The Blue Spirit

by silentplayermc03

A vision has been seen by Arceus; a world covered in darkness, corrupting both humans & pokemon alike but it also showed two heroes fighting against it. Plans are formed, old & new friends meet, relationships are made, emotions run high, secrets are revealed & an inevitable world war engulfs them all against the darkness…

37. Chapter 36 - Enter the Skull Brothers

THE BLUE SPIRIT

CHAPTER 36 – ENTER THE SKULL BROTHERS

In a spacious meeting room that was located at the Pokémon League Headquarters, which was stationed near the Indigo Plateau, the five Champions and Goodshow were in a heated debate. It was late at night, past midnight and they were talking for hours now about the information they recently learned from the Aura Guardian the night before. Lance wanted to start preparing, strengthening their defenses in secret and place some spies around the world while getting as many trust worthy agents on board as possible to prepare but Cynthia was telling him to wait and follow Ash's plan.

"You need to trust him Lance! If we act rashly, we may cause more harm than good. He made the plan with Arceus damn it! And we promised to keep this between us only! We should wait until after the tournament to find out what they have planned next. If what they came up with was good enough for the Alpha Pokémon, then it should be good enough for you! You promised you would listen to others!" stated Cynthia.

Goodshow was holding his head in his hands against the table. He was tired and wanted them to stop bickering. Alder, Diantha and Steven were trying to play devil's advocate between the two as they both had good points. Lance couldn't believe that she would so blindingly follow someone without question when there are so many lives at stake.

"Damn it Cynthia I don't care what Ash and Arceus have planned! I vowed to help him and I will! I did promise that I would listen to others but he's barely an adult and has no idea what's coming in the future besides a great evil! I don't doubt his plan, or what he can do. But this is about millions and millions of lives we're talking here! The fate of the world!" shouted Lance, making Cynthia and the others go silent and think about what he just said. "Just because Arceus trusts him and they made a plan, doesn't mean it's the best course! It doesn't mean that we shouldn't make some plans of our own or at least have a backup plan put in place! We are Champions and leaders of our regions! The Pokémon Master has been gone for over a decade and nobody has seen him since so people look to us instead! We need to set good examples and be prepared!" This statement made Cynthia sigh, nodding since he was right. Goodshow and the other Champions agreed with that as well. "Now, I'm not saying we should tell everyone but only those who are worthy! And there is no harm in preparing away from the public eyes!" finished up Lance and he took a couple breaths to calm down.

"You're right Lance. It would be wise to strengthen our defenses and to have a backup plan in case things go bad," replied Cynthia. "But we should still wait until after the tournament to see what else they have planned. Ash mentioned he had other things to work on but said he'll say what later. For all we know, it may be the same thing we want to do or even better than what we come up with."

"What happened to you Cynthia?" asked Lance in disbelief that she still wanted to wait to see what the young man has planned. "You were never one to just wait around. You used to be proactive. You used to think for yourself but you've changed. You're too busy trying to make him notice you like a stupid little fan girl! Remember your promise that you would remain unbiased and neutral about this stuff! You need to stop blindingly following him because of your lustful fantasies about him!" shot Lance in anger but then instantly regretted it as he realized he crossed the line in what he just said when he saw her face.

"HOW DARE YOU INSULT ME LIKE THAT YOU EGOTISTICAL BASTARD!" screamed Cynthia as she stood up abruptly and was about to launch herself at Lance and make him eat his words when the doors were slammed open suddenly, making them all stop and look in the door's direction. What they saw made them all widen their eyes but Lance also had slight fear show on his face. It was Sabrina and she looked angry, glaring straight at Lance. They barely registered that there were two more people behind her when Sabrina started glowing pink.

"LANCE! How dare you ignore my calls! After all I've done for you and the G-Men, you can't answer my calls or call me back?! Who the hell do you think you are?!" screamed Sabrina as she levitated through the air to him.

"Now is not the time Sabrina!" shouted back Lance. Seeing her not back down, he glared at her the best he could before talking again. "Fine damn it! What the hell do you want?! Tell me and get out! I have work to do!"

Sabrina looked like she was about to explode. She narrowed her eyes before she raised her hand and pointed at Lance. He was outlined in a pink glow and was slammed against the wall behind him causing the others to shout out in fright.

"Because of your inability to trust someone else, you made me hurt an innocent person! I haven't been able to sleep and when I could, I've been having nightmares! You couldn't even send me a message saying he's alright?! I've been suffering until I found out he's okay from the damn TV when I saw him compete in his next match! How could you be so thoughtless?!" yelled Sabrina as Lance grunted in pain.

"Sabrina, STOP!" shouted Diantha as she stood up. Sabrina eyed her and growled but the Champion didn't falter. "He's done wrong yes but this won't change anything! He was only trying to do his job!"

Sabrina kept her gaze on Diantha for a moment longer before her furious expression faded away and let Lance go who dropped to the floor, breathing heavily. Sabrina floated down to the floor and collapsed onto a nearby chair and started crying heavily. Cynthia went to her and did her best to soothe her nerves. The two other persons who entered with Sabrina then spoke up as they moved forward.

"What did you do now Lance?" asked the blue haired girl. She was wearing a dark and light blue one piece workout apparel that covered her body from her shoulders down to her thighs along with a black and light blue cape. She was very attractive, with an hourglass yet athletic figure, since she was a master in a couple forms of hand to hand combat and the gym leader of Blackthorn City Gym in Johto.

"Probably fucked around with somebody's life again for no reason other than being paranoid," quipped the green haired girl. She was also a very attractive, with a slender but slightly curvy body wearing a red short jacket that was buttoned up over her black sports top, showing off her stomach and had on a short red skirt. She was the trainer and caretaker in a way of the Charicific Valley, where only Charizard were allowed to stay to train and become stronger.

"Shut up you two," shot Lance as he stood back up. He glanced at the sobbing Sabrina who was slowly pulling herself together thanks to Cynthia. "Did you bring my pokémon?"

"Yea, here you go," answered the sky blue haired girl as she tossed a poke ball to Lance who caught it.

"Thanks Clair," he said as he clipped the poke ball to his belt, next to the five others. He then glanced at the green haired girl. "What are you doing here Liza?"

"Not really your business but when your cousin came to get your and her Charizards, she gave me an update of what's being going on and I decided to come and check things out for myself. Plus, I want to watch the rest of the tournament."

"I see. Very well. That's all I needed Clair. You're dismissed," replied Lance.

"I'm not one of your workers to speak to me like that Lance," snapped Clair and Lance flinched. Clair went to the now quiet Sabrina, who she knew as they were friends, having worked together on a couple missions in the past. "C'mon Sabrina, let's go. You can stay with me and Liza in our room at the Indigo Hotel. You can tell us what's bothering you."

Sabrina whispered out her thanks to her and the three girls left the room after both Sabrina and Clair glared at Lance, while Liza smirked when the Champion flinched once more. When they left, Cynthia turned her attention to Lance who was both frustrated and angry at how things had turned into such a complicated mess.

"Do you see what you do to people in your haste, your inability to trust and your poor choice of words and actions most of the time?" she asked him.

"I don't need you to tell me how to do my job Cynthia. I've been doing this far longer than any of you have, even Alder as he spends most of his time hiding in the woods." Alder gave Lance an annoyed and angry look at that remark but Lance didn't care. "I don't just say things. You can hate me all you want but you know I'm right as we have to prepare. You may not like my methods but they have protected everyone for the past decade. But if you want to leave the faith of the world in the hands of someone who's barely of age, then you can go and tell your boyfriend that you're willing to risk millions of lives while you sit back and watch just so you could tell him that you're on his side and get into bed with him. I hope it's worth it," he finished nastily.

A fist came flying at his face so quickly that he couldn't dodge it and he was struck hard, sending him to the floor. He grunted and groaned in pain as he held his sore and bruised jaw as Cynthia held her right fist.

"You are one bipolar, ignorant and arrogant bastard. We're not fighting against the usual goons and grunts from some organization. We're fighting against an evil that can take over us all while he and Mewtwo are the only ones who can't get affected. Even if we did prepare, we don't know how or in what way. But he does. So yes, I will follow him but not just because I have feelings for him. He is my friend as well and I trust him. Looks like you already forgot that it wasn't your methods that saved everyone from the stadium attack but his. You should think before you open your mouth Champion," lectured Cynthia heatedly before she turned away from him. Diantha helped Lance up in time to see a furious Cynthia leave the room and slam the door shut behind her. Goodshow got up at that moment and looked at Lance with pity.

"You need to learn that you're not the only one who wishes to do what is right," said Goodshow calmly and quietly before he too left. Alder and Steven gave Lance looks of disgust and disappointment before they left the two alone. Lance sighed heavily and shook his head at what just occurred.

"It's alright Lance. You're just doing what you think is right. But you need to choose your words and actions more wisely. And it seems you need to follow your own advice of being unbiased and neutral. You weren't like this before. You've changed. I know you're upset that Cynthia chose Ash over you but you need to stop this childish act. That ship has sailed long ago and you need to move on and treat your friends as friends and not as your enemies," advised Diantha kindly and Lance raised his head and looked into her eyes before dropping his gaze in shame and shaking his head.

"You're right Diantha. I…I need help. But let's call it a night for now. Let's go and get some sleep. It's late," replied Lance and Diantha agreed. She helped him up and both of them left the room together and closed the door behind them.

"Do you understand what to do?" asked a red headed woman.

"Yea, yea, we know what to do," replied a bald man.

Six people were talking together in the middle of the woods, very early the next morning. The sun hadn't even risen yet. The red head was a very attractive woman with an hourglass figure, wearing black business clothes consisting of black knee length skirt, white blouse and black jacket. The bald man was tall, buff and had four others standing behind him, all of whom were almost identical copies of him. The five were wearing sleeveless leather jackets and black jeans with white skulls on their black shirts. The one who spoke had a white headband around his forehead, signifying him as the leader.

"Good. You will get the rest of the money after you complete the mission," said the red head.

"Consider it done. You better not cheat us or we will come for what we are owed," replied one of the men.

"Remember who I work for. You do not want to piss him off. You'll get your money. Just make sure to do as I planned. Got it?"

The Skull Brothers agreed and left the red head alone in the vast woods next to the Indigo Plateau Hotel. When she was sure they were gone, she sighed and shook her head. She hated dealing with such people, not because she was scared but because she was disgusted of them and what they have done in the past. She moved in the opposite direction while digging through her bag, checking her equipment and poke balls, making sure she had everything she needed before her plan went into motion.

"Yes, I got that…and that…check that off…where is that last…there it is. Okay, good; I have everything I need. Those boneheads better not mess up or I'm in some deep shit," thought Natasha out loud.

She stopped what she was doing and thought about how Giovanni scared her before she left to start the mission. He had never done something like that before to her, even working for him for so long. She felt a shiver go down her spine when she remembered his icy stare and vice-like grip on her arm. She saw a bit of the devil that was inside him, of the horrible side he was rumored to have from the other grunts and nameless workers he had employed who were unfortunate enough to get a glimpse of it whenever his plans failed. She thought about that for a couple more minutes before she shook her head clear of it.

"Get a grip. You have a job to do." Natasha told herself and she continued walking deeper into the woods. She walked on for a pretty long time before reaching her destination. She smiled and walked towards the lone cabin in the middle of the woods near a small and relatively unknown lake.

At the Indigo Plateau Hotel, in the Master's suite, a raven haired young man was sleeping peacefully in his bed with a beautiful honey blonde girl cuddled up onto him. The two had become intimate the night before and revealed their love for one another. It was also the first night in a few days that he had a very good night's rest and was beginning to wake up. He opened his eyes slowly and noticed that there wasn't any light yet. He turned his head to look at the digital clock on his night stand.

6:45AM. Looks like the sun will be up soon.

Ash was taken out of his thoughts by a small sound. He glanced towards the source and found that Serena was mumbling in her sleep. He grinned as he caught some words from her muttering such as 'future, 'love' and 'night'. He listened to her mumbling for a couple more minutes, hearing some very interesting things that made his smile grow larger as he kept his laughter in. She then went quiet and he took this time to gaze at her for a few more minutes before he decided he should get up.

He slowly moved Serena off of him so he could get up and gently lowered her back down onto the bed and covered her up with the blanket. He gave her a quick peck on her forehead and she hummed in response. He smiled and checked on Pikachu, who was sleeping with a large grin on his face. He chuckled quietly while he moved to his room's balcony. He stepped outside to the morning air and enjoyed the gentle breeze that flowed over him as he looked out into the horizon as time went by. He could see the dark sky starting to light up in the distance where the sun was beginning to rise. The sun's shine made the sky light up in many different colors, the lighter colors near the sun. It went from black, to dark blue, purple, red, orange and finally yellow. It was a very beautiful view. Ash had seen many incredible sights during his travels but this was something else.

"It's beautiful isn't it?" asked Serena as she stood next to him and looked out into the distance.

Ash had sensed her get up and come closer but he was too mesmerized by the view to look at her until her voice broke his trance. He turned his head to look at her and what he saw took his breath away. She had used the bed cover to cover herself up but the combination of the night sky and the sun's glow made her look even more stunning than usual.

"Not as beautiful as what I'm looking at," he replied, making Serena turn to look at him and saw he was gazing at her with such a look that it made her blush.

"Stop teasing," remarked Serena as she looked away.

"I'm not," said Ash simply.

She glanced back at him. She saw his eyes focused on her and they were shining under the sun's barely visible shine. She had never seen his eyes shine like that and it made her take in a sharp breath. She stepped closer to him before leaning in, kissing him softly before pulling away. When she opened her eyes and looked at him, he was staring at her and it made her giggle. Her cute laugh snapped Ash out of his daze and he smiled at her. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her in close to him. She leaned her head against his shoulder as they both looked at the sun rise. She then wrapped the blanket cover around the both of them, their naked bodies up against one another's.

"So what made you get out of the bed so early?" asked Serena as they continued looking at the sun rise.

"I woke up a little while ago and stayed in bed for a bit watching you sleep. I heard you mumble some pretty interesting stuff before I got up and came here to get some fresh air," admitted Ash.

"Hey, I said no teasing," said Serena as she playfully smacked his chest before resting her head against it again. Ash just chuckled. "Thinking about anything?"

"Yes," he said. "Just thinking about a few stuff; the tournament, what the future will be like fighting the darkness, finding out about Leaf, Cynthia, Anabel and Sarah." Serena nodded as she heard him before she let out a yawn and shivered a bit. She tightened her grip on the blanket. "You should go back to sleep Serena. It's still pretty early and you'll catch a cold."

"Hey, you're the one who stepped outside onto the balcony naked first," remarked Serena, making them both go pink but other than that they didn't react too embarrassingly.

"True, but I trained at Mount Silver and other really cold places. I'm used to it," said Ash truthfully.

"Good point but I'm not tired either," she said as she tried to stifle a yawn but was unsuccessful.

"Riiiight," said Ash sarcastically, making Serena form a sheepish smile on her face. He smiled back at her before he surprised her by picking her up bridal style and carried her back to the bed. Serena laughed at his action, making him chuckle. He lowered her gently onto the bed, giving her a quick kiss before he raised the blanket to cover her.

"You're not sleeping?" asked Serena as she looked at him.

"No, I figured I should get some training in since I'm up already," answered Ash.

"Oh, okay. Can you stay with me until I fall back asleep at least?" she asked.

"Of course my Angel. Let me just put something on in case Leaf or your mom decide to barge in. I don't know how they'll handle seeing me naked. They might jump me," joked Ash and Serena slapped his arm in response as she gave him a fake angry face before giggling. As he went to put on some boxers and another pair of pajama pants, Serena watched him get semi dressed and her face flushed red as she admired his body and remembered their time together last night. Even with the scars on his body, she believed him to be perfect as they showed that he was a courageous man. When he finished, he lied down on top of the blanket on his side next to Serena, facing her. She smiled at him and he returned it.

"I was wondering," started Serena. "You said you trained with Lucario to learn how to fight. You should teach us so we can defend ourselves."

"Yes I did…but I'm not sure if I would be able to teach you. Not by myself anyway. Lucario would most definitely have to do the honors and I probably would just be used for demonstrations," chuckled Ash and Serena followed suite, giggling. "But that's a good idea. You should all know how to defend yourselves. When should we start that?" he asked.

"I think the sooner the better," replied Serena.

"Yea, you're right. Okay, I'll talk to Lucario today and we'll come up with a training schedule and start while we're here and looks like we'll need a place to practice," said Ash and Serena nodded.

They laid there for a few minutes talking before Serena said she was unable to continue since she was so tired. She gave a quick kiss and fell asleep. He looked at her for a few minutes before he got up and changed from his sweats to his heavy workout clothes, which consisted of black, loose exercise pants, a black weighted shirt, weighted wrist bands and weighted ankle bands.

He left the room and moved silently through the suite even with the weighted shirt and accessories on him and he entered the large patio area where the pool and jacuzzi were. He noticed that the sun was fully out now in the horizon and started stretching for about ten minutes. When he was finally ready after jumping a couple times on his bare feet, he climbed on top of the railings and tossed out a poke ball that had materialized in his hand with a blue glow into the air and his Pidgeot appeared who nuzzled him affectionately.

"I missed you too Pidgeot," said Ash as he hugged her and caressed her bright colorful plumage of feathers on her head as the great falcon cooed at him. "I'm going to start some training. You know what to do."

Pidgeot gave a chirp of understanding and took off flying around him as he began his training on top of the railings. As he trained, Pidgeot kept a close watch on him from the sky, making sure that she was ready to catch him if he were to fall or slip off the ledge. It was a new regiment that he and Lucario devised when he was back at New Island checking on his recovering pokémon. It was one that focused on his balance and coordination. After about an hour of working out, when he started doing hand stand pushups on the railings, he had a spectator watch him as he continued. A few minutes later, the spectator had someone join her.

"Aren't you worried that he'll fall off?" asked Anabel with obvious worry coating her words.

"At first I was but then I noticed his Pidgeot," answered Leaf, pointing out the beautiful falcon in the air above Ash.

Leaf had gotten up a while ago since she was an early riser. She had washed up, changed and when she was about to go to Ash's room to wake him up as usual, she was surprised when she noticed him training in the large balcony patio. She leaned against the sliding glass door and watched him. Anabel had woken up soon after since she had placed an alarm on her Poketch so she can get up and train. She fully intended to follow up on her vow to prepare and help Ash in his fight against the darkness.

"I get it. Good precaution," remarked Anabel and Leaf nodded.

"I was wondering what you guys were staring at until I saw Ash. Never seen someone that good looking train before?" Both Anabel and Leaf turned around and saw Sarah standing behind them with a smirk on her face. Anabel went crimson but Leaf merely smiled back in response.

"What are you doing up so early? I remember you sleeping in a bit usually," commented Anabel.

"Same as you," replied Sarah. "I plan on starting my training already so I woke up when your alarm went off. Looks like you don't need it Leaf since you were up before we got up."

"So you two are going to go train? Where?" asked Leaf, thinking she should start her training too in order to keep the promise she made as well.

"I'm going to the woods in front of the hotel," answered Sarah. "You two can come with if you'd like."

"Sure, I'll come. I want to get some training in too. Thanks!" said Leaf with a smile.

"I'll join as well. Let's go," added Anabel.

The three girls took one more look at the young man who was now balancing on one leg, the other leg resting on his standing leg's knee while holding his hands together in a prayer position, meditating before they headed out. They each grabbed their bags that had their poke balls inside on the way out. They greeted Joy at the bottom, who left earlier than them all to start her shift. They talked for a couple minutes before leaving the building and headed into the woods. They walked until they found a suitable clearing for training and they brought out their pokémon. Leaf called out Volcarona, Anabel had Alakazam come out and Sarah had her Jolteon appear. They began their training separately for a little while before they started having mock battles against each other. Unknown to them, five bald men were walking closer to their position a good distance away from the hotel in the woods.

"So who was the girl we're supposed to get again?" asked one of the men.

"Look at the picture you idiot," replied the leader.

"How are we supposed to find her?" asked a third man.

"The red head said she'll be near the Indigo Plateau Hotel so we'll start there and we'll figure it out as we go. She may not be smart and if she is, we'll just force her to come with us."

"Alright boss, but what if she travels in a group?" asked the fourth man.

"We take them all if it's a group of girls. I mean she only asked for this particular girl. We could have some fun with the others if they look hot. What do you say boss?" mused the fifth man.

"If it's not a hassle. I've been bored lately. But our mission is to get her. This has been our biggest score yet since business has slowed down greatly," answered their leader and the others agreed as they continued moving through the forest, unknowingly getting closer to the girl they were looking for in the picture.

The picture was then passed around to each of the five bald men so they can see who their target is. It was of a raven haired young man and a brunette girl in an embrace in the stadium right when the attackers invaded. Back at the hotel, after the three girls left, Ash began using his aura abilities to practice his basic moves to keep them sharp while trying to keep his balance in various positions.

"Feel like having a little sparring session?"

Ash finished practicing his Aura Spheres, shooting them into the air and traveling a good distance before fading away. He turned to glance at the new arrival and smiled.

"Sounds good to me. Let's get started Riley."

Riley nodded and Ash jumped down onto the balcony floor. He jumped on his tip toes a bit to loosen up and stay warm since he was sweating profusely. He had taken off his black weighted shirt but kept his weighted accessories on his ankles and wrists. Riley took off his Guardian's hat, jacket and shirt, placing them on one of the lounge chairs before he joined where the younger Guardian was waiting for him, which was a pretty spacious open area near the railings and next to the large pool. Pidgeot eyed the two from high up in the air and chirped out a good luck to her trainer who waved his hand at her in response.

"Ready?" asked Riley with a smirk.

"Always," grinned Ash.

They bowed to each other before getting into fighting stances. A tense moment passed between them, each contemplating how they should start their practice fight. They sensed a few people come out onto the balcony but they kept their attention on each other.

"What are they doing?" asked Johanna with obvious worry. "Why are they about to fight?"

"They're not really fighting," explained Ilene. "They're just going to spar. Riley mentioned he wanted to test Ash's new abilities and strength himself."

"That makes sense," said Misty. "I hope Riley is ready to get his butt whipped." Her comment earned some laughs but got some frowns, namely from Ilene and from Daisy Oak.

"I don't know about that Misty," remarked Ilene. "Riley has more experience than Ash."

"Maybe so but I don't think that would matter," replied Misty fiercely.

The two spoken of suddenly shot forward and began their fight, preventing Daisy Oak from adding her own comments to the debate as they drew everyone's attention. They each ended up hitting the other and quickly attempted to follow through but they kept evading and deflecting the other's attacks, though they did end up striking one another every now and then.

"Not bad," commented Norman as he and his wife Caroline joined them in watching the practice fight.

"Who are you trying to kid honey?" joked Caroline. "They're much better than you."

They laughed at Norman who muttered under his breath while crossing his arms but they couldn't understand it. They continued watching the fight as the others slowly joined their group when they entered the living room and noticed them in the large patio and that their focus was on something.

"What's going on Dad?" asked Max as he pushed through them to get to the front.

"Just an exhibition match son. Get over here and watch," answered Norman.

Max finally made it through and his eyes widened as he saw Riley and Ash fighting. Not too much later, Bonnie made her way through and stood next to Max, who smiled at her when he noticed her and she returned a smile of her own to him. A few others joined them a moment later. The two Aura Guardians took a step back and grinned at one another after exchanging kicks.

"How about we make this more interesting? I want to see your full power!" requested Riley.

"Are you sure?" asked Ash, a bit hesitant.

"Yes, I'm sure!" replied Riley as his eyes glowed blue. Then he had a blue glow outline him before his aura burst out from him in blue flames. His aura was strong for someone who wasn't from a bloodline of Aura Guardians and Ash was impressed. Lucario had taught him how to gauge another's strength.

Looks like he's been training too. Not bad Riley but not good enough either.

"Wow," said Daisy Oak, before smirking. "He looks bad ass! Looks like Ash has met his match Misty!"

"Don't count on it Daisy," said May, getting involved with the debate. She, Dawn, Serena and Misty gave Daisy Oak and Ilene glares, the two glaring back. That made the others glance at them and they shook their heads in amusement at the sight of them comparing whose boyfriend was stronger.

"Well, are you in or not Ash?" asked Riley.

"I'm in but did you say my full power?" he asked and Riley nodded. "Then you got it!"

Ash's eyes glowed blue and not even a second later, his aura burst out from him with such power and speed that it pushed Riley back a couple feet and blinded the others for a second. The aura flames were three times the height of Riley's, who was amazed and so was everyone else. Ash had grown stronger after he fully recovered from the wounds he received before. The four girls smirked at Daisy Oak and Ilene who didn't look back but noticed it from the corner of their eyes. Riley couldn't believe it. The younger guardian had brought out his own aura much more quickly than he did and it was far stronger. He didn't think he would be that much stronger than him and was stunned but quickly recomposed himself. He jumped onto the railings and landed on top of it with perfect balance with Ash doing the same right after. They eyed one another for a second before they moved forward and continued their sparring session on top of the railings, keeping their balance as they continued to spar.

Back in the woods, the three girls were finishing up their training. Their pokémon were tired out and so were they as they decided to do some exercises too but they were all pleased with themselves. Leaf, panting a bit, turned to the blonde girl.

"That was some good training. How did you come up with some of that stuff?" Leaf asked Sarah, impressed with her training methods.

"Thanks but I got those training tips from Ash after I lost to him in the opening match of the tournament," admitted Sarah with a sheepish look.

"Oh that's right I saw that match back home. That must have been a brutal defeat," remarked Anabel. "Sorry," she added quickly.

"Don't be as I'm not sad about it anymore," replied Sarah, making Anabel and Leaf smile. "Hey Leaf, when are you going to tell Ash?" Her sudden question made Leaf's smile go away and Anabel looked at her.

"I know I need to tell him…I just…I don't know when or how to tell him," answered Leaf. The two girls were looking at her with concerned expressions on their faces. "And…I'm scared as to how he'll take it. I don't want to lose my chance if it's possible…"

Anabel suddenly shushed her and snapped her attention to the side as she had sensed some people coming and faced the nearby bushes. Leaf was a bit angered at the interruption and Sarah was confused. As soon as they both opened their mouths to say something, Anabel shook her head and nodded towards the bushes. The three girls stayed silent and eyed the bushes. A moment later, five bald men came out of the bushes they were looking at and they quickly stopped moving and talking as they noticed the three girls.

"Well, well, well. What are three beautiful girls doing here? Perhaps we could escort you out of the woods? Maybe go out together?" asked one of the bald men who had a white headband on.

The man with the headband eyed each of the girls with a nasty glint in his eyes and when he faced Leaf, he realized that she was the girl from the picture. His lips curled up into a dangerous smile as he thought that this would be an easy score. The three girls gave the guys a disgusted look and their pokémon growled at him. The men laughed, looking very similar to one another but only one of them had a white headband on.

"You're really not our type," said Leaf as her Volcarona went in front of her.

"Just leave us be," added Sarah as her Jolteon growled, his fur spiked up.

"But Arceus has answered our prayers by leading us to you. So what do you say?" asked the leader, trying to feign innocence but it didn't work as Anabel could sense it. Even if she couldn't, the five just sent off bad vibes that was hard to notice.

"How stupid do you think we look?" asked Anabel as her Alakazam raised his twisted spoons.

"Stupid? No, we think you three look great, especially her. I would love to show you a good time," said the one with the headband while pointing at Leaf who became afraid.

"You're not taking me anywhere!" shouted Leaf hysterically and her Volcarona growled.

"Feisty. I like that. How about a battle then?" asked the same guy as he opened a poke ball and a Machamp appeared.

"Leave before you get pulverized! We are far stronger and we outnumber you! " threatened Sarah.

"Stronger and outnumber us?" laughed the five.

The other four men quickly brought out four other pokémon; Tyranitar, Rhyperior, Aggron and Weavile. The three girls quickly brought all of their pokémon in return: Leaf's Aggron, Venusaur, Pidgeot, Walrein and Dusknoir appeared; Sarah's Typhlosion, Steelix, Tyranitar, Hypno and Victreebell appeared; Anabel's Metagross and Espeon appeared.

"Is that it?" asked the leader with a smirk.

They brought out two more of each of their pokémon so now the girls were facing three Rhyperiors, three Aggrons, three Machamps, three Tyranitars and three Weaviles. Leaf, Sarah and

Anabel grimaced and were quickly getting scared but they didn't show it. A chaotic battle ensued as the three girls had their pokémon fight against the five men's pokémon.

High up in the air, Pidgeot was watching the fight between Ash and Riley. She was impressed that the other guardian was able to keep up with her trainer, though she had a feeling that it would soon be over as Ash had more power and he was younger though the older guardian's experience was playing a big role in being able to keep with Ash. The falcon pokémon was about to fly higher when she heard a faint blast from the ground in the distance. She flew in the direction the sound came from to see what caused it. As she soared over the woods near the hotel, her keen eyesight able to see perfectly even from such a high altitude, she soon spotted the three girls who were battling against five men. They were at a stalemate from what the falcon pokémon could see but saw that their opponents were battling dirty and were ruthless. She knew that they needed help and so quickly headed back to Ash, hoping she could make it in time to tell him before something bad happened.

Ash and Riley finished up their sparring session when Ash delivered a surprise Aura Beam out of nowhere that took all of Riley's energy to block it with his Aura Shield. Panting heavily though with a smile, Riley jumped down off the railings and his aura died down. Ash followed right after, his aura fading away and they bowed to each other before shaking hands.

"That was awesome Riley. You're really good," said Ash.

"Thanks but I have to say you are much better but I learned some cool tricks from you. You have to show me how to make an Aura Beam one day soon," said Riley and Ash agreed.

"That was great Ash!" praised the four girls as the two guardians moved towards them.

"Thanks," replied back Ash as he wiped off his sweat with a towel. The others all noticed the scars on his body now and when he noticed their sullen looks, he knew why. "Hey, don't worry about it. I don't feel a thing and I think they're pretty cool. Show's I'm not afraid eh?"

"You always find a way to make everything better," commented May with a smile.

"I try May." Ash smiled and the others followed suit, though Daisy Oak was busy trying to cheer up Riley over his loss even though he wasn't really saddened but enjoyed the attention greatly. A loud screech was heard and Ash turned around to see his Pidgeot fly down to him with a worried expression. "What's wrong Pidgeot?" asked Ash as she landed next to him. Pidgeot explained with a series of soft chirps and whistles. Ash's eyes grew wide before he let out a growl.

"What happened?" asked Dawn, becoming concerned.

"Leaf, Sarah and Anabel are battling against some men. They're holding their own right now but Pidgeot said that the attackers are fighting dirty," said Ash as he climbed onto Pidgeot's back without even putting on his shirt.

"WAIT!" shouted Misty and Ash looked back at her. "Let us go fight. Let me, Dawn, May and Serena go help them."

"She's right. You can't keep doing everything yourself and this will be good for us. We need to not rely on you all the time, especially if we are to fight against this evil that you said is coming. We have to be able to help each other like we used to and carry our own weight," added May. The girls gave Ash blazing looks as they stepped forward, one that said that they were going no matter what he said. He quickly thought over some things and decided to give them a chance.

"Okay. Get ready quickly as I get your transport ready. You have fifteen minutes as soon as you get there. If Gardevoir senses you haven't won by then, I'm joining the fight. Agreed?" he asked them and Misty, May, Dawn and Serena agreed as they went to get their pokémon as Ash brought out two poke balls with his aura and soon after, Lucario and Gardevoir appeared.

"Master, I sense great unease in your aura. What is the matter?" asked Lucario.

"Leaf, Sarah and Anabel are in a battle against some men who are fighting dirty. We're getting ready to help them out" said Ash and the two growled loudly. "The girls should be in the woods in that direction. Please keep an eye on them as we prepare here. Let me know if they get in great danger."

Lucario and Gardevoir moved to the railings facing the direction they were told the girls would be in and concentrated with their eyes glowing blue. They both soon sensed the three girls, the many pokémon and five men in the woods still battling. They felt a little relieved finding out that the girls were doing alright but kept up the watch. Misty, May, Dawn and Serena came back and were ready to battle, their poke balls clipped to their belts. Ash brought out three more poke balls and Staraptor, Unfezant and Swellow appeared. The four girls climbed onto the four flying pokémon.

"Please be careful. Remember fifteen minutes. Lucario and Gardevoir will be keeping an eye on you all. If the time limit is reached or something happens, I will be there immediately. I swear it," said Ash and the four girls gave reassuring smiles before becoming serious as they took off.

Ash watched them leave for a little bit before he turned his attention to everyone else. He noticed everyone had worried and angry looks on their faces but they weren't objecting to what was going on. After what they heard Ash say about the darkness coming in two years, they all had thought hard on how to prepare and this scenario, though not a happy one, was a good opportunity to get some experience from and to test their strength and abilities.

"It'll be alright everyone. They're all tough trainers and they can handle a few bullies. But don't worry; I'll be ready to step in if they can't or the five men try something," promised Ash.

"I'm scared! What if they get hurt? What if they're kidnapped?" cried Bonnie.

"Don't worry Bonnie," said Max as he held her hand and they both went red since they were still not used to it. Everyone noticed but nobody commented, even Gary, which was surprising. "They're strong and we won't let that happen." Bonnie nodded but continued sobbing. Caroline pulled the young girl into a hug as they watched their friends fly into the distance some before they flew down into the forest as they let out screeches.

"Volcarona, Flamethrower!" commanded Leaf and her fire moth let out a stream of flames at a Weavile who dodged the attack but countered back with a Night Slash that Volcarona barely evaded out of the way at the last second.

"Jolteon, Double Kick!" shouted Sarah and her electric dog sped towards one of the Aggron who was busy fighting her Tyranitar and kicked it twice on its side, making it cry out in pain before stumbling into a Fire Punch to the face by Typhlosion. The grey and white pokémon roared with rage as he charged at the fire badger with a glowing white fist, hitting him in the chest and sending him flying.

"Metagross, Bullet Punch!" ordered Anabel and her iron leg pokémon shot forward with one of its limbs glowing with a metallic sheen and hit the Rhyperior that was trying to land a hit against her Espeon. Rhyperior roared with rage and swung its powerful tail around and hit the psychic and steel type, sending it flying back.

The girls were having some trouble. Even though they were strong themselves, the pokémon they were facing were naturally tough. Aggron, Rhyperior, Tyranitar and Machamp were all physically stronger than most pokémon and while the Weavile were strong too, their defenses were quite pitiful, though their incredible speed made it hard to land a hit on them.

"We need to finish this quickly!" said Sarah as her Steelix dropped to the ground unconscious after taking multiple Brick Breaks to the face by two of the three Weaviles but her Hypno knocked out a Machamp with a telekinetic blast.

Several loud screeches were heard from above and they all looked up to see four birds diving down towards them. At first the three girls got scared, thinking their attackers had back up but when they got nearer, they grinned, seeing who the riders were. The four flying pokémon shot Air Slashes and Air Cutters at the men and their pokémon, pushing them back before they landed so their riders can get off. Misty, May, Dawn and Serena jumped down and immediately tossed out a couple poke balls each. Starmie, Corsola, Blaziken, Glaceon, Mamoswine, Typhlosion, Delphox and Pangoro appeared and quickly joined the battle, easily overcoming a Rhyperior and Machamp who were blindsided over their arrival. The four bird pokémon flew back up into the air before returning back to their trainer.

"Miss us?" asked Serena with a smirk as they gathered together.

"Very," replied Sarah with a smile as the seven girls stood next to each other. "But where's everyone else?" she asked as they ordered their pokémon to attack and evade.

"Yea, where's Ash?" asked Anabel after alerting her Metagross to dodge a Dark Pulse attack.

"He's not going to come because we can handle this," said Dawn as she glanced at the Salon Maiden who quickly nodded in agreement.

"Looks like we got some extra playmates boss," said one of the five men whose eyes were soon filled with lust over the beautiful new arrivals.

"Shut up Ed! Keep your focus! Edmond, we should send out the rest or we're toast!" said another.

"Alright! Ed, Eddie, Edward and Edwin; send them all out and beat them into the ground!" yelled Edmond, their leader with the white head band.

They five Ed's sent out the last of their pokémon and fifteen more pokémon came out from them; three Shiftry, three Houndoom, three Ursaring, three Crawdaunt and three Scizors appeared. The seven girls' eyes widened but they stayed in control and ordered their pokémon to attack without mercy. Misty let out her Gyarados, Politoed, Vaporeon and Staryu, Serena let out her Flareon, Dawn let out Espeon, Piplup, Togekiss and Pachirisu and May let out her Beautify, Wartortle and Jolteon. The battle between the now seven girls and the five men intensified with so many pokémon involved and it turned so chaotic that they were having a hard time keeping track of what was happening.

Several minutes passed by as the fight continued with many different elemental attacks flying through the air to hit their targets, some hitting their marks and others missing by just a hair. Misty's Gyarados, Sarah's Aggron and Leaf's Venusaur began powering up Hyper Beams and the five Eds ordered their pokémon to attack them to stop their attacks. The girls' other pokémon were ordered to defend the three until they launched their powerful attacks. After charging up their attacks, the three pokémon fired their white beams of powerful energy at their targets. Three large explosions occurred with the cries of many pokémon along with shouts and yells were heard along with bringing up a large dust cloud over them all.

Back at the hotel, Ash was standing on the railings, with Pikachu on his shoulder who was having his cheeks shoot out sparks every several seconds. His body was outlined with his glowing blue aura, pulsing as it was fading in and out, though no flames were around him…yet. He had returned his four flying pokémon after thanking them for taking the girls to the battle. His Lucario and Gardevoir were relaying the major points that were happening in the forest to him and everyone else as they kept watch.

"How much time has passed?" asked an anxious Ash.

"Eleven minutes," replied Brock, who was keeping time for everyone.

"Damn it. I hate not doing anything," muttered Ash and they all heard him.

"We know you want to go now Ash but the girls needed this and so do you. You won't be able to save everyone and you won't be able to help everyone all the time. We have to be able to do things on our own as well. I know you hate sitting on the sidelines, but this is important. You understand?" asked Oak.

"I know Professor. I just hate not doing anything."

"Thirteen minutes," said Brock.

"Okay. Gardevoir, can you-" Ash was cut off when three huge explosions were heard from the woods and he turned his attention back to the forest to see smoke trailing up into the sky. "NO!" His aura intensified and shot out around him with great force, making him look like a miniature blue sun, the glow so bright that it momentarily blinded the others. He tossed out a blue glowing orb before it faded away to reveal a white poke ball, a Premier Ball. It opened and the next second a very large pokémon appeared with a loud screech of its name that caused everyone to gasp. Ash jumped onto the flying pokémon's back, his aura flaring around him. "Teleport there now!" Gardevoir, Lucario and Pikachu disappeared as Ash and the large flying pokémon flew through the air with incredible speed.

"Was that..." whispered Ilene.

"No way. It couldn't be..." muttered Gary.

"It is. I can't believe he captured that pokémon," awed Oak and the rest just stayed silent as they were unable to speak as their jaws had dropped. Instead they watched him fly towards the smoke trailing upwards towards the sky.

The smoke cleared from the explosions in the woods after a while. Serena, Anabel, May and Dawn were knocked to the ground, badly hurt and barely conscious as Misty, Leaf and Sarah stood on shaky legs, leaning against each other for support. Half of their pokémon were knocked out as a result of the explosions caused by the Hyper Beams since they were so close but the other half were still standing but were panting heavily. The Eevee evolved pokémon that Ash gave the girls were panting as well as they had intercepted many attacks for the other pokémon to give them chances to strike back as they took the damage for them.

Their opponents had most of their pokémon on the ground unconscious but they still had a Machamp, two Aggron, two Rampardos, an Ursaring, a Houndoom, a Crawdaunt, a Tyranitar, Scizor and two Weaviles left. Their pokémon were hurt too but not as badly as the girls' pokémon since they were able to get some distance from the powerful attacks that damaged the entire area.

"Ah, this isn't good," commented Leaf, holding her shoulder and seeing her Venusaur barely standing, breathing heavily.

"You can say that again," replied Sarah weakly from the ground, seeing her Typhlosion out for the count and Tyranitar barely standing.

"Give up girls. You can't win!" laughed Edmond.

"Yea, we don't want to bruise those great bodies of yours before we have some fun!" cackled Ed and the girls shook with disgust while letting out 'ewwws'.

"Looks like they don't like you Ed," laughed Edward.

"When have they ever? I'll still have my way with them," replied Ed with an evil smile.

"Enough you morons!" yelled Edmond. "Time to finish this and get what we came for!"

Right when Edmond finished saying that, three blue spheres appeared in between the two groups. A second later, a hissing and sparking Pikachu appeared in the middle of a snarling Lucario who was in a battle stance to the right of him along with a Gardevoir to the left with narrowed glowing eyes. The girls felt relieved in seeing the reinforcements but soon felt completely safe when they heard a powerful voice from above; "YOU WILL PAY FOR YOUR ACTIONS!"

They all looked up and soon found an enormous and majestic flying pokémon above them with a man who was glowing with blue energy flames around him. The sight of him in the air on top of a massive pokémon made the girls gasp and the five men shook in fear a bit. Ash glanced at the girls from above and saw that they were hurt. His rage built inside him as he jumped down from massive flying being onto the ground and he landed in front of his pissed off pokémon. He let out an Aura Pulse after standing up to his full height that pushed the men and their pokémon back many feet before he raised both his hands to his sides and two large blue spheres of energy appeared above his palms instantly.

"Who the fuck are you?!" asked Edmond.

"I am Aura Guardian Ash Ketchum and you have pissed me off by attacking my girls!" replied Ash with fury as the two Aura Spheres grew even larger and his four pokémon let out battle cries.

The girls simply awed at him from behind, marveled by the sheer power radiating from him and that he had the large pokémon in the air with him who screeched at their enemies. They felt the Aura Pulse wash over them too, comforting them and gave them a little energy. Four of the seven girls smiled a little but the other three glanced at one another in slight confusion; did he just say 'my girls'? thought each of them.

"Aura Guardian?! Your girls?!" Edmond glanced at the four behind him and they all shared stunned looks. The red headed woman didn't tell them they would be trying to kidnap an Aura Guardian's girlfriend. They would deal with her if they got out of this mess. Edmond faced the Aura Guardian again. "Well, Aura Guardian or not, nobody messes with the Skull Brothers! Attack!" Their pokémon charged at the Aura Guardian who immediately focused the two large Aura Spheres into an Aura Shield instead around himself, the girls and their pokémon. He then looked up at his large pokémon who was hovering above them all.

"HO-OH! END THIS WITH SACRED FIRE!" roared Ash.

The legendary rainbow pokémon let out a large torrent of multicolored flames that shot forward with incredible power and speed that washed over the Skull Brothers' pokémon while Ash protected himself and his group with the Aura Shield from their attacks. Their opponents cried out in pain and agony and when the large flames disappeared, all of their pokémon were unconscious on the ground. The Skull Brothers took a step back with fearful expressions on their faces. They were never beaten before yet they were so easily defeated that it shook them to their core. Ash let the Aura Shield disappear and glanced at the girls behind. They looked at him with small smiles and he nodded at them, seeing them alright.

Ash faced the Skull Brothers, who shrunk back in fear against a few trees. He walked towards them, his aura blazing around him like a roaring fire as he did so, scaring the five bald men and the seven girls enjoyed the sight of their would-be attackers trembling with fear. He stopped a foot away from the leader and before Edmond could even let out a sound, the guardian's arm shot forward and grabbed his throat, lifting him up into the air with ease. Edward, Edwin, Eddie and Ed did nothing because of two reasons; they were afraid of the Aura Guardian but even more so of the legendary pokémon above them who had locked her gaze onto them from the air, hovering above them.

"WHY?! WHY WOULD YOU ATTACK THE GIRLS?! I'VE HAD MY FILL WITH SCUM LIKE YOU! ALWAYS THINKING YOU DESERVE WHATEVER YOU WANT! WELL NO MORE! I'M GOING TO MAKE SURE YOU NEVER BOTHER ANYONE EVER AGAIN!" roared Ash.

He placed his free hand in front of Edmond's face and a small but deeply concentrated ball of blue energy appeared, cackling with the enormous amount of energy contained within it. Edmond began to cry out an apology and started begging for his life. The girls felt a little pity but also felt that they deserved to be punished, yet they didn't want Ash to take a life. They felt conflicted over what they wanted but if they felt torn, Ash was feeling as if he was being split in two. A part of him wanted nothing more than to end their pathetic lives right then and there for hurting the girls and knew without a shadow of a doubt that they had caused much suffering in the past and may cause some more in the future if let be. His other side though wanted to give them a chance to repent and change their ways. He thought about the promise he made that he would gladly take life to keep everyone safe…but…was that necessary here? Arceus words rang through his mind at that moment; are you ready to take life?

After a long tense moment, he decided. The glowing ball of energy faded away and he lowered the leader back onto the ground and let go of him, who immediately started gasping for air. His aura died down but his eyes remained glowing blue. A series of powerful punches were thrown so quickly that nobody saw it happen as Ash struck Edmond in the chest many times, making the leader drop down in extreme pain when he finished. Ash then faced the other four and before you could say 'Pokémon Master', they too were on the ground in agony.

"That is a warning for all of you," said Ash in a serious tone and the Skull Brothers were barely able to look up at him. "I am giving you a chance to change your ways even though you don't deserve it. Don't ever come near my girls again and don't ever do any wrong again. If you do and continue down this path…I will find you…and I will kill you without a second's thought. That is a promise. Now leave before I change my mind."

They didn't need to be told twice. Without a word, the Skull Brothers returned their fainted pokémon and fled the area as quickly as they could back into the deep woods from where they came from. Ash watched them leave and nodded at his pokémon on the ground who followed after them to make sure they left. Ash turned around, his eyes turning back to brown and walked back towards the seven girls who had large relieved smiles on their faces from the floor. They had returned their pokémon already and each wanted to run to him but couldn't get up since they were so tired and hurt. When Ash drew near them, he knelt down in front of them. Ho-Oh landed behind them in the clearing, taking up most of the space since she was so large.

"Good job Ho-Oh," praised Ash as he looked at Ho-Oh, petting her and the legendary bird let out a soft chirp like sound at him. He then faced the girls in front of him. "Thank Arceus that you all are alright," said Ash to the seven girls. "Everything is fine now. I'm going to heal each of you as quickly as I can."

He was closest to Misty and May and so placed his hands on their shoulders as his hands glowed blue. The two felt the comforting aura wash over them, healing and energizing them. When he finished, the two girls kissed him and hugged him tightly, thanking him and when they separated, he did the same to Dawn and Serena next. After healing them two as well, who thanked him with kisses and hugs as well, Ash moved to heal the remaining three girls. Lucario, Gardevoir and Pikachu came back into the clearing they were in at that moment and stood next to the four girls. He went to Anabel and Sarah first since they were the closest. He placed his glowing blue hands on their shoulders and pulsed healing aura onto the two. Both girls felt instantly better, both from his touch and the aura flowing through them. When he finished, he removed his hands and Anabel and Sarah hugged him tightly.

"Thank you Ash," they said into his chest, clinging onto him for dear life.

"You're welcome," he replied back softly as he returned the hug and let them stay like that for a moment. When they separated, he smiled at them and then moved to Leaf finally. She attempted to stand up. She didn't want to look so weak but stumbled and was about to fall back down when Ash caught her. "Hey, no need to push yourself so hard when you're hurt," said the raven haired guardian softly as he helped her stand back up. Her green eyes locked with his brown ones as he placed his glowing blue hand on her shoulder and healed her too. Not once did Leaf lower her gaze from his eyes and when he finished healing her she spoke.

"That's the third time you've saved me Ash in less than two weeks," she whispered.

"Doesn't matter how many times Leaf. I'll do it over and over again with no hesitation. But try to stay safe will you?" he asked with a bit of a chuckle.

Leaf's face flushed as her heart beat quickly while the other girls smiled when they heard him. Damn it Ash. Why do you have to be so perfect? I want nothing more than to just hold you and kiss you. But I can't…I…I need to tell you… "Ash…there's something I need to tell you…" whispered Leaf so no one but Ash could hear.

"Okay Leaf but can you wait a bit? I think we should go home first," advised Ash and Leaf nodded after a few seconds, thinking it would be best.

Ash grasped Leaf's hand, who went red and led her to where Anabel and Sarah were standing. He grasped Sarah's and Anabel's hand with his other hand and they too flushed crimson. He then led the three girls to where Misty, Dawn, Serena, May and his pokémon were standing with smiles on their faces. He let go of the three girls' hands and faced the seven girls and his pokémon. He thanked Ho-Oh again, who nodded at him and returned the legendary pokémon. He nodded at Gardevoir after and they disappeared in blue glows.

The eight of them reappeared in the patio of their suite, surprising everyone at first at their sudden appearance but then they quickly cheered that they were alright and gathered around them. The eight of them smiled and told them not to worry as all is well. Delia, the girls' mothers and sisters hugged them all tightly and then told them to get ready for lunch. As they all gathered around the dining table with Lucario, Gardevoir and Pikachu staying outside in the patio, the others asked them how they were and what happened. Leaf, Sarah and Anabel started explaining everything from the beginning. By the time the food appeared and they began eating ravenously since they were so hungry, they got to the part where Ash appeared and completely pulverized the men and their pokémon.

"Wow, nicely done Ash," praised Ilene and Ash rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Thank you my Queen."

"Just call me Ilene, Ash. I guess you weren't here when I told everyone that."

"Oh, okay."

"When and where did you catch Ho-Oh?" asked Max, his eyes wide. Everyone wanted to know too and they became quiet as they listened to Ash's story of his encounter of the legendary bird.

"Well it's not too much of an exciting story. I came into contact with Ho-Oh when I visited the new tower to replace the Burnt Tower in Ecruteak City in Johto. I had found a rainbow feather a while ago and kept it for good luck. Next thing I know when I reached the top of the tower, the rainbow feather started glowing and when I looked up I saw her hovering above me. She spoke with me with telepathy and I found out that she's been flying around trying to find a pure hearted trainer that would be worthy of her power for a long time and chose me. But I would still have to battle her to see if I was ready for her power. I ended up winning the match and now she's with me."

They nodded in understanding and continued finishing their meal as they thought about what Ash just told them. When they finished up, Delia reminded her son that his match was coming up and that he should get ready. He thanked his mom and he turned to the seven girls.

"I want you seven to go rest at least until I come back from my match." He was met with defiant looks on their faces but he didn't falter. "Please do this for me. You know I'm going to win my match and I appreciate you wanting to be there for me but I would feel better if you would just skip it this one time and just rest alright?"

After a long moment, the seven girls reluctantly agreed. Ash thanked them for listening to him. He also told the rest of the others to stay behind to look after the girls in case they needed something and they agreed. The seven girls wished him good luck and he went to the patio for his three pokémon.

"Hey guys, let's go," said Ash as he reached his pokémon. Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder and Lucario and Gardevoir stood next to him. "Let's finish up the match quickly." The four of them teleported to the stadium while everyone else went to the living room. The seven girls took up one couch for themselves and the couples sat together, with some of the girls sitting on their boyfriend's laps, who were Lucy, Violet and Lily. They weren't embarrassed about it at all and the three guys enjoyed it. Richie turned on the TV and flipped the channel to the tournament in time to catch the announcer speaking.

"WHAT A MATCH THAT WAS! BE SURE TO KEEP ON EYE ON THAT DRAGON MASTER! NOW LET'S GET READY FOR THE NEXT MATCH OF THE DAY! IT'S GOING TO BE AGAINST THE VALE-DICTORIAN OF THE POKÉMON ACADEMY, GISELLE YUTO AND THE PEOPLE'S HERO, ASH KETCHUM!"

The crowd roared in response to seeing a beautiful black haired girl walk out onto the field, who was wearing a short black skirt, a blue blouse and a black scarf around her neck. When she reached the referee in the middle, a blue glowing sphere appeared in front of the two that made the dark haired girl gasp. A second later, Ash and his pokémon appeared, making the crowd roar even louder as they chanted out his name again.

"BLUE SPIRIT! BLUE SPIRIT!" the crowd kept repeating, making Ash rub the back of his head before he waved at them all.

"Let's have a good match," said Ash as he raised his hand to her after putting on the microphone and facing his opponent.

"I'm looking forward to it. Do you remember me?" asked Giselle suddenly. Ash tilted his head as he looked at her and then his eyes widened as he realized who she was.

"I do. I remember now why you're name was so familiar. You're Giselle from the Pokémon Academy that I met years ago right?" asked Ash with a small smile, noticing that she had grown up to be quite attractive but he got over it pretty quick. He remembered how they met and wondered if she remained a better person than from what she used to be; an arrogant and conceded brat. He noticed she wasn't giving off that vibe anymore.

"Yup that's me and it has been a while. Let's have a good match," she replied back while blushing a bit and the two went to their respective areas so the match could start.

"That girl better not try something," fumed May from her seat in the couch as she clenched her fists. They all saw the way she was looking at Ash on the TV. The others shook their heads at her in amusement from their seats while Leaf, Anabel and Sarah glanced at one another with slight fear.

In the VIP room, the Champions, Goodshow and three guests were watching the matches and several of them couldn't wait for Ash's. Cynthia looked a bit peeved seeing Giselle try to get Ash's attention and the rest noticed it. Sabrina was gazing at Ash and thinking about how much pain she caused him. A lone tear escaped from her eyes that Clair, Liza and Cynthia caught since the four of them were sitting together on a couch in front of the window. Sabrina had told Clair and Liza what had happened, Cynthia already knowing why since she was there when the psychic prodigy helped bring out his memories.

"It's alright Sabrina," said Clair and Sabrina wiped away the tear hurriedly. "He's fine. No lasting damage or anything of the sort."

Sabrina nodded and thanked Clair. The four of them focused their attention on the match that was beginning. Alder, Steven and Goodshow glanced at Lance who was sitting with Diantha and shook their heads before turning their gaze back to the field. Clair and Liza wanted to see just how strong Ash had become, having only heard about his feats and saw the news. They watched the referee repeat the rules of the double battle and when the two trainers said they were ready, he signaled the start of the match.

"AND THEY'RE OFF! GISELLE HAS CHOSEN GYARADOS AND MAROWAK WHILE ASH HAS CHOSEN HIS GIGALITH AND TAUROS! WE'VE SEEN HOW POWERFUL GISELLE'S POKÉMON ARE, HAVING BEAT TRIP WHO WAS CONSIDERED ONE OF THE STRONGEST TRAINERS! THIS SHOULD BE INTERESTING!"

Seeing the Marowak, Ash smiled a bit, remembering when Giselle used him in a battle against his Pikachu when he was just a Cubone. But he wanted to end the battle quickly as he was pretty worn out already from the day's events and had a lot of things to think about.

"I hate to say this Giselle but I'm going to have to finish this battle quickly. Don't take this personally! Giga Impact and Stone Edge!" shouted Ash as he crossed his arms. His bull pokémon covered himself in a multi colored glow and charged at Marowak while his boulder pokémon made the ground underneath the Gyarados start breaking apart.

"Dodge then counter attack with Hydro Pump and Bonemerang!" shouted Giselle but her pokémon were too slow to avoid the attacks.

They were both struck hard and cried out in pain. Surprisingly though, they didn't go down but they looked like they were barely holding on. They launched their attacks, striking the surprised Tauros and Gigalith. Seeing her pokémon in such conditions with just one attack each and their opponents with just a few scratches and bruises, slightly panting, Giselle shivered as she realized just how outclassed she is. She recalled her Gyarados and Marowak and sent out her last two pokémon. Ash returned his pokémon and sent out two others.

"ASH HAS MADE GISELLE RECALL HER GYARADOS AND MAROWAK, TAKING THEM OUT OF THE MATCH COMPLETELY WITH JUST ONE ATTACK AGAINST THEM EACH. WHAT POWER! THE YOUNG GUARDIAN HAS GISELLE UP AGAINST THE ROPES ALREADY! SHE HAS CALLED OUT HER EMBOAR AND DRAGALGE WHILE ASH HAS SWITCHED OUT HIS POKEMON AND NOW LAPRAS AND TALONFLAME ARE ON THE FIELD. ALL FOUR POKEMON LOOK READY TO BATTLE!"

"Giselle, I must say I'm impressed. You returned your pokémon before they got too hurt. I'm happy to say that you are my friend," called out Ash, making Giselle blush.

"Thanks Ash. That means a lot coming from an Aura Guardian. But I'm not done yet!" she replied and Ash nodded while their pokémon roared. "Fire Blast and Dragon Pulse!"

"Counter with Fire Blast and Dragon Pulse too!" ordered Ash.

Emboar and Dragalge fired off their attacks while Talonflame and Lapras countered with their own. The four attacks met in the middle of the field and exploded, canceling each other out. Giselle was stunned but Ash was smiling as a thought went into his head; her pokémon are strong. Let's see if they can handle this next attack.

"Not bad Giselle. Let's see if you can withstand this next barrage. Blizzard and Tailwind combo!" called out Ash before she could make a move. Talonflame whipped up a turbulent wind on their side and right when Lapras summoned a freezing blizzard to hit their opponents, the fire bird increased the speed of the blizzard with the incredible winds. The supercharged icy storm went roaring towards their opponents.

"GAH!" shouted Giselle, seeing the incredible attack hurtling at her pokémon. "Use Protect!" Her Emboar and Dragalge covered themselves in protective transparent shields. The icy storm slammed against their protective barriers and her two pokémon struggled to keep up the shield as the attack was so powerful as the dark haired girl shielded her face with her arms. Both pokémon's shields shattered and they were struck by it, making both Emboar and Dragalge yelp. Finally the attack ended and both pokémon dropped to the ground.

"NO WAY!" shouted Giselle. The crowd was silent. Even inside the VIP room it was quiet and so was everyone back at the hotel. Nobody could believe just how quickly Ash won his match and what was more astonishing was that he did so in the later matches of the tournament when the battles were much harder since the stronger trainers were left.

"Dragalge and Emboar are unable to-" The announcer stopped when he noticed the fire pig lift himself up slowly but Dragalge stayed unmoving. Ash raised an eyebrow in surprise. Giselle returned Dragalge and was about to return Emboar as well but he shook his head at her. He wanted to land at least one hit against these powerful fighters. Giselle tried to talk him down but he wouldn't listen.

"You have an incredible will and spirit Emboar," complimented Ash, everyone listening carefully. "But there is no shame in accepting defeat in a match like this."

Emboar grunted in response as his ability Blaze activated and he was glowing red. He charged up a ball of flames in front of him before launching it at Lapras and Talonflame. Ash shook his head and chuckled a bit when he saw the fire pig charge up the attack. He knew how stubborn fire types could be, especially starters.

"Send it into the air!" ordered Ash when the attack was launched. His command made Emboar become wide eyed. Talonflame used his powerful wing muscles to blow away the ball of flames high up into the sky before it expanded and then exploded. "Now, finish this with Hydro Pump!" Lapras let out a torrent of pressurized water that raced across the field and struck Emboar as he was too tired to move. Emboar was sent flying back from it and hit the stadium wall before sliding down unconscious.

"Emboar is unable to battle! Giselle Yuto has no more able pokémon and the winner is Ash Ketchum!" said the referee, holding up the flag for Ash's side.

"OUTSTANDING! THAT WAS THE SHORTEST DOUBLE BATTLE IN LEAGUE HISTORY! WAIT, WHAT'S THIS?!" Ash had returned his pokémon and he moved across the stadium with Pikachu on his shoulder while Lucario and Gardevoir followed him. Giselle watched him move to her fallen Emboar, frozen with her arm outstretched, about to return her pokémon. He placed his hand, which was glowing blue, on Emboar's shoulder. A blue wave of energy went over the fallen fire pokémon and after a little while, Ash stopped and Emboar stood back up and bowed his head in respect to the Guardian. "WHAT SPORTSMANSHIP! ASH HAS HEALED THE GRAVELY INJURED EMBOAR WITH HIS AURA POWERS AND THE FIRE PIG HAS SHOWN HIS RESPECT TO THE BLUE SPIRIT IN RETURN!"The crowd was silent for a moment as they watched him do that before they roared in happiness that they witnessed such a good hearted action. Giselle returned her Emboar and went to Ash who had moved to the referee. They both gave the referee their microphones before shaking hands.

"Thanks for that and you are so strong. You surprised me again just like all those years ago. I'm sure you're going to win the tournament," praised Giselle.

"You're not bad either Giselle," replied Ash with a smile as they let go of hands.

"Thanks Ash. Um…I was wondering…would you like to meet up later on? I know of a nice place nearby called Club Indigo we can go to," asked Giselle, becoming red with hope in her eyes.

"Thank you for the offer Giselle but I'm sorry, I can't. I already have a girlfriend," he replied back softly with a smile. Giselle sighed a bit but nodded as she understood. With that, Ash and his pokémon disappeared in blue glows, making her gasp again.

"I wonder what they were talking about?" asked Liza in the VIP room as they noticed the two talking for a bit before Ash vanished.

"Giselle asked him out but Ash denied the offer, saying he was already in a relationship," answered Sabrina at once, staring at the spot where Ash vanished from. The others in the room looked at her with surprised looks.

"You read their minds from here?" asked an impressed Cynthia.

"Giselle's yes. I couldn't read Ash's mind. He has learned to protect it from unwanted psychic assaults, like mind reading. Though I don't know how strong his defenses are," revealed Sabrina and the others nodded their heads, impressed.

"Huh. Who would have thought that Ash would become such a powerful and handsome trainer that girls are literally offering themselves up to him," commented Clair, making them all look at her curiously and one of them showing jealousy and she noticed. "Oh relax, I'm just saying," she said as she got up to leave the VIP room to go get some snacks.

Ash and his pokémon reappeared in his suite's living room where everyone was. Misty, Dawn, Serena and May got up and congratulated him on his impressive and speedy victory with hugs and kisses while the rest just congratulated him from their seats.

"Thanks everyone," he replied back. "I'm gonna go relax and take a nap for a bit. I'm worn out. I'll see you guys later."

They nodded at him and watched him go to his room with his pokémon. The others decided to go do their own things. Max and Bonnie went to the nearby Indigo Arcade with Norman, Caroline and Clemont. Gary, Ilene, Riley and Daisy Oak went out for a walk together. Richie went downstairs to visit Joy who was on her shift. Delia, Johanna and Grace were swapping recipes with Cilan, Cress and Chili in the kitchen. Iris, Violet and Lily were playing a card game in the dining room. Professor Oak was reading a book in the patio. Brock and Lucy decided to go watch a romantic comedy together in their bedroom but then it turned into an intimate session after some playful interactions and they merely used the movie for cover to have some privacy for a bit while they went at it. Daisy Waterflower went to her room alone as she wanted to take a nap too and laid down on her bed, holding the Squirtle stuffed animal that Ash won for her. She looked at it for a bit before hugging it tightly and slowly drifted off to sleep with a smile on her face. Misty, May, Dawn and Serena went to their room with Sarah and Anabel as they decided to talk to the two girls a bit and see how they were doing. Unlike the two, the four girls had been in situations like that before with Ash and decided afterwards if they could come up with a good training plan together. Leaf told them that she'll join them shortly after she takes care of something and they agreed.

The brunette girl from Pallet Town went to the nearby bathroom and looked herself in the mirror. She was wearing her black skirt with a red tank top that had a black poke ball symbol on it along with her black cap on her head. She sighed as she thought of what she had to do and decided this would be the best time to do it. She only hoped that he would understand. She took a deep breath and steeled herself to commit to her decision. She left the bathroom and walked to Ash's master bedroom. She knocked on it and the door opened after a moment by Lucario.

"Hey Lucario. I was wondering if I could talk to Ash alone," said Leaf.

"I apologize Lady Leaf but Master is still sleeping. Maybe you could-"

"It's alright Lucario, I'm up," interrupted Ash and Lucario stepped aside for Leaf to enter the room. "Can you guys give us some privacy?"

"No problem Master. We will go to the living room," replied Lucario. He, Gardevoir and Pikachu left the room and closed the door behind them. Ash sat up on his bed as he leaned his back against the headboard. He was on top of the bed's covers, one knee up with his hand on top of it. Leaf gazed at him for a moment, unable to look away before she sat down on the edge of his bed and stared at her feet.

"So, what's up Leaf?" asked Ash, making Leaf look up at him.

"There's something I need to tell you…something important. I want to come clean Ash," started Leaf, making Ash tilt his head and look at her with a curious expression. She took a breath before continuing. "Remember when you were in the hospital after protecting everyone from the stadium attack?" Ash nodded. "Well, I came into your room and asked your pokémon for some privacy after you took Norman's beating like it was nothing. I then confessed some things to you while you were sleeping."

"What kinds of things?" asked Ash but he had an idea what it was but he waited for her to explain. Leaf locked her green eyes with his brown ones before continuing.

"I confessed that I was an idiot for not waiting to travel with you, that I've been developing feelings for you and that I've been trying to hide them and ignore them. I confessed that you are the type of man that I need in my life. That I have fallen in love with you and I want for you to love me back. After confessing that and saying a couple more things, mostly about how I want to be with you, I finished my confession by giving you a kiss while you slept."

"You said you loved me and then kissed me? While I slept?" asked an astonished Ash in a low voice and his eyes wide.

"Yes. Anabel and Sarah caught me in the act and got mad at me. Anabel even slapped me hard. One thing lead to another and we found out some other things about each other but they decided to keep the secret and not rat me out. I wanted to come clean after seeing your memories and worst fear with even Sarah and Anabel telling me to but I never got the chance until now. I'm so sorry Ash for that as you didn't deserve a coward's confession and I shouldn't have taken advantage of you like that. I should've said that to you when you were awake and much sooner. I hope you can forgive me," finished Leaf with her eyes watering.

Ash was shocked. He didn't know what to do. At first he was feeling happy that she confessed that she loved him, even if he was sleeping….but when she said that she kissed him while he was unconscious, it made him feel something else entirely. Leaf had just admitted that she had taken advantage of him. She had betrayed his trust and the girls' trust. After a few quiet and tense moments, with Leaf letting out silent tears, Ash got out of bed and stood up. He looked at Leaf with cold eyes devoid of emotion making Leaf inhale sharply as she was taken aback from his icy gaze. He moved without another word and began heading out of his room. Leaf jumped up and grabbed his hand.

"WAIT! Please don't leave me Ash. I'm really sorry for doing that. Please don't go! I'll do anything! Anything to make it up to you! Please forgive me!" begged Leaf as she started to cry loudly when Ash turned around and glared at her.

"YOU TOOK ADVANTAGE OF ME LEAF! YOU BETRAYED MY AND THE GIRLS' TRUST! HOW COULD I FORGIVE YOU?!" roared Ash, making Leaf stumble back a bit before falling down onto her rear from his angry outburst.

His bedroom door opened suddenly and Lucario, Gardevoir and Pikachu hurried in followed by the six girls. Lucario and Gardevoir sensed Ash's emotions and the girls had heard Ash yelling and came in with concerned faces. They were startled and surprised to see Leaf on the floor crying with Ash facing her with an angry expression a few feet away from her. Anabel and Sarah had their eyes widened as they realized what could have caused this sort of scenario as they put two and two together; Leaf had confessed.

"Ash? What happened?" asked Serena but she didn't get a response back, making her and everyone else become extremely worried as it seemed that Ash didn't even realize they were there.

"Please Ash…I'm so sorry!" cried Leaf. She slowly stood up and moved to the raven haired guardian who didn't react at all. She grasped his hand again before looking into his emotionless eyes. She flinched a bit at the sight but forced herself to maintain eye contact. Everyone else was staring at what was happening with wide eyes. "I'm so sorry Ash! So sorry! Please…I didn't mean to hurt you! I didn't know what to do! I'll do anything! Anything to make it up to you! Please believe me!"

"I thought you changed…but you betrayed me Leaf...again," replied Ash coldly, scaring Leaf and everyone else.

He freed his hand from her grasp and moved to leave the room as Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder right before he slammed the door beyond him in his wake. The sound of the door slamming shut made the girls all jump and Lucario and Gardevoir to glance at one another. The aura canine followed his master out of the room while the psychic fairy stayed in the room with the girls. Besides Anabel and Sarah, the other girls were glaring at Leaf, each furious at her for whatever she did to make Ash be that way.

"What. Did. You. Do?!" asked the red head with an obvious angry tone.

"I…I...I…" Leaf stammered, unable to answer her as her gaze was still on the door. Misty moved to be right in front of her, grasped her shoulders and asked the question again. The brunette's green eyes found the red head's cerulean blue eyes and knew she wouldn't be able to just leave without explaining what happened. "I…I…confessed to him," answered Leaf finally.

"Confessed what?" asked Dawn stepping towards the other brunette, barely holding back her anger. Misty still held onto Leaf, preventing her from fleeing. May and Serena moved to be on opposite sides of her with furious looks on their faces. Anabel and Sarah feared what was going to happen. Leaf took a deep breath and explained what she had told Ash about what she did back at the hospital when he was recovering. From her confession, to her hope and finally to her kiss. When she finished, Misty let go of the brunette and glanced down at the floor while Dawn, Serena and May were giving looks filled with anger and hatred at the brunette for her treachery.

"You damn bitch," insulted Dawn and Leaf's eyes widened. She wasn't expecting that to come from her.

"I should've known you were a temptress that screws over their friends," commented Serena and Leaf felt like she was stabbed.

"You went behind our backs you fucking snake!" yelled May, making Leaf take a step back, becoming scared of them.

"Please," started Leaf, starting to cry. "I didn't mean to hurt him or any of you. I was scared. I never felt this way before! Please understand that! I'll do anything to-"

The red headed girl delivered an incredible slap out of nowhere that both sent the brunette crashing to the floor and silenced her. Anabel and Sarah looked at Misty with fear in their eyes while Dawn, Serena and May were only surprised that she moved so quickly as they believed that Leaf deserved that slap and much more. They gathered around the red head, giving dangerously angry looks at Leaf.

"YOU DAMN WHORE!" shouted Misty when Leaf looked up at her from the ground. Her cheek had a red hand print on it and rapid tears were falling down from her eyes both from the painful slap and hurting Ash. "You've broken his heart once before when you broke the promise to travel together and now you did it again by taking advantage of him! Do you know how much he values trust, honesty and loyalty?! No, of course not since you don't understand it! You stupid, idiot skank who uses people for her own benefit! I'm going to tear you apart!" screamed Misty. The others in the room were frozen in shock over what Misty just said but when she pulled out her mallet and was about to pummel Leaf into the floor May, Dawn and Serena held her back.

"We're mad too but you have to control yourself!" yelled out Dawn.

"She's not worth it Misty!" added May.

"Ash wouldn't want you to do this!" finished Serena.

The three girls kept trying to calm her down by telling her to stop and to control her anger. They were furious themselves and wanted Leaf to be punished, to beat the ever living shit out of her but they knew that if they didn't do anything to stop the red head, she would end up killing Leaf. Even May when angered didn't compare to the feisty red head when she was furious. Leaf stayed on the floor, frozen in her place from fear but still kept crying. Anabel and Sarah moved to stand in front of Leaf, shielding her from Misty who had broken free of the others and pushed them away, telling them not to get in her way.

"OUT OF MY WAY!" screamed Misty at the two, her eyes blazing with rage.

"No Misty," replied Anabel. She was scared of the red head but knew what she was doing was right. "What she did was wrong but we kept her secret too."

"I DON'T CARE! YOU WEREN'T THE ONES WHO WENT BEHIND OUR BACKS AND BETRAYED HIM! YOU WERE BEING FRIENDS AS WHAT WE WOULD HAVE DONE! I'M NOT ANGRY AT YOU! I'M ANGRY AT THAT SLUT YOU'RE TRYING TO PROTECT WHO DOESN'T DESERVE YOUR KINDNESS! SHE NEEDS TO BE TAUGHT A LESSON FOR WHAT SHE DID!" shot the fuming red head.

"You're right but we hurt him too," added Sarah with sadness in her voice. "We kept the secret for Leaf. We betrayed his trust. You should be angry at us too."

"GAAHHH! YOU DON'T FUCKING GET IT!" shouted Misty as she hurled her mallet against the wall were it got stuck. She took rapid breaths to calm down before she rounded on them. The three girls were terrified of her now and Gardevoir took a step back, not wanting to get in the cross fire. "Ash won't blame you two for protecting her secret as he would've done that too. But what Leaf did...all the things he values and believes in, she has torn to shreds and burned them to ashes! He has always been fair, always been trusting, always been honest, always been looking out for others first, always sacrificing for others and he has never taken advantage, never cheated and has never betrayed anyone!"

Misty's words washed over the two girls and slowly they understood what the four girls already knew. Anabel and Sarah glanced at one another as they finally understood why they were so angry. The red head pushed Anabel and Sarah aside, who didn't even attempt to stop her now. Misty grabbed the scared and crying brunette from her tank top and raised her up onto her feet who didn't dare move from her current position, completely frozen over what was happening.

"Do you understand now what you did?" asked Misty, in low but dangerous voice. "Everything he believes in...everything he values...you just destroyed and spat on it for your own selfish desires. I hope you're happy for causing him agony you selfish bitch," said Misty with contempt as she slapped the brunette hard again, causing Leaf to cry out as her head turned to the side, her body following after her as she fell to the floor in despair.

The red head left the bawling brunette on the floor as she stepped over her to go look for Ash. As soon as she opened the room's door, Lucario stepped inside and closed the door behind him with a grave look on his face. Misty's heart jumped to her throat the second she saw it and knew instantly that something was wrong.

"Where's Ash?" asked Dawn fearfully.

"Master has left on Charizard with Pikachu. He ignored the others as they asked him what was wrong and left without speaking to anyone," informed Lucario sadly.

"Oh no no no no!" whined Serena.

"Arceus damn it!" cursed May.

Misty turned around, seeing the scared and fearful expressions on the other girls' faces after hearing Ash was gone. She then lowered her gaze to Leaf. The red head knelt down beside her and she cupped her tear stricken face with her hands and lifted her head up to within an inch away from hers. "I swear to Arceus Leaf...if anything happens to him…if we can't find him…or if he doesn't come back...You're going to wish you were never born."

Her last statement made the other girls gulp and even made Lucario and Gardevoir shiver in their spots. Misty let that sink in for several seconds before she let Leaf go. The brunette fell back to the floor and continued crying heavily now as the red head stood up with a blazing look. She was about to head out of the bedroom when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned her head slightly to the person and saw it was Dawn with May and Serena standing beside her.

"Let's go calm down and think about where he would go before we go rushing off without a plan," advised Dawn and Misty took a deep breath to calm herself before agreeing with the blunette. The four girls left Ash's room, leaving behind the sobbing brunette, Sarah and Anabel. Lucario and Gardevoir glanced at the three girls before they spoke.

"What were you thinking Leaf?!" asked Gardevoir with anger but Leaf just shook her head in response.

"You hurt Master gravely and in such a way that he won't forgive it easily. What you did, betraying his trust and the people he loves, is one of the few things that he despises and hates," revealed Lucario, making Leaf cry harder as she realized how much she fucked up. Lucario and Gardevoir left the room and headed to the patio to see if they could sense Ash's whereabouts.

Both Sarah and Anabel were debating on what to do. They thought for a few minutes before they knelt down besides Leaf and helped her stand up. They waited for Leaf to look at them and right when she did, both Anabel and Sarah slapped her hard, making Leaf cry out again in pain. Her right cheek had a very red hand print on it now as it had been struck hard several times in such a short period. Before she could even say anything to them, Sarah pulled Leaf into a tight hug right after and Anabel quickly joined in on the group hug. Leaf broke down even more.

"You're such an idiot Leaf. Did you ever think that something like this might happen? Did you ever consider that things won't be all sunshine and rainbows? No. No you didn't," stated Anabel as the brunette kept sobbing.

"This is beyond messy Leaf. You fucked up big time. I don't think it's fixable. You hurt someone who we have feelings for. But…even so…we'll try to help you," said Sarah. Leaf couldn't believe what she just heard and it took a couple minutes for her to calm down enough to speak.

"Why…why would you…h-help me?" asked Leaf in a whisper while sobbing.

"Because we know how you feel about him as it's the same as we do. You made a mistake. Granted it was a big fucking mistake. But that doesn't mean that you shouldn't get a second chance if you do truly care for him," answered Sarah.

"She's right. As much as I hate what you did, how it hurt Ash…and how easy it would be to just cut ties with you…I know you didn't mean to cause trouble or cause him pain. That you were just scared and didn't know how to show your feelings. So we'll help you," said Anabel and Leaf slowly pulled herself together after a few minutes.

"T-Thanks you t-two," sniffed Leaf as she wiped away the dried tears on her face. Sarah and Anabel nodded at her before they gestured for her to follow them out of the room to their own. The three girls went into their room, careful to not walk into the others, especially the four girls on the way there before they started brainstorming on how they could help better the situation.

A good distance away from the Indigo Plateau Hotel, there was a semi hidden lake that had a lone cabin next to it that few knew about. Inside that particular cabin, the Skull Brothers were resting, tending to both their physical wounds and humiliation at being defeated so easily by one person while arguing with a red headed woman. They were not pleased with one another. The five men were supposed to have kidnapped the brunette girl in the picture that she was hoping them to find. They were then supposed to send a ransom note to lure the guardian here so she could run into him when he looked for her. Her plan was to help him out in 'saving' her, to earn his trust, getting her a spot in his group. But they caused a scene and were defeated by him before they could run off with the girl. She was not happy at all that they failed their mission. The Skull Brothers were angry that she didn't mention that they would be going after an Aura Guardian's girlfriend. They were also pissed that they were so humiliatingly defeated by a single person, even if it was by an Aura Guardian with a Legendary Pokémon.

"You didn't follow the plan!" she screamed at the five. "How am I supposed to get close to him now?"

"Not our problem. Give the rest of our money," said the leader without a care.

"You haven't completed the mission yet and if you don't, say goodbye to the rest!" snapped Natasha.

"You bitch, you didn't tell us that we would be trying to kidnap a Guardian's girlfriend! We don't want that kind of heat on our tail! Not for this amount of money! If you want us to complete the job, then our fee has tripled since you forgot that important part!"

"You greedy sons of bitches! You won't get a penny more than what we agreed on and you'll only get the rest of your money when you do the job you were paid for!" she shot back.

"You fucking slut! You think you can screw over the Skull Brothers just because your Giovanni's bitch?!" roared the leader.

"Screw you! Either accept what the agreement was on, finish the job and get paid or leave now!" said Natasha as she took out a gun from her bag and pointed it at the leader who glared at her.

"Alright fine. Have it your way bitch. We're leaving. But after I take a piss," said Edmond as he went to the bathroom and his brothers waited for him.

Natasha kept her gun on the other four and kept her eye on them so they wouldn't try anything. She heard the toilet being flushed and a moment later, the leader appeared back in the room. He motioned for his brothers to head towards the door and he slowly followed after them. Natasha kept her attention on the leader since he was closer to her but when she heard the front door open, she glanced at the others leaving. Edmond stepped towards her but then Natasha focused her attention back onto him.

"Did you honestly think that I wouldn't notice you?"

"No, but you didn't notice him," replied the leader with a smirk.

"What are-" She was cut off as a punch landed against her right cheek.

Edmond's Weavile had struck her when she was distracted. He had called the pokémon out when he was in the bathroom and used the sound of the flushing toilet to mask the sound of the poke ball opening. She dropped to the ground and cried out in pain. She tried to aim her gun and fire at Edmond as she searched for her poke balls in her bag but he didn't let her as his foot connected strongly with her stomach, knocking the wind out of her. She coughed as she clutched her stomach and took heaving breathes. Edmond removed her gun and took her bag, throwing both to the other side of the room before pinning Natasha down on the ground as his brothers gathered round with evil and lustful looks on their faces.

"Edward, go keep watch in case some people wander around here," said Edmond and Edward stepped outside. "Edwin, go and make some food. I'm hungry." Edwin went to the kitchen and started going through the fridge. "Eddie, go heal our pokémon." Eddie went to heal their pokémon back to full strength. "Ed, go get some rope." Ed dug through their supplies as he searched for some rope.

Natasha remained still for a moment but when Edmond grabbed her arm, she twisted out of it and punched Edmond in the face, pushing him back. She got back up onto her feet and quickly followed up the punch with a kick to his stomach but Edmond moved to the side and dodged it before closing the distance between them and knocked her down with a single punch to her head. She hit her head on the floor and became dazed by it. Edmond quickly took advantage of the situation and grabbed her arms as he sat on her back.

Natasha tried to keep her cool and think of a way out but the leader was strong and had her arms pinned to her back. She couldn't think of a way to get out of this situation. How could she have been so stupid? She had been on many field assignments before and never once messed up. What made her lose her focus? Was she out of the game for so long that she had forgotten some things? She couldn't think of an answer and her head was swimming from the pain of hitting the floor hard and both strikes.

"Giovanni's bitch or not…we don't take kindly to threats and we don't like being kept in the dark. You should've known that about us," said Edmond, applying more pressure onto her arms and Natasha winced.

"Oh, this is going to be fun," said Ed as he returned with rope. "Looks like we're not getting the rest of our promised money so it looks like we'll have to take our own form of payment." Ed began tying up Natasha's hands and feet while Edmond kept her pinned down. She screamed at them to let her go, promising them her wrath if they didn't obey but they just ignored her. Even when she told them that Giovanni would punish them for this, they laughed. "You really believe Giovanni cares about you?" asked Edmond, making her face him as he clutched her face with his large brutish hand. "You are nothing but an expendable asset to him. And when we're done with you, he won't even want the leftovers. No one will want what's left of you." Natasha's eyes filled with fear and she was frozen from it. When they finished, they gagged her with a cloth. The sudden gag made her scream out against it and Edmond slapped her to shut her up since even her muffled screams were annoying him.

"Take her to the basement for now. Perhaps the cold floor will improve her attitude. I want to eat before I have some fun," said Edmond and Ed nodded, picking up the red head and throwing her over his shoulder. "Enjoy your time with her Ed but remember; I go first."

Ed laughed as he carried Natasha down to the basement. When he reached the basement, he dropped the red head painfully onto her side and Ed knelt down beside her. Natasha let out muffled curse words and insults as she tried to wiggle out of her binds that made Ed smile evilly. He rubbed her side with his hands before groping her ass and tits, making Natasha scream in defiance but it was muffled by the gag in her mouth. She was soon shaking as her rage and fury grew at her humiliating and submissive situation.

"It's alright sweetie, I'll make you feel all better soon. But first, you need to be punished," whispered the sadistic man into her ear before he slapped her hard in the face. He moved his hands against her chest and the red head was glaring at him with narrowed eyes filled with anger. She tried to kick him with her tied up feet but was easily blocked and then slapped again in return.

"Oh, we can't have that!" he said as he slapped her once more before ripping off her blouse, revealing her breasts contained in a red bra. Natasha struggled against him but he pinned her down with his body as he sat on top of her stomach, her arms pressing into her back since they were tied behind her. She cried out against her gag in pain from the strikes and her uncomfortable and humiliating position. He placed both hands on her face before slowly moving them down, caressing her as he went down before stopping on her chest. The red head let out a whimper, but instead of making the man feel regret or pity, it made him smile, being spurred on by her pleading. He grabbed her through her bra and squeezed her breasts hard, not being the least bit gentle. She cried out as loudly as she could but instead of some sort of aid, she received another slap in the face. Ed laughed evilly, enjoying it greatly.

Then something happened that the red head never thought would happen to her. She broke. She broke and she started to cry. She hadn't cried in so long she was at first surprised she still could. She couldn't believe this was how things turned out to be. After all she had done, all the harsh times, all the close calls, all the things she had to do to get ahead in life, finally getting the things she always wanted, the position she wanted to get to, she was now worth none of that and was now at the mercy of a sadistic and perverted bastard that she herself had hired to get a job done. Oh the irony.

Please! Someone! Anyone! Help me! thought Natasha as Ed ripped off the bra, freeing her breasts.

"Oh they look magnificent. Let's start slowly shall we?" he said as he grabbed her breasts and played with them harshly before he licked and sucked them. When he bit down on them hard, Natasha cried out as her tears let out faster. The sounds of Natasha's muffled whimpers and cries along with Ed's evil laughs traveled up the basement steps and the other Skull Brothers heard.

"Eddie, go help Ed control the slut. I'll be down in a few minutes," said Edmond who was finishing up his meal. Eddie responded with a grunt as he headed downstairs to the basement.

"You should stop resisting my sweet so you can enjoy it," chuckled Ed as he tore off her clothes without hesitation. Finally, he tore off her last remaining article of clothing, which were her red panties. She was now fully in the nude and she was helpless. Ed rubbed her womanhood's opening before he plunged his dirty fingers into her making her scream against the gag. She struggled to get away but he prevented her from getting away by punching her in the face.

Natasha went still. She was in so much pain, felt so horrible, so worthless and so powerless that she didn't know what to do. She screamed with all her might against the gag in her mouth as he continued violating her with his unclean fingers going in and out of her, but all that was heard was a muffled sound. Ed laughed maniacally as Eddie appeared.

"That's right my little puppet. No one is coming for you. No one can hear you. No one is going to save you. We have you all to ourselves," remarked Eddie with a sadistic laugh.

Ed grinned as he took in the sight of her beautiful body and Eddie let out a whistle. Natasha cried out in defiance and tried to get out of Ed's grip but it didn't work. She tried to knee him or kick him or something but he had pinned her down with his body as he sat on top of her legs. Eddie delivered a kick to her side that made her scream in pain before she stopped moving again. Edmond then appeared beside Ed and Eddie.

"Put her on the table," said Edmond. Ed and Eddie lifted up Natasha and placed her on top of the nearby table, facing up. Edmond then cut her legs' binds with his knife and immediately Natasha started kicking at him but Eddie grabbed her legs and Edmond raised her own gun at her. "Keep resisting, and I'll kill you."

Natasha stopped immediately, her eyes filling up with frightened tears once more as she watched Eddie move away and Edmond draw closer to her and give the gun to Eddie. The leader unbuckled his jeans and lowered them, revealing his shaft. The red head whimpered and shook her head, trying to plead for him to stop but was muffled by the gag. Edmond wasted no time as he spread her legs forcefully and plunged into her roughly, making Natasha scream out as pain shot through her as he rammed her over and over again harshly. Natasha started crying heavily. She couldn't believe she was being raped and raped by the very thugs she hired.

Please stop! Please someone help me! Arceus! I swear I'll change my ways! Please save me! Help me! Please, I beg of you! Make it stop!

"Oh looky here," said Edmond as he noticed red marks around her inner thighs after a moment. "She was a virgin! Saving yourself? HA! Prepare for a good time," cackled Edmond who continued his savage thrusting as his brothers laughed. He enjoyed seeing her so scared and whimpering in pain. "Or more accurately, a good time for me," laughed Edmond as Ed took the gun from Eddie and pointed it at Natasha's face.

"You stay quiet, don't resist and do as we say and we won't kill you. We'll let you go after we have our way with you and we may even finish the job you asked of us. That is if we feel like it," said Ed.

Natasha knew that he was lying, that they would probably kill her in the end but she had no choice. She had to stay alive to maybe find a way out. She remained silent and Ed removed her gag and she coughed before he put down his pants and plunged his shaft into her mouth. Natasha's eyes widened and she gagged, almost choking at the rough fellatio. Edmond told Ed to relax on it as he could kill her if she suffocates and that he didn't want her beautiful body to go to waste. Ed reluctantly agreed and eased up a bit, allowing Natasha to breathe again. She coughed as he withdrew from her mouth. She winced and cried out at the painful thrusting Edmond was giving her and was trying to spit out the taste from her mouth.

"Please stop!" gasped Natasha as she panted and pleaded through the rough intercourse, feeling intense pain. "I'm sorry…I'll pay…more…just stop…please…" she offered but Edmond shook his head and continued his savage fucking. Natasha's face was shining with many tears and the three brothers just laughed at her before Ed grabbed her head and moved it to his shaft again and made her suck on it.

Natasha felt sick and horrible and felt her life was over as she was being raped, feeling the rough movements at both ends of her body. She closed her eyes, trying to detach herself from what was going on, to send her mind elsewhere but couldn't, failing miserably. The pain was overwhelming, being her first time but the humiliation that she was feeling was worse. She cried her eyes out as she continued to be ravaged by the two Skull Brothers. She prayed it would be over soon and that they would let her go but she knew how small the odds are for that to happen. She felt even more sickened when Edmond and Ed finished by releasing their load into her, making her cough and choke while feeling their seed flow into her from both ends. They then withdrew to have Eddie and Edward, who had just joined them, to take up their positions and started their turn. The fifth brother Edwin came downstairs and soon joined his brothers and rammed is shaft into her only other available hole, making her scream out as horrific pain coursed through her body as he entered her anally, taking that purity away from her as well. It didn't help that Eddie kept thrusting into her without care and Edward pushed her head back down and made her suck his shaft dry.

The red headed woman had the worst day of her entire life. They raped her over and over many times, switching their positions and making her do many things. They released their seed into her multiple times before finally stopping as the day became evening. Edmond then told her with a nasty smile that since she was such a good sport about it all, especially for a first timer, they weren't going to kill her but instead keep her with them and use her as their very own personal entertainment. They tied her up and gagged her once more after slapping and beating her a bit when she screamed at them to let her go. They left her in the basement naked as they went back upstairs to do other things.

Natasha was in so much pain from the harsh gang rape as well as from the beatings and she felt so dirty, so worthless, so inhuman as she was violated many times, her virginity taken in such a violent way, that she just wanted to die right then and there. She didn't care about living anymore or finding a way out or even the mission. Even if she could find a way to escape, she would have to live with the knowledge that she was raped, humiliated, violated and abused for the rest of her life. That her virginity was taken from her by a bunch of sadistic bastards. She grew even more horrified at the thought of becoming impregnated by them. She shuddered and shivered on the cold floor as her dried eyes overfilled with tears again. She didn't know if she could handle that at all, bearing the child or children of the cold hearted bastards who were now upstairs.

Please, thought Natasha as more tears escaped from her eyes as she whimpered and cried against her gag with the uncomfortable basement floor doing nothing but increasing her discomfort. Please let this nightmare end. Just take me now and make it so I don't ever remember this. Just kill me Arceus. Just let me die! Please take me away from all this. Please save me…