Chapter 20

"Gain a feather and lose a chance"

The next day went by as Ash, May, Max and Brock spent the night in the Pokemon Center. They were lucky enough that no new patients needed the room as they were granted an extra night to rest there. Professor Latrommi returned to his lab, allowing the kids to enter the surfing competition the following week. If they were able to win the prize money, it would nearly reimburse him for all the machines that Ash and May accidentally destroyed their first day there.

The following morning, Ash got fully dressed for the first time since his injury. He firmly placed his hat on his head eager to finally get out of the Pokemon Center and start traveling again. He knew his Swellow needed another day or so of rest, and was willing to give his Pokemon every second it needed to stay at the Pokemon Center to recuperate.

May could barely contain her excitement as she spent the entire previous night and the following morning re-reading the pamphlet about the Pokemon surfing competition. She slept the night in her cot with the booklet in her hands, and spent the entire morning gazing over the photos of the 15 different two-piece bikinis that were given away as the prize. May was ecstatic about swimsuits and their design, she always was since she was a little girl. She had felt disappointed for the past few months as she was so wrapped up in her Contest quest that she didn't spend nearly as much time just relaxing at the beach as she used to. Not only did she love to swim, but she knew she wanted to look nice while wearing a swimsuit too. May briefly recalled showing off her brand new green bikini to Ash and Max back on Dewford Island. Unfortunately for May, she had left all her previous swimsuits with her parents when she returned to Petalburg City after traveling the Hoenn region. She had one sole bikini that she picked up in the Kanto region for a little hot spring visit one afternoon. It was a red two piece that fit her figure well, the top didn't have straps but tied around the back of her neck instead. She got excited just thinking about wearing it again and for the chance of winning so many new ones.

"So guys? When are we going to head down to the beach?" May asked excitedly, hugging the pamphlet against her chest, "After Swellow is ready to leave we should head down there. Since the competition doesn't begin for another week, we have plenty of time to practice the surfing. I'm still not totally sure how this is going to work, or if our Pokemon are supposed to be pulling the surfboard by the tether."

"May, you spent the whole night reading the pamphlet!" Max exclaimed, "Didn't you even bother to read the rules? They're all clearly listed in there, you know."

May blushed and nervously rubbed the back of her head, "Oh not really ,Max, I spent the entire time just reading about the swimsuits. I glanced over the rules but I couldn't stop myself from looking at all those photos of those cute bikinis!"

"You see? This is why I think that I should have been the older sibling," Max crossed his arms slyly, "Obviously being a girl, all my sister thinks about is going swimming, yet all the rules fly right by her."

"Hey, Max!" May angrily yelled, "What are you trying to say, exactly?"

"Noooothing," Max smirked.

"I still don't know about this," Ash said as he tied his shoe lace, "I don't like the idea of going to the beach right after Swellow just had his big operation. It just doesn't seem right to have fun while Swellow is still resting here."

"But Ash…" May said disappointingly.

"Swellow should be able to come with us Ash," Brock said, "It'll be able to gather its strength up by tonight most likely. Of course after that its best not to have Swellow exert itself in any battling or anything."

"Definitely," Ash replied, "I'm certainly not going to make Swellow battle again right after his surgery. I'm going to let it rest in its Pokeball for as long as it wants, I don't want to force it back into battling again so soon. Swellow proved to me what being a trainer is all about. We're supposed to be taking care of the Pokemon we capture and sharing a strong bond with them, and if Swellow isn't up to battling for a few weeks or even a month, I'm certainly not going to force it to."

"That's the spirit, Ash," May smiled warmly.

After the group had breakfast at the Pokemon Center, Nurse Joy informed them that a new patient had been admitted and they needed to use Ash's room as there were few others available. Ash and his friends thanked Nurse Joy for all her hospitality, gathered up their belongings in the room, and decided to make their trek back to the Professor's lab. Ash, May and Pikachu stayed behind to visit Swellow one last time for the day before they had to return to the lab. Joy told Ash and May that Swellow would be able to leave by nightfall in which the trainers were very happy. However, since they no longer had a place to stay in the Pokemon Center, Ash and May knew they had to return to the lab for the rest of the day, and then by nightfall Ash would return and pick up Swellow himself. May was really disappointed in herself that she couldn't keep her promise of staying with Swellow all the way until he was ready to leave. Ash reassured her and told her that he wanted to stay for the remainder of the day as well, but it would only be a couple hours that they would be at the lab while Swellow remained here anyway. May thanked him for cheering her up as the trainers petted Swellow and exchanged goodbyes for the time being. Their faces were teary-eyed as they recalled all the hardships their friend had just went through the past several days. Ash told Swellow that he would come back and pick him up around 6 O'clock in which Swellow chirped agreeably. The Pokemon was just as eager to leave the Pokemon Center as the trainers.

Ash, with Pikachu on his shoulder and May started heading back to the Professor's lab. She still had the pamphlet in her hands and didn't take her eyes off it the entire time while heading back. She was in her own little whimsical dream world as she fantasized herself wearing the various bikinis pictured in the pamphlet in her mind. May blushed and giggled to herself as she walked next to her friend up the hill and past the scorched forest. Ash noticed that May could barely contain her excitement, she looked far more excited about the prize than actually paying off the Professor's debt. He chuckled to himself knowing how obsessive May is with her swimsuits.

The day went by quickly as the gang helped the Professor with some last shipments of machinery as a gesture of good will. Professor Latrommi wondered how much longer it would take before Devon Corp. sent him another shipment of mechanical arms that he ordered for. In the meantime, for the first time since they met, the Professor spent his time befriending each of the kids and getting to know them a bit better. Ash shared his dream of becoming a Pokemon Master, while May told the Professor about her past accomplishments in the Grand Festival. Max explained how much he idolized his father Norman, the Gym leader of the Petalburg Gym. Brock shared his love of Pokemon and how he wanted to become a great breeder. The Professor seemed quite impressed that they all had their lives set on such positive goals.

Nightfall came about as the sun was setting outside. Ash told the group that he was going to run down to the Pokemon Center and pick up his Swellow. Pikachu didn't hesitate to jump on its trainers shoulder to go along with him. May asked if she could go too but Ash said that it would be quicker if he went alone. As disappointed as she was, she knew she had to give Ash and Swellow some time together alone. Brock and Max waved goodbye to Ash as he quickly ran down the hill.

"Boy, he's got a lot of energy for someone who was staggering two days ago," May said, standing in the entrance to the lab.

"Since he's going to pick up Swellow, he's obviously quite enthusiastic," Brock said.

Brock walked back inside the lab as May continued to stand in the doorway. She gazed down the sea of grass as the red and orange colors in the sky gave the area a harmonious and dazzling atmosphere.

"Hurry back, Ash," she said quietly while leaning against the doorway.

It took Ash around a half hour to make it back to the Pokemon Center, in which the boy was almost exhausted from running so much. After gasping for air with Pikachu near the front desk, he quickly went down the halls searching for Nurse Joy. Unable to find her, he decided to walk back into Swellow's room for the time being. Much to his surprise, Nurse Joy was unwrapping the bandages on Swellow's wings once he got there.

"Swellow!" the flying type chirped.

"Swellow…you look so much better now!" Ash cheered.

"Pikachu pika!" Pikachu greeted its friend.

The first thing Swellow did was make a brief flight in the air straight into Ash's arms. Ash hugged it tightly as the affection between the boy and his Pokemon warmed Nurse Joy's heart. Ash was so excited that he quickly ran outside the Pokemon Center with Swellow to see if it was ready to take flight again. The flying type hummed joyously as it took a brief flight in the air in a circular pattern. Ash and Pikachu watched happily as Swellow seemed like its old self. Ash reached out his arm as Swellow landed on top of it.

"I know you're not up to flying very long distances just yet, so I'm going to let you rest back in your Pokeball, buddy," Ash said, reaching into his pocket.

Swellow nodded agreeably as Ash recalled it back into its Pokeball. He slipped the ball back into his pocket contently.

"Well, Pikachu, looks like Swellow is ready to come along with us again," Ash said, happily.

"Pikachu!"

"Hmmm…I think we're going to head down to the beach tomorrow, Pikachu. I guess May and Brock sort of talked me into checking out that surfing competition," Ash said, "I wonder if we'll be able to win it, I don't think the competition will be all that hard."

"Chuuuu…pika," Pikachu said, jumping on his shoulder.

"You know May wants to win because she wants all those new bathing suits," Ash said slyly, "Sometimes I wonder if she wants to try all those bathing suits on to show off on purpose.

"Pika pika."

"Well she does look nice in them…." Ash pondered, "Hmmm…come to think of it, I hope I still have my own bathing suit in my backpack. I don't think I'd be able to take a swim without 'em."

A few hours later after Ash let Swellow out again to greet everyone in the lab, May was busy looking through her fanny pack for her two piece red bikini. She was sitting on the side of her bed in the guest room with her fanny pack on her lap.

"Hmm…its gotta be here somewhere," May said while rummaging through her things, "Ah here it is!"

May pulled out the top and bottom of her bikini and rested them on her bed. She picked up the top and stared at it a bit. She seemed somewhat underwhelmed with her current bikini compared to the ones they were picturing in the pamphlet. She still liked it of course, but the others ones seemed so much more impressive.

"I guess this will have to do then. I really wish I didn't leave all my old ones with my Mom and Dad," May sighed.

In the kitchen area of the lab, Ash, Pikachu, Max, Brock and Professor Latrommi were busy discussing their plans for the next day. They were all sitting around the table while Pikachu sat in Ash's lap.

"So tomorrow we're going to head down to the beach, right?" Max asked.

"You guys are, I'm not," Professor Latrommi said.

"Huh? Why don't you come with us, Professor? I'm sure it'll be fun," Ash asked curiously.

"Are you kidding me, boy? Do you honestly want to see me half naked in swimming trunks? I'm afraid that my belly and my hairy chest will scare people away on the beach!" Professor Latrommi exclaimed.

"Uh…good point," Ash lowered his hat over his eyes to hide his embarrassment.

"All I know is you kids better make the best of it there. I need money to help replace the machines you broke. If you can win that competition and get the cash, it'll be all the same," Latrommi said, sitting down.

May entered the kitchen area strapping her fanny pack back along her waist. "Hey, guys, what are we talking about?" she asked as she sat down on a chair next to Ash.

"Oh, just that your friend here wants to see a 269 year old man in a pair of swimming trunks," Professor Latrommi scoffed.

"Huh?" May turned to Ash.

"Don't ask," Ash said.

"May, do you still have that pamphlet on you?" Brock asked.

"Of course, you know I love to look at those swimsuits on the pages," May grinned, handing the pamphlet over to Brock.

"Thanks," Brock said as he held the pamphlet in his hands, "Might as well read through the rules myself."

Brock placed the pamphlet down on the table and carefully read through the text for the competition.

"Where were you before anyway, May? We were all sitting here at the table ready to discuss what to do for tomorrow," Ash turned to her.

"Oh," May grinned nervously, "I was in the guest room trying on my swimsuit. I had to make sure that it still fit, you know."

"That makes sense," Ash said shyly, "I haven't tried on my bathing suit yet either, it's in the back of my backpack somewhere."

May clasped her hands as she rested them atop the table, "Is it the black swimming trunks, Ash? That's the only one you still have with you, right?"

"I think so. Unless I have another one in there that I forgot about," Ash smiled.

"That's good, I think you look best in the black one," May smirked.

"Uh really? I didn't know I looked that much differently in my others," Ash scratched his head.

"Well…" May said.

"What are you dense, boy?! The girl is giving you a compliment!" Professor Latrommi slapped his hands down at the table.

Everyone at the table was taken by surprise as the shockwave shook the table upon him hitting it.

"I know it's a compliment!" Ash blurted out, "Sheesh."

"Pika pika," Pikachu said mocking its trainer.

"Max, you still have your green bathing suit, right?" May asked across the table, "Mom told you not to lose that one."

"Yeah I do, May! The first thing I'm going to do when I get to the beach is build a sand castle! I love making those," Max said happily.

"I always found the concept of swimming in a beach or pool to be awkward," Professor Latrommi said, "A bunch of strangers bathing half naked together in a body of water wearing things that can practically be underwear. Human beings truly have no shame."

The group stared at him with a stunned silence.

"Hey whaddya want? It's true," Professor Latrommi smirked.

"Hmmm…" Brock said while reading through the rules, "It says here that people are racing on the surfboards only that they're not actually doing the surfing. Water Pokemon are supposed to pull the surfboard by a tether at the end of it, and as they're swimming in the water pulling their trainers along with it, the trainers have to pull the tether in a certain direction to let the Pokemon know if it has to make a turn."

"Water Pokemon in a surfing competition, that makes sense," Ash said.

"So all the trainers do is to tell the Pokemon when to make a turn?" May asked curiously.

"Well…yes. It's not just a race, but it's also an obstacle course. You'll have to maneuver the Pokemon around obstacles and inbetween buoys to stay in the race. You only have to make it through the course one lap it seems, but there's going to be a heck of a lot of obstacles while getting through it," Brock said, looking up.

"Sounds challenging," May said enthusiastically.

"There is no limit to the number of entries, so it looks like we don't have to register for a deadline or anything. All we need to do is show up with one of those oval surfboards," Brock said.

"But we don't have one of those surfboards!" May said disappointingly, "The one that surfer had in the Pokemon Center was different too. There was quite a lot of room to stand in the middle of it and it was enclosed on all sides but the back. Where are we supposed to get one of those?"

"I assume they have them down at the beach," Professor Latrommi said, "Obviously if they use a special type of surfboard it has to be readily available somewhere."

"Good," Max said knowingly, "In the meantime we can just relax on the beach until the competition starts the following week."

"We should be practicing those days though, we've never done something like this before," Ash said.

"Yeah, Ash is right, if I stand any chance of winning those swimsuits I'm going to have to practice hard for them," May said, clenching a fist in front of her.

"So it's settled then right? We're going to head down to the beach tomorrow for some good practicing, rays and swimming. Everyone ready?" Brock asked enthusiastically.

"YEAH!" Ash, May and Max declared.

~*~~*~

Later on in the evening, the group was passing the time lazily by walking around the lab or walking outside it. Brock, May and Max were inside the lab chatting while Ash and Pikachu were standing outside in the sea of grass gazing at the night sky.

"I sure hope you wake up early tomorrow, Max. We're going to head down to the beach early and I don't want to waste any time," May said.

"Yeah yeah, I know," Max shrugged her off.

"I can't wait to think about all the beautiful girls that I'll meet down there," Brock said daydreaming.

"Hey that reminds me," Professor Latrommi said, "Didn't you want to check out the beach tonight?"

"Huh, what do you mean?" Brock asked.

"You know…your zapping," Latrommi raised an eyebrow.

"Zapping?" May pondered.

"OH MY GOODNESS! I forgot all about it!" Brock said panicking, "I may not even have much time left!"

"What…what's wrong, Brock?" Max asked, nervously.

"NOTHING!" Brock said, jumping around nervously, "Oh jeez, I gotta get down there!"

Brock suddenly rushed toward the exit of the lab running as fast as he could. May and Max watched him with confused expressions on their faces.

"What's with him?" May wondered.

"He just has something to take care of," Latrommi said slyly.

"What's that noise?" Ash asked while sitting on the grass.

"Pika?" Pikachu added.

"MAKE WAY, ASH!" Brock screamed.

"What the?" Ash turned nervously.

Brock then ran right passed Ash and Pikachu down the hill at tremendous speed. Dust sprang up into the air in which Ash and Pikachu coughed closing their eyes trying to wave away the dusty smoke.

"Gah, where's he running off too?" Ash gagged from the smoke.

"C'MON C'MON!" Brock screamed while running, "I sure hope there's still some girls down at the beach at this hour! The zapping from that ray gun could wear off tonight! If I don't get there in time I'm screwed!"

~*~*~

After 20 minutes of running, Brock finally came across the beach near the port. He panted for air while leaning against a bunch of wooden crates.

"Let's see now…" Brock said looking around.

Brock frantically ran across the boardwalk looking down at the beach to see if anyone was around. Unfortunately for him the entire beach was deserted. He continued to search desperately for any person whether they be male or female just to see if he could find someone. After some aimless running around, he panted a bit as he came across a sign posted on the wall of a store.

"I don't believe this, how can there not be a single person on the beach? Hmmmm….what does this sign say?" Brock wondered, looking up at it.

"BEACH IS CLOSED AFTER 9.P.M." Brock gasped while reading the sign, "I DON'T BELIEVE THIS!" he shouted.

He sat down on the floor tired and defeated as he shook his head in shame.

"I ran all the way down to the beach just to find out it was closed?" Brock whined to himself, "I guess I took that zapping from the ray gun for no reason then, there are no girls around!"

Brock panted, sitting alone on the boardwalk very disappointed that he couldn't find anyone. He sat there and sulked for a good ten minutes until he decided to head back to the lab empty handed.

~*~~*~

May glanced out of the doorway of the lab as she saw Ash and Pikachu sitting on the grass just gazing at the night sky. She smiled passionately as she decided to join them. She walked through the sliding doors of the lab and quickly jogged over to the spot where Ash and Pikachu were sitting.

"Hey, Ash! Pikachu!" May called out as she ran toward them.

"Hey it's, May," Ash said, leaning back turning to her.

May smiled as she stood next to Ash and Pikachu.

"I was wondering where you were, Ash," she said, sitting down on the grass next to him. She hugged her knees against her chest and rocked slowly while sitting an inch beside him. "I thought that maybe you headed up to the room to go to sleep already."

Ash grinned as he stretched out his legs on the grass. He rested his arms on his legs as he sat upright with Pikachu resting on the other side of him.

"Nope, I thought it would be more relaxing to just sit out here right now. By the way, did you see Brock run out of the lab?" Ash asked.

"Yeah I did. He ran right out of the lab yelling "I forgot all about it!" and ran right passed me," May said.

"I saw him run by me too, I wonder where he was going," Ash said softly.

"Who knows? Maybe he realized that he didn't flirt with that Nurse Joy back at the Pokemon Center. That could be the reason," May jested.

"Heh, maybe you're right," Ash smirked.

Ash and May noticed the unusually quiet atmosphere as they sat side by side just gazing at the night sky and grass around them.

"So…did you find out where your bathing suit was?" May asked to break the silence.

"Yep it's still in my backpack. It's the black one like you said. You seem awfully curious about that for some reason," Ash said grinning.

May cracked an innocent smile and hugged her knees against her chest even tighter. "I was just wondering, that's all. I dunno, you kind of look older when you're in a bathing suit."

"Older?" Ash asked.

"Maybe the word I was looking for was more mature," she said, blushing.

"Uh…and that's because I'm not wearing a shirt right?" Ash asked quietly.

"That…that's not true!" May said shyly rocking her body while holding onto her knees.

Pikachu listened to the trainers contently as it decided not to interfere with their conversation. It rested its head down on the side as it listened to its two friends spend the night talking.

"You seem to be shaking quite a bit even if that isn't true," Ash said while staring ahead at the night sky.

"I'm not shaking! I was rocking my body, I've been doing that since I sat down!" May bantered, "Why would I be so interested in seeing you without a shirt on anyway? I mean just because you're a boy doesn't mean I purposely look for these things."

"OK, I believe you. It's just that you kept bringing it up," Ash smirked.

"Liar."

"Sorry, I don't think so, May."

She panted, "Eh, so says you."

Ash gave her a gentle shove as he pushed her shoulder. May wasn't expecting it and fell over to the side as he pushed her while she was rocking. Ash was a bit taken back that she actually fell over.

May nervously sat back up on her knees and turned to Ash, "You are pushy when you want to be, Ash."

"Sorry, I didn't expect you to topple over. I didn't push you that hard, you know," Ash said innocently.

"Maybe you don't know your own strength, Ash," May said playfully as she pulled the brim of his hat down over his eyes, "Just like I didn't know your hat could be pulled down so easily."

"Hey," Ash grinned as he pulled his hat back up over his eyes, "I hate it when people do that."

May leaned her body toward him slowly as she rested her hands on his left leg. She stared at him absent-mindedly as the wind blew her locks of hair. Ash looked back at her as if he were waiting for her to say something.

"Tomorrow, Ash," she whispered while leaning toward his face, "Do you think we can practice surfing together? I don't know how to surf, really."

"Maybe I can show you," Ash said quietly as he wrapped his fingers around one of her arms, "If we can get a couple of those special surfboards, maybe we can surf alongside each other. We're both going to enter the race, aren't we?"

She continued leaning toward him as they faced each other, she had her hands pressed down on his leg while his hand held onto one of her arms.

"I hope so," May giggled, "That way even if I don't win you can still win for me and I get all those swimsuits anyway. I mean you're not going to need the swimsuits are you? I don't think you'd look too good in a bikini, Ash."

"No, I don't think I'd look good wearing a bikini either. It'd look uh…odd," Ash smirked, "It'd probably end up falling off me too."

"Hee hee, that's not true, Ash. You can simply tie the straps tighter around your back, that way it'd stay on your…flat chest," May blushed.

"I guess this is why girls get tops for bathing suits and boys don't, right?" Ash winked.

"Yeah, my top fits on me though. Even if it is a little tight and doesn't cover as much as it used to, it still fits me," she said shyly staring into Ash's eyes.

May then cautiously leaned backward and moved herself away from Ash. She sat on her knees on the grass and rested her hands in her lap. Ash didn't know why she moved away, but he thought that it was probably because she was feeling a little awkward discussing her bikini with him. For some reason, Ash felt a little disappointed that May wasn't pressing against his leg anymore, but he shrugged it off nonetheless.

May stared contently ahead of her at the sea of grass while holding her arms underneath her breasts. Ash leaned backward on his elbow, not sure if he should say anything to her. He then caught someone walking toward them out of the corner of his eye.

"Hey," Ash said as he sat up, "Is that Brock?"

"Huh?" May asked, looking ahead of her, "I think you're right, Ash, that does look like Brock."

The figure then became clear as Brock was walking in a moping manner back toward the lab.

"Brock!" Ash called out, "Where did you go?"

Brock turned to Ash while still walking toward the lab. "I just went to check out the beach…but unfortunately things didn't turn out as planned," he sulked.

"Wow, he ran all the way to the beach?" she asked, looking at Ash.

"No wonder he looks tired," Ash said.

Brock walked back into the lab sulking as he headed into the Professor's living quarters. He spotted the Professor sweeping up some broken metal on the floor with a broom.

"Oh hey, Brock. Have any luck with the ladies? That ray gun zapping should have made you a ladies man," Professor Latrommi said, sweeping the broken metal into a garbage pail.

"No, that's what I came to tell you about! I ran down to the beach looking for ANY girls at all and the entire beach was closed!" Brock exclaimed.

"My my, that is a pity," Latrommi said, yawning, "The zapping from the ray gun probably wears off by tonight too, oh well."

"I know that, Professor, and it looks like I missed my chances this time. But couldn't I just get zapped by the ray gun again? This ray gun has no negative affects like the de-aging one, right?"

"That's right, the second ray gun has no negative effects….that I know of anyway," Latrommi said, wiping his eye sleepily.

"So then why don't I just use the ray gun again, tomorrow?" Brock asked, happily.

"There's one problem with that," Professor Latrommi said, smiling, "You know, my two ray guns? Well, I smashed them to the floor."

"WHAT?!" Brock shouted.

"You saw that broken metal I was cleaning up when you entered the room, right? Those were pieces of my two ray guns, I destroyed them both."

"But…why'd you do that?" Brock asked curiously.

"For the simple reason of what happened to my Tyranitar, and what could happen to me. I'm not going to toy with this stuff anymore, stuff that could change who you are or who you want to be. So I decided to destroy the two ray guns, and now I vow never to create something like those again," Latrommi said, walking toward the door.

"But…what about "having all the women" you could want?" Brock whined desperately.

"I'm afraid you'll have to solve that problem on your own," Latrommi smirked, standing in the doorway, "There are plenty of girls out there, I'm sure you'll get one on your own."

Latrommi walked out of the room as Brock sulked while sitting on the floor.

"My one chance and I screw it up. I guess fate really does hate me," Brock shook his head. The lonely Pokemon breeder sulked as his plans for a love life have gone awry once again.