Hey hey everyone! EP's back with an update! Sorry I couldn't get around to sending the update messages to you all but I was really frustrated with the fact that the stupid site's glitches stopped me from posting on March 20th...why is the 20th of March so important? Maybe some of you knew already, but in case you didn't, March 20th happens to mark the one year anniversary of AAML: Diamond and Pearl Version's publishing! That's right folks, this Pokeshipping story was born about a year ago and I have been remaking the Diamond and Pearl TV series in a glorious Pokeshipping image ever since then. I'm proud to have written this story and I'll be proud to write it all the way through! Now before we get started with this newest chapter, let's take care of a few anonymous reviews.
- lightningblade49: Well there were some very weird conditions for that Riolu to know Aura Sphere, but Ash's Riolu is just a plain old Riolu, so it won't be learning any moves that it can't learn. Once Riolu evolves though, the moveset will get a little more flexible.
- charizardlover: True, that's how it evolves in the game, but I wanna have a little fun with Riolu first. After all, personalities are very different between Riolu and Lucario, so I don't want it to grow up too fast.
- Airoh: lol you are a good guesser. xD I didn't think the Sir Aaron thing was really worth mentioning, Japan didn't do it and I didn't see it as a huge deal so I left it out.
- tray125: Well you'll see in a minute. ^^
- Aditya Shukla: Here you go! ^^
- Anna: Thanks! ^^
- sparky1001: You like it? It gives Ash a chance to use that aura he has.
- Polly: All I can say is we'll see. :/
- darky: Sooner or later, we'll see what I decide.
And now everyone, behold the one year anniversary chapter! I don't own anything except the story that comes from my own mind. (Longer disclaimer for yearlong chapter. xD) Oh yeah! If any authors are reading this, here's the solution to the glitch if it hasn't been fixed yet! All you need to do was change the word "properties" in the URL of the story editor to "content." So click on your fic like you normally would to add a chapter and while on the error page just change that word and POOF! It works! Awesome loophole eh? Enjoy folks!
_
Chapter 44
Misty's POV
It really is kind of amazing. Just a couple of days ago we ran into Team Galactic and had another battle with them, this time an entire island was at stake! We had gotten a call from Barry, who I still can't believe Dawn thinks she has a crush on. He told us about how his Empoleon had suddenly gone crazy during a training session on Iron Island and that he was worried. I will admit that Barry may have some bad ideas about Pokémon, but he definitely wasn't insensitive to the needs of his Pokémon, which placed him way above Paul on the worst trainer list. The weirdest thing though, was that Barry still thought Paul was someone to look up to as a trainer. I suppose when it comes to brute strength Paul has a slight edge over Ash, but now that he has a Riolu on his team, Ash is poised to have the most powerful team I've ever seen him have. After doing some training with his Riolu, Ash'll hopefully get himself a powerful Lucario, and with his…almost spooky proficiency in aura, Ash having a Lucario would make him seem almost unbeatable! And as for me, I've been wondering if maybe I should start putting myself through some intense training with Dawn. I mean, I'm having the time of life being Ash's girlfriend and travelling with him again, but I'm getting kinda bored, maybe I should start training for contests, or maybe I could train harder with Ash so I could battle gyms myself. These Sinnoh gyms have inspired me to tell the truth, Ash's skill level at this point would let him blow right past the Kanto gyms, admittedly, even mine. And still he has to push himself to the limit to get past these Sinnoh gyms. When we go home to Kanto, I want to go back to Cerulean and be the toughest gym in Kanto! But of course, I'll be putting Daisy through my own special battling boot camp. I wouldn't want to raise the bar and then leave again knowing that Daisy would trip over it. That'd be like shooting myself in the foot.
And yesterday was just crazy, Riolu was playing with Pikachu, Piplup, and Corsola, when they wandered off without us knowing. When we went looking, Ash got an aura message for help from Riolu and wound up diving over the boat railing and into the ocean! He called out Buizel and together they chased after what we found out was Team Rocket's Magikarp submarine. But just before they got away, Team Rocket got trapped in a whirlpool and the Pokémon they captured got swept away in the current! Luckily we sent out an SOS to help Ash, so a nearby Officer Jenny came and picked him up. Then Officer Jenny came and picked us up, and we agreed with the captain of the ship that he would keep going to Chocovine and then we'd catch up with the ship after we rescued our Pokémon.
After a while of searching, a storm started brewing over the horizon while we leaned over a map of the area, but unfortunately there was a strange phenomenon involving the area of ocean we were in, ironically nicknamed "Diablo's Ocean". Officer Jenny explained that many ships have gone by the area and had their instruments stop working, luckily a map could be read without machines, and Jenny was able to discern the general area our Pokémon could've been swept to by analyzing the ocean currents. Then Ash got another aura feeling, and sent Charizard, Staravia, and Buizel to go confirm it. Brock suggested we might as well follow them in case they were there to save time, and we agreed and followed the Pokémon.
As we got closer, Ash felt the connection growing stronger, which only further encouraged the idea that Riolu and the others were on the nearby island. And it was a good thing that Ash could feel Riolu's aura because the search party Pokémon had already gotten way ahead of us. When we finally got there, we saw the Team Rocket submarine trying to recapture Pikachu and the others with golden mechanical arms. Charizard and Staravia came to the rescue as Staravia used 'Brave Bird' to snap the arm in two and Charizard's brute strength merely ripped the metallic limb from its socket. Naturally Team Rocket came out and did their motto, but before we could battle them, a weird crystal started glowing and when the light dissipated, Ash identified the thing as a Deoxys. Naturally Team Rocket changed targets and switched to trying to grab Deoxys, and somehow they had the gall to try and steal Riolu too anyway! But then Deoxys started absorbing power from the meteorites surrounding the island and made the instruments on Officer Jenny's boat go haywire and her boat start to drag to shore. We got out of range and let Deoxys have his way with Team Rocket, but then the meteorites started falling all around us, AND Riolu was in free fall heading to a painful splash.
But then Deoxys quickly changed shape and caught Riolu and dropped it in the boat, then changed shape again and protected us from the falling debris of meteorites and the remains of Team Rocket's submarine. Once the danger was over, we thanked Deoxys for saving us and our Pokémon, and in gratitude to our Pokémon and the Pokémon on the island, Deoxys created a beautiful rainbow aurora for us to look at in awe. Then we headed back to our original destination, and as the sun set over the horizon, we finally spotted the ship that was about a day away from Chocovine and boarded it again.
Normal POV
"So how long until we get to Chocovine Town?" Dawn asked. "Another half-hour tops." Brock replied. "That's fine with me, I want Riolu to make better friends with our other Pokémon before we get there, that way if something happens like yesterday, Riolu knows who to turn to for help if we're not there." Ash said.
"That's a pretty smart idea Ash, you're being really responsible with Riolu, I had no idea you were so good at being a parent." Misty said teasingly. "That'll come in handy when you guys get married and have kids one day." Dawn laughed. The couple couldn't help but blush at that comment, they had pondered marriage once or twice, but for now they were content with just being boyfriend and girlfriend. "Come on Dawn, not in front of Riolu." Brock said, his breeder instincts kicking in. "Aww Brock, it's been forever since I've teased them! Lemme have my fun!" Dawn whined.
The coordinator looked around and spotted Ash with his eyes closed, then she looked down and noticed Riolu's eyes were closed too. "That's just spooky." Dawn said. Ash opened his eyes and smirked at Dawn. "What's with the smirk?" Dawn asked. Ash ignored Dawn and whispered something in Misty's ear, which made her giggle softly.
"Aww, whispering sweet-nothings to your girlfriend?" Dawn teased. The couple looked at Dawn and tried to stifle the laughter that was desperately trying to escape their mouths, which confused the coordinator who was trying to tease them. "Oh come on, what's the joke?" Dawn whined. "I just told Riolu that sometimes you can act a little crazy." Ash laughed.
Dawn's jaw dropped in disbelief and looked down at Riolu who was giving her a weird look. "You didn't." Dawn gasped. "That'll teach you to mess with me and Misty." Ash stuck his tongue out at the younger girl who still couldn't believe what Ash was telling her. "We'll see about that." Dawn knelt down in front of Riolu and put on her best smile. "You don't think I'm weird, do you Riolu?" she asked sweetly.
Riolu answered by scampering away from Dawn and jumping up to hang on Ash's free shoulder. "It's ok Riolu, she may be weird sometimes but she's still a good friend." Ash reassured. Dawn pouted with frustration, "Stupid aura…stuff…come on Buneary, as long as we have the time we may as well do something other than be abused by Ash and Misty." Dawn picked up her rabbit Pokémon and headed to the top of the ship, but she turned around when Piplup didn't follow along.
"Piplup, you coming?" Dawn asked. Piplup looked back and forth between his master and the baby Pokémon on Ash's shoulder. "Oh, I get it. You wanna stay and play with Riolu." Dawn said half-heartedly. Piplup sweat-dropped and nodded in response. "Fine, you stay and babysit Riolu, Buneary and I are gonna go have fun, right Buneary?" Dawn asked. Buneary looked back and forth between her master and the electric-mouse on Ash's shoulder. "Don't tell me you wanna stay here with Pikachu?" Dawn asked with disappointment. Buneary thought about it for a moment, and then finally smiled up at Dawn.
"Yes! Come on Buneary; let's see if we can come up with something for your performance!" Dawn ran off excitedly, leaving the others behind. "Buneary wanted to stay with you Pikachu, why don't you go with them?" Misty suggested. "Pika Pikachupi!" (Thanks Misty!) Pikachu scampered off after Dawn and Buneary. "Boy at this rate, Pikachu will wanna quit gym battles and start doing contests with Dawn." Ash said.
"Don't be ridiculous Ash, Pikachu's just in love that's all. Don't forget he's learning from you and following your example." Misty said flirtatiously, drawing circles on the bashful trainer's chest. "W-Well, I guess that's ok then." Ash stammered. Misty pulled Ash in for a kiss, but first Brock grabbed Riolu off of Ash's shoulder and set him down, covering the baby Pokémon's eyes so he couldn't see. "Hey, you have a fever?" Brock felt the emanation Pokémon's forehead and felt it was warm, but when he looked at Riolu's facial expression, it looked happy.
Then Brock looked up at the couple who were currently enjoying the sweet taste of each other's lips, their arms wrapped around each other tightly in blissful affection. "Must be one of those freaky aura things." the breeder figured. Sure enough, when they broke apart, Riolu's temperature dropped to normal, and its eyes opened up as if nothing had happened. "Hey Ash, kiss Misty again." Brock said.
"I'm warning you Brock, no cameras!" Misty warned. "No nothing like that, I wanna test something." Brock replied. The couple looked at the breeder skeptically, but finally shrugged it off. "What the hey? I definitely wouldn't mind another kiss." Ash chuckled. "Yeah, I'll bet you wouldn't." Misty giggled. The couple's lips locked once more, and as they focused on the pleasure that the feeling of their lips pressing against each other brought, Riolu once again closed its eyes and its face heated up as well.
"Alright stop!" Brock said. But Ash and Misty apparently either didn't hear, or they were ignoring him, as their loving gesture remained as strong as ever. "Uh guys, that's enough." Brock said again. But again Ash and Misty ignored him. "Alright, no more Mr. Nice Guy." Brock tossed a Pokéball, and almost instantaneously, the couple's kiss lost its pleasure as Ash fell to the floor in pain. "Hey, you're supposed to hit Brock, not me." Ash groaned, as the jab from Croagunk made Ash collapse.
"What's the big idea Brock?" Misty screamed. "I told you I needed to test something, but you got carried away and you weren't listening to me." Brock replied. "What exactly was the test?" Misty asked angrily as she helped Ash back to his feet. "When you guys kissed, Riolu's face got hot, almost like it was feeling the exact same thing you were." Brock said.
"You mean…Riolu felt the uh…kiss?" Misty asked. "Not so much the kiss itself, as it felt the pleasure you guys felt." Brock replied. "Whoa, that's kinda weird." Ash said. "KINDA? I don't think I'll ever be able to look at a kiss the same way again." Misty said. "So does that mean whenever me and Misty do something, Riolu's gonna feel what we feel?" Ash asked.
"I don't think Riolu feels what Misty feels, just Ash. I get the feeling that if you were to get your feelings hurt or something, Riolu would feel it too." Brock said. "Boy, having a Riolu is tougher than I thought." Ash sighed. "Well hopefully as Riolu gets older and gains more experience, it'll depend on you less for aura training and it'll be able to use its own aura rather than feed off yours." Brock replied.
"That sounds like training to me! Alright Riolu, when we get to Chocovine, we're gonna get started with our training, how's that sound?" Ash asked. Riolu squealed excitedly and jumped onto Ash's shoulder. "Ash, don't you think you're jumping into the whole training thing a little quick?" Misty asked. "No way Mist! The sooner we get to training, the more of a head start Riolu will have on getting stronger! Besides, it's a great way to bond with your Pokémon." Ash said.
"I know that but…you should give Riolu a little time to…you know…be a baby." Misty said. "I think l have to back Ash up on this one Misty, the sooner you get to training Pokémon, the better it'll be at battling in the future." Brock said. "Don't you ever train Azurill?" Ash asked. "Well…not really, I don't want it to get hurt you know?" Misty said. "You didn't have any problems letting it battle Giratina." Ash pointed out. "It was an emergency! And besides, it had Gyarados and Charizard covering it." Misty replied.
"Battling is a part of Pokémon Misty, you know that. Azurill can't be a baby Pokémon forever you know, it needs to mature and grow and it needs your help to do it." Brock said. "But…well…oh alright, I'll let Azurill train…but ONLY with MY Pokémon…and MAYBE Riolu and Happiny." Misty said.
"Sounds good to me, how about you Riolu?" Ash asked. Riolu grunted excitedly and hopped off of Ash's shoulder to play with Piplup. "Hey look! I see Chocovine Town over there!" Brock exclaimed. "I better go find Dawn and tell her then." Misty walked off to find the wandering coordinator.
"That really is freaky though…I wonder if Riley had the same problem before his Lucario evolved." Ash said. "He probably did, but then again he may not have had a girlfriend at the time, let alone a girl like Misty." Brock replied. "What do you mean by that?" Ash asked. "You know Misty's a romantic at heart, she lives for love, and she doesn't do things 'just because'. She always has some sort of motivation for whatever she does." Brock replied.
"I guess so. But still, I'll have to be careful for a while until Riolu gets a little more independent with his aura." Ash said. "Yeah, with the pleasure it feels whenever you and Misty kiss, it'll get spoiled." Brock laughed. Ash blushed, and ironically enough, so did Riolu.
"Dawn! Hey Dawn, where'd you go?" Misty called. "I'm in here Misty! The computer room!" Dawn replied from somewhere. "I can't find the computer room!" Misty shouted. "It's around the corner next to the closet, just follow my voice!" Dawn replied. Misty found the closet and looked to her left immediately after turning the corner, and sure enough there was Dawn and Buneary doing something on the computer. "What's up Misty?" Dawn asked. "We'll be docking in a few minutes, what are you doing?" Misty replied.
"I'm looking back on Buneary's past performances by watching some old contest footage, I don't wanna copy what I already did you know." Dawn said. "Yeah that sounds like you'd wind up with the Jessilinda syndrome." Misty joked. "I know right? The thing is…I can't think of anything we haven't done already. I'm thinking I may have to use Piplup or Pachirisu first, I've already come up with a couple of new ideas for them." Dawn said. "Well I'm sure it'll look great no matter what. Come on, let's go topside." Misty grabbed Dawn by the arm and stood her up from her chair, and together they walked back up to the top of the boat.
"Hey guys, check this out!" Ash exclaimed. The two girls leaned over the railing and saw multicolored tents lined up all the way down the road. "Wow, is the circus in town?" Misty asked. "Dunno, guess we'll find out though." Ash replied. Riolu squealed excitedly, which made Ash twinge a little. "Riolu say something?" Brock asked. "I think Riolu just told me it wants to go check it out." Ash replied. "Well we'll get to in a minute, the gangplank's going down." Brock said. The group watched as their ramp to Chocovine Town lowered, and the group set their feet on solid ground.
"Wow, this place is packed!" Ash said. "Busy for sure." Dawn added. As they walked, the group heard one concession stand vendor who was louder than the others, "So how about a Phione cellphone strap for good luck?" the vendor shouted, "We've got your Phione dolls here, your Phione candies here! You name it, we got it!"
"Wow, it's adorable!" the two girls ran for the stand with stars in their eyes. "I've never seen anything so cute in my life!" Dawn squealed as she squeezed one of the dolls in her arms. "Ma'am, you've got good taste." the vendor said. "Ash, will you buy one for me PLEEEEASE?" Misty asked, batting her eyelashes pleadingly at the trainer. "Uh…how much?" Ash asked the vendor. "Hmm…under normal circumstances they'd be $1.50 each, but for these lovely ladies, it's on the house." the vendor said. "Wow thanks so much!" the girls squealed, as they both grabbed a Phione doll off the shelf and squeezed it tight.
"And if you think these are cute, check this out, they're the real article!" the vendor pointed their attention to a TV screen, where video clips of a real Phione was playing. "Oh…my…gosh…that is too cute for words!" Misty squealed. "Yep, the cutest water-type anywhere near here." the vendor said proudly. "Chocovine Town's one of the few places Phione can be seen since they're such rare Pokémon." Brock said.
"Well I've never seen one before!" Ash said. "Neither have I but I want one!" Misty added. Dawn pulled out her Pokédex to scan the Pokémon on the tape, "Phione, the Sea Drifter Pokémon. Phione lives in warm oceans. It inflates the flotation sac on its head allowing it to float on the waves and look for food." her Pokédex chirped.
"So you fine young people on your way to the Pokémon Contest?" the vendor asked. "I am! Once I show them what I'm made of that ribbon's mine!" Dawn exclaimed determinedly. "As for me, having Gym Battles is what I'm into. As soon as we leave here we're heading for the Snowpoint City Gym." Ash added.
"Well then you ALL wanna make sure you take in a little Phione watching." the vendor said. "Phione watching? What's that?" the group asked. "I see you've never heard of it…there's an old saying here in Chocovine Town: 'Good luck smiles down on those who spot the Phione.' And you've come to the right place. Actually, this is the only time of year when it's possible to spot a Phione. Year after year this town swarms with sightseers, all hoping to catch a glimpse." the vendor explained.
"Wow. That sounds amazing!" Misty sighed, her love for water-types bubbling to the surface. "Believe me it is, and if memory serves me well the last several years, all the contest champions were coordinators who spotted a Phione before the competition." the vendor explained. "Wow! Are you serious?" Dawn squealed, "Guys, we've just GOTTA go and do some Phione watching!"
"I dunno Dawn; shouldn't you be more concerned about doing some training before the contest?" Brock asked. "Oh come on Brock, I can train tomorrow, but I wanna go and see the Phione and get some luck for the contest!" Dawn replied. "Well…I think the call should be up to Ash and Misty since they haven't had any say in this." Brock said. All eyes quickly fell on the couple. "Well I think it's a great idea!" Misty exclaimed. "I dunno, I really wanted to get in some training with Riolu." Ash added.
"Oh come on, think about it Ash, we could make it a date night…the two of us, under the moonlight, listening to the sound of the waves and maybe spotting a Phione or two! Whaddya say?" Misty said enticingly. "And think about the experience it would be for Riolu too!" Dawn added. The trainer thought it about it for a moment, and eventually gave in to the wishes of the two females. "Well I guess we could take one night off to relax and do some Phione watching."
The two girls cheered excitedly, the eldest one giving Ash a tight embrace in thanks. "Misty, Riolu." Ash whispered, his face red with blush. "Misty released Ash and remembered what happened on the boat, and sure enough Riolu was blushing along with Ash. "Hoo boy, you're gonna have to find a way to make your connection with Riolu not quite so…complete." Misty said. "I'll leave Riolu with Brock before we go on our own, how's that sound?" Ash asked. "Sounds good to me." Misty replied.
"You could've asked if you could leave Riolu with me instead of volunteering me you know." Brock said disapprovingly. "Uh…sorry Brock, can I leave Riolu with you?" Ash asked. Brock smirked and softly whacked Ash in the back of his head and chuckled, "Sure thing big guy."
"So everything's finally set! I'm so psyched!" Dawn squealed. "Hey Dawn, did you happen to decide who you're going with this time?" Ash asked. Dawn winked at the group, "What do you think?" the coordinator grabbed two Pokéballs and tossed them up into the air, "Buneary, Pachirisu, come on out!" the rabbit and squirrel emerged from their Pokéballs and landed on the ground in front of their master. "So how would you two feel about going out and getting yourselves some extra good luck for the contest?" Dawn asked enticingly. The two Pokémon excitedly jumped up and down in response, while the penguin Pokémon on Dawn's head groaned sadly. "Uh Dawn?" Misty pointed above her head, giving Dawn a signal.
Dawn picked it up quickly and plucked Piplup off from her head and held him. "Oh Piplup, I was thinking maybe you could help cheer them on this time." she said. "Piplup…" (But…) the penguin chirped sadly. "Come on, you know how much they look up to you." Dawn said with a wink. Upon hearing that, Piplup cheered up and was satisfied with the task given to him. "Might I suggest you young people go and get yourselves a room at the Pokémon Center before you go?" the vendor said. "Sounds like a good idea, thanks so much! And thanks again for the Phione dolls!" Misty replied.
The group waved goodbye to the friendly vendor, and walked over to the Pokémon Center to check in. "Now remember Brock, just check us in to the Pokémon Center, we don't wanna have to check YOU in to a hospital." Misty said. "Yeah yeah, I get the message." Brock grumbled before walking to the counter where Nurse Joy was. "Well we have a few hours before we get going, maybe I get in a bit of training with Riolu after all." Ash said. "And maybe I can do some contest training before we go." Dawn added.
"I thought you told me you didn't have any ideas for Buneary's performance, why are you using her now?" Misty asked. "Because after I saw that Phione on film this idea just popped into my mind! I guess they really are good luck then." Dawn replied, "And what about you Misty? Are you gonna do any training?"
"Well I guess so, but I'm a little iffy on the whole thing." Misty admitted. "Why? You were never concerned before." Dawn said. "Well it's just that since Riolu's a baby Pokémon, Ash and Brock suggested that I start training Azurill too…but I don't want it to get hurt while we're battling." Misty replied. "Come on Misty, it's no big deal, all we're doing is some friendly training, it's not like we're out to hurt your Pokémon on purpose." Ash said, "And wouldn't it be awesome if Azurill evolved into a Marill? And then an Azumarill after that!"
"I-I guess…but…" Misty stammered. "But what Mist?" Ash asked. Just then Brock walked up, "We're checked in. Ash, why don't you and Dawn go out and start training? Misty come with me a second." the breeder led the water-trainer away, leaving the puzzled trainer and coordinator to head outside without their redheaded friend.
"What's up Brock?" Misty asked. "I couldn't help but overhear your conversation with Ash and Dawn, and you still seem really bothered by the prospect of training Azurill." Brock said. "Well Brock wouldn't you be worried if it were Happiny out there battling? You wouldn't want it to get hurt now would you?" Misty asked. "You're right about that, I was really worried when Happiny went out to push on the glacier back in Sonzonia City, but I let it go anyway." Brock replied, "But I don't think that's the real issue here…tell me the truth Misty, what are you REALLY worried about?"
Misty looked into the caring eyes of her big brother figure and fell down into a nearby chair; Brock joined her in a different chair. "You can tell huh?" she mumbled. "I'm working to be a breeder; I can understand what you're feeling." Brock replied. "Brock I just don't want Azurill to grow up, I wanna be able to keep my baby Pokémon. It's bad enough I couldn't keep Togetic after it evolved, I don't want to wind up with a Marill just to have it leave me." Misty admitted. "Misty, listen to me. Togetic didn't leave because it didn't like you, I'm sure Togetic loves you to this very day. Just because it evolved doesn't mean it forgot everything you did for it when it was a Togepi…" Brock was cut-off.
"I know that Brock, and I still love Togetic…it's just that…I was just so heartbroken after that…I wanted to stay with you guys longer but…I just couldn't take the pain I was feeling." Misty said, tears starting to form in her eyes from the painful remembrance. Brock smiled sympathetically at the maternal water-trainer, "She's gonna make some mother one day."
"I kind of know what you're going through Misty. You're afraid of losing Azurill the same way you lost Togetic right?" Brock asked. "Yeah, pretty much." Misty sighed sadly. "Let me ask you something…would you have stopped Togetic from leaving even though it would make Togetic unhappy?" Brock asked. "Of course not Brock! I'd do anything to make Togetic happy!" Misty replied.
"Well then why are you depriving Azurill?" Brock asked. "Depriving…how can you say that Brock? I give Azurill all the love it could possibly want!" Misty exclaimed incredulously. "Calm down Misty. What I'm trying to say is…here; maybe you need a visual demonstration." Brock stood up and tossed out a Pokéball, and the Pokémon that emerged immediately gave Brock a salute. "When I got Sudowoodo, it wasn't even able to eat solid food yet, and I nurtured it and played with it and gave whatever it asked for, isn't that right Sudowoodo?" Brock said.
Sudowoodo laughed bashfully and blushed embarrassedly. "But you know, I knew that sooner or later I would have to start training it or it would've remained a Bonsly forever. So when I got home after Ash's Hoenn journey, I started training Bonsly in the gym, and when we got back on the road Bonsly showed signs of maturation, most notably the fact that it would eat regular Pokémon food. A little while later, Bonsly evolved into what you see today, and I couldn't be prouder of Sudowoodo even if I tried." Brock explained.
"Think about it Misty…assume that you and Ash really DO get married one day and have kids…are you gonna stop them from going on their own journeys?" Brock asked. "No…I guess not, but it's hard to let go." Misty replied. "That's just it, you don't HAVE to let go. You DO have to let them go their own way, but they'll always love you no matter what happens…I guarantee you Togetic never really let go of you, and you've never really let go of Togetic." Brock reached for one of Misty's Pokéballs and released Azurill into Misty's lap, where Azurill looked up at its weeping mother in concern.
"So what do you say Mother Misty? Will you help your kids grow up and reach their full potential?" Brock asked. Misty looked down at Azurill, who was nuzzling her chest in an attempt to comfort her. Misty gasped and squeezed the small Pokémon tightly in her arms. There were so many things running through her mind right now, and none of them were comfortable. She knew Brock was right, she loved Azurill just as much as she loved Togetic and she did want was best for it, but she was afraid of losing Azurill the same way she lost Togetic, but Togetic left to protect its own kind, not because it didn't like her.
Azurill would probably stay with her after it eventually evolved, but the maternal instincts inside of her were fighting to keep her baby Pokémon. But as she felt Azurill softly breathing in her arms, she realized how selfish she was being. Azurill loved her unconditionally and was always there when she needed it, even now when what was bothering her directly concerned it. And here she was, worrying more about how she would feel than her own Pokémon's health and happiness. "Azurill…I'm so sorry…I've done everything I could to be a good mother, but not a good trainer, can you ever forgive me?" Misty asked. Azurill looked up and smiled, using its tail to dab away the tears in its mother's eyes. Misty gasped again and hugged Azurill with a love that only a mother could have. "I'm sure Togetic forgives you too." Brock said with a sympathetic smile.
Misty looked up at Brock and smiled, "Thank you Brock. Thank you so much. From now on, I'm going to treat Azurill like a grownup Pokémon, and we're gonna get right to training so you can battle one day, does that sound good?" Misty asked. Azurill bounced up and down on its tail with excitement, which earned another loving hug from its trainer. "See you out there Misty." Brock nodded at the water-trainer and walked away. "Alright Azurill, no more baby Pokémon, from now on you're a grownup Pokémon." Misty said. Azurill whined playfully and nuzzled Misty's chest. "Well alright, maybe SOMETIMES." Misty laughed. Azurill hopped out of Misty's arms and pointed towards the battlefield where Ash and Dawn were getting ready to spar.
"You got it Azurill! Let's show them what you're made of!" Misty returned Azurill to its Pokéball and stood tall. "Today's the start of something new." Misty confidently walked out the doors of the Pokémon Center and stood at the edge of the battlefield with a determined look on her face. "Ash Ketchum!" she shouted. "Hey, you ok Misty?" Ash asked with concern. "I challenge you and Riolu to a battle!" Misty threw a Pokéball with all her might and the Polka Dot Pokémon emerged from it determinedly. Ash smirked at her girlfriend and couldn't help but chuckle. "You sure Misty? Me and Riolu won't be taking it easy on you just because it's Azurill." he said.
"We don't expect you to! Right Azurill?" Misty exclaimed. "Azu azu!" (Right Misty!) Azurill replied. "Pika pika Pikachupi pika chu pi pi pika." (Azurill called Misty by her name.) "Looks like Azurill's starting to grow up thanks to Misty." Ash replied. "Alright then Misty, let's do this!" Ash exclaimed. The couple faced off on the battlefield with the most determined looks that either Dawn or Brock had ever seen from either of them. "Wow, they're into it." Dawn said.
"Alright you two, it's a one-on-one battle right?" Brock asked. "That's the plan!" Ash replied. "Alright, let the battle begin!" Brock shouted. "I'll start! Azurill, let's get things started with 'Bubble'!" Misty ordered. Azurill jumped up and fired a blast of bubbles at the Emanation Pokémon, who was caught off guard by Azurill's fast reaction. Riolu took the hit and fell to the ground, groaning in pain. "Whoa! Where'd that come from?" Dawn exclaimed. "Looks like not even Misty knew how strong Azurill really was." Brock said in awe.
"Come on Riolu, let's get back in this!" Ash encouraged. Riolu cringed for a moment, but then Ash used his aura to speak to Riolu, "Come on Riolu, don't give up! Use 'Quick Attack'!" Riolu quickly jumped back up and charged for Azurill who was also caught off guard by the fast reaction. "Hey, using aura isn't fair!" Misty shouted angrily. "I have to train it both ways you know!" Ash quipped back. At first it looked like Azurill was going to cry, but then the small Pokémon bounced on its tail and stood back up with a determined look on its face. "Whoa, Azurill?" Misty said in shock. "You go Azurill!" Dawn cheered.
"Oh yeah? Riolu, use 'Quick Attack' again!" Ash ordered. Riolu charged for the small Pokémon to tackle it again with a lightning fast attack. "Azurill, dodge it by bouncing up on your tail!" Misty countered. Azurill bounced up onto its tail and dodged the attack by bouncing high into the air. "Now use 'Slam'!" Azurill obeyed and slammed down on the Emanation Pokémon from above, knocking Riolu back onto his back. "Whoa! When did Azurill learn 'Slam'?" Ash asked. "It learned 'Slam' a few days after it hatched! Pretty cool huh?" Misty replied. "Not bad, but I dare you to dodge this! Use 'Quick Attack' again!" Ash ordered.
Riolu charged again, but when Misty ordered the same dodge, Ash closed his eyes and spoke via aura again. "Jump up and hit Azurill from below!" Riolu acknowledged the aura command and jumped up to hit Azurill with a swift 'Quick Attack'. The Polka Dot Pokémon hit the ground with a thud and slowly got up to face its opponent again. "Alright Azurill, try a 'Water Gun'!" Azurill acknowledged and fired a stream of water from its mouth that hit right on target and knocked Riolu down. "No, Riolu!" Ash cried. "Keep it up Azurill!" Misty encouraged. Azurill continued to fire, stopping Riolu from getting up to counterattack. "Come on Riolu don't give up! Use 'Endure'!" Ash yelled. Riolu suddenly got a second wind, and with the help of 'Endure', the Emanation Pokémon managed to get up and dodge the attack.
But after the effects of 'Endure' wore off, Riolu was left with almost no energy. "He's done for! Finish it with 'Slam'!" Misty ordered. Azurill charged for the panting Riolu, who at first seemed helpless to even dodge the attack. "No Riolu, no!" Ash cried. Suddenly, Riolu started glowing in an orange light, and the Polka Dot Pokémon's momentum was abruptly reversed, and Azurill was sent flying onto its back. "What was that?" Dawn asked. "That's the move 'Counter'! When a Pokémon uses 'Counter', all physical moves like 'Slam' for instance are repelled and get countered for double the damage!" Brock replied.
"Awesome Riolu, way to go! You learned a brand new move!" Ash cheered. Riolu squealed happily and awaited further orders, "Alright, let's get back in this with another 'Quick Attack'!" Ash ordered. Riolu acknowledged and charged towards Azurill again. "Surprise surprise, another 'Quick Attack'. Use 'Slam' now!" Misty countered. Azurill charged as well and was about to go head to head with Riolu in a battle for superiority, but then Ash changed the plan. "Stop and use 'Counter'!" Acknowledging the aura command, Riolu stopped and glowed in the orange light again as it waited for Azurill to try and make contact.
"Quick Azurill, out of the way!" Misty screamed. But Azurill's reaction wasn't quick enough as Riolu repelled its attack and sent it flying backwards. "It's in the bag Riolu! 'Quick Attack'!" Ash ordered. Riolu charged towards the stumbling Azurill, who was battling just to stay up. "Come on Azurill, stay strong!" Azurill heard its master's encouragement and jumped up to dodge Riolu's attack. "Turn around and finish it with 'Quick Attack'!" Ash ordered. Riolu made a sharp U-turn and headed for Azurill once again. "No way! 'Water Gun'!" Misty countered.
Azurill fired, and the water headed directly for the intended target. "Not this time, use 'Endure' to fight it off!" Ash ordered. Riolu acknowledged and began to fight off the stream of water with 'Endure', and the two Pokémon battled to see who would win the battle finally.
"Give it all you got Riolu!"
"Finish this Azurill!"
Finally the effects of 'Endure' wore off only seconds before Azurill ran out of energy to prolong the 'Water Gun', and was knocked onto his back for the final time as Riolu simply couldn't handle anymore and fainted. "Riolu is unable to battle; the winner is Misty and Azurill!" Brock announced. "Azurill you did it! That was amazing!" Misty cheered, hugging the Polka Dot Pokémon tightly. Azurill happily cheered in its master's arms, as it celebrated its first official victory in a Pokémon Battle. Meanwhile, Ash had run onto the field to check on Riolu. "Riolu, are you ok?" Ash asked with concern.
"The baby Pokémon opened its eyes and looked up at his master with tearful eyes, he wasn't able to win and was in pain because of it. Ash smiled at Riolu and hugged it tightly in his arms. "Hey, don't cry Riolu, you were awesome. I'm proud of you…don't cry." Riolu felt the love in Ash's aura and tightly hugged Ash back, thanking Ash for comforting him. Then Misty walked up holding Azurill in her arms. "Riolu sure put up one heck of a fight." she said. "See Riolu? Even Misty's proud of you, you should be too." Ash said. Riolu jumped out of Ash's arms and hugged Misty's legs, which the water-trainer couldn't help but giggle at.
"Riolu's so sweet." Dawn gushed. "I'm gonna miss when it evolves one day, Lucario aren't quite as open with their emotions." Brock said. "I guess we should enjoy it while it lasts." Dawn sighed. "You know guys, if we're going to get a good seat on the boat we better get inside so we can get ready." Brock said. "But wait! I didn't get a chance to train yet!" Dawn exclaimed. "It's either train or Phione watching Dawn, your choice." Brock said. "I'll go get ready." Dawn rushed into the Pokémon Center, leaving the group to laugh at their youngest friend. After a little while, Brock came in to check on the group.
"Alright, everyone ready to go?" Brock asked, holding Happiny in his arms. "I've been ready for a long time!" Dawn squealed. "Alright, calm down. Ash, Misty, don't wander too far off tonight alright?" Brock said. "Don't worry Brock, we'll be alright." Ash replied. Just then, a white light emerged from Dawn's backpack, and the electric mouse on Ash's shoulder hopped down to meet it. "Looks like we have a double-date tonight." Misty giggled. "You gonna be alright Pikachu?" Ash asked. "Pi pika chu." (No problem.) Pikachu replied. Pikachu and Buneary walked out of the room on their own. "Hey, wait for us!" Dawn exclaimed.
"Well they definitely can't wait, shall we go next?" Misty asked, extending her arm. Ash smiled and hooked his arm with hers, and together they walked out as well with Dawn and Brock. Outside, the group walked out towards the pier and were about to walk towards the boat when Riolu tugged on Ash's sleeve from on top of his shoulder. "What's up Riolu?" Ash asked. The Emanation Pokémon pointed excitedly towards a submarine that was docked near the pier. "What's that?" Ash wondered. "Hey it looks like they're taking passengers." Dawn said.
"You don't think they're doing UNDERWATER Phione watching?" Misty squealed hopefully. "Only one way to find out." Brock said. The group walked towards the submarine and saw a sign that showed the price of a ticket. "They ARE! This is awesome! We've just GOTTA get on this sub!" Misty squealed. "I can't believe it's only fifty cents more than the regular boat per ticket." Brock said. "Who cares? We're going UNDERWATER!" Misty exclaimed. "Thanks to Riolu that is." Ash said proudly. "Riolu you little scamp, I owe you!" Misty said, rubbing the baby Pokémon's head. Riolu squealed happily at the show of affection and hopped into Misty's arms for a hug. "Aww, you're cute." Misty giggled. "Don't spoil Riolu, Mist." Ash snickered.
"I'm not spoiling him, he battled hard today and he's earned a little love." Misty said, nuzzling the little Pokémon's nose. Ash rolled his eyes and walked on towards the submarine. "Ladies and gentlemen, you can watch Phione ABOVE the ocean's waves…" the saleswoman shouted, "But if you need a submarine, we've got one!"
"There's nothing like viewing a fab Phione beneath the ocean white with foam!" the male shouted through a megaphone. "I agree!" Misty shouted. The three salespeople suddenly hid their faces when the four teens walked up with their Pokémon, but the group was so excited they paid no attention to this fact. "Excuse us, four tickets please." Brock said. Still hiding their faces, the salespeople handed the teens their tickets. "With ease." the woman mumbled. The group walked past them and entered the submarine, and a few moments later the three salespeople quickly became the captains of the submarine as their voices came over the intercom. "Ladies and gentlemen, we will now begin our descent; we ask that you please take your seats until we reach our reserved area."
The sub dove down, and after a few minutes, Pokémon of all sorts could be seen swimming around the water. "Wow, look at the Luvdisc, they're gorgeous!" Dawn exclaimed. As if on cue, a school of Luvdisc came near Ash and Misty's window and started doing a dance of some sort. "What's up with these Luvdisc?" Ash asked. A woman came by and explained her theory, "It's been said that when Luvdisc see two people who were meant to be together, they show it by doing a special dance." the woman said. "Wow…really?" Misty asked, blushing. "It's true, I found my husband thanks to a school of Luvdisc." the woman said happily. Ash and Misty looked at each other and smiled, and they couldn't hold back the urge to hold each other's hand as they watched the Luvdisc swim around gleefully. "So we're meant to be." Misty whispered tenderly, leaning her head on Ash's shoulder. "Glad I chose the right girl the first time." Ash whispered back, leaning his head on hers.
But then the Luvdisc moved on and started swimming around the next window. "What the? Me and Brock?" Dawn asked in shock. "Congrats Brocko, you found the love of your life." Ash snickered. "You're not funny Ash, I DON'T like Dawn that way." Brock replied. When the group looked down though, they noticed that Pikachu and Buneary were seated in the window together as well. "Aww, hey Ash, does this mean when you and Misty have kids one day, I'll be their Aunt Dawn?" Dawn asked, only half-jokingly.
Ash and Misty were in too much of a love-induced daze to even hear what the coordinator had said. They were cuddling in the window seat and nothing could disturb them. Brock spotted what they were up to and took Riolu off of Ash's other shoulder and tried to keep the baby Pokémon's mind off of Ash's aura by pointing out all sorts of Pokémon. It worked for the most part, as Riolu had Happiny to talk to. "Look Riolu, those are Finneon! Isn't being underwater cool?" Brock asked. Riolu squealed excitedly and pointed out a lone Sharpedo hunting for food. "Eh, that's a Sharpedo." Brock said. "You can tell that Riolu belongs to Ash, only he would think that a Sharpedo is cooler than these better looking Pokémon."
"You know we haven't really seen any Phione yet." Dawn said. Just then, Pikachu pointed out a small light in the distance. "Whoa, what's that?" they wondered. As the lights got closer, they realized that they were exactly what they were looking for: A trio of Phione. "It's a Phione!" Dawn squealed as the trio swam around the windows. "Wow, look you guys, aren't they cool?" Brock asked. Riolu and Happiny gasped in awe, eyes shining with admiration. Next to Ash and Misty, there was another young couple who were watching as the Phione swam around happily. "You know what this means?" the man asked his fiancé. "We'll be so happy together…forever." the wife-to-be replied. "Guess we added a little luck to our future huh Ash?" Misty whispered. "Yeah Mist, I'm glad we did this." Ash replied lovingly.
As the Phione continued to swim around, one Phione caught a glimpse of the Pokémon in the window and swam up to them excitedly. "Wow, this is too cute. Ash, Misty, come here!" Dawn exclaimed. Ash and Misty walked over hand-in-hand with Riolu hopping back onto Ash in the process. "Wow, I wonder what Phione's saying." Ash said. "It's hard to say, but I know one thing's for sure, it likes Buneary." Brock said. "Bun buneary?" (It likes me?) Buneary asked in shock. The group suddenly felt the hairs on their bodies start to stand up. "Uh oh…Ash, I think Pikachu's getting jealous." Misty whispered.
Ash looked down and saw that Pikachu's cheeks were shooting out tiny little daggers of static due to anger. Ash picked up the electric mouse and walked over to where the group couldn't hear him. "Pikachu, is something wrong?" Ash asked. "Pi pika chu pi pika!" (That Phione likes Buneary!) Pikachu growled. "So what Pikachu? There's no reason to get upset." Ash said. "Pika pika pika chu?" (What do you mean no reason?) Pikachu replied angrily. "Well it's only a big deal if Buneary likes the Phione back, does she?" Ash asked.
"Pi…pi pika chu." (No…I don't think so.) Pikachu replied. "Then don't worry about that Phione, just enjoy the view with Buneary while we're down here, ok?" Ash said. "Pika Pikapi." (Ok Ash.) Pikachu replied. The electric mouse hopped out of Ash's grip and back onto the windowsill where Phione was still squeaking gleefully at Buneary. "Bun bun?" (You ok?) Buneary asked. "Pi pika chu." (I am now.) Pikachu replied. Buneary placed a small peck on the mouse's cheek, making Pikachu blush. But when the Phione saw that, it started shouting in fury at Pikachu, luckily they couldn't hear anything Phione was saying through the glass. Before anyone could make a comment, the intercom came on again. "Attention passengers, we will now begin our ascent, please take your seats until we say it is safe to get up, thank you for riding with us."
The sub slowly made its way up and in a matter of minutes the group was docked at the pier again. "Wow, wasn't that amazing?" Dawn squealed. "Shh, Happiny and Riolu are asleep." Brock said as he gently rocked the tiny egg-toting Pokémon in his arms. "Heh, I didn't even notice." Ash gently took the baby Pokémon off of his shoulder and held him in his arms. Without even waking up, Riolu yawned and wrapped his arms around Ash's neck as Ash held him, peacefully sleeping in his master's arms. "Aww Ash, you look like such a good father." Misty giggled.
Let's head back guys, these guys need to get some sleep." Brock whispered. "Right." they replied. As they walked off the sub, the three captains/salespeople covered their faces again as they waved farewell to the four teens. Once they reached the Pokémon Center, they walked into their room and placed the two sleeping Pokémon on a chair. Then Ash and Misty walked out onto the balcony to spend a little time alone. "That was just AMAZING Ash, I've seen great things underwater, but this just trounced everything right away." Misty said.
"Glad you had fun Mist, it sure was something." Ash replied. "And…those Luvdisc…Ash those Luvdisc, it was just…I couldn't believe it Ash!" Misty said giddily. Ash chuckled and sat down in the chair on the balcony with a happy smile plastered on his face. Smiling, Misty sat down on Ash's lap and leaned back on him. Ash supported her by hugging her waist so she wouldn't fall off. "You know…seeing those Phione kinda reminded me about May and Manaphy." Ash said. "Oh yeah, you said you didn't want to go into detail." Misty replied.
"Yeah, I still don't really…Mist I'm so tired of seeing all these goodbyes…I'll never forget how painful it was for May to say goodbye to Manaphy…I mean, May was practically Manaphy's mother! She had even managed to get him to speak a few words. I really never saw a Pokémon that was so attached…Manaphy made my relationship with Pikachu look platonic." Ash said. "Ooh, 'platonic'. Ash know big words." Misty joked. "Very funny." Ash chuckled. "They must've been really close then." Misty said.
"They were. Ahh Mist…it hurts you know? Sometimes it feels like I've gone through more goodbyes than hellos, and each time it leaves a hole in my heart." Ash said. Misty turned around in his lap, and Ash scooted over to make room for her in the chair so they could sit together. "I'm sorry Ash." Misty said softly, leaning her head on Ash's chest. "I'm sorrier for May; she felt it more than any of us…just like Dawn was hurt most by Shaymin leaving." Ash replied.
"You know…saying goodbye is the exact reason I didn't want to train Azurill…I didn't want to chance Azurill leaving me like Togetic did…I know Togetic loves me, I just didn't want to have to part with Azurill the same way." Misty explained. "Brock talked you into it?" Ash guessed. "Yeah…he told me that I needed to learn to let go if I had to, and that Togetic would never let go of me even if we weren't together, so…I'm gonna train Azurill now." Misty replied.
"I wish I could fill all the holes in everyone's hearts…starting with Max and May since they had the earliest ones…" Ash said thoughtfully. Misty didn't have a reply to that, she understood how Ash was feeling and she knew that all she could really do at this point was to comfort him as best as she could. So the two sat in silence for a while, until the water-trainer eventually fell asleep, and Ash had to get Misty to her bed. After he got changed, he got under the covers and embraced the water-trainer's waist, and she showed her approval by scooting closer to him.
The next morning, Ash was woken up by an excited Riolu who was bouncing up and down on the bed, "Alright Riolu, I'm up, I'm up." Ash groaned sleepily. Riolu hopped of the bed and went to wake up Pikachu and Buneary, while Ash yawned and stretched before slinging his legs over the side. The excitement woke the rest of the group up too. "(Yawn) Might wanna get used to it Ash, when you have kids one day, you're gonna get a lot of wake up calls like that. My brothers are sisters are how I know that." Brock said.
"If they do that every morning they won't be MY kids, they'll be Misty's kids." Ash said. "Only if you want a mallet to the head." Misty warned, not opening her eyes. "The girlfriend has spoken." Dawn laughed. Ash sighed and went to go change into his regular clothes, but then Riolu jumped back onto the bed and started jumping up and down on Misty. "(Groan) Ash isn't here, why are you jumping on me?" Misty whined tiredly. "My guess would be that if Riolu sees Ash as his dad, he read his aura and views you as his mom." Brock laughed.
"(Sigh) I guess that's alright." Misty sat up in her bed and embraced the Emanation Pokémon, who squealed happily at the affection. "This little guy sure has a lot of energy." Misty said. "Just like Ash." Brock added. "Well as long as we're up, we might as well get started training." Ash said, coming out of the bathroom. Riolu quickly hopped out of Misty's hug and jumped up onto Ash's shoulder. "Alright Riolu, we're going. Come on guys!" Ash ran out of the room with Pikachu and Buneary trailing him. After a few minutes, the group walked outside to the battlefield and saw Ash doing some stretching with his Pokémon, counting off as they did poses to limber themselves up for a hard training session. "Mind if we join you?" Dawn asked. "Sure thing, just follow my lead!" Ash replied.
Misty tossed out a Pokéball and Azurill popped out, the Polka Dot Pokémon hopped over to where Piplup and Pachirisu had just joined Pikachu, Buneary, and Riolu, and together they all did a quick routine of stretches. "Alright guys, finish by just stretching your arms up to the sky." Ash stretched and reached for the clouds and everyone else followed suit, after a few seconds, Ash lowered his arms and exhaled, concluding the stretching. "Boy that felt good." Misty said. "I'll say, it really gets the blood flowing." Dawn added.
"Alright you guys, time for some special gym battle training!" Ash exclaimed. Pikachu and Riolu cheered when Ash said that. "Ash you're not REALLY gonna put Riolu through a gym battle ALREADY are you? It couldn't even beat Azurill yesterday let alone one of these Sinnoh gyms." Misty whispered. "Heck no Mist, but I want Riolu to get a taste of what it's like so when I DO decide he's ready, he'll be used to the training." Ash replied.
"Hey Ash, could we maybe do that training a little later?" Dawn asked. "Why?" Ash asked. "Well you see…I kinda wanted to buy some new seals for my contest Pokéballs, and if you three would join me it'd be great!" Dawn said. "But there's training to do." Ash said. "Think of it this way, you will be training since you're practicing what you'll go through whenever Misty decides to go shopping." Dawn said.
Misty giggled at that, "She's right you know, you'll have to carry my bags and everything." she laughed. "Come on, I won't be long! There's no need to worry!" Dawn exclaimed. "That's when I worry the most!" Ash whined. Dawn grabbed Ash and Brock by the hands and dragged them off to the nearby shopping center with Misty not far behind. Buneary followed her master's example and grabbed Pikachu by the hand, who like Ash was not exactly thrilled at the concept of shopping. But nevertheless the electric mouse yielded to the wishes of the small rabbit and followed along, with Piplup, Pachirisu, Riolu and Azurill trailing behind.
They soon found the contest shopping center and Dawn wasted no time filling up bags of contest stuff and handing it to the two men to carry. Even poor Pikachu had been forced to carry Dawn's shopping bag on his head. "What's even in here?" Ash asked incredulously. "Stuff I need for the contest of course! Hey Misty, come here and see what you like best." Dawn said, directing the older girl's attention to a wall full of contest Pokéball seals. "What do you think of this one?" Dawn asked, pointing at a purple heart seal. "Looks fine to me, but whose Pokéball will get the seal?" Misty replied. "I was thinking Buneary. What do you think Buneary?" Dawn asked. "Buneary! buneary!" (I like it! I like it!) Buneary replied approvingly.
"Chipa chipa pachi?" (What about this one?) Pachirisu asked. "Oh you like that one better Pachirisu? Ok, we can get that one for you then." Dawn replied. "Someone should be sealing her wallet shut." Ash grumbled. "Talk about being left holding the bag." Brock added. "Pika pika." (You said it.) Pikachu replied with a sweat-drop. Finally, Dawn walked up with her Pokémon in tow and Misty standing next to her. "Ok, all done." Dawn said. The two males shot annoyed glares at the coordinator who sweat-dropped. "Ok no more shopping guys, I promise." she laughed.
"Well alright! Finally we can get a little training done!" Ash exclaimed. "And so can we! Now that we have our new seals let's get to work!" Dawn exclaimed. Dawn's Pokémon cheered their approval. "And I know just the spot! There's a little spot near here next to the ocean that we can train without interruption." Misty added. "Perfect! Let's get going!" Dawn rushed out of the store with excitement, leaving the others to chase after the coordinator who immediately started training the moment she got there.
"Ok Piplup, I want you to spar with Pachirisu! Use 'Bubblebeam'!" Dawn ordered. Piplup didn't waste a second and fired a stream of bubbles towards the squirrel Pokémon. "Ok Pachirisu, 'Discharge'!" Dawn ordered. Pachirisu fired a blast of blue electricity towards the bubbles, making the two attacks criss-cross. "Looking good for a warm-up!" Dawn exclaimed. "Wow, Pachirisu's getting good!" Ash said. "With great appeal too. Nice." Brock added. "Great job Pachirisu! Alright, next…" but before Dawn could finish her sentence, something jumped out of the water with a happy cry.
"It's a Phione!" Dawn exclaimed. The ecstatic Phione hopped over to Buneary and Pikachu, and introduced itself to the rabbit Pokémon. "It can't be…" Misty said in disbelief. "It is…it's the same Phione from last night!" Dawn gasped. Ash looked over at Pikachu, and for the moment it seemed the electric mouse was doing a decent job controlling his temper. Piplup waddled over to Phione to shake its fin, but Phione angrily glared at the penguin, slapped his fin away and jumped up to fire an 'Ice Beam' that froze Piplup solid. "Aah! Piplup no!" Dawn cried. After a few moments however, Piplup thawed out and sighed with relief.
"But if things hadn't gotten bad enough, Team Rocket emerged from the water as well in their Magikarp submarine. "Not them!" Ash growled. The hatch opened and the trio of crooks appeared from inside. "You've been a naughty little water-type. But now after a lengthy search it's back in the pot you go." Jessie said. "Team Rocket! I'll bet you wanna steal Phione!" Ash growled.
Jessie: "Your grasp of the obvious never ceases to amaze. Do I hear a yes?"
James: "Go on twerp, take a guess!"
Jessie: "While we're on the wind…"
James: "Passing the stars…"
Meowth: "You'll WISH you were as smart as Jess!"
Jessie: "Bringing chaos at a breakneck pace!"
James: "Dashing all hope, putting fear in its place!"
Jessie: "A rose by any other name's just as sweet!"
James: "When it's worse our work is complete!"
Jessie: "Jessie!"
James: "And James!"
Meowth: "Meowth's da name!"
Jessie: "Putting you do-gooders in your place!"
James: "Because we're Team Rocket!"
Team Rocket: "In your face!"
"Don't even think about trying to take Phione!" Ash growled. "Another comedian…the real joke is that Phione is all OURS." Jessie snickered. "So come on Phione, come to Jamesy!" James said friendlily. But Phione backed off in fear, it knew that Team Rocket was bad; after all, they had captured it, stuffed it in a pot and even now had chased it all the way around Chocovine Town during its quest for Buneary. Speaking of the little rabbit, Phione turned around and gasped in horror when it was Buneary hiding behind Pikachu nervously.
Fire ignited in the little water-type's eyes, and it started spouting off at Pikachu who was gradually growing angrier as Phione continued its verbal onslaught. "Meowth, could you translate that for us?" Jessie asked. "Believe it or not, Phione's challenging Pikachu to a battle!" Meowth replied. "Battle?" the group exclaimed in shock. Phione shouted off some more, and this time Pikachu responded by getting down on all fours and sparking his cheeks with anger.
"You all might wanna sit down for dis one but Phione says dat whoever wins it gets ta be with Buneary ta have and ta hold." Meowth translated. "Well…if you had told me that Phione had THAT kind of moxie I never would've believed it." Jessie said. "Oh dear, that's so romantic!" Dawn gushed. "What?" Ash shouted at the coordinator.
"A troubled soul searching for love…Phione I totally understand!" Brock shouted passionately. "What? Brock, Pikachu likes Buneary, remember?" Ash exclaimed angrily. Pikachu responded to the determined water-type, who seemed completely undeterred by Pikachu's sparks. "Even I can't believe dis one, but Pikachu just told Phione: 'You must be crazy if you tink you can beat an electric-type in a head-ta-head battle.'" Meowth translated. Phione shouted back with even more determination than ever. "Oh wow…" Meowth couldn't believe his ears.
"Spit it out Meowth!" Jessie said. "Phione just taunted Pikachu saying dat he's scared ta battle with it." Meowth translated. "Pikachu's not scared of anyone!" Ash shouted. Pikachu growled at the water-type and gave one last response. "Wow…I neva pictured Pikachu as da doity mouth type." Meowth said. "Just clean it up a bit for all the twerps out there." James said. "Basically Pikachu told Phione: 'Bring it on you big drip, one 'Thunderbolt' and I'll send ya packing!'" Meowth translated. "Well this is worth the price of admission right here!" Jessie, James and Meowth scurried over to the sidewalk with the teens to watch the battle take place. While this was happening, Buneary hopped into Dawn's arms with worry etched on the small rabbit's face. "Don't worry Buneary, everything will be alright." Dawn comforted.
"Pikachu's actually fighting for Buneary." Misty said in disbelief. "I really don't know what to do other than hope Pikachu wins." Ash added. "Well I'll tell you this Ash; this is serious, so no matter what…we gotta see this through!" Brock said. "Guess you're right Brock." Ash replied.
"Pika pika!" (I'm first!) Pikachu charged towards the water-type with a swift 'Quick Attack'. "Whoa, that's 'Quick Attack'! Pikachu must really wanna get the first hit." Ash said. But before Pikachu made contact, Phione split into a bunch of other Phione, leaving Pikachu hitting nothing but air. "Whoa, that was 'Double Team'!" Misty exclaimed. "That Phione sure knows what it's doing." Brock added. Phione then leaped up and launched sound waves from its mouth.
"Here comes a 'Supersonic'!" Meowth exclaimed. "Pikachu better dodge it or it's date time for Buneary!" James added. But the electric mouse was ready for it and quickly leaped out of the way. Then Pikachu jumped up and his tail turned to steel. "That's 'Iron Tail'!" Dawn exclaimed. Phione didn't want to take the hit, so it quickly hopped into the water and seemingly dissolved before Pikachu could make the hit. "What happened to Phione?" Ash asked. "That's 'Acid Armor'! Just like Vaporeon does!" Misty replied.
For a moment Pikachu was worried, but then it smirked as an idea popped into his head. His cheeks sparked furiously and the electric mouse launched a furious 'Thunderbolt' towards the water, shocking the hiding Phione and sending it flying out of the water. "Whoa! That was incredible!" Ash exclaimed. "Pikachu used the water to his advantage and used 'Thunderbolt' knowing that the water would conduct it and hit Phione. Pikachu continued his assault and leaped up into the air, and slammed Phione down to the sand with a powerful 'Iron Tail'.
"Oof, even I felt dat one." Meowth groaned. "Pikachu's battling with the heart of a lover and a warrior." James added. It was then that Phione realized that it had bitten off more than it could chew by challenging the obviously more powerful electric-type to a battle, but one glance over at the worried Buneary gave it a second wind. Phione used 'Double Team' and split into ten different Phione, surrounding the electric-type. "So which one's the real one?" Dawn wondered. The Phione readied a 'Supersonic', but Pikachu wasn't ready to throw in the towel by any means. Smirking, Pikachu leaped up and spun while using 'Thunderbolt', making a carousel of electricity that took out the fake Phione and zapped the real one into losing focus.
"Whoa, Pikachu used his Counter Shield to take out the fake Phione!" Ash exclaimed. Now Phione was mad. The water-type blasted an 'Ice Beam' at Pikachu, who quickly dodged it and charged ahead with a 'Quick Attack'. Pikachu tackled Phione with the attack ad followed up with an 'Iron Tail' that sent Phione flying up into the air. Then Pikachu leaped up and used 'Iron Tail' again to slam Phione down into the sand and then immediately followed up with a 'Thunderbolt' before he could even land. "Pikachu's gone crazy!" Misty exclaimed.
Phione pushed itself up, panting and almost totally exhausted as it angrily glared at its opponent. It tried to fire another 'Ice Beam' but it just didn't have the strength to summon the power it needed. Pikachu grinned almost evilly and charged to finish Phione off with a mighty 'Volt Tackle'.
"Pikachu, that's enough!" Ash yelled. But Pikachu was in a blind rage, and it had only one thing on its mind and that was to take down Phione and stop it from getting anywhere near Buneary. But Buneary had seen enough and hopped out of Dawn's arms. "Buneary, what are you doing?" Dawn shouted.
Buneary jumped in front of the injured Phione and held out her arms defiantly. "Bun bun!" (Enough!) Pikachu's eyes widened in horror when he saw Buneary block his target. Pikachu desperately changed direction and wound up ramming into a cement pole with the attack. "Pikachu!" Ash ran over to the electric mouse and held him in his arms, "Are you ok Pikachu?"
Pikachu smiled and nodded. Buneary looked back at Phione, "Bun buneary?" (Are you ok?) Phione looked up and smiled happily at the small rabbit defending it. But Phione's smile quickly disappeared when Buneary hopped over to Pikachu to check on his condition. "Bun Buneary bun?" (You ok Pikachu?) "Pika chu." (I'm fine.) Buneary then hopped back over to Phione and spoke up. "Meowth, translation please." Jessie said.
"Buneary's saying dat she's flattered dat Phione would be willing ta fight for her, but da choice of who she'll be with should be determined by her and not a battle." Meowth translated. Phione sadly looked into the eyes of the rabbit Pokémon and replied. "Now Phione's asking Buneary what her choice is." Meowth translated.
Buneary looked down at Phione, and then back at Pikachu whose eyes were also longing to know what her choice would be. Finally, Buneary spoke up and looked down at Phione. "Buneary's saying…she chooses Pikachu." Meowth translated. Phione got up and looked down in sadness, then finally looked back up and talked to Buneary with a longing look in its eyes. "Alright, what's the current fuss?" Jessie asked. "Phione's saying…goodbye." Meowth replied. Just as Meowth finished, Phione glumly began hopping towards the ocean, its heart shattered and its spirit crushed. "Goodbye? Just a minute! We're not going to let your personal problems get in our way!" Jessie exclaimed. "Deal with them on your own time!" James added. "Back here on the double!" the Team Rocket trio took off after Phione, but Buneary and Pikachu leapt into action and barricaded the way.
"What are you going to do? Stop us with cute?" Jessie screamed angrily. "Buneary, stop them with 'Ice Beam'!" Dawn ordered. Buneary fired, and Phione joined in with its own 'Ice Beam', freezing Team Rocket in a solid block of ice. "Now Pikachu, 'Thunderbolt', let's go!" Pikachu complied and launched a furious blast of electricity at the chunk of ice, and sent the frozen trio blasting off again. After that, Phione took one last glance at Buneary before starting its lonely swim away. "Poor Phione looks so lonely." Dawn said sadly.
"I feel its pain! The pain of lost love!" Brock cried. "Add another goodbye to the list." Ash grumbled. Misty heard Ash's comment and suddenly came up with an idea. "Phione! Phione wait!" she shouted. Phione turned around and swam back to shore, where Misty was waiting for it. Misty whispered in the little water-type's ear and its spirits immediately lifted. Then, Misty pulled out a Pokéball and Phione entered it and was happily captured by the trainer. "Misty, what are you doing? Capturing Phione will only make more drama!" Brock exclaimed. Misty walked by the group without saying a word, but after she walked about five feet, she turned around. "Let's head back."
Misty turned and walked on to the Pokémon Center, leaving the others to follow in confusion. When they got there, Brock and Dawn went to get dinner, but Ash stayed back. "You're up to something Misty, what's up?" Ash asked. "I'm just gonna put Phione somewhere where it'll be happy, don't worry!" Misty replied. "Where? Cerulean?" Ash asked. "Don't be silly, Phione wouldn't get to breathe with my sisters hugging it twenty-four/seven. Go and get something to eat Ash, and just leave everything to me." Misty winked and ran off to the videophones, leaving a bewildered Ash in her wake.
Later that night, Misty remained totally quiet about what she had done with Phione despite the constant questioning by Ash, Dawn, and Brock. After they all had dinner, the trio had grown weary of asking, so they gave up until tomorrow, when they'd be back to harassing the water-trainer to relinquish what she had done with Phione. After the lights went out, Ash and Misty headed off to bed, and after they got under the covers, Misty asked a question, "So how you feeling Ash?"
Ash sighed, knowing what she was referring to. "Aww Mist, I already told you how I feel about goodbyes, all I can say is that I'll just have to cope with this one too since you won't tell me what you did with Phione, for all I know you released it into another ocean."
"I can assure you that Phione is plenty happy where it is right now. Do you trust me?" Misty asked. "Well sure I do." Ash replied. "Do you love me?" Misty asked. "…Yeah." Ash replied sheepishly. "Then go to sleep and don't worry about Phione. I'll tell you tomorrow…but I WILL say this…one of those holes in your heart are currently on the mend." Misty placed a sweet kiss on Ash's chest and snuggled up to him, and the trainer smiled and relaxed in the gym leader's embrace.
[Flashback]
"Hello?" a cheery voice said. "Hey there May!" Misty replied. "Misty! Good to hear from you! How are you and Ash doing?" May asked cheekily. Misty giggled and replied, "We're doing great, and how about you? Has Drew opened up to you yet?" she asked. "Nothing yet, but what your older sister told me gives me hope! He recently gave 'Beautifly' another rose." May replied.
"Sounds good! Hey listen…Ash told me about you and Manaphy and…I couldn't help but call and tell you I'm sorry too." Misty said. May's eyes widened and she sighed sadly, "Oh he did huh?" she sighed. "I'm sorry if you didn't want it passed around, I could whack him with my mallet if you like." Misty joked. May laughed, "No that's alright, it's not a secret…it's just that Manaphy still holds a special place in my heart, and I have both fond and not so fond memories about it."
"Well…if you're interested…I think I may have something you'd like." Misty said. "A present? Cool!" May replied. Misty smiled and placed a Pokéball on the send platform, and in a moment it appeared in the Pokémon Center in Johto. "What's this?" May asked. "Let it out and you'll see." Misty replied. May examined it for a moment and finally let it out, and she gasped in awe at the creature that popped out. "Misty…is this…?" May asked.
"It's all yours…see we're here in Chocovine Town and there's a whole bunch of those little guys swimming around…I figured…maybe you'd enjoy having a little memento of all the fun times you had with Manaphy." Misty said. "Misty…I…I don't know what to say." May gasped as the little Pokémon snuggled up to her.
"Well you could say 'thank you' AND 'you're welcome'." Misty said. "Why 'you're welcome'?" May asked. "Well in a way…this is also a present to Ash and the little guy hugging you. See it fell in love with Dawn's Buneary, so I told it that you have all sorts of Pokémon it could be friends with…and Ash…Ash always hated the way you felt when you had to say goodbye to Manaphy…he…I don't know if I should be telling you this." Misty admitted. "I swear I won't tell a soul, I won't even let on that he knows if he asks, this is STRICTLY between you and me." May replied.
"Well…he told me that…every goodbye he's ever gone through has left a hole in his heart that hurts him all the time…and he told me he wishes there was a way to maybe fill those holes…this is my way of filling one of the holes in that all too big heart of his." Misty explained. "Aww Misty, it's YOU who has the big heart, how you can manage to make so many people happy all at once is beyond me…" By now May was beginning to tear up as she squeezed the little Pokémon in her arms. "I-I love it Misty, thank you. And don't worry, Phione will be well taken care of." May said gratefully. Right before Misty said goodbye, Dawn's Buneary hopped up, surprising everyone. "Bun buneary!" (Bye Phione!) she waved.
"Phi phi ne!" (Bye Buneary!) Phione waved back. Misty and May smiled at each other and waved goodbye was well. And right after May hung up; the water-trainer got up, holding Buneary in her arms and headed to the cafeteria, preparing herself for the inevitable flood of questions about Phione. "I wanna keep it a secret until tomorrow ok? So don't tell." she said. Buneary nodded and smiled up at the water-trainer. One thing was for sure, Misty couldn't wait to tell Ash tomorrow how Phione and May had been made happy, and two of the holes in his heart had just been plugged by the actions of his redheaded girlfriend.
_
A/N: Well that's that! We see a lot of things in this chapter: Pikachu and Buneary's relationship is growing stronger, Misty is no longer acting like just a "mommy" to Azurill, and Riolu has his first battle! For those of you who were disappointed with Riolu losing, I'm sorry but logically, with only one damaging attack it would get too repetitive for Misty to simply lose to a whole bunch of Quick Attacks. But you all gotta admit, isn't Riolu cute? ^^ And don't worry, the little guy will learn more moves, and it will eventually become a powerful Lucario...the only question is when. And if you think Phione went down too easy, let's think about it for a moment. Pikachu has trainer for three years with Ash, gone through four different regions (six if you count the Orange Islands and the Battle Frontier), learned the most powerful attacks a Pikachu can learn, and a whole bunch of techniques like the Counter Shield. While Phione is a random wild Pokemon looking for love...somehow I think Pikachu is the obvious winner. And lastly, Phione's final destination...I always thought it was weird that Phione's friends forgot about it and then randomly appeared again at the end of the show...so I used May and managed to connect the past parts of this chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it! And please make sure to review!