Author's Note: What's up! I'm sorry if this update took too long. Again, I was busy with other things, so I'm sorry if I caused you any alarm. Trust me, I will not become one of the, "missing authors," a.k.a. the guys who didn't update since 2004. However, I may occasionally get sidetracked and not update for a couple of weeks, maybe even months. And, I have the idea whirling around of a NaruSaku fanfic. If you think it's a good idea, tell me. You know how to reach me. Anyways, enjoy!

Oh, and if you noticed, yesterday, I changed the genre of the story to Romance and Hurt/Comfort. The reasons were:

1. A Romance and an Adventure are literally the same thing (that is one of the good things I've learned in English)

2. The second reason… well, you'll find out when you read.

FF006: Announcements and a New Journey Part 1I

"WHAT!! YOU'RE MY HALF-BROTHER!!"

"I'm sorry if I didn't tell you, but then, I could tell no one about the fate of my family until… until…" Ash then started to break down. As he started to cry miserably, people were shocked at this reaction.

'Wow… I never saw Ash break down like this… even when he lost the Indigo League, I didn't see this… Ash, why didn't you tell us until now?'

'Man, I haven't seen Ash this sad since… well, when Misty and I were with him on his first journey. And he had to hide from us all a horrible past. Even if I don't know the details, it just can't be done.'

'Poor Ash… this reminds me of my family… O GOD, I CAN'T REMEMBER THAT! IT WAS PLAIN HORRIBLE!! I lost my baby brother… But still, a Gym Leader did this! I'm depressed major. I need to talk to Mom about this…'

'YOU SON OF A BITCH GIOVANNI! I WOULDN'T HAVE EVEN ACCEPTED TO BE A MEMBER IF I KNEW THIS! But poor Jess… I should tell her my feelings. That should cheer her up.'

'Ash… This should be the happiest day of his life, but I know this isn't. I should have a talk with his mother.'

'Ash… you finally go through the torture of telling them. You aren't old enough, though, to go through it… God bless you and God bless Robert.'

'The boy had to go through a lot to keep it a secret. I'm impressed he didn't commit suicide, though, once he started training. It was hard for me, as well, to keep such a secret from Gary.'

'Wow… So this is what Gramps didn't want me to know. I should be ashamed for even asking about this! I need to sort my priorities…'

'Ash… I thought that you were the normal Trainer with the skills to help even my Mini-Dit. But, this is indeed dark… Yet, I can tell a hero will arise out of the ashes… a romantic hero… especially for May. Good luck.'

'Ash, I never knew you had to go through this… I'll tell him about the prophecy later. He needs it.'

(GOD DAMN YOU, YOU FUCKHOLE GIOVANNI! YOU TOOK THE LIFE OF ANOTHER! YOU WILL PAY FOR YOUR SINS! God bless you Robert, my friend…). Pikachu then began crying as well.

'Pikachu… He saw it too… I will make sure Giovanni pays for the torment he has put on Ash's shoulders!' May then ran over and tried to console Ash. "Don't worry. We can get through this. Plus, we're a couple now. What bothers you bothers me. And we will care for each other till death do us part."

"May…" he said hoarsely.

"Let's get you inside. You need to rest."

"Hey, I'll help out." Suddenly, Molly Hale, at the age of 12, appears out of nowhere. "After all, keeping that in is hard. And, I owe him. He saved me from my doom as well as my family and the entire town of Greenfield."

"Molly! How have you been doing? And you know Ash?"

"I've been doing well once I left for my journey, cousin, and yes, I do know him. He saved my… family from the curse of the Unknown and possibly even their death."

"Unknown?"

"I'll tell you about it later. Now, let's get him inside." The girls proceeded to help Ash up and walk him inside. Everyone else followed them.

When they got inside, Ash went up to his room, while everyone else went to the living room. There was hardly enough room for everyone. The mood seemed to become very sullen, depressing, and dark. After everyone did their introductions, they all turned to May. She started fidgeting around. "So, May," says Brock, "why couldn't Ash tell us about this relation at all?"

"Yeah, continued Misty, "I knew him longer than you and he tells you only."

"WILL YOU KNOCK IT OFF?! ASH HAD HIS PERSONAL REASONS NOT TO SAY ANYTHING UNTIL YESTERDAY, AS WELL AS LEGAL REASONS!" Once May said that, everyone just shut up, knowing that May had to be going through a lot as well, what with being his bride-to-be. "His brother, when he died, left a last will and testimony that said the following:" May then quoted the letter word for word including the details of his death. When she finished, everyone was almost close to tears.

"What torture, May." said Anabel. "What torture…" 'Wow. Ash must have really wanted to keep the lid on it, because I couldn't even sense this. I pity him… Hopefully, May knows what to do.'

"May," said Misty, as she was crying, "if I knew this, I wouldn't have judged you at all. What he did was pure hatred. I wonder, though, why did Giovanni do it?"

"I think I could explain." said Jessie. "If I remember correctly, when I was 7, I heard that Giovanni cheated on my Mom. So, I bet he wanted to get rid of all traces of your family so that he wouldn't be caught."

Melody exclaimed, "That… That… barbarian! He uses women like… machines. I wish that I could kick his ass around like the manwhore he is. But, I can't because I have something else to tell you."

"What is it, Melody?" asked everyone else.

"Unfortunately, it's the prophecy." Everyone who knew about it began to act nervously, except Gary, who already knew about it. Instead, he was shaking a fit.

"Melody," asked May, who was told of the prophecy by Ash during one of their dates, "what about it?"

"Well, apparently, we found that a good part of the prophecy was missing, and then we had to translate it."

"So," asked Dawn, who was also told about it through Max, "what is it?"

"OK, I'll start." Melody then said the following:

Disturb not the harmony of fire, ice, or lightning,
Lest these titans wreak destruction on the world in which they clash.
Though the water's great guardian shall arise to quell the fighting,
Alone its song will fail, lest the earth shall turn to Ash.
O Chosen One, into thine hands bring together all three –
Their treasures combined tame the beast of the sea.

When the dawn of a tenth year after this struggle has occurred,
The earth shall end in shameful decay
Unless the Legend crushing war sees its end
By the will of the Creators, hand in hand.
Yet, the Chosen One alone will not be enough
To convince the Creators to go with his doubts.

So the One will have to divide within
And become seven, for their destinies intertwine.
May, Dawn, Max, Brock, Misty, and Tracey
Thou art the names of the Six that will have to combine
And become the Chosen Seven with the One as Alpha.
With Ash and May, as their lights oh so dear
They will convince the Creators to save what they hold dear.

O Chosen Ones, lest you not worry with fright
If others try to follow your light.
For you and your followers try to light the way
For others to go to the righteous way.
Shower their darkness and their wicked ways
With this light divine and then they shall go straight.

Melody, however, didn't include the last three paragraphs, for she had a feeling the prophecy would become untrue in some parts if she said that. 'Love is a difficult subject to accept, and I can't tell Misty and Tracey that they will get married. It'll creep them out and probably reverse that.' "And, if I'm correct, the dawn of the tenth year will be in about a year and a half."

"WHAT!!" they all exclaimed.

"I'm sorry, guys, but you know how accurate these prophecies are. The other problem is, how will Ash take it, especially after what just happened?"

"I don't know, even with being his fiancée. But, we gotta tell him eventually."

"Yeah…" replied Misty. "I'm actually afraid for him. Let's just hope he doesn't…"

"Misty! You dare go that far in the subject of my son's depression!" Delia then started to weep. "It's just that… after I first told him, he was on the verge of…"

"I'm sorry, Delia. I'm so sorry…" Misty then started crying as well.

"Man, why is this family so similar to mine..." Dawn replied glumly, and then everyone started staring at her. 'Me and my big fat gob.' "I'm sorry, but I can't tell you yet… It was… horrifying and… (gulp) vulgar."

"I can respect that," Ash said while he was at the stairwell, "I can totally respect that Dawn, especially considering I didn't tell anyone about this until I proposed."

"Ash…" said Molly, "are you sure you're all right? I mean, I can't even compare my family to this."

"Yeah, I'm sure Molly, I'm sure. Anyways, there's a new prophecy, right."

"Uh…" replied Melody. "That's right, Ash. But, I wasn't going to tell you until later."

"Yeah," said Max. "In fact, we're feeling for you, man. We're feeling for you. But, how did you recover so quickly?"

"It's just that, I couldn't act like this and continue with my journey, especially now that I'm going to get married."

"But, I can't believe you, Ashy. Just for our union, you forget this like its nothing. That is wrong, Ash, wrong. That can lead to inner conflict. Denying yourself is like slowly causing your own demise. You can't let it go, even for my sake. And don't worry; like I said before, we can deal with this together."

"May…" Ash then started to cry on May's shoulders, knowing that his fiancée was right. He couldn't just forget about it. He had to conquer his inner-demons completely before he would forget about what happened in the family. When he was done crying, he responded, "Thanks, May. I really needed that."

"Anytime, Ashy, anytime. OK, so are ready to go on a journey?!"

"Well, we first need to get supplies," replied Brock, "but other than that, I believe we are good. Except, of course, if more than the usual group is coming, if you know what I mean."

"Well," said Duplica, "I came all this way, so why don't I stick around with you. You need the support."

"I'd better go along also." replied Melody. "It's my fault that you are even in the prophecy, Ash, and I want to make it up with you."

"Same with me." Ritchie said. "I want to go and see how you guys travel, plus, I hardly get to see you. I really want to catch up."

"Well, I'd better go along too." Susie converses. "You're gonna need all the help you can get when it comes to doing what Brock does best: cook and clean." The group then laughed at her attempt at humor.

"Oh," Casey responded, "what the heck. I'm going to go! I've been really looking forward to catching up as well."

"I should go also." Anabel spoke out. "You may never know what happens, and I also want to catch up with you."

"So should I." replied Molly. "I've always been your biggest supporter in my family, plus, now I'll be related to you. I really gotta catch up."

"OK," responded Ash. "But, what about you, Team Rocket?"

"Well," replied Jessie, "I was thinking that we should still go with you, but we should stay at a distance. I don't want the group getting too large, brother. Man, I'm gonna need to adjust to that." She then chortled.

"OK, I understand. What about you, Gary?"

"Sorry, Ash, but no. I feel I have to sort out my priorities first. Plus, I have to catch up with my research."

"Right. So, Brock, is everyone accounted for?"

'I believe so. Is everyone ready to leave?"

"YES!!" they all exclaimed.'

"OK, then we all leave tomorrow morning. Pack your things, because we're going to be gone for a long time." The entire house was in a frantic frenzy with a new journey about to begin. By the end of the day, though, all of the group's items were packed. They were now making video calls to all their loved ones, especially since this journey could be their last. However, Dawn was in the worst disarray.

"Hello. Is a Johanna Hikari here…"

"DAWN!"

"Zoey! What are you doing here?" She seemed very solemn, her eyes were bloodshot, and her hair was in dregs. In fact, she was still crying. "Dawn…"

"Zoey, what's wrong? WHAT'S WRONG?!" With that, everyone turned their heads to Dawn, and Ash, Misty, May, Max, and Brock were all very worried. They all knew that Dawn only got like this when she had a feeling something bad happened.

"Dawn," she continued as she was crying, "I don't know how to say this…"

Ash thought, 'Oh god no. I got a bad feeling that someone is dead. Please not her mom… I couldn't live with that. She's like my sister, and I couldn't stand to see Dawn like that.'

May had similar thoughts. 'Oh damn it. I got a feeling that something bad happened. If it was a death, she'll be devastated… I wonder if Ash really does think of her as a sister, as he said.'

"but," Zoey continued, "your Mom… is… d-d-de-dead…" When Dawn heard that, she froze. The rest of the group, also, was in shock. 'No…' Ash thought. He then began to cry.

(Damn it… why does this…) Pikachu began to cry as well, knowing how Ash thought of her as a sister.

When Dawn realized finally what happened, she began to water up and then wail loudly. With that, Max's eyes also began to water up. 'Why did this happen… Was this her dad's fault? I… I just can't believe it. My girlfriend's mom is… dead…'

"I'm sorry, Dawn, but the doctors did the best they could. After all the burns, she just couldn't pull through…" Her crying then intensified, since Dawn was also like a sibling to her, or something even more. She still didn't know. "When I was walking to your house, I saw it explode in flames. When I got there, all I discovered was your Mom's unconscious body and a Team…"

"DAMN IT!" Dawn replied as she pounded her hands on the desk. "I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN MY FATHER AND HIS FUCKING ORGANIZATION WAS UP TO THIS!" The audience all froze, surprised that Dawn knew this kind of language. "Dawn," replied a still-crying Ash, "who was your father?"

"My father is the head of Team Galactic, Cyrus." Ash, Brock, May, Max, Misty, and Zoey were all shocked when they heard that.

You were surprised with what I did there, weren't you? Trust me, when you have great ideas, you will always want to apply them as soon as possible. This was one of them. It promotes the build-up of the back-story as well as the creation of tension. And don't worry, I'm not sadistic, as you probably now think I am. If I wanted to be, this fic would be over by now, with a completely different storyline and a lot of main character deaths. So, please R&R and spread this fic to the world!