AN: Great news everybody! My copyright finally went through so this mega update is to celebrate! My short story is called 'The Stranger' and you can find it on amazon. There will be a link to it on the Facebook page for my stories. I want to thank everyone for supporting as I write and for anyone who ends up getting my story. This is hopefully the latest step to becoming a full-time writer.

Spot Inspection

Chapter 2

-Ash-

"Alright, so who am I travelling with?" he asked the officer as they left the Laboratory, his new Pokédex pinging as he got the message every Kanto registered trainer received about how the Lab was facing difficulties and so any Pokémon captured would be kept with the trainer, warning them not to catch more than they can handle if they can't keep their Pokémon somewhere else.

"My little sister." the officer pointed to the road at the bottom of the hill with the lab where he saw another of the practically identical Jenny family waiting, this one looking about his age.

"Sup," the bluenette grinned, flashing him the peace sign "names Jane. You the guy who made the call about the prof right?"

"Yeah, I'm Ash." He nodded, "This is Slakoth and Scyther." The two Pokémon wave in greeting, Slakoth having decided it was a scarf.

"I'll let you two get to it." The older Jenny smiled, pulling her sister into a hug "Travel safe and be sure to call me every time you reach a city, alright J?"

"You got it sis," his new travelling companion returned the hug, "me and Growlithe have this covered. We'll make you proud!"

"You already have brat." The older Jenny chuckled, ruffling her sister's hair as the younger sibling squawked in playful indignation.

"Come on," he told Jane with a smile as the elder officer went back to the lab, "we can grab a bite to eat at my place before we head out." It would be a good way to get to know the person he would travel with at least. Jane shrugged and fell into step beside him as they made their way back to his house where he saw his mom waiting.

"Ash!" his mom jumped the fence and pulled him into a hug, "You got your starter…s?"

"I'm helping the league have an excuse to do spot inspections for the main eight gyms in case they're pulling anything like Oak was." He told her and felt fear as he saw the teasing gleam enter his mother eyes.

"So, you got two starters and a pretty girl to travel with." She summed up, her tone teasing as he and Jane blushed, "First day on your journey and you're already bringing cute girls home to meet your mother, your father would be so proud of you."

"Mooooooom!" he groaned, hiding his face in his hands as even Scyther and Slakoth cackled at his suffering.

"And these two!" she turns to the Pokémon as their cackling stops "They're so adorable!" she pulls Scyther and Slakoth into a hug as the two attempted to squirm for freedom. "All joking aside, I'm glad you can do your journey Ash." His mom's teasing smile easing into a sincere one as she stroked his cheek, "I'm so proud of you and your dad would be as well. Now come!" his mom clapped her hands together and ushered them inside "We feast!"

"Huzzah!" he and Jane exclaimed together, grinning at the unexpected synchronization as they enter to see the smorgus board of food his mom made and his neighbors there to celebrate the start of his journey. "So, Jane," he asked as they approached the food table, filling their plates "what made you join the league itself instead of taking a journey?"

"My family are almost all police officers," she told him "mostly for the cities themselves but some of us do work for the league like my sister is. Ever since I was a kid I looked up to her, wanted to be just like her. She was strong, she was confident, and she didn't take any shit from anybody. So, I didn't feel like I needed to do a journey or compete in the league. Then the reality sunk in once I started working for the government."

"Paperwork?" he chuckled at her tone.

"Paperwork." She nodded, making a disgusted expression before they both chuckled "Anyway, this way I get to actually get to do some travelling, at least for your journey, and even catch some Pokémon. If I get strong enough I can try to join one of the special investigation branches who look into things like team rocket activity and do more heavy battling."

"Well I could always use a sparring buddy for my team," he bumped her shoulder "we might be able to help you get to decent standards." He gave her a teasing grin as she swatted his shoulder, the two of them relaxing as they found a rhythm to work off of.

"Keep it up league boy, I'm doing the work of inspecting the gyms, you're just meant to show up and look pretty." She scoffed, her Growlithe yipping in agreement.

"You know, this means war." He declared dramatically as Slakoth and Scyther cried out in agreement. They spent the next hour chatting and eating, relaxing as Ash's neighbors all took the opportunity to wish him luck, and in some cases tell him they were planning on betting on him to win the league.

"Be safe you two!" his mom waved as they set out on the road to Viridian city, "Call me when you get there and don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

"Mooooooom!" he groaned out, hiding his blush as his mom cackled at her teasing.

"Your mom is certainly interesting." Jane gave an awkward chuckle as they entered the Viridian forest, Slakoth walking beside them to build his stamina while Scyther and Growlithe were resting in their Pokéballs, having eaten too much at the party to be able to move without being sick.

"That's one way to put it." Ash grumbled, pulling out his new Pokédex as he flipped through the functions, "Hey Slakoth, hold up, I want to check your move set." Seeing his starter posing for the camera he scanned the little sloth Pokémon.

"Slakoth, the slacker Pokémon." The Pokédex's computerized voice began, "Type: Normal. Known ability(s) truant. Gender ratio: fifty, fifty. Average height: two feet seven inches. Average weight: fifty-three pounds. Egg group: field."

"That's just the average information," he frowned, "where's the, ah!"

"Slakoth, status: captured. Ability: Huge Power. Height: Three feet three inches. Weight, sixty-eight pounds. Current moves: scratch, yawn, encore, slash, and ice punch."

"Ice punch?" Jane muses, "An egg move?"

"It's ability though," he gaped "It said they only ever had truant." His face split into a wide grin "This is awesome buddy!"

"Slakoth!" the first stage Pokémon cheered happily.

"Must be why the professor had him in the lab," Jane grinned, rubbing the happy pokemon's head "an anomaly in the species, you're already evolved little guy."

"Ice punch is a good move to train with for now," he decided, knowing the first gym had rock and ground types "we can battle the bird Pokémon in the forest as we walk."

"Koth!" Slakoth began scurrying around the path as they walked looking for anything to battle as his fist showed faint signs of frost on the claws.

"Ch-cha." The weak cry was almost drowned out by the piercing angry shrieks of nearby spearow. Not even hesitating, Ash took off towards the sound, Jane running alongside him and Slakoth in the lead. Entering a clearing he saw a badly beaten Pikachu being pecked by a spearow horde.

"Ice punch!" he yelled out, scooping up a rock and throwing it at the vicious bird Pokémon, the local spearow having always been cruel and sadistic.

"Slakoth!" his starter lunged at the surprised birds and started swinging its arms, frozen claws glowing as the birds got hit by the super effective attack. The birds took to the sky at the new threat and began to circle, screeching and swooping on occasion.

"Gotcha!" he scooped up the Pikachu, not going to bother with a Pokéball in case it was already connected to one or in case the attempted capture failed. "Slakoth, come on!" he yelled as they took off running towards Viridian city. Slakoth rushed over, jumping up onto his shoulders, swinging frozen claws at any spearow that came close as the flock followed after them.

"Gotta say Ash," Jane panted as they continued to sprint, the flock on their heels as Slakoth kept them from getting too close "you sure know how to show a girl an interesting time."

"Gotta do something to keep you around." he gave a frantic chuckle before scowling as it began to rain "Oh come on!" noticing a landmark he let out a loud curse, "Veer right!" he yelled out, as they changed direction slightly "We're coming up on the Viridian fall!"

"The what?!" Jane yelled, grunting as she threw a rock at the head of one of the larger spearow.

"Big ass cliff with a waterfall!" he panted, his legs burning as he forced himself to keep sprinting. Jane was doing better than he was, probably as she had been training for police work since she was a kid, but he could tell it wasn't easy on her either.

"Are you kidding me?!" she screamed out, stumbling slightly as the spearow began to swoop down faster and faster, Slakoth's strikes beginning to slow as he kept swinging ice punch.

"There's a slope coming up so get ready to slide and keep running!" he yelled out, jumping onto it and sliding, the dirt ground already turning to mud in the pouring rain. Up ahead he saw a girl fishing, not at all bothered by the weather.

"Run!" Jane yelled to the girl who looked up with a scowl before her eyes widened at the flock of angry spearow.

"What did you idiots do?!" the angry orange haired girl screeched, fumbling to put away her fishing rod as he and Jane ran past her.

"We didn't do anything!" he protested, not bothering to wait for the other person as they didn't have time to stop for someone who was apparently more concerned about a fishing rod than their own safety. A roar from the river behind them shakes the ground louder than any thunder as they continue to Viridian, "Was that a Gyarados?!" he yelled, Slakoth completely spent by this point and just hanging on as they ran.

"Whatever it was," Jane threw another rock behind them "most of the flock are going the other way now." Which was true, only a handful of the meanest spearow left were still following them.

"Pika." The tired voice of the Pikachu called out for the first time in their mad run for safety, the injured Pokémon trying to move out of Ash's grip.

"Don't move little guy, you'll just hurt yourself more!" he tried to tell it only to yell when he tripped over a root, the rain having blurred his vision. A higher pitched yell showed that Jane had fallen as well as they all skid, Slakoth and Pikachu falling form his grip as the remaining spearow began to caw in victory.

"Pi…ka…!" the mouse Pokémon growled out, forcing itself to its feet as the storm raged and the spearow circle moved lower and lower. A bolt of lightning struck a tree, lighting the branches only for the flames to get quenched by the pouring rain. "PI…KA..!" Ash could see the Pokémon tense it's muscles even as he and Jane struggled to get up, their bodies exhausted and hurting. "PIKACHU!" with a scream the Pokémon leapt skyward and got hit by a bolt of lightning, glowing with raw power before releasing it in the most destructive electric attack Ash had ever seen, Spearow crying out in pain as they were sent flying, all of them rendered unconscious and immobile. "Cha." The little moues Pokémon panted proudly before its eyes rolled up and he blacked out.