As it would turn out, Dawn won her quarterfinal match, and went to the semifinal.

The same goes for Zoey, and Jessie, who have passed into the semifinal. Now, because of the draw, Dawn and Zoey are going to battle in the semifinal, while in the second semifinal, Jessie will go against a brown haired girl.

An interesting thing about the competition is that out of the four contestants in the semifinal, all four are girls. There isn't a single guy in the semifinal, even though there were a bunch of them in the competitions, and few in the quarterfinals, as well.

"It's time." Dawn said, watching at their faces next to each other, at the large screen.

"Yeah." Zoey agreed.

"I'm just so excited, I can hardly stand it." Dawn said, making Zoey look at her, with a curious face.

"Don't you see," Dawn looked at Zoey and said? "This is the first time I get to fight against a high-level coordinator, like you.

"That's so sweet of you to say," Zoey said with a small smile. "So, the last thing I want to do is let you down."

"Great," Dawn said with a bright smile. "I'll give it all I've got as well."

XXX

Not long after their conversation, maybe an hour later, Dawn and Zoey found themselves at the battleground, standing across from each other. Both were wearing smiles on their face, while at the same time, the look in their eyes shows that they are confident in themselves.

Through the cheering of the crowd, a voice of Marian - a very beautiful, tawny hair-colored announcer of the competition - was announcing the start of the match. "Now we are heading to the first of the second round appeal battle," Marian said! "Contestants are, Dawn, battling against Zoey!"

"With the five minutes already set on the clock, are we ready!?" Marian asked, though no one said anything. So, Marian started the match. "Then, let's go!"

The clock started to countdown five minutes, as that's how long the match will last at the most. At the same time, Dawn went and released her Pokémon. "Buneary, spotlight!" Dawn shouted as she threw the Poke Ball, which was inside of the capsule.

Poke Ball opened, and Buneary came out with a burst of light and surrounded with some flower petals.

"Now, Glameow," Zoey shouted as she threw her Poke Ball, also enclosed inside a capsule. "Curtain!"

"Buneary, Ice Beam, now!" Dawn started the battle, by being first to call her move.

Buneary formed a whitish-blue orb in front of her mouth, before several beams shot from the ball, toward Glameow.

"Glameow, use Shadow Claw!" Zoey called her first move.

"Why is she using the Shadow Claw," Lillie asked Ash? "It won't be affective against the Normal Type like Buneary."

"She has her reason," Ash replied, without actually saying anything. "Just watch." He added when he saw Lillie's look.

Just as he has said it, Glameow grabbed forward, her arm enveloped in shadows in a form of an extended claw. Then… she grabbed the Ice Beam, stopping it in its tracks.

"AWSOME," Marian shouted as she watched the perfect move made by Zoey! "Glameow's Shadow Claw, just grabbed the Ice Beam! Not only that, but the Shadow Claw has caught the blue light from Buneary's Ice Beam, creating a stunning contrast."

At the large screen above the battlefield, it was shown that Dawn has lost almost a quarter of her points, because of Zoey's move. "It's a sight to behold." Marian finished.

"Zoey is using Dawn's attacks to make hers look better," Ash commented. "It's a nice strategy. I'll give her that much."

"I guess that's what contest battles are about." Lillie said, as she curiously watched the match. She payed close attention to every move the two trainers did, so she can see if she can learn something which she could use in the gym battles, and later in the League Tournaments.

"Ok, Watch this," Dawn shouted! "Buneary, use Bounce."

Buneary started to bounce toward Glameow, but Zoey also told her Pokémon to jump up, which the cat Pokémon did.

During all that time, Marian was shouting in excitement at the battle, and the performances of the two girls.

"Fury Swipes!" Zoey said, and her Pokémon's claws glowed white and extended, before she started to swipe and scratch Buneary all over her body… while still in mid-air.

Buneary fell on the battlefield, in pain, while the screen showed that Dawn has lost even more of her points, which gave Zoey an even bigger advantage.

"No! Buneary!" Dawn shouted at her Pokémon.

"Use Iron Tail, Glameow!" Zoey called her move immediately, not wanting to give a chance to Buneary to get up, and prolong the battle more than she wanted to. She was wearing a large smile on her face, as she was enjoying the way the battle was going in her direction.

Glameow jumped high in the air, before her tail glowed white, as she spin in the air and started to fall toward Buneary, ready to hit her.

Before Glameow could actually land a hit, Dawn told her Buneary to grab the attack. Buneary stood back up from the battlefield, and using her ears, she grabbed Glameow's Iron Tail, stopping the cat Pokémon in her tracks.

"WHAT!" Zoey shouted.

"That's it, Buneary," Dawn said! "Good job!"

Buneary though, she was struggling to hold Glameow's Iron Tail, with just her ears, but she is managing it so far.

"Well, what do you know," Marian spoke! "Buneary seems to have a certain Glameow by the tail." And for the first time in the battle, Zoey has lost some points against Dawn.

"Now that's a good thinking." Ash commented with a smile.

"I'll admit, that's an attractive move you've made," Zoey spoke, still wearing a slight smile on her face, but also had her eyes closed. "But perhaps you've forgot that you always need a follow-up. Glameow, spin the tail!" Zoey suddenly called her next move.

Then, Glameow started to spin her tail, which was still being held by Buneary. As she was spinning her tail, Glameow has also started to spin Buneary, who couldn't let go of the tail, just like that.

"OH, MY, would you look at that," Marian shouted? "That tail has such power. Buneary's in a tail spin!"

"Toss her!" Zoey said, and immediately, Glameow threw Buneary far away, as by then the spinning has loosened Buneary's hold on Glameow's tail.

"Buneary, straighten up, and then use Ice Beam!" Dawn said.

Buneary turned one more time in the air, before she stopped herself, and then from up in the air, she fired multiple beams of ice with blueish outline.

"Quickly, dodge it!" Zoey said. Glameow jumped away from the incoming Ice Beam, which hit the ground where Glameow was just a moment ago, and froze a good part of the battlefield.

Glameow came back down on the ground, now covered in ice, but almost instantly, she slipped up and fell down. She couldn't stand up from the ice covered floor.

"Would you look at that," Marian spoke! "Glameow is slipping-up on the ice!"

"Damn it!" Zoey swore in frustration.

"Go, Dawn," Lillie shouted from the stands. "Now's your chance!"

"Quick, Buneary," Dawn said. "Dizzy Punch! GO!"

Buneary jumped in the air, and practically flew toward Glameow, with the top of her ears glowed white. Then she spins in the air, and once she was right in front of Glameow, she started to hit her over and over again.

"Now, use Bounce!" Dawn ordered. Buneary started jumping up in the air, then she spins, and comes back down on Glameow's back, feet first. She did this several times.

"Now, that's teamwork," Marian commented! "Dawn and Buneary are right in sync, and the audience is loving every second of it!"

As Marian spoke, the crowd cheered at the battle between Dawn and Zoey. They were very loud.

"This is it," Dawn said with a smile. "This is what the appeal battle is all about."

"Dawn sure looks happy, right now," Lillie said to Ash.

"She does, doesn't she?" Ash said back, with a small smile, which quickly turned to a frown. "But this is not over yet. Not by a long shot. Dawn shouldn't lose her focus, just because she landed a few attacks on her opponents Pokémon. She needs to keep her head in the game, otherwise… she will lose, as Zoey won't make a mistake like that."

"Well, Zoey is more experienced," Lillie commented.

"And that's one of the reason's she has the advantage," Ash said. "The second is that she is rather calm, unlike Dawn, who is very excitable."

Lillie looked away from Ash after she heard his words, and went back to paying attention to the battle, which is very close to the end, as there is only 30 seconds left until the end of the battle.

"We are just passing the 30 second mark," Marian commented, "and the final stage is waiting for the winner!"

"Buneary, use Dizzy Punch, one more time!" Dawn ordered her Pokémon.

Buneary jumped in the air, ready to use the attack. Zoey was quick, though, as she told her Pokémon to use Shadow Claw on the ice.

Glameow stood on the ice with both of her legs, and her left arm, holding herself steadily, so she won't slip. Then, she lifted her right arm, which was enveloped in shadow, before then formed into a claw. Then, Glameow started to punch at the ground, and break the ice, which flew all over the place, and even landed a hit on Buneary, who was coming down from the air, ready to hit Glameow.

Buneary flew backwards from the hit, as Dawn shouted for her Pokémon to look out.

"What a great idea," Marian commented, as Glameow was now using both of her arms, enveloped in Shadow's, and punching the ice, which was sending the shards up in the air. "Glameow was using Shadow Claw to pulverize the ice. Using the terrain for a beautiful counterattack!"

Buneary was hit over and over by the ice shards, and was unable to do anything at the moment to stop it, or escape.

"Use, Iron Tail, Glameow!" Zoey shouted.

Glameow jumps up, spins in the air, while her tail started to glow. Then, she landed a direct hit on Buneary's head, which sent Buneary straight onto the ground, right in front of shocked and worried, Dawn.

"Buneary, get up, now," Dawn ordered, with a hard look on her face, as her Pokémon tried to stand back up, though she was having problems with it! "Be strong! You can do it!"

Before Buneary could get up, there was a 'ding' sound heard around the stadium, which made Dawn look at the big screen. The first thing that she saw at that moment, was that the time has run out for the battle. She didn't need to see the amount of points she and Zoey had, as Marian announced it.

"That's it," Marian spoke. "The time is up, and that means moving up to the final stage will be… Zoey!"

The screen showed Zoey and Dawn, with the amount of points they have left, right before their pictures. It showed that Zoey had about 20% more points than Dawn, which is why she went to the final round of the Jubilife Contest.

Zoey and Glameow stood next to each other, and bowed slightly to the crowd. As for Dawn… well, she was just standing there, not believing what happened and how she lost. Then, couple of seconds later, she closed her eyes, and sighed, before she opened them again, and gave a slight smile.

"Well… I guess that's it." Dawn said, before she walked toward her Buneary, and kneeled next to her. "Buneary, don't be sad," Dawn patted her Pokémon on the head. "You were wonderful out there."

Buneary wasn't happy though. She was sad that she lost, and it was shown by her half-closed eyes, and a sad expression.

The judges of the match praised Zoey and her Glameow, saying how Zoey's choices were right, and how Glameow was able to perform them perfectly.

As for Dawn, they said how she did well for the first-timer, and that they are sure that in the future, she will do even better.

"Well, that was a nice battle," Ash commented. "It's a shame Dawn lost, though. She was close, but in the end her inexperience was what cost her the match."

"I guess you are right," Lillie spoke. "But I agree with the judges. She will do much better next time, when she has more training with her Pokémon, and gains more experience."

XXX

Sometime later, Dawn stood in front of a video phone, and was talking with Johanna. "Mom, I'm sorry that I lost," she said to her mother.

"You don't have to apologize to me," Johanna said from the other end of the line. "Apologize to your Pokémon, if you need to be sorry."

"OK." Dawn cried, but Johanna wanted none of it, as she narrowed her eyes, and said to Dawn to stop crying. Dawn did.

"There are better things to do," Johanna said. "It's a smarter thing to think of what went wrong, instead of crying. Then you'll need to figure out what to do for your next contest."

Dawn nodded. "Ok."

"One more thing," Johanna spoke again, still with her eyes slightly narrowed and a serious look on her face. "You don't need to call me every time you win, or lose. You have good friends like Ash and Lillie, for that. You have your Pokémon, as well. Talk to your friends from now on, not to your mother."

Dawn was surprised by her mother's words, as she had a partly hurt look on her face.

Then, Johanna smiled. "You know I'll be watching all your contests, right," she questioned Dawn?

"Yeah," Dawn said.

"All right," Johanna said. "Now, Zoey's final battle is about to begin." Dawn nodded at that.

"Thanks, mom," Dawn said with a smile. "Bye, bye."

XXX

Over an hour later, and the Jubilife Competition was officially over.

Zoey was able to defeat Jessie in the final round, though barely, as she had just a speck of points more than Jessie in the end.

During most of the battle, Jessie, and her Arbok had an advantage, while Zoey's tried to keep up, and not end up with too much points behind Jessie. It was only in the last minute of the battle, that Zoey pulled a Shadow Claw, Furry Swipes, and finally Iron Tail, which allowed her to overcome Jessie and win the match, and the whole contest, earning her the second ribbon.

After the battle, Jessie approached Zoey, congratulated her, and said that she will not lose the next time they battle, and that she should be ready, because Jessie most certainly will be. Then, Jessie walked away.

From the seats, Ash was keeping a close eye on Jessie, and even though he couldn't hear what Jessie said to Zoey, it was most likely nothing serious, as the two did shake hands, and Zoey did have a small smile on her face before Jessie left.

Still, Ash will make sure to find out what's Jessie's goal for being in the Sinnoh region, at the same time he is there.

Half an hour later, Zoey was awarded the Jubilife Ribbon, while all the competitors who participated in the competition, were also at the stadium, all cheering for Zoey, and clapping with their hands for her as she was handed the ribbon, and held it high in the air, for all to see.

XXX

Near the end of the day, as the sun was setting down to the west, Ash, Lillie, Dawn and Zoey were standing in front of the Pokémon Center. Zoey was standing by herself, while the other three were standing in front of her.

"Good for you, Zoey," Ash said. "You've definitely deserved your win."

"I agree," Dawn said. "And with this one, you now have two ribbons."

"Thanks, all of you," Zoey said, a smile on her face visible. "Dawn, tell me. How was your first contest?"

"It felt like riding the biggest roller-coaster, ever," Dawn said with excitement. "It was a lot of fun.

"Hey, Zoey… will I see you at another contest?" Dawn asked.

"I guess you'll just have to… show up." Zoey simply replied.

"I've got one more thing I want to say to you," Dawn said, getting a curious look from Zoey. "I know I may not look like much, now… but I'm going to keep training, until I become a great coordinator. The best, just like you. And then… I'll beat you!"

Zoey looked at Dawn with surprised look on her face, for several seconds, before she smiled, and said. "I guess I'll be looking forward for our next contest." With those words said, Zoey moved her sunglasses from the top of her head, to over her eyes, before she turned around, and walked away.

"I will too," Dawn said her last words to Zoey. "Even more then you."

Zoey simply waved with the back of her hand, as she was walking away from Dawn, Ash and Lillie.

"So, Dawn," Lillie spoke for the first time. "I guess you've got yourself a rival."

"You will do great, Dawn," Ash gave his own comment. "I'm sure of it. You just need more training and experience."

"Thanks, Ash," Dawn turned toward Ash, and said. "And I know that you will do great, too, but I don't have to tell you that, don't I?"

"No, you don't," Ash said with a smile. "But I appreciate it."

Ash and the girls stayed in front of the Pokémon Center, until Zoey was beyond the horizon, and no longer visible. After that, they returned to the Pokémon Center, where they will spend the night, and continue their journey in the morning.

Knowing that Ash, Lillie and Dawn are in the Jubilife City, and that they will spend at least one more night there after the end of the Jubilife Contest; Jessie decided to use the opportunity presented to herself to do some job for the organization she was a part of.

She knew that it will take Ash and the girls a while to reach the place she was currently at, as they are traveling by foot, and making many stops on the way, while she took a hot-air balloon, which she had James build for her so she can use it to travel around. So, where she's currently at, she reached around 9 in the evening, of the day the Jubilife Contests ended. Ash and the girls, won't be there for at least three days, so she was free to do the job she set for herself.

Jessie wasn't actually ordered to do this, but she saw a chance, and decided to use it. She knew that no one in the organization will get angry at her. At most, some of the higher agents, or Freya will tell her that it was a risk, not worth taking, they will give her a warning, maybe a slap on the hand, and that would be it.

The job she was currently doing, took a whole night to set-up, and then a whole day to reach a level where she is satisfied, and could end it.

As she was preparing to leave in the evening, she was met by someone she wasn't expecting to see.

"What are you doing here?" Jessie asked the person standing in front of her.

The female person just stood there without saying anything, before she gave a simple smirk.

XXX

Ash, Lillie and Dawn are currently in a forest, about two or three days away from Jubilife City

Right now, Lillie and Dawn were taking a break, while Ash was in the middle of training his Starly to learn Aerial Ace… well, it's more like he's helping her perfect is, as she can perform it, but tends to lose balance, and fall on the ground, from time-to-time.

"Come on, Starly," Ash shouted while standing in the clearing in the forest. "Aerial Ace, one more time."

His Starly came down fast, from high in the air, while enveloped in white light. Before she could crash into the ground, she pulled up, and went straight toward the target which was attached at the three.

"Ash, she's coming really fast?" Lillie said with a worried voice, while Dawn was scared that the bird Pokémon will crash into the three.

"Starly, just before you are in front of the target… pull up." Ash said, completely calm. He wasn't fazed by Lillie's and Dawn's worries. He knows his Pokémon. They are tough, and hard workers, so even if Starly does end up crashing into the tree, she will get over it, and be fine very quickly.

As Ash said, his Starly flew up in the air, just when she was about 10 inches away from the three. She flew high above the threes, and into the sky.

Ash smiled when he saw this, while Lillie and Dawn breathed out sighs of relief.

"That was great, Starly," Ash said to his Pokémon. "Now, try it one more time."

Starly flew across the sky, before she came down, leaving the white trail behind. She was going fast, really fast, before she suddenly lost balance, and fell on the ground, injuring herself in the process.

Ash, Dawn and Lillie, quickly run toward the downed Starly, before they all kneeled in front of her injured form, and Ash asked if she was OK.

As he was having experience with this, his training has always been tough, and there were many injuries; Ash already knew how to react, without panicking. Panicking is unsuitable for him, anyway. Anger and Ash, on the other hand…

Ash looked Starly all over, to see where the injury was, before he found it on Starly's leg. Then, he pulled out a potion from his backpack, as well as some bandages.

"What are you doing, Ash?" Dawn asked.

"I'm going to use the potion on Starly's leg," Ash said. "It's injured, though it doesn't look-like it's very bad. Some potion, and then bandage, and she will be as good as new.

Dawn and Lillie smiled at this. They were happy for Starly, as any serious injury would have been a problem, since they are not exactly close to any of the Pokémon Centers. Then again, with Ash's Pokedex being able to switch Pokémon, he could easily send his Starly to Professor Oak, who will then send it to Nurse Joy, in the Pallet Town's PPA.

"Where did you learn to heal Pokémon, like that?" Dawn asked Ash.

"I learned something before I even started my journey," Ash said, while working on healing and bandaging Starly's leg. "The rest I learned while traveling with a friend of mine, Brock. He wanted to be a Pokémon Breeder, so he knew a lot of stuff, and I learned a lot from him."

"I see," Dawn said, as she watched Ash work. "Where is Brock now?" She asked.

"He stopped traveling after the end of our journey through the Johto Region," Ash said. "He wanted to become a Pokémon doctor, so he stopped traveling, and started to attend classes to become a Pokémon doctor. He was supposed to have finished several weeks ago, but from what I've heard of him few weeks ago, he was still going to school, and it will be sometime before he earns his medical degree."

Dawn nodded in understanding. Then, she looked at Lillie, and asked. "What about you, Lillie?"

"Actually, I learned about healing and taking care of Pokémon last year," she said. "It was Ash who taught me, along with several other students in my class in Alola Region. Ash was our teacher for a year, and he taught us how to care of Pokémon, how to heal them, how to train them, how to battle with Pokémon, he taught us many different battle strategies, as well as how to overcome the type disadvantage. He taught us pretty much anything he could in that year. Though, I will admit, it was a year of hell, both for us trainers, and for out Pokémon. I don't even want to talk about what Ash's older Pokémon went through in that year."

Dawn knew that Ash has spent a year as a teacher in the Alola Region, before he came to Sinnoh Region. What she didn't know, was the extent of the things he taught to the students there. And if she was to trust Lillie, which she does, then that means he taught them a lot, and she wouldn't be surprised if Lillie, along with any of those other students, are good enough trainers, and have strong enough Pokémon, to win a Regional tournament in any region on the planet.

"Can you teach me?" Dawn suddenly asked, getting two looks from Ash and Lillie. Dawn looked away, as she blushed from the sudden attention she got.

"Sure," Ash said, making Dawn and Lillie look at him. "I'll teach you as much as I can while we travel. Do keep in mind though, that I won't be able to teach you as much as I did Lillie and the others from the Pokémon School. Back then, we were in one place, and had a lot of time. Now, we are traveling a lot, and have limited free time."

"That's fine," Dawn said with a smile. "I'll learn from you what I can, and after, I'll learn by myself."

"OK." Ash nodded in agreement.

By then, Ash has finished bandaging Starly's wound, and is now holding her on his arms, while she moved her leg back and forth, trying it out.

"Why did she lose balance like that, Ash?" Lillie asked.

He shrugged. "She went to fast and lost balance. It's no big deal. She knows how to use Aerial Ace, all she has to do now, is to learn to use it at her top speed. It might take a few more days, but by then, it will be perfect."

Suddenly, there was some noise coming from the bushes, several meters away from the group. They all looked at the moving bushes, to see what's going to come out.

A woman in her twenties, with mid-neck length purple hair, and wearing green shirt and shorts, as well as green boots; came out from the bushes. She was also wearing a pink Pokétch on her left arm, a green backpack on her back, and finally, she had a binoculars in her right hand.

"OH, well hi, there." She said as soon as she came out from behind the bushes.

"Hi, to you to." Dawn said, with a slight smile.

"Hello," Ash said. "What a surprise. We didn't expect to run into anyone in the middle of this forest."

Lillie simply said 'HI', as well.

"It's very nice to meet you all, way out here." The woman said. "My name is Rosebay."

"Hi, Rosebay," Ash spoke first. "My name is Ash. Nice to meet you."

"And my name is, Dawn." Dawn said.

"Hi, I'm Lillie?" Lillie spoke last.

"So, what are you doing here, Rosebay?" Ash asked her.

"My work is to observe and keep track of the numerous Pokémon that are living in this forest," Rosebay replied. "That's exactly what I was doing, when you came by."

"That sounds like fun." Lillie commented.

"I hope that we weren't getting in your way by being here." Dawn said.

"No, don't worry about it," Rosebay said. "In fact, if you are interesting, you can watch the bird Pokémon, along with me,"

"Sure, why not." Ash said without any excitement in his voice.

Dawn, on the other hand, was jumping up and down in joy and excitement, as she has never before done something like this.

Lillie was also excited, but she wasn't showing it. She was cool like that.

XXX

Not long after, the gang, along with Rosebay, were hiding behind some bushes, while Rosebay was using her binoculars to watch some bird Pokémon. She was the only one who was watching, as the others didn't have their own binoculars. They never needed them, so they never bought them. Even Ash, never acquired them.

"There is a large colony of Swablu, living in the forest," Rosebay said. "Their nest is over there." She pointed in the direction right in front of herself and the gang.

"A colony?" Dawn questioned.

Before Ash, or Lillie – who knew the answer – could say anything, Rosebay spoke. "A colony refers to a different type of bird Pokémon, who live separately, because of species."

Rosebay gave her binoculars to Ash, who looked through them in some trees, and found the nest. "There is one nest over there," he said. "Though it's empty right now."

"Can I look as well?" Dawn asked.

"Go ahead." Ash said, as he gave the binoculars to Dawn.

"I see it," Dawn said. "And it's empty, just as Ash said. Where are all the Swablu?"

"Hm," Rosebay hmed, as she thought of where the Swablu might be at.

Ash looked at Rosebay, and said. "I have a feeling that this isn't normal."

"No," Rosebay said. "It's not." She stood up from the kneeling position, and spoke again. "Come on. Let's find some higher ground."

Not long after, they were all standing on some hill, overlooking the whole forest below them, and the paths leading through the forest.

Rosebay was standing at the edge of the hill, looking through her binoculars, while Ash and the girls, were standing behind her, and waiting to see what's going on.

Across the sky above the forest, there are numerous birds flying around, but none of them were Swablu.

Rosebay stopped looking through the binoculars, and looked at her Pokétch, looking at the time. "This is weird," she said. "The Swablu should have returned home to their colony, by this time.

"Something must be very wrong."

Ash and the girl looked at Rosebay, with questioning looks on their faces. "What's going on, Rosebay?" Ash had to ask, because if something is wrong, then it's his job to do whatever he can, to fix the problem.

Rosebay looked at Ash, and said. "Recently, the number of Pokémon living in this area, has dropped by a huge number. And I'm not talking just about Swablu. It's been the same with many other Pokémon colonies, as well."

"And you don't know the reason why this is happening?" Dawn questioned.

"I'm working hard to try and find out, why," Rosebay said. "But this forest is a big place."

"Well then, we should help you," Ash said. "At least I should, as it's my job."

"What do you mean, it's your job?" Rosebay asked.

"I'm an Aura Guardian, on top of being a Pokémon Trainer," Ash said, getting a gasp of shock from Rosebay. "So you see, it's my job to protect Pokémon, whenever, and however I can."

"Well, I'm really glad that you are here, Ash," Rosebay said. "The same for you, Dawn and Lillie. With you here, and with Ash being an Aura Guardian, we should have much easier time to find those Pokémon, then it would be for me to do alone."

XXX

Minutes later, the gang was led by Rosebay through the forest path, on their way to search for the missing Pokémon.

As they were walking, Rosebay spoke. "This part of the forest contained a colony of Hoothoot," she said.

"But there isn't any here," Ash said.

"Yeah, I can't see, or hear any." Lillie added.

Ash's Starly came down from the sky, and landed on Ash's right hand. "Have you been able to find anything, Starly?" Ash asked, but Starly just shook her head, indicating that she didn't find anything.

Ash and the others sighed, before Ash spoke. "Does your leg feel better?" He asked.

Starly nodded with a happy look on her face.

"That's great," Ash smiled as well. "Does that mean that you can take one more look around?" He asked.

Starly happily nodded, before she flew away.

XXX

Jessie was flying using her hot-air balloon.

She was currently flying away from the valley where she did a job, and is on her way to a drop point, where several grunts from the Shadow Legion, are waiting for her to get there.

She was flying very high, above the clouds, so that no one would see the balloon, and so that no one would see a steel cage, covered in green cloth, attached to the bottom of the cage.

As she was flying in her large balloon, with a picture of Arbok on it, Jessie thought of the job she did a little over a day ago, and about the person she met.

Flashback:

"What are you doing here?" Jessie asked the unexpected female person.

The person is a young female, dressed in short black skirt, yellow t-shirt, over which she wears another purple shirt, but it's sleeveless. She wears white socks, and pink shoes with black underside. She also has a red backpack on her back, and her hair is long and brown, with fringes over her forehead, as well as several long ones at the side of her head. The back part of her hair goes to her mid-back, and a small portion of it is tied at the back of her head with a pink ribbon.

The girl is Athena, one of the high ranking members of the Shadow Legion. She is number 8, among the number agents.

"Well," Athena spoke, while wearing a bright smile on her face, which slightly irritated Jessie. It irritated her because Athena is always smiling. No matter what happens, she is always happy and smiling for some reason. Even when things are not going well for her, or the organization, Athena is happily smiling. "As you know, I'm traveling through the Sinnoh Region, and was just passing by here. I honestly didn't expect to find you here, doing… this." She said, as she looked behind Jessie, where she saw a whole slew of bird Pokémon, all trapped in a strong cage made out of steel.

"I had some free time, so I decided to catch some Pokémon for the organization," Jessie said. "I'm sure it will be appreciated."

"Oh, I'm sure it will," Athena said. "At least enough not to punish you for pulling something like this, when Ash Ketchum is just two days from here."

"How do you know that?" Jessie asked.

"It's my job to know things like that," Athena said. "I've been following him and the two girls, ever since I came here, so I know exactly where they are, and what they are doing."

"Well, I knew that Ash and the two girls were in the Jubilife City, just this morning, when they left," Jessie said. "I left last night, and came here quickly, using my hot-air balloon. I had a whole day to capture all these Pokémon, and I'm planning to leave by the end of the day. Ash won't even know I was here, even if he does find out that a bunch of bird Pokémon have disappeared from the area."

"Hm, I guess you did plan this out, all the way through," Athena said. "Congrats."

"I do have brain power to think and plan, you know." Jessie said, pretty insulted by what Athena said, and how she seems to treat her.

"You do," Athena question with a slight mocking look on her face, making Jessie want to blow up and strangle the girl, right then and there. "I'm sorry, I must have missed that memo. But I guess you can't blame me, when you take into account how you were arrested and sent to prison."

"If it wasn't for that monster, then I wouldn't have been arrested," Jessie said, of course referring to Ash. "And let me remind you, that the whole Team Rocket organization, was taken down by him. Even the boss was defeated and sent to prison, where unfortunately, he met his untimely demise. You know that perfectly well."

"Yeah, Yeah, I know," Athena waved off at Jessie, though there was a slightly angered look on her face at the mention of Giovanny. "Don't get all snappy at me."

Jessie bristled in anger, but said nothing.

"Why did you even come to the Sinnoh Region," Athena suddenly asked? "You know that Freya sent only me, to spy on Ash, and anyone who travels with him."

"I was bored, so I decided to come here and participate in the competitions." Jessie said. "It would also give me a chance to catch some Pokémon for the organization, as I've got nothing else to do, and you won't be able to, since you'll be tailing Ash all the time."

"Hm, I guess that's a good decision." Athena said. "So, how do you plan to send all those Pokémon to HQ?"

"I already made a call, just before you showed up," Jessie said. "Someone will come to an agreed location tomorrow to take them to HQ. All I have to do, is take them to a drop point."

Athena nodded. "Well then," she spoke. "I guess I'll leave you to do your thing, while I'll do mine." And so, she walked away, though she did have few last words for Jessie. "DON'T! GET! CAUGHT!"

And with that, Athena was gone, and Jessie stayed behind, all alone, and with face red as her hair, in anger.

Flashback end:

As soon as Athena left, Jessie lifted the balloon of the ground, just enough to attach the cage with Pokémon in it, to the bottom of the balloon. Then, she covered the balloon in the green cloth, so that no one would see what's inside. When that was all over, it was just as the sun set down behind the horizon. So, she let the balloon land of top of the cage, and then she hopped aboard, to get some rest, before she leaves in the morning.

Unfortunately, Ash, Lillie and Dawn won't get to there, until sometime the day after Jessie already left, by which time, it will already be late, as Jessie has already sent the Pokémon to the HQ.

XXX

Sometime later, Starly returned from checking over the forest, one more time, but as she returned, she informed Ash that she hasn't found anything.

"I haven't found anything, Ash," Starly spoke, but only Ash understood. "I checked the forest, and even that large path over there, and except few Pokémon, like Swallow, there is nothing there."

Ash sighed. "Starly didn't find anything," he informed the others. "She said that she checked the forest and that path between the two hills, but she found nothing."

Rosebay wanted to ask, how Ash knew exactly what Starly said, but decided to leave that for later.

"If that's the case, then we have a problem," Rosebay said. "That large path between the hills is called, the Valley Path, and all the bird Pokémon that fly, use it. But if there are none there, that is strange, and worrying, as I have no idea where they could have gone."

"Then we go there, and check it out," Ash suggested. "Maybe all of us together can find something on the ground, that Starly could have missed from the air."

"I agree," Rosebay said. Lillie and Dawn also agreed, and then they all went down the hill, and through the forest on their way to the Valley Path.

XXX

Rosebay, Ash, Dawn and Lillie, spent hours looking all over the forest, and the Valley Path, but all they found were two square imprints on the ground, in the middle of the valley. One was larger and deeper, while the other is smaller and shallower. None knew what they were from, but all knew that they shouldn't be here.

Seeing those squares, and counting in the fact that a whole slew of bird Pokémon are missing from the forest and the surrounding area, told the gang that something bad has happened, as it seems that someone came, caught the Pokémon in something large, and then took them away. At least that's what it looks like.

The problem though is the question, how were all those Pokémon taken away, as besides the two squares, there is no other indication that anything has been there. Considering how many Pokémon are missing, whoever took them, must have had something to load them in, and take them away, but there are no tire marks anywhere, which means that no vehicle was there to take the Pokémon away.

The only thing remaining, was that they were taken away by the means of flying.

"This is bad," Rosebay spoke as she looked around frantically, and with sweat leaking down her face. "This is really, really bad. All those Pokémon taken away, and there isn't anything left to tell us where they were taken, and by whom. This has never happened before. It's terrible, and I don't know what to do."

"Well, the first you need to do is calm down," Ash said, drawing the attention on himself. "Getting nervous, or angry won't help you. Instead, it will only make the situation worse. Trust me, I know.

"Once you are calm down, we need to call someone."

"Who," Rosebay asked? "Whoever we call right now, it's already too late. If someone really took all those bird Pokémon, they are already, Arceus knows where. I don't even know when they've been here, as it's been almost a week since the last I've been here to check it out, and everything was OK. For all I know, they could have been here six days ago, and if they left by something which can fly from here, then they can be anywhere in the world by now."

"Everything you just said, is true," Ash said. "But what I said, is also the truth. You can't allow yourself to lose your focus. You must call the Pokémon Rangers, and the police, so they can come here and investing. That's something I can't help you with."

Rosebay took a deep breath, and tried to calm down a little bit. Then, she looked at Ash, and said. "Fine. I'll call the Pokémon Rangers, and the police. I'll also inform the Pokémon League, while I'm at it." With that said, she moved away from Ash, Dawn and Lillie, to make those calls using a special phone she has, which works anywhere in the world.

"What are we going to do, Ash?" Lillie asked.

"There is nothing we can do," Ash said, a slight look of anger on his face. He was barely able to contain himself, and that was only because of what he said to Rosebay. If she wasn't there, he would have blown something by now, but he didn't want to scare her. As such, as troublesome as it is, he has to contain himself, and think, instead of blowing stuff up, which will not end well for anyone. "My job is to stop stuff like this from happening, but because I'm traveling around, I can't do that as a full-time-job. Instead, I'm limited to only be able to do something, if I run into it, WHILE it's happening. Since this has already happened days ago, there is nothing I can do, except inform those who can."

"Who can you inform?" Dawn asked. "Rosebay is already doing it, but is there someone else?"

"I can call my father, and uncle," Ash said. "They are both Aura Guardians, so they might be able to do something. At least my uncle could. Dad barely has enough time to sleep, I don't even want to talk about other stuff, which weren't already planned months in advance."

Lillie and Dawn listened to Ash talk about his father, and had to wonder, how anyone can be that busy. They also wondered what he is doing, as Ash rarely talks about his father, and all the stuff he's been doing.

Thinking of his father, Ash really felt sorry for the guy. With all the work he has, he's never home, thus Delia grew bored of being alone, and filed for a divorce. Surprisingly, when Red heard about the divorce, he wasn't angry. He wasn't even surprised, really. All he did was sigh, and said how he knew this day would come. Then, he signed the divorce papers, and left. He didn't even try to save the marriage, because he knew that it would be useless. He can't change his jobs, so he can't be home more often, and he thought that Delia deserved better. Thus, he gave her the freedom she wanted to do what she wants, and with whom she wants.

Ash sighed, and took up his Pokedex, which he then used to call Riley. He informed him of what happened, and told him to see if he can do something.

Riley said he will, after which the two talked for a few more minutes about Ash's travels through Sinnoh. After they were finished, they both returned to their businesses.

By then, Rosebay returned, and informed the gang that she has called the police, Pokémon League, and the Rangers, and informed them of what happened. They said that they will be there as soon as possible.

Ash informed Rosebay, that he has also called his uncle, and that he promised to see what he can do.

With that dealt with, there was nothing else, Ash and the others could do, except wait. Ash, Lillie, and Dawn, couldn't leave before someone came, because they didn't want to leave Rosebay alone, just in case; and they also knew that they would have to be debriefed by the Pokémon League, and the others, so they couldn't just leave, even if they wanted to.

As such, they all set up a camp for the night, and waited.

XXX

The second half of this chapter, wouldn't be that important, if not for a fact that I wanted to show that Ash can't do everything. He isn't omnipotent, or omnipresent. He can't be everywhere at once, and do everything. He can do a lot, but just like regular humans, he is limited by time.

As for him not wanting to get angry, well, that's because of what happened the last two times he got angry. The one time in Hoenn, when the creator had to interfere, and the second time in Alola, which will be revealed later, of what happened, though part of it was already revealed at the Shadow Legions meeting in chapter 95.