of Kanto after some outrageous things reported last year by Ash Ketchum..."

"Ash Ketchum?" Bianca repeated. "Huh. Small world... he's their trainer."

"I know," Joy assured her. "That's why I asked Misty in the first place."

"Right."

The conversation stalled for a moment.

"What do you do?" Joy returned the earlier question.

"Paint, mostly," Bianca told her. "I'm looking to do it for a living."

"That sounds nice – do you have any I can see?"

"Sure," Bianca nodded. "There's a shed over here that I keep the ones I paint in the garden..."


"It's nice to meet you," Caroline said, smiling and trying not to look nervous.

Latios waved, also a bit uncertain. "Um... hi?"

"I don't think I need to translate that," Ash said.

"No, it's fairly obvious," Lucario agreed.

"I have to admit, I'm quite impressed," Norman said. "This is the closest I've ever been to a Legendary Pokémon, and there's something... indefinable. A presence..."

Latios offered a hand to shake, and Norman took it. "Thank you."

"Sorry if we're not treating this right," Max said, fighting down a yawn. "But we've been concentrating really hard for the last few hours..."

"Yeah," May agreed. "And... yeah."

"It's certainly not the closest you guys have been to a Legendary, either," Ash said.

Norman blinked. "That's right, you did mention... Jirachi and Manaphy were the two big ones, right?"

His children nodded.

"And Rayquaza, Deoxys, Groudon, Kyogre and Mew," Max added. "And I think there were Regi golems too... and an Articuno."

Ash tried to resist the temptation.

He really did.

"Should I find out what Entei wants for breakfast tomorrow?" he asked.


The next morning, bright and early, May stretched and got out of bed.

From the guest room Ash was staying in, she heard the sound of an alarm. Then the alarm getting louder.

As she dressed – putting on her new green-and-yellow bag they'd picked up on a shopping trip – she tried to prepare herself for the journey.

Any thought of it being a serious, solemn occasion was somewhat spoiled by the electronic voice coming from Ash's room.

Ash, it is time to get up. Do not make me use alternative methods.

There was a pause.

May tied her hair, then heard a Pokéball opening. There was a grating noise, and a loud thump.

"Owww..." Ash groaned. "Did you have to tip the bed, Lucario?"

I gave you five minutes to get up. Alternative methods were used.

Lucario said something May didn't catch, and then she was ready – picking up Blaziken's Pokéball from her bedside table, she set off downstairs.


There was an unexpected guest at the breakfast table.

"Mrs. Ketchum?" May asked, stopping as she caught sight of her friend's mother.

"Good morning, May," Delia Ketchum said, with a smile.

"She arrived earlier," Caroline volunteered. "She took her son's Pidgeot down here – the Flying-type's outside having a rest."

May nodded. "Okay," she said. "Nice to see you, Mrs. Ketchum. What brings you to Hoenn?"

"Well, obviously I'm grateful to you all for bringing my son down here," she said, and sighed. "But he didn't stop off at home for long enough to pick up new clothes – or anything else..."

May winced.

"Mom!?" Ash gasped from the stairs behind her.

"There you are, mister!" Delia said, voice suddenly much sharper. "We're going to have a good long talk about this!"

May could swear she heard Ash gulp audibly, and she stepped prudently aside.

Rescue baby Legendaries, sure. Stand on a Contest field in front of thousands of spectators, May was your girl.

Face motherly wrath from Delia Ketchum, even by proximity? May knew what was best for her.


"Ya know, it's kinda a good ting that James taught ya to fly dis thing," Meowth observed. "Ain't like he could even if he wanted to, right now."

Jessie glanced behind her. "James, stop encouraging Carnivine."

"I'm trying," James mumbled. "He is being very affectionate."

Meowth pricked up an ear, and listened to Carnivine's own speech.

He seemed pleased that James had come to get him.

"Where should we aim for?" Jessie asked, a moment later. "What's the latest information?"

Meowth grabbed their phone and scanned through it. "Uh... well, accordin' to dis, we can get a cheap-o mortgage..."

"Really?" James asked, interested.

"It's obviously spam," Jessie pointed out. "Besides, we don't need one."

"Ah, gotcha!" Meowth crowed. "Somethin' about Team Magma bein' after da ruins near Oldale. Guess dat's where we're headin'!"

Jessie nodded. "Makes sense."

She banked them slightly, and they settled down on a course southwest.

After a moment she blinked. "Wasn't that the place where all there was was a school of Relicanth?"

"Ya know, I tink it might be..." Meowth shrugged. "Actually, dat's a good question. We even gonna bother?"


"Nice outfit," Max said, looking Ash up and down. "Much more like what I remember."

"Yeah..." Ash agreed, embarrassed. "I forgot to pick it up from Mom before coming down here..."

"You've still got the stuff from Cameran Castle, right?" May asked. "That was pretty cool..."

Ash nodded. "Yeah, but Mom had a point, I've been wearing it too much again."

"I've noticed..." Pikachu sniffed.

"Oh, what's that?" May added, pointing. "There."

"This?" Ash indicated the small crescent-moon pinned to his lapel. "Yeah, Mom decided to make me one when I won a League." He smiled. "It's really nice of her."

"That is a pretty neat idea," May agreed. "What do the other ones look like?"

Ash duly got his badge case out, lifting off the top row which was ready for Hoenn. Beneath it were the two other League badges, Indigo and Orange.

"She did flowers for the first two, but there isn't really a silver flower," Ash shrugged. "So I guess this was the closest choice."

Max nodded, then glanced at his watch. "Ash? When are we supposed to be at Professor Birch's lab?"

Ash looked at the clock. "Uh... we'd better get going!"

"Seriously, Ash, how did you manage to keep all the timings straight in Johto?" May asked. "We're going to be really late now!"

"Brock helped," Ash admitted, as he scooped up his bag. "A lot. Uh... okay, I don't think there's really a better way to do this on time..."

Entei materialized in a flash, and Latios a moment later.

"I know what you're going to ask," Entei told him. "If Max and May don't mind, I think I can carry both of them."

Max blinked. "Wait, what's going on?"

"Entei says he thinks he can take both of you," Ash translated.

"Ash, this is a pretty huge overreaction," May pointed out.

"It's this or Pikachu accidentally wrecks your bike..." Ash winced. "What about you, Latios? Do you mind?"

"Latias told me about how fast she went in Mega, even carrying you. I think I'd like to give it a go." Latios shrugged. "Well, it's better to find out now, when the greatest risk is being late to a meeting..."

"That's the spirit!" Ash grinned. "Okay, let's go!"


May got up on Entei's back somewhat awkwardly. "Is that okay?"

Entei said something she didn't understand, but it sounded fairly ambivalent.

"Okay, uh... Max, I guess you come up here?"

Max nodded, and May pulled him up a bit to help him get aboard.

"Remember, we're new to this," May said. "We might not be able to stay on..."

Another mutter, and May thought it sounded just a bit offended.

There was a bright orange flash, and she turned to look.

Mega Latios looked... well, identical to Mega Latias. Except for the eyes, she thought.

"Remember," Ash told him, settling the glowing staff where it was slung acros his back. "You're going to be trying to move a lot faster now – so keep that in mind."

Mega Latios nodded, and then reached down to pick up Pikachu and lift him to his back. Ash followed, making sure he had a good grip.

"You know which way Littleroot is?" he asked Entei, and the fire-type replied with a bass chuckle.

"...yeah, fair enough, you've been running all over the country for a hundred years," Ash admitted. "Okay, let's go-"

May blinked.

One moment there'd been Ash and Mega Latios, floating there... the next moment, they'd vanished.

A breathless cry, shifted by speed so it was low and hard to hear, drew her attention towards the south.

"...now that's fast," Max admitted, spotting the disappearing shape.

Entei rumbled something – May listened, trying to concentrate, but got none of it – and set off at a walk.

He picked up speed quickly, going to a flowing lope which bounced the siblings up and down a bit but wasn't as bad as they'd feared.

May still grabbed onto one of the spikes, though. Just in case.


"How much more is there to fill out?" Ash asked. "I thought I'd done most of the paperwork already..."

"You did!" Professor Birch told him. "It's just there's an awful lot of it."

Behind him, there was a clang as Birch's Aron played a reflexes game with Mawile.

"I'm sure I've filled this one out already..." Ash muttered. "Right. I think that's it?"

Birch took a moment to check through. "Yes, it does look like it! Just need May to fill out this form, and Max to sign these, and they get their official trainer cards." He passed something over to Ash. "This identifies you as Max's mentor, by the way."

"Thanks!" Ash said, looking the card over.

"Here they come," Pikachu reported from the door.

"Ah, good," Ash added. "Right, let's see how it went..."


When May came up to the door, she still looked a little green.

"Everything go alright?" Ash asked, letting her and Max in.

"Well, it wasn't too bad..." Max said critically. "Entei was going a bit fast, though – I think he wanted to catch up with you and Mega Latios."

Ash chuckled. "Yeah, that was a bit too fast..."

"It's good to see you, May," Birch said, waving. "I'll be wanting to hear about what you get up to!"

I will make sure you are kept up to date even if she forgets, Ethan informed him.

"Hey!" May said. "I'll remember!"

I am sure. Nevertheless.

"What do we have to fill out?" Max asked.

Birch pushed a set of forms across the low table towards him. "Here, here, here and here, and then on this one..."

"May?" Max asked. "Was there this much paperwork when you became a trainer?"

"Not really, no..." May said, taking her much smaller pile of paperwork and filling it out with quick strokes of her pen. "Contest entry forms were the tricky one there."

"You might have to show me how to do that," Ash said.

"Oh, yeah, that's right, Dad suggested you do the odd Contest," May nodded. "Hmmm... well, I guess we can think about that if you have trouble with the gym challenge he said you should do."

"I'm kind of nervous about that one," Ash admitted. "Trying to not break a gym... well, I guess I should use some of my Pokémon who need the training..."

"Hey!" Max said, pointing. "Look!"

All three of the older trainers turned, to see a Zigzagoon picking up a piece of laminated plastic from the lab bench. At the sound of Max's voice, the Zigzagoon looked up in surprise before bolting out the window.

"...that was Max's trainer card..." Professor Birch said weakly.

"Give it back!" Max said. "Watt, follow the scent – I'll meet you outside!"

Max's Electrike materialized on the bench, sniffed, and jumped out through the same window. As for the young trainer, he was already heading for the door at a run.

"Should we help?" May asked.

"Actually, I'm kinda interested how he does," Ash admitted, following Max towards the door. "I'll have Houndoom sort it out if he has to, but otherwise it's a good chance to see how he's doing!"


"Watt?" Max called, as he rounded the corner of the building.

The Electrike glanced back at him, then put his nose to the ground for a moment. He barked, and set off at a fast walk – slow enough to let his trainer catch up.

"Which way did it-" Max began, then saw that Watt was already on the trail. "Good! If you spot it, try and zap it!"

Watt gave a bark of agreement, and his fur began to buzz slightly as static charge built up.

He then let out a yip, and a bolt of electricity crackled forwards. It hit a branch, and the startled Zigzagoon dodged left before heading back in the same direction it had been going.

"That was close!" Max said. "Okay, keep it up!"

Another electrical bolt zapped out.


Behind him, Ash jogged through the sparse trees.

He wasn't in any particular hurry, just wanting to keep up and watch how Max worked with his Pokémon.

"How was that, Pikachu?" he asked.

Pikachu waved a paw. "Passable for a young Pokémon. Accuracy was actually pretty good, but it didn't have much zap..."

"Where's the power going?"

"I can't... ah. He's charging his legs, but not actually using the boost."

Ash nodded to himself, and hurdled a fallen log to avoid having to take a detour.

"Maybe he's staying back to let Max keep up... which is good, actually, but it means the electricity's going to waste."

"I agree."


Some way behind them, May slowed and came to a halt.

"Okay, there's no way I'm going to be able to keep up," she sighed. "Back to the lab... I miss Beautifly."

Blaziken pointed.

"I know you could catch up, but really there's no need," May told him. "Ash has a Pokémon that can break the sound barrier and he can see through walls... I was just interested to see what would happen."

The Fire-type said something, and frowned. Then he made a gesture.

"...nah, don't think it's worth it," May decided, after deciphering that he was suggesting he carry her. "Thanks for the offer, though."


Max and Watt came crashing through a screen of bushes, and found themselves facing a ledge – about six or seven feet high, and nearly sheer.

Zigzagoon had just run into the same ledge. It looked quickly back and forth, then turned back the way it had come and saw the Pokémon and trainer facing it.

Watt let out a challenging growl.

In reply, the Zigzagoon began to growl as well. It dropped the card, which didn't look too badly chewed, and jumped forwards at Watt to deliver a Tackle.

"Left!" Max said quickly.

Watt jumped left, and Zigzagoon caught him a glancing blow on his right haunch. He yipped, more in surprise than in pain, and came to a halt on the loose earth of the clearing.

Max tried to look at everything at once, not just keeping track of the two Pokémon but also the environment. "Uh... okay! Run up that log there!"

Watt jumped to the log, narrowly avoiding another attack by the Zigzagoon, and ran up it – nearly falling off as it trembled from a headbutt.

"Okay, now – Spark!"

Watt barked, electricity sparking in his fur, and leaped back down off the log. The moment he kicked off, the Zigzagoon jumped back out of the way, and Watt hit the ground with a painful thud.

Max winced.

Electrike brushed dirt off his muzzle, whimpering, then flinched away from a barrage of sand kicked up by his Normal-type opponent.

"Watt, use your electricity to make yourself faster!" Max called. "And Quick Attack... now!"

Watt discharged all the electricity in his fur with a zrrrrp sound. He launched himself forwards, and thanks to Max's timing he hit the Zigzagoon in the side as it turned to attack again.

The Tiny Raccoon was knocked several feet and rolled to a stop with a whimper. It took one look at Watt, got up and fled.

"Nice work!" Ash said.

Max did a double take. "How long have you been there?"

"...a while," Ash told him.

Panting, Watt picked the trainer card up carefully in his teeth and brought it back over to Max. The boy accepted it, and gave Watt a rub. "Uh – Ash, do you have some water?"

"Yeah," Ash replied, digging in his bag. "Uh – here."

"Thanks."

As Max started to carefully wash out Watt's eyes, Ash sat down next to them. "I've got a few pointers to start with," he said. "Think you want to hear them now?"

"Sure," Max decided, and stopped pouring water for a bit on a yip from Watt.

"Right – well, you did eventually have him use it, but there was a fair bit of charged electricity that Watt wasn't using," Ash began. "The other thing I'd say you should have done is stay up on that log and use ranged attacks. You might also have been better off sending Watt on ahead using all that charged up electricity to speed him up – you got lucky with the ledge, but it might have been hard to stop that Zigzagoon otherwise."

Max nodded. "Right."

"As for moves... well, Shockwave might be a good one, Pikachu knows loads of those." Ash frowned. "He also needs to get used to using his speed-boosting trick more, that's a good thing to be able to do if he can keep it up... oh, the other one. Quilava and Houndoom can both blind-fight using smell, so maybe Watt should learn that one."

A final dribble of water, and Watt relaxed. He shook himself, sending water droplets flying, and perked up considerably.

"We can work out other moves for him to learn later," Ash decided. "Let's get back to the lab so we can finish this paperwork off and get on our actual journey!"


AN:


Welcome to Hoenn!

Here we have Ash getting a few things sorted out such as the early stages of Aura tuition for the Maples, and picking up Latios.

Incidentally, there's a lot of Pokémon on the way – early Hoenn is crowded!

And this little incident with the Zigzagoon is an alternate version of a bit from early Pokémon Emerald...

Finally - I've started posting another Pokémon story, one that's been worked on in the cracks between working on this one. It's very much an AU for the Pokémon world, one in which Ash has a rather unusual secret.

(What's the secret? Well, go look at the fic - it doesn't stay secret very far into the first chapter...)