Authors Notes: Thine eyes do not deceive you, two updates inside a month. The end is frigging nigh, people.

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Above, the sun was setting. Below, the ground was wet, and every step Ash took sounded out that fact. He stopped, finally, he could see it, Pallet Town. It was the most beautiful he'd ever seen it. Home. He'd been many a place far and wide, but nowhere came close to his town of Pallet. It was his cradle, and in years to come, he's desire no other place to be his coffin. He'd permit no other place to be.

And yet, for a moment, he considered running. Running elsewhere, anywhere. This consideration was not born out of fear.

It was born out of sacrifice.

The town before him was a quiet haven, whose only real claim to fame was a Pokémon Professor, who at most would bring in the regular aspiring researcher, hoping to meet their idol. That, and the occasional reporter, looking to scribe his latest discovery, and translate it to the masses. A well known man, yet not one everyone wanted to come across.

Ash had changed that. He had made it the birthplace and home of the strongest trainer in the world. He was one most would certainly want to come across. Rule against challenges or no, sooner or later trainers were going to come looking for him, and that day now seemed far closer than it would have been such a short time ago. He had turned the almost unknown little haven into a beacon, and he was the fire that was shining like the fires of Moltres. Perhaps he should take that fire elsewhere. Run into another city, in another region and shine there. Scream out to the world in every possible way "I'm here!", and for one second, one single second he was about to do it.

Then came the next second, and a face...

He walked on.

"I can't do that to Mom again."

He gazed onwards, taking in the town he knew better than any battle he could recall, and all thought of leaving was gone This place was... his holy ground. Whatever came, would come, and he'd meet it head on. He couldn't help but smile, realizing now just so much he missed smashing his head against an obstacle. Even if it ultimately accomplished nothing, it was doing something. It would be many years before Ash understood that sometimes, the real trick was knowing when to do nothing. Such wisdom was beyond reach and need at this point in time. Right now, Ash was just focused on making his way through Pallet, to his home, to where he could finally-

That thought would be on hold for a while.

His first obstacle was before him.

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Not long ago...

Gary sat in front of a video phone, a slight frown meeting the words just spoken to him. "That's alright. Thank you. Goodbye." With that, Gary ended the call, leaning back in the chair with a sigh. "Dammit."

Another week, another failed attempt to find Ash, and the next was unlikely to be any different. He'd exhausted every contact he had. Back when Ash was still collecting badges, it'd been easy enough, somebody would mention rumor of a trainer that had decimated the local gym leader in battle, or some tournament. Even when Ash missed the conference he still kept racking up badges.

Then he got his eighth, and vanished.

Vanished!

Ash had vanished from the face of the earth!

An Abra couldn't have done the vanishing act better. Then again, Ash naturally had almost nothing that could be used to trace him. He wandered, in whatever direction took his fancy, so there was no pattern to look for. He almost never used his credit card, so there was essentially nothing to trace there. Plus, by now, all his old habits seemed to have just...gone. The guy was a wandering recluse. An Abra really couldn't have done the job better. For a while Gary had just put the matter down on his list of priorities, when a trace showed up he'd pursue it. Then one day gramps had asked him to attend to a small dig in Unova on his behalf, and Gary had jokingly mused to himself if he'd meet Ash while he was there.

Meeting him really had been sheer luck. Sheer luck, and if Pikachu hadn't seized Ash's attention then he wouldn't have even got that. He had trouble recognizing Ash for a moment, but he recalled that Pikachu's were extremely rare in Unova, and then it hit him.

He'd actually ran into Ash.

In retrospect, his method of getting Ash to do the right thing was, well, crap. He seriously thought just dropping the hint on him would work. Just point it out and then it'd have an "oh", moment and then it'd be like some kind of domino effect. In short order; problem solved.

Subtly was lost on Ash Ketchum. Maybe he should have taken a leaf out of that Misty chick's book and bashed his skull in. Well maybe next time, whenever that would be. He'd heard something six months ago, some trainer had entered a tournament, and utterly decimated his competition. Details were scarce, and paperwork was too. A contact of his grandfather had mentioned a Pokémon League investigator was trying to track this trainer for some reason, but the brick wall that was "official Pokémon league business" kept Gary from this trainer's name. He had a guess as to who this trainer was, the why, not so much. Typically, being tracked was a bad thing, but Gary couldn't honestly see Ash doing anything the League would seek to punish him for, so maybe it wasn't him after all. He put the thought from mind, making way to the living quarters of the lab.

He turned on the TV, with a half-formed frown. It'd been a long time since he'd really battled, the last serious battle he'd had was against Ash himself. (and he was taking the results of that match to the grave). Gary had realized after losing his first match against Ash at the Silver Conference he just wasn't a battler as much as a researcher, but there was always a certain thrill in a good battle, one it didn't look like he'd get to enjoy anymore. Still, it was a pleasure to see a really good battle, and the Grandmaster's Champion was starting up today. He smiled to himself, remembering a time he dreamed of going, to rise through the rounds and fight Quentin Gelden himself, after totally demolishing Ash of course.

He smiled, he'd found the channel, and battle in full swing. A Genger fired a Shadow Ball, only for the target-a Scraggy, to evade.

"Scraggy, Dark Wave!"

That voice!

Scraggy's tail swing swiftly in the air, unleashing a blade of darkness, shrouded in violet, which struck Gengar's face, exploding. "Come on! Show me his face!" The blast parted, Gengar suddenly lashing out, blindly-near literally so. Gary could only so easily diagnose confusion. The camera changed, showing a grinning trainer

"Nice job, Scraggy!"

"Son of a-!" Still in his lab coat, Gary ran out the room, out the front door, running across the town as fast as his legs could carry him. He had to get to that house. It'd been over a year since he'd last gotten concrete word on Ash, and a certain someone was losing hope. All he'd been able to do was watch.

Until now.

He soon came to the Ketchum household. He grasped the Pidgey knocker, and started knocking. A Pokémon resembling a clown opened the door. "Mime?" Gary forced his way in. "Mime!"

"Sorry!" He rushed to the living room, looking for-the remote! He picked it up.

He became aware of footsteps, turning to find Delia entering the room. Gone was the (nearly) perpetually happy, warm woman. In her place was left a sad, and tired woman. "Gary? What brings-"

"Got something you wanna see."

With that, he found the right channel, showing-a Raichu?

Huh, Ash finally did it. Raichu roared, unleashing a wave of power, covering the entire arena. When the blast finally cleared, Raichu's opponent was revealed to be-Oh. No, no he hadn't. Ash was still as dense as dwarf star matter.

Pikachu smiled. Ash did too. "Pikachu! Iron Tail!"

"Stop him with Dymanic Punch!"

Pikachu swiftly reached his target, being approached by the incoming fist. Pikachu slipped past the punch, grabbing Raichi's paw and throwing the bigger Pokémon over his shoulder, slamming the Raichu into the ground, and smashing his form with his weapon of choice, forming a sizeable crater. When the dust cleared, Raichu was no longer moving.

"In an overwhelming victory; the winner of the opening battle of the Grandmaster Championship is Ash Ketchum!"

Ash raised his fist, mimicking Pikachu. Their first step to the ultimate victory had been taken.

"H-he won?" Delia's face slowly started to brighten, for the first time in a long time. "He won!" She broke into smile. "He won!"

With that, Delia grasped Mimey by the hands, the pair quickly spinning in a circle. "My baby's gonna be the greatest!"

In the heat of the premature celebration, nobody noticed Gary's hands, closed and shaking.

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Closed, and shaking. With gritted teeth, Gary ran forward, his rage bubbling up in a violent roar, and-

"Pikapi!"

Pikachu leapt off Ash shoulder at the last second. Ash hit the ground, muddying his cloak. Ash reached to his mouth, taking a look at his fingers. He was a bit too used to seeing his own blood at this point. He looked up at Gary. "Probably deserved that."

Whatever response Gary was after, that clearly wasn't it. "Get. Back. Up."

Slowly, Ash found way back to his feet. "You wanna lose another tooth?" He shrugged, taking a stance. "Okay. Pikachu, stay outta this."

Pikachu leapt up to a tree branch, and frowned. "Pi kachu chu pi." You shouldn't do this.

"Yeah, well, I'm gonna." He solidified his stance. "Come on!"

With that, Gary rushed forth, lashing with a hook. Ash threw up his arms, the blow meeting his guard. Ash began stepping back, blocking another punch, and another. He grunted as a hard punch met his wrist. Ash shifted his form, evading a jab, throwing a punch of his own. Gary staggered back, briefly, his bottom lip bloody. Ash blinked, slowly. "You done?"

Gary wiped his lip on the back of his forearm. His answer burned in his eyes.

For reasons unspoken, and to one, unknown, the two boys charged. It was not the masterful, titanic battle the Pokémon Grandmaster had so recently fought, this was something more base, more primal, a mass of limbs, blood, rage and-

And a grin. Ash slammed his fist into Gary's gut, and their heads together. Gary's leg struck out, meeting Ash's side. Both backed up, briefly, Ash still smiling.

Gary found his bearings, and glared. "What's the joke?"

"No joke." Ash's eyes flared, his smile widening. "Normally, I have to flatten some asshole's team for this part." Ash cracked his knuckles.

Gary's glare darkened. "Is it worth it?"

"Is what worth what?" Ash's smile vanished in sudden confusion.

"Is your title worth the price?"

With Gary's unusual (to Ash) rage aflame, he renewed his attack. Ash batted away Gary's fists, trying to decipher what exactly was-"Is all shit you keep doing worth the reward?" Ash ducked his hook. "Is it worth screwing everyone else over?!"

Ash caught Gary's fist. "Is that what you're pissed about? Give me a break!" Ash's fist slammed into Gary's face again, sending him into the dirt. "I've wronged a lot of people, Gary. But you've got nothing to be bitch about."

Gary's glare transformed into fury, the kind of blind fury Ash had only occasionally seen in the midst of a Pokemon's Outrage. He shot to his feet, with the full force of his legs forcing his body forward. "You bastard!"

Ash felt his lip split. "You weren't here!" Another punch, soon to be a bruise. "You weren't here every day!" And another, soon to be another. "You didn't watch as you mom kept coming to the lab, hoping me or gramps had heard anything, anything about you! And she always left with nothing! For over a year! I watched as she lost hope you were ever coming home!" Ash threw up his guard, blocking a hail of strikes. "Do you have any idea-!" The attacks suddenly stopped-"How hard that was to watch?!"

Gary lunged, slamming into Ash's mid-section and sending them both sliding down a muddy hill. When they came to a halt, Gary gripped the front of Ash's cloak, pulling them face to face, Gary's fury, and despair as clear as day. "I couldn't stop it! I couldn't find you! I couldn't find a trace of you! I couldn't even tell her that you were still alive!" He hit Ash again, and again. "I couldn't tell her you hadn't gotten yourself killed in some cave somewhere, or fallen off a cliff, or drowned! I couldn't tell her a damn thing! Now you do this! This! You self-centred, reckless piece of shit!"

Ash began to raise his arms, then let them fall. "Do it."

It took Gary a second to realize what Ash meant. "Why?"

"Because no one else'll do it. None of 'em. I got it coming, but they won't do it." He looked up into the rage, and confusion, and closed his eyes. "So go on." Ash waited, for the storm of blows to come. He waited.

And waited.

Huh, maybe he'd changed his mind about-"Oof!"

The fist lodged in his stomach stated otherwise. "Stop it, Ash. Just-just stop it. If you don't come back home one day, your mom'll leave." Something in Ash's gut twisted in a way that had nothing to do with the fist lodged in it...why didn't Gary just hit him again? -WHAM- Ash was going to have to be extra careful about showing his face to the camera for a while. "That was to make me feel better."

Ash opened, and rolled his eyes. "Whatever. We good?"

"For now." With that, Gary finally stood up. Ash, made an effort, but his body felt heavy. Suddenly, the hospital's advice about not straining himself came to mind. He guessed getting into a fist fight was pushing it.

"Here, lean on me."

After brief hesitation, Ash lay an arm over Gary's shoulder, and the two walked on, in an uneasy silence.

The unease couldn't really be removed, the silence, on the other hand…"How did you learn to fight, anyway?"

"Scrafty. When nobody else would train with him he'd challenge me." Ash smiled. "It was learn to fight, or get used to broken bones."

"So now you're some kind of fighting genius. If your battles are anything to go by." Gary gave Ash the first honest smile he'd managed in quite a long time. "I watched the Championship. Nice job, by the way."

Ash shook his head. "I'm not a genius. Doesn't take a genius to understand fighting. Just pick a fucker and start hitting. Hit until somebody goes down, and if it's you; get back up, and hit 'em again. Keep hitting, 'til they go down." Ash paused, sighing softly. "Fighting isn't hard. It's everything else."

With those words weighing down the air, they continued, alone through the town of Pallet. What words should have been exchanged between them, neither really knew. Even as they came to the Ketchum residence, the pair had nothing to say. Things between them were maybe not quite settled, but it was a start. As they came to the fence, Ash noticed the trash cans…

"Stop a sec."

With a strained grunt, Ash pulled off his cloak. He looked down at the muddied, worn cloak. He open a can, throwing his cloak in and slamming the lid. He felt Pikachu land on his shoulder, feeling his questioning gaze.

"I'm not hiding anymore."

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For the first time in a long time, Ash found himself on the dining table, as Delia addressed his wounds. A repeated setting, but far from repeated wounds (and being near-nude was a new one too). The full extent remained under bandage, but there was enough, recent and very recent present to the naked eye. Ash would hiss from the occasional pain as Delia applied something to his most recent entries on the chronicle of self-inflicted suffering. He'd tell her this was needless, but she wanted a moment to mother him. He owed her at least that.

Delia's eye briefly turned to a chair, on which lay-"Honey? What should I do with them?" Ash glanced too. The hat was missing, hopefully to find better memories, but the rest of his getup remained, if tattered. The clothes that took him through Unova, to the Championship, and lastly to his greatest victory.

"Burn 'em." He didn't meet his mother's glance, at this point, he couldn't. "I don't want 'em. Bad choices. Bad memories."

"Okay, honey."

With that, the outfit lay forgotten. The pair would never even look upon them again. Mimey would be ultimately be the one to see to the destruction of the offending garments. Delia quickly got back to her work.

He couldn't help but look around. It was so strange, coming home. He'd been travelling so long, it was still strange to have a single place he returned to, especially after all that time alone. He'd been so used to sleeping wherever he happened to find himself by the time he was tired. It was...(he hissed again)...nice. Being here felt familiar, yet foreign to him at the same time. Like some distant memory-ah, that's what it was. It was only now he realized how much he'd missed it. A home, some place he could always return to, someone he could always return to. What would have been...had he not returned, or had not been permitted to return home?

Then he recalled...he'd seen the answer to that question himself.

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Not so long ago...

Ash, for a multiple hundredth time that day, had sworn out loud. This day had been a pain in the ass all round. It was just another day in his latest endeavour; get to the grounds of the Grandmaster Championship. It was a lot of distance to cover, pulling him out of Unova at long last, but even then, owing to the upcoming Championship, public transport directly to the place was absolutely packed. Way too much so for Ash to tolerate, and somehow, just walking the rest of the way seemed to be the right thing to do, to be just him. One more long walk to the ultimate challenge. He figured he'd be at the grounds of the championship in a couple of days, but even if he got there tomorrow he'd still have well over a week before it began.

The way he was going though, chances are he'd just make it for the championship, next year!

His route had brought him to a small mountain, but fortunately the cave entrance at the base evaded the need to call out Charizard and just fly around the damn thing. So he'd bought a map of the cave from the nearby town, and just kept on going, expecting to be out of the cave in just over an hour.

So far it'd been three.

"Never trusting a map again." Now he was aimlessly wandering, swearing to himself from sheer frustration roughly three times a minute.

Five he if tripped over something. "Shit!" -Thud- Fortunately he'd yet to land in anything. Ash was busy muttering swears to himself when a voice pierced his ranting.

"Most people would be using a map, you know."

Ash turned, still on the floor to see a figure leaning up against a wall, arms crossed and gazing intently at Ash. Ash looked upon the man with mild interest. Like Ash did at this point, he preferred to wear a cloak, which hid most of his face entirely. He could also make out the lower part of his face, and if Ash had to hazard a guess (not that he would) he would put him somewhere in his 30s, maybe early 40s (not that he was that good as guessing ages). At the man's feet sat an Arcanine, gazing intently as its trainer. In Ash's experience, random trainers seemingly waiting in the middle of his path was seldom a portent of good fortune.

"Who are you?"

"Just a thrill seeker, looking for his next kick." Ash's head tilted, what was this guy on-"Everyone needs a hobby. Some people watch TV, others drink, some play sport." He smiled. "As for me, I pick off weaklings headed for the Championship."

At that Ash openly glared. "We're not weak."

The stranger chuckled. "I'll believe that when I see it, kid." He removed himself from the wall, treading slowly across the ground. "You're obviously lost. Tell you what. You beat me in a battle, and I'll guide you to the exit."

"And if you win?"

"Then I'll guide you back to the entrance. If you can't take me you're not going to the Championship."

Ash turned to face Pikachu, who'd wisely removed himself from Ash's shoulder before he'd fallen. "You up for this, buddy?" All he got was a nod. Ash turned to his new challenger. "You got yourself a battle."

The stranger suddenly grinned. "Good."

"I gotta warn you, I'm good. If you get your Pokémon beaten senseless it's your fault."

With that, the stranger only grinned wider. "Don't disappoint me."

Silence then fell, and both stood across from each other, the prelude for an upcoming battle settling in.

Ash wasn't sure why, but staring down this opponent had its own kind of pressure. Its own kind of atmosphere. The stranger across from him, dressed so like him. Standing so like him, with a certain fire in his eyes so like his own. Ash thought he finally understood...how people felt when they faced...

When they faced him.

Both stood in silence, but each of their spirits roared. The fire which burned in their very souls igniting the cold air of the cave, each one's body preparing, awakening to the battle that just waited to begin, waited for the toll of the bell which would signal them to start clashing. Two sets of eyes met, and the fires grew even stronger, and stronger, and stronger still, waiting for the moment that they could finally begin...

The silent bell...tolled.

Both reached for their first Pokemon, and the war was under way.

The battle, taking place within the confines of the large cave was one of great power. The ceiling, ground and various walls become cracked, scorched and subjugated to all kinds of punishment as the two super powers collided. Two titanic forces clashed that day, and no one would ever know the scars that would stand in the cave were the results of one of Grandmaster Ash Ketchum's battles. Tragic, in its way.

It was one of his finest.

To Ash, it was almost like fighting an aged reflection of himself. The pressure he emitted, the way he commanded his Pokémon. Yes, an aged reflection summed him up perfectly.

He was so strong.

The stranger been the first opponent to witness the Flash Step. Ash didn't do it to show off, he'd been forced to use it. His opponent was too damn strong to hold anything back...Ash would think on it one day, as he thought back on this battle he would realize. He would realize this battle had prepared him for the Championship, for the Champions, it was the final step in his training. It was the day he truly learned to wield the strength he'd worked for. He'd spent so long training his Pokémon, but this was the match that trained him. He'd trained his Pokémon to fight at the highest level, this battle taught him how to command them at that level. This was the final stage of his forge, and his first taste of the highest level of battle.

This was the day he became certain, he would become Grandmaster.

Yet all good things must come to and end.

Ash had proven a shade more skilful, and his Pokémon a level stronger that his adversary. Eventually both were down five Pokémon, and each of their sixths met in one last blow. When the smoke finally cleared Pikachu stood over a defeated Arcanine, breathing heavy, his form dirtied, and burned, but he was standing.

The battle was over. Ash was victorious. The stranger walked up to his fallen partner, leaning down, gently petting him. It was only now Ash could see, his arm was wrapped in a chain. He'd seen weirder fashion choices, but this one struck him as particularly odd. The chain was large, and rusted. It was clear now, it weighed this man down. He literally carried a weight on his shoulders. Yet, it was more than the chain that weighed him down…

The stranger smiled, petting his Arcanine gently. "It's okay, buddy. You put up a good fight." He raised a Pokéball, returning his partner to his ball as Ash advanced on the pair.

"My way out? Kinda need to get to a Pokémon center." Ash glanced at Pikachu, looking far the worse for wear. Ash picked up his oldest friend, being nuzzled into for his trouble.

The stranger smiled, and nodded. "Deal's a deal. Come with me."

With that, the pair (and Pikachu) were off. Between the battleground, and the exit, not a word was shared. The closest thing that came to breaking the atmosphere was finally arriving at the exit, greeting them with the sunlight of a waning day. The walking continued, until they reached the top of a hill.

There it was. He could see it, in the distance, the place where he would soon prove himself the world's strongest.

"And this," the stranger turned, "is where I say goodbye."

"You're leaving? Why?"

"I'm done here, this year anyway. I got what I came for. I'm catching the next ride elsewhere."

"You're not attending the Championship? Why not? You're strong!"

The stranger shook his head. "Strength isn't everything. Even if I became Grandmaster, then what? There's not much in that for me, not that I want anyway..." He briefly turned his head back, smiling. "Besides. There's already one who we both know can beat me. I'd get second place, at best. Got a good feeling about you, kid. You got the drive to become the next Grandmaster. Were a gambling man, I'd bet on you." He took a step, and a few more, then stopped. "Your parents must be proud."

Ash suddenly stiffened. "I...I haven't talked to my Mom in..." How long had it-…oh. "In a while."

A brief silence, if the stranger reacted, he kept it to his face. "And your father?"

At that one, Ash just shrugged. "I don't really remember him. He left when I was young. Mom said she kept contact, but, uh, I think she lied about that."

The stranger sighed. "Not as rare a story as it should be. Don't begrudge her, she meant well." He raised is arm, the closest he'd give to a wave. "See you around, kid. Good luck."

Ash smiled. "Thanks."

With that, the stranger continued walking, and Ash went his own way, each carrying their burdens. Ash continued, onwards to the little city, where the Grandmaster's Stadium was located. Where, within weeks, the new Pokémon Grandmaster would be crowned. He'd finally arrived, but even this moment, his mind was elsewhere. Even the buzz of what lay ahead couldn't penetrate his sudden gloom. The time, where the hell had it all gone? How had it all gone? He'd been calling home less and less, yes, and that-that was his choice. It was just-Fuck. It'd been dumb. He'd been dumb. Nothing new there. Nothing remotely new...

Every time he called home, it hurt afterwards. It sucked, doing it all alone, and not thinking about it was better than the alternative. Every call was a reminder of his state of affairs. He'd always meant to call, but calling meant facing the pain again, so he put it off, and off, and off… and here he was.

Ash missed home...he missed a lot of things. Maybe when this was over, when he won, maybe he could, maybe he should… Ash would've thanked for stranger, but as he looked around again, Ash discovered he was already beyond his sight.

It was then he realized, the pair had never exchanged names.

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Now Ash believed he understood.

Life alone like that. How had he ever endured it? And what if his Mom hadn't let him come home? How could he possibly have survived going back to that? Was that what he'd have become if he'd lost? A man on his own, sad and lonely until he'd finally won? And what if he hadn't? What if he'd never won the title?

"Ash? Is something wrong?"

Ash looked up at his mother, and before she could even react he'd gotten off the table and embraced her. Ash clasped her tightly, finding himself crying again, but these were good tears. Then it all seemed to crash into him, all those years, all that time away from his loving mother, the two in his own exile and all those before.

"Thank you, for letting me come home."

Delia held her son close, never asking what brought on this sudden display, simply both happy, and sad for her son. He'd truly suffered, but finally he was where he belonged again. She'd cried as well, she'd missed him too, and each spent a long time merely standing there, letting years of distance finally close themselves forever more. It was then Ash finally realized, his Mom didn't want anything from him. He didn't need to do anything to absolve himself in her eyes. She just wanted him to be safe, happy, and preferably, home. He'd give her two...and do his best on the third. He gripped her just a little tighter.

"I love you, Mom."

"I love you too, Ash."

Later, Ash would spare a thought for the stranger, the stranger whose name he'd never learned.

He hoped that one day, he too would find his way home.

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End of Chapter

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Author's Notes: Told you there was more to Gary than I showed.

P.S. Important: Need an assist, folks. I need to come up with a new outfit for Ash. Can you point in the direction of fan art trying to depict a more "adult" Ash? I've seen a few over the years, but their names escape me. So, little help?