Hello everybody and welcome back to chapter three of Ketchum Academy.

This is the longest and most complex story so far. It's twice as long as the Paul chapter. At this rate, I don't want to know how long the Max chapter will end up being.

Anyway, I hope it's length reflects its quality. Next chapter will be on Max.


"Everybody makes a wrong turn once in a while."

- Ash Ketchum


It was about six in the afternoon somewhere deep in the forest that surrounded Lumiose academy. Red cautiously tracked down the trail, the bill of his cap lifted up slightly to block any offending sunrays. Clinging onto his bag, Paras clicked softly, mushrooms pulsating slowly as he dozed.

He'd slipped away from his friends about half an hour before under the excuse of extra homework. He'd not been lying off course, after Bonnie and Max's recent argument over trust and secrets he knew better than to. He'd even, at Max's request, specified that it was a project he was doing for Paul. He'd just not explained exactly what that project was.

He turned a bend in the path that took him down the hill to a creek at the bottom of a small valley. The banks leading down to the water were a lot more open, with less trees to restrict the movements of him or his Pokemon.

He set his bag down and Paras scuttled off next to him. He then opened the zip and laid out his Pokédex and emergency first aid kit before reaching down and carefully extracting the heavy ball from the bottom. He studied the ball's silver gleam as he held it, getting a good sense of the weight. It was surprisingly light for a heavy ball, weighing about the same as the cheaper plastic pokeball he kept Paras in. Then again, this was an apricorn ball which probably reduced the weight a bit.

After a few minutes of hesitation, he stood in up. He closed his eyes and gave a deep breath before giving the ball a small underhand toss.

"DAAAC-TEEEL!"

Red had just enough time to scream before being slammed into the ground.

He held his eyes closely shut as he felt his body get dragged brutally through the mud. He felt his head hit something hard with a thud.

Upon opening his eyes he saw another pair of cold, silver, reptilian eyes staring down at him. Beneath that was an absolutely ginormous jaw line filled to the brim with gleaming white teeth.

What a thematic way for me to die! he thought. At the hands of a mismanaged Pokemon. Something that I didn't deserve.

The monster above him suddenly let out a pained scream and flinched. Red felt it release him as it bucked its head backwards repeatedly, its magnificent wings flapping wildly as it let out an irritated scream. It turned around and Red saw the source of its discomfort. On its back, clinging on for dear life, was Paras, forceps dug deep and legs flailing in the air.

The beast spread its wings as wide as they would go and managed to shake the small bug type off. With a few flaps, it had cleared the tree line. Red winced in pain as he got up as quickly as he could and began to limp after the runaway Pokemon.


"Looks like it's down to the wire folks, Charizard seems to be dodging Blastoise's hydro pump really easily right now!"

"But for how long could he keep that up I wonder? Guess we'll have to find out!"

The sweet melody drifted slowly out of the closed door to the boys dorm. Mr Fuji's hand wavered on the door as he heard the sounds of battle drift up from behind the door. They were interspersed with another noise: the passionate cheer of a young boy. The old man chucked as he slowly creaked open the door.

All of the other boys were outside in the back yard, playing with their Pokemon. However, this six-year-old was inside, sitting quietly on his bunk with a Paras at his feet completely enraptured in the scene on the small television in front of him. He had short, scruffy brown hair that often flopped over his ruby eyes.

"Come on Charizard! Use Seismic Toss!"

The boy's young face was bright and cheery as he passionately cheered for his hero. His obsession was clear from the wall behind him. It was scattered with pictures, photographs he had carefully snipped out of newspapers, all of which displayed the same spiky-haired trainer, alongside with multiple stickers of Pikachu and Charizard. Upon noticing Mr Fuji, he turned around sharply.

"Sorry sir," he began, picking up the controller and switching off the TV. "I've been watching this for quite a while now."

"I see. The same old Ash Ketchum match again?" Fuji began.

Red giggled "Of course!" He said. "It's the coolest match ever!" he looked the older man straight in the eye. "What did you come to see me about? Is it lunch time yet?"

Mr Fuji chuckled and sat down next to him. "Well I've got some good news for you. I've been making some calls and," He took Red's hand in his, "I think we found you a new family!"

Red beamed "Like, a mummy and daddy? An adoption?"

"Yes, or more accurately just a mother. I'm not sure what happened to her husband but she has a son who is journeying in Hoenn right now, I believe."

Red had been reading up on Hoenn recently. It was rumoured that that was where Ash Ketchum was travelling.

"What's she like?"

"Why don't you find out for yourself? She's currently downstairs."

Red beamed and sprang to his feet. Paras' pokeball, which had been in his lap, clattered to the floor. He yelped, dropping down to his knees and picking the sphere up. He then stood up and held it out to Mr Fuji. "I suppose you'll be wanting this back then. You know, because I'm leaving."

Mr Fuji smiled softly. "Keep it," he said. "He was your Pokemon since I gave him to you." He bent down and gripped Red in a crushing hug. "Please come back to visit sometime. And look after Paras for me. He doesn't want to be abandoned again."

They stayed in the hug for some time. Before they separated, Red asked a crucial question.

"What'll happen to Leaf after I go? I don't want her to be lonely,"

"Don't worry about her," Fuji replied "Leaf's a big girl. She'll be fine. Besides, I'll still be looking after her."

"Great," Red replied as he went downstairs to meet his new mother.


Red grimaced. He had expected the training of this Pokemon to be a challenge, but not to this degree. He wondered how Paul would react if it got lost or, even worse, was found ruthlessly attacking someone.

He kept his neck craned upwards, tracking the flying Pokemon as it cruised through the air. The beast dipped down beneath the treeline again, out of sight. Red was so focussed at staring at the sky that he didn't notice a particularly large tree root. With a yell, he tripped and fell onto his face.

He stayed there for some time, face in the mud. His lips were cut and bleeding, his limbs buzzing with pain. He got up slowly, cringing as the bruises on his legs made contact with the ground. Somewhere in from of him he heard an immense thud, which he hoped was the Pokemon landing, following by the yelp and then nervous laughter of a girl.

Red took a few shaky steps forward, thanking Mew that nothing was broken. Most of the initial pain and shock eventually faded and he was soon able to walk reasonably confidently towards the noises in front of them.

"You are a beauty, aren't you? Want something to eat?" The girls voice called. The voice was irritatingly high pitched but also oddly familiar.

"Aeeeer," the Pokemon growled in response.

Red slowly approached the noise, pushing a fairly stubborn bush out of the way.

Ahead of him, the forest opened to reveal a moderately sized field. On one side the river burbled peacefully along the edge. The grass was fairly tall, growing to about his shins and littered with wildflowers, many of which has been trampled by something large. The sun shone unbroken across the entire field, bathing the scene in golden light. However, there was something in the middle that blocked out much of the light, drowning part of the field in shadows.

Now that it wasn't trying to kill him, Red could finally appreciate the Pokemon that Paul had given him.

The beast was smaller than he had actually expected, only being a little under six feet tall. It was bipedal, with well-muscled legs that ended in crushing talons. It's arms had developed into massive wings, each one easily as long as a Pidgeot's and connected by a deep purple membrane. It's scales were a light shade of matte grey, with none of the interesting countershading or patterns expected of other reptilian Pokemon.

It's head was massive, with jaws that could easily crush him in to if the beast desired that. It tapered back into a pair of short, blunted horns the same colour as the skin. Overall the appearance was a peculiar one: scaled, but not a dragon; winged, but not a bird; like nothing Red had ever seen before. It seemed as if it were an ancient beast of some bygone era.

"Pretty, isn't he?"

Red flinched in surprise, turning around too look for whoever had just spoken to him.

Leaf stood behind him, giggling at his actions. It took him a second to recognise her. He wasn't used to seeing most of the class, besides Max and Bonnie of course, outside of school uniform and he could barely see Leaf's face due to the white short-brim hat that was pushed down over her eyes.

"What're you doing here?" Red began, his voice accusatory.

"I could say the same about you," She countered lifting her hat so she could look him in the eye.

"Well that's none of your business," Red jabbed a finger at the Pokemon, who appeared to be judging which of them would make for the tastier snack. "What're you doing with my Pokemon?"

"Wait he's yours?" She said, awe in her voice.

"Not really," he looked away bashfully. "I'm borrowing him from Paul. Until next term."

"Paul doesn't seem like the kind of guy to do free handouts."

"It's a long story."

"I see. And what happened to your Paras?"

Red looked over his shoulder, back to where he came from. "I... don't know in all honesty. He must have got lost when the thing..."

"My Pokédex is calling it an Aerodactyl..."

"...When the Aerodactyl escaped," he shrugged. "It's fine. He'll find its way back, some way or other."

Leaf's tone became deadly serious, contrasting strangely with the grin that continued to adorn her face. "Then you are going to look for him. And you are not going to stop until you find him." She grabbed his wrist and began to pull him back into the forest. "And along the way, you're gonna tell me how you ended up with that Pokemon."

Aerodactyl stared in bewilderment as the two rivals disappeared into the woods again, the boy complaining along the way.


Cold.

Dark.

Wet.

These were the first thoughts that went through Paras' mind as he slowly got up. Standing as high as he could on all six legs he opened his glassy eyes.

He gazed around in shock. He couldn't see a thing. There was something blocking his vision, a red fabric of some kind. Light was filtering through the stitches of the fabric, in the same way that it filters through the material of a tent.

His hearing was naturally very weak but now that his feet were on the ground he could feel the trembling of the ground which signalled large and heavy footsteps.

Large, heavy, fast moving footsteps.

Footsteps headed in his direction.

As they came closer, Paras could also pick up a muffled chattering sound. He silently prayed to the lord of all bug types (whoever that may be) that he wouldn't be spotted. What if it was that Aerodactyl from earlier, coming back from more?

Paras opened his mouth, coughing up a pile of purple slime, which he fashioned into a small sphere with his forceps. He held the Sludge Bomb tentatively, ready to throw it at whoever next came to attack him.

"Oh here it is!" He heard a voice say, muffled by his poor hearing and whatever was covering his face. It sounded like a vaguely familiar male human of some kind.

"What? You've found Paras?" He heard a more distant female voice respond. This made him clutch the ball of toxic gunk even tighter. Whoever it was was looking for him!

"No, my hat! I must have lost it when Aerodactyl attacked me." The male voice responded.

Suddenly, a great shade was cast over Paras. He could catch the silhouette of the male human as it crouched over him, reaching out to grasp at something. He raised his arm, ready to fire as soon as the cover was raised...

"Don't get distracted. It's your Pokemon remember?"

"Yeah, yeah. Give me a few seconds and... Aah!"

As soon as the cover was lifted, Paras flung the Sludge Bomb.

Red stumbled backwards. Purple goo was splattered all over his jacket and was slowly dripping down onto his jeans. He let out a loud gasp, the air having been knocked out of his system by the impact. Why did everything want to push him over today?

Leaf approached slowly, giggling hysterically as she went. She turned to Paras, who was standing there frozen in surprise, sludge dripping from both his mandibles and his forceps.

"Great job Paras! You caught him totally off guard there, didn't you?"

The bug type was completely in shock. He's never received such praise before, at least not in a couple of years.

Red was utterly crimson in embarrassment. He gripped his hat tightly and placed it no back on his head, pulling the bill firmly down over his eyes. Had he been slightly less tired and not already been in pain he may have remembered to keep his cool. But no. He was pissed.

He stomped over to the bug, giving him an absolutely blood-chilling gaze. "I suppose you thought that was a joke do you? Well now I've wasted time that could be spent training with considerably stronger Pokemon looking for you and, as if you haven't caused enough pain already, you ruin a perfectly nice jacket! Worthless bug!"

"Be nice Red!" Leaf said indignantly. "That was the best I've ever seen Paras do! He really seems to be improving."

She was smiling, as always. Anyone else he knew would have been angry. Even Max and Bonnie would have been at least a bit disappointed, even if they had both grown polite enough to hide that by now. But Leaf never let anything get her down. And something about that aspect of her always irritated Red.

"Oh shut up Leaf! He's still not strong enough to beat you, or anyone else for that matter. Might as well stick to Aerodactyl now that I have them. Now that's a Pokemon that could stand up to Ash!"

Leaf rolled her eyes. Of course Red was still utterly obsessed with that trainer. "Ash used a lot of unconventional Pokemon. If you trained Paras like he did with..."

"Oh really. What's so weird and quirky about using a Charizard or a Sceptile or an Infernape? He used powerful Pokemon, not scrubs!"

"I see," Leaf chuckled. "And what about Rowlet, or Gible or Pikachu?"

"Pikachu doesn't count!"

"Oh he does. Do you think that Pikachu would have gotten as far as he did without Ash's love for it? His bond with it?" Red was about to interject but she continued talking "You should probably try that yourself. I don't see you do that much anymore. No training explicitly for battle, just playing with your Pokemon and trying to make friends with them."

Red snorted sarcastically "Ah yes playtime! Such an epic battle strategy! I'm sure that will cause me to win all my battles all of a sudden!"

"I'm being serious here Red." Her smile wavered slightly. "This reminds me, I was doing some research into our teachers the other day. Do you know that Paul once had an interview where he said that the only way to train Pokemon was through discipline, ditching the weak ones and focussing on the strong?"

That fact caused Red to let out a small laugh. "So Paul did give out good advice once!"

"Oh I wouldn't call Paul the best source of Pokemon training opinions. Don't get me wrong, I respect him as my teacher, but bear in mind that he managed to get no further than the quarter finals in any of the regional leagues he entered. Do you think that he'd be teaching rowdy teenagers if he had the chance?"

"I suppose that's fair," Red reasoned before snorting. "Playtime's still a stupid concept though. Sounds like some bullshit that Mr Fuji would say."

Suddenly, Leaf's entire demeanour changed. Her bright blue eyes became ice cold, glaring furiously from beneath her hat. Her hands balled up into fists.

"You take that back!" she snapped, a chill in her voice. "You take that back right now!"

Red humphed. "Why should I? All he ever did was go on about humans and Pokemon and the bonds we share! I got nothing from my time there! Nothing but him!" He jabbed a finger at Paras.

Leaf looked practically inconsolable. Red realised that this was probably the first time since he met her that he has seen her like this.

"Do you have any idea how much that man sacrificed for us? For you Red? Or the amount he did for me?"

Red was silent.

"Remember when he first gave you that Paras? The promise he made you take that you would protect and care for him in the way his old trainer wouldn't?"

He remained still. He was lost for words, unsure of what to say in front of Leaf's tirade. She didn't see that though. She took his silence for a lack of care.

"You know Red, when I first learned that we were both gonna end up studying here I was excited to get to know you, see how you've changed after ten years. I didn't expect you to turn out so... so sour."

Red was about to interject but Leaf stopped him. "It's because of Ash isn't it? You became so obsessed with being like him that you forgot to be yourself, didn't you?"

"Leaf please!" Red protested. "I've not forgotten myself!" He gritted his teeth "And I don't see why you get to choose who I idolise."

"Fine then," Leaf turned briskly on her heel "you choose who to look up to. Your fake fantasy version of a trainer you've never met or the man who raised you." She began to angrily walk away "And don't blame me if you're disappointed!"

"Leaf, wait!" Red called out, dashing ahead and trying to prevent her from leaving. Leaf turned around and, with surprising strength, shoved him over with one hand. She then kept stoically walking onwards without saying a word.

Red stood up, groaning in pain as he picked up his hat off of the floor. At his feet, paras gazed up at him. He heard a whistling noise as Aerodactyl cruised down and landed next to the grass type. Both Pokemon had the same emotion in their eyes:

Disappointment.

Pure, undistllled disappointment.


Red managed to get back to his dorm relatively easily. As he opened his door, noticing that Max was already asleep in the top bunk, he realised how tired he was. His cuts and bruises, the culmination of the multiple times he had fallen over that evening, made him feel weak and drained.

He dragged himself to the bathroom and looked himself in the mirror. With his frayed hair, dirty face and slightly-askew cap, he would have looked like Ash. But the lively, determined sparkle that was always in Ash's eyes was not present in his own at all. Instead they were dull and bloodshot, a testament to a lack of sleep and a long day of work and training.

He drew the first-aid kit from his bag and began to sponge off his wounds. The stinging of the water on his cuts was not what was on his mind however. His evening had been too eventful for that to bother him.

After he had finished he walked out of the bathroom, not bothering to pack up the first-aid kit and instead slumping into the bottom bunk. As he lay there, futilely trying to go to bed, he remembered his argument with Leaf.

Part of him was still adamant that he had been in the right. He'd grown up and now had a goal to strive to. She had not changed a bit in ten years, still as naive, stupid and unbearably positive about literally everything as she was when they were nine.

On the other hand, there was something appealing about the how kind she was to him that justified her outburst. Leaf always helped him in class, greeted him in the hallways and acted like the model sportswoman when she bested him in battle. She had tried her best to get to know him again, to make up for lost time...

...And in return Red had been nothing but a prick.

He sighed. How could he have been so stupid? He'd forgotten what Paul had said to him two weeks ago. After he had been threatened, both by Paul and Electrivire, Red had sworn that he would do better, that he would prove to everyone that he was capable of being a good trainer.

But here he was, still being a terrible trainer, still being a terrible friend, still being a terrible person. He had let himself down again.

Red turned in his bed, facing the wall. There hung a poster, a piece of merchandise from three years ago released by the World Coronation Tournament. Around the edge were depicted four Pokemon: an Infernape, charging a punch on the left; a strangely coloured Greninja striking a pose on the right; a Sceptile, arms crossed and blades extended beneath; a Charizard with its wings spread high above.

These four formed a border for another six Pokemon that were arranged in a ring around the centre: a grinning Dracovish, a roaring Dragonite, a cackling Gengar, a Sirfetch'd charging a Meteor Assault, a badass Lucario and above them all a Pikachu, smiling determinedly in an aura of electricity.

And in the centre, beneath the Pikachu there stood a trainer. He was a a young adult, about 18 years in age, with spiky black hair, a dirty, tanned face and a reckless gleam in his eyes. On his head he wore a bright red pokeball-logoed hat.

How would he do in this situation? Red thought as he gazed upon the face. What would my brother do?


"Attention everyone," Professor Sycamore's voice rang out over the loudspeaker. "Migrating Charizard have been spotted in the area surrounding the academy. There are at least two of them and they are powerful. Remember to take care when outdoors and keep a Pokemon on you at all times. Any sightings of either one must be reported to a member of staff immediately. Good luck and stay safe,"

Neither Red nor Max payed much attention to the loudspeaker as they left the school building and sat on the edge of the playing field. Beneath them, Bonnie was running in circles, Dedenne at her heels.

Red slumped down on his bag and looked up at the sky. Max sat cross legged next to him, staring silently at Bonnie, his feelings for her clear on his face. After a few seconds he turned to Red.

"How's the Aerodactyl training going?"

Red stared at him wide eyed "How do you know?"

Max chuckled "You disappear into the forest, claiming you're doing schoolwork. Very weird." He said, with the tone of a detective in a crime drama. "Naturally, Bonnie starts stalking you, because she's nosy like that, and claims she sees a large winged shape accompanied by roaring that wasn't from a Charizard. Suspicious, don't you think?"

"Who's to say that Bonnie miss-heard? It could have easily been a Charizard."

"You've been to Oak's lab right? You must've heard a Charizard roar. It's not a sound you easily forget."

"I guess not," Red scratched the back of his head nervously.

"And top of all of that, you'll never guess what I found next to the first aid kit (which you still need to pack up by the way) in the bathroom." Max smirked, reaching into his bag and pulling out a heavy ball before dropping the sphere into Red's lap.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to ask any stupid questions about how you got it. I'm just gonna warn you to be careful. I've never seen an Aerodactyl myself but I've heard that their powerful and incredibly short tempered. Ash encountered them several times. Every time the same thing happened."

"They went on a rampage and he defeated them?"

"I don't think he did. I wasn't there I can't say for sure. But whenever I hear about it the glory's usually put on someone else. Gary stopped one of them and Goh stopped another I think."

"Oh," Red said, his eyes intently fixed on the heavy ball.

"Yes," Max remarked. "That's one thing about Ash. He never traveled or worked alone. He always needed friends to support him. The one time he did attempt to travel alone was the time he just so happened to disappear without a trace!"

Red looked up at his reflection in the balls surface. Was Ash really that reliant on others?

"Of course it's not just Ash this applies to," Max continued. "Forgive my vanity but I consider myself quite smart. However, I have the impression that I'd be in a worse position mentally if I didn't have someone as hyper focused as you around. And don't get me started on Bonnie..."

"... Don't worry I won't. I'm sure there'll be other times for creepy crush descriptions."

Max went slightly pink in the face at that."No comment," he mumbled before composing himself again. "Anyway, I guess what I'm trying to say is we're as reliant on one another as we are on our Pokemon. I guess that's why falling out sucks so much."

Red thought of Leaf. Maybe this was why he felt so ripped up after their argument. Like it or not, he'd relied on her more than he wanted to admit. Just like with Paras. Or with Mr Fuji. He had a lot of people to thank, and repay.

"Thanks Max. I needed that,"

Max smiled warmly. "No problem. It's what friends are for," he scratched the back of his neck. "Also for the record I do not see Bonnie as anything more than a friend!"

Red rolled his eyes knowingly at this.

"What's going on? I heard my name!" Bonnie jumped up between the two boys, red in the face from all of the running around she had been doing.

"Oh um, not much," Max replied, blushing slightly.

Suddenly Red remembered something. "Bonnie, could I ask you a potentially awkward question?"

"Sure! Ask away."

Red cleared his throat "You would happen to know where Leaf's dorm is, would you?"

Bonnie couldn't help herself at this and burst out laughing. "Geez Red! That's a bit creepy if you to say."

Red's face went the colour of his name at that suggestion. "I-I have an apology to make," he stuttered. "An incredibly important one."

Bonnie smirked and raised an eyebrow "I'll see what I can do," she promised.


"Attention all! This is Paul speaking. I have been out in the woods today with some of the Vaniville Ranger team. I have bad news. Not only are the rumours about Charizard in the forest true, they have also formed a nest. Wild Charizard are exceptionally dangerous, especially whilst with eggs or young. For that reason, I urge all students to not enter the woods under ANY circumstances until the rangers have the situation under control. Thank you for listening and stay safe."

Hilda collapsed on the couch and faced the wall. Why did a loudspeaker have to be inserted into each person's dorm and all around campus? No one really paid attention to teacher announcements anyway, and the last thing she needed that evening was teachers yelling at her. She'd had enough of that in the day already.

No. What she needed right now was a long evening of television before turning herself in for the night. She reached for the remote and began scrolling through the channels. Buying a TV for their room had been completely her decision but Leaf had enjoyed the idea and they had gone halves on the price.

Speaking of Leaf, the other girl was laying silently on the top bunk scrolling through her Pokédex, Nidoran sleeping soundly on her lap. Her face was oddly emotionless tonight and the way which she scrolled through the data on Magcargo breeding patterns was oddly half-hearted for someone who was always so passionate about everything. Something must've gotten into her over the past few...

THUNK, THUNK, THUNK!

"Could you get that please?" Leaf asked politely, putting her Pokédex down.

"Sure," Hilda groaned, standing up slowly and walking to the door.

Red stood in the threshold. He was scruffy as ever, though he had at least thought to change out of his school uniform and was instead wearing jeans and a rugged crimson jacket that matched his cap.

"Who is it?" Leaf asked getting down from the bunk bed, Nidoran leaping after her.

Hilda was about to respond when Red spoke up. "Hi Leaf! It's me,"

Hilda could feel Leaf tense up when he heard his voice. From her feet, Nidoran let out a soft growl. "What do you want?"

"Well I..."

"You know what?" Leaf yelled. "Forget what I just said, I don't care what you want. I don't think I can deal with being around an asshole like you."

"Leaf, please..."

"Get out!"

"Leaf..."

"GET OUT!"

Red slowly turned, looking back a tear in one eye. "I'm sorry Leaf. I disappointed you and..."

SLAM!

Leaf barged past Hilda, shoving her aside before swinging the door closed in Red's face. She then turned to her roommate, her grin returning weaker than it had been. "I'm sorry for pushing you," she said. "But he deserved that."

Hilda shrugged and returned to the TV. She scrolled through the channels and found an interesting show on Audino grooming. She'd always had a soft spot for that side of pokemon welfare.

She'd always regretted that she never picked up a cute mammalian pokemon that she should pamper over her current Venipede. Perhaps when she started journeying, she would catch an Emolga or Mincinno and dress it up as she saw fit.

She clicked on the channel, as Leaf climbed back onto the bunkbed behind her.

"Hello and welcome back to Grooming 101! We're the Haircut Brothers and today we're in Castelia city to see the wild ways in which Audino are..."

"thumpthumpthump!" Hilda instinctively turned to face the door

From behind her, Hilda heard Leaf swear.

"How many times do I have to tell you Red? I don't want to talk!"

"ThumpThumpThump!" Went the door.

At this point, Hilda was just as exasperated as Leaf was. "Go away!" She yelled.

"THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!"

"Piss off!" Leaf shouted. Finally having enough, Hilda got up and opened the door.

Bonnie stood in the doorway looking absolutely furious, both hands balled into fists. Dedenne scowled from his position in her bag.

"I need to talk to Leaf," She demanded. "And unlike Red, I don't take no for an answer."

"Oh, Bonnie!" Leaf exclaimed in surprise as Hilda stood aside to let the blonde girl in. "Forgive me I thought it was someone else. What can I do for you?"

Bonnie scowled "Cut the crap Leaf," she said bluntly. "My friend is crying. And you are gonna apologise."

Leaf sighed. "Bonnie, you don't understand..."

"Oh I don't do I? Then please explain. I've got all night."

She sighed. This was going to be a long evening.


The sun was setting on a beautiful warm summer's evening, bathing the forest clearing in golden light. From one end, a boy walked in from the surrounding woods and stood on the ground, a bright red cap obscuring a tear-stained face.

He shrugged his rucksack off of his back before unclipping both his pokeballs from his belt and throwing them, releasing the Pokemon held within. He gazed at both of them intently and they gazed back, no one having anything to do, or say.

Aerodactyl growled menacingly, looking ready to cut him into pieces at the slightest provocation. Paras, on the other hand was totally devoid of any emotion, positive or negative, towards its trainer. Both Pokemon stood there patiently, waiting for their trainer to say or do something.

"I'm sorry," Red began, his voice harsh from crying. "Aerodactyl, I know that we have just met but I'm going to have to let you go. When I first received you, I promised that I would become a better trainer. It only took me a few days before I immediately broke that promise." He stepped forward, placing a shaking hand on the rock-type's nose. "Paul offered me a second chance and I threw it away almost immediately. I really don't deserve you at all. When I send you back to Paul tomorrow, I'll make sure that he treats you better than I ever could."

A change came over Aerodactyl's face as he finished speaking. The jaw muscles relaxed and the eyes widened as the wings lowered. The look on his face was not longer savage or predatory but instead more vulnerable, more human.

Letting go of the fossil Pokemon, Red crouched down and put a tentative hand on the head of his starter Pokemon. "Paras, what more can I say? You've helped me through some of the most difficult spots in my life, always been there for me and I want to thank you for that. You are a truly amazing and remarkable Pokemon, even if I have been the worst trainer you could possibly have had, worse even than your old trainer." He was beginning to sob as he collapsed to his knees in front of his first friend. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry for everything. I promise that if I do somehow miraculously improve I promise I'll come back for you, but for now, I know you'll do better with Mr Fuji. I hope you can forgive me for this."

"What was that Ash always used to say?"

Red stood up, turning to face behind him. There, on the edge of the forest stood Leaf, her face stern but smiling.

"W-What do you mean Ash always used to say?"

"About giving up," Leaf pinched the bridge of her nose with frustration. "Mew above Red! For someone who knows so much about Ash you do seem to have a hard time actually trying to mimic him!"

"Oh," "Red looked back at his Pokemon, who were giving each other awkward glances at the intrusion. Suddenly the memory came back to him, the one quote that always came up when Ash's name was mentioned. "Don't give up till it's over?"

"Precisely. And that's what you're going to do," Leaf said firmly before turning to Paras and Aerodactyl. "Sorry, guys but I'm not gonna let Red leave either of you. You're stuck with him until he's out of my site."

Red sighed "I can't. I told Paul that I'd become a better trainer but instead I just pissed you off and let me and my Pokemon down again. If I continue, I'll just end up screwing up even worse next time, if I'm even allowed a next time."

"There is always a next time. We all fail now and then."

"True but what if this failure isn't a one-time thing? What if its consistent?" he turned away from her, sitting on the grass. "I'm not going to get close to Ash, no matter how hard I try."

"Since when did Ash matter?"

"Since I was adopted, he did!" Red turned to glance at Leaf, his eyes as hard as rubies.

Leaf gave an inquisitive grunt. "I should've known there was something more to this whole Ash business. Please tell me more."

"You really want to know who adopted me?" Red asked, grimacing.

"Sure,"

"Delia,"

"You say that as if I know her,"

"Delia Ketchum."

Leaf's eyes widened, one hand reaching up to cover her gaping mouth. "Does that mean..."

"Yes it does. I am now Red Ketchum. Younger brother of Ash Ketchum,"

Leaf gained a bit of her previous composure and chuckled. "Talk about big shoes to fill,"

Red hunched over, clenching his legs. "How do you live up to a legacy like that? Ash is my hero and my brother and I keep letting him down over and over again!"

"Have you ever met him?" Leaf asked, cocking her head to one side.

Red shook his head sadly. "I'd give anything for the chance to do so."

"Well then I'll give you the best advice I could possibly give you in this situation. You listening?" Red grunted in response. "Very well then. The best thing for you to do is to stop trying to be Ash at all. You are not him."

"That's funny!" Red snapped "You come here teaching all this stuff about not giving up only to end up telling me that I should drop my aspirations all the same!"

"Red, that's not what I was..."

"Face it Leaf! You'll never understand what it's like to have someone like Ash in your family! When people around Pallet talk about me, I'm always 'Ash's brother' or 'Delia's boy'. The only reason I could get here in the first place is because I share a name with the Academy itself. I mean nothing on my own, just like you mean nothing on your own!"

Red was utterly furious, practically ranting at this point. "We're both just meaningless orphans, you and I! It's just that you have actual skills as a trainer whereas I have to ride on the coattails of his undeserved family just to get anywhere in life!"

As soon as Red finished yelling, he immediately felt regret well up inside of him. He'd overstepped his boundaries again by calling her life meaningless, hadn't he? Leaf was just going to yell at him and then leave him again...

...No. Instead of a hard glare, a soft smile adorned Leaf's face.

She walked around in front of him and crouched down so that she could stare directly into his eyes. "Do you know why I'm here Red?" She began. "I'm here to apologise. I'm here to apologise because a good friend of yours convinced me that you deserved forgiving. And I think she was right."

"Bonnie right?"Red asked. Leaf nodded.

"You do know that the only way I know Bonnie is through Ash right? She and Max both knew him actually, at different points." He exhaled sharply. "Even my friends wouldn't have been made without Ash,"

Leaf rolled her eyes, that pesky smile still on her face. "Ok then," she gestured to the Aerodactyl. "What about Paul? He clearly must have trusted you enough to give you that thing?"

"I strongly don't think trust is the right word..."

"Then what about Fuji? Or Paras? Or me?"

Leaf left Red hanging on that last one, staring dizzily into her sapphire eyes. "Face it," she said, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder. "You are not Ash. You will never be Ash. You could potentially be as good as him, you may even get better than him one day. But you will never be exactly him, no matter how hard you try."

She blinked and her smile became even brighter. "You are Red. That's all you have ever been and all you ever need to be. And there is nothing wrong or inadequate about that at all. There are people out there who care about you, not because of who you are not but because of who you are."

Red vision was blurry with tears. "Leaf, I..."

Before he could say anything, Leaf stepped forward and trapped him in a hug "It's alright," she whispered, not at all annoyed at how wet her shoulder was from his crying.

"Ra-choo!"

Suddenly the emotional moment was interrupted any a squeaking sneeze from Nidoran. Leaf released Red and looked down at her Pokemon with worry. "Are you OK?" She asked worriedly.

Red wiped the tears from his eyes, "Do you smell that?" He asked, his voice full of tension.

"Yeah," Leaf replied. "Smells like something is burning,"

Surely enough, as they looked out across the clearing they saw a great column of smoke that rose above the tree line. The smoke sped towards them at an alarmingly fast rate. This startled Aerodactyl who took to the air, screaming in blind panic.

The two teenagers begin to feel sweaty, as the air temperature began to rise. The smoke got closer and closer, until...

... Red covered his face with his armpit as the air around him became grey with floating ash and orange with blistering cinders.

"DAC-TEEEL!"

"Red, we need to leave NOW!"

Despite the fears of his Pokemon and of Leaf, Red couldn't seem to get his legs to move. He just stood their petrified of the silhouette approaching them.

Through the smog, a dark shadow could be seen, approaching them on foot. It's footsteps we're making the burning ground beneath their feet shake as it approached. It's arms were thin but muscular, clearly useful for tossing unfortunate trainers to their deaths. Its head was tall and proud, with a pair of long and pointed horns. It's wings were massive, easily as wide as Aerodactyl's if not wider. It's long, thick tail ended with a blazing flame that glowed white with heat. Flames gushed from its agape maw and its eyes glowed with pseudo-draconic fury.

Red knew what he was looking at. A Charizard. And a damn big one at that.

He had barely a second to process the fire type before it was upon him, flying at unmeasurable velocity towards him, arm raised and claws gleaming and extended. Red closed his eyes, silently praying that Mew would look favourably on him as he violently left this world. The dragon claw was about to tear through his flesh when...

... the strike never came. Instead, a certain small bug type, whom Red had failed to notice in the carnage, flung a ball of toxic sludge at the face of the monster from its position on Red shoulder.

The Charizard roared at the inconvenience, instead trying to swing at Paras with all its might. However, it had been caught off guard, allowing the mushroom Pokemon to grab the fire-type's arm and refuse to let go.

Screeching at the pain, the beast opened its great maw, attempting to incinerate the puny grass type with a super effective flamethrower. However, as the white-hot flames gushed from Charizard's mouth, they only had a portion of the effect that was expected. Paras's shell miraculously began to glow silver, using some kind of power that Red had never known that Paras had, before as he refused to let go of the larger Pokémon's arm. The mushrooms on its back began to rapidly vibrate, producing pale green spores that clouded the area between the two combatants.

From behind him, Red felt Leaf yank him backwards by the shoulder, away from the heat and the numbing spores. Charizard recoiled at the cloud, coughing and sneezing several times. The flying type blinked once, then twice, then collapsed on the ground, it's eyes shut.

Paras's shell began to return it to its original colour. The Pokemon gave out a soft clicking before falling down, unconscious.

"You did great," was all that Red could say as he returned his first pokemon to its ball. He turned around to see Leaf, Nidoran and Aerodactyl, trying to find a way out of the burning forest.

"Come on!" Leaf yelled. "Before it wakes up!" Red looked back over his shoulder, noticing how the Charizard was stirring, eyelids fluttering open then closed again. He wouldn't stay asleep for long.


Travelling through the fire was the worst thing either Red or Leaf had done in their lives. They ran and ran and ran, as hard as their legs could carry them, occasionally stopping to dodge a smouldering log or a fallen piece of debris. They were both tired and weak, but the adrenaline in their blood kept them going until they reached the forest path.

Once they had climbed back onto the track. They stopped for the briefest of moments, just long enough for Leaf, who had been carrying Nidoran, to set her Pokemon back down on the ground and for Aerodactyl to land and shake off his wings.

Then suddenly, they heard an ear-splitting howl that had both trainers looking at each other in dread.

Out of the blazing woods, flying like an angel of death, came Charizard.

However, that was not the thing that concerned Leaf and Red. What really scared them was when the roar was answered with a similar sound some distance away. Down the path, on a pair of great wings charged another great flying lizard. The Fire types circled around the trainers and their Pokemon, deciding which to eat first.

Out of the frying pan, into the fire.

Red swallowed slowly before turning to his companion, his nerves showing all to well on his face. "Leaf, if this is how we die, I want you to know that you have been the best friend I could have ever asked for, even after ten years."

Upon seeing the smile on Red's face, Leaf laughed. "Don't be ridiculous! We'll make it out of this alive. We just need to fight."

Red chuckled, inspired by Leaf's bravado. He couldn't help but admire how cool she looked in this situation, her blue eyes gleaming . Eventually he turned around, ready to issue a reckless command to Aerodactyl when..,

"ZAAAAARD!"

Red turned around just about fast enough to catch what happened. The Charizard that they had fought in the clearing was struck with a shining blue object. No sooner than the projectile has hit it's target, a darker blur streaked past, slamming into the dragon yet again as it was reeling from the damage of the first attack. The blur shot into the air, allowing Red a good view of their new ally.

Hanging in mid air, as if by magic or incredible skill was a Greninja, legs outstretched as it struck Charizard yet again, pinning the larger Pokemon to the ground. It's mate bellowed in anguish, charging in to tackle the Frog Pokemon when...

"Use Stone edge!" Red yelled passionately.

The second Charizard was knocked off of its path by Aerodactyl, the fossil Pokemon summoning great blades of stone out of the ground and sending them crashing into his foe. The stones slammed into Charizard's wing, causing it's flight to weaken drastically.

"Poison sting!" At Leaf's command, Nidoran raced forward, using the Stone Edges as a ramp in order to leap into the air and stab Charizard with her venomous wrist spurs. The fire type turned around, swatting the small blue rabbit out of the the air with its tail.

"Catch Nidoran!" Red yelled. At the order, Aerodactyl swooped beneath the falling poison type, picking her up and carrying her to the ground. Nidoran, who had somehow not been knocked out by the attack, squeaked thankfully before bracing herself as the Charizard advanced once again.

Greninja had a lot more successful with it's opponent than the humans had been. The combination of Water Shuriken and Shadow Sneak had already injured the other Charizard massively, so upon pinning it to the ground, all it took was one Cut to knock it unconscious. Still grasping the glowing white energy kunai in one hand, the frog Pokemon turned around and then attempted to slash at the side of the second fire type, who currently had its arms grasping Aerodactyl's wings in place on the ground.

The attack missed, but it was enough to avert the Charizard's attention to Greninja. The pseudodragon attempted to strike at him when Aerodactyl flew forward, intercepting the assault.

"Use Roar!" Red screamed. Greninja wrapped his tongue around his ears, preparing for what was to come.

"DAC-TEEEEEEELLL!"

The noise had it's intended effect. Red, Leaf and most importantly Charizard cowered down, hands clenched tightly over ears. Capitalising on the weakness, Greninja took the opportunity to fling one last Water Shuriken, smiting the fire type on the head as it let out one last pained cry and then lay on the floor.

A moment of silence followed in the aftermath of the battle.

Greninja croaked something to Aerodactyl, who nodded and grabbed hold of one of the unconscious Charizards, flapping wildly as he dragged the body underneath a wide tree, which had miraculously not caught fire yet. Meanwhile, Greninja began a dance, limbs moving flowing water as his body was surrounded by a light blue glow.

Red felt a drop of rain on his cheek, then another, then another until the first was full of the sound of falling water. Steam began to rise as the downpour began to extinguish the fire.

He turned to Leaf, who was returning Nidoran to its pokeball. Her eyes were red and baggy and her clothes were thoroughly singed but that didn't bother her. She was still smiling as brightly as she always did.

"You alright?" She asked, head on one side.

Red nodded. He was lying and she could tell. His knees were weak from all the running and he was close to giving in.

"Nin!" Red looked back to see the water type staring at him.

"Thank you," he replied "You saved us. We wouldn't have made it without you."

Greninja approached Red slowly. After they were as close as they could be without being awkward, the frog reached forward, one arm reaching out to snatch the cap off of his head.

Before Red could react to the theft, Greninja leaped off, taking his cap with him.

That was the last thing Red noticed before he lost consciousness. His knees gave in and he collapsed. Somewhere nearby, he could hear Leaf giving a concerned yelp before his world went black.


Red woke up in the hospital wing of Ketchum Academy several days later. According to Nurse Joy, he had been stupidly lucky, not having sustained any major injuries. Joy insisted that he take two days off of lessons, suggesting that rest was the only thing he needed to fully recover.

Once he was properly back in school, the rest of his week was dominated by people being angry with him. Professor Sycamore gave him and Leaf an entire hour-long lecture on the importance of listening to teacher announcements. Given Leaf's previously spotless record, Sycamore thankfully let them both off the hook, giving them a measly month's set of detentions. Neither of them complained about this - it was better than the alternative, which was expulsion.

Leaf had a phone call with Mr Fuji, who wasn't as mad at them as Sycamore had been, mostly relieved that they were safe. Red wished he could say the same about his Mother, who scolded him to no end when he got in contact.

It wasn't just the adults who were mad at him however.

"What the hell were you doing!" Bonnie exclaimed loudly when they reunited in the hallway after class. "You could've got yourself killed!"

Max rested a calm hand on her shoulder "Don't fret Bonnie. At least he's alive and... in one piece."

Bonnie calmed down quickly before smiling. "I'm sorry about that. Just don't do it again ok."

"I won't don't worry," Red replied. "By the way, why is it so important that I am in one piece?"

"Long story. Can't get into it now. Don't want to tell you," she responded flatly.

"Don't worry I won't. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a detention to get to."

"No problem," said Max. "You free tomorrow?"

"Should be,"

"Brilliant. We'll meet up and do something together then."

"You're on. See ya!" Red turd around and ran off to Paul's class, leaving Bonnie and Max in awkward silence.

"You wanna get an ice cream in Lumiose?" Bonnie asked.

"S-sure," stuttered Max in reply.


Strangely, that one person that Red hadn't seem to anger in any way also happened to be the person that Red had expected to be the most furious:

Paul. Upon hearing about Red's exploits, he just chuckled. "I suppose you gave Aerodactyl some good training then," he said.

"You're not mad?"

"No, not at all," he replied, before returning to his usual, more serious tone. "Scratch that, I am mad at the fact that you didn't listen to the warnings, but seeing as you're here," - he gestured to the detention hall when he said this - "I see no reason to make you feel anymore ashamed about that."

"Oh, ok,"

"If Leaf is to be believed then I am impressed at how well you commanded Aerodactyl. Not many people can control a fossil Pokemon on their first try."

Red scratched the back of his head. "To be fair, it was a life or death situation and we had help."

"Yes but still, good job. Last I heard, the Charizard were seen fleeing the forest two days ago. They haven't been found since." Paul glanced at the clock. "Looks like this detention is finished. I will see you tomorrow for your next sitting."

"See you later Paul!"

"Whatever."


It was another pleasant May evening at Ketchum Academy. Most of the students have long since left campus and were either hanging out in their dorms or had left for Lumiose city, so the courtyard was empty as Red passed through.

In the middle of the courtyard stood a statue of a young man, wearing a sports jacket, shorts and a cap. He was posed with one hand in the air, which carried a pokeball, and a determined, reckless smile was set on his face. Red stopped, admiring how the statue looked in the evening light.

"Boo!"

Red jumped at the sound turning around to see who was there.

"Do you have to sneak up and start talking behind me every time we meet?" He asked irritatedly. "It's very annoying."

"I know," replied Leaf, giggling. "That's why I do it."

"I see," Red replied.

"Anyway, you mind if I ask a question?" Red nodded at this and Leaf stepped forward. "You're be on the list for the Spring Ball, right?"

"No, I'm not." He stated.

Leaf looked at the ground. "I was wondering if you wanted to go with me," her words were cautious and she looked down, avoiding eye contact.

"Platonically of course! I wasn't trying to imply anything between us," She hastily added. Red could catch the slightest amount of pinkness on her cheeks.

"I can understand if you're busy but we're basically training partners at this point so I was wondering if you wanted to double battle..."

Red shrugged, grinning "Sure. But I'm only going for the tournament. I am not learning to dance or anything for one singular party."

"Sure, sure whatever," The width of Leaf's grin at his statement worried him immensely. She grabbed his wrist and began to drag him off across the courtyard.

"W-where are you taking me?" Red stuttered.

"Lumiose," Leaf replied. "If we are going on a date to this ball, we'll both need to buy something to wear. Besides you need a new hat, you look really weird without one."

"W-who said anything about dates? I thought you said this would be platonic!"

"Best friends can go on dates too! Unless of course you want to be something more than that..." she replied teasingly.

"NO!" Red replied. Why was he getting so flustered all of a sudden?

From a rooftop, basically invisible to the naked eye, a dark blue Greninja wearing a bright red cap watched the two friends leave, the boy complaining all the way.