Chapter 18, everybody! In which we introduce the starters and I take the route previously established by Dragonsrule18 in their story When One Door Closes, Two More Open by splitting the starters among Ash, Misty, and Brock. And we find out what Darkrai's been up to, so….
Pokeevee57, thanks for the review! Yes! No! Stronger Team Rocket, AAAAA! Yes…but he'll be back next week. Good question…but you know, there's a certain half of the Lunar Duo who's at her weakest during the New Moon….
Yami-chan and Unrealistic, thanks for the review! Yes! And yes—they're surprisingly fun to write for. Thank you, glad you like! Well, Lenny is a fish and Frenzy is…well, Frenzy. Although come to think of it, there hasn't really been an opportunity for Ash's Pokémon to really shoot the breeze, so….
Jakeroo123, thanks for the review! Yes, Bulbasaur is making an appearance. This is also true—the prep school in the first season, for example, with Ash having Pikachu defeat a Cubone by making funny faces at it. Yes, you have to wonder what goes on in his head….I haven't seen that episode, but I'll definitely put it on my to-watch list. This is true. And this is also true….Yes…and me too. :)
Idea Tamer Chaos, thanks for the review! I've received the PM—and good question…and I don't know—I've never had that problem before. So that's where all that Pokédex data comes from….I think something similar comes up in the Pokémon manga…and that is a very fair point…as is that. Yes, that's another reason why Ash being spliced with a Pokémon is probably a bad thing (although it means that if Bill survived, he's off his rocker now). Hmm…and also hmm…but I am banking on that battle being interesting, especially since Darkrai doesn't exactly fight fair. And you're right—this version of Ash might not be as selfless/stupid enough to run in between two attacks. Hmm…and also hmm…and I suppose we'll have to wait and see….
Thor94, thanks for the review! Thank you, glad you like it! Yes, if there's one thing Team Rocket's good at, it's manipulation….
Ardtornismyname, thanks for the review! Let's see, maybe, um, no, and apparently I've missed a few Darkrai references, why haven't these been mentioned in Fanfiction? I will say that this Darkrai has his own history, though….
Vismur, thanks for the review! Yes, finally, although I wouldn't go that far regarding Darkrai. That—is probably the best way to describe Darkrai's opinion of Ash. Yes—pity Eevee can't learn Chatter. Eh…he'll be around Ash, does that count?
Chandan, thanks for the review! I'm glad you like my take on the Pokémon world—there's tons of fodder to work with and make something with, so it's been tons of fun. :D Yes, it will. I do have this written up past Chapter 40, so we should be good for a few more months at least. I've heard of Ashes of the Past, but I'll have to look the other two up. Ah thank you, I'm glad you like it. :D I hope so to; I'm glad you had fun reading, and I hope to continue to please. :D And maybe (Schrodinger's Clefairy—perfect term for Bill right now). :)
CandlitNights, thanks for the review! Good question…we'll find out this chapter. Eh….Yes, this is true….Well, in my reasoning of the Pokémon world, there are multiple instances of all Pokémon, even Mewtwo (the second female-voiced one in the Genesect movie I consider separate from the first Dan-Green one). Legendaries, like all other Pokémon, breed and reproduce, as we've seen with Lugia, but not nearly as frequently as other Pokémon due to the power difference and the fact that several of the Legendaries can be considered super predators, which also explains why we never see large groups of them in one location—competition for resources (I go into greater nerd-detail in a few of my pieces in my Pokémon folder of my DeviantArt gallery). So, technically, there could be a Darkrai for the PMD games, the main games, the anime, the movie, and this fic—or, since Legendaries are long-lived compared to regular Pokémon, it could be the same one. We shall see….
Cyan Quarts, thank you for the reviews! Yes, I've never been able to get into those kinds of stories. Aha, Calvin and Hobbes is one of my favorite comics, so that might be why that's so. And maybe. And yes, all three starters will be making an appearance (and I'm glad my AOL account blocks swear words, by the way).
IceDragonGirl36, thanks for the review! Hopefully this chapter pleases! :D
QuartSigma, thanks for the review! Wow, thank you! I hope to continue to please! :D
Pokémon © Game Freak; Nintendo
And now, for something completely different:
In other news, the Unovan sentient cloud has amassed a following. People have been congregating on routes the cloud has been sighted on in attempts to "reach enlightenment" with contact with it. Authorities would like to take a moment to remind everyone to not engage the sentient cloud.
The leader of Team Rocket wasn't well-known, mostly to assist with keeping him alive. The leader of such an organization would be a tantalizing target to anyone.
Mostly, however, his identity was kept a secret to keep other people alive. One simply did not become the leader of such an organization without at least some ruthlessness, and Meowth had heard more than one instance where the boss had either ordered someone killed or came to ensure the death himself. To say that Meowth was not looking forward to this call would be an understatement.
The sentiment was shared by his cohorts, if the lack of enthusiasm they were showing was any indication. James was laboriously dialing, as though carefully trying to defuse a bomb. Jessie was keeping her hands so tightly clasped in her lap that her whole body was trembling. Meowth, meanwhile, was trying to figure out which life he was on out of his nine lives, and whether its end was destined to be painful.
No one breathed as the phone rang. No screen, but there would be no video. Just them and the speakerphone in the soundproof booth.
Meowth was certain their hearts stopped when it picked up—at least, he was certain his had stopped.
"This had better be good."
James made a sort of eep noise and froze. Jessie glanced at Meowth—who minutely shook his head; no way was he throwing their team under the bus thanks to his accent, which got thicker when he got nervous—before clearing her throat.
"Um, yes, this is Jessie, James, and Meowth—team ninety-seven," Jessie said tentatively. "You've…been asking for us?"
Silence—Meowth wondered if it was the boss refreshing his memory on the dunces calling him.
"Yes. I want a report on your activities in the past few weeks."
Eep.
Meowth and Jessie both glanced at James, who seemed to have fainted dead away seated straight upright. Jessie looked like she was suppressing a sigh before launching into her report, carefully spinning their activities so it didn't sound too hopeless, making certain to mention the Clefairy and Clefable and oh by the way, we're currently tracking down a very rare Pokémon.
"And progress on that front is going how?" the boss asked, sounding a little testy.
"We, ah," Jessie started, rubbing at her throat.
"We've had a minor setback," Meowth offered, feeling the need to at least try to help. "Nothing major—just regrouping, figuring out a way ta properly capture it, anticipate its next moves…dat sort of ting." Urk. Meowth had never been good at the th noise—his mouth simply wasn't structured right to make that noise, and when he tried, it sounded like he was hissing at the person. Usually he wasn't bothered by it, but right now…if he irritated the boss, that could be the tipping point….
"I see," the boss said, after a painfully long while. "To get to the reason I called for you: I have a job for you three."
Meowth blinked, exchanged glances with Jessie. What?
"I…what?" Jessie managed to get out.
"I would hope my statement was obvious. Your little team has been sending in more Pokémon in a month than the rest have in the past quarter—including rare Pokémon and revenue-generating Pokémon."
The ones Meowth had just given the send-off to, Meowth realized.
"And so, I'm giving you the S.S. Anne job," the boss continued. "This is a high-cost job, so I expect proper results."
"But…sir…what about the—"
"Ask one of the survey units to keep watch for it. If it's as powerful as you say, it'll show up on the radar eventually. In the meantime, focus on your job. Do. Not. Fail. Me."
And with that, the call ended.
It was a few moments before Meowth and Jessie breathed again, a few moments more while they composed themselves.
And then they noticed that James still hadn't recovered—Jessie finally shoved him out of the booth, where he tumbled to the floor outside with a yelp.
"So?" the grunt asked, once they extricated themselves and stepped around a recovering James. "How'd it go?"
"We've got a job," Jessie said, sounding dazed.
James looked at her, surprised. "We've got a job?"
"We've got a job!" Meowth cheered, as the implications of what they heard sunk in. "We've been assigned da S.S. Anne! Dat's high dollar, dat is!"
James and Meowth hugged. "We're finally coming up in the world!" James sobbed.
"How would you know? You were out of it the whole time!" Jessie scolded, before rounding on the grunt. "We're going to need to speak to the surveyors—boss's orders."
The grunt hopped to, and so did they.
Things were finally looking up for them!
As it turned out, the group had stumbled upon a hidden sanctuary, run by a girl named Melanie and guarded by a rather distrusting Bulbasaur.
They had stayed on a few days, though, to allow their Pokémon to recover. Things had gone quite nicely after Bulbasaur had decided it didn't want to kill them. To be honest, it seemed to be almost thinking about liking them.
Now, however, they were getting ready to leave, bidding Melanie and the Pokémon goodbye as the Bulbasaur watched carefully.
It surprised them as they turned by suddenly barking out. Ash turned, confused, and saw the Bulbasaur talking with the Oddish that Misty had tried to catch before and had later apologized to—they had gotten along quite well.
Oddish said something, prompting Bulbasaur to nod, and then wrap it with vines and hold it out to Misty.
"You want to come with me?" Misty asked.
"Oddish!" the Oddish declared.
Misty held her hands out for it, and Bulbasaur deposited it in her arms.
"I'll take good care of you," Misty said, hugging it gently.
"Odd," Oddish said.
Melanie seemed to be considering something.
It became clear when she kneeled next to Bulbasaur.
"I think you should go with them, too," she told it. "You've done great here, but I think it's time you start considering what you want, too. Don't worry," she added, winking. "We can take care of ourselves."
Bulbasaur regarded her, then turned its attention to the group, examining them critically.
Brock poked Ash in the back, prompting him to step forward and kneel in front of Bulbasaur.
"Well," Ash noised, suddenly nervous. "I want to become a really good trainer," he said, trailing off when he noted Bulbasaur's unimpressed expression. "But…you know, Brock wants to be a Pokémon doctor," Ash added, pointing over his shoulder. "And you know…you and him…you've got a lot in common. I think you two would get along."
Bulbasaur tilted its head, looked beyond him, and then walked around, sitting in front of a surprised-looking Brock and looking him up and down critically.
"Bulbasaur!" it said decisively.
Darkrai finally touched ground after a week of soaring over ocean.
It hadn't been as bad as the last time he had had to cross the ocean, when he had fled with no clear idea of where he was going, but it was bad enough that he immediately sank to the ground upon arrival.
"Hello beautiful," he moaned, spread out over the sand. "Boy have I missed you."
In more ways than one.
He sat up, looking about at the land he had so long ago departed.
Sinnoh.
It didn't look a bit different.
He struggled upright, wanting to get moving before he got stiff. He needed to get what he came for and get out, before he was chased out once more.
He wasn't going to give her the satisfaction.
He floated off, telling himself that he'd sleep for a week once he got back to Kanto.
"Well, it's nice that you guys got a Pokémon."
"Ash, stop sulking."
"I'm sorry!"
"Bulbasaur's a good fit for you, Brock," Misty said. "He reminded me a lot of you—taking care of a bunch of siblings, having to act tough, wanting to journey…."
"Let's not sum up my life," Brock said, holding Bulbasaur's Pokéball up so he could see inside. The plant saurian blinked up at him. Ash glanced over to see Misty checking her Oddish's Pokéball as well.
To be honest, Ash was more than a little miffed at the fact that none of the sanctuary Pokémon had wanted to travel with him—or indeed, have anything to do with him. They'd come close to him the first day or two, nose twitching as they eyed him carefully—and then it was like they caught a whiff of something, something that spooked them so badly they wouldn't have anything to do with him. It had gotten to the point that by the time they had left, none of the Pokémon would have anything to do with him. It was enough to make him wonder what kind of concession it had been for Bulbasaur and Oddish to travel with them.
It was also enough to make him wonder just what it was about him that spooked the Pokémon so bad. They didn't smell Darkrai on him, did they?
"Pika," Pikachu said in his ear, jolting him out of his reverie.
"Yeah," Ash said, glancing at Pikachu and smiling in a way that hopefully alleviated that worried look on Pikachu's face. "But hey! We're all charged up and ready to go again, right?"
"Yay, more wandering in the wilderness," Misty moaned as Ash charged ahead. But Ash didn't mind—so long as they were on their way again.
Darkrai snuck into the hatchery on the night of the new moon.
It was laughably pathetic, really. Way too easy. She was losing her touch.
It didn't stop his claws from trembling slightly. It wasn't so much his moony counterpart as the guardians of the hatchery that worried him. Dark types had precious few weaknesses—Fairy was one of them.
Fighting was another.
But this was the important thing—just get in, out, and on with life. If he hustled, then the Lucario guarding the eggs would never know he was here. Steal—commandeer—a Riolu egg, then give it to the yutz—the Lucario line were held on such a ridiculously high pedestal that this was sure to shut that stupid puffball up. Enough with the doom-and-gloom, really—Darkrai brought nightmares wherever he went, for crying out loud, and he was more cheerful than that stupid fairy!
And besides, he wasn't about to admit that maybe he thought said stupid fairy had a point.
The eggs rocked nervously as he passed by—of course. They were technically sleeping in their eggs—therefore, they were having nightmares right now. Better hurry, before their alarmed aura alerted the adults.
Ah—this was it.
An egg that trembled, yet stayed resolute—perfect! It meant it would survive the journey back to Kanto.
He picked it up, cradled it against his chest, and drifted back to the window as quickly and quietly as he could. Almost there, almost scot-free—yes! Out of there!
Something cold striking him in the back alerted him to his error. He spun around, cursing his luck—
Oh.
Oh boy.
Time to go.
Because above the hatchery was the absolute meanest-looking goose he had ever seen.
"You," Cresselia hissed. "I told you to never come back!"
He dodged the next Aurora Beam she shot at him and zipped off into the woods. She followed with a screech of indignation.
"Oh good," Darkrai sighed sardonically. "She missed me."
The group was not having a good day.
It wasn't because of the rain. No. Or the mud. Or the fact that they had spent most of the day lost in the wilderness. Again.
It was because they had heard the trainer of the Charmander they had encountered earlier bragging about how he had callously abandoned it, and now it was torrentially raining, and they were scrambling to get back to it before the rain extinguished its flame for good.
The reached it as its flame guttered and sputtered. Ash stood over it, trying to block the rain, as Brock threw out Bulbasaur.
Bulbasaur too, had been abandoned. But not before his previous trainer had used a Technical Machine to teach him Sunny Day.
Misty was using a potion on the Charmander in an attempt to get it to passable enough health so they could carry it to the nearest Pokémon Center—which Ash was frantically trying to find on his Pokédex.
They ran for the Pokémon Center, Ash carrying Charmander as Misty read off the directions on the Pokédex.
Ash mentally filed away the trainer to tell Darkrai about when he got back. Granted, he had wanted to do something to that trainer himself, but if Brock—who had gotten in the trainer's face—could hold back, then Ash supposed he could to. The Charmander was more important, and if they had wasted any more time on the trainer, the Charmander would have been dead.
And besides, as Darkrai frequently said, revenge was a dish best served cold (to which Ash had once responded that Revenge was a move best used immediately, which had earned him a bonk on the head).
He couldn't help but scowl at that. He hoped Darkrai was having a better time than they were.
Darkrai was absolutely certain that yutz-and-friends were having a better time than he was.
Cresselia may not have had the moon to use, but that didn't stop her from firing off Aurora Beams after him, dogging his every move as he tried to lose her. He was getting close to the coast, and he needed to quickly ensure that she wasn't going to follow him.
Ah, idea—and it fit so well with her perception of him.
He shot over the open beach and spun around, one clawed hand poised over the egg.
"Drop it, or the egg gets it," he snarled.
Just as he thought—Cresselia practically skidded to a halt, appalled. "How—how dare you!"
Darkrai gave a little shrug and shot off before she could recover.
"You won't get away with this!" she yelled after him. "I will find you! You will pay for what you've done!"
"Remind me to write a check," he muttered, Sinnoh already a blot on the horizon behind him. He turned his attention to the little egg cradled in his elbow.
"Sorry about that, but I needed to dump her," he said.
It was a few moments before he addressed it again.
"By the by, if you ever tell anyone I apologized, I'll squish you."
He had a reputation to uphold, after all!
"I can't be bothered to fight you! I have a reputation to uphold, after all!"
Ash scowled at the uppity prep-school girl who apparently ran the students of the school. Nngh, she wouldn't face him in a fair fight—
He practically heard Darkrai right then—so fight dirty.
"Misty, can I borrow that Squirtle you caught the other day?" Ash hissed to Misty.
Misty had just lost a sucker-punch round from this girl, so she didn't question him as she handed over the former leader of the Squirtle Squad.
"Okay, Squirtle!" Ash said, holding up the turtle Pokémon. "Use Water Gun!"
Squirtle shot a quick glance at Misty, who nodded, before shooting a spray of water at the prep-girl.
It didn't take them long to beat feet off campus.
Especially considering prep-girl was chasing them with a vengeance for ruining her hair.
"We need to talk about your approaches to confrontations," Misty said as they fled.
"I'm working on it," Ash said.