AN: Hey guys, we're back!

K: Good to see you all.

P: What's there for today?

SV: First, an apology. Sorry that Child of Mew is taking so long, but there is a 'good' reason for it.

K: Well, sorta. We're working on it, and we'll explain when we get that up. Hopefully that'll be soon, but again, we're working on it.

P: Anything on the chapter?

SV: Finishing the forest, new Pokemon, and some phone calls.

K: Are you being vague again?

P: She does have a good reason. Anyway, onwards! No Pokemon ownership here!

*Timeskip: 1 week.*

Ashley was starting to get very annoyed with Misty by now. They had been in the forest for over a week, and every time Misty had spotted a bug she took of screaming. Ashley had ended up just using Aura Sight to find her, then point Strike in the right direction to pick her up. During the walking time, she let her newest Pokemon, the Pidgeotto now named Torna, fly with Strike. He had been talking to her about some sort of aerial fighting, as she often saw the two of them racing, with Torna using Quick Attack to try and hit Strike. The two had been playing air tag for ages, and would often stay in the air until they needed to put up a camp. Ashley didn't mind; after all, it was like a more playful form of training. She had spent quite a lot of time training, as she wanted to make sure that her team was ready for the gym battle in Pewter City. She only had two Pokemon at the moment, but she was hoping to catch a few more.

"ASHLEY! HELP!" Ashley sighed and turned to the Water type trainer she had been traveling with. She chuckled a little at what she saw. A small Caterpie was staring at Misty hopefully, while the aforementioned red head was trying to stay on the other end of the path from it.

"Geez Misty, can you calm down? It's only a Caterpie." Ashley rolled her eyes as she stepped closer.

"I DON'T CARE! CATCH IT OR SOMETHING!" Ashley crouched down next to the small bug.

"Hello there."

'Hello.' Caterpie replied. 'That human's funny.'

"I know. I've been traveling with her for a week. It seems she is petrified of bug types."

'You understand me?' He said, looking at her with wide eyes.

"Yes, I do. Say, would you like to come and travel with me?" She asked. "I'll take care of you."

'You do seem nice. I'll come with you.' He nodded.

"Ok." She pulled a Pokeball from her belt. "Just tap the centre of the ball." He pushed his nose against the button, and it shook a few times before clicking. She stood, letting her new friend out again and holding out a hand. "Come on, you can sit on my shoulder."

'Just don't let me fall, ok?'

"I won't." She replied quietly. She slipped her Pokedex out of her pocket and pointed it at the small bug.

'Caterpie, the Worm Pokemon. Caterpie has a voracious appetite. It can devour leaves bigger than its body right before your eyes. From its antenna, this Pokemon releases a terrifically strong odor. This Caterpie is male and has the ability Shield Dust. This Pokemon knows the moves Tackle, String Shot. It also has the egg move Electroweb, though this has not been unlocked yet. Note, this Pokemon has an extremely high speed stat for its species.'

"High speed stat, huh?" She smiled. "I think I'll call you Swiftstreak. Is that ok?"

'Sure! It sounds cool!'

"Why did you catch it?" Misty asked, quivering.

"Because Butterfree can be a really powerful Pokemon. Plus, with the info the Pokedex said, I think this little one has a special stat. I can't tell as well, but my tutors talked about it. It means that a Pokemon has a much higher stat than normal from its species and age." She looked at the Caterpie on her shoulder. "I think, with the right training, you could be the fastest Butterfree in the world. What do you think?"

'Wow…' His eyes were shining. 'Do you think I could?'

"So long as we do our best, we'll get you there." Her newest Pokemon nudged her happily, and she chuckled.

"How do you know all this stuff?" Misty asked, her eyes wide.

"I had four very special tutors that helped Professor Oak teach me. I went to the school like everyone else, but I started getting extra lessons privately when they saw how good I was in class."

"Who were your tutors?" Ashley was saved from trying to answer the question when Strike dove down and clashed against something with Steel Wing. She turned and looked over his shoulder to see a Samurai, with his sword lying a little ways away. Strike was glaring at him, and Torna had just landed next to her and was glaring too. Volta was on her other shoulder to Swiftstreak and was sparking angrily.

"Ok." Ashley said calmly. "Ten seconds. Explain what the hell you were doing."

"I apologize miss." The Samurai said. "I simply wished to challenge the trainers of Pallet Town to a battle."

"And swinging a sword at me was definitely the best way to get my attention." She replied, with slight sarcasm. "You know, not just coming over and asking?"

"I do apologize. Would you like to battle?" He asked, more politely.

"Of course." Strike and Torna took off and circled the field for a moment, then hovered gently. Volta jumped from her shoulder, and Swiftstreak used String Shot to jump down. "You want to go first Volta?"

'Sure thing boss.' He grinned, then ran to the battlefield, sparking slightly.

"Well, let's go Pinsir!" He threw out the bug type. Ashley scanned it quickly.

'Pinsir, the Stagbeetle Pokemon. Pinsir has a pair of massive horns. Protruding from the surface of these horns are thorns. These thorns are driven deeply into the foe's body when the pincers close, making it tough for the foe to escape. No further data available.'

"Right. Volta, start with Thundershock!"

"Pinsir, move out of the way and use Seismic Toss!"

"Let him come." Ashley said calmly. Volta and the Samurai looked at her like she was crazy. 'Don't worry, I've got a plan.' She said telepathically to Volta, frowning slightly as she did.

'I'll trust you on this.' He stood ready as Pinsir charged at him and went to grab him.

"Now, use Quick Attack to get out of the way and Thundershock from above!" Volta jumped up in a blur, reappearing a few feet above Pinsir. It stopped in place, confused, and he used this to unleash a powerful Thundershock on it. It cried out in pain, and when the attack finished it was panting. Ashley looked at it with a practised eye. That looked close to the Thunderbolts that Mew and myself used when we were in Almia. She thought to herself. Maybe we'll get there soon.

"Pinsir!" Samurai shouted, regaining her attention. "Use Revenge!" Ashley's eyes widened.

"Use Agility in the air and Quick Attack away!" She countered quickly.

'Sure! I'll work on that!' He yelled back sarcastically. He blurred around, missing the brunt of the attack but still being clipped on the side.

"Volta, are you ok?" She asked, worried.

'Yeah. I'll be fine.' He grunted.

"Right. Try using Agility and Thundershocks."

"What are you trying?" Samurai asked.

"You'll see." Ashley thought back a few years, once again to the field trip to Almia, remembering some of the powerful moves they could use. The region had no trainers and rarely battled with Pokemon, so the coordination had been very surprising. Volta was soon jetting around the field, periodically firing Thundershocks at a confused Pinsir. "Now, Thundershock as strong as you can! And start running!" Volta followed her instructions perfectly, and a huge disk of electricity formed, with Volta running around the outer edge and Pinsir stuck in the middle. "Stop!" She called out, seeing that Pinsir couldn't continue. Volta returned to his original place in front of her, panting heavily and close to passing out himself. His opponent fell to the floor, completely exhausted.

"Pinsir, return." The Samurai looked at Ashley, stunned. "How did you do that?"

"By firing a continuous Thundershock, moving fast enough means that the lightning doesn't quite keep up with Volta's momentum, leaving the trail. Because he's focusing the attack on Pinsir, though, it means that the actual attack doesn't just fly away. It just makes the disk instead, as it has a place to focus and can follow on." She explained, picking up the tired Pikachu.

"Well, I'm impressed. It would appear the loudmouth from before was right."

"Who?" Ashley asked, confused.

"I've been battling every one of the trainers from Pallet Town. The most recent one said that there would be one more, and that she would be a very powerful trainer."

"Really? I wonder who'd have said that…" She thought aloud.

"If it is any help, he battled with a Squirtle."

"I might know who that is, but I don't recall exactly what my friends started with." She shrugged. "Anyway, shall we do another battle?"

"I agree." Samurai moved back to his original position as well. "Scyther!"

"Swiftstreak, up for a fight?" She asked, looking at her newest Pokemon.

'Sure!' He chirped enthusiastically.

"Ashley, what are you planning?" Misty said, still quivering at the huge amount of bugs in the area.

"Nothing really." She shrugged. "I just want to give him a test."

"I think that may be going too far."

"I don't think so." Ashley turned slightly, just so her hair covered her eye, and glanced at the Scyther in Aura Sight. From what she could tell, the bug type wasn't very powerful, leading her to believe that it was only a recent addition to the Samurai's team. Her Caterpie didn't seem too much better, but she could tell they would be fairly evenly matched. She shook her head again, moving her hair back as the blue glow faded, and grinned.

"Scyther, Quick Attack!"

"Swift, use String Shot to dodge!" The small Pokemon shot a web at a tree and pulled himself towards it, making Scyther miss by a mile. "Swing yourself around and Tackle!" Despite the weight of Caterpie being negligible in comparison the the Scyther, the speed of the attack helped deal damage to it. Before the Samurai reacted, a faint call of "Beeeedriiiilll…" stopped them in their tracks.

"What was that?" Misty said, shaking.

"The Beedrill swarm approaches." Samurai replied, returning Scyther. "Return your Pokemon and follow me." Strike landed next to Ashley.

'Climb on. I'll get you up and out of the way.'

"Misty, climb on Strike and get above the trees. Strike can keep you safe." Ashley replied instead.

'Ashley, what are you doing?' Torna asked, cocking her head. 'I'd carry you if I could.'

"Don't worry about me. I'm going to see if my old friend is here." She smiled. "Swift, Volta, do you want to go with them?"

'No way!' Volta shouted, shaking his head.

'If you're going to do something stupid, we'll come and keep you safe.' Swiftstreak added.

"Ok guys." She picked up Swiftstreak, and turned in the direction of the swarm. "Strike, Torna, get going. Follow the Samurai."

'I really hope you know what you're doing Ashley.' Strike shook his head, then took off. Samurai had already disappeared, so Torna went ahead of Strike to find him. As they broke through the treeline, Misty gave a small scream, which attracted the Beedrill. One of them lunged straight at Ashley, a powerful Twineedle attack at the ready. She closed her eyes, focusing on her Aura and trying to pull up a shield, but Swiftstreak didn't notice that and jumped off her shoulder. A wave of power disturbed her concentration, and she opened her eyes in surprise, only to close them again at the huge white light. Knowing what was happening, she put her arms in front of her to let her open her eyes for a moment, and watched her Metapod block the hit and start to fall.

"Swift!" She caught him, and used a slightly messy Heal Pulse to restore him.

'You ok Ashley?'

"Of course I am." She smiled. "That was silly though. Don't do it again."

'Well, I wasn't going to let you get hit!' He said indignantly.

"I know that. You distracted me, that's all. I was going to put up a shield, but the energy pulse from you evolving distracted me."

'Oh.' Was all he said, in a quiet voice.

"Hey, don't feel bad. Thanks for wanting to save me." She lifted the Metapod in her arms carefully and glanced around the swarm. "Now, where's Vespine?"

'Vespine?' Volta asked.

"She's my Beedrill friend. I met when I came out with 'Mya' to get some practise using Aura on Pokemon I didn't know." She replied, still searching.

'You're an Aura Adept?' One of the Beedrill, a younger one by the sound of it, questioned.

"Yes, I am." A few whispers scattered through the back of the swarm, most likely the youngest Beedrill, before an older one flew forward.

'We are sorry for attacking you, Adept.' It said, nodding to her. 'Many noises were coming from here, so we came to get rid of the disturbance.'

"Oh, sorry about that. I was having a battle with someone. I didn't realise the swarm was so close. I only came two months ago, and I thought the nest was further away from here." Ashley explained.

'Not a problem. Where is this one you mentioned?'

"He ran away, and I sent my traveling partner Misty with him, as did my birds." She said. "If you don't mind, could you get my friend Vespine for me? I think she was around here."

'Vespine is back at the hive.' The elder told her. 'Come, we shall guide you.' The rest of the swarm took the hint and started to fly back. Ashley followed them.

'Ashley? Are you going to call Strike and Torna back over now?' Swiftstreak asked.

"I'll do that in a second." She replied. "Telepathy using Aura takes some focus when the target is close. Long distance telepathy is much harder, as it takes huge amounts of focus. Once I'm better trained in it, it should take less time and focus to talk. It's also easier with Psychics and other Aura Adepts."

'How did you learn all of this?' Volta said.

"Mostly Lucario and the Johto trio." She explained. "'Mya' was able to help as well, her home is really close to Rota, so she knows a lot about Aura."

'Who're all these people you keep mentioning?' Swift asked.

"Volta can explain tonight. I would, but it isn't something for any other humans to hear."

'Young Adept, we are approaching the nest.' The elder Beedrill who had spoke before told her.

"Thank you. Do you mind if I call my birds over? They won't cause any harm." Beedrill nodded, and she closed her eyes.

'Strike, Torna, I'm with the swarm. I'm trying to find a friend. Feel free to come over to us.' She was sure that they'd get her message, so she opened her eyes. A few of the younger Beedrill flew away quickly, heading straight to the swarm.

'Vespine! Vespine!' They chorused. 'We ran into an Aura Adept in the forest! She wants to talk to you!'

'Really?' Another Beedrill asked them. 'Who is it?' Vespine floated out from behind one of the trees.

'She's over here!' The younger Beedrill pulled Vespine over to Ashley and her two Pokemon.

"Hey there Ves!" She waved. "How's things?"

'Ashley?' She hovered in front of the Aura user. 'Didn't think I'd see you here.'

"Yeah, I started my journey about a week ago. This is Volta, my starter," She nodded her head to the Pikachu on her shoulder. "And this is Swiftstreak. He's my most recent catch."

'Just two? I'd have thought you'd have more, Adept.' Vespine grinned, poking her in the shoulder lightly.

"I have a Pidgeotto too, but Torna's with my traveling partner Misty, and Strike, a shiny Staraptor that belongs to one of my friends from Sinnoh. She's currently in Johto for research."

'That's nice. How's your training?'

"It's been fine. I've struggled to practise much this last week though, as my partner still doesn't know about it yet."

'Do you plan to tell them?'

"Not sure." She lit up her eyes with Aura and scanned the sky. "They'll be here soon. Can you still do the telepathy trick you learned?"

'Sure can! I assume you want me to use it?'

"So I don't show my ability to understand Pokemon, yeah."

'Ok. It's fine with me, friend.' She assured Ashley. Once again, the fluttering of wings alerted Ashley to Strike's presence. The shiny bird landed next to her, and Misty slipped off his back while Torna took her place on the ground too.

"Hey Mist, how was the flight?"

"It's still odd. I'm not used to being in the air, even if I'm not that high."

'Maybe you should get a Flying type yourself to fly with.' Vespine suggested.

"That could be a good idea… waitaminute! Did you just talk?" Misty exclaimed, backtracking her sentence suddenly.

'Telepathy, actually.' She replied, chuckling slightly. 'It's something I picked up around a year ago.'

"That's really cool!" She said. Vespine flew forward and headbutted her gently, but Misty jetted away with a small shriek.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that Misty is terrified of Bug types." Ashley grinned.

'Oh. My apologies.' The Beedrill told her.

"Not a problem. Not your fault." She replied, eyeing the Bug type with some hesitance. Vespine floated back over to Ashley and hovered above her head.

'What do you plan to do now Ashley?'

"I'm working to challenge the Pewter Gym right now."

'Really?' She looked at the assembled team. 'I'm sure that's Rock type. Good luck with that.' She grinned.

"Be quiet you!" Ashley snapped. "We're working on it."

'Was that supposed to be a pun?' Vespine snickered. 'In all seriousness, you really do need help. And I know just the way!'

"What could you do?" Misty asked. "No offence, but I'm pretty sure you don't have any Rock moves, and you're weak to Rock type moves as well."

'Don't you have a Pokedex thing?' Ashley nodded. 'Scan me then!'

"If it's a move or ability I won't be able to tell unless I catch you." She replied.

'Awwww, that sucks.' She moaned. 'Come with me then!' The Bug grabbed at Ashley's arm and pulled her along. She went to do the same with Misty too, but remembered her fear of Bugs and left her alone, settling for dragging Ashley to a rock that was sitting a little ways away. She dropped her arm and flew over to the rock, leaving Ashley and her team watching. 'Watch this!' She floated over the rock and closed her eyes for a moment, before swinging her needle like arm downwards. It glowed white, or more so than normal, and crashed into it, splitting it in half.

"What was that?" Misty asked, seemingly unnerved by the power the bug held.

'It was Brick Break!' She said cheerfully, flying around in a circle. 'I picked it up a while ago.'

"I thought Brick Break was a TM move." Ashley stated.

'I don't know about that, but I do know that it's good against Rock types.' She giggled.

"That is true." Ashley sighed. "Why show us though?"

'Well, I thought-' Her telepathic message was cut short by a small explosion.

'What was that?' Volta yelped.

'I don't know, but it came from near the hive! Come on!' Vespine jetted off towards the tree fortress that was the Beedrill hive. Misty and Ashley followed, with Volta jumping to the ground and the two birds flying up. They ran/flew into the clearing, and were met with an odd sight. Two humans and a Meowth were holding nets, and were facing a horde of rather angry Beedrill. The reason for this soon became apparent, as they noticed the cages of Kakuna and Weedle in a balloon nearby.

"Haha, silly bugs!" Jessie gloated. "Now we have them all caught, what will you do?"

"Nothing, that's what!" James continued. "Not unless you want to watch them all be fried!"

'How… dare they!' Vespine yelled, her mental voice shaking with anger. 'How dare these lowlives take our family!'

'Hush now Ves, they can't win.' Ashley replied mentally. 'We'll stop them.'

'I sure as hell hope so!' She said viciously. 'What's the plan?'

'Volta shocks the cages mechanism to stop Team Rocket from getting them, Strike and Torna on sabotage. You can fight with me.' Ashley told her, spreading the message to the others and wincing as she did so.

'When?'

'When they notice us, they start a stupid song. That'll distract them.' Luckily, it was at that time that Misty called the Rocket members out.

"Hey! Aren't you the three idiots from Viridian?"

"I don't believe 'idiots' is the right term. Allow us to remind you who you're dealing with, girl." James sneered.

'Now!'

"Prepare for trouble."

"And make it double."

"To protect the world from devastation!"
"To unite all people within our nation!"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars above!"
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"Team Rocket blasting off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"
"Meowth! That's right!"
"What do you think you're doing?" Ashley said, with a deadly calm in her voice.

"Why, stealin' da Pokemon, o' course!" Meowth replied, looking at her like she was an idiot.

"Well, looks like I'll stop you then." She dropped Swiftstreak on the floor, letting him sit at her feet, and looked to Vespine. "Let's go girl!"

'Let's teach these fools a lesson!' The bee 'grinned' viciously.

'What can you use then?'

'Poison Sting, Brick Break, Twineedle, Fury Attack.' She reeled off.

"Ekans, go!"

"Koffing, fight!"

"Hey! Two on one isn't fair!" Misty argued.

"I agree. However, Ves is more powerful than either of them." Ashley smirked.

"Yeah? Well how about you back that up!" Jessie shouted, clearly irked.

'Swarm, get out of the way. This is about to get dangerous.' Vespine ordered. They nodded, and flew back into the trees, out of the way of the upcoming battle.

"Ves, let's get them out of the way! Twineedle!"

"Poison Sting!" Both criminals shouted.

"Left!" 'Don't listen to that, go right!' Ashley commanded, using her Aura to give the actual plan. The 'small' bug feinted to the left like Ashley had shouted, and both opposing Poison types tracked her over before she looped and flew around the right, then sped forwards to crash needle first into the Koffing, and knocking him into the Ekans. Out of the corner of her eye, Ashley watched as Volta quietly shocked the cages and cracked them open, and both Strike and Torna tear the balloon with Steel Wing and Quick Attack, respectively.

'What now boss?' Vespine called, returning to her place in front of Ashley.

"Swoop in with Fury Attack!" Replied Ashley, making eye contact with Volta and flicking her head slightly to the right. 'Send them back to the Rockets. Volta, get ready.' Vespine didn't reply or react, as she was busy poking the enemy with her sharp needle arms, but the mouse's eye widened as he caught onto what she meant. He nodded and moved quietly into position behind the trio. They all ended up in a pile, trapped underneath their Pokemon. "Volta, Thundershock!"

'Get outta here Team Rocket!' He yelled, firing a huge bolt of electricity at the five. It exploded, and all of them had to cover their eyes from the light.

"Look's like Team Rocket's blasting off again!" The remaining Beedrill came out from the trees, blinking the lights from their eyes, and reunited with the Weedle and Kakuna that had been trapped.

'Holy heck, was that Thunder?' Vespine telepathically shouted. 'That was insane!'

"I really hope that wasn't Thunder." Ashley replied, also blinking rapidly. "If it was, that was a lot less powerful than I was expecting." She bought the Pokedex out of her pocket, and pointed it towards Volta again. She ignored the actual dex entry, and focused on what it said after.

'This Pokemon has the moves Thundershock, Growl, Tail Whip, Iron Tail and Thunderbolt. It also has the egg move Volt Tackle, though this has not been unlocked.'

"Ok, never mind. That was a Thunderbolt, and a lot more powerful than I was expecting."

"How powerful were you expecting?" Misty asked, shaking her head.

"Well, I saw a few Pikachu with my tutors once, but their Thunderbolts weren't massively powerful." Ashley told her, putting her Pokedex away. Torna and Strike flew back over to her, and Volta jumped to her shoulder.

'Doesn't matter how powerful it was, it was helpful!' He said enthusiastically. Vespine translated telepathically for Misty.

"Yes bud, it was." Ashley grinned, patting him. "Now Ves, what were you saying earlier?"

'I was going to ask if I could join you.' She asked hopefully. 'I mean, you're a good friend, and I can tell you're powerful, so…?'

"I'd love for you to join me, but what about the swarm?" Ashley asked worriedly.

'They aren't my swarm, someone else leads them.' Vespine replied, gesturing towards the swarm, that were currently talking to the Weedle and Kakuna that had been caught. 'So… do you mind?'

"Of course not!" Ashley smiled widely. "You're a great friend of mine, and clearly powerful. Go say any goodbyes, then come on back." Vespine nodded, and flew over to the rest of the swarm.

"You're really getting another bug?" Misty asked, trembling.

"Well, she's my friend, and she asked, and she could be helpful against the gym." Ashley shrugged, picking up Swiftstreak again.

"Ok." Misty flinched.

"It's also likely that Ves can lead us out towards Pewter City." Ashley continued, looking over the swarm.

"I guess." They waited a few minutes, then Vespine flew back over.

'I'm done with my goodbyes.' She smiled as best she could. 'Let's get going then.'

"Ok." She tapped the bee on the head with the Pokeball, and a few moments later it clicked shut. She quickly released her, and she shook her head. "How was it?"

'Fine. Felt a bit weird, but I'll get use to that.' She nudged Ashley. 'Now, let's head out. I'll show you the way.'

Around a half an hour later, the group of six exited the forest.

"Finally!" Misty said, relieved. "Out of that forest!"

"I have to admit, it was starting to annoy me as well." Ashley admitted. "I'll have to return you three now." She said to Vespine, Torna and Swiftstreak. "I'll call you out later."

'Ok.' 'Ok.' The three said, and were sucked back into their Pokeballs. Strike resettled next to Ashley.

"It's time for you to head off now, right?" She said.

'Yep. Remember to call at some point.' He nodded. 'We'll be here in Kanto quite soon, so we'll try and find you.'

"Ok then. See you soon." She replied, patting his head. He cooed and nudged her, then took off again quickly, circling a few times before flying west to Johto. "Right. Let's get going to the Pokemon Center. I'll challenge the gym tomorrow."

"Ok." Misty looked around. "Follow me." She led the way over to the Center, and Ashley followed behind.

"I'll drop you lot off for a check, along with the eggs, and make the phone call to Aunt Delia while you explain to the others about my friends." She said to Volta in a low voice.

'Alright. How much?'

"Mya, the trio, and the eggs. Also Aura properly." She replied, even quieter.

'Right. I'll start explaining and try not to let them annoy you on the phone. What about what Strike told me?' Ashley was silent for a moment, long enough for Volta to worry that maybe he shouldn't have asked, but then she spoke.

"I think that would be best. Leave that until the end, though, please."

'Ok.' They stayed quiet until they reached the Center.

"Hello Nurse Joy, can we get a room each for the night?" She asked.

"Of course you can." She replied, handing two keys over to the girls. "Anything else?"

"Can you give my team a check over please?" Ashley requested.

"Mine too." Both girls put their Pokeballs on the counter, and Volta jumped next to them so Ashley could get to her bag. She carefully took the two incubators from it and placed them down too, ignoring the curious look Misty gave her.

"I also need you to check these eggs for me."

"Not a problem." She smiled. "Please go and wait over there." Both girls took a seat on the side.

"Where did you get those eggs Ashley?" Misty asked her. "I didn't see you with them before. Did Strike bring them?"

"No. I got them as a gift on the first day of my journey." She said truthfully.

"Who from? And what are they?"

"My aunt gave them me. I don't know what they are, and I'll wait to find out."

"They look pretty special. Maybe they're rare Pokemon?"

"They might be." Ashley replied. Oh, you have no idea. She stood up and went over to a signboard, choosing to attempt to avoid continuing the conversation. Surprisingly, it worked, and Misty didn't bother to continue talking. She stood there reading the board, unconsciously fiddling with the crystal around her neck. Luckily it wouldn't activate unless she put Aura into it to send the message, so it just sat there next to the red jewel on her wrist.

"Hey Ashley, where did you get that bracelet from?" Misty asked, catching sight of it. "It's really pretty."

"I don't know where it's from. It was a gift from my cousins when I moved over." She replied truthfully.

"What are your cousins like?"

"They're twins, and live in that northern area like I said. They're really nice, but a little odd sometimes. I don't mind though, it's kinda fun." She smiled, happy to think about her home region without many bad memories. Most of the actual good memories involved her parents, and she didn't really want to think about that. Even after five years, it still stung. A small flicker of Aura washed across the bracelet, but she didn't notice, going back to reading. Misty did, though, and stared at it, confused.

Did her bracelet just glow? She thought. She kept looking at it for a few moments more, but the ruby stayed red. I must be imagining things. There's no way it could change colour. A small ping made them both look up, and Ashley looked in Aura Sight to see Nurse Joy, with six Pokeballs and a Pikachu. She walked over to the desk and stood there, waiting for her team to come back, and Misty followed.

"Here you are, your teams are both perfectly fine." Volta jumped onto the counter, but stayed there, letting Ashley get her bag. "And these two eggs are in perfect condition as well."

"Thank you." She smiled, taking the incubators one at a time and putting them in her bag. She shouldered it and Volta climbed up. She clipped the balls to her belt, and Misty did the same. "I'm going to head upstairs. I've got a few calls to make before I turn in."

"I'm going to take a look around the town before heading up. Goodnight."

"Night." Ashley smiled at her friend before heading to the room she had been given. She quickly shut herself inside and took a few calming breaths. Volta jumped back down and gave her a worried look.

'You ok?'

"Sure am." She took another breath and steadied herself. "Ok. I've got three calls to make, two depending on where my aunt and the Professor are." She dropped her bag carefully and took the eggs out, placing them on the side. "I'll start with Mya, then the others. With Mya, I talk telepathically, so I'll be a bit blank until after. Don't disturb me please."

'Of course Boss!' Volta said, and she chuckled.

"Right. Good luck keeping them under control." She took one final breath, then released her team. They got into fighting positions, then relaxed, confused. "I've got some calls to make, and Volta has some explaining to do on my behalf. Mostly because it kinda hurts to talk about some of it, so it's better to make my calls while he does. Please just listen, and I'll answer questions after I'm done. Ok?"

'Sure thing.' They grinned.

"Thank you." She grinned to Volta. "Good luck."

'Thanks. Where shall I start?'

"Same list from earlier. Leave the extra 'till last." He nodded, and settled down.

'Right. Get comfortable, this is gonna take a while.' She smiled, then leaned against the wall herself and grasped the crystal around her neck.

'Hi again Mew. Can you open a connection again? I want to talk about some stuff.' Mew popped into her head a few seconds later.

'Hi Ashley! How's everything?'

'Going great, thanks.'

'That's good to hear. I assume you didn't just call me for gossip, though, did you?'

'You'd be right in thinking that. I have a few questions and you're the only one who can answer them.'

'Fire away chick.'

'Is it possible to teach a Pokemon or person to harness Aura? I remember being told that it's in everything, so could we?'

'For Pokemon, yes. Most already use Aura to power up their attacks anyway, so you just need to split it from the natural type. For people, if they aren't an Aura adept like you, then it's unlikely they can do much. Aura Sight and translations are about it.'

'Ok. I'm about to challenge the Pewter gym, and my team isn't the best against Rock types. I was thinking of teaching Volta how to use Force Palm to give a small advantage.'

'Oh, you're in Pewter? It's quite close to Rota, maybe I'll stop by and watch. Maybe you-'

'No thanks Mew. I still don't want to face it.' She could hear Volta talking distantly, and the others of her team seemed quite shocked.

'Alright. Why ask about people?'

'I have a new travelling partner, Misty. I was thinking about explaining Aura to her, and teaching her something.'

'It might not be safe. Make a call whenever you're ready. It's your power.'

'Ok. Continuing with Aura, how come you always weakened you Psychic power when I was training?'

'Psychic and Aura are very different. The reason is that if the two are too close, they short each other out, and neither can use them. Aura Sight and Psych Scans are the limit. Luckily, really weak energies can work together, so I just powered down instead.'

'Ouch. That sounds bad.'

'It can be, yes. Anything else?'

'No, that's it, thanks.'

'Ok. I'll come by tomorrow and stay around. I'll try and watch your battle!' The link cut off, and Ashley grinned. She stayed still for a few moments longer, then moved to her bag and got the X-transceiver out, along with some earbuds. She wanted to make sure no one could overhear the conversation.

'Right, next up is mostly for Torna. Ashley can use Aura.' She typed in the number needed to call her home, and grinned as she felt the surprised gaze of her bird Pokemon. She quickly dialed the number, and her aunt picked up after a few rings.

"Hello dear!"

"Hi Aunt Delia. How are you?"

"I'm fine thank you. What about you?"

"Great! I just got out of Viridian forest earlier, along with my travelling partner Misty. That was fun, considering that she is petrified of Bugs." Her aunt flinched.

"Ouch, that doesn't sound good. Have you expanded your team anymore? I remember meeting Volta last time you called."

"Yeah, I've caught a few new friends. There's Torna, a Pidgeotto I found being attacked by a flock of Spearow. I healed her with Aura, though she didn't realise it, while Strike went and got Misty and Volta for me. I'd stormed off when Volta had kept talking to me about… some stuff." She flicked her wrist slightly, drawing attention to her bracelet, knowing Delia would understand.

"Oh. Are Volta and Torna ok? And what about Strike?"

"Strike left this morning, when we got out. And they're both fine. Anyway, I also got a Metapod, named Swiftstreak, or Swift for short." Her aunt looked confused, and she elaborated. "He has a special speed stat. And I picked up Vespine, you remember her? I caught her as well. I'd show you the team, but Volta's busy talking to them."

"Right. I spoke to the Professor, obviously, and he immediately wanted to study them, but I managed to talk him out of getting you to send them to him. He's probably going to badger you with questions the next time you're both together."

"That sounds great." She groaned. "I just hope he doesn't yell about them too much."

"It'll probably happen anyway. So what are you doing now?"

"I'm in Pewter. I was planning to challenge the gym tomorrow, but I might push that back a bit. I was talking to Mya earlier, and I want to test something with Aura."

"Ok. I'll be going,I've got some things I need to do. Bye sweetie!"

"Bye." She hung up and put them X-transceiver in her bag. She took another deep breath, readying herself for what was likely to be a storm as Volta finished talking. She'd stopped hearing the Pokespeech for the actual words at some point during the conversation with her aunt, as though the entirety of her aura reserves had disabled themselves to stop needing to listen to what would occur. She slowly closed her eyes and reactivated her powers, focusing on being able to understand, and pulsing Aura into her wish. She couldn't tell if it had worked, as none of them were saying a word. So, instead of bothering to think about it, she just turned around and gave a weak smile.

"All done?" She asked quietly, not needing the answer. Torna took wing and glided over to her, wrapping her wings around her. Volta followed over, wriggling under to sit in her lap. Vespine hovered over holding Swiftstreak, who she placed on her lap next to Volta before floating to hug her as well.

'Ok?' Torna asked.

"Of course."

'Sure?'

"Yes, I am." She hugged each of them in turn. "I guess Volta told you everything then?"

'Yes.' Swift said. 'Is there anything he missed?'

"Nothing he missed, just stuff that he didn't quite know about. Though, I'm not sure what you know about my past, as Strike told him that."

'I think I got everything that Strike knew, so you'd have to fill in the gaps.'

'I'll do my best to do that later, or leave it to our guest."

'Guest?' Vespine asked.

"I mentioned to Volta that I was going to be talking to my aunt and Mya. I assume he told you who Mya is?" They nodded. "Well, she's going to come and visit. She wants to watch my gym battle, and I think she wants to help with training. She can get a little over the top, though, so be warned. If you need to stop, just say."

'Seriously?' Torna said, surprised. 'Volta said you were friends, but you can just call her for that?'

"I didn't call her over to help. I wanted to ask her something. You all already know I can use Aura. Well, Mya lives in a very important place, near a kingdom which has a lot to do with Aura. It turns out that, because Pokemon have a lot of natural aura that goes into your typed attacks, I can teach you to manipulate it. You can either make your normal attacks stronger, or use Aura specialised attacks like Aura Sphere and Force Palm. Of course, she can't really help much, but I think she's coming to supervise." At her team's flabbergasted looks, she added, "If you want to, that is."

'If we want to?' Vespine repeated.

'Ashley, that sounds awesome!' Volta grinned up at her.

'Yeah, it sounds really helpful.' Swiftstreak said.

"Ok. But as a warning, it sure won't be easy. Although," Ashley focused for a moment, and winced slightly. 'You'll all be able to do this.'

'I already can.'

"I know Ves, but telepathy using Aura is easier with other Aura users or Psychics powerful enough. And good luck with that."

'Why's that?'

"From what Mya said, when a Psychic and Aura user get too close, they can short each other out. It pretty much limits you to Aura Sight or Psych Scans."

'But, Volta said you learned with Mew. How did that work?'

"She's powerful enough to be able to block most of her power, leaving her weakened, but we could still use our respective powers because of it." She pulled the small crystal back into sight. "This acts as a focuser, as well as letting me send messages to Mya via its link to the Tree." Torna looked curious, as did the others, so she quickly continued. "Later. Anyway, it lets me focus Aura better."

'Right. What's the Tree? Volta didn't mention that.' Torna asked.

"That's because he didn't know. I'd rather let Mya explain herself tomorrow, as I don't really know anything about it. If you don't mind, I'd like to sleep. I'll head back to the forest for a training spot."

'Ok. Good night.' The other three members of her team returned themselves, and Ashley lay down, Volta at her side in a little ball.

"Night all."

AN: All done!

K: Woooo, long chapter.

SV: Well, only in comparison to the rest of my chapters.

P: Either way, what he says rings true.

T: If it sounded a little rushed, none of us like Viridian Forest, mostly because we get lost a lot.

SV: Yeah, I wanted to get out of there as soon as I could. Still, another apology for that delay to Child of Mew, I know you guys like it. Nothing else really of note here, see you next time!