Road to be a Pokemon Master

[Dracoflare]

Rating: PG-13 I guess. Very minor, next to none swearing

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, and like my most people say: I wish I did.

Assumptions: As any fan fiction on Pokémon, there are a few things I as an author customized for the sake of reality. It would take one year for Ash to travel a region(including the filler stuff like Battle frontier) so Ash aged by five years. The age assumptions that matter are as follows: Ash 15, Misty 16, May 14, Dawn 13, Brock 18, Cilan 17, Iris 16, Max 10, Delia 33.

The world differs from other world: Legend of the Dark Prince at the fact that Giovanni is not Ash's father in this story. But yes if you really like Gio to be his dad, check out the other story. Another assumption: Ash gets to the finals in the Unova League(lol I know its kinda impossible)

~*~ 1. The Man Who Abandoned Us ~*~

'You have twenty-four hours to consider your decision. If you want to be a Pokémon Master, I can make it happen. But as you are now you don't stand a chance.'

The words kept ringing in my ears. What was the man thinking about himself? I don't care if he was a veteran Pokémon trainer but saying that I didn't stand a chance was ridiculous. He didn't even accept my challenge to battle!

That's right, he's scared. He's scared to lose to me. I didn't win a Pokémon League yet but I believe in my strength. I believe in my Pokémon, I was sure that old man won't stand a chance against me. But—

The truth being that the World Champions League was the ultimate stage for deciding a trainer's fate made me paranoid. It would be held once in ten years, and I really wonder if I was ready. I believed that all my Pokémon were powerful, but the fact was that I couldn't win the Unova League, not to mention I was overwhelmed by Tobias in the Sinnoh League. Do I really have a chance? How much could I improve in just one year?

A soft touch brought me to reality. I looked down and noticed the yellow paws on my hand that has been curled into a fist.

"Pikapi?" My number one partner seems to be worried about me. He must have realized what was going through my mind. Just like always. Even after four years I couldn't fully understand his language but I could understand what's in his mind just by looking into his face. I guess the opposite was true too because I was still not sure if Pokémon fully understood human language. I stopped wondering about it at some point, I guess. Does that mean I was growing up? I don't know but a lot of around me used to say I needed to grow up in some aspects. The problem was none of them said what are these 'aspects' that I need to grow up on. They simply sigh and say that I was naïve. I guess something was really wrong with me when almost everyone says that.

"Ash?" A soft familiar voice gathered my attention. It was mom, with a sweet smile like always. But I know she was a bit worried this time. I could see the hint of sorrow she was hiding behind the smile.

I looked away as soon as my gaze met hers. I know what she was going to talk about, and I am in no position to discuss about something like that. I have enough things to worry on my plate already. Namely: The Champion's League in one year.

She sat down beside me, where Pikachu once sat. That guy took it as an opportunity and snuggled between my hands and curled himself, in a sleeping position.

"Look," she said in a calm voice. There were very few instances like this. I usually never got mad at my mom. She was a sweet woman, and constantly supported my decisions travelling farther regions even if she was worried sick about me. She doesn't even ask me to call me day after day like May's mom does. "I understand all of this is really sudden, but you must forgive him."

"I won't," I jumped to my feet, startling Pikachu awake. It's irritating, how she keeps supporting him even now. Well alright that's fine by me, but there's no way in hell she should expect the same from me.

"Ash why don't you just think about it a little?" Her voice bordered on a pleading tone. It irked me more. Why was she pleading for him? If anything he should come talk to me, not send her."He's your—"

"I can't!" I yelled. I didn't look at her when I did so, but I know her face turned pale. That man, he made me yell at her. She wouldn't cry. She's my mom, she's very strong, and Professor Oak says I'm like her too, but I know she's very hurt. I couldn't stay in the room anymore.

I took two furious steps and pulled the door open, as if to break from its hinges and exited my bedroom. The living room was filled with people, and all of them had their eyes set on me. I don't know what went through their brains, sympathy or anger whatever it could be, I didn't care. Once again I dashed for the door, I hate when people see me like this.

"Ash!" May exclaimed, or was it Dawn? I didn't simply care, but I am pretty sure Brock might have stopped them.

***

Dawn was somewhat disappointed. She had come all the way from Sinnoh to greet Ash and congratulate on reaching top 2 in the Unova League, but the meeting ended up into a disaster. Not that it was his fault…

She noticed the people around. They all might be feeling the same, she noted. Misty slumped on the couch, playing with what seemed like a keychain. May was observing the Ketchum residence's décor, which wasn't that impressive. Then again, Dawn's mother spent too much on stuff like that, so it's natural for her to feel so.

Cilan attempted to open his mouth twice, but Iris glared him into shutting up. Cilan liked to speak his mind and that too in a fanciful manner. Perhaps Iris was worried that those not acquainted with them might consider it the wrong way.

Brock sat beside her, equally silent. He was the one who suggested Misty to stop when she tried to call Ash earlier. The poor boy didn't even notice them. For what she knew he could even be crying, although she felt a boy crying would be weird.

Of course the source of all this tension, and the reason they were all quiet was sitting right across her, along with Professor Oak.

How long will this continue? Mrs. Ketchum might be crying inside. Ash was sulking somewhere else. The person responsible was simply eating cookies, indifferent. Yeah he looked indifferent.

"I think I rubbed him the wrong way," he scratched his chin. "He's too much of a girl though."

The said man then had to regret what he said because the majority female population glared at him, including herself.

"Alex, you do realize how much impact you have on him?" Even the ever jovial Professor Oak (whom she adored for his poems) put on a stern face.

"Fine, fine," the man finally raised his arm slightly as if to accept he was guilty, although his face still remained somewhat jovial. Perhaps it was a mask, much like how she constantly said people 'Everything is okay.'

***

The river gently streamed down, reflecting the calm wind that gently brushed my hair. The sky slowly turned violet as the sun slowly dipped into the distant horizon. A couple of Rattata skipped around, chasing each other. The occasional Magikarp dove up as far as it could into the sky before returning back to the water.

Something about this scene always soothed my heart. Made me forget the burning injuries. I was not alone, my little yellow partner sat beside me as always, enjoying the scenery as much as I did. I noticed that he was really worried back when we came here. He put a sullen face because I was depressed, and even tried to comfort me. I should perhaps try to mask my feelings, even if it's for him. It's kinda annoying when he puts that face whenever I do.

"Pikachu," I pulled him closer. Every time I fall in trouble, I realize more that he was a valuable partner that I could never lose.

"Just like your mom," a gruff voice came from behind. I didn't need to take a second guess at who was behind me. I remained quiet. He didn't deserve my attention.

But of course, the silence seemed like an invitation to him. He sat down beside me on the lush grass pretending like nothing happened. I took a glance to my right, not that I cared for him, but if somebody sat beside you , you would at least throw a glance right.

Till then I didn't notice how tall he was. I was fifteen, and I barely was few inches above five. But even in a sitting position like this he was at least half a foot above me. Not to mention he was strongly built too. The muscles somehow reminded me of Stephan's Sawk. Maybe Bianca might like him.

"Do you know how I met your mother?" He asked. I remained silent, I didn't care. But he didn't seem to notice it, "She sat here, sulking just like you. The professor scolded her for something about mishandling a Pokémon. She didn't cry though, what a tough one. I was trying to fish a rare Pokémon so that I need not wait till I turned ten. I was really impatient. That's how we met."

Uggh. Why was he telling me all this? Should I openly tell I didn't care? But hey that last part seemed too familiar. "Did you catch anything?" I asked. I know I hated myself for asking this, but I couldn't help ask it.

The old man was slightly surprised by the question. His lips pursed, "No."

A sudden silence stood between us. Maybe I shouldn't have asked the question. Did I make him mad?

Then he suddenly dropped, "Let's battle, Ash."

I involuntarily held my breath for a second. Didn't he blatantly refuse my challenge earlier? "Y-You will battle me?" I voiced the same.

"Yes," He smirked. "If you lose, then you should accept my proposal."

My eyebrows drew in a sharp frown. It wasn't fair. But hey, if I decline his challenge then it meant I was accepting my defeat. No way in hell I would do that.

Because I am Ash Ketchum, and there was no way I would lose to some annoying man who dared to think he was better than me.

"Sure," I sent my own smirk confidently.

~*~

Annoying Rambling from the author: This is a short chapter. (if you are aware of my standards) Yes because I wanted to just start it. It's annoying that I have ideas but my brain is scared to put them out.

I am writing this in First Person only for Ash. But even in the other character's case I am usually writing from the POV of a certain character. The tenses keep annoying me, I really would appreciate if anyone would BETA for me. It's that annoying.

Also Ash might look a bit OC, but I believe he would seem so because this is a situation you wouldn't face in the anime itself. But as the story progresses I will try my best to keep him in his shoes. Showing Ash's naivete in his own narration might be difficult but I will do my best! I would also be grateful if any of you could find a story with Ash in first person, just show me to it!

In addition I kept things very vague this chapter, but I didn't waste framing the situation because it would just be a boring read to you guys.

In other news: The Legend of The Dark Prince isn't dead. It is my mastermind project and it won't just go sit in a corner. But ideas that keep blocking you can be a ***** :/

[Dracoflare]

~*~ 2. Ketchum versus Ketchum ~*~

"Is this really okay?" May raised her concern. Currently she was in a group comprised of Brock, Cilan, Iris, Misty, Dawn, Mrs. Ketchum and Professor Oak—which was basically everyone gathered to celebrate Ash's resounding success before his father decided to suddenly drop by after ten years. They were on their way to watch what the father and son were up to.

"While I understand Mr. Ketchum coming back is a wonderful occasion," Brock said, mostly referring to Delia when he said so. "I find his behavior inappropriate. I am worried what Ash and he are doing right now."

"Well, I actually thought Ash would be happy," Dawn added, her face slightly down, as if it were her own father who returned after a long gap.

"Me too," May agreed with Dawn. She wondered if she and Max could ever hold back from suffocating the Petalburg gym leader with their hugs if her father were to disappear and return like that.

"Not every father would drop in suddenly and ridicule your achievements." Professor Oak retorted, "Not when they just met after ten years." The old Professor took an exasperated sigh.

"Professor Oak," Mrs. Ketchum spoke, somewhat weak, "You pretty well know he didn't mean it in the wrong way."

"But it is still a harsh flavor on Ash's pure heart," The green haired Cilan finally spoke up earning an awkward stare from everyone but Dawn and Iris.

May noticed that Iris was constantly trying not to let him speak. In fact she was currently glaring at him for daring to open his mouth. Judging by the little he spoke, and how Iris wasn't allowing him to speak, May came to a conclusion that Cilan was somewhat of a homosexual. His actions only supported her supposition. She felt a tinge of sympathy for Iris at that moment.

***

"So you are ready?" The guy who was supposed to be my loving father asked. There was a good amount of distance between us, enough for a Pokémon battle.

"I'm always ready," I returned confidently. That man deserved to lose for abandoning us for the past ten years. Not to mention, he insulted me. As if I need someone like him to help me out.

"It'll be a two-on-two affair," he shouted from the other end. "I believe one-on-one battles are bull ****. It's more like a game of luck."

"We could even have a full battle if you want," I suggested, with a somewhat haughty smile. If I could crush him in a six-on-six he wouldn't dare to spout nonsense about my skills for the rest of his life.

"Now don't get too carried away," His expression was nonchalant, as if he dealt with such comments on a daily basis. "You get the first call."

The battle has begun. My heart drummed with excitement. There was a tinge of unease in my stomach; it felt like Caterpie were crawling all over inside me. It was a sort of excitement I always get when I was about to battle someone I always wanted to. I knew my dad was an amazing trainer in Pallet when I was small, and I knew he would be a tough opponent to face. Well if he wants me to make the first call then so be it. I had already chosen the two Pokémon I wanted to battle him with. No type disadvantages or advantages would affect my choice.

My hands reached for the first Pokéball on my belt. Yes that would really be fun. I enlarged the Pokéball making the tiny object that fitted between my two fingers now firmly fit in my palm.

"It's been a while since I battled with you," I kissed the Pokéball. He was my precious friend and one of my first Pokémon. "Let's show that guy a thing or two, old buddy. Come on out—!"

***

"Bulbasaur!"

It was a distant scream, followed by the familiar pop noise of a Pokéball. Misty exchanged a glance with the rest of the group. They all seemed to have come to a similar conclusion. It seems the Ketchum's decided to solve the bitterness amongst them with a battle. It would normally give good results but Ash had a massive lump of ego on his head, which when pricked the wrong way could pave way to a disaster.

The group wordlessly rushed to the scene where the father and son were confronting each other, in the backdrop of a river and the setting sun. How poetic.

If anyone didn't know they were father and son then they would definitely know now, Misty thought. That because both of them wore a confident or better described a cocky smirk as if their victory was well assured.

"Uh oh," Professor Oak muttered under his breath. Would it be a bigger disaster than she thought?

"It seems your friends have come to support you. It will be really bad if you lose now." the older Ketchum nodded towards them. The smirk on Ash's face only grew wider. "But still—a Bulbasaur?" Mr. Ketchum's expression was somewhere between surprised and amused. "If you are to fight someone as strong as me you could have at least chosen a Pokémon that you have been trained for a long time."

The younger Ketchum scoffed, "Bulbasaur is one of my first Pokémon." The amused expression on the father's face slowly disappeared.

His eyebrows were now knit in a frown, "What do you mean? Then why the heck is it still a Bulbasaur?"

"Because he doesn't like to evolve," Ash replied curtly. He was going restless; the impatience in his eyes grew.

"What?" Mr. Ketchum put his face as if what he said now was the most stupid thing he ever heard.

"This is bad," Brock muttered.

She couldn't agree anymore. Things were taking a very bad turn, and the heat was only rising. Ash caught on his father's reaction, because his own expression turned serious, giving an 'annoyed' aura.

"Because he doesn't like to evolve," Ash repeated, but with a raised voice, as if to tell his father he heard it correctly the first time. The Pokémon under discussion, Bulbasaur and Ash's Pikachu turned to their trainer, noticing the change in his tone.

"He?" Mr. Ketchum closed his eyes. The word itself seemed to speak volumes to him. The air around them suddenly stiffened. A sweat drop descended down the old Oak standing before her, which he cleaned absent-mindedly out of habit. The downhill to their relationship seemed to get steeper and steeper with every second.

"Ridiculous." Mr. Ketchum's tone was filled with disappointment and anger.

The word had a significant effect on Ash's face than she expected.

***

Just how did he water down all the emotions I had for my Pokémon with one word?

Ridiculous?

Was forcing my Bulbasaur to evolve against his wishes a normal thing then? No, if anything should be called ridiculous, it was him. He abandoned me and my mom. Now he comes here after all these days and calls what I learnt ridiculous. That was ridiculous.

I had seen people who think otherwise and force their Pokémon to evolve, as if they were some furniture in your room that you can decorate or upgrade. At the least, I didn't expect my father to have the same kind of thinking. He could have been a terrible father, but in my mind I always imagined him as a hero.

My teeth were clenched tight. It was the most I could do from snapping up and retaliate.

"I don't know what the heck you did during these five years, Ash, but I won't be holding back on you, not even one bit." that man put a disappointed face as if I was a useless brat who couldn't even qualify for the League. I almost won the Unova League!

"That's what I want too," I replied. I took a glance to my right. My friends, the Professor and my mom were watching the battle. Of course I shouldn't lose to him, not in front of mom.

"Sure," he muttered and tossed his Pokéball. "Let's keep runnin' the stakes high, Rapidash!"

The fire type emerged out of the Pokéball, lifting its forelegs into the air, giving out its best battle cry.

"R-Rapidash…" The presence of that imposing fire type couldn't help but make splutter in response. It was majestic; the flames on its mane resembled a wild fire that could rage forests to ashes, which reminded me that my little guy was having a terrible type disadvantage.

The main source of my surprise was that I recognized the Pokémon in front of me. Rapidash was one of dad's Pokémon that I barely remember. He used to let me touch the Pokémon when I asked him to. Touching a Rapidash was a big deal to me back then.

"Beware of its speed, Bulbasaur," I warned. The bulb Pokémon nodded, determined. It has been a while since Bulbasaur battled by my side. I remembered how often I used to make him battle back then. Earlier when we were at the party, he almost pleaded me to come along. Professor gave him the day off to spend with me. What else could be better for our reunion than a battle? The zeal on his face couldn't be mistaken. I won't switch my Pokémon. "Let's go, buddy!"

The old man asked, "You're not going to switch?" I couldn't know if he was surprised or he's looking down on me. Switching out Bulbasaur would generally be the right thing to do but—

"You needn't tell me how to battle," I replied. I hate it when people look me down. "I'll make the first move. Go for a Vine Whip!"

Thick vines extended from each side of Bulbasaur's bud. The twin vines shot towards the horse like Pokémon. The first vine was shot faster to strike Rapidash. The said Pokémon took an easy short leap from the vine with relative ease. But of course the first vine was always a decoy for the second. The second vine immediately shot for Rapidash's legs as it landed. The fire type however proved to be faster. This time it took a longer leap to get momentarily away from the vine's range.

"Keep Attacking!" The attack gave me some momentum; I will put him under pressure. The whips again shot for the Pokémon, moving like snakes trying to strike Rapidash with a sharp sting. But hitting the Pokémon known for its speed was easier said than done. The cycle of attacks and dodges continued for three or four rounds. As every strike passed it seemed like we were getting closer to hit them and yet unable to close in the gap between the speed of the attack and the dodges. I couldn't just put him in a stalemate like this forever. I will just wait for the right moment and—

"Agility!" My trail of thought was broken by the sudden command. The vines tried to hit the Rapidash for another round, but the fire Pokémon disappeared from the vine's reach all of a sudden.

"What the—!" I exclaimed. The Pokémon reappeared almost instantaneously. It charged towards Bulbasaur at high speed, while disappearing and appearing between and outside the range of the extended vines. Within the blink of an eye it was only a few steps away from the bulb Pokémon.

The adrenaline shot a thunderbolt into my spine. "Use your vines and jump!" The words came out of my mouth instinctively. And just as reflexively, the extended vines were shot to the ground, causing the light weighted user to lift itself from the air.

The blur of orange and red skid past where Bulbasaur once stood, only to find the bulb Pokémon in the air, its face tilted downwards. The Rapidash skid itself to a stop, with a rough noise, raising the dust around.

"What in the name of Mew!" Its trainer exclaimed.

It was a perfect chance, I noted. Rapidash was still in a surprise from the sudden dodge, and Bulbasaur's bulb was facing Rapidash.

"Leech Seed! Shoot it!"

Bulbasaur, still in its air, huddled its four legs closer, causing the Pokémon to tilt a little. A brown inconspicuous seed emerged out through the green bulb. With a small growl from Bulbasaur, the seed was shot at the unsuspecting Pokémon like a bullet.

In a sharp second, the Leech Seed managed to reach its destination, but the target disappeared once again. With an unimaginable speed it took two more steps back. The seed struck the ground, partially burying itself in the soil.

Dammit!

If it hadn't used that Agility earlier, the Leech Seed would have struck Rapidash. Before long the battle would have been over. But things weren't so easy. It doesn't mean I had given up though.

Bulbasaur landed softly on the ground, firmly on its four little feet. "More of them! Leech Seed!" The Pokémon gave a momentary grunt.

The Leech Seed were shot continuously like bullets, but much to our annoyance, the Rapidash kept skirting between the shots, evading each one of them.

Its speed was overwhelming. We couldn't let it gain any further movement. I realized that man hadn't commanded a fire type move yet. He was perhaps waiting for a chance and finish us off in just one hit. Unfortunately for him, we won't let that happen.

"Vine Whip, at its feet!" Grabbing its feet would be the best way to put its speed to a stop, or at least lose its momentum a bit.

The vines moved like ropes that intend to trip the Rapidash, but the said Pokémon leapt over them as if they were skipping-ropes. Then in that case—

"Use your new move, Bulbasaur! Sludge Bomb!" It was a sudden change of pace on my part. The Rapidash seemed to be caught off guard but—

Bulbasaur took a deep breath and spat out the single shot of sludge with an incredible speed. Rapidash which was all focused on skipping over the vines was surprised by the sudden projectile attack. It was a strategy I used against Volkner's Electivire. His Electivire stopped Torterra's Leaf storm with fire punch. It was a brilliant tactic to stop a grass type move but we found a way around it. Torterra used a Leaf Storm to keep its hands busy with Fire punch, and then we used a surprise Energy ball to hit the off guard Electivire.

"Agility!"

But things proved to be different this time. The Pokémon disappeared just as the slimy projectile passed past where it once stood and landed on the ground with a minor explosion. I have to accept, that man's reactions were faster than anyone I faced till now.

It seems he was impressed by the strategy. The smirk on his face changed, he must have started acknowledging my strength then.

The man barked, "Now rip it apart with Flareblitz!" Took him long enough, but he finally decided to go with the explosive fire move.

Rapidash reappeared, using its right foreleg it propelled itself towards Bulbasaur. The Pokémon's red mane engulfed it in a complete orange aura, which instantly transformed into a blue one.

"Vine Whip, on the ground!" I commanded. My loyal friend whipped himself into the air once again.

"One more time!" He ordered the fire type. Just as Bulbasaur's feet touched the ground, the Rapidash charged at us one more time. It seems he doesn't want us to rest.

"Dodge!" Just as the blue blur shot past it, my partner pushed itself to the left, crash landing on his left side. He immediately skipped to his four feet, turning around at the same time, he was wary of another Flareblitz it seems.

"Attack till you burn it completely!" And just as we thought, another Flareblitz came to strike us. Bulbasaur dodged to his right this time. The game was turning dangerous. Each Flareblitz was lethal to Bulbasaur. One hit and the damage will be fatal. We were losing our ground while Rapidash kept raising its momentum. If this continues—

The blue blur was approaching once more. Bulbasaur flexed its legs, ready to jump away from the attack. But there was something else in my mind.

The Rapidash carried away by the uncomfortable situation it put us in, dashed at us once more, this time with more confidence and momentum. But momentum was his own enemy.

"Sludge bomb!" I made a quick call.

There's no way he could dodge this, not at this speed or so I expected. There was an instantaneous realization in that man's eyes as he figured out the move I made.

"Steer Clear!" His command came almost immediately after mine. His thinking was faster than I thought. I should have expected as much. He was my father after all.

The bomb of dirt shot at a brilliant speed at the rushing target, but the target pushed its feet, all at once and sprang, to push itself away from the bomb's trajectory. The bomb barely scratched past the blue blur, and crashed to the ground.

The next thing I knew the dust around rose up as Rapidash crashed beside Bulbasaur in a heap, skidding its way forward due to the momentum from Flareblitz.

"Excellent Job!" I gave the bulb Pokémon a thumbs-up, to which he grinned victoriously.

The horse-like Pokémon raised its head, attempting to rise back to its feet. "Sweep it off the ground with Vine Whip!" It's my turn to get into the offensive now.

The grass type took my cue; it extended its whips to topple the Pokémon back down. But the Rapidash's trainer reacted before his Pokémon did. "Jump!" He yelled.

The vines were swung like a baseball bat to trip the Pokémon, but the trainer's commands sent it a warning well before. The Pokémon hopped upon the low vines. There was a momentary relief in the trainer's eyes. We weren't finished yet.

"Leech Seed!" Another attack to our combination made it a triple attack combo. We could get them this time, we had them for sure!

"Agility!" Like a wave, our hopes crashed when the Pokémon disappeared once more, barely dodging the bullet-like Leech seed, and appeared at a safe distance behind, where it could easily dodge our attacks.

"Aw, snap!" It was May who exclaimed in displeasure. My face might be mirroring what she said because that man laughed.

The tension on his face disappeared. It seems he was holding his breath till now. He let out a huge sigh, "You almost got me there."

I smirked in response. But it was a façade to cover the pressure I was facing. The combo we did right now was the best we ever did. If that didn't get Rapidash, I wasn't sure what would.

Should I really switch out? Pikachu had a better chance at handling Rapidash's speed, and not to mention taking the Flareblitz wouldn't be just as troublesome. But—

I could see the uncomfortable expression on Bulbasaur's face. It wasn't anger; it was more like frustration of not being able to even land a single hit. I raised his hopes when I didn't switch out in the beginning itself. Doing so now would be horribly unfair. I didn't become that kind of a monster, not yet.

I just need to figure something else.

'Take a look around.' My voices called out.

That's right. That's how I battle, I should do something only I—no, both of us would be able to pull out together.

***

Ash's gaze shifted towards the blue and serene river. The battle was its peaks, Cilan noted. The battle was splendid, and if Iris hadn't forced him into shutting his mouth he would have used the opportunity to weave some amazing vocabulary. The sommelier inside him was unable to hold much longer.

The attacks from either side were sharp, as if to slice through the opponent like butter. Leech Seed or Sludge bomb, either attack would severely decapitate Rapidash, while Flareblitz would plainly finish Bulbasaur. They seemed even till now, but to Ash, the type disadvantage was a severe hindrance. Ash's side couldn't afford to take a hit. In fact if the harmony between Bulbasaur and Ash weren't outstanding Ash could have lost it by now. Even Cilan was surprised with the marriage between Bulbasaur and Ash. All these days he didn't expect any Pokémon to rival the closeness he had with Pikachu, but this particular combination was plainly fantabulous.

The posture Ash wore was a tense one, while the expression on his face could make one think he was calm and confident, it was a simple face show, a mask to be exact. His eyes quickly darted, studying the surroundings.

"It seems Ash is up to his trademark plan now," Brock commented.

"Trying to use his surroundings to his advantage, right?" Dawn asked.

Cilan wanted to add a few more words with some spice but Iris's foot was firmly on his, ready to crush Cilan's tender feet any moment, which definitely doesn't have a good taste.

The silence in midst of the tense battle stood. Even Alexander Ketchum waited for his opponent to do something. Mr. Ketchum seemed to be waiting for his son's reaction in the current predicament. Anyone who never saw Ash battle will be stumped by what he could do when cornered. It was actually because of this reason that Ash had more victories with a type disadvantage than ones with a type advantage. In the latter case he always gets cocky and makes a silly mistake.

"This will be interesting," The ingenious Professor muttered, which Cilan wholeheartedly agreed, after exchanging a glance with Iris, in silence.

***

What was he doing? Alex wondered. His so-called prodigal son was simply squinting at the surroundings, as if some natural disaster would come in and aid him in a comical victory. Yes he was called a 'prodigy'. Words of his son's achievements were discussed even in Rosenburg. To be honest those achievements weren't spectacular, the league competitions have definitely lose the flavor from ten years ago. Trainers these days relied a lot on day-cares and what not, forgetting that the main source of battle strength was the bond with their Pokémon. Standing top 16 in the Indigo League in the first try wasn't a great feat. Defeating the Battle Frontier was however, a significant achievement, but then again he was literally owned by Tobias in the Sinnoh League. That trainer might be using legendary Pokémon of unique strength, but getting mowed down like that was embarrassing. Still he did better than the others, he heard.

In Alex's eyes he viewed his son as above-average. He was better than the usual mass, but not excellent enough to be champion material. Cynthia would make him lick her boots any day. Speaking of which, that woman had some interest on Ash. Maybe the looks he inherited from his father? He virtually patted himself. If he weren't committed to Delia, he would take the blonde any day.

"So what will you do?" He asked, teasingly. The boy could be easily provoked, that was also something he inherited from his father.

The observant expression on Ash's face disappeared; his face seemed to light up with some kind of idea. His eyes were on the river to his left.

"Why don't you watch?" He smirked with somewhat extravagant confidence. This of course meant that he was planning something troublesome.

'I wonder what it would be.' Alex was filled with excitement. 'This better not disappoint me, son.' He silently wished.

"Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip on that tree," he pointed his fingers energetically at the large Oran tree on the other side of the river.

What the heck?

The Pokémon, much to Alex's surprise, did so without any hesitation. The long vines were now wrapped around the sturdy branch.

'He is trying to get to the other side.' He figured. "Rapidash, stop them!"

The fire-type prepared the enigmatic fire type move and galloped towards Bulbasaur at incredible speed boosted by agility.

The frog Pokémon however, took its jump before the horse-Pokémon could have a chance to tackle it down to a crisp. The little frog landed on the other side, like its trainer wanted, safe and sound.

'My bad.' He cursed himself. If he had reacted a second sooner, the battle would have been over. Then again, he was too engrossed wondering what he was going to do—perhaps, the kid was used to give people surprises. Interesting.

But why jump to the other side, unless—

He turned to his son, "So you figured out my Rapidash doesn't know a long-ranged fire type move, huh. Do you think attacking from the other side makes you safe?"

"Of course," the cocky smile on his face turned into a grin, akin to a child whose well-thought prank was successful. The boy commanded, "Let's use Solarbeam!"

The frog Pokémon's expression mirrored its trainer, as it haughtily prepared the attack that left it vulnerable for an entire turn.

Alex smiled wryly. The boy was just as he thought. He used some stupid half-thought strategy and expects himself to win it.

The river was not a small one, which was true. And unlike Bulbasaur, Rapidash couldn't use a long vine to cross like that but Ash did forget one thing.

"A Rapidash's jumping power shouldn't be underestimated, Ash. Besides a simple attack like Solarbeam is too easy to dodge," the battle turned sour for Alex. He expected something great, and all he got was a simple parlor trick. "Rapidash, jump to the other side, and obliterate them!"

The gleam on Ash's face only grew. Ah, perhaps he may have thought a step further. Maybe the kid was planning to attack while Rapidash was still in the air. It was a not a bad idea, if Rapidash were to fall in the river, the battle would end immediately. But only a fool would expect a beam attack like that to hit a superfast Pokémon like Rapidash. Even if it had a wonderful aim, the chances of Bulbasaur hitting Rapidash would be a meager twenty percent. Even if it did, his Rapidash was trained to charge through not-very-effective attacks like Blizzard and Solarbeam. The half-thought plan of his son was just a failure no matter how he looked at it.

The older Ketchum's Pokémon nodded and began sprinting towards the bank, and leaped over the somewhat broad river. Within the blink of an eye it crossed half of the distance it intended to when—

"On the water!" Ash cried abruptly.

What in the name of holy mother—!

An exasperated Alex turned to his son, who pumped his fist in the air, with gleaming eyes.

A bright flash light emanated at the corner of his eyes.

"Bulba—!"

With a ferocious battle roar unexpected from such a small Pokémon, the Solar Beam was shot in Rapidash's direction. Just as Alex predicted, Rapidash crossed the Solarbeam and touched the bank on the other side before the beam shot past behind it. But it was very late before the veteran knew that the intended target was not the Pokémon but the water behind it.

Before Alex could even let out his mouth to utter some command, the water struck by the enormous power of chlorophyll was pushed in all directions, the powerful surge rose up like a tidal wave and crashed on him, drenching the furious Alex. It was obvious that his Pokémon met the same fate; in fact the impact on the other side was much larger.

Rapidash was thoroughly drenched; the flames on its mane were on the brink of extinguishing and were fighting back with what seemed like extreme will-power. Alex knew this was the doom.

"Let's attack while it's still vulnerable!" Ash clapped Bulbasaur to attention. "Sludge Bomb!"

The Pokémon spat out the brown poisonous pellet out, and promptly hit the struggling Rapidash, as its trainer only helplessly watched. A perfect hit nonetheless, Alex criticized.

The bomb exploded on Rapidash, the Pokémon neighed in pain. A purple smoke enveloped the fire-type as if to hasten its impending doom. The smoke mixed with the air, and soon disappeared as if it never existed.

However, a purple surge of venom coursed through Rapidash's body buckling the Pokémon to its knees. The fire on its mane steadily returned, but at the same time the poison covered every nook and corner of its body, rendering it practically immobile and unable to stand.

"That little—!" Alex unconsciously girt his teeth and clenched his fists.

Alex furiously unbuttoned his green and weathered overcoat and furiously threw the drenched coat aside, revealing a black sleeveless black t-****, and well-toned muscles, that rose a gasp from the young men and a small blush from the young women. Delia however didn't give any reaction as he expected. But he wasn't particularly picky now, because the source of his anger was now delightfully smirking at him.

***

The group of gym leaders, former gym leaders, an old Professor and a concerned mother/wife watched the scene with eyes wide open.

"Alex is really mad," for the first time even Delia was scared. While the rest were doubtful all the time, she alone was confident that everything would turn out okay. Even the ever-positive Dawn couldn't give any positive hope this time.

"No man would like to get outwitted by his 15 year old son," Brock pointed out the hard truth.

"He's just as thickheaded as his son," Misty whispered into Iris's ears. The dragon trainer meekly nodded, afraid that Delia might have overheard them.

"An excellently weaved trap, and it seems Mr. Alex fell right into it," Cilan spoke, now that Iris's hold on him loosened. The to-be-dragon-master immediately crushed his feet once more, and closed his mouth at the same time. What resulted was a simple yelp.

Idiot! She wanted to curse him. They didn't even properly introduce themselves to May and Misty. If he were to behave like this, they might take a terrible misunderstanding. To her knowledge, May was already throwing awkward glances at Cilan, and pitiful smiles at Iris.

Getting back to the topic, what the hell was that childish Ash doing. Didn't he notice the man on the other side was angry enough to kill him? Instead he grinned like a naïve stupid five year old. It was a surprise that the man didn't burst yet.

"He sure can control his emotions," Brock commented. It was surprising, but true. Getting provoked easily might be Mr. Alex's weakness, but he found a way to confine his emotions. The anger that this man carried inside him made Ash's little tantrums a joke to be laughed about, which Iris gladly did.

"It's time to finish this for once," a cocky Ash now commanded his Bulbasaur. "Solarbeam!"

"That's stupid!" May exclaimed. Yes, he was completely letting Bulbasaur out in the open.

"Rapidash is poisoned, even if it were to attack now," Brock explained. "Bulbasaur can easily dodge it. I think Ash has this in the bag." She saw Cilan nod in agreement to Brock's judgment.

"I wonder," Professor Oak said with a wry smile.

***

'This battle is good as over.' I said to myself in delight. The old man's Rapidash was cringing in pain. But I have to hand it to him, it was still standing. Even my Unefezant couldn't stand this long after getting poisoned by Roxie's Koffing.

Bulbasaur was charging another Solarbeam. Things are going very smoothly; even if Rapidash were to attack we could dodge the attack pretty easily. Besides Flareblitz would only make things harder for them. Either way, all I had to do was just stand back and watch my Pokémon win.

"Rapidash Flareblitz!" The old man barked. His voice didn't carry the tension as I expected, but oh well—he might be good at hiding it. Solarbeam was beginning to glow on Bulbasaur's back turning to a spherical shape. Only a few more minutes perhaps, the sun was almost down and it was harder to grab the energy.

Rapidash roared, despite the toxic sparks warning it not to, it raised the flames on its body. It dug its hoof deep into the mud, and trudge it back and forth like an angry Tauros. The Pokémon much like its trainer was gripped with fury. The purple surge appeared once more torturing the Pokémon to stop but it refused.

"It's coming," I decided to be safe and warned Bulbasaur beforehand. With a Solarbeam on its bulb, it could be difficult to warn it when it's too late. I am pretty sure that a poisoned Rapidash won't be able to outmatch Bulbasaur in speed.

A powerful neigh like none other. The Pokémon was already filled in a blue flame ready to strike its target.

"Now Rapidash!" The trainer commanded.

"Dodge!" I said almost at the same time.

What happened next was a brilliant movement. I thought I was watching a still Rapidash engulfed in blue flames. It took me a while to realize that it was an after image created by the flames.

Before I realized and turned, the blue blur shot like lightning, its speed unwavering. I could perhaps remember this scene even after ten years. Bulbasaur watched the disaster coming, it was loaded with a Solarbeam on its back, its jaws wide open in surprise. Its eyes lost color in fear of the upcoming pain. I watched Rapidash shoot towards Bulbasaur and run past it, with my mouth wide open, like I was watching an express train shoot before me.

Akin to an unfortunate obstacle that never should have stood in danger's way in the first place, Bulbasaur was tossed away far into the air, and landed after a long time when the blazing Rapidash stopped and looked back.

Like a package of burnt garbage thrown from a bridge, Bulbasaur landed like a heavy thrash, its lush green texture turned into a charred grey. The Solarbeam disappeared into nothingness and its eyes were still wide open in shock, but dazed.

I watched the scene like I had seen a ghost. I ignored the purple shock that made Rapidash scream in pain, followed by a blue one that resulted due to the recoil from Flareblitz. I simply watched my Bulbasaur fainted, and unable to move a limb while it was kicking actively only a few seconds ago.

"I would take it back into my Pokeball if I were you," his words brought me back to this world. That was when I realized I had my mouth open all along. I looked at him terrified, and when I realized I was scared, anger wallowed in its place.

But first—

I promptly returned Bulbasaur back into the Pokeball. The red light magically sucked the burnt Pokémon back inside. I looked at the Pokeball filled with regret, and anger over my sheer stupidity. "I am sorry buddy, I won't let this happen. Never again."

Staring at the ball like a precious jewel for yet another second, I tucked the ball back to its number one place on my belt. My eyes fell on the man when I did so.

He looked plain, his eyes studying me completely from top to bottom. I was guilty of smiling when his own Pokémon suffered, in a second he simply turned the tables upside down. Could it be that?

He asked, giving me an inquisitive look. "You have realized why you lost, right?"

My pride told me not to nod. But he took the silence as a yes. Provoking my dad was the biggest mistake I made. He fuelled that anger and used it to finish Bulbasaur. But still with all that poison Rapidash shouldn't have moved so freely.

He continued, "You were too overconfident when things went your way. But a battle is much more complicated than that. Things will never always go your way."

I know all that. I wasn't just expecting that. Gulping down my massive ego, I asked, "How did your Rapidash move so fast, even when it's poisoned?"

"Humph," he scoffed, as if my question held no value. "Poison endurance training is one of the basic things people do while preparing for a Champion's League. Poison is nothing but a mere hindrance to the trainers of that level."

Somehow winning the Champion League became a distant dream to me, all of a sudden.

"But still," he smiled. "I could see why Cynthia was interested in you."

"Wait," I asked, somewhat stumped. "You know Cynthia?"

"I do," he said. "When I met her a month ago she mentioned two names. One of them was 'Ash' a unique trainer that uses the abilities of a Pokémon like no other, and made surprising strategies in the battle. She said that if you were to use them on a regular basis, you might as well beat her in a span of five years."

I took a gulp down my parched throat. My hands felt numb, and it seemed like I was about to fall down any time soon due to a concussion.

Did she really expect that much from me? I always thought it was a kind gesture from her behalf, when she remembered me and when she listened to all that I talked.

Wait there's something else, she mentioned two names? "Who's the other guy?"I asked.

"She says it's some Paul, a trainer who could see through your little antics with ease even if you were to develop them to a higher level enough to threaten Cynthia. She told me he was a brilliant strategist, and perhaps a perfect "counter" to you."

"M-My perfect counter?"

Just as I thought. Paul's amazing; he's the strongest trainer I have ever fought. Those two full battles I fought back then, those were the battles that told me that I was strong enough to battle even in a world class tournament like Champion's League.

"Don't get too cocky," he broke through my thoughts. Was my face that easy to read? He said, "Unfortunately I don't share the same opinion as Cynthia. And your friend Paul—well if he lost to you, then I can easily estimate how much of a trainer he is." His words were dripped with sarcasm, cutting through any of my daydreams.

There was a brief silence. My eyes which were on his, trailed off to the suffering Rapidash's. I should choose my next Pokémon, I remembered. It wouldn't be a fair battle if I delayed anymore.

"I guess I'll take him back in," he took out his Pokeball and extracted the Pokémon right back. Why did he do that?

Before I opened my mouth to voice my opposition, he said, "Your next Pokémon will easily beat Rapidash. It hasn't much fight left, making it suffer knowing the result is pointless unless it's an official match."

He wasn't a cold-hearted prick as I thought because his actions suggested he cared for his Pokémon.

He said, "You did a good job, I should say, but it could have been a lot easier if you switched." I remained silent, unable to answer him.

"Ash," he spoke one more time. "I don't like your battle style. Not one bit," he said bluntly. I was fairly ashamed of what I thought of this man, but that doesn't mean he wasn't being a prick in my case. So basically there wasn't much difference, and yet I felt guilty somehow.

"But I'll battle you with everything I've got," he enlarged his Pokeball. "I know what you'll be sending next. So I prepared the right Pokémon for it."

I took a deep breath in, pushing the last few minutes out of my memory. Brushing them off as if it never happened. "Even if you say so," I smirked, "I will win and prove why Cynthia acknowledged my battle style." That's right; I am now putting Cynthia's words into the line too. I shouldn't lose, for her at least.

"Good, always keep the stakes high, that's what your grandfather used to say," he enlarged the Pokeball. "My prediction is that you will use Pikachu as your next Pokémon. What I have in my hand is a perfect counter to your Pikachu."

So he wasn't just joking, huh. Then in that case, "That's right. Pikachu is my next Pokémon." I glanced down and winked at my best partner. "Let's do it, Pikachu,"

The rodent acknowledged my feelings and stepped forward, settling down to his fours. Sparks leaked out of his cheeks, as a signal to my opponent that he really meant business.

"Well then," Dad aimed the ball at the ground. "Let's take the winnings, Dugtrio!"

The triple headed Pokémon appeared with an echoing cry.

A ground type huh. I exchanged a glance with that man; he was studying me, if there was some kind of fear in my face.

Type disadvantages mean nothing to me. I think I proved that earlier. So I remained confident, much to his annoyance.

"You make the first move," he said, nonchalantly.

Alright. Electric moves don't work, so I will focus on getting closer to Dugtrio and finish it off with Iron Tail.

"Pikachu, Quick Attack!"

Pikachu's fluffy long ears straightened, a white aura surrounded him, and dashed forwards with the speed that could rival a motorbike, taking coherent breaths between while exhaling them with a 'Pi'.

The tense battle atmosphere returned. Once again both of us returned to studying what the opponent would do and counter that move.

"Dig!"

The other trainer's reaction was fast, and necessary for dodging the Quick Attack. It couldn't be helped that Dugtrio was quick in following his lead. Spinning about itself, the Pokémon dug itself out of the scene before the fast move could even hit it.

Pikachu put a brake to its attack, he swiveled his head around, his eyes fervently looking for the Pokémon that was about to emerge out of anywhere, anytime. The two of us faced this situation many times, and there wasn't a particularly great strategy to overcome this, other than put a vigil on the surroundings, that we did.

Unlike Pikachu who had to turn his head around to have a view of the battlefield, my vision covers the entire area. But the time lag between me warning Pikachu and he following my command would be enough for the opponent to finish the attack. The only way out of this was to observe and warn before the enemy attacks. But if I were to warn too soon, the enemy would attack from some other direction. It's a matter of timing if you catch my drift.

The ground was still, nothing moved except the grass that swayed with the wind, and my partner who was aching to dodge the incoming attack anytime.

"Pi," Pikachu's ears wobbled a bit. It must have heard something. It was close then. I strained my ears, into the silent atmosphere. That's when I heard the faint rumbling noise. If it was perceived by my ears, then it was pretty close. The ground began to shake, it wasn't a powerful tremor, just a small one, befitting of a Dugtrio.

My eyebrows furrowed, sending a warning glance to Pikachu. The rodent pressed his legs to the ground, ready to jump anytime. The rumbling grew louder and louder until—

"Jump!" I barked out the command. Pikachu was already in the air, and simultaneously Dugtrio emerged out of the ground, surprised and disappointed to find its target in the air.

"Pikachu, Iron Tail!"

Right in the middle of his jump, Pikachu's yellow tail stiffened to a bright silver color akin to a freshly made iron bar. He spun about his flexible body, increasing the momentum of the attack.

As Dugtrio's trainer let out a gasp, and the Pokémon shivered in fear, the heavy attack landed on Dugtrio's head. The Pokémon 'moved' a few steps due to the impact.

"Awesome job!" I gave Pikachu a thumbs-up to which he raised a paw victoriously.

"Quite a powerful Pokémon you got there," Dad commented "Let's see how you will take this. Dugtrio use your special ability!"

Special ability? Wait, what was it? My brain desperately searched for any trace of memory I had on Dugtrio. The search gave a blink on the word Arena Trap. The realization only gave me an instant headache.

"Pikachu," I let out a hurried yell, "fall back!"

The electrified look on my face sent the urgency of the situation to him. Pikachu turned around and began to sprint towards me when—

A huge chunk of ground beneath Pikachu gave away at once. The rodent immediately fell into the pit before it could react in any way possible.

"Pikachu!" I let out a cry. It was too late.

Dust erupted from where Pikachu once stood, clouding my view from what was happening underneath. The dust cleared away slowly, but the scene only made me skip a heartbeat.

What has been a plain grassy land turned out into an enormous pit, filled with crumbles of the broken ground. All I saw everywhere was a pile of rocks that were supposed to be supporting the topsoil.

Like a drill machine, Dugtrio emerged out at the centre of the pit and watched its handiwork proudly.

My mind was completely blank. It seemed like someone electrocuted my brain from the inside, leaving nothing but a dazed 'Ash' who couldn't even breathe properly.

Was this over, so quickly? No, I refuse to accept so. Not my Pokémon, not my Pikachu. Then why wasn't anything moving? Why was everything so damn silent?

It took a while for me to collect my thoughts. I took a deep breath, putting my electrified brain back to work. Pikachu was still there, he was simply trapped underneath all that. In that case I'll save him.

"Use thunderbolt to smash the boulders away!" My voice echoed.

A dreadful silence followed. Fear crept through my veins instead of blood. Did something happen to Pikachu? The old man broke his wry smile and opened his mouth to say something.

Only to be interrupted by an explosion from underneath. A lone streak of electricity shot into the empty sky, blasting the rubble, underneath from which the attack erupted. A tiny yellow figure appeared in the mountain of rocks. His little figure was bruised all over with black soot like marks that tainted the pure yellow he was. His breath was ragged, but it seems he didn't suffer any fatal injury.

"Good," was all that man said in response. Of course he's my Pikachu.

"Let's continue then," he said, the seriousness on his face remained. "Dugtrio, rockslide."

My eyes instantly darted to the sky. Out of nowhere, huge boulders appeared, to rain on the contrastingly small Pikachu.

All I could let out was a small noise at first. I snapped finally as the danger approached, "Pikachu, destroy that boulder with Electroball."

My partner reacted as quickly as he could. Electricity surged through his tail, and slowly shaped into a ball filled with electric energy. The ball was smashed into the air, like a tennis player's serve.

The ball of energy struck a particular boulder above him and exploded with a loud bang. The huge boulder was broken into smaller harmless ones, while the rest of the boulders that couldn't harm him landed with a huge ground shaking impact.

Taking the chance Pikachu shot for the surface. It was smart of him, because I was planning to do the same.

"Dugtrio, Dig!" He commanded as Pikachu approached the exit of the extremely steep pit. It was a perfect moment to catch us off guard.

Not one second sooner or later, as Pikachu put his front paw on the firm land outside, Dugtrio appeared from underneath the grassy land, tackling the defenseless rodent back into the depths of the pit, which then landed on one of the huge chunks of boulder Rockslide left, squirming in pain.

"Dammit," I cursed under my breath. It seemed like a Herculean effort, but Pikachu managed to stand on his feet once again, somehow.

"Looks like I cornered you once again," he smirked. "What magic will you do now?"

That's right. I should figure a way out like the last time, except I will be a bit more careful this time. I won't let my emotions take the control of my battle. I promised that to myself many times, but I somehow end up forgetting it when needed.

All right, so what should I do? Dugtrio used both long range and short range moves. Not to mention, he has effectively trapped me inside the pit. There's no way in hell I could win unless I found a way out.

Wait!

I could use that! That's right; I could use the same tactic I used against Trip's Serperior back in the Unova League. Combine Electroball and Iron tail and plough my way out.

"Pikachu combine—" Before the words barely came out of my mouth, something else grabbed my attention.

It was faint but there was a trickle of water inside the Arena Trap Dugtrio made. "What the hell is that?" The other trainer asked, who apparently noticed the same.

The faint trickle of water grew and grew, until it turned into a pool in a matter of seconds.

"Alex, you idiot!"

Wow was that Professor Oak? It was the first time I saw him speak like that.

"Ah," my opponent examined the water flow. "I think I may have screwed our Pallet river bank a bit."

It was true. The 'hole' his Dugtrio made was pretty close to the river, the current gushed out through the flimsy layer of mud between the pit and the river's path and ended up filling it in no time.

"Why in the name of Zoroark would you make a huge pit like that downhill?" The Professor scolded. "Now the whole area will be flooded!"

"If you were so observant, the why didn't you warn me!" He raised his voice back at the Professor.

"Uh," the Professor was taken aback, "Well, um, that is," he fidgeted for a second searching for answers, and finally gave up doing so. "It doesn't matter! You were the one who dug that hole in the first place. It's your problem."

"I guess you're right," he scratched his head sheepishly. Now, why did the expression seem so familiar?

"Ash," he said to me, "Let's halt the battle. I'll deal with this first."

I nodded. "Return, Pikachu."

***

[Dracoflare]

Chapter 2 Conitnued

The next few minutes Misty spent watching Alex's Dugtrio carving out a neat outflow for the incoming water. In the end, the river resumed its usual flow, with the addition of a small bump which used to be Dugtrio's pit.

"Will he be okay?" Ash crouched, as Brock examined his Bulbasaur. Professor Oak who had some knowledge on the issue joined the trainer. The rest of them were asked to watch from a distance, so that the Pokémon could have enough air to breathe.

"Just a few potions and a paste made up of Rawst berry would be more than enough." The Pokémon doctor said examining the Pokémon. "Leave it to me," he said taking Bulbasaur into the Pokeball.

"Alright," Ash nodded.

"There are few potions in my room," Professor Oak suggested, "Tracey's in the lab. Make him prepare that paste."

"Alright," Brock took a step back and jogged back to the lab.

"Ash," Misty walked to the Pokémon trainer. The others slowly followed her.

"Hey Misty," he smiled at her. It was just a smile of courtesy, she could see. "Thanks for cheering me guys." He said to the group in general.

Misty was slightly dejected. She wanted to talk with him a bit and raise his spirits. But a one-on-one talk was impossible right now.

His eyes were set on the couple by the river. Mrs. Ketchum was casually chatting something with his father, a smile on her face as he made some joke.

"They make a nice couple," she said, and bit her tongue immediately. Ash wasn't particularly fond of his father, was he?

"I guess," he replied lazily. The yellow rodent seemed to understand its master's pain. It tugged his pants, and growled cutely with a 'Pikapi' as if to say it's all right.

"I hate him," he said, the chances that he meant what he said were high. Such was his father's attitude towards him.

"He's being deliberately being tough on you," Cilan said. This now earned a surprised stare from everyone else.

"You think so?" Misty asked on Ash's behalf, or so she thought.

"Ash, if your mother chose this man as her man of destiny," Cilan said, "Then he is a good man, Ash. You should believe in her that much."

The young Ketchum lowered his head, as if in thought. He brushed the Pokémon that rested on his lap while the Pokémon purred in affection.

"He doesn't like my battle style," Ash spoke after a brief silence. "He thinks it's a bad joke."

"Then prove that it isn't," Cilan added. Ash's eyes widened, the words worked like a magic on him. "The battle style you developed as a result from countless number of battles, the harmony with the Pokémon you deeply trust. If you explain him properly he will acknowledge you, Ash."

"That's right," Dawn jumped in glee, "Everything will be alright."

Misty couldn't find anything to add; instead she gave him an encouraging smile. It did seem to have an effect on him. The sulky expression on his face disappeared with the usual determined-Ash expression. "Thank you. I will do as you say." He stood up to his feet, and placed the yellow rodent on his shoulders. "Let's settle this for once, Pikachu." He said to his partner, the rodent pumped its fist in exchange.

***

I walked to my parents who were involved in a casual conversation. They perhaps had a lot to talk about the past ten years.

Mom noticed me first," Ash," she muttered my name, as if to greet me and warn him of my presence at the same time. The man turned around and set his intimidating set of eyes on me. I wonder if I had met anyone more intimidating since Brandon. Clay was a close one but he was more of a carefree guy.

I involuntarily took a gulp and opened my mouth to say that I was strong, and that I was proud of my battle style no matter how he thought about it. But he spoke before me, "You were better than I thought," he said.

Was it for real? He complimented me. Yes he did. I was better than what he thought, but how good did he think I was?

"Maybe Cynthia's prediction might be true," he said, somewhat unsure. He sighed, "But you don't have five years, Ash. You only have one. Not to mention I still don't approve your battle style."

"Why?" I blurted out. And here I thought he finally acknowledged me.

"It's simply hard to accept," he said as if it were his own weakness. "I trained my Pokémon for years in a rigid orthodox battle style. I couldn't just accept your antics as a legitimate battle style after watching some of the best trainers in the world. Cynthia might say you're unique, but she's the only one who thinks like that."

My fists tighten, nails dug into my gloves. I lowered my head, avoiding eye contact with him. Then, he made a surprising move.

He removed the cap that hid my eyes from his, and placed his left hand on my head and brushed my hair a bit like the way I did with Pikachu.

I wanted to remove his hand, but I didn't. And then he said, "But I am proud Ash."

What the heck? I looked at him with a surprised face. As if to mean what he said, he ruffled my hair. My throat felt heavy at once, a tinge of pain choked me from the inside. My heart seemed like it was clogged and tears welled up. I can't believe this. Am I crying? Just because he was proud of me?

"Oh, look at you," He teased and brought me closer to a hug, "Crying like a girl." The remark didn't hurt me, because it was true.

"Alex," Mom protested. "You bullied him enough already."

"He's too soft because of you Delia," he scolded her mockingly. "He's more of a girl than a man because of you. Look at those cute chicks behind you, Ash. You should make them all fall for you. Gotta catch'em all, boy!"

"Alex!" Her voice was louder this time, as if to give him a stern warning. "If I see you teaching him inappropriate stuff you'll be spending your nights outside the door."

"Oh for god's sake he's fifteen," the both of them started to ignore me and went deep into their quarrel. "I used to peek under girl's skirts at his age."

This only caused mom to pout and complain more. This was the first time I saw her really happy. They were fighting but they were enjoying it. Yeah, they make a good couple.

***

That night, the Oak's ranch was more like a banquet. A long table was arranged, to hold the grand feast for the group of friends and relatives.

"The food's plain great," Iris enjoyed the dish she was gobbling upon.

"Courtesy of Mrs. Ketchum, Brock and Cilan," Professor Oak commended the chefs.

"So Cilan is a sommelier?" May was already having her dessert, as she gulped down the food rather quickly.

"Sorry for the misunderstanding," Misty apologized.

"No, he deserves it," Iris complained. "He's a real pain, isn't that right Ash?" She asked the boy who was supposed to be sitting beside Mrs. Ketchum. He was missing and so was his father.

"Where did they go?" Dawn asked.

"Ash's showing his Pokémon to his dad," Ash's mom replied, she apparently liked the idea of them bonding.

"Hey guys," a new voice said grabbing the attention from everyone. "Nobody told there was a party."

***

"Half of them could use evolving," Dad was criticizing my Pokémon. They were clearly not enjoying his attitude. Sceptile put on a face, as if he would cut him any time. Buizel was glaring at him while Totodile and Gible fought to chew his head. "You have too many Pokémon of the same type. But overall, I think all your Pokémon need some individual training."

"We still have a year," I brushed his comment carelessly.

"Idiot!" He smacked me on my head. Hey what was that for? I didn't ask.

"One year is hardly enough," he glared. "I don't want you to just participate, I want you to win."

"Of course I want to win too." I argued. Who in the right mind would participate to lose?

"Your skill set is extremely poor. They wouldn't even let you step into Rosenburg."

I didn't know what Rosenburg was, but I took a good guess. "I am going to prove they all are wrong."

"They will crush you before you could open your mouth," Dad yelled back, "I spent ten years there and I know how it is."

"You spent ten years at the League?" I knew he spent ten years somewhere, but I never knew where.

"Not just I, hundreds of people do so, and they are all dedicated and experienced than you," he spat.

A sudden realization hit me. I asked, "You will be participating in the Champion's League too?" It was obvious. If he spent ten years at Rosenburg or whatever it was, he would obviously participate in it. But still the thought of fighting my own dad in the league was hard to believe.

His face broke into a sad smile, "I wish I could," he muttered, turning away from me. He looked at the distant stars in the night sky, "It was my ambition after all."

What does he mean by that? He couldn't? If he worked so hard for it then why wouldn't he participate?

"What happened, Dad?" Before realizing it, my voice turned serious. Even a naïve kid like me could understand something was terribly wrong.

"It's a long story," he said, not taking his eyes off the sky. "I will tell it when the time's right."

I was about to pressure him to answer when a third party disturbed us. Standing between two large trees was a pleasant surprise.

"Hey Ashy-boy," the newcomer grinned at me and turned to dad. "Nice to see you again after all these years, Mr. Ketchum. I barely remember you."

"Gary," I muttered his name. Yep, my oldest rival was standing before me.

~*~

Authorial Rambling: This chapter was way longer than it should have been. Mostly because of the battle. I think I did an okay job with the battles. Battles are main point of this story, but this story isn't just about battles. That would make it boring like hell.

I carefully tried avoiding Ash mentioning Alex as his dad, at the same time he wouldn't call his father Alex or Mr. Ketchum. In the end it was very difficult to put up with that. But yes things will be easier from now on because I can use both 'father' and 'dad' interchangeably.

I made yet another assumption: A normal trainer's Pokemon generally loses its ability to attack properly when poisoned. This assumption was based on Ash v/s Roxie. His Pokemon were completely hopeless after poisoning, and won with great difficulty.

Another assumption: Sludge bomb poisons the victim if it inhales the toxic gases once the bomb(or rather a bullet) explodes. So things like 30% probability etc. won't be applicable here.

Character appearance Count:

Major role only:Ash Ketchum (2), Alexander Ketchum (1)

[Dracoflare]

~*~ 3. Evolving Strengths ~*~

"Gary," Ash was genuinely pleased to see him. Mr. Ketchum studied the boy's face curiously, as he jogged his memory.

"Ah, you are the Professor's grandson!" Alex exclaimed, snapping his fingers.

Alex was about to ask something else, when Ash interrupted. "So how's your research, Gary?"

There was a tinge of surprise on Alex's face. So he didn't know that Gary was a researcher. Brock then realized what Ash did, and commended his quick-wit in handling their introductions.

Gary was taken aback by Ash's sudden question but answered, "I am specializing on ancient Pokémon research, and guess what?" He said with a casual air of arrogance, "We managed to defossilize about ten varieties of Pokémon."

"Ah, so you decided to follow your grandfather's path after all?" Alex nodded to himself, "Research is in your genes, boy."

Gary let out a small laugh at this, "I guess you expected me to be a trainer. I am sorry I couldn't put the promise from ten years ago."

"No," Alex nodded in displeasure. "Holding onto promises gets you nothing. One must follow his own heart. If your heart says you want to be a researcher, then so be it."

Ash frowned at the man for some reason. Brock sensed it too. He was being nice to Gary all along, and not to mention he spoke with Brock and Cilan in the same fashion too. So he was being rude only to Ash?

"Mr. Ketchum," Gary brushed his hair, and said with a sly grin, "I didn't give up on my other dream yet."

***

Now that startled me. What did he mean by that? Dad simply raised an eyebrow in response, as if demanding a full explanation from Gary.

"I intend to win the Campion's League," he said. His statement made me gasp for a brief second.

Gary's gaze shifted to me. When our eyes met, I realized he was asking for my reaction. So if he was reverting back to the old Gary, then there was only one way I could react— a trademark Ketchum's only confident smirk.

I asked, "You left the battle circle for three years. Won't you be all rusty now, Gary?"

Gary's face relished with a smile. It's been a while since I had thrash talked with him.

"Unfortunately for you Ash, I didn't ignore my battling even during research," Gary's face seemed like he was hiding a cunning grin. "Watch out, Ash. I maybe stronger than you."

"Then how about we see how good you are?" I asked, pointing my finger at the Pokeball on his belt. The smile on Gary's face grew wider. He wants this; I could notice it even if he doesn't say so.

"Now aren't the two of you a lively couple of hot-headed young trainers," Dad put a hefty arm on each of our shoulders. The two of us had to put extreme effort to just stand. "But this isn't the time for a battle. Gary I have a question for you."

"What is it, Alex?" He asked, he was more familiar to dad than I thought. When did they meet? I can't remember. Maybe my birthday party? I threw in a proclamation that I would become the strongest trainer in the world that day. That's when he pulled my pants and made fun of me. Now thinking about that day. Dad must have enjoyed me suffer. He obviously made friends with Gary at that time.

Dad asked him, "The Champion's League rules state that only trainers with forty official badges from five regions can participate in the tournament. How many do you have?"

"Ten from Kanto, eleven from Johto," Gary said, rubbing his nose. I swear his nose looks as big as a Fearow's beak when he does that. "But it doesn't matter according to the new rules." He opened his green duffel bag, and extracted a blue-covered book.

"The league catalogue?" Dad frowned as he took the book and flipped the pages. He stopped in the midst of reading something and eyed me, "Ash, did you read this?"He asked.

I never saw a book like that, and everyone knew I hate reading books. Was it something important? "Uh, no?" I answered promptly.

There was a momentary pause. The whole world around seemed to freeze, as if it were struck by Kyurem's ice beam. The look on my father's face ranged along the same lines one would put in front of a catastrophe or completely distressful news. In other words the book was something important that I ought to read.

I could see something behind Brock shake vigorously. Four figures suddenly disappeared from my line of vision. It was those four. I swear those girls were laughing at me now. "I was uh, planning to read it tomorrow," I tried to save my face from embarrassment.

Dad raised an eyebrow, "Tomorrow?" He asked. I realized it was a rhetorical question.

"Uh, yeah," I scratched my hair sheepishly. "Tomorrow."

"Ash," Gary was hard suppressing a grin. "Tomorrow is the Champion's league registration."

"What?!" I cried, loud enough to throw Pikachu off my shoulders. Nobody told me about that! Weren't registrations done a day or two before the actual league starts? Why didn't anyone tell me about it?

"Well in his defense," Brock interrupted. "The catalogue was released only a week ago, and he was on a ship back to Kanto."

"A week?" Dad gasped and turned to me. "Ash do you realize how people in Rosenburg wait for this?" He said pointing at the blue book.

Rosenburg. Rosenburg! Why does he keep mentioning the same name? If he really loves that place, then why did he return? Does he care anything about mom, his wife?

I opened my mouth to say the same. But I was stopped when another figure entered the scene. I simply couldn't speak like that, not in front of her.

***

Brock was tensed. Ash was about to burst out. Oh, why should those two be like this? Looking at Ash's face, it seems like he was about to throw a scalding remark any time soon, and Mr. Ketchum was eagerly waiting to counterattack. Coming from a family that faced severe situations, Brock knew how simple words could destroy relationships and cut people's hearts like no knife or sword could ever dream to, that is, without spilling any blood.

The atmosphere was cold, the same cold he faced when Bulbasaur drenched Rapidash. The both of them were painfully alike in personality, and acknowledging that only made them madder.

But then like a cool breeze that could sweep any fatigue, like a magic that could drag one from the pits of hell itself, Delia Ketchum appeared.

"My, my," she clapped her hand. Whether she was oblivious or she purposely wanted to ignore the coldness around, she spoke with a warm innocent smile like a Sunflora's. "Isn't he just like you, honey? Too focused on his goal that he forgets the important things. But isn't that why I am here for?" She showed the blue book she hid behind her. "Ash, I brought your catalogue from the online store." She handed the book maintaining the bright smile.

"L-Like me?" The older Ketchum seemed surprised and offended at the same time.

"Of course," she beamed. "Don't you remember how you forgot to register for the league and then had to pay the janitor a lot to put your name in?"

"That janitor!" Alex's face turned red, "He's a top notch business man now. He owns the Kanto Battle frontier. I hate his guts for bargaining with me like that."

"Scott was a janitor?!" They all exclaimed.

"Yeah," Alex muttered bitterly, He turned to his son, his anger wasted on the millionaire-turned-janitor. "Ash, read it out."

"Y-yes," Ash opened the book and searched for the page with rules page. After finding out the correct page he began reading with quite difficulty.

"The champion's league 2012-2013 has a complete new set of rules as opposed to the rule carried out for the past 130 years. This time the tournament will face a tier system. Trainers with any amount of league experience amounting from 1 second to even a thousand years can participate in this tournament. Yes, even if you are a trainer who just began his journey you can register at the respective Pokémon Centre near you. However a trainer should submit his Pokédex as a proof or should carry at least one Pokémon with them during registration. "

"What the—" Mr. Ketchum's face lost colors. "It must be that damn Scott. He is a part of the board of directors now. "

"Scott has shares in the League?" Brock asked. Now this was genuinely surprising.

"Yeah, a freaking twenty percent."

"Wow, twenty percent is just too much," Brock conferred. The PLA had a huge turnover amounting to many billions. It was the second best sport after soccer and baseball in terms of popularity. But the new rules—

"I see," Brock scratched his chin. "So by letting beginning trainers battle, Scot is planning to draw in a huge number of crowd than usual. Even people not interested in the league will come and watch if their friends or children will be participating."

"Excellent deduction Brock," a new voice said. Professor Oak and Tracey were behind them, carrying a large tray containing Pokémon food. "Now Ash this means you'll have to face Gary in the Champion's League."

"It isn't called the Champion's league till you reach Tier 1," Mr. Ketchum interjected, before reading further. "All applicants are automatically put in Tier 7, irrespective of League experience and any position they previously have. The tournament from Tier 7 to 6 is Pokémon World Tournament, Rosenburg cup. But, if you are a current certified Gym Leader then you get into Tier 5, which is called the Pokémon World Leaders Tournament. And if you are a certified member of Elite Four, you will be in Tier 2, the tournament is then called the World Elite Tournament, and then finally if you are one of the Champions of the Unova, Sinnoh, Hoenn or the combined Johto-Kanto champion you will be in Tier 1. It's then called the Champion's League."

"Ah," Professor Oak said thoughtfully, "Although it seems like they degraded the tournament, in hindsight they actually improved the quality of the tournament."

"How is that?" Alex asked. "They are literally allowing anyone who can wear a pant."

"The new system will filter out all the beginner trainers, Alex. Only the best of the best will reach the top. It's far better than the usual Champion's League. If you win you could actually boast that you defeated everyone below you."

Alex took a sigh, sinking in what the professor said. "What do you guys think?" He asked Ash specifically.

Ash however, pumped his fists into the air and exclaimed, "No matter what the rules are, I will win this tournament no matter what!"

"Idiot," Alex muttered while wincing at his own remark, owing to the fact that he was exactly the same like him. "Well I guess it's good, but the people at Rosenburg will be pissed off."

"Then in that case I believe all of you should participate in this tournament," the Professor nodded to Cilan, Brock and the four girls behind.

"Iris and Misty will be in Tier 5," Cilan said, "Now that has a fantastic taste to it. We all could aim to reach those two." The girls beamed proudly of the sudden status they were given.

"What I want my son to reach is Cynthia or Lance," Alex commented, which brought out an eerie silence among the group. "Ash, our battle was interrupted earlier. But my question stands, will you take my offer?"

Ash looked down, contemplating for a second. Now something like that was a surprise from Ash. He thinks very rarely, Brock thought. "Only if you accept my battle style." He replied firmly.

So even if an experienced trainer who was also his father told him to change his battle style he wouldn't do so. Is this the same Ash whom he battled in the Pewter Gym? It was a wonder how time changed people. He has grown from a brat who only wanted the title of Pokémon Master to a powerful trainer who sticks to his ideals. Without his knowledge Brock was beaming proudly at Ash. Noticing which Cilan placed a friendly arm around his shoulders.

"Seeing Ash talk like a grown up makes me dizzy for some reason," Misty said. Brock then realized she missed some of his growth in the Hoenn League, Battle Frontier and Sinnoh League. Even he missed his growth in Unova, but nothing shook Ash as much as that one person did, namely: Paul. Brock witnessed the biggest changes in Ash's life. While it was true that Dawn watched the same, but she didn't knew the Ash from before, so she couldn't register it as a change.

Iris whispered, "Really? I still think he is a little kid."

Misty smiled, "You should have seen him back then. He used to brag for a whole week just because he caught a Caterpie."

"Fine," Alex agreed after a deep pause, cutting the murmurs between the girls. "But I need time. I won't take much. But till then you are on your own."

"Well let's put all this discussion aside and have a good night's sleep."Delia announced. "All of you will be busy with the registration tomorrow." She said to her son, "Ash I think it's better if you camp out with your friends tonight. We can always catch up later."

"Yeah," Alex agreed, "Friends are very important Ash. It's really hard to find people you can trust these days. Take care of my son, all of you." He smiled at them. The veteran trainer then led his wife towards the exit. "So when did you close the restaurant?" He asked his wife as they slowly disappeared out of earshot through the door. Mrs. Ketchum replied something back, but Brock couldn't make out what it was.

"Well I and Tracey have some feeding to do," Oak said. "You guys have your time."

***

The night was far more disappointing to her. She has canceled many appointments to visit him. The reunion with his father postponed half of it. But at least Mr. Alex was kind enough to give Ash to them for the night. But the boy was already asleep, apparently tired from the three day journey from Unova. Perhaps May and Dawn were equally disappointed, but they were already indulged in discussing about contests.

"So you love him?"

Misty jumped at the sudden question. She found Iris, in her pink, worn night dress hanging upside down from the sturdy branch of some tree.

"I-I," she panicked for a second. She placed a hand on her chest, and found her heart pounding like a race horse. But she was different from three years ago. She was used to tough situations as a gym leader, and she knew the best thing to do was to take a deep breath and clear her mind from all idle thoughts. "I don't know. I feel so sometimes, but sometimes I think it's just an attraction because I hung out with him for two years."

"A dilemma, huh?" Iris folded her arms with a foxy smile on her lips, "You are really interesting and daring to accept like that. You did better than May."

"Wait, you asked May?" It didn't dawn upon her that the other girls were travelling partners too, and might have considerable feelings towards him. Not to mention, she was completely out of touch with the 'new' Ash who talked stuff like battle style and what not.

"I did," she replied.

There was a momentary silence as Misty wanted her to speak further, but Iris didn't. The dragon trainer watched haughtily as Misty burned with curiosity. Misty realized the cunning fox behind her and understood the kind of stalemate she was thrown into.

"So what did she say?" Misty asked, trying very hard to look unconcerned.

"Well, she was in a dilemma too," Iris said. "Although she said she never gave it much thought. So you seem to be advanced on the relationship thinking. Maybe you love him the most."

"Wait, why me? You didn't ask Dawn yet, right?" That was an awful self-defense, but it seems Iris wants to corner her into admitting something she would regret later on. Thinking about him a bit and confessing are in different levels altogether. Misty wasn't keen on touching the second, not yet.

"Oh so you want me to pick on Dawn?"

Misty asked, hoping to corner Iris. "So you admit you are picking on me?"

"Yes, I am."

Her guts be damned to hell! How could she talk something like this? For god's sake Brock and Cilan might be listening to them. They should at least move away from the boys. What if something worse happens? What if Ash listens? She glanced at Ash's sleeping figure, to confirm her doubts. Much to her sanity, the boy was snoring loudly while attempting to roll inside his sleeping bag.

"Fine, let's pick on Dawn tomorrow, okay?" Misty said. She felt guilty about putting Dawn in a fix like that, but even she was curious about her. But of course not as much as she was about Iris. Was Iris simply playing with her or could it be a psychological play for the tournament? Nah, it couldn't be the latter. She wouldn't droop so low. Ash never associated well with people who have malicious intent.

"Fine," Iris agreed. Her eyes brightened with a new idea, "Hey wanna sleep on the tree with me?"

Misty considered the offer for a second, realized playing along her terms would be safer for now and agreed. "I'll try."

***

"So is everybody aboard?" Dad's booming voice echoed through the group. We were on Oak's jeep, with Dad at the helm. Brock sat beside Dad, while the four girls somehow fitted themselves in the back seat. Cilan and I were forced to take the uncomfortable, empty and crooked space in the back which was supposed to be for luggage. Gary was driving his own car and already took off few minutes ago. So much for my ego, I should have gone with him.

"Yeah," everyone with the exception of Cilan answered with full energy. Cilan might be paranoid about the long journey to Viridian sitting in a dangerous spot. The both of us could easily be knocked out of the jeep if dad would drive rashly.

But of course trivial matters like that was none of my concern. What mattered to me now was the registration! I know it's kinda weird to get all riled up for a tournament which was one year away, but the excitement kept beating the energy into my body.

While it was said that the registration was open for a whole month, we won't be able to book the suites if we go late, or so dad says. Apparently tenting outside for the whole league wasn't an acceptable option for him.

"Hang on Ash," Misty teased, "We don't want the future Pokémon Master injure himself on his way to the registration." She was holding onto Pikachu who preferred being with her than the cramped up space we were in.

Cilan asked noticing the Pokeballs on my belt, "You are bringing your Pokémon?"

I replied, "Yeah, if I run into some strong trainer during the registration, I will beat him if he tries to smack talk with me."

Cilan laughed, amused at my reason.

"Here we go!" Dad yelled, jerking the jeep to a start while almost throwing me and Cilan outside in the process of doing so. The sommelier was definitely unhappy.

***

"Whoa," the ever-busy Viridian city was busier than usual. In fact there were people everywhere no matter where one looked at. At some point I wondered if it was a League registration or a Tsunami refugee campaign.

They were all trainers. All of them were chattering excitedly, perhaps speaking about their dreams to win the league like I always did. That's right; everybody who participates in a League wants to win. But only a few can actually manage to make the dream a reality.

The jeep screeched to a halt before the Pokémon center where the crowd was denser than it was on the streets.

A cramped up Cilan and I jumped down. My body was aching all over owing to all the bumps along the road.

"Did the two of you make in one piece?" Dad peeped behind. Did he really expect us to fall down somewhere?

"Somehow," Cilan let out a sigh, massaged his arms, and then dusted his dress clean.

"Pretty hectic isn't it?" Gary appeared from the crowd, playing with the keys in his hand. "Even registering for the league can get competitive."

"Ah, don't tell me we have to stand in that big line!" Misty exclaimed. Indeed the line was long, in fact very very long. So long that it started from the Pokémon Centre's main door and extended all the way down the main road. It was as long as one could see. They were all waiting eagerly for the clock to strike 8 AM.

"You are a gym leader of Kanto, Misty." Dad scoffed at her reaction. "I think you can figure out the rest."

And that was how Misty, May, Cilan, Dawn, Iris, Gary, Brock and I were inside the Pokémon Centre before the registration even started. A couple of people yelled while we entered, and some threatened to throw stones at the glass door, but luckily, Officer Jenny maintained the peace for us.

However the excitement I was holding inside couldn't wait any longer as I saw Nurse Joy standing by the counter with a computer, and a printer beside her. That was definitely the registration desk.

"Nurse Joy, register me!" I was already jumping at the counter. But before I could even reach my destination someone pushed me, knocking me off my feet.

"Nurse Joy! My heart breaks with the knowledge that you have to register these participants all by yourself!"

It was the usual infatuated Brock, and he was currently holding Nurse Joy's arms. I could only let out a helpless sigh.

"Is Brock a sommelier too? Iris asked, watching his actions curiously.

"No he's just a weirdo." Misty said with a frown.

"Not much difference," she whispered into Misty's ears. But if I heard it from this far, Cilan might have listened that too.

"Iris," Cilan said, putting up a scowl, "I don't like the way you give people the wrong notion about sommeliers."

"Its fine, Cilan," Misty found his reaction funny, because she laughed, "I know better than to believe what Iris says."

"I actually want to know what a sommelier does," May joined the conversation.

"Really?" Iris asked, "You should see his tasting time. What a big pain!" She earned another scowl from Cilan, but I wondered if she cared.

"It isn't as bad as Iris makes it out to be," Dawn said in an attempt to cheer him. "You actually look cool when you do the 'tasting' thing."

"You really love teasing people don't you?" Misty said, as if the two of them know each other pretty well. "And you call Ash a kid?"

"Oh Misty," Iris brushed her long hair, "Should I tell everyone about what we discussed last night?"

"Hey!" Misty exclaimed. "It's supposed to be a secret."

Iris turned to me, "Hey Ash wanna know what Misty said last night?"

Before I could even have a chance to reply Misty grabbed Iris and closed her mouth, "I didn't say anything, okay?" She said glaring at me.

"Uh, okay?" I said. What the hell was that supposed to be?

"It sure is lively here," Gary lent me a hand and yanked me back to feet. I was too busy watching Iris's antics; I didn't realize I was on the floor all the time. "We better get the registration going before the clock strikes 8. Those people outside look like they are gonna come and kill us. Why is Mr. Ketchum taking so long to park his car?"

"Dad won't be participating in the League," I said. "Let's do the registration thingy."

"What?" Gary looked surprised, "Why wouldn't he? He spent the last ten years on it, right?"

"I don't know," I said, my voice was somewhat low and dejected. He didn't tell me anything about it last night. I should perhaps ask him when I get the chance. But whatever reason he was hiding, it's really painful to let go of the goal you wanted to achieve. Just what happened to make him do it?

"Fine let's register ourselves," Gary said.

"Hey Gary," I asked out of curiosity. "How do you remember my dad? I don't remember him mixing with the kids much."

I wanted to ask if dad encouraged while he made fun of me but decided against it because that seemed silly.

"You remember that party when we were kids," Gary said. So it was the party after all. I hate that man, he loves ridiculing me.

"I bullied you that day," he said. I hate when he puts it like that. "Your dad was all drunk that day. He threatened me when we were alone and told if I were to ridicule your dream again he would throw me in the Pallet River."

"What?" I stared at him unbelievably. I never expected dad to do that. Threatening a five year old? Gary could have complained to the police. But I felt relieved that all my earlier assumptions were wrong.

"He told me I could make fun of you though," Gary chuckled. "I thought he was strange. But now I see the difference between ridiculing you and your dreams."

Uggh, my opinion on this man keeps changing every second.

The registration went quite quickly. It was apparently made easy for handling the large crowd. All I did was hand my Pokédex, put a thumb impression on some kind of scanner. Following my lead Gary, May, Dawn, Cilan, Iris, Misty did the same.

Leaving only Brock.

"Brock, aren't you registering?" I asked the same.

"Brock has applied as a Pokémon doctor," Nurse Joy replied with her trademark smile. "He wants to use the League as an intern project."

"Really? That's cool." I actually didn't know what an intern was, and I had no intention to tell anyone about it.

"So you weren't simply flirting huh," Misty said. She casually checked her watch, "Well guys its eight 'o' clock, let's go and leave Nurse Joy to the mass of commoners." She spoke as if she was the imperial queen to the kingdom called Kanto.

And they say I am haughty and overconfident. Them hypocrites!

***

Although Misty felt slightly guilty about cheating the people by using her influence to register first, that was worth it. They were waiting for Alex to show up. The said man mysteriously disappeared after he left to park his jeep. Maybe he was struck in a line of cars in the parking garage?

"Guys, I need to book a ticket to Twinleaf for tomorrow," Dawn said, "I am going to the booking counter."

"I'll come with you," Ash offered.

"Thanks, I am not familiar with Viridian city; I really need your help." She smiled.

"Why are you thanking me? We are friends not strangers," Ash put on a bright innocent smile.

Why the heck is he so cheeky with her? Oh wait, that's his usual personality. Misty cursed herself for momentarily thinking about him in the wrong way. Ash could cheat a woman perhaps, but he needs to learn to love one for that to happen.

Ash asked, "So you will leave tomorrow, huh? I wish you could stay a few days."

"Buneary has a dress up pretty soon," Dawn said. "I should focus on that for now."

"What about you May?" He asked the brunette.

"Max's tenth birthday is one week from now. I will stay till then," May replied. "So I will hang out for a couple of days."

"Iris?" He asked the annoying dragon trainer.

"I have just become the gym leader, I can't afford much time here. I don't want Drayden pulling me back all the way to Unova. So I will be leaving soon too."

"I see, so all of you will be leaving pretty soon," he looked disappointed.

'What about me?' Misty wondered. Why did he ask everyone else and not her? So he really doesn't care about her? She was furious, not that Ash didn't ask her the same question but to the fact that she was actually bothering about something trivial.

"You didn't ask Misty yet," Iris asked snidely.

Mew damn you Iris.

Ash who didn't notice the devious smile on her face replied casually, "Cerulean is pretty close to Pallet. I can visit her any time."

That's right. He didn't forget about her after all, Misty sighed in relief.

"Yeah, you can visit her any time," Iris said and repeated the last word once again, "Any time," she grinned deviously.

The trainers around gave a mixed reaction to this. While Cilan put on a sympathetic expression, May and Dawn stared at Iris, as if she was unbelievable. Brock who knew Misty's character, however took a cautious step back. If she weren't fuming red, Misty probably would have clobbered Iris with something. That girl is just too much!

"Heh, I get the joke," Gary smirked, unaware of the volcano beside him.

"Nobody asked you Gary Oak!" Misty snapped at the young Professor.

"Ouch," he said mockingly.

"What's the joke?" Ash asked, feeling left behind. "I didn't get it."

"You are the joke," She yelled at the Ketchum. "Gary bring your car, I am going back to Pallet!"

"Aye, aye madam!" Gary saluted her.

Cilan said, "I will come with you too. I don't want to be in that jeep again."

"Count me in," Iris said, ignoring the stern glare from the water Pokémon trainer. The threesome then followed Gary's lead to the parking station where he left his car.

***

"Well let's go to the harbor then," I said leading the way. Brock, May, Dawn followed me. The harbor was pretty close to the Pokémon centre. It was a couple of blocks away.

"So how did the Wallace Cup in Johto go?" I asked. That was the last thing we talked when I met Dawn in Unova.

She exchanged a worried glance with May, "It was a small disaster."

"What happened?"

"We made it to the top four. I lost to Drew," Dawn replied.

"And I lost to Zoey," May finished.

"Wow, so who won?"

"Drew," Dawn said. "Zoey didn't like him at all. She raged for a whole week about it."

"And that's not it," May added. "Drew got to battle Wallace himself."

Brock added, "That must be quite an honor for a coordinator."

"It was," May said enthusiastically, "And guess what? He won!"

"He what—?" I exclaimed.

"Are you telling me Drew won?" Brock was shocked too. "Wasn't he the former champion of Hoenn before Steven took in the reins?"

What the heck. Nobody told me that part. I knew he was Juan's student. Then it makes less sense for Drew to win.

"Well, Drew had the field advantage, and he kept dodging the attacks," May said, "He didn't even attack back. Wallace went easy on him."

"Zoey said it was a cheap way to win," Dawn added.

"But a win is a win," I said. "Dodging a Champion level trainer's attacks is a great feat itself."

A win is a win no matter what. That's what I believed. It's stupid to put the blame on the field or weather. If you lost a battle then it means you lost and nothing else.

"Wallace beat Steven to the Champion throne in 2008," Brock said. "Steven got it back in 2010."

Well that answered my doubt. Talking about Champions, Cynthia came to my mind. She told something about me having some potential and she even talked about Paul—

"Hey Dawn," I asked the blue haired girl, "Did you hear anything from him?"

I realized I didn't mention who the 'him' was. Paul need not be in her mind like he was in mine.

"Him?" She was confused. "Do you mean Paul?"

"Yeah," I said. She somehow caught my drift, luckily. "Did you hear anything from Paul?"

"I heard a couple of things from Barry," she said. "I heard he defeated Brandon and is training under him in Kanto."

"Paul's in Kanto?"

I could meet him and tell what Cynthia thought about the two of us. "Where is he now?"

"I am not sure," she said. "Well I can try contacting Barry for you."

"Ash," Brock brought my attention. He pointed at something distant at the Viridian port. "I think the guy you are searching is right in front of us."

Huh? I swiveled to where Brock pointed. At a good distance away from us, two boys of my age were visible. Each of them had a gigantic grass type beside them and were engaged in a conversation.

I had no doubt. It was him. That purple hair, that purple jacket, it was him!

"Paul!" I yelled at the top of my lungs and dashed towards him immediately.

"Ash wait!" May yelled.

But it's Paul! I can't wait here when he's right in front of me!

Paul noticed me as I came closer. His expression suggested that he was surprised to see me too. He muttered my name in surprise. The surprised face turned into a smile as he finally registered me.

I stopped a few feet before him to catch hold of my breath. There was a brief silence between us as we stared at each other. It all seemed like a dream. I knew I would meet him someday, but not like this. It was a pleasant surprise for both of us.

Calming my breath I finally managed to speak, "It's been a while, Paul."

"Yeah," he said with a warm smile uncharacteristic of his previous cold self. "You seem to be energetic as usual."

***

"Freakin' Viridian Gym," Alex muttered. He had several bad memories about this gym. Things he liked to forget about. If 'that man' still lived here, he would have broken the gym's door to pieces and try to burn him up with his Rapidash. But he ran away, to some freaking' underground where no one would ever hope to find him. He hated him, but he accepted that he was good at what he did.

"**** you Giovanni," he muttered under his breath. It was almost time; Ash and the others might be waiting for him.

"Hey did you see that? Ash Ketchum from Pallet is fighting that guy with Drapion." An enthusiastic kid shouted at a group of children who were busy playing mock Pokémon battles.

"That nasty guy who used poison on Ash's Pokémon?" A young girl asked, apparently looking scared.

"Yeah!"

The kids rushed towards the direction where the port was.

Alex was amazed how he underestimated his son's fame. Apparently making it to the top ranks in Leagues consecutively could make you popular. A smile crept on his face as Alex imagined his son's reaction to his newfound fame.

But wait. A guy who used poison? Guy who used Drapion? He never watched any of Ash's battle but he remembered a news article about an epic battle in the Sinnoh League that made its way into the Rosenburg Times' third page. He remembered the picture of a Gliscor dodging Drapion's Pin missile. The photo was quite artistic, he remembered.

So Paul is here, huh? Quite interesting.

***

"You seem to be energetic as usual."

Dawn was surprised to see the smile on Paul's face. She knew there was some change in him during the battle, but this? Was this what Cynthia said?

"When one life meets another life, something will be born."

The guy in front of her, it is hard to call him Paul. He's completely different. He doesn't carry the same negative aura anymore. Instead he was shedding a positive light like Ash. Did losing to Ash really affect him that much?

"Well, I guess you are Ash?"

Their attention shifted to the new face beside Ash.

"My name's Vincent from Fuchsia City," he lent a firm hand to Ash.

"The name's Ash Ketchum, from Pallet." Ash shook his hands with Vincent.

"I know everything about you," the blue haired Vincent said. "You turned Paul into a monster, you know?" He chuckled.

Ash threw a questioning glance at Paul. "Ignore him," Paul said.

"I am not kidding, Ash," Vincent said. "Paul and I were friends. We got our starters the same day. He changed a lot since Reggie lost. He hardly talked to me back then. The only thing he did was battle and battle."

Dawn's attention shifted to the enormous Venusaur beside Vincent. Calling it enormous was apt, because it was considerably larger than May's.

"Ash," Paul said. "Ever since I lost to you. I questioned my strength. I knew I lacked compassion. It's hard to learn something like that. But I tried, and I won against Brandon."

"Isn't that great?" Ash smiled back earnestly. His face lightened up with a new idea.

"Let's have a rematch Paul," Ash pointed to Torterra, "I want to battle your strongest Pokémon."

"You want a one-on-one with Torterra?" Vincent looked between Ash and Paul. "You are quite the strange guy, Ash."

"Its fine," Paul said, "Let's battle."

"Well Paul did you forget the registration?" The blue haired Vincent asked. "Your ship's gonna depart by afternoon."

"I'll do it in Sinnoh," Paul smirked.

***

A considerable crowd surrounded the battlefield the two trainers chose. The normal crowd would mostly ignore a Pokémon battle, but Viridian was currently full of trainers prepared for registration and they apparently took interest in the Pokémon battle.

"Ash versus Paul," Alex muttered. "Let's see how good it is."

Their battle ground was a small public park nearby. Paul had a well-grown Torterra on his side. Alex could tell with a mere glance how powerful the Pokémon was.

'He seems to be a lot stronger than Cynthia said,' Alex wondered. Was there actually a Pokémon in Ash's team that can fight this monster? Maybe that Infernape or Pignite could. Staraptor or Noctowl wouldn't be a bad choice either. Or better he could use that Glalie. It seemed good enough, and with an overwhelming type advantage it could defeat Torterra.

"Tauros, I chose you!"

With a mighty roar, the Wild Bull Pokémon signaled its presence. Its eyes were intimidating, carrying a rage fitting of a Pokémon with such stature. But that could have been wonderful only if Torterra showed any signs of intimidation. The Pokémon which was larger than Tauros merely watched its opponent like it was a minor trifle to be filed away.

Once again, his son made a strange decision. Instead of going with a type advantage he chose a Pokémon with a neutral type against Torterra.

"I was actually expecting Pikachu," Paul stated. "Well I guess you are wary of my Torterra's strength."

Ash remained silent, sending out his trade-mark-Ketchum smirk. He loved when his son put that look, but he seemed to use it too often than necessary.

So Paul was expecting him to do worse and use a Pokémon with type disadvantage? But yeah, from what he knew, he couldn't put his son above that.

'Let's see how your prediction goes, Cynthia.'

***

Ash will make the first move. It was a silent agreement between the two of them. Ash always loved to attack first and Paul always loves to study the opponent's attack first. It was an excellent match between their opposite tastes.

"Get ready, Tauros!" Ash signaled his Pokémon. The Pokémon was pumped by the trainer's motivation as it snorted and glared at Torterra with intimidating red eyes.

So he constantly motivates his Pokémon by reminding that they were in this together. Then he should do the same too.

"Let's win this, Torterra," he said trying to sound as natural as possible. The Pokémon turned to its trainer mildly surprised, but it turned back to its opponent and gave out a small grunt.

So encouragement works.

Are small trivial things like encouragement really this important? The Sinnoh League proved to him that it was a yes. He decided to show affection to his Pokémon if not for their sake, for winning at least.

He liked winning.

His attention shifted to Ash. He carried the same aura of confidence as ever. There were no doubts of his chance to win. Cocky as usual. Then he should remain passive till he gets high and high and drop him down.

Tauros were known for their physical prowess and their head on attacks. However Torterra was an ace at taking such attacks. Even a Flareblitz from Infernape wouldn't take him down, not that he would ever do something rash like that. So, what was it? Return? Tackle? Double Edge? Take Down? Rock Climb?

There were too many options, and he didn't know what that Tauros can use. So which attack is it Ash?

Ash raised his hand to the air, "Tauros—" Whatever it could be, Torterra could handle it without a sweat.

Ash completed his command. "Bulldoze!"

Damn that brat.

Tauros growled in response and lifted its front leg and landed the foot heavily on the soft ground. The ground instantly shook in response, shockwaves erupted from the surface, strands of leaves were thrown astray, blowing the wind at the same time.

The tremor shook the ground beneath Torterra. The heavy Pokémon planted its feet to the ground, its large expanse preventing it from any damage. Being a grass type meant that the damage done was further less.

Then why did he use this move? Ash isn't a fool. That much he could say.

'What is it, Ash? Are you predicting some kind of reaction from me?'

Paul waited till the Bulldoze ended. Torterra didn't budge, not even a tenth of an inch. So whatever Ash expected him to, Paul gave him a clear message: 'I won't move till you attack me head on.'

It was an open provocation and Ash would definitely fall for it.

"Bulldoze, one more time!"

Again? This time Paul was genuinely surprised.

The Bull Pokémon repeated the ground shaking move once more. The same thing repeated. Torterra didn't bother the attack and stood still.

Was he aiming for some kind of field effect? He took a look at the ground. The field was made specifically for Pokémon battles. It was a plain field with some grass and bushes here and there. If it were a muddy field then what Ash did could make sense.

"Dorderaa!" The Pokémon grunted at its trainer. Apparently doing nothing was boring it.

That's when the realization hit Paul.

***

"Holy Miltank," Alex didn't knew whether to laugh or be proud of his son's strategy. It was a dumb strategy, in a way but it actually takes some brain to think things in a different angle.

Ash intended on forcing Paul to attack. He was trying to wear down Torterra slowly with Bulldoze. Of course it won't work in long term because the damage done was very less. He simply wants to do some damage till he wears off Paul's patience.

Ash knows that the Paul guy was waiting for him to attack. He's scared if Paul might be setting up some kind of ambush if he attacks head on.

At this point Alex could throw a guess: Ash knows a lot about the other kid's Torterra. Knowing his son he might have actually challenged Paul to use his Torterra.

But the strategy he was using now was more like an attempt to draw the game, not win it. A Tauros can never put a Torterra in stalemate. Patience was a virtue Torterra possessed, not Tauros.

So if the Paul guy was actually smart and stays put, Ash would be the first to lose his patience. And the Ketchum's are well known for their impatience. So—

"Tauros, Take Down!"

Ash finally snapped.

***

Dust rose over the field as my Tauros charged at the gigantic tortoise with power enough to make a truck feel small.

Tauros was finally happy. He hated sitting and uselessly plowing the ground with Bulldoze. It's sad that my strategy was a failure. I tried provoking Paul's Torterra into attacking but it didn't work.

"Block it!"

Paul's commands were simple and never carried more than two words. It was an effective way of communicating. I wish I could be like him, but it's not my style.

Torterra braced for the attack, plunging its feet deep into the soil. As the wild bull came closer, Torterra pushed its skull forward to meet Tauros's head with its own.

Like a resonating sound wave, dust rose behind Torterra's hind legs similar to the one raised by Tauros's charge. The gigantic Pokémon was pushed a few steps back before it managed to hold its ground.

The wall of mass stopped the destructive force called Tauros from moving any further, but at the same time it didn't push forward in return. In otherwise it was simply being defensive. In that case—

"Put more power into it!"

Tauros did as directed. It put more power into the attack, this time forcing Torterra a few more inches back.

"Just like that buddy!" I encouraged.

Tauros let out a roar and put more power once again. The tortoise let out a surprised grunt as the Pokémon pushed it more and more. It could easily retaliate perhaps, but the trainer didn't make a move yet.

'This is my power, Paul.' I wanted to say. But knowing Paul this was just an attempt to give me false comfort.

"Torterra Gigadrain!" He commanded at last.

"Fall back!" I cried, almost immediately.

The stone like projections on Torterra's back grew a brilliant green. Three vines grew out of the projections and went on to grab Tauros. But having being warned well before Tauros stopped its charge and jumped back just in time. The green vines struck the ground, penetrating deep into the soil. The tortoise Pokémon opened its jaws in surprise to find its target safely behind the Gigadrain.

Paul glared at me, not expecting me to react so quickly. 'So you predicted me to do that?' was the look in his eyes.

Yes I did.

"Stoneedge!" He didn't waste a moment.

Torterra having failed to hit the target decided to take its revenge with a Stoneedge. A circular array of rocks was found orbiting around Torterra. The projectiles were then sent one after the other at the bull Pokémon.

Steel against Rock!

"Counter it with Ironhead!"

The bullet like stones was bounced like harmless pebbles when a flash of bright light shot past them. The flash charged at the immobile Torterra and struck it head on.

Torterra let out a painful grunt, the four claws on its feet plunged onto the ground to stop itself. But the soil said otherwise and crumbled under its grasp until friction finally dominated Tauros's attack power. With an unexpected snarl, Torterra took a step forward and pushed Tauros back with its head. Even the ever docile Torterra couldn't tolerate getting pushed back like that.

Tauros back tracked a few steps back. Torterra was glaring at him, prepared to go for the offense.

I was really in a fix here. I wanted to have a head on confrontation with Torterra, but the problem was getting into a close ranged battle with Torterra was dangerous, and the only attacks Tauros knew were close ranged ones. For once I wanted to curse my thoughtlessness.

But, if we could do a hit and run tactic, then maybe we could have a chance. Or I could do that.

"Tauros, Take Down!" I commanded.

Tauros charged at the tank, the ground trembled as its hooves touched the ground. I would never want to be on the receiving end of the attack, But Torterra was a completely different case. To take an attack like that he must have a really hard shell. I wonder if my Torterra could take attacks like that.

"It's coming," Paul's eyebrows twitched. "Gigadrain!"

The three green vines shot for the head-on charging Tauros.

"Full force!" I exclaimed.

Tauros doubled its speed as the tortoise came closer. At the same time when it crashed into Torterra with a sound similar to banging a wooden door, two of the Gigadrain caught Torterra by the horns.

But the impact of the Takedown was larger than anyone expected, Tauros pushed and pushed Torterra back.

"Hold fast!" Paul said.

It was only a matter of time before Gigadrain takes over Tauros and leech its health away.

"Tauros, lift Torterra into the air!"

A collective gasp surrounded me. Everyone was taken aback by the command, even Paul. He stared at me with a bewildered expression.

Tauros lowered its head, catching Torterra's horns with its own.

"Impossible," Paul muttered with a frown.

"It won't make it," someone muttered.

"That Torterra is too heavy," another of the crowd commented.

Defying all other expectations, fighting the impossible, Tauros rammed the ground with its feet and propelled up the weight on its horns. At first Torterra's hind legs rose by half-a-inch, the green vine sparked with energy as it began to absorb Tauros.

"It actually lifted it!" There was a buzz in the crowd.

"Just wait, it will put it down in a second." A nameless woman was bragging to her friend.

They were all wrong. I believed in my Pokémon.

"You can do it, Tauros!" I cheered.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried in encouragement.

My last words had a significant effect. Tauros grunted, snorting a gallon of air out of its lungs. With an unbelievable motion it lifted Torterra completely off the ground and tossed the hefty mass into the air.

A collective gasp surrounded me, as almost everyone around stared at Torterra, ten feet above the ground, with open mouths.

With a ground-breaking impact, that almost shook me off my feet Torterra landed with a heavy thud, crunching the ground underneath. My vision was blurred by the dust that enveloped the entire region.

I covered my face with my hand, dust and smoke was something I saw lot often in Pokémon battles. The trainers around however were unprepared, and coughed as the dust seeped into their nostrils.

It wasn't before a whole minute that the vision returned. Two silhouettes appeared as the dust thinned down. One was the standing Tauros and the other was Torterra, upside down, limped to its left, groaning in pain.

Paul's purple eyebrows were touched down in a frown. He was mad. Being in a disadvantage was my advantage after all.

"Get back to your feet," Paul said, except his voice didn't have the same curt expression, or snappy tone he had whenever his Pokémon fell in an uncomfortable situation. He changed.

Torterra tried to swing its airborne right leg. The entire shell moved about the grounded left part, using the tree on the right part of its shell as a fulcrum and heavily landed its right foot.

Torterra managed to come out of its uncomfortable fix in just one swoop. There weren't any useless struggles, only a perfect swing of its entire body to get out of the situation all other turtle Pokémon dreaded in a battle. I knew how difficult it was because I have three such Pokémon.

It was simply amazing.

Paul has trained his Torterra to come out of the most extreme situations. He thinks a lot more than just attacks and defense. Unlike me, he trained his Pokémon on every single outcome, no matter how less likely it was.

"Your Tauros is good," Paul smiled. But behind it was a calculative shrewd trainer. He was preparing to counterattack. It couldn't be helped that the only course of attack we had was a straight on collision.

[Dracoflare]

"If it were anything else than your Torterra we could have won already," I retorted back.

Tauros was steadily losing his stamina. But as long as we dodge his attacks, we could still use a ton of Take Downs.

***

"We have cornered them Tauros," Ash said to his Pokémon, "Let's finish this once for all, Take Down!"

It was true, Brock realized. Torterra was pretty ragged, but would it be finished with the next attack? Unlikely. This was Paul's Torterra they were talking about. Ash knows it better than anyone. Maybe he was simply encouraging Tauros to put it all.

Tauros charged at its opponent, the usual trail of dust following it.

"Ash seems confident," May commented. "They are doing the same attack again."

"Gigadrain," Paul said. His voice was back to serious mode.

"Again?!" Dawn exclaimed. "Didn't Torterra fail the first time?"

"Paul isn't Ash," Brock stated. "He won't use the same move again unless he's very sure about it." Brock stated.

"Wow, you make Ash sound bad," May said.

"It's just that Ash's way of doing things is unusual," Brock said.

Torterra prepared its three green sparkling vines once more. As Tauros approached the Tortoise, the said Pokémon sent two vines to grab Tauros's horns one more time.

Ash exclaimed, "Let's lift it again Tauros!"

"Grab its neck," Paul said at the last minute.

Brock exclaimed, "This is bad!"

***

Perfection.

Paul liked it, and wanted it more than anything. And this was perfect.

Torterra's three vines completely took control of Tauros. It was foolish to stop Tauros's charge directly. He made the mistake first time. The first time, he tried to catch hold of the horns and pull it down to the ground, but Tauros was too fast and strong for Torterra to do that. But this was—

Perfect.

Tauros let out what was a mixture of a grunt and a groan. Two vines held the horns, while the third was wrapped around its neck, like a leash. The sudden pressure on its neck stopped Tauros completely.

"Don't give up Tauros, attack!"

Tauros pushed itself forward, despite the painful leeching vine on its neck and tackled Torterra. But the attack lacked the previous momentum.

Gigadrain began its work, leeching away Tauros's health. Consequently Torterra's fatigue was slowly disappearing. Its ragged breath was becoming steady.

Yes its breath was ragged. Most people don't notice when Torterra goes out of breath because it normally takes one breath per 3 minutes or so. But when damaged heavily it takes two per minute. Hardly noticeable for an outsider, but the trainer can easily figure out its situation.

Tauros realized the trouble it was in. Its legs were slowly losing energy. It panicked and tried to move back, but the leash around its neck stopped it.

"Tauros!" Ash panicked. Things were finally going his way. A smile crept across Paul's face.

Tauros tried to desperately pull back, but what it could only do was raise its two legs and fall forwards again. Escaping was impossible, Paul made sure of that.

He noticed the expression on Ash's face. The panic was still there, but he was calmer. His brain seems to be working.

When Ash's cornered he would do something crazy. Paul knew that much. But predicting what he would do was the exciting part. He should think the same way Ash does.

What could he possibly do in a situation like this? Ramming into Torterra was impossible, they were too close to do that, and would only waste energy. Then that would leave his—

Legs. He noticed Tauros's legs were completely free. Yes, he would do that. Then the attack coming would be—

"Tauros use Bulldoze on Torterra's head!" Ash cried, with his fists clenched.

Just as expected. Then he shall let him do that, let him squirm his freedom back.

Tauros lifted its front legs at once and thrust them at Torterra's weak spot, the part above its head.

Wham!

The impact was larger than Paul thought. The power Tauros put on the attack was harder than usual. The impact on its head caused Torterra's hind legs to rise. The tortoise's grasp on the bull was loosened. Tauros used the chance to stagger back.

Now for the final attack.

"Frenzy Plant!"

Just as Tauros began to distance itself from the Pokémon, twelve large monstrous and jagged plants rose from the ground. The bull halted its retreat and looked back in terror.

Three of the plants went for Tauros. It all happened quickly the Pokémon had no time to dodge.

Paul could have used Frenzy plant earlier, but there was an issue, He didn't know Tauros's fourth move yet. Besides Tauros was so fast that, unless it was a surprise it could actually dodge the attack. Missing a Frenzy Plant was something Paul couldn't afford.

But now it's over. It's game.

"Your horns!"

'Horns?' Paul was bewildered.

The Frenzy plants were supposed to strike Tauros, and the impact should be good enough to toss it away a good distance. But instead—

Tauros was still standing underneath the three plants, its legs trembling under the impact. It held the Frenzy plants between its horns!

The attack would have finished Tauros if it had hit. But Ash made sure it didn't. The battle wasn't over yet. Only Ash can do something unusual like this.

There were still nine frenzy plants under Torterra's control. He could try finishing the bull off. It wasn't too late.

Ever since Torterra learned Frenzy Plant he learnt the strengths and weaknesses of the attack. Torterra could summon twelve plants at once. Each of these plants could be used once before they turn immobile. Paul used this fact many a times for his advantage. There was no time to make a decision; he should just strike while Tauros was still defensive.

"Finish it off!" Paul barked his command.

Torterra having understood his command moved the remaining nine plants at once.

Meanwhile Tauros wriggled out from below the three plants only to find nine more lunging at it.

"Tauros, Double Team!"

'What the heck!'

As Frenzy Plant #4 moved onto Tauros the Pokémon jumped above it and split into six images.

Not good at all.

Fine then he would strike them all at once.

"Attack them all!" Paul barked.

Frenzy Plant #5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 hit the five images. When #10 was about hit the real one, the Pokémon leapt away from the crashing plant.

#11 and 12 were aimed to catch it but the Pokémon dodged them with relative ease too.

Paul gritted his teeth with immense dissatisfaction as Tauros weaved between the plants and came towards Torterra.

This was what he feared the most, and to think he actually let that happen.

"Torterra can't move," there was a smile of victory on Ash's face, "Take Down!"

***

A powerful impact knocked Torterra a good foot away.

"Dorderaa!" The Pokémon growled in pain. Tauros did an excellent job.

"This time use Iron head."

Tauros moved back and charged once more, this time with a flashy aura surrounding it. It struck Torterra once more, this time with more power.

The heavy Pokémon was sent sliding like a football. But as it slid back towards Paul, its legs finally regained mobility and clasped the ground underneath, braking itself to a stop.

Paul had a deep frown on his face. Torterra must be reaching its limits. Heck it should have fainted by now, I just couldn't believe how many attacks it could take. I understand Torterra were supposed to be defensive but this was too much.

Paul's stance changed. He looked all laid back till now, but now he seemed more excited. Maybe he finally decided it was time to go full offensive.

"Stoneedge!" He commanded.

"Use Double Team to dodge!"

The six images of Tauros were rained upon by the sharp projectiles, but the original darted between them and stood before Torterra unscathed.

"Gigadrain!" The Pokémon said as done.

"Dodge again!" Tauros hopped above the vines aimed at its leg, then dodged the next one that tried to grab its neck and the final one that tried to plunge its belly.

"Don't let it go! Keep attacking."

The vines chased Tauros, trying to pierce the bull. The bull Pokémon jumped, hopped, and sprinted. He dodged every last of them. At some point I lost the count of rounds we dodged the attack for.

The relentless Gigadrain finally stopped despite the trainer not commanding so. Torterra was out of breath, I noticed. He was panting, opening and closing his jaws to take in the air through his mouth along with his nose.

I examined my own Pokémon. Tauros was worse; its legs were bruised, trembling ready to buckle down anytime. It struck its tongue out as it desperately tried to take the fresh air inside.

Torterra shifted its body and grumbled something to Paul. Paul closed his eyes, and smiled in satisfaction.

Did something happen?

"You have finally brought Torterra down to half its health," he proclaimed.

You have to be kidding me. Tauros was almost down. It's just a bluff. It's just a bluff.

"We could do it the slow way," Paul said. "I could keep attacking you. Your Tauros has good stamina but I wonder how long it could dodge. Your Pokémon must be reaching its limit."

I remained silent. It was all true. This was what happened in Lake Acuity too. Gliscor kept attacking it with super-effective attacks, and Chimchar hit repeatedly with flamethrowers, which could have hurt a lot despite the light screen and yet he had a lot of energy left. We were actually better this time. Tauros did a lot more damage than Gliscor and Chimchar combined. Should I be proud?

"Thanks to you I found a new strength within my Pokémon," Paul said.

New strength? Thanks to me?

"Torterra, activate it," he said casually placing his arms inside his pocket.

"Activate what?" I asked.

As if to answer my question Torterra stretched its body. A green aura surrounded every corner of its body, from the head to the short tail behind.

It was pure energy and Torterra was full of it. It was Torterra's special ability, Overgrow.

"B-But how?" Overgrow was a special ability that kicked when the Pokémon was extremely low in health. It was a temporary surge of energy. A last resort. Not something you can unleash whenever you want.

"Thanks to you I found a new strength within my Pokémon."

"You turned Paul into a monster, you know?"

So this was what they were talking about. Paul used his Pokémon as brainless tools and yet brought out strength out of them. But now he treated them with love and respect. I always thought the only difference between me and Paul was I cared for my Pokémon, and caring for my Pokémon's feelings was my strength. That was actually why I managed to defeat Paul in the Sinnoh League. But now I lost my advantage. I had no upper hand above him. The truth—

I am outclassed.

I can't beat him, not like this. This isn't the Paul I know, he's something more. The smirk he carried wasn't arrogance, it was confidence. He didn't say he would win, he knew he would win. I-I…

"Pikapi?" Pikachu noticed the hesitation inside my eyes.

"I know Pikachu," I said. "I can't lose to him. I won't lose to him."

"Let's decide this in one move," Paul said.

Just like the Sinnoh League battle.

"Fine by me," I said.

We studied each other. His eyes bore into me and mine into him.

"Tauros—"

"Torterra—"

We said at the same time.

"Take Down!"

"Frenzy Plant!"

Tauros charged at the glowing tortoise as if it were the last wall he needed to cross to reach paradise. The wall however proved too strong for him to scale.

With a final grunt Torterra performed the dynamic grass type move, Frenzy Plant. The ground splintered, giving way to the enormous trees from underneath.

The sights before made me gasp at once. The crowd which constantly muttered comments turned silent and the determined Tauros lost its will and stopped in its tracks.

Lying before was literally a forest of frenzy plant. They were innumerable, making the last Frenzy Plant a big joke in comparison. The plants moved like organisms that had a life of their own. Standing amidst the forest was a bright green light, the mastermind, the final boss, Torterra.

The attack made me lose any hope at once. I couldn't win, not against this. No one can win against this. This was monstrous, unearthly. I doubt if even Mewtwo could win against this.

Maybe the last statement was an exaggeration but that was what I felt at that time.

I lost.

"You turned Paul into a monster, you know?"

Yes I did. A monster not in the sense that he was a demon to slay, or a terrible person but an extremely powerful trainer that you cannot imagine to defeat, even on your best day.

I looked at Tauros, terrified as its legs trembled and unconsciously took a few steps back. It irked its ears, waiting for me to say something encouraging, but I was too stupefied. Pikachu didn't add any encouragement either. I can't blame him.

If anyone can still see a chance of victory in front of this, they are either ridiculously strong or don't have a brain inside their head.

"Finish it," I heard Paul's muffled voice from behind the wall.

The plants rained on Tauros, as it didn't even try to dodge the attack. Telling to dodge that was the worst practical joke one could make.

***

Silence engulfed the huge gathering. Everyone including Alex neither moved nor made any noise.

"I won," Paul said breaking the impregnable silence.

The field was all battered. The trees that were brought from the ground slid back into the ground. Torterra was standing still, like it stood from the beginning. It never moved, it was only pushed, thrown by the other Pokémon. It never moved on its own.

Tauros was unconscious, sprawled on its four legs. Its tongue was stuck out, eyes dazed. Its body was filled with injuries and cuts all over.

Ash lowered his head, defeated. His fists were no longer clenched. They simply hung to his shoulders as if they had no energy in them. His face was partially covered by his red hat.

He silently walked over to Tauros and brushed the unconscious Pokémon's fur. "You did an excellent job. I am proud of you." His voice was weak, almost inaudible. He took the Pokémon inside its Pokeball.

Paul did the same before muttering praise for his Pokémon.

The silence returned. Ash simply looked into the ground. He lost the courage to face Paul.

Alex knew how it felt to be in his position. He experienced it more than once. No, he experienced it on a regular basis in Rosenburg.

A single clap broke the silence. The person clapped once more, and was soon joined by a wave of claps. Alex hesitated for a second, but decided to join in the mass of clapping.

It was good while it lasted.

'Cynthia your predictions on Paul were wrong.'

Paul doesn't need five more years.

***

"Ash," the blue-haired Vincent lent me a hand. I wanted to refuse him. I can stand on my own. But I took his hand anyway. "Now you understand what I meant? He's practically unbeatable now."

The crowd began to disperse now that the fun was over.

Brock was close by. He approached us and placed a friendly arm on my shoulders. "You were amazing Ash. It's just that—"

"He's better." I cut in. I am not a kid anymore. I can accept facts, to an extent at least.

"Don't worry Ash," Dawn said. "You can beat him the next time if you train hard. I can help if you want. You have one year for the League."

I wonder. I doubt if even Charizard could beat that power. Even if I were to rely on Charizard, in a full battle he could always use five other Pokémon that can take care of Charizard.

"Not to pour water on your dreams but," Vincent said. "Paul is going to train under Brandon in Snowpoint till the next year."

"Brandon?" May asked, "The frontier brain? Why would he go to Sinnoh?"

"Brandon left his three Regis in Snowpoint. So they would train—" Dawn paused. "Oh, hey Paul."

Paul walked towards us. There was a slightly uncomfortable look on his face. He was perhaps contemplating on how to talk after defeating me like that.

Despite the pressing doubts of future in my heart, I smiled. "You were amazing Paul."

Paul seemed to be shocked by the response. He looked at me bewildered for a second. "I owe it to you and Brandon."

"Where's he?" I asked.

"He said he'll follow me up after he finished something here."

"Well Paul," May stepped forward, "My name is May, and I am a coordinator from Hoenn."

Paul looked at her hand for a second, and gingerly touched her hand. For some reason he shifted his eyes to the ground as if he were hiding something. Something was wrong with him.

"Wow," Dawn whispered into my ear.

Vincent who heard her chuckled.

"To all of you, let me reintroduce myself. My name is Vincent. Paul and I were rivals since we got our first Pokémon."

"Saur," the Venusaur behind him growled.

"Your Venusaur is really huge," May said examining the Pokémon.

The conversation casually drifted off topic. I remained silent all the time. Paul and I exchanged awkward glances once in a while. For some reason he was silent too. The topic moved from introductions to their hobbies to Brock's love life. At that point Brock cut the conversation. "Dawn aren't you supposed to book a ticket to Sinnoh."

She let out a gasp, "Oh, I forgot. Let's hurry!"

"Paul, the S.S Sinnoh might be here anytime soon," Vincent reminded him. "You gotta go too."

***

The S.S Sinnoh bellowed as it sent a final warning signal to its passengers who were yet to board.

Paul and Ash moved closely with Vincent a few steps behind. They didn't have any conversation, they simply walked together.

"Who would have thought they would become so close," Dawn said. Brock had to agree. Ash and Paul were bitter rivals the last time they saw them together.

"Paul doesn't seem to be the type to open himself to others," May said. "Did you see him blush when we shook hands?"

"Maybe he isn't used to have people around," Brock said. The only person he saw Paul move closely with was Reggie. He seemed to be close to Vincent too.

"He used to be extremely rude," Dawn said. "He never even considered talking with me. The only thing we talked about was Ash."

"I could take a guess," Brock said. "Paul isn't used to talking with people. Maybe he reasoned with himself that talking to people is just a waste of time. Hence the rude remarks."

Brock could tell so because his youngest brother was similar too. The correct word was—

"An introvert," Brock said after thinking for a while. Having a large family paid off.

"I guess," May agreed.

Brock and the two girls stopped at a distance from the three trainers. Before boarding the ship Paul turned back and said something to Ash. He couldn't hear what it was but it stung Ash, because even from the distance he saw Ash clench his fists.

***

"Goodbye Ash," Vincent waved to me as he took the bus to Fuchsia. "It's nice meeting you. Good luck with your league training."

"Same to you too!" I waved back. He seemed nice; it was my obligation to return the courtesy back.

"Alright guys, time to go home," I collected their attention. "Dad must be sick of waiting for us."

"Ash, what did Paul tell you before he left?" Brock asked.

The mention of what Paul said earlier made me stiffen.

"I wanted to say this because you are my friend. I guess I could call you that."

"Ash, get stronger."

With just three words he told me a lot. He told me I wasn't ready for the league. He wanted me to get stronger because he wants to defeat me at my full strength.

It was something Paul shared with me alone. I needn't tell about it to anybody. "Three words," I said instead and walked towards the main road.

"Three words?" Dawn asked in confusion.

"Three words!" May squealed at the same time. I didn't know what she understood from that, I simply didn't care.

As we approached the main road a familiar figure was standing there, resting his back on the jeep. "You kids have kept me waitin' for two hours."

"You watched me battle, didn't you?" I asked ignoring his remark. I saw him watching the battle, but I didn't give it much thought back then. He disappeared right after it.

He sighed, "I did."

"What did you think?" It was a straight question. At this moment I wanted someone who could reply to me honestly. Brock, May and Dawn poured words of encouragement, but that wasn't what I needed. An honest opinion and the only person who could give that was dad.

"You sucked," he said. For some reason I wasn't hurt, I was actually expecting that. A mischievous smile crept on his face, "Just kidding. You were excellent."

I was excellent? What a joke. "Dad I don't want your sweet talk. Be honest."

"I am not your mom dummy," he pounded on my head with his bare knuckle. "You were excellent, and that's that."

"But I lost," My eyes sank to the ground. I felt ashamed.

"This isn't like you kid. Bounce back when you lose, that's the Ketchum way!" Alex said. "So that Paul guy overwhelmed you, huh?"

It was true. Every time I lost, I always recovered immediately. Sulking like this, the last time I did so was when Brawly beat me in the Dewford Gym.

"Kid," he said after a pause. "I swear it on the crushes those girls have on you," Dad pointed to May and Dawn who were watching the whole ordeal between me and dad. "I'll make you strong."

***

"Mr. Ketchum, that's highly inappropriate!" Dawn shrieked impulsively, her face was red.

May was about to say something too but stopped as she realized what Alex meant.

"D-Dad?" Ash was shocked. He was trying to say something but he was too shocked to say anything.

Brock began, "Mr. Ketchum, are you saying that—"

"Yes. I'll train Ash for the League starting from tomorrow."

May looked at Ash, studying his reaction. "Does that mean you have accepted my battle style?" He asked.

"Not completely," his father said. "But I see how you consistently get results with it so we can work on it. Besides the things my teacher Mao taught would suit you better than they suit me."

"Really?" Ash seemed excited.

"Yeah," the father said. "The league starts on October 1st 2013. That's exactly 364 days from tonight."

May casually checked her watch. It was indeed October 1st today. Then she remembered Max's birthday was October 7th. Her little brother would finally have a Pokémon. It's been two years since their journey with Ash.

Ash grew up well as a Pokémon trainer. 'I shouldn't fall back either.' She warned herself.

She smiled as the Ketchum ordered his Pikachu to thunderbolt to check if he was dreaming. The rodent promptly obeyed him.

~*~

Authorial Rambling

I liked writing this chapter. I suppose I shouldn't be commenting on what I wrote, so you guys comment on it instead.

The Paul I am showing you guys might be weird outside battles, but in a battle Paul is as ruthless as ever. I personally love writing Paul. He's a grumpy kid with attitude, its fun to play with him.

Vincent is based on the girl who defeated Richie in the Indigo League Semifinals who has an Ivysaur. I thought it was a guy, but when I checked it was a girl. I didn't like changing the gender so I made him a complete OC. I even adjusted her age.

In case you want to check her Google 'Pokémon Assunta'

Time Line: I have adjusted the anime time line to present. So it means Ash started his journey in 2007 and Alex left the family in 2002.

A Question for Reviewers

Name a Canon CoTD/ League Rival you want to see in the World Tournament. It won't be necessary that Ash battles them all, but I'll at least bring their character during the course of the League.

Btw I don't accept OC requests, I make my own.

Other News:

Legend of the Dark Prince

I am still stagnant on my other fic: Legend of the Dark Prince. The chapter to be posted is ready, but I have a bit of conflict with myself about a certain character. People waiting for it: Be patient. I am also going to edit the first few chapters because the quality seems to be lacking when compared to the newer chapters.

Romance and The Pokemon Master:

I will be very happy if anyone would adopt this story. You can start the story from the scratch, and write your own plot or continue with mine. Interested people can PM First come first serve.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. But I own this fan fiction.