Aichi was soaring through the skies on his way to Snowbelle City. As he got closer the climate was getting colder. But it was strange that the trees that they were flying over were frozen in ice. Aichi landed on the ground giving Charizard another break, he looked exhausted after flying for maybe an hour straight.

"Charizard, get some rest. I think I saw a small village not far away from here. I'll try to see if I can find a Pokemon Center." Aichi said. Charizard nodded as he returned back to his Pokeball. After leaving Lumiose City, Mew decided to part ways with Aichi and explore more of the world alone, so Aichi walked alone towards the direction of the town.

"It is getting a little colder." Aichi commented to himself. A cold gust of wind blew making him shiver a little and hug himself.

Soon, Aichi made it to the town. It looked abandoned, but everything was still in tip top shape. "The people of this town must've left here recently..." Aichi analyzed. "Where is everyone in this town?" He shouted as loud as he can. He found it strange because the town was decorated, but looked incomplete.

He continued to look around. There seemed to have been no Pokemon Center in the town. It was a really small town with little residents. "Is anyone there?!" Aichi asked loudly. Silence… "This is strange…"

Suddenly, Aichi heard a cry, sounding like a bird. Aichi ran towards the direction and heard a human scream along with it. Aichi hurried and saw a little boy about to get attacked by Articuno.

"Wait! Stop!" Aichi shouted. He used his Psyqualia. Articuno turned to Aichi instead. He pulled out his Pokedex to see who the Pokemon was.

"Articuno. The Freeze Pokemon. Articuno is one of the three winged mirage Legendary Pokemon. It is most notable for its ability to control the cold."

Aichi knew that something must've been up when he saw the frozen trees. "Everything is alright, please tell me what's wrong." Aichi said. Articuno flapped its wings creating a freezing cold breeze as it retreated.

"Thank you for helping me." The boy thanked. He was wearing a think coat and a scarf. Aichi was shivered and trying to keep warm after being hit by the freezing breeze.

"Dalus!" An older boy called. He came from inside the forest.

"Big bro!" The boy now identified as Dalus replied.

"You shouldn't have ran back like that! It was dangerous!" The older brother scolded. He looked like Aichi's age.

"Yea, but someone came to help me." Dalus said as he pointed at Aichi. He was hugging his knees shivering really badly.

"This isn't good. He must be really cold, he isn't wearing that much warm clothing too." The brother said. He took off his coat and put it over Aichi. At that point, he was so cold that he was hardly able to move from the position he was in.

"Come on, I'll help you to the camps where the townspeople are staying at the moment." The brother said giving Aichi a shoulder. Aichi coughed and his breathing was heavier than before.

Soon, they got to the campsite. By then Aichi seemed to have already caught a cold. "Dalus!" A woman cried most likely his mother. She ran to Dalus and hugged him tightly. Aichi was pretty pale and couldn't even stand up straight or walk by himself. Dalus's brother was carrying him along.

"Oh my, Kevin. What happened and who is that boy?" A old lady asked, most likely Kevin and Dalus' grandma.

"He saved me, mom. He was amazing, it was like he spoke to Articuno." Dalus answered.

"Come, bring him inside the tent. We need to get his body warm." Their mom said opening the opening to the tent.

Kevin helped Aichi inside the tent and placed him on one of the beds. There were fire type Pokemon inside keeping the inside of the tent warm.

"Thank you…" Aichi thanked. His voice was shaky and he was still shivering, but he seemed to be better.

"Thank you for helping my son when he ran into Articuno." Their mother replied. Aichi coughed.

"What happened here?" Aichi asked.

"A while ago, there were stories of Moltres appearing at the peak of Mt. Molteau. It was on a rampage after awakening from its slumber. Three days ago, our village caught word that Zapdos was seen near Joule City near the day of the Zapdos Festival. Yesterday, Articuno grew angry and started going on a rampage. Everyone hurried to pack their essential belongings and abandoned the town." Kevin explained.

"Why was Articuno mad?" Aichi asked.

"We had a minor setback with our preparation for the Frost Festival. You see, the weather in this area changes, unlike other parts of the region or even the world. It is said that Articuno is in a slumber on a mountain near this town and only when it awakens will it create cold climates. The Frost Festival is held to commemorate Articuno when it awakens so that after being woken up, it will calm down and soon fall into its slumber once more, so the heat returns. We predict when Articuno awakens by Pokemon as the climate gets colder and colder more and more Pokemon that thrive in the warm hibernate to wait out the long cold. The Pokemon that thrive in the cold come out to join us in the Frost Festival." Grandma explained.

"But this year, there were some children that weren't taking the Festival preparations seriously and slowed down our progress far too much and we weren't able to celebrate the Frost Festival." Kevin added turning to his brother.

"I understand." Aichi replied. His shiver seemed to have stopped temporarily. "I can help calm Articuno down. Or at least distracted it long enough for you to finish the preparations."

"We can't ask that of you. You helped save Dalus and you almost got a bad cold while doing so. If you go out there again you may be faced with a worst cold." Kevin denied.

"I'll be fine. I just hope that my Charizard is up to the task. We flew for a few hours to try to get to Snowbelle City. I'm not sure if he had enough rest to stall Articuno." Aichi said.

"That is the reason why we can't ask that of you." Kevin said.

Aichi shook his head. "I can't just leave your village to freeze in an infinite winter and I don't want Articuno to be angry anymore. I want to use my ability to talk to Pokemon to help your town." He replied.

"If you insist, then you can help us distract Articuno as we finish the preparations. We'll give you a coat so that Articuno can't freeze you so easily again." The mother said.

"Mom! He's in no condition to help us." Kevin exclaimed.

"We must calm down Articuno, our little town won't last long in the woods." The mother replied.

Aichi sat up on his own and released Charizard from his Pokeball. He still seemed tired from the flight earlier. "Charizard, I know you're tired, but do you mind helping me calm down Articuno?" He asked.

Charizard gave him the thumbs up but Aichi can see that he wasn't up for the task. "Charizard, will you be alright?" He asked. Charizard nodded as a sweat dropped down.

"Don't push yourself, Charizard. I'll return you back to your Pokeball if you need it." Aichi said. He stood up, he felt fine.

"Take this. This will keep you warmer out there." Kevin said, he handed Aichi a dark blue coat.

"Thank you, I'll hold Articuno off as long as I can. Hurry and finish the preparations." Aichi said. They nodded and Aichi ran out with Charizard after wearing the coat.

"Are you cold, Charizard?" Aichi asked as they started flying. They were looking for Articuno.

Charizard shook his head and the flame of his tail burned bright. "That's good." Aichi smiled.

"I'm sure that if we had my Key Stone this will be an easier task." Aichi said. His bracelet was empty, he can't help but think of all the energy Lysandre obtained by taking all the Mega Evolution energy and some Psyqualia energy his stone gathered.

"Charizard~!" Charizard pointed to a large flying blue bird in the forest.

"That's Articuno." Aichi exclaimed. "Charizard get its attention, but don't hurt it." Charizard nodded and he used Flamethrower at the place Articuno was about to fly in which got its attention.

Aichi and Charizard quickly landed and Aichi immediately tried to talk to Articuno. "Articuno, we aren't here to hurt you. We just want to talk to you and calm you down."

Articuno screeched. It still looked angry. "Calm down, please." Aichi pleaded, the tone of his voice worn on Articuno's anger a little. Aichi slowly moved closer to Articuno. "It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you. So don't be afraid."

Aichi reached his hand out to touch Articuno. The clouds started to cover the sky, a cold breeze of wind blew past them. Articuno moved back from Aichi slightly. "It's okay, I won't hurt you." Aichi repeated. Articuno flapped it's wings a little causing a freezing cold breeze to hit Aichi. He endured it and tried to hide his cold feeling from Articuno, it nodded at Aichi.

"Can you do anything to stop the frost in this area?" Aichi asked. It curled itself and looked like it was going to sleep. "So you need to sleep to stop this?"

Articuno nodded as it got up. "Articuno~"

"So you only awaken when you sense someone needs help and for when summer changes to winter here?" Aichi asked for confirmation. Articuno nodded, but then it heard something. Aichi heard it slightly, it sounded like music. It was soft and peaceful.

"Let's go together, I think they've finished the festival for you." Aichi said with a smile. He got on Charizard's back and flew alongside Articuno to the festival. The festival had a trail of water where Articuno followed and turned it into ice all the way back to the peak of the mountain. There were many decorations along the trail and town.

"This looks so great! Don't you think Charizard?" Aichi asked. He held out his hand slightly to touch the frost coming from Articuno flapping its wings. At the end of the festival, Articuno fell into a slumber once more and the clouds disappeared and the ice slowly melted.

"Thank you. You were a lot of help. You mentioned you wanted to go to Snowbelle City a while back?" Kevin asked.

"Yea, I forgot that I was going somewhere for a second. I was having too much fun." Aichi answered.

"If you fly that way, it will lead you straight to Snowbelle City. You and your Pokemon can rest here for the night and leave tomorrow." Kevin's mom suggested.

"I would like that, Charizard is exhausted." Aichi replied. Charizard nodded, not as energetically.

Aichi stayed for the night and left in the morning, the townspeople gave the coat to Aichi as a thank you gift. As they were flying Aichi felt something and looked inside his bag. Azumarill's Pokeball was glowing. "Azumarill?" Aichi called. He used his Psyqualia strongly as Azumarill broke free and sat on Charizard's back beside Aichi.

"You broke free!" Aichi exclaimed. Charizard flew down to the ground, once reaching the ground he looked happy seeing Azumarill again.

"Charizard~!"

"Azumarill~!"

"It must have something to do with Articuno." Aichi said. Azumarill nodded. "That is good. Thank you, Articuno if you are there!"

A cold wind blew past them. "Even though Articuno is asleep, it is still watching over the world." Aichi said. He looked up at the sky, in the distance the clouds were in place signalling that they were getting closer to Snowbelle City.

He was excited to be seeing Ash, Serena, Bonnie and Clemont again.

"Charizard~!"

"Azumarill~!"

"Alright, let's keep going. Ash, Serena, Bonnie and Clemont are waiting for us." Aichi said. They nodded. Aichi returned Azumarill back to her Pokeball and continued on.

~A Few Days Later~

Aichi was flying and he saw Snowbelle City in the distance. "Charizard! That's it we made it!" He pointed out, he was shouting louder than the wind so that Charizard can hear him.

"Aichi!" He heard some people call. It was quiet, but he was able to hear his name faintly. He looked down to see Ash and the others waving at him from the ground.

"There they are. Let's get down there." Aichi said. Charizard nodded and flew down.

"It is nice to see all of you again." Aichi greeted.

"It's been a while, hasn't it Aichi? How are you feeling?" Ash asked.

"I'm feeling as good as ever. This is your final gym badge right? Do you want to have a practice match before you battle? I wanted to battle you again." Aichi answered.

"You got it, Aichi. I'm up for it." Ash accepted. They all hurried to the Pokemon Center, Aichi gave Nurse Joy his Azumarill and Charizard to heal them preparing them for the battle with Ash. Sawyer was battling another trainer to practice for his gym battle as well.

"Aichi, how is your other Pokemon?" Serena asked. Aichi took off his bag and put it to his side. He pulled out four locked Pokeballs.

"I think Azumarill and I's bond strengthened for some reason. After I helped some people, Azumarill managed to break free. I ran into a town on the way here and I saw Articuno, I guess after helping it, Azumarill suddenly felt our bond strengthen. I was thinking that maybe Articuno help me somehow." Aichi explained.

"We ran into Zapdos recently and Moltes a while ago. Do you think maybe they would help you?" Clemont asked.

"I think our bonds would strengthen when the time is right. I'm not even sure if what I was thinking is the right solution." Aichi answered. Everyone looked at him concerned. "It really is okay. I believe that our bonds are strong enough to help them escape."

Aichi smiled at his four locked Pokeballs. "Aichi, Ash, your Pokemon are fully recovered." Nurse Joy called. Ash and Aichi walked up to get their Pokeballs back.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy." They thanked together.

"Let's get this battle started!" Ash cheered as he pulled Aichi's arm to the battlefield. Serena, Clemont and Bonnie followed along. They saw that Sawyer was just about to win the battle with his Mega Sceptile against a Mega Charizard Y.

"Wow! Sawyer has really gotten better, hasn't he? He is much stronger than the last time we met." Aichi commented. Sawyer concluded the battle and defeated Mega Charizard Y.

"Sawyer, you were awesome!" Ash cheered.

"Thank you, Ash." Sawyer thanked.

"I can tell your opponent was really skilled, but even with a type disadvantage, you still managed to defeat him." Clemont commented.

"You give me too much credit. I've just been doing a lot of special training with Sceptile." Sawyer replied.

"Come on, Aichi. Let's have our battle." Ash said. Aichi nodded and they walked to separate sides. "Let's have a 2 vs 2 battle."

"Sounds good." Aichi replied. He released his Pokemon. "Azumarill, you're up." Azumarill came out of her Pokeball and onto the field.

"Since Azumarill is a water-type. Pikachu, come out." Ash said. Pikachu nodded and walked on.

"Ash, let's have a fun battle." Aichi replied with a smile.

"I'll be the referee." Clemont said. "Battle begin."

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt."

"Azumarill counter it with Rollout." Pikachu attacked, Azumarill nullified it by using Rollout, but Azumarill was faster than Ash and Pikachu anticipated and the attack hit directly.

"Azumarill is so fast. We can see what Aichi was working on." Serena said.

"Azumarill, hurry. Use Rough Play before Pikachu can recover."

Pikachu was about to get up when Azumarill knocked Pikachu back down over and over again. "Pikachu, use Agility to get out of there. Then use Thunderbolt."

Pikachu was quick and dodged all Azumarill's attacks. Aichi closed his eyes. "Azumarill, use Aqua Tail at 6 o'clock. Now!" Azumarill knocked Pikachu into a pile of snow. Aichi opened his eyes. Pikachu seemed to have fainted after hitting the snow, the ground was icy and from the impact, Pikachu cracked it.

"Azumarill, you did well. You were great." Aichi said. He returned Azumarill back to her Pokeball, after taking little to no damage. He turned to Ash and Pikachu. "Is Pikachu alright?"

"Yea. Pikachu seems to be fine." Ash responded as Pikachu started to wake up. Pikachu looked disappointed in himself. "It's alright, Pikachu. We know that Aichi is a strong trainer, that would just mean we'll need to work that much stronger."

Pikachu nodded as they walked back to their side of the field. "Greninja, it's up to you!" Ash called as Greninja came out of his Pokeball.

"Ash knows that Aichi can only use Charizard and Greninja is a water type." Serena said.

"I believe in you, Charizard." Aichi called as Charizard was released. "Charizard, we may not have Mega Evolution and we might be in a type disadvantage, but we have a strong bond to make up for it. Let's fight our hardest."

Charizard nodded cheerfully. Clemont signal that the battle has started. "Greninja, Water Shuriken!"

"Charizard dodge by using your flying speed." Charizard dodged well, Aichi knew that Charizard's speed while in flight was much better than on the ground. "Charizard, quickly. Use Smokescreen to create some cover."

Charizard used Smokescreen while flying around to dodge the Water Shurikens who were still being thrown. Aichi closed his eyes and felt the aura of Greninja and Charizard to know where they both were. He noticed Greninja's aura changed, it looked exactly like Ash's.

"Charizard swoop in with Dragon Claw. Right… Now!" Charizard nodded and he flew quickly making the Smokescreen disappear where he was flying. But it didn't matter because of his amazing speed, the Dragon Claw landed. Aichi saw Ash-Greninja and his eyes widened.

"Greninja, grab Charizard's tail before he gets away!"

Greninja did as told. "Now, Water Pulse."

Greninja's attack hit and it did a lot of damage to Charizard. "Charizard, are you alright?" Aichi asked.

"Water Shuriken!" The Water Shuriken landed. Aichi's Psyqualia activated triggering Charizard's Mega Evolution.

"Charizard, Mega Evolved?" Aichi asked. Another Water Shuriken was about to land. "Charizard, fly up!"

Charizard successfully dodged the attack. "Dragon Pulse." Aichi ordered.

The Dragon Pulse landed knocking Greninja back. Both Pokemon and trainers were exhausted.

"Wow, this is an intense match." Serena commented. Both Ash and Aichi were smiling, they were enjoying themselves.

"Greninja, Water Pulse!"

"Charizard, Dragon Pulse!"

Both attacks barely passed each other and hit both Pokemon. Aichi and Ash felt the impact and were down on the floor.

"Ash! Aichi!"

Both Pokemon were trying to get up, but both fainted at the same time. The forms dispersed and they were both back to their normal forms. "Both Pokemon are unable to battle, but… Aichi's Azumarill didn't faint, so since this battle is a 2 vs 2. Aichi wins." Clemont announced.

"You did good, we'll get you to Nurse Joy."

"Ash, Aichi. Are both of you alright?" Serena and Clemont asked.

Aichi sat down normally. He looked tired calling out Mega Evolution without his Keystone. "How did he Mega Evolve his Pokemon without having a Keystone?" Sawyer asked in surprise.

"Um… Well…" Serena, Bonnie, Clemont and Ash mumbled turning to Aichi.

"To put it in short. I have a power that strengthens my connection to Pokemon. Using that power can act as a Keystone, it can also be used to Mega Evolve more Pokemon at once. But without my Keystone a lot more energy will be consumed." Aichi explained briefly. It was enough information for Sawyer to understand what he was trying to say, but not enough for him to process.

"So it's just like Ash's ability?" Sawyer asked.

"I guess, you can say that. The functions are similar, but not exact." Clemont answered.

"That's so cool!" Sawyer exclaimed.

Aichi didn't want to talk about it any more than he had already. He looked at the sky and saw that it was cloudy, but he was able to faintly see the sun close to the highest point. "How about we get our Pokemon taken care of, so that you two can get your gym battles?" Aichi suggested as he got up. Ash still looked tired, so Aichi gave him a hand to get up on his feet.

"Sounds good." Ash said.

"Sorry if I exhausted you too much for your gym battle, Ash. It didn't feel like it was the time to not go at you with my full strength. I didn't think about the energy you needed for your gym battle." Aichi apologized.

"It isn't a big deal. That battle made me more pumped up for the gym battle!" Ash cheered. He seemed a lot more energetic that a few seconds ago. Aichi smiled as he saw Ash run into the Pokemon Center and everyone else following.

"Hey Ash! There is plenty of time. You don't need to run!" Clemont whined. Serena turned to Aichi who was still standing at his place.

"Come on, Aichi. If we don't catch him now, he will run out the door without us." Serena said. Aichi nodded with the smile still on his face before catching up to everyone else.

Blissey took Aichi's Pokemon inside to rest them. Ash's Pokemon finished resting first. "Aichi, I'm sorry, but we have an emergency patient, if you don't mind. Can you wait a little while longer?" Nurse Joy asked. Aichi looked to her side and say a Charmander with a weak flame.

"It's fine, Nurse Joy. Just take care of his Charmander." Aichi replied.

"Thank you for understanding." Nurse Joy thanked before running into the emergency room with Charmander and Blissey.

"I think by the time Nurse Joy finishes up with my Pokemon and that Charmander your gym battle would be done." Aichi said.

"Alright! Let's go!" Ash cheered as he hurried everyone out the door and to the gym.

When they got to the gym, there was a door that led to the battlefield.

"Hello, my name is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town! I'm here for a gym battle!" Ash announced in the hallway. A bunch of little Bergmite came from underneath the floor. They looked at the group and saw Aichi, they smiled and laughed jumping around Aichi in joy.

"It's nice to see all of you well." Aichi said.

Everyone looked at each other confused. "Oh, yea! Aichi has already been here and got his badge." Clemont remembered.

Aichi nodded. "You are here to challenge the Snowbelle Gym, please come in." A voice said on the speakers. The Bergmite ran to the door and pushed it as hard as they possibly could to open it and they did in a minute or so and they flooded the field before disappearing inside a corridor behind Wulfric.

"How pleasant to see you again, Aichi and Sawyer. You told me that your friends were going to challenge me to a gym battle soon. I was awaiting the moment when I would be able to battle them." Wulfric said.

"Well, I can assure you that Ash is really strong. It would be worth the wait." Aichi responded.

Wulfric laughed happily. "I have already met Sawyer, he is a fine trainer. But I don't think I've met the other." He said.

"I am! My name is Ash Ketchum, I'm from Pallet Town in the Kanto Region. I came here to enter and win the Kalos League." Ash replied.

"Well, that is a high task, you will be meeting Aichi there. Maybe in the final match. I think that is enough talk, if you freeze up here you won't ever be able to climb up to the Kalos League. Do you wish to begin our battle?" Wulfric asked.

"I am." Ash answered.

"Great, let's begin." Wulfric declared.

"The match between Wulfric the gym leader and Ash Ketchum the challenger will now commence. It will be a three on three match and only the challenger will be able to make any substitutions. The battle will finish when both of one side's Pokemon is unable to battle. Battle begin!" The referee explained. Wulfric released Abomasnow and Ash sent out Halucha.

"Let's stop this losing streak Halucha!" Ash said.

"Halucha~!"

~At the End of the Battle~

Ash lost and he looked exhausted and hurt, he was sitting seeming to be a hazy consciousness. Aichi knew that Greninja was unable to battle, but Ash didn't look okay.

"Ash!" Everyone shouted.

"Greninja is unable to battle, Wulfric is the winner!" The referee announced.

Aichi jumped from the sidelines and landed on the ground easily. "Ash! Are you alright?!" He asked. He put his hand on Ash's shoulders and shook him a little.

"Aichi looks so worried for Ash…" Bonnie said.

"Of course, only Aichi knows how Ash feels right now. He understands his pain." Serena replied.

Aichi used Psyqualia in hopes of helping Ash recover. His aura made Ash feel warm, but then Ash knocked Aichi's arms off of him as his consciousness stabilized. "Ash?"

Aichi looked closely and saw Ash's aura darken a little. Ash was frustrated because he wanted to win so bad and yet he still lost. Aichi understood that from the sheer determination in his words while he was battling. "Ash, a loss can only make you stronger. Don't beat yourself up for it." Aichi said.

"You are the one to talk, Aichi… When this happened to you, you beat yourself up for it…" Ash responded. Aichi's eyes widened. His voice was soft enough for Aichi and Pikachu to hear it, but for no one else to.

"Ash…?"

"Pikachu…~"

"I'm sure that you were jealous of this boy after witnessing his strength. A strength that you will never be able to surpass."

"I hope you learned something. Being ridged might make you strong, but it is better to be flexible in the long run. I'm stubborn like ice, I love ice. But it is best to follow the battle style that works for you and being like ice isn't yours. You are powerful, but it doesn't seem like you've mastered your power yet." Wulfric said.

Aichi turned to Ash and he looked lost. They returned to the Pokemon Center for the time being. Sawyer continued on his journey leaving Serena, Ash, Aichi, Bonnie and Clemont together. It was quiet and Aichi kept staring Ash's aura as it got darker as his frustration, doubt and the crave for power increased.

Nurse Joy walked out of the treatment room, she held Aichi's Pokemon with her and the boy that she helped earlier ran out with his Charmander thanking Aichi for letting Nurse Joy care for it first. Aichi took his Pokeballs. "How is Greninja?" He asked.

"Greninja is really weak right now. Seems that gym battle really put a number on him." Nurse Joy answered.

"I see. Will he be okay?" Aichi asked.

"Greninja just needs a little rest, that's all." Nurse Joy answered.

"I see, that's a relief. Ash, Greninja's okay." Aichi informed with a smile. Ash didn't answer. Aichi's expression changed into a slightly sad one.

Later in the day, Ash walked into Greninja's room. Greninja didn't look at him, he walked to Greninja's side. "I'm sorry, Greninja. If only I was stronger, I would be able to make the most of your power." He apologized. Greninja didn't turn to him. "If only I was like Aichi... He would be a trainer worthy of your power." Greninja didn't move or say anything.

He walked out putting on his coat. "Ash, where are you going?" Serena asked. He walked towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

"Pikachu~?!"

"I just want to be alone right now." Ash replied.

"Ash! In times like these, being alone will make you feel worst!" Aichi scolded. Ash scrunched up his fist. "You have friends! We are all your friends! We aren't here to knock you down, we are here to help you! Why won't you talk to us about it?!"

"You don't know how I feel! There is no way! Unlike you, Aichi. I'm not perfect like you! I don't have that power that lets you do get powerful and talk to Pokemon!" Ash shouted back.

"Of course, I know how you feel, Ash! I was just like you, I felt frustrated because I was weak. The time that I wasn't apart of your journey made me feel insignificant in this group of ours. The power I saw in you made me feel weak and topping that with the strength Serena and Clemont gained while I was gone. But then recently, my friend made me realize that I was wrong. He reminded me that I don't need to use Psyqualia, nor did I need to be the strongest around." Aichi explained.

"Ash, listen to me. There is no need for you to compare yourself to me, because you are just as strong with the strength have currently." Aichi added.

"Aichi… Unlike you, I still need to get all of my gym badges! Why did you even return here and stay with us?! If you felt that way you could've left back to your own world! You wouldn't have to deal with any of it, I can't do that like you can!" Ash responded.

"Ash!" Serena and Clemont exclaimed.

Aichi's lowered his head. "I stayed because of you… All of you… If I ran from your world's crisis without doing anything, I knew I wouldn't ever be able to forget and forgive myself. Going back without achieving anything, that is just not how I would act normally. And this isn't you Ash, The way I thought I knew you was 'a strong trainer that cared and believed in all of his Pokemon' and more importantly 'a trainer that believes in his strength and his strength alone." Aichi explained. Ash was silenced and didn't say a thing.

Aichi lightened himself up. "If that is how you feel now… Then I will respect your judgement on me. Just know that I really want to keep going on in this journey with all of you, but if I'm only here to drag you back then you'll be better off if I just going back." He replied. Ash turned and ran into the snowy forest.

After he left, Aichi sat back down on his seat.

"Aichi, I'm sure Ash didn't mean what he said. Please don't leave our journey so soon." Clemont and Serena said.

"I'll leave it up to Ash to make that decision." Aichi said.

Ash, frustrated by his last match with Wulfric ran into the forest and before that, he made Aichi once again doubt his decision to return back to the Pokemon world. The journey continues...

Hello, guys. A little different chapter; A very emotional and deep chapter this week.

Today is actually the day I first began posting stories. Boy, I remember how nervous I was posting the first chapter of XY Vanguard. And here we are, a sequel to the original story I posted and two other stories under this accounts name.

It has been really fun writing and I hope all of you enjoy the crazy stories I've managed to create. This is an early chapter to commemorate my technically 1 year anniversary. So thank you for reading! :3