Final exams are now done and over with, at least for now. You think that'd be enough for me to be able to resume writing on a more regular basis, but now I've gotten a part time job, which is pretty awesome to tell the truth. Now I don't feel like a complete bum now, but that's a story for another day…

I also hope you all enjoyed a fine Easter. That is all.

"It's Ash…"

Those were Dawn's only words spoken at the time right as she and Axew entered the clearing during their pursuit of Scrafty. She didn't want to believe that she easily stumbled upon the Pallet Town Trainer as easily as none of the others, aside from a brief moment for May, were able to have a full-on confrontation with him.

To make things even more interesting, Anabel, of all people, was by his side for some unknown reason. Dawn knew that the Salon Maiden occasionally hung out with her and her friends, but thought that she had leaned closer to her Battle Frontier colleagues more than a random collection of young kids and adolescents that shared a common friend.

Just what is she doing here? Dawn thought, switching glances between the two Trainers standing before her.

"Hey, Dawn," Anabel greeted, drawing her attention away from Ash as best as she could. "I didn't expect to see you in this neck of the woods."

"Oh, I was doing just fine for a while," Dawn replied before forming a sour expression. "That was before I got ambushed by some deranged Team Rocket member who's now finally subdued. You'd think the guy that rounded up all of Team Rocket would've made sure to get in a full head count before leaving."

Anabel quickly darted her eyes to where Ash was, noticing how dejected he became so suddenly right after Dawn mentioned about the escaped Grunt attacking her. She could sense the guilt emanating from him, which felt as thickening as the recent blanket of tension that covered the area as a result of the Twinleaf Town Coordinator's impromptu arrival. She had to act fast before things got worse for Ash.

"Listen, anyone can make mistakes, so it wouldn't be right to blame it on the one guy that took down Team Rocket, especially given what he had done for everyone," Anabel advised. "No one could've possibly known that crook had escaped and remained undetected for several months now. The past is in the past."

Dawn took a brief moment of pause to consider her words before giving a cheerful agreement of her own. The Pokémon around them, which included Axew, Pikachu, Scrafty, and Marowak, appeared to be visibly relieved with that matter settled.

"You're right, Anabel. No need to worry about that any longer."

"Whew."

"Although…"

"Eh…?"

Anabel stiffened slightly despite retaining her casual appearance as much as possible. She certainly did not like the way Dawn drew out her last word. She could feel another bullet preparing to be shot from any direction and she had to prepare to dodge this one as well.

"I do want to know what you're doing with Ash," Dawn stated before sending another accusatory look at the Pallet Town Trainer himself. "And you! What are you doing in avoiding all of us since this tournament began? Running away from your friends!"

"… … Dawn… I… …"

Ash stood firmly, though slightly lowered his head wherein the visor of his red cap visibly covered nearly his entire face. Anabel and the Pokémon were all concerned, especially as Dawn did not appear to be letting up anytime soon. As a matter of fact, the frustration she built up and hid away concerning Ash not bothering to even see her or any of his previous friends and companions was welling up to the surface at a heated rate.

"'You' what? I know you've been training hard to become the best and all, but is that your only excuse for not even saying hello to any of us? We've been worried sick over you, Ash!"

"… …"

"Dawn, please calm down," Anabel intervened, stepping in on Ash's stead, much to their surprise. "There are some things that you don't fully understand, why Ash hasn't been able to reach out to you all. It's… kind of complicated right now."

The Twinleaf Town Coordinator appeared startled from the news, but still remained adamant to her intentions. Anabel, however, did sense a bit of softness working a bit into her. With someone whose heart and overall demeanor was considerably like an open book, Dawn was relatively easy to understand once someone understood the basic cues.

"I guess I may have jumped the gun the first time around, but what are you doing acting as his spokesperson, Anabel?" Dawn countered back. "Not to sound rude and all, but last time I checked, Ash is capable of talking for himself."

"Ash's been through a lot the past year, ever since he left Unova and trained on his own."

"You know, he's not the only one trying to get stronger. There's me and the rest of his friends working hard out there to achieve our dreams and you don't see us trying to brush off one another during major social events."

"He's gone through rough changes, alright? Give him a break!"

Anabel immediately slapped both hands over her mouth, astounded by her own impetuous outburst. She felt the rushing of her blood rushing up to her head out of sheer embarrassment, lighting up her pale cheeks with every passing millisecond. As the known empath that had mastered control over her emotions and her unique connection to Pokemon, this was certainly not one of her best moments in her life, even in a private situation as the one ongoing now.

Dawn and the others were as equally surprised by the Salon Maiden's sudden bluntness. The Pokémon were quick to shake off the initial shock as they had their own personal problems to deal with, mainly with Axew having discovered the Pokémon he once saw as a little brother now fully evolved, having achieved something he had been working on for some time with Iris, but still not at that stage yet.

Axew continued to examine Scrafty while the latter merely stared emptily in front of him. In spite of the major growth and change of appearance, he could see the original personality Scrafty had as a Scraggy, namely with the big goofy eyes while not in battle. Even after evolving, Scrafty was the same as ever, though it did make one thing clear for Axew at this point.

He still held onto the dream of growing up and becoming a powerful Haxorus one day. Scraggy had already shown the way to be possible, as someone younger than Axew had evolved and gained more power and maturity, in some aspects at least. Scrafty did retain much of his previous youthful personality, reflected upon the moment Axew leapt up and hugged his old friend. Scrafty was caught off guard, but seeing his smaller friend brought back the familiar fondness shared since their days in Unova, with Pikachu and Marowak bearing witness to their reunion.

It's too bad the same emotions have yet to reach the humans present at this time…

"I see," Dawn finally spoke, appearing rather begrudging. "I can tell that you have changed, Ash, the moment we saw your first battle in the Champions League."

"Wait, Dawn, you're going about this the wrong way," Anabel reasoned once more, having sensed disdain in her tone. "It's not like that. Ash is still who he is and what he represents as a Pokémon Trainer. And−."

"And you, trying to take our place in his life just because you're some high and mighty Frontier Brain, where the strong only belong to the strong," Dawn interrupted, continuing on her tirade with a piercing look directed towards Anabel. "Is that it?"

"Dawn, please listen to yourself!" Anabel pleaded. "You're only allowing your pent-up emotions over Ash take control over you. You clearly know him more than I do. Does it really look like Ash would do something like that, giving up previous friendships he held dear for the sake of winning some special tournament held once a decade?"

"Gee, how'd you figure that one out? Probably because you've had him in your hands since this whole thing began."

She's not listening, Anabel thought, trying to control her own uprising frustration.

Before the Salon Maiden could respond back, someone had stepped forward next to her and held an arm in front of her as a gesture to hold her back and stand down. Both she and Dawn were surprised over the timing he had in stepping in over their ongoing conflict.

"… That's enough… … both of you," Ash spoke up, lifting his head and cap visor up to the point where only a narrow view of his eyes could only be seen.

"Ash…" Dawn whispered in mild astonishment.

"… … Dawn… everything Anabel has mentioned up to this point… it's all true," Ash stated while the said Salon Maiden glanced at him intently, waiting to see what will be coming next. "… Many things have happened… Things I'm not particularly proud of… …"

"Then please tell me," Dawn requested earnestly. "I want to help. We want to help. We just want you back."

"… I… I can't… …"

"What?!"

To say that Dawn was surprised by this rebuttal would be considered an understatement. A Trainer who depended on his friends for help and advice since he first walked the Pokémon path turned her down. In the fever of her emotions, she couldn't understand why Ash has been this stubborn in keeping his distance from his friends. Both Anabel and Ash knew how she was taking the response. Either way, it was rather obvious that she was having trouble masking her rising anger and dejection.

"… … It's a personal matter that I have to do… alone," Ash continued, attempting to approach her, but was cut short when Dawn held a rigid open hand in front of her to stop him.

"Just stop," Dawn muttered, refusing to look at either Ash or Anabel in the eye. "If you really wanted to be alone, you should've just said so. That way, none of us would worry ourselves over you any longer."

"Dawn, just please calm down," Anabel implored, gesturing with her hands to emphasize her point. "This has nothing to do with Ash not wanting to be with you. It's like we already said, he's been through some hardships that he still hasn't fully gotten over."

"But why can't he just come to us for help? We won't judge or look at him any differently than we have before. I liked it better when he got psyched up for every opportunity to battle, but now…"

"If you really consider yourself Ash's friend, then why haven't you taken his word by now that he's not ready to confront you and the others?"

Dawn looked up at Anabel, who bore a look of rare severity on her normally delicate face. In addition to Ash's peculiar behavior, the blue-haired Coordinator didn't understand how and why Anabel was overly defensive concerning Ash. The only thing she knew regarding the Salon Maiden's history with him was that they became friends within a day prior to Ash battling her and eventually winning the Ability Symbol at his rematch. Just how close were they really?

"That depends," Dawn countered, taking up Iris's Axew in her arms before he had a chance to give Scrafty a formal good-bye. "Does Ash still consider me a friend after all this time?"

With those final words left to ring in the moment, excluding Axew's cries and attempts to reach back to Scrafty, Dawn turned away and left the forest clearing the same way she stumbled into it: lost and confused. Anabel softened her posture a few seconds after the confrontation had ended, giving off a heavy sigh before looking back at Ash, who appeared as silent as he was since she first ran into him. He certainly became harder to read after Dawn's departure.

"She does have a point, Ash," Anabel began, attempting to pick up where Dawn left off in hopes to bring him out. Dawn had the right intentions, but went about it the wrong way, granted that she, and most likely the other former companions, have been unaware over the fact that Ash took a major part in disbanding Team Rocket the past year. "She and the others are still your friends, no matter what you think has happened while you were gone training. I'm asking you now once again to please…" She locked her eyes as intently as she could to where Ash's eyes were underneath his cap. "… Let it go. Let your friends come back. The past won't bother them anyway."

"… …"

"Listen, what I'm trying to say is that I just want you to know that they still do care about you as I've been in their company for a good amount of time now," Anabel continued. "No matter what happens, they'll forgive you. Now, can you forgive yourself?"

"… … … … One day… …"

"I know you understand as well as I do that even with trying to distance yourself from them won't protect them from what you went through," Anabel pointed out. "After all, that escaped Team Rocket member managed to find and ambush Dawn before your Scrafty managed to catch up to him. I know that you still care and love them, but there's no need to torture yourself like this. After all, I don't like it one bit at all."

Ash's head slightly tilted up, the rim of his cap exposing part of his brown eyes once more. He appeared surprised that Anabel was able to piece him together in a short amount of time and was now attempting to act like some sort of guidance counselor to him. She was certainly intuitive enough with her own gifts and talents, but this moment made her all the more impressive in his eyes. Though one thing still eluded him…

"… Anabel," Ash spoke, eliciting the Salon Maiden to look up expectantly at him. "… … Do you want to train with me?"

The light in her lilac eyes seemed to shimmer reflectively like an ocean wave. It was obvious even to Ash what her answer would be at this point. While Dawn would still be a major concern for him, especially once she would reunite with his former traveling companions to share her encounter with him, he had this matter to attend to, given the timing of it all. With that step over with, finding out why she has been so keen to help him and remain at his side even as he purposely avoided other humans, including his former companions, would be his next course of action from here on out.

Elsewhere at the same time…

"I can't be fooled this time, not after all the times I've traveled and learned," Brock said resolutely, facing Looker and his new agent-in-training, Poké Ball Seven.

"What are you getting at, dear boy?" Poké Ball Seven asked, knowing full well what the young Pokémon Doctor will say.

"Are you who I know you are?"

Poké Ball Seven and Looker kept their glances on Brock while Iris and Piplup were completely lost at what their older friend was attempting to do. Looker glanced at his fellow agent, receiving a somber nod in confirmation while returning one of his own. The Interpol agent then hoisted up the paralyzed Rocket Grunt from the ground while applying the handcuffs with his arms behind him.

"I'll take this man into custody," Looker announced, keeping a firm hold on the criminal. "Poké Ball Seven, do what you think needs to be done and meet me at our rendezvous point one hour from now."

"Understood," Poké Ball Seven saluted with a quick bow as Looker and the Rocket Grunt left before resuming attention to Brock. "So you think you've gotten me figured out, eh?"

"Let's just say that this 'disguise' was a bit more obvious than your previous ones, James," Brock replied, drawling out the proposed identity of the agent in front of him as strongly as he could.

"Wait, this is James?" Iris repeated, sharing an incredulous look with Piplup. "Are we talking about James of Team Rocket, the same Team Rocket that gave us and Ash trouble in the past? That James?!"

In response to Brock and Iris, Poké Ball Seven reached a hand up to his face and placed a firm grip on the frame of his sunglasses. The only minor alteration to his face was slowly removed, revealing him to be the very same individual that Brock had accused him to be. In retrospect, the sunglasses alone wouldn't constitute as a perfect disguise anyway.

"I suppose that couldn't have been any more obvious, even if a Carnivine sprang up and chomped on your head," James surmised, giving a slight chuckle as an afterthought. "Then again, I should know what it feels like to have Carnivine chomp on my head."

"It is you!" Iris exclaimed, immediately switching into a defensive stance while Piplup leapt in front of her to protect her. "You're not stealing our Pokémon this time. We're ready for you!"

"Stand down, twerpette−I mean, little girl," James commanded sternly.

"Like I'm going to listen to you anytime soon, crook!"

"Everyone, stop," Brock intervened, holding his arms out to separate the two of them, to ensure that Iris and Piplup wouldn't pounce on James and the latter retaliating back. "We're not here to fight." He then sent a look at James. "At least, I hope we don't have to."

"Pointless conflict to be kept in the past, nothing more," James replied. "My main objective has been fulfilled here after apprehending that haughty hooligan from horrendously wreaking further havoc on you fine Trainers."

"Good, because I didn't want any more trouble coming our way anyway. However, I am curious on how you became part of Interpol after the fall of Team Rocket. I thought you, Jessie, and Meowth were taken in when the news mentioned that only the Leader had escaped from the authorities."

"Let's just say it took finally recognizing which lines not to cross for us to realize that Team Rocket was going to turn on us in the end. That, and the help of your little friend, if I may add, cemented our decision to never look or turn back after that."

"Little friend…"

"Brock, just what is he talking about?" Iris inquired, only to catch a small smile forming at the corner of his mouth. "What's wrong now?"

"Somehow, it isn't a surprise that Ash was involved in this," Brock spoke up, only for James to return the same expression.

"You really are the observant one, after all," James praised lightly. "I'm surprised you figured it all out this quickly."

"Figured what out quickly? And what does Ash have to do with you?" Iris continued on, becoming frustrated over her growing confusion from their ambiguous conversation.

"It kind of made sense that Ash would want to stop Team Rocket, but the thing is that I don't know what drove him to actually fight them until they disbanded," Brock summarized. "Probably whatever happened to him then has resulted in how he's been acting now, including some of his Pokémon in battle, seeing how efficient they were in taking down their opponents without breaking a sweat."

"So I'm guessing you lot haven't even talked to him since this New Island tournament began," James pointed out. "I was afraid of this."

"You know something about Ash," Brock stated, narrowing his expression at the ex-member of Team Rocket.

"He does?" Iris cried out, looking back at James with interest. "You know what's wrong with Ash and why he's acting even more of a kid than usual?"

"Iris, mind your manners!" Brock scolded, causing the Dragon Trainer to jump back from the surprising intensity before giving off a sigh. "I'm sorry about that."

"Listen, I don't have any time to stay and share what happened to your main friend, but I think I can work around my schedule and meet back here with you and the rest of your camaraderie to share the full story in the coming week, including what happened to Jessie and Meowth," James offered, scratching the back of his head. "I feel it would be the least I could do for him."

"That's when round three of the Champions League finally starts," Brock said, offering a hand out to him. "Alright, James, but I'll be taking your word for it. You better come back."

"I'm not going to run away and hide this time," James replied, accepting the handshake and sealing in their agreement. "I'll send you a message through the Pokémon Center here early next week on where and when to meet. With any luck, I might also be able to bring in Jessie and Meowth for them to share their two cents on the matter."

"Great idea."

"One last thing, though. Refer to me by my codename, Poké Ball Seven, from now on. It's for security measures and issues. Wouldn't want another rogue Rocket member coming after my hide just by hearing you kids shout out my name over and over."

"Very well then, Agent Poké Ball Seven," Brock responded with a nod.

"Excellent, now if you adolescents don't mind, I have some unfinished business to take care regarding an old friend of mine competing here," James announced, recalling his Amoonguss that had been waiting patiently to the side back into its Poké Ball. "I shouldn't keep my friend waiting any longer. That would be rude."

"See you then," Brock replied, waving alongside Iris and Piplup as their unlikely new ally took his leave.

"~ Ohh, I'm stiiiiill… in a dream… Snake Eater!" James sang aloud, ironically quite well, once he was a fair distance away from where Brock and Iris stood, much to their awkward confusion.

"Hey, Brock?" Iris asked.

"Yes, Iris?" Brock replied; both of them were still staring out into the distance in the direction James departed to.

"What's a 'Snake Eater'?"

"Let's not worry about those things right now. We've got to find Dawn now."

"Right! And Axew too!"

"Pip-Piplup!" Piplup chirped in agreement.

"No need to bother, we're here," a low voice grumbled from behind them.

Both Iris and Brock turned around and discovered the Twinleaf Town Coordinator and Iris's Axew standing right behind, likely at some point while they watched James leave. Iris and Axew were quick to reunite in a huge hug while Piplup leapt back to his Trainer's side. However, the Penguin Pokémon and Brock were able to note Dawn's particularly foul mood as they got closer to her.

"Dawn, what's wrong? Did you catch up with that Scrafty?" Brock inquired concernedly.

"I'd rather not talk about it," Dawn said bluntly, looking down to her feet before looking back up to Brock. "It's been a long day."

"I'll say," Iris concurred as Axew resumed his place within her large hair. "We've got a lot of things to share with the rest of the gang. We're going to find out what's happened to Ash by next week!"

"I wouldn't waste your breath since he probably wouldn't waste his on us," Dawn muttered before walking in the direction to the Pokémon Center with Piplup.

Brock and Iris exchanged worried glances, wondering what or who she had encountered while she chased after Scrafty before going and catching up to her. They both were going to ask what happened right as a loud rumbling noise occurred within their small group. The culprit turned out to be Dawn's Piplup, who placed both flippers over his stomach while blushing out of embarrassment for creating said noise.

"I almost forgot with all the excitement going on that we hadn't had a proper lunch yet," Iris pointed out.

"Okay, ladies, how about we resume our outdoor meal plan?" Brock suggested eagerly.

"That actually sounds good right about now," Dawn spoke up, sounding a bit livelier than before. "Some food should help me feel better about today."

"We can talk about what happened to all of us during lunch then," Iris offered, running ahead to find their lunch location. "Come on, guys! It's lunch time!"

"Sounds like Cilan has rubbed off on her more than she knows," Brock commented, eliciting a giggle from Dawn as a result. At least she seems better now.

Agent Poké Ball Seven is indeed James of the late Team Rocket. It was supposed to be an allusion to the legendary agent himself, James Bond. Even his agent name, Poké Ball Seven, was supposed to reference 007 when said (as Double O Seven, usually). As for him randomly singing the Metal Gear Snake Eater song, it was Bond-esque after all.

An interesting thing while I planned for James to become an agent for Interpol after Team Rocket's fall was that I thought about actually making a spin-off from this story around his life as a new secret agent. Seeing as this story takes place right after Unova and the Decolore Islands, there would be no visiting of Kalos by Ash, obviously. So then, the basic premise would be James being sent to the Kalos region to uncover the uprising of Team Flare and stop their operations, Bond style. Of course, that would take a lot of effort to work on, so that potential idea would be on hold. Let me know what you think about this, if you can.

Now after twenty chapters, you think there would be some more development between Ash and Anabel. Again, I have my reasons for making it slow as it seems, but hopefully it should turn out well fairly soon. Also, I may have a battle chapter pretty soon.

Well, it's time to measure up my writing skills. Please review!

L-ater!