Day 5: Seasons

"Do you have a favorite season, Ash?"

Ash looked at his girlfriend, an eyebrow raised. They'd been walking through the leaf-strewn fields of Nuvema Town, enjoying the sights in silence. The only sound to be heard was that of the leaves underneath their feet. Her question came out of the blue and interrupted an otherwise quiet walk.

"Uh," he said finally, "not really? I don't know; I've never really thought about it."

May giggled as they walked, watching as a light breeze blew some leaves around. "Do you only get summer in Kanto?"

"No, we get all the seasons," he said. "I just never gave much thought to picking a favorite." He looked around. "Then again, I've never really seen a fall like this in Kanto."

"I love fall," May smiled. "The changing colors on the leaves just feel so magical to me. I love the way they fall on the road. It almost feels like I'm one with nature when that happens."

"You enjoy jumping in piles of leaves?" Ash grinned.

"No," she shook her head, frowning slightly. "We never got to do that in Hoenn. It's always warm up there, so there wasn't a lot of variety in the weather." Despite the truth in her statement, Ash couldn't help but chuckle at the irony in it.

"That's a bummer," he said. "We didn't really get this kind of weather either, so a friend of ours would always bring a bunch of leaves over so we could make piles to jump in anyways."

"That sounds like fun," May smiled. She looked around at the trees surrounding them, their orange leaves mingled together, almost glowing under the light of the setting sun.

"Also, is it just me, or does fall seem to be the most romantic season of the year?" Ash blurted without thinking.

May giggled and moved closer to Ash, leaning her head against his shoulder. "Why don't you tell me?" she said, nuzzling him.

Ash smiled at her actions and put his arm around her, leaning his own head against hers. "Well, it does get colder at times. That seems like a good excuse to cuddle up next to your boyfriend." As if on cue, a sharp breeze blew past, causing them to shiver. May pressed herself closer to Ash, while he put his other arm around her. After a moment, they relaxed as they felt the temperature return to normal.

"Maybe we should get back to the lab," May suggested. "I have a feeling it's only gonna get colder from here."

"Sounds like a good idea," Ash agreed. They started back for Professor Juniper's lab, still leaning on each other. It wasn't too cold, but that wasn't their concern. In season or out of season, it was always nice to be close to the one they loved.

I don't know what it is with Day 5 of Advanceshipping Week always being the weak link in my one shot collections. Not that they're necessarily bad; they either just don't meet my standards, or they lack that creative punch that makes my other one shots stand out.

On a side note, I find it kinda funny that "Seasons" was one of the winning themes this year...and then a few days after it was chosen, Pokemon GO's massive update includes a new feature where the game changes with the seasons.