I gotta admit, I was a little disappointed that Medieval AU got voted to the top again, but I was quite happy to have an excuse to continue the story I started back in 2017. If you want to see how this started, feel free to head over to my "Advanceshipping Week 2017" collection. It's not necessary to understand this story, but it does give a little background on these incarnations of Ash and May.

Anyway, enjoy!

Day 3: Medieval AU

"Augh!" she cried as she fled from her assailant. The battle raged hard around her as the knights of the royal court fought against the mysterious monsters. The ambush had come so suddenly that there was no time for preparation. Were it not for their strength, the battle would have been lost long ago.

Princess Haruka Maybelline of Hoenn wanted to aid the knights, knowing how dangerous the monsters were. She was almost certain that, despite assurance of victory, the knights would be injured, which would only make the next ambush all the more dangerous. Despite her knowledge, her father refused to listen and instead reminded her of her duty to her people. It frustrated her to no end, so she came out in the hopes of proving him wrong, only to fully see just how reckless she had been. Her most trustworthy partner, Blaziken, had quickly fallen in battle, leaving her alone without protection.

Eventually, she got away from the battle. She leaned against the wall, gasping as she tried to catch her breath. She looked down at her arm where one of the monsters, which she dubbed "Symbiont," had slashed her with its tentacles. As she placed her hand over the small burn, she winced at the hissing sound it made. It didn't hurt too bad, and she didn't think she was infected, but it was still a very uncomfortable feeling.

Br-r-r-r.

She gasped and looked to the side, her eyes wide with horror. "No!" she cried. Symbiont had found her, and was slowly closing in on her. "Get away!" she screamed, curling up against the wall in a fetal position and shutting her eyes. "Please!" The monster made no indication that it heard her, and reached for her with its tentacles once again. "No! NO!"

"AURA SPHERE, NOW!"

A sudden explosion from in front of her caused her to open her eyes and look up, expecting the worst. Then her eyes widened at what she saw before her. The monster was recoiling in pain, and standing between it and its prey was a humanoid canine creature. He glanced over at her, its eyes displaying a fierce concern.

"No," she whispered, as her fear gave way to awe. "It can't be…"

"Bone Rush!" came the voice again. A long, blue rod of energy materialized in the creature's paws, and he rushed forward, slamming the monster with it. It hissed in rage trying to slash at him with its tentacles, only for him to deflect it every time.

"A Lucario?" she wondered aloud.

"Now!" the voice came a third time. "Finish it with Reversal!" The Lucario glowed for a moment, then rushed forward and punched the monster once again. Having enough, it fled the scene, hissing with rage all the while.

The Lucario turned to her, extending his paw to her. As she uncurled from her fearful position, she slowly reached forward as though admiring an angel. Her hand touched his paw, and she gasped slightly while he pulled her up.

"It's so...soft," she whispered, unsure of what else to say.

"Great work, Lucario," the voice came. The princess turned to see who had commanded Lucario, and found it was none other than Satoshi Joash Kent, one of the king's most trusted knights, and her personal bodyguard. He turned to her in concern. "Are you all right, milady?"

"Y-Yes," she said, her hand over her heart as she trembled. "T-Thank you."

"No need for thanks," he said, bowing to her. "It is simply my duty as a knight to protect those who cannot protect themselves."

"Excuse me!" The princess became indignant. "I can protect myself just -" she started to say, but then she winced as the scar on her arm burned slightly.

"You're hurt!" the knight exclaimed, coming up to her.

"A-ah, it's nothing," she replied, wincing at it.

"Here," he said, ripping off a piece of his robe and tying it around the scar. It hissed in pain for a moment, but once the cloth was tied, it faded. "Is that better?"

"Yes," she said, rubbing the cloth.

"Good. I am glad," he said again. She rolled her eyes at his formal demeanor. "Allow me to escort you back to the castle."

"We can't," she groaned, looking back towards the way she came. "The entire front gate's completely blocked off by the battle. We'd just get trampled to death."

"Don't worry," he said. "I know another way in." She turned back to him in surprise. As she watched, he and Lucario placed their palms on the wall behind her. A portion of the wall glowed blue for a moment, before it moved to the side.

"A secret passage?" she gasped.

"Come," he said, stepping in and reaching his hand out to her. "We can get in through here." She took his hand and stepped in. Once they were inside, the wall behind them closed. The knight pulled out a lantern, which gave off a blue glow. "Thanks for your help, Lucario," he said. As Lucario slipped away into the shadows, the princess looked at her savior in surprise; that was the first time she had heard him speak without any formality.

"I thought Lucario were extinct," she said to herself.

"Many of them were wiped out, yes," the knight nodded as they walked through the dark tunnel. "Yet there were some who escaped the purge. We have hidden ourselves away for centuries."

"We?" she blinked. Then she remembered the rumors about him, and her eyes widened. "Then it's true," she gasped. "You're -"

"Descended from the Aura Guardians, yes," he replied somberly.

"Wow, that's amazing!" she exclaimed with a huge smile. "A descendant of one of the most ancient Orders the world has ever known! Your ancestors served as the greatest protectors of our kingdom for millennia! I can't believe it! All these years, and I thought that they were -"

She bumped into him, cutting her rambling short, and saw that he had stopped and was looking back at her a surprised expression. Realizing what she'd been doing, she looked down and stopped. "S-Sorry," she sighed.

"What for?" he asked.

"For -" she started to say, but nothing else came out. She sighed. "Nothing. Let's just keep going."

"No," he said, turning to face her fully. "I want to hear this. Why would you be sorry about knowing our history?"

"I just," she stammered, "I just thought you weren't interested. No one really is, except me." She sighed and looked down. "Not very becoming of a princess, I know."

"Maybe not," he shrugged, not knowing anything about royalty, "but the way you spoke just now...I've never heard you sound so excited before. You always sound so stilted and formal in the court, and outside of that, you just keep to yourself." He looked at her attire, which was much less formal than the dress she usually wore. "You even seem more comfortable right now."

"Ah-h, well," she stammered again, "I've always been fascinated with our kingdom's history, and I've studied it extensively in my spare time. My father finds it foolish and believes I should spend more time focusing on my duties as a princess." She sighed. "Wanna guess which one I like more?"

"Nah," he chuckled. She looked up at him in surprise. "I think I've figured it out."

She sighed again. "He thinks studying history is a waste of time," she continued, "but everything that's happening right now - the demons attacking our land - we would be able to combat them so much more effectively if we knew just what we were up against. All we need to know is right there in our history books, and what do we do? Ignore them in favor of blindly fighting any threat that comes our way!" She huffed angrily. "Sorry. Just needed to get that off my chest"

"I understand," he said. "It's a pity he won't listen." He sighed. "And here I thought princesses got everything they could ever want."

"Most people think that," she agreed. "It's overrated, really. I would love to see the world, but I know that can never happen. My duty is first and foremost to my kingdom and my people. I'm a princess, not a historian"

"A noble sentiment, to be sure," he agreed. "But what's wrong with wanting to be both? I can't imagine a passion for history would hurt your ability to run the kingdom."

"Thank you!" she agreed, clearly relieved that she finally found someone else who thought the same way as her. "I don't know why everyone gets so worked up over it!"

"I guess they just don't understand," he sighed.

"Yeah."

Their conversation was interrupted by the sounds of thumping overhead. They heard some people speaking, though their words were muffled due to the walls between them. But it was clear where their concern was.

"Quickly," he said. "We need to get you back." With that, they started down the passage again, this time at a quicker pace.

"I hope I haven't been gone too long," she moaned as they walked. "Father will be angry if that's the case. He'll know I went out when I wasn't supposed to!"

"Don't worry," he said as they walked. "This passage leads to a room deep inside the castle. As long as we're not seen coming out, no one will ever know you've been gone."

"Are you sure?"

"Trust me," he said. They went a little farther until they came to a dead end. "This will bring you back in," he said.

"Will you be okay?" she asked. She wasn't sure why she asked.

"Of course," he smiled.

"Okay," she said, and returned his smile. "Thank you again for saving me."

"No need for thanks," he replied, bowing to her. "It is simply my duty as a knight to protect those who cannot protect themselves." She raised an eyebrow at the sudden shift in demeanor. He looked up and chuckled, prompting her to chuckle as well.

"All right," she rolled her eyes. "I'll be going now."

"Oh, wait!"

"Hm?" she blinked, looking back at him.

"Listen...about me being related to the Aura Guardians...and Lucario...can we keep that a secret?"

She blinked in confusion. "Why?"

"I -" he started, but then he just stopped and sighed. "I can't explain."

She blinked again, then smiled. "Still keeping secrets, I see," she giggled. "All right. I guess that's the least I can do after you saved my life today."

"Thank you," he said.

"No need for thanks," she replied, giving a curtsey. "It is simply my duty as a princess to protect those who cannot protect themselves."

"Hey!" he said, laughing with her.

"Okay," she said. "I should probably go."

"Yes," he nodded. She started to pull the wall to the side to go out, only for something to take her hand. She turned and saw him holding it. Her face turned quite red as she watched him bend down and gently kiss her hand. He looked up at her, also blushing. "For good luck," he said.

She simply smiled back at him, before pulling the wall back and stepping back into the castle. She looked back at him one more time before he pulled the wall back, vanishing from her sight.

"What a mysterious knight," she hummed to herself, looking up. "I wonder what other secrets he's been hiding."

Ash and May attained Support Level B!

That's all for now. Tomorrow's story will be a little different, but I can't wait to share it with you.