I honestly can't believe I am on the third chapter already. I'm excited that after this chapter, the romance can begin. I intend on making it proceed as a slow romance, so I just wanted to let you guys know. I hope you enjoy! I do not own Pokémon or any of the characters.
"Talking"
'Thoughts'
"Telepathy"
As Ash slowly wakes up, he stretches and lets out a soft yawn. He looks to his side to see Pikachu sleeping peacefully. He chuckles softly and gently scratches behind Pikachu's ear, which the yellow mouse Pokémon gives a happy "chaaa". The young trainer smiles at the sight of his best friend.
After a few minutes Ash gently rubs Pikachu so that they could go get breakfast. The yellow mouse Pokémon lets out a small yawn and stretches before rubbing looking at Ash.
"Pika, pika pi?" Pikachu asks.
"Yeah buddy, it's time to eat!" The trainer says happily as his stomach growls.
"Pi, Pikachu!" Pikachu says.
"We should hurry if we are going to meet Brock and Misty though." Ash says as he gets dressed and grabs his bag.
They had agreed to meet Brock and Misty at the ferry in Cherrygrove City the next day, after, calling them when Ash had gotten home. After that, Ash had eaten lunch with his mom and picked some Pokémon to take with.
"Ready Pikachu?" Ash asks as he opens the door.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu exclaims and gets on Ash's shoulder. The young trainer heads to the kitchen where he gets a bunch of food, and a Ketchup bottle for Pikachu. He starts eating his food hungrily as Pikachu eats his and then starts drinking his Ketchup.
"Don't drink too much buddy." The young trainer says as he begins eating. After a few more minutes, both finish their meals and head to the ferries. As Ash waits for Brock and Misty, he thinks about Latias. 'I can't believe I didn't visit her like I promised. I am going to make things right. I missed her a lot.' He thinks.
"Ash Ketchum! You have a lot of explaining to do!" Misty angrily yells as she moves towards Ash. The young trainer sweats and gulps.
"Now Misty, I'm sure Ash has a good reason why he hasn't talked to us for a few years." Brock says, trying to calm the young woman down. Misty seems to calm down at that and frowns as she places her hands on her hips.
"Well, it'd better be a real good reason." Misty says as she glared at Ash.
'I've got to remember that Misty still has a temper. I need to thank Brock later for helping calm her down.' Ash thinks to himself. He then smiles as he hugs both of them, and Pikachu lets out a happy "Pikachu!" to both of Ash's friends.
"So Ash, I must say I'm impressed that you're here already. Usually you'd be late waking up. You really must have changed." Brock says to the 16 year old. Ash blushes slightly and grins a little.
"Well, let's just say Pikachu helped a lot in that. I told him I wanted to stop being late and he helped me by waking me every morning." Ash says as he chuckles. Brock laughs a bit at that and pats the young man on his shoulder.
"Well, that's very good Ash. So what have you been doing these past few years?" Brock asks as the group wait for the ferry. Misty looks at Ash as she waits for his response.
"Well, I've been training my Pokémon a lot. I decided to spend time with each of my Pokémon and train them as much as I could. After I get back from the visit to Altomare, I'm going to challenge Lance. I'm confident that I can beat him." Ash explains as he smiles and scratches Pikachu's ears.
"Chaaaa!" Pikachu says happily.
Brock looks at Ash with a look of interest. Misty was staring at him with great interest. Ash looks at them and chuckles.
"Ash, that's going to be very hard to do. You do seem more mature though. I'm sure you have probably gotten better at Pokémon battling. Pikachu seems much stronger as well. If your other Pokémon are as strong as he seems to be, then I think you can do it." Brock says with confidence as he smiles. Ash looks happy at that and smiles.
"Thanks Brock. That really means a lot."
"So what are we doing when we get to Altomare?" Brock asks. Ash looks at his friend then looks at Pikachu.
"I'm going to keep a promise I made years ago." He says softly as he rubs Pikachu's ears. Misty and Brock look at one another in understanding. Ash always did his best to keep his promises. If he had made a promise to someone in Altomare, it meant that it had been years since he had visited. That would have bothered him a lot. Misty gently placed her hand on his shoulder.
"Ash, I'm sure whoever you made the promise to will understand. All of us know how much it means for you to be a Pokémon master. But being your friend is very important. I'm sure anyone would be willing to wait a few years to see you again. Especially if it meant you'd grown as much as you have. I know you can become a Pokémon master. To see you happy would make any of your friends happy for you." Misty says in a gentle tone, surprising Brock at how caring she's being. In all the years Brock has known her, she never has shown such care or passion from the young woman.
'If I didn't know any better, I'd say Misty really missed him even more than I thought. Sure she's been caring but this almost seems like she had stronger feelings towards him than most friends do towards each other.' Brock thinks to himself as he observes Misty squeeze his shoulder gently. Brock also notes a slightly blush on the redheads cheeks.
"Misty is right Ash. You are a good person and a great friend." Brock says as he pats the young trainer on his back. They all hear the Ferry arriving, and gather their bags.
'Today I am going to keep my promise to Latias. I hope she will remember me.' Ash thinks as they all board the Ferry.
Latias was sleeping peacefully until she hears some arguing outside. She sighs and tries to go back to sleep but is unable to. With a grumble of irritation she heads outside of her home, a nice nest inside a tree.
"You need to get out of my way! Latias and I were going to spend the day together!" A familiar female voice shouts.
"I'm sorry but we need Latias here to help out around the sanctuary. She promised me some time." The other voice said in a arrogant way.
'Of course those two would be arguing today. Bianca and I did have plans. So I don't know what Jackson is thinking. I never made plans with him.' Latias thinks as she sighs and approaches the two.
"Alright what's going on?" Latias asks as she looks at Bianca and Jackson.
"I was coming to wake you up when this Latios told me you were going to spend the day with him. I knew that you wouldn't do that without telling me first, so I've been trying to tell him that." Bianca says while glaring at the Latios.
"You haven't spent much time with us, Latias. It's only right that you spend time with us as well. As potential mates, we should be spending more time with one another." Jackson says in a slightly complaining tone.
"Alright I'm going to say this so remember it, Jackson. I am not your mate. I already have a potential mate. He is going to be visiting soon and when he does I'll be his mate. I did not say I'd spend the day with you so don't say I did. I'm going to go eat breakfast with Bianca now, so if you'll excuse me, I have to eat." Latias says irritated as she moves past Jackson and turns to her human disguise. She then takes Bianca's hand and leads her towards her house.
"Wow Latias. I didn't think you could be so confident." Bianca says when they had gotten close to Bianca's house. Latias blushes and squeezes Bianca's hand gently.
"Well, it was because your yelling woke me." Latias says softly while they arrive at her house.
"I am sorry about that. But I don't think I've ever seen you get so confident when talking about Ash.~ Already saying he was your mate was pretty confident. When can we expect some children?~" Bianca says teasingly. Latias turns fully red in the face and lets out a squeak as she tries to hide her face.
"Bianca! We aren't dating! Why would you say that?" Latias squeaks out and the two start eating breakfast. Bianca giggles and gives Latias a teasing smile.
"But I bet you two would be so cute together! I hope he knows how to kiss! He better be protected when you guys become mates~." The young woman teases again. Latias just squeaks again and focuses on eating her breakfast.
"You know I'm just teasing Latias. But you should tell Ash how you feel about him. He's a good guy. I'm sure he would give you a chance." Bianca says.
"But..what if he says no? He's a human and I'm a Pokémon..what if the others don't like me being with him?" Latias says softly. Bianca frowns and takes Latias's hand and gently squeezes it.
"Don't let others tell you who you can be with. I know that Pokémon and human relationships are accepted in Kanto. So you wouldn't have to worry about any problems. Tia, you love Ash don't you?" Bianca asks. Latias nods slightly and blushes a little.
"Then tell him that. It's better to ask and for him to say no and still be friends. But consider when you ask and he says yes, then you two can be mates!" She says. Latias smiles and the two finish their breakfast.
"I was thinking today we would paint again, and after that, I'd call Ash's mom to see what Ash is doing. Maybe I can get her to have Ash visit. Would you like that?" Bianca asks.
"I would like that very much. Thank you!" Latias squeals and hugs her friend as they get their painting things and head towards the docks. As they walk, Latias sees the store that had the dress she wants and shows Bianca.
"Look Bianca! There is the dress! Can we get it now?" Latias says with a pleading look. Bianca only sighs.
"Latias. We can get it when we are done. Alright?" She says as Latias nods. They get to the docks and begin painting.
After a few hours, the two girls are on their last paintings. The last ferry arrives and for a brief second, Latias thinks she sees a Pikachu on the shoulder of a familiar looking boy. But when she looks again she doesn't see him. She sighs and finishes her painting.
"Okay Bianca. That was fun. Can we please get my dress now?" Latias says giving her cutest look. Bianca giggles at her friend and gathers her things.
"Alright Tia. Don't forget your paintings." The young woman says as she waits for Latias to gather her paintings and they head to the store.
As Ash looks around, he smiles happily and starts running towards the city. He is excited to meet Latias and wants to visit her now. Not hearing Brock and Misty's shouts to wait, he heads towards the place where he met her last time. Pikachu heads toward a bench as Ash looks around.
"Do you think she knows we are here, buddy?"
"Pi, Pikachu." Pikachu says. Ash sighs and sits in the bench. Pikachu sits near him and Ash scratches Pikachu's ears.
"Chaaaaaaaaa!" Pikachu says happily.
"I know you love it when I do that. I know! Do you think you could find Lorenzo's house?" Ash asks in excitement. Pikachu nods and starts running towards Loremzo's place. Ash runs after Pikachu, as Pikachu guides him to a nice looking house. He pets Pikachu to thank him.
"Well, here goes Pikachu." Ash says as he rings the doorbell. After some time, Lorenzo answers and looks at Ash.
"Yes, can I help you?" Lorenzo asks.
"Lorenzo, it's me, Ash!" Ash says as he smiles.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu says.
"Ash, is that really you?!" The older man exclaims. Ash smiles and Lorenzo gives Ash a hug as he laughs.
"We were just talking about you the other night! Bianca was wanting to ask you if you'd visit but you came already! Come inside! The girls should be back soon. Is there anyone else with you?" Lorenzo asks as they head to the living room and sit on the couch.
"Brock and Misty! I hope they can find your place." Ash says.
"I'm sure they will Ash. So what brings you to Altomare? Did you want to take part in the Tour this year? It's not for a few more weeks though." Lorenzo asks.
"I came to keep a promise I made. I told Latias I'd visit her. I'm sorry that I didn't come sooner, but I am ashamed to admit that I forgot. I got so busy with trying to be a Pokémon master, that I forgot my promise." Ash says sadly, as he looks at Lorenzo. Lorenzo pats Ash on the shoulder and smiles.
"Ash my boy, I understand that you forgot. Being a Pokémon master is a hard thing to do. The important thing is that you are here now. I'm sure Latias will be very happy that you are here. I'm sure she'll forgive you Ash. You look more grown than last I saw you. Pikachu looks stronger as well. You must have done some good training." Lorenzo says admiring how strong Pikachu looks.
"Yeah we did! I spent a few years doing hard training with my Pokémon. They should be stronger than any champions Pokémon!" Ash says happily as he hugs Pikachu.
"Pi, pika pi!" Pikachu says in a confident way. There is a knock as Lorenzo goes and answers the door.
"Brock and Misty! It's been so long! Please come in!" Lorenzo says as Misty approaches Ash with an angry glare.
"Ash Ketchum! You should know better than to just run off! We had to ask to find Lorenzo's place! You just left us to come after you without saying where you were going!" Misty yells and Ash moves a bit from her.
"I'm sorry Misty! I really wanted to come here!" Ash says as he blushes from embarrassment.
"Well next time, why don't you tell where you're going before you just run off!!" Misty says as she huffs and Brock sighs.
"Some things stay the same." Brock says and he and Lorenzo chuckle.
"Grandpa, we are home!" A young woman's voice says as she walks to the living room.
"Ah, Bianca! We have guests! Look who decided to visit!" The older man says as he smiles. Bianca smiles at Brock and Misty, then looks at Ash in shock.
"Wait, Ash, is that really you?" Bianca says while looking in surprise. Ash smiles and nods as Pikachu runs up to Bianca who scratches his ears.
"Bianca, is Latias with you? I've been excited to meet her again. I've missed her a lot." Ash says in a happy tone.
"Yes she should be right-."
"Bianca, what's going on? I put our stuff in your room. Do we have guests?" Latias asks as she walks to the living room.
"Yes we do. You remember Brock and Misty right? Bianca asks. Latias nods and smiles at them.
"But I'm sure you remember him." Bianca giggles and Latias looks at Ash. She puts on a the cutest expression of shock as she moves a little closer to Ash.
"A-Ash?" She says in a very soft and extremely nervous fashion.
"Hey Latias. I'm here." Ash says with a smile.
That's it for this chapter! They finally meet! I was hoping to do more but I can do more the next chapter! I hope I can continue to do well! Thank you all for your reviews! I hope you enjoyed it!