I apologize once again for delaying this fic. This time I just had no clue what to write concerning this one, but I have a decent grasp on it now. There were also events that discouraged me from writing this, but I've put those aside so I can focus on the present. Reviews!

Foxchick1: I'm glad that you enjoy this, and I apologize once again.

Thor94: Well, that dark aura is in everything. At least potentially. Blinded by truth or ideals will do that to you. And as for Giovanni… spoilers.

Bladetri: :3

Pokemonever1994: Well, the 'Dark Pokemon' as you put it do not only attack Ash. Ash is just the only one who can tell if they're Dark Pokemon or normal.

Okay, I've delayed this for long enough! Better yet, there's no Mew to distract me, so that's a pl- *looks around from paranoia*... Okay yeah. We're good.

"Speech/Pokespeech"

"Telepathy"

'Thought'

Pokemon Attacks

Ash panted as he dodged a flurry of attacks from Lucy. She had gotten faster with each attack, which was what they were experimenting with. While the attack Power-Up Punch is useful in the sense that it strengthens the user, that strength is useless if you cannot hit your target. So Ash wanted to see if they could make the user faster by using the same technique. He has named the variation to the attack Quickened Strike, and boy was it effective. "Okay, Lucy! That's enough! You go too fast you'll burn yourself out!"

Lucy nodded and sighed as she stopped attacking Ash, her legs shaking. She leaned against the human, panting very heavily.

Ash draped Lucy's arm around his neck and he helped to carry her to the tent. "I told that you could take today off. You haven't regained all of your energy from yesterday, and now you need more energy. But I suppose that this could be a good thing. You can use this attack twice before you start to burn out." He laid the Lucario down and held up her Pokeball and returned her. "You did great today. Now rest up." Ash sighed and then looked over at a nearby tree that had the Scyther that had attacked him tied up with Drago making sure that it doesn't escape.

Grace walked over to Ash, holding a large, mossy rock that she had found nearby behind her with her mind, sweating slightly from the strain. "Ash, the Scyther is waking up. And I believe that I have enough endurance, seeing as I've been carrying this thing all day."

Ash looked behind Grace to see the boulder. "Don't crush that one." He walked towards it and then placed his hand against it. His eyes turned blue and he saw a very compressed aura inside of the rock. "This is what Eevees nearby can use to evolve into Leafeons. Go put it back where you found it, then once you take a break, we can focus solely on Heal Pulse."

Grace nodded and moved the rock into the forest and slowly set it down. She then slowly sat down and began to meditate to recuperate her mental energy, a purple, wispy energy coming from her closed eyes.

Ash walked over to Drago and then patted his leg. "I'll take it from here. Go get something to eat. There's an uncooked seasoned grouper in a portable fridge in the tent. Just use a very weak Flamethrower for a few seconds and it'll be cooked the way you like it."

Drago nodded and pushed himself on the ground with his hind legs to the tent.

Bolt ran up to Ash and hopped onto his shoulder. "So, you never told us who this joker is."

Ash looked at Bolt and sighed. "Well, he used to be an evil Pokemon, but I helped him. Or her. I think that the Scyther is male."

The Scyther groaned as it opened its eyes and immediately saw Ash. It began to shiver. "A-Are you going to kill me…?"

Ash looked at the Scyther again. "Why would I kill you? It's not like you hurt me or anything."

The Scyther sobbed quietly. "I deserve it… I hurt… I killed so many innocents… children… I don't deserve to live…"

Bolt glared at the Scyther. "So you want to fucking run from your guilt? Escape from all of those souls you murdered?!" His tail became metallic and he hit the Scyther in the face with it very hard. "You don't get too just fucking escape from this shit! You live with it!"

Ash sighed and looked at Bolt, thinking that he had some kind of experience with that. "He's right. You have to face it head-on. Use this to… do something. You can help others instead if you choose."

The Scyther looked at Ash and Bolt with an amazed look in their eyes. "D-Do you really think that I could do something like that…? I… I was taught that we don't get second chances…"

Ash smiled at the Scyther. "Well, you feel remorse right? That's enough for a second chance. What you do now is up to you."

The Scyther nodded and then cut itself loose from its bonds, then kneeled. "T-Thank you for this… I don't believe that I can ever thank you adequately enough with words alone, Chosen… I swear on my life that I will do my best to uphold Arceus's law and protect the innocent."

Ash's eyes flashed gold and saw a small bit of golden aura inside of the Scyther. He was… very confused, to say the least. "Rise, and uphold your duties." He had no clue where those words came from, but he couldn't stop himself from saying it.

The Scyther nodded and stood again, nodded to Ash, then Bolt, and walked towards the forest.

Ash thought for a second. "Hey wait! Do you know the quickest route to Pewter City from here?"

The Scyther paused and looked back. "Huh? Oh, yeah. Take a left at the Mossy Stone and just keep walking and you'll be there. But the Pokemon there are pretty strong, so be prepared." It resumed its walk, disappearing into the trees.

Bolt looked at Ash, then hit him on the head. "Why didn't you recruit them?! They would've been a great addition to our team!"

Ash sighed and then grabbed the Pikachu and set him on the ground. "For some reason… it just didn't feel like the right thing to do." He then grinned and looked around. "Okay. I want you to run around the clearing for as long as you can. Not as fast as you can though, as this is to build your stamina up."

Bolt sighed softly. "Well… I guess I asked for this." He then began to run around the area on all fours.

Ash then looked around and sighed. 'We need to get going soon. The fresh air is nice and all, but if we stay like this, the entire league season will pass us by.' He then walked over to the tent again to see Mei sleeping on his pillow. Lucy had healed her up completely, though Ash still didn't want her doing anything intense for a few more days, just in case. He gently shook the Bubble Frog Pokemon with a smile. "Mei. You need to get up."

Mei groaned softly, the bubble coming from her mouth popping. "Wha…?" She looked up at Ash, then smiled. "So this isn't a dream… thank Arceus…" She stretched a bit, then began to hop around to shake away her post-rest exhaustion. "So, what am I going to do today?"

Ash chuckled. "Well, we are going to be running around the clearing today to build up endurance so we can handle more intense training, but I don't want you to push yourself. After training, we're going to pack up camp and head to Pewter City."

Mei nodded and hopped out of the tent to go train with Bolt.

Ash smiled at Mei's conviction to get stronger, then returned outside to train with his team.

Ash hummed softly as he walked through the forest with Bolt on his shoulder and Mei sleeping on his hat. She exhausted herself trying to keep up with the others. Ash then heard a slight rustling in the bushes near him, and his eyes narrowed, still humming. His eyes began to glow blue as he searched the area for anything hostile. 'There's a human in those bushes. Judging from the way he's standing, he has a weapon. His aura doesn't have any malice in it, though if he does have a weapon, then I must assume that he's hostile.' He shifted his attention to Bolt and connected his Aura to the Pikachu's. "Bolt. Don't freak out, this is Ash. I'm speaking to you through our auras. I need you to grab Mei and get off of my shoulder on my mark. Twitch your tail if you understand."

Bolt looked at Ash suspiciously, then twitched his tail.

"Okay. Get ready." Ash closed his eyes as he walked past the bushes with the person in it. Someone yelled loudly as they leaped from the bushes and swung down at Ash with a katana. "Now!" As soon as Bolt tackled Mei off of his head, Ash rolled forward and spun on his hands to strike the person in the face with his foot. He pushed off of the ground and kicked the katana into the air mid-flip. He caught it flawlessly and looked at the assailant, his eyes glowing ominously. He pointed the tip of the katana to the neck of the now identified teenager. "State your reason for your assault and I might allow you to keep your hands." 'I can say whatever I want about my mother, but it won't change the fact that I learned to be frightening from her.'

The teenager flinched heavily and held his hands in front of him. "Please don't! I meant no harm in my actions! If you did not dodge out of the way, I would have directed my strike to be just behind you!"

Ash tapped the tip of the katana on the boy's throat, then sighed as he pulled the blade away. "Well, if you keep doing that, people might get the wrong idea." He spun the blade in his hands and offered the blade back to the teenager with the tsuka* towards him. Ash looked at the teen now and saw that he was dressed in loose-fitting samurai garb. "And why are you dressed like that?"

The Samurai then sighed in relief as he took his blade back and sheathed it. "I am the Samurai of the Viridian Forest! And I attacked you as a test of skill, both yours and my own."

Ash held a hand to his chin. "Okay… but why wear armor that doesn't fit you? Did it use to be your fathers?"

The Samurai nodded with pride. "It was my father's armor before he had to retire due to an injury. So I have taken up his blade and garb to protect the forest from those who would do harm to it and its inhabitants!"

Ash sighed softly. "Kid, you're clearly not finished with your training, so I would suggest finishing that before you take up the title."

The Samurai huffed. "You aren't that much older than I, yet you claim to know of matters that you cannot hope to understand!" He jumped back and pointed dramatically at Ash. "You have challenged my family's honor! In turn, I challenge you to a battle!"

Ash smirked and then cracked his knuckles with the same glow in his eyes before the blue light just cut out and a look of realization was on his face. "Oh. You mean a Pokemon battle." He looked back at Bolt. "You up for it buddy?"

Bolt glared at Ash. "Do not call me your buddy! And to answer your question, yes! I would love to!" He jumped in front of Ash and made his cheeks spark.

Ash then sighed. "Just so you know, Bolt is the only one able to battle you. Mei, the Froakie, exhausted herself training, and my other three partners are too powerful to use here."

The Samurai held up a single Pokeball. "Very well! Then it will be a one on one battle!" He threw his Pokeball in the air. "Come forth! Pinsir!"

The Pokeball opened and a white light came from it, releasing a large bipedal stag beetle. "Who calls forth the mighty Pinsir?!"

Ash deadpanned at the Pinsir. 'Geez, they're the same.' His eyes became cold and he stared the Samurai down. "You may have the first strike." He connected his Aura to Bolt's again. "We're going to freak them out. I want you to prepare an Iron Tail."

Bolt nodded and then stared Pinsir down with a smirk. "Let's do this, you overgrown dung beetle!"

The Samurai nodded and then swung his blade to his side. "Pinsir! Strike with Vice Grip!"

The Pinsir yelled a wordless battle cry as it charged Bolt, its horns glowing white.

Ash smirked. "Activate Iron Tail and make it hit you on your tail. And before you ask, I have a plan."

Bolt sighed softly and then moved his tail in between the Pinsir's horns and his tail became metal. He winced at the pain of the Vice Grip hitting the now metal tail.

"Wait."

The Samurai cheered lightly. "We got them now! Pinsir! Seismic Toss!"

The Pinsir bent down and threw Bolt into the air. It then leaped into the air after Bolt, its horns glowing an orangish brown energy.

Ash grinned. "Send it to the ground with Iron Tail, then hit it with a ThunderShock."

Bolt nodded and flipped around in the air, and slapped the Pinsir hard with his metal tail, then laughed. "You've activated my trap card!" His cheeks sparked dangerously, then engulfed himself in electricity. He focused the charge on his chest and then threw his limbs to the side to release the attack. A yellow bolt of lightning shot towards the Pinsir and struck just as landed on the ground.

"Seriously?"

Bolt looked back at Ash. "What? I heard it from one of those light up boxes that humans watch."

The Pinsir cried out in pain from the shock, then yelled as a show of power as he forced the electricity out of his body.

The Samurai looked at Pinsir with concern in his eyes. "Are you alright Pinsir?"

The Pinsir nodded, no longer wanting to waste his breath on words.

"Now. Use Iron Tail again as an attack. If he catches you, give him a shock."

Bolt made his tail metal again, then spun as he fell towards the Stag Beetle Pokemon. His tail just barely slipped through the grasp of the horns and slammed down on the bug's head. Bolt flipped around and grabbed Pinsir's face, then sparked.

The Samurai grimaced. "Pinsir! Grab it and use Bind!"

The Pinsir nodded the best it could, then yanked Bolt off of its face, and then shoved him between his horns, and constricted the mouse.

Bolt cried out as he felt his body beginning to be crushed, his attack cutting off before he could release it. He squirmed as hard as he could, trying to get out of the attack.

"Bolt. Calm down. Stop moving, and focus on my voice. It'll only get worse if you squirm, so we're going to try something. Continuously channel electricity through your body, build a charge up, then release it in one huge burst. Not a specific place."

Bolt gasped for air, then nodded, electricity soon beginning to arc through his fur. He felt the Pinsir squeezing harder and harder, and felt his bones beginning to pop. He closed his eyes as he charged his attack a little more, then cried out in pain as the attack was actually forced out of him, bolts of electricity flying everywhere.

Ash stepped out of the way of a stray bolt of electricity, then smirked as he looked at the Pinsir. It was in very bad shape from that. He then grinned when he saw a small bit of electricity arcing off of its shell. "Alright Bolt. Finish it with an Iron Tail, at the base of one of the horns."

Bolt nodded, his teeth gritted, and squirmed out of the grip of the paralyzed bug. He then slammed his now metallic tail down onto the base of The Pinsir's right horn, then the left, then right down in between them as a 'fuck you'.

The Pinsir cried out in pain as he was struck, and was forced down to one knee. As it tried to stand, it felt something impact the back of its knee, and it fell, being forced onto all fours. It struggled to stand, but just as he got to his feet, his legs gave out and he fell forward, unconscious.

Bolt panted as he walked back over to Ash. He turned back to the Pinsir and pointed at him. "Yeah…! You… like that…?!" He then slumped over, panting heavily. He then held up a paw to keep Ash from grabbing him. "I'm… I'm fine… I just… need a breather…"

Ash shook his head, then looked back at the Samurai. "That was a good battle."

The Samurai nodded as he returned Pinsir. "It was. Now I know how far I have to go to become the protector of this Forest. I thank you… umm…"

Ash chuckled softly. "It's Ash Ketchum."

Samurai nodded. "Ash. I thank you for your wisdom, and I believe that I shall return to my home. Complete my training before I wear this armor again."

Ash patted The Samurai on the back. "Hey, with that attitude, you'll be done in no time. I hope we meet again!" He walked over to Mei, placed her back on his hat, then picked Bolt up like a football.

The Samurai walked back into the forest, soon being engulfed in a green light, shifting into a green stag-like Pokemon, with long horns that end in dull curves. It chuckled to itself as it bounded off into the forest. 'As do I Chosen. As do I.'

Jessie and James were hidden in the bushes near where the battle took place. The redhead looked at James. "Did you see how strong that Pikachu is?!"

James nodded with a huge smile. "I sure did Jessie! If we get him to the boss, he'll be sure to promote us!"

A cat-like Pokemon with a gold coin on its forehead popped up from in between them. "So we capture da twerps Pikachu, den da boss has to take me back as his lap cat!"

Jessie and James shared a look and the same thought. 'Stage one complete.'

Jessie then looked at both of them. "Well, we should go after them! Come on you two!" She grabbed them both by the ears and dragged them towards a path that would allow them to cut Ash off.

James pretended to be hurt by this. "Ow! Jessie let go!"

Cynthia sighed as she walked back into the Champion's manor. She honestly hated not being in league season. Mostly because anyone who beats her Elite Four can challenge her, while in League season, all challenges are suspended until after the tournament, where the winner gets to battle the Elite Four, then her. Basically, she gets more time off, and she loved it. "How did that kid even get past those four? Sure, he had a strong Empoleon, but the rest of her team weren't strong enough." She walked into her room and then flopped into her chair with a groan. Her Garchomp came out of its Pokeball on its own as she turned around and began to log onto her computer. "Close the door for me Garchomp."

Garchomp made a noise of affirmation and slammed the door closed.

Cynthia smiled back at Garchomp. "Thank you." She then logged onto her email and saw a message from Ash. "Oh! It looks like Ash made it out of Viridian City! I should check his battle history!" She then rolled across her room to get onto another computer and logged into her League Account to look at Ash's stats. "Okay, looks like he… beat an unregistered trainer? Huh. Oh well. And it looks like he's in another battle right now! His Pikachu looks kinda roughed up though… probably because he encountered the trainer before he could find a camping spot… Arceus I love that we have hidden cameras on the routes."

Speaking of Ash, he's currently in a two on one battle against a kid dressed like a professional bug catcher. He has no clue where these kids are getting their costumes, but he kind of wants a fedora now. Bolt was currently up against a Weedle after defeating a Caterpie. It gave them a bit of trouble, seeing as they're both still getting used to battling, but a well executed Iron Tail cut through the Caterpie's String Shot and they were able to eliminate it.

The bug catcher's bravado seemed to falter a bit when that happened. Though when he sent out Weedle, he was sure that he could win against Ash. "Alright, Weedle! Use String Shot followed by Poison Sting!"

Ash scowled slightly. 'It's either Bolt gets hit by the silk or by the barbs. He's making me choose. But I don't see why I can't use this to my advantage.' "Bolt, use Iron Tail to block the barbs!"

Bolt nodded as he brought his tail in front of him and activated the attack just in time for a barb to deflect off of it. He felt the silk hit his hind paws as more and more barbs impacted his tail. He gritted his teeth and tried to keep the attack up, trying to focus despite the pain.

The bug catcher growled in frustration. "Keep using Poison Sting!" He then looked at Ash. "Why isn't your Pikachu getting poisoned?!"

Ash smiled as he tilted his hat over his eyes and then looked at the kid. "Because Iron Tail is a steel type attack. It makes the skin as hard as iron, and if used properly, can make the user's fur, feathers, or scales into iron temporarily. Which means as long as he keeps the attack up, you can't poison him." He closed his eyes. "It's still doing damage, but not nearly as much as it would if it touched his bare skin." 'I got him off balance now. Time to knock him down.' "In other words…" He opened his eyes to reveal glowing blue iris'. "Your plan failed. Now Bolt!"

Bolt noticed the Weedle slowing down during his trainers' spiel, now realizing why he was mouthing off. He was buying time so that the Weedle would get tired. He then slammed his tail down, slashing through the silk and then quickly dodged out of the way of a barb that was coming towards him. His cheeks sparked as he grinned and then turned off the Iron Tail so that he could launch himself into the air. He spun around for dramatic effect and unleashed a powerful Thundershock at the Weedle to stun it momentarily, then he used two small bolts of electricity come from his front paws, which were behind his back at the moment to create a tiny shockwave that would propel him forward. He then began to flip around in the air to gain momentum for his Iron Tail attack so it would do more damage.

The bug catcher noticed this and then had a worried expression on his face. "Weedle! Fire Poison Sting attacks at the Pikachu as fast as you can!"

The Weedle shook off the effects of the jarring shock it just got and then looked up to see a ball of yellow with what seemed like a blade in the middle of it. It began to panic and fire both String Shots from its mouth and Poison Stings from its tail.

Bolt simply cut through the silk strands that were fired at him and whenever he saw a barb coming at him, he smacked the barbs out of the way, which slowed him down a little, but he was still kind of on course.

The bug catcher grimaced. "Get out of there Weedle! Use String Shot on one of the trees to dodge!"

The Weedle quickly fired the attack at a high branch and then used the attack to swing itself away from the strike that would surely knock it out. It swung over the branch and landed on a higher one.

The kid whooped. "Alright! We got this now!"

Ash rolled his eyes. "Bolt, Thundershock on the branch when you land.'"

Bolt's tail impacted the ground hard, cracking it slightly. He flipped over onto all fours as his tail returned to normal and quickly fired a bolt of electricity at the tree. He broke the branch off and then watched as the Weedle used String Shot again to move to a different tree. He used another electric attack to hit the silk and made the Weedle fall to the ground.

Ash nodded at Bolt, telling him to finish the battle now.

Bolt could feel Ash nod, as their Auras were connected, and then dashed towards the Weedle, a white aura surrounding him very briefly and he slammed into the Hairy Bug Pokemon as hard as he could, using a bastardized version of Quick Attack.

The Weedle cried out in pain as it flew across the battlefield towards Ash. It struggled to recover, but it refused to give up. His trainer was counting on him.

Ash smiled softly at the Weedle. "Hey. Do you have a name?"

The Weedle looked back at Ash and shook his head. "I...like...being called...Weedle…"

Ash chuckled at that. "Okay, well Weedle, you shouldn't push yourself too far. Look at your partner." He looked up at the bug catcher, who was shaking slightly. "He's afraid for you. There's no shame in stopping. You fought well, it's time to rest, or you might be hurt for a long time. Do you want to do that to yourself? To him?"

The Weedle looked to his trainer, then shook his head. "No… but I want to make him proud…"

Ash walked over to the Weedle and then crouched down next to him. "Then concede. There's no shame in it. You fought very well, okay? He's already proud of you."

Weedle looked up at Ash, then at his partner and nodded as he laid on the ground and closed his eyes.

Ash stood up and then stepped out of the way. "I don't think that Weedle can fight anymore."

The bug catcher nodded and then returned Weedle with a smile. He looked at the ball with a smile. "You did really good buddy. Thank you." He then looked at Ash. "That was a really fun battle. Thanks."

Ash nodded at the kid. "I had fun too. I hope to see you at Indigo Plateau for the league." He then picked Bolt up and walked deeper into the forest.

Mei yawned as she woke up. "Oh wow… what time is it…? How long was I asleep…?"

Bolt looked up at Mei. "Well, you were asleep for most of the day, and we're making camp now, so we can eat and sleep and relax."

Ash looked at Bolt. "I never said that we were making camp."

Bolt groaned. "Please! I'm exhausted! We've been walking and battling all day!"

Ash smirked. "You mean that I've been walking all day, and we got into two battles. I think that-"

Mei groaned softly. "Ash, I'm starting to hurt again." She then winked at Bolt.

Ash sighed. "I can feel your aura you know. But...I can't argue with two of you. We'll make camp."

Bolt cheered and then hopped up onto Ash's shoulder as they entered a clearing. "Yes! I can hear the ketchup calling to me!"

"Well...you did really good today in your battles Bolt, so… I suppose you can have ketchup." Ash set the two small Pokemon down on the ground and then began to set up the campgrounds. "Mei, stretch your legs a little and walk around. Bolt, take five."

Bolt flopped onto the ground as Mei began to walk around the clearing slowly. "How about I take fifty?"

Ash rolled his eyes as he quickly set up the tent and portable grills. Once he got those set up he released Lucy, Grace, and Drago. "So, did you guys get any progress done on your attacks?"

Lucy shook her head. "Nope. I just rested for the whole three days we were in there."

Drago chuckled. "Yep. She was lazier than I am. And that's saying a lot. I mostly slept, but when I was awake I was working on my dragon type attacks."

Grace sighed as she rolled her eyes. "Unlike these two lazy bums, I decided to increase my pain threshold so that I can take more hits and last longer in battle." She smiled and then winced a little. "I'm a little sore, but it shouldn't interfere with my training."

Ash sighed and then gently pulled Grace aside. "You didn't have to do that Grace. Right now we're just dusting off the battle skills that you should have already."

Grace nodded with a smile. "I know, but when you prove your strength, you'll be able to command us in battle, and when that happens, I'll have to be able to take a punch."

Ash smiled softly. "That's all well and good, but you can't push yourself too far. Otherwise, you won't be able to move, let alone take a punch." He then gently patted her shoulder. "Take the day off. If you're still sore tomorrow then we'll see. Mom taught me a lot, including massages, for some reason. I was never really good at them though. Maybe because she had me do them without learning how to give a medicinal massage."

Grace sighed and then nodded. "I'll just do some light exercises then. Get the blood pumping." She then walked over to a non-crowded part of the clearing and proceeded to do some stretches that Lucy taught her.

Ash looked back at Lucy and Drago and then grinned maliciously. "Lucy, Drago, I think that it's time to work on your speed!"

The two Pokemon looked at each other, then gulped nervously. Lucy chuckled, her nervousness clearly showing. "A-Ash, shouldn't we work on something a little more useful like more attacks?"

Drago nodded his head. "R-Right! We should work on those!"

Ash chuckled darkly as he allowed his blue aura to envelop him. "I'll give you a five-second head start. I'll be firing Aura Spheres at you two while you run around as fast as you can. Drago, we'll think of a different way to get your flight speed back to your previous speed."

Drago looked down at Lucy to see a dust cloud of her in her place. He looked around and saw Lucy looking like she was running for her life. He did the same as he dashed after her, much slower on foot than in the air.

Ash closed his eyes so that he could enter a semi-meditative state, then opened his eyes to reveal them to be glowing blue. He grinned and then formed an Aura Sphere in his hands fairly quickly, then launched it in front of Lucy, though the explosion from it was slightly behind Drago. 'My creation speed is passable, but I still need to work on confinement. The explosion should've been twice that size.' He fired another blue sphere far in front of the Lucario, the explosion nipping her heels. This went on for ten more minutes before Drago and Lucy both collapsed panting. "Lucy, come here please."

Lucy stayed on the ground for a minute or so, then begrudgingly stood and walked over to Ash, still panting heavily. "Wh… What… do you want…?"

Ash sighed softly. "I wanted to wait and see if I could figure it out on my own, but I haven't yet, so I'll just say it." He then looked her over. "You can sit down if you'd like."

Lucy fell backward, panting still.

Ash sat down with her. "So, I can create an Aura sphere with minimal difficulty, but I've been having a real problem with keeping it the same size when I launch it. Any tips?"

Lucy looked up at Ash, then sighed. "Lady Mew taught you the Pokemon way of doing it, didn't she?"

Ash nodded hesitantly.

Lucy sat up, leaning on her hand/paws. "It's a common mistake. Humans and Pokemon simply don't have the same anatomy. Instead of many points on the body where you can store and channel Aura like we Pokemon do, humans only have a select few. In your solar plexus, I think that's what it's called anyways, at the base of your spine, and your brain is three of five. I don't remember where the other two are. The problem is that she taught you to regulate your sphere through your hands. You need to form it inside of you first, then push it out through your hands. It'll be easiest for you if you do it that way, otherwise, making a stable Aura Sphere will be impossible for you."

Ash nodded softly and then held his hands slightly out in front of him and entered a full meditative state. He began to channel the Aura inside of him to create a sphere. He then slowly pushed it out of his left hand and an Aura Sphere began to form in between the palms of his hands. It was very slow, as it was an entire sphere being forced out of Ash instead of just the energy for it, but when he opened his eyes, a light blue, glowing aura sphere was floating in his hands. "Do they usually glow?"

Lucy giggled softly, then nodded. "That's how you know that you've created a successful Aura Sphere. It's more versatile than most people think. For instance, you've only learned how to use it in close quarters combat and to launch them one at a time. But it can be used for so much more than that. Once you master the Aura Sphere, a whole world of new techniques and opportunities will be unlocked."

Ash smiled at the orb then casually tossed it behind him. Or, he tried to. He looked at his left hand to see the sphere still there. He flicked his hand, then began to shake it violently. "Usually it comes off by now."

Lucy's eyes glowed blue, then she stifled a laugh. "I-It's still attached to you!"

Ash looked at his hand again, then pointed his palm into the air and forced it off of his hand, launching it into the air. A loud explosion rang out above them, a cry of pain that slowly grew louder came soon after. He looked up and saw a Pidgeotto falling fast. "Shit!" His right hand shot up and his arms began to glow lavender as psychic energy surrounded the large bird and slowed their descent very quickly. The Pidgeotto slowly landed in Ash's lap, his eyes also glowing lavender. "Sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you!"

The Pidgeotto groaned softly as it looked back up at Ash. "Thanks for catching me… I would've died otherwise." It quickly got onto its talons and flexed its wings. "It's an honor to meet the one chosen by Lady Arceus in person."

Ash stared the Pidgeotto in the eyes. "Care to answer me something?"

The Pidgeotto nodded.

Ash sighed. "Why is it that you guys can tell that I spoke to Arceus?"

Lucy snickered. "W-Well, besides that golden aura trick you do sometimes, you kinda smell like her."

"I… I what?"

The Pidgeotto sighed. "I see that this wasn't explained to you by your caretaker. Aura has a specific scent to Pokemon. More specifically, our gods, whom you call Legendary Pokemon, have a unique aura. All Pokemon know each scent of every one of our gods at birth, and you smell reminiscent of Lady Arceus."

Ash tilted his head, then groaned in confusion. "Okay, Aura emits a scent as well? That's a little much, so I'm just going to assume that you don't mean aura and I need to bathe, so I'm going to go do that." He stood up and looked back at Grace. "Make sure none of our stuff is taken and that those guys don't slack off Grace. And remember to go easy on Mei!" He walked deeper into the forest, hearing running water.

Pidgeotto looked over at Lucy. "Are all humans like that?"

Lucy chuckled. "You mean do they all care about how they smell even when it's not mating season, then yes. All humans are like that."

*tsuka: handle of a Japanese blade

I realize that this is a short chapter, but I felt like I needed to explain why I took another hiatus, but this time unannounced. I recently hit an all-time low in my… let's just call it mental state and not only was I unmotivated to write, I could barely eat, drink, even sleep. All I was doing was laying there, unable to think about how worthless I am. However, I got past that and I'm back! Though I'm still kinda down, that doesn't mean that you all should suffer for it! After this, you should expect more chapters in the future, but with less content in each one sadly, because I need to take it kinda easy and also I have to worry about coursework. Anyways, I'll see all of you later! Bye!