Me likes to censor shtuff. You all know what I intended to say, right?
And I'm sorry for being dead for a while. Had my FATs i.e stupid useless pain in the butt tests for a week.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There were many reasons which could explain Ash wanting to go to Prof. Oak's lab. He could meet all of his pokemon, introduce Serena, Clemont and Bonnie to all of them and, here comes the best part, Gary was there.
No, it's not what you're thinking, Ash doesn't have any intentions to run all teary eyed to Gary and hug him while going on and on about how he missed him. NO. Ew!
Okay, he may not have exactly won the Kalos League, but he did get second place and eight shiny badges. He could totally wave at least those in front of the brunette, grinning widely and smugly talk about his outstanding achievement. They were old rivals, it would be unnatural NOT to do it.
But today, Ash was trying to find every possible reason to stay away from it. The reasons included a summer camp and his relation with a certain honey-blonde girl. After getting kicked in the shin by a very pissed off Bonnie, who couldn't wait to see the lab, he had to go.
However, upon meeting and introducing all of them to Gary, Ash had successfully managed to avoid any discussion about the summer camp; actually, more honestly, it had never been brought up.
Until now.
"Aren't you a tad bit curious about why Gramps and your Mom have gone out shopping?" Gary asked, gulping down the biscuit "And also, why are you so quiet Ashy-boy?"
Serena, Clemont, Bonnie and Pikachu had the very same doubt. This wasn't the Ash they knew and loved. They got even more confused when Ash said "I am curious. Just slipped my mind"
He was the guy who had rambled about Prof. Oak, when Clemont mentioned him. He literally had stars in his eyes, almost looked like he was fangurlin'.
Gary shrugged it off and taking another sip of juice, he said "They were planning out the summer camp they want to set up. Some problem with the catering, apparently."
Bonnie's eyebrows rose, only dropping to morph into her smiling face "Isn't that how Ash and Serena met?!" she yelled, hopping off her chair.
Dunn dun dunnnnnnn~
Ash's dropped head snapped up and Gary stared at him, confusion scribbled all over him "Wait a sec" he said "There is not a single summer camp you have gone to that I haven't."
Even more confused, he asked, looking at Serena "What's going on?"
"Its nothing" she replied, smiling "At one of those summer camps, you and Ash went to, I was there too"
"You know, the girl with the really huge straw hat"
A few blinks was all it took, for Gary to get all the memories back. Reluctantly, he pushed away the voice in his head that kept saying 'Wow. Look at her. You'll be forever alone if you let her slip away. She's super cute Gary. ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING??!?!?!' and shot a dangerous smirk at Ash, making the boy push his chair away from the table.
When Gary got up to go to the bookshelf, Ash got up. He was out of the door and into the back garden, when Gary returned to the table with a photo album.
"What's wrong with him?" Bonnie asked, frowning.
"Pika?!" the pokemon joined in.
Gary only flipped roughly through the book ad rested only the last picture. He tapped the picture, flipped his hair with a "Take your time digesting this. I'll be back" and walked off to deal with Ketchum.
Ash knew, all too well, that Gary would flaunt out to taunt him. Already prepared, he grabbed the brunette and with a voice deadly enough to rust nails, he said "Why. Would. You. Do. That?!"
Gary smirked, clearly anything but intimidated "You've grown tall, haven't you? I mean, you're about as tall as me. Impressi-"
"SHUT UP!" Ash yelled "I'll never be able to look her in the face again, Gary! She's my friend!"
"Yup" Gary replied "That's all she'll ever be to you - a friend"
Ash dropped his frown and cocked his head "What is that supposed to mean?" he asked, making Gary sigh.
"Never mind" he said "All I'm telling you is, they saw that picture. Guess its too late now, huh?"
Ash didn't even bother to retaliate, he picked up his weakening feet and sprinted off towards his herd of Taurus "Don't tell Serena where I am!" he yelled. Slightly turning back to face him, he added a desperate "Please"
Meanwhile back inside, for the viewers, the heart-shaped image stuck on the album was the center of attention.
It was an innocent photograph (maybe) of a familiar raven haired boy and a familiar honey-blonde. Turn them back a few years, when they were still seven or eight year-old's and position them so that the former's lips were on the latter's cheek.
See, innocent.
Oh and add a pair of bug-eyed, super shocked blue eyes.
Clemont was the first to react. "Now isn't that cute" he said. "No wonder Ash ran" he added, glancing at his sister and Serena.
"Right, Bonnie?"
Bonnie didn't even care about the other living things that inhibited the room except for the Pikachu on her head and the Deddenne in her purse, all wearing an expression similar to hers.
Wide smiles, which eliminated the gap between the mouth and the ears and eyes streaming with tears at the very existence of the picture.
"Oh my goodness. Oh MY Goodness! OH MY GOODNESS!!!"
The pokemon ran around in joy, high-five-ing each other. "Pikapi!" Pikachu cried in ecstasy, racing out (followed by Dedenne) in search for his best friend. Bonnie followed suit "You can't hide for long Ketchum!" she yelled.
Gary watched the two run out and smiled, half at how cute it was and half at - 'MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!', and slowly took gentle steps towards Serena, who was still standing there, frozen, with her mouth open wide.
"Wanna know the story behind this picture?" Gary asked. Even though he earned a 'yes I'm listening' only from Clemont, he continued.
"Ash's mom was responsible for this picture" he began "She was going around taking every single kid's picture, when she saw the two of them"
"If you were an adult at that camp, you would've been shipping them too" Gary said, earning a chuckle from Clemont.
"I'm not surprised" the Lumiose gym leader said, grinning.
"Any way" Oak continued "Delia, joking obviously, said 'I want a really adorable picture of the two' to which Serena's mum said 'Ash, could you please give her a kiss?'"
"And he took it seriously?" Clemont asked, mirth filling every single one of his words.
"Yup" he nodded "Much to the extremely horrified looks on all of our faces and in front of all those laughing adults.
It's funnier now than it was then."
Clemont broke into a laugh.
Meanwhile outside, Bonnie had found a very scared Ash siting crouched behind a tree. His red hat was a dead giveaway.
"You suck at hiding, you know?" she screamed, scaring the heck out of him. "I mean, why would you hide behind a tree with a width about half as yours"
"Is Serena with you?" he asked, shrugging away the teasing.
Bonnie only smugly grinned; battering her eyelashes and putting on an innocent facade, she asked "Why? Don't you want her here?"
"Bonnie~"
"Okay okay, sheesh!" she laughed "But you know what?"
Ash sighed "What?" he asked back in reply.
She grinned, walking up to face him "You should remake that picture one day" she said.
"Bonnie!"
A/N------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I began writing this before Ash and Alain's battle and I was super sure he would win, so I wrote the one-shot that way. Now, he lost so I had to change it >0<
I'm still not over it, though.