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…

48. Chapter 47 - Indigo Mall

THE BLUE SPIRIT

CHAPTER 47 – INDIGO MALL

The sun was beginning to rise as a large helicopter was nearing the Indigo Plateau. There was a beautiful blonde girl in it along with the pilot. She had a mission to complete and would get it done no matter what, just like she always did. She glanced towards the pilot next to him. He was quiet the whole trip. She wondered if it was because she intimidated him or because of what he found out about the red head since it was well known that he was obsessed with her. "So John was it?" she asked him. He nodded while keeping his gaze straight ahead. "How do you feel about Natasha being kicked out of the organization for failing our Boss and letting herself become raped like a whore?"

John grimaced before he turned his head to her and saw her looking at him carefully with a stoic expression. "I'm not going to lie to you of all people Domino. I'm saddened that she's not with us anymore and what happened to her. I wish it never happened but the organization comes first," he told her.

"I see. Well then, perhaps you might be able to get what you want then," she told him, satisfied with his answer. She could tell when others tried to lie to her. He tilted his head, asking her what she meant. "Well, we're going to find Natasha and tell her that the offer is still on the table since she was able to get into the guardian's group. If she gets us the information we want on him, she'll be welcomed back," revealed the blonde.

John was surprised over what she said. "Is that so?" he asked her. He never heard of Giovanni giving someone an extra chance besides the three bumbling idiots who somehow stayed on his good side even with all their fuck ups. But they haven't been in touch for a long time now. He wondered sometimes if Giovanni had finally decided to get rid of them.

"Yes. Giovanni told me this himself," she replied back. "She completes her mission and she'll be able to come back. And Giovanni will reward you for your assistance by giving you whatever you want," she lied without trouble. She went quiet for a few seconds, seeing her words enter his mind. "I daresay he'll even give you Natasha. That is, if you still want her since she's damaged goods now."

John faced forward and he thought about it a bit. He imaged her coming back, being with him and finally experiencing what he's been wanting from her for so long. "Doesn't matter to me. It's not like I want to marry her. I just want to have some fun. Alright. I'm in. What's the plan Domino?" The deadly blonde beauty grinned before explaining the plan. As soon as she finished, they looked at the remaining distance to go on their GPS. Feeling themselves becoming hungry, they decided to hit up the food court at the mall once they got there before starting their mission. Domino got up and dug into her duffel bag for her disguise.

A large beam of white energy shot through the air and exploded when it hit a very large boulder, bringing up a cloud of dust and smoke. When it cleared, in the boulder's place was a large crater. "Well done," praised a tall trainer to his large pokémon beside him who didn't react. The trainer was dressed in black jeans, white long sleeved tight shirt, black vest and had a cloak around him. "We are at full strength and ready to decimate our next round opponent." He looked up towards the dark sky that was slowly becoming lighter. "It will be glorious. We will show that there are trainers stronger than the Aura Guardian. He will be a worthy opponent, but we will triumph in the end. And then we'll decimate the trainer of legends as well. Then everyone will know that we are the strongest in the world!" He looked at his pokémon who gave him a look that said that he was with him till the end. The man tossed out a few other poke balls and his other pokémon appeared with loud roars that made smaller pokémon flee the nearby areas. "Morning training! But half speed! We are only warming up for our battle today against the Aura Guardian and then we'll go get some food." His pokémon agreed and started mock battles against one another.

In the Indigo Hotel, a raven haired man was still sleeping. He turned his head a moment later but remained asleep. His movement made one of the girls who was sleeping with him stir and wake up from it. The brunette from Pallet Town opened her eyes and looked up at him. Leaf smiled, seeing him peaceful and relaxed for once. He had gone through so much in his life and he had barely reached his twenties. She quietly sat up on his stomach and glanced at the two other girls with them. Her sisters Anabel and Sarah were snuggled up against his sides, with their heads resting against his shoulders. She returned her gaze back to Ash and saw his diagonal chest scar. She moved her gaze downwards until she reached the other scar on his stomach. Not the bullet scar but the stab scar. She moved her hand towards it and felt the ruined skin with her finger tips. Her smile faded away with her filling up with sadness. I can't see you get hurt because of me ever again. She placed her hand over it and lowered her head to his. She gave him a soft kiss on the lips before lying down fully on top of him again with her cheek against his chest. "I love you Ash," she said.

Leaf stayed awake in that position, listening to his heart beating calmly through his chest. She thought of what she could do for him or get for him. She wanted to pay him back for everything he had ever done for her in the past and here at the tournament. Not to be even or to not owe him anything. But because he deserved it. She wanted to make sure he was never saddened again. She wanted to be there for him always just like he's been there for her. She wanted to do everything she could for him. Sure she likes to play games with him and tease him among other things. But she also wanted to give him the world. She raised her gaze to his again in time to catch him mumble some incoherent words before quieting. She smiled again and rested her head against his chest once more. What can I do for you Ash? What will show you how much I care for you and would never hurt you ever again? She thought for a long time about that. Each thing she came up with just wasn't good enough. She thought she had to do something grand, something incredible for him. Leaf was so lost in thought that she didn't notice that her sisters had woken up already.

Anabel had woken up when Leaf had straddled Ash but kept her eyes closed. She enjoyed being in bed with her love so much that she just wanted to stay like that with him forever. She felt his arm wrapped around her and she felt so much emotion fill her. I'm so happy to be with you Ash. I've thought about you for so long. I cannot believe that we're finally together. And I cannot believe our special situation. Though I knew you were unique, I would've never guessed something like this happening. But, I have to admit that I'm alright and actually happy with it all. She took in a quiet breath, trying to calm her rapidly beating heart since she was feeling his body against hers.

She forced her mind to go onto another subject because she didn't want to keep thinking about her beloved or she wouldn't be able to control herself for much longer. Her mind landed onto her sisters and how each of them trusted her and cared about her too. She felt happy over that because she was an orphan and never really had anybody there for her. That is until Scott found her when she was a teenager. He was impressed over her abilities and took her in. He raised her like his own daughter and helped her in learning how to control her gifts and grow stronger. He introduced her to the Frontier Brains at the Battle Frontier. When she was ready and passed her test, he named her a Frontier Brain as well.

But she always still felt like she wasn't complete. Though she was friends with her fellow Brains, becoming best friends with Lucy and loved Scott like a father, she still felt like there was something missing. Like a piece of her that was lost. She hid it well for a long time until the day came when she met the one who was her other half. Instantly she knew that he was the one for her, even with all the little misunderstandings. Thinking about that made her almost laugh out loud but she kept it in. She remembered their first interactions together, their battle together and everything else between them.

Anabel thought about all that but then remembered how sullen she became when he left after becoming the Battle Frontier Champion. She was hoping he would take up Scott's offer and become a Brain himself so he would stay. But he wanted to travel some more and become stronger first before thinking about that. She respected and admired his goal, his dream but couldn't help but be saddened by it. And at the time, she couldn't help but also feel jealous over May and Misty being around him. She had seen the way the two girls looked at him and even sensed their emotions and feelings towards him. Anabel couldn't believe that now the two are her sisters and the three of them were sharing this incredible man between themselves. And with six other girls too. She continued thinking about all that while she continued to pretend to be asleep.

The third and final girl who was in bed with Leaf, Anabel and Ash had awakened when the brunette had said that she loves him out loud. Sarah was feeling completely safe and happy as she continued lying snuggled against her boyfriend. She had dreamed of finding such a special love and was hoping it would be with him when she saw him at the tournament. And it came true. Sure, she was sharing him with several other girls. However, for some reason, she didn't care about that at all. In fact, she was happy over that too because she would never be alone again. After all she's been through, all her losses, she had found something that filled the hole in her heart. She found the love of her life and a loving family in addition to it. I thank Arceus that I'm with you Ash and for my sisters. I can't believe that my dream came true. The blonde Johto native could never have imagined that she would have such an incredible man be hers. A man whose single touch could make her feel many things at once. From safety and comfort to love and excitement.

Thinking about that made her remember what happened yesterday. How he became so angry at his childhood friend for trying to make a move on her. She was moved by his words and actions. He didn't know her for long at all, barely a few weeks. Yet he was treating her like they had known each other for a long time and that she was just as important as the girls he had loved for years. He had fallen in love with her as she had hoped he would. And she knew that he would do anything for her. She only hoped that he understood that she would do the same for him. He is the only one for her since he was the reason why she was able to overcome so many bad things in her past. He didn't know just how much he had influenced her and inspired her in her life. As Sarah thought about it all, she came to a decision soon enough; she would tell him. She would tell him everything about herself when they had some time alone together.

As the three girls stayed in their positions on the bed while snuggled up against the raven haired guardian, they didn't notice that their love was starting to wake up. Ash kept his eyes closed though when he fully awakened, trying to remember the dream he just had. He was at the pyramid like temple once more with the golden mirrors. The shadowy figures closed in on him and the voice spoke to him again but he couldn't make out the words or the figures. He thought about it a bit more before dropping it for the time being and that's when he remembered he wasn't alone in bed. He opened his eyes and looked down at the three girls in bed with him. He watched his girlfriends for a few minutes without moving. He knew that they were awake, sensing it, but just wanted to relish in the moment with them.

He thought about how much he loves them and that he would do anything for them. Ash wondered where he can take each of them out to until movement made him focus onto the blonde. He felt his heart beat a little quicker, thinking about what she went through yesterday. Anger rose inside him but he quickly controlled it by taking in a quiet breath. I need to let that go. Gary got what was coming to him and he's not here anymore. I should think about what to do for Sarah instead. He thought about that for a bit but then stopped when the brunette moved. Leaf raised her head and placed her chin onto his chest. Green and brown eyes looked into one another before the two smiled. "Good morning Leaf."

"Good morning Ash. Did you sleep well?" she asked.

He nodded. "Of course. And what about you?"

"Pretty good. I have to admit that it is more comfortable to sleep on top of you than to sleep in a sleeping bag in the woods," revealed Leaf with a smirk. Her comment made Ash chuckle and her two sisters to let out involuntary laughs as well. "Ah, so you two are awake and eavesdropping huh? How rude!" remarked the brunette as she raised herself to a sitting position again.

Sarah and Anabel opened their eyes and lifted their heads a bit. "Sorry Leaf," said the two at once.

Leaf crossed her arms and turned her face to the side. "Not good enough." She looked at the her childhood friend from the corner of her eyes and gave him a look that only he knew what it meant. "You ought to be punished." Before the two could ask why, both of them started laughing out loud. Ash had started tickling Sarah and Anabel, slipping his hands over their sides. Leaf quickly joined in on it and soon enough, both girls were laughing so hard that they were becoming blue in the face. Seeing that happen, both stopped what they were doing and their victims slowly got their breath back.

"That was…cruel…" panted Anabel as she sat up. Sarah stayed lying down, taking in large gulps of air.

Leaf grinned at her. "Don't be so sensitive." Anabel narrowed her eyes at her. "Ooh, I'm scared!" mocked Leaf.

"That's it!" Anabel lunged forward and pushed Leaf backwards onto the bed and started tickling her back, making her laugh out loud. "How do you like it missy?!" Anabel turned to Sarah. "Don't you want some revenge too?" asked the Brain. Sarah shot up and began aiding Anabel.

"HAHAHAHA! ASHY! HAHAHAHA! HELP! PLEASE! HAHAHAHA!" Ash however didn't help and was just laughing at her. Seeing her not able to breathe properly anymore, Anabel and Sarah finally stopped and withdrew from her. Leaf slowly caught her breath and then sat back up. "ASH! What the hell?! I said 'please'!" she shot at him, peeved that he didn't help her.

Ash just shrugged his shoulders. "I thought you could get out of it," he replied with a grin. Leaf narrowed her eyes at him and crossed her arms over her chest while Sarah and Anabel laughed. Ash glanced at the clock and saw it said 8am. "That's early. At least we'll have a good amount of time to use for today."

"True. That gives us enough time to go out today. That's if you want to?" asked Sarah.

"Sure. Who wants to go first?" replied back Ash.

Anabel moved back to be beside him. "Well, we were thinking of doing things a bit differently this time. Either we can all go out at once together or just do like mini dates separately," said the Frontier Brain.

Ash thought about that and nodded. "Why not? Let's mix things up," he told them.

Sarah and Anabel beamed at him but Leaf scoffed. "See if I let you take me out after not helping me get out of torture!" shot the brunette, turning her gaze away from him.

Ash chuckled at that. "Is that right?" Leaf commented back that it is right without looking at him. "Really? Well, let's see if you won't let me do this." Ash sat up and grasped her shoulders, making her look at him before placing his lips onto hers. Leaf melted into it and uncrossed her arms before wrapping them around his neck and pushed him back down onto the bed. Sarah and Anabel just watched them go at it with smiles on their faces. Right before it was about to get even more heated, a beep was heard from his Poketch. Reluctantly, they slowed down and separated with groans. Leaf sat up, straddling him again and Ash looked at the message. His displeasure at being interrupted was replaced with interest. "Looks like my ninth round match is today at 5pm and it's against a trainer who goes by Dragon Master Drax."

"Dragon Master Drax?" repeated Sarah, tilting her head.

"Somebody thinks of themselves pretty highly," remarked Anabel with a chuckle.

Ash smiled. "Looks like it huh? I hope he's a challenge and his name isn't for nothing," he said.

"Well he is in the ninth round. He should be strong. Hopefully you'll get a good match," said Sarah.

"Hopefully. I'd like a challenge."

The three girls giggled. "We know you'll win," stated Anabel.

"But don't get cocky," added Leaf.

Ash grinned. "Yes ma'am," he said and Leaf let out a squeal. He had grabbed her cute ass and squeezed it, making Sarah and Anabel laugh out loud. But then both of them turned red, imagining him doing that to them.

"Ash!" She slapped his chest, giving him a mock glare. "You're being naughty. You should be punished."

"Really? I didn't do anything," he said, feigning innocence. "If you want to punish me, at least do it for something bad." Ash smacked her ass hard suddenly, making a sharp sound cut through the air, shocking Sarah and Anabel that he did that as Leaf let out a yelp.

Leaf gave him an astonished look over his action before glaring at him. "Oh it's on," she said dangerously. "You're toast!" She raised her hand to slap him and Ash covered up his face immediately. But Leaf was counting on that. She quickly shot her hands forward and began tickling Ash heavily, not letting him rest for even a second. "This is only the start Ash!" rubbed in Leaf over his laughing. While maintaining her torture, she glanced at Sarah and Anabel. "Help me punish him!" she said. Both Anabel and Sarah grinned and helped the brunette keep the raven haired man down.

Being tickle tortured once again, Ash was trying to resist but failed miserably. Leaf was still straddling him while Sarah and Anabel had sat on his hands, holding him down while tickling him under his armpits. He was laughing so much that his stomach was starting to hurt and he was running out of oxygen. Leaf was grinning from ear to ear, remembering their old days of their play fights when they were kids and how she would usually win like this. Sarah and Anabel were enjoying it as well, seeing how they were making their beloved squirm beneath them. Seeing him turn almost blue, the three eased up. That allowed Ash to get some much needed air back into his lungs. And to think of how to overcome them or he would stay under their mercy.

"Be grateful Ash we showed mercy since you have a match today," said Leaf with a smirk as he kept taking in gulps of air.

Sarah giggled before speaking up. "That's right and instead of going out today for our dates, we'll have you take us to the mall instead before your match."

He took in a couple deep breaths before responding. "Alright, we'll go to the mall today," agreed Ash without protest, surprising the three girls.

"Really?" asked Anabel and he nodded. "I'm surprised you said that."

"I did promise to take my girlfriends out to the mall," he replied.

Anabel smiled. "Yes you did." Seeing the rather let down look on his face, Anabel tried to cheer him up. "Don't worry, we'll have some fun."

Ash sighed, commenting that he knows they'll have fun but not him. "Don't be such a kill joy Ashy or we won't let you help us pick out new bathing suits," warned Sarah.

Ash grinned, replying back that he doesn't believe that. "Well, you better believe it buster! When we go shopping today, you will get us whatever we want and you won't get any sneak peeks because-AAHHHH!" Leaf was interrupted as Ash was able to somehow flip their positions. Now he was on top of the three girls. He was sitting on top of Leaf's lower body while holding down Sarah and Anabel with his hands on their stomachs. The girls were shocked, red faced and wide eyed, not believing what just happened.

"I'm sorry Leaf, but what were you saying again?" teased Ash. Not getting an answer from her, he glanced at Anabel and Sarah who were unable to react at all either. "So, you decided to help her huh? Well, now you need to be taught a lesson in aiding a troublemaker." Ash started tickling Sarah and Anabel, making the two burst out laughing. Leaf tried to stop Ash by tickling him back but he clamped his arms down against his sides and caught her hands with them, preventing her from aiding her sisters. "Looks like I win this time Leaf," he chuckled, seeing her struggle to get her hands free and the other two lost in their laughter, unable to gather enough strength or coordination to push his hands away.

"Ashy! No fair!" whined Leaf, unable to get her hands free.

"Pl-lease st-top!" begged Sarah.

"I-it h-hurts!" pleaded Anabel.

The two girls started crying out that they surrender and Ash accepted, stopping their tickling but kept his hands on their stomachs. The two were taking deep breaths. He locked eyes with his childhood crush. "Do you surrender?"

"Never!" answered Leaf with a defiant look on her face.

"Alright then," he said and started tickling the two again. Sarah and Anabel once again started laughing and the two were starting to get stomach aches. "You can save them you know," taunted Ash, making Leaf glare at him. "All you gotta do is admit defeat," said Ash.

The brunette glanced at the blonde and purple haired girl on opposite sides of her and saw them laughing but also giving her pleading looks as they slowly turned blue in the face. She looked back at Ash and saw the grin on his face. "Fine!"

"I'm sorry; I don't understand what you mean." Ash's grin grew larger at her angry look.

She scowled at him for a second. "I admit defeat! I surrender! Now stop tickling them!" shot Leaf.

"I accept your surrender." He stopped tickling Sarah and Anabel but kept his hands on their stomachs along with Leaf's hands trapped. The two girls were slowly trying to calm down. They were also heating up from feeling his touch.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" asked Leaf, pulling her hands a bit.

"You think I'm stupid enough to let your hands go free so you can get me?"

"Damn. Looks like you're not as slow as in the past," jabbed Leaf with a smirk.

Ash pouted. "Now that was mean Leaf. You must now face the consequences." He leaned in closer to her, making her heart beat wildly. He got closer to her face but then stopped a couple of inches away. He then moved towards Sarah and placed his lips onto hers.

"HEY!" shouted Leaf, angry that he would just play her like that. The two finished their kiss and then he went back to hovering over the brunette, leaving a happy blonde girl next to her. He smiled at Leaf before leaning in to her, making her fill up with excitement again. But once again, he moved away but this time to Anabel and kissed her. "YOU'RE SUCH A JERK!" cried Leaf. Once finished with their kiss, Ash went back to Leaf, now leaving a happy purple haired girl on the other side of the brunette.

"I did say you would have to face the consequences," reminded Ash with a smirk.

"That's just being cruel," said Leaf quietly. Ash leaned in closer to finally give her the kiss but right before he was able to, she turned her face to the side, denying him. He kept going though and pecked her cheek. He then lowered his head a bit and kissed her neck, making her quiver from it and become turned on. "Oh… Ashy…no fair…" she moaned, making her two sisters have their hearts beat faster. She turned her gaze back to his and he raised his head. "Kiss me!" she demanded and he obliged, leaning in closer and letting go of her hands. The two kissed passionately with Leaf becoming both heated from their actions and being embarrassed that she was being so turned on in front of her sisters who were watching. But she couldn't let them know that. Sarah and Anabel watched the heated moment between the two. They were mesmerized, unable to move away or make a sound while their hearts beat faster. Ash and Leaf separated, green and brown eyes losing themselves in one another. "I forgive you. But don't think you can get away with that again Ashy or you will face the consequences," she promised.

Ash grinned his trademark goofy smile in return. "Maybe I'll do it again just to see what kind of punishment you have in mind." Leaf glared at him but then smirked back. He glanced at Sarah and Anabel, making their hearts skip a beat. "Don't think I forgot about you two now." And with that he gave a heated kiss to Anabel, moving on top of her, making her become so hot. Their hands went wild all over them. Leaf watched the two go at it with a smile but also wondered if that's how she looked when kissing Ash. After another moment or two, they separated and Ash went to the blonde haired girl.

Before he could say anything, Sarah surprised him by pushing him backwards and went on top of him as she kissed him furiously. She had been waiting impatiently for her turn. Both Anabel and Leaf watched her go at it with amazed faces, seeing her so in control. She was running her hands through his hair and massaging his body while he did the same to her. When they finally separated after a while, they were out of breath. Sarah glanced at her two sisters. "Sorry."

"Don't be," said the two at once together. They glanced at one another and then giggled, making Ash and Sarah chuckle.

After the four calmed down, Sarah got off of Ash, allowing him to sit up. "Hey, since it's early, I think we should train a bit after breakfast. Then we'll hit up the mall before my match." The girls agreed to that and got out of bed and so did he. The three left to go get changed and wash up for breakfast and Ash did the same before leaving his bedroom.

In one of the other rooms, two blunettes were wide awake and dressed. They were talking to one another about what happened yesterday. "Do you think Ash will be alright?" asked Lizabeth.

Shauna shrugged. "I don't know. But I think he will be. I hope." The two sighed and shook their heads. "Hey, about what we talked about last night, do you think we should confront the other girls?"

Lizabeth was quiet for a moment before replying back. "I don't know." Shauna gave her an annoyed look before saying she does know. "What if they don't? We'd be revealing our secret that we both love Ash to them."

Shauna sat down on her bed. "I doubt that. I mean, didn't they do what we did? Jumping into the field to help him?" Lizabeth nodded her head and after, plopped onto the bed and let out a sigh. "Even though Ash has nine girlfriends…whoa." Shauna stopped talking and Lizabeth raised her head to look at her. "I just realized he has nine girlfriends." Both blunettes let out groans as it hit them hard now, realizing it would be very difficult for things to go the way they wished for. Shauna took in a deep breath before continuing. "We still need to give it a shot. We can't just give up or just sit on the sidelines and do nothing. Lizabeth..." Her best friend sat up and looked at her, understanding the important tone of voice. "Lizabeth, I love him. I don't know if I can go on anymore without telling him. I don't know what to do," revealed Shauna.

Lizabeth was surprised at Shauna's admittance. Usually the fighter would have some idea but she was completely lost right now. "I'm feeling the same way Shauna. We'll tell him." Her best friend asked when. "The first chance we get we'll confess to him. No ifs, ands or buts." The two agreed on it and right after they heard a knock on the door, making them go quiet. Johanna's voice was heard from the other side telling them to get ready for breakfast. The blunettes thanked her and got up to go have their morning meals.

In another room, a red haired girl was lying in her bed and staring at the ceiling. She had woken up abruptly a little earlier after seeing a worrying dream. When she tried to recall the events, it kept coming up blurry. She had a bad feeling that something was coming besides the ceremony attack and she couldn't shake it off. She wanted her hero to be with her now, feeling scared and vulnerable. She wanted to leave her room and go to him but didn't know which room his was in and didn't want to run into the others. And she also wanted to tell him what Giovanni was planning. Ash…where are you? I have to tell you. And…I need you… No sooner did she finish thinking that when her doorknob turned. She snapped her gaze to it, fear filling her since she didn't know who it could be.

The door opened and the raven haired guardian walked in. Though breakfast was ready, he wanted to check on Natasha first. And he also wanted to see if she would like to have breakfast with them. The second she saw him, the fear inside her vanished at once. She shot out of bed, went to him and embraced him, surprising the young man. "Hey, what's wrong?" asked Ash after reciprocating the hug, feeling her shivering. I…I just…I was feeling… She sighed, unable to finish. But she was feeling herself calming down and feeling safe once more. Ash rubbed her back tenderly. "I get it. No need to worry." She looked up at him and he gave her a half smile. She lowered her gaze back down, rested her cheek against his chest and tightened her hug on him. I'm sorry. I didn't sleep well. And I just had a bad feeling and couldn't shake it off. I'm sorry for being so scared. "That's nothing to be sorry about Natasha. It's okay."

The two stayed like that for a moment before she withdrew from him and looked him in the eyes. Thank you. He nodded at her. "You're welcome." Natasha felt her heart beat skip a beat over his words. Sure it was nothing more than gratitude, but somehow, when it came from him, it seemed to be much more than that. Ash…there's something I need to tell you. "Okay. What's up?" he asked her. She took in a breath. What I'm about to tell you is something about myself. He nodded at her with a small smile, trying to give her courage to continue. He was glad that she opening up to him. Seeing his smile, Natasha felt both elated and nervous. She didn't ever want him to be angry with her and seeing the way he was looking at her, she never wanted that to change. But she had to tell him. After all he did for her, she had to. She mustered up whatever courage left in her. Ash, I appreciate everything you've done for me. I really do. But I have to admit that when I first came here, it was for…

There was sudden knocking on her room door before someone spoke, cutting Natasha off. "Hey, food's getting cold! Hurry up and come eat before May doesn't leave you any!" warned Delia.

"Alright, thanks!" called out Ash towards the door. Getting no response back, he faced the red head while chuckling a bit. "Sorry Natasha. What were you saying? You first came here for?" The red head took in another breath. I came here for…I'm here for… She stopped, unable to continue. Being interrupted made her lose her nerve. She let out a sigh and hung her head, ashamed that she couldn't continue. Ash sensed her emotions going haywire and had a feeling that what she wanted to say was very important but wouldn't force it out of her. He closed the distance between the two and placed a hand on her shoulder, making her look back up at him slightly. "It's okay. You'll just tell me later when you're ready." Natasha looked at him for a couple seconds before nodding. He nodded back at her and removed his hand. That action made her miss his touch but didn't show any expression over it. "By the way, like you heard, we're about to have some breakfast. Would you like to come join us?"

She felt her heart beat a little faster, feeling anxious about that. I…I don't know if I'm ready for that yet. I want to get out of the room…but I'm still…you know. "I understand and that's nothing for you to feel anything bad about it. But allow me to say that I know you can do it. I know you can overcome it and you can sit beside me, my Mom, May or between us. Remember, no one will hurt you here and I won't allow anything to happen to you." Natasha had her cheeks redden slightly over his words. She let a small smile form on her face. Thanks Ash for giving me the courage to take the next step. Ash smiled at her. "You're welcome Natasha. Now let's go join the others before they eat up all the food." She chuckled a bit at his joke. Okay. Just let me get changed out of my pajamas.

Natasha entered the attached bathroom with some clothes that Delia gave her. After several minutes, she stepped out of the bathroom fully dressed. She was wearing black sweat pants that were slightly big on her with a long sleeved shirt that was also slightly big on her. She didn't want her clothes to show off her body, not wanting to draw attention to herself. Her long red hair was left alone since it flowed down naturally, which also gave her a feeling of being covered. She walked over to her bedside dresser and picked up the notebook and pen that Delia gave her before. She then went to Ash who was now waiting by the door.

He was about to open the door when Natasha grasped his arm, making him look at her. Ash, even though I feel okay around your mother and May, I'm still only really comfortable with you. She went red admitting that to him but he kept his expression neutral. I asked Delia to tell Sabrina and Anabel to communicate with me through the notepad. Can you please remind them not to listen to my thoughts? I…I only want you to do that for now. The raven haired guardian agreed with that, telling her it's no problem and she thanked him for that. He opened the door and took a step out into the hallway. He glanced back at her and saw her not taking a step yet. He waited for her quietly and patiently, knowing she was trying to overcome her fear. The red head took a moment before taking a step towards him. Ash smiled at her, extending his hand to her and she took it with a small smile on her face as well. The two left her room to join the rest of the group in the dining room.

When Ash and Natasha, who was behind him as they walked, entered the dining room they saw everyone already eating and conversing with one another. Ash cleared his throat loudly, making everyone fix their attention onto him. They noticed his hand trailing behind him. Before anyone could ask what's going on, he spoke up. "Just wanted to let you guys know that we're having one more join us for breakfast. Please make her feel welcome." Taking that as her cue, Natasha took in a quick breath and stepped to the side, revealing herself to the group.

The moment she did, several things happened at once. The females in the group let out 'ohs' in understanding before smiling. However, after also noticing her beauty, several of them, young and old, become jealous of her looks. All the other males of the room however had their eyes widen and their jaws drop. They couldn't believe that this drop dead gorgeous girl in front of them was the one that Ash had saved from the clutches of the Skull Brothers. They couldn't stop ogling at her.

The red head saw the way the guys were looking at her. Natasha hid behind Ash again and grasped the top part of Ash's arm tightly. She had dressed simply for a reason but it seemed that even so she would still be getting attention. Sometimes she hated her looks and this was another one of those times. The way they were looking at her reminded her of the way the Skull Brothers did while violating her. She began shivering a bit in her spot from those awful memories. Ash understood her reaction to the group and so did the girls. Before he could even say anything however, most of the guys were hit hard in the guts by their girlfriends. Grace smacked Clemont upside the head and Caroline punched Norman in his chest. Each of the guys groaned with pain while doubled over in their chairs.

"Thank you," said Ash and the females nodded with some replying back that it was no problem. Ash glanced back at Natasha. "Don't worry, they're harmless." He waited for her to calm down and step out beside him again and she did. She looked at everyone, her hands still clutching his arm tightly. "Everyone, this is Natasha Dobrev. Natasha this is everyone. You know my mother, Delia, by now. Her full name is Delia Ketchum. And you remember May Maple right?" Delia and May waved at her with smiles and the red head acknowledged them with a nod. The raven haired guardian then introduced everyone there, one by one, with the indicated person waving and smiling or nodding their heads. Natasha was surprised to see some very famous, popular and powerful gym leaders and trainers there along with a champion no less. After the introductions and reintroducing Leaf and Joy to her, the two walked over to the dinner table. They sat down with Natasha sitting between May and Ash. "Oh and one more thing," stated Ash and the group looked at him. "She will be communicating with her notepad and pen." The group nodded without question, knowing the reason why. Delia had told them only of her voice being gone yesterday. They were saddened to hear that but also swore to keep their mouths shut about how she lost it. Both Sabrina and Anabel gave Ash looks of understanding when he caught their gaze. The two wouldn't listen to her thoughts or talk mentally with her. "Alright, let's dig in. I'm starving." Several let out chuckles as Ash's hunger took control.

They continued their meal normally afterwards. Though several of the guys would shoot split second glances at the red head. A couple of them got caught by their girlfriends and were elbowed hard because of it, angry over their behavior. Ash and May both offered Natasha some food from the table before taking a good helping for themselves. The new member of the group was astonished at how much her savior and his girlfriend could eat, seeing their plates overfilled. How could you eat so much? Ash faced her and just shrugged before continuing his demolishing of his food. She watched him go at it for a couple seconds before turning to May and saw her doing the same thing. The brunette felt like someone was staring at her. She turned her head towards the red head and went red before smiling sheepishly. Natasha let a small smile form before going back to her meal. She wasn't feeling threatened anymore but she was feeling a little overwhelmed from being around so many people all of a sudden. She stayed remarkably calm though, knowing that her savior was right next to her. As the red head ate, she took her time and listened in to the others' conversations while also looking around every so often. Luckily for the guys who would steal glances at her, she didn't catch them in the act.

A certain blonde girl was particularly quiet. Daisy was deep in thought as she slowly ate her food. Before Ash and Natasha joined them, she was thinking about how she had failed yesterday in protecting Ash. She didn't react to Gary's insults or attack. She was frozen still, just like the others, over what was happening. She had sworn to protect him and her sister Misty but she failed in her oath the day after. She felt crestfallen and didn't feel like talking much. She only gave short answers or barely commented back to others who were trying to speak with her like her sisters.

She stayed that way until she saw the red head. The second she saw her, she felt intense jealousy spike up within her. She couldn't believe how stunning Natasha looked. And the way she grabbed onto Ash's arm made her stomach churn. She didn't act on it though. She didn't want anyone to become suspicious about what she's feeling for the raven haired young man, especially Misty. Daisy let out a quiet sigh and returned to her food. A couple minutes later, she glanced around to try to get her mind off of her failure and about her feelings for Ash. Most of the group was busy with conversations going on around the table but the blonde gym leader noticed some things.

Daisy saw Shauna and Lizabeth speaking with one another quietly while also shooting quick looks at Ash. When they looked away from him, the two blunettes noticed the blonde girl staring at them. They quickly stopped what they were whispering about and went back to their meals. She thought that was odd but then shrugged it off. Turning her gaze away from them, Daisy then noticed Clair and Liza staying unnaturally silent but would glance towards Natasha. The two were giving the red head quick annoyed looks every now and then.

Feeling like complete shit because of Natasha's incredible looks and over her own problems, the caretaker of the valley let out a sigh. Liza happened to look towards the area where the oldest sensational sister was at. She saw the way Daisy was staring at her and her friend. She quickly looked away and nudged Clair with her foot, making the blunette shift her gaze to the green haired girl. She was about to ask what her deal was but then Liza gave her a look that she knew what it meant. Clair turned her gaze to her plate and so did Liza.

Daisy kept her sight on Liza and Clair for a little while longer, thinking what they did was also odd before looking away. She was almost about to go back to her meal when her eyes fell onto Giselle. She was slightly slumped in her chair, staring at her plate. Daisy was about to ask her what's wrong when the black haired girl raised her head and gave a quick look of longing towards the raven haired guardian. Turning her head, Giselle saw Daisy looking at her. That made her redden before quickly going back to her food.

Misty's oldest sister kept her sight on her for a little while longer. Afterwards, she looked at the other four once more, seeing them not moving their gaze from their plates as they ate. Daisy faced her own meal and began thinking a mile a minute. She thought about their behavior, their reactions and also of them helping out in the stadium. Her eyes widened suddenly. SHIT! They have feelings for Ash! She snapped her sight back onto the five girls. They were still not looking up from their food. The blonde girl couldn't believe it even though it made sense now. Why else would they act this way and do what they did? But it doesn't matter. I won't let them take Ash away from Misty! If they try something, they will learn that a Sensational Sister is much more than just a pretty face! Daisy stared intently at them for a bit as she gripped her fork tightly before going back to her own meal, trying to control her emotions.

As breakfast went on, several became full and were just relaxing in their seats. After speaking with Max for a while about wanting to train with their idol again, Bonnie turned towards the young guardian. "Hey Ash, got any plans for today? Are we going to train again?" asked Bonnie anxiously.

"A few yea and yes," replied Ash, making the rest quiet down to hear him better. "I was thinking after breakfast we train again. Same as last time. Afterwards, we'll relax a bit before I follow up on my promise and take the girls shopping. If you or anyone else wants to join, it's no problem," said Ash and some of the group glanced at one another before asking if they're going or would like to.

"So no matches today for you?" asked Max.

That question reminded him of his next battle. "Actually, I do have one today." Everyone quieted down at once, wanting to know who he was up against. Only three other trainers were left and they were each said to be strong. "What was his name again…oh that's right. The trainer I'm facing goes by the fearsome title of Dragon Master Drax," joked Ash, making a few others chuckle as well.

Their chuckling was stopped short by forks dropping and hitting plates. Everyone looked towards the reasons why and found Iris and Clair to be in shocked states with their eyes wide and their mouths slightly open. Cilan gave Iris a concerned look as did Sabrina, Cynthia and Liza to Clair. The two girls were looking at Ash and it was making him worried. "Did…did you say…Dragon Master Drax?" asked Clair in a whisper.

Ash titled his head. "Yea…why?"

Clair couldn't respond but Iris answered. "Drax was from my village and he was considered to be a prodigy dragon trainer!" That astonished everyone and Ash asked her how come she never mentioned him before. "Well, he's a couple years older than me and how was I supposed to know you'd be strong enough to face him one day in a tournament?!" shot Iris, making Ash huff. "Anyway, he's really strong and he's been considered to be even better than Lance was in his youth." Many had surprised expressions form on their faces at that bit of news. "He's traveled around like you did Ash and my elders have said that he's never been beaten," finished up Iris excitedly and most of the group couldn't believe that he was never beaten.

The green haired connoisseur gave his girlfriend a bewildered look. Cilan hadn't seen Iris become so worked up over another trainer for a long time. And learning that this Drax was from her village and considered to be a prodigy dragon trainer was cause for concern. He felt a little threatened, knowing how much his girlfriend loves dragon types and dragon trainers. And this particular trainer is considered to be stronger than the Champion Lance in his youth. Cilan turned his attention back towards Ash with a calm expression but inside his stomach twisted into knots.

Ash's expression of disbelief however turned into an anxious one with a grin. "Awesome! I can't wait to see how strong he is. Finally, a challenge!" Natasha gave him a curious look that he was excited to battle someone that was considered strong. Some also chuckled over his enthusiasm, glad that he was able to look forward to other things after the past few days' events. "But how come we haven't heard much about him?" he asked Iris

Before the purple haired girl could answer, a blunette did. "Because he doesn't like the spotlight." Ash turned his head towards Clair again. "And don't take him lightly Ash. Don't underestimate him," she advised him seriously, with her three closest friends keeping their gaze on her. Iris gave Clair a curious look but said nothing.

Seeing her in a non-joking state, he nodded. "I won't Clair." The blunette kept her gaze on him for a moment longer before turning her head back to her plate but didn't continue eating. Ash sensed some emotions spike up in her and wanted to ask what was wrong but before he could…

"This should be a great battle huh?" asked Max.

"I know you'll win!" encouraged Bonnie.

"Thanks guys for the support," he replied with a smile. He glanced at Clair again and saw her in the same state but didn't continue his initial desire to find out what's wrong. He decided to wait for some other time. "Alright guys, lets finish up breakfast and then it's time for some training. Meet me in the balcony when ready." The group agreed and soon enough, finished up their meals. They got up to get ready and Ash faced Natasha who looked at him. "What would you like to do?" She thought for a couple seconds. I'll watch. I have nothing else to do. He told her to wait for him in the living room while he changed. She didn't have wait long for him to come back and soon enough, both of them entered the balcony.

Ash set up a seat for Natasha off to the side and she thanked him for it. He had Mewtwo, Lucario and Gardevoir appear while he waited for the rest to come. He introduced Natasha to them and the three greeted the red head who was stunned at seeing the purple feline. "Yea, he's a Legendary psychic type. The brother of Mew," revealed Ash, making Natasha gasp. Ash chuckled and Mewtwo smacked him upside the head. "What the hell man?!" shot Ash while rubbing the area he was hit.

"You still owe me a full on battle session and you still have that one thing to do. Remember?" asked Mewtwo with a smirk. Ash replied back saying he still remembers it. "Good. Just making sure you do. Otherwise I'd be angry."

Ash rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Keep pushing me and you'll get more than an Aura Sphere to the face," warned Ash but Mewtwo just chuckled while taunting him to bring it on. Lucario just sighed, shaking his head and Gardevoir gave the two an amused look. She missed these interactions. The raven haired trainer turned towards Natasha. She had a stunned expression on her face, her eyes wide and mouth open. She couldn't believe how Ash acted with the Legendary and how the two were buddy-buddy. Almost like brothers. Ash quickly explained some things to Natasha and right when he finished up, the others joined them. He gave the red head a reassuring look before moving to be in front of them. She decided to remain quiet for the duration of the training so she can see if she can find out why her savior is so strong. "Alright everyone; we're going to start with the dummies again. Practice the strikes while Lucario and I walk around and check on you. After that, we'll let you know what's next." Mewtwo's eyes glowed blue and the purple dummies appeared once again after the balcony items disappeared and the pool was covered by a purple floor. The group spread out and each person went in front of their own dummies to practice the strikes they were shown before. Ash and Lucario began their observations of them training, walking through the group.

Mewtwo turned to Gardevoir who glanced back at him. "You should train as well. C'mon." The white and green fairy agreed and followed the purple feline towards the railings. Mewtwo used his Psychic attack on her so she can try to gain some resistance to it. They did that for a while before switching their roles, having her use her Psychic on him. She was barely able to affect him. But it was still helping her focus and raise her endurance in using the technique along with its power.

The aura canine commented on several people's training, giving out some advice and suggestions or otherwise approving with just a nod of his head. The aura guardian was doing the same but vocalizing his praise. After checking on most of his girlfriends, who he complimented and also gave advice to with them thanking him with some teasing and seductive actions, he moved over to his friends Brock, Lucy, Richie and Joy. He saw they had improved greatly. He praised them for their work but also give some additional pointers. They thanked him for it before continuing. He watched over them for a moment before continuing on to the other others.

Ash walked to where Clair, Liza, Sabrina and Cynthia were training at. As he drew closer to the four, he sensed that all of them had worried auras and were whispering to one another. Seeing him come towards them, the four girls quieted down and focused on their training instead. "Hey. Everything alright?" he asked them.

Cynthia nodded and Liza spoke up. "Yea, of course. Why wouldn't it be?" she asked him back while hitting the dummies groin with a smirk.

Ash raised his eyebrow. "What is it with you always smirking when you hit there?" he asked her. Liza went red and turned away from him, not replying back. He shook his head, chuckling and turned to the Saffron gym leader. "So what's really going on Sabrina?" He asked her because she wouldn't be able to lie to him. The other three's eyes widened and they started worrying that she wouldn't be able to hide it.

The dark haired psychic looked at him. "Training. What does it look like?" she asked him back and threw another strike at the dummy to signify that.

"Okay. I believe you." She smiled but didn't look at him. "Or I would've if you didn't just turn red right now." She went even redder and her friends sighed, hanging their heads since they almost got away with it. She really couldn't lie worth a damn. Especially to her beloved. "So what's going on?" The psychic turned to Clair and gave her an apologetic look.

"It's okay Sabrina," started Clair, taking over. "We were talking about Drax. About him and something that happened in my past that involved him. I'm just trying to not let it affect me and I don't want to talk about it. I will say again to keep your guard up around him though," revealed the dragon gym leader.

He saw the worried and fearful look in her eyes, understanding that something had happened between the two of them. He didn't push the subject but still wanted to help her. "Alright Clair. But if you need someone to talk to, I'm here for you along with your friends who are great people for having your back. Okay?" he told her and she thanked him before going back to her dummy. He watched the four practice some more with his gaze lingering on the sullen blunette longer than the other three. He wanted to know what could cause the confident, assertive, outspoken and tough dragon trainer to become so timid but he didn't want to push too much. He so badly wanted to hear her thoughts on the subject but wouldn't do that to her. He may accidently hear thoughts from time to time and would sometimes try to listen in on the six girls that he had suspicions on. However, he wouldn't take advantage when it's obvious that they don't want to talk about something.

Ash walked around the others, giving some tips to Max and Bonnie. The two young teenagers were competing against one another, trying to see who was doing the training better. Bonnie was really into the whole training. She wanted to get stronger and she also felt a little ashamed over her actions yesterday. When she saw what happened to Ilene, she just screamed like a scared little girl instead of taking action to help the Queen. She was lucky that others heard her scream. She didn't want that to happen again. And she didn't want others, especially Max, to think of her as a helpless little girl. Taking Ash's advice to heart, she quickly integrated them into her training. The young teenage boy in glasses saw the girl he likes putting her heart into the training. He became both impressed and motivated by her. Wow, Bonnie sure is giving it her all. And so will I! He increased his efforts to become better.

Ash watched the two for a couple minutes before praising them and moving away. He checked on Clemont and gave him some advice to put more power into his attack by using his body. Afterwards, he went up to Daisy Waterflower. He saw her doing well and was actually impressed. He remembered her needing some tips and looks like she took it to heart. Her technique, skill and power were getting better and better. "You're doing great Daisy. Nice job," he told her after her last strike.

Daisy stood up straight and faced him before smiling at him. She ignored the sudden happy feeling that sprang up inside her though. "Thanks. I wish I knew this stuff before. It would've come in handy."

Ash became angry, thinking who would dare hurt her and think they could get away with it. "Handy? Did someone try to hurt you?" he asked seriously, stepping closer to her.

She shook her head before sighing. "No, no one threatened me. And I'm okay right now Ash. I was just talking about in the past when I went out on some dates with some asshole guys. It's nothing and I'm fine so no need to worry," she told him, getting back into her fighting stance and faced her dummy to continue training.

"Hey." Daisy looked at him again. "Even so, I care about you. If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask. If you want to talk, need something, anything at all, just let me know okay?" he told her as he placed a hand onto her shoulder.

Daisy felt her body temperature shoot up all of a sudden but kept her face neutral. She had a lot of practice in keeping her face unreadable because of her many failed dates. "Thanks Ash and I will," she said.

He smiled at her. "Hey no sweat. We're gonna be an official family one day soon and you know I'll do anything for my family and friends. Keep it up," he said with a smile before patting her on the shoulder and left to check on the others.

We're gonna be a family one day? She repeated his words in her head as she watched him move away. Her mind went into overdrive, imagining the two of them together in a park. They were sitting on a wooden bench, snuggled together while watching their children run around on the playground. They glanced at one another, smiled and leaned in together to kiss. But right before they connected, Misty's betrayed expression showed up in her mind. She shook her head and went back to practicing on the dummy. I'm such an idiot. He didn't mean it like that. He meant when he and Misty married, which would make me his sister in law. I'm sorry Misty for even imagining that. I won't ever betray you. I need to stop thinking and feeling about him. She glanced around and found the five girls who she had suspicions about having feelings for Ash. I will not let you jeopardize Misty's happiness for your own either. She continued her training while her mind raced about everything she had come to learn.

Ash and Lucario, after checking on everyone, went to be in front of the group. A couple minutes later, and the alarm went off on his Poketch. "Alright, stop!" Everyone finished their last strike and looked at him, panting but not as tired as they were the first time. "Good job everyone! You've all improved. Now, before our run, we're going to add two more exercises. Pushups and sit ups." Everyone grumbled about that. "Well, its either that or you can train with Lucario and he has other plans." Complete silence at once. "I thought so. Alright, pushups first for five minutes. Do as many as you can the standard way." Without even asking, Mewtwo's eyes glowed blue and the purple dummies vanished. Ash took up a pushup position with his legs and feet together and his arms shoulder width apart. His gaze was on the group. "Standard position. C'mon." The group copied him and got ready. "Five minutes, as many as you can. Lucario will be checking on all of you while I do this with you. Ready? Go!" He lowered himself and went up in one swift motion, the others attempting to do the same.

Lucario walked around the rear of the group, checking on everyone, making sure they're doing it correctly. The aura canine helped out some, giving them pointers such as how to keep their back straight and not to lock their elbows. Ash monitored the front of the group, shouting out some encouragement, praise and some tips to whoever needed it. After five minutes, his alarm went off and he dismissed it, causing many to just collapse onto the floor, letting themselves go. "C'mon, stand up! I know you can do it!" encouraged Ash and watched them push themselves onto their feet. "That's it!" he praised them. "Everyone take a two minute break but don't sit down. We'll be doing sit ups for five minutes after." The group let out a collective sigh while Ash chuckled a bit.

After the two minute break, the raven haired guardian sat on the floor and bent his knees a little and placed his hands by the sides of his head, his side towards the group. Seeing him get ready, the group followed after him without being told to. "Alright, five minutes. As many as you can do. Remember, do it properly and don't worry about anyone else but you. Ready? Go!" He sat up and went back down quickly, doing the exercise with them. Once again, Lucario did the rounds, checking on everyone, making sure they were doing it correctly. Some suggestions said here and there, some praise and some encouragement to those who needed it and five minutes later, the alarm went off. Ash sprang to his feet using his hands to push him up off the floor. Most of the group slowly got up, panting heavily now except for a few like Clair, Shauna and Misty. "Nicely done everyone. Another two minute break and then we'll finish up today's training with the two mile run." As the others rested, Ash turned to Natasha, who had an amazed look on her face over their training. "We'll be back after our run. Okay?" Alright. I'll be in my room. Natasha left the balcony and headed back inside, making several of the guys watch her leave before getting elbowed hard again. As they groaned in pain, Ash shook his head. "Seriously guys?" he asked them, earning some glares from them but Ash just laughed. The two minutes went by way too fast for them because before they knew it, they were teleported to be in front of the woods once more with the purple path appearing in front of them. "Alright focus! I'll be joining you this time. Remember, do your best but heed your limits. Again, Mewtwo, Lucario and I will be sensing everyone so don't be worried. Ready? Go!" he said and led the way into the forest with everyone else following after him.

Ash maintained an even pace but still ended up getting further and further away from everyone as they continued with a only a few to keep up with him but were still behind. About a quarter of the way done with it, Mewtwo sent a mental message to him from Lucario; full speed now and no aura! Letting out a sigh, he increased his speed and shot forward like a bullet. He kept going faster and faster, leaving everyone behind.

"Damn, look at him go!" commented Shauna.

"I'll beat him in the water though," remarked Misty with confidence.

"That'll be a match to see," stated Cynthia.

"Hey, I'll race you all to the end," challenged Clair.

The four girls agreed and at the count of three they picked up their speed and started running as fast as they could to the finish line. Each of them wanted to finish first, for themselves and to show the raven haired guardian that they were fast too. When they finally reached the end, all four girls doubled over, with hands on their knees and panting heavily. Misty once again placed first. She grinned at the other three who sighed and shook their heads, not believing she won again. "I told you guys not to kill yourselves. I also did say Misty is faster and has higher endurance. Doesn't anyone ever listen to me?" The four girls looked up to see Ash casually leaning against a tree with one of his legs bent with that foot resting on the tree with his arms crossed. He looked like he didn't even run two miles at all, completely relaxed with no sweat stains at all.

Misty straightened out and walked over to him, having recovered sooner than the other three. "Easy for you to say Mr. Pokémon Master," remarked Misty, making Ash grin. She stopped in front of him and poked his chest with her index finger. "Since I won again, proving you right, you have to do something for me."

Ash raised his eyebrow. "Is that so?" The red head placed her hands on her hips and gave a glare, saying it is so. "Alright Mist. What do you want me to do?" he asked while chuckling.

Her glare turned into her radiant smile. She leaned in closer and whispered into his ear. "You'll find out soon enough," she said teasingly, making his heart beat skip a beat. She gave him a quick kiss on the lips before just standing beside him and leaning against his shoulder. The five of them waited for the rest, with Cynthia leaning on his other side and the two other girls just hanging around a bit away from them. Each of them were giving covert glances every now and then at Ash, Cynthia and Misty.

After some time, everyone arrived with no major complications. Though several were panting heavily and Ash went up to one. "Hey, how are you doing Sabrina? You okay?" he asked her, placing a hand on her mid back.

She looked up at him since she was leaning on her knees with her hands, taking big breaths. "Yea…just exhausted…" He commented back that he understood. When she straightened, she leaned against him for support since her legs were shaking. He wrapped an arm around her waist to help keep her up and turned to everyone while in the embrace.

"Alright good job everyone!" he told them. "All of you have improved greatly. That's it for today. We'll go home and relax for a bit. Also, we'll be leaving for the mall in about an hour. If anyone wants to join us, you're welcome to it." He turned to Mewtwo and the psychic feline's eyes glowed blue and they all teleported back to the balcony and so did its furnishings. Mewtwo, Lucario and Gardevoir teleported back to the island.

The group split up to go shower and rest. The penthouse suite had many bathrooms but still not enough for the large group to all go at once. Even with the girls sharing the bathrooms, letting one another in as the other was in the shower. The guys had to wait for their turns except for Ash who used his own master bathroom. When he got out, there was a couple knocks on his door. Covered with only a towel around his waist, he opened it and saw it was Sarah, Anabel and Leaf. They immediately went scarlet at seeing him like that. "Hey, what's up?" he asked them.

Anabel recovered first. "We're wondering if we can use your bathroom because the others are full and pretty busy."

"Sure, I'm done with it. Go ahead," he told them, stepping aside so they can enter.

The three girls entered the room. "What a gentleman," teased Sarah.

"How thoughtful," added Anabel.

"That's what I thought," taunted his childhood crush while walking in. Sharp slaps were made against each girl's rear that made the three jump into the air and squeal. They turned around, narrowing their eyes at him. "Oh, you done it now Ashy," growled Leaf.

"Oh, I hope you're ready to get beat!" shot Sarah.

"You're just asking for it mister!" snapped Anabel.

Ash merely grinned back at the three angered faces. "I'm ready to go if you are. But some articles of clothing may just come off and who knows what'll happen next," said Ash, making the three girls blush heavily again. "You may not be able to resist and neither will I."

The girls were quiet for a few second until Leaf opened her mouth to argue back. But then both Sarah and Anabel grabbed her arms and dragged her to the bathroom. "What the…"

"Not now Leaf!" cut off Anabel.

"He's right!" shot Sarah.

Before Ash knew it, the three girls disappeared into the bathroom. He chuckled as he put on some clothes before letting out a sigh. He was wondering how he was going to survive going to the mall with his girlfriends. Shaking his head, he stepped out of the room and went to the living room.

One of the girls who had showered already and got dressed was sitting on her bed, wondering about what she was going to do about her being pregnant. She had to tell her beloved but she just didn't know how. She went out of the room and sat in the living room alone, wondering about how she could go about it while waiting for the rest. A few minutes later, Joy appeared and sat down next to her. "Hey, how are you holding up?" asked the pink haired nurse.

"I'm alright. Just thinking when and how to tell him," she replied back in a low voice so only she could hear her.

Joy nodded. "Okay. I'm sure you'll know when and how. Just try not to think about it too much," she said and the girl nodded, thanking her. At that moment, several people entered the living room, ready to go. Ash, Cilan, Richie, Brock, Cress, Chili, Cynthia, Sabrina, Liza and Shauna appeared. Joy smiled at Richie but the girl next to her became nervous when she saw her beloved. She was saved from getting up when the girls who arrived sat down beside her and Joy and started talking with them.

"How many more people are we waiting for?" asked Brock.

"We'll find out soon enough Brocko. Might as well just kick back and relax for a bit," suggested Ash and the guys sat down on the couches and relaxed while making idle talk. While they talked, almost everyone else gathered in the living room, including some of the parents. The last ones to arrive were Misty and Daisy Waterflower. "Alright. So who's going with us?" asked Ash as he stood up.

After some conversations made, it was found out that almost everyone was joining them except for the parents, Bonnie, Max and Clemont. The parents wanted to just stay home and relax a bit before Sabrina's parents arrived. Max and Bonnie were going to play some video games in their room. Clemont decided he'd rather work on his invention in his room since he was single and didn't want to go to the mall.

"Ash sweetie, can you come here please?" said Delia suddenly as she walked into the room and he went to her.

"What's up Mom?" Delia whispered into his ear and his eyes widened. "Really?!" he asked her and she nodded with a smile. "That's great!" He turned to the rest, who were giving interested looks. "I'll be right back." He walked down the hallway and disappeared behind a door.

"What's going on Delia?" asked Grace.

"You'll see."

When Natasha left the balcony and entered her room, she thought about what she saw in the balcony. She couldn't believe how…organized and respectful they are of one another. Nothing at all like Team Rocket where everyone was on their own. Even during training or on group missions together. She was also impressed over their training and how they focused on simple yet effective techniques. She could tell that they had barely started their training. If they're this good right off the bat because of him, what else are they capable of? She thought a bit about that until a knock on the door caught her attention. "Hey, it's me Delia."

Natasha got up and opened the door for the kind mother. "Thanks," remarked Delia as she stepped inside the room. "I was wondering if you'd like to go to the mall with Ash and the rest?" The red head didn't react for a moment before writing her answer on her notepad and showed it to her. "Hmm, I understand. But the best way to move past something is to face it, learn from it if you can and move on." Her words resonated with the young woman and made her think for a bit. Natasha wrote again in the notepad. "Okay, sure. I'll get you that stuff. Just relax until they're done with the training. See you in a bit." Delia left the room and Natasha lied down on the bed for a while, thinking until she came back with her requested items. Delia also updated the red head that their training was done and were now getting ready to head out. Natasha thanked her and when she left, started getting ready.

Ash knocked on the door before stepping into a room and looked at the red head. She was dressed in black jeans that covered up her legs entirely along with a black long sleeved sweater. He could barely make out a bit of red underneath the sweater. Unknown to him, it was a long sleeved red blouse that was tucked into her jeans. The sweater was also covering her rear, which was what she wanted it to do because the jeans accentuated it. Her long red hair was also tied into a simple pony tail. After what happened earlier that day, she hoped that this way would draw less attention.

Natasha gave Ash a nervous look and he walked up to her. "It's alright Natasha," he told her. "You don't have to do this if you're not ready. Only a few of my friends and our parents are going to stay. So if you want you can stay with my mom." She shook her head. That may be, but I need to do this. You're mom's right; I can't be cooped up forever. And I'd feel more comfortable and safe around you. Ash nodded, understanding her. "Okay. But promise me something." She tilted her head a bit. "The moment it becomes too much, you feel overwhelmed, you feel sacred, anything at all, you tell me the second it happens. Can you promise me that?" he asked her while looking into her red pupils and she looked into his brown ones. A moment later she nodded. I promise. He smiled, headed to the door and opened it. "Whenever you're ready," he said when he glanced back at her. Natasha took in a breath and walked to him. I'm ready. Ash grasped her hand, making her feel confident. They both stepped out of the room with him leading the red head down the hall towards the waiting group, with her right next to him. "You guys ready to go?" he asked them and they nodded. "Alright. We're going to teleport." He turned to his mom. "We'll be back in time for my match."

"Okay sweetie. We'll handle things here with Sabrina's parents. Have fun everyone and be safe," she said, with the other parents repeating it. The large group vanished, leaving behind the others.

"I'll be in my room working on my latest invention. Don't bother me please unless it's important," said Clemont and disappeared into his room.

"What game should we play Max?" asked Bonnie turning to him.

"How about Call of the Trainer?" suggested Max and she agreed. The two went to their room, turned on the video game console and began playing. Norman, Caroline, Johanna, Grace and Delia headed into the balcony to get some fresh air and talk a bit.

A good distance south from the Indigo Plateau, a young man was tossing and turning in his bed. A few minutes later, he snapped his eyes open and sat up. Too quickly, making his head spin and he lied back down as he closed his eyes. "Ugh…" He felt like absolute shit. His mouth was dry, he felt constipated and his head was pounding. "Fuck me…" he groaned out.

"I don't think you have any takers for that right now."

The man slowly opened his eyes and lifted his head up a bit. His vision was slightly blurry but soon focused. After seeing who it was that spoke, he lowered his head back down and closed his eyes. "What do you want Daisy?" he asked her as he covered his eyes with his forearm.

His sister crossed her arms and glared at her brother. "I want you to get your ass up Gary and go to the lab. Grandpa's waiting for you."

Gary let out a long groan. "I feel like shit. I'm not going anywhere."

"You should feel like shit over that crap you pulled yesterday," remarked Daisy. Gary lowered his arm, raised his head again and gave his sister a confused look. "You don't remember?!" she asked him. He slowly sat up and shook his head with a worried expression on his face. "Nothing at all?!" He shook his head again. Daisy was flabbergasted. "You don't remember getting piss drunk?! Trying to seduce Sarah to make her cheat on Ash?! Forcing yourself onto Ilene and hurting her?! Fighting with Ash again?! None of that?!" she asked him while slightly yelling and speaking very quickly.

Gary's eyes widened over what Daisy just said. His brain seemed to finally work as it started flashing some images of what he did yesterday. He buried his face into his hands and let out a long groan. "Fuck! What the hell did I do?!" He looked up at Daisy with a horrified expression on his face. "Why did I do that Daisy?! What is wrong with me?!"

Daisy let out a sigh. "I don't know what's going on in that head of yours anymore. You tried to seduce Sarah. You tried to force yourself onto Ilene. You insulted Ash about his father. You made up a ridiculous story that Ilene was using you to get to Ash." Gary buried his face into his hands again and began shaking. Seeing him become so didn't draw any sort of pity from his sister though. "You crossed the line for the last time Gary. Now get up and go see Grandpa at the lab. He's absolutely pissed at you. I've never seen him this angry. You better get there quickly before he loses it," suggested the blonde girl.

Daisy turned to leave her brother's room but then Gary called out to her. "Wait…" She glanced back at him. "What happened to…Ilene? And…why are we…home?" he asked her.

Daisy was quiet for a moment before answering him. "Looks like you don't remember everything. Ilene asked Ash to take her home because what you did to her scared the crap out of her." Gary's eyes began filling up with water. "And we're home because Ash kicked you out of the group instead of beating the shit out of you over what you did to her and Sarah. Consider yourself lucky." Daisy opened the room door and left, leaving her brother behind who began letting out tears over his mistakes. Gary slowly got out of bed to get ready before he went down to the lab to face his grandfather's wrath.

It was the worst place ever imagined. A place where time seemed to stand still. A place where no matter which direction one would look in, all they would see was countless wandering souls. A place where it was every girl's favorite pass time and every single man's bane of existence. It was the Indigo Plateau Mall. When they arrived, the large group had split up. Brock and Lucy went off alone. Richie, Joy, Iris and Cilan went off together. Cress, Chili, Lily and Violet went off together. Daisy Waterflower went off by herself. Giselle, Clair and Liza had gone off together and Shauna and Lizabeth went their own way as well, leaving the rest alone.

Right now, Ash was allowing his girlfriends Misty, May, Dawn, Serena, Leaf, Cynthia, Sabrina, Sarah and Anabel to drag him from one shop to another. He thought of how lucky his starter was. Pikachu had opted out, having already suffered one shopping experience at the hands of the girls. Natasha, who was also with them, was sticking right next to Ash, not leaving his side at all. The girls didn't mind one bit, having gotten used to her being around. They understood how she felt because of what she went through and were not feeling any sort of resentment towards her at all. And they trusted Ash, knowing he would never betray them, no matter what.

"Oh! Oh!" squeaked Dawn and May all of a sudden together. They had spotted their favorite clothing store in the distance after exiting a shoe store. Each of the girls, except for one, was holding two bags already, having exited their second store. Natasha however refused to get anything so far, writing in her notepad that she didn't want anything. The brunette and blunette turned to Ash. "That's our next stop!"

Knowing there was no way out or convince them otherwise, the raven haired guardian just agreed. "Alright. Can we slow it down a bit though?" asked Ash. "I'm getting kind of tired."

Cynthia raised her eyebrow. "What happened to that endurance earlier today when we ran? Or that infamous stamina of yours that I've been hearing about?" asked the Sinnoh Champion with a playful tone of voice. That caused the raven haired guardian to go red and rub the back of his head in embarrassment. His girlfriends giggled and Natasha had her eyes widen at hearing that, having many different thoughts go through her head.

Not letting him find a hole to get out of it, Sarah slapped his shoulder playfully. "C'mon! It's been barely two stores. Stop being such a party pooper!"

The group gave the blonde intrigued looks over that, making her blush a bit. Ash chuckled a bit before responding back. "I'm not," replied Ash. "Malls just sap my energy. How about you girls go on ahead and I'll make my way over there with Natasha helping me get there?" The girls glanced at one another and then at him and the red head.

"Okay Ash. We'll go on ahead and when you get inside, meet up with us at the far left corner," informed Anabel and he nodded.

May turned to Natasha who looked at her. "Keep him safe okay? He's easily distracted and likes to do stupid things," stated the brunette from Hoenn with a smirk.

"HEY!" whined Ash and the girls laughed with Natasha smiling. She nodded at May who smiled back.

With his girlfriends moving quickly to the store, the raven haired guardian and the red head followed after them, taking their time. She was clinging onto Ash, holding his arm tightly. A couple times she squeezed it so hard while burying her face into his shoulder. She was startled by random persons who had appeared out of nowhere right next to her as they passed them by. "You alright? Want to take a break?" he asked her, noticing her reactions. She looked at him and shook her head. I'm okay. Just getting spooked. Sorry. "No need to apologize. It's alright." They continued walking at a leisurely pace towards the store in the distance that his girlfriends already entered.

As they passed by the other people while walking, many of them noticed and realized who he was. Some walked away, increasing their distance from him. Several even gave him rude glares and obscene hand gestures. A few bold persons even insulted him. The raven haired guardian however just merely ignored them all. Natasha was astounded that he didn't react to them. She knew he could pulverize them but he was just ignoring them. She couldn't believe how much patience and restraint he has, impressed over it.

Not all of the people they passed acted like that though. Some thanked him for helping out and saving people, even commending him for ending the Skull Brothers. Several others even wished him luck on his next round match, saying that they'll be there to watch it. Ash just thanked them for their kind words as well as replying that he's just trying to do what's right. That made Natasha smile a bit, seeing how compliments weren't inflating his pride or ego.

As they continued on their way, a couple times Ash was surrounded by teenage girls who wanted an autograph or just to touch him, completely ignoring the red head. A few brave, or perhaps foolish, fan girls even wanted to ask him out, getting out some words at first. But when they caught Natasha's angry gaze with narrowed red eyes at them, they quickly changed gears, coming up with an excuse and left. Ash was puzzled at first about that but after the third time, he happened to glance at the red head with him and found her giving the new girl a death glare. "Thanks for that Natasha," he said, looking at her after the girl left. "I don't want to be rude, but don't want to get in trouble with my girlfriends. And I really don't want them thrown in prison either," he chuckled and she smiled. You're welcome.

But it wasn't just Ash who was getting attention. Natasha had to deal with many men staring at her. Hell, even a few women did too. She didn't like the attention at all, knowing what each of them wanted and now fully aware that some would do anything to get that. She knew that before of course but after what she went through, it became more of a harsh reality. Some had made rather rude comments from afar as they passed them. Some even were about to walk up to her. But when they glanced at the man next to her, they saw him glaring at them with his eyes glowing blue. Realizing who he was, they would immediately avert their gaze and walk away. Thank you for keeping them away, she told him after the fourth time a man just completely changed his direction suddenly and practically sprinted away from them. "Anytime Natasha." He wrapped his arm around her upper waist and she hugged him with both arms, resting her head against his side. They continued towards the store his girlfriends were at.

As the two walked on, they were being watched by two others. These two had just finished up their food and were about to leave when one of the guys that the Aura Guardian scared away bumped into the male. He let out a hurried apology before continuing his way out of the large shopping complex. They looked around to see what had him spooked and soon found the reason why. They saw Ash and Natasha holding each other closely while walking. The male felt intense jealousy spike up within him and let out a growl while the female narrowed her eyes. She quickly silenced him, telling him to stay focused. He took a breath and nodded. "You know what to do. Wait here," she told him. The male watched his female partner quickly but casually make her way to the two. "HEY! NATASHA!" yelled out the woman in a friendly tone of voice, surprising the man that she even could sound like that.

Natasha froze instantly, making Ash stop as well. She knew who that voice belongs to. She felt her heart start to beat faster and harder at first before quickly controlling herself. She couldn't allow her savior to have any suspicions about her. Both of them turned around to see a stunning black haired girl dressed in black tight jeans and yellow tight shirt. Her clothes were showing off her assets quite well and that's what she wanted it to do to keep the guardian off balance. But for some reason, he wasn't affected by it, not paying much attention to her. Instead his attention was on the red head. "Do you know her Natasha?" he asked her.

"Does she know me?!" asked the dark haired girl with a laugh, making Ash look at her now. "Of course she does silly! I'm Tanya! We've been best friends since we were kids!" she said and hugged her tightly. Natasha hugged her back, not wanting to start something. Ash was feeling a bit uneasy with Tanya, unable to sense her emotions at all. Or anything else for that matter. "Where have you been?!" she asked when they separated. "It's been a while since I heard from you. I was so worried about you!" She turned to Ash. "Can we have a moment alone please?"

He didn't like her at all but didn't want to cause a scene. And if she truly was her friend, he couldn't be rude to her. "I guess so," replied Ash. He looked at the red head who glanced at 'Tanya' before looking at him again. Thanks. Can you wait here for me? I'll be right back. She nodded to signify what she wanted. "Okay. I'll wait right at that bench." Ash watched the two girls go towards the food court before sitting down on a nearby bench and just looked at the mall goers walking past him.

Once Natasha and 'Tanya' were out of ear shot, the dark haired girl spun around and her friendly demeanor changed to that of seriousness. "Ugh, I hate acting nice." The red head frowned a bit at that. Since when are you ever nice to anyone except to Giovanni? Not hearing her thoughts, Domino continued on. "Alright, let's drop the charade. So, looks like you're in with the Aura Guardian. Having fun are we?" Natasha folded her arms across her chest and glared at her. "Relax, I don't care if you let him fuck you. What I want is information. Find out anything about him?" Natasha didn't react. "You better tell me." She shook her head before opening her mouth and pointing at it. "I don't want to hear about how you've been giving him and the Skull Brothers blowjobs all this time." Natasha narrowed her eyes and went red. "Oh, did I embarrass you for reminding you of what you went through? How you allowed a bunch of dumbasses to rape you? Don't give a shit you slut." Natasha's heart began beating a little faster, remembering her ordeal. She kept her expression neutral but was filling up with anger. "Now answer me or I will make you."

Natasha scowled at her and was about to punch her when someone grabbed her shoulder. Ash! She turned around, thinking it was him but instead it was someone else. John?! "Well, nice to see you too Natasha," remarked John, seeing her surprised expression. "So, how's the mission going?" he asked her.

Natasha mimed out a few things but the two weren't getting it. She felt frustrated but then remembered what she was given. She took out her notepad and pen. She quickly wrote down some things and handed it to John but Domino snatched it and read it first before tossing it back to him. "So you lost your voice and was told that Giovanni cut ties with you." The red head didn't react, waiting to see what the two were going to do. She wasn't going to make a foolish mistake right now like she did before. And they couldn't really do anything in front of so many witnesses. "Well, it's your lucky day. Don't know why or how Boss decided this, but just so you know, he's offering you another chance." Natasha's eyes widened. Is she serious? Domino noticed her surprise. "That's right. You finish the mission and he'll welcome you back with open arms." Natasha took the pad back and wrote something else before giving it to her. "Don't have enough time?" Domino's smirk widened before she started laughing. "Perhaps. If things stayed the same. But luckily for you, I have some details you should know about." She explained what's been going on back at base with the delays and what they found out from their mole in the league that would help her out in her mission. "So you'll have the chance. Do this and he'll allow you to come back."

The red head couldn't believe it. She had never heard of Giovanni giving second chances. But then again, he did give those bumbling idiots dozens of chances. But she hadn't seen or heard of them in a long time. Perhaps he finally got tired of them and got rid of them? John saw the look on the red head, knowing that she was thinking about what she was told. "It's true Natasha," said John, making the red head look at him. "Complete the mission and he'll take you back. Come back before he launches his attack with the intel. It will be both deadly and glorious. No way even the Aura Guardian can stop it. I don't want you to get caught up in that," he told her and grasped her hands, surprising her.

Natasha knew how he wanted her before but it didn't faze her until now. She never was afraid of him but never fully trusted him either. She felt uncomfortable with him touching her because she didn't know him that well and also knew what he wanted from her. She slipped her hands out of his and wrote in the notepad again before holding it up to him to read. He read it and frowned before looking at her. "You feel uncomfortable with me touching you?" he asked her in disbelief. She nodded and he became pissed but didn't show it. Instead he acted like he cared. "I understand Natasha after what you've been through. But you should know that I'm always here for you," he told her.

Domino made the red head look at her before she could respond back to John. "Look, I don't like you at all and never did," she started. "But I have orders to follow and that's what Giovanni has ordered. So you could finish the job, get the intel, get out and come back to us. Do that, and all you had achieved will be returned to you. Or you can stay and die with the guardian when the attack happens," said Domino and John felt uneasy over her words but showed no emotion. "But be warned; if you decide to stay with him and try to warn him, we'll find out. Because you know we have eyes and ears everywhere. We'll come after you, him, his family and his friends. It's your choice. Choose wisely." She walked away towards the exit, leaving the two behind.

John looked at Natasha for a moment before grasping both her shoulders gently and had her face him.

She shivered, still feeling uncomfortable but didn't fight it since she didn't want to make a scene unless he tried something. "If you want some sort of life, you should do as we said for your own good. You underestimated the Skull Brothers even though I warned you and allowed them to rape you." She became angry at him for saying that, glaring at him. But John kept his gaze on hers without backing down. Slowly, her anger died down and she hung her head over that, realizing he was right. John placed his hand underneath Natasha's chin and raised her gaze to his. He saw her eyes become watery. "Hey, I'm sorry for saying that. But that's what happens when you don't listen to advice. I've always looked out for you and I'm still doing so." She thought about that a bit, remembering how he did give her some advice sometimes. Seeing her not resisting him now, he pushed further. "This…guardian…he may have taken you in because of that, feeling sorry for you. But do you honestly believe that he'll keep you around if and when he finds out that it was because of you that they were even here in the first place?" Natasha stayed quiet as fear filled her. "He won't. He'll kick you out the second he finds out if he doesn't kill you." Her heart hammered over hearing that. "But Giovanni won't. He'll take you back in if you complete the job. You know he has to follow protocol. It's nothing personal. You know I've always wanted the best for you." He hugged her without her stopping him. Yet she felt an uneasy feeling wash over her from the embrace. "I'll be waiting for you Natasha. I know you'll make the right choice." He withdrew from the hug, leaned in and gave her a soft kiss on the lips, shocking her so much that she couldn't react. When he finished, he smiled at her, wished her luck and left.

Natasha stood there frozen from his actions while watching him go towards the mall exit. A moment later, she lifted her hand and slowly touched her own lips with her fingers. Did he just kiss me? She thought of what he said. How Giovanni was giving her a second chance. How John said he was always looking out for her. The new information that was given to her about the tournament that will give her some wiggle room to get the job done. If what they said is true, I can get everything I've achieved back! She felt ecstatic, trying to picture herself back in the group, back in her powerful and respected position. She would be a somebody again if that happened.

But for some reason, she couldn't picture it clearly. It kept coming up distorted in her head. She tried to focus on that but the more she tried, the more distorted it became. She wondered why that was until a sudden image appeared in her mind's eye. A certain person's face appeared with his unique set of brown eyes that had captivated her from the second she saw them. Instantly she had completely different feelings fill her. I can get everything back…but only if I betray him. Betray my savior. Betray Ash…But what have I achieved with them? She thought about that for several long minutes until she had an epiphany.

Natasha realized that the so called respected position she reached and had cared about was nothing more than a glorified secretary position for a sadistic and lust filled bastard. And that bastard kept trying to get into her pants while making her do all his dirty work so he could steadily become richer and more powerful. She also remembered that many of her so called comrades and teammates in said organization wanted to violate her to win some stupid bet. That none of them had ever helped her in anything without seeing if there was something in it for them. That John, who said he was always looking out for her, wasn't there to save her from her nightmare. That he was practically ordering her to do as they said. And he had always mentioned right to her face how he wanted to fuck her. That made her shiver again over what he wanted to do to her.

She thought about how she never truly felt safe or comfortable while working with them. She was never at peace. But she found that with her savior, with Ash, the Aura Guardian. She felt safe with him. She felt comfortable with him. She felt at peace with him. How could she betray the one who had showed her so much respect and kindness? One who showed her a different kind of life that she never thought possible? One who never asked for anything in return from her? Whose very presence helps her control her fear? The one whose simple touch could make her feel special, safe and alive again.

And that's when she realized something else. That all the money and power in the world wasn't worth anything if there was no peace, no comfort, no safety or no happiness. She raised her hand higher and wiped her lips with the sweater sleeve in disgust before spitting into a nearby trash can. Fuck you John. Fuck you, Domino, Giovanni and everyone else in that bullshit organization. Nobody truly cares in that group of yours and I'd be a damn fool to believe the words you and that slut just said. She turned around and hurried back to where her hero said he'd wait for her. And as soon as she reached the area he said he'll be, she saw him. There he was, sitting on a bench as he waited for her, keeping his word.

Ash saw her coming back and he stood up. She quickly hugged him and he hugged her back. "Hey Natasha. Is everything alright?" he asked her, sensing her emotional state. "Did Tanya say something to you?" She raised her gaze to his and nodded. She was about to say something in her mind when he spoke again. "Don't worry. She's not a true friend then. I didn't like her vibe either," he told her. "I hope you don't mind me saying that," he said, rubbing the back of his head with worry. No, I don't and you're right. It's just that, there's something I need to tell you. "Okay Natasha. What is it?" She sighed, looking down at her feet before looking back up at him. It's about... BEEP! Ash's Poketch just let out a sound and he looked at it, reading the message he was sent. "Oh shit, the girls are waiting for us." He looked at her. "I'm really sorry Natasha to ask this but..." You don't have to ask. I can wait. He smiled at her. "Thanks Natasha. You're the best." He hugged her tightly, making her feel much comfort from it before letting go and grasped her hand. "C'mon, we gotta go before they kill me!" They both moved to the store his girlfriends were waiting at, moving faster than usual.

The red head decided to tell him later at the right time since she had some more time than she believed at first. This way, she could enjoy being in his company a little while longer at least. Even though she feared it could be very little time she could have with him if he decides to tell her to leave afterwards, she had to do it. She had to go through with it because she had come to realize something; that her savior more than deserved to know the truth. And she also hoped for another thing; that with her coming clean to him and what she went through, that he may forgive her, let it stay in the past and allow her to stay with him.

Two figures were outside the mall and walking away from it. You think she'll take us up on the offer?" asked John.

Domino didn't respond for a while. "All I will say is that Natasha is acting the way I suspected her to." The pilot looked at the deadly woman beside him with a curious expression. Not answering his questioning look, Domino continued walking. "C'mon, we have some other things to take care of."

John said nothing else and just followed her while thinking. You will meet your end soon Guardian. And you will be mine Natasha.

When Brock and Lucy separated from the others, they went to a photo booth, closed the curtains and took some crazy pictures together. Some photos were of them kissing, some funny faces, some suggestive gestures and one other with them fooling around a bit. That photo was of her on his lap with his hands on her breasts while kissing.

When they stepped out of the booth finally, Lucy looked at their pictures. "That one is being saved for sure," commented Brock, looking over Lucy's shoulder at the photo strip while hugging her from behind.

"Pervert," she quipped. "But I agree. Who gets to keep it?" asked Lucy. As soon as she asked that, he raised an identical strip next to the one she was holding, surprising her. She looked at him with a grin. "Looks like we both do."

"Got that right babe," he said. She gave him a peck on the lips and the two went into another store and that particular one was filled with a few toys and costumes to role play with when becoming intimate. They showed their IDs as proof of being of age before allowed through the check in point.

Cress, Chili, Lily and Violet exited out of another store. They were mostly window shopping as they conversed with one another. The two sisters didn't want to scare away their boyfriends with their shopping madness, even though the two brothers were asking them what they wanted. "Seriously? How could you not want anything?" asked Chili to Violet.

"I just don't. I'm okay. Thanks though," she replied back.

"Are you two sure? Cause we don't mind," elaborated Cress.

"Yes, we're sure," answered Lily. She got an unbelieving look back from both brothers. "Oh alright. We don't want to scare you away," revealed the pink haired girl.

Chili scoffed. "Scare us away? Yea right. We're tough. Well, maybe not Cress so much."

Cress rolled his eyes as the two girls giggled. "Very funny. But he is right." The other three gave him confused looks. "If there's anyone who should be scared right now, it's Ash. Imagine having to deal with nine shop crazed girlfriends at once." All four of them stopped in their tracks before they burst out laughing.

"Poor Ash," sympathized Violet after they calmed down. They continued their walk for a bit until the two brothers finally convinced the two sisters to at least buy one thing and so they entered a souvenir shop.

Iris, Joy, Cilan and Richie were checking out a custom poke ball shop. It had different style poke balls on display for purchase. Some were differently colored than the traditional ones and there were also seals that could be purchased as well. Those seals could be attached to a poke ball and whenever it opened, would bring out a unique display corresponding to the seal other than the basic flash of white light. Joy was looking at a Luxury Ball when Richie came up beside her. "Thinking about getting it?"

The nurse placed her right index finger against her lips. "Hmm, maybe. But then again, I don't have any pokémon of my own. And what would I do with it?"

Richie's eyes widened. "You don't have any pokémon of your own?" he asked her. Joy lowered her hand and picked up the ball as she shook her head. "Well, how about I help you get your very own pokémon?"

Joy faced Richie. "It's okay. I've been fine without a pokémon of my own all my life." She placed the ball back down onto the shelf. Her boyfriend picked up the ball she placed back onto the shelf and grabbed five more of the same. Joy's eyes widened as she watched Richie go up to the cashier and placed the six Luxury Balls onto the counter. "What are you doing Richie?!" she asked him after getting out of her stupor.

"Getting you ready to become a trainer," he replied back as he glanced at her with a smile. Joy was about to say something but then Richie cut her off. "I saw the look in your eye. I can tell you want to have your own. And you'll need pokémon in the future. So let me do this for you Joy."

The pink haired nurse smiled at her boyfriend. She went up to him and hugged him tightly. A moment later the two separated and looked into one another's eyes. "Maria." Richie tilted his head, slightly confused. "My name is Maria. Maria Joy."

Richie's mouth turned into a large smile. "Richie Hiroshi." The two leaned in and kissed for a few seconds before separating. "I love you Joy…I mean, Maria."

She giggled a bit. "It's alright. You can say either one," she told him with slightly reddened cheeks.

"How about MJ? I'll be saying both at once," he said.

Joy thought about it a bit before nodding. "Sure. I like it. But let's keep that between us." He agreed with that and the two turned to face the associate who was waiting for them. They spent some time asking about and trying different kinds of apparel that they could use to clip poke balls onto them.

While that couple was doing that, the other pair was at the other side of the store looking at limited edition poke balls that were made to commemorate certain events. The purple haired girl passed by several balls before one of them caught her eye. She stopped in front of it and read the information on it. As she read, her green haired boyfriend was looking at her with worry in his eyes. He couldn't forget how excited she had become during breakfast when she heard about this…Dragon Master Drax. It may be insecurity or something, but he felt threatened by him for several reasons. One was that they knew one another, another that they were both from the same village, he's supposedly a powerful dragon trainer, she loves dragons and that was her goal too.

He remembered when he first met her and how that was all she would talk about. Dragon pokémon, famous dragon type trainers like Lance and Clair, dragon prophecies and stories and other things related to the mythical beasts. And not to forget, but how she would become one of, if not the, best dragon trainers in the world. But not once did she mention this Drax. He wondered about that. Why keep it a secret? What was the reason? And why did she become so excited all of a sudden? Was it because she wanted to see a powerful dragon trainer in action? Did she want to see Ash break his undefeated streak? He couldn't tell.

Cilan let out a quiet sigh. He gazed at the love of his life, seeing her fascinated by another custom poke ball on the shelf, reading it's back story. He loves her so much. Yet, sometimes, he felt that he may not be the one for her. That he might be holding her back in reaching her potential. He had buried that worry a long time ago. But the way she acted today brought that insecurity back again and it was even stronger. Iris…am I holding you back? Am I keeping you from reaching your goals? Your dreams? He thought about that a bit. He remembered his travels with her and Ash throughout Unova together. How they had some crazy adventures. How Ash would annoy and tease Iris and do the same to him. But he also somehow was able to encourage her and inspire her at the same time. Cilan's heart hammered as he realized something right then. I've never had that affect on her. But Ash has. And apparently, so does this…Drax. So, why is she with me?

Cilan thought about that some more as Iris continued on with her reading. Cilan quietly followed after her. When Ash disappeared three years ago, Iris went searching for him. She went alone at first for a few months. She even teamed up with Misty, May, Dawn and Serena for a bit too. But then she went off on her own again before we teamed up. He remembered how their search went. The danger they put themselves in to try to find their best friend. The things they went through together. And somehow, that brought them closer together. Somehow, it made them develop feelings for one another. But he also remembered how depressed she was during that time, before they got together. How much she missed him. The many times that she wished for him to come back in a whisper when she thought he had fallen asleep. Are we supposed to be together? Was us becoming a couple just a result of some randomness? Was Iris supposed to be with someone else? Be with…Ash? Be with…Drax? What can I offer her that they can't? Why can't I get her excited like they can? Is there a reason? What is the…

"HELLO! EARTH TO CILAN!" The connoisseur jumped, startled over the loud voice. He placed his hand over his chest, panting a bit quickly. Iris had an amused look form on her face. "Wow, what a scared little kid. What happened Cilan? Why were you spaced out?" asked Iris.

Cilan caught his breath and fixed his clothes. "I'm alright and I apologize. I was merely thinking about some things," he said as calmly as he could.

Iris tilted her head a bit and then shrugged. "Okay. Anyways, I want you to look at these custom poke balls that are made specifically to capture dragon types!" The purple haired girl grabbed his forearm and led him to where they were. Cilan decided to push his worries aside for the moment as Iris showed him the new type of poke balls.

A blonde girl was on the second floor of the mall. Daisy Waterflower was walking around by herself. She wanted some time alone to think about everything she had learned about. She wanted to confront the other girls. To find out if they really do feel something for Ash. And if they did, she would tell them to back off and not try anything. She didn't want her baby sis to have to go through more drama. Not after everything she's done for her, her sisters, the gym and their family name. Daisy continued walking around until she spotted two familiar blunettes walking together in the distance. The blonde quickened her pace to catch up to them as the two girls entered a store. As a result, she bumped into someone who just exited a store. "Ah, my bad," apologized Daisy, balancing herself out again before facing the person.

The person she bumped into was a tall, well built man with silver hair wearing white and black clothing along with a cloak. He brushed off his side and looked at her. "Watch it. I could've been carrying something important in my hands you know," he told her.

Daisy flushed a little. "Sorry. I just need to get somewhere quickly. Take care."

She turned to leave as the man opened his mouth. "Should've known city people are disrespectful," commented the man.

The sensational sister stopped. Usually she would've just let that go and continue on her way but she was already on edge over the day's events. She turned back around to face him. "Excuse you Mr. High and Mighty but I did apologize. No need for you to blow things out of proportion and get all butt hurt about it," she growled at him.

The man scowled at her. "How dare you insult me! Do you know who I am?!" shot the man angrily, making some bystanders stare at the two for a second before moving away quickly. They didn't want to get involved over whatever was going on.

Daisy took a step back automatically in fear but controlled it and her expression. "No, and I don't care. Now leave me alone or you will face the consequences!"

The man's scowl turned into a smirk. "Is that so? And how are you going to do that?" he asked.

She glared at him. "I'm Daisy Waterflower, one of the four gym leaders of Cerulean City Gym, which is one of the toughest gyms in Kanto. Leave now or I will pulverize you in a battle!" she informed him.

The man was quiet for a moment before he burst out laughing, surprising Daisy. That's not what she was expecting. "Oh Arceus! HAHAHAHA! You think just because you're a gym leader that you'll be a match for me?! From a gym that needs four leaders to run?! And a water type trainer as well?!" The man continued laughing as Daisy started shaking with anger over his remarks. He finished up and looked at her. "I'm not going to waste my time with you anymore. I only battle against powerful trainers. You're not even worthy enough to lick the dirt off my boots." The man walked away from Daisy, laughing as he did so.

Daisy's hands clenched into fists over his words as she watched him leave. What an asshole! She wanted to kick him where the sun don't shine. She was about to go after him to do that but then remembered what she was going to do before. She took in a few deep breaths to calm down. If I ever see him again, he's going to wish he hadn't crossed me. Daisy turned around and headed towards the store that the two blunettes entered.

Giselle, Liza and Clair were in a sport apparel store that also sold workout clothes for both genders. They figured it would be good to pick up a spare or two since they would be training to help out Ash in the future. The three were looking at different outfits while nearby one another. "Hmmm...this doesn't look too bad," remarked Giselle, pulling out one from the rack and placing it over herself. It was a sports top that exposed the stomach along with shorts, which were pink and black colored. She turned to the mirror to see how it would look on her.

"It's nice," complimented Clair from behind, making Giselle turn to face her friends. "You should get it."

"Yea, Clair's right. Definitely will make you-know-who look at you more closely if you know what I mean," teased Liza with a wink.

The black haired girl blushed at that while the blunette chuckled. "Thanks. I guess. What about you two?" asked Giselle. Clair rummaged around but before she could pull one out, Liza asked them for their approval for one she pulled out.

"Are you kidding me?!" asked another. The three friends turned around and saw Lizabeth and Shauna standing there. They had entered the same sporting store with the same intentions as the three. They were staring at the outfit that the green haired girl was asking about.

The one Liza took out was very revealing, hardly qualifying as exercising clothes. "Oh, look who it is. It's the blue haired twins!" joked Liza, making the newly arrived girls scoff. "Anyways, what's wrong with it? Afraid to show what you got? You got a nice body name stealer. Why don't you?" asked Liza with a smirk, making Lizabeth flush red with embarrassment. She then faced Shauna. "How about you? You're not bad yourself. What do you think of a possible fighter like yourself seeing you in this huh? Probably make him tap out," joked Liza, laughing out loud at Shauna's very shocked look on her face.

Clair shook her head at Liza's antics. The Dragon trainer knew that the caretaker was still upset and sullen over what she was going through. She also knew that she would be much more prone to joking around and making teasing remarks to hide that. She didn't call her out on it though. Instead, she went along with it, not wanting to make her more depressed. "Leave them alone. They're not like you who just shows her body off to anyone and everyone. You should learn to not show what you got," replied Clair.

Liza turned her gaze to Clair. "Ah, shut up you bitch," she quipped. "You're just jealous that I can pull it off and look amazing while you'll look desperate in it."

"Make me you attention whore!" snapped Clair and the two glared at one another.

The other girls went wide eyed at their behavior and words. But what really threw them off was when they burst out laughing. "Yea, you're right. It's too revealing. Even for me," agreed Liza, putting it back.

"Good choice. I would've burned it even if you did get it while making you watch," admitted Clair.

Liza shook her head, chuckling. "What?" she asked, looking at the three who had confused expressions.

"What just happened?" asked Lizabeth for the three.

Liza and Clair glanced at one another and just shrugged. "Eh, it's just how we are with each other. Don't worry about it," informed Clair.

"She's right. You should worry about something else."

Liza, Clair, Giselle, Shauna and Lizabeth turned around at that. "Daisy?" asked the five together after seeing who it was. Daisy walked up to them with a serious appearance, making them become nervous. "Ah, what's going on?" asked Liza.

Daisy was quiet for a few seconds before answering her. "I know." Her words made the girls shift uncomfortably. Giselle asked her what she knows. "I know about your feelings for Ash."

That made them gasp and look at one another in shock. "You like him too?!" asked each one at once towards one another. They had suspicions about one another but finding out the truth still surprised them.

"How could you like him?!" asked Shauna towards Clair.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" snapped Clair back angrily.

"Aren't you part of some honor bound dragon family thing where they can only be with dragon trainers?" asked Lizabeth.

Clair didn't reply to that back but Liza did for her. "That's in the past! She can get with whoever she wants!" snapped the caretaker. "And what about you?! Why do you like him huh? Who are you to him?!"

Lizabeth took a step back from Liza's glare while Shauna got angry that Liza scared her. "HEY! Back off! You try something and I'll hurt you!" warned Shauna.

"Try it and see what happens when you face a real fighter!" threatened Clair with anger.

Shauna, Lizabeth, Liza and Clair started bickering and yelling at one another. Daisy was absolutely stunned at what was going on. She thought that the five were in it together but it seemed that they didn't know about one another either. Their arguing kept going until… "STOP IT!" screamed out Giselle, silencing the four at once. They turned their gazes onto the black haired girl with surprised faces. "You four are acting like children!" chastised the valedictorian.

"She started it!" said the four at once while pointing at one another.

They were about to go at it again when… "SHUT UP!" screamed Giselle making them go silent immediately. Satisfied with that, Giselle turned to Daisy. She quickly thought and came to a decision. "Daisy…" she started before taking a huge breath and letting it out. "I admit that I have feelings for Ash." Her admittance made them gasp. "Not because he's powerful. Not because he's handsome. Not because he's famous. But because the first time I met him, he changed my life. He made me open my eyes. And I haven't stopped thinking about him since that day. I just want a chance. That's not asking for much."

Giselle's words made the other five girls think about that. Each of them had a similar experience with the raven haired guardian. He was the one who impacted them greatly by just being who he was. Daisy wanted a chance too with him but she couldn't do that to Misty. She let out a sigh a moment later. "That may be Giselle. I understand what you're saying…" Her emotions almost got to her but controlled it. The others however noticed that. "But… but whatever your reasons for liking him, having feelings for him...it doesn't matter." The girls titled their heads, confused over what she said. "You will forget about him because I will not let you mess things up between him and my sister." The five girls became a little angry at that but understood why she was doing this now. "You try anything to mess up their love and I will make you pay. This is your only warning. Stay away from Ash!" demanded Daisy.

She turned to leave the store when Liza called out to her. "And what about you huh? What about your feelings for Ash?!" asked the caretaker.

Daisy froze in her spot. "I don't know what you're talking about," she answered back without looking back at them.

She made to take another step but then Shauna grabbed hold of her arm from behind. "Don't try to hide that fact. You helped out too. And we noticed how you were looking at him too!" revealed the blunette.

Daisy's heart skipped a beat at that but maintained her composure. She broke free from her grip and turned around to face them again. "Say what you want or believe but it doesn't matter!" she shot at them and the five took a step back. "I will not let anyone or anything mess things up for my sister! She deserves it after everything she's been through!"

The other girls glanced at one another, wondering what she was talking about. Clair and Giselle eyed Liza, remembering her saying the same thing for Sabrina. One of the blunettes took a step forward and the blonde moved her sight onto her. "Hey, I get it," started Lizabeth calmly, trying to keep things civil and not get out of hand again. "I understand what you're saying. And I'm pretty sure the rest do too." Daisy glanced at the other four girls. Though they were angry for being told not to pursue their feelings, they couldn't blame her for trying to protect her sister. "But is it fair that your sister and the other girls are with him? That they were given a chance for happiness while we don't get a shot?"

Daisy stayed quiet while thinking about that until she shook her head. "Fair or not, I swore that I will protect Misty and Ash. I will not let anything come between them. Doesn't matter who or what. They deserve it. I…you…don't," revealed the blonde girl sadly.

The five girls felt sullen over her words and glanced at one another with each of them thinking about her words. Was she right? Were they fooling themselves that they could have a shot too? They were quiet for a couple minutes until Clair was about to say something. But then she stopped with her mouth left open and her eyes widened. She couldn't continue as she just saw someone pass the entrance of the store.

Seeing her become frozen in shock, the black haired girl went up to her. "Hey, are you alright Clair?" asked Giselle. The blunette didn't answer. Instead she took a few steps back and bumped into a clothes rack. In her haste to balance herself out, she tripped over the rack legs and fell onto the floor.

"CLAIR!" shouted the five. They helped her stand back up but saw she was trembling and taking in stuttering breaths.

Liza had an idea as to what the cause for her best friend's sudden lack of coordination. "Is it him?" she asked the blunette quietly. Without looking up, Clair nodded and Liza turned to the girls who began asking what's wrong until the green haired girl silenced them. "Not the right time. Later." The girls didn't argue and she turned back to her friend. "It's okay. He's not here. He left. C'mon, let's get up and look for the others and we'll go home." Clair didn't argue and nodded her head. Liza told the others to split up to find their friends quicker and to meet in half an hour at the food court. They agreed and exited the store. Daisy and Giselle went together as Lizabeth and Shauna went together while Liza stayed with Clair. "C'mon, you're tougher than this. Get your ass up chicken shit!" growled Liza. Since the girls had left, she could be her normal hard ass on Clair, which she knew she needed right now.

"Screw you!" shot Clair and Liza smiled.

"There we go. C'mon." She helped her up and the two left the store. They decided to check a few stores to see if their friends were there before heading to the food court.

The others checked some stores as well. They looked around frantically but couldn't find the others. Nearing the thirty minute mark, the three pairs of girls started heading towards the food court. Daisy and Giselle were the first to get there. "Where the hell are they?!" asked Giselle.

Daisy shrugged. "I have no idea. I should've brought my Poketch with me. Do any of you have their number?" asked Daisy and Giselle admitted that she didn't record anyone's number yet. "Damn it. Looks like we'll have to wait," sighed Daisy.

The two waited for a few minutes quietly while both were thinking heavily. "Daisy…" started Giselle, making the blonde glance at her. "What did you mean by saying Misty deserves it and we don't?"

Daisy sighed and was about to answer her when someone else spoke up. "What are two beautiful girls like yourselves doing here all alone?" asked a man's voice. The two turned around at that. "Oh, it's you," chuckled the man, seeing Daisy again. She started shaking with anger as Giselle had her eyes widen at the size of the man.

"We're waiting for our friends who should be here soon," answered Giselle. He was putting her off guard with the way he was just standing there in front of them so relaxed and calm but with a serious look on his face. And it didn't help that his size intimidated her.

"So waiting for your friends huh? That's cool. Anything I can help with? Maybe get you a drink?" he asked, locking his eyes with Giselle's who felt uncomfortable over the way he was looking at her. He had a thing for darkly colored hair on females.

"Leave us alone! Or did you think that we're worthy now to lick the dirt off your boots?!" asked Daisy sarcastically with anger.

"I never said such a thing," replied back the man. Daisy shook with anger, clenching her hands into fists while giving him a glare. He shook his head. "And I believe your friend could speak for herself can't she?" asked the man. "That's rude speaking for others when they might have something else to say you know," he added, making Daisy growl.

The black haired girl had enough of the guy, seeing how rude he was. It reminded her of her past conceited self and didn't like being reminded of it. "She's right! I don't want anything. So leave us alone," chimed in Giselle.

Before he could say anything else, someone shouted out to them and the three of them turned around to see Iris, Cilan, Richie and Joy coming up to them. The four had decided to go eat something after leaving with some purchases from the poke ball store. The man's eyes widened and so did the purple haired girl's.

"Iris?"

"Drax?"

Everyone was surprised to find out that this formidable looking man in front of them was Dragon Master Drax. What also startled them was Drax and Iris hugged each other. Cilan's heart began beating rapidly, becoming both worried and angry. He noticed the way this new person, who was tall and well built, was hugging his girlfriend, with his hands so low on her back. He was about to say something when the two separated. "How have you been Iris?" asked Drax with sincerity, surprising Daisy and Giselle how his behavior just did a one eighty.

Iris smiled at him. "Been great. Thanks. Let me introduce you to everyone," she replied. She introduced her friends to him. He nodded towards the girls, with Daisy and Giselle still glaring at Drax, which made Iris tell them to cool it. He then shook hands with the men before turning to Cilan. "And last but not least is my boyfriend Cilan." Drax and Cilan shook hands but the dragon trainer didn't smile or anything, attempting to crush the green haired man's fingers before separating. Cilan's hand hurt but he didn't show it and wouldn't comment on it. He didn't want to give the disrespectful gesture any attention.

That didn't go according to plan though. "Sorry if I hurt you during our handshake Cilan. Sometimes I forget about my strength," remarked Drax with a slight smirk.

"No worries," replied Cilan through gritted teeth, making his friends glance at him for a second.

Drax grinned. "So, you two are an item? Must have been tough hearing about some stuff huh?" he asked towards Cilan whose eyes narrowed.

"Drax!" shot Iris warningly, glaring at him but he wouldn't back down.

Cilan's heart began beating even faster. "What do you mean by that?" asked Cilan as calmly as he could. His friends glanced at him again, becoming worried before looking at the newcomer again.

"They don't know?" asked Drax, looking at Iris, who went pink. "Wow, this is unbelievable."

"Don't know what?!" repeated Cilan, starting to get angry. He glanced at Iris who was looking at her feet now before looking at Drax again.

Seeing Iris not answer, Drax replied. "If you won't tell them, then I will. Iris and I were chosen by our elders to get together when we became of age." Everyone's jaw dropped and Cilan's heart dropped to his stomach. Iris's face turned crimson red. "But it looks like she broke tradition and got with you instead," he explained to them. The group looked at Cilan and then at Iris who was completely quiet.

Right when Cilan was about to ask if it was true, they heard someone calling out to them. The group turned around to see Brock, Lucy, Chili, Cress, Violet, Lily, Shauna and Lizabeth coming towards them. The two blunettes had bumped into them on their way back and told them the situation. "Hey, guys. What's going on?" asked Brock when they reached them.

"I was just about to find out," replied Cilan. "Iris, is what Drax said…" He turned back to his girlfriend while talking but stopped, seeing her not there and neither was the tall trainer. He looked around and saw the two away from them. They seemed to be in a heated discussion. Cilan and his friends became concerned and went towards the two. But then something happened that made them freeze with rage erupting inside Cilan; Drax had kissed Iris, cutting her off.

The Unovan native was shocked, unable to resist at first before gathering her senses and stopped it before slapping him. "HOW DARE YOU!" yelled Iris.

Her shout snapped Cilan out of his trance and he shot to the two. It also drew the attention of many around them who turned to look at them. He pushed Drax away from her and stood in front of his girlfriend. "You disrespectful swine!" he insulted and followed up with a punch to Drax's face.

However, his punch was easily caught it in the palm of Drax's hand, shocking everyone. "Someone's angry," commented Drax calmly but with an angry tone over the insult.

The connoisseur shook with rage. "You. Me. Battle. Outside. Now," growled Cilan.

"I usually don't battle trash but I'll make an exception for you." The tall trainer let go of his hand and walked towards the food court's exit that led into the parking lot and nearby park.

Cilan followed after him with Iris at his side, begging him not to battle because that's what he wanted. The three disappeared outside. Their friends looked at one another but before anyone could say anything, yet again someone called out to them and they turned around. It was Liza and Clair. "Hey. Thanks for meeting us here. Did …wait, what happened?" asked Liza, seeing their worried looks. The two were quickly updated of what had happened.

Clair had her eyes widen. "No no no! What is he thinking?!" snapped Clair. "He'll destroy him! We need to stop this now!" She led the group outside and they looked for the three.

They found Cilan and Iris were standing on an empty field and across from them was Drax. Liza's eyes widened at seeing the Dragon Master. She had never seen Drax before, only hearing descriptions from Clair. But now that she saw him, she felt her heart skip a beat at seeing his silver hair that looked so much like white. No! It can't be! Don't tell me it was him who won the Gauntlet! I can't be promised to this douche bag! Liza froze in her spot as the others skidded to a halt a little closer to the three and saw what their friends were doing.

Iris was still trying to keep Cilan from battling. "Don't battle! It's what he wants! It's not worth it!"

"He will learn respect! And don't you believe in me?" he asked her. She said that she does but Drax is undefeated. That hurt his pride a bit that his own girlfriend basically admitted that he had no chance but it didn't stop him. "No Iris! I will not let him get away with his rude behavior!" retorted Cilan. "Go! Simisage!" He tossed out a poke ball and a green monkey with yellow chest, hands, feet and face appeared. He let out a shout of his name and pounded his chest, pumping up for battle.

Drax scoffed. "Is that the best you can do?" he lazily opened a poke ball and a large pokémon appeared with a loud roar. The roar caught many people's attention and they started to crowd around them. Cilan's eyes widened, feeling the pokémon's power but Simisage stayed composed. He would not fail his friend. "Salamence, Flamethrower."

The large dragon spewed out a stream of flames from his mouth towards the green monkey. "Dodge it!" snapped Cilan and Simisage rolled out of the way, dodging the flames. By the time he got back onto his feet, another stream of flames headed towards him. "Dodge again!" shouted Cilan and again Simisage avoided the flames. Salamence however kept spewing out Flamethrowers, not allowing the monkey to get a foothold and Simisage was starting to tire out. "DIG!" yelled Cilan and the green monkey went underground, evading the flames again.

"Earthquake," commanded Drax lazily. His pokémon slammed its strong tail against the ground. Powerful tremors rocked the area, making everyone stumble about and a loud cry of pain was heard. A moment later, Simisage popped out of the ground with multiple bruises and scratches. "Dragon Claw."

"Stop him with Seed Bomb!" ordered Cilan. Salamence shot to Simisage with his claw glowing greenish purple while multiple green and brown circle orbs collided against him. But they didn't do anything to the advancing dragon. Both trainer and pokémon became astonished that their attack did absolutely nothing before the devastating attack connected. The green monkey was sent flying back and crashed against the ground.

"Looks like I…" Drax stopped talking, seeing Simisage very slowly raise himself to his hands and knees, panting heavily. "Impressive. You deserve a grand defeat. Hyper Beam!" Salamence roared and powered up the attack in front of his mouth.

"NO! STOP!" shouted Cilan running towards his pokémon but they didn't. The blue dragon fired the beam of powerful white energy towards Cilan and Simisage. The people there shouted over the brutality of it as a flash of white light blinded them for a second. The beam connected and exploded, covering the area with smoke.

When the smoke cleared, they saw a large dinosaur like dragon pokémon in front of them. Iris had sent out her Haxorus. Her pokémon took up a defensive stance and used Protect to shield them, barely holding against the attack. "Stop right now and apologize!" shouted Iris, shaking with fury while Cilan was checking on his pokémon.

Drax smirked. "Apologize for winning? Whoever heard of something like that?"

She growled at him. "Then I'll make you sorry! Dragon Claw!" Haxorus shot forward and so did Salamence. They intercepted each other's attacks. One of the two dragons looked to be using all he had while the other was barely trying.

"End this Salamence. Giga Impact!" commanded Drax. The blue dragon covered itself in a multicolored glow, the energy pushing the brown dragon back before slamming into him. Haxorus was out cold and Salamence looked like it didn't even use a powerful attack. Everyone there couldn't believe what just happened, especially Iris's friends. Haxorus was her most powerful pokémon. "Pathetic." With all eyes on him, the silver haired man walked up to the purple haired girl who was standing astonished next to green haired man. "You should've stuck with me Iris and you wouldn't have become so weak. I've been training nonstop since last we saw each other years ago. We could've been unbeatable together. But instead you threw away your traditions, your culture, your people and a better life with me, to be with this pitiful excuse of a man." He glared at Cilan with a dirty expression who looked away. He felt like he was stabbed over his words since he said out loud to what he feared to be true.

"Who the hell do you think you are?!" Everyone turned towards the angry blonde girl. Daisy was beyond furious at what he was doing to her friends. "You can't just come here and insult people and treat them like they're inferior to you!"

Drax crossed his arms. "People get what they deserve. And I already did. What are you going to do about it?" he asked her.

Daisy growled in response. "I'll show you! Hydro Pump!" She tossed out a poke ball and her Dewgong appeared. Her pokémon immediately fired a highly pressurized torrent of water.

"Crunch." Salamence dodged out of the way and then dive bombed at his enemy head first. The dragon smashed into the seal, pushing him into the ground. Dewgong let out a cry of pain but then screamed in agony when he felt Salamence's powerful jaws clamp onto his back. The dragon shook his head and then tossed his limp foe away who crashed against the ground and didn't get back up.

"NO! DEWGONG!" cried Daisy, shooting to her unconscious pokémon. "Please be alright." She hugged her pokémon, letting out tears. "I'm so sorry…" Lily and Violet went to their sister and tried to comfort her while the others glared at Drax. Seeing what Drax and his pokémon did so effortlessly against three of their friends, the others were shaken to their cores, unable to react.

The Dragon Master Drax turned his gaze back to the purple haired girl. "You've surrounded yourself with weak people and as a result, you've become weak yourself. You can still change your life though. Come with me like you should've in the beginning." He raised his hand, waiting for her to take it. Cilan looked up at his girlfriend, fearing she would go with him. But Iris shook her head. "This is your last chance. Take it."

"Last chance for what?! So you can screw her over like you did to me?!"

Everyone turned to look at Clair now. She had a furious expression on her face, intimidating many but Drax was unaffected. Seeing what he was doing to others, like he had done to her, made Clair overcome her fear to confront the one who had hurt her in the past. "And how did I screw you over Clair?" he asked calmly with a slight smirk.

"YOU KNOW DAMN WELL HOW YOU ASSHOLE!" she screamed and tossed out a poke ball. Her Kingdra appeared and took up a battle stance in front of her trainer, hovering a bit above the ground.

Salamence faced the new challenger with glee. "You did that to yourself for being so blind, gullible and desperate for love," replied Drax coldly. Clair scowled but her heart began beating faster.

Liza snapped out of it. She took out a poke ball and was about to toss it to help out her friend but she was stopped by Brock. "What are you doing?! You saw what he can do! She needs our help!" she shot at him.

Brock however shook his head. "From what I'm understanding, he did something to her and she needs to rise to the challenge. She needs to do this, win or lose. To overcome what happened," said Brock.

The caretaker shook her head in response. "You don't understand Brock!" said Liza hurriedly. "Drax won't just beat her. He'll humiliate her and break her like he did in the past! You can't let it go on like this!"

He thought quickly and came up with a plan. "Just hang on and see what happens. If need be we'll get involved. For now, let's wait." Liza glared at him but did nothing except turn to face the field as Brock quickly sent a message to his brother.

The self named Dragon Master let out a sigh. "If you're not going to battle, at least let me know so we can leave. I have an important match to get ready for," stated Drax.

Clair growled. "Ice Beam!" Her Kingdra fired the whitish blue beam of energy at Salamence who lazily dodged the attack and flew up into the air as his trainer ordered his next command.

A raven haired young man was sitting on a couch with a red haired girl next to him facing the fitting rooms. They were waiting for his girlfriends to try out some clothes and they would show it off to him to see if he approved or not. May had replaced her red dress with the same one but then also got another one. When her boyfriend asked about that, she merely answered back that replacing a ruined dress didn't count as getting a new one. Unable to find a decent comeback in time, Ash was defeated and said nothing. "That's what I thought my Knight," teased May as she went back inside her fitting room. Keep that up my Princess and I may just tear that dress off of you as well. May poked out her astonished face from the fitting room and stared at Ash who grinned at her deviously. The brunette went crimson before withdrawing back inside her fitting room.

His girlfriends continued trying on some clothes. From regular traveling clothes, some workout apparel, to bikinis and dresses and other outfits. Some of the dresses that his girlfriends tried on were elegant and very classy. The others were more revealing, showing off their curves and assets. No matter what they tried on though, it made them look extremely sexy and exotic. Ash had a hard time keeping himself from going red so often. Every time that happened, the girls would giggle and go back into the dressing rooms. Natasha smiled at their interactions, happy to be distracted from her darker thoughts of her telling the truth and him being mad. And though she was asked a couple times to get something for herself by both the girls and Ash, she refused their offer. She was alright for the time being.

A little while later, the girls finished up and went to the cashier with Ash trailing behind them and Natasha standing beside him. She wasn't clinging onto him anymore but remained close to him. The girls were about to drop their many chosen outfits onto the counter to be rung up when they were stopped. "Excuse me, but can I go first please? I only have one item."

The group turned to the girl who spoke. "Marina?!" said both Misty and Ash in surprise.

"Misty! Ash!" The three entered into a group hug with the others realizing that the two knew her. When they separated they got a good look at her. She was an attractive girl with blue hair, slender body with nice curves. She was wearing yellow tight shorts that went down to her knees and a black and orange top. "It's so good to see you guys again! How have you been?" asked Marina excitedly.

"We've been well and same to you! Let me introduce you to everyone," replied Misty. She introduced everyone who either smiled or waved with Marina doing the same. However, when it was Natasha's turn, she merely nodded slightly but the newcomer didn't take offense to it. "Oh and go ahead." Marina thanked them and placed her single outfit on the counter for the associate to ring up. "So what are you doing here?" asked Misty.

"Oh you know, shopping and killing time for now. And I'm also looking for Jimmy. He's always getting lost when we go shopping together. Either that or he's hiding," she said, laughing a bit while taking out her credit card to give to the associate. "And I must say, we came to the hotel to see if we could help you out but you weren't there Ash and neither were your friends. And I'm sorry for what happened to you during your match against Damian," informed Marina.

"Thanks and its okay. Things are a little messy but we'll be alright. Wait, you said Jimmy? He's here?" asked Ash.

"Yup. We're together now," she revealed, receiving smiles in return. "Took a while for him to gather the courage but it's been good. We've been together for two years now," she said, receiving the receipt from the associate.

"Tell me about it," replied Misty and Ash rubbed the back of his head, blushing.

"So when exactly did you finally confess to Misty about your feelings Ash?" asked Marina, smirking.

"You knew about that?!" he asked her, surprised and shocked while the girls giggled.

"Everyone who saw you two knew about it." A new voice spoke up behind Natasha that made her jump and she clung onto Ash like he was her lifeline. He spun around quickly and grabbed the person from the throat and raised him into the air. The red head trembled behind him while the girls, including the store associate, were left in shock.

"What were you…" growled Ash at first but then stopped as he recognized the person, his tone of voice changing from aggressive to calm. "Jimmy?" he asked.

"Y-yea…w-wanna p-put me down A-Ash?" he stammered out.

Ash lowered Jimmy and released him who immediately started taking in gulps of air. "Sorry buddy. I thought you were trying to hurt Natasha," apologized Ash.

Marina went over to Jimmy and after seeing that he was alright, smacked him upside the head and he yelped out in pain. "How many times have I told you not to sneak up on people?!"

"I know! I know! Sorry!" he cried out, shielding himself from another possible strike but Marina just sighed and shook her head. "Sorry if I scared you. I didn't mean to," said Jimmy to Natasha but then stared at her, unable to look away. She hid behind Ash again.

Marina elbowed her boyfriend in the stomach hard making him yelp. "Keep at it Jimmy and I'll hit you where the sun don't shine!" she threatened, making him cower and a couple of the girls to giggle and nod in approval at keeping him in line. She then turned to Natasha. "Sorry about him. He's harmless though so don't worry." Natasha however didn't respond. The blunette looked at the raven haired young man. "Is she okay?"

"Yea . She's just shy," replied Ash and his girlfriends smiled at his thoughtfulness. He glanced at her and she gave him a thankful look.

"Um, are you going to pay for all that?" The group turned to the associate and the girls apologized for taking so long, placing their wanted items onto the counter. They then turned to Ash. He hung his head, while taking out his PokeDex and handed it to the associate.

"Ouch," commented Jimmy, seeing the total price go higher and higher. "Why pay for them all?"

"Because he was being tickle tortured and gave in to his girlfriends," answered Sarah with a grin. Both Jimmy's and Marina's eyes widened at that and Natasha gave a curious look at Ash.

"Girlfriends? So its true? What was said? The report and rumors?" asked Jimmy looking at each of the girls. His jaw dropped suddenly as he just noticed a few of them were quite famous. "Cynthia, Sabrina and Anabel are your girlfriends too?!" he asked in surprise, earning another elbow to the stomach.

Ash rubbed the back of his head, turning red and so did his girlfriends. "Yes. It's true. The girls here are my girlfriends. Well, except for Natasha but she's our close friend who like I said before is very shy and prefers to be around us."

Jimmy, Marina and even the associate had their eyes widen in surprise. "Wow. Talk about being complicated. How does it all work out?" asked Marina.

"Let's just say we have a special understanding between us all," revealed Serena with a smile.

The two newcomers merely glanced at one another and shrugged. "Whatever works for you I guess," remarked Jimmy. "Gotta say this though; you're one lucky bastard to be with several incredible girls but good luck man." Marina elbowed him in the stomach again but this time harder, making him cry out and the others to chuckle. "What?!" Marina glared at him. "I'm just saying." He faced Ash again. "Anyway, we gotta go. My match is up soon. I'm facing Tobias."

"Good luck Jimmy. Hopefully we'll face each other in the finals," said Ash raising his hand to him.

"Hopefully. I wouldn't mind taking out the Trainer of Legendaries and the great Aura Guardian. Imagine how famous I would become." They all laughed at that. "Good luck with your match too buddy." Jimmy shook his hand and the two exited the story, saying their farewells to the girls with them doing the same. They saw the two leave with Marina slipping her arm through Jimmy's arm and he took her shopping bags to hold for her.

"Aw," said his girlfriends together and glanced at Ash with their eyes sparkling.

He rolled his eyes. "Yea, yea, I know. But first let's get this stuff paid for before you buy the whole store," quipped Ash, making them blush in embarrassment. He walked up to the counter as the employee rang the last item and hit the total button on her screen. The grand total for everything was displayed on the machine and his eyes widened before glancing back at the girls. They immediately looked away, their faces beet red, staring at the walls or at their feet. He sighed and shook his head. "Son of a…" BEEP! Ash got a message and he looked at it, making his eyes widen. "We gotta go. Now!" Sensing the urgency in his tone of voice, the girls didn't argue. He paid for the outfits, took back his PokeDex, the girls took the bags and the group quickly left the store with Ash telling them what was on the message.

A large sea horse looking pokémon was losing energy fast. She had been trying to hit the flying blue dragon for a while now with her attacks but was unable to. The blue haired gym leader of Blackthorn City was losing her nerve, seeing her most powerful pokémon toyed with by her most despised person's pokémon. "This isn't good," commented Lucy. "We need to stop this."

As soon as she finished saying that, Salamence launched a Dragon Pulse at Kingdra and it connected, damaging her greatly. The sea horse dropped to the ground but was still conscious, panting heavily. "You disappoint me Clair. Your reputation as a powerful dragon trainer is nothing but false. You don't deserve to be a gym leader let alone train dragons. No more games. Time to finish this," said Drax without emotion. "Salamence! Draco Meteor!" The blue dragon charged up the attack and launched it. The fiery meteor raced through the air towards its target with Clair screaming for him to stop. A blue shield appeared out of nowhere in front of the hurt pokémon and the meteor crashed against it before exploding, covering the area in smoke. "What the hell?" Drax and Salamence were confused.

"ENOUGH!" shouted a powerful voice within the smoke. It slowly cleared up to reveal a raven haired young man who was standing in the field with glowing blue eyes that were narrowed onto the tall trainer. Many of the bystanders were astonished to see the Aura Guardian in person and right in front of them. Some began to quickly move away, afraid of him while others let out shouts of happiness that he was there. Ash dismissed the shield before he swiftly moved to Iris, Cilan, Daisy and Clair who were kneeling beside their pokémon and the girls went to stand beside their friends. Though many were angered, Cynthia and Sabrina were beyond livid, seeing Drax. The two, along with Liza, wanted to tear him apart for what he had done to Clair. "You guys alright?" asked Ash to the four. They barely nodded but kept their gaze on their hurt pokémon. Ash placed his one hand on Haxorus and the other on Simisage and pulsed out healing aura onto them. The blue glow washed over the two pokémon and they stood back up, healed. The people there and Drax watched him do that in silence. Some were impressed, some awed but the Dragon Master was only looking with no visible emotion on him, looking for any weaknesses in his future opponent.

He then did the same thing for Dewgong who also got up. When Ash straightened out, Daisy hugged him. "Thank you Ash," she said quietly. I'm so glad you're here.

"No problem Daisy," he replied back after hearing her thought. After separating, Ash went to Clair.

Ash placed his glowing blue hand on her pokémon, healing her also with his aura. A moment later the sea horse got up and caressed the top of her head against the raven haired guardian's shoulder. Many 'aws' were heard from the females in the crowd. "Hey, no problem," chuckled Ash. When Kingdra finally stopped, he turned to Clair, who was still sitting on the ground with her head hung. He placed a hand on her shoulder and she raised her gaze to his. He helped her stand up and smiled at her. "It's alright Clair. No need to worry."

She looked at him for second before she hugged him all of a sudden and broke down, crying. She couldn't hold it in anymore. Being toyed with Drax had shaken her more than the defeat did. He broke me again! Why did I let him do it again?! Ash felt anger rising within him over her thoughts. Their friends looked at the two with sullen gazes but when they looked at Drax, their expressions hardened.

"Aura Guardian Ash Ketchum." Ash looked up at the imposing trainer and locked eyes with him. Clair was still crying into his chest, holding him and he was holding her. "I am Dragon Master Drax. I have been waiting for a worthy opponent for a long time. I will prove to everyone how powerful I am. You will lose to me in the ninth match," he boasted.

The raven haired man narrowed his eyes. "Don't bet on it," replied Ash coldly.

Drax smirked. "Why don't we?" Ash stayed quiet, waiting for him to continue. "If you win, I'll apologize to the four even though they won't deserve it. But when I win, you will bow to me, tell everyone that I am stronger than you and you will give up being a trainer for the rest of your life."

"With a couple additions," said Ash and everyone gasped that he was thinking about it. Clair even stopped crying and looked up at him. Drax remained silent, waiting for him to say whatever it is he wanted to say. "When I win, you will apologize to Clair, Daisy, Iris and Cilan in front of the whole stadium. And you will never battle again until you learn how to be a decent person."

The Dragon Master scoffed and so did his pokémon. "Deal." He walked up to Ash and Clair, who moved to the side. The two shook on it with Drax trying to crush his hand like he did to Cilan. But he was surprised that he couldn't and was getting an even if not stronger grip in return. They separated and he looked at Clair. He then glanced at Iris before shaking his head. "Two dragon trainers who had much potential. And both of you threw it away like worthless trash. You should be ashamed of yourselves, bringing dishonor on all other trainers of dragons." Both girls looked to the ground, embarrassed and humiliated, turning red.

"The only person who should be ashamed is you for the way you're talking," snapped Ash, his eyes glowing blue.

Drax scowled. "You know nothing! Iris abandoned her people to get with that thing that calls itself a man when she was promised to me." Once again, Cilan felt like he was stabbed and Iris hung her head in shame. "She held the hopes of her people but left them behind. And Clair was once the respected and feared Blackthorn City gym leader but can't function as soon as fear or lust fills her." Clair felt humiliated over that, shivering in his embrace. Ash was about to punch Drax but Clair snapped out of it in time and stopped him. He glanced at her and she shook his head. The tall trainer smirked. "I take it back. Maybe she can function after all. Why don't we find out Clair? We never did finish our date. How about we continue and go all the way?" Clair went red and before Ash could say something, Drax was suddenly slapped hard out of nowhere and stumbled back a couple steps. He looked to see who it was and saw it was Liza who did it. She was furious and shaking with rage with Cynthia and Sabrina also standing beside her with similar looks. He straightened out and eyed Liza. "You don't have to be jealous of her Liza. You can join too," he said.

"Not even in your dreams!" shot Liza, her nostrils flaring with her hands clenched into fists. "Leave!"

Drax chuckled at that. "I don't have to go anywhere."

"Then we will," said Ash, stepping forward. Salamence moved to stand next to his trainer. Ash stopped right in front of Drax. The two were almost an even height, but Drax was a good few inches taller. Their muscular build was similar as well but Drax also had the edge there, being much more buff than the guardian. The crowd and group of friends were unable to look away, wondering what was going to happen. "You will learn to respect others soon. That Iris is not an object for you to have. And neither are Daisy, Clair or Cilan for you to mess with. And you will also learn to be careful of what you wish for. Be prepared Drax for the hardest battle you've ever had," said Ash with a serious tone of voice, glaring at him with glowing blue eyes.

After saying that, Ash and his group vanished in blue glows, making Drax, Salamence and the crowd become surprised at what just happened. Drax recomposed himself and climbed onto Salamence and the dragon took off into the air. "Oh I can't wait Ketchum," he said to himself as a large grin formed while flying away. "It will be a glorious victory when I will be the one who defeats you."