This is more like a filler chapter of how Ash caught his Treecko, but it has a very deep meaning to me as I got touched when I saw the episode for the first time back as a child.

Disclaimer: I do not own any Pokémon characters! I only own my OCs!

Chapter 6: Tree's a Crowd

We were about halfway through the Petalburg Woods when we learned a poacher was roaming around capturing Pokémon for illegal business. We joined forces with Officer Jenny and managed to apprehend said poacher who claimed a bunch of losers had already released his prey and ran off. I didn't know why, but I had an inkling those so-called losers could've been Team Rocket. We hadn't run into them for a few days now and they hadn't ambushed us like they usually did. The main organization may be evil, but Jessie, James and Meowth were a little different compared to the other grunts Ash and I encountered before.

After that day, things were peaceful until we ended up in a sticky situation. Well, sticky like we got ourselves lost in the woods. A common thing that reoccurred often back in Kanto and Johto, but I had hoped it wouldn't happen again now that Ash and I had more experience in traveling.

"Just great! We're lost!" Max growled. "And it's all thanks to you, sis!"

May didn't like getting the finger pointed at her. "What do you mean it's my fault, Max?"

"I told you we should've taken the right path of that fork, but you insisted we should take the left one!"

"The left path was prettier with all those flowers. There's nothing like strolling down a path decorated with lovely flowers. Besides, who's in charge of the PokéNav? You could've just told us which way is the right one!"

"My PokéNav is out of range! How could've I told you?!"

Brock intervened by pushing the siblings away before they could accidently get into a Meowth fight. "Hey, calm down you two! The twins and I got lost all the time but we didn't fight each other!"

"Well, it depends on how you defy 'fight'", I spoke up.

"Even if we had some arguments with Misty, we never blamed each other", Ash nodded. "Besides, we always found our way again."

May and Max still sent laser eyes at one another before they turned away with frowns. It reminded me of the few times Ash and I had a disagreement on things long before we became Trainers. It was almost a little nostalgic.

Without a warning, Ash gasped so loud I thought he was right by my ear scaring my heart out. "What was that, Ash?!"

"I saw a quick shadow up on that tree!" my brother pointed at said tree. Now I saw those moving shadows and they cleared up when the sunlight shone upon them revealing their true identity.

"Treeckoo?"

"It's a flock of Treeckos!" Max exclaimed happily, already forgetting that he just had a fight with his big sister.

"Then this must be their territory!" Ash grabbed his Pokédex for data about the species.

Treecko, the wood gecko Pokémon. Grass-type. It makes its nest in a giant tree in the forest. It ferociously guards against anything nearing its territory. It is said to be the protector of the forest's trees.

May's frustration at her brother faded away when she studied the wild Treeckos. "Well, these ones are really cute."

"But I thought you said they looked creepy back at Professor Birch's lab?" I asked.

"Wild ones are prettier", May pouted her cheeks, making her look adorable like a Skwovet.

"This is great! I've always wanted to get my own Treecko ever since Ashley got Emerald from Professor Birch!" Ash grabbed a Poké Ball from his belt. "And I'm gonna catch one right now!"

But before he could call out Taillow, the Treecko horde ran off jumping across trees to avoid getting involved in a battle. "They're getting away!" Brock shouted.

"No! Come back, Treeckos!" Ash yelled as he ran after the group with Pikachu on his shoulder.

"Pika pika!"

"Ash, wait for me!" I ran after him before I could lose sight of him.

"Treecko, where are you?!" Ash yelled, hoping to attract the attention of one wood gecko.

"Ash, slow down!" I shouted. "We can't split up with the others-!"

I didn't get to finish my sentence when Ash tripped over a large root and fell down a steep hill. Pikachu ran after him while I tried to determine how I could get down in a safe way. My curiosity went to the huge roots scattered in the area. I followed them with my eyes until I realized we were right by a huge tree that almost touched the sky.

I had read mythology before and this tree reminded me of a world tree, said to bind many worlds together. "Wow…"

I snapped out of my trance as I remembered what I needed to do. I held onto a root and slid down the hill slowly until I touched safe ground. "Ash, are you okay?!"

"I'm fine, Ashley", Ash coughed some dirt out of his mouth. "Look at this. This tree is huge."

"Pika…" Pikachu was just as fascinated.

At closer inspection, I realized this tree didn't have a single fresh leaf. "Do you think it's dying?"

"Probably."

A sharp stick was thrown at us as a warning sign. And the culprit who threw that was a wild Treecko with a twig in its mouth. It didn't look playful or curious like the previous Treeckos we saw. It had more of a serious area like it meant business.

"Hey! That was dangerous!" Ash scolded the wild Pokémon. "Why don't you come down so we can have a battle?"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu's cheeks sparkled, eager to have a battle.

At first, it appeared Treecko didn't want to battle as it jumped from branch to branch on the dying tree, but it turned out to be a diversion. It spat its stick at Pikachu who dodged it with ease, but it was enough of an opening for Treecko to strike him with a Pound of his tail from behind.

"Pikaa!" Pikachu was thrown onto the trunk of the tree.

"Pikachu, you okay?!" Ash gasped.

Pikachu recovered swiftly from the surprise attack and attempted to tackle Treecko, but it dodged him with ease and slapped him with another Pound. Pikachu grunted when he got hit in the face, but he returned the favor with a Quick Attack the Treecko was unable to dodge.

"Alright! That's the spirit, Pikachu!" Ash encouraged him.

I noticed movement in the corner of my eye and looked up, only to gasp when a herd of wild Treeckos appeared out of nowhere. "Ash, look!"

"Whoa! Where did those Treeckos come from?"

The wild Treecko Pikachu battled with halted in the midst of its movement when an old Treecko called out to it. Pikachu froze in his steps as the battle had come to a standstill. Ash and I silently watched the interaction between the old Treecko, which I presumed was the leader of this flock, and the young lively Treecko.

"I wonder if there's a problem", Ash murmured.

Oh, there sure was a problem. The young Treecko didn't like what its leader told it so it pushed the elderly back. The other Treeckos yelled at it for being so disrespectful, but the elder didn't want to hear any of it.

"What are they talking about?" my brother wondered.

"I wish I could tell or if I had Lily with me", I sighed, referring to my Espeon who could communicate with her psychic powers. I rubbed my forehead as I tried remembering more facts about Treecko. "If I remember correctly, Treeckos are very territorial when they pick out a tree where they live all their life. This tree must've been their home, but it's dying so perhaps they want to move to another healthy tree."

"I think I got it!" Ash exclaimed. "The old Treecko wants to move its herd, but this young one must be against it thinking this tree can be saved!"

"Pika pika", Pikachu nodded, verifying his guess.

I was surprised how quickly my brother put two and two together. He wasn't exactly the smartest type, but his love for Pokémon broke many barriers as long as he studied them his way.

The argument didn't last long. The old Treecko could only sigh at the stubborn Treecko and commanded the others to leave their once flourishing home. When they left the area, Treecko took off in another direction.

"Treecko, come back!" Ash shouted.

I put my hand on his shoulder. "Ash, I think we're going to see Treecko again."

"You think so?"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu had climbed up the tree and rested on a thick branch.

"Look, even Pikachu is telling you we should wait here for Treecko and observe it", I smiled.

Ash returned my smile with a determined grin. "You're right! Treecko, watch out 'cause I'm gonna catch you!"

By helping each other climb up the tree, we made it to Pikachu. The view was lovely with abundant nature surrounding the dying tree that stuck out like a sore thumb. It was then I remember something important. "Ash! We lost Brock, May and Max!"

Ash face palmed. "Ah shoot! I got carried away because of those Treeckos!" A growl rumbled from his stomach, reminding us it was snack time. "May and Max are lucky that Brock's with them. I bet he's cooking something delicious right now."

I brought out some apples I foraged hours ago and passed them to Ash and Pikachu. "Here. We'll get at least something in our bellies."

"You're the best, Ashley!" Ash smiled before he and Pikachu dug their teeth into their apples at the same time.

I calmly ate up my apple while waiting patiently for Treecko to return. Once we were done with our fruit, Ash called out Taillow to guide our friends to us. Only minutes after Taillow took off, Treecko returned to the tree.

We ducked down so it wouldn't see us and either run away or attack us. Treecko carried a large leaf that was full of water and poured it on tree roots. When all water was gone, Treecko put some withered leaves and then left to get more nourishment.

"Treecko… It actually wants to revitalize the tree", Ash murmured in awe.

"When did you learn that hard word, Ash? You rarely poke your nose in books", I pointed out.

"I've caught up on my reading while we were staying at home after the Silver Conference", Ash replied.

"Pika pi."

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Day turned into dusk and dusk turned into night. We watched the whole time as Treecko came and went with water and mulch to give the tree a chance to flourish again. It was definitely determined to save the tree as it never stopped to eat or rest.

Ash and I shared a glance, both thinking the same thing. Next time Treecko left the tree, we climbed down and wandered nearby to get mulch and water. Even if it was possibly too late to save the tree, it was still worth a try. We returned just as Treecko was back patting some mulch next to a root. We put our share of mulch after we watered the earth with clean water from a nearby spring.

Treecko was dumbfounded at first but then hissed angrily. "Treecko treeee!"

"We don't want to battle you, Treecko. We want to help you", Ash told it with a calm voice.

Pikachu and I nodded as we gently ripped the leaves apart so the tree could absorb them better. Treecko was surprised by our actions but it allowed us to help it so we continued working together into late night.

The four of us were on our way back with more water and mulch when cries from other Treeckos echoed in the woods followed by the sound of something crashing into trees. We dropped everything and rushed to see what was happening. We were greeted by a modified bulldozer that caught Treeckos with net and tucked them away inside the R-marked vehicle.

"Team Rocket!" Ash and I yelled simultaneously, clearly knowing who were behind this chaos.

Said trio poked their heads out of the bulldozer with cackling grins. "Prepare for trouble, these Treeckos are ours!"

"Double trouble, you're up late in these hours!"

"Meeowth, that's right!"

"Wooobbuffet!"

"What are you guys doing?!" Ash yelled, surveying the area with young trees that got knocked down by Team Rocket's machine.

"You're destroying the nature!" I shouted.

"It wasn't our purpose, but we've got the Treeckos we need!" Jessie laughed.

Their balloon was quickly filled with warm air so they jumped into the basket. Under the cage dangled a cage with all the caught wild Treeckos including the elder. I cocked a brow when I realized the hot air balloon was decorated in lights. They never had those before.

"So do forgive our mess, but we've got to run now!" James added.

"A promotion is waiting for us!" Meowth cheered.

"Woobbuffet!"

"Pikachu, knock them down with Thunderbolt!" Ash yelled.

Pikachu launched a huge Thunderbolt which first appeared to hit Team Rocket, but then the move got cancelled. "Hah, nice try!" Jessie taunted.

"We've evolved after all the times your Pikachu has shocked us, so we equipped our balloon with lights that absorbs electricity!" James revealed.

"In that case… Emerald, Ruby, I choose you!" I called out my two Pokémon.

"Treecko!"

"Raalts!"

"Emerald, use Bullet Seed! Ruby, use Confusion to elevate their strength!"

Emerald spat dozens of seeds which Ruby used her psychic powers on to launch them like real bullets toward Team Rocket's balloon.

"Oh no, you don't!" James growled. "Cacnea, block the attack with Pin Missile!"

Huh, I didn't recall James having a Cacnea. Did he recently catch it? Anyway, Cacnea managed to block the combined attack with its Pin Missile cancelling each other out.

"What's that Pokémon?" Ash called before he grabbed his Pokédex.

Cacnea, the cactus Pokémon. Grass-type. Cacnea lives in arid locations such as deserts. It releases a strong aroma from its flower to attract prey. When prey comes near, this Pokémon shoots sharp thorns from its body to bring the victim down.

Before we even had time to blink, a net caught Pikachu as the balloon kept going up so Team Rocket could leave the forest without getting stuck on the trees. "Pikaa!"

"Pikachu!" Ash yelled.

"Give Pikachu back and release the Treeckos!" I demanded.

"How about no!" Meowth laughed.

Our friend Treecko leaped from a tree and managed to land in the basket. It slapped each Team Rocket member including the Pokémon with its tail. It must have touched a control panel because the cage containing the other Treeckos opened. They climbed out and jumped off while they could still reach trees, but a few crawled onto the robot arm with the net holding Pikachu. They used their tails to try breaking it to free him while Treecko distracted Team Rocket.

Next thing we knew, Cacnea used Pin Missile but instead of hitting Treecko it blew up the balloon. The other Treeckos successfully broke the net off in the nick of time before the balloon shot itself away in the speed of sound. Ruby used her Confusion to catch as many falling Pokémon as possible. Ash, Emerald and I helped out and made sure some fell into our safe arms.

We returned to the dying tree and made sure everyone of the herd were with us for and treated those who got injured by Team Rocket. Our friend Treecko was turned away when the elder approached it and nudged its tail against each other. The other Treeckos cheered so that told me it was a good sign.

"They must have reconciled", I said to Ash.

"Yep! Looks like they're all friends again", Ash smiled.

Our Pokémon smiled at the scene, but it changed for the worse when a crack was heard from the dying tree. It got louder and spread throughout the tree until it split into two perfect halves. The wild Treeckos panicked and came together to prevent the tree from falling apart. Our friend Treecko was frozen in shock that its home, its birthplace, was meeting its final end after everything it had done to try saving it.

"Hey, I've got a rope in my bag!" Ash took it off to get the rope.

"It's no use, Ash!" I told him. "This tree is beyond saving!"

"Don't give up until it's over!" Ash retorted.

The sun came up the horizon and shone through the large crack on the trunk. It was like nature hypnotized us and gave us a vision of one fertilized seed that was the child of the dying tree. It planted itself in the soil and grew into a new tree, a sign of life and hope for a new future for the Treeckos and their coming generations.

Sadly, it was just an illusion. We snapped out of the vision when the tree collapsed leaving only one seed behind that rolled to Treecko's feet. The other Treeckos were too shocked to say a word after witnessing their old home crash down.

Ash put back his rope and crouched down next to the rebellious Treecko. "Hey, Treecko. I think the tree tried to say thank you for helping it."

Treecko was still very upset that its efforts went to waste so it slapped Ash to vent out its frustration. "Koo!"

"Ow!" Ash yelped and rubbed his red cheek. "Why did you hit me, Treecko?!"

"Ash, you must understand it's upset", I said as I helped him up.

Treecko blinked its tears away and adjusted its twig in its mouth after it calmed down. Its eyes now burned with fire and showed signs it wanted to get the rest of its anger out with a battle. "Tree koo koo!"

"Treecko, you want to battle us?" Ash figured it out. "Alright! Let's do it!"

"Ash! Ashley!"

Brock, May and Max slid down the hill with Taillow flying ahead to my brother. He landed on his shoulder and chirped happily that we were okay. "Taillow loow!"

"You're okay!" May smiled in relief.

"Whoa! Look at all those Treeckos!" Max gasped.

Brock noticed the fallen tree. "Was it this tree we heard coming down moments ago?"

"Yep, and you're right on time!" Ash nodded. "Pikachu and I are about to battle this Treecko that tried reviving the tree."

"Tree koo!" Treecko nodded.

We moved back with the other Treeckos to give Ash, Pikachu and Treecko space to battle. Treecko's agility skills were very impressive. I had to say it was even faster than Emerald. Perhaps they could train together to be on par with each other if Ash caught it.

After some struggle, Pikachu landed a Thunder on Treecko in midair which caused enough damage to weaken it while it wasn't on the ground. Ash quickly threw a Poké Ball while Treecko fought to get up. "Poké Ball, go!"

Nobody uttered a word as we watched the Poké Ball wobble back and forth after it trapped Treecko. The wild Pokémon didn't have much of a reaction, probably having mixed feelings of seeing one of their own being caught.

The red light on the Poké Ball's button quit blinking when it stopped moving and made a familiar noise. Ash grinned from ear to ear as he picked up the capture device. "Alright! I caught a Treecko!"

"Pi pikachu!" Pikachu cheered, happy to have another new friend in the team.

My brother immediately called Treecko out. Treecko didn't look so aggressive anymore and immediately put a twig in its mouth. "Koo."

"Treecko, welcome to the team", Ash smiled. "Do you want to travel with us?"

"Treecko!" Treecko nodded.

I called out Emerald so he could get acquainted with our new family member. "Emerald, this is your new friend. I hope you two can learn a lot from each other from now on."

Emerald smiled to Treecko and raised his tail in greeting. Treecko returned the gesture and tapped his tail against Emerald's. The elder Treecko stepped forward and held out the seed their old tree dropped. After exchanging some words, the young Treecko dug a hole next to the tree and planted the seed.

It was such a fine gesture it touched my soul. While this was Treecko's way of saying goodbye and doing one last good deed for its flock, it was also the start of a new beginning.

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Ashley's party:
Emerald the Treecko (male)
Ruby the Ralts (female)

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Ash's party:
Pikachu (male)
Tallow (male)
Treecko (male)

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May's party:
Torchic (male)

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Brock's party:
Forretress (male)
Magcargo (male)