A/N: Guess who's back? Hello my lovely readers...
I am here today with the third to last chapter of the book. I have successfully completed every chapter and I feel so ecstatic over that. Feels good to begin thinking about my next project. The next book will be called: Tales of a Rising Master.
I apologize for the hiatus. This chapter gave me issues to write... and I suffered from writer's block for a while. In combination with everything that's happened in my life since I last uploaded, it took me a while to feel satisfied with what I was doing. I'm in better spirits now.
I'm not going to leave you waiting. Please, enjoy the chapter! Happy reading~
Disclaimer: I'm not gonna even mention how Pokemon itself isn't mine but is instead owned by Gamefreak. The story? Yeah, that's mine. Please don't steal it.
"Stab the body and it heals, but injure the heart and the wound lasts a lifetime." -Mineko Iwasaki
Chapter 41: Family Reunion
Delia had the couple, Aurora and Pikachu trapped on certain trees. When they tried to move, they found that they couldn't. Delia laughed at their struggle, "If you know the truth, then you must know Aurora is my fake sister in my fake family."
"Our parents loved you as if you were their own child! You are still their child in their eyes! How dare you say that about them?!" Aurora roared.
Delia was not amused at the sudden outburst. She closed her hand. All of them got shocked from the inside out. Ash, Pikachu and Aurora took it relatively well, while Serena didn't feel too much damage. At worse, it felt like a static shock. Serena wondered why she wasn't in that much pain as everyone else was. Delia was too irritated to notice Serena didn't take too much damage. Aurora continued to glower at her older sister.
"Quiet! You know that isn't true. They only got me because they didn't think they would have a child! Then you came and everything changed! They started to treat you like the perfect princess while I was I was pushed aside like a rag doll! They hated me because I was a psychic, but felt pity that I had nowhere else to go! Do you know how that feels?" Delia growled.
Aurora couldn't believe what she was hearing. Aurora closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. With aura coursing through her, her body became surrounded by purple energy. The dark-type aura was enough for Aurora to break free from Delia's psychic grip. In her hands, she created a bone club of aura and used it as if it was a staff. Delia and Aurora began to circle around each other, wondering when the other would attack.
"Are you serious? That isn't my fault you feel that way. I didn't ask to be treated like a dolled up little girl. I just wanted to be myself. Our parents still love you despite you being a psychic. They kept you despite hating psychics. Besides, I thought you got over this. I can't believe you still feel jealous of me. I didn't ask to be born, you know." Aurora defended while walking around her.
Delia brought out her hand, but this time, Aurora was prepared for it. With her bone club, she brought it down before Delia could bring out her hand completely. Delia's hand became suspended in the air. Delia sucked her teeth, "Stupid aura grip…"
"Look. I don't want to fight you. If anything, I want to help you, but that's impossible if you keep listening to Charles and Nyxcipher's lies!" Aurora said.
Delia turned her head away and then summoned a blast of electricity with her free hand. Aurora rolled out of the way to dodge it. Now somewhat enraged, Aurora swiftly approached Delia. Before she could think, Aurora tripped her with her bone club and pressed the weapon on Delia's chest. The older Ketchum tried to get up from the ground, but Aurora's physical strength was too overwhelming. Aurora applied more force to keep her down and looked at her with pure annoyance.
Weighing her options, Delia racked her brain for what she could do. In the corner of her eye, she could see Ash, Serena and Pikachu still trapped in her psychic grip. Closing her eyes, she sent a powerful surge of electricity to the three still bound by it. Ash and Pikachu screamed in agony while Serena only felt moderate pain. Aurora noticed Ash's pain and immediately stopped what she was doing to tend to him.
Delia grabbed a hold of Aurora's long hair and yanked it. Aurora elbowed in her stomach to make her stop, then followed it with a kick in the same place. Delia held her gut as she tried to recover. Aurora pointed her bone club at Delia, but stayed in front of Ash. He was still stuck on the tree.
She spat, "What's wrong? Afraid of me?"
"Of course not. I have better things to do than humor a weak person." Aurora spat back. "Let them go!"
"What reason do I have to do that? Ash, his little whore and his defected rat is perfect for hostage material." Delia scoffed. Ash looked angry, Serena hurt and Pikachu didn't know what to think. Ash was angry at his aunt insulting his love and his best friend. Serena was hurt hearing her call her a whore. Seeing Delia like this made the electric type sad because he liked her. The mouse had been called worse, but it still didn't help how he felt. He wanted to help his trainer, but he felt useless.
"Do not ever call a lady such a horrid name! Little Chu is better than that, too. I don't know if this is some sick game, but I'm tired of playing it. Let them go… or else!" Aurora's bone club began to radiate more aura as she narrowed her eyes. Delia laughed.
"So… we're playing the 'or else' game, little sis? It's been a long time since we've gotten a chance to, so I'll humor you. Or else what?" Delia crossed her arms and looked at Aurora with challenge.
"Or else… this!" Aurora slammed her bone club down on the ground. Upon slamming the earth, the ground started to shake. Delia didn't know what to expect. Anticipating a fissure, she levitated into the air, but Aurora smirked. Aurora twirled her bone club and pointed it at Delia. She summoned a strong surge of cold aura, similar to Blizzard. Delia was caught off guard by the sudden cold and this was enough to make her concentration break fully. Ash, Pikachu and Serena fell from the tree they were stuck on. Aurora immediately helped Ash up from the ground, but still looked at Delia, guarded. Delia fell from the sky and landed on her feet, shivering.
"Tricky! That was a well-played fake-out." Delia spat with disgust.
"You should know about faking people out, Delilah. After all, you are a fake yourself." Aurora crossed her arms.
Delia's eyes twitched slightly upon hearing the statement. With a low growl, she teleported randomly from place to place. Aurora tried to keep track of her sister, but found that her movements were more rapid than before. Each time she appeared right by Aurora, she slapped her in her face. Aurora grunted each time she had to take a slap. Delia was also very unpredictable, making it next to impossible to retaliate properly. Eventually, Delia made a sweep of Aurora's leg. Aurora felt an intense pain in her legs, but she didn't trip like Delia wanted.
"Don't you dare call me a fake!" Delia grabbed Aurora from behind and restrained her. Aurora struggled to force Delia to let go, but she wasn't deterred. Aurora was surprised at the strength of her older sister. Psychics weren't normally this physically strong. Still, she could tell Delia's composure was snapping. She made very little effort trying to escape, trying to make Delia think she had her.
"Why? Is it because you failed to earn the mark of the family?" Aurora said deliberately.
"Stop it!" She roared. Aurora made a small smirk as her bang covered her eyes.
"I merely speak the truth. You failed to get our mark because you aren't a real Ketchum. You've never been a real Ketchum." Aurora continued in a low voice. They both knew how deep those words hurt. Aurora had to eat up an electric shock from close range. She screamed in pain as she struggled to take in the hit, but she didn't let her anger consume her. She was tempted to properly retaliate, but decided against it. She wanted to slowly weaken her in any way she could. Using her wits, she transformed herself into aura and moved away from her. She re-materialized with her hands and knees on the ground, shaken up slightly. Ash and Serena looked horrified.
"Aurora!" Ash called out and ran over to her. He checked her. Aurora looked slightly shaken, but was otherwise alright. She shook her head and brushed herself off. She got up from the ground, but not before blocking him with her arm. She looked at him, fearful of his safety.
"Stay out of this Ash. Get away from here. I can handle her." Aurora growled while looking at Delia. Ash looked reluctant to go, but Aurora flashed a small smile. He could tell she had a plan and decided to trust in that.
"You cannot escape this forest, just like nine years ago. I've put up a barrier." Delia smirked. She saw no change in Aurora's expression. In fact, she had the small smile. Delia was caught off guard by Aurora's reaction. She pressed further, "Don't you see, sweet sister? You can't do anything to escape. You're going to end up worse than the first time. I can't wait to see you dead beneath my feet."
Aurora smile grew wide as she began to laugh. In fact, she laughed heartily.
Aurora cracked her knuckles and continued to regard the mahogany haired human warmly. She looked like she was preparing herself, "Oh… I don't have to worry about that. I believe in myself."
"I beat you in almost every sparring match we've had. You cannot hope to beat me here." Delia argued. Aurora laughed once again.
Aurora's yellow eyes turned red suddenly. Delia rose her guard. Aru stated and shrugged, "While I won't deny that to be true, but keep in mind who you're dealing with. You're dealing with the most technical of all the Ketchums. Aurora lives on holding back to not overwhelm people… and that included you. Every time she lost against you, it was because she held back and wanted to see what new things you've been taught. Besides, I think you've already established that this is no sparring match. We will see who will get beaten, big sis."
"As much as I want to prove you wrong, that's not within the mission." Delia pointed to Ash. Aru's eyes narrowed as they turned back into amber. Delia smirked, "He is coming with me."
"I'm not letting you take him away from his real family," Aurora growled. She rose one of her hands and trapped Delia in her aura grip. Before Delia could distort Aurora's senses to escape, Aurora closed her hand. She poured dark type energy into her. Delia withered in agony as her psychic powers were suppressed. Aurora's smile quickly turned into a frown. She yanked her arm towards a tree and Delia's body followed. Delia couldn't move.
Aurora used her free hand to throw up one of her Poké Balls in the air. In a flash of bright light, a large draconian with piercing red eyes was summoned. Upon seeing Delia, Chari was tempted to snap her neck in two, but Aurora stopped her without looking at her.
Aurora stated, "Take them both to the tree."
Upon hearing this, Delia struggled even more to be rid of her sister's influence, but it was too strong. She had never seen Aurora so willing to use dark aura to subdue a psychic opponent. She was even more surprised to see that she wasn't raging out of control from the continuous usage. Delia had a sickening feeling in her stomach that Aru was right and that Aurora was no longer holding back against her. She'd never seen Aurora so calm.
"But what about her?" Chari growled towards Delia.
"Her powers may be potent, but she's stayed the same since the last time we've fought. I've got this." Aurora responded. Delia scowled in outrage by the insult. "Make sure you find the sources that's keeping up this barrier."
"Faint or kill?" Chari asked bluntly.
"Only make the Pokémon faint, Chari." Aurora closed her eyes and touched the ground. She blotted everyone out and focused on her sensing. Her hair started to wildly move around on its own. When she was done, her hair fell back into place.
Her gaze grew sharp. She pointed in six separate directions. She spoke with an air of seriousness and command Ash hadn't seen before, "Delilah has six Pokémon holding up the barrier, perfectly spaced away from each other in a circular shape. They teleported to their spots, but they are no match for your strength. Ambush each one individually and make sure no Pokémon can alert other partners. Make sure you only defeat them before other Zurui members arrive. I know Delilah isn't stupid enough to come only by herself without requesting for backup first. And above all else… keep my two young ones safe." She said the last part with a bit of a whisper, so only Chari heard her. Chari looked back at Ash and Serena and chuckled to herself. Then, she nodded.
Aurora kissed her on the top on her snout. "I'm glad I have you and the rest of my friends with me this time. I feel a lot at ease with you guys near. Stay safe, alright?"
"I should be saying the same about you, you know." Chari noted. Aurora chuckled a little bit and gave Chari a look of acknowledgement. She noticed Aurora's hand beginning to shake and knew she needed to leave with the teens very soon before her hold on Delia was gone and Delia could force her to return in her capsule. Abruptly, Chari grabbed Ash, Serena and Pikachu and placed them on her back, much to all of their protests. Then, she flew off to find the six Pokémon.
Ash looked back, somewhat frustrated. On any other day, he would have been arguing to stay, helping out in any way he could. Even though he didn't know that much about his aura, he would have done something to help. He was amazed how much the memory made him vulnerable. He felt weak. He noticed that Aurora glanced up at him and looked overcome with emotion. He figured it was hard to separate from him like this, especially after what they just witnessed. He knew she was doing this for his safety. Meanwhile, Serena was looking at Ash was a bit of sadness as she could sense his frustration.
She wanted to say something to comfort him. She wondered if her words would have any effect, but she had to try. She said in a soft voice, "Hey… Aurora will pull through. I know she will. I know you'll remember everything."
"Seeing my… mother… like this stirs my mind, Serena. I feel like I'm missing something, but I don't know what." Ash admitted. He began to look down in thought. "Something doesn't feel right. I don't like to run away. I definitely feel like I need to be there, just like last time. Abandoning someone to save myself is just not me."
"(Spoken like a true Ketchum, Ash. I'm against it, too, but I understand Aurora's strategy. Divide and conquer. We do need the barrier down before we can do anything else. After I deal with Delilah's partners, I'll… d-d-disobey Aurora just this once. Although I need to make sure you're safe, I understand how you feel about helping her.)" Chari said without looking up at either teen. Ash smiled slightly and nodded his head. Chari distanced herself from her trainer until the trees blocked her from Aurora's sight.
Aurora had a small tear in her eye and opened her hand. Delia gasped as she was released from Aurora's dark aura grip and fell onto her knees. Her arms were shaking and she struggled to keep herself up. She looked up at Aurora with pure hatred. Aurora looked down at her with little remorse. Her eyes were seething with anger, anger that Delia hadn't seen before. Her fists were set ablaze in blue flames, her teeth were clenched and her eyes were glowing yellow.
"Get up." Aurora said in a cold voice. Delia struggled to get up, but she found she was weakened by Aurora's dark aura grip. Aurora seemed to know this. "You can't, can you? I'm not the side to do this often, but dark aura will siphon away the victim's power if the user is willing. It's like an aura sucking grip, similar to if I directly touched you."
"You…" Delia uttered, seeping with venom.
"You're lucky I didn't let the dark aura be with me. 'Cause if I did, you would have died with the aura. Even now, I'm trying to contain my negative inhibitions due the extended use." Aurora closed her eyes. "I'm conflicted in another sense."
"Part of me wants to kill you to pay for your sins. Once a betrayer, always a betrayer. I want to witness your downfall." Aurora's eyes turned red as they were seething in bloodlust. Her body was shivering not to act on her thunderous emotions. Delia flinched slightly. Then, Aurora took back control and took deep breaths. She shuddered as she felt Aru's rage, but it wasn't only her counterbalance she was fighting. She was fighting her own anger.
"And part of me wants to give you another chance. It's never too late to change. I want to witness your rise." Aurora said in a much gentler voice. "I'm giving you the choice, dear sister. You can choose to fight for Nyxcipher and the Zurui out of jealousy or you can choose to fight for Mew and Arceus and help be rid of the rift that separates psychics and guardians. If you decide to fight for Nyxcipher, I will respect it, but I will try in the fullest extent of my power to oppose you. If you fight with Mew, I will welcome you with open arms. Who knows? If you prove yourself, maybe Mew will finally grant you the mark of a Ketchum."
"I will never fight alongside you!" Delia suddenly got up from the ground and glowed with a white light as any signs of fatigue dissipated. Aurora narrowed her eyes, but stayed in the same spot. She growled, "You took everything away from me. The love of my parents! My lover! My dignity! Everything! You must pay!"
"I had nothing to do with our parents. Redrick dating me had nothing to do with me, either. He chose to be with me. I hate how you always blame me for all of your problems! I always tried to support you even when no one else did! Even when you started to push me away!" Aurora roared back. Delia looked away with a snort. "And as repentance? You took my son away from me. Other than my partners, he's the main thing I treasure before my own life. You crushed my soul, took my memory and raised him under false pretenses. Out of jealously, you took him away from me thinking that's how you would get revenge. Even when I visited you in my memory loss, you hid Ash from me. You joined the same team that aims to destroy all Ketchums and the world, mind you, to make the ultimate betrayal to not just me, but to Mew herself."
"Don't even tell me about that pink fuzzball, Little Miss Perfect." Delia hissed.
"My offer still stands, but if you are too hard headed to pay it any heed, then bad on you. I hope you know the mistake you're making…" Aurora's eyes suddenly turned red. Delia grew alarmed. "… not accepting Aurora's offer. Have at you, big sister!"
Aru surrounded herself in dark yellow aura and recreated her bone club of aura. She seemingly disappeared and reappeared right beside Delia, but her sister's reflexes were quick. Delia grabbed the bone club and struggled to overtake her. With a smirk, Aru made it disappear and gave her an uppercut. The force was enough to knock Delia upward and onto the ground. Delia quickly recovered from the ground, but Aru anticipated this and made a low sweep at her legs. Delia immediately lost balance and fell on her rear again.
She rolled out of the way to dodge Aru's punch. The red eyes guardian made a slight hole in the ground, but promptly removed her hand from the hole like it was nothing. She smirked at her sister with her trademark smile. Delia tried thinking of a way to allow herself to get off the ground long enough so that Aru couldn't repeat the process. Delia brought out her hands and halted Aru's movements with her psychic grip. She forced her body to move away long enough for Delia to stand up and clutch her ankles in slight pain. Aru looked relatively calm.
Aru made a nasty grin as her body became surrounded in dark aura once again. She began to push through Delia's psychic resistance. Aru inched closer and closer to her wayward sister. The closer she got, the more menacing she appeared and the more alarmed Delia grew. The aura around her was ever changing, enveloping her as if it was sentient, but at the same time, Aru looked in control of herself. Delia grew very alarmed at both the aura and the guardian herself. Aru cupped her hands together and shot out a blast of pure negative emotion. Delia gasped as she rolled out of the way. She didn't want to feel the effects of dark aura after the first time. The dark aura around Aru subsided, but her grin remained.
Tired of being defensive, Delia decided to take a stand. Surging towards the ebony haired guardian with a breakneck pace, Delia tried to punch her in the stomach. Aru caught it with her right hand and shook her head. She waggled her finger in mock disappointment. She then twisted Delia's wrist and made her fall down to her knees. Delia groaned in agony the more she twisted it. Aru's eyes had a small yellow gleam to them as she loosened her grip slightly, but maintained a firm hold. Aru's look became more of a warning to her sister. Her eyes turned completely red again as she lit Delia's body ablaze in red flames. Delia screamed in pain as her body struggled to take in the heat. Aru grunted in response.
"I thought you were better than me…" Aru's voice was dripping with both venom. "I thought you beat me in every practice fight we've had. Shouldn't the same result happen again in a real brawl? Or… should the result you wanted nine years ago happen? Backstabber!"
Delia couldn't respond because the pain was too much. She was only holding out because her body was healing itself just as it was getting burned by the flames. They both knew that the ebony haired guardian was purposely keeping the flames weak. While Aru was savoring every moment of her misery, Aurora had blocked herself off from seeing Delia like this. She couldn't stand to see her in pain, but deep down she knew she wasn't totally against Delia wailing in agony either. She wondered what was wrong with her.
"You tell me." Aru laughed maliciously. She raised the intensity of the flames. Delia's screaming increased. Her body was beginning to lose out of healing against Aru's aura. "Go ahead, tell me. I want to hear what you think. I should have faded out of existence the first time, right? Aurora should have died in this exact area, right? Ash should still be with you, right? Right?!" Aru's voice was shaking and raising as she spoke. The flames got stronger and stronger the angrier Aru got.
"I…" Delia could barely choke out.
"I can't hear you…. and I know you're much stronger than this." Aru said in slight disappointment. She shook her head in sadness. "I bet you want me dead even more than before. It wouldn't surprise me. I would want me dead, to be perfectly honest. Enough torture."
Aru made the flames stop and threw the multi eyed psychic on the ground. Delia coughed out some smoke. She looked up at Aru fearfully. Aru formed multiple aura spheres around herself and got into a fighting stance. "I want to see what you're made of. I want to find out which one of us really would win in an actual fight. Maybe that's my warrior side talking, but Ketchums are known to pushing themselves to the extreme. I know you feel the same way because you were raised the same way as me."
Delia's body once again began to glow white as it quickly healed itself. Aru made no effort to stop her.
"You… are going to pay…" Delia spat.
"I look forward to it, big sis." Aru smirked.
Aru created a bone club and lunged at her sister. Delia stopped her dead in her tracks. Aru immediately surrounded herself in dark aura to counteract the effect. Delia seemed to expect this and tackled her as she did it. Delia put her hands in front of her, curled them and glared at her sister. She started to move like a boxer. Aru frowned and narrowed her eyes. She decided to do the same thing. Delia inwardly growled.
The two circled each other, trying to find a fault in their defense. Delia was hoping Aru wouldn't do this because she found it much more difficult to deal with Aru when she wasn't attacking. Aru knew this, too. For once, she knew that it wasn't a good idea be aggressive. She wasn't going to risk anything.
Delia could feel those wolf-like eyes staring into her. They were observing her every move. She wasn't used to Aru being patient in a fight. She eventually grew too antsy herself and vanished instantly. Aru closed her eyes and concentrated. For a split moment, her eyes were both red and yellow. The guardian's eyes opened sharply. Right before Delia could strike from behind, Aru's eyes shifted back into red and she intercepted her punch. Delia widened her eyes. Aru couldn't do that before.
Aru frowned as she twisted her wrist. Delia screamed as Aru brought her down to her knees. Delia wasn't used to Aru being this calculating and it unnerved her. Delia didn't know how much Aurora and Aru changed since the last time she saw them. She noticed Aru wasn't trying to kill her. If she didn't know any better, she thought she was regarding Aurora.
"Like Aurora said, you've stayed the same since last time. I've trained constantly so I could match and surpass your boss. You aren't nearly as strong as him." Aru snorted.
"Grr… shut it! At least he gave me a home when our supposed parents didn't." Delia hissed.
"That seems to be a common theme with him. I heard Xander tell me that nine years ago. I wonder…" Aru looked down slightly in thought. She shook her head and focus on the fight. She could think more about her theory later.
"Paint him as a bad man all you like… he still cares about us! I won't let you interfere with something he's worked so hard toward!" Delia suddenly forced Aru to let go of her and forced her to float in the air. Before Aru could respond, Delia struck her in her stomach. Aru hissed in pain, but refused to go down. Her eyes began to glow red as she clenched her teeth. Delia gasped as she was trapped in Aru's aura grip and forced her into a tree. Delia growled as she couldn't move. Aurora suddenly took over again.
"Why are you like this? Our parents were so loving to you! I tried my hardest to be the best sister I could be! I looked up to you! Why can't we have a good relationship?!" Aurora asked in a pleading tone. Delia looked at her sister with hateful eyes and snorted.
"You've doomed our relationship the moment you chose that stupid tradition over me." Delia snorted. Aurora couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"That's so selfish. I was always on your side when we were younger. I even got myself in trouble when you did horrible things or covered you up when you did something wrong. Training the next generation is my duty to Lady Mew. I was born specifically for that purpose. I couldn't just give up that privilege, especially since it was proven that I had the purer heart. You've doomed yourself the moment you gave in to your resentment." Aurora retorted.
"…" Delia sucked her teeth and looked away in frustration.
"Why are you so upset at me? What did I do to make you hateful towards me?" Aurora asked.
"…" Delia glared merely glared at Aurora.
"Delia, please." Aurora asked again.
"Wow… you actually used my preferred name for once. You only did it because you're trying to get through to me." Delia said the last sentence in a sassy way. Aurora rolled her eyes.
"I called you 'Delia' instead of 'Delilah' because I'm being respectful of what you want. If you think I have something up my sleeve, you're wrong. I just don't want us to fight. Are you still upset about me being born with my marks… and you never receiving recognition from Mew?" Aurora wondered. Delia scowled intensely. Aurora widened her eyes as that was exactly the reason. "Delia, that isn't my fault. I can't do anything about that."
Delia hissed, "I failed to get my mark because Mew didn't give it to me. I don't know why I couldn't get it and you got it by just breathing. Do you know how that feels to see your effort being wasted like that?"
"You train yourself to better yourself, not to get recognized for it. Wanting to be congratulated for your arduous work is reasonable, sure, but that doesn't mean you're wasting your effort if no one says anything. Besides, Mew didn't give you the Ketchum mark to you because she sensed your malice as a child! Mew may be free-spirited, but she has a strong sense of character!" Aurora said. Delia hissed at her again.
"Her judgement was flawed!" Delia growled.
"Her judgement was on point." Aurora retorted.
"This is exactly what I mean. I'm never chosen first. Someone or something else always is picked over me. At least with the Zurui, I feel important. I'm an admin. People come to me and appreciate me. I was chosen over others." Delia growled. She closed her eyes and what seemed to be slight sadness. Aurora was confused. Delia opened her eyes, "I've made my decision long ago, Aurora. You can't change my mind. I'm too far in to change."
"Delia, you don't have to feel this way." Aurora said sadly.
"You always were too nice for your own good. That is why this encounter feels all the more painful. I don't want us to fight, either. However, you're going to have to choose. Me… or Ash." Delia said. Aurora paled and shook her head.
"Delia, that's not a fair question." Aurora pointed out. She couldn't believe Delia would ask that considering all she went through to reunite and connect with Ash again.
"I made myself clear. I want to be number one in someone's eyes. I know you said you love me, but do you really love me?" Delia asked. Aurora's gaze sharpened as she grew annoyed. Delia was surprised by the change. The psychic looked sad.
"I love you, don't get me wrong, but you're telling me to abandon my son and my values. I would love for us to get along, but not if it involves that. I'm sorry Delia, but I'm not going to be selfish. I love Ash too much for that. There's always going to be another way for get along. You'd just need to leave the Zurui. Both Ash and I believe in forgiveness and would welcome you with open arms." Aurora offered. Delia slowly began to laugh. Aurora grew unnerved by it.
Delia sighed. "That's what I thought you were going to say. I tried being nicer, but it seems even my own sister doesn't understand me."
"Delia…" Aurora sighed. She didn't know what else to say or do.
"When you die today, I won't have to feel guilty about not being a better sister to you. You're a reminder of everything that conflicts me and it hurts my head seeing you. I have to get rid of you." Delia's eyes suddenly began to glow white as she disoriented Aurora enough to be released from her aura grip. Aurora scowled and glared Delia. Although she was confused by Delia's statement, she knew she couldn't get through to her any more.
Delia suddenly teleported out of sight again. Aurora once again made her eyes red and yellow as she waited for Delia to come back out again. Delia once again come from behind her. Aurora sharply turned to her presence, but found nothing. Delia once again appeared behind her, but Aurora reacted fast enough to catch her strike. Delia sucked her teeth and gasped upon seeing both Aurora and Aru out. She then made an internal sigh of relief when Aurora's eyes become only yellow again.
Aurora then proceeded to strike Delia in her stomach. Delia doubled over in pain. She continued her assault with a kick to her face and knocked her down. Aurora looked at her sister sadly, but her eyes held no mercy in them. Delia growled as she promptly got back up. Electricity began to bristle in her fingertips. Aurora responded with fire in kind and put herself into a stance.
They both began to fight each other brutally, with Aurora's hits being harder. Delia grunted every time she was hit. Feeling the aggression she would come to expect from Aurora, she knew she couldn't deal with it up close. She instantly teleported away to be on top of one of the trees.
Aurora looked up and loosened her fists. She resolved to not hit Delia anymore.
She started to shoot psychic blasts from her palms. Aurora looked at her sister undeterred and merely sidestepped each attack. She continued to look at Delia with an indescribable expression. Delia growled and sucked her teeth. She began to shoot intense bolts of lightning. Aurora was once again quick to dodge, but refused to make herself the same height as Delia. Delia grew increasingly frustrated. She knew that Aurora was refusing to approach her and thought that her plan was to tire her out.
Aurora's eyes looked softer than normal to Delia. They didn't seem nearly as wolf-like. They only seemed sad. Delia snorted in her thoughts, "She's looking at me with those same eyes Mother and Father looked at me with… like I'm some lost soul. She's the one who is lost!"
Delia taunted, "Why aren't you attacking anymore? Afraid?"
"We both know that isn't the reason. I don't want to fight someone that is still in my family." Aurora responded.
"Grr…. I'm not a part of your family." Delia hissed. Aurora immediately shook her head.
"You were raised as my sister." Aurora countered. She then created a heart shape with her hands. Delia gasped. The way Aurora looked reminded her a good memory that she shared with Aurora before their parents separated them. Aurora continued, "I love my sister… and yet she isn't willing to accept that love."
"Stop it! I know you don't mean that." Delia said. Aurora sighed and shook her head.
"I do, but you won't give me a chance to prove that." Aurora replied.
Delia narrowed her eyes and lunged at Aurora. Aurora gasped and was knocked on the round. The two struggled and rolled around on the ground. Delia soon got on top of Aurora. Delia tried to scratch Aurora's face. Aurora refused to fight Delia back, but prevented her from scratching. She then closed her eyes and held her breath. A huge explosion of wind separated the two women. Delia screamed as she was knocked against the tree. Aurora got up to approach her.
Delia was feeling frustrated. She knew she was outmatched by the guardian and hated that Aurora wasn't truly trying to fight. It felt weird to feel this was way considering she felt outmatched, but she couldn't help it. Delia decided she had one more thing she could try doing without having anyone here.
Delia closed her eyes as Aurora approached. Although Aurora was confused, she continued to move toward her. Then, without warning, Delia's eyes opened with a sharp daze, but they looked hazy. Aurora gasped and prepared herself for a hostile attack. Delia created waves of energy from her eyes and stopped Aurora in her tracks. Aurora clenched her teeth and looked alarmed. She found herself feeling hazy. She recognized this effect. After all, Red told her about it.
Aurora growled, "To think you'd be so low as to use mind control…"
"You were right. You've clearly gotten stronger. I have never seen you have so much command of your internal aura before and it's frightening. Everything will be alright once you are under my spell." Delia told her. Delia's eyes developed to have two red moon-like marks on her eyes. Aurora gasped and couldn't believe what she was seeing.
Aurora's eyes turned completely yellow as she clenched her teeth. Delia brought out her hands and intensified the effect. Aurora struggled to get Delia out of her head. Delia got closer and closer to her to intensify the effect. Aru tried to take control to aid her balance, but Aurora prevented her from doing so. At first, she thought Aurora was under Delia's control, but this wasn't true at all. Aru could feel Aurora smirking. Aurora said, "No… I got this. Don't intervene yet, Aru."
"Aurora, your aura is getting low. Are you insane?" Aru asked in disbelief. Aurora seemed surprisingly calm.
"Of course not. I have a plan. Trust me on this and take control at my signal. Delia is doing something I never thought she could do, but I know how to get out of this. I know you've witnessed me reading about this, too." Aurora said.
"If you say so." Aru had no choice but to trust Aurora.
Delia increased her potency further. Aurora gasped in pain. Her entire body was shuddering and she had her eyes closed. Delia purred, "Aurora, don't fight it. Even you can't break though my control. My mind control is much different than other psychics."
"I know I can't break through." Aurora said while still resisting.
"What?" Delia was surprised at how confident she sounded. Delia had never seen anyone hold out for this long against her mind control and was flabbergasted.
"You are using an ancient form of mind control designed to counteract the late dark aura guardians of old. Only one type of psychic is able to do this and they, too, are almost non existent. To think you were one of them all this time…" Aurora said with surprise.
"What are you talking about?" Delia said with confusion.
"Don't play dumb. I know Charles is aware of this ability as well and would have told you to only use it when you thought you couldn't win because of how dangerous it can be. I read about it in the ancient scriptures at the tree. You bear the Mark of the Blood Moon. You are a virtuous psychic. I should have suspected it when I saw how your eyes constantly changes even when you use your powers regularly. That's not normal among psychics." Aurora pointed out.
At this point, Delia grew tired of listening to Aurora and intensified the effect even more. She was determined to make Aurora submit to her. Aurora wailed in pain and got on her knees. She was trying her hardest to hold out. Delia said, "I'm surprised you knew about that, but then again, you were always a bookworm. I didn't expect you to read up on psychics so well. That doesn't matter, though. As long as you are in my hold, you won't be able to use your aura. I've won this."
"Not… quite." Aurora retorted.
"The fact that you are only delaying the inevitable is just sad. Give it up." Delia hissed.
"Never! I will… hold out… for as long as I can." Aurora clenched her teeth and put her hands on the ground. She was shuddering even more than normal.
"You're just being stubborn at this point." Delia told her.
"Aren't I… always stubborn?" Aurora laughed despite the situation being dire. She could feel her consciousness slipping away, but she was still calm. Aru was getting increasingly concerned, but trusted Aurora. She would not make the same mistake of coming out too early like she did with Mirabelle in their dream.
"You've always been annoying. I'm finally going to crack you." Delia's eyes and hands began to change into multiple colors along the rainbow. Aurora was under the rainbow's effect and her body glowing the same colors. Aurora screamed in pain. Delia growled, "How are you not under my spell yet?! You don't even have access to your aura. No one should be able to hold out this long!"
"You… forgot one… crucial thing." Aurora screamed out in pain again. She couldn't rely on her aura so talking at this point was sheer willpower. "Virtuous psychics… and dark aura guardians… can still be resisted… by the primordial guardian… and psychic lines… not because of our… power, but because of our…. unique characteristic relative to… other guardians and psychics."
"What?" Delia blinked.
"Aru take control of me, now! We have her off guard and she's weakened from using her power for too long!" Aurora commanded. Aru, although confused at the sudden order, obliged immediately. Delia gasped in horror when Aru suddenly took control. Aru retaliated by kicking Delia in the face and knocking her back. Aru's hand began to glow yellow. She was surprised to be able to use aura herself. Then, it hit her.
"Aurora, no wonder why you were so calm. Her trump card is useless!" Aru thought.
"How is this possible?! Aurora should have been in my control! No guardian can bypass my effect!" Delia said with outrage.
"While it is true that Aurora eventually would have succumbed to your effect, it is also true that Aurora and I uses aura completely separate from one another. You can never completely suppress us and… Aurora and I know how to switch to the other if necessary. Never overestimate your power." Aru waggled her finger tauntingly.
"If I can't take control of Aurora, I'll take control of you before you can switch!" Delia said.
"Good luck…" Aru changed back to Aurora immediately. Aurora finished, "…trying override all of me, then."
Aurora got her in her aura grip and looked at her with determined eyes. Delia's eyes were seething with hatred. Aurora said with sadness, "You've lost. Please… let me be. I don't want to hurt you."
"I want to make sure you die where you stand. I don't care how I achieve that, but I will achieve that." Delia responded.
"That's unfortunate." Aurora sighed and shook her head. Aurora's eyes started to glow a bright purple and her hand started to glow the same color. Delia recognize the effect and scowled. Aurora said in a sweet voice, "Sleepy time, dear sister."
"You'll never get me that way." Delia's eye color suddenly completely clear. Aurora was caught off guard at the sudden change. Aurora then started to feel sleepy herself. Aurora realized what the effect was and quickly stopped herself. She looked at Delia in both surprise and awe.
"Agh…. Your eyes are like a mirror? When could you do that?" Aurora asked. Delia used Aurora's confusion against her to break away from her aura grip.
Delia suddenly sensed that all her partners were down. Ash and Serena were coming soon with Aurora's Charizard and Ash's Pikachu. She internally sweatdropped. Delia knew the situation was becoming worse. She knew that she needed to reunite with her team, but she wasn't sure how she could focus on that. Delia knew Aurora wouldn't allow her to escape if Aurora knocked her out and her psychic energy was growing low from using her forbidden power.
Delia now saw Chari approaching. If Ash and Serena joined in, she had no hope of escaping. One Ketchum was already a bit much. Two Ketchums would magnify that. Delia thought about all of her options. Aurora had already shown her reaction time was fast when she alternated between Aru and herself. She doubted she could teleport away since Aurora could intercept the process by ensnaring her in dark aura. Delia knew that she couldn't outright beat Aurora and she couldn't use her mind control on her.
Delia had to think of something quickly. She wasn't sure what she should do until the Charizard got close to the ground. She quickly formulated a plan based solely on what she knew about everyone. It was a gamble, but she banked on Aurora being the quickest to react.
Chari landed with a thud. Aurora looked at her starter and looked both terrified and confused. Aurora told her to send the teen couple to the tree, but she understood why they didn't listen. Chari and everyone else wanted to help her. She shook her head, but accepted it. Ash and Serena looked at Aurora and then at Delia. Delia seemed exhausted while Aurora looked like she was doing better. She still seemed very tired, but was hiding it. Ash got off of Chari to help Aurora.
Delia narrowed her eyes. Now was her chance. The psychic had to hope her plan would work. So many things could go wrong, but if she knew Aurora, it would provide her enough time to escape. Delia's eyes began to change color along the rainbow repeatedly. Aurora prepared herself for another assault. She was determined to end this pointless fighting. Delia began to charge up a lot of power in her hands. She poured almost all her remaining energy into it.
Instead of aiming at Aurora, she aimed it at Ash. Aurora gasped, but was the first one to react to the attack. Without thinking, Aurora quickly pushed Ash out of the way and took the hit. Ash was knocked on the ground roughly. He barely had time to register what had happened in that split second, but when he looked up, he started to form tears in his eyes. He saw Aurora struggling to take the combination of psychic and electric energy. Not being prepared to take all that energy, Aurora's body was blown back and hit a tree. Her entire body became paralyzed as she fell on the ground.
Aurora tried to get up, but found that she couldn't. She was too exhausted from resisting Delia's mind control earlier. Ash was having a feeling of déjà vu from how Aurora looked. She looked exactly as she did when Charles won the duel against her. He blinked his eyes. He remembered Aurora's confrontation with Charles himself. His heart suddenly grew heavy and he started to shake. He finally remembered that day himself.
He actually remembered that day.
Despite remembering what happened and how terrified he felt, he still couldn't remember too much of his time with Aurora. He growled in frustration, then shook his head. He ignored his rising emotions to instantly try to help her up.
"Ruru!" Ash immediately went over to help her up. Aurora didn't have much energy on her own to stand and looked like she was about to pass out.
"Ash…?" Aurora shook her head and requested to stay laying on the ground. Ash obliged. Aurora's eyes shifted to look at Ash's eyes as she smiled weakly. Ash knew that she was in terrible shape and he felt awful for it. Arceus, she was even smiling at him the same way she did before being knocked unconscious nearly a decade ago. It horrified him greatly. Ash hastily grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly. Aurora though surprised, didn't fight it, but did give back a gentle squeeze.
"Ruru… I'm… so sorry. If I listened to you, this wouldn't have happened. I…" Ash didn't know what to say or do so he began to ramble. However, Aurora hushed him gently.
"Don't be… sorry. I… understand you wanted to help me. Promise me… you'll go… to… Sam… in Pallet next. I'm… glad… I… could protect… you..." Ash felt Aurora's grip slip away. Ash held her hand tighter.
"I promise. I swear. Please…" Ash's heart nearly stopped when he saw Aurora close her eyes. He said in a panicked voice, "No! Ruru, please… don't fall asleep yet. Please…"
Delia took this opportunity to escape, but Chari took notice and immediately grabbed her. Delia struggled to force the draconian to let go. She was very weakened from her bout with Aurora and used most of her energy in the blast trying to kill Aurora. The rest of Aurora's partners forced themselves out of their Poke Balls to help deal with the weakened psychic. Suzie made sure that she couldn't escape by ensnaring her with the fiercest of dark auras. Delia wailed in pain. Happy and Rio sensed Aurora's declining state and immediately went to try to aid her.
Though Delia was being constricted, it hurt her heart seeing Ash so close to Aurora. He never showed her this sort of attention or concern. Her eyes grew bitter. Once again, Aurora took something from her. She decided to live to take revenge and reclaim Ash's love. Delia didn't care that her logic was flawed… she saw Ash's interaction as Aurora taking first in his heart. She couldn't stand the thought of that.
Serena covered her mouth at the situation and kicked herself for not trying to convince Ash or Chari that it was a bad idea to head back. When she first saw Delia, she never expected her to be willing to kill Ash. She seemed like she legitimately cared for him even though her personality during the phone call was a façade. Serena had a feeling something was up with Delia when she looked at her with those scary eyes, but thought she had been hallucinating. She berated herself for thinking that moment wasn't important. She wished she had told Ash what she what noticed earlier.
Even still, she knew Aurora was unconscious and that she should help. Serena went by Rio and Happy to help heal Aurora as well. She still didn't know what she was doing, but she couldn't stand around and do nothing. Her hands glowed pink as she healed. Rio looked at the girl with a small smile.
Happy forced Ash to let go of Aurora's hand so they could have more space to help Aurora, but she felt a tear fall on her feeler as Ash let go. Happy's bow like sensor turned blue in response to Ash's tear. Then, it turned red. The bow's color began to alternate between those two colors and she couldn't control it. She found this strange. Human tears don't evoke any change in her bows unless they had aura in them and Aurora's aura was the only aura she thought would cause a change in color.
Happy figured it meant two things. Ash's aura was similar enough to Aurora's that Happy could interact with it to change its color. She never had her bows change color for any other person beside Aurora. The other thing this meant is that Ash is both sad and enraged.
Happy was perplexed by this. Ash wasn't showing any signs of rage. Even his aura wasn't flaring up from anger like it had in the past. The Sylveon wondered if something was off about her sensing… or if Ash was hiding his anger well. She shook her thoughts away from that to begin healing Aurora with Rio.
"(Young master, we'll make sure Aurora will be alright. She won't be dying on my watch.)" Happy reverted to speaking in Pokelanguage because of Aurora being unconscious.
"Thank you so much Happy… Rio… Serena." Ash wiped his eyes and said warmly. He noticed Aurora's breathing was stable and she wasn't showing any signs of decline. He was thankful for that.
Seeing that Aurora was going to be alright, Ash suddenly stood up and looked away from everyone. His eyes turned stormy. Serena saw how his stance changed and his fists were curled up. She saw hints of sparks forming at his knuckles. Ash usually didn't appear or stand so threatening, so it alarmed Serena. Ash brought out his hand. A long blue aura sword materialized into his hand and radiated with power. Serena and Pikachu gasped while the rest of Aurora's Pokémon looked at the boy with concern.
"Ash?" Serena said, now somewhat afraid of Ash.
"…Keep doing what you're doing, Serena. I have something to take care of." Ash said without looking at her. He gripped the hilt tighter.
"Ash… what are you planning on-" Serena started.
"Please…. just do it." Ash cut her off sharply. Serena, though taken aback slightly, decided to comply. She could feel the anger radiating from him and if Ashton was an indicator of what he could do when he wasn't thinking, she was fearing how Ash himself would be like. The psychic guardian didn't want to be on the receiving end… and she hated herself for thinking that. Serena wondered if Ashton's attack scarred her more than she thought.
Serena sighed, "If you do anything crazy, I will stop you."
"…" Ash said nothing in response.
Ash pointed his weapon at the now terrified Delia. Chari looked at the boy with some indecision. She didn't know what he was planning on doing with Delia. Ash forced Chari to let her go with his aura grip. Delia slowly backed up in a circle so she couldn't corner herself. Ash matched every step. Delia stared into his stormy brown eyes wondering what was going through his head. For the first time, she couldn't get a read on him. His thoughts were too jumbled up to peek into, but she could most hear this the most clearly, "I will make you pay…"
"Ash… put away your-" Delia started but was quickly cut off when Ash sliced her chest. Delia screamed, "Gah!"
"I cared for you… but that didn't seem to matter, did it?!" Ash snarled. He clenched his teeth tightly in pure rage. The sword responded to his emotion and began to emit a red aura. Delia never seen this before, even when Aurora had created a sword like projection from her aura during her training. She clutched her chest and saw blood. The cut wasn't deep, but it wounded her more than a deep cut would. Ash was scaring her more than she ever expected him to. She became paralyzed with fear.
"I swear… I had no intention to kill you. I still care about you. I just know my sister well. She always had a fast reaction time… and I knew she would try to shield you from my attack." Delia explained, but Ash grew even more irate.
"And you think that gives you justification for what you've done?!" Ash sliced her right shoulder in anger.
"Urrgh…." Delia winced in pain and held her shoulder.
"I will make you pay for everything! You will never have a chance to kill my mother again!" Ash bellowed. This time, Ash sliced at her right shoulder. Delia got on her knees and held her shoulders in agony.
"Ugh…" She looked up weakly at her angered nephew. She didn't hold what he was doing against him. Delia felt she deserved it. Serena looked over her shoulder and grew a shiver down her spine. She knew Rio and Happy would continue to aid Aurora, so she decided to take things into her own hands. The psychic felt like she needed to stop Ash and quickly.
"Ash! Stop it!" Serena yelled. When Serena went to touch Ash on his shoulder, she immediately got spooked. His aura felt stinging instead of warming and the feeling quickly overwhelmed her. Serena immediately let go and shook her hand, trying to get rid of her unnerved feeling. It felt like his aura was saying in a deadly tone, "Stay away from me… or else."
"…" Ash merely growled at her. Serena looked into his eyes. She could see the bitterness from both sides of him. Serena could have sworn that he had hints of marron in his eyes.
"Ash, please… don't lose yourself…" Serena said, scared for him. He continued to stare in her blue eyes with very little resemblance to the Ash she loved. She grew slightly purple in fear. Ash gasped upon seeing that. He became aware at how much he was terrifying her. Ash blinked his eyes and they appeared brown again. The girl found herself relieved, but she knew he was still upset.
"Serena… I…" Ash didn't know what to say. He never wanted her to look at him so fearfully again.
"Ash…" Serena said soothingly. She grabbed his free hand.
"I'm sorry you have to see me like this, Serena… but she deserves everything and worse. You don't know how it feels nearly lose your mother twice to the same person. It stings… especially when you felt like you could do nothing the first time. I can at least do something now." Ash argued. Serena noticed the intensity in his tone. He also spoke with both sides of himself, despite not having marron eyes. She didn't hear this before in any of his questions to Aurora prior to being attacked by Delia.
"Do you remember the separation? I feel you are speaking closer to your heart instead of what you've been told." Serena pointed out.
"Yes, I do." Ash said with a solemn tone. He looked away from her. Serena placed her hand on his cheek. Though his aura felt stinging, she bore through it and began to make her hand glow pink. She tried her hardest to bring about soothing thoughts to her boyfriend. Ash immediately began to calm down. With his free hand, he grabbed her hand on his cheek lovingly. He murmured, "I promise I won't go any further… for yours and Ruru's sakes."
"Thank you." Serena felt Ash's aura die down, but still felt waves of anger from him. It was much more controlled, though. Ash turned his attention to Delia.
"I want you to always remember this day like I will and feel the pain of nearly losing something that's close to you. For me, it's… Ruru." Ash shook his head and corrected himself. "No... no, for me it's Mom. My real mom."
Ash closed his eyes as he resonated with regarding Aurora as 'Mom' for the first time in nine years. Delia seemed incredibly hurt by this. His words stabbed deeper than she cared to admit. Ash opened his eyes sharply. He noticed how Delia's distress and narrowed his eyes. Ash said, "For you, I guess it's me. These scars will mark our encounter for as long as you stay standing. Go ahead and escape like you planned to. When next we meet, I can't say my care will save you a second time."
"Ash…" Delia was unnerved at Ash treating her this harshly. She never thought she'd see the day.
"(Young master, are you sure? She's a danger to all of us.)" Chari pointed out.
"Personally, I have no reason to let her go, but… I have a feeling Mom held back against her." One look in Delia's eyes and Ash knew this was the case. He found himself disgusted more. He couldn't believe Delia used Aurora's love for him against her. The boy thought that was a low blow. Despite that, he continued, "I think… she wants to help you despite everything you did to her. I don't understand why, but I don't want to see Mom worrying about you when she wakes up and sees... what I've done to you. She would instantly tend to you instead of worrying about her own health. If it wasn't for her… I'd kill you right now and I wouldn't allow you to leave."
"…" Delia gulped at his intensity. She knew he wasn't lying. Serena covered her mouth in shock.
"Consider me letting you go my way of showing how Mom loves you. Maybe you'll finally acknowledge Mom caring about you this way. I made a promise many years ago not to kill unless proven necessary. I'll hold true to it… unless you want me to deem killing you necessary…" Ash growled and pointed his sword at her chest. The very tip of it cut into her shirt and caused a tiny cut. Delia got a shiver down her spine and backed away.
"Ash… I…." Delia decided that the best thing she could do was go. Ash was giving her a chance to escape and she sure wasn't going to waste it. She didn't have the courage to say the words she wanted to say: "I'm sorry for everything. I really do love you still…"
Delia weakly got up and hurried away from everyone. Ash saw the drops of blood falling in her wake and looked away, ashamed at himself. He made his weapon disappear. Then, Ash once again focused his attention on Aurora and checked on her. His eyes softened. She looked like she was taking a nap peacefully. He nodded to himself.
"Stop for now everyone." Ash said.
"(What? Why, though?)" Happy blinked her eyes in surprise.
"I feel it necessary to get Mom to a safe place before continuing to heal her. I think she'll be okay until we get her inside a safe place. She said she wanted us to head to Sam in Pallet, so… we're going to get there." Ash said.
"Ash, do you know who this Sam person that Mrs. Ketchum was talking about?" Serena wondered.
"Yes. I eventually found out that Professor Oak's name is Sam a few years back. I don't know why she wants us to head to him first, but I'll trust it." Ash replied. Chari widened her eyes.
"(It makes sense, young master. Professor Oak was one of Aurora's teachers growing up. I know she wants you to tell him what's happened and warn the other townsmen about Delia.)" Chari supplied. Chari picked up Aurora in her arms. The rest of Aurora's Pokémon returned themselves into their respective capsule.
"One of her teachers, huh…?" Ash looked down in a bit of thought. He began thinking about everything that had happened for the past couple of weeks. Serena looked closely at Ash and grew increasingly concerned.
"Ash… will you be… alr-" Serena was about to ask, but Ash cut her off by kissing her on her cheek impulsively. Serena, though surprised, temporarily lost her train of thought at the touch.
"Don't worry about me, Seri. I'll be fine." The way Ash said that made her not sure if he truly felt that way. She didn't expect Ash to use his nickname for her, either. She just looked at him with saddened eyes and decided not to say anything else. Ash continued, "Before we go, I want to do something I promised myself I would do. I feel like this is even more important I do this, considering what happened today."
Ash closed his eyes and concentrated. His hair began to flow wildly in his own and he was surrounded in a blue aura. Serena looked at him confusion. She thought, "What is he planning?"
Ash began to sing a song that sounded like a translated version of Relic's Song. Chari and Pikachu instantly recognized it and started to wag their tails subconsciously. As he continued, his marks began to glow and he began to spread out his aura wide around the area. By the time Ash was done singing, Chari sensed Ash's aura encompass the entire forest, but she noticed that it was much focused than before. She found herself impressed.
Meanwhile, Serena found herself stunned. She never knew Ash could sing. He always seemed focused on his journey and Pokémon and knew the opportunity never arose. Still, she wondered why he was singing at a time like this. Almost as if the trees can hear him, the leaves began to ruffle. The wind began to answer to his call.
The wind felt tense, but calm. Serena felt like she was somewhat enveloped in Ash's emotions. His emotions felt much more tranquilizing than earlier. Serena looked up and noticed something soaring high above them. It was clearly a Pokémon… a bird to be more precise. She never saw this Pokémon in Kalos too much, but she recognized from her time at the Kanto camp. Pikachu's eyes widened as he recognized the bird. He jumped on Ash's shoulder and began to wave to the bird. Chari merely observed Ash's technique.
"A Pigdeot?" Serena said in surprise.
"(Ash?)" The bird said upon seeing a few humans on the ground. Her eyes lit up when she noticed a human with spiky black hair. Pidgeot immediately flew down to see if what she sensed was right. She gasped as she saw a now older Ash below her. Ash brought out his right arm. She immediately perched herself on his arm. The bird said with happiness, "(Ash!)"
"Hey there old friend…" Ash said happily, but Pidgeot noticed the solemnness in his tone. At first, she thought it was because of her, but then she looked at the area a bit more closely. She could tell that a big skirmish just happened and that she was flying into the aftermath. Despite that, she decided to focus on the positive: the fact that Ash called her for the first time in six years.
"(You actually came back after these years. I feel… so happy…)" Pidgeot cuddled against him. Ash made a warm smile and rubbed her head. "(I was starting to think I'd never see you again.)"
"I had a feeling… and I'm sorry." Ash said while looking down. His hat covered his eyes.
"…" Pidgeot didn't know how to respond. She didn't expect him to apologize.
"I focused on my journey instead of cherishing the past…" Ash looked back at Aurora as he said this. He then focused on Pidgeot again. Pidgeot flew off his arm and landed on the ground. She looked up at him. Ash placed his forehead against hers. "I'm not going to make that mistake to lose things I treasure. I'm also not going to forget about them. So… Pidgeot, would you like to be on my team again? Or do you still need to protect those Pidgeys and Pidgeottos from six years ago?" Ash asked.
"(Of course I want to be on your team again! I've been waiting for this day and I'll be honored to serve you.)" Pidgeot did a bowing gesture with her wings. Pidgeot continued, "(As for the flock I protected, I was preparing a new protector should anything happen to me. We've grown quite the number over the years. I would just need to let them know that my friend is back. I'll meet up with you. Where are you headed?)"
"I have to get my mom some rest, so we'll be going to Professor Oak's lab. If I'm not there once you're done, I will try to get someone to find you." Ash told her. The bird nodded, though she eyed Aurora curiously. She had never seen Ash's mother before and although she was surprised that she was unconscious, she figured now wouldn't be a good time to ask Ash about it. The bird knew Ash was tense. She decided to wait until Aurora woke up.
"(Gotcha. I'll see you later, Ash.)" Pidgeot nuzzled his cheek affectionately one more time before soaring off to another part of the forest.
Serena and Chari looked at Ash with surprise. They both noticed how he had much more hardened eyes and more serious look than earlier today. He also wasn't smiling anymore or showing any glimpses of smiling. His eyes seemed just as intimidating as Aurora's and this caused Pikachu and Serena to shiver at the resemblance. Seeing Ash not cheerful unnerved everyone, especially Serena. Serena hoped that Ash would be alright, but it was hard to think that considering he almost died and Aurora almost died for him. She knew his heart had to be heavy with a plethora of emotions.
"(Shall we fly over to the Professor's lab, young master?)" Chari asked.
"No." Ash suddenly took Aurora from Chari's arms and carried her himself. Ash thought that he would be struggling more, especially since Aurora was heavier than Serena, but he found that he was just fine. Ash said without looking at either of them, "I… want to cherish the past… because once I step inside that lab and Mom awakes… nothing will be the same again. I'll go on ahead."
With that, Ash started to walk south with Aurora in his arms. The reality of the situation began to hit him like a truck. Ash looked like he was on the verge of tears, but didn't want anyone to see. He just rushed and continued forward. Pikachu and Chari heard him sobbing and sighed sadly. Chari, Pikachu and Serena looked at each other concerned, but followed him.
A/N: Was this worth the wait? I hope so.
This had to be the toughest chapter I had to write to date. I couldn't decide on three different ends to this chapter for a couple of months. I feel content with what I put out, but wooooo boy, it was tough to decide.
Oh... can you guys tell me when you'd want the next chapter to be released? Two days from now or four days? Please let me know (whether by reviewing or by PM). If no one lets me know in time, I'll probably default to four days from now. In any case, I am not releasing it two weeks from now, so that's good!
Let's see what happens now that Ash is heading to Pallet Town. How will he be like from now on? I can't wait to show you. I hope you lovely people have a beautiful day. Happy Earth Day!
Next chapter: A Burnt Ash and Sprouting Oak Revealed
Until next time...
~SPG123~