The Very Best

by God of Sun

What if Ash never overslept? With his brand new Pokémon partner, Squirtle, he is going to go on a journey to become the next Champion of the Kanto Region! However, his journey is not going to be even remotely easy. Ash will have to deal with powerful enemies, new friendships, and to learn how to become someone that is worthy of being called a Pokémon Master!

6. The Elusive Mt Moon

Yo! chapter 6 is here, and I have a few things to get out of the way. I understand the last chapter wasn't that different from canon, and I am very sorry. However, I will make it up to you with this episode. Trust me, a lot of stuff is going to go down in this chapter, and I genuinely hope that you guys at least like some of it!

I would also like to shout out to my friend 'Pokemaster06' for encouraging me to do better with this story. Thanks, man, I needed that! Also, we have finally made it past the 50-favorite mark, and we aren't even on chapter 7 yet! Thank you, guys, for all the support, as usual. You, indeed, are the very best!

Disclaimer: I do not, have not, or ever will own Pokémon. All right's go to their respective owners. I recommend watching/playing Pokémon in general.

The Very Best:

Chapter 6:

The Elusive Mt Moon

Opening (If you want to): Ready, Steady, Go! (From Fullmetal Alchemist, cover by AmaLee)

---

It had been two weeks since they had left Pewter City. Brock was such a great addition to the team, as he is the only one that can make something edible. They were currently having some lunch soup Brock had cooked up for them; it tasted so good that both Ash and Ryan had seconds. He was always ready for guidance or advice of some kind. Misty's role as the parent of the group has just been updated.

There were no actual problems as they sat down to eat; even the Pokémon were allowed to have some. Brock made his Pokémon food recipe that made the creatures love the guy. This food was better than whatever second-rate thing they got from the Poké Mart, not even believing they ate that stuff back then. Misty was on dish duty as they would have to leave soon for their next stop.

Mt Moon.

"I'm guessing that a third bowl is going to be necessary," Brock told them as they drank the last part of the soup. Not only did the two boys have gigantic stomachs, but also Wartortle and, surprisingly, Marill. Ryan drank his bowl first, pumping his fist as he finished the race with Ash.

"This food is great," Ryan stated as he wiped his mouth with his hand, Ash finishing his bowl as well. "But we have to move from this spot eventually."

Ash cleaned his mouth as well. He was now wearing his new jacket as it was a bit big on him, but the boy didn't mind. "We do need to get a move on." He looked at Ryan with determination. "I swear, I'll win the next eating match against you."

"You missaid 'lose,' Ash." Brock joked, causing Ash to rile up a bit.

"Mari mari!" Marill giggled as he saw the two interact, an empty bowl near him.

"Warrr." Wartortle had a bowl of soup with him instead of the Pokémon food that every other Pokémon got. The Water-type lazily sat on his shell as the lovely sun was nice on him.

"If you boys are done sitting, then look at this map." Misty presented the map she was carrying as she showed their location and where Mt Moon was marked. The distance was extremely short for them. "It looks like we only got an hour left until we get there."

"I wonder what we will see when we get there." Ryan thought as he saw the girl put away the map.

"I've been through Mt Moon, as that is the established way from Cerulean to Pewter," Misty admitted. Now that everyone knew her secret, she wasn't afraid to talk about Cerulean or even her sisters anymore. She had a pleasant thought go through her mind. "You have to admit; Mt Moon just sounds like a romantic name."

"I heard that a meteor once crashed into those mountains, but that was long before we came around."

"Meteor?" Ryan was confused at what Ash spoke of.

"A meteor came down from earth and rammed into those mountains millions of years ago. It was called the 'Moon Stone.'" Brock explained as he was putting out the fire, placing the soup in a container. "People say that the Moon Stones we have nowadays are just shards of the original. The real Moon Stone is still there, hiding deep within the mountain range."

Ryan was interested in this legend. "Cool. Do you think that we could find it?"

"It's just a myth, Ryan. I don't want you to get your hopes up." Misty warned him in an understating voice. She placed the map that Brock had and put it in her bag. She frowned at the three bowls of soup that the males had left. "You know the rules. Wash your dishes!"

"Come on, don't be heartless like that."

"I'm serious. I took care of your dishes these last three days." Misty was serious about this one, causing Ash and Ryan to grumble a bit. "I am not your maid."

"A maid would be much nicer than you."

"What was that?!" This question made Ryan quickly stop his low mumbling. "I think you just said something to me."

"Nope! Nope! Nothing at all!" Ryan quickly said, causing Misty to make a 'hmm' sound before walking away. Ryan sighed in relief as he went to get his bowl cleaned off, Ash following close as he knew what the anger of Misty was like.

Marill was back in his Poke Ball as Ash went for his Wartortle, laughing at how Wartortle was positioned. "Not again. Need help getting you back up?"

"Wartortle!" Wartortle tried to be independent and get back up on his own. What ended up happening was that poor Wartortle couldn't get around as his shell couldn't land him stand back up. Wartortle must have tried for a solid minute as everyone was smiling at this, even Misty chuckling a tiny bit. Wartortle gave up as he stretched his arms. "Tort." He admitted.

Ash playfully rolled his eyes. "Alright, come on." He heaved up Wartortle until the Water-type was back on two legs, glad he could move again. Ash gave a friendly pet to his Pokémon. "You gotta stop going on your shell like that."

"Wartort." The Water-type complained like a child.

"Let's hope he doesn't do this when he becomes Blastoise. We might need a Machamp for something like that." Everyone chuckled at the comment that Brock made. Wartortle face grew red in embarrassment as he looked away.

Misty went back to giving a good scan of the area. "Looks like we got everything together. Anything else before we leave?"

Everyone thought for a moment. "Nope." They all agreed to this and moved on, Ash and Wartortle holding hands as they walked.

The group had no issue as they walked to their next spot on the list. Mt Moon was the way through the mountain range to get to Celadon, as going around or over would take an entire month. They went down the path until they reached the mountain. It was so massive up close, the late afternoon sun already starting to make its enormous shadow for the mountain.

"Woo!" Ash smiled at seeing how massive this thing was, Wartortle still holding onto his hand. He smiled at the next obstacle in front of him as he knew this would test their skills, but that did not deter his smile. "How long would it take to get through here, Misty?"

"If we made good with our time, then we could get to the other side by morning." She revealed.

"I have to ask," Ryan quickly spoke as he went to Ash. "Is it true that you can see this place from Pallet Town?"

Ash had heard this rumor as he tried to think if the outline of the mountain was familiar. "It could be. There are a lot of mountains around Pallet Town, and I don't exactly know all of them by heart."

"Tle!" Wartortle was shocked. He didn't give enough credit to the size of this thing.

Suddenly, metallic clangs rang throughout the mountains. Everyone froze as they seemingly heard big metal rattling against one another. The noise wasn't random as it appeared it was meant to scare off someone or something from entering it. Everyone felt some fear go through their spines as Misty was shaking a bit. Ryan was the most terrified, taking horrible shaggy breaths and shaking.

"W-What w-was that?!" Ryan managed to speak out after what they had just heard. "I-Is that n-normal, M-Misty?"

"N-No. I've never anything like whenever I came through."

Suddenly, someone's screaming could be heard near the mountain's entrance.

Ash didn't think as he dropped his fear and went to see what had just happened. "WARTORTLE?!" The Pokémon quickly chased after his Trainer, also leaving his fear behind.

"What are you doing?" Brock and Misty were the first to chase after Ash, Ryan doing it as well since he didn't want to be left behind. They stopped to see what had transpired, letting out a small gasp when they saw it.

There appeared to be about twenty blue bats attacking someone that was on the ground. They had a short, round bodies. They also had pointed ears with purple insides and a mouth with two sharp teeth on each jaw. The most notable thing about this creature was the lack of eyes they had. The person being attacked had his arms over his head in a defensive way, screaming out in pain.

"It's a bunch of Zubat!" Ash said out loud as he and everyone else saw what was happening. "We need to help him." He decided without a second thought.

Brock came up with an idea. "Ryan," The boy quickly faced Brock. "Use Butterfree to let out Sleep Powder!"

Ryan was a bit fearful but knew that plan was a good one. "Right!" He quickly grabbed the Poke Ball from his pocket, almost dropping it by accident, and released the Bug-type. Butterfree looked at his Trainer as he wondered what was going on. His eyes widened at what he saw. "Can you, um, use Sleep Powder on them?"

"Free!" Butterfree flapped his wings as he readied the same attack he used on those Beedrills. Misty knew that doing this could harm the man.

"Sir, get out of the way!" Misty warned as Butterfree released his attack.

The person being attacked by the Pokémon could hear the warning and ran away from the Zubats. The Zubats tried to go after their victim until they all began to feel drowsy, white powder slowly falling around them. The Sleep Powder from Butterfree worked well, quickly knocking down the Poison-types.

Ryan let out a sigh of relive as the situation had disappeared. He faced his Butterfree to give a soft smile. "That was some good wo-"

"WOW! You guys are the greatest!" The person that Butterfree had just saved suddenly grabbed Ryan into a gigantic hug, and Ryan's face was pressed against the man's chest. The rest of them saw what he looked like, seeing he had chin hair and glasses on his face. This person had brown hair, eyebrows, and pants. An oversized white lab coat was on him as he wore a blue shirt underneath, large rubber boots completing his outfit.

"Free." Butterfree watched as his Trainer was getting squashed to death by this guy.

"Let me go!" Ryan tried to yell in a muffled voice.

"I'm talking super fantabulistic! I mean, two thumbs up! Way up! The best rescue I ever had!" The person kept going on and on about how grateful he was, and he wished to repay them while Ryan tried not to suffocate from the man's grip. Finally, after what felt like a minute of struggling, Ryan was able to push himself out of there.

Ryan took in long breaths as he was freed from his prison. "Butterfree." The Bug-type went to his Trainer to make sure he was okay.

The new person smiled at how they interacted. "They say, 'Man's best friend is a Pokémon.' And with you two, I believe it." The person happily said as he adjusted his glasses. Ryan and Butterfree looked confused at this compliment.

"Um... sure?" Ryan responded after a second. Butterfree seemed slightly saddened at Ryan's unsure answer, giving a slight frown.

"Tort," Wartortle commented.

"Don't be like that. I'm sure he is not always like this." Ash was so wrong when they saw what this man did next.

"I'm so moved! Such friendship I thought I never see when the Zubat began attacking me! I thought I was done for when who should arrive? Two heroes, thanks to whom I'm alive!" This person began to rhyme as he made some dramatic poses, slowly weirding out everyone watching. The man then got down on one knee, releasing two last powerful sentences. "I'M ALLLLLLLLLIIIIIIIIIVVVVVVEEEEEEEE!" His voice could be heard from a full kilometer; nothing put pure energy in every word. "THANK YOU SO MUCH! THANK YOU!"

They all sweat dropped at this. "Never thought that he would be the poetic type," Misty remarked after what she just saw.

Out of nowhere, someone else's yelling could be heard. Everyone looked around when they heard a feminine voice; they saw someone coming toward them. All of them did not know who this was, but Ash seemed to figure out who it was on the spot. They ran with all their might at top speed. "Brace yourself."

"Huh?" Whoever this was had reached there and aimed for Ash himself. They ran straight into Ash and brought him to the ground, holding him in a tight inescapable hug.

"ASH! You're here!" The girl that was hugging Ash said with pure happiness.

Despite him on the ground, Ash just ended up laughing it off. "It's great to see you too, Green," Ash said. It was none other than Green herself. She looked the same as her precious Charmander was riding on her back.

Green smiled sweetly at this. "I can't believe I met my friend out here!" Green said joyfully as she stood up, holding Ash in a hug. Charmander looked to see that the Squirtle she knew had evolved, jumping off Green to see him.

"Char man der?" Charmander asked as she saw the giant Pokémon. Wartortle just smiled as he flexed his arms.

"War, war!" Wartortle's attempts to show off fell flat as Charmander shrugged it off. Wartortle sweat dropped at how fast her admiration just disappeared. The two still decided to share a high five.

"Ash." The two kids from Pallet Town turned to see Brock, Misty, and Ryan, and the older man looked at them like they had grown a second head. "This is the Green that you were talking about?" Misty pointed her finger at Green. "The one who has more energy than you?"

Ash just smiled. He was able to break away as Green stood next to him, giving a very hyperactive wave. "Everyone, meet Green." Ash presented. "One of my best friends from Pallet Town and one of the three that left on their Pokémon journey."

"HI! Your hair looks so great!" Green grabbed Misty's hand and shook the girl's hand with force and energy. Misty was getting dizzy as she dealt with the freakishly firm grip. "It fits you well!"

"Uhhhhh! Ttthhhaaannnkkkk yyyoooouuuu!" Misty managed to say out as she was getting moved up and down so quickly. Green eventually let go as Misty's eyes swirled, wondering why that had just happened.

"Oh! You are shaped like a friend!" Green complimented as she saw Wartortle ruffling the Pokémon's head. Her cheerful nature got replaced, almost like her face was a light switch. "You may have outgrown ears, but if I see you harming my Pyra in any way, not even a Poke Ball will safe you!"

The normally cool Water-type felt genuine fear in that sentence. "Tortle Wartortle!" He frantically nodded his head.

Green's cute nature was back on. "See! There is no need for problems!" She happily went up to Ryan and Butterfree as Wartortle breathed a sigh of actual relief. Ash went to his Pokémon to comfort him.

"Don't worry, that's just how she is," Ash whispered as he softly smiled at his friend. Wartortle gained a new respect for Ash Ketchum, wondering how the boy could handle this for years.

Green clapped at seeing the Butterfree, giggling at him. "Wow! Your wings are amazing! I wish I could have wings like you and my future Charizard!" She gave a soft scratch to the now-named Pyra's head, the girl giving a faint smile to Green. The ten-year-old looked at Ryan. "You must be the Trainer! Do you hate your hair because you cut it off almost completely?"

Although Ryan's, and all the other three Trainers, had their hair grow a bit, it wasn't that different. Misty was an expert in haircutting and design, so they had nothing to worry about. "Uh? Is having my hair short a bad thing?" Ryan was scared to ask.

Green just looked at him. "As a matter of fact,... It's a great thing!" Green's optimism came through as she looked at Ryan's hair. "You are brave to have short hair since that is what warriors once had. Plus, you sent a jab to Grimmsnarls!" She looked at Brock. "New friend!" She moved Ryan out of the way.

"I-I wha... wha I-I yo-you?" The poor boy couldn't even find the energy to say words. Butterfree flew up to Pyra, wanting to ask some things.

"Free? Butter butter erfree tter free?"

"Charm. Charm Charmander der man." The Pokémon was so silent after what Pyra had just said. Green was a good girl and Trainer, but her energy was so bright and overwhelming.

"Do you think that I could pick you up?"

"Huh?" Brock barely had time to react as he was picked from the waist and lifted a full inch off the ground. "Hey!" Green could only hold this for a second as she had to put him down.

"Dang! It looks like my arms need some training too!" Green laughed it off as she happily skipped over to the last person.

Misty went to Ash to whisper. "I thought you were being dramatic when you said she 'had more energy than a Raichu.' If you can handle this for years, you have my respect." Misty exclaimed.

Ash just chuckled at this. "She's not your average girl, but she is the most loyal person I have ever met."

"Wartortle."

Green came to the last person. "And who are you, oh mighty wearer of a lab coat?"

"Ah! Foolish me for not introducing my name! Watch for what I convey, and you will be dazzled at my display!" The group and Pyra found the whole rhyming thing a bit weird.

Green was looking at him like it was her birthday. "The excitement's killing me!' The man smiled as he saw someone appreciate his work.

"Knowledge! Research! I am Seymour, the scientist!" Seymour said all this while striking poses, finishing with him pointing his finger at the sky.

Everyone looked at Seymour like he was crazy. Green just let out a big chuckle. "Cool!" Brock's look of shock was directed to Green.

Misty quickly composed herself, coughing to clear her voice. "Okayyy. Well, Seymour, can you tell us why those Zubat attacked you?"

"Ah, it's a great tail indeed. Of people that came to this place and won't cede." Seymour quickly cleared his voice. "In all seriousness, something bad has happened in Mt Moon. I can explain it to you as we make our way through." Seymour walked to the entrance and turned to face everyone. "Please. Don't be shy."

Everyone was prepared to move on and get into the mountain when metallic clangs echoed through the mountains again. This one was louder and much more threatening than the last time. Whatever this was must have been something going on in this place. Everyone looked around as Ash and Brock didn't show much fear this time, even if they were surprised.

"Free!" Butterfree made Ryan take out his Poke Ball so that Butterfree could tap it, letting him get inside. The poor kid was biting his nails in fright. Wartortle remained strong as Misty did the same, even if she was nervous about this whole thing.

Green didn't seem scared in the slightest. "What's with the bang bang?" Pyra was also not that scared, as being with Green had taught her to be fearless.

Seymour turned to them all as the noise ended. "It sounds like the situation is escalating. If you wish to help, then follow me." Everyone agreed as they knew this could be a problem, Ryan shaking as he went into the mountains. Brock was in the back as he stopped. The older kid turned to see that the Zubats were still asleep on the floor, no one even noticing them after they were taken care of.

Brock saw his opportunity as he took out a Poke Ball and threw it at one of the Zubats. It hit a male as the Pokémon couldn't struggle to escape, resulting in an effortless capture. "Hate to do this while your asleep, Zubat." Brock put the Poke Ball with Geodude and Onix as he ran after the group, making sure to catch up with them.

---

"So, what's the gist?" Green asked her friend in Seymour, Pyra cuddling in her arms. Seymour held his arms as he faced the group of five and their two Pokémon.

"Look around. The caves are all lit up." Seymour said to the others as the group saw the bright bulbs all over the cave. "People have strung up all these lights throughout the whole cave."

"And the Pokémon need the darkness, don't they?" Brock concluded as he was now alongside Ash, the boy holding his partner's hand. Seymour nodded.

"Well, can't you just take down all these lights if they are that big of a problem?" Ryan suggested as he saw the number of lights that were around him. "Or even taking out the power source would work better."

"Believe me; I have tried to take down all these lights before." Seymour gave an honest swear as he continued down the path. "But no matter how often I try to get rid of them, they always just keep getting replaced."

They made it to a more open part of the cafe as they saw what effect these lights had. The native Pokémon of Mt Moon were suffering due to these foreign things entering their homes. Everyone felt terrible as they saw the suffering Pokémon; even Green went quiet as she held her Pyra in a comforting embrace. "You poor things," Misty said in empathy.

"Look at what is happening. These Paras are planting mushrooms everywhere before the summer, and the Sandshrew's are suffering from the intense heat." The two Pokémon mentioned above were suffering from these problems. "The people responsible for this need to stop at once. I warned them of the two guardian Pokémon here, but they don't listen."

"Guardian Pokémon?" Ryan inquired.

"Oh, yes. Pseudo-Legends, and their families, were brought here from another region. Out of everywhere in Kanto, they chose to reside in these mountains. That noise you heard when you first came was a threat from the Pokémon. They chose to give themselves a duty, protecting the legendary Moon Stone meteor. That is why the thieves are here."

"Pseudo-Legend?" Ryan once again asked.

"They are Pokémon that are notorious for being powerful. Their strength and abilities are beyond any normal Pokémon one may encounter." Seymour explained as he was always fascinated by this scarce group of Pokémon. Ash and Misty were also interested in these few Pokémon. "They are, supposedly, closet in strength to the legendary Pokémon that myths of the various regions would describe. I have only encountered one of them, a Tyranitar, and her power was enough to make all the other Pokémon submit. Extremely rare, they are."

Brock did find this talk exciting but knew that there were more important matters. "I hate to be this way, but you must tell us who these people are. Did you at least get their name?"

"There were five Trainers that attacked this place, all part of an organization that you must've heard about," Seymour revealed who the enemies were. "Team Rocket..."

Almost instantly, Brock, Misty, Ash, and Wartortle froze up after they heard. They knew that name, as the last three had just run into them back in Viridian City. Green had her eyes wide as Pyra had woken up, yawning loudly. Ryan knew this name sounded important as he saw the reactions and worried that asking would make him look stupid.

"Team Rocket?" Misty asked in a breathless voice.

"I should've known," Brock said with a stern face. "Back when I was the Gym Leader of Pewter, I was usually forced to battle them until they left."

Green was surprised. "Wait! You're that Rocky guy that was supposed to be running the Pewter City gym!" She figured out, as she was wondering where he ran off to. To her, adults should always leave a note.

"Char?"

Brock sweat dropped at the nickname and how he never did get to introduce himself to her. "First off, it's Brock. And yes, I am the Gym Leader who had to leave." He explained.

Green just looked at the boy weirdly, examining him from different angles. "Oh yes. Me and Pyra are going to fight you!" She proudly declared in a determined way. "Let me fight you for that badge!"

"Mander!" Pyra said as well.

Brock was a bit flustered at the idea of fighting right this second. "Y-You mean, right now?" He was also going to ask about the nickname but decided not to.

"Clefairy! Clefairy! Clefairy!"

Everyone turned their heads to see that a small, round, pink, star-shaped Pokémon was jumping right past them. Her hands had two white claws and a thumb; her short ears were pointy with dark tips. She had a long, curled tail and swirly hair, and her cheeks were pink. On the back were a small pair of wings. The Fairy-type was holding a rock close to her chest, jumping around as if she wasn't affected by gravity.

"Awww! It's a Clefairy. Misty cooed as she saw the cute Pokémon.

"Clefairy, the fairy Pokémon. Dex Number: 037. Pokémon Typing: Fairy. They are adored for their cute looks and playfulness. They are thought to be rare, as they do not appear often. This Specific Clefairy is a female and currently at level 9. This Pokémon has the following moves: Disarming Voice, Pound, Metronome, Life Dew." Was the description Green's Dexis gave Pokémon jumped by, not even noticing the trainers that it just jumped past. Green had sparkles in her eyes.

"SO CUTE!"

"Jang!" A different Pokémon ran by as he seemed to chase the Clefairy. This Pokémon looked nothing like any creature from the four central regions, causing Ash and Brock to be shocked by him. The Pokémon was a small, scaly quadruped Pokémon. His upper body was gray, while the lower part was black. His eyes were slit and brownish red, having a small tuft of feathers on his head and chest. Yellow claws on each of the feet. He had a large yellow heart scale on his forehead. He had six gray scales around his shoulders, with a tinge of yellow on each of them. A gray tail that had a yellow scale at the tip finished the look. "Jangmo-o!"

The Dragon-type Pokémon ran to catch up the Cleafiry, who happily giggled. "Fairy fairy!" She playfully taunted.

"What is that?" Ryan had never seen a Pokémon like that before. Green moved Dexis to face the new creature.

"There is no data. The current Pokémon is either not registered in the dex or a Pokémon yet to be discovered." Dexis gave me, making Green give a weird look at the machine.

"No. That can't be right!" Green tried to smack her device lightly, thinking that it was glitching out on her. Misty had some realization on her face.

"Wait! If that was a Jangmo-o," Something seemed to click for her, as she knew all the Pokémon that the Dragon-type was native to. "Then that must mean the Psuedo-Legends are K-"

"CLEFAIRYYYYY!" The Clefairy let out a scream of pure fear that echoed throughout the whole cave.

Everyone but Ryan went after the distressed Pokémon, also hearing that Jangmo-o seemed to be roaring at something. "Um. Isn't running into danger usually a bad idea?!" Ryan asked out as no one seemed to pay attention to him, making the boy let out a massive groan. "Why can't we just have a simple day?" He ran after the rest of the group.

---

"I found another pair, Mr. James." A boy that seemed slightly younger than the Team Rocket member called out. He was in the same outfit and eyes that James himself had, but had short brown hair, having a small opening to the side. He looked curiously at the scared Clefairy and the Jangmo-o in front of her, yelling at the Team Rocket member. "Should we add this one to the pile?"

Jessie stepped into the light with Meowth, smiling at what their youngest member was able to bring in. "Nick work, Mondo. You're doing good on Team Rocket with getting these two."

Mondo blushed at the compliment. "T-Thank you, Mr. James."

"Meowth! What did we tell you about that whole 'Mr.' thing? We got some new Pokémon to add to our bags." Meowth approached in a very offensive position, making the brave Jangmo-o growl. "Would you be so kind as to jump into our bag?"

Jangmo-o growling intensified. "Jang Jangmo-o!" Clefairy was scared as the Dragon-type was bravely protecting her.

"Stop right there!" Seymour yelled as he and Ash's group came into the section of the mountain. The Team Rocket members stopped their approach as Mondo, a rookie, was a bit overwhelmed at the number of people that appeared before them. Jangmo-o and Clefairy saw the Trainers come in and could tell they weren't enemies, though Jangmo-o guard did not falter.

"Well, lookie here! It's that scientist that kept trying to me..." Meowth saw the other people, instantly signaling out Ash, Misty, and Wartortle, who was probably that Squirtle they also saw. He pointed at them. "Wait a minute! You twerps ruined our Viridian City operation!"

"These are the Team Rocket members you mentioned, Misty?" Brock asked. Misty nodded in response as she saw the group that destroyed her bike.

"So, we meet again." Jessie got into his serious self as he saw the group that defeated them, noticing the lack of Red. "Are you going to keep interfering in our business?"

"We are here to stop you from hurting the Pokémon living here! We'll take you down, James, Meowth, and..." Ash realized that the third group member wasn't there, seeing only a boy slightly older than him in her place. "Hey, wait. Where's the... girl one?"

James did a double-blink at Ash. "... The 'girl one'? Is that actually how you remember her?"

"No, wait! Don't tell me who she is!" Ash tried to think about who the third member was. "It was... Jes-Jessebelle! Yeah, Jessebelle!"

Meowth twitched at the incorrect answer as James seemed a bit angry, the name reminding him of something he didn't like. Mondo was offended at how his crush was just treated. "It's Jessie! Jessie was her name!"

"Huh," Brock remarked as he thought. "I thought it was Jessica."

James had had enough. "Enough talk! If you aren't here to help us, you are our enemy!" James took out his Poke Ball, and Mondo seemed shocked for a minute as he took out his Poke Ball as well. "Prepare for trouble,"

"And make it double!" Mondo added as he smiled on the inside. "I always wanted to say that."

Meowth walked backward as he saw his two partners. "Meowth. I'll help you guys out... by running off!" Meowth ran off in the path James and Mondo were blocking, going to tell the leader of this whole thing.

"Quick! We must intercept that Pokémon!" Seymour declared as everyone agreed with this idea, yet they knew that someone had to deal with these two members.

"I can take care of this!" Brock stepped as he was the one with the most experience, and mostly because he wanted to try his new Zubat. "Mind helping me out with this one, Ryan?"

"What!" Ryan was overwhelmed by the request. "No, no! You do not w-want me t-"

"Looks like we got that figured out." Seymour declared as he ran off. "Follow me; I know the way across this mountain!"

Everyone but Brock and Ryan nodded as they ran off, leaving the four boys. "What?! NO! You can't do this to me!" Ryan called out as he was scared of the people in front of him. The fact that they were very young didn't detract from the fact that they were part of Team Rocket. Ryan gulped when he turned around. "Oh... no."

"Don't worry. You have me." Brock assured him as he talked like an older brother would. "I understand your fear, but we must do this for the Pokémon. For our team."

Ryan was still fearful but nodded his head, knowing that he was right. "I guess this is my life now..."

"Are we going to battle?" James inquired with annoyance. Both nodded as James let out a small smile, a good way for Mondo to get some experience. "Koffing, go!"

"It's all yours, Ditto!" Mondo said as well, letting out a Great Ball. Unlike a regular Poke Ball, the Great Ball was blue on the top with two red accents, but that was all that differentiated the two.

James's Koffing came out and a completely new Pokémon. Ditto was a very simplistic Pokémon. It was a simple, pinkish-purple, amorphous blob with two small dots as eyes and a long, curved mouth. "Ditto!" It happily said as Mondo seemed confident in his Pokémon.

"Jang mo o-o jang." Jangmo-o told the Clefairy behind him as the Fairy-type nodded, bouncing out of the area. Jangmo-o was watching, wanting to see how these Trainers would battle, helping if necessary.

"Go, Zubat!" Zubat came out with his cry as Ryan gasped a little.

"When did you catch that?"

"When I saw that group of Zubat on the ground at the start, asleep, I knew to take that chance," Brock explained.

Ryan slapped himself in the face. "Why didn't we think of that?" Ryan took out his Poke Ball and called out Butterfree.

"Free, uerfree!" Butterfree came out and saw what was going to happen. Butterfree seemed a bit scared as Butterfree came to Ryan, shaking his head quickly. "Butter, free, free!"

"Hey. Are you okay?" Ryan asked his Butterfree as the Bug-type shook his head, Ryan wondering what was going on. "You don't want to fight these guys? But what about those Zubat and Beedrill you took out?"

"Free Butterfree butter." The Pokémon answered. Ryan kindly looked at his Pokémon.

He figured it out. "You don't like to get dirty and fight, but you would rather be support." Butterfree nodded. Ryan knew to respect his Pokémon thanks to Ash and Misty, getting his Poke Ball out. "I understand. Return, Butterfree."

Mondo watched as Ditto they were sympathetic to the Bug-type. "If you want, we can do something else," Mondo suggested.

Ryan was surprised at how reasonable Mondo seemed to be. The kid was pretty considerate for being the enemy. "What are you?! Don't show kindness to the enemy!" Mondo was a bit stunned at how annoyed James was, straightening up.

"Yes, sir! I won't disappoint, Mr. James." Mondo quickly said as Ryan dug in his bag.

"Where are you? Ah ha!" He took out his second Poke Ball as Pinsir came out. "W-We can now fight! If... um, you want to..."

"Ditto!" Ditto happily said as the Pokémon glowed. Their simple shape was gone as what stood was a replica of Ryan's Pinsir, down to each horn. "Ditto!" Despite its new appearance, it still had the same cry.

"Pinsir!" Pinsir glared at his enemy.

"Use your Tackle on Zubat!" James commanded as he brought his arm out. Koffing went after the small Flying-type as he still had his derpy smile.

"Use Supersonic!" Zubat released an odd sound wave from his mouth that made the Koffing stop in his flight. The Poison-type seemed entranced by the noise produced as he poured all of his focus into it, making him cancel out the outside world. Koffing's vision became distorted and blurry as he tried to find the Zubat that did this.

This confusion caused Koffing to hit a rock, making James cringe at that pain.

"Koffing, don't get distracted!" James encouraged his Pokémon as he thought of another move, one that shouldn't harm him. "Use Smokescreen instead!"

"Koffing!" Koffing released the non-see-through smog from his holes as Zubat flew right in, his fangs ready for Leech Life, as Brock wanted. Zubat tried his best to pass through the gas as he came to the other side, moving his head quickly. Koffing was nowhere to be found as Zubat was prepared to go back into the Smokescreen, but something from above knocked him down.

"Zubat!" Brock called out as Koffing used Tackle from above, the Poison-type snapping out of his confusion. Zubat quickly flew away as Koffing was about to go for another Tackle. He went next to his Trainer as the smog was almost gone. "Can you still fight?"

"Bat!" The Poison-type said as Koffing was a fair distance away.

"Use Astonish!"

"Use your Smokescreen once more!" James instructed Koffing. As Koffing was about to release his gas, Zubat screamed at him in a very startled way. This move may have only made Koffing take minimal damage, but Zubat was able to get the flinch off, allowing Zubat to attack with a good move.

"Try to finish off with Leech Life!" Zubat got the perfect aim on his target as he got his teeth ready. He flew quickly to Koffing as the Poison-type was trying to get his bearings back, being met with two sharp fangs digging into him. Zubat quickly drained the blood and regained his health, stopping after he had had enough. Koffing felt exhausted as he fell to the ground after the battle.

Koffing had fainted!

James saw his Pokémon get harmed like that. "No! Koffing, return!" He knew that he could no longer fight as he had no other Pokémon on him. "How did Jessie trick me into letting her catch that Pokémon back in Viridian Forest?" He mentally asked himself as he poured his focus on Mondo. "Alright, twerp. Win this for Team Rocket, and mostly for me!"

"Yes, sir, Mr. James!" Mondo promised before focusing on the battle. "Although, I have my struggles right now."

Ditto tried to use Seismic Toss on Pinsir as the Real Bug-type could jump out of the way. Ditto had perfectly copied Pinsir's move set and wanted to use it on the real thing. None of them did have anything substantial against the other as the solid move they had was only Bug Bite, something that wouldn't do well against their type. Both kept dodging as they knew how scary their Focus Energy could be.

"Use Vise Grip!" Ryan's Pinsir tried to grab with his horns as Ditto moved out of the way; this kind of thing had been happening for two minutes.

"You need a strategy to take out that Ditto," Brock told Ryan as he viewed the match. "You both are the same, but one of you just needs to outsmart the other."

"I think I got that!" Ryan yelled as he told Pinsir to duck under a Bug Bite, trying to use Vice Grip at this time, only for Ditto to use their skinny arms to halt him. Both jumped away from one another after that brief skirmish. "Can't you help out with Zubat?"

"I would, but I want to see if you can handle this guy yourself," Brock told Ryan as Jangmo-o watched Ryan's battle, unlike when Brock fought. The little dragon seemed to feel something when Ryan was the one attacking. "Find any weakness in Mondo's strategy. Use his mistake before he can play against yours."

"Come on, Mondo!" James encouraged as he saw the fight. "Don't let the inferior Bug-type win!"

"Ditto!" The fake Pinsir went for the Seismic Toss once again as the real Pinsir moved his arms away as he struggled for a bit. The two tried to use the horns to attack simultaneously, knocking each other instead. They moved away after that.

"The simple answer is often the right answer," Brock told Ryan as the boy tried to take the advice. "Use whatever advantage that you can get."

"What kind of advantage?! They act the same way." Ryan mentally said as Ditto moved first to attack, wanting to go for the Bug Bite. Pinsir dodged once more as the move failed. Ryan decided to pay much more attention as the fight continued, James still cheering for the Ditto.

"Ditto." It simply said.

"Pinsir!" The Pokémon yelled at it. Ditto went for the attack right away again as Pinsir dodged again. The Bug-type seemed to notice a pattern as he was analyzing his opponent now, and Ryan was also slowly figuring it out.

"Ditto. It keeps trying to attack first." Ryan began to realize this as he looked back at the match. He tried to think of what to do to use that fact. Something came to him when he remembered what Brock had. "Pinsir, don't attack!"

"Nsi?" The Pokémon was confused by the command.

"Trust me. I think I figured it out." Jangmo-o was curiously watching to see what the boy had planned. Ditto ran up and tried to go for Vice Grip once again, Pinsir following order and not moving to defend or attack. As Ditto got closer, Ryan issued a command. "Aim for the leg!"

Pinsir sent out a strong kick with his small leg that got Ditto very off-guard. The copier was sent to the ground Pinsir quickly took advantage of this, grabbing his opponent to use Seismic Toss by holding the copy close to him. Pinsir jumped high with his opponent as he spun in the air, falling onto the floor by using Ditto as a cushioning for him.

Ditto took good damage as Pinsir was at Level 16, but the Pokémon was still quick to get back up and look at their opponent. "Try to trick!" Mondo commanded.

The fake Pinsir tried to jump high in the air to distract the Bug-type. Pinsir and Ryan watched as they wanted to see if they could find any pattern or counterplay for this, deciding to go with this. "Go right there, Pinsir." Jangmo-o was behind Brock as he watched the fight. Ryan had managed to pique the interest of a Pokémon such as him.

Pinsir stood in the exact spot Ryan told him, the same one that Ditto was going to land at. Ditto tried their best to move out of the way in the air. This resulted in a pretty lousy landing that not only caused Ditto to take damage but also allowed Pinsir to come in and use Vise-Grip. "D-Ditto!" The Pokémon said as the horns from Pinsir were slowly crushing it.

Pinsir looked at his opponent with daring eyes as he used his strength to bring Ditto to the ground with a heavy slam. He used a small punch to put Ditto away from him and make the copy slide across the land. "That was good!" Ryan complimented his Pokémon, something the Bug-type took with a smile.

Ditto reverted to its standard form as he had fainted as well. "You did great out there!" Mondo told his Pokémon as he returned the Normal-type. He also said it to Ryan, as he was impressed by the boy's skill. No one seemed to register that fact.

"This is bad..." James noted as they had no other Pokémon with them, knowing to cut their losses right about now. "We must leave, Mondo. Take this loss as a positive thing while you're at it." James was being sincere when he said that to the younger boy.

Brock was not having this, as Jangmo-o was right next to them. "We won't let you get away. Not on my watch!" Brock knew better than to leave these guys to their own devices.

Mondo gave a confident smile as he took out a smoke bomb. "We'll see about that!" He used his hand to pull the pin on the bomb, but it didn't work for him. The pin was not coming off. The boy kept trying a few times as he tried to pull with his strength. "Uh. Just give me a second..."

James sweat dropped at how his partner. "Let me just," He took the bomb and pulled the pin, making it come out. James got into a striking pose as the gas came out. "You have won this, but your friends will not win against the others."

"You will see the power of Team Rocket." Mondo went to James's ear for the next part. "Was that any good, sir?"

"Could be better," James admitted as the two used the gas to run away, leaving Brock, Ryan, and the Pokémon behind.

"We must follow them!" Brock decided as he called back Zubat, running through the gas. Ryan and Pinsir went with Brock, none seeing that Jangmo-o was following them. They went through the gas and to the other side, seeing that the two members were missing. "They must've gone down there. If we hurry, we can catch them."

Ryan nodded as he was a bit scared but not as bad as before. "Alright. Let's ju- OW!" Before Ryan was allowed to finish, Jangmo-o came through the gas to nibble on his left ear, happy to be with them.

"Pinsi!" Pinsir called out in shock for his Trainer. Brock was also surprised at how the Dragon-type was behaving.

Ryan tried his best to dislodge the Jangmo-o's teeth and get him out of his ear, holding the Dragon-type in front of him. Jangmo-o seemed happy at what he had just done. "Why did you bite my ear? And why do you seem happy about it?!"

"Jang mo mo!" He exclaimed as he was in Ryan's grip. Brock realized something as he thought for a moment.

"I think that Jangmo-o wants to help us with the fight against Team Rocket, and he seems to have imprinted onto you. Am I right?" Jangmo-o nodded as Ryan lessened his grip, seeing how the ear bite was not out of malice.

"You can help us. Just don't do that again, okay?" Ryan's semi-serious voice was countered with Jangmo-o proud nod. He placed the Dragon-type gently as he also placed Pinsir in his ball, the two looking at the oldest. "Um... we were going after them, r-right?"

Brock nodded as they all ran down the path, trying to make up for the lost time. "Jangmo-o!" The Pokémon acted like a warrior and was quite determined, especially for his small size. It was a struggle to chase after the two with his short legs.

---

"How long does this path go on for, Seymour?" Ash asked as he ran with the group, Wartortle at his side.

"This path, in particular, is one of the longer ones in this cave," Seymour explained. The group of six ran for minutes as they tried to find either Meowth or other Team Rocket members.

"Char." The fire Pokémon pointed behind her, which caused Green to look back. Clefairy had been bouncing after them as she was tired after all the running she had to catch up with them.

"Are you okay, Clefairy?" Green questioned the Pokémon as she stopped for the Fairy-type. Everyone stopped to see what was happening.

"Clefairy." The fairy type said in a tired voice, still holding onto her Moon Stone. Green approached the cute Pokémon, giving a very maternal smile.

"Don't worry. You can hang out in my bag." The girl opened her messenger bag, allowing the Fairy-type to climb inside. She left a small hole open as she zipped it back up to still let air get through. "Aww! Pyra, look at our new bag friend."

"Char." The Pokémon nodded as Green quickly got back on her feet and let Pyra on her back again, allowing everyone to keep going down the path.

"Seymour," Misty called his name, making the scientist look at her. "If I may ask. Why did you come to Mt Moon in the first place? It sounds like you were here before Team Rocket started invading."

"Oh, you are very bright, as you truly got me right. I came to these mountains to study the wild Pokémon, especially the Kommo-o and Clefairy." Seymour explained as they had to make a sharp turn. "The truth I wish to find... is the Moon Stone, that has been confined."

"I like your rhymes." Green happily said to Seymour, causing the scientist to be flustered as no one had ever said anything positive about that. "Do you make poetry? I think you and Oak would be friends!"

"Well, um, thank you." Seymour wasn't sure how to truly take this praise.

"That sounds interesting, but why is it just you? Aren't you part of some company or team that could help you?"

"N-Not anymore..." Seymour said as his lips felt relatively dry. "I was, uh... kicked out from my research team."

"What?" Ash was surprised. Seymour acted weird, but he was still brilliant in his eyes. "Why would they do that? Don't they realize what great thing they just threw away?"

"Warotrtle?" The Pokémon said as well.

"You don't need to say that for me," Seymour said, as he didn't want sympathy in this dangerous situation. "I was kicked out because I believed in the thing that 'aren't provable by science.'" He put air quotes and a mocking voice for the last part. "None of them were a big fan of the conspiracy theories I would bring to them. They eventually had enough and made me leave, but I still believe in those theories with my soul!"

Everyone felt bad for Seymour as the man meant the words he said. Green wanted to cheer him up. "I don't think your theories could've been bad. Do you know about Wobbuffet tail one?"

"That is one of my favorite ones!" Seymour replied actively. "I keep telling people that the body is too squishy and malleable for the proper structure. Have you heard about the 'Original Dragon' myth in Unova?"

"EEEE! Yes, I have!" Green seemed very happy that she had found someone with the same interest in these theories. They kept trying to list off every theory they could think of as Misty, Ash, and Wartortle watched while running.

"Never would've guessed that Green would be into that stuff. I wonder if Ash believes those too." Misty thought as she had nothing against those kinds of people, but they definitely could be annoying about it.

They kept going down, and they ended up having to stop as a situation had occurred. The path they had been following had split down the middle, creating two separate ways that went left and right. Both of the trails looked the same. The group's advance halted as they walked to this, unsure what to do.

"What do you think we should pick?" Ash asked the scientist.

"I'm not sure. Either of these paths could have Te... what are you doing?" Seymour stopped his train of thought as Green moved her arms like a Clefairy would when using Metronome.

"I'm just letting my body tell me the way," Green explained as Pyra grew very concerned, knowing what happened the last time she did that. Seymour had a great realization.

"I should've done the same thing." Seymour did the same thing as Green was doing as Misty gave a weird look, Ash and Wartortle just smiling at this.

"What is going on?" She asked out loud. Wartortle decided to do this, mostly wanting to see how Misty would react. "Not you too!" She said in disbelief.

Green and Seymour stopped their finger moving as they settled on their path. "The left one is mine!" Green happily said as she looked at Misty. "Come with me! It will be fun!" She promised.

"The other path is ours. Come with me, oh great Trainer," Seymour called to Ash as he went to the other side. "There is evil afoot!"

Misty was confused by this reasoning, just deciding to go along with it. "I guess me and Green will go down this way while the two of you take the other one."

Ash just shrugged as he knew questioning wouldn't fix much. "Works for us." Wartortle nodded his head as he held onto Ash's hand. And just like that, Green and Seymour's group took their paths.

The two girls ran down their path, trying to go as fast as their legs could. They were like this for a while, Green having a great time running as Mist wall, Green having a great time running as Misty didn't say much. They took a nice breath after going through most of their path. Pyra took the chance to climb off Green and walk around, ensuring it was still in sight of the two girls.

"We'll walk the rest of the way if you want to." Misty nodded as she could get some oxygen back in her lungs, looking at Green.

"That would be nice." Green gave a friendly smile to the girl as they had this time together. "So, how long have you known Ash?"

Green was very peppy in her response. "Well, we lived in the same town our entire lives. Ash was one of the few willing people to be my friend!" Misty nodded at the answer. "All the other kids, besides him and Red, thought I was too hyper or annoying to be around."

"You shouldn't listen to those people," Misty told her, even if she slightly agreed about the hyper part. "You seem very kind and interesting, at least to me."

"Does that make us friends?!" She asked excitingly.

Misty sweat dropped at the question. "Well, we're at least not strangers..."

"That's good enough for me and Pyra!" Green happily declared before a question came to mind. "Why are you traveling with Ash?"

"Oh, it's quite simple. My bike blew up." Misty said the sentence like it was an everyday thing. "In all honesty, Ash is letting me go along with him since he felt bad that Team Rocket blew up my bike for no good reason. He is a good kid, but he can be brash and annoying at points."

"Hmm. Maybe I should do that." Green said out loud as she tried to think of ways to make quick friends. "Got to find someone with a bike first, though."

"Um! Let's not do that, so you don't get into legal trouble." Misty nervously said as Green seemed so serious about it for a second. The redhead knew she had to bring something up to make her think something else. "Anyway, Ash and I are trying to become Champion level Trainers. I'm guessing that you are aiming for the top as well."

Green shook her head. "I could care less about being Champion."

"Really?" Misty asked, wondering what other dream Green might have. "Then what's your goal?"

"I don't have a goal," Green admitted in her usual way. "I went on this journey to have fun, not to be the next Champion or anything like that. That sounds like a lot of responsibility, and I want to spend time with my family."

"You see your Pokémon as a family?"

Green smiled. "They are to me. A family I would never give up." This made Misty think as she was delving into her thoughts, taking Green's words as the Clefairy was still in her bag, sensing how pure this girl was. Green looked around as parental concern filled her form. "Where is Pyra?!"

Misty snapped out of her mind as she was ready to help, but they didn't need to worry. "Mander char char!" Pyra said as she rounded the corner, pointing her small claw to something further down the path. Green came and scooped up her Charmander, getting her finger out.

"Don't run off like that!" She was very stern for one second and hugged her Pokémon the next. Charmander hugged back as she couldn't imagine her life without Green being around. Misty peeked through the corner at what Pyra was yelling about, causing her to gasp.

"It's you!" She mentally threatened as she saw familiar hair sticking out. "Get your Pokémon ready, Green. A battle is going to start soon."

"Oh! Fun!"

Jessie and another girl were digging and plowing through rocks. Jessie was using a pickaxe, and the other was using a drill. "Keep that drill away from me!" She yelled at the other person.

"What's wrong, Jes? She teased as she was holding the drill with two hands. "Are you worried that I'll keep finding fossils first?"

Jessie screamed in frustration. "Why did he make me work with you? I kept telling him you would only cause trouble, Cassidy!" The girl Jessie spoke to had purple eyes and gold hair worn in pigtails. She also wore a pair of triangular pink earrings. Her Team Rocket uniform had a black short-sleeved mini-dress with the team's red 'R' logo on the front, plus white gloves that reached the sleeves. There was a red stripe near that area and white thigh-high boots with the same line near the tops and a slight heel.

"I'm not the one complaining!" She retorted. The girls were sending significant glares at one another.

Misty and Green walked into the area to confront the Team Rocket members. "Stop right there!" Misty yelled at them, making them face the three intruders. "I know that you were the one that destroyed my bike, Jessie! You'll pay for that!"

Cassidy looked at Jessie with a skeptical look. "You know these brats?"

Jessie scoffed at this as she discarded the pickaxe. "Yeah, right. Like I've met the..." She looked at Misty much closer, something rattling in her mind. "Wait! You are one of those twerps that ruined our Viridian mission! And now, your here to stop this operation as well." She accused.

Cassidy looked at the two, not finding either of them that impressive. "You know, it's quite fitting that you would lose to these brats!"

"Are you going to keep talking, or will I have to force you to fight?!" Cassidy rolled her eyes as she got rid of the drill as well, her and Jessie taking out Poke Balls.

"You take the girl with the ugly earrings," Misty told Green as she took out her Poke Ball, facing the team Rocket girl. "Jessie is all mine!"

Cassidy seemed angered by that comment. "Your one to talk about being ugly. Raticate, go!"

Out of her Poke Ball came the evolved form of Rattata. His most notable feature was the massive teeth. He had brown fur all over, with a long tail and whiskers. Raticate looks like an overweight rat, standing on his hind legs as he opened and closed his rigid jaw. "Raticate!"

Jessie brought her Ekans as the Poison-type looked at Misty, remembering what she did to them. "Ekkkaaannnnssss!"

"You'll pay for what you did to my bike!" Misty ensured as the Poke Ball was still in her hand. "Why did you blow it up in the first place."

"Oh, it's quite simple." Jessie began to explain in a mocking tone. "I hate the color orange!" This answer made Misty grit her teeth.

"Hi, big rat!" Green happily waved as she looked around in her bag, Clefairy jumping out of there. "Sorry I have to do this to you, but I need to take you out." She took a Poke Ball to show off her second Pokémon. "Go on, Viney!"

A Grass-type emerged from the Poke Ball, standing up as he fell to the ground. "Bellsprout." Bellsprout was a plant-like Pokémon resembling a pitcher plant. The body was a thin brown root and stem system, with secondary roots acting as the legs. He had two leaves on each side of his body. His head was yellow and shaped like a bulb, while the tip of the mouth was colored pink, resembling lips.

"Hah! You think that walking plant could stop my Raticate?" Cassidy asked arrogantly.

"Well, yeah. Why else would I bring him out?" Green asked. To her, an adult could be so dumb sometimes. "Viney, use your Poison Powder!"

"Sprout." Viney released a purple glitter-like substance from his mouth, similar to how Sleep Powder appeared. The move hit Raticate, and he suddenly felt relatively weak. The Normal-type was poisoned as Cassidy cursed herself, regretting not getting something for the poison condition.

"Use Super Fang, quickly!" Raticate moved and got his mouth ready, hoping to get revenge for what the Pokémon did to him.

"Use your Vine Whip!" Green told her Pokémon. Charmander watched from the sides as Viney sprouted a vine and used his strength to slam it into the Raticate. The Grass Type was hoping that the attack would be enough to make the Normal-type halt his attack. Raticate took decent damage from the attack, but he could power through and go to Viney.

"Cate!" With a mighty chomp from his teeth, Viney lost half his health instantly. Raticate pushed the Grass-type as he looked at him, taking damage from the poison.

Green was worried for her Pokémon as she went to him. "Viney! Can you still breathe?" The Grass-type nodded as he could still move around, and he slowly stood up. "If you want, Pyra can take over for you."

"Bell." The Pokémon dismissed as he returned to battle, signaling Green to do the same. Green felt proud that her Pokémon was acting like this but also worried that her Pokémon was acting like that. At least he saw that he was doing better than the Goldeen that Misty sent out, as at least he was able to attack. Misty was trying to give her Goldeen spotlight, as the Water-type did almost nothing all this time, but it only made the girl seem foolish.

Misty sighed. "Goldeen, return." She decided to use her Starmie as Goldeen was a lost cause. She didn't want to admit it, but Goldeen had done little to nothing for the group. "Starmie, use Psybeam on Ekans!"

Back to Viney and Raticate, The Grass-type was prepared to use his Vine Whip to get some more damage off since he couldn't inflect another status condition, but the next move foiled his plan. "Use Quick Attack!"

Raticate was just a blur as the rodent headbutted Viney with such speed and power, causing the Grass-type to be pushed back. This time, Viney didn't have the strength to get back up as Pyra and went Green went to their team member, Clefairy coming as well.

"Viney!" Green panicked as she held her Pokémon close, Pyra placing a gentle hand on her friend. "It's okay. You're okay." Green tried to tell him as she took his Poke Ball. "You did the best you could, and that's all I could ask from you. We can handle the rest."

"Out..." Viney attempted to protest, not having the energy to do so correctly. He returned to his Poke Ball as Green had her eyes covered by the shadow of her hat, Pyra seeming much more severe than before.

"Clefairy?" The Fairy-type seemed worried for them. Pyra placed a comforting hand on her shoulder before moving away, stepping into the battle.

"How cute!" Cassidy taunted along with her still-poisoned Raticate. "You think that little Pokémon can defeat my own! Hahaha!"

Green's childish wonder was gone as she seemed very serious, Pyra acting the same. The two nodded in understanding as Pyra flexed her arms until they were ripped with muscle, charging at the Raticate. Raticate saw this and smirked with his giant mouth, planning on disrupting the attack with a simple Quick Attack. Raticate came from the side to give a quick headbutt to the side.

In a shocking turn of events, Pyra's attack did not falter when this happened as the Fire-type used her strong arm. Raticate could only widen his eyes briefly before a strong punch sent him flying into the rock. If the attack itself didn't knock him out, then the poison right after definitely would. Cassidy was dumbfounded, as was Jessie. Even Misty had to admit that was epic.

Cassidy realized something. "That Charmander has Mega Punch?! How?"

Green smirked as Pyra jumped in her arms, the two looking at the Team Rocket girl. "A good Trainer never reveals their secrets, right?" She asked. "I knew that TR I found in Route 1 would be useful!"

Cassidy had no choice but to recall her fainted Pokémon, which just so happened to be her only Pokémon, and watch Jessie's fight. That last part was a fate worse than death to her. "Nice work, Green!" Misty complimented with a thumb's up.

"Star!"

Green just chuckled as she scratched the back of her head. "Pyra just punched hard. I bet one of your Pokémon could do the same thing." Pyra hit Green slightly, making the girl correct herself. "Of course, my punch will always be superior."

"Fairy." Clefairy gave a small clap for Green. The cute Pokémon suddenly heard something coming from the path behind them. It sounded like something metallic was being bounced up and down, creating a rapid jingle. "Clefairy fairy." She told Green as she jumped over.

Pyra focused her hearing on that path, feeling like something was coming towards them. "Char! Char!" She told her Trainer as she pointed.

Green had picked up on this as she held the two Pokémon close to her. "I hear it too..."

"Ugh!" Jessie yelled as Ekans fainted from Starmie's Swift. Jessie called back the Poison-type as she reached into her pocket for something else. "You may have defeated her, but I have two Pokémon with me now."

"That won't change anything," Misty replied as Starmie suffered little to no damage. Jessie brought out her next Pokémon, something that neither of them was expecting.

The new Pokémon that Jessie had captured from Viridian Forest was Cascoon. Cascoon was a round, cocoon-like Pokémon. She was covered in purple silk, except for two holes where her red eyes were visible. Cascoon remained unmoving as Jessie commanded the Bug-type. "Go on, Silcoon. Now is the time to evolve into your Beautifly self and take out these twerps."

Misty and Starmie sweat dropped at what Jessie just said. Even though she hardly researched the type, she knew the difference between Silcoon and Cascoon. "Is she being serious?"

"Just go along with it," Cassidy spoke up as she saw Misty's confused look. "There's no point in saying otherwise."

"...Okayyy." Misty cleared her throat as she decided to continue the battle as usual. She could just contemplate this later.

The noise that Green and co heard was now ringing throughout the entire part of the cave, making everyone stop to look around. "Mie?" Starmie sensed two Pokémon coming their way, Silcoon doing nothing as she perceived it.

"What is that noise?" Cassidy asked irritably.

"Hak!" Was a noise that came from further down the path. Misty looked down that way as she used her hand to block the light, surprise on her face.

"Are those-"

"Hakamo-o!" What came in were two bipedal, reptilian Pokémon with many scaly plates. Most of their body was light gray, having dark gray instead on the arms and legs. They had red eyes and a rounded, beak-like snout with a small spike on either side of the upper jaw. Scales covered their body and arms, some red, unlike the Jangmo-o.

The Hakamo-o came out as the male of the pair crushed a small rock with his bare hands, trying to enact fear into the Team Rocket members. Cassidy and Jessie looked with fear as they took a step back, Misty and Starmie following this example as well. The female Hakamo-o saw the Silcoon on the floor as the Bug-type looked up, unable to do anything. The Fighting-type did a feeble kick to take out the enemy.

Jessie caught her Silcoon as she glared at the Dragon-types. "How dare you interfere! If it's a fight you want, it's a fight your going to get!"

"Haka!" They roared, causing the two girls two sweat.

"Or, we can just run!" Cassidy said as she took off. Jessie followed close with her Bug-type in her hands.

"That's the first decent idea you've had all day!" The two ran off as the Hakamo-o calmed down their approach. They faced Green and Misty as the pair came to them, sensing that these Trainers had noble intentions.

Misty became scared as she held Starmie in front of her. "Hang on! I-uh, know your type weakness!"

The male pair of Hakamo-o shook their head, signaling they didn't have to be adversaries. Misty calmed down as she placed Starmie back on the ground. "Haka mo o-o." The female used her arms to make a small outline of a creature, noting something on top of the head.

Misty was unsure how to react. "I don't understand..."

"Mie." Starmie wasn't much help, either.

"Oh, Charades! I love this game!" Green walked up as Clefairy and Pyra were resting on separate shoulders. "Okay! Um... a small animal. What was the name of that Pokémon again?" She snapped her fingers in realization. "Is it Jangmo-o?"

Hakamo-o nodded as she was glad that Green got it. "Mo." She morphed her two hands to make an 'R' shape.

"Team Rocket..." Green picked up as Hakamo-o went to the final one, where she closed her two hands together in an aggressive way. "And that looks like something is trapped." Gren gasped. "Team Rocket is capturing your Jangmo-o!"

The female Hakamo-o nodded; the pair was glad they didn't have to do anything more complex. They pointed to the ground and then at the path that Jessie and Cassidy escaped to. "Ha mo mo?"

Misty picked up on it as she got the form of communication. "I'm sorry. Neither of those girls had captured Jangmo-o." The two nodded as their hunt had to continue. "Would you like us to help? We're trying to take those guys down as well."

The male thought for a moment before scoffing, seeing how they mostly took care of these two. "Hak." The male was about to go down Team Rocket's path, gesturing his hand.

Clefairy smiled at the Pokémon her kind became friends with. "Fairy." Clefairy jumped on the male's back as the stronger Pokémon didn't seem to mind, making sure she was taken care of as he went off.

The female went up to Pyra as she saw potential in the Fire-type, Green smiling at her as she wasn't scared. "Haka Hakamo-o amo?" She asked.

"Char man der der. Charmander mander." She explained to the Dragon-type. Hakamo-o took this in for a moment as she reached her hand, placing it gently on Charmander's head to give a proud pat.

"Mo-o." She was proud of how Pyra fought the Raticate to protect her friend, Viney. Pyra felt something inside her as Hakamo-o walked away from them, looking at them one last time before she ran off.

"We're coming." Misty got ready as Green seemed very happy with her Pokémon, petting her softly. "Hakamo-o rarely shows fighting respect to another Pokémon besides Kommo-o. I'm impressed."

"Pyra is truly an amazing Pokémon. Don't you think so?"

"Charmander." The Pokémon happily agreed with her trainer. Suddenly, the Fire-type began to have a white light surrounding it.

Misty and Green gasped in shock as they saw this. Pyra's body began to change in the bright light. Once the light died, there was no longer a small Charmander.

"Charmeleon!" The Pokémon yelled out loud as the light was now entirely gone. Pyra looked very similar to her pre-evolved form, but she had her differences. Pyra now had a much darker red skin color, a larger body, claws, and a horn-like protrusion on the back of the head. Her nails were razor sharp, and her tail looked very strong.

Before Misty could say anything about what had just happened, Green instantly began to hug her new Pokémon. "Oh my gosh! You are even cuter than before!" She yelled in pure joy, Pyra slowly patting her trainer's back. She should've known trying to get some time to breathe from Green was a fool's wish.

"Char," Pyra said to her.

"Congratulations, Green," Misty said as she saw how happy the girl was. "We not only beat up those Team Rocket grunts, but I just got the first bit of revenge for my bike."

"Uh-huh. Yeah." Green didn't seem to care as she held her newly evolved Pyra, giving an adorable smile. "Let me spend time with my child." This caused Misty to sweat drop at this.

"Okay then..." Misty said in an unsure way as she followed those Team Rocket members. "Well, whenever you are done with Pyra, come down this path to join-"

"Yup! path, got it."

"Are you even paying attention?" Misty question was met with no response; she groaned a bit. "Enjoy your time together, I guess." She ran down the path to quickly follow Jessie and Cassidy. Green and Pyra seemed rather fine that their partner had just left them.

"Who is the best Pokémon in Kanto? Do you know who?"

"Charmeleon!" Her response caused Green to laugh.

"Yes! Your completely right!"

---

In another section of this enormous mountain was a man sitting silently on a rock, looking at what the rest of the group had captured. One bag was full of six separate Jangmo-o's, all stuck and crushed together in the tight net. On the other side were a bunch of fossils and some Moon Stones that they had gathered, all of them in separate bags for more accessible transport. They almost gained enough to return to base. "JANG JANG!" They yelled at him.

"Shut your trap!" He yelled at them in a gravelly voice, the Dragon-types not even listening. He had brown eyes and short green hair with M-shaped bangs. He wore a black long-sleeve shirt with a large red R, a white belt, black pants, and white boots and gloves with red trims. "You will make great additions to Team Rocket!"

The Dragon-types all growled as they were stuck in the bulky net. "Birch! Birch!" Meowth called out as he finally made his way to the boss of this whole operation, using one of the three paths there. "Something has come up! Meowth!"

"How many times to have to tell you, stupid cat? The name's Butch!" The man told his partner angrily.

"Whatever!" Meowth jumped onto the rock to properly talk to the leader. "Anyway, some stupid kids are causing trouble for our incompetent teammates. They are here to stop us!"

"Who?"

"Those kids we told you about when we were at Viridian, the same ones that caused us to be here. Meowth!" The Pokémon impatiently told him. "They brought their friends along to ruin everything!"

Butch took this in as he decided to go and take care of this. "Okay? But who is going to take care of these fossils and Jangmo-o here, 'cause it ain't going to be you?"

"Meowth! I can take care of this; fight our battles for us already!" They heard footsteps approaching, and their faces became meaner when they saw it was not Team Rocket.

Seymour and Ash stopped as Wartortle and Meowth locked eyes, both groups facing one another. "You will stop harming Mt Moon once and for all!" Seymour declared as he pointed a stern finger at them. "I warned you that the Jangmo-o or other Trainers would come to a stop you, but you still didn't listen to me!"

"Look, Meowth, that stupid scientist kept trying to stop us," Butch said as he crossed his arms at Seymour. "Looks like you finally decided to fight back properly... by hiding behind some newbie for protection!"

"I may be a newbie, but I'll still take you down!" Ash declared as he took a step forward with Wartortle by his side.

"War tortl!" The Pokémon declared to the Jangmo-o that were trapped in the net. The Dragon-types all began to proudly cheer for Ash and co, shaking their small scales to make some sound.

Meowth and Butch readied themselves, the former revealing his claws and the latter taking out a Great Ball. "Meowth! I always wanted revenge after you embarrassed us back then, and I'm glad it could come sooner!"

Ash got into a battling stanch as Wartortle took the front. "Be careful; Ash," Seymour warned the boy. "The boss, Biff, has some Pokémon that you might not be able to handle."

"Bob has some skill to him." Ash simplified as he nodded. "Got it."

"IT'S BUTCH!" The leader said furiously as he threw his Great Ball out. "We'll show you what happens when you mess with Team Rocket!"

"Hitmon!" The Pokémon said as he came out. He had short legs with white bands near the hands and feet. The feet were large and blue, having a circular brown pad on the underside. He had a skinny brown tail that ended with a blue sphere with a spike. His head was round and brown with flat, curved extensions on either side and a single point on top. He had black, beady eyes.

"A Hitmontop!" Ash took out Dexter.

"Hitmontop, the handstand Pokémon. Dex Number: 120. Pokémon Typing: Fighting. It fights while spinning like a top. The centrifugal force boosts its destructive power by ten. Hitmontop can only be male, and this one is currently level 21. Pokémon Ability: Intimidate (Lowers physical attack from the opponent). This Pokémon has the following moves: Triple Kick, Focus Energy, Tackle, Protect."

"Not going to be easy to deal with," Ash admitted as he put Dexter away, calling out the only Pokémon he knew had the advantage. "I choose you, Pidgey!"

"Pidgey!"

"Use Focus Energy!" Hitmontop nodded as he landed on his head and balanced himself on the top, taking an intense breath as he felt himself become stronger. Pidgey wasted no time as she got Wing Attack ready, using an imposing wing to slash the Fighting-type. Hitmontop took good damage as he still kept his balance. He jumped off his head as the Focus Energy was complete.

Intimidate weakened Pidgey's move as Hitmontop was ready to fight back. "Mon!"

"Jump up and aim your Triple Kick!"

Hitmontop jumped as he spun around rapidly, his two legs and the tail acting as three legs. Pidgey was able to skillfully dodge one of the legs and tail that came flying at her, but the Fighting-type surprised her with a sudden jerk of his remaining leg. Despite Pidgey being a Flying-type, she was still only level 16 with no severe EV training on physical defense.

"Use Quick Attack!" Pidgey became a blur as she was swift with the move. Butch just smirked.

"Protect." Hitmontop summoned a blue dome that protected it from all kinds of damage. Protect had more priority than Pidgey's simple Quick Attack, causing the Flying-type to bounce off the shield instead of attacking. Hitmontop dispelled his shield as he went for another Triple Kick.

Pidgey composed herself as she activated Steel Wing, using her metallic appendages to block the attack from Hitmontop. Pidgey blocked the first strong kick as the second diminished her small defense, allowing the last to hit her squarely in the face. "Gey!" She cried out as the attack almost brought her to the ground. Hitmontop landed on the floor.

"You alright?" Pidgey gave a stubborn nod as she wanted to take this Pokémon down. "Try to use Quick Attack again!" Ash thought of a strategy, knowing this Hitmontop was flat-out stronger.

Pidgey became a blur as Butch made Hitmontop use Protect again, causing the same thing to happen. "Finish it off with a Tackle."

Ash wanted this to happen as he issued the following command. "Use Wing Attack as he approaches!" Pidgey listened as she lashed her powerful wing at the male Pokémon, also taking damage in the process. Hitmontop was on low health after taking two separate Flying-type attacks, but he was able to get the crit off with that Tackle. Pidgey was knocked out as she landed on the ground, her eyes spiraling.

Ash ran to his Pokémon as he didn't want to have to do this but knew that it would make this fight winnable. Ash had a backup plan, as Brock did have revives on hand. He just had to hope that the fifteen-year-old didn't use them up. "You did everything you could, and you gave that Hitmontop a good battle," Ash told his Pokémon as he took her Poke Ball out. "We can take care of the rest."

His promise was met with no response from Pidgey as she was returned to her Poke Ball. "Tort," Wartortle spoke up, pointing at himself.

"I know you want revenge, but this guy could have a full team for all we know," Ash explained, as he knew Wartortle was too important to use right away. He took out another Poke Ball. "Besides, you'd be robbing this little guy a chance in the spotlight."

Nidoran was brought out as he looked at his opponent, smirking at the challenge. Butch sighed as he worried that the boy would send out his Wartortle, which could've very easily defeated his team if he had the right move set. "Use Tackle."

Hitmontop spun around as he approached his opponent, using his head for the move. Nidoran was able to use his small size to his advantage as he avoided the action and got a clear view of the Pokémon. "Poison Sting." He concentrated the poison in his horn as he stabbed Hitmontop's arm, causing the Fighting-type to yell as he tried to swat him away with his tail.

"Not good!" Butch thought as he saw the poison already hurting his Pokémon, knowing that Hitmotop might have one last move within him. "Quick! Try to use Triple Kick one last time."

"Montop!" Hitmontop went on his head again as he swiftly moved his legs and tail. Nidoran used his small size as Ash had trained him to be relatively fast and acrobatic. As Hitmontop approached, Nidoran leaped into the air and flew clean over the Fighting-type. Butch was flabbergasted as Hitmontop was impressed by how fast the tiny guy was.

Nidoran went down as he aimed his horn headfirst, acting his other attack. "Finish it with Peck!" Nidoran used his horn to dish out a Flying-type move, causing Hitmontop to lose all of his health.

Hitmontop stood up and tried to look at his opponent., but his vision was too blurry. Nidoran knew he would win as he smirked at the Hitmontop, seeing him slowly going out of commission. Butch was in disbelief as Hitmontop fell to the ground. Did his strongest Pokémon lose to a level 13 Poison-type? His answer came when Hitmontop stopped moving.

Hitmontop fainted.

Butch let out a sound of annoyance as he recalled the Fighting-type. "Are you prepared to give up yet, Bob?" Ash didn't like to taunt opponents, but he could make an exception for enemies.

"It's not Bob!" Butch warned as he readied his next Poke Ball. "And you're living in a fantasy if you think I am going to do that, kid."

The next Pokemon was a small quadruped Pokémon with four chubby legs and a large head, more than half the size of his body. His body was black, with gray plates of armor covering most of the body. His eyes were a pale shade of turquoise. There were several openings in the armor, and a blunt spike extended from his back.

"Aron." The small thing said.

Ash smirked as he saw the second Pokémon. "Think you can handle this one, Nidoran?"

"Nido." The Pokémon responded with snark. The four looked at one another as their battle was going to continue, Seymour and Wartortle watching from the sideline.

"BRIAN!"

"BOB!" James and Mondo ran into the room, followed by Ryan and Brock as they stopped their chase, Jangmo-o biting on Ryan's ear again.

"Ow! Ow!" He managed to get him off this time as he wanted to yell at the Dragon-type but knew there were more important things to worry about. He gasped when he saw Butch. "He must be the leader!"

"He is," Seymour confirmed. "Biff has been in charge of the whole thing."

Brock glared as he looked at the leader. "Benson, your operation here has been discontinued."

"I'll keep fighting you until you give up, Bob!"

Ryan tried to show some bravery as well, Jangmo-o on his shoulder. "I-I'll fight you with my s-strength, George!"

"HOW DID YOU GET IT WRONG ALL THREE TIMES?!" Butch yelled in absolute anger as Wartortle and Jangmo-o just laughed. Aron also found this pretty funny. He pointed a stern finger at Ryan. "THERE ISN'T EVEN A 'G' IN MY NAME!"

Everyone just stood as the anger-filled man was steaming at this point. Things didn't get better as Jessie and Cassidy ran into the rooms, both girls surprised at the party they walked into. "You lost too?" She asked the boys as she saw Ash pointing a finger at him. "You! You and your dumb turtle ruined our Viridian mission!"

"Sup." Ash greeted as he sent a peace sign at her, causing the two to be caught off guard.

"I am sorry that I failed, my angel." Mondo got on his hands and knees as he went to Jessie. "Show mercy for my foolish mistakes!" Jessie cringed as she hurried away; everyone else sweat dropped at this attempt at love.

Jessie shook her head quickly as she looked at the leader. "Blake!"

"It's Butch!" Butch gritted his teeth. "What is it?!"

"We need to get out of here! NOW!"

"What are you blathering about?" Butch demanded. "The four of you may have lost, but it's not like these brats can force us out."

"You don't understand!" Cassidy warned him as she nervously looked back, seeing the shadow of the Pokémon coming. "We have no choice but to leave! Right now!"

Butch scoffed as he heard this. "And why's that?"

Before they could elaborate, their answer personally came to them. The two Hakamo-o that had been following them made it there as they roared in rage. The Team Rocket members were fearful as they backed off, and Ryan showed the same fear. The Jangmo-o began to cheer as they saw their own family here to rescue them. The Hakamo-o didn't put focus on their other members as they glared daggers at Team Rocket.

"HAK!" The male yelled as he began to run at Aron, the small Steel-type sweated as he braced himself. Hakamo-o slashed across the Pokémon with sharp claws as he used Dragon Claw, knocking out Aron before he could defend himself. Butch began to sweat as he saw his only other Pokémon fall.

Ryan gave a quiet sigh. "Yes. They're on our side." He whispered to himself.

Ash, Nidoran, and Wartortle looked at the defeated Aron with a frown. "Poor Aron. He was just standing there."

The two evolved Dragon-types growled at Team Rocket as Jangmo-o himself joined, looking cute next to the other two. Jessie, James, Meowth, and Mondo held themselves. "Is a situation where we run away?" Mondo nervously asked.

"No!" Butch responded.

This answer only made the Pokémon angrier as they growled at him. Meowth squirmed like a worm as he jumped out of the group and ran away. "I am not risking my life for this!"

"Traitor!" Jessie called him as she didn't want to be left to the mercy of these Pokémon. "I am not risking my beauty for this!"

"Like you had beauty!" James and Mondo ran away as well, only leaving Cassidy and Butch.

Mondo looked at his older member with a stink eye. "Don't claim Jessie, the angel, has no beauty."

Cassidy gritted her teeth as they weren't left with many options. "I hate when I have to do something with those idiots! Blake, we need to abort the mission!"

"It's Butch! How do you keep messing that up?" Butch demanded as he went to take the bag of Jangmo-o, but a Water Gun made him retract his hand. He furrowed his eyebrows as Wartortle and Nidoran were standing alongside the Dragon-types. Butch tried to think. "Cassidy, help me ensure this was not a total waste!"

Butch and Cassidy each took one of the bags with fossils, leaving five whole bags behind. "We will have our revenge, you stupid lizards!" Cassidy yelled as they ran away. Team Rocket was no longer there as everything mellowed out. Misty finally caught up as she leaned on the wall, trying to take a breath.

She huffed as she stood up. "I'm here to help. Me an- Woo." She looked around to see everyone looking at her, telling her she was the odd one out. "What happened?"

"Oh, it's quite simple. You just missed everything." Seymour's cheerfulness caused Misty to sweat drop. Everyone's guard went down as the conflict was dealt with.

"Should we chase after them?" Ryan asked.

"No. They should know better than to come back here." Brock answered as he put the Poke Ball away. "They may have run off with a few fossils, but the bulk of the work has been done."

The Hakamo-o looked at the Jangmo-o in concern, going near the net they were all stuck in. "Let me try." Misty came to them as she crouched down, trying to open the trap. The trap was much sturdier as it was made with a thick rope. "Do any of you have something sharp?"

"Here. Use this." Seymour handed a wooden pocketknife to the girl, Misty sheathing the small blade as she began cutting. It took some work, but a hole opened up in the net.

Jangmo-o poured out as they all began to run around with energy, most of them gravitating towards the Hakamo-o. "Jang!"

The Hakamo-o nodded at one other as the task that the Kommo-o gave them had been completed, taking care of the smaller Dragon-types. Surprisingly, the Jangmo-o that had been with Ryan did not do what the rest of their kind did, still near the boy.

Seymour sighed as he got his pocket knife back. "It looks like Mt Moon will return to normal." He remarked joyfully, coming to the cags of fossils that Team Rocket couldn't take with them. "These fossils should also return to their rightful place. Would any of you care to work with me on that?"

"We can." Ash and Wartortle stepped up as they saw how many fossils there were. The Moon Stones would go with Clefairy and the Hakamo-o. "This looks like a job that needs many hands."

"Wartortle." The Water-type said as well.

"I appreciate all the work that you all put in today," Seymour said so everyone could hear him. "Mt Moon can now be at peace due to the Hakamo-o," The two bigger Dragon-types nodded at this praise, Jangmo-o happily hearing these words. "And the Trainers that decided to help! I don't know what else to say!"

"Words aren't always necessary," Brock told the scientist with a smile; the four Trainers all grouped. "Sometimes, you show your gratitude differently."

Seymour chuckled as he scratched the back of his head. "Yeah. I guess that works."

---

Ash was eating his food as quickly as he could, but Ryan was the first one to finish the bowl. "Done!" He happily yelled.

The ten-year-old coughed as he saw that he had lost. "No! I was so close this time!" Wartortle patted his back as he tried to get the soup out of his throat.

Brock smiled at this as he took some of his Pokémon food, feeding his Zubat by hand. "Two points for Ryan and a simple zero for Ash." He spoke.

It had been hours since Team Rocket had left Mt Moon, and now dusk outside. Ash and co were exhausted after taking down the lights in the cafe and putting the fossils back in their place. Brock suggested that they should take a break and rest after all this, being ready in case Team Rocket came back. No one argued as they found a nice spot on the rocky shore of an unmoving river.

The Hakamo-o were still there as they returned to Jangmo-o back to their homes, but the Dragon-types were only watching from a distance. Seymour and Green talked about nothing in particular as she held Clefairy. Everyone was enjoying themselves and watching the sun slowly fade from view.

Ash quickly wiped his mouth as he was mad, mostly at himself. "I will not let this war go unwon!" He declared as Pidgey landed on his shoulder, finding his determination hilarious.

"Pidg! Pidg!"

Ash looked at his Flying-type before facing Brock. "Thank you again for letting Pidgey have that revive, Brock. I would've been so worried if she didn't have that."

"It's no problem. I have one more, just in case." Brock said as he watched his Zubat enjoy the food he made. Ash's Nidoran was also having some and liking the taste.

"I have a question..." Ryan spoke up as a Pokémon was sitting on his lap. "Can you tell us about that Onix and Forrest's Rhyhorn story?"

"Jang?" Jangmo-o was still with Ryan after all of this. He was the only that didn't want to leave the group when Team Rocket was gone, being in a similar position to Clefairy. That was probably why the Hakamo-o were watching, but that may have still happened with Clefairy.

"Again?" Brock questioned. "I know it's good, but this is the third time you asked me for it these past few days."

"It's just funny!"

Brock chuckled at how Ryan defended himself. "Alright... but no more requests for the rest of the week, got it?" Ryan nodded as Jangmo-o decided to listen in as well. Maybe this story was about a warrior that Jangmo-o can learn from.

Ash heard a loud sigh as he looked at Misty, who was sitting right by the water. All the Water-types, including Wartortle, were spending time with the girl. "Is Misty okay?"

Brock stopped himself from starting to look at the girl, noticing her current state. "She does seem a bit deflated. Why don't you go check up on her?" Ash shrugged at the request as he walked off. The Pokémon and Ryan were still there, waiting for the story to begin. "Alright, so it starts with me doing the chores."

Brock continued his story as Ash walked next to his friend. "Hey," He said simply as he sat next to her.

"Hey," Misty was out of it as she responded.

"...We both know something's wrong. Just say it."

Misty sighed again as she played with her Starmie, telling the Pokémon to do another lap. "It's just I've been trying to give Goldeen more of a chance these past few days. I feel she deserves some spotlight instead of either Marill or Starmie."

"Is that why you tried to use her when those two Hoppip attacks a few days ago?" He inquired.

Misty was a bit nervous after he brought that up. "Basically. I know I'm being too harsh on her, but she's been doing so little for the team and in general. I worry that keeping her will only turn out bad in the future." She looked Ash in the eyes. "What do you think?"

Ash scratched his chin for a bit. "I do think you might be a bit unfair to her, but I do get your reasoning. Some Pokémon are just not right for a particular Trainer, and you sometimes have to admit that your relationship isn't good." He looked at Goldeen, the Water-type swimming through the water. "You need to give her a home that you know she'll do well in. I know you are not the kind of person to abandon Pokémon."

"I don't want to say this," Misty sounded annoyed that she had to say these words. "But I think Goldeen will probably do better with my sisters in Cerulean. I know they'll care of her as I take my Horsea and Magikarp there."

"I think that'll work." The pair saw as Goldeen accidentally ran into a rock again, that being her third time overall. Ash sweat dropped at what he saw. "Maybe it's for the best."

Wartortle helped out his Water-type as he swam with the others. Misty turned around to see that the Hakamo-o were still watching them from afar and that the Jangmo-o was sitting by Ryan as they listened to Brock. "I still can't believe that Kommo-o evolution line lives in Kanto. I never thought people would bring them all the way from Alola."

"It took me a minute to remember them," Ash admitted as he saw them too. "I know all the Pokémon that live in the four main regions. I know a good amount of the other region's Pokémon, but not all of them, and definitely not by heart."

"If I were allowed to go anywhere, it would be Alola," Misty explained happily. "I always wanted to see the amazing beaches there. That is why I've done so much research there, in case I do end up going."

Ash thought as he saw the Hakamo-o, the Dragon-types a bit annoyed at the looks they were getting. "Wouldn't bringing a foreign Pokémon from another region cause major problems? The environment and all that?"

"Seymour explained that many of the Pokémon's predators live here and that the Clefairy are always around to keep them in check. The people that brought them here knew what the best place would be for them, based on climate, food, and whatnot." Misty looked over as Green and Seymour were still talking, Clefairy still with them. "I still don't know how to feel about them believing in that stuff."

"Come on; they're not that bad."

Misty raised an eyebrow at the boy. "Do you believe in that kind of stuff?"

"It sounds interesting, but not really," Ash admitted as he decided to go to Green, wanting to spend some time with her. "Later, Misty."

"Later." Wartortle saw his Trainer walk away as he came out of the water, shaking himself dry.

Seymour, Clefairy, Pyra, and Green smiled as they saw the pair walk up. "Oh, goodie. You've decided to come and engage in conversation with us." Seymour said excitedly.

"We debated whether Steel or Fairy would be the better type." Green happily explained. "Care to join us?"

"Not this time." This answer made Green pout as she accepted it. "Congratulations on your new Charmeleon. I think she looks great."

Pyra took the praise without thinking about it as Green smiled. "Of course, she's great! Even Luna is happy with how Pyra turned out?"

"Luna?"

"It's the nickname that Green decided to give Clefairy," Seymour explained as he was now holding Clefairy. "Green, my fellow theorist," Green smiled at that nickname. "Thought that calling Pokémon by their names was too boring. She decided to give Clefairy her name, despite not catching her."

"Do you nickname your own Pokémon, Ash?"

Ash was a bit flustered at the question. He did like the idea of nicknaming Pokémon but decided not so that people wouldn't get confused. "I used to call my Wartortle 'Squirt' when he was a Squirtle. Does removing the last two letters of the original name count?"

"That's cute, but no," Seymour said. "We need something more creative. Would you like a nickname, Wartortle?"

Wartortle just shrugged. As long as the name wasn't stupid, he had no reason to complain. "Okay!" Green tried to think of some good names for the Water-type. "How about Rex?"

"War." Wartortle shook his head, thinking that name wasn't very good.

"Maybe Cloud?" Warotrtle didn't like the name that Ash suggested either.

"I got it! H2O!" Seymour said excitingly, making everyone go very quiet.

"...That's not a name. That's just water." Ash shot down Seymour's idea as he snapped his finger. "I think I got it."

Wartortle groaned, not liking where this was going on. "tle?"

"How about... Koopa?" He suggested. Wartortle was so quiet as he slowly walked up to his Trainer.

He gave a soft smile before moving his leg extremely fast. "TORT!" Wartortle gave a solid kick to Ash's leg, making the boy grab it as he hopped on his other one.

"Ow!" He cried out as Wartortle walked away from them. Ash looked at his partner going back into the water. "You can't seriously think that H2O was a better name!" Wartortle stuck his tongue at him as he jumped in.

Seymour and Green couldn't help but laugh, Pyra chuckling at this. "Maybe leave the nicknaming thing to Green for you and your Pokémon's sanity."

"Sure thing," Ash said as he could put his other foot down again. He sighed. "Does anyone know what day it is? Last we checked, it was the 11th."

"It should be the 25th today," Seymour answered, as he had a personal calendar in his pocket when someone would ask him such a thing. Green let out a massive gasp.

"Ash! Do you know what that means?!" Green asked happily.

"Uh. April is about to be over?" He answered, unsure what the girl was leading to.

"No, silly! Did you even tell your group?" Ash was confused before Green made an exaggerated groan, standing up on a rock. "Everyone! I have something to say!"

Everyone stopped what they were doing to look at the girl. "War?" The Pokémon questioned.

"You might know this, but I'm already on this rock," Green told them as she looked at Ash. "On May 22nd, it will be Ash's 11th birthday!"

Ash went silent after he realized what Green was telling them. He was so caught up in his journey and new friends that he forgot to tell them about it. He didn't want them to stress over him like that. Misty and Brock were the most worried that he didn't say so.

"It is?" Green nodded. "Why didn't you tell us this, Ash? Birthdays are so important to me." Brock told the boy as Misty was by him.

Ash seemed nervous as he tried to think of something to say. "It was over a month away. I didn't want to be that kind of person that reminds everyone every day."

They understood but knew that this was too important to pass by. "You can't just treat your birthday like that. When we get Cerulean City, we will make sure that you will get a gift or two."

Ash grumbled as Wartortle found it funny how annoyed they were at this. "Ort art." Ryan was turning them out as he didn't want to listen, not in the mood now. Jangmo-o noticed this.

Before Ash was allowed to say anything, Brock was already talking to Green about what the boy liked. "He always wants chocolate cake for his birthday, and he likes red and blue," Brock noted as she continued. "There was a time when the baker accidentally poured salt instead of sugar."

"Green. Please, stop." Ash calmly warned as he felt flustered.

Green didn't listen. "You should've seen his mom's face! She was so worried as she screamed: 'Ashie!', 'Ashie!'"

Misty burst into laughter as she heard the nickname that Delia gave to Ash. "Ashie?!" The taller girl couldn't contain herself after hearing that.

"GREEN!" Ash was so embarrassed at this point. He always disliked that nickname, and now everyone had just learned about it. The laughing from Misty and Green, with snickers or smiles from everyone else, was not helping.

"What?! It's funny?"

Both Pyra and Wartortle seemed to think so as they gave very loud snickers. Misty was on the ground as she was laughing very loudly, Ash giving a deep frown at what was happening around him. "You kn-"

"Please," Ash began as he tried not to be mean to Seymour, but the disappointment was hard to contain. "Keep it to yourself." Misty calmed down as she wiped away some tears from her eyes.

Clefairy stood up as she held the Moon Stone. "Clefairy!" Once the Fairy-type caught everyone's attention, she bounced away to talk to the Jangmo-o.

"What is she doing?"

The two Pokémon were talking about something as Hakamo-o seemed to agree with what Clefairy was telling them, looking at the group as a whole. The three Pokémon came as Clefairy drew their attention as she began to speak."Clefairy! Cle fairy airy cle." She explained as the Hakamo signaled for them to come.

"Haka." The male told them as they walked away, standing nearby for when they were ready. Everyone seemed to realize what they were asking.

"Luna seems like it wants to show us something," Green said to Pyra as she was excited at the idea of a new adventure.

"We must clean up this area, then."

Misty looked at her friend. "Care to give me a hand with this, Ashie?"

Ash groaned as he heard him being called that, grumbling as he decided to help. All the Pokémon and objects were quickly contained as they looked just as good as before, not having that much stuff, to begin with. Green, Ash, and Ryan had the Pokémon they bonded with outside as the Hakamo-o they were ready. The Dragon-types began to guide everyone as Clefairy was happily bouncing around.

---

Nighttime was now upon the Kanto Region, and the Clefairy and the Hakamo-o guided our leading group. They revealed a path that was beyond the small river. This was a path that no one, not even Seymour, had found out about. Everyone felt tense as they walked, knowing this would be something big. Ash decided to pass the time by catching up with his old friend.

"So, Clefairy let you hold the stone she was carrying?" Ash asked Green as they followed the Pokémon, Wartortle, and Pyra by their Trainer.

The girl gave a pleasant nod. "She wanted to thank me for carrying her when those Team Star guys attacked."

Ash gave a sweat drop as he chuckled at the name. "It was 'Team Rocket,' Green. I can't imagine anyone calling themselves 'Team Star.'"

"Rmeleon." Pyra couldn't help but nod.

Green just laughed it off. "Either way, we beat those guys with ease! Vinny and Pyra had fun, which means I should too."

"You would think that a disaster would be fun," Ash remarked as he saw how Green didn't defend herself on that, happy at the girl's positive energy. "How has your journey been?"

"It's been great! There was the one time I got lost, another time that I got lost, another time that I got lost and stumbled into a Mightyeana, and when I got lost another time and met you again!" Green chuckled. "My Pokémon keep telling me to invest in a map, but I know that won't help me."

Ash knew from experience that any map or compass couldn't help Green; not even Oak could get it through her. "We were worried about you. Professor Oak was worried when you went off the radar."

"Wartortle."

"I was so excited about finally going out and being free," Green admitted. "I don't get why that meanie, Gary, wanted to get badges so quickly. Who told us we had a time limit because my mom definitely didn't say so."

Ash laughed as the two shared this moment as old friends, their Pokémon giving soft smiles at how they interacted. "Chameleon char arm."

Wartortle nodded his head. "Wartortle Wartortle."

Ash wiped a tear of joy from his eye. "You know, I hope to see you at the Pokémon League. When we have seen all of Kanto and show what we can give the world."

"Like I would be anywhere else!" Green sounded annoyed that Ash would've thought anything else. "If I make it all the way to first place, I will give my position so that you can get that chance at being Champion."

Ash chuckled at her childish idea. "That's probably not how it works, but I'll keep that in mind." The two shared a soft smile.

"Ashie!" Misty's name-calling ruined Ash and Green's moment, the boy sending a frown to Misty. "You should probably focus on what's ahead."

Ash and Green, along with the Pokémon, walked over to see what Misty wanted. "What is so important? Also, stop calling me that!"

"In your dream!" Misty playfully taunted as Ash grumbled, causing Green and Ryan to chuckle. Seymour shushed everyone as they saw what this path led to. The Hakamo-o and Clefairy had led them to two massive boulders blocking something, creating a gap that only a Jangmo-o or Clefairy could squeeze through. The two Hakamo-o and Clefairy turned around to face them.

"Hak hakam hakam o-o!" The two Dragon-types chanted as Jangmo-o, who had been with Ryan, also joined as he climbed down. "Hak hakam hakam o-o!"

Clefairy just kept smiling and calming down everyone. "Clefairy fairy." The Hakamo-o and Jangmo-o stopped as they jingled their metal scales in a certain way as if they were signaling for something. Everyone watched with anticipation as the noises seemed to stop, leaving only dead silence. No one knew how to react as they heard something from above, something massive and strong, coming to them.

A massive Dragon-type Pokémon came down from the cliff, kicking up dust and leaving a dent in the ground.

Everyone stood agape at what they saw in front of them. What stood was the Pseudo-Legend that Seymour spoke of, Kommo-o. Most of his body was gray and large, also having a rounded, beak-ish snout. The top of his head was covered by an elaborate arrangement of scales that formed a headpiece, his small eyes under the headpiece. His body had many chains of scales that the entire Pokémon had, but these were far bigger and stronger. His muscular legs were black at the bottom, with three golden claws on each one and four claws on his bulky arms. Near the tip of his tail were three sets of loose scales that increased in size near the end.

Kommo-o stood in front of the boulders as he looked at the group, strength flowing out of his body. "Kommo." He said as he looked at them.

Everyone felt a shiver as Kommo-o was in front of them, gently swinging his scales as a threat. Misty and Ryan were the most scared as they saw the Pokémon that could defeat without a sweat, Brock trying his best to hold it together. Seymour was very quiet as Pyra was in front of Green, scared of what this was, but was still willing to protect her partner.

Ash stood in the front as he knew to get rid of his fear, wanting to protect his friends. He and Kommo-o looked at one another. "I won't let you hurt my friends." Ash's words were completely serious.

The Hakamo-o were surprised that this boy was still confident enough to face the powerful Fighting-type. Kommo-o's interest was piqued as he looked at Ash with squinted eyes. "Kom?"

"I know I can't defeat you if I tried right now," Ash admitted as he was still in the front, Wartortle still by his side. "Even with all of here, it would be an unlikely victory. But I would hate myself if I didn't attempt to protect them!" Ash declared to the Pokémon.

"Wartortle!" Wartortle moved past his fear and joined his Trainer in this cause.

Everyone stood silent as they were scared for what might happen to Ash; the Hakamo-o stood agape at this promise. This kind of bravery was not something anyone could have. Kommo-o slowly knuckled-walked to Ash as he stood inches away, letting out a low, fierce growl. Ash did not falter as he faced this powerful Pokémon and his threats. Kommo-o only saw resolve and passion behind those chocolate eyes, no fear or sadness. Kommo-o got one step closer as he looked fiercely at Ash even more, the boy returning the favor.

Kommo-o stopped growing as he extended his large hand to the boy, surprising the group.

"Mmo-o Kommo-o." Ash took the hand as they shook on it, the Kommo-o offering a small but warm smile. "Komm."

Ash let out a sigh as the two sides reached an understanding. "Thank you, Kommo-o. I am glad that we don't have to fight over this."

Ryan and Misty were unwounded as they saw everything was normal again, Brock grabbing his head after what just happened. "That was so scary." Brock thought with relive.

Pyra and Wartortle stepped up as they gave their thanks for the mercy that Kommo-o had given them. "War tortle."

"Char char."

Kommo-o merely nodded his head as he saw the middle stage Pokémon. "Kom." Kommo-o faced the two boulders that blocked the path and grabbed each one with an arm. He held the two rocks supremely and placed them to the side, opening the way completely. He looked back at the group as he lifted his arm. "Mmo-o."

Everyone saw the open path as they saw this, seeing Clefairy wagging her fingers to follow her. They made the way through the rocks and were quick to give their thanks to the Pokémon, going past the two Hakamo-o's now guarding the path. "Thank you, Kommo-o." They all said as they went through, Kommo-o nodding as he held the Jangmo-o.

Green and Pyra were the last to come through as she happily waved at the Dragon-type. "Thank you very much, big scaly guy! I love your chains and headpiece." Kommo-o and the rest were surprised at the compliment as Kommo-o sensed that this girl had no fear towards him, making him smile a bit. Green came to him and brought her fist out, confusing the Pokémon.

"Ommo?"

Pyra wished she could be surprised at how Green was, but then she would just be lying to herself. Green chuckled at the dragon's reaction. "It's called a fist bump; it's something you do with friends!" She happily demonstrated by gently bumping her fist together. "Like that!"

Kommo-o seemed to realize what she wanted as they bumped fists together, Kommo-o being relatively gentle with his fist. "Mo." The Dragon-type enjoyed doing that as the Jangmo-o, now resting on his head, watched this.

Green laughed at the Dragon-type as she gave a big grin to him. "You'll get it one day! Thank you again for this!" Green happily ran as Pyra quickly followed, his more muscular legs now coming in handy. The Hakamo-o saw this as they went to practice on each other, actually liking this.

"Haka." They agreed as they fist-bumped each other. Kommo-o went through the path as well as the little Jangmo-o was still with him, telling him everything that had happened. Ryan is what he primarily focused on. Deeper down the path, Ash was being met with the appropriate reaction.

"Your such an idiot!" Misty critiqued as she smacked Ash on the head, causing the boy to yelp a bit in pain. "What would've happened if that Kommo-o was not very friendly? Then what?"

Ash was rubbing his head as he looked at Misty. "Hey! It worked out for us, didn't it?"

"That's not the point," Misty responded, as she was scared for Ash back there, not wanting the boy to get hurt. "You can't keep treating those wild Pokémon like some old friends. You got out this time, but not all Pokémon will be like that."

"It sounds rough, but what Misty says is very true," Brock told Ash as they went through the tunnel that Clefairy was still guiding them through. Ash sighed as he heard this, knowing that it was true.

"Fine. I'll be more careful next time." Ash grumbled as Wartortle gently patted Ash's leg, sending a comforting smile to him. Green and Pyra came to them, slowing down when they returned to the group.

Green looked around as she walked with the others, the Moon Stone still in her hands. "What I'd miss?"

"Well, you missed a game of 'attacking the boy.'" Ryan joked.

Green pouted childishly. "AWWW! That's my favorite game!" This comment caused Ryan to give a weird look to her.

Misty decided to cheer up her fellow girl. "Don't worry. You can always join the next round. Hmmm... how about Brock for the next one?" Brock sweat dropped at this.

"Sure!" Pyra was also on board with her Trainer.

Brock raised his hands in case he had to push back. "Um. Can we not?"

"Clefairy!" Clefairy got everyone's attention as they reached the end of the path, seeing something that took their breath away.

Seymour was mesmerized by it. "I-It's the Moon Stone..."

They stood in a vast room that was bigger than anything they had seen before. A big hole in the ceiling not only showed the crescent moon that was above but also illuminated something that was in the direct center. In the middle stood an enormous rock shining in the moonlight and surrounded by multiple Moon Stones. Everyone stood in awe as the idea of the meteor was very real.

"It's beautiful." Misty somehow managed to say in her amazement. Ryan and Brock looked around to see that two Kommo-o and about a Jangmo-o were there, looking at the Moon Stone in anticipation. A few Hakamo-o were here and there as they all waited for something to happen. The Kommo-o and Jangmo-o behind them came and stood with the other Dragon-types.

Suddenly, Green felt something pulling on her sock. She looked to see that Clefairy was trying to move her to the center. "You want me to follow you?" The Fairy-type nodded. Green followed the small Pokémon with a smile to the Moon Stone, Pyra quickly following her trainer.

"What are you doing, Green?" Ash called his friend as he saw this.

"I don't know, but I feel like it will be something fun." Clefairy brought them to the Moon Stone and showed her a missing spot on the circle of smaller Moon Stones. Green put two and two together and realized what Clefairy was asking of her. She gently placed the rock she had been carrying with the ring.

Suddenly, the Moon Stone began to glow a bright blue as the last rock was placed. The Dragon-types voiced their support as they shook their scales, letting their sound ring through the mountains once more. Everyone saw the room was starting to fill up with Clefairy as they came in, at least fifty of them. There were also multiple Cleffas that came to view the mighty rock.

"Cleffa!"One of them happily said. The Pokémon was the baby version of Clefairy as it looked like a much smaller version of them, having an underdeveloped tail and appendages.

Brock was in disbelief at what was unfolding. "What do you think was going on?" Kommo-o answered this as he pointed at the Moon Stone, instructing them to keep watching.

The Moon Stone's glow stopped as a grayish rock came down from the air. Moon Stone shards fell from the roof of this cave in a way that seemed on purpose, moving incredibly slow as they descended. The Clefairy and Cleffa stood patiently as they watched the shards fall. The rocks touched most Clefairy, causing the Pokémon to glow white. Seymour was excited as he saw all of this happen.

Multiple Clefairy's and Cleffa's glowed brightly as they began to change, The Cleffa's being evolved into Celfairy's. The Clefairy that evolved became a much bigger Pokémon. They resembled their pre-evolution, but now with more prominent ears and tails, more giant wings, and no claws on their hands.

"Clefable!" Most of them said as they turned into their new forms. The ceremony ended as the shard stopped falling, and the Moon Stone lay dormant again. The Dragon-types let out a mighty roar to congratulate the Fairy-types, shaking their chains once more as the cute Pokémon began to sing in joy.

"So. Much. Cute!" Green couldn't contain her joy as she hugged two of the Clefable, the Pokémon hugging back. Ash took out Dexter as he had never seen a Clefable in real life before.

"Clefable, the fairy Pokémon. Dex Number: 037. Pokémon Typing: Fairy. With its acute hearing, it can pick up sounds from far away. It usually hides in quiet places. This specific Clefable is a male and is currently at level 15. This Pokémon has to following moves: Calm Mind, Metronome, Minimize, Disarming Voice." Dexter explained as the image of the Pokémon was on the machine. Seymour walked forward as he saw what had happened.

"The Moon Stone was right here after all this time." Seymour watched as the Fairy-types were interacting with one another. "They seem to treat this meteor with nothing but respect."

"Jang jang!" The small Dragon-types had fun as they interacted with the Clefairy and Clefable. The Dragon-types seemed rather proud that this whole thing went off without any significant issues. The three Kommo-o nodded as they watched all of this unfold, preparing for their kind to give the Clefable some space. The Jangmo-o that Ryan had was still speaking as some of the other members listened, hearing what these people had done.

Misty was content while watching this. "It is beautiful..." Green had the time of her life as she kept smiling and being kind to Clefable and Jangmo-o.

"All are so cute!" She squealed as Pyra watched with a content look as well. Green felt something pull on her sock, making her look down, seeing a Clefable. She gave a very kind smile that seemed familiar to Green, causing her to gasp. "Were you that Clefairy that I hid inside my bag?" Green asked as she kneeled for the Pokémon.

Clefable gave a happy nod in response. "Clefa!"

The girl smiled as she hugged Clefable, the Fairy-type returning the favor. "It was fun having you with me when you were a Clefairy. How about we have more fun by traveling together?" Green suggested as she looked at Clefable.

To Ryan and Brock's surprise, the Fiary-type agreed with the idea. "Clefable!"

Green was ecstatic as she giggled in glee, calling over Pyra. "You hear that, girl? We just got a new member!" She was so happy as Pyra smiled for her, trying to tell Clefable that it wouldn't be so bad. Clefable didn't seem bothered by the girl's carefree nature or energy.

Green clapped as she looked at Clefable. "You need a name!" She declared. "Do you still want to stick with Luna, or do you want something else? You can pick any name you want."

Clefable thought for a moment before shaking her head, actually liking the name Luna. Ash walked up with his Wartortle as he came to congratulate his friend. "Wow! Nice work on catching this Clefable!"

"Wartortle." The Water-type nodded.

"She is not just a 'Clefable,'" Green corrected as she took out an empty Poke Ball, placing it in front of Clefable. "She is called Luna. She is a friend that I will cherish forever."

"Clefable." The Pokémon clicked the button on the Poke Ball without a second thought, a smile on her face as she quickly went inside. The Poke Ball began to shake five times again as the button glowed a red color. Green wasn't even remotely scared about the Fairy-type breaking out. Finally, the Poke Ball stopped moving, and Green picked it up with absolute joy.

Green had caught Clefable!

The young girl could no longer hold the happiness growing inside her. She jumped around in joy after the capture she had just made, her celebration similar to Ash's when he caught Pidgey. All the Pokémon and group were caught a bit off-guard by this amount of joy, only having Ash, Pyra, and Wartortle fully expecting this kind of reaction.

Misty came to give a friendly pat to Green. "Nice catch you got there, Green. You should be proud." Green just chuckled with joy.

"Thank you, Misty!"

"Clefable." Another Clefable came to them as she had three Moon Stones. The Dragon-types, and her fellow Clefable, supported this as she offered the stones to them. "Fable."

They were surprised at this. "Do you want us to have this?" The wild Pokémon all nodded at the question.

"I think they want to show gratitude for what we did today." Brock deduced as he saw the Fairy-types sending them happy smiles. "They seem okay with this idea, and it would be rude to turn a gift down."

"I can hold them." Ryan stepped as he took the three Evolution Stones and placed them in his bag, having more than enough space for them. The Clefable bowed to them as they all returned the favor; even the Hakamo-o and Kommo-o brought their heads down a bit.

"Thank you very much!" Ash said to them.

Seymour was asking Clefairy and Clefable questions about the Moon Stone as this was going on. "So you didn't travel with the Moon Stone when it came down to Earth? You have always been native to this planet?"

The two Clefairy's nodded as they saw the man's disappointed expression, feeling bad that they had broken the truth. "Clefairy." The Clefairy tried to comfort him as they walked off.

Ash heard Seymour let out a defeated sigh as he walked over to help out the scientist he had just met today. "Is everything alright, Seymour?" The ten-year-old asked the scientist with a smile.

Seymour seemed sad as he responded. "I guess..."

Ash knew what was wrong with him as he placed a comforting hand on the man. "Hey. This mystery may not have come true, but there are always others that you can focus on."

"I guess so. I always thought that the Clefairy were aliens that came to this planet when the Moon Stone fell. But it seems like that was a stupid idea after all." Seymour sighed once more. "I can study these Clefables and the other Pokémon, but even that plan will run dry eventually."

"You don't know what else to do now," Ash concluded in a small voice; Seymour gave a slight but sad nod.

Wartortle brought his head down as he saw the pain that Seymour felt. "Ortle."

Ash felt terrible for the scientist. Even though this guy may have his quirks and weird traits about him, Ash could tell he was a good person. Even though he has never had a problem like the one that Seymour was currently in, Ash could only imagine just how empty this man felt after all this. Ash felt the need to help this guy out, just like how Professor Oak often wo-

It suddenly hit Ash.

"Hey, Seymour." Ash was able to make the saddened scientist look up at him. "You know about Professor Oak?"

Seymour's eyes suddenly lit up as he heard that name, which inspired him to pursue this career path. "How could I not?! He is only the region's most famous professor!"

"Well, I called him back in Pewter City, and he said he was looking for an assistant to help him. I don't think he has still found one yet." Ash explained to the now attentive Seymour. "If you do not have anywhere else to go, you can try your luck with him!"

Seymour gasped at such an idea. He, the laughingstock at his original place, actually being allowed to work with the famous Oak. "D-Do you think I have a chance?"

"I think you are smart! Just try to go for it!"

"Wartortle!" The two encouraged Seymour.

Seymour felt his path was evident again after hearing this. He knew better than to turn this kind of offer down. "OF COURSE I WILL!" Seymour suddenly grabbed Ash into a gigantic hug, something the boy wasn't expecting. Ash was now in a situation similar to Ryan's as the scientist kept on talking about just how grateful he indeed was about all this. "THANK YOU! THANK YOU!"

Ash tried his best to move his head to speak. "Err. No problem, Seymour."

Seymour ran over to Green as he went to tell his friend the fantastic news, letting Ash go as the boy was able to stop the spinning after a bit.

Everyone expressed their joy at what Seymour was planning on doing, Green being the most energized. "Go for it!" The two grabbed each other's hand as they shook in genuine glee, excited for what the scientist could now do.

"Kommo-o." The Pseudo-Legend called out to the group as he knuckled-walked over, Jangmo-o still on his head. In his right arm were three rocks that he placed down and presented to the group, surprising them as they were fossils. The two other Kommo-o came as well to see this.

"Are you giving us these?" Misty asked as she felt a bit threatened by the powerful Pokémon. The Kommo-o all nodded as they looked down at the fossils they were presented. To the left was a fossil that looked like a tentacle, the Helix Fossil. In the middle was a fossil that looked like a shell of some kind, the Dome Fossil. In the middle was not a common fossil but an egg that seemed stuck in some sap. It was called the Old Amber.

Everyone looked at these as Ash and Seymour tried to decide what to pick. Green walked over and picked up the Old Amber. "Oh! Shiny!" She commented as she was happy with her selection. Pyra laughed at how Green just took one of their options.

Everyone saw how casually Green just snatched the Old Amber like that. "I guess she has that," Ryan remarked, as there were still two other fossils they could choose from.

Brock turned to Seymour as the rest tried to make this difficult decision. "Which would you rather have, Seymour?"

"I am more interested in the Dome Fossil, but I wish you to pick first."

"Well, I pick you to have the Dome Fossil." Ryan picked up the rock and gave it to Seymour, making the scientist quite surprised.

"Are you sure I can take that?" He didn't want them to do this just for them.

"Just take it." Ash encouraged him as he had no problem with leaving the Dome Fossil to someone else that was responsible. "It would be a good gift to present to Professor Oak whenever you make it to Pallet Town."

Seymour realized that good point and took the fossil, though with some slight hesitation. "I guess you are coming with me, Dome Fossil." He told the ancient rock.

"That leaves us with the Helix Fossil, then." Ash picked up the last fossil as it wasn't too heavy, but it would not fit in his bag. He faced the Kommo-o and said his gratitude.

"Thank you so muc-"

"Kom." The Kommo-o they first met stopped speaking by holding his massive hand up. He made his way to Ryan as Jangmo-o resided on his head, the boy becoming nervous as the Dragon-type faced him.

"Ummm... hi?" He tried to be nice to the massive, fighting dragon in front of him. The scared boy saw Kommo-o opened his palm and let it out, causing something Jangmo-o to react. The little dragon climbed down his body and landed on the palm. Kommo-o moved his hand slightly forward as he looked at Ryan, causing everyone to gasp.

"Jang mo-o!" The little dragon happily said as Ryan had his eyes wide open.

"You... you want me to take him as my Pokémon?" To their surprise, the three Kommo-o nodded as Jangmo-o jumped around in his palm.

"According to myth, if a person that a Kommo-o meets has great potential of being a hero, they would offer a Jangmo-o to them to raise and train," Seymour said as they saw this. Ryan was stunned at hearing this, looking at the Jangmo-o.

"Hero?!" He took a step back and raised his hands a bit. "Y-You got the wrong guy. I am no hero, and I don't think I'll ever be."

"Kommo-o are known for many things, but they don't pick people on accident," Misty told him as she knew all about how Kommo-o work in her deep research on the Alola Region. "If I were you, I would trust the dragon with this decision. They know what they are doing by making this choice."

"Take it, Ryan!" Ash encouraged his friend as he knew Ryan deserved to have three Pokémon, just like all of them. "Raise that Jangmo-o into something amazing!"

"You got this!" Brock and Green said as well. Wartortle and Pyra also voiced their support as they kept nudging Ryan to pick up the Dragon-type.

"Alright! Alright." Ryan slowly went over and picked up the small Pokémon with his two hands. He looked at Jangmo-o as the Dragon-type was now his responsibility. Jangmo-o seemed rather excited as he looked at Ryan, causing the boy to smile at him softly. "You know what? You are pretty cute!"

"Jang!" Jangmo-o confidently said as he jumped out of Ryan's grip.

CHOMP!

"AHHH!" Jangmo-o bit down on Ryan's ear again as the boy ran around, the Dragon-type smiling as he was hanging on. "Help! Help! Help!"

"Oh no! Ryan!" Misty and Ash went after him while trying to get the new Pokémon to behave. Green laughed at how they were.

"Ahaha! They are very funny!" She laughed as she saw this. Pyra did chuckle a bit but couldn't imagine how painful something like that could be.

Brock sweat dropped at this. "You got an interesting sense of humor, Green." He remarked.

All the Dragon-types that weren't biting down on ears were shaking their scales around to congratulate their comrade, the one who was currently getting pulled off of Ryan by Ash. The Clefairy, Clefable, and Cleffa danced around the Moon Stone as they jumped high and spun around, the moonlight as their spotlight. The Kommo-o softly smiled at the boy they gave a Jangmo-o to, knowing that it would be hard for the boy but still feeling confident in him. Brock just watched as if a spectator in all this chaos.

It had been a truly crazy day, to say the least.

---

It was morning outside, and the group had finally left Mt Moon. They sadly had to say goodbye to Seymour as he left for Pallet Town. Green and Ryan hoped he could stand next to Professor Oak himself. The group also gave their goodbyes to the clan of Clefable and Kommo-o. They were generous enough to let them sleep safely in the cave for the night, showing them a way out when dawn came.

The group had been traveling for almost an hour, and it was nice to finally feel the cool air after what had just happened yesterday. Everyone could now enjoy the long walk ahead without thieves or surprises along the way, just like before. Ryan's new Jangmo-o was a very energized Pokémon as he always stuck by his shoulder, wanting his Trainer to move around.

"Ow! Please don't pull on my ear!" Ryan said to his new Pokémon with pain in his voice. Jangmo-o was a very excited Pokémon, wanting to do something every other minute. Pyra laughed at this with her deeper voice.

Misty stretched her arms out as she let out a yawn. "Man. I still can't believe what we just went through yesterday."

Brock thought back on yesterday. "We defeated some Team Rocket members, met Pseudo-Legends, saw the real Moon Stone, and some of us caught new Pokémon." He listed off. "It was fun, but let's take a break at the next stop."

"Jang." The small Pokémon wasn't in favor of such an idea.

Ash was reading the map as the Helix Fossil was under his other arm, Wartortle right by him. "Hmm. It says here that we will reach Cerulean in just eight days. Does that sound right, Misty?"

"That sounds accurate." Misty seemed a bit nervous about going to Cerulean, still not wanting to go after all this.

"OHH! Me, Pyra, Viney, and Luna are easily going to clear the second gym!" Green declared as Pyra was beside her, bumping her fist as well. "But first, I need to deal with some rocks."

Brock realized what she meant. "We can fight later. Let's just take a breather after what we went through."

Green thought for a second before happily nodding. "Any time works for me. If you want to do it a four AM, then so be it!"

"Pyra!" Pyra said as well, as she did come to love Green. Her energy and personality were very off-putting initially, but she treated her and the others as if they were family. She was like a mother that looked after her children.

Ryan was able to calm down his Jangmo-o, putting the tiny creature on his head when he saw a sign. "Is that the sign that you were talking about, Misty?"

Misty looked at what he was talking about. "It is." Her slight disappointment went away as she had a sly smile. "Would you care to read it, Ashie?"

"Are you just going to keep calling me that?" Ash asked with a frown.

"You should be smart enough to figure that one out," Ash grumbled as Wartortle just chuckled, glad that he dodged a bullet by not getting his own nickname.

Green and Ash, along with their Pokémon, looked at the sign as they read it. "Looks like we're on the right track! The arrow is telling us to go that way!" Green pointed in the wrong direction, making everyone sweat drop.

"Char." Pyra slapped her head in embarrassment, knowing that this was the norm for the girl.

"Don't you mean that way?" Ryan asked with a weird look.

"Mo-o?"

Green realized what she did as she laughed it off. "Oops! I meant the direction that you guys are going!" She joyfully said.

Brock saw something in the corner of the sign. "Okay, but what's that scribble?" Brock pointed at the bottom right.

"Well, people like to write on these things sometimes," Ash explained nonchalantly. "What does it say?" Green and Ash grew very silent at what it was.

The scribble said the following: GARY WAS HERE! EVERYONE ELSE IS JUST A WASTE!

Ash and Green began to growl in frustration after what they had just read. Wartortle and Pyra widened their eyes. "I'LL SHOW YOU WHO'S A WASTE!" They both declared at the same time. No one could stop the two from running down the path at a shocking speed.

"CHAR!"

"WAR!" Pyra and Wartortle were forced to run after their trainers. Jangmo-o saw this and jumped for joy on top of Ryan.

"Jang!" The Dragon-type ran after them as he saw potential excitement, making it a challenge to run as fast as the evolved Pokémon.

"What the? Don't run away!" Ryan was forced to go after his newest Pokémon, seeing how active he was compared to himself. Brock and Misty were left behind. "It always has to be running..." He thought.

Brock and Misty were standing there as the girl seemed nervous about where they were going next. Brock saw this and placed a comforting hand on her. "I know that it might be hard going back there. Tell us if you want to sit this out; we'll understand."

Misty, to Brock's surprise, shook her head. "No. I won't try to hide from my sisters." Misty said as she remembered being honest with the rest of the group. "If I can reveal my secret to them, I can face my family." She thought about it. "... At least, that's what I'll tell myself."

Brock was proud of what Misty was planning. "At least you thought about that." He slightly praised. He then had a fun idea to chase after the rest of the group. "But did you think of this?" He ran away as fast as he could, lightly tapping Misty on the head as he left her.

Misty smirked at the challenge. "Oh no, you don't!" She joined the chain of running as the trip to Cerulean continued, and her time to face her issues came as well.

END OF CHAPTER 6

---

It was very fun to bring Green back into the picture and to see her team start to grow during this chapter! I still haven't quite figured out what to do with Seymour yet, but I will try to find an answer. Giving Jangmo-o to Ryan was not an accident, as it is part of something that I have in store. I hope that you can figure out the pattern as the story continues. I will give a quick warning for the future; chapter 7 will diverge from the canon story. I am going to plant the seed for one of the things that I have wanted to do since the beginning, and if you read the description above, then you can probably guess what might happen in the next chapter. Remember to hit me up with that review, and see you guys next time!

Edit 2/08/23: I decided to eliminate those awful Team Rocket OCs I stupidly made. Mondo is not an OC. He's from the 'It's a White Tomorrow, Team Rocket!' book from Japan. I never did own the book, but I had my friend translate it for me, and it gave me a good idea of Mondo as a whole. Nice to give everyone their own fight and the Helix Fossil to our main group since we all know that the Dome Fossil is for peasants. Trust me; I'll make that fossil come back in the future. Adios!

THANKS FOR READING!

-God of Sun

Ash's Team: Wartortle (M), Pidgey (F), Nidoran (M)

Misty's Team: Starmie (N/G), Marill (M), Goldeen(F)

Ryan's Team: Pinsir (M), Butterfree (M), Jangmo-o (M)

Brock's Team: Geodude (M), Onix (M), Zubat (M)