Chapter 20: I'm Back! Ash Returns Home!
Back on Doubloon Island, Misty and Tracey searched around for Ash. He'd been missing since Misty activated a trap door and dropped Ash. "It's been three weeks, Tracey!" she complained. "Doubloon Island's big but where haven't we looked?!" Togepi continued to grow concerned, missing Pikachu as well.
"I know how you feel, Misty," Tracey acknowledged. "We've looked about everywhere for Ash on this island. I just hope they didn't get hurt badly, or worse…" To Misty, Ash's disappearance had more of an impact.
"I don't want anything worse to happen! How can he pay me back for the bike he destroyed!?" Tracey jumped at Misty's point about an incident prior and became a little upset.
"MISTY!" Tracey's shout startled Misty while Togepi looked up to him. "In case you forgot, you're the one who sent him through that trap door in the fortress! Regardless, what's more important: your bike or Ash?!"
"Well, excuse me when he happened to take my bike in a thunderstorm and barbecued it!"
"What would he need your bike in the first place?" Misty thought back to when she first saw Ash. She remembered seeing Pikachu injured before Ash put him in the basket before riding off.
"He was taking Pikachu to the Pokémon Center!"
"See? Now if something did happen to him, how would Mrs. Ketchum feel?!" Misty gawked at seeing a brunette woman in a pink shirt and skirt having fire in her eyes glaring down at her. Her face drained of color. She relented her anger.
"I-I… I'm sorry. I should be more worried… for Ash and for Pikachu." Tracey nodded, accepting the answer.
"That's better. Now, we can-" Togepi's shrill disrupted Tracey's scolding when the two turned to the Spike Ball Pokémon.
"What is it, Togepi?" Misty's Pokémon turned to the sea where they turned heads. A large bubble began to emerge from the water. "What's that?" Tracey brought out binoculars and adjusted magnification as the bubble's size increased.
"I don't know, but it's about to surface…" Out of the sea came the Thousand Sunny, surfacing after spending days below the surface. The coating that provided air to those with Devil Fruit powers popped. "A ship?" Tracey skimmed the Sunny before seeing their pirate sail. "It's a pirate ship!" Misty's face became pale with fear, learning that pirates emerged.
"Pirates?! Don't take me and Togepi!" Still looking through, Tracey spotted someone whom he believed disappeared for good and hanging with the fishkids.
"Misty… you're not gonna believe this…" Misty twisted her head to Tracey with a gawk on his face as Luffy joined Ash and the fishkids on the prow.
"What?"
"I see Ash… and he's on that pirate ship!"
"What the-!" Both gawked in disbelief. Their friend, in their minds, had gone rogue. Tracey zoomed in more at Ash and noticed his new appearance.
"And apparently, he's gotten a bit beefed up. I-I've never seen muscles like that! His arms, his torso, his legs…" Misty wasn't sure what to believe. She wanted to have a look.
"Let me see!" She traded Togepi for Tracey's binoculars to view as Zoro joined by the prow. Studying Ash's new body, Misty started to drool. "Who is he and can I have him?" she gargled. Ash journeyed away from the prow and walked around Brook and Franky. Seeing the man who ate the Revive-Revive Fruit and the cyborg, Misty let out a scream. "SKELETON! AND A ROBOT!"
"Really?" He began to reach for the binoculars when Togepi shrilled to something else.
"Now what?" In a massive splash, Shirahoshi flew out of the water. She peered up to find the sun as Misty and Tracey peered up to her size.
"The surface world!" cheered Shirahoshi. "And the sun! Darling was right, it is beautiful! And warm!" Those on the island gawked to see the giant mermaid princess.
"Tracey, are you seeing what I'm seeing?" stuttered Misty.
"It's not that I can't see it," Tracey gulped. "It's whether I'm believing what I'm seeing!" However, Togepi escaped from Tracey's arms to confront Shirahoshi. Its shrill caught her attention and looked down to find the Pokémon calling for her. "Considering Togepi wasn't afraid of Charizard or Scyther, should we be surprised that it's not afraid of a giant mermaid?" Seeing Shirahoshi looking in the trees, Ash assumed she found his friends.
"So that's Doubloon Island again," he sighed in relief. "And that means we're breathing air of the Pokémon World again. I've been missing it." Grabbing a spyglass, Ash saw where his fiancee peered to and much to his added relief, found his friends again. "There's Misty and Tracey! Boy, won't they be surprised to see me after so long." Hearing a girl's name summoned Sanji to Ash's position.
"You say Misty?!" the excited chef gasped before taking the spyglass. Looking to where Ash pointed, Sanji spotted Misty picking her baby Pokémon up. "Wow! A real doll!" Ash showed a befuddled look to one of his pirate teachers. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say she's a younger Nami-Swan!" Understanding and looking back to Nami, Ash lofted a chuckle.
"I see why…" However, he also lofted a heavy sigh. Even Sanji could tell the outcome.
"I suppose… this is when we part ways."
"Yep…" The Straw Hats gathered, knowing of Ash's departure. His first to say good-bye to was the walking skeleton. "Brook, this is it."
"I know, and it breaks my heart to see you leave," he admitted… somewhat. "That is to say since I don't have a heart!" He chortled once more with Ash smiling. "But aside from that, it's not gonna be the same without you helping us out as our Vice Captain." Flesh and bony hands shook.
"I know. I have Binks' Brew to remember you by."
"Of course… and we still have our dedicated friends to find: My Laboon and Lapras' school." Ash heard a grunt and turned to Franky carrying a bag of items inside.
"I guess I bear some of the going-away presents," he snickered. Ash approached the cyborg.
"The Thousand Sunny is a masterpiece of a ship, Franky," he smiled.
"It has to be if it can sail a thousand seas… and like Brook said, the Sunny won't be the same without you on board to help Luffy. If possible, you would see the end's of our world." To Ash, it could only be the beginning.
"If the seas back there aren't enough, you can always sail here in the Pokémon World. Besides, the Thousand Sunny's got a lot of mileage ahead." Franky chuckled as he decided to present Ash's gifts.
"I'll keep that in mind. Anyway, you'll be heading back with friends so I packed you a few bottles of Cola… and by few, I mean a whole 12-pack!" Ash laughed to the offer. "Besides, I still recall how you gave your prayers to the Going Merry and I made miniature models of that and the Sunny for you to have."
"Franky, you big lug… You shouldn't have!"
"Even better is that it's made of the same Adam Wood that the Sunny's constructed of. That's sturdier than the steel I'm made of, believe me." Ash awed the wood used.
"Adam Wood… I bet this can take an Electrode's Explosion attack." Franky had some more to give Ash.
"Now I know you weren't around during the first time we visited Fishman Island, but I also have these two models of machines I built which make up the General Franky." He pulled out two models of vehicles. One was a three-wheeled motorcycle with a star each on the back red wheels. The muffler barrel had "FR-U" printed. There was also a black horn as its front piece with a white 4 on the green circle. It had Franky's colors on it. The other was a pearl-white tank with an animal's mouth as the gun. "The motorcycle is the Black Rhino FR-U IV which is now in the Soldier Dock, same with the tank, the Brachio Tank V. I've even included the General Franky Sword and an instruction pamphlet. Some assembly required." Ash gasped in sheer delight to the gifts.
"You have no idea how awed I am to receive this!" Luffy, Usopp and Chopper didn't like that Ash got the models.
"Why didn't you make something like that for us?!" they groaned in envy. The women sighed to the three.
"We have… kids running this ship," Nami mulled.
"Franky, the Cola will be for the reunion with Misty and Tracey," Ash planned. "The Black Rhino and the Brachio Tank will be in my room." Franky grinned as he pressed his nose in.
"I think this will tell you how excited I am," he sneered. His hair grew and became a fist with a thumb sticking up. That stoked the envious boys. Ash then turned to his pirate mother.
"I know there's a moment for the child to leave the arms of their parents," she sighed. "I suppose… now's the time for me to do so." Ash huffed a sigh, knowing he'll miss her the most.
"You've been a great mom to me while I've been on the Sunny," he praised. Robin smiled before she presented the journal, the booklet that started the fiasco. "Hey, the journal! I forgot about that!"
"Indeed, which is why I wanted to give it back to you since it's important to this world." Ash reached for it and actually palmed it. However, he pushed it back to Robin, much to her surprise. "But Ash!"
"You keep it, Mom. A little something to remember me by." Robin felt blessed, even beside herself when Ash called her his mother. She dove onto her Vice Captain, hugging him in love while tearing up to the gift.
"Thank you, my son!" Robin finished it off with a massive kiss to the cheek. "I wish I was your real mother. She's blessed to have you… as am I. We will still guide Luffy to become Pirate King by finding One Piece… but I found my treasure, my One Piece." She held onto Ash for a solid minute. After she released Ash, Robin watched as Chopper was next to meet with Ash while holding a bottle.
"This should come in handy for you down the road," the reindeer neighed. Ash opened the bottle and found pills in four colors.
"Red, blue, green and purple?" he counted.
"They're for different ailments: Take the red for fevers, the blue for colds, the green for stomachaches and the purple for insomnia." Ash smiled at the medicine Chopper created.
"This will come in handy. Thanks, Chopper. You're already becoming a great doctor so quickly." Chopper beamed a smile and danced.
"I told you not to say that, you jerk! Don't say something not true!" All Ash did was scratch the back of his head. That's when Chopper stopped dancing and began to wallow up, knowing Ash was leaving. He dove onto the Vice Captain with tears coming down his face. "I don't want you to go! You've been so kind to me!" Despite the muscles, Ash remained gentle while petting the reindeer.
"I'm always with you, Chopper, even if I'm not on the Sunny." Chopper settled down as they broke the hug and Ash faced Sanji. He had the boxes stacked and ready to ship.
"Something else to bring to Doubloon Island and the Mystifyer," he nicknamed. "I've also provided a cookbook and bundles of the salt from Water 7."
"Thanks, Sanji… for the food and teaching me how to cook." Sanji nodded to the praise.
"Of course… and I'm still searching for the All Blue." Ash nodded to Sanji's dream.
"When you do find it, we'd like to see it as well." Sanji smirked to the wish.
"Bring the Mystifyer and consider it a deal." Ash snickered to the counteroffer. Usopp came next by throwing a bag of red into the bag of gifts.
"Don't mind me, I'm just throwing in a special fishing rod for you and some Ketchup Stars for Pikachu," he informed. Pikachu cheered in delight to hear of Usopp's edible ammo going with Ash and Pikachu.
"A little snack for you, huh, buddy?" teased Ash. Pikachu squeaked to accept the offer.
"And also… to thank you, Ash." Usopp's words irked and befuddled Ash. "After seeing how you fought and obliterated Arlong, you're more of a real warrior than I am by far. Hell, that fight inspired me to continue my dream of becoming a great warrior." Ash flashed a grin to the compliment.
"Keep in mind that a great warrior isn't what's on the outside."
"I don't need a reminder but still…" They shook hands as Nami came up with a pouch of tangerines.
"Sis?" Nami sniffed to the new name addressed.
"You've earned these, little brother," she expressed.
"Your tangerines… Bellemere knows about what I'm going to do with the seeds, and I'm sure the Pokémon back in Pallet Town will enjoy it as well." Nami blinked to his plan.
"You're gonna grow them at home?"
"My mom's grown plenty of fruits in the backyard. I'd want to grow them for your foster mom's memory, spread the care from Cocoyashi Village to Pallet Town and to the Kanto Region." Nami teared up, learning what Ash would be doing to the fruit.
"Ash, Bellemere came to you and now I know why. Nothing would make her happier than to see her tangerines spread all over." Her smile brought a warmth to Ash before he remembered something else.
"I know I didn't let you have the GS Ball but this should make up for it." He offered Meowth's charm to Nami who gasped to the gift.
"The coin from that Team Rocket Meowth!"
"Pikachu found it after he and the rest of my Pokémon destroyed Arlong's ship. I know you've been after this since Team Rocket stormed the Sunny and finally I have something for you to remember me by." Her priceless joyous face couldn't hold herself back from leaping onto Ash and smother him with a massive hug.
"Ash, I wish you were older! You've been a miracle, not just to me and Robin but everyone!" She gave Ash a huge kiss to the cheek which he blushed from the scene. Sanji dropped to his hands and knees, dismayed by Nami's affection.
"WHY?!" he cried. "Siblings don't kiss!" Zoro groaned, annoyed with Sanji's whining.
"You're hopeless, Curly brow," he muttered. Pikachu squeaked at the sight before Nami picked him up.
"Don't think you're going away clean," she sneered. Pikachu blinked before Nami kissed him on the lips. Pikachu gave off a loving squeal as Ash stepped to Zoro.
"Guess this is it, kid. Here…" Zoro offered a large mug in the shape of a barrel.
"That'll keep me quenched for awhile," he joked.
"Not only that, but now, I can safely say you're a man. The way you manhandled Arlong was nothing short of awesome, and inspired me to continue my training when I face Hawk-Eye." Ash smiled as they both shook hands.
"You have what it takes to be the greatest swordsman. Hawk-eye may not stand a chance."
"Maybe… I would want you to have at least a sword to take home… but since you told me the laws… I'd say anyone can use it, not on Pokémon per say."
"Yeah, but I can't necessarily ignore them." Ash now confronted the captain who gave Ash more meat than when he became Vice Captain.
"For the road," Luffy offered. Ash took the meat and scarfed it. "It's sad, knowing that my best friend's heading back to being a trainer." Ash nodded, knowing that he's stepping off.
"We both have goals ahead of us. So much I've learned from saving the Sunny to saving Fishman Island…"
"And still, you're part of the crew who made it happen." Ash smirked to the reply. "Don't forget, you're a Straw Hat… and while we're parting ways, you're still our Vice Captain… now and forever." To Ash, the title fitted him.
"I wouldn't want to change that… at all." They smiled when Luffy realized something.
"Oh crap, that handbook!" Ash forgot about the Pokémon Trainers handbook. Quickly, he relented.
"You keep it." Luffy gawked to the request.
"Me?"
"Didn't you say you wanted to be a Pokémon Trainer? Besides, I've got enough experience, especially with Pikachu, Charizard and others." Luffy stretched his smile to the offer.
"I'll treasure it, Beastman."
"Same with the straw hat. It means a lot to you and me." Now, Luffy laughed. Ash walked over to the princes and Jimbei for their farewells. "Fukaboshi, Mamboshi, Ryuboshi, Jimbei…" Fukaboshi rose a hand.
"We know, brother," he nodded. "We wish you good luck with your Pokémon journies."
"It's still new to us about the betrothal of our Shirahoshi to you," Ryuboshi said. "Regardless, our duty to protect the family is strong."
"We promise to look after our little sister for you," Mamboshi issued.
"Now, give those trainers, hell!" ordered Jimbei.
"I will," Ash finished before he and Pikachu were picked up by his fiancee. Waiting in Shirahoshi's hand was Togepi which an excited Pikachu raced to meet his friend. "Hey, Togepi! Missed us?" Togepi shrilled to Ash.
"Togepi is an adorable Pokémon," Shirahoshi cooed. Using one hand, she returned the Pokémon to the island where Misty embraced the two.
"Pikachu!" she cheered. Pikachu missed the hug from the traveling companion and squealed in delight.
"It's great to see you again, Pikachu," Tracey cheered. Pikachu squeaked to the Pokémon Watcher. Shirahoshi had her time alone with her fiance.
"Darling, I wish you wouldn't go home so soon!" she tearfully whimpered. "I'm just gonna miss you being around so much." Ash understood her sadness.
"I know, but this is the life I lived before becoming a Straw Hat," he briefed. That's when he had one more item to hand out. "By the way, you can have this." Ash handed Shirahoshi a smooth lime green stone with a lightning bolt on it. Looking down to what seemed like a tiny pebble, Shirahoshi wondered.
"What is it?"
"Dear, that's a Thunder Stone. It's an evolutionary stone that can make Pikachu or an Eevee evolve. I received it in Vermillion City. However, I'm not gonna do that to my friend. It's small but I'd rather you have it than me." Shirahoshi wallowed up in happiness.
"I'll…I'll treasure it! Thank you, my love!" She proceeded to kiss Ash several times, covering him in mermaid saliva. Sanji groaned to the love for Ash. Shirahoshi placed Ash back onto the Sunny to retrieve the gifts. Jimbei and Usopp had a few more gifts on hand.
"Just thought we'd give you a few more things to take home," Jimbei started. Usopp loaded a Transponder Snail in Ash's bag.
"I'm throwing in a scrapbook of our time together and a Transponder Snail," he added. Ash blinked to the name.
"Transponder Snail?" he repeated.
"Well, a Video Transponder Snail. It's used to communicate with others."
"Like a telephone, I get it." Jimbei had something else about the item.
"The reason we're giving this to you is that when you compete in the league," he explained. "We want to see the action and cheer you on whether on the Sunny or on Fishman Island." Ash felt the matches ahead of him would help illustrate Pokémon battles.
"I'll make sure to set him up when I compete." The fishkids had one request and approached the Vice Captain.
"Beastman, can we come to see your friends?" asked the four-armed fishgirl.
"Can we?" the merboy asked.
"Come on, why would I say no?" teased Ash. The fishkids cheered as Ash summoned Lapras. The Transport Pokémon looked up to Ash who seemed interested. "Ready to head back to Misty and Tracey?" Lapras cheered for the return. With the bag of loot, Ash leaped down to see the crowd of Straw Hats waiving to him. The fishkids joined before Ash left the Sunny. The fishkids swam alongside Lapras as he saw Misty, Tracey and the Pokémon waiting for him.
"Ash!" shouted Misty. Reaching shore, Ash hopped off Lapras to the relief of his friends.
"Misty! Tracey!" Misty gasped while holding Togepi as Pikachu crawled up Ash's shoulder.
"Where the heck have you been?! You disappeared for about three weeks! We thought you died somewhere and instead, we see you with pirates and bringing all of this loot to shore!" Ash scoffed before pointing out how he wound up with the Straw Hats.
"I fell through a trapdoor and suddenly, I became a pirate. You have no idea what I went through." Seeing the loot where Pikachu had leaped into and pulled Usopp's Ketchup Stars, Tracey felt sympathetic to Ash.
"I can tell," he spoke. "What did you bring besides a new figure? I mean, I haven't seen muscles on someone that young." Misty became red in the face with embarrassment.
"I wasn't expecting you to transform while away from us," she gulped. Togepi chirped to the notice which the four-armed fishgirl came to.
"So adorable!" she cheered as she ran to meet it. Misty became befuddled.
"I can understand that you have a LOT of questions for me," Ash sighed.
"So much, I don't know where to start like should it be with these three," she tried to regain composure.
"They're from an undersea land called Fishman Island."
"We're talking 10,000 meters below the sea," the fishboy clarified. "If you want, we can help you down there. It's amazing." Misty and Tracey stuttered to the thought.
"We'll keep that in mind," Tracey muttered. Ash then pulled out the bandanna and reached Togepi. Seeing the Straw Hat emblem, he flipped it around before tying it to the Spike Ball Pokémon.
"There you go, Togepi," Ash giggled. Togepi shrilled to the new headgear. Just as Ash felt ready to move on, Pikachu heard something and turned to the Sunny. Tracey spotted it.
"Did you hear something, Pikachu?" Before Pikachu could answer…
"Gum-Gum…" shouted Luffy. "Suspension Bridge!" His Gum-Gum Fruit powers active, Luffy flung his arms out to the island and spooking Misty and Tracey. Luffy caught his arms around a palm tree before flinging over to the island with Nami and Robin riding him. The women disembarked before landing on the sand. Seeing the women, Ash sighed.
"Did I forget something?" he asked.
"Well, one more item," Nami teased before giving Ash a spyglass. Misty saw Robin and Nami kiss Ash on the Sunny before Shirahoshi and didn't think either would be a fit for him.
"I could be wrong but aren't you two a little old?" she questioned. "We saw you giving Ash kisses on that pirate ship." Robin laughed to Misty's suspicion.
"What, can't give Ash motherly love?" she sneered. "Or in Nami's case, sisterly love?" Shirahoshi came to the island again.
"I'm just saying that seeing you that close to Ash got me a little nervous. I had a funny feeling one of you happened to be Ash's girlfriend." The women laughed to the accusation before Ash decided to clarify.
"Misty, I don't think you need to worry about a girlfriend for me," he sneered while showing her the ring. Misty and Tracey gawked to the sight.
"Is that an engagement ring?" he guessed. "Talk about moving fast!" Ash glanced up to Shirahoshi where she revealed the matching ring.
"Ash is my darling," she concluded. Misty and Tracey couldn't believe the news.
"You're getting married to… A GIANT MERMAID!?" shrieked Misty.
"Well, a giant mermaid princess," Ash corrected. Misty crumpled to the ground, realizing Ash had been taken and engaged to a princess. Words of the past came back to insult her.
"If you want somebody to do whatever you want, whenever you want, you should find yourself a girlfriend!" Misty heard her own words and soon whined. "Ash didn't get a girlfriend, he got a fiancee!"
"Pretty much…" Tracey sighed. "How do we tell Mrs. Ketchum about this?" The fishgirl came to Ash first, all of her arms wrapping around him for a hug.
"We're gonna miss you, Ash," she huffed. She gave Ash a kiss to the cheek. Nami came next with a hand on his shoulder.
"I love you, my little brother," she cooed before another kiss to the cheek. After that, Robin. She removed Ash's cap.
"I love you, my son," she said before kissing his forehead. She reapplied the cap. Lastly, Shirahoshi.
"I love you, my one true love," she whispered before they kissed each other. Luffy came to Misty and palmed her shoulder.
"Hey, watch over our Vice Captain, okay?" he ordered. Tracey gawked to Ash's title.
"Vice Captain? He repeated. "You mean Ash?"
"Of course! I know you guys will make sure he's okay." Luffy came to Ash for one last word.
"Luf-ster…" he named.
"Beastman, good luck in the league." Ash and Luffy exchanged fist-bumps. "Maybe when we visit again, we can have a Pokémon battle." Ash gasped to the offer of a battle before grinning.
"How about a full battle? Six-on-six…" Luffy grinned to the idea.
"You got it!" They now shook hands. "Good luck…Pokémon Master Ash!"
"Take care… Pirate King Luffy!" Meeting adjourned, Nami and Robin reached Luffy before he stretched his arms back out to the Sunny. Reaching the mast, Luffy slung himself and the women back to the ship. Misty and Tracey reached Ash's side as Shirahoshi and the fishkids returned on their way back to their world. The coating applied, the Sunny soon sank to the sea below but not before the crew waived a fond farewell to Ash and his friends, the women blowing kisses and Franky bawling once more to the Beastman's departure. When the ship disappeared, Ash began to sigh in relief. "I can finally resume my life as a Pokémon Trainer." That's when Misty noticed the necklace around Ash's neck.
"Whoa, those are some fancy stones," she pointed out. "They look like shark's teeth and a saw. How much did you have to pay for all that?" Ash knew Misty wasn't aware of the necklace's origin.
"Misty, these ARE real shark teeth. They're from a fishman that I beat with my bare hands." Misty gawked to the information.
"WHAT?!" Not even Tracey could believe Ash.
"I've got a lot to talk about. I'll explain it at the Pokémon Center." The group made their way to a building with a big red "P" above the door. Ash handed Misty, Tracey, a pink-haired woman in a white nurse outfit and a turquoise-haired woman in a blue police outfit the boxes from the Sunny's kitchen.
"You?!" gasped the pink-haired. "You made these with a pirate cook?"
"I did, Nurse Joy. Sanji helped teach me how to cook and with salt that no one would even think wasn't salty." Misty cackled to the claim.
"You, cook!?" she scoffed. "You can barely pour cereal into a bowl! What makes you think that you have the ability with culinary arts?!" Ash sighed, not sure how to show Misty yet. "Look, I may be able to accept that you're with pirates, that you have all these muscles, that you found an undersea city, got engaged to a giant mermaid princess… I still have trouble about those women that cheeked you… but cooking… please!" Tracey also doubted Ash's ability to cook.
"Yeah, I may also believe the Devil Fruits and Team Rocket unable to escape this Fishman Island," Tracey mulled. "But if this is part of your work, I'll need to see it for myself." Ash grinned to Tracey's challenge, thinking he can prove it.
"I know that look!" the turquoise-haired woman noted. "That's a look that's accepting the challenge." Misty huffed a groan to the woman's claim.
"Officer Jenny, don't give him ideas," she warned. Ash's first day back from his pirate days may have been rocky but Misty and Tracey won't know what Ash has in store. Ash may be back from the other world, but deep down, he'll be forever a pirate.
TO BE CONCLUDED...
(When this and my other story, I Wish I Never Met You!, are over, my next stories will be with "The Legend of Zelda," and what you guys voted for: Equestria Girls)