SZ: *garbed in holy gear as he looked around suspiciously* I know it's close to October, but I'm trying to be cautious. I ain't getting spooked by no Ghost Pokemon, especially the Gastly line!
GT: *pops out behind SZ, dressed as a Mega Gengar* GENGAR!
SZ: *screams as he tossed holy water on GT* DIE FOUL GHOST!
GT: *laughs while getting out of the getup* Gotcha!
SZ:...Not cool man. Not! Cool! ...Ahem! Though given today's chapter, it's...appropriate I guess.
GT: Oh so very true. Plus, be glad I didn't go with my other idea. *points at a door, showing dancing skeletons singing The Living Tombstones remix of Spooky Scary Skeletons inside*
SZ:...Fair enough...ahem. So let's cut the chit chat. You guys already know who we own and don't own, so let's begin! GT, care to do the honors as always?
GT: Yep. *sends out a Gengar that eats the screen*
Entry 017: Greetings. I am Tsubaki Yayoi, a member of the student council of the academy me and my friends attend. After giving her own entry last time, Makoto thought it would be a good idea for each of us in Remix Heart to put in an entry of our own, and Kajun didn't seem to mind that. It does feel a bit comforting doing something like this, so I'll do my best to give an accurate report.
While we were waiting for a boat, I thought back to the previous night where Professor Oak explained how he came to realize we were from an alternate reality. I...I must admit that I'm still in shock that Kajun was the one who slipped up. I was honestly expecting it to be Makoto. Ahem! Regardless, we did learn a few things from him, most importantly...that the one behind that portal that sent me and my friends here was possibly created by something known as an Ultra Beast. Not much is known about it, but it seems a group known as the Aether Foundation has dealt with an Ultra Beast before...could the two incidents be connected somehow?
I was taken out of my thoughts as we started talking about the wait for the next ferry off the island. During said wait, we encountered an injured Horsea that was trying to warn us about something...something I wish we should've noticed sooner later on. S...sorry….getting off track here for a bit. Anyways, a nearby ship had exploded, prompting most of us to send out some of our Water Pokemon to go rescue the people that were onboard. When we did...we were taken to meet their boss….*frowns* Nastina. I thought her sister Brutella was horrid, but Nastina...she….she was even worse! She wanted to hire us to kill a school of Tentacool that live in the coral reefs she was building a hotel on! I...I couldn't stay in there any longer and neither could Misty, whom was a rather big fan of Tentacool and Tentacruel. Just as we were heading back to the port to check on Horsea, however….Nastina 'recruited' all Pokemon Trainers on the island-both native and visiting-and offered a large sum of money to kill the Tentacool, along with a 'bonus' for exterminating any nearby Water Pokemon. I….I…GAH! *clears throat*
Sorry, sorry. It's just that woman makes me so infuriated! But...it was with good fortune that we ended up running into three Trainers from the SS Anne that had apparently gone to the port to restock on supplies. At least there were some good people there at the time...but to my annoyance and anger, Nastina had arrived...riding in a tank! This..this woman… How has anyone not arrested her for clear Pokemon abuse and destruction of an ecosystem?! Ugh...it didn't help Team Rocket took up her offer to go take care of the Tentacool. And then it went all downhill from there.
*sighs* Let me explain. Apparently, Team Rocket had a special mixture that was meant to paralyze the Tentacool so they could catch them. However, every single Tentacool in the area showed up around their boat and destroyed it. The mixture went into the air and landed on a Tentacool...causing it to evolve into a giant Tentacruel as tall as a skyscraper. From there once we, along with those that were at the port-minus that horrid woman Nastina-evacuated to higher ground… It was as if a class 5 hurricane had struck as Tentacruel created a tsunami-sized tidal wave to completely flood the entire city of Porta Vista with the Tentacool destroying any buildings that weren't submerged in water.
We began to send out our Pokemon to fight back the oncoming invasion. The Pokemon Takuma, La, and Ken all had...they were amazing. I thought the ones I saw on the SS Anne were amazing, but...Their entire teams are simply amazing and very powerful. We were able to force most of the Tentacool back, but Tentacruel...it was too strong, managing to overpower our Pokemon while Meowth-who was being used as a translator-called our Pokemon traitors for defending the humans. Just when things were starting to look bleak...we had a miracle thanks to Misty, who begged Tentacruel to stop and take the Tentacool back out to see, all while showing the pain and suffering they were causing.
I think many were stunned when Tentacruel chose to leave with the Tentacool after Misty's pleas were made. At first, I thought things were done with, but...but that...that despicable woman! She was going to shoot Tentacruel with a bazooka! If she attacked Tentacruel again...then we'd have to suffer through that assault again, so...I came up with possibly the most reckless idea I've ever had...have Makoto toss me into her before she could fire. The plan worked of course, but...it was then Nastina pulled out a pair of SMG and threatened to kill me, my friends, and our Pokemon for 'getting in her way', starting with me and Misty.
I...I have to admit that I thought I was about to die. I would have were it not for her guns being unable to fire due to them being soaked from the water. I think she may have tried something else, but Luca...He learned an attack known as Aura Sphere and used it to knock her away from me. He...he saved my life. I..I couldn't ask for a more brave and loyal Pokemon...Ahem! S...sorry. I do not know what La said to Nastina, but she seemed scared...maybe La was once a member of the Pokemon International Police? Regardless, justice had finally caught up to Nastina, and we managed to get a ride off the island and to the mainland. I just hope that once we reach the mainland...we can have one normal day for a change.
"How much longer are we gonna be on here?" Makoto asked as she looked around for land, holding her tail up above her to let her three in-tail 'roommates' poke out and look around too, "Seriously, I love this big boat and all with all the free food at the buffet, but the salty air's messing with my hair and tail too much for my tastes."
"We should be able to reach the mainland in an hour or so," Kajun answered, looking at a map as she walked next to Makoto, "Our stop should be a small port town that leads towards Saffron City, and from there we can cut through to reach Celadon."
"Didn't Surge say there was a Gym in Saffron?" Mai asked, "And to try and avoid it if possible?"
"Yeah. The guy was a jerk and all, but it did feel like he was being completely worried for us when he talked about it," Makoto noted.
"Maybe we should go ask Brock and see if he can pull up any videos put up by the Gym Leader like he did with Lt. Surge?" Tsubaki suggested.
"It does sound like a good idea," Kajun nodded, "I'll ask him when he's free."
"...Yeah….about that…" Makoto spoke, making her friends blink as she jerked a thumb over to the side, showing a sulking and depressed Brock leaning over the railing.
"What happened to him?" Mai asked.
"He's been mumbling about missing summer," Makoto answered.
"Eh?" Mai blinked at that, "But...aside from those two incidents, we kinda did enjoy Summer."
"For you maybe…" Brock spoke, catching the girls' attention, "For kids, it means kids splashing around and having fun. But for me…." he shot up as he exclaimed to the sky, "Summer means bathing suits, and cute and pretty girls to wear them!" he then slumped back down, a depressing aura around him, "Now bikini season's over and I'll have to wait another year to meet a girl!"
"Uh, hello? What are we? Chopped liver?" Makoto felt offended.
"I think he's too depressed to hear you, Makoto…" Mai sweatdropped.
"Hmph!" Makoto puffed her cheeks.
"Anyone know where Ash, Misty, and Noel are?" Mai changed the conversation.
"Misty is currently trying to stop Ash from going overboard with the buffet," Tsubaki answered, "Ugh...I truly fear for our food budget with him and Makoto around."
"Y-hey~!"
"As for Noel, she's currently tending to both Yuki and Nymph."
"Oh yeah...La gave her that kit from the Alola Region. The, uh…" Makoto tried to think.
"Pokemon Refresh or PokeRefresh for short," Kajun replied.
"Ah. Thanks," Makoto nodded before tilting her head a bit, "Though...I still don't get those beans that came with the kit."
"Think of them as treats for Pokemon, Makoto," Kajun replied, the Fluffy Trio poking out of Makoto's tail at the mention of food, "In fact...I think I may have a few extra ones La gave me and Noel," she reached into her bag and pulled out a few small beans, each one in different colors, "S-"
Before she could even finish, three of the beans were snatched out of her hand, making her blink a bit. She looked to see the three chewing on something in their mouths, stars in their eyes.
"Chipa/Emol/Vui~!" Berry, Cherry, and Booster beamed in pure delight, their tails wagging excitedly.
"...I guess I shouldn't underestimate the power of beans," Makoto blinked a few times, 'Note to self...try and find a place that sells those beans.'
=Maiden's Peak welcomes passengers arriving from Porta Vista! We invite you all to our Summer's End Festival now in progress!= a PA system called out as the boat stopped in a small port town, various booths and Pokemon-themed decorations set up around the area.
"Oh wow!" Ash awed, "A festival!"
"Hey...Doesn't this set up remind you of Natsu matsuri?" Makoto whispered to Tsubaki.
"I believe so," Tsubaki answered with her own whispered.
"Sweet!" Makoto beamed a bit, "Let's go off and enjoy ourselves!"
"It d-does sound nice," Noel spoke, Yuki and Nymph walking beside her, "M-maybe we can finally have a normal day for a change."
"I hope so," Misty agreed.
"I'll go ride the ferris wheel alone…" Brock sighed, the depressing aura still surrounding him.
"..." Makoto began to walk towards Brock while pulling up a sleeve before Tsubaki, Kajun, and Mai grabbed her and tried to keep her back, "H-hey!"
"No, Makoto. Just no."
"Ugh…." Bock sighed deeply before he noticed something in the distance, "Huh? What's that?" looking closer, he saw a beautiful young woman with flowing light-purple hair in a simple blue dress, red headband, and a red hibiscus in her hair staring off at the sea, "Whoa! What a knockout!"
As if on cue, a group of people came right out of the boat and ran right over Brock, not seeing him due to either looking at phones, reading tour books or maps, or just playing a game on a mobile device. Makoto would go on to deny that she did not laugh like a hyena at what happened.
"Oh! Oh that was perfect timing!" Makoto laughed hysterically.
"M-makoto, th-" Noel began before Yuki, Pikachu, and Nymph tensed up, "Hmm?" she looked over in the direction Brock was looking at before...only to end up paling at what she saw, "Gh….gh…..gh….gh…."
"Noel?"
"Gh….gh….gh…..GHOST!-!-!" Noel freaked as she ran behind Misty and Kajun, shivering like a leaf.
"Ghost?" Misty and Kajun repeated as they looked only to see nothing.
"Um...we don't see anyth-" Misty began as Brock shot back up, covered in footprints.
"Hey...she's gone…" Brock spoke.
"Eh? Who's gone?" Mai asked.
"That beautiful woman I saw in the distance…" Brock answered.
"...D...did….did….did sh-sh-sh have light-purple h-hair and a simple blue dress?" Noel nervously asked.
"She did…" Brock nodded.
"V-v-v-vuii…" Nymph whimpered as she ran behind Pikachu with Yuki.
"...Uh…...wh-why don't we go check out the festival?!" Makoto asked, laughing nervously as she began to push the others off.
The festival was in full swing. Performers danced in outlandish, appealing outfits while people were enjoying tours of various stalls and businesses getting involved with the festival with various flowery decorations on their buildings. As a parade went by, the group aside from Brock, Noel, Mai, and Kajun were eating some sweets while Mai was just drinking some water with a bit of sugar Noel mixed into it.
"Mmm~God this is good~!" Makoto beamed a bit, currently munching in a candied apple, "Ohh! Let's see if they got some funnel cakes at the next booth!"
"Makoto, you're gonna spoil your appetite if you eat nothing but sweets and deep-fried foods while we're here," Tsubaki pointed out.
"I know, mom. I'm not a little kid," Makoto playfully argued, "Just trying to have some fun...unlike Brock over there."
"She was the most beautiful girl I've ever seen…." Brock whispered, the depressing aura surrounding him once more.
"...Uh, n-now now, Brock. I'm sure you'll…" Mai began in her attempt to cheer Brock up.
"Hey you there!"
"Oh! Are you th-?!" Brok began excitedly as he turned around..only to end up face to face with a small elderly woman, "AHH! You're not that beautiful…!"
"Who's not beautiful?!" the elder demanded, sporting long white hair, a wooden staff, and a purple set of robes before pulling out a magnifying glass and looked him over, "...Beware. Not of an old beauty like me, but of a young one. Otherwise, you'll meet a cruel fate worse than any before!"
"Ahh!" Brock gasped as he moved back from her, "That...that girl on the rock! I have to meet her!"
"...I…"
"Before you say anything, I was talking about an elegant young woman, not some scrawny stick of an ironing board!" the elderly woman stated to Misty.
"I-Ironing board?!"
"?! Ironing board?" Noel repeated before both she and Misty slumped and went into a blue corner, drawing circles on the floor with their pointer fingers, "I-I'm still growing…"
"Hey!" Makoto snapped as she glared at the old woman, "That…"
"And I'm certainly not referring to the rest of you girls, especially the three cows with the obvious plastic surgery jobs to their chest!" the elderly woman added.
"Wh-w-wh-what?!" Mai exclaimed, blushing bright red.
"Plastic...Surgery?" Makoto's eye twitched before Mai, Tsubaki, and Kajun once more began to try to hold her back, "Lemme at her! Lemme at her!"
"Ashton, please help escort Misty and Noel out while we try and prevent Makoto from causing physical harm on someone!" Kajun begged.
"R-right!" Ash quickly nodded.
"The beautiful woman…" Brock whispered, ignoring Makoto's ranting as he had a distant look on his face, "A cruel fate...the cruelest fate would be to never see her again…"
"You've gotta be kidding me!" Jessie exclaimed as she, James, and Meowth were currently scrounging around for money around the festival grounds, "Nothing! There's absolutely no money here at this festival!"
"Not a quarter, nickle or dime! Not even a penny!" James added.
"I'm startin' ta think we shoulda jest gone straight ta dat Fuji guy," Meowth muttered.
"Well we need money for the travel, but a certain SOMEONE gave away our salaries for a Magikarp!" Jessie snapped.
"Hey, hey, hey! I only gave away our collected salaries in our savings account," James corrected.
"And because of that, we're flat broke!" Jessie snapped, "Now come on! We need to find at least some money!"
"Fine...I…" James began before he noticed something shiny on the ground, "Ohh~! A penny!" he was about to pick it up before…
"Hold it right there!"
"I dropped this!" James quickly defended as he turned around, coming face to face with a certain elderly woman.
"I've been watching you, and you're up to no good!" the elderly woman stated, using her magnifying glass to look at him, "And there's no good in your future!"
"Who? The police? The sheriff? The IPP?" James asked.
"I see a young and beautiful woman who'll lead you into a cruel fate!"
"...I don't need a fortune teller to know that," James slumped, "I already got three horrifying women down my back as is…"
"...Why do you mean…?" Jessie asked with a frown.
"The young woman I speak is not you, nor these other two bimbos this young man mentioned!"
"...Sis?" Karai spoke, currently resting in a hotel room with Aoiro.
"Yes, Karai?"
"I don't know why, but I feel like someone just called us bimbos…"
"Knowing you and some of the...outfits...you tend to wear when you fill in for father in certain duties, I'm not surprised," Aoiro replied, turning a page in her book.
"Ye-hey!"
"James...you better tell me wh-" Jessie began.
"Good afternoon!" Team Rocket looked up...only to tense when they saw Officer Jenny standing there, "I'm with the local police department, and I knew exactly what you all are doing!"
"Ahh!" Team Rocket freaked before Jenny shot up to James.
"I see you found some change someone dropped! Whenever money is lost, even a penny, it must be reported to the authorities," Jenny smiled, taking the penny as she stood up, "Thank you for being such a good citizen. Now if you'll just follow me, we'll file a report at the station."
"Oh! No need for that, officer!" Jessie quickly spoke, "We're just trying to do good deeds and all that!" she grabbed James and dashed off, "Ta-ta!"
"Hey! Wait fer me!" Meowth shouted as he ran after her.
"UGH! Honestly the nerve of that woman!" Makoto snapped, currently punching into a boulder as it shattered to dust as her friends-minus Misty, Ash, and Brock at the moment- stayed far from her, "Plastic surgery?! PLASTIC SURGERY?! I...I...UGH!"
"Ironing board…" Noel mumbled sadly, Yuki and Nymph whining a little at they looked at her in concern.
"I was actually wondering when someone would openly accuse one of us of having implants," Mai admitted, a drop of sweat on the back of her head.
"NOT IN THE MOOD, MAI!" Makoto snapped before coming face to face with a growling Ursaring, "...WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT, YOGI?!"
"Ur?!" the Ursaring freaked as it ran away as quickly as possible.
"...It's official. An angry Makoto is scarier than Ursaring…" Kajun sweatdropped.
"Chipa/Emol/Ee," the Fluffy Trio nodded...all hiding behind Koko as she was using the time to practice Psychic-type moves with Hikari using water balloons from the festival in various ways such as changing their shapes or popping them.
"...Still...there's something about that woman that doesn't sit right with me," Kajun admitted.
"Aside from being a total bitch?" Makoto asked with a frown.
"No. Just...she knew about that woman Brock and Noel claimed they saw," Kajun answered.
"You think she's seen this happen before?" Tsubaki asked.
"Most likely…" Kajun nodded, holding her chin in thought, "It's possible the two are connected somehow...this seems rather mysterious to me…"
"?!" Noel tensed at that, the shy blond starting to shake nervously, "P-please tell me we're not gonna investigate that ghost woman me and Brock saw…"
"Everyone, we're going to investigate that phenomenon Noel and Brock witnessed," Kajun informed.
"Mmmm~~~!" Noel cried waterfall tears at that.
"But first, we'll need to check on Ashton and the others," Kajun added, "Mai, any ideas where they might be?"
"I think they went to the local shrine," Mai answered.
"Good. We have our heading," Kajun smiled as she pulled out a magnifying glass, "Bishoujo Tantei-dan(Pretty Girl Detective Team): Remix Heart, ikuze!"
'And Kajun's gone into Investigation Mode…' Mai thought, 'At least it isn't Science Mode.'
"Greetings one and all!" an elder in formal robes declared as he stood before a shrine, a covered object at his side, "To celebrate the Summer's End Festival, we will now display the Shrine of The Maiden's greatest treasure! For 2000 years, this painting has hung within the Shrine of The Maiden. Once a year, it is removed from the Shrine and is displayed to the public during the festival!"
"Two thousand years?" Ash repeated.
"That's a long time," Misty noted as Brock stood quiet, the group unaware that Team Rocket was also watching from the crowd.
"As I unveil the painting, please gaze with preference!" the elder informed, grabbing the cloak before pulling it off.
"?!" Brock and James' eyes widened as they saw the picture, showing what looked like a familiar light-purple haired woman.
"It...it's her…" James quietly gasped.
"But...it can't be…" Brock whispered as he and James began to walk up to the painting, "She's so...incredibly beautiful…"
"Ah. There they…" Kajun began before spotting James, "..." she turned, walked over to an empty jar with a lid to it and opened it before sticking her head into it, "GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" she removed her head and closed the lid on it, ignoring the looks from her friends, "Ah. There they are."
"She's the girl of my dreams...don't wake me up…" James spoke, an almost hypnotized look on his face as he and Brock slowly headed towards the painting.
"...Okay. What th-" Makoto began.
"Stay back!" the elder shouted as he pushed Brock and James back, "The woman in this painting perished over 2000 years ago. She was in love with a brave and handsome young man, but he left to go fight in a war. Since the day he left, the Maiden had waited on the same spot she waited for her beloved, promising she'll wait for him forever, hoping to see his ship on the horizon."
"How romantic…" Noel awed.
"But alas…" the elder sighed sadly, "Her true love never returned, having died in the war. Regardless, she waited and waited...never moving from that spot until her body turned to stone, just like the cliff upon which she stood. To this day, she awaits for her true love to return."
"Tell me, where is she at?" Brock asked.
"Maiden's Rock is not far from here," the elder replied.
"May we see it?" James asked.
"Of course," the elder nodded, "Just walk along the side of the Shrine. There you'll see Maiden's Rock for yourself."
"Thank you!" the two nodded as they ran off in opposite directions.
"Hey wait up!" Ash called out as he and Misty ran after Brock, Pikachu riding on Ash's shoulder while Jessie and Meowth snuck through the crowd to go after James.
"After them," Kajun ordered as she quickly followed Ash and Misty.
The rest of the girls soon followed as they caught up to Ash, Misty, and Brock. The last one was looking out as he gazed at a stone statue of a young woman, the evening sun shining on 'her'.
"So that's Maiden Rock…" Brock noted in awe, "It...she's the most beautiful rock I've ever seen…"
"I don't care if she's made of stone, I'm still in love with her!" James' voice declared.
"If she were my girlfriend, I'd make sure she'd never stay out of my sight!" Brock declared.
"No one would steal her from me, not even Team Rocket!" James shouted, "I'll fight them to keep her safe!"
"It's like they're entirely different people…" Tsubaki noted.
"James, you're insane. Why would we steal a thing like that?" Jessie frowned as she held James back by the belt of his pants.
"We could steal dat other thing," Meowth spoke, getting Jessie's attention, "Pokemon are valuable, but so are works of art. Let's swipe da painting!"
"...of course! If we grab that painting, we can make a bundle in the black market!" Jessie beamed.
"They do know we can hear them from over here, right?" Makoto asked her friends with a sweatdrop.
"Ahh! Jessie, help!"
"I think they're too occupied at the moment…" Mai deadpanned.
"True," Tsubaki agreed as Jessie had to pull James up since he had gone over the railing...before both fell into the water below.
"Jeeze...Looks like Team Rocket is slippin'," Meowth facepalmed.
"...Okay. We've seen the rock, Brock," Ash spoke, "Let's head on back to the festival."
"Yeah! I still want to look around before it gets too dark out!" Misty added.
"Why don't you go back? I wanna stay here for a while," Brock stated, gazing at Maiden's rock.
"But…"
"Don't worry. I'll be fine…" Brock assured...in an almost empty tone.
"...You do remember where we're staying tonight, right?" Ash asked.
"The Pokemon Center near the port. I'll make it back by curfew…" Brock answered, "Don't worry about me. I'll be okay…"
"...If you're sure…" Ash whispered as he and Misty walked off, unaware of Kajun and the others as they left the area.
"...Okay. I've heard of love sick, but this is...honestly getting creepy," Makoto was the first to speak.
"It's like he's under some sort of hypnosis," Mai noted before holding a finger up to Makoto, "I am not licking him to see if he is. I told you that I'd never do it again after the last time you convinced me to."
"...Fair enough," Makoto shrugged.
"...Hmm…" Kajun pondered for a bit as she looked out at the rock, "...Noel, the ghost you saw...did it look anything like the picture and Maiden's Rock?"
"H-hai…" Noel nervously nodded.
"Hmm...Maybe a bit more research is in order," Kajun noted.
"Maybe the Pokemon Center will have some books," Tsubaki suggested.
"Yeah! We could probably ask Nurse Joy, t…" Makoto began before Kajun dashed off for the Center, "...We should really start thinking of setting up an intervention on her Nurse Joy/Officer Jenny study."
"Agreed…" Mai sweatdropped.
"...Makoto, you, Mai, and Noel look after Brock until Kajun comes back," Tsubaki instructed as she began to walk off.
"Eh? Wh-where are you going?" Noel asked.
"I'm going to see if I can gather some more info from the priest here at the shrine," Tsubaki answered.
"Oh."
It was late at night as the full moon shone within the night sky, Brock still gazing upon Maiden's Rock while Team Rocket slept in some sleeping bags...while hanging from a tree branch.
"How did they get in those things after they hung them up?" Makoto pondered.
"Emolg," Cherry shrugged.
"...Eh. Whatever," Makoto shrugged as she looked over at the others, Kajun and Tsubaki looking over some books and scrolls respectively, Noel was gently rubbing a sleeping Yuki and Nymph's fur, and Mai was keeping an eye out on Brock...while she was drin, "Any luck on finding out more about our mystery maiden?"
"Not exactly, but we did find something about the war," Tsubaki replied, "It involved a region named Ransei where only soldiers and royalty were allowed to use Pokemon."
"And it seems that they were having their own Sengoku era in this world in the Ransei region," Kajun added as she turned a scroll to them, revealing an ink painting of an intimidating man in black and purple armor with a pitch black Chinese Dragon-like Pokemon with gold designs on it behind him, "Even having famous warriors such as Oda Nobunaga who owned a Shiny Rayquaza."
"...Okay. The fact that Nobunaga having something like THAT is scary enough…" Makoto gulped.
"Yes. But unlike the one we read about, the region was unified under an unnamed ruler and that ruler had the aid of the Kanto and Johto regions when they were trying to unify the entire region," Tsubaki read, "The man the maiden was looking for might have been a casualty in one of Nobunaga's final attacks since he had his Rayquaza create tornadoes that became waterspouts on the seas, wiping out many of the boats with aid from the two regions for the upcoming ruler."
"Oh my…" Noel gasped, "That….that's so sad. The man she loved was killed, and yet...she waited for him forever, even in death...such tragic love."
"Indeed….war is truly a terrible thing, no matter what the end results are…" Tsubaki nodded.
"Even the one some of our classmates were involved in," Kajun noted.
A moment of silence befell the five girls for a moment. Even before graduation, some of their fellow classmates were sent out to war in the name of the NOL...with most of them not coming back at all. An alarm ringing snapped them out of it to see Meowth waking up groggily while pulling out an alarm clock that was going off.
"Eleven o'clock…" Meowth mumbled before fully waking up and turning it off, "Hey!" he began to paw at Jessie and James's bags, "Come on, wake up! We've got a paintin' ta steal!"
'Eleven o'clock?! Shoot! The center's probably closed now!' Makoto thought just as some dark clouds began to cover the moon, followed by a fierce wind, "?!"
"Wh-what's going on?!" Noel yelped, keeping Yuki and Nymph close to make sure they wouldn't be blown away.
Without a moment's notice, the doors to the shrine suddenly burst open, startling those that were still awake.
"Wh-what's dat?" Meowth blinked before he saw something coming out of the shrine, "Gh?!"
"G-g-g-gg-g-g-g…!" Noel and Makoto stammered, seeing a ghostly image of the Maiden float out of the doorway.
The Ghost Maiden took noticed of those that were awake before waves suddenly began to come off her.
"Huh? Wh….ahh….must be dreamin'. Back t' sleep…" Meowth yawned as he began to fall asleep.
"Wh...what...is this?" Mai asked, trying to stay awake as the waves hit her and her friends...but seemed to miss Brock.
"It...It's trying to make us fall...as...leep…" Kajun noted before she fell over, sound asleep.
"It...must be...going...af….ter…" Tsubaki couldn't finish as she fell over, sound asleep.
"Ka...jun...Tsu...baki…" Noel whispered, trying her best to stay awake...only to end up falling asleep as Mai soon followed.
"Damn it...stay...awake…" Makoto grunted, gritting her teeth as she tried to stand up.
"...You...you will not keep me from my goal…" the Ghost Maiden whispered as she glared at Makoto.
"You're...doing something...to my friend...I…" Makoto began before a black wave came off of the ghost and hit her, causing her eyes to widen as they went a dull color.
"Suffer through your nightmare….as you fall asleep…" the Ghost Maiden stated as Makoto fell over.
"Brock! Hey Brock!" Ash called out, he, Misty and Pikachu looking around the shrine the next day as they saw no trace of their friend.
"Noel, Kajun, Tsubaki, Mai, Makoto, where are you?!" Misty called out.
"James! James! If you're not here, at least come out and tell us!" Jessie shouted, unaware that she and Meowth were about to bump into Ash.
"Dat's right!" Meowth added.
"Hey Brock!" Ash called out before he and Jessie finally noticed each other, "?!"
"You again?!" the two exclaimed.
"Ah! You really are stalking us!" Ash yelped.
"NO WE'RE NOT!" Meowth barked.
"Prepare f-" Jessie began.
"Mmm~"
"Hmm?" the two groups looked over at the forest, seeing Noel groaning a bit as she got up.
"Ohh...my head…" Noel whispered, using the tree to try and stand on her feet.
"Noel!"
"M-Misty?" Noel whispered as the tomboy ran over with Ash, "Wh-what are you doing here?"
"You and the others didn't come to the Pokemon Center last night," Misty answered, "We were worried sick about all of you and came looking for you."
"Pikachu…" Pikachu spoke up as he saw Nymph and Yuki stumble over, yawning.
"Vul…" Yuki whispered.
"...Oh! The others!" Noel gasped, "They...they were hit by those waves too!"
"Waves? What are you on about, you…" Jessie began.
"Ugh...my head…" the group looked over to see Mai sitting up, followed by Kajun and Tsubaki.
"What happened? Last I…" Tsubaki began before she noticed something, "?! M-Makoto!"
The others hurried over-Mai and Kajun having a bit up help getting up from Ash and Misty- to where Tsubaki was...only for their eyes to widen. Lying there was Makoto...but she had black rings around her eyes as her pupils were blank, the squirrel girl shaking a bit as she whispered something.
"Makoto?" Mai gasped.
"What happened to her?" Ash pondered.
"...M-Makoto? A...are y-" Noel began as she carefully placed her hand on Makoto's shoulder.
"?!" Makoto tensed up as she shot up, backing up into a nearby tree as she shook, a look of fear on her face as tears rolled down her face, "Pl...please...stop...stop saying those things..."
"M-Makoto?"
"I...I'm not useless...I...I'm not something that shouldn't have been born...I...I'm not different...I...I'm the same as everyone else!" Makoto shouted in her fear struck state, "Just...please….don't discard me...don't abandon me...I...I'm not useless...I…" she began to curl up into a ball as her tears increased, "I'm not useless…."
"What happened to her?" Jessie pondered, worry actually evident on her face.
"Yeah...Dat...Dat jest ain't right wit' her," Meowth agreed.
"...Hold it…" Kajun spoke, reaching into her bag as she pulled out her notebook on moves, "Where is it? Where is it…" her eyes widened when she stopped on a page, "...It's just like I thought...it's Nightmare."
"Nightmare?" Misty repeated.
"That Maiden...she somehow knew the moves Hypnosis and Nightmare," Kajun noted.
"Wh-what is Nightmare exactly?" Jessie asked nervously.
"It's a Ghost Type move. If it hits a sleeping Pokemon, it hurts them while making them go through one of their worst nightmares. But if used on a human…" Kajun paused as she looked over at the shaking Makoto, "It makes them live their absolute worse fear in the form of a relentless nightmare."
"Chi~" a yawn made them look at some bushes near where Makoto had been found to see Berry crawl out of them, her blue dress messed up with dirt, leaves, and sticks in it.
"Pika!"
"Chi?" Berry blinked before she noticed Pikachu running over, "(Oh...morning, Pika…)"
"(Berry, Makoto got hit by a Nightmare Attack!)" Pikachu informed.
"(?!") Berry's eyes widened at that, "(Wh-where is she?! Is she okay?!)"
"(No...she got hit by it...bad…)" Pikachu shook his head, looking over at the shivering Makoto as she repeated the same words over and over, "(I've heard stories of it being used on Humans before, but...but they were never this bad.)"
"(...Hold my dress for me,)" Berry whispered, taking her dirty dress off before handing it to Pikachu.
"(What are you gonna do?)"
"(Same way you wake up Ash when he oversleeps…)" was all Berry said as se ran over to Makoto, jumping on top of her head, "(Sorry about this…)"
"What's Berry d…" Misty began.
*BZZZZRRRT!*
"AHHH!-!-!" Makoto screamed as she shot up, the black rings around her eyes gone as her pupils changed back to normal, "Wh-what's going on?! Are we under attack?!"
"Chipa!"
"Huh? B-Berry? Wha?" Makoto blinked a few times as her Pachirisu rubbed her cheek against Makoto's, "Did...you wake me up?"
"She's sayin' dat you got hit by a Nightmare attack and she had ta shock ya ta snap ya out of it," Meowth translated Berry's talking, "What was dat about anyway?! I've seen Humans get hit by dat Move before, but none o' dem reacted that badly before!"
"...It….it's complicated…." Makoto answered before pulling Berry into a hug, tears of relief starting to flow down Makoto's cheeks now, "Berry….I….thank you...I...I don't want to go back to that nightmare ever again….thank you….thank you so much."
"Pachisu…"
'Makoto...that nightmare you had...it involved your childhood...didn't it?' Tsubaki thought, looking at her friend as she hugged Berry, before recalling last night, "Ah! Brock!" she looked around, "That Maiden….did she take him?"
"Wait. You saw dat freaky ghost lady too?!" Meowth asked, "I thought dat was jest a dream!"
"No. We saw her," Noel spoke, "In fact, I...I saw her too just as we got off the boat."
"V-Vul…" Yuki nodded as Nymph and her hid behind Pikachu.
"You three too?" Meowth asked, earning nods from them, "So James got ghost-napped like da Twoip did!"
"...wait. I hear something…" Makoto spoke, her ears twitching a bit as she got up, Berry jumping onto her shoulder as she rushed towards the shrine.
"Makoto? What…?" Ash began before the squirrel girl opened the doors, letting both James and Brock fall out, "Ahh! Brock!"
"Ugh…" both groaned.
"...They look terrible…" Mai noted as James shot up, grabbing onto Jessie's leg, "What did that ghost do to them?"
"So everything turned out just as I predicted," a voice spoke up.
"...That voice…" Makoto's eyes twitched a bit as the two groups-minus Brock and James-turned to see the elder woman from yesterday, "You again…"
"It's the old woman…" Ash noted.
"Obviously these two have seen the Ghost of Maiden's Peak."
"The Ghost of Maiden's Peak?" Ash, Misty, Jessie, and Meowth repeated while Brock and James...began to speak like lovelorn idiots.
"...Berry? Some assistance?"
*BZZZZZRT!*
"Thank you," Makoto nodded as Berry jumped into her tail and popped out wearing a detective's outfit.
"Wh-who am I? I am Brock…" Broke spoke in a slight confused tone.
"And I am James, member of Team Rocket and former mil-GH?!" James tensed as he shot up.
"...okay. I think some explanations are in order," Tsubaki spoke, looking over at the elderly woman.
"Of course," the elderly woman nodded, walking into the shrine and looked at one of the flames, "You see, many men who passed through here have fallen under the spell of the Ghost of Maiden's Peak. We manage to find them, but their life forces had been drained while babbling like a bunch of idiots, as if they were acting like zombies."
"...Is that the cruel fate you mentioned to him yesterday?" Mai asked, Noel shivering at the zombie part.
"Yes! The Maiden is still waiting for her true love, eager for him to return, even if it means sucking the life forces out of men!" the elderly woman exclaimed.
"Who cares? As long as I can be with her, I'd gladly give up my life…" Brock spoke in a monotone.
"Oh...he's not cured…" Ash groaned.
"I care about my life! I don't want to die!" James freaked, "Please, you gotta do something!"
"Oh don't worry. I have just the thing…" the elderly woman smirked.
"Wh-what is it?! I'll take any…"James began before something was stuck to his and Brock's foreheads, "Thing?"
"...Talismans?" Misty blinked.
"O-fuda, actually," the elder corrected, "However…"
"What's the catch?" Ash asked as Tsubaki felt that the group fund was going to be drained big time.
"...I can't give them away for free," the elder smirked as she pulled out a cash register, "If we're gonna deal with the Ghost of Maiden's Peak, we'll need all my o-fuda to protect those two and the shrine itself."
"Cheapskate…" Makoto muttered.
Kajun however...she seemed suspicious of this old woman. She took a look at the o-fuda, and..something seemed...off about them. Almost as if….she was tricking them.
"Do you really think she'll come?" Jessie hissed as the two groups hid behind one of the decorative moveable walls in the place.
"Most likely," Kajun nodded, 'Or if my suspicions are correct…she's already here.'
"Use Nightmare on me will she…" Makoto whispered with a growl, "I don't care she's a ghost, I'm gonna knock her straight into the moon when I see her."
Brock and James were sat down seiza-style before the old woman, who was waving a stick littered with the o-fuda over them. Outside, a powerful wind erupted and began to tear the o-fuda right from the shrine with ease.
"She's here!" the old woman exclaimed as the doors burst open, letting the fierce wind blow in as it forced the o-fuda off Brock and James, all while blowing to the flames.
"My love…" the Maiden's Ghost spoke as she floated in.
"It's you…" Brock gasped.
"Eeek!" James freaked.
"I've been waiting for you…" the Ghost Maiden smiled.
"Yes. And I've been waiting to meet you too…" Brock replied.
"I'm scared! Really really scared!" James cried in pure fear, tears falling from his eyes in abject terror.
"Come my love...let's go," the Ghost Maiden said as she began to float away, Brock and James starting to float as well as they were pulled towards her.
"Brock!" Ash yelped.
"But why?! Why aren't the o-fuda working?!" James yelped as he grabbed the railing inside the shrine.
"...Maybe because…" Meowth began.
"We got them for free," Jessie finished, "It was...a two for one deal. We got one set free for every set the twerps bought."
"What?!"
"They weren't going to work anyway…" Kajun spoke, catching their attention, "The o-fuda she sold us were fakes."
"Fakes?!"
"Yes. Fakes," Kajun replied, "If they were real, they would've held out longer unless it was a powerful demon."
"...The Maiden became a demon in death!" James freaked, "I don't wanna die! I don't wanna die!"
"GAH! Where's that old crone?! She's gonna give it to her when I catch her!" Jessie growled as Misty and Ash grabbed onto Brock's legs, trying to keep him from going outside.
"...That's the thing I want to talk about next," Kajun spoke, catching everyone's attention, "Didn't you find it odd how fast she disappeared the moment the doors burst open?"
"?!"
"And furthermore, she knew both Brock and James saw the Maiden's Ghost," Kajun continued, "Yet Noel saw it, too. If that's the case, why didn't she interrogate her and tell her the warning as well?"
"Ah! Th-That's right…" Noel's eyes widened, "Wh-Why didn't she warn me…?"
"Jessie, Meowth, when you encountered her, did you two notice anything strange?" Kajun asked the two Team Rocket members.
"Well, aside from a rather overly-cheerful Officer Jenny, no," Jessie answered, "What's that have to do w-" her eyes widened in realization, "?!"
"Exactly. They were illusions created by her!" Kajun declared.
"G-gah!" the Ghost Maiden gasped, her form distorting for a moment.
"Hey! Stop bullying her!" Brock snapped at Kajun.
"I'm not. I'm exposing her for what she...or rather what he truly is!" Kajun declared as she pointed at the Ghost Maiden.
"...Heh...heh heh...he? What makes you think I am a male?" the Ghost Maiden giggled a bit.
Kajun smirked, "Ash, please point Dexter at our ghost please."
"Huh? Uh...sure," Ash nodded, pulling out his Pokedex and aiming it at the Ghost Maiden.
=Gastly, the Gas Pokemon. Its body is made of gas. Despite lacking substance, it can envelop an opponent of any size and cause suffocation. Although Gastly is barely visible, when it's near, a faint sweet smell lingers= Dexter informed, showing the image of a black ball with menacing eyes and a fanged mouth surrounded by purple gas.
"?!"
"Just like I thought…" Kajun smirked, "I thought it was suspicious for a human ghost to use the moves Hypnosis and Nightmare...but when we were sold those fake o-fudas, that's when it all came together."
"...H...how….?" the Ghost Maiden demanded, her form distorting a bit as a dark aura came off her.
"Aside from the Mythical Pokemon Darkrai and two fully evolved Psychic-types, the only line of Pokemon that naturally learn Nightmare is the Gastly line," Kajun informed, lightly tapping her Pokemon Notebook and Attack Notebook, "They're also known to be tricksters at times, often playing tricks on unsuspecting people, like selling fake o-fuda."
"?!" the 'Maiden' tensed at that.
"Another trick of theirs is to create illusions to trick people, whether it takes the form of a peddler, an officer...or in this case...a Ghost Maiden," Kajun added.
"?-!-?-!-?-!"
"I get it! Gastly's been using the story to trick people into buying stuff and scaring the living daylights out of people!" Misty realized.
"Exactly!"
"What's...going on here?" Jessie blinked a bit.
"I dunno...but I like it!" James beamed, forgetting he was afraid for a moment.
"Now to end this so called 'curse'..." Kajun began as she pointed dramatically at the 'Maiden', "Reveal your true form to us, Gastly!"
"...Y….y….you…" the 'Maiden' growled, the dark aura around her intensifying and her form distorting as she changed into the elderly woman, "How dare you…" she then changed into Officer Jenny, "How dare you….!" she then transformed into a spiraling purple eruption, "HOW DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRREEEE YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUU!?-!?-!?"
"Holy…!" Makoto gawked as the group shield themselves from the eruption.
After a few moments, the smoke slowly began to die down, revealing a rather large Gastly as he glared at the group, "You...you dare ruin everything for me?! I...I am the Ultimate Gastly! I cannot lose...I shall not lose!"
"It talks?!" Meowth exclaimed, "Dat's freaky."
'Pot meet Kettle,' the majority of the others thought.
"Phew. It was just a Gastly. I-I knew it wasn't a ghost," Makoto chuckled sheepishly.
"Makoto…" Mai mumbled, trying not to moan at where Makoto was squeezing her from behind.
"In any case, let's chase Gastly out for good!" Ash shouted, "Go Pikachu!"
"Pika!"
"Heh heh...is that such a good idea, child?" Gastly asked, making Pikachu stop in his tracks, "My illusions work on other Pokemon just as well. For instance; to deal with a rodent…" his form changed into a giant mousetrap, "You use a mouse trap!"
"CHAAAAAAAAAA~!" Pikachu screamed as he ran away, the mousetrap following him and trying to snap on him.
"Mouse traps won't hurt Meowth!" Meowth shouted as he lept forward.
"Maybe so, but here's a little toy you might enjoy," Gastly countered as he transformed into a yarn ball.
"?! Y-yarn!" Meowth beamed as he jumped on the 'yarn ball', "Ahh...fun and safe yarn ball…" a growling sound as he as he looked inside it, seeing a growling purple pitbull-like Pokemon inside, "...AHH! NOT SAFE! NOT SAFE!" he freaked as he ran away.
"Why you...Ekans, get him!" Jessie ordered.
"Ekans~!"
"A snake Pokemon's natural enemy is…" Gastly transformed into a menacing white and red mongoose-like Pokemon, "A Zangoose!" 'Zangoose' licked its lips as Ekans began to shiver, "Dinnertime~"
"KA~~~!" Ekans freaked as he bolted out of there out of pure fear.
"What?! Grr...Ariados, go!" Jessie ordered before smacking James out of his stupor.
"Oh! Uh...Koffing, use Poison Gas!"
"Ari!"
"Koffing!"
"For pesky bugs…" Gastly turned into a large flyswatter, "You SQUISH them!"
The loud squeak that Ariados let out was soon followed by Jessie being stuck under a shivering giant red spider that was hugging her like it's life depended on it.
"And further more…" Gastly began as Koffing's holes were suddenly clogged up with corks, "Smoking is prohibited in the shrine."
"K-Koffing!" James gasped.
"Why you...Needles!" Makoto called out, sending out her Beedrill.
"Again with the bugs? Perhaps I should smoke this one out," Gastly noted as he turned into a smoke machine.
"Needles, don't freak out! Use Poison Sting!" Makoto called.
"Drillbee!" Needles shouted, sending a flurry of needles at Gastly.
"If smoke won't work, then perhaps ones of the natural predator will, such as…" Gastly then transformed into a giant silver bird as the poison needles bounced off, "A giant bird!"
"BEE?!" Needles freaked as she ran behind a pillar, shaking a bit.
"Oh, come on! Hacks! I call hacks!" Makoto shouted.
"Charmander, I choose you!" Ash called.
"Charmander!" Charmander beamed as he came out, ready to help.
"Well now...here's something for you,squirt!" Gastly grinned, transforming into a fire extinguisher as it fired at Charmander.
"CHAR!" Charmander freaked as he ran, keeping his tail-flame safe and away from the 'extinguisher'.
"Now who's next?" Gastly asked.
"Luca, let's go!" Tsubaki called out.
"Rio…" Luca growled, quickly using a discreet Foresight.
"Oh? Well that's gonna be a bit of trouble...but why go for the Pokemon when I can go for the trainer's worst fear instead?"
"Beg pardon?" Tsubaki blinked as Gastly transformed...into a small panda-like Pokemon with a twig in its mouth, "?!"
"A...A Pancham?" Mai pondered, managing to recall one of the Pokemon Kajun had gone on about in Science Mode back in Pewter City.
"P….P….P…." Tsubaki stuttered before she ran for the nearest tree, "KYAAAAAAAA!-!-!-!"
"Rio?!" Luca gawked before growling at Gastly, "Ri-rio-lu-lu! Rolu!"
"Oh come now. I'm just playing fair is all…" Gastly countered.
Luca's eye twitched before he charged at Gastly.
"It seems you haven't learned your Types, have you? I am a Ghost-Type. Your Fighting-type m…" Gastly began before a Blaze Kick barely grazed him, making him fly back from the Riolu, "!? ...Clever little sneak." he spun around, shooting a long tongue out to smack away the Water Gun and Razor Leaf sent by Squirtle and Bulbasaur, "Especially with that. Far too easy!" he swirled before turning into a large blue turtle-like Pokemon with canons emerging from his shell and a much larger version of Bulbasaur with a palm tree growing from its back, "Here are Bulbasaur and Squirtle's fully evolved forms. Venusaur and Blastoise."
"What's he up to…?" Kajun whispered.
"And just for fun, I'll combine them into one new, super Pokemon!" Gastly declared as the two Pokemon swirled around each other before they became a larger Pokemon with the shape of Blastoise, but the plants, head, and splotches of Venusaur, "Behold, Venastoise!Try that on for size!"
Both first-stage Pokemon hugged each other, screaming in fright, before running off behind Ash where Pikachu and Charmander were.
"...Kajun, put the notebook down…" Mai ordered.
"B-b-but Venastoise~" Kajun was actually whining.
"It's an illusion created by Gastly!" Mai snapped, "Ugh...Aqua, please help!"
"Bui~!"
"A little water rat. You better be careful, otherwise…" Gastly transformed into a sparking car battery that was releasing bolts of electricity from jumper cables connected to it, "...You'll be in for a shock!"
"Aqua, use Ice Aqua Jet!"
"Ice what now?" Gastly pondered before he was barely slammed into by the ice 'torpedo' and disrupted his illusion, "?! I see...you're more clever than I thought. Perhaps I should go after your Trainer like I did with Pancham girl then."
"Sorry, but I have nothing to be afraid of," Mai smirked a bit.
"Oh? Then how about this?" Gastly smirked as he transformed into Noel, "Mai...I'm cutting you off my cooking."
"Wh-what?!" Mai gawked before shaking her head, "I-it's not...it's not real…"
"Besides...I've learned how to properly cook~!"
"NOOOO!" Mai cried out in pure despair.
"H-hey! That doesn't' sound like me at all!" Noel shouted at her 'duplicate' as it changed back into Gastly.
"Oh? True, I think I made a mistake in chest size. Too big."
"?!" Noel tensed before she was in a corner, making circles in the dirt, "N-No fair…"
"That's it! Berry, Cherry, let's get him! All three of us!" Makoto shouted.
"Pachi/Emol!"
"Not the wisest idea to be out at night when you're a squirrel, especially since…" Gastly transformed into a giant Owl-like Pokemon, "Owls are out and about!"
"CHI/GA~!" Berry and Cherry screamed as they shot into Makoto's tail, shivering like mad.
"Okay, seriously, that is so cheap!" Makoto snapped.
"Oh? Then would you rather I put you back in that Nightmare again?"
"?!" Makoto's eyes widened in pure fear at that, her body beginning to shake, "...no...no no...Don't put me back there again…"
A sharp whistle went off. Gastly turned...and froze with wide eyes. Luca had a paw raised to his side...right at the stone Maiden.
"N...no...no please! Not her! Anyone but her!" Gastly begged, worry evident in his voice.
"..." Luca kept his eyes right on Gastly, Foresight glowing strong in his eyes.
"No...please….I...I promised…" Gastly whispered, regret in his voice, "I promised her I'd find him…I...I can't let her die here…"
"...(Ransei)."
"H-Hmm?"
"(The war that he went to was in the Ransei Region)," Luca informed, lowing his paw from the statue, "(You want to keep that promise, then check the Ransei Region. But understand this...if you ever harm people and Pokemon like this again...if you ever come near my master or her friends again...)" an Aura Sphere erupted in his paw as he aimed it once more at the statue, "(I will not hesitate to deliver Justice for your actions. Are we clear?)"
"Y-yes! We're clear! Very clear!"
"(Good)," Luca nodded, dismissing the attack and letting his limb drop once more just before a nearby bell began to ring loudly, "(Now get out of my sight and never let me see you ever again.)"
"GH?!" Gastly tensed at that as he faded from view.
"Huh?" Brock blinked as he dropped to the ground, "Wh-what's going on? Where am I?"
"I...is it gone?" Tsubaki nervously asked, currently hugging a tree branch.
"Ri!" Luca nodded as he jumped over the railing and ran over to the tree she was in.
"Oh thank Arceus…" Tsubaki sighed in pure relief as the sun began to rise in the distance, "This night...it's finally over." a cracking noise went off, "...That was the branch, wasn't it?"
"Riolu…" Luca squeaked in confirmation, realizing he was under said branch.
"...Darn it," was all Tsubaki said as the branch broke, sending her falling to the ground and landing on top of Luca, leaving both having swirls replacing their eyes.
"...Okay seriously, what's going on?" Brock asked, "What did I just miss?"
"It's….a very long story…" Misty sighed.
After spending the majority of the day resting, sunset soon approached once more. Along the river heading out to sea, people were placing small wooden boats with paper lanterns in them on the river and sent them out to sea.
"At the end of every summer, the visitors send out these tiny boats, each one with a candle to help light the way," Officer Jenny-the real one-explained as Ash and Misty were setting up a small boat as well, along with Noel and Makoto, "It's for any wandering spirits who can't find their way back home."
"It's rather touching," Tsubaki noted, holding Luca in her arms as the two watched, "A way to let them know that they're never forgotten."
"Riolu…" Luca nodded, smiling a little bit.
Further out in the ocean, a single small boat floated near the shrine where the Maiden's Stoen was, a faint image of the Ghost 'Maiden' seen on top of the boat before it changed into Gastly.
"This summer is over, but your legend will continue to live on…" Gastly whispered, looking up at the Stone Maiden before a faint image of the real one appeared from it.
"Thank you, Gastly...for everything."
"My pleasure. I enjoy keeping alive all the old legends that people have forgotten over the years. Though...that Riolu...I see that some of my methods when my cover's been blown go too far," Gastly noted, "I'm sorry that you were involved with my attack after being discovered."
"It is fine. In a way, he put you back on the true path," the Maiden smiled softly, "And I will wait for you to return here next summer, like how I've waited for my love to return."
"...Ransei. The Riolu told me your love was in the Ransei region during the war," Gastly explained, "I may be a Ghost Pokemon, but I will make it my life mission to find your true love, and bring him to you."
"...Thank you...good bye…" the Maiden smiled as she faded from view.
"Good bye...Milady," Gastly gave a sad smile as he followed suit.
"The Ghost Pokemon...Gastly…" Ash whispered as he looked at Dexter, the boy currently dressed in a green yukata as Pikachu sat beside him.
"Sorry we're late!" Misty's voice called out, "There was some small issues with the yukatas!"
"Not my fault they had to look in the back," Makoto's voice grumbled.
"At least they didn't say anything about implants," Mai laughed sheepishly out of Ash's sight.
Ash looked up and took a few blinks to see if what he was seeing was right. The girls were all wearing yukatas of different colors and patterns on them. While (to Ash) Makoto was still wearing her cosplay tail and ears, she wore a yellow yukata with a blue sash around her waist with an acorn print on the yukata, the upper half somewhat managing to covered a good amount of her bust. Mai wore a yukata similar to his own with water, rock, and wind designs to it while her hair was let free, letting two long bangs go in front of her with the upper half of her yukata the same as Makoto's. Kajun wore one that was purple with a ruby-red sash with butterfly print on the outfit while Tsubaki was in a pink and red yukata with a flower theme to it complete with hibiscus in her hair. Misty, with her hair undone and reaching her shoulders, wore a pink and red yukata with a bubble and Goldeen theme to it and Noel rounded them out in a blue and white yukata with a night motif to it.
"What do you think?" Misty asked.
"...wow. Misty, y-" Ash began.
"Upbupbup!" Makoto quickly put her finger over his mouth, "Be careful on what you say, otherwise it could end up biting you in the tuckus."
"Uh...r-right," Ash nodded.
"Now come on, Ash! Let's dance!" Misty beamed as she dragged Ash off.
"Woah!"
"...Heh. He's gonna be a real ladies killer when he grows up," Makoto chuckled before seeing Kajun writing in a notebook, "Again?"
"...What?" Kajun asked as Mai peeked over her shoulder.
"...Kajun, why are you writing up strategies on how to keep Ash away from 'problem girls?'" Mai asked.
"N-no reason!"
"...You see him like a little brother, don't you?" Makoto asked with a teasing smirk.
"Pika?" Pikachu pondered, looking at Kajun.
"Um...Oh! Berry,, Cherry, Pikachu's here!" Kajun spoke fast.
"Pi?" Pikachu blinked before Berry and Cherry hopped out of Makoto's tail and he was suddenly dragged off, "Pika?!"
"Chipa!" Berry beamed, wearing a yellow and brown yukata as Cherry wore a similar one.
"Emol!" Cherry beamed.
"...Like trainer, like Pokemon I suppose," Mai chuckled a bit.
"H-hai," Noel giggled a bit before noticing Kajun was gone, "Ah! Where did Kajun go?"
"...Oh, that sneaky little…" Makoto grinned before giggling, "Oh man. She totally does!"
"Let's just enjoy the rest of the festival while we can," Tsubaki spoke, "Besides...after what happened, Team Rocket agreed to hold off on chasing us for a while, so we have a few days of not having to worry about them."
"Oh thank Arceus…" Mai sighed in relief, "...Hey, whatever happened to that jar she screamed into, anyway?"
"...Good question…"
-linebreak-
"The heck's that?" Karai asked as Aoiro looked over a decorative jar.
"Oh, just a winning from a raffle Serenade entered at a summer festival yesterday on her day off," Aoiro replied.
"Oh? What's inside it?" Karai asked, "Crack that baby open!"
"I cannot...the way this was done is just too beautiful...I can't ruin something like that by opening it," Aoiro stated.
"...I can!" Karai grinned as she swiped the jar and opened it.
"GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
Aoiro caught the tossed jar and lid as the last of the screamed ended. She looked down at Karai, who was flat on her back, twitching with her hair stuck straight up.
"...Don't….you….dare…" Karai growled.
"You shouldn't have opened it," Aoiro gave a playful faint smile as she walked away.
"...If those three idiots are behind that scream...I'm siccin' Ravage and Chaos on them!" Karai snapped.
"Kajun's Pokemon Corner!"
The curtain rose up once more. Kajun was currently missing from her normal spot while Hikari wore a pale-green yukata with pink sash.
"(Okay. Where's Lady Kajun this time?)" Luca asked, wearing a blue yukata with gold sash while manning the camera.
"(Hiding from a teasing Makoto)," Koko replied.
"(Ah. Lady Makoto and her teasing...Understandable)," Luca nodded, "(Well, we might as well get on with it then. Koko, start the show please.)"
"(Very well then…)" Koko nodded as she looked at the camera, "(Greetings, I am Koko the Espeon. With me is Hikari the Ralts and she will assist in today's lesson. Also, this is our camera-Pokemon, Luca the Riolu.)"
"(...Okay. Now you're being sarcastic)," Luca deadpanned.
"(We did this with Pikachu, we'll do it to you, too.)"
"(She is not wrong…)" Hikari nodded.
"(...Just get to talking about this chapter's featured Pokemon,)" Luca sighed.
"(Right. As mentioned last time, today's Pokemon is both famous and infamous thanks to Generation 1's games)," Koko informed, "(It's Gastly!)"
Luca adopted an annoyed look, "(Can I go get Pikachu to deal with this?)"
"(No)," Koko replied instantly.
"(Grrr…)" Luca's eye twitched, "(Just get to talking about it. The less I see that noxious ball of trouble, the better!)"
"(Oh, he's gonna be in a very sour mood a few chapters from now…)" Koko whispered to Hikari, who nodded, before saying aloud, "(Gastly is known as the Gas Pokemon. The reason for this is that Gastly has no true form, due to its body being 95% poisonous gas. The toxic gas surrounding the main body can induce fainting and suffocation, and is capable of enshrouding a Pokemon the size of Groudon within two seconds.)"
"(As stated in today's chapter, Ghastly, along with its evolutions Haunter and Gengar are notorious tricksters, often using their ghostly powers to scare people for fun,)" Hikari stated as the screen changed to show Ghastly scaring a human couple.
"(Fun? FUN?! He completely terrified most of our allies and do you not remember what it did to Lady Makoto?!)" Luca exclaimed.
"(I do. When it comes to the Ghastly line, what we see as terrifying is fun to them. But if provoked or threatened in anyway, they will defend themselves,)" Hikari explained, "(Such as using Confuse Ray, or a combination of Hypnosis and Nightmare, or Hypnosis and Dream Eater.)"
"(They are also lovers of legends, often making sure they're kept alive through the generations)," Koko added, "(They will often take on the form of the legend in question to help keep it alive, even. Such as the case of the Maiden.)"
"(...well he shouldn't have resorted to such underhanded tricks to do that…)" Luca frowned.
"(I think someone has a crush on their Trainer)" Koko noted, an amused look on her face.
"(Wh-wh-wh-WHAT?!)"
"(Well, you didn't really try going all out on Gastly until he terrified Tsubaki)," Koko noted.
"(B-because he used her fear on her!)" Luca argued.
"(...Now that you both brought it up, why is it when miss Yayoi sees Pokemon like Pancham, she ends up either fleeing in fear, or tensing up?)" Hikari asked out of curiosity.
"(...We must experiment!)" Koko declared.
"(OH NO YOU DON'T!)" Luca snapped as he tackled Koko, causing the curtain to fall on them all.
SZ: And thus ends the Summer Festival. Glad the group had some fun...despite having to deal with a very tricky Ghastly.
GT: This episode, even to this day, always gave me goosebumps. Especially since this is the only Gastly that has even spoken the human language in the entire anime.
SZ: That is very true...which kinda makes me a bit nervous.
GT: Agreed.
SZ: Hai...ahem! I think that about does it for today. We hope you enjoyed this chapter, and stay tune for something original next time.
GT: Until then, please read and review!
Ash Ketchum: Pikachu [Starter], Butterfree(At Professor Oak's ranch), Pidgeotto, Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Krabby(At Prof. Oak's ranch), Eevee
Misty: Goldeen, Staryu, Horsea, Starmie [Starter]
Brock: Geodude, Onix [Starter], Zubat
Makoto Nanaya: Berry(Pachirisu) [Starter], Needles(Beedrill), Cherry(Emolga), Booster(Eevee)
Noel Vermillion: Yuki(Alolan Vulpix) [Starter], Nymph(Eevee), Umi(Feebas)
Tsubaki Yayoi: Luka(Riolu) [Starter], Astrea(Eevee)
Mai Natsume: Terra(Sandshrew) [Starter], Aqua(Buizel), Celsius(Eevee)
Kajun Faycott: Hikari(Ralts) [Starter], Koko(Espeon)