Hey everybody here's the next chapter for your viewing pleasure. I'm still up in the air on whether or not this will stick, so let you opinions be known. I appreciate the support you all have given so far with 8 reviews, 15 alerts and 25 favorites, so thanks a bunch. A lot of questions I got from reviews will be at the end of the chapter so stay posted for that.

Chapter Summary: Ash arrives in Kalos and prepares to go and face his first gym a snag keeps him from his task. Instead he opts to do the next best thing he can. Meanwhile in Vanville Town, a mother and daughter prepare for their day.

Key:

Bold- PA system/Message Bulletins

Bold Italic- Radio/TV/Pokedex descriptions

Italics-Thoughts/Letters/Flashbacks

The plane soared down the runway as it landed from its descent and began to gradually slow down as it started to makes its way to the terminal. Inside the plane, Ash, Pikachu and Alexa were more than ready to get out of their seats and stretch their legs after the overnight flight from Kanto. The door to the plane opened and Ash flew from his seat and hurried over to the door, desperate to escape the confines of the cabin and get some fresh air. As he stepped onto the stairs he looked into the sky and took a deep breath. He was finally here and it was time to get to work. He would first find where the nearest gym would be and then he would register for the Kalos League after obtaining his new Pokédex from the region's professor. Ash glanced at Pikachu and saw the determination in his partner's eyes.

"You ready to show Kalos what we're made of, buddy?" Ash asked.

"Pika!" Pikachu nodded enthusiastically.

Ash got to the bottom of the stairs and waited for Alexa to leave the plane. While he was waiting for his companion, Ash noticed a group of shadows on the ground hovering overhead and looked up. He shielded his eyes from the sun to get a better view and a cluster of Pokémon flying in circles. He was so intrigued with the sight of the new Pokémon that he did not notice Alexa walk up behind him with her Helioptile now resting on her shoulder.

"Those are Spritzee," Alexa said as she looked up at the flying Pokémon.

"Cool! What type are they?" Ash replied as he continued to watch them fly.

"Fairy."

Ash's head perked up at that. He never heard of that type before as he always thought there were seventeen types. With that new bit of information, that meant there were now eighteen types and he was interested in what other Fairy-types there were in Kalos.

"I've never heard of that type before," Ash said as he looked to Alexa. "Are Fairy-types only native to the Kalos region?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Alexa replied with a smile. "Maybe Professor Sycamore could shed some light on that."

"Professor Sycamore? He's the professor that hands out the trainer's starters here, right?"

"That's right. His laboratory is actually nearby."

"Sweet. I'll have to be sure to look at that after my first gym battle."

Ash was about to walk off but Alexa stopped him by speaking again.

"Where do you plan on having your first gym battle?" She asked with a curious look on her face.

"Easy," Ash began as he turned around with a smirk. "Your younger sister is a gym leader, right? That's the first one I'm going to!"

"Well, I hate to burst your bubble there but her gym isn't here in Lumiose City. Her gym is in Santalune City."

"Aw, come on, really?"

Alexa had an apologetic look on her face after telling her younger friend that bit of information. Ash crossed his arms as he looked at the ground and let out a sigh. That did lower his mood but not by much. Alexa decided to cheer Ash up after giving him the bad news.

"Hold on, don't get all bent out of shape just yet," Alexa assured as she started walking to the terminal. "I'll go and give her a call right now, so just meet me in the lobby."

"Awesome! Thanks a bunch!" Ash replied.

Ash gave one last look at the group of Spritzee before he started making his way to the building. He started to search for any other new Pokémon as he continued his walk to the terminal. Finding none in front, he turned around and looked back towards the runway. All his eyes could see were multiple flocks of Spritzee flying about. Regardless if he did not see any new ones outside of Spritzee he was bound to see more as he started traveling. As he was about to turn around his eyes fell upon a lone shadow on top of the shade the building was giving. He turned around and looked up to be blinded by the sun. He shielded his eyes enough to see a figure standing on top of the building.

Ash squinted to try and make out the individual but before he could get a clear picture, the figure vanished. His eyes widened in surprise at the speed which helped him draw the conclusion that it was a Pokémon. A whoosh came from above him and a small thump as the Pokémon landed behind him. Ash wheeled around and managed to catch a glimpse of the Pokémon just before it sprung high into the air and vanished again.

"That thing was fast!" Ash thought as he looked at the spot where the Pokémon vanished. "It looked like a Blaziken but at the same time, it wasn't."

He looked at Pikachu who looked just as stunned. Their faces became ecstatic after getting their wish to see another new Pokémon and it was a sight to behold for the pair of them.

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Ash cheered.

Vanville Town was a small, quiet town for families to settle down in. The friendly atmosphere and small population made the neighbors very close to each other. In the center of the town was a small house that belonged to a famous Rhyhorn racer and her only daughter. The mother and daughter were well known throughout the town and well liked. Grace, the mother, retired from Rhyhorn racing to raise her daughter and now spent her free days training her daughter to ride Rhyhorn so she could race them someday. The daughter, Serena, although loved her mother dearly, did not enjoy Rhyhorn racing and found the whole concept dull.

Grace was working on her agenda for the day. She was making breakfast for herself and Serena and then they would go out to the backyard to practice riding Rhyhorn again. Although Grace knew that Serena was not fond of her hobby, she kept making her try it, partially hoping she would gain a newfound like for the sport but what she was really trying to do was get Serena out of the house and start thinking about what she wanted to do with herself. Serena was now fifteen and did not take up the opportunity to get involved with Pokémon for the past five years when she became eligible to become a trainer when she was ten. Grace sighed to herself and looked at the clock. She had gone upstairs to wake Serena almost half an hour ago and she still had yet to come downstairs. Grace clicked her tongue and looked at Fletchling who was sitting on the counter looking at her.

"I tried waking her up, so now it's time to go to the heavy artillery," Grace thought as she turned to Fletchling. "Fletchling, be a dear and go wake up Serena please."

Fletchling gave a chirp in acknowledgement and began flapping his wings as he took to the air and began to fly upstairs. The tiny bird Pokémon flew up the stairs and came to a stop at a door that was left ajar and landed on the ground. He squeezed through the tiny space left by the door and wiggled his way into the room. He heard some light snores coming from the bed and flew into the air again. His eyes fell on Serena who had rolled onto her back, leaving her forehead exposed for punishment. Fletchling flapped his wings a few times to gain some altitude and folded them in to dive-bomb at Serena. The gap began to close until finally a loud shriek was heard throughout the house. Downstairs, Grace glanced up at the ceiling as she fished an omelet out of the skillet and smirked.

"Good, now we can get this day started," Grace said as she placed the omelet on the plate.

Back upstairs, Serena sat upright after tangling herself in her blankets from flailing around like a fish out of water when Fletchling crashed into her head. She broke free from the covers and glared daggers at Fletchling who was now sitting on the small table in the center of her room. She growled at the little Pokémon before pointing an accusing finger at it.

"I told you a thousand times not to wake me up like that!" Serena yelled.

Fletchling look at her and merely shrugged, angering Serena even more.

"Why you little…" Serena growled out as she dove to strangle the tiny bird.

Fletchling quickly flew into the air and left Serena to do a face plant on the table. He then landed on top of her head and pecked it lightly making Serena growl in frustration. She was about to swipe at Fletchling but was stopped at her mother's voice.

"Serena, time for morning training!" Grace called.

"Fine!" Serena hollered back.

She gave a sigh as she dragged her hand down her face. She stood up and made her way to the window and opened it wide. Fletchling flew out of the window and out of sight to enjoy the day. Serena looked down in the lawn and saw Rhyhorn stretching as he exited the small house that was customized for him.

"Morning, Rhyhorn!" Serena greeted getting a grunt in return.

Serena went over to her mirror and could see that her forehead was turning red after Fletchling slammed into it. She made a mental note to get back at her mother for her nasty method of using Fletchling as an alarm. She gently rubbed her forehead as she made her way downstairs and into the kitchen. Grace greeted her with a smile and it remained on her face as Serena gave her a death glare.

"Morning!" Grace chirped.

"That was totally uncalled for!" Serena sneered as she made her way to the table and sat down.

"That's on you, Schnookums. You didn't get out of bed when I came to wake you up so I took it up a notch."

"So having a bird smash into my forehead with its beak is the next best option? That can seriously hurt me!"

"I think you'll live. Now, eat up!"

Serena pouted and took a bite from her omelet, all the while plotting on how to get back at her mother.

Ash and Pikachu exited the terminal and entered the airport's lobby. He looked around for Alexa and managed to find her standing near a group of payphones and hurried over to her.

"Hey, Alexa!" Ash hollered as he ran over to her.

Alexa turned just as Ash and Pikachu came to a stop in front of her. By the look of it, they appeared to be very excited about something and she had a pretty good hunch on what it was.

"We just saw an awesome new Pokémon!" Ash grinned.

"Really?" Alexa asked as she tilted her head.

"Yeah, it was really fast. One second it was on the roof and then the next thing we know, it's jumping right over our heads."

"It must have been quite the sight. I wish I could have seen it."

Alexa quickly remembered what she needed to tell Ash and she knew it was going to irritate him a bit.

"Oh, yeah, what did your sister say?" Ash asked.

"Well, I gave her a call and she told me that she was away from the gym now," Alexa said as she crossed her arms and bit her lip.

"Are you kidding me?"

Ash groaned as he gently hit his head against the pillar they were standing by. Now that he was going to be delayed in getting his first gym badge he was definitely a little bummed out. Alexa giggled at Ash's animated reaction as he stood upright and rested his hands on top of his head.

"I don't suppose she told you when she was coming back?" Ash asked.

"When my sister says she's going away for a bit, she's usually gone for a while," Alexa replied.

"Of course she is."

"I know you're bummed out after coming all this way, but maybe you can try channeling that energy into challenging the gym here in Lumiose City?"

"Ah, so there is a gym here!"

"Yep, it's actually inside the Prism Tower in the center of the city."

Alexa walked over to the exit but stopped at a large display that had a map of the city. She spent a moment trying to find the Prism Tower on the map as Ash and Pikachu hurried over to her. Alexa found the tower and then put her finger on the map.

"The tower is right here," Alexa said as she looked at Ash.

"Alright, then that's where I'm going!" Ash said with a nod.

"I guess this is where we say goodbye for now. Are you going to be alright?"

"Yeah, we'll be fine."

"Pika!" Pikachu nodded.

"Alright then. I wish you luck on your battle," Alexa said.

"You've really been a big help. Thanks a lot," Ash replied.

"No worries. It's been fun."

"Definitely."

Ash reached out and shook Alexa's hand before he turned around and started running to the exit. Alexa watched Ash until he rounded the corner and vanished from view. She smiled as she spared a quick glance at Helioptile as he climbed on her shoulder.

"So much energy," Alexa said as she looked back to where Ash disappeared. "Go get them, Ash!"

Ash ran into the busy crowds after he rounded the corner and gave a whoop of excitement as he started running down the road he saw on the map. Pikachu hopped off his shoulder and started running beside him as they continued their run to the Prism Tower. As the pair of them ran, they took the time to look at the buildings and wandering Pokémon around them. Not only were there new Pokémon but there were also plenty that he had seen before like Ampharos, Medicham even a Raichu. They turned another corner and quickly bolted across the street to see the Prism Tower in all its glory a few blocks away.

"There it is, Pikachu. Our first gym," Ash said as he looked at his partner.

"Pika," Pikachu nodded with a smirk.

"Let's show them what a trainer from Kanto can do!"

"Pi!"

They started running again as they ran down a flight of stairs and followed the main road to the massive landmark. It did not take them long to reach it and neither of them felt remotely winded from their long sprint from the airport. Pikachu quickly climbed on and rested on his shoulder again. They looked at the Prism Tower with awe as they got to see the large tower up close. It was as if the tower was touching the sky and it stretched high above all the buildings in the city.

"Our first gym is inside here, buddy. Let's do this!" Ash grinned.

"Pi!" Pikachu smiled back.

The two partners hurried to the front entrance of the tower and were about to enter the doors but stopped after they ended up colliding headfirst into somebody else. The hit knocked the wind out of Ash as he fell back to the ground in a daze. He looked up and saw another boy in front of him that sat up and rubbed his head. The boy appeared to be taller and older than him. His eyes were green and his hair was brown and hidden under a black baseball hat. The boy stood up and held a hand out to Ash who took it and was pulled to his feet.

"You okay there, dude?" The boy asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry about that," Ash replied.

"Hey, it's cool."

Pikachu climbed back on top of Ash's shoulder after recovering from the surprise fall after they collided with the other boy. It was at that point that a Raichu suddenly perched itself on the boy's shoulder.

"Cool, you have a Raichu," Ash said as he looked at it.

"Yep. This bottomless pit of a Raichu is my partner," the boy replied with a laugh.

"Nice, Pikachu was my first Pokémon too!"

"Pika!" Pikachu greeted as he looked at the Raichu.

"Rai." Raichu smiled back with a wave.

"I'm Ash Ketchum," Ash said as he introduced himself.

"Tom Sandbourne," Tom replied as he shook Ash's hand.

Ash finished shaking Tom's hand and excused himself to head inside the tower. However, just before he could get inside, Tom stopped him.

"What are you doing?" Tom asked.

"I'm going to challenge this gym for my first badge," Ash answered. "Did you already get it? What type does this gym leader use?"

"Slow down there bro. I didn't battle the gym leader."

"Why?"

"You can't battle him until you have four badges."

"How do you know that?"

"There's a plaque on the wall inside saying that all challengers have to have four badgers before trying. Since I don't have any yet, I left."

Ash found it odd that the gym leader would have a set standard for four badges before accepting a trainer's challenge. He could not recall facing a gym leader that demanded a set amount of badges before battling someone. From his experience it was just a set order from town to town that he did, but he never once saw badge requirements for challenges in the old gyms he faced.

"Really? Is that something new?" Ash asked.

"I have no idea but if it is I am not going to waste my time," Tom replied with a shrug.

"Well, I'm going in to try anyway."

"Dude, it's not going to work. Whenever there's a sign giving you information it's best to follow it."

Ash frowned at Tom's answer. He usually tried regardless of whether or not there were circumstances and sometimes there were some exceptions. He looked at the front door and decided to take Tom's word for it. If he already tried then there was obviously no reason to try himself.

"Man, I can't catch a break today," Ash said.

"What do you mean?" Tom asked.

"I wanted to battle a gym leader today to get a fresh start on my journey here but the first gym leader I know about is away and this one here won't challenge anyone unless they have four badges."

"I hear you."

It was there that something clicked in Ash's head. If he could not battle a gym leader now, then he would do the next best thing. He would have his first battle in Kalos against Tom.

"Wait, I have an idea."

"Okay, let's hear it."

"How about we have a battle to see who's stronger? Your Raichu against my Pikachu?"

Tom blinked and then a smirk came to his face. Ash smirked back as he knew that Tom was going to accept the challenge after he proposed it.

"You're on," Tom said as he motioned for Ash to follow him.

Ash followed Tom over to a set of stairs off towards one of the roads. As they got closer, Ash could see a battlefield open for use. He hurried down the stairs and took his end of the field with Pikachu hurrying inside of it. Tom ran over to his side and got into the trainer's box as Raichu stood in front of him.

"Ready when you are!" Tom said.

"Alright, here we go!" Ash said as he clenched his fist. "Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"

"Raichu, you use Quick Attack too!" Tom barked.

Pikachu and Raichu bolted straight for each other and collided head on. The battle was underway.

Well, that's the chapter and I hope you all enjoyed it. And as some of you may have noticed, I brought in my OC Tom to act as Ash's first battle, now don't get on my case about this, I know how to use OCs and avoid the dreaded Mary Sue crap. Tom will be acting as Ash's rival until the anime finally shows his new one. Below here are the answers to reviews I received so until next time, I'll see you all later.

(Most asked question): What do you plan on doing with Serena/What about Serena's crush on Ash?

Answer: I plan to do my own spin on it. She and Ash will meet up eventually.

jg13145: On a similar note, have you had a chance to watch XY or play the games?

Answer: Yes. I actually answered this in an author's note in Becoming the Master. I have seen all subbed episodes of X and Y so far and I have both games.

Elemental-Aura: Will Ash use any past Pokémon that are with Professor Oak?

Answer: Yes