Chapter 4: Show-Off Sonic

"And you're positive you'll have us a way back home by the time we come back?" I ask, looking up at the professor expectantly.

"Yes, Sonic, I promise," she replies, laughing lightly. "We may not have Chaos Emeralds around here, but our technology is quite advanced. You should be home in seven, eight days tops."

"Great," I sigh, knowing Tails is going to worry himself to death over this. Too bad I don't have that headset, or I'd ask her to fix it before we go. "Well, see you later Professor!"

"You too, Sonic! Be careful, you three. Team Infinity's been strangely active the past few months around here. Just don't get into any situations you know you can't handle."

"Well, I always told Knuckles I don't get into fights I can't win, so that should be pretty easy," I answer, crossing my arms behind my head as I walk away.

"We will, Professor. Right, Ash?" Misty asks, elbowing her absent-minded friend in the side.

"Yow, Mist! I mean, uh, yeah, we'll be careful," Ash says, scratching his head and waving goodbye. "Geez, did you have to hit me so hard? What did I do to deserve that?"

"I don't know. You weren't paying attention, for one." I roll my eyes. We haven't even been walking for a minute, and they're already at it.

"Sorry for zoning out on you guys. Not like I missed very much." Misty huffs, clearly annoyed at his reckless remark.

"I swear, Ash Ketchum, sometimes I just don't know…"

"Don't know what? You're the one who decided to come with me again, you know."

"I know that! It's not like you had anyone else to travel with."

"I'm sixteen now, I think I can handle it by myself, thank you. I don't need watched after anymore like I used to," he mumbles, staring wistfully up at the sky.

Misty sighs. "I know you don't. I just thought you'd enjoy the company. Plus, it has been six years. Can't we just try to get along? Just this once?"

Ash thinks about it a minute. "Don't see why not. And yeah, it has been quite a while, hasn't it?" Misty nods, looking over at Ash affectionately.

"And you're sure you guys aren't together?" I ask, noticing once again the liking they've taken to each other. Ash doesn't even seem to notice my question.

"Uh, yeah, we're sure," Misty answers, blushing slightly. "Why?"

"Just wondering," I answer, clicking my tongue in amusement. "Now, mind telling me what this journey is all about, anyway?"

"Well, Ash is here to travel through the Midori Region, catching Pokémon, battling trainers, and collecting the seven gym badges needed in order to enter the Midori League, held every year in Millennium City. Trainers come from all over to participate in it, and the winner becomes Midori's newest champ."

"And Ash is hoping to do that? Why didn't you try it?"

"Yeah, he is. And well, I jus—"

"She has a gym back home to take care of. Plus she knew she wouldn't stand a chance against yours truly," Ash answers, winking at Misty in laughter. "Love ya, Mist."

"Mhmm, we'll see about that one," she sighs, flicking Ash in the nose like he's a dog. Or whatever the Pokémon equivalent is around here.

"Geez, Misty, do you got to be so harsh? I was just playing."

"I know, so was I," she replies, smirking at him teasingly.

"Sure you were. And I'm a Pikachu."

"Well, you were, once. Don't tell me you've forgotten about that already." I raise an eye at Ash, very confused about what she's said.

"Oh, this girl named Lily turned me into a Pikachu by accident one day, Sonic. And Misty, you can bet I haven't forgotten about that!" Pikachu sighs noisily, making me realize that I'd nearly forgotten about the little yellow rat.

I glance over at him, and he seems to be staring at something up ahead. Curious, I look that way, and notice a guy about Ash's age coming down the road, heading straight for us. "Well, Pikachu, up for your very first battle here?" Pikachu nods excitedly, glaring at the guy coolly.

He's nearly as tall as Ash, with pale blonde hair and icy blue eyes. He strolls over to us, glowering down at me in particular and says, "Some Pokémon you got there, eh?" I sigh. Here we go again.

"Oh, he isn't a Poké—"

"The name's Alec. Hm, the Pokédex doesn't have any info on him. Not so much as a picture. What's his name?" the guy interrupts, glancing at Ash nosily.

"If you'll just listen—"

"Sonic. Sonic the Hedgehog," I state, hoping to catch his attention.

"Whoa, he can talk too! Look, want to battle? Your Sonic versus my Eevee. How 'bout it?"

"Uh, but, Alec—"

"Sure, sounds fun," I remark, smirking at Ash, who looks about ready to murder me. This should be a piece of cake.

"Great, right here, right now. Battle's over when one side's Pokémon is knocked out. Ready?" Ash nods steadily, still eyeing me warily. Man, if looks could kill, I'd be six feet under by now!

"Don't worry, Ash. I do stuff like this for a living," I whisper in his ear, hoping to set him at ease just a bit. Also, I'm kind of wanting to show off, I add silently, walking over to my place on the field.

"You sure about that?" he asks, not fully believing what I'm capable of.

I wave him off and look at Alec, saying, "Ready when you are."

"Okay then, go, Eevee!" he screams, launching a red and white ball into the air. Out pops a little brown dog, presumably the Eevee he's been talking about. It grunts, ready to get this over with.

"Sonic, do whatever you do, I guess," Ash sighs, already feeling like defeat is just a few moves away.

"Don't underestimate me just yet, my friend. You haven't seen anything."

"Eevee, Tackle!" The Pokémon rushes over toward me, ready to hit me head-on.

"Fast, but not quite fast enough!" I exclaim, stepping out of the way and stopping behind him seconds before Eevee can even reach me. I then jump and do my signature Homing Attack, hitting Eevee square on the head. He moans as he hits the ground, hurt but not giving in quite yet.

Ash looks at me in wonder, surprised that I actually seem to know what I'm doing. "Told you I do stuff like this all the time," I answer, facing him and shrugging my shoulders.

"Here's your chance, Eevee, Quick Attack!" Thinking this attack will be just as slow, I take my time. Then I hit the ground face-first.

"Mmph." I stand up, looking at the brave little Pokémon. Wow, this kid's faster than I gave him credit for. Still not as fast as me though. I then launch my Spin Attack, sending the poor Pokémon flying.

"Eevee, no!" He hits a tree, landing on the ground with a loud thud! Scrambling to get up, the tuckered out Pokémon refuses to lose to me. And I thought I was stubborn. "Eevee, Swagger!"

The Pokémon taunts me, confusing me for some reason. What's going on? I think as my body mechanically runs around in circles. Before long, I've dug a tiny trench, but still can't seem to control myself.

"Snap out of it, Sonic!" Ash calls in a desperate attempt to bring me back to reality.

"Bite, Eevee!" Oh not you don't! I prepare to dodge, but for some reason I can't budge. Eevee does as it's told, fiercely sinking his teeth into my right leg.

"Ngh," I groan as I attempt to shake the Pokémon off. My body decides to respond this time, so I quickly peel the little dog off and launch my next attack. I use my Bounce Attack, hitting the Eevee full force and finally knocking him out.

"Alec is out of usable Pokémon. Ash wins the battle!" Misty declares, clapping enthusiastically.

"Return, Eevee, my friend. You did well," Alec says, crossing over to us. "I must say, that was some battle. Never seen anything like it in my entire life! Are you sure you're even a Pokémon?" he asks, looking directly at me.

"Well, that's kind of what we were trying to tell you. See, he isn't really a Pokémon," Ash answers sheepishly, making me wonder what Alec's reaction will be. He looks at Ash in confusion, and then glances at me in recognition.

"Ah, I see. Why didn't you tell me this sooner?"

"Uh—"

"Because you didn't give Ash a chance. You kept interrupting him, you know. I just decided I ought to teach you a lesson," I state, walking over to join the conversation.

"Oh. Sorry 'bout that. Lesson learned," he replies, laughing. "Still, a good battle overall. Maybe we'll meet again soon. Hopefully next time I'll actually be battling one of your Pokémon though."

"Yeah, you can bet on that."

"Well, I'm afraid I must be off. Nice meeting you guys!"

"You too, Alec!" Misty exclaims, waving at him as he walks away.

"Yeah, you too," Ash says, also waving. Then he turns to me. Uh-oh. "What in the world were you thinking? You've never even seen a battle before, let alone been a part of one!"

"Sure I have. Though most of my battles were fought against Eggman's robots or gigantic 'ultimate life forms,' and they were mainly life-or-death situations," I answer, recalling some of the things I've battled over the past year.

"Still, you have no clue what a Pokémon battle is! Bet you've never dealt with confusion like that Eevee gave you with his move, have you?" I have to admit, he has me there.

"No, but I can take care of myself just fine. Geez, lighten up. Either way, it's not like it mattered to you whether I won or lost. I'm still not a Pokémon, and it still wouldn't count, whatever the outcome would've turned out to be." I sigh and shrug my shoulders. "Besides, the only way to learn is to do it yourself, am I right?"

Misty turns to Ash, raising an eyebrow at him. "He's right, you know. I don't know about you, but I remember a time when you had no idea what you were doing either. Besides, it's not like that guy gave him much of a choice anyhow. You know that." Ash lets out a sigh of defeat.

"I guess you're right. Sorry, Sonic. I guess I overreacted."

"Hmph, that's nothing new," Misty laughs, clapping Ash on the back. "We'd better get going, before it gets too late. Who knows what could happen to his friend if we don't hurry?" I laugh nervously at her words.

"Somehow, I really don't think you have any reason to worry about Amy. She always manages to find me, one way or another. Kind of like she has this built-in 'Sonic Radar.'" I chuckle, remembering what Tails once called it. Ash just looks ahead blankly, not even hearing a word I say.

"What are we waiting for then? Let's get going!" he exclaims, grabbing Misty by the arm and making a run for it.

"Seriously? That's your idea of fast? That's nothing. Come on," I say, catching up to them and grabbing Misty by the hand. "Grab on, Ash, and hold on Pikachu! They don't call me Sonic for nothing!" I take his free hand and start to run, faster than I've run in quite a while.

"Sonic, I don't think I can keep up much longer," Misty states, already feeling a bit worn down.

"Nonsense! You can do it, Misty! Just close your eyes, forget about everything else around you, and run."

"I-I'll try," she answers hesitantly, shutting her eyes.

"You too, Ash! Give it a try!" At first, I feel his feet starting to slip out from under him. "Ash!" He shuts his eyes, focusing on nothing but his feet, and soon gets swept away in the moment of being one of the fastest beings this world has ever seen.

Just a bit longer, Amy. Just a bit longer.