Hey look, this update didn't come so late. :) Also, I've heard a lot of people complaining and wanting Ash to hurry up and become a Mew. Guys, you can't rush this. Once Ash becomes a Mew, it's going to become a completely different story. Right now, he won't be a Mew for the duration of the Kanto series, so please stop yelling at me to hurry up and make him a Mew. I already have a time and place for when that happens. And yes, I know I haven't had a lot of Mew Games or Ash and Mew's mother and child interaction lately, reminding me about it really doesn't help. Mew Games were just something I did for filler really, but now I have more of a plot to focus on and less of a reason to use Mew Games for padding. I will try to use Mew Games again, but only for character development or plot reasons. Anyways, enjoy this chapter.

Chapter 34: The Volcanic Riddle

It was around five in the morning. Mew in her Meowth disguise was out all night looking around before she stopped and was staring at a burned down mansion. She slowly walked up to the building before putting her paw against the wall and sighing.

"I almost can't believe how long it's been… and yet it feels like it only happened yesterday," She said to herself quietly.

"Hmm? I didn't know there was another Meowth in these parts," A voice spoke up from behind her, nearly startling the Mew-turned-Meowth.

Nya turned to see it was the human talking Meowth who always hangs with Jessie and James, but he seems to be alone out here.

"Y-you? What are you doing out here? Where are your human owners?" She blinked, not expecting this Meowth to be here of all places.

The cat shrugged a little ways away, idly scratching at an itch on the back of his neck. "Eh, my 'human owners' are sleepin' right now- we've kinda been here for the past few days, and we're all pretty tuckered out. But what about you? Is the twerp boy staying at a nearby hotel or somethin'?"

"Hey, I don't t appreciate you calling him a 'twerp boy'. He may be young but he's far from a twerp. His name is Ash, though I like to call him Ashy," Nya huffed before she glanced back at the mansion, sighing. "And I guess you could say he's sleeping somewhere on this island. I'm just exploring by myself… This mansion gives me pretty painful memories."

"Huh? Really?" Meowth blinked, walking up to the building and staring up at it. "That's weird… was this your home or somethin'? Jessie and James came here so we could catch some rare or powerful Pokemon, so I've already been in there a couple times, and I didn't see any Meowth in there…"

"No, I didn't live here. But a long time ago I lost… something very important to me," Nya sighed before looking over at the Meowth. "But… you're the first Meowth I've ever met who actually learned how to talk to humans by tongue. Why do you hang out with Team Rocket?"

Meowth cringed slightly at the question, glancing down at his foot and awkwardly toeing the ground. "E-er… just this and that, really. I kinda got dumped by the love of my life, so I left to prove I could do more than be a 'freak'. Plus I don't think I'd ever wanna leave Jessie and James by now… we're like a really weird family, ya know?"

"Yeah… I know how that feels. You don't ever want to leave your family, even if it comes with a nasty cost," Nya said sadly- she wanted to take a peek in the Meowth's memories to see what exactly happened to him but she decided against it. Over the years she spent with her surrogate child, she learned that some memories are better kept private unless the Pokemon or person in question is ready to tell you themselves. "So why do you three work for Team Rocket anyways? You always seem to be… struggling."

"Well…" Meowth hesitated for a moment, glancing left and right before he leaned in and began to whisper. "I heard Jessie's mom used to work for Team Rocket- she was a high-ranking agent and was looking for Mew. You know, the Phantom Pokemon? I dunno whatever happened to her… but she disappeared when Jessie was five, so the poor girl had to go to a foster home with little money."

Nya frowned, but Meowth continued, not noticing the other Pokemon's reaction to Jessie's mom. "Eventually Jessie tried to become a nurse. Since she isn't a Nurse Joy and didn't have the money though, she had to join the school for Chanseys… and eventually she failed to graduate even though she was really good." He chuckled for a moment, shaking his head. "Lemme tell ya- she's still amazing at bandaging James and I when we're hurt… It's like it never even happened!"

"But if she was so good… how come she couldn't graduate?" Nya asked, blinking. "I mean, if she's as good as you say she is, she should've been a natural!"

"I think it's because she wasn't a Chansey… and she fell asleep during the Singing part of the practice," Meowth sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "She couldn't give eggs to the Pokemon either- so while she was amazing at helping injured Pokemon, she couldn't help the ones who would need special care. So, in the end… she left. Apparently she was friends with a Chansey- sometimes I see her holdin' half of an egg necklace all Chansey get after graduating."

The Mew-Meowth looked down at that, frowning sadly… She had created each Pokemon to have their own special skills, strength and weaknesses in life. When humans started appearing in the world, she created Pokemon that could help them, like Growlithes and Chanseys as well as Audinos. But she never thought a human would try to be like them- they weren't designed to have the same abilities as the Pokemon themselves. Somehow this made Nya feel even more guilty, like she was responsible for what happened to Jessie, because her mother tried to track her down and disappeared... and because of the nursing school.

The female Meowth glanced up at the male, crossing her arms. "But that's not her fault- they shouldn't fail her just because she's not the same species as the Chansey were. They could've let her graduated for being as good as she was for what she had to offer."

"Yeah, well…" Meowth sighed, giving a small shrug. "Sometimes life just sucks, ya know? After that, I'm pretty sure she jumped around a lot- trying to be a model, a weather girl, a Coordinator, and even a ninja! I also heard she had a ton of boyfriends who treated her badly… Eventually she tried going to to Pokemon Tech before dropping out with James and joining a bicycle gang." The cat chuckled, shaking his head in amusement. "I still wish I could've seen her as 'Chainer Jessie' then… would've been hilarious. After that, Jessie and James had some kinda fight and went their own separate ways before joining Team Rocket, and that's when they met me."

"Sounds like Jessie had it pretty hard… What about the other one? You know… James? Did he ever tell you what happened?" Nya asked, half-wanting to hear James's story but at the same time worried about what would happen.

"... Hmm… you know… I don't think James ever did talk about his past…" Meowth said after some hesitation, giving a shrug. "He met up with Jess in Pokemon Tech, like I said, and joined that gang as 'Trainer James'- but anything before that's a complete blank… Maybe I should ask him sometime."

"Hmm… I have a feeling we might find out someday. Just call it a hunch or a possible premonition," Nya said before turning back to the mansion. "So you three are looking for a rare Pokemon that was seen in the mansion? Why are you out here alone then?"

"Eh, it is five in the morning…" Meowth chuckled, grinning at Nya wryly. "But I'm more of a night cat, so I decided to take a little stroll- what about you? Why're you out here at this kinda time? Decided to go down old memory lane? You did say somethin' about having a bad experience here…"

Nya gave a sigh before nodding. "Yeah, I guess you could say that. I worry that Ash may have come through here and discovered something…"

"Hey, I'm sure it couldn't have been that bad…" The cat shrugged, leaning against the mansion and letting himself slide down the wall until he was sitting down. "Besides, as smart as the twerp can be, he's still a twerp- they aren't always too observant."

"I told you; he's not a twerp. Ash is a lot more observant than you'd think he is, after all he was raised that way!" Nya said before smiling a bit at the thought. "He was always such a quick learner, though a bit stubborn too…"

"What, did ya watch over him since birth or something?" Meowth chuckled, poking his female counterpart in the side with a smirk before sighing. "Kinda reminds me of my first Trainer… she was kinda like that too. Really sweet, but she was a really tough fighter, ya know?"

This was news to Mew-Meowth; she was very tempted to peek into his mind, but tried to hold herself back out of respect. "You had another Trainer before?"

"Well, of course- I wasn't always in Team Rocket!" Meowth rolled his eyes, but he seemed pretty somber, staring up at the stars thoughtfully. "Thing is… I'm… pretty sure she's dead. See, she caught me about when she and her husband had a tiny kid- to be a pet to the little brat, right? I was perfect since I just hatched a little while beforehand and was practically a baby myself... We were on a walk one day though… and…"

He stopped talking here, closing his eyes tightly. "I… didn't wanna stick around and see what'd happen- I was scared, afraid I'd be killed myself. So I did the one thing I knew how to… I ran away," Meowth sounded a bit hoarse for a moment, as if his throat was tightening up. "I didn't wanna go back after that… either my Trainer was dead and I'd never see her again, or… she was alive and would release me for runnin' like that when they needed me."

"I'm sure she would've understood if she was as nice as you said she was. You were only a baby yourself after all…" Nya said sympathetically, patting Meowth's back. "Still, Ash lost his parents when he was only three years old… someone had to take care of him." Nya stopped, not sure if she should really go into details about that right now. "Although I hadn't watched him since birth, I was always there for him after he lost his parents to the Fearow Flock."

That phrase made Meowth shudder for a moment before he shook his head. "I… yeah. I can imagine how that must've been, both for him and for you." He glanced at Nya, giving a small but appreciative smile. "Thanks… for not laughin', I mean- I know it's a stupid story, but I'm still so scared that if I quit Team Rocket and have to leave Jessie and James, I'll head back to my old home and… see my old Trainer, and her kid with a new Meowth, even if it's likely they're both dead."

The sun was starting to rise into the sky, brimming the darkness with its gentle morning light. Nya stretched, standing back up and giving the Meowth a smile of her own. "I guess I better get back to Ash soon. He's going to have a gym battle with Blaine- I want to see that. What're you going to do? Stick around until you find some Pokemon for that mafia boss of yours?"

"Heh… yeah, probably." Meowth nodded, standing up himself and grinning at Nya. "But I'll see if I can get Jessie and James to visit the Gym later, maybe cheer the twerp on a bit… He's not the worst one out there, after all." With that, he began walking away, giving a small wave to the Meowth as he went. "Smell ya later, alright Nya?"

Nya put a paw over the middle of her face, looking rather confused. "But I didn't design Meowths to have noses to smell…" she muttered to herself, blinking, before she shook her head and called after the cat. "Yeah, I'll see ya later then! And… thanks for talking with me- I feel a lot better!"

"No problem- you scratched my back and I scratched yours!" he replied before heading around a nearby corner, leaving the Meowth-Mew by the old burnt mansion to her thoughts.

Nya couldn't help but smile a bit as she thought about the friends she made over this one adventure with her child than she ever made living as the Guardian of the Earth as a Mew. I guess it's true… sometimes you have to learn from others and experience things to live life to the fullest. She put her paw over the mansion, giving a small nod to herself. It's only too bad I wasn't able to teach you that before they took you away… but I'll make sure Ash will learn this and always keep it in his heart.

With those words, Nya ran away from the mansion on all four of her paws, ready for a new adventure with her child.

Meanwhile, back at the Riddle Inn… a certain Shaymin hybrid was starting to stir in bed, waking up slowly but surely. "Mmm…." Jayden groaned, blearily opening her eyes and noticing a Pikachu a little ways away.

"...What the…?" She blinked a bit when she felt soft fur beside her, she was still in her tiny Shaymin form. She looked around and saw yellow fur beside her… she noticed she was lying beside a Pikachu. Is this a wild Pikachu? I don't remember seeing one of those in the mansion- in fact… why am I on a bed? Am I still in the mansion? She sat up, frowning in confusion as she stared at the Pikachu. Okay, what was the last thing that happened to me…? I was looking for Blaine's key in the Pokemon Mansion- I thought I saw it in a tiny little cranny, so I tried to grab it as a Shaymin… and then… A lot of Koffing suddenly surrounded me…

The little Shaymin hybrid moved slowly away from the Pikachu before she noticed a human hand nearby. What the-? Someone else is here?! Jayden frowned, following the hand up to its owner, and her eyes widened in shock. Is that the 'Child' of Mew!? W-what the heck is HE doing here, wherever this is!?

In her panic, she backed away and nearly bumped the Pikachu off the bed, who yelped at the sudden 'attack' and woke up. "H-hey! What's going on!?" He blinked before noticing her awake. "Oh, you're finally awake! … You didn't have to hit me!"

"Y-yah!" Jayden yelped, spinning around before glaring at him. "You! Quiet- I need to get out of here!" So if the Child of Mew is here… does that mean this is his Pikachu? Crud- he'll tell the boy I woke up!

"Hey, what's wrong? Are you scared?" Storm asked curiously when he noticed her expression. "Don't be scared, Ash isn't going to bite- heck, he was carrying you the whole way here! Made sure you had plenty of clean water after we had to get that poison out of your system."

"..." That made Jayden blink, caught off-guard. "W-wait… what? He… did that?" Did… Mew abandon him or something? It'd make sense with what she's like, but… what other reason would he have to save me, especially if she told him that I'm against her?

"Of course he did. Ash cares for everyone, even Pokemon and human hybrids," Storm said with a nod. "So why don't you talk to him? I'm sure Ash would be happy to know you've finally woken up." The Pikachu began nudging the boy's hand.

Ash stirred from his sleep and yawned, blearily opening his eyes. "What… what is it… Storm?" he asked groggily as he sat up from bed.

Jayden gulped, but she didn't move. If… if Mew really did abandon him, maybe I could convince him to join us! "...I… thank you," she said, glancing to the side awkwardly. I NEVER have to thank somebody else… it feels so weird!

Ash's sleepy eyes soon turned wide when he saw she was awake. "You're awake! How do you feel?" He asked her in concern, quickly moving the sheets to the side so that he wasn't trapped under them.

"I-I'm fine!" Jayden snapped before she paused, shaking her head. Ugh… I'm really not used to anybody other than Memma caring for me like this- even the other Rocket Elites wouldn't ask me if I'm okay… "I-I mean, I'm fine… why'd you save me?"

"Why wouldn't I save you?" Ash asked her, frowning in confusion. "You were dying from the poison trapped in your body, we couldn't just leave you there like that. Although I would like to know why you were there in the first place."

"I… was on a mission, that's all." Jayden frowned, curling up into herself a bit as she glanced to the side. "C-can I change back to my human form now!?" Being a Shaymin around this Child of a Legendary is… it makes me feel uncovered for some reason…

The boy just shrugged to that, scratching his cheek. "If you think you're healthy enough to, go ahead- but you might want to get off the bed first or this would be very awkward. But just promise not to use your Pokemon to attack me, I gotta be in top shape to battle with the Gym Leader later today."

"Y-you didn't need to tell me that!" The Shaymin huffed, closing her eyes and beginning to transform. An assortment of flowers covered her whole body before, in a bright flash of light, she transformed back into the Team Rocket Elite Ash had faced before. Unlike before, though, she wasn't in her uniform- she was wearing a casual T-Shirt and hoodie, as well as some jeans and a belt which her Poke Balls hung from. "Besides, it'd be a waste to fight you right now anyways…" she grumbled as she opened her eyes, glancing to the side and crossing her arms.

"As feisty as ever, huh?" Ash chuckled, surprising Jayden.

"Huh? Didn't I make you forget…?" She asked, glancing at Ash suspiciously.

"My mind has strong mental barriers having to live with Mew almost all my life." Ash shrugged. "I don't know about Blue though. But anyways… I'm going to challenge Blain later today… I take it you're here for his badge too?" After seeing what Dustin did, Ash figured they were taking gym badges for some special reason.

"...Yeah- I am." The girl sighed, deciding to trust Ash for now. Even if he declines the offer to join… it's not like I'm telling him all of our plans… "The old geezer had his doors locked due to the tourists, though- I heard he hid the key in the mansion, which is why I was there."

"Yeah, we found the key you were clutching onto," Ash said with a nod. "If you don't mind, I'm going to use it to get into his gym. But… are you coming too? Did you even know that the gym is inside an active volcano?"

That made Jayden pale a bit, but she weakly responded, clearly bluffing. "I… uh… yeah I did! N-no problem at all- so long as I didn't go in there as a Shaymin, I-I'd be fine!" Dustin…! You KNEW about this, didn't you!? I swear, when I get back to HQ, I'm going to kick your winged tail to Unova! I hate the heat, I hate it with a passion…

"Okay, if you're sure about that." Ash asked, crossing his arms. "Just don't take the badge I earn, alright? It'd be rather troublesome to have to battle him again for another one."

"I… yeah, don't worry- I'll get my own, whether by challenging the old man or by stealing another one…" Jayden blinked slowly, rather confused as to why Ash is so casual and calm about the fact she would steal a gym badge. After what she heard from Dustin, the boy went all out against him for trying to steal Koga's badge. "You're… not upset about me doing that? Not gonna stop me or anything?"

Ash just gave a shrug as he stretched out. "It's not like I can really stop you- besides, you must have your own reasons for wanting those badges. If a fellow Trainer wants a Gym Badge then it's not against the law to let them have one, so there's no real reason for me to stop you."

"Are you planning to go the gym NOW? The sun's hardly even up." Storm asked with a yawn, curling up into a ball.

"An early start is always good, Storm." Ash said to the Pikachu. "I'll just have to wake up Blue and Yellow, and-"

"Who?" The announcement of a third party member made Jayden blink, yet again. How the heck have we all been out of the loop for this kid…? "You have a new traveling partner?"

"Yeah, she kinda came out of nowhere." Ash chuckled, putting his arms behind his head. "But it turns out she's Blue's half sister and wanted to stick with him, so she's a part of the group now."

Half sister, huh…? Interesting… The Shaymin hybrid nodded slowly, before she shrugged, glancing at the time. "Well, it's up to you- it's fairly early, but this way we can each get a badge our own way and go our separate ways before noon…"

"So you're going to be leaving soon, huh? Well I won't stop you, but I would like to use this chance to get to know you more, Jayden." Ash said with a smile as he put on his blue and white jacket and the green fingerless glove over his hands.

She huffed, leaning against the wall and trying to not look too awkward in the room of someone she would normally be fighting. "Y-yeah, yeah… same here, I suppose." Jayden then glanced around, clenching her fist awkwardly as she thought of a question to ask. "So… er… where's… her? The pink menace?"

"You mean Mew?" Ash asked, and she nodded, making him glance to the side awkwardly. "She's not… here right now…" Ash sounded uneasy, like he didn't want to talk about her right now.

"Oh?" Jayden raised an eyebrow, still leaning against the wall. Did she actually leave him? It would be the perfect revenge to use Ash in that case… "Did something happen between you two?"

Storm silently watch the two young people raised by Legendary Pokemon talk, hoping to himself that a war didn't break loose between them.

"You… could say that…" Ash frowned, thinking back on what that diary said. How am I going to talk to her about that? That seems like a sensitive subject… but it'll bother me if I never talk to her about it…

"..." The Shaymin hybrid smiled gently, shrugging. "Hey… it could be a lot worse, couldn't it?" She chuckled, sitting down in a nearby chair. "Besides, stuff like that is why I've never been a fan of Mew. Arceus could be a better Guardian, in my opinion- even if he's strict and acts like he should be worshipped, he doesn't get too involved with things at least."

Ash frowned as he looked at the girl in confusion. "What? Why would Arceus be better than Mew? And what do you mean he acts like he should be worshipped?" This was news to Ash- he heard a lot of human legend stating how Arceus was the first Pokemon to come to be and created the universe, but he knew it was all speculation and theories.

"Like I said- he just stays up in the Hall of Origin and lets the other Legendaries have their own children if they want. But not Mew- she says Children of Legendaries like me are abominations…" Jayden growled slightly at that, almost looking like a Shaymin with her face for a moment before she shook her head. "As for the god complex, well… Let's just say he's begun taking those old legends about him seriously because it makes him look more important."

Ash frowned and looked like he wanted to argue, but he stopped himself at the last moment. He wanted to win Jayden over even if it's slowly, not push her away. "I see… but didn't you once play with Mew a long time ago?" He asked as he picked up his backpack and clutched his Poke Balls onto his belt.

"Well, yeah… but by the end of it all she nearly destroyed Dustin and I- not to mention she created Shadow Pokemon." The girl sighed, giving a shrug. "Mew was… not as bad as my Memma said she was, but she definitely didn't seem sane or safe. Did you know she nearly destroyed me for that one time in Silph Co.?"

"Well to be fair, you did attack us- Memma doesn't take kindly to those who hurt me…" Ash said after a pause. "But I understand your point of view, she's a menace and unstable." He said without adding in his own two cents, worried if he did then Jayden would either try to fight him or just leave before he had a chance to try and turn things around.

"Well, glad to see you finally are beginning to understand why we're doing this…" The girl grumbled to herself before she took a deep breath, checking her Poke Balls one more time. "Still… I can imagine being abandoned like that must have sucked- I know how I'd feel if my Memma just did that to me…"

"Wait… you think I'm abandoned?" Ash asked, surprised by this. "She didn't abandon me, she's just exploring the town. Besides, she was the one who took the poison out of your body. Being treated by someone who's considered unstable, you sure survived the extraction."

"...W-wait… WHAT?!" Jayden froze, staring at Ash horrified before she began frantically patting herself down. Oh no oh no oh no! I-if SHE took the poison out… What else did she remove!? S-some of my energy, maybe my ability to use attacks!?

"Will you relax? You're fine, okay?" Ash said, shrugging while she was freaking out. "Do you want to come with me to Blaine's gym or not?"

"I…" Jayden forced herself to calm down a bit, taking a deep breath and glaring at Ash a bit suspiciously now. "...Fine- but if I find out anything happened to me, I'm going to beat you and your team all the way to… to Kalos!"

"I don't think that would be necessary, but maybe you should try learning how to use Seed Flare so next time we won't have to extract poison from you." Ash said casually, giving a shrug before he stood up. "Come on Storm, let's go see if Blue and Yellow are up yet." The Pikachu gave a nod as he jumped on Ash's shoulder.

Jayden huffed before she crossed her arms and began to think. …Actually, that… isn't a half-bad idea- I've been meaning to learn it, I've just never had the time with my Rocket Elite duties… After thinking for a bit more, the brunette shrugged to herself, following Ash at a leisurely pace.

Ash knocked on the door to the other room, calling in, "Blue! Yellow! Are you two up yet!?"

After a few moments, the door opened, revealing an irritated Blue rubbing his sleepy eyes. "We are now. Why are you up so freaking early, Ash?"

The raven-haired boy chuckled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Heh… sorry- it's just that I'm excited to challenge Blaine. I think I have a decent strategy, but I still need to think a little bit longer on it, so I was thinking I could brainstorm while on the way there!"

"I don't think even Blaine is awake yet…" Yellow yawned, shuffling up to the door. "Although Memma always did say the early Pidgey gets the Caterpie."

"Good morning children! Did you sleep well?" They jolted and spun around to see the hippie manager was already awake and full of energy. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle ya. I'm an early riser."

"Do you know an easy way to get into Blaine's gym? I don't think climbing up a volcano and jumping in is the best way to go." Ash asked the man, crossing his arms.

"There's a hidden passageway by the hot springs around here- you can use that to find the entrance into his gym." The man answered with a shrug.

Jayden groaned to herself, muttering darkly. Great- not only is the gym inside a volcano, but I have to go by a hot spring too… Just fantastic!

The group head outside where the hot spring were. Blue and Yellow looked around before Blue sighed. "Did you know it was because of the hot spring that Cinnabar Island became the tourist attraction it is today? It's the only place on Kanto where the hot springs are natural."

"Well that would explain it, but I prefer cold, clean water myself." Yellow said with a shrug, putting her arms behind her head.

"I wonder how we're supposed to find the entrance if it's hidden?" Ash wondered as Storm jumped on top of a statue Gyarados that was spewing out boiling water into the hot spring.

"I don't know, but the view up here is pretty cool!" Storm smiled before his weight pushed it down slightly and caused the wall behind him to slide open while the Pikachu fell off in surprise. "W-whoa! W-what the heck?"

"...Well, there it is." Blue snorted, shaking his head in a mixture of amusement and exasperation. "Almost looked like something out of an old movie…"

"So that's where the secret passageway is…" Jayden muttered to herself, crossing her arms.

Yellow was looking at her curiously before she cleared her throat, glancing at the younger Trainer. "You know Ash… I've been meaning to ask… but who's this? I had assumed she was just another guest but she's been following us around."

"Oh right, this is Jayden." Ash gestured to the brunette, smiling a bit. "She was that little Shaymin we carried in."

"Wait… you mean her? That Rocket Elite in Silph Co.?" Blue frowned, examining Jayden suspiciously. "I thought you looked familiar, but with your changed outfit you look so different…"

"Oh shut up, Spikey- at least my hair doesn't look like I got electrocuted!" The Shaymin hybrid growled, crossing her arms and huffing in annoyance. "I'm not here for long, I'm just sticking around to watch this brat's Gym Leader battle- then I'm out!"

"Why are you here? JUST to see Ash fight the Gym Leader?" Blue rolled his eyes, scoffing in disbelief. "Not likely."

"Guys, guys, please! Let's not fight okay?" Ash quickly said, hoping to break this up before it got ugly. "We're all civilized people here- let's just go into the Gym, do what we need to do and then talk about our issues, alright?"

Blue and Jayden both glared at each other for a few more moments before reluctantly nodding, glancing away and muttering grudging agreements. Then Jayden blinked, feeling the phone in her pocket buzz. "Oh- hang on, got a call. I'll catch up in a bit…" She pulled out her phone, walking a couple feet away and beginning to speak quietly into it.

"Who's she talking to?" Yellow asked curiously, tilting her head as she stared at the fellow Child of a Legendary.

"Someone you may not ever want to meet…" Ash cringed as he remembered his first encounter with said person, and he shook his head, beginning to lead Blue and Yellow into the tunnel. "Come on, let's go on ahead."

"I can't believe I'm willingly walking into a VOLCANO!" Storm grumbled as they starts walking down the stoned made stairs.

"What now? I told you that I'm still busy here!" Jayden snapped on the phone as soon as Ash and his companions were gone, her demeanor growing much more angry.

"Well pardon me for ruining your little vacation, Jay-Jay, but that little pest of a fake Child is heading towards Cinnabar Island next." Jayden could hear the voice of her fellow Rocket Elite clearly, despite the hiss of the hot springs nearby. "He may try to stop you, especially if by some chance you try to steal the badge while he's challenging Blaine. He's got two partners, two, and they're fairly tough from what the grunts have told Giovanni- be careful, alright?"

"Uh-huh, well you're a little late on the update there, Dusty!" She snapped, clenching her phone a little more tightly. "For your information, I ran into the 'fake' Child- and he doesn't even seem to care. He knows I'm going to do it, yet he's not going to do anything about it! And- …" She hesitated, not sure if she wanted to tell Dustin that she almost died in the Pokemon Mansion from the poison and that apparently Mew saved her.

"And what? Spit it out- the fact that you ran into that boy's irritating enough!" Dustin snapped, although if Jayden took notice she would've heard a slightly worried tone to his voice. "What else happened!?"

"... No, nothing else happened. I just ran into him and he's willingly letting me follow him into the Gym. And by the way… THANKS SO MUCH for telling me it's INSIDE a FREAKING VOLCANO! Why couldn't YOU be the one coming here? You're a FIRE type after all!" Jayden snapped angrily, regaining her energy as she began barking into the phone. "This should be like HOME for you! It'll burn ME up to a crisp!"

"Well excuse me, 'princess', but need I remind you that YOU'RE the one who volunteered to go to Cinnabar Island in the first place? I just happened to not tell you that you decided to go to a Fire type area, which ends up with no skin off my back!" Dustin huffed, quickly resuming his bickering with his friend.

"Then you should've told me when I said I wanted to go to Cinnabar Island, smarty pants! And if I get out alive then there WILL be skin off your back Mr. Tail Wing Butt!" Jayden snapped back, growling once more.

"Ugh- fine, whatever, I'll get you a rare Pokemon or something when this is all done…" Dustin groaned, clearly rolling his eyes even if Jayden couldn't see him.

"You owe me an Eevee after this!" Jayden pouted, crossing her arms in annoyance. "Not just a regular one, either- shiny, do you hear me?!"

"Fine! Whatever- shiny Eevee it is! Just get that Gym Badge and hurry back- we don't have much time left!" He sounded surprisingly stressed before suddenly hanging up, leaving Jayden with the sound of the dial tone in her ear.

"Honestly, that boy… Still… I hope he and the Leader is okay." Jayden frowned before putting the phone back into her pocket before hurrying down the stairs. "Hey wait up!"

Ash and the group were now standing in front of huge metal doors with a lock. "I'm guessing this is where the key goes."

"I guess Blaine got sick of the tourists coming here, so he locked up the Gym." Blue said with a shrug. "He used to have one outside of the volcano until it was run down by tourists."

"I'm here!" Jayden called as she quickly reached them, wiping her forehead in exhaustion. "Ugh… it's so hot here…"

"Well it is a volcano," Yellow said, giving a small shrug. "There's bound to be lava nearby."

Jayden paled at this, glancing around worriedly. "L-l-lava!? K-keep me away from it, I am not getting near any lava! You hear me!?"

"Yes, we heard you loud and clear! Now either shut up and suck it up or leave!" Blue snapped, getting annoyed by Jayden's screaming.

Ash put the key into the lock and twisted it, opening the once tight lock and stepped back as the doors opened themselves, which was a good thing too since Ash knew the metal doors must be boiling hot from the lava. With the doors open, the battle arena was revealed, chained over boiling lava.

"Whoa! … We're going to have to fight here?" Ash gulped nervously, his eyes slightly wide in fear as he glanced around.

Meanwhile, Jayden's eyes widened in terror, and if she was able to hover or fly, she would. As it was, she stayed in the back of the group, away from the lava. "W-why? WHY did it have to be LAVA!?"

"Hello!? The badge is called the VOLCANO Badge, and you never put two and two together!?" Blue snapped, rolling his eyes.

"Cool it Blue! Be nice to her!" Yellow frowned at her half brother's temper, crossing her arms with a huff.

Ash began to call out, "HELLO!? IS ANYONE HERE!?" Then he stopped when he saw that hippie Riddle Inn owner walking up on the other side of the battle field.

"Well Ash, I must say congratulations for getting this far, and in such record time too- you found the entrance almost instantly! However, before you face Blaine you must answer a few trivia questions to prove your knowledge and worth," The man said as he waggled a finger tauntingly.

"Eh? Trivia…?" He blinked, slightly caught off-guard by this. "In a Gym with Pokemon meant to have brute force more than anything?"

"Well, of course- every Elite Gym has to have a way to train the people who get through it successfully in order to prove they're the cream of the crop! Blaine's Gym just happens to involve knowledge of Pokemon and of the Kanto region, ho ho!" The Riddle Inn owner said, giving a small chuckle. "And no getting help from the cheering squad, squirt- this is something you need to answer yourself or it doesn't count."

"Alright fine. Bring on the questions then." Ash said with a challenging glint in his eyes. "I'll answer them."

"Very well then!" The Riddle Inn owner smirked, holding up one finger. "Question number one- Pokemon of the same kind and level are identical, true or false."

Ash smiled, this was an easy one. "False. No two Pokemon are exactly the same."

"Bravo, bravo indeed- many Trainers would be stumped on that one alone." The man chuckled, holding up a second finger. "Question number two- what are the typings of the Elite Gyms in the rest of Kanto, excluding the Viridian City Gym?"

Ash had to think for a minute to remember what the typings were. "Pewter City's Gym specializes in Rock types. Cerulean City Gym specialized in Water types. The Vermilion Gym uses Electric types. Celadon Gym uses Grass types. Saffron Gym specializes with Psychic types… uh… Oh, and Fuschia Gym uses Poison types. If we're including this one, then I'd have to say Fire types from the look of the battle field."

"Even better, my boy- you're doing quite well so far!" The innkeeper smiled, holding up a third finger. "Question number three- is it possible for a Pidgey to learn Hurricane on its own?"

"What? Why ask a question about a common Pidgey in a Fire type gym?" Jayden asked with a huff, crossing her arms. "That's as random as it could get!"

"Well, I did say that this Gym was all about knowing information about all Pokemon, now didn't I?" The Riddle Inn owner chuckled, smirking at Jayden. "Besides, as any experienced Trainer knows, Hurricane is quite powerful…"

Ash had to think about that one before he finally said, "Yes, I do believe a Pidgey can learn Hurricane on its own but only after years of experienced battles. It's not a move easily learned without a Trainer teaching it."

"Ah, bravo- bravo indeed!" The owner nodded once more, giving a small clap of delight. "You're doing marvelous, I must say… Question number four- which major area or areas of Kanto contain a port or a location for ships to dock at? Any location that is connected to a large body of water does count."

"Contain ports…?" Blue blinked at this, clearly a bit surprised at the random question himself. This wasn't one of the questions when I earned this Gym Badge- was it updated?

"Wow… well geez… I haven't explored every nook and cranny of this region." Ash said, sounding rather stumped. "I know Vermillion City has a port… I think Routes 12 and 20 do too. And I think there was one leading to the ocean in Fuschia City and all the islands in Kanto…"

"Correct once more!" The man nodded, giving a happy smile to Ash. "You're doing well, but there are still three more questions… Question five- does Magmar learn Flamethrower through a Technical Machine or naturally?"

Ash knew he'd better watch his answer with some of these questions… "Magmar can learn Flamethrower both ways. They can learn it by Technical Machine and they can learn it naturally."

"As with all the previous questions, you're right again! Only two more to go, but these are the toughest ones…" The innkeeper crossed his arms, growing a bit more serious. "Question number six- is Gyarados able to learn Dragonbreath through breeding?"

"..." Ash never bred Pokemon before, so he wasn't quite sure on that one, but he also knew it was impossible to teach Magikarp- its pre-evolution- any moves through Technical Machine, so there's a high chance it couldn't learn anything through breeding either. "I'm going to say no- it's impossible to have Gyarados learn anything through breeding because of its pre-evolution."

"Correct- last question, and many people consider this to be the toughest one of all…" The hippie in front of Ash cleared his throat, staring the boy in the eye. "Name every currently known legendary Pokemon with the Fire type, whether it's secondary or primary."

At this, everyone, including Yellow, Blue and Jayden all fell down in shock. "Are you kidding? Name EVERY SINGLE Fire type Legendary!?" Jayden yelled impatiently, glaring at the man angrily. "Can't you just let the boy battle!?"

"Heh- not at all! After all, there aren't that many of them to begin with… I could have asked a tougher question, like to name every known Water type Legendary, or simply name them all. I will give you one hint… there are only six currently known Fire type Legendaries." The man nodded, crossing his arms.

"... Alright." Ash took a deep breath and hope all his lessons with Mew pays off now. "Let's see… there's Moltres... Ho-Oh… Entei… Heatran... Reshiram… and Victini. Is that right?"

"That's… Correct!" The Riddle Inn owner nodded once more, giving a bright smile. "Congratulations, Ash Ketchum- you just won the right to see Blaine. And with the toughest questions, too- normally Trainers have to fight the other Gym Trainers along with the questions, but seeing as you solved the hardest ones…" He smiled, shrugging. "There is ONE more question, though- and it's a riddle."

"You've GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!" Jayden screeched, throwing her hands up in the air in frustration.

Ignoring her, the man said mysteriously, "It's not a hat, but you wear it when you lose it and it keeps your head dry from the rain."

Ash blinked before thinking. "An umbrella? … No… you don't wear it because you already lost it… Wait…" An idea hit him, and he snapped his fingers, smiling. "It's gotta be a wig!"

The man suddenly took off his sunglasses and the long light brown hair he had been wearing… revealing his true face. "As with the previous questions… A wig is correct, Ash!" His accent was gone and his voice was different as he pulled some glasses out of his pocket and placed them on his face.

"...N-no way!" Blue's eyes suddenly widened, and he stared at the man in shock, seeming to recognize him now. "You… wore a disguise to trick us!?"

"What? He's just an old geezer instead of a hippie, what's the difference?" Jayden scoffed, rolling her eyes as she crossed her arms.

"That's Blaine, the Gym Leader." the boy snapped, still looking at the old man in surprise. "I… didn't expect him to wear something to fool people, of all things."

"Well, when you get tired of tourists but are famous, sometimes that's all you can do…" Blaine chuckled, walking over to a small closet that was somehow built into the face of the mountain and opening it, revealing a few sets of disguises!

He grabbed one set of clothes- a lab coat and a white mustache- and put them on, turning back to face the challengers. He looked… a lot different now- more professional and in charge. "Now then, you wanted a challenge from Gym Leader Blaine, and not the innkeeper of Riddle Inn, am I right?"

Ash was still staring at him in shock before shaking his head to snap out of it. "I… O-of course! I want a fair battle with the Gym Leader Blaine, nobody else." He smiled, crossing his arms. "Clever disguise, though!"

"It's certainly better than my first outfit, that much is for sure…" The old man chuckled, shaking his head in amusement before growing serious. "Now then, challenger, how many gym badges do you currently have? I'll assume you're doing the Elite Run, seeing as how my colleagues have mentioned you from time to time…"

"Errr…" Ash rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, chuckling. "To be honest, that wasn't intentional on my part… At least not at first- I only heard about the Elite Gyms recently as a matter of fact. But yeah, I want to be pushed to the limit with the toughest Gyms in this region. I have six badges so far, this will be my seventh one." Ash said as he opened his jacket to show his badges to Blaine as proof.

"Ah, I see… Quite impressive, I must say- very well then." Blaine nodded in understanding, tapping the wall by the closet for a moment and, to everybody's surprise, three Poke Balls popped out. "In which case, this shall be a set of three on three, Single Battle only. Is that alright with you, young man?"

"Of course! I'm ready with whatever you dish out at me." Ash said, smirking as the anticipation made him excited while he took a Luxury Ball from his belt.

Blue and the others quickly found a nearby seating arena behind heavily reinforced glass, sitting down in it. "What the heck is this here for? It's gonna be like a sauna!" Jayden grumbled, crossing her arms.

"What, would you rather be exposed to the attacks and lava directly?" Blue asked dryly, crossing his arms.

"I…" Jayden paled at that, quickly shaking her head. "N-no, no, I'm good! Thank you!"

"Heh- very well then, but be warned, I won't hold back by any means…" The old Gym Leader smirked, his lab coat ruffling slightly due to the hot air emanating from the lava. "Now… let the battle begin!" He grabbed a normal Poke Ball, tossing it into the air.

The Poke Ball popped open and released a familiar beam of light onto the battlefield, the light soon shaped into a Pokemon. The Pokemon turned out to be Flareon, an Eeveelution, much to Ash's surprise as he threw the Luxury Ball.

The black and gold ball opened up, releasing its own flash of light before it formed into an Eevee with unusually spiky hair on top of its head. Both Pokemon were rather surprised to see each other before they smirked and became even more battle-ready, each one ready to take on its own species.

"Oh? A spiky-haired Eevee… It's been a long time since I've seen a young Trainer use one of those." Blaine blinked in surprise before he smiled, giving a small nod of approval. "It seems like this will be an interesting challenge after all… Flareon, start us off with a Flamethrower!"

"FLAAAAAR!" Flareon gave a battle cry as it shot out streams of fire at its little unevolved counterpart.