A.N. Well, hello again!
I'm very glad to have finished this fic before the end of pride month! I promised I'd do something related to the marriage pictures that were released prior to the Gary's return episode.
As such, this chapter of the fic is ResearcherShipping! But there are also plenty of other mentioned ships, because it's set in the future and I wanted to take the opportunity to showcase the other ships I support in the pokémon anime.
For purposes of clarity, these are the ships I used for this chapter (I won't put them in the tags because they're not a big part of the story):
Brock/Olivia, May/Drew, Dawn/Zoey, Georgia/Iris/Shannon, Miette/Serena/Shauna, Lillie/Mallow and Misty/Lana.
As for the characters' ages, I haven't entirely decided how far into the future this one-shot is set, but Ash, Gary and Goh are 18-20 years old.
Anyway, I hope you all enjoy the story! I worked really hard on it :D
The sun slowly rose through the window of Ash's house, its rays of light doing their best to wake the young man up.
Ash responded by trying to shield his eyes and wrapping himself with his blanket even tighter than before, but his plan was thwarted by his own partner pokémon, Pikachu, who tugged at the blanket in the opposite direction while making some very angry "Pika" noises.
"C'mon, Pikachu, I'm trying to sleep! Why are you like this today?" Ash grumbled. "Do we have some sort of appointment?" Ash rubbed his eyes. Clearly it was futile to attempt to sleep at this point.
Pikachu replied to the question by turning his head and harrumphing. Now Ash was curious. He must be forgetting something very important – a really big commitment! But what could it be?
He decided to just get up, get some coffee and try to remember as quickly as possible. So Ash dressed himself – as quickly as he could, now that he was living alone without someone like his mom to help him – and went to his living room. He turned on the TV, thinking maybe whatever it was could be big enough to appear on the news. It usually did turn out like that, when it came to him.
Instead, he was shown the image of a news reporter interviewing his much-beloved friend (maybe more) Goh.
"How does it feel to be the first man to ever complete the pokédex? And at such a young age, too!"
"Well, ma'am, as much as I would love to bask in this accomplishment", Goh said while grinning and making sparkles appear in the air for effect, "the truth is that there are new pokémon species being found every day, so there is really no such thing as a complete pokédex. I've only managed to get as close as anyone would be able to get at the present moment."
"Is there anyone you would like to thank for helping you get this far?"
"Well, I would like to thank Miss Chloe Cerise, who is currently a teacher at Pokémon Tech, for always sticking up for me when I was young, even if we butted heads sometimes. I think we both gravitated toward each other because neither of us knew how to make friends back then." Ash chuckled slightly at Goh's openness, picturing Chloe calling Goh in the middle of the interview to rag on him about mentioning such private details.
"Special mention should also go to my rival – in more ways than one – Gary Oak, who was the one who convinced me, albeit in a rather roundabout way, to join Project Mew. Their resources and training were a big help, and if he hadn't kept provoking me about him being a part of it, I would most likely have just let the opportunity pass me by because I wanted to work alone." Ash shifted uncomfortably in his seat at the words 'in more ways than one', knowing what Goh was most likely referring to.
"And most importantly I want to thank my best friend, Ash Ketchum, who all you viewers know is the reigning World Champion. I couldn't have even gotten started on this journey if he hadn't encouraged me to open up and broaden my horizons. To this day, he still has a better opinion of me than I do. It was thanks to him that I was able to make the choice to catch Scorbunny, and every other pokémon since then…"
Ash would have probably started reminiscing about their first days together while hearing this, but something Goh said jogged his memory.
"Make the choice…"
'You have to make a choice, Ash!'
Ash got up from his seat abruptly, and smacked his forehead in frustration. "THAT'S RIGHT! How could I have forgotten? My choice…"
He then slumped his shoulder as the full realization of what he had to do dawned on him. "The hardest choice of my entire life…"
One day earlier
Ash was feeling a little uncomfortable in his tuxedo.
"Do I really need to wear this…?"
"Oh, come on, Ash, you're wearing the simplest outfit out of all of us", Goh remarked. Indeed, Ash was wearing a simple black vest, a white undershirt and shorts. Compared to Goh's more elegant all-white outfit, he didn't look very appropriate to the occasion.
"Yeah, who even wears shorts to a wedding? It could only be our Ashy-boy!" Gary commented, walking up from behind Ash and ruffling his hair. Goh glared at him in response.
"Well, I happen to like shorts!" Ash huffed. "Besides, I don't think Misty and Lana will mind my outfit as long as I'm here for their wedding like anyone else."
"Say cheese, you three!" Todd Snap, the wedding photographer, told them. The trio huddle closer together and smiled. Todd's camera flashed, and in only a few seconds, a picture came out of it.
He removed the picture and showed it to them. "I'd say you guys looked even better than in last years' wedding!"
"Which one was that, again?" Goh said, placing his hand on his chin pensively.
"It was Serena and Miette, I think… or was it Serena and Shauna?"
"Pretty sure they were both last year, just a few months apart", Gary explained.
"Ash has so many friends, geez."
Meanwhile, Ash took the picture and placed it in a photo album, which he was quick to show to the other two boys.
"Look, look! I have all the pictures from all the other weddings we went to over the years!" The other two boys leaned in to look closer.
"Here's us in Iris and Shannon and Georgia's weddings, then Dawn and Zoey's, then May and Drew's, then Brock and Olivia's!" Ash's eyes sparkled with glee. "We look so cute holding those flowers!"
"We look so young in that one, too!" Goh commented.
"Our fashion didn't change much, apparently. Ash is still wearing shorts."
"HEY!"
"Although, I find it a weird coincidence that Todd always takes one of picture of the three us together. It's like he's trying to imply something." Goh stated, giving Todd a suspicious glare.
"Oh, uh, I dunno, sometimes a picture is just a picture…", he sheepishly replied.
Goh coughed. "We should go mingle with the other guests."
"Oh, yeah! I can't wait to try out all the food!" Ash exclaimed, while Goh and Gary both rubbed the backs of their heads in embarrassment, probably thinking something like 'that's our Ash'.
In the foyer, there were plenty of familiar couples hanging out. Iris and Serena were debating which of them had the best polycule, Dawn and Zoey were sitting in a table chatting with May and Drew, and Brock was doing his 'for the girls, yeah!' dance to entertain the other guests while Olivia tried her best to pretend like she wasn't there.
"For! The Girls! Yeah!" Ash cheered.
"I feel like he's been singing the same song for five hours now", Goh commented.
Brock paused and replied, "That's because I don't know any other songs."
"If you want, I can sing some songs, too!" Mallow said, picking up a microphone from seemingly nowhere. "Post Mallowne, Alola's #1 rapper, at your service!"
"I think that might not be such a good idea, dear…" Lillie told her.
Ash perked up at this. "Oh, I know some good songs! Like… Pokémon – Gotta Catch 'Em All! "
"Eh, that's an old one…" Goh complained in a bored-sounding voice.
"I dunno, I like it!" Brock said. "Maybe I'm just old-fashioned."
"Oh, I think I know one that fits!" Ash walked up to the podium and started dancing badly. "Take me on a journey, please choose me, we could be the best team of all time…"
"Gotta admit, Ash does have a nice singing voice…" Goh noted, lowering his head to make his blush less noticeable.
"Yeah, it's his dancing that needs work", Serena said. "Not that I would know anything about that", she added, shooting a look at her now-wife, Miette.
"Oh, let it go, dear, it's not like you missed much. If anything, I simply saved you from getting a bunch of accidental headbutts."
"So, you girls both have two wives, huh?" Goh asked, looking at Serena and Iris. "How do you make it work?"
"I don't really have any advice about it, it's just that Miette and Shauna aren't the kinds of girls to really get jealous of one another?" Serena explained. "And they're both pretty and make me feel good, so…"
"My relationships with Shannon and Georgia couldn't be more different, but I think that's why we work. No one feels like they're intruding on the other person's territory. When I want to be with Shannon, I go hang out with Shannon, and when I want to be with Georgia, I go talk to Georgia." Iris said, hugging both of her wives.
"Yeah, sure, just as long as you remember I will beat you one of these days…" Georgia muttered under her breath.
"No need to act so coy, honey."
Gary smirked at the conversation and put his hand on Goh's shoulder. "Why the sudden interest? You're not planning on doing the same thing with a certain oblivious spiky-haired boy, are you, Goh?"
Goh pouted cutely (he would never admit that it looked cute, but trust me when I say it was). "With you as the third guy? Not in a million years! Maybe with Clemont or Sawyer…"
Clemont and Sawyer, who had been busy trying to get the younger kids to behave, decided to approach the group after hearing their names being spoken. "With us what?"
Goh made a choking sound due to being surprised that they heard him say that, but pulled himself together. "Oh, I was just discussing, uh… what if Ash was in relationship with me and someone else, like a polyamorous relationship… yeah?" He awkwardly explained.
"Oh, I don't really think Ash has any interest in me like that" Clemont remarked, blushing and rubbing the back of his head.
"Don't worry, big bro, I'll find you a nice husband soon!" Bonnie cheerfully exclaimed.
Clemont shot her a disapproving look. "No, you won't."
"Anyway", Goh interjected, "I don't think I'd be able to be part of a polycule… I get insecure and jealous easily…"
"No need to worry, Goh! Monogamous relationships are good, too! Just look at us!" Dawn said, pointing toward herself and Zoey, as well as May and Drew next to them.
"I just wonder if that's fair to do to Ash", Goh pondered to himself. "He's in love with a bunch of people."
"Well, he is going to have to choose between them sometime, I doubt even Ash could date dozens of people at once", Sawyer considered. "I hope whoever he does choose makes him happy, though. He deserves it!"
"Yeah."
Speaking of Ash, he was just about done with his song. "…Take me on a journey to your heart, the journey to your heart, Pokémon!"
All the guests clapped. "Oh look, the ceremony's about to start!" May pointed out with stars in her eyes.
Ash stepped down and joined the rest of them to watch. "Hope you liked my singing, everyone!"
Everyone stayed silent as the two brides stepped down the hall.
Mallow got teary-eyed at the sight. "Lana looks so grown-up in that wedding dress!"
"She's still a full head shorter than Misty, though!" Goh observed, finding the height discrepancy a little amusing.
Ash, too, got very emotional. "All my best friends are getting married, I'm so happy…"
"And meanwhile, you're still technically single…" Gary pointed out.
Ash huffed. "That's not important right now! Shush, you."
Principal Oak, who had agreed to officiate the ceremony, looked at the two girls and asked, "Do you, Misty, take this girl as your lawfully-wedded wife?"
"I do."
"And do you, Lana, do the same?"
"I do!"
"Then you may now kiss the bride...sdale!" He said while making a funny face (which the rest of the guests completely ignored along with the pun).
The two wives embraced and gave each other a big kiss. Ash and the others cheered from the audience.
Harper and Sarah walked toward their sister and handed the newly-wedded couple their rings. "Now toss the bouquet! Toss it!" They exclaimed in unison.
"Alright, you asked for it!" Misty took the bouquet she was holding and threw it in the audience's direction.
The guest became silent for a split-second as the bouquet flew in the air, and into Ash's hands.
"I got the wedding bouquet!" He declared while striking a dramatic pose as though he'd just caught a new pokémon.
"Ooooh!" Bonnie whispered. "That means Ash is gonna be the next one to get hitched!"
"Oh, really?" Mallow asked with a mischievous grin. "I wonder who's gonna be the lucky guy, hm? Or girl, though that seems less likely at this point…"
"He's gonna pick me, obviously!" Gary bragged.
"I'm sorry, don't you mean me?" Goh interjected. "Just because he met you first doesn't mean you get priority."
"Boys, boys, let's not fight!" Ash told them. "I have plenty of love for you both!"
Goh looked downcast. "I don't know, Ash. I'm not sure I could deal with the uncertainty of being in a polyamorous relationship. Especially with… well, him."
Ash pouted. "But why? I know you guys've had a rocky relationship in the past, but…"
"I'm just saying, if it's between me and Gary, you have to make a choice, Ash! You have to commit at some point! We've been stuck in this weird will-we-or-won't-we situation for years now. I think we both would probably like to have a definitive answer."
Ash looked at him expressionless for a moment, and then replied. "I understand, my beautiful scone!" He exclaimed in a jovial tone, though it sounded somewhat forced. "Sometimes we must make sacrifices for love. I'll think really hard about this and give you both my answer tomorrow, promise!"
"Okay. Thank you. I'm sorry for putting you through this."
"It's fine!" Ash said, patting Goh's head affectionately.
"Well, while I personally like to think I know who Ash is going to pick," Gary commented, grinning at Goh with an arched eyebrow, "Let's get back to celebrating our newlywed friends for now."
"Right. All this talking's been making me hungry."
"You're always hungry, Ash."
"I'll be less hungry after we eat this wedding cake, though!" Ash replied, and everyone went over to the wedding cake to start cutting it. The rest of the day's events proceeded as normal.
"Right, right, of course!" Back to the present, Ash was knocking himself on the head for forgetting his promise. "I'm such a dummy!"
He started pacing nervously through his living room. "I'm just no good at this romance thing, Pikachu. I don't know what to do."
"Pika…" The electric mouse whispered softly, sounding like he wanted to help, but didn't know how.
"You're lucky, you found your wife pretty early… hey! Don't they say Pokémon reflect their trainer's feelings? If you're in a relationship with Goh's Raichu, maybe that's a sign I should be with him!" Pikachu shrugged.
Ash thought about it for a while, and then slumped his shoulders. "Then again, that's not a hard and fast rule… My Bulbasaur and May's Bulbasaur liked each other and it's not like that ever meant May was in love with me… I don't think."
Ash stopped pacing and fell dejectedly into his couch. "Awww, they're both just too good! How can I choose between my first friend or my best friend? My Gary or my Goh? My two Gs?"
Thinking about Gary, Ash voiced his thoughts aloud. "Well, Gary was my first crush, ever since we were kids. Deep down, I always dreamed of reconnecting with him and making up for lost time. Maybe that's enough. Sometimes your first love is your best love!" Ash started recalling some nostalgic memories of his and Gary's time together.
"He was always so blunt, but he was the only one willing to spend time with me. I guess in a way, he was the 'Ash' to my 'Goh' back then…" Then, Ash's face gained a sorrowful expression. "But we also spent a good part of our childhoods pretty much hating each other. Or at least, we thought we did. Maybe me and Gary just have too much history together – good and bad – for it to work out… and he probably isn't even serious about me, anyway."
Pikachu uttered a few more 'pika's that sounded like he was asking 'what about Goh?'
"Well, Goh is… I love him dearly, of course! I love him like a, a… a thing that a person loves more than anything!" Pikachu raised a slightly-judgy eyebrow at this.
"Hey, you know I'm not good with words!" Ash protested. "But Goh is… that's why he and I work so well together. He is smart in the ways I'm not, and I'm good at the things he isn't, like making friends! Maybe that's it! I should be in a relationship with the boy that complements me the best!" And again, Ash began remembering the beginnings of his friendship (and romantic interest) in Goh.
"Goh was so motivated and confident back when he met. A little headstrong, too, but that didn't make a difference for me. He always took the initiative, even if sometimes that initiative was misguided, like the time he thought Raboot didn't want to stay with him… But I always made sure to set him on the right path!" Ash started twiddling his thumbs nervously. "Aah, I don't get this 'choosing' thing at all! Why can't I just pick both? It's too painful!" Pikachu patted Ash's head comfortingly.
"Man… I'm no good at this mushy stuff. I gotta sleep this off. Maybe the answer will come to me in my dreams or something. Wouldn't that be nice?"
Ash got up from the couch again and returned to his bed. "Not like I have anything else to do today, after all."
While Ash gave himself a break from his indecision, the two other boys involved tried to go about their days as normal. Let us check on Goh first.
Goh woke up, drank his coffee and went to greet his pokémon in the Cerise Park, which had grown up to four sizes larger since he was a kid, to accommodate all the pokémon he had caught.
Professor Cerise had retired and promoted Goh to head researcher of the Cerise Lab. Ren and Chrysa had left to pursue careers in other regions. Lots of things had changed, that was for sure.
Now Goh and Chloe worked there every day, trying to keep their latest research fellows in check.
"Parker, I told you neither of you were allowed to play Pokémon Base indoors! Give me that!" A furious Chloe shouted as she took away the bats that Max and Parker were holding.
"Sorry, sis/ma'am", they said in as apologetic a voice as they could muster.
"Honestly."
Goh walked through the lab's automatic doors and waved at her. "Good morning, Chloe!"
"Good morning!" Chloe replied while hiding the two bats she took. "So, how was the wedding yesterday? Tell Lana I'm sorry I couldn't come."
"It was fine, I liked seeing all those people again. Though there was one tiny thing…"
"Oh, lord." Chloe said, as she sat down on a table and started pouring herself some tea, as well as some imported Gear Cookies she had bought.
"Must you always assume the worst? Anyway, I kind of made Ash promise he'd give me a definitive answer about whether he wants to be with me or Gary…"
"Oh, lord." Chloe repeated.
Goh pouted. "It's not that big of a deal!"
"Asking that little personizer to settle down seems like a fool's errand to me, but alright." Chloe said.
"Well, I didn't really want to put him on the spot like that, it's just that we've known each other for so long, and it's hard to not have a clear answer after all this time", Goh explained. "And plus, I would love it if we finally managed to tie the knot. Everyone else is already getting married, while neither of us have even begun dating yet."
"Are you sure you're ready for the possibility he might not choose you, though?"
Goh looked embarrassed and went silent for a while as he thought of an answer. "I… I don't know. I'm sure I'll end up feeling pretty disappointed if he doesn't. I've been waiting for this since I was ten, after all…"
"If it doesn't work out, you can always try talking with that Horace boy. He seemed interested."
Goh stammered nervously. "M-Me and Horace are just friends!"
"Yeah, about as friendly as you and Ash are."
"Chloe, I know it's our duty as my childhood friend to rib me about my complicated love life, but I'm telling you there's nothing there!"
"I believe you." Chloe replied in a clearly insincere tone as she took a sip of her tea.
"What is it with you today?" Goh asked with a frustrated look, but then slowly got a mischievous expression as an idea came to him. "Maybe you're jealous because I have multiple potential boyfriends and you have nobody, hmm? Yeah, that must be it!"
"W-WHA-" This time it was Chloe's turn to stammer and look shocked. "I-I'll have you know, I'm currently in a long-distance relationship with a beautiful girl from the Galar region!"
"Oh yes, the old 'beautiful girl from the Galar region' excuse, I remember when I told that to my parents so they wouldn't think I was gay." Goh playfully taunted.
"Rrrrgh…" Chloe breathed deeply and calmed herself down. "Fine, maybe I just have a friend in Galar I'm thinking of asking out. Alright?"
"I figured that was the case." Goh grinned victoriously. "Anyway", he said, picking up a cup of tea from the table as well and lifting it up, "to potentially not being single anymore soon!"
"Hear, hear!" Chloe replied as they clanked their tea cups together.
Gary was hard at work in his lab filing some reports.
"Wooloo are… a friendly pokémon that craves… stability. If they are ever in a… dangerous situation, they will simply… roll away." He mumbled to himself while typing that information into a computer.
He wiped the sweat off his brow and sighed with relief. "I think that's all the observations I had from my last research trip."
Then, he got up from his chair and walked out of the lab.
On the left side of the lab, there was a small plot of land that housed a small gravestone.
Gary looked at the gravestone with a sad, but pleased expression and began talking. "Hey there, gramps. Lots of stuff's been happening lately. Thought I should tell you about it."
Clearing his throat, he continued. "You remember Ash, of course. Last night, me and him and Goh went to a wedding together. It's funny, everyone thought I'd be first one to get hitched out of all of us.
Well, it's not like I was ever interested in any of those cheerleaders of mine. They were just there to make me look good… there was only ever one person I was really interested in.
The one who I kept teasing all the time to get his attention, the one that I always remembered whenever I looked at that broken pokéball. Doesn't that sound childish? Still having feelings for your childhood friend instead of moving on?
Then again, Goh is the same way.
Speaking of Goh, he's part of the reason I'm a bit worried today. He told Ash he had to choose between either of us, romantically, I mean. Since we both know Ash has been attracted to us both for some time now, but he's never tried to commit to either of us.
I know Ash isn't the kind of person who can make this kind of choice easily, but I would really like it if he picked me, you know? I've been there for him all his life… as much as I could, at least, considering our history.
But maybe Goh is the better choice in the end, since he and Ash have more in common? I don't know.
It's really funny, I can charm every girl in Kanto (barring a few exceptions) but I can't change the feelings of the one guy I'm actually into. Ash is a free spirit, after all. He's not the kind of person who gets swayed by corny pick-up lines.
Anyway, I hope he can make that choice as soon as possible so the three of us can move on and maybe try to find someone else to fall in love with, if need be. Too bad Goh isn't big into polycules – I wouldn't mind taking him out for a spin…"
Goh waved goodbye to where his grandfather was buried and turned around. "Wish you were here, though. I'm sure you'd have a funny poem to put my mind more at ease about this. See ya, gramps. I'll make sure to bring you flowers when I come back."
Ash fidgeted around in his sleep. "Yes, dear. No, dear. Yes, I want those scones, the nice-smelling round ones. Mumble, mumble…"
Inside his dream, Ash imagined himself as a Pikachu wearing a hat, and on his sides there stood an Eevee that looked like Gary and a Zorua that resembled Goh.
He wasn't sure how they resembled them, considering they looked no different than other pokémons of those species, but he felt like they did.
Gary-Eevee nuzzled against him and purred gently. Goh-Zorua snarled with anger and immediately did the same thing.
And Ash-Pikachu felt so happy, so beautifully happy…
"Piiiika…" Ash mumbled. Pikachu looked at him and shrugged, apparently used to his owner having dreams of being a Pikachu.
Ash accidentally knocked his head on the bedpost and woke himself up. "Mmngrn… That really didn't help at all!" He complained. "I already know I want to be with both of them, but I can't!
…Or can I?" Ash got up again and gained a determined expression on his face. "I've thought about this for so long, and no matter what, I always come to the same conclusion that they're both equally as good in different ways! There's only one possible choice!"
With that in mind, Ash picked up his Rotomphone from his pocket and began dialing the other two boys' phone numbers. "I just hope they don't get too disappointed."
"What exactly are you doing here?" Goh asked Gary.
"Probably the same thing as you."
"So that means Ash must have made his choice, huh?" Gary nodded.
"That's all he told me. And said to come to his house because he wanted to tell me in person."
"That's the same thing he told me." The two walked up to the door and Goh knocked on it. "Ooh, I'm so nervous! What if Ash just can't choose and ends up picking neither of us?"
"Would that be so bad?" Gary asked, putting his hand on Goh's shoulder and raising an eyebrow.
"…I know what you're implying and the answer is no." Goh replied sternly. "You manizer", he muttered under his breath.
Goh tapped his foot impatiently. "What could be taking him so long?"
"Maybe Ash is getting cold feet?"
"But in our call, he seemed so sure he'd figured it out…" Goh looked down at the floor. "I should never have asked something selfish like that out of him. I shouldn't have put him on the spot. I probably made him uncomfortable."
"Hey, it was bound to happen sometime", Gary commented, trying to sound reassuring. "With as many partners as Ash had in his life, eventually someone was bound to ask him to commit. Could have been you, could have been me, heck, it could have been Sawyer or Gladion, even. Don't feel too bad about it. I'm sure Ash would feel just as bad if he felt that he was stringing us along."
"I guess that's true. Thanks, Gary."
The door opened and Ash greeted the boys with a warm smile. "How it's going, my two Gs? Come in!"
Ash sat them down and, holding both of their hands, he started talking. "I've made my choice, but it might not be as satisfying as the ones you were expecting."
He took a deep breath before continuing. "My choice is that I can't decide between either of you! That's it!
"…Oh?"
"After giving it a lot of thought, I realize that I love both of you guys equally, in different ways. Goh, you told me I had to commit – but I am still going to commit! I want to be in a committed relationship with both of you, because out of all the people I love, I love you two the most! If you guys accept, of course." Ash concluded, looking nervously at the two boys.
"Well, I think you all know I wouldn't mind this", Gary replied, putting his arms behind his head. "But what about you, Goh? You did say you didn't think you could be part of a polycule."
Goh put his hand on his chin in thought. "Well, you did do what I asked. You thought as hard as you could for an entire day, and if that's the conclusion you arrived at, then I accept!"
"You- You do?" Ash looked at Goh with sparkling eyes. "You mean you're willing to let me date both you and Gary?"
"I am, um…" Goh coughed and turned his head away. "I am willing to… to give it a try, yeah?"
"Hurray!" Ash excitedly embraced his two new boyfriends.
"Ouch! Ash, not so tight…" Gary uttered while trying to catch his breath.
"Well, we knew what we were signing up for, after all!" Goh commented sheepishly.
One year later
"Are all the refreshments here?" Chloe asked.
"Aye aye, ma'am!" Bonnie replied.
"And the guests? Is everyone present?"
"Everyone is present and accounted for!" Max told her.
"Good! Then I officially declare this wedding ceremony started!" Chloe replied, blowing on a whistle.
"Wow, she sure is taking her wedding planner thing seriously", Ash remarked from far away.
"She just wants everything to go smoothly for us", Goh commented with a small blush on his face.
"Well, I don't want to brag, but this is the most publicized wedding of the decade", Gary said. "The World Champion and the two most famous researchers in all the regions? It's only natural everyone would want to make sure it goes smoothly."
"Speaking of everything going smoothly, how about you guys try standing closer together?" Tracey asked, once again making the three of them pose for a picture.
"You know, I can't help but feel we do something like this in every wedding we go to." Goh observed.
"Yeah, but… I feel there's a bit more meaning to it, this time!" Ash exclaimed happily.
"Smile for the camera, everyone!"
Ash and his two soon-to-be husbands gave their best smiles and prepared to get their picture taken.
*KLICK*
A.N. And there you have it! I struggled really hard to balance showcasing the elements of the future world with focusing on the main story, but I think I did a good job.
I wasn't entirely sure until the last minute about what ship I wanted to end the fic on, whether ResearcherShipping, JourneyShipping, PalletShipping or none of the above. I even rewrote the entire first wedding segment from scratch at one point! I guess you could say I was being just as indecisive as Ash in the fic, hehe.
But in the end, I thought since the image that inspired the fic was ResearcherShipping-y, that that should be Ash's choice. And besides, I do see him as someone who wouldn't be able to settle for just one person.
Also, I think it's going to take a long time between this and any further chapters (or even new fics, for that matter). I have too many ideas and I want to finish at least a good bunch of them before posting! Just so you guys know.
See you (hopefully) soon, everyone.