I'd Sacrifice My Happiness for You – An AdvanceShipping/Pokémon Story
Chapter 5 – Just like Old Times
May continued searching for hers and Ash's Pokémon in Lumiose City. When she had found no sign of them there, she made her way to the next city.
She began thinking to herself. To think her Pokémon and Ash's were all in trouble all because some people held petty vendettas against her and Ash. She began to feel guilty about ever meeting him, despite the massive impact he had on her life.
She had initially not even liked Pokémon, mostly due to a traumatic experience as a child when she had been surrounded by a horde of Tentacool while she wore a blue bathing suit that resembled the colours of a Tentacool. When she had called out for help that time, her mother had thought she was a Tentacool and tried to catch her like one. She had only decided to start a Pokémon Journey of her own so that she could travel to new places around the world.
However, the day she had gone to Professor Birch's lab to collect her first Pokémon was also the day Ash and his Pikachu had arrived in Hoenn, and Pikachu was unwell. While it was recovering, May had noticed how Ash had stay with his Pikachu, observing the strong bond between them. And when she had to choose between a Treeko, a Mudkip, or a Torchic for her starter Pokémon, Torchic had run up to her and shown her affection, prompting her to choose Torchic as her first Pokémon. It didn't take her too long to start growing fond of her Torchic, seeing its loyalty to her and love for her, as well as Pikachu's loyalty to Ash, and Pikachu even being friendly with her. Eventually she found herself growing an appreciation and love for Pokémon, and she credited Pikachu, Torchic, and her first catch Wurmple, for her change of view on them. She had then shown such a kindness, and sometimes protectiveness, to Pokémon that her Bulbasaur and Squirtle had WILLINGLY chosen to become hers, without her even needing to battle them.
As well as this, while there were a couple of times she and Ash would get into almost heated arguments, throughout their travels together, they had created such a strong and unbreakable bond. She still couldn't believe that she had won Ash's heart too, just like he had won hers. Memories of her time with him began flooding back to her, from when she and Torchic were being chased by a group of Grass-Types and Ash and Pikachu swung in to protect her, to after her and Bulbasaur had lost a Contest and Ash had sat next to her and cheered her up, to when Ash had gone to place the final crystal of the Sea Temple while placing her, Pikachu and the Manaphy who looked at her as its mother in a pod to protect them from drowning, risking his own life. Looking back, it made her realise how strong her bond with him was, and that it was love from both sides, and their halves of the Terracotta Ribbon from the Pokémon Contest in Terracotta Town was a symbol of it.
After she had decided to travel to Johto by herself to compete in Contests there, while Ash had gone to Sinnoh to compete in the Sinnoh League, accompanied by Brock and Dawn, she had tried to bury her feelings for Ash and dismiss them as a one-time crush, and in hindsight, she figured he had tried to do the same with his feelings for her. But it was no use. No other guy she had encountered made her feel the same way Ash did, certainly not her rivals Drew or Harley, who used to often treat like some punching bag, with her only gaining some respect from Drew after she had defeated him in the Kanto Grand Festival, while Ash always treated her like a person. This made her realise how deep her love for Ash went, and had considered her half of the Terracotta Ribbon her good-luck charm, as it reminded her of him.
Ash had often written back to her after each of his regional adventures, and she had often thought he'd meet someone else, but that never happened. While he had admitted that he had a strong bond with Dawn, which May had seen from her visit in Sinnoh, by the end, she was just a best friend to Ash. For him, Lillie, Iris, Mallow, Serena and Lana were nothing more than great friends. She had always thought it was interesting why Ash felt he had to make his dynamics with these other girls clear to her. In retrospect, she knew why. It was his way of assuring her that none of his friendships or strong bonds with these other girls, not even those he had with either Dawn or Lillie, ever outclassed the one he had with May. She would've been happy for him if he ever had seen any of them as more than just close friends, though, but she did feel happy knowing she held a special place in his heart too.
She thought back to Serena. Ash must be feeling very betrayed right now. She also felt all this was her own fault. Had she never decided to go on her own Pokémon journey just to see new places in the first place, Serena wouldn't have done all this. Ash's Pokémon would all be safe, as would all hers (mainly because she wouldn't have met any of them), and Harley and Serena wouldn't have been petty towards her.
She had actually expressed this guilt of ever starting her journey on the boat to Kalos. Dawn had told her to never even think that, reminding her that she had learnt a lot about herself when she had started her journey. Misty had even admitted that, for a very brief time, even she had a crush on Ash, but quickly realised he was more like a little brother to her, overcame her crush on him and was happy to have him as a friend, stating that Serena could've just been grateful to have Ash as a friend too instead of taking out her hurt over being friend-zoned on him and May. Max had then asked her if she ever truly regretted meeting Ash or the many Pokémon she had bonded with, to which May truthfully answered no, and that she never truly would, as she wouldn't be the person she is today if she hadn't.
May returned from her thoughts to where she was now. She was going to find all of them, she thought to herself, whatever it took. She headed for Coumarine City, and like she had previously done in Lumiose City, reported hers and Ash's missing Pokémon to Officer Jenny, and started searching again. When she didn't find them there, she made her way to Shalour City and continued looking there. No such luck. She was beginning to worry that her search here in Kalos was a fool's errand, as she headed towards her next destination, Geosenge Town.
She went to the Pokémon Centre, hoping to rest there and think for a bit. As she was speaking to the town's Nurse Joy, an Eevee appeared next to the Nurse, trying to get the Nurse's attention.
"Not now, Eevee, I'm working. I'm sorry." the Nurse told the Normal Type. She turned back to May. "Forgive me, May. This Eevee has only spent three days with us. There was a nasty storm in the town a few nights ago, and it was stranded out in the storm all alone, so I let it come in. The town still hasn't recovered from the storm, hence why I haven't let it go back out yet, but it really wants company, having been lonely most of its time, and even I can't provide that with how busy I am looking after visiting trainers' various Pokémon, especially with the number of patients having risen since the storm."
"That's okay, Nurse Joy." May told her. "Maybe I can keep Eevee company while you find a room for me and contact Officer Jenny to meet with me."
Nurse Joy beamed at May's offer. "Thank you. You're the first person to even think of doing that."
Eevee eagerly jumped into May's arms, happy to finally have someone wanting to keep it company. She took it with her to a nearby table while Nurse Joy spoke with Geosenge Town's Officer Jenny on the phone. She cuddled Eevee tightly, which it enjoyed so much, and then got out some Pokémon food from her bag and gave it to Eevee to eat, which it ate with so much enthusiasm.
"You must've been really hungry." May told the Normal Type, who nodded happily. "You know, you kind of remind me of my own Glaceon back when it was an Eevee like yourself. It's one of my most loyal Pokémon"
May then told Eevee about how she had gotten her own Eevee as an egg; how it had taken part in many of her Contests across both the Kanto and Johto Regions, including the Terracotta Contest that she and Ash had won; how the two had even taken part in a Pokémon Partner Treasure Hunt together; how when she had briefly visited Sinnoh to compete in the Wallace Cup, it had then evolved into Glaceon while in Snowpoint City; and how her and Glaceon had competed in the finals of the Wallace Cup Contest, but had lost to Dawn and her Piplup, but Glaceon had battled very hard. The two had then continued competing in Contests together.
Eevee loved hearing the story, and really wanted to meet May's Glaceon, and her other Pokémon. That was when May had to break the unfortunate news to the sweet Normal Type.
"I'm really sorry, Eevee. I really wish you could meet them, but, unfortunately, none of my Pokémon are with me at the moment. It's actually why I'm here in Kalos: to find them and my friend, Ash's, Pokémon, who are also missing."
She then told Eevee how her rival Harley, alongside Trip and Serena, held a vendetta against her and Ash, from Serena's crush on Ash and not liking that Ash was in love with May herself, to Trip holding a grudge against Ash for his defeat in the Unova League, to Harley wanting payback at May for his defeats in the Hoenn and Kanto Grand Festivals; how they had gotten some Team Rocket members to kidnap all of hers and Ash's Pokémon; and how Trip had threatened to harm Ash and all his Pokémon if she hadn't agreed to date him, even using his Serperior to keep an eye on her and harm anyone who might've interfered. She even confessed to Eevee that she was, in fact, in love with Ash, and had tried to protect him from Trip. She then explained that her friends exposed all this and that they came to Kalos with her to search for hers and Ash's missing Pokémon.
As May explained the story, she teared up a little, especially when admitting her love for Ash, and Eevee cuddled into her arms more. The Normal Type wanted to cheer her up, show her she's not alone, by returning the affection she had been giving it.
"Though, if you want," May told it, " I can show you some stuff I have in my backpack."
Eevee nodded in response without needing to think twice. May got out some photos of her, Ash, Brock, Max, Pikachu and the rest of their Pokémon that they had taken together throughout their adventures in Hoenn and Kanto, introducing each of them in the photos to the friendly Normal Type. After that, she showed her half of the Terracotta Ribbon, and expressed how much it meant to her and how it symbolised the bond she and Ash shared with each other.
Eevee took a sniff of the ribbon and the photos, and suddenly ran outside. May raced after it.
"Eevee?! Where are you going?!" She cried out.