I know I haven't gotten around to a Valentine's story (I was working on one but struggled with it) but I wanted to get a new story up so I decided to wrap this one up and share it!
Aiden and Michelle: 4 years old
Reunion
Misty squinted as the deep orange sunlight caused her eyes to burn and hindered her vision. It was so bright that she could hardly see anything around her. Reaching out, Misty walked slowly until her palm connected with a tree, which she gratefully leaned against.
"I wish I had brought sunglasses with me," she complained. "I have no idea where I'm even going!"
"Just follow me!"
Unimpressed, Misty furrowed her brow. "How am I supposed to follow you when I can't see you?"
Ash suddenly jumped out in front of her with a big smile on his face, causing Misty to yelp and stumble back, nearly tripping over her own feet. She scowled while he laughed, but as soon as he saw the look on her face, Ash quickly cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry; I couldn't help myself! If we go up just a little bit further, there are more trees that'll block out the sun. That should make it a whole lot easier to navigate around here."
Misty still seemed wary, so Ash chuckled and offered her his hand. Smirking, Misty accepted it and allowed him to lead her ahead, although she couldn't stop herself from attempting to look around. It was during her latest futile attempt, however, that a question popped into her head.
"Didn't you say you haven't been here in years?" Misty asked.
"Yeah," Ash replied.
"So how do you know exactly where you're going?"
"Because I can feel it."
"You can feel it?" Misty repeated incredulously. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"You'll see."
Misty sighed and shook her head. "You keep saying that, but I don't even know what I'm looking for."
"That's because it's a surprise!" Ash cried. "I thought you liked surprises."
"You know I hate surprises."
"Well…I like them."
Misty playfully rolled her eyes but didn't have time to crack another witty response. The sunlight had suddenly become much less harsh, and for the first time since entering the forest, she was able to see clearly. It didn't seem all that unique of a place; there were trees all-around, moss-covered dirt and rocks beneath her feet, plants and weeds both large and small springing up in all different spots. The formerly glaring orange rays had dulled to a much more tolerable gold, illuminating their surroundings in long, brush-like strokes.
"Whoa," Misty breathed. "It's actually kind of beautiful here!"
"I never thought I'd hear you refer to any forest as beautiful," Ash chuckled, glancing over his shoulder at her. "You're usually too worried about bugs jumping out at you!"
Misty's face tinged red. "Come on, don't ruin it. Besides…that's a valid concern!"
Ash smirked, but his expression suddenly grew serious before he whipped his head back around. Misty blinked, unsure of why his disposition had changed so abruptly. The sound of a twig snapping, however, caused her breath to hitch. Misty reached up, grabbing Ash's shoulders and gripping them tightly.
"Did you hear that?" She whispered urgently to him. He didn't respond, which only served to further fire up her nerves.
Straight ahead of them, a shadowy figure appeared and began walking closer. Misty's grasp on Ash managed to tighten, but he still had no reaction to it.
It was at this point that Misty began to internally curse herself. She knew she should've stayed back at Lumiose Tower! Playing with Bonnie and the twins while eating some of Serena's delicious desserts and listening to the all-too-intricate details of Clemont's latest invention would've been fine by her, even without the imminent threat of potentially being murdered in the middle of a forest. But no, Ash had to push for her to come with him instead.
At this point, she was just glad she hadn't acquiesced when Aiden and Michelle had begged to come along on this little excursion as well.
The figure drew closer and closer, and Misty could feel her fight or flight response begin to kick in. If Ash wasn't going to do anything about this, then she would. She removed one of her hands from Ash's shoulder and allowed it to linger by her waist, ready to rip off one of her poke balls if the need arose.
"There you are!"
Misty slowly lowered her hand as she stared at the back of Ash's head in disbelief. He'd finally decided to open his mouth, and he sounded downright happy?! Looking back ahead, she realized that the figure had finally stepped out into the light, and now she could see clearly who it was.
"Greninja?"
She had never seen the Pokémon in person, but she had seen him on TV and in Ash's own pictures enough times that was very familiar with what he looked like. His dark blue skin had enshrouded him in the darkness perfectly, although Misty was a little embarrassed she hadn't taken notice of the bright pink tongue wrapped around his neck before now. The ninja Pokémon's equally pink eyes were locked firmly on Ash, and before Misty could process it, Ash charged forward, and his old friend did the same in order to meet each other in a tight embrace.
Misty watched the two with a smile on her face, happy for the both of them. She knew how much they'd been through together, and that it had been years since they'd last seen each other. It then occurred to her that this forest must've been the same one where Ash had left Greninja all those years ago to assist in ridding the Kalos region of the remnants of Team Flare's evil deeds.
"Alright, you win," Misty sighed, finally regaining Ash and Greninja's attention. Smiling, she winked at her husband and conceded, "this is a pretty awesome surprise."
Ash's face somehow managed to light up even more. "I knew you'd like it!"
"Ninj?" Greninja asked his trainer, looking from Misty back to Ash.
"Right, you two have never met!" Ash exclaimed. "Greninja, this is my wife, Misty! She's the best. And she knows all about our adventures!"
Misty giggled softly and nodded. "It's so nice to finally meet you! You sure do sound like one amazing Pokémon!"
"Ja!" Greninja gratefully replied, giving Misty a quick nod before once again gazing at Ash. Although it had been years since they'd last seen each other, the trainer and Pokémon still shared a very tight, unique bond. From the time Ash had entered the forest, Greninja had been able to sense his presence…and his spirit. It was still unmistakably Ash, but there was something different about it. A good different. Ash had always been cheerful and buoyant, but those traits within him felt stronger than ever…something that surprised Greninja to some extent considering Ash was now a full-grown adult and not the carefree child he'd been when they first traveled together. And, even more than that, something about Ash's essence felt far more secure and complete.
Could that all have been because of this woman? Had falling in love actually managed to purify Ash's soul even more; something that the Pokémon wouldn't have thought was even possible?
"Greninja, I was wondering…would you like to come back to Lumiose City with us?"
The fully evolved starter snapped out of his thoughts, focusing on a meekly grinning Ash instead.
"It'd be lots of fun to catch up," Ash continued. "All of our friends are there! And there are some other people I'd love for you to meet too."
Greninja's expression evolved into one that Misty noted was quite similar to Ash's, and the Pokémon excitedly nodded his head.
"Awesome!" Ash cheered. "Come on, let's go!"
And so, the ninja Pokémon followed Ash and Misty out of the forest he'd been protecting for years, making the familiar trek back out to Lumiose City.
"How's it been out here?" Ash asked as they walked. "Have the vines settled down at all?"
"Ja," Greninja confirmed, nodding his head.
"Wow, that's great!" Ash crowed. "Has it been a long time since you and Zygarde last saw any?"
Greninja nodded again, and Misty inclined her head when she saw a hopeful smile appear on Ash's face.
The trainer and Pokémon continued their conversation, Misty interjecting when she felt she could. She didn't want to interrupt too much; she knew how long it had been since Ash and Greninja had last seen each other, and how excited they were to be back together. She wanted to allow them to have this moment and catch up.
It felt like no time had passed before the group made it back into Lumiose City. Even from several blocks away, Lumiose Tower was visible, the setting sun reflecting off of its many windows.
"Ninja?" Greninja asked, nodding towards the building.
Ash looked up at it and grinned. "Yeah, that's where we're headed. I bet you can see the tower even from the forest if you're up high enough in the trees, huh?"
"Ja," Greninja replied.
Misty frowned. She knew Greninja had a job to do…a very important one. But it made her so sad to think that he'd been out there all by himself, able to look back into the city where he'd first met Ash, where Clemont and Bonnie still lived, but unable to actually see any of them.
"It must be lonely in that forest," Misty murmured, looking over at a bewildered Greninja. "Don't get me wrong; I meant what I said when you're an amazing Pokémon! And selfless, too. I mean, you left Ash so you could protect the whole Kalos region. But still…you must've really missed all of your friends."
Greninja quickly shook his head and pointed towards the tower, explaining, "ninj…greninja ja ninja janinja janinj!"
Misty was visibly confused, causing Ash to laugh. "He said that Clemont and Bonnie visit him all the time! They like to check up on him and hang out. Bonnie especially likes bringing him all different treats! The ones Serena sends are his favorites."
That brought a smile back to Misty's face. "How sweet! I'm glad to know that. Clemont and Bonnie are great friends to come and visit you! And so is Serena, for making you those special treats."
Greninja smiled as well and nodded in agreement.
"And they'll all be really surprised to see you at the tower!" Ash chirped. "Hey, I know! Let's race there!"
Misty rolled her eyes. "Ash, seriously? We're adults! I'm not about to chase you through the streets of Kalos' busiest city."
Greninja, however, seemed more than up to the challenge, as he darted forward, right past both Ash and Misty. The man grinned to himself, excitedly whopping, "don't get too cocky, Greninja! I'm gonna catch up to you in no time!"
Ash began to chase after his Pokémon, while Misty was left behind gawking. Scoffing to herself, she muttered, "guess I shouldn't be surprised. At least if I jog and keep my distance from those two, I won't look totally insane."
That's what she chose to do, not wanting to fall too far behind Ash and Greninja but also not willing to disturb others on the street the way she was sure those two would. They still managed to beat her to Lumiose Tower handedly, however, leading her to scowl as soon as she arrived at the entrance and saw their smug faces.
"So, who won?" Misty asked teasingly.
Ash and Greninja exchanged looks, both grinning foolishly soon after. "It was a tie!" Ash declared. "Truthfully, I thought you might've picked up the pace and beaten both of us. You're usually much faster than that!"
"I already told you I wasn't going to cause a scene," Misty reminded him. "Judging by the looks on people's faces as I went past them, I'm assuming you and Greninja took care of that quite easily."
"Ninj…" Greninja muttered sheepishly.
Ash blushed as well and rubbed the back of his neck. "Okay, guess we just couldn't help ourselves! We're both pretty competitive, after all."
"You two are definitely a good pair," Misty agreed with a short giggle. "Come on, let's head inside. Everyone will be so surprised how quickly we got back thanks to you and Greninja's little race!"
The three of them entered the tower, using the elevator to take them to the top floor. It had been a long time since he'd been inside, but Greninja remembered every detail of the building, and very little had changed. The familiarity was pleasant to him; it reminded him of the past, when he'd still been travelling around with his trainer and their friends, before all of the trouble with Team Flare had ever begun.
And then shrieking laughter broke him out of his reverie.
Greninja looked out on the battlefield, where Bonnie was chasing around two small children who he had never seen before. One was a boy with messy black hair, and the other was a girl with a bright red ponytail swinging behind her head. The longer he stared at them, the more he realized they looked exactly like Ash and Misty, and the more he felt like, despite not recognizing them, he somehow already knew them.
"Aiden! Michelle!"
The kids ceased their running and looked in the direction of Ash, who had just called out to them. Bonnie stopped as well and looked disappointed for a brief moment until her bright blue eyes locked with Greninja's pink.
"Hey, Greninja!" Bonnie cried excitedly, running up to the ninja Pokémon. "I should've known you were the one Ash was going to see!"
"Ninj!" Greninja replied, nodding his head.
"Whoa, Daddy! That's your Greninja?"
The little boy had ambled up to the dual type Pokémon, his brown eyes shimmering. Greninja let out a shallow breath, his eyes widening as the child stood there marveling at him.
"Yep!" Ash confirmed, causing Greninja to slowly turn his head in order to look over his shoulder. With an almost bashful smile, Ash moved closer to Greninja and explained, "I'm sure you've figured it out by now, but these two are mine and Misty's kids. Their names are Aiden and Michelle, and they know all about you! I've told them all the stories about our journey through Kalos," Ash had been going on excitedly up until that point, at which he lowered his voice and whispered, "…but I left out some of the darker stuff like Team Flare and the vines, obviously."
"Ja," Greninja sighed in understanding.
"I've always wanted you to be able to meet them," Ash continued, his expression managing to grow more remorseful. "But I was so scared of those vines, and if they were to come back…I could never put those two in any kind of danger. I'd never be able to forgive myself if anything happened to them."
Greninja looked down and was a bit alarmed to see that Aiden was gone. The young boy suddenly darted out from behind his back, however, leading Greninja to realize that the boy had been running circles around him, trying to take in every aspect of the Pokémon.
"When Clemont told me that he hadn't been receiving any readings of those vines in a while, I figured now was the perfect time," Ash concluded, smiling more confidently at his Pokémon. "Not just for me to introduce you to the twins, but for you to come back with us to Kanto as well…that is, if you want to."
Greninja barely had time to process what Ash had just said to him before Aiden began giggling again. The ninja Pokémon glanced down at the boy, who seemed positively exuberant. "You're so cool!"
That compliment got an amused smile out of Greninja. Aiden not only looked like his father, but he sounded just like him, too. And, Greninja could tell, also had the same love for Pokémon as his father. Kneeling down, Greninja offered a webbed hand to Aiden, who laughed excitedly and gave the dual type a high five.
When Greninja looked back up, however, he could see that the boy's sister hadn't moved much at all and looked rather timid. Misty had gone over to her at some point and appeared to be trying to coax the child, although she didn't seem to be having much success.
"Michelle's a lot shyer than her brother is," Ash commented with a chuckle. "Don't take it personally; she's like that with everyone she doesn't know very well. But the good news for you is she warms up to Pokémon a whole lot faster than she warms up to people!"
Thinking for a short moment, Greninja slowly walked over to Misty and Michelle, quickly gaining the little girl's attention and causing her to squeak nervously as she inched closer to her mother. Smiling kindly, Greninja got down low, to Michelle's level, and stared right into the girl's dazzling green eyes.
"Greninja is a very sweet Pokémon," Misty informed her daughter. "You remember all of those stories Daddy's told you, right?"
Michelle slowly nodded her head, but still looked a little unsure. Understanding this, Greninja held his arms out towards the child, as though he were silently asking for her embrace.
"Oh, I don't know if that's gonna work…" Bonnie murmured. Although Ash and Misty said nothing out loud, both were thinking the same thing.
Which is why everyone was stunned when Michelle took one small step forward, then another, and finally a third, until she was close enough to Greninja that she could reach out and give the ninja Pokémon a cautious hug.
"Ninj! Greninja!" Greninja cheered, hugging the girl back before pulling away and making a silly face at her. This caused Michelle to burst into a fit of giggles, highly amused by the creature's willingness to act like a bit of a goof.
"You're funny!" Michelle squealed, hopping up and down. "I love Greninja!"
The dual type Pokémon paused. That sure was a quick turnaround! Ash could tell that the creature was surprised, and he let out a short laugh at the reaction.
"Told you she'd warm up pretty fast!" Ash chirped. "Michelle might be shy, but once you have your trust, she's very loyal. Now she'll be your best friend forever!"
As if to further prove her father's point, Michelle sidled up to the Pokémon and grabbed his hand, beaming up at him.
"Look how sweet!" Misty crooned.
"Aw, so cute!" Bonnie agreed.
"I wanna hold Greninja's hand too!" Aiden cried, running up to the Pokémon's other side and clutching his free hand. "There; now we're all friends!"
"Yeah, you are!" Misty giggled.
Greninja looked between the two children before turning his gaze onto Ash. And as soon as he saw his trainer, the Pokémon's eyes widened.
Ash looked so happy, so proud of the two of them. Greninja could tell just how much he loved them. It was a fierce, powerful feeling…and it was those feelings that led Greninja to realize that it was not just Misty who had brought Ash such a sense of security; it was Aiden and Michelle, too. Ash had always treated his Pokémon like family and regarded them as such. But having a family of his own had elevated his sense of self tremendously, and to Greninja, it was now plain as day.
"So…what do you say, Greninja? Would you like to come back to Kanto with us?"
Ash's voice regained the Pokémon's attention. He saw a hopeful look on his trainer's face, which in turn filled Greninja with a similar feeling. He wanted to, so badly, but he still had that fear in the back of his mind. What if those vines wound up returning and he wasn't there to help Zygarde destroy them? That could lead to even bigger problems…ones that Greninja didn't much care to dwell on.
"You don't have to worry, Greninja!"
The dual type turned around to find Clemont just coming through the back door of the battle area, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose as Serena followed alongside. "I just ran another environmental scan, this one at a deeper surface level. There's absolutely no evidence of any further abnormal activity in the forest area. And I haven't been able to say that confidently in a very long time!"
"And if anything ever does come up, you know that Clemont would never hesitate to get a hold of you," Serena helpfully added.
"Precisely!" The Lumiose gym leader agreed. "In fact, we have a poke ball transport machine right here in the gym. It would take only seconds for Ash to get you back to Kalos in the event of an emergency!"
The more Clemont spoke, the wider Greninja's smile grew. And while the twins weren't entirely sure what Clemont was even talking about, the larger they saw Greninja's grin become, their own smiles strengthened as well.
"Yeah, come with us, Greninja!" Aiden pleaded, swinging the Pokémon's arm back and forth.
"We can have fun!" Michelle chirped, following that up with a sweet little giggle.
"Ninj…" Greninja breathed, looking between the enthusiastic twins. His own confidence surging, the ninja Pokémon cried out a passionate, "ja!"
"Really?!" Ash gasped, his eyes twinkling. "You will?!"
"Ja!" Greninja confirmed, nodding his head.
"YAY!" Aiden and Michelle both squealed, spinning around to hug their father's Pokémon.
Misty beamed at the three of them before switching her attention onto Ash. "This is so great!"
"Yeah, it is!" Ash agreed warmly. "I've been waiting forever for this!"
Clasping her hands together, Serena declared, "this calls for a celebration! How do some homemade pastries sound?"
"Oh! Oh! I want those!" Aiden cried, letting go of Greninja so he could throw his hand in the air while jumping up and down.
Serena laughed at the boy's jovial response. "I know you do, Aiden!"
Looking up at Greninja, Michelle informed the Pokémon, "Serena makes the yummiest stuff!"
He nodded in agreement, being very familiar with Serena's baking himself.
"I'll help you get them!" Bonnie volunteered, practically skipping over to the older woman.
Serena smirked, bewildering her younger friend. "Are you just volunteering so you can get first dibs on the pastries?"
"What?! Me?!" Bonnie gasped dramatically, holding a hand over her heart. "Never!"
"Mmhm," Serena hummed sarcastically.
Aiden's eyes widened. "Then I wanna help too!"
"No, you definitely want to dig into those treats before anyone else," Misty playfully scolded, to which Aiden laughed.
"Clemont can help me with the pastries," Serena decided, turning towards the surprised gym leader. "He's the only one I can trust to not sneak anything."
"HEY!"
The chorus of displeased voices caused Serena to giggle nervously. "Sorry, but it's true! The rest of you all have a history! Well…not Greninja, but I'm not about to tear him away from this happy little reunion."
The ninja Pokémon proudly puffed his chest out, pleased that he was in Serena's good graces.
"Would you?" Serena sweetly asked the still stunned Clemont.
"Uh…sure!" Clemont agreed. "I'd be happy to!"
As soon as they left the room, Bonnie's pout dissipated as she scurried over to Greninja, grabbing onto the dual type's hands and spinning him in a circle. "I'm so excited you get to go home with your family! And you're so lucky you'll get to play with Aiden and Michelle all the time! I wish I could do that…"
She had stopped running around, a forlorn look on her face accompanying her last statement. Smiling, Michelle flitted over to Bonnie, grabbing at the young woman's legs. "Let's play now!"
Bonnie giggled, bending at her knees. "You want to play again?"
Michelle nodded eagerly. "And we can play with Greninja, too!" She released Bonnie's legs and ran in the direction of the ninja Pokémon, urging him, "come on! Chase me!"
Greninja blinked, looking up at Ash and Misty for a prompt. Both just smiled encouragingly at him, and taking that as their approval, he began to race after Michelle, the girl squealing with delight.
"Hey, I wanna play too!" Aiden cried, darting after the Pokémon and his sister.
Bonnie watched them in amazement for a short moment before letting out her own excited yelp and joining in on the fun. Misty giggled at the younger woman's response, and when she looked over at Ash, she realized her husband looked a bit jealous. She smirked, knowing exactly why that was.
"You want to join them, don't you?"
Ash glanced over at Misty, who had a mischievous look on her face. "Maybe just a little…"
She rolled her eyes, her smirk widening. "Well, go on. Greninja's got to know what he's getting himself into by coming back with us to Kanto, after all!"
Grinning, Ash grabbed Misty's hand and pulled his alarmed wife forward with him. "You're right, which means you have to join us too!"
Fighting the urge to protest, Misty just sighed and allowed it to happen. After all, Ash had a point: she was right.
Greninja would have to get used to their family's craziness one way or another.
I'm still waiting for a proper Greninja reunion, and I figure every time I've written a story like this lately, Journeys winds up contradicting it. So...I'm manifesting!
