Chapter 25: Hold the Line
"This can't be good," May gulped when she saw the figure that stood in front of them, coming out of the fog and in an intimidating posture.
"It's big," Ash gulped when it saw the creature that towered over them, from the looks of it, the creature was over 12 feet.
"Pikaaaa," Pikachu's jaw dropped and gazed up at the thing.
"Vi victini," Victini shivered in fright and hid behind Ash and May.
"It's also very different from all the other Golurk we've seen," the brunette examined its features.
"I know, the Golurk in our nightmares weren't this tall and this one is gray, it must be a Shiny Golurk," Ash looked up at the formidable Ghost Pokémon, mentioning the most prominent of this unique Golurk.
"What are we going to do Ash?" May had a frightened look on.
"There's only one option, we'll have to battle it," Ash put on a confident smile and stood up with a courageous posture.
May nodded and put on a confident smile and stood with the same courageous stance.
"Pikachu, use Iron Tail on Golurk!" Ash commanded while pointing at the Ghost-type.
Pikachu nodded and jumped into the air, turning its tail into steel. "Pikachu!" Pikachu prepared to swing his tail at the Ghost Pokémon.
"Golurk!" Golurk raised its arms up and became outlined in yellow energy. The armored Pokémon then wasted no time in charging at Pikachu.
When Iron Tail hit Golurk, it left it unfazed and the Ghost-type bashed at Pikachu full force. "Pikaaaaa," Pikachu cried out when Golurk bashed it and sent it crashing toward the ground.
"Pikachu!" Ash and May gasped.
May became concerned and spoke, "Golurk used Heavy Slam, and that Iron Tail had no effect on it."
Ash grinded his teeth while responding, "That Golurk has high defense. We'll have to try harder."
"V…" Victini got highly intimidated by Golurk's fierce power while hiding behind Ash and May.
"Piiiiii," Pikachu struggled to get back on its feet while Golurk merely towered over it.
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt now!" Ash extended his arm to the left while making his command.
Pikachu glared at Golurk and charged up electricity. In no time the mouse cried out, "Pikaaachuuuu!" and released a violent bolt of electricity.
When the attack hit Golurk, the armored Pokémon simply chuckled and shook it off by flexing. "Ash, Electric-type attacks won't work on a Ground-type like Golurk," May reminded Ash while still having a worried expression.
The raven-haired teen gritted his teeth, "That's right, I forgot. How are we supposed to beat, it's stronger than we could imagine."
Before Ash or May could do something about Golurk though, the Ghost-type released Shadow Punch and the powerful Ghost-type attack charged at Pikachu.
The Shadow Punch came at Pikachu so quick, the mouse had no time to react and got punched towards a tree, crying out in pain. "Piiiikaaa," Pikachu felt its energy hitting zero and after crashing against the tree, it dropped to the ground unconscious.
"That last one hurt Pikachu completely," May squealed in fright.
"No way," Ash's eyes were wide and felt sorry for his pal for having to sustain so much damage. He quickly ran over to the mouse with May and picked him up.
"Pikachu, I'm sorry you got hurt pal. You did your best," Ash gave the weak-looking Pikachu a sad gaze.
"Pi…" Pikachu let out and grinned softly. The next second the yellow mouse closed its eyes and had no energy left.
"Victini," Victini's eyes began to water when it saw Pikachu.
"Poor Pikachu," May caressed Pikachu's head with a sad look in her eyes.
"We'll take him to the closest Pokémon Center as soon as this is over," Ash regained his composure and glared into the trees, his back still facing Golurk.
"Gooooluuuurk!" Golurk moaned loudly and the last thing Ash and May heard was the sound of an energy beam being blasted.
Victini instantly moved out of the way, but when the couple tried to see what it was, all they saw was a Hyper Beam, and the next moment they got blasted against trees themselves. May cried out in pain while Ash held onto Pikachu tightly and enduring the pain his back just felt.
"May…are you…ok?" Ash struggled to lift his head up to see the girl just to his right.
Tears were hanging by the corner of May's eyes when the sapphire-eyed girl looked to him. "That one…hurt," May tried to hold back the tears, if she could she would crawl over to Ash to hug him, but the impact left her body unable to move that moment, she felt as though her spine would shake enough to just break after such a hard hit.
Ash clenched his fist and tried to get up, but his body was too weak after such a blast. "This isn't good," the boy managed to say.
Victini's eyes were wide with horror after watching Hyper Beam blast his parents away like that. The pain he saw in both their eyes and the sound of the impact hurt Victini on the inside. The fact that they were unable to do anything because of the attack and how badly they were hit forced Victini's tears out of its eyes.
The pain and hopelessness his trainers were feeling passed over to him and Victini's usually innocent eyes became violent. A red aura outlined the Victory Pokémon as tears streamed down its cheeks, evaporating before they could hit the ground.
Victini's eyes became red and the Pokémon turned to Golurk, glaring fiercely and gritting its teeth. "Viiicccc…tiiiiiii…niiiiiii!" Victini shouted so loudly in anger that the forest echoed with his scream.
"Huh?" Ash and May gently lifted their heads up and saw flames surrounding Victini.
"Victini?" May called out to the little one.
"It's going to battle Golurk," Ash flashed a small smile at Victini, realizing that the Victory Pokémon was furious at Golurk for what he had done.
"Seeing us get hurt like that must have provoked Victini, Golurk's gonna get it now," May formed a small grin when she saw Victini.
"Victiniiiiii!" Victini screeched and released Searing Shot with immense power and speed.
Golurk was immediately got off guard and the Searing Shot blasted the giant away, bashing and breaking through many trees. When it finally crashed, it moaned in pain while Victini continued to glare with its red eyes.
"Gooooluuurk," Golurk slowly got up, but before it could Victini charged at it using Flare Blitz and sent Golurk crashing back down.
"Viiiictiiiiniiii," Victini breathed heavily from using so much energy, but could still continue the fight.
Before Victini could unleash another attack though, five Shadow Balls shot out of the trees, all aiming at Victini. Victini took notice just in time and nimbly dodged all five, causing the Ghost-type attacks to hit each other and cancel out.
"Where did that come from?" May examined the area to see where the Shadow Balls had come from.
"Liiiitwiiick," a group of five Litwick revealed themselves when they came out of the trees, all glaring at Victini.
"Looks like it came from those Litwick," Ash frowned when he saw the small Pokémon who were responsible for putting the gang to sleep and take them into a nightmarish world. When he gazed at the Litwick for a couple of seconds, Ash came to a realization, "I get it now. This Golurk is those Litwick's leader. When they put us to sleep, they allowed the Golurk to get into our nightmares and harm us."
May nodded and turned to the Litwick after listening to Ash, "Yeah, I think you're right Ash. Looks like they're trying to protect Golurk from Victini and that's why they attacked."
"We'll just see if they can beat Victini though," Ash formed a confident smile and slowly began to get up gently, the pain from the impact finally fading.
"Litwick!" the Litwick released another barrage of Shadow Ball at Victini.
"Viiiiiii!" Victini cried out and engulfed itself in blue flames that protected it from the Shadow Balls.
"It used Inferno as a defensive move, that's smart," May praised Victini's tactics and slowly began to get on her feet as well.
"Keep going Victini!" Ash encouraged the Fire-type, now on his two feet and making a fist out of joy for Victini.
"Tiiiiiniiiiii!" Victini blasted the blue fire away in all directions, hitting the Litwick and causing them to fly everywhere.
"Lit…" the Litwick moaned and when they looked up at the hovering Victini from the ground, there was clearly a look of fear in their eyes.
"Goooluuurk!" Golurk moaned loudly, the armored Pokémon was now back on its two feet and wasted no time in using Hyper Beam.
The red beam charged toward Victini, but the red-eyed Pokémon stood its ground and used Confusion to manipulate the Hyper Beam. The powerful attack began to glow blue and Victini directed it to the ground near Golurk, causing a powerful explosion and a large cloud of dust to rise up.
"What's going on, I can't see a thing through that dust," Ash tried to see through the cloud by focusing his eyes.
"I can't see anything either," May tried to focus her eyes as well, concerned for Victini's well being.
In the cloud of dust, the Litwick searched frantically for Victini while Golurk stood like a statue. Out of nowhere though, Victini appeared right in front of Golurk and released a beam version of Stored Power at the giant.
The Litwick became alert, but Golurk remained still until its body changed into the color of steel and Stored Power did very little damage. The next moment, Golurk used Night Shade and fired a black beam at Victini, sending the Victory Pokémon crashing towards the ground and out of the cloud of dust.
Victini didn't cry out in pain like usual and its eyes remained red and serious as it got up. "Look there's Victini, it looks like Golurk used Night Shade on it though," May became more worried, fearing that her little one would get hurt after seeing it get blasted like that.
"Don't worry May, Victini's strong, it'll pull through and beat that Golurk on its own," Ash said and May looked at him, his comforting smile assuring her that Victini would be fine. The brunette nodded and formed a confident grin, turning her attention back to the battle.
The cloud of dust finally dispersed and it revealed the battlers again. The Litwick used Shadow Ball once again, but this time Golurk added Shadow Punch into the volley. Victini smiled slyly and nimbly dodged all the Ghost-type attacks, but as it dodged, its body became enveloped in a violent fire and Victini moved so fast, it resembled a fiery bullet.
Then without any warning, Victini charged at each Litwick using Flare Blitz and when it bashed each one, the Litwick went flying all over the field. When they crashed, the Litwick were out cold, no longer able to resist Victini's superior power.
"Vi," Victini grinned confidently.
"There goes the Litwick, now it's just Golurk," Ash grinned confidently, but his attention turned to Pikachu, who had been moving in his arms.
"Pika," Pikachu looked at Victini.
"Pikachu, have you been watching this whole time?" Ash gave Pikachu a curious look.
"Pi," Pikachu nodded and smiled, looking back at Victini.
"Victini is a great battler isn't he, this match is almost over," Ash gazed at the showdown between Ghost and Psychic.
"Look, Golurk is going to use Mega Punch," May pointed out.
Ash and Pikachu focused on Golurk and saw the Ghost-type's fist glowing white and being pulled back.
Victini braced itself for the incoming attack and when Golurk lunged forward, Victini knew just how to counter. "Golurk!" the armored Pokémon moaned when Victini used Confusion to stop Golurk from hitting it with Mega Punch.
"Vi victini v," Victini grinned slyly and began to make Golurk levitate.
"Go go lurk," Golurk obviously became uneasy when it saw itself floating.
"Viiiiii," Victini chuckled and maintained Golurk in midair. The gigantic Pokémon tried to its best to break free, but Victini had complete dominion over the Ghost-type.
Victini then charged up a white energy ball in front of its tiny body. Victini's red eyes focused on Golurk's and then Victini screamed, "Victini!" and released the energy ball version of Stored Power at Golurk, causing an explosion in midair and sending the Ghost-type flying far away from Victini and its friends.
"Gooooluuurk!" Golurk's moan could be heard fading away while Victini grinned.
When Golurk was finally lost in sight, Victini's eyes turned back to normal and the fog surrounding the gang was finally fading away as well. Ash, May, and Pikachu looked around and smiled, "With Golurk and those Litwick defeated, this fog is leaving," May grinned in joy.
"Way to go Victini!" Ash pumped his fist into the air while praising Victini.
"Pika pika!" Pikachu mimicked Ash while still in Ash's arms.
Victini turned around and smiled widely when it saw Ash and May on their feet, and Pikachu awake. Ash and May quickly ran over to it and Victini began to lower down to hug his parents and sibling. "We're so proud of you," May hugged Victini tightly.
"You saved the day, thank you for protecting us Victini," Ash also joined in the hug.
"Pi," Pikachu hugged Victini between the small Pokémon and the couple.
"Mama, Papa, Pika!" Victini embraced the trio happily.
When Ash and May heard Victini say that, they couldn't help but freeze for a moment and the next, they began to blush deeply while grinning at each other sheepishly.
"It said we're its 'mama' and 'papa', Ash," May spoke sweetly, liking the idea of Victini saying that.
"It even said half of Pikachu's name, who knew Victini would learn how to talk like that," Ash grinned, ignoring the thought of him and May being parents to a baby.
May sighed and ignored Ash's density, continuing to hug Victini until she saw something beyond the trees and past the hills. She separated from the hug and pointed toward that direction, "Look Ash, I think that's Virbank City!"
Ash and Victini separated and looked to where May was pointing. Ash smiled and said, "You're right May, quick, we should head there fast. The first stop is the Pokémon Center."
"It's not far, if we run there we can make it very fast," May stated and then formed a sly smile, confusing Ash, "Last one there is a Slowpoke!"
Without another word May dashed off, "Hey wait, you didn't give me a heads up May slow down!" Ash darted off behind her with Pikachu in his arms.
Victini giggled at their antics and began to fly, surpassing Ash and May within seconds. Victini looked back at the couple and winked and flew ahead.
"Victini's fast, but I won't let him win," May smiled confidently and ran faster.
"I won't let neither of you win," Ash grinned confidently and began to run faster, catching up with May and the couple along with Victini and Pikachu laughed the whole run to Virbank.
Running past the forest and hills, the gang made it to Virbank City at last. At the entrance of the city, Victini passed like a bullet and looked back at the couple while laughing. Ash and May reached the entrance simultaneously and sighed at each other.
"Looks like we're both Slowpoke," May grinned sheepishly.
"Guess so," Ash grinned sheepishly as well.
Victini and Pikachu chuckled at the trainers' comments and then smiled. When the fun was over, Ash spoke, "Let's head to the Pokémon Center, Pikachu and the other Pokémon need the rest and healing after that whole incident beginning in Castelia City."
"Right behind you," May agreed and the group wasted no time in reaching the Pokémon Center.
Victini hid well among Ash and May, frightened by all the people they passed while walking around the city. Ash, May, and Pikachu assured the Victory Pokémon that no one would harm it, but Victini remained timid and focused his attention on getting where his parents wanted to be.
"Here we are, let's head to the counter," Ash became relieved about their arrival at the Pokémon Center.
"This place is pretty empty for a Pokémon Center during the day in a busy city," May examined the area, seeing only one or two trainers wandering as they walked over to the counter.
"Hey Nurse Joy," Ash and May greeted the pink-haired woman when they reached the counter, grinning at the nice lady.
"Hello and welcome, how may I help you?" Nurse Joy grinned, asking.
"We just here from the woods and we'd like for you to take care of our Pokémon," May told the nurse.
"I'd be happy to," Nurse Joy said nicely.
"Great, thanks Nurse Joy," Ash thanked the woman.
Ash placed his Pikachu over the counter and smiled, "We'll be back soon, Pikachu, behave well ok? Have a nice rest."
"Pika!" Pikachu nodded and grinned happily.
Ash then placed his Pokéballs beside Pikachu and Nurse Joy placed Pikachu and the Pokéballs and a mobile tray pushed by Audino. Before they took off though, May placed her Pokéballs on the counter and Nurse Joy placed them with Ash's as well. When she reached for Victini, who hid behind, the Victory Pokémon moved away from her.
"Oh my, is that the Legendary Pokémon, Victini?" Nurse Joy's eyes widened when she saw it.
"The one and only, we'd like for you to take care of it, but please don't let anyone know that it's here. It's a rare Pokémon so who knows who might be after it, please Nurse Joy," Ash told the woman with a concerned tone.
"Of course, I'll take good care of it, there are a lot of criminals running loose these days, so I'll do everything to protect it," Nurse Joy assured Ash and the boy smiled while nodding.
"Victini, what is up with you, come back," May tried to reach for Victini, but the Victory Pokémon would move away from the brunette every time.
"May, I don't think it wants us to leave it here, it'll be its first time without us remember?" Ash pointed out to his beloved.
May sighed and spoke with a dismayed voice, "That's right, but after that battle with Golurk, Victini needs to take a good rest."
"Vi," Victini seemed uneasy, not willing to be separated by his parents.
From behind the Victory Pokémon though, Ash popped out and grabbed him. The boy turned Victini around, and the Victory Pokémon was trying to break free from papa's grasp.
"Victini, I promise mama and papa will be back for you soon. We're only leaving you here because Nurse Joy will heal any injuries you have and you'll be with Pikachu," Ash tried to calm Victini down. When May heard Ash use the terms, "mama" and "papa", she became surprised, seeing as how he ignored the comment about that earlier, but it seemed that he was using those words to calm Victini.
"We won't be gone for long. We'll be reunited soon and you can be with mama and papa ok? Pikachu, will take good care of you if anything happens and Nurse Joy is a nice lady, she'll be very gentle with you," May got beside Ash and spoke softly and grinned sweetly at Victini.
Victini looked into Ash and May's warm and assuring eyes for second with a gaze of uncertainty, and then it turned to Nurse Joy and Pikachu, who were both smiling at it. Victini turned back to the couple and gazed into their eyes one last time, causing a smile to form. "Vi victini," Victini beamed and nodded.
Ash and May smiled at it and brought Victini over to the counter. "Take good care of him Nurse Joy, we'll be back for them soon," May told the woman.
"You'll also take good care of Victini, right Pikachu?" Ash smiled at his partner, who nodded cheerfully.
When Victini got placed beside Pikachu, the Victory Pokémon grinned joyfully and Pikachu returned the gesture. Audino then took the Pokémon away and Victini and Pikachu waved goodbye Ash and May.
After waving until Pikachu and Victini were gone, Ash and May's stomachs began to grumble, the sound even resembled the sound a Snorlax would make. The two laughed nervously and Ash spoke, "Speaking of which, we should probably get something to eat now."
"Agreed," May continued to laugh with an embarrassed expression.
Nurse Joy also couldn't help, but giggle and said, "May I recommend going to Virbank City's most famous and delicious restaurant, The Toscana? It's located in the Pokéstar Studios part of town."
"Toscana?" May became puzzled by the name.
"Pokéstar Studios?" Ash questioned.
"Yes, Pokéstar Studios is a district in Virbank City where movies are filmed and the premieres of many well-known films take place there. You'll know you're there when you see a lot of advertisement for movies and crowds of photographers and people admiring film and music celebrities, and because of the big banner that welcomes you there. Toscana is located there, it is the oldest, most famous, and delectable, restaurant in town," Nurse Joy informed them.
"Sounds like fun, I've always wondered where they made movies and where celebrities live," Ash seemed interested.
"Plus, after hearing all that about The Toscana, I'm dying to try out there food too. It'll be so amazing if we meet a celebrity while eating there," May clasped her hands together and fantasized about meeting high-profile celebs.
Ash smiled at May as she fantasized and turned to Nurse Joy, "Then it's settled, we'll go to The Toscana."
"Wonderful, to get there, just go in the direction of that hill with the big sign that says 'Pokéwood'," Nurse Joy pointed out a window, which Ash and May peeked through.
"Got it!" Ash and May said at the same time.
From there, Ash and May bid farewell to Nurse Joy for now and began their walk to The Toscana in the famous Pokéstar Studios district. Although one question did pop into May's head and she had to ask Ash, "Ash, you think we should call Iris, Cilan, or the others before going to eat?"
Ash placed his hands behind his head and smiled, "I'd like to, but I feel like I'm going to faint if I don't eat something soon. Besides, I think they're doing fine, better than us I bet."
"Yeah I think that too, I was just wondering and I feel the same, I feel like I'll blackout if I don't eat soon," May grinned at Ash.
"Wonder what we'll see at Pokéstar Studios though," Ash began to think about what was in store for them in that part of town.
"From what Nurse Joy said, probably some interesting stuff, I just wish I had a camera," May smiled at first, but then sighed.
Ash wondered for a second, but then grinned, "If you want to take pictures, you can take one with the Xtransceivers, remember what they told us this thing could do?" Ash lowered examined his black Xtransceiver.
"Oh right, how could I forget? That's perfect!" May cheered happily, glad Ash had remembered that certain feature.
After minutes of walking and nearing the hill with the Pokéwood sign on it, they reached the base of the hill and found a large banner like Nurse Joy had said with "Welcome to Pokéstar Studios," written in large red letters and Pokémon icons surround the message, Pokémon like the Unova starters and others.
"We'll let's see what it's like," Ash grinned and walked into the district
"I'm so excited," May spoke eagerly.
Ash and May held hands as they walked and almost immediately, they found themselves among many people, walking, yelling, and screaming all over the place. While Ash a little annoyed by the ruckus, May was oblivious to it all thanks to the multiple shopping stores, and restaurants around.
"This place is fantastic!" May's eyes became star-shaped and got mesmerized by it all.
Ash sighed and replied, "May, I've seen at least half these stores already in Castelia City when you went shopping."
"But I didn't get to buy anything," May sighed in disappointment.
"I'd like to get you something, but this place is almost as expensive as Castelia City. Besides, we came here to eat remember? We don't have too much money on us," the raven-haired teen reminded the brunette.
"Yeah you're right, may be next time…but I can't wait to eat!" May's low spirit of not being able to afford 99% of the things here got raised by the thought of food.
"Nurse Joy was right about this place though and what I can't stop seeing is giant billboards and posters on stores about upcoming movies. I've probably even seen at least one movie theatre every five blocks we've walked," Ash stated the other thing that stood out in the area.
"Yeah, if you just look there's a ton of advertisement for movies like a couple of ones I saw called 'The Aura Knight Rises', 'Trainer of Steel', 'The Pokémon Avengers', 'Breaking Dusk', 'Lord of the Plates', I could go on forever," May said, seeing even more film advertisement as she named the most prominent movie advertisements she saw as they walked.
Ash agreed as they continued walking, but they halted when they saw a black limo pass right in front of them and a crowd of about 100 people followed it, most of them photographers. The two became alarmed by the crowd that dashed like a herd of Tauros and they could hear very loud yelling like, "Quick, who took a picture of Aniston," "This photo is going to get on 'Unova Today'," "Look there's that Selina girl!"
The sounds of their cameras clicking was probably the worst part, but when the crowd finally passed by them, the couple was left unharmed. As the crowd vanished from sight, Ash and May gazed with horror, "They make my Tauros seem tamed," Ash commented.
"Talk about zero control, I could've sworn more of them popped up out nowhere when they got close," May added to what Ash said.
"We should get moving before we're stomped on by another one of those crowds," Ash suggested and the two quickly got going.
"Is it really healthy for people to be so obsessed with celebrities?" May inquired, thinking about the crowd from earlier as they walked.
"I don't think so, but I guess that's just how some people are," Ash answered her question.
After some more walking, another thought struck into May's head, one which somewhat irritated her.
"By the way, how are we going to find The Toscana if Nurse Joy only told us how to get to Pokéstar Studios, this place seems pretty big," May's tone became sassy when she realized that they weren't even sure where they were heading.
Ash froze and wondered how he never thought of that. When he looked at May, he could tell that she clearly wasn't happy, and he laughed nervously. "It must've slipped my mind," the auburn-eyed teen chuckled nervously.
May sighed and lowered on to her knees, "Oh Ash, what do we do now?"
"We could ask for directions, what do you think May?" Ash looked down at the ground, thinking, when he got no response from May, he lifted his head and asked, "May?"
When he saw the girl, she was staring ahead of them and in front of them was a golden statue of what looked like a rock star. Ash became as fascinated with the statue as May, it was made of gold, it was spotless, and it appeared to be about 15 feet tall.
"Who do you think this is?" May got onto to her feet and admired the statue. The rock star was a girl, and dressed very much like a rock star, she held an electric guitar in her hands and her hair was very wild.
"Someone really famous if they are willing to take their time to make a 15 foot statue of them made of gold," Ash told the girl.
May agreed, but their admiration for the statue ended when their stomachs grumbled. "My stomach's killing me," May sighed and held her stomach.
Ash sighed and held his as well, he examined the area and realized they were at a town square, and the statue was at the center of it, where they stood. The black-haired teen motioned his head and looked around the area, until his eyes began to shine with joy.
When May noticed, she quickly asked, "Ash, what's wrong?" she put on a puzzled look when she questioned.
"The Toscana!" Ash pointed right behind the statue.
May looked to where he was pointing at and her eyes began to shine as well, but the sapphire-eyed girl also clasped her hands together in joy.
They walked past the statue and stood in front of the fancy looking restaurant. The name of the restaurant was in yellow letters and written in script, reading "The Toscana", with the word "the" on top of "Toscana". The style of the building was very French-like, which made the couple believe that it might be a fancy restaurant.
"Well, we've walked all this way, let's go inside!" May cheered and grabbed Ash by his hand, pulling him and rushing into the restaurant. Ash got caught off guard, but went right behind her; he was just as hungry as she was.
When they entered they became surprised by how fancy it was, many of the customers were dressed in tuxedos and dresses, the waiters wore the traditional uniform, but they just made the place look even fancier. There were a couple of plants and the primary color of the building was red, at one of the corners of the restaurant, a band was playing smooth jazz, people were laughing, talking, and some even seemed to be doing business. At the far back area of the restaurant was a bar where a couple of men could be seen sitting in their suits and drinking. It all seemed very formal to them.
"This isn't what I was expecting," Ash felt lost in this high-class looking restaurant.
"I know. I didn't expect Nurse Joy to send us to a place like this. She could've told us we needed to dress more appropriately, I feel like a white rose sticking out among red roses," the sapphire-eyed girl wished she had been better prepared.
"Good afternoon sir and ma'am, how may I serve you today?" A waiter appeared in front of Ash and May, speaking with a very elegant tone.
"Could we get a table for two, please?" Ash asked politely, still uneasy about the whole setting though.
"Of course, right this way," the waiter said and the couple followed behind them.
As they walked, May couldn't help but look at all the meals. True to Nurse Joy's words though, the food looked delicious, all this food is making me hungry, I can't wait to eat, May couldn't help but let a little saliva drip. Luckily no one had seen and she wiped it away, embarrassed by her manners.
When she and Ash reached a small, nice table, the waiter pulled their chairs back and they sat down. The waiter gave them two menus, which were made of red leather and the name of the restaurant was on the cover, written in the same style as the sign outside.
"I'll return in five minutes to know your orders. If you have any trouble just let me or one of the waiters know and we will come to your service," the waiter said and left without another word.
Ash and May opened their menus and saw a wide array of foods to choose from. "All this stuff looks good huh May?" Ash read through the menu and looked at the snapshots of food, almost causing his mouth to water.
"Yeah, I'm not sure what I'll order, what about you?" May lowered her menu to look at Ash.
"Hmmmm, I think I'll have…..a bacon cheeseburger and some spaghetti, I'm starving, so I think two plates are good enough for me," Ash chuckled with his menu lowered to look at May.
May giggled and looked at her menu, "I think I'll have two plates too, the question is what I should have? Hmmmmm…." May kept looking until she finally came across two things, "Ok, I think I know what'll eat. I'll have BBQ ribs and Filet Mignon."
"That sounds good, guess all we have to do now is choose our drinks, how does two orange sodas sound?" Ash questioned the sapphire-eyed girl.
"That's fine," May grinned.
"Great, now we'll just wait for the guy to get here so we can order and finally eat," Ash placed his menu on the table and smiled at May.
May nodded and did the same. They both had their hands on the table and May reached over for Ash's and the two intertwined their fingers, they both smiled at each other lovingly, the smooth jazz music fitting the mood. "You know Ash; we haven't gone out to eat at a restaurant just the two of us since we left Pallet Town. It feels nice to be doing this again, but the best part about it is that it's with you," May gave Ash her sweetest gaze.
"I'm glad we could spend this time alone again too, we don't have the same time to do this type of stuff like we did in Pallet and the nicest part is sharing the moment with you too," Ash caressed her hand gently and flashed her a sweet smile and looked directly into her gentle sapphire eyes with his warm auburn eyes.
"If you keep this up Ash, I reward in a way you can't even imagine by the time we're older," May winked playfully, getting into her flirty mode.
Ash blushed at her playfulness, knowing exactly what she meant, but he just continued caressing her hand. "After this, we'll go back to the Pokémon Center and get Pikachu, Victini and the others is that ok?" Ash asked the brunette.
"Sounds good to me," May smiled, but her face then put on a thinking look and she said, "I wonder how Victini is doing; I hope he's doing ok."
Ash smiled and spoke, "I'm sure he's doing fine, after the talk with him, he looked much better and he's with Pikachu, so no worries."
Feeling reassured, May smiled and caressed Ash's hand. He always knows what to say at the right time.
"Ma'am, sir, are you ready to order?" the waiter from earlier returned like he said.
"You bet, I'll have a bacon cheeseburger and spaghetti," Ash said, smiling since he was eager to eat.
The waiter wrote it down on his notepad and then shifted his stare to May, "What will you be having ma'am?"
"I'll have BBQ ribs and filet mignon please," May grinned, just as eager as Ash to eat.
"And as for drinks?" the waiter looked at both of them.
"We'll have two orange sodas," Ash informed the guy.
"Very good sir, I will return shortly," the waiter finished taking notes and walked away.
"How long do you think we'll have to wait?" Ash inquired.
"Not long, I hope," May grinned sheepishly, wishing she would also know how long they'd have to wait for the food.
Before Ash could say anything though, he noticed the jazz music stopped and one of the players of the jazz band spoke, "Ladies and gentlemen, we'll be taking a short break. For now enjoy the televisions placed around the restaurant."
When he finished talking, the screens of the TVs that were hung all over the restaurant were on and punk rock music began playing. On the screen, there was a woman playing on the electric guitar and it seemed like she was in the middle of guitar solo.
May and Ash looked at the TV that was nearest to them and they became amazed by how well the woman was able to play. "How do you think she does it? She plays really well," May continued to watch the screen.
As Ash watched, he quickly realized something, "May, isn't that the woman we saw a statue of outside?"
The brunette began to wonder and analyzed the girl carefully, her hair was similar and the design of her guitar was exactly like that of the statue outside, "I think it is Ash. I wonder who she is, but looks like we found out the reason why they made a statue of her," May said, pointing out the musician's talent once again.
Ash nodded in agreement, the girl on the screen sure knew how to play it. Their admiration for the guitarist got cut when the voice of a man interrupted their train of thought. "That my friends, is Roxie," the voice said.
"Who?" Ash and May asked simultaneously when they saw a man right behind May's chair.
He had sunglasses hanging beneath his eyes, his hair was shoulder-length, and he had a moustache, his hair color could be identified as dirty blond. The man moved from behind May's chair to in front of their table so both could take a good look at him.
"Who are you?" Ash asked the man.
"Please forgive me, where are my manners. I am Mr. Gold, pleasure to meet you," Mr. Gold smiled at the pair.
"Likewise, I'm May from the Hoenn region," May smiled and greeted the man politely.
"And I'm Ash, from Pallet Town in Kanto," Ash introduced himself politely to the man as well.
Mr. Gold adjusted his sunglasses a bit and grinned, "My, my, you come from very faraway places, but I welcome you to Virbank City, Ash and May."
"Thank you," the couple answered at the same time.
"So as I was telling you before, that brilliant musician playing on TV right now is Roxie," Mr. Gold told them.
"Who's Roxie?" Ash and May inquired again at the same time.
"Seeing as how you're foreigners, I'm not surprised; her fame is only highly defined here in Unova. Roxie is the biggest celebrity musician in Virbank and one of the most well-known in all of Unova. She was born here and is adored by the townsfolk, heck she's even more famous than that Kardashian fellow your generation rambles on about," Mr. Gold stated.
Ash and May ignored the last comment, since they didn't even know who Mr. Gold was even talking about, but they fascinated by the amount of popularity Roxie had. "You know come to think of it, I did see some shops selling purple shirts with the name "Roxie" written on it like a lightning bolt and even saw some people wearing them," May recalled seeing from of the people of Virbank selling and wearing shirts about Roxie.
"I saw posters with the name 'Roxie' on them too and they specific dates for concerts and stuff. There were even people with the same rock star haircut that she has, I thought it was just because they all liked having the same haircut, but I didn't know it was because of a celebrity," Ash stated what he saw that referenced or was an allusion to Roxie.
"Goes to show that celebrities dominate this city, they are loved by one and all," Mr. Gold said, smiling as he said it.
Before anyone could say something else, the waiter arrived with a tray that had Ash and May's food and drinks. "Bon appetite," the waiter placed the food and drinks on the table beside the napkins and condiments.
"Thank you," Ash and May grinned at the waiter.
The waiter merely bowed and left. With his bacon cheeseburger with fries and spaghetti in front of him, Ash wasted no time in digging in like a ravenous beast and dirtying himself. May reacted the same way with her BBQ ribs and filet mignon, she carved into the meat of both plates with her fork and knife, it was like she had never tasted food before. Meanwhile, Mr. Gold and the other people nearby couldn't help but feel repulsed and embarrassed by how the teens ate. They all ignored the sounds of their eating and continued their conversations. Ash and May seemed oblivious to it all though and when they realized that Mr. Gold was still there, they gave the man ashamed looks.
"We're sorry, we haven't had a decent meal for a few days," May grinned sheepishly while taking a piece of her filet mignon.
"We've been starving," Ash also smiled sheepishly as he got shoved a meatball into his mouth and then took a bite of his burger with some fries alongside that.
Mr. Gold laughed nervously and spoke, "There's no problem at all with that, but would you like me to continue or shall I leave and let you eat in peace?"
"No, please, tell us more," May insisted as she took a bite of her rib, the sauce dirtying the corners of her mouth.
"We'd love to hear more about Roxie," Ash ate some of the spaghetti noodles.
"Very well," Mr. Gold grinned and spoke, "There's one other thing that makes Roxie such a hit with the people of Unova, besides being a talented musician."
"What would that be?" Ash picked up a meatball with his fork and prepared to eat it whole.
"She's the formidable Virbank City Gym Leader," Mr. Gold said and although he said it with a very normal tone, the news shocked the couple.
Ash nearly choked on his meatball as he tried to swallow it while May's jaw dropped after taking a sip of her soda. Ash pushed the meatball down with all his might and when he was successful he let out a deep breath and yelled, "Virbank gym leader!"
Ash's scream caused a crowd of attention to turn to him and he had a shameful look on his face. May also felt uncomfortable with all those eyes gazing at them while Mr. Gold sighed in discomfiture, Ash chuckled nervously and motioned his hands back and forth, speaking, "It's ok, sorry for my outburst, you can all go back to eating, it won't happen again."
After the Pallet boy said that, they all returned to their business and the couple continued speaking with Mr. Gold. "So you were saying?" Ash chuckled with a sheepish grin on.
"Yes, Roxie is the gym leader here and her skill has given her a reputation as a powerful trainer. Many trainers prefer to have her as their final opponent when it comes to getting their last badge," Mr. Gold gave some facts about Roxie as a trainer.
Ash stood up from his chair and was careful not to yell it out this time, "Then I'm going to challenge Roxie, I've been waiting to get my next badge," the raven-haired teen got a confident smile on.
"So you're a Pokémon trainer?" Mr. Gold raised an eyebrow, surprised by the news.
"You bet and my next challenge is Roxie, I'm going to see how powerful she really is," Ash made a fist of confidence as he spoke.
"You already have seven badges?" Mr. Gold raised his eyebrow again.
"No, I only have three, but just because I don't, doesn't mean that I can't win," the auburn-eyed continued to flash his confident grin.
"Ash, are you sure about this?" May got up from her chair and asked her boyfriend.
Ash grinned at her and responded, "Definitely, I'm in it to win it." The boy then winked at her.
May let out a deep breath and smiled, typical Ash, never caring about how big the challenge is, guess it's another one of the endless reasons why I love him. The girl began to blush a little and reached for Ash's hand, the boy noticed and smiled at her.
"Thanks May," Ash grinned, knowing what May meant by holding his hand.
Mr. Gold smiled and nodded, "Well then Ash, you've showed up at the perfect time."
"What do you mean?" Ash had a baffled look on.
"Well, I'm not your average Joe. You see, I'm the mayor of Virbank City, owner of Pokéstar Studios, and producer and director of major films," Mr. Gold chuckled after revealing who he is.
"Whoa, that's amazing," Ash became immediately impressed by Mr. Gold.
"Looks like everyone here is a celebrity," May said with a stunned tone.
"But what do you mean that I showed up at the right time?" Ash asked Mr. Gold.
"You see the next film I'm working on is a documentary about Roxie. It is about her beginnings, her struggles, her recognition, greatness, skill as a trainer and gym leader, and I've been waiting for a trainer with enough spunk to challenge her so I may use it as film material for my documentary," Mr. Gold explained to Ash.
"Wait, so you're going to film my battle with Roxie and put it in your movie?" Ash asked, trying to the details together.
"That's right, I've been waiting for a trainer with enough skill and confidence to battle Roxie and I must say, I haven't met anyone who has fit that qualification up until now, you're the perfect challenger for Roxie and you're going to make my film a hit, Ash," Mr. Gold spoke with a confident tone.
"Sounds good to me," Ash smiled at Mr. Gold while making his fist.
"Ash, you're going to be in a movie, that's awesome," May clasped her hands together, almost jealous about it.
"May, you may be in it as well as one of Ash's supporters," Mr. Gold offered May the chance to star in his film.
"Oh wow, really, that'll be great, thank you," May smiled at Mr. Gold. The brunette then looked at Ash and the boy looked back, they both chuckled and smiled at the idea of being in a movie together.
"Perfect, why don't we discuss more of this while I give you a tour of the town, you two appeared to have already finished your meals," Mr. Gold said and looked behind them to see napkins everywhere, empty glasses, and plates, the only thing left on them was bones.
Mr. Gold walked past the couple and noticed the receipt, "Look, the waiter was even kind enough to just leave the receipt, why don't I pay for this?" Mr. Gold suggested.
"Wait no, that wouldn't be fair, it's not like you had any," Ash stopped the man for reaching for his wallet. When Ash picked up the receipt, his eyes were wide and the boy flipped backward and landed hard on the ground like a statue.
"How much is it?" May got the receipt from Ash's hand and froze when she saw it. "Wow, we really need to be more careful with our expenses," May giggled nervously.
"Thanks again for paying for our bill, there's no way we could have even paid with our money combined," Ash thanked Mr. Gold while grinning shamefacedly.
"Who knows what would have happened if you hadn't shown up," May added to what Ash said as they the trio walked through Virbank City.
"It wasn't a problem at all kids, you're already doing me the favor of being in my film," Mr. Gold grinned at them.
While May and Ash continued to hold hands, Ash asked, "So Mr. Gold, how are you going to plan it?"
"I've been planning this documentary for a year. I've had my employees do research on her, I've had interviews with her, Roxie is a good friend of mine and she was even nice enough to share some of the more major details about her life that none are aware about. The only major element left to this film is a dynamic battle, Ash would you please do me the large favor of giving this battle the best you've got?" Mr. Gold talked to Ash about his film.
"You bet, I won't you down," Ash grinned with a confident tone.
"Thank you lad, I can't thank you enough. How would you like me to repay you?" Mr. Gold asked the messy-haired teen.
Ash smiled and quickly replied, "Nothing, you already paid for our food and you're making May and I a part of your film. I think you've done us enough favors."
"Ash, with the attitude you've displayed today, I have no doubt in mind that says this won't be a great battle and with a great battle, I know a great documentary shall be forged," Mr. Gold's tone showed that he was very confident in Ash and his abilities.
May then came into the conversation, "Mr. Gold, what films have you made? I'm curious; I might have watched some when I was a little girl."
"Being an old man has given me a long career in film. Among my most notable films are 'Pokémon Ranger and the Sea Princess,' 'Zoroark and the Mystery of Lucario,' 'Pokéformers', 'Triassic Park,' and 'Schlimder's List'," Mr. Gold mentioned.
"I saw 'Pokémon Ranger and the Sea Princess' and 'Schlimder's List' when I was a younger. I cried in both movies, I couldn't believe how they ended," May began to have nostalgia as she talked about the movies she watched as a little girl.
"Yes well, it is a result of years of experience. Both movies even helped me win my two academy awards, which is the most prestigious award any person in the film industry can win," Mr. Gold stated.
"I saw 'Pokéformers' and 'Triassic Park' when I was younger, I thought they were incredible. Where do you guys get such giant Pokémon for your movies?" Ash also began to have nostalgia of his childhood.
"Both films were a major box office success and it was only possible with hard work Ash, hard work has given me everything I have today," Mr. Gold chuckled.
Ash and May smiled, they couldn't believe that they were now walking alongside the man who was responsible for a part of their childhoods. "But enough about me, tell me more about you two, your origins, achievements, etc," Mr. Gold said.
"I grew up in Petalburg City with my dad Norman, who is also the Petalburg Gym Leader, my brother Max, and my mom Caroline. When I turned ten, I went on my journey and pursued a career in coordinating. In my first Grand Festival I got into the Top 8, in my second one I got Top 4, and in the last one I participated in, I won," May smiled, shortening her origins, career and life as a coordinator into just several words.
"That is very impressive; I assume you are competing in the Grand Festival here?" Mr. Gold asked the girl.
"That's right and I'm going to win," May spoke with a confident tone.
"Just the kind of spirit I like to see and what about you Ash?" Mr. Gold asked the auburn-eyed boy.
"I just grew up with mom in Pallet Town. When I turned ten, I set out on my journey with a Pikachu and together we fought many battles and made many friends. When I first competed in a Pokémon League I got into the Top 16, then in the Johto League I got into the Top 8, in the Hoenn League, I reached Top 8 too, and in the Sinnoh League I placed in the Top 4. I also participated in the Orange League and Battle Frontier, and I was able to win both. And now I'm here in Unova, ready to conquer the Unova League," Ash smiled confidently, reminiscing about his past for a second.
"Most impressive, I look forward to both of your performances when the Unova League and Grand Festival begin. There's one thing I'm curious about though," Mr. Gold complimented Ash, but then expressed further curiosity.
"What's that?" Ash and May questioned simultaneously.
"How did the lovely couple meet and come together?" Mr. Gold chuckled, acknowledging the fact that the pair was a couple.
Ash and May began to blush red and smiled at each other sweetly. Ash was the first to speak, "May and I met when I first traveled to Hoenn and she was just starting out on her journey. At first she was insecure about herself and had a difficult time cooperating with her Pokémon, I helped her in whatever way I could so she could improve and when she became interested in contests, I supported her all the way and practiced at every moment I could. We traveled Hoenn and Kanto together and gradually formed a strong bond between us."
"After we finished traveling through Kanto, I decided to travel on my own to Johto, but the feeling wasn't the same anymore. Ash was in Sinnoh and I was in Johto, we missed each other very deeply, and were temporarily reunited in Sinnoh for a competition. But after that ended, that feeling returned and it just wasn't the same without Ash. We finally reunited again in Pallet Town after finishing our travels and it was during that time we spent together, we realized we were in love with each other, although it did take some time because there was another boy who liked me and Ash was pretty dense about love at the time. When we did get together though, we decided to travel together again, and this time to Unova," May recounted the rest and giggled, making Ash sigh, but then smiling affectionately at her.
"Such a marvelous romance, it would make for a remarkable film," Mr. Gold thought about it, liking the idea.
Ash and May began to blush again when they heard Mr. Gold's idea, but shrugged it enough, not believing their love life would be put up on the big screen.
Suddenly, the sound of a phone ringing interrupted the conversation and it turned out to be Mr. Gold's phone. The man quickly answered and spoke, "Yes, hello?"
Mr. Gold walked away from the couple so he could talk and Ash and May were left thinking about the past. "We have a long history, don't we May?" Ash smiled as he recounted many important moments in his life involving May.
"And we have a longer history coming right at us," May smiled at Ash. The two then hugged each other tenderly and felt at peace, the ruckus of Virbank City, the paparazzi, and any other nuisance became oblivious to them as they hugged.
May couldn't feel more secure than being Ash's arms and Ash couldn't feel happier than having his arms wrapped around May.
"Sorry to interrupt your sweet moment kids, but I have to go. It was a pleasure meeting both of you and I'll see both of you at the gym when your match begins, Ash," Mr. Gold informed them.
Ash nodded and replied, "We'll be waiting."
"I look forward to our next meeting, till then you two," Mr. Gold said and a black limo stopped behind him, surprising Ash and May, they hadn't noticed that the car had been driving up the street they were on.
Mr. Gold entered his limo and waved one last time before driving off. Ash and May stayed behind and stopped waving until the limo was gone. Ash lowered his arm and spoke to May, "Let's head back to the Pokémon Center, Pikachu and Victini must be waiting."
"Let's go," May nodded in agreement.
"Glad to see you guys are still in one piece," a voice said that caused Ash and May to stop in their tracks.
The voice caused Ash and May to smile and they quickly turned around to see who stood in behind them.
Many references to real world people and things lol. Shorter than my latest chapters and I hope you enjoyed it. Not much went on here, just a typical chapter focusing on Advanceshipping and the growing theme of Ash and May being Victini's parents. Chapter 26 will be up sometime past the weekend, so stay tuned for that. Remember to REVIEW, PM, ETC, your opinions and thoughts always count. Till the next chapter guys! BTW Ash's gym battle with Roxie is in the next chapter so be excited!