A/N: Hello my lovely readers.

Welcome to the penultimate chapter of the first book. I'm super excited to finally share it with you guys! I had good reception last chapter and as I expected, people wanted me to release this chapter two days after the last one. I heard you and I'm delivering what I promised. I hope you enjoy this chapter. It was fun to write!

Diclaimer: I do not own Pokemon as it is Nintendo's/ Game Freak's. Story's mine. Don't touch it.

"Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like." ― Lao Tzu

Chapter 42: A Burnt Ash and Sprouting Oak Revealed

Ash, Pikachu, Chari and Serena all walked in silence toward Pallet Town, with Ash leading the way. Pikachu had decided to stand on Chari's head while Ash was carrying Aurora. He had his ears drooped looking at his trainer. He had an air about him that was much more serious than before. Pikachu both liked and hated this change. It made him feel prouder that Ash was maturing more. He looked like the type of trainer people would keep an eye out for. Pikachu was also afraid that he would change too much. Pikachu enjoyed Ash being goofy and cheerful.

Serena looked at Ash in concern. He seemed so transfixed about what was ahead on him. She noticed he kept looking around him and the trees, sometimes pausing and gazing longingly at times. She wondered if he was slowly remembering everything as time passed. The girl also noticed that Aurora had gotten comfortable in Ash's arms, sleeping soundly.

Chari walked with them through the forest in case Ash grew too tired. She hated it because of how large it was, but knew it wasn't too bad. The draconian wished she was a Charmander or Charmeleon again so she wouldn't be so large and her wings wouldn't get stuck in branches. Pikachu assisted Chari by breaking any branches that posed some sort of threat to halting Chari's path. The fire type looked at the electric mouse, appreciative of his efforts.

Chari focused her attention on Ash. Each step the young master took, she could feel him gaining bits of information back. She wondered how much he was remembering. After all, the separation nine years ago wasn't the first time Aurora had taken him into the forest. Eventually, everyone made it out of the forest.

As it was late at night, the moon was hanging high in the sky. The sky seemed to be twinkling brightly, as if to welcome the travelers to the new route. Ash looked up at the sky and sighed. His eyes turned red. Serena, Pikachu and Chari didn't notice this because they were behind him.

Route 2 was a short route and Ash decided not to waste any time and hop over the ledges. He had a slight recoil from each landing, but wasn't too phased despite carrying Aurora. The ledges were a little higher than Serena expected and she seemed nervous to jump over them. Chari noticed this and decided to lift Serena up in her arms to carry her through the route. Serena looked up at the Charizard in appreciation. Chari made a smirk and winked in response. Eventually, everyone made it to Viridian City.

Chari deiced to put Serena down when she noticed Serena squirming for her to be released. Serena wanted to walk and continue to observe Ash.

People were looking at the ragtag group funnily, mostly due to the fact there was an unconscious woman in a teenage boy's arms, but thankfully for Ashton, no one asked him if everything was alright. He attributed people hesitant to approach him due to the wolf-like glare he was starting to develop. People could tell he didn't want to be bothered and combined with his red eyes, he also didn't appear too friendly.

Serena noticed the looks people were giving him. Some people ignored him, while other people seemed a bit nervous of him. Serena walked a bit faster to walk to who she thought was Ash. She gasped when she noticed it was Ashton. Serena noticed the vibe he was giving off. It made a bit more sense to her why people were regarding him like this. Ashton acknowledged Serena by slowly moving his eyes to look at her.

"Uh… hi Ashton." Serena said nervously. She could see Ashton trying to inspect her and grew anxious as a result.

"Hello Serena. What do you want?" Ashton said matter-of-factly.

"Um… I just wanted to see how Ash is feeling, is all." Serena said.

"Oh? Do you want me to switch back to Ash? I know you weren't expecting to see me." Ashton replied.

"No, no. You're Ash as well… just more distant. How are you feeling?" Serena asked again.

"I think this is the first time you've acknowledged me and Ash as the same person instead of me as a darker counterpart. Warms my distant heart a little." Ashton chuckled slightly. For a moment, she saw a semblance of a smile on his face, but it quickly disappeared. Ashton continued in both Ash's and his tones, "To answer your question earlier, we… I am feeling a little better. I've just been thinking to myself."

"Care to share what you've been thinking about?" Serena pressed further.

"…" Ashton looked on ahead instead of answering, but didn't increase his pace.

"If you don't want to talk right now, that's alright. I understand that you need a little time to process everything." Serena said with a gentle smile.

"Thanks." Ashton went in and kissed her on her cheek. Serena gasped and held her cheek softly. She never expected Ashton to make an advance. Ashton noticed her reaction and blushed. He looked away while saying in only his voice, "Sorry about that. I wasn't thinking."

"It's… it's ok. You just surprised me, is all." Serena stammered slightly. Ashton took notice and decided to see how she would respond to him.

"Glad I can fluster you, my pretty little rose." Ashton laughed. Serena grew slightly irked.

"Gah! Why can you be so…" Serena struggled to think of the right word. Ashton smirked as he tried to make a guess.

"Alluring?" Ashton said hopefully.

"No, annoying." Serena responded. Ashton chuckled, anticipating her response. Serena gasped as she had a weird feeling inside her. Ashton picked up on it.

"A bit of déjà vu, huh? I recall my other self having a similar conversation with you. Unlike him, I'm not dense. I know what I can say to fluster you more. Heck, I know what I can do, too…" Ashton smiled toward the honey blond girl. Serena's face turned completely red hearing this. Her heart was beating faster hearing Ashton say all this. His deeper voice made it all the more irresistible to her. Now that she was acknowledging Ash's whole self, she could feel Ash himself saying these things, too, even if it wasn't audibly apparent. She shook her head and tried to calm down. Meanwhile, Ashton was enjoying watching her become like this.

"Seems like you want me to do this more. I definitely don't mind you seeing me like this more often." Ashton's eyes turned brown for a few moments to wink at her before going back to red.

"Ash… Ashton…" Serena was visibly flushed at this point. She wasn't expecting that, despite what happened less than two hours ago.

"Hahaha… thank you, Serena. I feel a little better teasing you. Once I put Mom down at Professor Oak's lab, hold me to what I can do with you at a later point…" Ashton said with Ash. Hearing the combination of the two was making her lose it. She felt like she was under his spell, but she shook her head.

"As-Ashton, your mom would kill you if we did anything stupid..." Serena said, but Ashton wasn't convinced.

"You don't sound like you care too much about that. Besides, Mom is stern, but easy going. She only is strict if you're actually doing something wrong. I don't think she would react too badly to us going on a proper date." Ashton said in an innocent tone.

"Pro-per date…?" Serena blinked her eyes in surprise. She wasn't expecting that response.

"Yeah… what did you think I was alluding to, Seri?" Ashton said in Ash's voice. Serena sweatdropped and laughed nervously. She put two fingers together and tapped them awkwardly. Ashton smirked and said with his voice, "Interesting mind you got there…"

"You're a monster for tricking me into thinking those things." Serena blushed and pointed her nose up, now annoyed at both of them.

"Whatever do you mean?" Ashton said an innocent tone. Serena growled and punched his shoulder in response. The hit didn't hurt and the boy merely shrugged it off and laughed.

"You're a fiend, Ashton." Serena crossed her arms.

"Nope. Just a little observant." Ashton responded. He noticed that through their talking, they were almost out of Viridian City. He could see that they were approaching Kanto Route 1. Ashton seemed to perk up more and sped up his pace. Serena struggled to keep a decent pace with him. Chari began to hover above the ground with Pikachu to keep up as well. Once Ashton reached Route 1, he slowed down significantly and sighed solemnly. His eyes turned brown again.

Serena managed to catch up with him only to notice that Ashton was Ash again. He was looking down at Aurora with glistening eyes, but quickly blinked it away. Serena decided to stay by him this time. She wasn't sure how close Pallet Town was from here, but based on how Ash was acting, it seemed to be close.

Route 1 was a very short route that was mostly plains. It seemed so quiet and tranquil compared to Kalos routes, especially since there were no one on the route. Serena noticed Pikachu running at Ash to jump on his head. Ash looked up to acknowledge the mouse. He had a feeling what Pikachu wanted to say.

"(You remembered what happened here, Ash?)" Pikachu asked curiously.

"How could I forget? I feel so appreciative for what you did for me all those years ago." Ash responded.

"(You shielded me from all those Spearow. It felt wrong not to defend you after that.)" Pikachu told him. Serena looked at the duo, slightly confused.

"Ash…?" Serena said in a questioning tone. She still couldn't understand Pikachu. Ash nodded.

"When I first started my Pokémon journey, Pikachu didn't like me or listen to me. I had to drag him on a rope to make him come with him. He even taunted and laughed at me when I tried to catch a Pidgey." Ash explained.

"Was that Pidgeot the same Pidgey?" Serena asked.

"No. I caught Pidgeot as a Pidgeotto in Viridian Forest." Ash confirmed. He continued, "While I was on this route, a flock of Spearow attacked me and Pikachu. We were injured severely from their attacks. Right at the last moment when lot of them charged at me, Pikachu jumped from my shoulder and unleashed a mighty Thundershock attack. All the Spearow were down and Pikachu and I looked at each with a new sign of respect. It took me a while to tap into Pikachu's power more and to be honest, I still don't think we've reached our true potential. However, from that day on, we were best buds. I'd do anything for Pikachu."

"That's a cool story. Thank you for sharing it." Serena said. Pikachu felt touched, but noticed Ash still seemed a bit sad. He had hoped that reminding him about how they became more connected would distract him until Pallet Town, but his plan failed. The mouse drooped his ears in sadness.

Ash started to look down again as he sighed, "I want to be the trainer Pikachu and the others deserve. I have to get stronger. The trials in my dreams made me realize I'm not using a fraction of what I'm capable of. Pikachu was able to use purple lightning, create electric barriers and seemingly teleport with Quick Attack… and this was without me aiding him. I feel like I owe that much to my partners to tap into their true potential…"

"Ash…" Serena didn't know how to respond to that. Pikachu found himself giddy at what to expect as he grows stronger with Ash, but sad that Ash was brooding somewhat.

"We're almost to Pallet Town. Just a little farther now." Ash said. He grunted a little to readjust how he was holding Aurora. Chari took notice.

"(Young master, would you like me to carry Aurora? You've been carrying her for a while and I can tell you're getting tired. Aurora isn't exactly a light woman.)" Chari noted.

"Chari, I'll be fine. We've already walked this much, right? I might as well go all the way. I can see the professor's windmill from here." Ash pointed out. Chari looked over the trees and noticed the boy was right. She could see the small building in the distance. She nodded, but still was concerned. The Charizard decided to stay out in case anything happened.

"(So be it.)" Chari conceded.

There were more ledges in this route, but unlike in Route 2, he decided to go around them. The boy didn't want to take the chance of dropping Aurora because he was beginning to get tired. Serena was getting anxious the closer they got to Pallet Town. She didn't know what to expect from the Professor. She hadn't seen him directly since her time in the Pokémon Camp with Ash. She wondered if he would even remember her face.

The trio and their Pokémon passed by the grass between the several trees that separated them from Pallet Town. Within a few minutes, everyone made it to Pallet Town.

Pallet Town was much quieter than Viridian City, especially at night. There were barely anyone outside. Ash noticed no one he knew. He figured most people were done for the day and were inside their homes. Ash took a deep breath, taking in the air, and started to smile sadly. He looked over in the direction of his house and wondered if Delia was in there.

"Hmm…" Ash's marks glowed blue as he sensed if anyone was in his house. He gasped when he sensed no one was there. Then, he began to wonder, "Where did she go if she's not here?"

Serena gasped when she noticed Ash's marks glowing. She figured he must be thinking to himself, but figured at this point, she shouldn't ask. Chari started to hover over the ground and look around herself. She remembered a lot of these structures since Aurora lived here as a child. She wondered if she could find her partner's parents' old ranch. Ash and the gang soon made it to Professor Oak's lab.

Serena tapped on his shoulder to make him realize that his marks were glowing. At first, Ash was confused by the touch, then realized what Serena was telling him. He nodded and promptly made the glowing stop. Although Ash wasn't sure if Oak was still in the lab, he decided to try anyway. Using his knee, he knocked on the lab door a few times. Then, he stepped back to await a response.

At first nothing happened. Ash knew that Oak lived with Daisy and thought he went home since it was taking him a while to answer. When he finally thought it was a good idea to go somewhere else, the door slowly creaked open. Ash saw no visible light, but was curious regardless. He stepped inside.

Serena looked at her boyfriend, somewhat hesitant, but trusted his judgment. She followed suit, but mostly to protect him in case anything happened to him. Chari was forced to stay outside because of how large she was, but she peeked inside. Because her vision was far greater than a human's, she could see that there was nothing wrong. The lizard relaxed a little.

"Professor…? Are you here?" Ash asked in a shaky voice.

"… I think the better question is… are you really here?" A voice replied.

"Professor?" Ash knew Oak's voice well. Ash looked around for some sort of light source. The only light he had was from the moon, but that wasn't much. He felt as though the professor was expecting him, but he didn't know why. He also didn't understand the professor's question.

"You've changed quite a bit, lad. You've learned much of your true heritage, but you are like a half-written slate." They heard a pause for a few moments. The lights suddenly turned on. Ash reeled back and squinted his eyes at the sudden change. When his vision cleared, he noticed the professor was looking at him with much more hardened eyes than normal. He said with a relieved tone, "I see you've found your real mother. I'm glad I don't have to keep up that façade anymore."

"You knew all this-" Ash started, but Oak kept his mouth shut. Literally. He raised his hand and submerged Ash's lips in a brown aura to make him stop speaking.

"Save it." Oak cut him off with an authoritative voice. Ash obeyed but scowled inwardly. Oak continued, "You know the answer and we both know neither of us is in any mood to argue about my reasons for not telling you. The fact of the matter is, Aurora has been afflicted with a powerful and ancient psychic energy that is preventing her from waking up. Seems like she pushed herself too hard trying to resist whatever she was fighting. We need to get her on a bed so I can properly remove all of it."

Oak snapped his fingers. The brown aura near Ash's mouth subsided. Ash asked in a somewhat panicked voice, "Where can I put her?"

Oak nodded and went to his desk. Cracking his knuckles, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes. The desk itself began to shake. Serena tilted her head in confusion. She thought guardians couldn't control anything that was non-living. Her confusion was soon quelled when a vine covered key broke through the table. The leaves still looked living, too.

"Follow me." Oak said and went outside. Ash and the others abided by his wishes. Oak immediately patted Chari on her head and whispered something in her ear. She widened her eyes, but nodded. She took Aurora from Ash's arms and gestured Ash, Serena and Pikachu to climb on her back. Although confused, Ash, Serena and Pikachu obliged. Oak threw out a Poke Ball and revealed he had a powerful Pokémon rivaling Chari in size.

"Dragonite, let's head to a place we haven't been to a while. Go to the secret passage in Mt. Silver…" Oak told him. The dragon type widened his eyes.

"(There, master? That's a solemn place.)" The dragon type said with concern.

"We're going to bring new life to it. It won't be as depressing for now with these two." Oak said, referring to Ash and Aurora. Dragonite made a docile smile.

"(I see. If this is what you desire, then so be it.)" Dragonite lowered himself so his trainer can climb on him. Oak mounted on his partner Pokémon. At his signal, Dragonite and Chari flew from the Pokémon lab and toward the west.

With Oak at the lead, he directed Chari and the teens on her toward Mt. Silver. None of them knew what to expect. Chari stayed right behind Dragonite and made sure she kept at a decent pace. However, she didn't want to make too much of a strain on Aurora, so she slowed down occasionally. Eventually, the two fliers made it to the base of Mt. Silver Cave. Oak directed everyone to the base waterfall of the cave.

He looked back at Chari and said, "Chari, think you can handle it for a few moments?"

"(I can pinch my wings tight and land on the other side well enough. I just don't want my flame or these kids to get wet.)" Chari replied. Ash was confused. Just what was Oak planning?

"Of course. We'll make this easier for you." Oak looked down at his dragon friend, "Pal, give me the strength… to control this water surge."

"(Will do, Sam!)" Dragonite suddenly started to glow brown. Oak started to glow in the same color. Oak closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The water seemingly responded to breath he took. Then he widened his hands and opened up his arms. Dragonite's antenna copied his trainer's movements. Ash and Serena gasped in awe when the waterfall began to bend to the master guardian duo's will. It began to stretch apart in tow and revealed a cave path from behind it. What made this more impressive was how powerful the waterfall is to be able to create and maintain such a large path.

Oak gestured Chari to follow the two of them through the path. Chari obliged, but tucked in her wings and lowered her head so she could have space to walk. She barely fit in otherwise. Dragonite himself had to keep his head lowered in order to proceed. Once through, Oak and Dragonite closed the waterfall path behind them. The water crashed with a surge of power as if nothing happened.

They started to walk through the hidden cave until they reached a dead end. The only light they had was from Chari's tail. Dragonite began to feel around the cave walls for something. Serena was confused, but Ash widened his eyes. He did something like this before during his trial with Mew. Ash knew exactly what they were trying to find.

"There." Oak said when he noticed Dragonite's arm go through a wall. He said to the teens, "Alright… we're about to go through a secret aura tunnel which will require you to be a guardian to proceed. Serena…"

"Yes?" Serena blinked her eyes when she heard him regard her by name.

"You're not normal, but you're also not a guardian… at least not completely. What are you?" Oak asked in curiosity.

"I'm a psychic guardian, sir, but how did you know my name?" Serena asked.

"I made a note of you when you were at my camp eight years ago. I sensed your power was suppressed by something, but I didn't try to spur it on the off chance I was wrong about my hunch. I didn't want to take the chance of you not having any power and revealing myself ceaselessly." Oak closed his eyes and began to think. He said, "A psychic guardian, huh? Didn't think I'd live to see one of those again. You should be allowed to go through, but… you will go through a lot of pain as this is a guardian specific path. We are going to be turning into aura for this. Are you willing to do that?"

"Of course. I committed myself to be at Ash's side. I will stay committed." Serena said immediately. She grabbed Ash's hand and made a gentle squeeze. Ash blushed. Oak sensed the warmth on Ash's face and made a small smile.

"So be it… and I commend it. This is a good sign if you and Ash are the two being referred to in the prophecy." Oak replied. Then he said in a much more serious voice, "Make sure to follow Dragonite and myself specifically, Chari, so we end up at the same place at the same time. Ash, make sure you hold on to Serena's hand tightly. Also, make sure she'll be alright once we make it through. The aura path we're going though is both an aura path and an aura barrier, so Serena will feel some resistance and aftermath as partial psychic."

"Understood." Ash nodded.

"Then let's proceed together." With that, Professor Oak and Dragonite walked through the wall. Chari looked back at Ash and Serena before beginning to walk through herself.

Immediately when Chari started to walk through, Serena started to feel some resistance. Serena screamed in pain when she came into contact with the aura barrier. Ash gazed at her with worry and held her tightly. Serena had to close her eyes as tight as she could to go through the pain. Chari sighed, but knew she needed to keep up with the Professor.

Ash wasn't sure how to help her, so he draped his arms around her like a blanket. Since he was behind her, it was very easy to cover most of her body up. He wasn't sure if this gesture was helping as Serena was shaking heavily while under him. He hugged her from behind even tighter and gave her a tighter squeeze to let her know he was there for her. Ash started to feel Serena crying when he felt some water fall on his arms. He felt awful for her and hated to see her this much in pain.

As everyone continued the path, they started to turn into aura. Chari and Aurora were yellow, Serena was pink, Ash and Pikachu were blue and Oak and Dragonite were brown. Since they all were aura, any words were formed by thought. Ash could no longer hold her like he was, but made his aura stay close to Serena's.

"Ash… it hurts… so much…" Serena could barely think. She felt as if the core of her body was fighting itself.

"Hang in there, Seri. We're almost there. I can feel it." Serena heard Ash reply. Ash, while in aura form, engulfed her into his aura. Serena felt a warmth of love from the raven-haired teen. She felt appreciative. The pain significantly went down with Ash covering for her.

"I'll… try… my best. Thank you, Ash." Serena enjoyed feeling Ash's tranquil aura surround her. He was using himself as a shield for her.

Ash and the others eventually reached the end of the path and re-materialized into their normal forms. They all jumped out of a tree. Ash found himself in awe. Considering they were just in a cave, this would be hard to try finding. He wondered what place could be so important to have so many layers to finding it. Once out of the aura path, Serena was shaking with her eyes shut tightly. They re-materialized to where Ash was carrying her in his arms. Ash walked on, but stole glances at Serena occasionally. He hoped she would be alright.

Serena tried to shake off the terrible pain she was experiencing. Never in her life she felt this much agony, but despite that, she felt it was worth it. She wanted to remain by Ash's side, especially with Aurora being unconscious. She didn't know if she should trust Professor Oak considering how Delia was like and the fact that he knew a lot that she didn't expect him to know. Even though she was feeling shivers from the gruesome pain she was experiencing, she decided to keep a closer eye on the graying man.

Chari was carrying Aurora in her arms, too. She could hear Aurora say in her sleep, "Delilah… please…"

"(…?)" Chari widened her eyes and looked down at her trainer. If she had been human, she wouldn't have heard her from how quietly she was speaking.

"Please… come back… to us…" Aurora continued.

"(Aurora… what are you talking about?)" Chari asked her in a whisper. She didn't want Ash to worry about her even more than he already did, especially with Serena in pain, too.

"Your aura… it's… not normal…" Aurora started to squirm in Chari's arms. She seemed to be in pain.

"(She wouldn't be like this in her sleep if her senses weren't going off. Something's wrong.)" Chari deduced in her thoughts.

"This feeling… you have. It's… so… cold." Aurora began to visibly shiver as her marks glowed faintly. Chari could feel her body becoming burning to touch. She was smoking. Aurora murmured, "How do… you deal with it… constantly, big sister? It's too… cold. I… can't warm up…"

"(Aurora… hang in there. Hopefully you'll be able to remember what you're saying when we wake you up.)" Chari thought.

"Chari? Why is Mom smoking in your arms?" Ash took notice of the smoke forming from Aurora. Chari didn't know why and shrugged her shoulders. Oak perked up upon hearing that. Then, he began to smell the smoke in the forest. He looked a little concerned.

"Smoking, you say? Now why would she…?" Oak walking to inspect her more closely. He put his hand above hers and shivered upon sensing her aura. He paled, "Oh no…"

"What's wrong?!" Ash said, highly anxious. Oak scanned her aura again by making his eyes faintly brown. He widened his eyes, then narrowed them.

"We have to get this energy out of her. Now. Chari, lay her down. Does she carry any blankets?" Oak asked. Chari nodded and gestured Ash to look through Aurora's large pouch. Ash nodded then asked Serena if she was able to stand on her own. Serena immediately tried to get out of his arms, but quickly lost her balance and held her head in pain. Oak, upon seeing Serena so weak, decided to get the blanket himself.

"Ash, continue to carry Serena. I'll make sure your mother will be alright. We were so close to our destination, but I don't want to take any chances." Oak's hands began to be drenched in dark brown aura. His dark eyes were fixated on Aurora as she began to glow in the same color.

Aurora began to visibly look uncomfortable in her sleep. She alternated between a whitish and eerie glow and the professor's dark brown. Oak's hands began to shake as he poured more of is aura into her. Aurora was sweating and kept making small noises of distress. Ash and Serena watched him anxiously while the Pokémon looked stern. Soon, Aurora stayed glowing brown. Ash made a sigh of relief, but gasped when he noticed the white energy leaving her.

Oak struggled to contain the psychic energy in his grasp due to its very nature of being opposite to aura. Oak could feel the white leftover energy fighting him. Oak grew more and more ambitious in his efforts, refusing to give in to the energy. He recognized it from a reading he'd seen a few decades ago, but he never imagined trying to seize control of it. Oak's body became surrounded in a dark brown aura and he clenched his teeth tightly. He was determined to remove all of Delia's presence in Aurora.

Eventually, he succeeded and cupped the white energy inside a makeshift aura bubble in his hands.

Oak seemed to be exhausted. His hands were shaking and he seemed visibly drain as he controlled the white energy. He then shot the bubble out toward the path they took and it disintegrated into the air. Oak collapsed on the ground, panting. Ash immediately went over to the professor to make sure he was alright.

"I'm fine, Ash. I just… didn't expect Aurora to have dealt with a virtuous psychic. No wonder why her body is reacting so negatively. She'll… be alright." Oak continued to pant.

"I'm happy she'll be OK, but… virtuous psychics?" Ash blinked his eyes at the term.

"I'll explain more about dark aura guardians and virtuous psychics to you eventually. We're almost there." Oak shakily got up. Serena gasped upon hearing Oak mention dark aura guardians. Ash looked at her curiously. Chari once again picked up Aurora in her arms. Oak put back the blanket in Aurora's pouch. Dragonite looked at his partner, somewhat concerned. He immediately put Oak back on his back. Oak looked at the dragon in protest, but the dragon shook his head.

"(You're not as young as you used to be, Sam. We can't afford you to overexert yourself especially with the young master being inexperienced. Rest on my back until we make it.)" Dragonite said while looking away. Oak nodded and didn't fight him. The dragon and flying type made a docile smile. He looked at Ash and said, "(Are you ready to proceed, young master?)"

"Yes." Ash nodded.

"(The end of this path will be the place you, your girlfriend, and your mom will sleep for tonight.)" Dragonite explained.

"Why did you keep being an aura guardian a secret, Professor?" Ask said, curious.

"I'll explain once we head to our destination if you ask again later. Just a little farther now. We're almost out of the forest completely." Oak pointed to the upcoming clearing.

Without saying another word, everyone continued walking. Serena had slowly fallen asleep in Ash's arms, both of exhaustion from going through an aura path and because it was very late. She seemed fairly comfortable in the young Ketchum's arms. Despite the situation, Chari found herself smiling, but focused on ahead.

The group eventually made it.

Ash gasped with astonishment and wonder. He had found himself in a large grassy field. The moon was illuminating the grass and the wind flowing through it. Ash also felt like he recognized this area, but he couldn't pinpoint from where. There was a lot of space for different Pokémon to roam about. Ash noticed there were quite a few nocturnal Pokémon outside like Hoothoot and Spinarak. He also noticed a few berries trees further away from everyone.

The main thing he saw was a red brick cottage.

It looked a little old, as if no one has visited it in a long time. Ash noticed some of the grass growing into the house. It looked tranquil and he sensed there were a lot of good memories here. Now, he had a dense of dread. It felt a bit too quiet, despite feeling safe. Ash looked at Aurora as she slept in Chari's arms. He wondered if she took him here before. Ash knew he wanted to touch the house's bricks once he got to it.

Professor Oak, Ash and the rest of the gang made it to the front door. The house had a rustic charm to it up close. It was neither too small or too large, but it radiated a natural beauty. Oak took out the key he had gotten early to unlock the door the first time in several years. The door slowly creaked open. Chari found herself tearing up, but unable to wipe her eyes because she was holding Aurora. Oak made Aurora became immersed in his brown aura.

Oak quickly directed Aurora inside and made her go into one of the bedrooms. Ash quickly followed him with Serena in his arms. Chari decided to sit outside and look at the moon once she felt Aurora leave her. She sighed to herself. Luckily for her, Dragonite was also a bit too big to comfortably fit, so the two stayed outside together.

"Oh?" Oak gasped in surprise. Ash peered in the bedroom and seemed a bit confused. There was a Pokémon sleeping in here already. It was an Espeon. The window behind her was open so they figured that's how she got in. The professor's eyes soften and shook her a little. The Pokémon woke up with a fit. She hissed at the old man and bit his finger. Oak gulped and resisted the urge to scream. The Espeon immediately looked remorseful and let go.

"Sam, I…" The Espeon stammered telepathically.

"It's alright. I know you weren't expecting anyone to find this place, so your nerves were high. I'm sorry for surprising you." Oak said.

"I'm sorry for being so aggressive. What are you doing here…?" Espeon immediately cut herself when she noticed Ash with Serena sleeping in his arms. She looked at the boy with a bit of disbelief. She jumped off the bed and approached the young guardian. The red gem glowed a slight red. Then, she gasped, "Young master Ashton?! You've returned?!"

"You recognize me?" Ash gasped in surprise.

"Recognize you? I recognize the Ketchum mark anywhere. I hardly believe it is you. You've grown up so much since I last saw you, but I will always know the scent of my master's son." Espeon explained.

"Master's son…? Professor, what is this place?" Ash asked with curiosity.

"This is your father's old ranch. This Espeon is one of his guardian partners." Oak told him.

"…?!" Ash gasped and looked around rapidly, trying to take in more of the environment and room. He hated himself for not being able to remember any of this place.

"I often trained Aurora and Red here when they were younger. It's spacious enough to where we could do almost anything, but at a good enough location to where people wouldn't come over. There's a reason I had made it almost impossible for trainers to come to Mt. Silver and this was it. I'm assuming Espeon still lingers here to guard Red's house." Oak explained.

"That's partly true, but I actually have hope that I will see Redrick come back here one day…" Espeon revealed.

"What happened to him? Mom wouldn't tell me." Ash said in a pleading voice.

"Aurora wouldn't tell you likely because of everything you found out today. She's always been a pretty reserved person. I'll honor that. I'm assuming you learned about how you and her were separated and were in a conflict with a psychic in trying to get here. I don't know what happened to you other than the fact that the psychic you fought is a very old type of psychic." Oak explained.

"Virtuous psychics…" Ash said without thinking.

"Yeah. Ash… if you want me to explain more, put Serena down in another bedroom and follow Espeon and I to the main hub. You'll see us sitting on a couch. Come along, Espeon." Oak gestured the psychic type to follow. She did. Pikachu also stood beside Oak. He placed Aurora on the bed and covered her up before leaving for the living room with the two Pokémon following him.

Ash went in what he presumed to be a guest room and placed Serena in there. This room was a little smaller than the previous room and so was the bed. The bed was twin sized while the other bed appeared about queen sized. Ash didn't think about it until now, but he figured the other room must have been his parents' room. The realization gave him a shiver. After giving Serena small kiss on the cheek and leaving the room, his curiosity began to consume him.

Ash looked into the last room outside of the kitchen and hub area and gasped. This was the only room decorated with any semblance of effort and it caused him to tear up. The room's main color was blue and he noticed stars and a large moon painted on the wall. He also noticed a picture of a man, woman and child on the man's back at the bottom of the wall looking up at the moon opposite to the bed.

Upon closer inspection, he noticed the woman looked like Aurora, the man looked like an older version of him with brown hair and the child looked like exactly like him.

Ash gently touched the people in the picture and began to have a warm fuzzy feeling. It looked though Aurora or Red drew this. He could see the detail in the drawing. He could feel Ashton having that same fuzzy feeling, but could tell that he didn't remember any of this, too. The ebony haired teen was tempted to ask Ashton what he remembered about their father and life here, but decided against it. He knew that he had been young so remembering would be difficult. Ash decided to move his focus to something else.

After appreciating his toddler picture, he took notice to the bed in the middle of the room. It looked a little old, but the wood appeared sturdy. It was blue like the majority of the room and there were several soft cotton blankets on it neatly made. It looked like it hadn't been touched in over a decade. Feeling a bit nervous, but excited, Ash gripped the edge of the bed and his marks began to glow. He closed his eyes and imagined his young self coming onto this bed after playing outside hard. He didn't remember much, but he knew that had happened, though not very frequently. Ash's eyes softened and he wiped away any semblance of tears forming. He decided he needed to do something before he reunited with the professor.

The young Ketchum left his old room, both with sadness, but with a warm feeling.

Ash went back out to the living room. Pikachu's ears perked up upon seeing his partner and he jumped on his shoulder instinctively. Ash rubbed the mouse's cheek and made his finger spark a little. Pikachu found this even more soothing than normal and relaxed under his touch. Ash could feel his grip loosen slightly from the pleasure.

Ash turned to the professor and old him he wanted to go outside for a bit. Although confused, Oak nodded and gestured him to do want he wanted to do. Ash went back outside.

Ash noticed that Chari and Dragonite were no longer just sitting down, but were battling in the air.

Dragonite engrossed his claws with a teal claw like aura to swipe at Chari. Chari punched her fists together and formed a red dragon-like silhouette around herself. They charged at each other full speed and collided with an explosion of power. Ash could barely keep his hat on from their aura clashing. The two knocked each other on the ground with a large thud. Ash jumped up when they made impact.

Chari made an impressed grin and bared out her fangs. Her eyes grew draconian in shape as they turned into slits. Dragonite's face grew downright terrifying and his glare matched Chari's. He seemed much more serious. His eyes turned red and his eyes also appeared like slits. Then, he made a loud roar in power. Ash gasped as he had to plant his feet on the ground from the sheer intensity of it. Pikachu could barely hold onto Ash. Dragonite then opened his wings wide, surrounded himself in a dark brown dragon-like aura and lunged at Chari. Chari continued to grin as she closed her wings to intercept the attack. Dragonite made directly contact.

For the first time since meeting Chari, she appeared to be struggling to take an attack. Eventually, Chari couldn't take the pressure and took the hit. She seemed to be in slight pain. She winced slightly. Then, her body began to heat up. Her tail flame increased in intensity. Chari's eyes were seething. Dragonite seemed amused, but eager. Chari began to charge at the dragon type with both determination and rage. However, before she could, Dragonite noticed Ash and Pikachu and dodged Chari's assault.

Angered, Chari wondered why he dodged, but soon realized Ash had been watching. Her body instantly cooled down and her tail flame and eyes grew back to normal. Dragonite's eyes also turned back to normal. Both draconian gave their full attention to the boy.

"Doing some training?" Ash inquired.

"(Chari and I used to get quite rowdy like this back in the day. Our siblings were always trying to prove to ourselves who was the strongest and we were no exception.)" Dragonite laughed.

"Siblings…?" Ash tilted his head.

"(Oh, I guess you didn't know. Dragonite and I are siblings. I'm his younger sister.)" Chari explained. Ash backed up in shock and widened his eyes.

"What?! How is that possible?! I thought when Pokémon breed, the child will look like the mother Pokémon if they're different species." Ash said.

"(That's true, but Dragonite and I have the same Dragonite for a father. My mother was a Charizard, but his mother was a Dragonite.)" Chari explained.

"(We both were consequences of a trainer trying to find the perfect natured Pokémon. He had us judged by an ace trainer and… we were released. We're what hyper competitive trainers call breedjects.)" Dragonite continued.

"That's horrible, but what is a breedject?" Ash wondered.

"(A breedject is a Pokémon that was bred with the purpose of getting a Pokémon with outstanding potential in certain stats, but failing to have that potential in all the desired stats. I was missing potential in my special defense." Dragonite explained and recalled.

"(And I was missing potential in my health apparently. We… weren't good enough… so we were left for dead once we were evaluated.)" Chari added.

"…" Ash grew silent.

"(When the professor found us, I was already embittered against humans. I saw him as another human that would abandon me. It's the main reason why I hated humans, actually. So many of my brothers and sister were released because of selfishness.)" Chari snarled as she remembered her anger. She continued, "(When Sam decided to give me up as a possible Pokémon to trainers, I decided that if I did get given away, I would make that person as miserable as possible. People often gave me back to Sam, thinking I was too much to handle. That was horrible, in retrospect, but I was young and foolish. Aurora ended up subverting all expectations I had about humans and taught me that people can be kind.)"

Ash always believed that any Pokémon could do well with lots of love and care. It sickened him to hear how multiple Charmander and Dratini were released just to find the perfect one. He didn't know how someone can just judge a Pokémon from looking at it and insult its potential like it didn't have any feelings. Ash narrowed his eyes and curled up his fists. His fists started to glow blue, but he stopped himself from getting too heated. The glow subsided.

"(Sam was trying to give Chari away to a trainer he felt could take better care of her and although it took her a while to find the perfect one, I'm happy she found Aurora. With Sam teaching Aurora as she grew up, I could still interact with and get to know Chari. I, on the other hand, had a much easier time. Samuel and I connected from the start and we knew that we were guardian partners. He honed my energy to something great and I learned to control the gift our father passed us: our eyes.)" Dragonite explained.

"Your eyes?" Ash asked.

Chari and Dragonite simultaneously shifted their eyes to red and silted. Ash gasped and got a shiver down his spine. Dragonite continued, "(Our father was a very peculiar Dragonite with red eyes. Each of us either had red eyes or could shift our eyes to be red. There is a legend that states that a dragon born with intense eyes will grant their trainer indomitable strength. He was said to be the most terrifying Dragonite to have been born and he bred against his will because our first trainer wanted a perfect dragon. Chari and I were products of that.)"

"What happened to him? Can't we do anything to help if he's still going through that?" Ash gripped his fists tightly. He felt angry for them and sad about their dad.

"(I appreciate the sentiment, but… he… died a long time ago, young master. It's been at least twenty-five cycles around the sun since his death. However, I do not believe that is the main thing you want to ask. You came out here for a reason.)" Chari pointed out.

"I want to find out more about you now." Ash said with a soft voice. Chari tilted her head. Her eyes turned normal and they appeared soft. Ash's eyes turned red as he noted his observations, "What you went through was horrible, I can tell. I don't know how the professor found you since you kept it so vague. You also kept your interactions with your old trainers vague, too. It's clear you don't want me to know."

"(…)" Chari looked at the boy speechless.

"I felt alienation from people who don't understand me, too. Serena… was so cold to me after I attacked. Granted, it was perfectly reasonable, but I felt bias against me when I helped defend everyone from Mother. Everyone seemed surprised and that hurt realizing that. It seems like after the six-day coma and Serena and I went through our respective trials, she started to understand more and judge me as a person rather by my past. Not a lot of people usually is able to accept me. Even before Ash and Mom were separated, when I took control of Ash in public, people looked at me as if I did something wrong… like I was a freak. I didn't understand at the time why and Mom told me constantly to keep myself hidden. I understand why now, but it doesn't make me feel better." Ashton explained.

"(Ashton…)" Chari didn't know how to respond to that.

"The point I'm trying to make is that I have a good feeling that the main reason people gave you back to the professor was because of a combination of your attitude, odd abilities and how different you looked, but you don't want to address that. Your eyes aren't normal and your potential is much greater than normal Charizards. People didn't understand you and tossed you aside like you were nothing. They gave up on you and made you leave on their terms instead on your own. You felt angry by this and acted out. Your feelings… not mattering to others…" Ashton continued.

"(Ashton, did you really feel like Aurora didn't care about how you felt?)" Chari asked in a small voice. Ashton took a deep breath.

"I… used to. That changed when she stopped my rampage." Ashton began to tear up, but wiped them away. He went up to her and gripped her claws. Chari seemed a little surprised. Chari looked down and acknowledged it. Then, Ashton looked straight in her eyes and said, "When she gave me that hug and acknowledged me as being confused instead of malicious like everyone else, I knew she cared and knew me. I know you feel the same about Mom and probably had that realization when she was willing to sacrifice herself against that Gyarados."

"(Ashton… you are quite perceptive. I see why you took over Ash here. It seems like you and Ash are coming into yourself beautifully. Though Ash is dominant, he leans on you and you lean on him. That's most heartwarming and shows just how much you've grown. I apologize for not saying everything, young master.)" Chari looked away from the young guardian.

"It's alright." Ash and Ashton said together. Ash made one eye turn brown and the other stay red. He chuckled, "If I didn't have to keep being a guardian and the aura allegiance secret to most people, I'd probably look like this, if I'm being perfectly honest. This is who I am."

"(I wish we lived in a world where that was possible. Even though you're not using any aura actively, I can feel the power radiating from you. Just like people will not understand you, they will also use you.)" Chari noted.

"I wish you were wrong, Chari. Even though I can't fully be myself all the time, I appreciative that both sides of myself is me. I'm glad that Mom found me. I'm happy that I have the ability to be myself fully again and acknowledge it." Ash said with a smile.

"(Ah… I'm glad. Can't wait for some of the adventures we'll have as a family.)" Chari grinned.

"Chari… if you don't want to talk about it now, I won't push you. I do want to know more about how Professor Oak found you and the experiences you had with your past trainers at a certain point. I want to understand you more." Ash said.

"(I appreciate that, young master. I'll hold myself to honoring your request when we get to know each other more. It took me a while to admit everything to Aurora, so I think it's fair for you to wait. Now… why did you come outside?)" Chari wondered.

"I wanted one of you to go out and find Pidgeot. I wasn't expecting to end up at my dad's ranch and I doubt she'll know where to go. Can one of you find her?" Ash pleaded. The two siblings looked at each other, then at the boy. Then, they nodded.

"(I can get your old friend better than Chari could because I could control the waterfall and I'm slightly smaller. Give me a bit of time and I'll give a holler outside.)" Dragonite said. He started to hover at this point. Ash thanked him. Dragonite grinned and flew off into the night, trying to honor Ash's request.

Chari looked back at Ash with a small smile and flew off to follow Dragonite. Ash had a feeling she didn't want to remain outside alone and also figured she wanted to spend more time with her brother. Ash nodded to himself and went back inside.

Once inside, Ash noticed that the professor had given both the Pokémon a bowl of berries to feed and was just about to sit down. His eyes lightened up when he noticed the youngster and gestured him to sit beside him. Ash obliged and sat down, too. Espeon got mostly sweet berries while Pikachu got mostly spicy ones. Ash raised an eyebrow. He knew what their preferred flavors were. The boy wondered if Oak was inspecting him for anything.

Oak said something first, "You had a few questions regarding virtuous psychics and your father. I'll address the virtuous psychic part since I know more a lot more about that."

"I can address some of that myself actually." A third voice suddenly entered herself in the conversation. Ash widened his eyes when he noticed Mew appear in front of them. She gently floated with her tail moving causally, observing them both. "After all, I am the creator of all life."

"How long have you been here?" Ash said curiously.

"Since you first found Samuel. I had Celebi let him know to expect you… down to the very second of the day. Once I sensed you two together, I made myself invisible and followed you. How do you like your old home?" Mew inquired.

"I feel… fuzzy. I feel both a good and a bad kind of fuzzy, too. Lots of good things happened here, but I know Mom didn't come back here after Dad went missing. I don't think Mom, Dad and I were here often during the day when we did stay here. I can't really remember much else, though…" Ash answered as well as he could.

"How impressive. You haven't been here since you were two and yet you recalled much of what happened here. Now that you've acknowledged your true mother, things will begin to accelerate for you, both mentally and physically. I even see you comfortable enough to be out completely. That's a good sign to come." Mew said with a small smile.

"Now… can you tell me what is up with Mo- er… Delia? What are virtuous psychics? Why did Mom spaz out earlier… you know… smoking up on our way here?" Ash asked. Mew tilted her head, but nodded. She turned into Delia's shape in response. Ash's eyes narrowed and he immediately snarled at her. Oak gasped when he noticed Ash's fists becoming blue angrily.

"Just gauging your reaction, young one. It's just like I thought." Mew turned back into her cat-like form again and put her paw on her chin and she seemed to be in a state of thought. Then, she decided on something. She said with a flat voice, "Tomorrow."

"What? Are you kiddin-" Ash was about to say, but Mew interrupted him.

"Tomorrow. You're not ready and your emotions are still charged from earlier. I can tell you're cooled down, but the animosity and resentment are there. I need your mind to be clearer before I cloud it more." Mew decided.

"Cloud it more…?" Ash was confused by the phrasing. Mew sighed.

"Tell you more that will affect how you feel about certain things. Get some good rest. Tomorrow's a big day. Aurora should be awake tomorrow and you two will accompany me to the Tree of Beginning. I will personally escort you there." Mew said with a small smile. Oak raised an eyebrow.

"But-" Ash wanted to argue with her, but Mew's face grew significantly more serious. Her eyes turned daunting and her voice projected to have the authority of a god.

"Go to bed, Ashton Cornelius Ketchum." Mew said with a commanding voice. Ash suddenly had the inclination to do exactly what she wanted, even though he wanted to find out more. He felt exhausted from the day and knew he needed to sleep. The boy wondered if Mew could influence his actions, but doubted she could do it by the sound of her voice.

"Grr… fine." Ash started to walk to his room, but said this before he went there completely, "Please… can you make sure Pidgeot knows what's happening and what we're doing tomorrow? Also, please tell me more and stay true to that."

"I'll tell you as much as I feel you can handle right now. I'm mindful of how you may react at some things, but I am looking out for you. Patron's honor." Mew swore. She did an adorable gesture making herself stand straight up and did a swearing sign with her paws. Ash chuckled at the gesture. His left eye turned back to brown as he went to sleep in his old room for the first time in over ten years.

Oak had watched the entire thing with sad eyes. He looked at Mew both curiously and suspiciously. He didn't know she had been following them and that one simple fact made him a bit uneasy. Mew was watching Ash to make sure he went into his room. Oak eyed her with a hesitant look. Once Ash went to bed, Mew made a relieved sign and shook her head.

She appeared a lot more stressed than before Ash left. The Pokémon seemed worried about something, though what he didn't know. Oak took notice and decided to say something.

"Mew… you wouldn't be doing this if you didn't sense something off. You would have waited to expose yourself when Ash and Aurora made it to you. What's wrong?" Oak asked, somewhat concerned.

"I… have an odd feeling of foreboding, Samuel. I feel as though something will happen to my Ketchums, but I cannot predict the extent. I want to at least monitor these two more closely. I never predicted Aurora to have the willpower to overcome a virtuous psychic, but it has some repercussions. She might not be able to use her aura normally until I get rid of the influence completely." Mew explained.

"So, I didn't take all the energy out. Blast…" Oak looked annoyed at himself. Mew's eyes softened and then she made a reassuring smile.

"I appreciate everything you've done for the last two generations of my Ketchums, but only myself, Arceus, or a dark guardian can be rid of a virtuous psychic's influence. All you've done is temporarily soothe the effect. This is alright. I will heal Aurora completely tonight, but she will feel some pangs of her sister's cold touch once she awakes." Mew explained.

"Hmm…"

"Samuel?"

"Tell me everything. What do you think will happen to the Ketchum family in the future?" Oak asked with a serious voice.

"…" Mew didn't respond.

"Mew, please. I committed myself to helping them for this long." Oak said with a deadpan voice.

"Samuel… let's just protect these two, alright? I shouldn't have said anything. I'm sorry. I don't want you to worry about an outcome that might not even happen." Mew shook her head.

"Hmm…" Oak looked at the psychic type with an indescribable expression. He thought, "I think I know why Mew might be so scared and worried about the future. If I'm right… I'm worried, too. I have to be there for them should anything happen."

"You should go back to Kanto, Samuel. You can't have your friends and family being suspicious of you. Kanto doesn't take too well to guardians out in the open." Mew advised.

"I will go back, but it's clear that the situation is much direr than I thought. I'll find some way to visit you three some point in a few days to check in on you." Oak told her.

"Actually… that would put my mind at a bit of ease. I would like to speak with Gordon and Alison then as well. Would you mind that?" Mew pleaded.

"Not at all, my lady." Oak bowed. Mew smiled at the old man. He noted, "You've changed quite a bit from the last time we spoke. You're not trying to manipulate me, but is instead trying to speak from your emotions. I can see how much you care and is being more serious. I wonder if that's a good sign for the state of the world…"

"Samuel… even after limited exposure to me today, you're so observant. I like that trait of yours." Mew complimented.

"Well, we have known each other for over fifty years. It's easy to be perceptive about you." Oak chucked.

"Heh, true." Mew chuckled. She asked, "Would you like me to teleport you back to your lab so you can head home and sleep?"

"That would be nice, actually. Come outside with me, first. Ash requested we keep an eye out for Pidgeot. He seems quite invested in his old partner." Oak noted. Mew nodded and the two went back outside. Espeon decided to go into the room Aurora was in while Pikachu headed into Ash's room. They both fell asleep soon afterward.

Mew and the professor went outside and waited outside for his dragon partner to return. After about twenty minutes, they noticed three shadows approaching from the sky. At the front was Dragonite, with Chari and Pidgeot right behind him. They all seemed pretty happy to be flying at a fast pace. Oak was a little surprised that Pidgeot could keep up with both of them and wondered if she got a lot stronger since she was released. Despite that, he also knew that Pidgeot could fly at twice the speed of sound. However, that type of speed usually would tire the Pokémon out too quickly.

Dragonite landed right beside his trainer while Chari and Pidgeot landed right in front of Mew and Oak. Chari tiled her head in confusion at seeing the mythical Pokémon while Pidgeot seemed shocked and nervous. Mew picked up on this and made an easy-going smile.

"(What happened to the young master?)" Chari asked.

"(I had him go to bed, Chari. I didn't want him to stay up because of everything he went through today. He needed the rest. However, he made a special request to get Pidgeot.)" Mew explained. Pidgeot gasped when she heard this and had a warm fuzzy feeling filling up in her chest. Mew slowly floated to the bird and said, "(My trial affected him to the point where he lamented not seeing you in six years.)"

"(Really?)" Pidgeot widened her eyes.

"(Your trainer's a keeper, Pidgeot. Now that's he's asked you to return, hold him close. He will do you justice like he had in the past. Do you mind finding somewhere to perch yourself until Ash catches you properly again tomorrow?)" Mew asked.

"(Not at all. I don't know this area well, though.)" Pidgeot admitted.

"(Ah… that's because we're in the Hokori region. I doubt you would know this area too much. We're on the outskirts of Yousei Forest within a shroud I created to connect Mt. Silver Cave to this place.)" Mew explained.

"(That makes no sense, though. How can Johto be connected to this place?)" Pidgeot said, slightly confused.

"(The connection is at an entrance away from the house within a tree. Once you go through the tree, you are in a cave. The tree is an avenue for guardians to travel through. Think of it like a teleporting spot, except you must turn into aura to use it. It's weird to explain to a Pokémon unfamiliar with guardians.)" Mew sighed. She shook her head and gestured the bird Pokémon to follow her. The psychic type said to Oak and the Pokémon. "(I'll be back. Gonna give Pidgeot an overview of what's happening while finding her a safe place to rest.)"

With Mew's urging, the two flew off into the night. Mew made sure to tell Pidgeot as much as she thought she should know including Ash being an aura guardian, Aurora being unconscious and Ash's mother and her struggle to reunite with Ash. Pidgeot flew quietly, but listened intently. Her heart grew heavy, but she grew irritated with the mythical Pokémon for starting all this. The bird also acknowledged Mew's reasons and accepted them because the alternative meant death for everyone.

Mew found Pidgeot a safe place to rest within the forest, but she was still within the shroud she constructed to help conceal Red's home. Waving the bird Pokémon goodbye, she flew off into the night to help get Oak back home.

By the time Mew got back, Oak had set up a blanket for Chari to sleep on and the three was chatting about old times. Mew found herself trying to hide a small smile and hoped to see more of this in the near future. Oak, Dragonite and Chari stopped talking when they noticed the mythical Pokémon approaching them.

Mew said, "Ready to head back to Kanto, Samuel?"

"Yeah. Do let me know when Ash and Aurora are at the Tree of Beginning. I'll promptly be there when you talk to Gordon and Alison." Oak reminded. Mew nodded, but appeared distant.

"…Yeah." Mew suddenly grew somber again. Oak raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Mew put out her paw, "Touch my paw and we will return to Kanto. However, are you sure you want to not tell Ash about why you kept Aurora and guardians a secret from him? You hesitated to tell him earlier."

"It's like you said… his emotions are a bit too high right now. I think he may need more time to accept everything, but I can tell he's matured heavily since he started his journey. Judge how he is tomorrow and tell him in my absence if you deem him ready." Oak decided.

"Gotcha. I'll talk to you soon, Samuel." Mew said with a small smile. She wiggled her paw slightly.

"Likewise, Mew." Oak gestured Dragonite to touch Mew's paw simultaneously with him. Before he did, Chari lightly punched her brother in affection and nuzzled against him. Dragonite made a bashful smile and waved a goodbye at her. Then, trainer and Pokémon disappeared into the night with the mythical Pokémon.

Chari lightly yawned and laid down on the blanket, both to keep an eye on the house and because she always liked to look at the moon at night. She thought about Ashton's perception of her as well as her trainer's condition. She tried to shake those thoughts away so she could relax. It took her a while, but the dragon-like Pokémon eventually lulled herself to sleep.

Soon after Chari fell asleep, Mew returned and entered the house. She seemed determined and had a deadly serious face. Mew went into the house and into Aurora's room. She floated to the unconscious guardian, put out her paw and began to focus her energy on her. Her paw began to glow a bright pink that illuminated the room. Mew narrowed her eyes and two 'z' like marks appeared on either side of her face. She smirked into the night.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I really liked it myself. It was very fun writing Ashton's and Serena's interaction after all that family stuff the last few chapters. ;)

Welp, the last chapter of the book awaits for next time. See you in three days. I feel like releasing it Friday afternoon will be a little gift to my younger readers who come home from school.

Next Chapter: The Tree and End of the Beginning

Until then...

~SPG123~