Ash looked around in fascination at the cabin. While it wasn't too big, it was more than cozy enough for a small family, such as their new friend and her uncle. It was somewhat surprising that they had a house like this all the way out here in the woods. Or that they even lived out here.

"So, you live here, huh?" he asked almost absentmindedly.

"Yeah," said Maria. "I've lived here with my uncle for as long as I can remember."

"Really? You've always been here?"

"My whole life. I mean, sometimes me and my uncle go to Viridian City to buy stuff, but I've never gone anywhere else."

"Well, have you ever wanted to go somewhere else?"

Maria paused for a moment, Ash turned to look at her, and was surprised to see that she almost seemed sad.

"Yeah," she said finally. "I've always wanted to see more of the world, and I really want to meet a lot of different Pokemon! It would be so amazing to do all of that!"

"Yeah, I know," said Ash. "That's why I decided to go on my journey. I wanted to meet different Pokemon and trainers, so I could learn and grow, and maybe one day become a Pokemon master!"

"Pokemon Master, huh?" Maria said with an amused tone. "You're going to have to train a lot to get there!"

The two of them laughed for a moment, before Ash thought about something.

"So, why don't you go on a journey of your own?"

Maria stopped laughing.

"Wha- No! I can't!"

Ash looked at her in confusion.

"Why not? I mean, you've never gone out, and you want to see the world, so it sounds like it would be great, right?"

"It might… but I can't leave my uncle! I'm the only one who's there for him!"

"Oh."

Ash looked back at David, who was currently helping Sam and Mikaela settle in. As he did, he realized that there was something missing. Or rather, someone.

"Hey, where are your parents?"

For a moment, Maria didn't respond, but Ash could see that she seemed... sad.

"Oh," he said quietly. "I… I'm sorry, I didn't-"

"It's okay," Maria said quickly, cutting him off. "I don't even remember them, so it's not like I miss them or anything."

"Oh."

"Yeah," said Maria. "Like I said, I've lived with my uncle for as long as I can remember. I don't think about my parents that much, really. I asked Tio David about them once, but he just told me he'll tell me later. I think it made him sad, though."

Ash frowned. The blonde girl's explanation reminded him of his own talks with his mother. How she never talked about his father.

"Do you… want to find out?"

"Sometimes," Maria admitted. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I love my uncle, and he has always been there for me. But there are some times where I… wonder."

Ash looked downwards with a thoughtful expression.

"You know, my dad has never been part of my life. I've only ever known my mom, and she doesn't talk about dad at all. She's not a bad mom in any way, but I do want to meet him one day. In fact… I really hope that I'll find him on my journey eventually."

Maria looked at him in surprise.

"I'm not saying you'll find out about your parents on a journey," said Ash, "but it could happen.

"I guess," said Maria. "I mean, it would still be nice to see the world."

"Yeah, it would," said Ash. "You really should think about it, A-ma-ri-ya."

Maria blinked and stared at him.

"That's not my name," she said in bemusement.

"It's not?" Ash said in confusion.

"No, it's Maria."

"That's what I said."

"No, you said Amarilla. That means yellow."

"You mean your name is Yellow?"

Maria slapped her hand against her face.

"Oh my gosh! This is delicious!"

Ash and the rest of the gang were amazed by the taste of their meal. While they had tried to argue that David and Maria didn't need to feed them, their hosts had been insistent that they needed to be ready to go back into the forest, which could potentially bring them back into Beedrill territory.

Ash was now very grateful for this, as the food was proving to be excellent.

"I'm glad you liked it," said David. "Maria made it with mucho amor!"

"You made it?" Meowth said in amazement. "That is amazing!"

"Pika. Pikachu."

"Oh, come on," Maria said, her cheeks turning red. "It's not that great."

"Are you kidding me?" Sam said happily. "This is so much better than the pre-packaged stuff we've been eating!"

"Eevee! Eve!"

"We don't need to eat that stuff, though," Mikaela chimed in. "I could have cooked for you guys!"

"Well… maybe," said Ash.

Mikaela pouted as she went back to her food.

That night, the gang huddled together in Maria's room.

"So you're going to be a Breeder?" Maria said in fascination.

"Yeah, I am!" Mikaela said enthusiastically. "I can't wait to meet a whole lot of different Pokemon and learn all about what they like and what helps them grow!"

"Eevee Eevee!"

"That's amazing," Maria said in awe. "I would love to meet different Pokemon like that!"

"Yeah," said Ash. "That's what our journey is all about, you know! Meeting all sorts of Pokemon and making our dreams come true!"

"Making your dreams come true…" Maria said in a thoughtful voice.

"Absolutely," said Sam. "And maybe helping people out here and there. I do want to become a great G-Man one day, you know!"

"Chu, Pika."

"That sounds kind of dangerous," said Maria. "It sounds like a lot of Pokemon could get hurt. And I don't like seeing Pokemon get hurt."

"Well," said Sam, "some Pokemon do get hurt. But the job of a G-Man is making sure that Pokemon don't get hurt. So we do everything we can to keep everyone safe."

"Oh. I guess that makes sense."

"Yeah," said Sam. "True, it's dangerous, but we make sure no one else has to be in danger."

"That's amazing," said Ash.

"Yeah," said Meowth, "you're like a superhero or something!"

The gang laughed together, while the blonde girl watched them with a thoughtful look on her face.

The next morning, Maria got up early to check their surroundings. Fortunately, as she looked out the window, she saw no signs of the Beedrill swarm. She smiled in relief, before a sigh escaped her lips.

To be honest, she had greatly enjoyed the time she had spent with her new friends. While life in the forest was hardly dull, she had never really gotten to interact with other people her age. Even in her rare trips to the city, she only spoke to other people briefly. And she didn't have a chance to go anywhere else. She never got a chance to explore the world.

Exploring the world. Ash, Sam, Mikaela, and their Pokemon friends were so lucky.

"Is something wrong, Mija?"

She looked up at the voice to see her uncle standing next to her.

"Oh, Tio David," she said quickly. "I'm okay. I was just… making sure there weren't any more Beedrill outside."

"I see," David said as he looked out the window. "Well, it does look like they all decided to leave, right?"

"Yes… it does."

David placed a hand on Maria's shoulder, causing her to flinch.

"Dime, Mija… what's really bothering you?"

Maria winced. She really didn't want to have to tell her uncle, but it didn't seem like she had a choice.

"It's just… Ash, Sam, and Mikaela are going to go out on an adventure together to make their dreams come true. And they're getting to travel all over Kanto, and meet so many different people and Pokemon! And that's really cool! But…"

"But?..."

"I… I don't know. I really liked them, and I was hoping I could get to know them better. And it would be really nice to go around the region too. I mean, I've always lived here in the forest with you, and I love it. But, well, sometimes I wonder about the rest of the world."

David smiled as he watched his niece explain her dilemma. He was happy that she had managed to make such good friends, even if it had all been due to a rather unfortunate situation. She had so little contact with other people out here that he sometimes worried about her. Still, the fact that she was able to connect with these newcomers so easily filled him with hope.

And her sadness made him worry.

"And what do you want to do, Mija?"

Maria looked away, clearly not comfortable with what she was about to say.

"Well, I want to be there for you, Tio," she said finally. "If I leave, you'll be all alone. And I don't want to leave you alone. I want you to be happy."

David sighed, then smiled. Maria was too kind, too selfless, even now that she was given the opportunity that she had always deserved.

She was so much like her mother.

"You know, Mija, I once made a promise. A long time ago, I promised that I would be there for you. I promised that I would always protect you, no matter what."

"What do you mean?" Maria asked. "Who did you promise that to?"

For a fraction of a second, David winced. But he quickly composed himself as he continued his explanation.

"It was… to someone very important to me," he said cryptically. "It's not important. What matters is that it's my duty to make sure you're always safe, and to care for you. And I've always made sure to do that."

Maria smiled as she remembered all the times her uncle had been there for her. He had fed her, taught her, cared for her. When she needed help, he was there to lend a hand. When she was sick, he had been there to nurse her back to health. And every single night, he had been there to tuck her into bed, with a bedtime story and a kiss on the cheek.

Even if her parents hadn't been around, he had raised her just as if she were his own.

"Even so, I can't always be there to protect you."

Maria looked up at her uncle in surprise.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Maria, there will come a time when you have to keep going on without me. It's not because I want to leave you. I would stay with you forever if I could. But as long as you are with me, you won't be able to make your own dreams come true."

The blonde girl's eyes went wide.

"As much as I hate to admit it," David continued, "I can't protect you and give you space to grow at the same time. Sooner or later, I will have to let you go on your own path. And when you do, you'll grow apart from me, on your own. And that's okay. I will still be happy knowing that you're chasing after your own dreams."

Maria was staring at her uncle in shock. She had never thought he would say anything like this. And yet, here he was, encouraging her to go out and follow her dreams.

A smile crept up onto her face as her eyes began to water. She flung herself into his arms and hugged him as tightly as she could.

"Is… is it really okay if I leave you all alone?"

"Ay, Mija," David said as he hugged her back, "You go out and explore the world. Make your dreams come true. I'll still be here when you get back."

Despite herself, Maria couldn't help but smile. Even if she still worried about leaving her uncle behind, she still wanted to experience everything the world had to offer.

Ash and his friends grinned as they prepared to head out.

"Man, I can't wait to get back on the road," said Ash. "Good thing those Beedrill aren't around to cause trouble anymore!"

"You said it," said Meowth. "All clear from here to Pewter!"

"Well, you two sure are excited," Sam said observantly. "I'll bet you've got a great plan to take on the Pokemon Gym!"

"Nope!" said Ash. "But I'm sure we'll figure it out when we get there!"

Sam fell over.

"Pikachu, pika," Pikachu said an annoyance as he got back up onto his trainer.

"Well, I think you'll do great," said Mikaela. "Once you figure out what you're doing, of course."

"Ev-Eevee!"

The group smiled, ready to move out. At least, until Meowth noticed an unexpected addition to their party.

"Wait, what's Maria doing?"

Ash and the others turned around in surprise. There standing in front of them was Maria, displaying a surprising amount of confidence. She was now wearing a black turtleneck shirt and dark blue jeans, both of which were covered up by a long yellow sleeveless vest. She also was wearing a pair of purple boots, as well as a brown belt around her waist. Most notably, she had recovered her straw hat, which was now sitting on top of her head.

"Do you guys have room for one more?"

Ash and the others looked at her, each of them speechless. At this sight, the blonde girl felt herself shrink back.

"I - I mean if you don't have room, that's fine," she said timidly. "It's not like I need to go with you guys or anything. I just thought-"

"We'd love to have you along!"

Maria's eyes widened as the raven haired boy stretched out his hand. A huge smile took over her face as she grabbed it.

"Oh my gosh! Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome!" Meowth said enthusiastically. "We always got room for more friends!"

"Yeah," said Mikaela. "Especially if those friends saved us from a bunch of angry murder bugs!"

"...What she said," said Sam. "Welcome to the team!"

Maria smiled, then frowned a bit as she turned back to face her uncle.

"Well… I guess this is goodbye, Tio."

"Supongo que si," said David. "But don't be sad, Mija. You're going to learn so much on this journey. And you'll be back before you know it."

Maria smiled, then gave her uncle one last hug. She then rushed back to her friends.

"Well, are you ready?" Ash asked.

"Yeah!" said Maria. "I can't wait to go!"

With that, the gang said their goodbyes to David and marched out the door.

"I can't believe I'm finally going out on my own," said Maria. "It's… exciting, but also a bit scary!"

"Well, that is true," said Sam. "But trust me, it's going to be great!"

"Pika."

"Yeah," said Mikaela. "You're going to love this!"

"Vee!"

"I sure hope so," said Maria. "I mean, I've never really gone out of the Viridian area, so it's going to be really different from before."

"Hey, don't worry," said Ash. "I'm sure you'll do great, A-ma-ri-ya!"

Maria rolled her eyes.

"I told you before. It's Maria."

"Isn't that what I said?"

"No," said Maria, "I told you, that means yellow."

"Wait," said Mikaela, "your name means Yellow?"

Maria groaned as the rest of the group laughed.

A/N: So, in case it wasn't obvious enough, Maria is based on Yellow from Pokemon Adventures.

I still have no idea why Yellow's real name was in Spanish, but I've decided to roll with it. In this case, her name was easy enough to confuse with Amarilla, which is the feminine version of Amarillo. The masculine version was fine in the manga, where Yellow was trying to pass as a boy, but here it makes much less sense. Thus, Amarilla del Bosque Verde; or, as I decided to call her, Maria Bosqueverde.

Presumably, she's from whatever region is south of Unova and Orre. Or maybe west of Kalos.