Hello all of you glorious readers to another chapter of Remembering an Old Friend! I just started a new semester of high school! Now I'm sad :'(. Oh well, at least that means that school's almost over! I hope that all of you enjoy this chapter!
Yeah sorry Andy-m about that :( it's just that it was too difficult for me to write out the courtroom scene and what I wrote down was pretty terrible so, yeah... xD and yes I am very excited about my new story! XD anyway thank you for the amazing review!
Hey Brandon295! And thank you for the most spectacular review ever! Well I don't know what you're thinking about the upcoming chapter but... anyway! Haha, thanks for thinking that my fluff is cute :3!
Owner Pwner! It's been like, forever! And don't worry, I'm one of those people who go crazy whenever they get like one review xD so thank you so very much! And yes, Latios was very nice! Well Bianca had always liked Latios, but she used Ken as a cushion after his death and so on... haha well thanks for the review!
On to the chapter!
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Last time on Remembering an Old Friend...
"Yes your honor." a woman said after clearing her throat. "Ash Ketchum is found..."
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"GUILTY!" the woman said with a smug grin on her lips, her evil sneer made Delia want to go ballistic. The officer, Delia, Ash, and Pikachu all gasped as the people in the crowd all cheered with glee. How could this be? The Ketchums had a sure win, but what in the world happened? The Judge smiled and clapped his hands that the trial was finally over as he stood up and walked away from his seat, that is until the bailiff quickly stopped the judge and whispered something in his ear.
"Do I really have to?" the Judge whined, stopping in his tracks as the bailiff nodded firmly. "Fine. But only because of my reputation." the judge grunted as he turned on his heel and sat back in his seat, earning many confused looks from the jury. "He's right, I can't let this one stupid case ruin my reputation of being a judge!" the judge thought sharply. "Order in the court!" the judge demanded, rapping his gavel on the stand. The crowd courteously obeyed as they sat back in their seats, the jury had a strange feeling in the pit of their stomachs. The judge cleared his throat and faced the jury, "The Ketchum family is not found guilty."
All the members of the jury gasped in shock as Ash, Delia, Misty, Brock, Pikachu, and the officer stood frozen in place. "B-but your honor! The jury has already reached a verdict!" the woman stammered, violently flashing the papers that she held in her well manicured hands. The other members of the jury stood up along with the woman and desperately tried to persuade the judge to conclude this case. But the judge simply shook his head.
"Sit down, all of you. As a representative of the law, I must act like said representative." the judge said as the members of the jury stood with their mouths agape. "The jury's verdict is irrelevant, and therefore court is still in session until we have reached a logical conclusion." said the judge, flipping through the small stack of papers from before as the bailiff flashed a proud grin. The judge was exhausted, bored, and hungry, it would be best to finish this case as quickly as possible, while still reaching a valid conclusion that is. "So, Mr. Ketchum." the judge spoke, the fire in Ash's eyes lit up like a blazing inferno knowing that he still had a chance to win this case and return to Latias. "If you would please summarize the events that happened on the day of the incident, I might be able to make more sense of this case." the man said, thinking about where he would go to eat.
The raven haired boy eagerly nodded as he, Brock, Misty, and Delia quickly retold their side of the story. After a short ten minutes the judge had processed all of the details into his mind as he asked the plaintiff their side of the story. The leader of the mob and the scientist had stood up as the rest of the mob members sat behind them. Fifteen minutes passed by and the judge's growling stomach was getting the better of him, "So tell me, why was there a reason to attack the Ketchum family along with their friends?" the judge asked.
"Simple, your honor. The defendant has simply committed the vile, disgusting act of pokephilia. And for his mother, she has failed to report the crime the the authorities." the leader of the mob said, a smug grin tugging at his lips.
"Interesting. Is it a crime to commit pokephilia according to the community? Or is it a crime to commit pokephilia according to the law?" the judge stated, very eager to finally shut this case down. The leader of the group along with the scientist scratched the back of their heads, their eyes twitching as a few members in the court began to laugh. "And as it says here in this report, that your only evidence to prove this so-called crime is a group of children that had supposedly witnessed Mr. Ketchum 'kissing' his partner slash pokemon." the judge continued as the laughter in the courtroom slowly grew as those who were against pokephilia grit their teeth until their enamel began to weaken. "What is your response?" the judge asked, secretly taking his wallet out to see if he had enough money to purchase his lunch.
"O-our response is t-that Mr. Ketchum was in a zone where t-the law was p-present." the scientist frantically stammered, not ready to receive his punishment. The laughter in the courtroom continued to grow as the judge joined in.
"That was never mentioned in the report." the judge said, smiling as he flipped through the pile of papers on his desk. "My decision is made. Mr. Ketchum, you young man is found as not guilty!" the judge smiled, happy that he was minutes away from his delicious meal at his favorite eatery. Our heroes nearly burst out in cheers, but held back to not be charged with disruption in the courtroom. Misty, Brock, Pikachu, and Delia hugged Ash with all their might as the members of the jury exploded with rage.
"The plaintiffs are charged with assault, hate crime, battery, destruction of property, pokemon abuse, possession of weapons without a license, possession of illegal weapons, lying while under oath and are sentenced to thirty years in prison." the judge announced as the jaws of each and every mob members practically dropped to the floor. There was dead silence on one half of the courtroom and mild celebration on the other half. The officer was glad that Ash had won, although he wasn't of much help, and those who weren't against pokephilia congratulated the raven haired boy on his victory.
"You won Ash!" the officer smiled after the group had finished their group hug. "Feels nice without all that weight on your shoulders isn't it?" the officer chuckled, patting Ash on the head as the raven haired boy and his mother embraced the police officer in a bone crushing hug. "I'm glad that you're happy..." the officer said as he felt his ribcage crack under the intense hugging.
"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Delia squealed as she wrapped her arms around the officer's neck. "You saved me and especially my son, Ash!" Delia thanked, still embracing the officer in her iron grip. The officer couldn't help but smile at Delia's happiness; she reminded him of his previous wife...
"But!" the judge announced with volume, gaining the attention of everyone in the courtroom. "Since this area is under the 'no pokephilia' law, your crime has been carried here, Mr. Ketchum. And you're sentenced with one month of community service." the judge said. And with that the broad shouldered man rapped his gavel on the hard wood of his bench, giving a disappointing, but fair win for our heroes.
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Our group of friends had left the enormous structure of the Indigo Plateau as soon as they could, happy that their friend Ash had kept his freedom. The raven haired boy dashed out of the structure along with his mother, Brock, Misty, Pikachu, and the two officers, breathing in the fresh air of mother nature. The fire that fueled Ash's soul was back! His oblivious engines roared with happiness as the thought of his precious one came across his mind, Latias! Although it's been a few weeks since their separation, it felt like an eternity for both Ash and Latias.
Brock, Misty, and Pikachu were still celebrating with Ash as the officers and Delia followed. "They sure do look happy." Delia smiled. The driver politely excused himself as he went back to their police car to get something that he had forgotten. "I know I've said this far too many times but, thank you, James, for helping my son and I through this case. You're the kindest man I have ever met." the mother smiled with all her heart.
"You don't need to thank me, I was practically useless in this case." the officer said modestly, rubbing the back of his head. Delia shook her head as she patted the officer on the shoulder.
"No you weren't useless!" Delia objected. And then suddenly, Delia changed her composure, "I know that this is quite sudden, but how about you and I go out for a nice dinner back in Pallet?" the mother asked bravely, earning a warm smile from the officer.
"That sounds delightful." he smiled.
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"Hey look! They're finished!" Bianca shouted out loud, pointing down at the ground from the rooftop of the Indigo Plateau. Without saying a single word, the three eons perked up from their tired, dreary state and immediately flew down to the side of the structure to transform and meet up with their friends. Latias and Ken flew at blinding speeds toward the side of the enormous structure as Latios took Bianca on his back and followed suit.
"Did he win?" was the only thought in Latias' mind. Her hopes had kept her up for two hours, and now she was going to find out whether or not her love had won, or lost... the Altomare group landed on the ground with the utmost stealth as they each transformed, Latias looking like Bianca, and Latios looking like Ken. 'Come on, let's go!' Latias said as she dashed around the corner to meet up with Ash and the others.
The pair of supposed twins dashed around the corner of the building to find Ash, Pikachu, Brock, and Misty celebrating their friend's victory. 'I think that's all the evidence we need.' Latios said, letting out a small grin. The Altomare group ran up to their Kanto friends as they caught each others presence. Latias met Ash's eye as they both smiled wildly at each other while Latias continued to run to her love. They all couldn't believe it, their dense headed friend was safe and sound and reunited with his precious love, and to top it all off, he was let off easy!
The young girl and the raven haired boy embraced each other as if they haven't seen the other in years. Latias felt happy again, the warmth had finally returned to her body along with her old self. The only thing that could possibly ruin her happiness was the shadow... but, how does she know if she really is happy? Yes, hugging Ash made her feel warm on the inside, but was that what she really wanted? 'Oh Ash...' was all Latias said as Ash gave her a peck on the cheek.
"He won!" Brock and Misty chorused as Ken, Bianca, and Latios jumped in for another group hug. Bianca and Ken smiled as wide as they could possibly smile while Latios showed off his unenthusiastic looking but equally happy, grin. "He won! He won! He won!" they all chorused as Ash and Latias joined their group hug. It's been a rough ride for our heroes, but it's going to even more difficult with the intense training to prepare them for the fight with the shadow.
Delia and the officer had grown quite close during their little talk, and after their celebration was over, they had decided to go back home. Ash, Pikachu, Delia, and the two officers headed back to Pallet in the police car while Bianca, Latias, Latios, Ken, Brock, and Misty flew back home high above the skies. Their hearts seemed to finally recover, but that's just it, it seemed that way. There was no other way that they could be driven apart again, right? But both Latias and Ash were unaware; they felt too happy to care what happened after the trial, as long as they were together again. It's funny how love can bring the most unbelievable happiness, but at the same time it can bring the lowest point of sorrow.
...
The trip back to Pallet Town was fairly uneventful, well besides for all of the billboards advertising the major event known as the Super Bowl. 'Hey brother, what's the Super Bowl?' Latias asked as she gazed upon the enormous billboard down below in an unnamed city. The blue eon looked puzzled for a moment until he remembered that he saw a commercial on TV while he was at Bianca's house.
'I think that it's some kind of football event.' the blue eon responded while keeping the sleeping Bianca from falling off of his back. Latias thanked her brother as she looked back at the billboard. For some reason, Latias felt an uneasy feeling while staring at the board. She felt a kind of, giant feeling coming from it, but why?
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"Finally, we're back home. Ash groaned, the events of the courtroom and the ride back home sucked all of the energy out of his body. The raven haired boy tiredly opened the car door and stepped out to be welcomed by Latias in her true form. The red eon took caution in her actions as she gave Ash a refreshing peck on the lips and a quick hug.
"Alright James, I hope you enjoy your date with Delia!" the driver said as he waved goodbye to his partner in crime. James smiled and waved back as he stepped out of the car, opening Delia's door after he got out. After all of his passengers were out of the police car the driver rolled his window down and stuck his head out, "Bye everyone! It was nice meeting all of you!" he said, and with that he drove off back to the police station a few miles away.
"Thank you James." Delia thanked as she took hold of the officer's hand. The mother looked around her to find an enormous group of Ash's friends behind her! She was slightly surprised at the amount of people and pokemon that they had with them. It was late afternoon and the sun began to set, leaving the sky to become an intense, strong, orange color.
"Come on kids! Let's all go inside!" Delia said as she beckoned the children behind her to follow. The group behind her obeyed as they went to their own business. As James escorted Delia into her house, he gave the mother a reassuring look, as if they had something planned. Our group of heroes resided in the living room as James and Delia stood in the kitchen.
"Are you sure you want to do that Delia?" James asked, worried about how Ash would react. Delia nodded as she frowned, her son had just recovered from the biggest heartbreak he's experienced, and now she was about to make it worse. "I just want you to know that I'll be with you when you tell them. James reassured, calming Delia down a bit.
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"It was so stinky!" Bianca laughed, along with Misty and a giggling Latias. The boys of the group had looks of horror on their faces, how could the girls giggle at something such as that! The girls just giggled even harder at the boys' reaction as they moved on to the next subject.
'Girl talk is strange...' Latios telepathed to only the boys of the group as they nodded in shocked agreement. And at that moment Delia and James walked into the living room.
At the sight of the two adults the whole group greeted them with big smiles as they waited for Delia and James to speak. "Ash, Latias, we need to talk." Delia said in a worried tone. That tone, those words, they were the infamous saying that everyone disliked no matter what the situation. Sometimes it was easy to detect, but sometimes it's harder to spot than a needle in a haystack.
"What is it mom?" Ash asked as he and Latias made room on the couch for Delia to sit on. Incredible, neither Latias nor Ash had noticed the tone of voice that Delia was using, but the others were dead silent as they watched the conversation.
"We need to discuss your relationship with Latias." Delia said with the greatest unease. James and Delia took a seat on the couch next to Latias and Ash who were holding each others hands. The raven haired boy nodded as Latias listened with all of her attention, wanting to make a good impression.
"Ash, you can't be with Latias anymore..." said Delia as she held her breath.
"What?..."Ash asked, unsure if he had heard his mother correctly.
"I'm sorry Ash, but you can no longer be with Latias." Delia repeated, the pain in her heart grew at the action of tearing her own son's heart. The raven haired boy was speechless, and Latias couldn't believe what she heard.
After that was dead silence, nobody spoke, nobody moved, and for a while it seemed as though nobody was breathing. "W-why not?" Ash asked, hoping that his mother was pulling some kind of sick prank on him.
"Because, I don't want to risk having either of you getting hurt again." Delia said, almost brought to the verge of tears. "I know that you make each other happy. I'm not trying to pull you apart or anything, I'm just trying to protect the both of you from getting hurt." Delia finished, hoping that her son would understand.
Ash was in shock while Latias didn't want to believe what she was hearing, she just couldn't. Why was this happening? It wasn't fair, how come whenever happiness is in her grasp, it's taken away from her? Latias understood how Delia felt, but she would stay with Ash no matter what happened. "But what if we're careful about how we act?" the raven haired boy asked, hoping to make some sort of compromise.
Delia shook her head; Ash's heart dropped. Then Latios stepped in, 'Ash, please listen to your mother. She knows that you two love each other, but by doing this, she's ensuring your safety and happiness.' Latios explained as Delia felt relieved that someone else felt the same way.
"But that doesn't make sense! How can we be happy without each other? Splitting us apart will only keep us from being happy!" Ash objected.
"Ash, you still don't get it." Ken spoke seriously. "What if you were allowed to be with Latias, then what?" the young boy asked, his arms folded across his chest.
"We would be happy! That's what!" Ash replied ignorantly.
"Ok. But let's say this, suppose you and Latias were out on a walk somewhere with Latias in her true form, and someone comes by to judge and harass the both of you. What would you do?" the disguised dragon asked.
"I would protect her of course! I don't get what you're trying to say, Ken!" the raven haired boy answered. The blue dragon ignored the last part of Ash's sentence and continued.
"What if you couldn't? What if Latias or you were seriously injured? If that happened, neither of you would be happy. This is why your mother is keeping you apart for your own safety and happiness." Ken finished.
"You're wrong!" Ash retorted, not wanting to believe what they were trying to tell him. But after saying that, everyone in the room sighed and frowned as they all beamed at Ash.
"He's right Ash." everyone said in unison. "Please understand dear. I'm trying to protect the both of you by doing this." Delia said, giving her son a comforting hug.
After half an hour of convincing, they finally got Ash and Latias to understand what they were trying to do for them. How could this happen? They were just reunited and now they were being pulled apart! But this is how it must be.
"Goodbye, Latias. I love you..." Ash said.
'Goodbye, Ash. I love you too.' Latias replied. They both hugged, and kissed each other for the last time. After their goodbyes, the Altomare group headed back to their island, leaving Brock, Ash, Misty, Delia, and James behind in Kanto.
'Why must this happen?...'
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Oh no! Haha well I hope you guys noticed the references that I put in this chapter :p I think I might start doing that now! But anyway I noticed that this year is the year of the dragon! XD Awesome! Sorry if this chapter was lame :( my minds been stressed out by my new honors English teacher :o. Well please review and tune in next time on Remembering an Old Friend!