Chapter 29
The trip to Rota didn't take as long as Ash would have liked it to take. When Rota hoved into view Ash pulsed out his aura to send Lucario and the guardians of Rota an advanced warning that he was on his way, as much as he'd like to render them all unconscious again he didn't really have the excuse he did last time. Landing half a mile away between Mt Moon and Rota he recalled Salamence and continued on the path towards the city. He had never really taken in the splendour and beauty of the area, given the last two times he had been here had been trying to not be seen and then attacking it a few months later but as he walked out of the forested area he did have to stop and take the place in.
"I'm reluctant to say anything nice about this place but it is rather beautiful isn't it" Ash mumbled to Pikachu "it's a shame it's ran by an idiot."
"Are you going to be able to control yourself this time?" Pikachu asked humorously.
"I'll give it a shot" Ash laughed "I'm not here to meet anyone other than Lucario so hopefully it stays that way."
"You know full well that won't happen" Pikachu responded shaking his head "it wouldn't surprise me if we had an entourage waiting for us."
"Where the hell did you hear that word?" Ash asked confused "I've been meaning to ask that for a few years now. Every single one of you are pretty articulate, why is that?"
"You're kidding right?" Pikachu asked in surprise "we thought you knew."
"Knew what?" Ash asked.
"We don't actually know the words Ash" Pikachu said "when we speak to you we're still speaking in Pokémon language, you just instinctively know what word fits each sentence and we carry on from there. Everyone that hears us talk has only ever heard your side of it. You've written books on this haven't you?"
"Well yeah" Ash said "but I always thought you knew the words you were saying. I've been able to speak to and understand Pokémon since I was six years old, it never really occurred to me that you were still speaking in Pokémon language as it became normal for me to talk and converse with you."
"Yeah, well" Pikachu said "now you know."
"That's fascinating really" Ash said "so understanding your language is linked into my own vocabulary and intelligence. I never really gave it much thought."
The rest of the trip was done in silence as Ash pondered what he had just heard, how did it take him two years to not ask that question? As they walked through the streets of Rota Ash ignored the various whispers and glances the people of Rota gave him as he made his way through the city and up the steps leading to the palace grounds. The palace was situated on a huge area of flattened ground, easily four acres of land, created centuries ago for the first King of Rota and walking along the path Ash saw the huge silver gates that sat in between ten-metre-high walls. This was the only way in and out of Rota by foot and the guard house at the side had emptied when they felt Ash approach.
"Halt" a man commanded as he walked forward to meet Ash "state your business!"
"My business is not with you guard" Ash said "my business is with Sir Aarons Lucario who will know to expect me, as I suspect you already know."
"You are lucky we've been given instructions to let you pass unharmed Ketchum" the man said looking sour at the very thought "after the last time you were here, you are lucky we're letting you live."
"You and the rest of Rota are lucky my mother let Ilene live after what she did" Ash quipped back to outraged gasps "but as I said my business is not with her nor with you. Now, are you going to open the gate or shall I do it for you?"
"Open the gate" the man shouted at the guardhouse looking angry at the thought of letting Ash through "we're watching you Ketchum."
"I don't think you're quite tall enough to even attempt to threaten me, guard" Ash quipped smiling as he walked past and into the Rota palace grounds ignoring the snarl from the guard. As the gates closed behind him Ash let out a small chuckle.
"Not even five minutes" Pikachu said laughing.
"Hey, at least I didn't start this one" Ash said laughing back as they continued along the long winding path. Eventually they came across a huge open cobbled expanse with various people milling around, Ash remembered this place very well as it was the very place his mother had taken Ilene up into the sky on Charizard and threatened to turn her into a giant pizza on the floor. "Ah good times" Ash said earning a snort from Pikachu who remembered the area too. Looking around Ash wondered what was going on as there were booths set up selling inflatable toys, balloons, food, drinks etc and many people seemed to be in fancy dress having a good time. Wandering over Ash stopped a couple who were dressed in ballgowns and a pirate outfit and asked them what was happening.
"Oh, it's the tournament today" the lady said "we're just about to go to the arena to see the twice yearly tournament for Rota Champion."
"It's a huge honour" the man put in "the winner gets to meet the King and Queen and sit beside them holding the sceptre of Sir Aaron!"
"Oh, that sounds interesting" Ash said smiling "when does it start?"
"We're all actually heading over to the arena now, its due to start in ten minutes" the woman said "you can come and sit with us if you like?"
"That would be lovely" Ash replied "I'm just going to buy Pikachu and myself a drink and a sandwich if you can wait a few minutes?"
"Certainly" the man said. A few minutes later Ash was happily walking with his new friends down to the arena where they sat down and waited. Twenty minutes later there was a terrific fanfare as Ilene and her husband (who's name escaped Ash) walked out and greeted the audience. Ash stayed seated, pretending to be feeding Pikachu as she addressed the crowd.
"Greetings everyone" Ilene said "and welcome one and all to the Rota Tournament. We have some fantastic battles ahead of us so, which I'm sure will amaze us all so without further ado please welcome the first contestants!"
"Is Ilene pregnant?" Pikachu asked.
"She must be" Ash said "funny how the rest of Kanto haven't heard about her pregnancy though. Having said that we have been rather pre-occupied lately and may have just not taken notice."
"Are you talking about the King and Queens, soon to be new arrival?" the woman asked excitedly "it's very exciting isn't it, soon there'll be a new member of the Royal Family."
"Yes" Ash said nodding "I was just commenting that I didn't know but I have been busy lately so maybe I've just forgotten."
The next few hours were pretty enjoyable to Ash and Pikachu who were enthralled in watching other battle. It was strange to Ash to see how basic some battles were, and how poor some trainers could be. It was difficult not disparaging most of them, just because Ash was a better trainer didn't mean these battlers weren't competent, so this was a whole new thing Ash had to think about. It didn't stop him giving a running commentary for the people around him on where they could improve and what made them either win or lose.
"Why aren't you out there?" the man from before asked curiously "you obviously have some interest in battling given your opinions on the battles here, so why aren't you out there?"
"Oh, I didn't know anything about it until today" Ash said genially "and it's been over a year now since we've competed in a tournament so we may be a little rusty" a comment which earned a snort from Pikachu.
"Do you think you could win it?" the man asked "this tournament I mean."
"Yes" Ash said simply nodding, something which Pikachu mirrored "but I'm not here to compete, and it's nice to watch other people battle. I haven't done that since I competed in the Indigo League a few years ago."
"How did you do in that?" the woman asked. For his part Ash was confused, no one had recognised him yet, which felt very strange and also made him quite happy that he wasn't surrounded by people clamouring for his autograph.
"We did ok actually" Ash said smiling before turning back to the match "oh that was a rookie mistake, normal moves don't affect ghost types."
Twenty minutes later the finalists walked out onto the pitch and greeted the Queen before battling. The battle was over pretty quickly, much to Ash's disappointment as it was incredibly one sided. Why someone would try a Rhydon against a Gengar he would never know but it was easily beaten as Gengar just kept phasing out and launching Shadow Balls when it appeared twenty yards away.
"Congratulations to Amelia for a fine victory!" Ilene said as she stood up, being assisted by her husband "pleased everyone, give a round of applause for Timothy who put up a terrific fight but also please join me in a huge congratulations to our winner Amelia!"
Amelia was all smiles as she walked up onto the stage as she received a nod and a scroll before being invited to sit down next to Ilene.
"Thank you everyone" Ilene said as the noise died down "but we also have a very special guest in the crowd today, one we certainly were not expecting to ever grace our presence voluntarily." Ash sighed as he could see where this one was going "please can we all give a big Rota greeting for the new Pokémon League Champion of the Kanto region, Ash Ketchum!" the crowd led a round of applause, but everyone looked around in confusion as Ash still didn't stand up. "Please Ash, stand and receive your due congratulations." Sighing Ash stood up and looked to slowly make his way down the steps and out of the arena but he had unluckily chosen the middle of an isle and was trapped. Giving into the inevitable he looked at Ilene and waved before sitting back down as the crowd swelled and a huge amount of noise filled the arena. "You win this round" Ash muttered as he closed his eyes.
"Why didn't you tell us?" the woman asked over the crowd.
"I was enjoying the anonymity" Ash shouted back. Ash saw Ilene move from her box, along with her husband, Amelia, Sir Riley and a Lucario.
"Please Ash" Ilene said as they walked onto the arena floor "come and join us."
Shaking his head Ash and Pikachu made their way over to the left-hand side and walked down onto the arena floor where they walked to the centre, hating every minute of it. As the noise died down Ash waited.
"What brings you to Rota?" Ilene asked "as I stated, you are the last person we would have expected to visit our city."
"I'm here to see Lucario actually" Ash said keeping his guard up and reigning in his aura tightly.
"Peace Ash" Ilene said "we mean you no harm."
"Past evidence would suggest otherwise" Ash said looking at Riley who grimaced before concentrating on Ilene "I was simply here to see him before a lovely couple invited me to see the tournament, one I actually enjoyed viewing. As I said up there to them it's been a while since I've watched a battle that I wasn't involved in."
"What did you think?" Amelia asked nervously, probably breaking protocol by interrupting the Queen. Ash though could care less and addressed her personally.
"You were good, you were a tad lucky to get an opponent you had no weaknesses to, but you can only beat whoever is put in front of you." Ash said "having said that you were very impressive in the earlier rounds."
"Thank you" she said blushing heavily at the praise.
Reaching into his pocket he pulled out his wallet and took out a card before handing it to her "Here, over the next few months there's going to be huge news coming from Indigo Plateau. I can't say more just yet, as I've just literally come from a meeting this morning and nothing has been finalised but keep an ear open and email me as soon as you hear about it, that is if you're interested."
"Thank you" she said holding onto the card and reading Ash's name and email address embossed on it.
"Can you not tell us anything?" Ilene asked curiously.
"Sorry, no" Ash said shaking his head "it's not up to me what happens and as I said certain things were only tentatively discussed this morning. You'll probably hear about it the same time I will, that is if what was discussed goes ahead."
"Ok" Ilene said nodding "will you be joining us for the banquet?"
"No" Ash said shaking his head "I have some business with Lucario and then I need to go home to see mum and dad."
"Dad?" Ilene asked shocked.
"Yes," Ash said cursing his loose lips "my father is back home. And no, he isn't a Guardian anymore so don't even think about it."
"That is not up to him" Riley said before taking a step backwards as Ash's aura flared.
"No, but it's up to me" Ash said "try me Riley, I beg of you. My father resigned as a Guardian when I was born, so keep him out of your thoughts and plans."
"What business do you have with me Sir Ketchum?" Lucario asked stepping forwards.
"He is not a knight" Riley said indignantly trying to regain some form of authority, he was First Knight Sir Riley after all "Our Queen did not knight him."
"As I've told you before Sir Riley" Lucario said glaring at him "I am the Lucario of Rota and as such I have the same powers of ennoblement as the reigning monarch does. I knighted Sir Ash for his services to Mew and the Tree of Beginning, without whom there would be no Rota anymore as Mew was literally on deaths door when Sir Ash sacrificed a part of his very soul to save hers. If I had tried, I would have failed so you should be on bended knee, grateful that he was around."
"Peace" Ilene said stepping in between them. "He is right Sir Riley, Lucario has that power to do so, and we will not contest it."
"So," Lucario said turning to face Ash "what business do you have with me?"
"A friend of mine is concerned about her child. She is having trouble controlling her aura at such a young age and I could only think of you who may be able to help" Ash said, "I will be leaving for Shamouti in the next few days and I won't be back until mid-January so I was hoping you could help."
"And who is this friend?" Riley asked curiously "I could help."
"I think not" Ash said "and it is someone who is protected from Rota by myself and Lucario."
"Lorelei's child?" Ilene asked.
"Yes" Ash said bitingly "thank you for announcing it to everyone here. I'm sure Lorelei and Bruno will be incredibly grateful." Ilene for her part at least had the decency to look ashamed.
"Why is she protected from Rota?" Amelia asked confused "aren't all guardians welcome here?"
"She is protected for good reason" Lucario said looking around "since I came back, I have found the current guardians lacking and as such will not take on apprentices until I believe them to be up to scratch, so far there has been a big improvement but not yet enough to warrant me lifting said ban. As for Hailee, she will have the choice herself on whether she becomes a guardian and only with both mine and Ash's blessing, after her parents one of course, will we remove our mark from her. That is not up for discussion. So, she's manifesting already?" he asked looking at Ash.
"Yes" Ash said "and I don't really know what to do without seeing her. I also don't have the resources you do here at Rota to see if there's precedent for this, so I came for your aid."
"Very well" Lucario said "I will set out next week, I will have a look in the library here first to see if there's anything I can find but please let them know I will be at Indigo Plateau by next weekend."
"They won't be there" Ash said, "Lorelei and Bruno are in the process of moving to Johto, so you'll find them both in Silver Town."
"Why won't they be there?" Ilenes husband asked, "they are part of the Kanto Elite Four after all."
"Bruno isn't anymore" Ash said shocking them "there'll be an announcement tomorrow about it, but he is dedicating his full time to the Johto Elite Four. He was getting sick of not being able to see his daughter due to the commitments of the Kanto League and resigned the day I became Champion."
"And no doubt Lorelei will do the same" Ilene said.
"Possibly" Ash said shrugging his shoulders. "That decisions made between husband and wife should stay as such and I find no reason to pry."
"Anyway, I shall make my way to Silver Town then" Lucario said "it will likely take me a few weeks though."
"That's fine" Ash said "as I said I will only be able to be there mid-January. Thank you Lucario, it means a lot."
"It is no problem, Sir Ash" Lucario said bowing, an act that Ash mirrored.
"I must be going now" Ash said to them all "my job here is done. I have no doubt I shall see you all at some point, our paths seemed destined to cross don't they. Congratulations on your pregnancy by the way. I hope all goes well." Nodding he turned around and made his way to the exit, waving at the crowd as he did and left the arena. Before anyone could swarm after him, they all heard a few wingbeats and saw a huge blue dragon take flight and head off into the distance. Ash had left his mark on rota yet again.
Several hours later Ash landed at his house and wandered in, saying hello to Zoe who was setting out to pick Ava up from primary school. Releasing his remaining Pokémon, he walked upstairs, faceplanted onto his bed and passed out. The last few days had been very draining mentally and he was so glad he had nothing to do now until the end of January, a whole month away.
Christmas came and went with Zoe and Ava joining Ash and his family at their home. Red had been allowed to travel as long as he was in a wheelchair and limited his activities but he was quickly regaining his strength. Ash had cleared out a room he was using as a storage area and moved his mums bed downstairs and set up their bedroom there, something which brought his mum to tears.
"You didn't think I'd force dad to walk up them stairs, do you?" Ash asked confused when he had told them both what he had done.
"No" Delia said hugging him "but it's not something I thought of asking for."
"I'll do what I can to aid dads recovery" Ash said looking over his mums head at his dad who was asleep in an arm chair. The air around Pallet Town and his home had knocked his dad out after only a few hours, something which Delia thought was endearing. "you're off work now until January aren't you?"
"I am yes" she said releasing him from the hug "what are your plans?"
"Nothing until the 10th January when I leave for Vermillion" Ash said "I'm getting the boat to Mandarin South and going watching the Shamouti festival."
"What on earth for?" Delia asked surprised "why would you want to go near there again?"
"I need to speak with Lugia" Ash said as he opened a drawer and pulled out the G.S Ball. Amazingly the ball seemed to pull on Ash and led him over to his father who woke up abruptly at its presence.
"What the hell is that?" Red asked looking concerned at the ball.
"It's a ball Sam asked me to go and retrieve when I travelled to the Orange Islands" Ash said "in fact it was the main reason for me going there. It resonates with me for some reason, but it also resonates with the two feathers I was given by Lugia and Ho-oH and I have no idea why. My best guess is it has something to do with an ancestor of ours, something which has gained traction given how you're reacting to it."
"Ash" Red said wearily "that ball feels very familiar to me, but it's hurting me and calling to me at the same time. Can you take it away please."
"Certainly" Ash said walking away and putting it back into the drawer, an action which made Red sigh with relief. Looking concerned Ash padded up to his room and retrieved his dads cap and walked back downstairs.
"My cap!" Red said overjoyed as Ash handed it over. Looking it over he smiled in nostalgia and gently placed it on his head and sighed in relief as the foreign feeling disappeared.
"That's strange" Delia said after Red told them how at peace he felt being reunited with his cap "I wonder why."
"Probably because of what's inside the lining" Ash said sitting down. Puzzled Red pulled it off his head and opened up the brim, gasping as he did. Cautiously he pulled out the two feathers which began to shine briefly before settling back down. Ash for his part immediately sat up straight and eyed them intently.
"Try and use your aura" Ash said. Carefully Red tried and both him and Ash felt a brief short pulse before it died down again. "It seems we have more of a mystery on our hands, and another question to ask Lugia. For now, keep them and the hat with you at all times, it may help you build up a slight reserve of Aura over time, at least before we locate wherever your aura is being stored."
"That seems like a good idea" Red said before replacing his cap and leaning back into his chair looking tired. "I'm very tired, I think I'll have a nap."
"Have one in bed" Ash said as he walked over to his dad and helped him stand before they carefully and slowly made their way twenty feet to his parents' bedroom. Lying his dad down he smiled as Red started snoring softly as soon as his head hit the pillow. Delia smiled before she lay on the bed and rested her head on her husbands chest, Ash feeling like an intruder left without saying anything.
Christmas came and went, and Ash was beginning to get a bit concerned that Charizard had not returned, he knew his Pokémon could handle himself in any situation but the mission he had sent him on wasn't an easy one. Deciding he couldn't do anything about it Ash began doing some of the work he had been putting off, namely conversing with the AONB and Silph over a project they wanted to start in the spring, something which Ash was hesitant to start without having experts on board. A few phone calls later he had gained the support of those experts and gave his go-ahead for the project. Introducing fossil Pokémon to his home wasn't something he was keen on, even ones as placid as Anorith and Lileep and given his last interaction with fossils he felt he had a right to be wary. Luckily though he knew he had Pokémon in place to put a halt to any issues but it still concerned him.
As December rolled into January Ash began to prepare to head towards Vermillion City to take the SS Aqua. Ash was sat with his dad going over a few things that he could do to recover his health quicker.
"I'm going to leave Machamp here while I travel so he can supervise you in his gym" Ash said "trust me, he doesn't let me do too much so don't take it personal if he halts you for any reason. For over six months he refused to train with me for longer than an hour because my leg was so bad. And he actually banned me from the gym after I had been cleared from the doctor after my operation because he was worried I would go overboard."
"He's that strict?" Red asked humorously "wow."
"Yeah" Ash said laughing "each of my Pokémon have areas that they're in control over here and I listen to them when they tell me anything. I know how to use a gym, I've been training my body since I was six to be able to handle aura and I'm still unbeaten in hand-to-hand combat with any fighting type I've fought, but I would still heed Machamps warnings when messing with weights. As I said it's not personal with him, and your body is still in pretty good shape dad, it's just your conditioning that needs working on but that will quickly come back to you."
"I dunno about that Ash" Red said uncertainly trying and failing to create an Aura Sphere "for my entire life I've been using aura to supplement my training so it's going to be difficult working without it."
"I can see how that would be an issue" "Ash said "but there are many people who don't have aura that are incredibly strong. I'll email Bruno and ask him for his routine, it may help you…" before Ash could finish he looked up sharply and stood up "come with me" he said to his dad who warily stood up and slowly walked to the door. Opening it Ash was greeted with various workers leaving as quickly as they could as in the clearing two hulking Pokémon were waiting, one snarling in irritation at the activity around it. At Ash's side he felt his dad give a sharp gasp as he recognised one of the Pokémon.
"So, you managed to convince him" Ash said walking forwards to greet his Charizard with a head bump. Looking at the other Pokémon he had to stop himself from backing away as he gazed upon one of the most feral looking Pokémon he had ever come across. It was another Charizard, one that stood at least half a metre taller than his own, littered in battle scars, eyeing Ash up. As it stepped forwards it stopped and sniffed the air before looking sharply at the porch as Red made his way down the steps and walked towards it.
"Charizard" Red breathed out "is that you?"
Growling the Charizard retracted his claws and walked forwards gazing impassively at Red before all of a sudden Red jumped at it and hugged it. Almost instinctively Charizard furled his wings around Red and hid themselves from view. Ash would never actually know what was said between them both at that meeting and he never asked but it made Ash happy to see his father reunited with his starter.
"You did well pal" Ash said to his own who snorted and took off to the nearby hill where his lair was. Walking back into his house he sat back down and leaned back, he was very happy that Charizard had managed to get his dads starter to come and visit. He had heard stories over the years that he was the strongest Charizard in the Charicific Valley but after asking a few people some pertinent questions he found out that it didn't live in the valley, it lived on top of the valley in his own cave, very rarely ventured out and had been living there ever since his dad went missing. For years he had searched for Red but was unsuccessful and became bitter and angry at trainers worldwide, so he had taken himself out of the way to avoid any altercations. It took a lot of self-discipline to take yourself away from a situation you know you have very little control in.
A few hours later Red walked in looking very windswept. Sitting down in his chair he had the biggest grin on his face as he sighed and closed his eyes.
"Thank you, Ash," Red said looking over at his son who looked up from his laptop "I never thought I'd ever see any of my original team again. I thought I'd lost Charizard like my others."
"Charizard isolated himself after years of trying to find you, we never found out where Snorlax drifted off to and your other four disappeared with you" Ash said sighing "Mewtwo didn't return them with your body, so I have no idea where they'd be."
"Gone" Red said sadly "the last time I was taken out of stasis Silver visited me and told me that they'd been experimented on and then when they couldn't take anymore, they were killed. I lost four fantastic Pokémon because I let myself be captured."
"In fairness you didn't know they had Mewtwo" Ash said, "and you beat Silver before Mewtwo ambushed you so it's not your fault dad."
"Yes, it was" Red said shaking his head and closing his eyes again "but I got my best friend back, so again, thank you."
"It's ok" Ash said knowing he'd never be able to change his fathers mind on who was at fault "and just so you know, I won't tell mum you've been flying but you might want to go to the bathroom and sort your hair out. It's a dead giveaway."
Chuckling Red stood up and clapped Ash on the shoulder before doing as he suggested. When Delia came back that evening from work, she listened on with a soft smile as Red talked about getting his starter back, mouthing a thank you to Ash when Red regaled them with past tales.
A few days later Ash headed off to Vermillion, spending the night in the Pokémon Centre before boarding the SS Aqua the day after. He decided after the journey last time to just stay in his cabin, as since he'd been declared Champion he'd been having to literally plough his way through people clamouring for autographs. Arriving on Mandarin South he quickly made his way to the hotel he stayed in last time and checked in, this time he was in a different room, but he didn't mind as he planned to have a nice relaxing weekend before heading to Shamouti. He was extremely grateful for the private beach as he managed to get quite a bit of work done without being hassled and had sorted out the plans for the fossil Pokémon. It irked him that he was having to work on his holiday, but he knew he would only come back home and have to sort it out then.
The weekend passed for Ash fairly quickly and he reluctantly winged his way northwards towards Shamouti, praying that this time there would be no end of the world nonsense. Landing on the south beach Ash made his way up the path where the festival was in full swing, the inhabitants performing a part of the festival Ash never got to see the last time due to havoc reigning.
"Bless us oh Chosen One, into thine hands bring together all three. Their treasures combined tame the Beast of The Sea" a voice said that Ash recognised as Carols.
"I am honoured to be the Chosen One" another voice said that Ash also instantly recognised. Ash couldn't help but start laughing at the irony, the crowd wondering what was going on parted and many of them gasped as they recognised Ash. Eventually a path cleared for Ash and he saw sat in the chair at the centre of the banquet was Nia, looking equally irritated and happy.
"What are the odds?" Ash asked walking forwards and standing on the opposite side of the table, mirth clearly evident in his eyes.
"Do you mind Ketchum?" Nia asked "I'm trying to be the Chosen One here, if anything you should be thanking me for giving you a year off!"
"I am eternally grateful Miss Morgan" Ash said sweeping into a bow "As thanks, what colour would you like your brown shoes polished?"
"Git" she said as she stood up and leaped over the table and into his arms for a huge hug, one he happily reciprocated. Ignoring the muttering Ash was in his own world as he hugged her tightly before he let her go. "I didn't expect to see you here, you know. I thought you'd long since be gone from here as the last I heard from you, you were heading to Mandarin South, but that was two weeks ago now."
"I made a detour here" Nia said smiling up at him "after what happened last year, I thought I'd be able to give you a story of how this festival was supposed to go."
"You two know each other I take it?" Carol asked looking at them both curiously as they still hadn't let each other go.
"Yeah" Ash said nodding "along with Pikachu, Nia is my best friend. I've known her for over a year now, ever since I faced her in the Indigo League."
"It was before that match that we first met, though he didn't know it at the time" Nia said releasing the hug "I was part of the crowd when he released us all from the psychic grip of Sabrina in Saffron City six months earlier. We then met at the League where he beat me, and we've been friends ever since."
"Oh ok" Carol said still eyeing them up "so why are you here Ash?"
"I'm actually here for a few reasons" Ash said as he sat down opposite the Chose Ones chair, a seat Nia had sat back down in "I'm on my way to Navel Rock to do the first part of Dannys challenge again, I'm a big mountaineering fan and it's an incredible view from the top of that mountain. I'm also here to see the festival, as it usually has been for centuries but I'm mainly here to speak to Lugia, I didn't get the chance to do so last year, and I was far too eager to get away from this place after what happened."
"Lord Lugia hasn't been seen since that day" a new voice said. Looking over to the side of Carol Ash vaguely remembered her as the festival maiden but struggled to recall her name. "Melody," she said seeing his confused face "I should be offended that you don't remember me."
"Oh yeah of course" Ash said, "you're the one that tried to get handsy with me when I arrived last time."
"She what?" Nia asked looking at her with narrowed eyes.
"It was all a misunderstanding" Melody soothed waving her hands, looking slightly alarmed at the look she received "but anyway, yes, I was the festival maiden last year and as I said Lord Lugia hasn't shown himself since that day."
"I suspected as much" Ash said nodding "from the report I read from Professor Ivy the ecosystems in the Orange Islands took a good six months to settle down, even with his power I imagine he's knackered."
"So do you know where to find him?" Nia asked, "I would love to see him."
"Yes" Ash said nodding "or at least I know roughly where he sleeps. So anyway, when does the Chosen One go and visit the islands?"
"Anytime soon really" Carol said looking at Nia "the evening will be setting in in a few hours so it's her choice."
"We'll go now" she said standing up, Carol, Melody, Ash and Carols uncle joining them as they made their way down the steps of the island to where Carols boat was moored. While the others talked about where they were going to head to first Ash walked over to the side of the ocean and stared out intently before closing his eyes and concentrating. After twenty seconds or so he released his aura out into a pulse that radiated outwards from him in all directions towards the islands and waited. After a few minutes he received four faint blips and nodded, turned around and found to his confusion the other four resting against the boat, propping themselves up, looking as though they'd just been knocked over.
"You all alright?" Ash asked concerned as he helped Nia up ignoring the soft moan that came from their contact.
"You could have given me a warning" Nia said shaking her head and trying to clear the cobwebs.
"Sorry" Ash said rubbing the back of his head "I just needed to check on which birds were on the islands. It isn't the Lord or Ladies thankfully so you shouldn't have much of a problem but if they get uppity let me know please, Pi and Charizard are just looking for an excuse after what they put up with from their parents."
"That was you contacting the birds?" Carol asked.
"Locating more than contacting" Ash clarified releasing Charizard who looked around confused before focusing on the islands.
"We're back" he said simply.
"You are, but hopefully you, Pikachu and Ash will have a much more relaxed time this time" Nia said nodding rubbing Pikachu's head and scratching his ears.
"We better" Charizard and Pikachu said in unison.
"Good luck" Ash said to them all, hugging Nia again "if you need anything just ring, I'll be just off the coast of Shrine Island, Lugia is just underneath it."
"Bye Ash" she said hugging him back before reluctantly releasing him and climbing into the boat. Waving them off Ash sighed as he climbed onto Charizard and they headed over to Shrine Island.
"You do realise what happened just then, right?" Charizard asked Ash as they landed a minute later. Seeing Ash's confused face he continued "Nia understood us."
"Oh crap" Ash said sitting down as panic set in. A few minutes later, after centering himself he asked "do you think she knows?"
"Yes" Pikachu said "she's been able to understand us for a while now, you've just not noticed for some reason."
"Oh crap" he said rubbing his face with his hands "I can only think it's because I'm so used to talking to you guys that it isn't strange anymore. What do I do?"
"I'm not making that decision" Charizard snorted "she's your life-mate, it's up to you to sort out."
"What he said" Pikachu agreed nodding "we've already discussed this; at length I might add. Now it's about time you sorted your own issues out."
"Speaking of issues" Charizard said nodding as a huge twister of water appeared off to the side, water sparkling as it fell down from a huge silver and blue birds wings.
"Greetings Chosen One" Lugia said landing on top of the shrine and eyeing them "what brings you to Shamouti once again?"
A few hours later Ash was sitting eating in silence on Shrine Island mulling over what they had just talked about.
"Is it just me or did Lugia talk about everything and nothing?" Pikachu asked.
"It wasn't just you" Ash said handing Charizard a Pokéblock "that was a few hours of pulling teeth trying to get some answers. And I don't think I got everything I needed either."
"At least you now know there's at least one other part to the G.S Ball that you're missing" Charizard said "do you have any ideas who else is involved?"
"No idea" Ash said sighing closing his eyes "it's maddening. I wonder why dad reacted so badly though. You guys didn't see it but dad was terrified by whatever he felt and it wasn't nice to see."
"Another bloody mystery" Pikachu grumbled.
"Yup" Ash said laughing before looking over to the horizon "it looks like we're about to be joined by the Chosen One" he finished laughing.
Twenty minutes later three women walked up onto the plaza and stopped dead at seeing Ash and his two main Pokémon having a picnic a few yards from the shrine.
"Hello former Chosen One" Nia said laughing.
"Greetings current Chosen One" Ash replied still not standing "how was it?"
"It was good" Nia said putting the globes in the shrines "for some reason the birds were quite placid and literally handed me their spheres. They seemed quite eager to get rid of me now that I think about it."
"Good" Pikachu said, "I would hate to have to kick their arses again."
"It wasn't them last time" Ash pointed out to Pikachu "it was their parents."
"Maybe that's what it was" Charizard said "we beat their parents, what chance would they stand against us?"
"Charizard is probably right" Nia said placing the last sphere in the slot and the shrines lit up green. Melody took her spot on the podium and played a very familiar tune as the pillars lit up with each different note. A few minutes later, as the last note played the water broke again as Lugia appeared, showing off his impressive size and power with how the water blasted off him.
"Greetings Chosen One" Lugia said to Nia who stood there wide, eyed and breathless "Your song has recovered my strength and thanks to you the world can have a chance to heal once more. You have my eternal gratitude." He finished before swooping up into the sky and plunging back down into the water.
"Show off" Charizard muttered breaking Nia out of her trance as she looked around at the others who were also in awe at meeting Lugia. Chuckling Ash shook his head and began to pack up his picnic.
"How can you not be in awe at meeting all these Legendaries?" Nia asked appalled by how blasé he was.
"We see them on a regular basis, you even saw the Birds at Indigo Plateau" Ash said shrugging his shoulders "I've also owned two of the Golems at one point, died confronting Mewtwo, sacrificed a sliver of my soul to save Mew and even met Arceus herself. After that they kind of lose their majesty a bit. Anyway, congratulations Nia, I hope the rest of the event goes well for you."
"You're not staying?" Melody asked earning a slight growl from Nia who tried her best to look unfazed.
"No" Ash said shaking his head looking at Nia curiously "I was only here to speak to Lugia about something unrelated to the events of last year, which I have done and now I'm off to Navel Island. I have to be back in Kanto in a few days so I'm on a tight schedule."
"You better get going then" Nia said hugging him again "but keep in touch."
"I will" Ash said, "you too. And if Danny is anything less than courteous to you let me know and I'll come back and kick his arse." Nodding to them all he clambered on Charizard and with a single strong wingbeat rose into the air and took off, Eastwards towards Navel Rock. Behind him Nia waved sadly as once again Ash left her.
Meeting up with Danny was fun, their chats about life and how the last year had been very enlightening for Ash as he soaked in the advice about relationships and what living with your partner is like.
"It's not easy Ash" Danny said as they packed away their gear "Everything you have been through suddenly makes sense, all the fights, arguments, agreements, compromises etc are worth it once those boundaries have been established. You go from living on your own, able to do what you want to having to make plans in advance and make sure the other half is ok a lot. It's a lot of work and stress, but I will say this, I wouldn't change what I have for the world. It's all worth it when we're lying in bed cuddled up just enjoying being with each other. The world around you disappears and the silence is incredibly comforting so, when you've found someone you can just be silent with and still enjoy being around them, do not let them go."
As he was on the boat back home from Mandarin South Ash couldn't think about anything other than that statement. He knew that Nia was the one for him, he didn't really have a choice in the matter, but he also wasn't mad about it either. There could have been a lot worse destined for him to be with for the rest of his life. He still hadn't come up with an idea on how to tell her, which was the main source of his worry for now, but he knew he had time. At least he thought he did anyway, hopefully Nia wouldn't get tired of waiting for him to get off his arse and do something about it but Ash knew she wouldn't wait around forever. People like Nia don't come into your life that often.
Getting back home the day after Ash and his Pokémon went through their morning routine in silence, something which he appreciated as they knew he was fighting with himself over the issue. Thankfully they didn't pry and left Ash to figure it out himself. Greeting his dad as he sat down and had breakfast, he wondered how to broach the subject when his dad looked at him and chuckled.
"Talk to me" Red said making Ash look up in confusion "you have the same expression I did growing up when I wondered how to phrase a question. So, talk to me."
"How did you know mum was the one for you?" Ash asked after a minute of silence.
"Oh, that was easy" Red said taking a bite out of his crumpet "we have the advantage of knowing who is the one for us so it erased any doubt straight away for me. It wasn't even a question to be honest Ash. No, that's not what's worrying you. What's worrying you is if she'll say yes to you asking her out."
"How did you know that?" he asked before remembering who he was talking to "you had the same fears as I have then?"
"Oh yes" Red said chuckling "just because we know doesn't mean they do. And unlike us they have a choice in the matter which makes it a lot more difficult for us to get past because there is a strong possibility they'll say no. And if that happens, we then know we'll be alone for the rest of our lives which is the main fear every aura wielder has. I was one of the lucky ones Ash, I knew your mother from the age of seven when she first moved to Viridian City and we went to school there. If I recall correctly, she pinched my apple because I had been complaining loudly that it was the second time that week I 'whinged' about my mother forcing me to eat healthily. But I was fascinated by her from an early age and even though I didn't know about aura until I was fourteen, we remained close. She became an intern at Sams and I was out on my journey but every time I came back home I was just astounded by how much more beautiful she became. Just before my sixteenth birthday though we stopped seeing each other, I was too afraid to lose her as a friend and she didn't want to get hurt seeing me with another woman, which is understandable really so when my aura radar went off and pinged back almost instantly, in Pallet Town too I couldn't get to hers quick enough. The rest as they say is history Ash, but I've never regretted making sure she knew everything, even at the cost of us almost going our separate ways."
"That's the thing" Ash said "I know who it is, and so does she but I still don't know what to do. We have a great friendship at the minute and just because aura says I'm destined to be with her doesn't mean it's for life. People break up all the time dad, so what if it doesn't work out?"
"That's something you'll have to deal with" Red said shrugging his shoulders "relationships are hard work Ash, compromise and communication is everything, especially the latter. That part matters the most to a woman, never discount how much that bit matters because it's the key to a long and successful relationship. Your mother and I argued a lot, we made up a lot, we argued some more and we made up some more. But at its core was the understanding that our thoughts and feelings were valid, and we have never once discounted the others opinion. Just because you don't agree, doesn't mean they're wrong. There are always two sides to a debate and both sides can be equally as right. I will say this and leave you to your thoughts, your mother has never steered me wrong when I've needed her the most and she has never been afraid to call me out when I'm talking shit. What you need to ask yourself is 'is Nia worth it?'"
Too shocked to realise his dad knew it was Nia Ash was on about, he remained seated for a good half an hour going over what his dad had said. It tied in a lot with what Danny had talked about too, so Ash knew he was getting good advice. It was only when the doorbell rang that he broke from his thoughts, padding over to the door and opening it in surprise at who it was.