Chapter 10

Mewtwo was a bit uncomfortable when Ash and Pikachu fell asleep on his back a few hours into the journey to Pewter City. He knew that Ash would go to sleep at some point but the thought verses the reality is an experience that was both comforting and uneasy though it wasn't exactly something he would be totally opposed to doing during times of extreme circumstances. As he walked, he noticed that both Brock and Misty were getting a bit sluggish ahead of him though were staying awake for the most part while Mew was walking next to him with little balls of light in her paws being juggled around in a type of entertainment for her.

He sighed as walking without being able to converse to anyone but Mew was starting to get a little irritating as he wanted to ask how much further it would be that way he could at least be motivated to walk a bit faster to reach their destination or just fly to the Pokémon Center to just get out of this form so that he could communicate sooner. No matter how much he wanted it to be over, he knew that it wouldn't until Ash was at the center and in the care of a Nurse Joy.

Suddenly, a red sports vehicle sped by them kicking up a bunch of dust making everyone hack and cough from it. "Watch it bozo!" Misty yelled after the vehicle making the car hit the brakes and start backing up.

"You probably shouldn't have yelled." Brock said in a tone that seemed exasperated as the car stopped right next to them and lowered the window on the back passenger side.

Mewtwo froze in complete shock and anger as the passenger was revealed to be none other than Giovanni. Mewtwo knew that the man was alive but he also knew that as long as Giovanni was around, he could never be in his true form freely. "Little girl," Giavonni said in a no nonsense tone making Misty freeze. "Who do you think you are yelling at?"

Misty froze a tiny bit in offense to being called a little girl before saying, "I think I'm yelling at someone who doesn't care about anyone that is on the road trying to get help for an injured friend."

Giavonni raised an eyebrow at the disrespect that Misty showed before observing them all, taking in the injured form of Ash carefully on the disguised Mewtwo before his attention was once again on Misty. "I am guessing that the boy on that Dragonite is the one that is injured." He stated. "He should be more careful. Hospitals for us humans are few and far between."

"It's not like anyone planned on him being as hurt as he is." Misty growled.

"It does not matter." Giavonni said. "And it certainly does not warrant you yelling at my driver."

"You were going very fast." Brock said. "Even with our flashlights on us and your headlights lighting the way, the speed you were going at was dangerous."

Giavonni smirked. "You have a point there young man." He conceded. "Where are you headed? I will offer you a ride in compensation for my drivers mistake of speed."

Brock and Misty looked at each other before Brock said, "Very well, we need to get to Pewter for the Nurse Joy to mend his ankle."

Giavonni nodded. "Driver," he said. "Help the kids get in the car."

Mew put away her balls of light and looked at Mewtwo as he backed away from the car slowly while growling lowly. "Mewtwo?" She asked.

"He is the one that originally ordered my creation then tried to make me obey him after teaching me what I could do." Mewtwo answered making Mew look back at Giovanni before her eyes glowed slightly indicating the move Empath to determine the mans intentions.

Mew wanted to growl herself at what this man had in his emotions but refrained as the emotions geared towards the group were nothing other than some curiousness. "I do not sense any ill intentions from him towards us at this time." Mew said gently.

Mewtwo nodded but did not lower his guard as the driver of the car exited to help the others get their stuff into the trunk of the car. He was surprised that neither Ash or Pikachu woke up during any of the noise that was being created but sighed as he roused both by poking them with his antennae. "What's going on?" Ash sleepily said as he rubbed his eyes and gained his bearings around him along with Pikachu.

Brock, who heard Ash, walked over to him and said, "A man offered to get you to a hospital faster by the use of his vehicle."

Ash looked over at Giovanni who still had his window rolled down and the driver who was standing at the trunk of the car. "That was nice of him." He said as Brock slowly and carefully got him off of Mewtwo and Pikachu hopped onto the ground. "Will I meet you guys at the Hospital or are you coming with?"

"We'll be riding with you." Misty said. "We didn't want to just leave you on your own."

Ash turned to look at the disguised Mewtwo and Mew. "But who'll keep my Pokémon company? They can't fit in the car and they hate their Pokéballs."

Brock and Misty looked at each other as Brock supported Ash upright. "The can follow behind Ash." Brock said. "They are both strong Pokémon and if you want one of us can stay with them just to make sure."

Ash visibly relaxed at Brock's statement. "Misty, do you think you can stay with them?" Ash asked.

"Well yeah but why not Brock?" Misty asked.

Ash smiled. "You are strong Misty but if my Pokémon need a helping hand along the way I think that you are the better choice." He said with a bit of sarcasm.

Misty sighed but nodded. "I'll meet you at the hospital then." She said as Brock helped Ash into the back of the car with Pikachu hopping into his lap and Brock entering the front passenger side.

Giavonni smirked at Misty as she backed away from the vehicle. "I'll see you at the hospital young lady." He said as the driver got back in the drivers seat. "Don't be too long to meet them there." He then rolled up the window and sped towards Pewter City.

Mew immediately cancelled the Dragonite form on Mewtwo once the car vanished from view before putting him in the Lucario one again as Misty growled and murmured words of anger under her breath as she marched down the road with her flashlight lighting the way. Mewtwo growled as he tried hard to reign in his emotions from the memories that came forth on hearing Giavonni's voice. "Misty," he said walking behind the girl with Mew beside him.

Misty stopped walking and turned around in confusion at the suppressed emotions in Mewtwo's voice. "Yeah?" She asked.

"That man…" Mewtwo said as he walked to stand next to her. "He isn't one that you should associate yourself with."

Misty got even more confused but started walking once more down the road. "What do you mean Mewtwo?" She asked as they all walked side by side.

Mewtwo hesitated for a minute before Mew slightly pushed him to get him talking making Mewtwo glare at her before sighing. "He was the one who created me." Mewtwo bluntly said making Misty freeze in her tracks.

"I thought that the scientists created you?" She said continuing to walk after her initial shock. "The videos said they had a boss but I don't remember seeing that man on any of the tape."

"He is head of a criminal organization." Mewtwo stated. "He wouldn't risk his face on camera and reveal his identity to authorities if they by chance stumbled across the laboratory and reviewed the footage."

Misty sighed. "I suppose that is true but why did you not say something about the one who was behind your creation earlier?"

"I had no need to as I did not figure in my calculations that we would run into him so soon." Mewtwo looked down at Mew as he felt her paw on his own. "I figured he would have wanted to take care of the mess I had left one of his bases in before showing up in public just in case anyone recognized him that was not part of Team Rocket."

"If you recognized him then why let Ash and Brock into his car?" Misty asked concerned for her friends.

"I was not willing but Mew assured me that she sensed to ill intentions to what he had offered and no one can fake their intentions from a psychic type especially Mew."

Misty sighed in slight relief but worry and doubt still was in the forefront of her mind. "Do you think you can get us to the hospital a bit quicker?" She asked Mewtwo.

"Yes but if Giovanni is still there by the time we arrive he might get a bit suspicious on how you arrived so quickly and have a totally different Pokémon other than a Dragonite to help you get there fast." Mewtwo said.

Misty groaned. "I suppose you are right." She agreed. "Doesn't mean I like the reason not to appear at the hospital faster though."

Mew decided then to speak up. "I can teleport us a tiny bit closer and that way I can seek ahead invisibly and give Mewtwo the all clear once Giovanni leaves the hospital for him to teleport you guys the rest of the way." She said making Misty look at her.

Misty sighed after a tiny bit. "No. Let's just continue to walk as fast as we can there." She said making both Mew and Mewtwo look at her in confusion as just a few seconds ago she was adamant on getting to the hospital as soon as possible to be with Ash. "I know I sound like I am contradicting myself but if Giavonni is the Team Rocket leader then you never know if he has his grunts watching the towns and cities for any unusual activity. You already took a risk by turning back into a Lucario so I doubt we want to cause anymore risks because of our actions."

Mewtwo sighed but nodded as they all started to walk with a faster pace. He wondered though, what would happen if Giovanni ever found out where he was hiding and what Ash would do if that time ever came to pass but for now he was content just to stay hidden while still being able to wander free. He watched the ground go by as he walked slightly behind Misty while Mew stuck by his side making Mewtwo feel some level of comfort as the hours passed. As the sun began to rise, Mewtwo finally looked up from the ground and noticed that they were about to enter the city of Pewter.

He looked around and noticed the area was surrounded by luscious green forage, magnificent trees, rocks and caves. Misty stopped just before entering the city and looked around trying to find the hospital before spotting the white building next to the Pokémon center with Giovanni's car nowhere to be seen. Quickly, all three of them ran to the hospital and practically bowled over the door to get to the Nurse Joy that was at the reception desk. "May I help you?" The Nurse Joy asked smiling at the three politely.

"We're here for an Ash Ketchum." Misty said.

Nurse Joy looked at her computer screen that was on the desk and typed on the keyboard for a few seconds. "Ah yes," Nurse Joy said. "He is up on the third floor currently getting X-rays done to determine the damage of his ankle. You aren't allowed up there with him but you may wait for him in his room on the fourth floor room 419."

Misty nodded and went over to the elevator pressing the button to go up. Mewtwo was internally sighing in pure relief that Ash was really here and not somewhere unknown with Giavonni. As the elevator arrived and he entered with Misty and Mew, he was starting to get a bit uncomfortable with the enclosed area he was in. He knew that it wasn't as small as the test tube or the Pokéball but it was still disconcerting enough to make him start to feel claustrophobic. As they reached the fourth floor, Mewtwo had to stop himself from running out of the tiny space and straight to searching for Ash's room but managed to refrain from doing so as he did not want to be seen as weak in front of any strangers that could be roaming around. They looked at the board that held the room numbers in front of them on a wall and found that 419 was down the hall to their right, they immediately walked towards it and into the room of 419 only. To find Brock leaning in the windowsill with his arms crossed with his and Ash's bag beside him and Pikachu nervously pacing on the empty bed. When Brock and Pikachu noticed Misty, Mew, and Mewtwo he immediately stood up and watched as they reached him with worried faces.

"How's Ash?" Misty asked in slight desperation.

"He is doing okay so far. The doctors took him and assured me that we got him here before any irreversible damage had been done." Brock said.

"Thank goodness." Misty said her eyes closing and body slightly sagging in relief.

Mewtwo took a look around the room and spread his senses slightly to try to determine if Giavonni planted anything to spy on them but thankfully he sensed nothing. "Did the doctors say how long that Ash's recovery might take?" He asked looking at Brock.

Brock shook his head. "No. I suspect that they will need to determine the amount of damage before assessing that type of recovery period."

Before Mewtwo could ask another question, the sound of someone entering behind them through the doorway got all their attention and Misty, Mewtwo, Pikachu, and Mew all turned to look as Brock just put his hands to his sides to show alertness. The person who was in the doorway was a tall 6' 4" tan skinned man with brown curly hair, kind blue eyes with half moon glasses resting on his nose, he had a long white doctors lab coat on, brown pants on, black shoes on, and a clipboard in his slender hands. "I assume you are the friends of one Ash Ketchum?" His voice was soothing and calmed everyone's nerves just slightly from being a little startled.

"Yes, we are his friends." Misty said hugging her Togepi to her chest. "You have news on Ash?"

"I do." The doctor stepped fully in to the room and leaned against the wall, flipping his clipboard to the next page. "The x-rays show a substantial amount of damage to his ankle and we had to take him to the surgery ward to fix as much of the damage as soon as we could. The surgeon is working on him now and her estimate of him recovering is at about 90 percent but he may have a permanent limp. Thankfully we will not have too hard of a time fixing what damage there is and he should be out of the surgery in a few hours bar any problems that might pop up during the procedure."

"How long will he have to recover for?" Brock asked.

"That's a bit hard to determine until his surgery is done but it may be upward of 6 months." The doctor said. "Longer if he doesn't listen to proper care instructions."

Misty looked at Brock. "That long of a recovery would mean that…" she started to say looking at the sad Pikachu as Brock nodded in understanding.

"He would need to put off his Pokémon journey for at least a year." Brock concluded.

The doctor looked at a clock and said, "You all try to sleep some. You all look exhausted and I believe that some rest will help pass the time faster. I need to finish my rounds but please feel free to call a nurse if you need anything." He then left the room.

Misty walked over to the window sill next to Brock and they both sat on the ground. "Sleep you two." Mewtwo said gaining their attention. "I will keep watch for when Ash arrives." Mew flew over to Pikachu who was still on the bed and encouraged him to do the same beside her in which he complied.

"Thanks Mewtwo." Misty said before both she and Brock fell fast asleep.

Mewtwo moved over to the windowsill himself before sitting down on it, quietly watching his companions all start to drift into their own realm of dreams. He didn't feel the need to sleep as of yet and in an unfamiliar place and strongly reminded him of his time with Giavonni. He looked out the window watching as the sun cast bits of light upon the city below like it was blessing the world with happiness but to him, it was just another day starting with mysteries and precautionary measures to avoid any suspicion of Team Rocket finding him. He wanted to avoid the ominous feeling that grew in his gut but for some reason, the feeling would not go away no matter what he tried to think of that would be the cause of it. He sighed deeply and just hoped that the feeling he had would not last long, for he did not want to be involved in anything that might compromise his identity to strangers.

…

Albus rubbed his forehead in complete aggravation towards his familiar as he sat in his office behind his desk. For hours he argued with him about their travel plans but no matter what he said the plan would be, Fawkes seemed to just avoid the idea to stay by Albus' side during their travels in the new world. "Fawkes," he said while putting his gaze upon the Phoenix. "We do not know what lies in this world. We need to stick together and avoid gaining unwanted attention from the planets inhabitants. I would rather have you by my side in a world I have no knowledge about than being alone and risking any uncomfortable situations of which I will have no way out."

Fawkes looked at Albus and immediately regretted it as his old friend had taken out a tasty morsel of a mouse to try and lure him into a safe comfort and make him agree to stay with him the entire trip. As he gazed at the tasty mouse in Albus' hand, he debated in the consequences would be worth the treats his old friend would no doubt bring with him before his sense of taste overrode his brain and he nodded sullenly.

"Why are you wanting to disappear from my side so badly once we arrive there my friend?" Albus asked as he gave Fawkes the mouse. "Have I made you angry in some way?"

A shake of the head as the mouse was devoured.

"Do you need to be alone to recover your energy?"

Another shake.

"Do you want to stake out the lands before we start traveling?"

Fawkes slightly was more aggressive in his head shake on that question confusing Albus even more.

"I don't understand. You have no need to go off on your own yet you want to avoid being together for almost no reason other than just wanting to."

A nod from Fawkes.

"You understand why we need to stay together right?"

Another nod.

"So you understand that I cannot allow you to go out in a new world alone?"

A hesitant but accepting nod.

Albus sighed once more. "I'll make a deal with you." Fawkes trilled in curiosity. "I will allow you one week to go out alone in this new world but after that, we will travel together. Agreeable?"

Fawkes tilted his head a tiny bit for a few minuted mulling this deal over in his head before reluctantly agreeing making Albus smile.

"Now we need to figure out what all we need to prepare for in this new world." Albus pulled out a drawer and retrieved a parchment that had a short list written on it. "First things to figure out is what to wear in this world. If you can Fawkes, chirp if it is the second option I have written but stay quiet if it is the first. Your opinion matters to me." He smiled at his old friend. "Now then, should it be my robes or a muggle outfit?"

Fawkes chirped making Albus smile.

"Should we look around a bit to get a feel of this world before looking for Harry or ask people as we come across them in our journey?"

Fawkes tilted his head in thought before staying silent for a bit.

"If I come across Harry, should I break the news as soon as possible or get to know him before telling him?"

A chirp.

"What currency should I use for the necessities in this world in case I should run low? Silver or gold coins?"

Another chirp.

"Should I take my spare wand just in case or leave it?"

Silence.

"I will take the wand given to me by Olivander then as my other one is too important." Albus mumbled turning and taking a wand that looked like it was made of a long finger bone with 6 bumps along the length of it and in the middle of two bumps near the handle was a design that looked like a tattoo of a broom with 4 lines through it, a dot above the broom with a line on either side of it reaching out and touching a stick man surrounded by a cream undertone all around the design. He tapped on a middle area of the wall and out popped a long black rectangle box. Albus gently lifted the lid and took out a slightly less lengthy black want that had a spiral look near the base and a metal handle that had a black wrap in the middle and the Roman numeral 10 at the base of the wand. He looked at it fondle before putting the first wand in the box and putting the newer wand in his pocket after hiding the box once more in the wall. He then turned back to his list and sighed. "Most of the things on the list are for after we arrive in this world so not much left to do other than inform Minerva and Chief Rodgers that I am ready to leave." He looked at the clock in his office and noticed it was nearly dinnertime. "I'll inform them later on tonight. That way they at least have a meal in case I get held up with discussing safety and such."

Fawkes nodded and Albus put away the list into his robe pocket before rising to head towards the dining hall for a nice and well put meal hoping that by the end of the night, everything will be finalized and agreed upon with him leaving to find Harry. Fawkes trilled a bit in slight disappointment at not being able to evade being seen in the other world but he knew that he wouldn't be able to stay hidden the entire time Albus was there. It was a would where his friend would know nothing about and probably need guidance on traversing safely but he would think more on his travels at a later time, he needed his rest before the stress of thinking about going to the other world warranted an early burning day.