Hello everybody! Well, I'm back finally! I'm glad to have a new chapter up for y'all, but there is some bad news. Unfortunately, I don't think y'all will like this installment as much as you liked the previous ones. It's ironic because I had been so happy to be done with the dual scenes changing between Ash's coma dream and the real world because it had been so hard to write, but now I'm not as impressed with this "easier to write" chapter. Of course, you must bare in mind that the main purpose of this chapter is to connect Ash getting out of the hospital to him getting on the road again. Therefore, if this chapter seems a little rushed, that's because it is. I did not want to dwell on his time in the hospital any longer than I had to, and I am really really really wanting to get to the fun stuff (which should start next chapter, actually). I want to thank all my reviewers from the past couple of weeks, and I ask that as with last chapter, you REVIEW this chapter too, PLEASE!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, or any of its affiliated companies including, but not limited to, 4Kids, The Pokemon Company, Game Freaks, or Cartoon Network. The characters written within this fic are soley based upon the fictional characters created by these companies, and the story is not meant to, nor will it, receive any monetary funding.

Characters' Ages:

Ash: 16

Brock: 21

Misty: 17

Dawn: 13

Delia: 40

Oak: 55

Gary: 16

"Mi-Misty?" Ash stuttered as he rubbed his eyes. He felt like he'd been hit by a truck.

"You're awake!" Misty exclaimed happily. She reached down and brought Ash into a close embrace. However, she soon realized that he wasn't reciprocating her hug.

Allowing his head to rest once again against the pillow, she looked at him concernedly. "What's the problem Ash?"

"What's the problem?" Ash asked, appearing confounded by the question. "Where am I? Why do I have tubes in my arms? Why don't I have pants on? The fact I can't answer these questions is the problem."

"You don't remember?" Misty asked.

"Remember what?" Ash inquired, intrigued by Misty's sincere look of compassion.

"You're fight with that Fearow," replied Misty, growing worried.

Did he get amnesia or something? she asked herself.

However, when she mentioned Fearow, Ash felt the memory hit him like a train. Suddenly the events of that night flashed through his mind; his hat blowing off, Fearow's Mirror Move, the police…the fall.

"Do you mean I passed out after Charizard and I crashed?" he asked hesitantly.

"You more than passed out!" exclaimed the young woman. "You've been in a coma for about a week now! You had me - I mean us - scared sick!"

"You're crazy!" Ash remarked. He couldn't believe that he had been out for a week. "It feels like it just happened moments ago. There's no way that was a week ago."

"Ash," Misty said sympathetically, while reaching for his hand. "You were out, but it's okay. You're awake now, and me and your mom are – Wait a minute!"

Ash jumped back in the bed a little as Misty shifted her voice from one of sympathy and kindness to shock.

"Your mom doesn't know you're awake!" Misty explained with wide eyes. "She went to go get a nurse. I'm gonna grab her real quick."

Before Ash could reply, Misty was already out of the room.

"I was out for a week?" Ash asked himself once Misty had left his bedside. It was too much. Just moments ago he was flying on Charizard, and now he was being told that he had been in a coma.

"Pi, pika!" exclaimed a little voice at the foot of Ash's bed.

Looking down, surprised, Ash saw his little companion staring at him with joy apparent in his face.

"Pikachu!" cried Ash. "Come 'ere buddy!"

At his command, the little yellow mouse bounced on top of his trainer and into his open arms. He gave a small sigh as the young man scratched him behind his right ear (only his master understood that was his favorite place to get scratched).

"So Pikachu, was I really out that long?" Ash asked as he looked down at the electric mouse.

"Pika pi, pi," replied Pikachu in his gravest tone.

"I see," replied Ketchum. He had never been able to "speak" with Pikachu and completely comprehend the little Pokémon's exact words, but he had grown a strong relationship with the electric mouse, and was able to decipher his statements' general meanings.

"Ash!" cried his mother, as she saw her son. Before he could even look up at her she had flown across the small room and was holding him in a tight hug. Unlike with Misty however, he gripped his mom with all his strength. He felt the realization of what happened don on him, and elation to be with the living once more raced through his body. "I'm so glad you're okay. I'm so glad you're okay…" his mom whispered repeatedly in his ear as she began to sob.

"I am too, Ma," he replied.

"Mr. Ketchum?" asked a tall doctor wearing a white lab coat and horn-rimmed glasses after the two had been hugging for several minutes.

"Yes?" replied Ash, releasing his mom and looking to his left, directly at the doctor.

'I am Dr. O'Sullivan," the man said. "I hate to break up what is obviously a big reunion, but unfortunately I have to ask that your mom and girlfriend leave, just for a few minutes, while I check your physical status."

Blushing a little at the comment of Misty being his girlfriend, Ash said, "No problem doc. What do you mean physical status?"

"Well," the doctor began to explain, "We need to see if you have sustained any force trauma, or if any muscles have deteriorated over the week. We also need to make sure that your brain is functioning with a normal response rate, and that you are at no risk for falling back into a comatose state."

Ash felt a little chill go up his back as the doctor stated the last risk. "You mean I could go back into a coma?"

"Not likely, but all the same it has happened before. Sometimes the brain is just too weak to continue living as it once did, but like I said the condition is rare. You should have these two beautiful ladies back within the half-hour." As he made the last remark, he pointed across the bed at Delia and Misty.

"Okay then," said Delia wearily. She really wanted to be with her son right now, but she understood what was most important was to make sure Ash was healthy. "We'll be right outside when you're done."

She then proceeded to scoop Ash one more time into her arms before finally letting him lay back down and heading out the door.

As Misty followed Delia, she suddenly stopped in front of the exit. Turning around, she ran back to Ash and gave him a tight hug. Though he was caught off-guard, he gladly hugged his friend back. However, Ash could feel the eyes of the doctor and nurse on him and the young woman, so he quickly unclasped his arms from around her torso and smiled at her.

"See ya' later, Mist," he said as she began to turn around and walk out the room.

"You too, Ash," she replied with a big smile and tears in her eyes. She closed the door quietly behind her.

"So Mr. Ketchum," began the doctor. He turned his attention not to Ash, but to the clipboard he had in his hands containing the latest information concerning his patient. "I just need to check a few things."

He began by checking Ash's reflexes by hitting his knee with a small hammer, and proceeded to check his temperature, his weight, his pulse, and his heart rate. After this was done (it took about fifteen minutes) he then asked Ash several questions, from as early as when he was four to just two weeks earlier when he won the championship.

"And which Pokémon was your last in your match against Cynthia?" Dr. O'Sullivan asked as he wrapped up the memory quiz.

"Buizel," Ash replied yawning. He knew that he had been in a coma for a week, but he felt very tired as he finished up the question and answer segment of the check-up.

"Correct Mr. Ketchum!" replied the doctor happily. He stood up from the small chair he had been sitting next to Ash on for the past half-hour and shook the trainer's hand. "It looks like you are doing fine."

"That's great!" Ash exclaimed, feeling the tiredness drain from him as he heard the good news. "So can I check out tomorrow?"

"Huh?" asked the doctor, appearing confused. "Oh no, no."

Ash's heart sunk as the doctor shook his head. "Why not?"

"You were unconscious for seven days Mr. Ketchum! We have to keep you here for at least the next two weeks for physical rehabilitation, if not longer," the doctor stated matter-of-factly.

"What? Why?" Ash asked shocked. He had thought he might have needed to stay an extra day, but two weeks?

"Over the past week, you lost twenty pounds and you can't stand up for more than three minutes without tiring. I don't think you need a medical degree to realize that a little recuperation time is necessary." The doctor was beginning to sound incredulous. He couldn't believe that someone would think that after being in a coma they could just waltz out of the hospital and have everything normal.

"Do you mean I have to rebuild my muscles?" Ash asked worriedly. He didn't want to have to learn to walk again or anything like that.

"No, of course not," the doctor replied, now appearing slightly amused at the teenagers reaction to losing his physique. "Basically, although you're awake, your muscles are still asleep. So what we'll do is give you specific exercises to help awaken them and bring you back to your former strength. If my prediction is correct, then you'll recover completely in a relatively short time."

Feeling better, Ash simply nodded and thanked the doctor. He then leaned his head back against the pillow.

"Should I send those two in to see you now?" Dr. O'Sullivan asked as he approached the door.

"Sure Doc, thanks!" answered Ash. "Oh, and one more thing!" he called out to the physician right before he allowed the women inside.

"Yes?" the doctor asked, his hand on the doorknob.

"She's just a friend."

Smiling, the doctor nodded. "I understand. I hope I didn't embarrass you right after you came out of a coma."

"No," Ash replied chuckling. "I just didn't want her to be embarrassed. She'd never want people thinking her standards were so low that she would accept me as her boyfriend."

Laughing, the doctor nodded and opened the door. Within seconds, the girls were back in the room speaking a million words per minute.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

The following two weeks helped Ash realize how big being Champion was. No matter what channel he went to on the television, all he heard were people talking about his recovery. Some of their information was correct, but most of it was just gossip. Some were saying that he hadn't awoken and that his fans had just created the rumor to stir up public interest, and some were saying that he had woken, but was paralyzed. One odd channel even reported that he was not only conscious, but had been seen in a bar outside of Petalburg City with a peg leg.

However, he didn't watch too much television because he, of course, already knew the truth. Instead, he spent most of his time in the hospital working out, and was glad to see that after a week of walking around and doing basic arm and leg maneuvers he had "fully recovered physically", according to Dr. O'Sullivan.

Despite his progress though, the doctor told him that he still could not leave until his two weeks were up because they needed to continue observing him. Although he was frustrated by that fact, he made the most of his time by doing his normal workouts. After he had turned fourteen, Ash had decided that he needed to do more than train to keep in shape, so he had set up for himself a rigorous exercise schedule that he followed religiously. Fortunately for him, the hospital provided all the equipment he needed, and it also provided plenty of young women who seemed very interested in him as they watched the trainer workout through the window that separated the hospital corridors from the gym. Although he certainly wasn't as hormonally-crazed as his good friend Brock, he did secretly enjoy the attention he received as he did his various exercises. Often as he was benching his standard two hundred and twenty-five pounds, he would look out the window to find five or six girls watching him with grins on their faces. That was always a good confidence-booster, and it helped him to finish the sets quicker.

Other than work out, Ash did little but talk with friends. After the news of his awakening had spread, it was hard to find a time when someone wasn't knocking on the hospital door requesting to talk to him. He had already thanked Ritchie for finding him in the woods, and of course Brock apologized repeatedly for messing up the phone call to the police, for which Ash forgave him immediately. All his other friends had just come by to see how he was doing, and he received more than his fair share of "get well soon" cards. However, the most important person he needed to see did not come to visit until the day he was packing up to leave the prison that was his hospital room; Gary.

"Hey, Ash," greeted Gary Oak as he walked into Ash's room. The trainer's mom was going to pick him up in front of the hospital in about thirty minutes, so he was busy packing his things up in a duffel bag. He was mostly packing the gifts people had brought to him since he didn't exactly arrive at the hospital with luggage.

Turning around from his bag full of cards, Ash looked at the aspiring Pokémon researcher.

"Hey Gary," he replied. He was not unhappy that the young leader had taken so long to come and visit him. The day after he awoke, he received a big basket of treats and a phone call from Gary. While on the phone he explained that he was very busy at the gym at the moment so there wasn't a lot of time to talk, but that he was praying for Ash's quick recovery. However, Ash did have to talk with Gary about something important, and he had been wondering when he would get the chance to have a private conversation with him.

"So everything went well, I assume?" Gary asked jokingly.

"Actually no. Turns out I have twelve minutes to live, so I decided to help out the nursing staff by dressing myself for the funeral and packing all my things into this bag," Ash responded sarcastically, holding up the duffel bag.

"Well that's a shame," Gary continued to play along. "I was really looking forward to our battle."

Raising his eyebrows as he remembered what he needed to talk to Gary about, Ash put the bag on the floor and motioned Gary to enter further into his room with his hand.

"Actually, I wanted to talk with you about that," he began.

"So did I," Gary responded, suddenly replacing the grin on his face with a slight frown. "You're still going for the Master title, aren't ya?"

"Of course!" Ash affirmed, nodding his head vigorously. "And I want to battle you as soon as possible. I know I missed the day we were supposed to do the battle, but if you could clear out the gym for a day this week, then -"

"I can't do that Ash," Gary interrupted, looking sympathetic as he watched Ash's face fall.

"Whaddya mean?" asked Ash. If Gary had been able to use the gym for their battle a couple of weeks ago, then why couldn't he now?

"I mean…well, as you probably know the Indigo League started this week."

"Yeah," replied Ash. "The opening ceremonies weren't as exciting as when we were there though." He laughed as he thought back to when he entered the tournament and wound up lighting the Moltres Flame Torch.

"That's the truth," Gary stated while laughing. He remembered that night well.

"So what's the tournament got to do with our battle?" Ash inquired after they took a brief intermission for the laughter to subside.

"Well, because of the tournament starting, all the gyms in Kanto are closed for the next couple of weeks," Gary explained. "I asked the PLB representative from Pallet if they could make an exception for our battle, but they said 'no'."

"So we can't do our battle in the gym then?" Ash asked disappointedly. He had really been looking forward to the rematch.

Looking at the ground, Gary told him "no".

"Well, wait!" Ash exclaimed as his face suddenly lit up. "What if we battled outside of the gym? We could just do it on natural terrain."

Smiling at Ash's eagerness for a battle, Gary shook his head. "I'm sorry Ash, but the League says that the match must take place on a league-certified battlefield, and they are all closed for the tournament."

"I can't believe this," Ash muttered.

"I know Ash," Gary consoled. "Trust me. There's nothing that I would like to do more than beat you in a battle, but it looks like we're just gonna have to wait a couple of weeks for the tournament to end."

"Awwwwwwwww," Ash whined immaturely. However, his head, which had dropped after Gary had finished talking, suddenly popped up as he realized something.

"Wait a minute! You said you were gonna beat me?" Ash asked incredulously.

"Of course, Ashy-boy!" Gary said, smirking. "What else could happen?"

Beginning to smile himself, Ash shot a glare at his rival. "I could do what I always do, and win, moron."

"Talk's cheap, Ash," Gary retorted. "Besides, I've won the majority of our battles, remember?"

"So what?" Ash sneered. "I won the important battle at the Silver Conference!"

"Whatever," Gary said rather flippantly. "I guess we'll really know who's best soon."

"I guess so, but what am I supposed to do in the meantime?" Ash asked, although he was sure Gary wouldn't have a solution to his dilemma.

"I dunno," Gary responded, not surprising Ash. "I suppose you should just train, and rest some."

"But I feel fine!" Ash protested. "I wanted us to have our battle soon so I could head back out on the road and start catching the Pokémon that I need to complete the League's requirement."

"Well, what's stopping ya?" Gary questioned. "It's not like you have to wait for us to battle to start catching some common Pokémon in the area."

Ash suddenly realized that Gary was right. Why didn't I think of that? he asked himself.

"You could head out to go catch some Pokémon, and the next time you come to town, we could have our battle. There's no real order in which you have to follow the guidelines as long as you do them."

"That's a great idea!" Ash practically yelled.

"I know," Gary said tilting his head up. "That's 'cause I thought of it."

Frowning at Gary's attitude, Ash bent down to grab his bag.

"The loser says 'what'," Ash mumbled as he headed out the door with Gary behind him.

Not understanding what Ash had just said, Gary called after Ash. "What?"

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

A few hours later, Ash was in his living room with his mom, Misty, Brock, and the Professor, explaining what was going on. Although he had already told Misty of his new quest, and Professor Oak had known about the requirements for years, he had realized that neither his other best friend, nor his mother had been informed of his plans.

"…so now I've gotta catch all of the Pokémon I don't have registered on my Pokedex," Ash said, summing up.

Both Brock and Delia had listened carefully throughout his brief explanation, and now both felt as if they had a million questions about what he had just told them.

"So you're saying," Delia began, "that you're planning on leaving on another journey?"

Ash nodded his head.

"Well, frankly I don't think I can approve of this. You were just in a coma! How do I know you'll be safe out there on your own?"

Feeling his stomach clench as he heard his mother voice her disapproval, Ash quickly thought up an answer to her question.

"Uh, actually, I was planning on me, Brock and Misty going together," he explained. "That way I'd always have some people with me, and we'd be able to hang out again like we used to."

After hearing this, Delia didn't seem any less nervous, or any more covinced. "But now you're the champion honey. Before, you were just some trainer among thousands of others, but now you're going to have a lot of people, like that Mallory girl, coming after you because they know you've got powerful Pokémon."

"I know Ma," Ash conceded. "But this has been my dream since I was five. There's four Champions in the world, but there's only one Master. I want to be the very best, and I can only do that if you let me go out on this quest."

"Besides," he continued, "you're right. I do have some of the most powerful Pokémon. Who's gonna be a challenge for me?"

Frowning at her son's overconfidence, Delia just sat there on her blue sofa, appearing to weigh Ash's feelings against her own. Looking up again, she asked Ash, "But what about college? You were supposed to go in two years tops, remember? We had a deal."

"You're right," Ash agreed. "And I still wanna go. That's why I planned this schedule (as he said this he pulled out an agenda book from his left pocket). I've completely outlined where I need to go and which Pokémon I need to catch for each day. If everything goes according to plan, I can have them all caught within a year and a half."

"A year and a half?" Delia asked, stunned. "It's taken you eight years to catch forty different Pokémon, and you plan on catching the rest in eighteen months?"

"Yep," Ash nodded. "You see, I originally was more focused on quality over quantity because I needed strong Pokémon to win in the tournaments I entered, but I saw plenty of Pokémon that I never considered catching that were very common, like Rattata and Pidgey."

"Well, how do you plan on getting around?" Delia asked. She was looking for any reason to keep her son from leaving her again so soon. "It'll cost way too much to take a train to all those places."

"Actually," Misty interjected, "I told Ash that we could use my car. I bought one last year, and it's in really good condition."

Happy to hear that at least her son wouldn't be walking through forests like a hobo anymore, Delia sighed and reflected for a moment. She didn't like the idea of him leaving, especially after he just got home, but his logic did seem sound. He had obviously done his research before talking to her about this, and she didn't want him to remember her as the person who stood in the way of his dreams. Finally relenting when she saw Ash pleading with her with those big, innocent eyes, she grumbled an "alright".

Jumping up, both Ash and Misty hooted and hollered at the news.

"But," Delia interrupted the small celebration, "you have to call at least every other day, and I want you home occasionally for visits. Now that you have a car, you'll have no excuse for not coming back to Pallet more often than you did growing up." As she said this, she gave her son a stern glare, making sure he understood she was serious.

"Don't worry, Ma," Ash replied cheerily. "Why would I try to avoid coming to a place where my laundry is always washed for me, and there's a free snack bar?"

Smiling a little at her son's charm, Delia just watched on as her son and Misty high-fived each other in victory. However, her attention soon turned to Brock, whom she noticed didn't seem as thrilled at the prospect of the new adventure.

"Brock, why aren't you celebrating?" Delia asked over the yelling of the two trainers.

Turning around, Ash realized his mom was right. "Yeah Brock, why aren't you celebrating with us?"

"Oh, it's nothing," Brock replied in a humdrum tone. "I just have something on my mind, is all."

"What is it Brock?" asked Misty curiously.

"Well, I know that you said you wanted me to come with you, and I can, but there's a problem," Brock informed the group. "You see Ash, while we were on our journey in Sinnoh, I had been working online to get my Breeder's certification. Anyway, I'm supposed to get certified next month and the Professor here (he pointed at the older gentleman sitting next to him on the loveseat) was able to get me an internship at PokeBreeders Inc."

"Oh," replied Ash. "I've seen their commercials on the television. Aren't they like one of the biggest Pokémon breeding centers in the world or something?"

"They are," Brock affirmed, "and with this internship, I might have a chance of getting a job there. That's why I'm not as excited to hear this. I'll be able to go with y'all for a month or so, but in July I have to go to the PokeBreeders Inc. branch over in Jubilife City."

"Well that's not fair," Ash complained. "I was hoping that my last adventure could have been just like our first one together."

"But," Misty added, "we know how important this is to you, and we're glad that you have a shot at reaching your dream too. Aren't we Ash?" As she asked him this, she jabbed him in the side slightly.

"Uh, oh yeah," Ash agreed, trying to appear happy. "I really am glad for ya Brock-o. It's just a little disappointing, but like Mist said, it's important you achieve your dream too."

Knowing that Ash was trying his best to be sincere, Brock smiled. "Thanks guys. You know if I had the choice I'd go with you, but this opportunity's too good to pass up."

"It really is," Professor Oak said. "It took me months to get Brock that internship since PokeBreeders is such an elite organization. I told Brock a few weeks ago that if he impresses the corporate leaders there, he'll be set for life."

"Well, I think we're all happy for you," Delia piped in, feeling left out of the conversation. "I for one am proud that you're going through with this. I always thought that you'd be successful, and now you're starting to prove me right."

Blushing, Brock said "thank you" to everyone.

"And like I said," he repeated, "we still have a month before I gotta head to Jubilife, so we may as well enjoy it!"

"Yeah!" Ash and Misty affirmed in unison.

Author's note: Well, like I said, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I had a hard time with the transitioning from one time to another, and frankly I really rushed certain aspects because I really want this fic to begin. Up till now I've just been building up to when they got on the road, and next chapter I finally will be where I wanted to get to this entire time. I hope you understand. Anyway, although this was a painful chapter to write, I would like to point out that it is also one of my longest, surprisingly, so I do hope y'all don't think that I just threw it together in the last minute. I put a lot of time and effort into, although you may not think so by reading it. I just don't want my readers thinking I'm getting lazy. Next chapter will be better, I promise.

Anyway, in keeping with somewhat of a tradition, here are my story recommendations for the week:

"Topless Trouble" by Cristipotter - It's a really good one-shot. They're very descriptive (which I, of course, like a lot) and the fic itself is pretty humorous. Please take a look at it and review if you have the time.

"All for One" by licoricejellybean - Finally LJB writes a chapter fic, and a frickin' good one at that! However, now I'm worried because they're definitely a better writer than me, so if you don't want to, don't read this fic (ha,ha).

"Canon Rape" by Bittersweet Romanticide - This kid is good! This is just a parody of the different fics on this site concerning Pokemon. She makes fun of different authors and their work by pointing out their flaws. Seriously, I had to stop reading it because I was laughing too hard. Definitely need to read this one.

Anyway, we are now at 85 reviews, so let's see if we can break that 100 review mark! C'mon, y'all can do it! REVIEW PLEASE!