Authors Notes: Ash is back in Johto, now doesn't that bring back memories?
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They'd arrived, at a port in Goldenrod City they'd touched down in Johto. They'd made their way to just beyond the city borders, and were currently in a field. Ash stood before the three members of a family, the mother of which was currently tied to a familiar basket and balloon. It was time for trainer and Pokémon to part again.
Ash had to hold his breath as a much younger Ash of a different species practically strangled him. He turned to Charizard when the grip finally loosened a bit. "You know your training routine, I'll call if I have any ideas." He was met with a nod. "I was thinking we should all go train as a team about two, maybe three months before the Championship comes around again. That alright with you?" Charizard growled as he nodded, clearly looking forward to it. Ash smiled. "Then this is goodbye again, Charizard." Charizard closed his eyes and nodded slowly. It was definitely not forever, or even as long as some previous partings, but a parting was a parting, and the fact was they did have to go separate ways. Ash's home was far away from Charizard's now. Yet, as long as they will to battle burned in them both, they were guaranteed to meet again. Both knew it. Both were okay with it.
A certain other Ash on the other hand..."CHAAAAAR!"
The older Ash was silent as the blazes consumed his face, Pikachu watching from the ground with a sigh. Hopefully Chrizard's son would outgrow this habit soon enough. After all, what sane person wanted a Flamethrower to the face?
The fires ended, and the little Charmander soon found himself being placed in the basket. "I'll see you again, okay Ash?"
"Char! Char!" He was jumping up and down, stopping when a hand was placed on his head, giving an affectionate rub. The Charmander still smiled, even as the hand parted. He watched as his namesake turned his attention to his father.
"What? No love?" Charizard only snorted in amusement before-"YAAAAAHHHHH!"Ash did a rather convincing impression of a steam train before, "Ah, that's the stuff."
Pikachu only shook his head. Maybe he should try shock therapy...
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From there they'd walked, step by step, moment after moment, stopping only for brief breaks to eat. Eventually the sun's movement across the sky came to a set, and the moon rose up in its place. After that both came to a stop, and they lay down for the night. Soon Ash was sleep, and apparently Pikachu was too.
Apparently.
Pikachu opened his eyes, his ears twitching. He took a quick look at Ash, who was sound asleep. He nodded, reaching for Ash's back, quickly extracting something from a side pocket. A small, round, red and white object. He smiled, moving away from Ash before vanishing.
He was deep in the forest by the time he was still again, his fur and the grass below him being blown in a steady beating wind. Pikachu raised the Pokeball to the source of the wind. "Pika chu." Thank you.
A red light shot from the ball...
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It'd been three days since then. Three days of walking through Johto, one would think four and a half days would be more than enough time to find a single house, but there were two factors to consider: First, Ash's destination really was out-of-the-way of any main road.
As for the other factor...
"Ka pi." Say it.
"No."
"Pika chu, pi ka kachu. Pi ka pi." Come on, I wont laugh. Just say it.
"No!"
"Chuuu." Please.
"No! Now pipe down!"
Ash took in the scenery around him, the wide fields, with a forest visible in the distance. Currently he walked next to a stream, a school of Remoraid swimming within it, quickly passing him. Under the bright sky, on such a beautiful day, it was easy to forget-"Kapchu pi pikachu pi pi kachu ka." It'd be better if you just admitted it you know.
"Fine! I'm lost! You happy?"
"Chaa." Very. "Ka chu pika chuchu pi." Now admit the other thing.
"No way."
"Ka pi." Say it.
"No."
"Ka pi!" Say it!
"No!"
"Ka pi pikachu!" Say it already!
"NO!"
"Ka pi kachu pika chu!" Say it or I'll shock you!
"I ain't saying it!"
"KA PI!" SAY IT!
"Never!" He suddenly reached up, pulling Pikachu off his shoulder and gazing at him at eye level. "Ketchup is not better than Barbecue Sauce!"
Pikachu's cheeks violently crackled."Chukapi!" Blasphemy!
Ash merely sighed. "I should have left you at home." He put his best friend back on his shoulder before walking on, his thoughts briefly with the very place he just mentioned.
"Wonder if the press showed up again?"
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Delia extracted a trowel from the earth, the reason for her actions understood only by her and Mimey, who was currently doing the same deed at another part of the garden. Unlike the usual routine, where they would do this alone, they had company.
Buizel lightly sprayed water over a patch of flowers, while not too far away Glalie was freezing some weeds. When he was finished freezing he turned to Buizel, who nodded before approaching. He grasped the frozen weeds and pulled, extracting it from the earth with ease. They held satisfied looks, in the brief moment before Mimey returned and shuffled them away, sweeping in on the disturbed spot to...actually neither Glalie nor Buizel understood the finer points of gardening so they didn't take a guess. They just turned to Heracross, who simply shrugged, as clueless as they. This was what all day was looking to be like, confusing and boring (to all but two).
Well, almost boring. The three Pokemon turned to a scene beyond the fence.
"Hey, hey, uhh, n-n-nice-Poke-"
"BAY!" a 'crack' sounded in the air. Then came a second "Torr." Followed by a third. "Bulba!"
Beyond the fence a small pack of frightened reporters and cameramen found themselves faced with a trio of grass Pokémon, none in the mood to let them pass. The press had figured with Ash gone their chances would improve. They'd thought wrong. Who would have ever thought Ash Ketchum could actually practice cunning?
Delia suddenly frowned. "Bayleaf, could you come help me with these roses, please?
Bayleaf turned to Torterra and Bulbasaur, who both nodded. She threw her head back, her voice echoing in all directions. "BAYYYYYYYYYY!"
She quickly ran, placing herself within the bounds of the fence. Torterra turned, walking as quick as he was able out of the road, and onto the grassy field, Bulbasaur following him. Both kept their vine whips extended, making sure no one could get close to the fence.
The air was suddenly alive with the sounds of rumbling, the ground shook, the air was full of the sounds of heavy steps. The eyes of the intruders gazed in all directions to try to find the source.
They found it.
They ran.
Neither Delia nor any of the other Pokémon took any notice as the source of the noise ran by, all thirty of the mad beasts relentlessly pursuing their targets right out of the town. It was only a few minutes later did Delia take a look at the dust cloud in the distance, which was only getting further away. She took a good look at the road, then at the grass beyond her house with a thoughtful expression.
"Hmmm. Well if I ever need land flattened..."
They'd have to come back first, and there were a few sayings about rampaging Tauros...
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Hours later the pair found themselves in a small town between Goldenrod and Ecruteak, and they walked slowly through the streets, paying no mind to its citizens. Ash let his eyes creep around over the area, strange as it may have been, the architecture in Johto had always been of some interest to him. Just because how it looked, Johto always had that unique touch that seemed to make it more in-tune with the times of old, and no region better than Johto spoke of history in their buildings. Many of the buildings here were likely new (less than half a century easily), but he easily found some which were definitely older. There was definitely some history here, and years ago he likely would have had some kind of adventure with it, but today, alas, he was here for the future, not the past. He simply walked, his eyes darting over random things. Children, plants, a roaming Houndour, a very old tree, some poster in a window, a letter box-he suddenly stopped for a second.
A poster? He took a second look, before smiling. Yet another advertisement for the Pokémon league. He should have gotten used to them by now, and mostly he had. Yet this one had...a unique touch to it. It was a picture depicting, among various other little things, six people.
The foremost figure was Ash himself, with five other figures less emphasized around him, but all of them didn't need a poster to inspire attention. These people did it all on their own.
The Regional Champions.
Below Grandmaster they were the strongest, the five foremost elite. One for each region that competed in the world Pokémon League (which the various conferences were segments of). They were the pride of their respective nations, and though it was not compulsory, it would be shameful for them to miss the Grandmaster Championship, as such it had been decades since even one reigning Champion had missed the Championship.
Ash had always known a Champion was supposed to be the strongest of their nation, but until he'd seen them fighting all out he hadn't grasped just how strong they were. Even the various Elite Four groups strengths paled before these titans. While it was true there were people like Ash had been, trainers mostly void any formal title or rank which could also clearly outclass Elite Four members, for the most part even they were utterly decimated by any one of these five.
A little-known fact about the inner workings of the Championship was how matches were arranged. While for the most part, the first match-ups were decided at random, it was fixed so that champions would not face one another until later rounds. It was designed so anticipation could be built for when the time came for two Champions, two nations to clash. The world had been denied that this year. No champion had faced another.
They weren't that lucky.
He grinned, they had been the greatest battles of his life. He let his eyes wander over them all, remembering every battle, every blow, every close call...dammit he was itching for a real battle! His eyes did a double take on the Johto Champion. He really enjoyed fighting the Johto Champion especially. They were so much alike...
Wait, he was in Johto! Next stop!:...
...
"Dammit!"
"Pi?"
He sighed. "Should have found out where he lives..." Looking at the poster Pikachu nodded. He turned from the poster and went on his way, walking through the town with a single destination in mind.
Quickly, Ash located a restaurant, hunger demanding food to quell it. Making an admirable effort at disguising his voice, Pikachu and Ash quickly found themselves sat at a table near the entrance without being bothered. Ash subscribed to a simple philosophy these days: Know where the exits are.
If he was found, he wanted out quickly.
Ash finished applying a generous amount of ketchup to his meal before giving the bottle up to Pikachu, which he would no doubt empty before long. Ash let his mind wander to something else, to the man he was going to see. To Ash, it was almost the definition of wrong itself that he had not gotten the honor of fighting him for the title.
The truth was no-one had.
It had shaken the world, almost as much as Ash becoming Grandmaster. He could remember it like it was yesterday. Months ago, an announcement had been aired. He'd been in a room in a Pokémon Center, standing with a dish of soup while a news report (he'd lost track of the remote) aired.
"Pokémon Grandmaster, Quentin Gelden has announces his retirement."
"WHAT?!"
After that he'd started violently cursing, partly owing to the hot soup that had covered his feet. A similar bout of swearing took place when he got invited to the Championship, he'd been cheated! The greatest battle one could ask for and he'd been denied the thrill. What was worse he hadn't come to Quentin now to battle either, but just to talk.
Something had gone really, really wrong in his life.
Quentin's retirement had made this year's championship a unique deal. Normally, the championship worked not unlike a league conference. One by one, the competitors would fight it out, until only one remained. After that the Grandmaster would descend from their throne to wage one battle, one glorious war against whoever had earned the honor to stand against them. That was one thing Ash absolutely despised about his title. Despised! Now he was one who would sit upon that throne, waiting for one battle.
Next year's championship was going to be pure Hell. He would ask what he'd done to deserve such a fate, but then he'd remember. He just sighed, before digging into his meal. For a while both Pikachu and Ash ate in silence, until the blare of the TV in the corner caught their attention.
Ash resisted the urge to vent his annoyance in some way, opting just to whisper. "Remind me to ask Quentin how long this'll last. I'm sick of being on TV."
"Pika chu chu pikachu pika cha." Never have said that a few years ago.
"I didn't know what I was getting myself into back then."
Pikachu nodded. This was true. He turned to watch the screen too, admittedly they were both a little curious, this was not a battle re-run.
After a minute though they wished it was.
"We already know of the new Grandmaster's amazing victories, but what about his personal life? After extensive effort, we managed to track down and interview those who have actually travelled with him over the years!"
...
"..." A piece of burger meat fell from Ash's mouth.
"..." A drop of ketchup slipped from Pikachu's.
He gulped down his mouthful.
Pikachu downed his.
"...crap."
"...ka."
Well, he had wondered before, and now it was happening. Someone had bothered to check into his real life. His reputation was about to be butchered.
"We have interviews with everyone who has ever travelled a region with Ash, save for one. Unfortunately our crews were unable to reach Tracey Sketchit. Who currently is an assistant to Professor Samuel Oak."
Ash smirked. He was pretty sure he knew why that was. His smirk quickly vanished; they'd reached everyone else. He couldn't quite ignore the TV...
"The people who travelled with him have quite interesting stories to tell. Our first interview takes us to the Hoenn region. To the youngest companion ever to travel with Grandmaster Ash Ketchum, Max. Who, for those who are unaware, is the youngest child and only son of the Petalburg City Gym leader, Norman, who was also present for this interview."
The screen changed, and it showed Max, by the looks of it just in front of the Gym. Near him Norman stood up against the wall. Likely Norman had demanded he be present, Max wasn't exactly accustomed to being interviewed. Max looked nervous briefly before Norman smiled. Ash watched as the first question was asked, not really noticing how the tone of the questioner was rather soft, likely to better accommodate a child, which Max still was. Ash did notice a woman was conducting the interview however, just from voice.
"Now Max, as you were too young to go on a journey of your own, you travelled with your sister and the Grandmaster, right?"
"Yeah. I didn't want to stay at home, so I got Ash and May to let me go with them."
"Will you be going on a Pokémon Journey of your very own one day?"
Max nodded. "I'm heading off next month." He glanced at the Pokémon standing next to him. "With my buddy Ralts."
Ash knew nothing of how interviews were conducted, but somehow he could tell the question about Max's own journey was dropped for the purpose of the next..."Being one of the Grandmaster's closet friends, has he promised to teach you any of his tricks?"
Max briefly looked hesitant, taking a few seconds before he gave an unsure answer. "I'm not sure about teaching. But he promised me a battle once. But we haven't talked in a long time, so I'm not sure..."
Norman's eyes briefly glanced at his son, knowing that even a child of Max's intelligence was unsure how to end an interview, especially one like this. Had anyone asked him at this point, he'd have told them that letting this interview happen was a bad idea. He could tell by now that the media was just fishing for a story, and he could tell now it's not one that would work in Ash's favour. Alas, his children had not told him that Ash had abandoned them. "I think that's the end of this interview. Now if you wouldn't mind..."Norman slowly started to shift Max away, leading him (Ralts following) back into the gym with his arm, but before Max was beyond the threshold of the door a suddenly desperate voice spoke.
"Do you have anything to say to him?"
Max turned and grinned. "Yeah!" Max expertly ducked under Norman's arm, placing himself right in front of the camera as he, in an oddly spontaneous moment, seemed to be trying to look right at Ash..."I knew you could do it, Ash! Way to kick some ass!"
"MAX!"
That was definitely Caroline's voice, and she didn't sound too happy. Clearly Max knew that too, because his grin completely vanished. "Oops." Max's head suddenly started to shift from side to side, before "I still want that battle, Ash!" He ran off, so fast he was nearly a blur.
The feed froze, before zooming out and the main focus was the presenter. For a moment nothing important would happen.
Ash felt a potent sting of guilt strike him, he'd spared Max no real thought since his first night back at home. His thoughts had been elsewhere, and spent a considerable time being thrown around by the mess he'd created. Now; he had a moment, and not much choice but to give him thought, and he realized; Max represented a unique opportunity. Maybe...just maybe, there was a definite first step to making things right with him.
"Looks like we're off to Hoenn soon."
"Chaa." Pikachu smiled.
Everything felt oddly...weightless. For a brief moment Ash could honestly say he was happy, but only for that brief moment.
"This next interview is a special one, because we were lucky enough to find two of the Grandmaster's former partners together. The first of them to travel with him is actually Max's older sister, and Norman's daughter, May. Also known as the Princess of Hoenn."
Ash blinked. He thought that was just a name Dawn had come up with. Speaking of which..."And the second is Dawn, daughter of retired Sinnoh Top Coordinator, Johanna."
There went his good mood. The two of them together, this was not going to be fun to watch. He would just get up and go, but his legs seemed to ignoring his commands at this point.
All he could do was sit there and take it.
"So how did each of you meet him?"
It was a few seconds before someone spoke, Dawn silently been given the go-ahead to speak first. "Well actually I met Pikachu first. He and Ash were separated and I thought he was wild. I tried catching him, but all I got for my effort was a wrecked bike."
May suddenly spoke up. "Wait, Pikachu wrecked your bike too?"
"Yeah."
Ash blinked...he never did pay them back for those bikes. Strange, why was it that he couldn't seem to befriend girls without Pikachu wrecking their bikes? And why couldn't Pikachu just not wreck their bikes? He turned to Pikachu, sharing what he'd noticed and, "Are one of us cursed?"
Pikachu shrugged, before both turned back to the screen.
The story of May and Ash's meeting was briefly told, before they were asked what Ash had been like. Each had given similar answers, of how Ash had assisted with, and joined in their contests. Their story varied in the smaller details, but despite the tone they spoke in, or their highly specific choice of words used at times, one thing was clear: They really did enjoy travelling with Ash, and had looked up to him.
Naturally, Ash missed that meaning. All Ash really got from the story was he'd travelled with them, then up and abandoned them when they were no longer at his side.
He couldn't exactly challenge that perceived claim.
"Is there anything you two would like to say to him?"
Dawn didn't even wait a second. "Yeah!" She put both her hands on her hips, her face holding a glare unlike any he'd seen from her. "You're a jerk!"
May briefly glanced at her friend before looking at the camera. "I-" She closed her mouth, her eyes briefly avoiding the camera before she shook her head. "No. I don't have anything to say."
With that the footage quickly came to an end, and Ash was left in the silence, but his own mind was screaming at him.
"You're a jerk!"
Only Dawn had said it, but he was certain May agreed, but for whatever reason just opted not to vocalize it. A thousand words a thousand times worse would have been more befitting, but they struck deep enough. Not bothering to contact them was bad enough, but dammit why didn't he just at least stay to properly see them off? It didn't matter now, both were extremely angry with him. If May was mad, then he doubted his chances with Max. The two siblings were very loyal to one another, and he'd not force Max in any situation where he'd have to choose, so attempting to rebuild bridges was likely out of the question. He'd go and give Max a battle anyway, a promise was a promise, and he was not about to break his word. He sighed. Now how would life choose to kick him while he was down next?
"And next on our list is former Pewter City Gym Leader, Brock. Who has spent more time travelling with the Grandmaster than anyone but his Pikachu."
He just had to wonder.
He found his feet, but he couldn't bring himself to move. Now, it felt like he was almost obligated to stay. He watched as the video feet started, and watched as one of his oldest former friends appeared on screen.
He felt, damn he couldn't quite process all he felt. Their last meeting viciously flashed before his eyes. Every word, every yell, every single detail. Everything passed before his mind in seconds, up until his own final words...
How could he have said something like that?
Brock's face was, hard to define. It used to be Brock's general mood was easy enough to sum up, but his expression was a bit more serious than Ash was used to seeing, though what he was used to was based in a distant past.
"So, Brock. How did you meet the Grandmaster?"
Brock's mouth shifted upwards in a repressed laugh. The story of their meeting was briefly told, of how Ash, full of fire and well, not many else sent his Pikachu against Onyx. If Ash ever had a reputation as a master tactician then it just went out the window, though his reputation as one who just wouldn't back down was solidified in time as Brock told them of their second match. Then came the end of that story, with the formation of what became Ash's first band of misfits. The aspiring Pokémon Master, the Pokémon Breeder in the making and the runaway Gym Leader.
Such a unique group, many would wonder exactly how such a group had ever managed to function. Only three knew the answer; they just did.
"How long did you travel with the Grandmaster?"
"I travelled with him through Kanto and Johto, and through the Orange Islands for a while. I also went with him through Hoenn and Sinnoh." He smiled. "Four years. Four long and very interesting years." His smile retreated. "Leaving him wasn't nice, but I had my own dream I had to follow."
Ash released a breath he didn't notice he'd been holding. Brock hadn't mention their meeting in Unova...thank Arceus. If it was possible, he'd like to drag that to his grave, but alas that partly depended on Brock. If he wanted to give the details, that would be it, but it would not be today. With that worry briefly gone, he took notice of Brock's last words...
Adapting to travelling without Brock. That had been the single strangest experience in his entire journey. Brock had travelled with him for four years (with some brief gaps), and it was months before Ash got used to not having him around. Every time he ran into a Nurse Joy or Officer Jenny he automatically got ready to react (hey, no one else was around to do it, and just letting Brock do as he would was just against the law of nature), and he'd briefly be confused when he realized there was nothing to react to. The funny thing in all that is during the brief moment Brock and he were together again, Ash didn't react right away, and Brock went absolutely gaga over the Nurse Joy they'd run into.
Pikachu quickly ended that. Brock later went into some kind of speech into how the Nurse Joys of Unova were so different from the rest of the worlds. Ash just ate his food, not really getting it, but smiling none the less. He honestly missed Brock's antics, but more than that he missed the other things Brock represented.
That certain wisdom, a certain perceptive, a certain guiding light (not to mention that high quality cooking, Ash didn't food anywhere near that good again until he finally came home). Brock was a myriad of things which Ash thought there might be at least a few single words which would sum it up well, but he couldn't name them.
It was almost funny... he was sure Brock could have named a few. Both Pikachu and Ash turned, to watch the final part...
"Is there anything you would like to say to him?"
Brock was quiet for a moment, looking away from the camera. His gaze turned to the distance, through a window which was shining light upon him. His shoulders shifted with a heavy breath, before he turned to the camera once more.
"I considered you a brother, Ash."
And with that, the interview was over. In short order the footage was ended and it was back to the studio once more. Pikachu turned to Ash, but found his head bowed, and under that cloak he could not see a thing. Ash's hand slowly reached out for his glass, and he took a few gulps before he put it back down.
"Brother."
Maybe that was one of the words he was looking for, but he had no time to ponder on it.
His torture was not yet over.
"And last in our interviews is the first travelling companion the Grandmaster ever had." He gasped mid-sip, choking. There had to be a mistake! "The current Gym Leader of the Cerulean City Gym, Misty."
He shouldn't have, but his head shifted in the direction fast enough to briefly warrant the worry that his head would break off.
There was no mistake, except him looking. In seconds her face was on screen.
If the surge of emotion that sprung up seeing Brock was a river, then this was a volcano, and it was erupting with all the power it had to unleash, and it had a seemingly endless supply to draw from. He'd need far more than just one word to do this sudden surge due justice.
Then there was that. That feeling that somehow seemed to resonate with something just in front of his heart. Why was he still carrying those things?
As he looked at her, he realized. The real question was; why couldn't he let them go?
"Misty. You are the first person ever to travel with the Grandmaster, correct?"
She nodded. "Met him on his first day."
"How did you meet?"
She smiled. "I fished him out of a lake." She briefly looked to an area right next to the camera, likely she'd gotten a look of disbelief for that. "I'm not kidding. I fished him and Pikachu right out of the water. I thought I just had a big bite. Well I was right, it just wasn't what I was expecting." She briefly looked upwards, but she was looking far further than merely the sky. "There he was, that newbie Pokemon trainer with a hurt Pikachu in his arms and an army of angry Spearow on his tail." Her smile wavered slightly. "Sad to say the first thing I ever did was slap him. He got me back for that though..." She was quiet for a moment, before she laughed lightly. "He wrecked my bike. I swore that I'd follow him until the day he paid me back." She opened his mouth, but sighed. Her smile slowly receded into nothingness. "In a way I ended up keeping my word there." Ash briefly looked away...
Misty leaving, it had been...the worst of all departures. She had been there since day one, never wavering, never leaving (though close calls did arise), through thick and thin she'd remained. He really had thought she was always going to be there. They'd always be together. It wasn't until after she'd gone did he realize he'd thought this, and the reality was hard to come to terms with...Misty was gone. His hand slowly rose from the table, lightly touching against the now-familiar bump in front of his heart. It looked like, on some level, he was still coming to terms with it.
He doubted he ever really would.
He looked back just in time to hear "What was he like in his earliest days?".
She didn't hesitate in the slightest, and with a nostalgic smile she spoke. "He was an idiot. Brash, stubborn, thick-headed. The works. And he had no sense of direction."
Across from him Pikachu smirked. "Kachu pipi ka chu?" Ain't that the truth?
"Hey!"
Misty continued. "But he was always fun to be with. You never could have a dull moment with him, even if you wanted one. You couldn't have asked for a better heart of a group or a more loyal friend." Ash suddenly flinched. "loyal"
"He..." She sighed. "He was my best friend."
He flinched again. "was"
"One day he just stopped talking to me, we'd been growing apart for a while but..." Ash gulped down a sudden lump, "a while" was a bit of an understatement. "One day that was it. He'd let me go." Ash turned away again, memory failed him on who gave up first, but the odds of it failing Misty were slim to nothing. It was of no surprise it'd been him, yet somehow the certainty that it was his fault still hurt.
"Maybe I wasn't his best friend after all."
With that Ash slammed a hand on the table, several notes parting from him as he took to his feet. He swept out the door in the very next second, Pikachu running after him. "Pikapi!"
Misty's next words were prevented from leaving the bounds of the restaurant as the door shut once more.
"Still, I miss him. He has that effect on people. You really can't help but love him."
"Is there anything you would like to say to him?"
She smiled. "Drop us all a line, will ya? We miss you." She grinned. "You'll only get the mallet once." She winked. "Promise."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
He could not see. Before him was only a liquid blur. It cleared briefly, before blurring again. He ignored it, and just kept walking. "Pikapi!" He didn't stop, nor react as a weight put itself upon his shoulders.
Pikachu still couldn't see his face, but he knew his body language enough to guess what was going on under there. He had to tell him, he had to tell him about his own meeting with Misty. "Pikap-"
"Let's just get there, get this over with and go home."
Pikachu's voice was briefly trapped in his throat. Ash had never cut him off like that. He couldn't just give up.
"Pikapi. Pikachupi-"
"PIKACHU!" He came to a stop, but in an empty street no eyes turned to see. He didn't look at Pikachu either."Just...just leave it." He was still for another moment, before one foot move out in front of them, then the other, and soon Ash was walking again.
Pikachu just...left it.
XXXXXXXXXXX
By the end of the day they'd found the correct path before calling it a night. When morning came Ash and Pikachu made their way to the only sign of civilization they'd seen in miles.
They walked through a forest, through which a clear path had been made. Eventually the passed through it, and passed through it, and found themselves before a hill, when they reached the top they had to stop for a moment. The area before them was like some kind of paradise. There were wide open fields, several very large ponds, and various habitats which could only belong to certain kinds of Pokemon.
And there were Pokémon. This place did not hold the numbers found back on the Oak lab ranch, but still far more than Ash was used to seeing in one place. His eyes swept over them quickly, taking in random Pokémon which happened to reside here. Scizor. Magcargo, Luxray, Milktank and Tauros, Lopunny. Clearly the humans residing here had travelled far, and brought some specimens back with them, because he saw even more Pokémon which he knew were not native to Johto or even Kanto. His eyes grew tired of looking. Instead he looked at something further in the distance.
At the center of this place resided a house, several stories high and easily three times as wide as the last house Ash was in. Currently the sky blue house had no windows open, but had Ash been the peeping type he could have just taken a look in through the large constructs of glass. That would defeat his purpose entirely, however, so he just made his way towards the house. As he did many Pokémon took curious glances at him, and thinking it best to be friendly, he smiled at them. One of the Luxray's he'd previously seen approached him, and he held out a hand for it to examine. It sniffed him a few times before wanting to be petted. He obliged it for a moment before, satisfied, it walked away. This satisfied the rest of the onlookers, and they lost interest in him after that.
He walked quickly to the door, but he stood at the door for a moment, deciding exactly how to go about this, and wondering, briefly, if he should really be here. Was this really right to do? He was about to pester a complete stranger. He wrestled with it for a moment, until he found what little he could resembling a justification: Were the roles reversed, he would offer his help, assuming he could be of some use.
Didn't really feel like he was these days.
He raised a hand, what was really the worst that could happen? He guessed at most the door could just be slammed in his face, and there were far worse fates that could befall him.
Worse had.
He reached for the brass Hoothoot-shaped locker, pulling it and knocking it three times. He waited a handful of seconds before the sounds of operation sounded from behind the door. It opened, and the one Ash had come to see was before him.
They met eye-to-eye, and quickly Ash became aware of the dark green pools that were Quentin's eyes. They, like the man, were much older than Ash, and wiser. Were Ash better at reading eyes, he'd have noticed an interesting paradox, of a man who seemed laid back, yet whose mind was constantly in motion. Quentin's face was also much older, not so much that age was all one could see, but enough for lines of it to mar what was once a portrait of youth. His face was void of any other typical marks of ageing (moustache, beard, other facial hair).
His hair was white, but Ash knew this was not from age, it was simply his natural color. Similar to Ash, he did not believe in the concept of grooming his hair, yet like its color, Quentin needed to extend no influence keep his hair as it was. His hair was like a field of white grass, before it descend behind its head, somehow becoming much sharper in appearance. His choice of clothing at this moment was simple, which is all one could reasonably expect. A black shirt and dark brown slacks. He did not bother with footwear, or socks for that matter.
Quentin smiled, one that reached his eyes, and Ash could now perfectly see a man he had idolized for much of his life. One he had fought for years to be worthy of succeeding. "Hello, Grandmaster Ketchum."
Ash suddenly shuddered. "Please don't call me that. It's just...too weird, coming from you."
He chuckled. "Fair enough. So what brings you to this little scrap of nowhere?"
Ash reached up, nervously scratching the back of his head. "Could I come in?"
Quentin nodded, before turning around. Ash followed him, shutting the door behind him. Quentin spoke again. "Shoes by the door please, my wife's strict about dragging footprints in here. Speaking of which-" He turned his attention in a seemingly random direction. "Honey, we have guests!" He suddenly blinked, taking a quick look at both Ash and Pikachu again. "Oh damn." He turned, a new vigour in his step as he ran off, yelling, "I'm sorry!"
"What for-?"
Quentin had already vanished before Ash could finish, shutting himself in the nearest room. Ash suddenly couldn't shake the image of Quentin sitting against the door, hands over his ears, trying desperately to ignore something he'd rather pretend didn't exist. Ash didn't get it, what could be that horrifying-?
Oh Arceus. Now he knew.
That.
That foreboding sense of fear. The sudden chill running down his spine. The suddenly quiver which ran through him. He knew this, he knew what it meant, he'd felt it more than a thousand times. From the time he was ten, he could recognize this better than his own face.
He was in danger.
He backed away, but he found only the door. He and Pikachu shook in fear. There was no out, no escape. It was too late to react. The threat swept upon them before they could even scream, hands outstretched, each one appearing so much like a claw to them. She got closer and closer, and soon both Ash and Pikachu could see her nails in perfect detail, and grasp their shared fate with absolute clarity.
They were doomed.
"CUUUUUUUUUUTE!"
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End of Chapter
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Author's Notes:
-sigh- I do so love to kick Ash while he's down now don't I? Actually, it was me that knocked him down to begin with now I think about it. I'm a world-class prick. Now if only that was a paying job...(pictures self on a throne made of money)
You all know one thing that's coming, but it's what you don't that's worth sticking around for. Now begins this story's one named arc: The Grandmasters
Misty Slapping Ash: For those who don't know (probably none of you, but just in case), in the original Japanese version, Misty did slap Ash when she first met him (if you look closely at the dub scene you can note her right hand's position) It's a potent piece of scene (to me anyway, but I tend to over-think things a lot), but alas 4kids decided to get rid of it. (they pushed Pokeshipping more than the fanbase sometimes and such a clip would practically be blasphemy)
Fortunately the powers of FanFiction permit me to correct such gross errors.
About the Johto Champion:
I know that in the games Johto had no Champion of its own (or even its own elite four), and in the animé I don't think it's been clarified in any real way if there is one or not. Well if it has, and the answer is "no" I'm saying "screw the cannon" on this one. (you can gasp in horror now) Some of my fondest childhood memories are playing Pokémon Gold, so not to give Johto it's own Champion is just a load of grade A BS.
Flame if you will, but I'm doing a great game justice. End of story.