Ash widened his eyes in surprise. "Dad?!"
Delia looked at her husband incredulously. "She's your child?"
"Not now. He isn't apart of my life anymore." Anabel inferred with light venom in her voice. Ash could visibly tell that she was trying to keep her emotions intact. "I haven't spoke with him in years."
"Anabel, w-what are you doing with him?" He stuttered.
Anabel hugged onto Ash's arm. "He's my tag partner and my boyfriend."
Ash almost frowned, as he wasn't aware they made it official since they hadn't had an official date but for the sake of the argument, he decided to roll with it. He moved closer to Anabel. "That's right. Now you two better leave us alone. I don't care if you are legally married to my former mother or not. I disowned my family and friends when I left. Neither of you are a part of my life."
"So leave us alone. We will file restraining orders if we have to." Anabel claimed, making her 'father' glare.
"You can't do that!"
"Of course they can."
Delia flinched at the hard tone and turned to see Brandon and Palmer standing there, arms crossed as they gave off an angry aura. James, however, didn't seem to notice this, or most likely, didn't care as he glared at them.
"And what right do you have saying this, huh? She's my daughter and legally he's my stepson."
"Well too bad, cause 'legally,' no they aren't." Palmer inferred, emphasizing his words.
"That's a load of Tauros crap!" Delia yelled.
Brandon walked in front of them. "Scott adopted Ash to make sure you had no effect on him. And I adopted Anabel after she became my student in battling almost nine years ago. You can't legally do anything to them."
Palmer walked next to them. "Go grab your Pokémon, cause I saw Dawn and a few others nearby. Hurry."
Ash and Anabel ran inside the locker room and snagged their Poke Balls and watches before stepping back outside to see Palmer wasn't lying. Dawn was suddenly there with Paul and Misty next to her.
They saw them come back out. "So are you going to admit to what you did to Max and May's Pokémon?"
Ash had half a mind to go punch Paul, but held his ground. "That I beat them in self-defense for trying to kill Jolteon? Cause that's exactly what happened."
"No, you brutalized them with Garchomp because you got upset over losing the battle." Paul claimed.
"Do you want me to get the medical records and prove it? Cause that won't take me five minutes since he is my Pokémon." Ash snapped.
"Knowing you, you forged them." Misty glared.
Brandon let out a harsh chuckle. "Forging documents. Ash definitely has the IQ to do that."
Ash deadpanned. "You know what? I'll take that as a compliment this time."
"Whatever. Just admit you brutalized them and tell the owner of the buffet and quit the tournament. It's not like you'll win anyways, weakling." Dawn demanded.
"I don't need to win to prove how wrong you all are about me. I just need to watch as you all slowly fall while I keep climbing up. Cause everyone in the tournament that is still in knows I'll get farther than any of you ever will."
"And how many times did I kick you across the pavement in battles?" Paul retorted.
"Coming from the guy who lost to me in the Sinnoh League, where my Pokémon were at their strongest in Sinnoh." Ash fired back.
"And he actually beat me young man. Unlike someone who couldn't take out even one of my Pokémon." Brandon added.
Paul fumed, but Brandon didn't stop. "So do you all understand now? Ash cut all ties with you long ago. You have no right to make him do anything you want, and as I am Anabel's legal guardian, the same rules apply to her. You have no power against them. If I hear any more of this nonsense from her, then I'll personally show you just how much power I have. Do I make myself clear!?" Brandon glared harshly.
"No you don't. Who gave you permission to adopt my daughter?" James demanded.
"You did. After you made me spend my childhood in an orphanage."
"I didn't have the means to support you. But now I do! We can be a family again." James assured.
"You know, maybe in a different situation, I would've thought about at least speaking to you again." James smiled a bit. "But you sided with the one person that Ash never wanted to see again. The one person that reported him dead for two years."
James turned to Delia. "You told me he was just missing."
"Well I didn't think he would actually live for so long, so I told the police he was dead."
"And there you have it. She cared so much about him that she reported him dead instead of at least missing. Now leave before we get angry." Palmer threatened.
Delia held firm. "You can't make me leave my son! He is mine and I can make him do whatever I want."
"NOOOOOOO!" Brandon did his signature yell, making her recoil in fear. "Do I need to spell it out for you?! You do not own him now. Now get out of my sight!" He yelled.
They all ran away in fear, scared that Brandon would actually follow up on his claims. The Pyramid King sighed as he turned around to Ash and Anabel. "Are you two ok?"
"Yeah. We're glad you came at the right time. Otherwise this would have become an all out brawl." Ash stated.
Brandon nodded. "Well I'm surprised it didn't. People as stubborn and idiotic as they are also have shorter fuses. It's impressive that they didn't even pull out a Pokémon."
Palmer agreed. "Yeah. It's just depressing to see them fall so low." He turned to the pair. "So what was the thing we heard about the boyfriend and girlfriend, huh?" He smirked.
Brandon crossed his arms as he glared down at Ash. "I would like to hear this too."
Ash chuckled nervously while Anabel took the lead. "We used it as an act to get my 'Dad' to back off. We were lucky that you came along, cause that didn't exactly help."
"So it was all an act?" Palmer asked in slight disappointment.
Ash glanced at Anabel, who gave a curt nod before Ash responded. "Kind of."
Brandon frowned. "What do you mean 'Kind of?'"
"Since I pushed everyone out for a bit when Jolteon got hurt yesterday, I upset her some. So as an apology, I offered to take her on a date to a restaurant." Ash informed.
Brandon paused before he nodded. "Well that seems valid enough."
Ash relaxed for a second until Brandon looked Ash in the eyes. "But don't you dare hurt her. As much as I like you Ash, I can always turn that around for Anabel's sake. Are we clear?"
Ash nodded quickly, making Brandon give a rare smile. "Glad to know that. Now let's go to the Pokémon Center. Lucy baked a cake and she wants us to test it. Apparently it's a new recipe."
Ash grinned. "Count me in."
Anabel giggled. "Just make sure you hold yourself back. I want some too you know."
"Well then let's go. Time's wasting." Palmer said as they walked to the Pokémon Center, leaving the scene behind them.
. . . . . . . . .
The following day came easy for the group of Frontier Brains, as it seemed Arceus spared them the annoyance of dealing with any more of Ash's past. But it isn't the time to be worrying about Ash's past. Currently, all of them were out in a clearing doing something that they all seldom get to do together.
"Latias, use Dragon Pulse."
"Regirock, use Focus Punch."
Training.
The two attacks collided, the force at a complete standstill until an explosion occurred, indicating a standstill in strength between the two legends. Brandon and Ash gave each other a smirk.
"She definitely follows your orders to the letter Ash. I would almost think you both have been partners for ages." Brandon complimented, making Ash smile.
"In a sense, that's true. I've known her for a long time. But to be battling alongside her in an actual battle is something I could not have forseen before she showed up."
"I must also give her credit for her strength. You know as well as I do that pushing Regirock into a standstill against his Focus Punch is not an easy feat."
'Ash did train me from time to time and gave me ideas on harnessing my strength. I practiced everything he taught me constantly. He may not think he did all of this, but he had a part in it. That's a reason why I wanted to be his Pokemon in the first place.' Latias responded through slight pants of breath.
"Well then it seems you both made a wise choice. Now Ash, do you think Azelf would like a go as well? Latias has already been at it with us for about an hour now. She sounds tired." Brandon asked.
"I think so. Let me ask him." Ash flashed his watch and released Azelf from the small Pokemon container.
"Azelf?" Azelf gave Ash a curious glance.
"Hey bud. You want to do some sparring with Brandon?"
Azelf did a flip mid air before taking the spot right in front of Ash and giving a determined glance. Brandon switched out Regirock for Regice as they prepared for battle.
Meanwhile, Anabel and Spenser were working with Latios a bit. The male Psychic Dragon was already somewhat powerful, but lacking any real training and guidance puts him at an incredible disadvantage against Ash's Latias. So Anabel asked Spenser for assistance in helping him improve. With the two sharing much Psychic type experience, Latios is improving steadily.
"So you seem to be grasping the concept of using Psychic like a hand, but how long could you hold something heavy?" Spenser asked.
'I couldn't tell you. I usually never grab the heavy items if I use Psychic.' He exclaimed.
"Well then let's start simple. Try picking up that log over there." Anabel gestured to the downed log that seemed to be close to four feet wide. Latios' eyes became blue as he attempted to lift the log, but could only hold it for a few seconds.
"Well that's progress. Maybe we should start smaller. Try grabbing that rock." Spenser pointed to a rock that seemed to be the size of a skull. Latios grabbed it and was holding it, but one could already see the exertion upon his face. After a few moments, Anabel had him release it.
"We should try using multiple of those. I feel like it would make the process go faster if he had more."
Spenser nodded as he tossed out a Poke Ball, which revealed a Golem. "I need you to go find rocks that appear to be this size. About three more should do. Can you manage that?"
The Golem nodded before leaving the three behind to deal with their own matters. Anabel smiled at this before getting back to work. However, as she continued, she asked herself.
'Why couldn't this become an annual thing?'
. . . . . . . . . .
The following afternoon came quickly. As the Top 128 was about to kick off, Goodshow had told everyone after the last match of the day that there would be a battle between two famous trainers. Goodshow inferred that it would be randomized who the famous trainers were, as so many candidates would fit perfectly, which means that whoever was going up there would be decided by a computer.
Ash was stoked to see who would be fighting along with most of the others. Scott had already told them that it wouldn't be likely that any of the Brains get picked for this since it isn't like the Brains are famous yet. So all they could do was wait to see who would be up to battle and how it would go.
"I can't wait. This is going to be awesome!" Ash said with a grin.
"Can't calm down for a second, can you? Even after all the training that happened this morning, you are still full of energy." Greta stated.
"I can't really blame him. If it's decided between Elites and Champions, then this will be an intense fight. You rarely see this happen except for exhibition matches prior to a tournament. But this one is an all out fight." Noland inferred.
"I'm curious as well. We don't usually get to watch these up close." Lucy added.
"Yeah. Battles like these are always fun to watch." Anabel added.
Argenta sat down behind them. "These matchups always become interesting depending on the opponents. After all, I saw a match between Wikstrom and Malva years ago, and Wikstrom almost won the battle even with a disadvantage."
"That's why battles like these always annoy me. It makes my data obsolete sometimes." Thorton grumbled.
"Oh get over it. You need to enjoy battles like these instead of making constant calculations. If you relaxed and just watched it, then I could bet you would enjoy it more." Scott insisted.
"Here he comes." Ash said as Goodshow approached the microphone.
The Pokemon League Director cleared his throat before speaking. "Hello once again everyone. I am glad we had such a huge turnout for this battle. Now if you would turn your heads to the big screens, then you will see as the computer shuffles around many trainers before it picks one out."
True to the statement, the names were circulating on the screen at an incredible pace until finally they stopped suddenly on one name.
"And the first battler is Sinnoh's newest Elite member, Tobias!" A cheer erupted from the crowd.
Ash smiled. "What do you know? I forgot he joined them."
"Wasn't it because of Bertha's retirement?" Anabel asked as she turned to Palmer.
The Tower Tycoon nodded. "Bertha was getting up in age, and everyone knew she would stop eventually. When she announced it, it wasn't a surprise. But everyone was surprised to hear that Tobias took her spot instead."
"Yeah. Even though he primarily uses legends, he is just as good with his other Pokémon, as proven when he battled Cynthia. He deserved the spot for sure." Argenta added.
The names started circulating once again. The crowd quickly grew silent as anticipation snached their voices off their tounges. The last name seemed to take forever and not long at all, as it finally appeared, shocking everyone in the Frontier Box.
"And the last one is the Kanto Battle Frontier's own Ash Ketchum!"
As the crowd roared again, everyone in the Frontier Box was stuck with their jaws open until Ash turned to Scott. "Unlikely?!"
Scott rose his hands up. "How was I supposed to know?! None of the Brains usually ever end up in something like this!"
Ash sighed. "Looks like it's time for a rematch."
"You can do it Ash. He may be an Elite, but he isn't unbeatable." Greta cheered.
"Having legendary Pokémon doesn't make him invincible." Lucy stated.
"Don't freeze up out there young man. You are just as capable of defeating him as me." Brandon assured.
"I believe in you. We are all cheering for you up here." Anabel smiled.
Ash smiled at everyone. "Thanks everyone. I'll give it my all."
Ash rushed out of the Frontier Box when Scott turned to Brandon. "You seriously think he can do it better than you?"
"I don't lie to people Scott." Brandon said simply.
. . . . . . . . . .
"He's actually battling an Elite!? No way!" Hau stated from the Champions box.
"I'm surprised. I never knew he would be picked." Alder inferred.
Cynthia said nothing, making Steven lean in. "That was your favor, wasn't it? You wanted Ash to fight Tobias again."
"And if I did?" Cynthia stated with indifference.
"Then you might have just done Scott a favor, and made the Battle Frontier that much more famous." Steven smirked.
"Well they need publicity, don't they? And Ash is probably their most famous one outside of Brandon." Lance added, making Cynthia jump.
"Just what makes you both think I had something to do with it?" Cynthia glanced at the two of them.
"Cause you enjoy watching Ash battle. Everyone does after all. And his tag matches with the Anabel girl made you even more curious as to how much he grew, so you wanted to see for yourself." Diantha surmised. "We aren't all idiots. Hau and Ash are great friends, making him happy for the result, and Alder just doesn't always pay attention. You know that."
Cynthia shrugged, but realized that most of the others were staring her down. "Alright! I did it."
"Good. Now we can enjoy the match." Lance stated, making Cynthia glare at the Dragon Tamer.
. . . . . . . . . .
Ash had just made it to the tunnel and started to walk out. He saw Tobias walking up to his Trainers Box as well. Once both of them entered in, they smirked to each other.
"Well this is oddly familiar, isn't it?" Tobias chuckled.
Ash smiled. "You're right. It is. Except this time I might just beat you."
"Now, now. Don't get that cocky. But I would be lying if I said I didn't believe it was possible as well." Tobias mused.
"Well then what are we waiting for? Let's get this show on the road!" Ash smirked.
"Gladly." Tobias smirked back.
The ref rose his flags. "This is a one-on one battle between Castle Guardian Ash and Elite Four Tobias. Now release your Pokémon!"
"Alright, I think it's time I start off with something new. Kommo-o, come on out!"
The Alolan Pseudo was released from the ball and landed with a roar, making Ash blink for a second before reacting to the Pokémon before him. "Ok then... someone's been to Alola."
Tobias chuckled. "I've been a lot of places, Ash."
Ash smirked. "Well so have I."
This grabbed Tobias's attention, as Ash revealed a Poke Ball. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't prepared for some sort of Dragon. Now Noivern, I choose you!"
He tossed the Poke Ball up into the air, releasing the Sound Wave Pokémon, who let out a loud roar, making the stadium shake briefly. Tobias rose an eyebrow for a second before smirking. "Dragon versus Dragon. This will be fun."
Ash nodded in agreement, looking as the ref rose his flags up in the air. "Noivern versus Kommo-o. Battle begin!"
Ash narrowed his eyes in focus. "Alright Noivern, this will be tough, but stay focused. Don't take your eyes off of him." He said, speaking low enough that only Noivern could hear.
"If you refuse to make the first move, then I will. Rock Slide." Tobias ordered.
"Like we practiced. Now dodge it."
The rocks came sliding out of the air, falling towards Noivern at a quickening pace with the heavy weight. Noivern floated for a second before twisting around a single rock, agility evident with the style of movement that he was displaying. He moved around each rock, leaving no room to be hit by any of them. Once the attack, stopped, Noivern appeared unscathed.
Tobias widened his eyes a bit. "Impressive. I've never seen such movement before."
"I always make sure to find ways to help minimize weakness issues. After a year of nonstop training, we perfected this strategy together to help with Rock type moves in case the situation came up. Now Dragon Pulse."
"Dragon Pulse as well."
Both fired the green blast of draconic energy as they collided with each other, indicating a standstill. In the midst of the smoke, Ash decided to test his luck. "Boomburst!"
Noivern let out a shriek of soundwaves through the smoke, aimed anywhere to catch Kommo-o. Tobias, however, looked unfazed. "Run through and use Ice Punch."
Kommo-o ran through the smoke, taking the Boomburst as if it did nothing. Ash growled to himself. "It would be Soundproof. Just my luck. Protect."
Noivern stopped the attack and formed the green shield, letting the Ice Punch bounce off harmlessly off the barrier. "Now use Dragon Claw."
Before Tobias could react, Noivern struck at Kommo-o's back with the Dragon Type move, dealing significant damage to the pseudo as he cried in pain and annoyance. Tobias frowned before coming up with a strategy.
"Use Rock Slide. Then follow up with a Clanging Scales."
Rocks slid down towards Noivern once more, making the Dragon attempt to dodge them. Then came the Clanging Scales, striking Noivern in the side, ramming him into some rocks. Ash grit his teeth momentarily before realization dawned on him.
"Noivern, use Boomburst and aim it at the ground."
Tobias gave a confused glance while Noivern used the sound attack to hit the ground, breaking some of the rocks up.
"Now use Hurricane!"
Tobias saw the strategy forming. "Clever. Use Rock Polish!"
The scales on Kommo-o seemed to glisten a bit as his speed increased. Noivern fired the Hurricane, but Kommo-o dodged it with ease. However, Ash simply smirked.
"Keep using Hurricane!"
Rapid amounts of the Flying type attack were slung towards the pseudo, who was nimbly dodging them all quickly. Tobias let out a light chuckle at the futile attempts to land a hit.
"Come on Ash. Surely you're better than this."
"You may want to take that back in a moment." Ash stated, indicating that Tobias might be missing something.
The Elite looked around and noticed that the field was slowly becoming a sandstorm on the side Kommo-o was on. He could see his Dragon type flinching at the sand as it raged on him, wearing him down quickly with residual damage before a stray Hurricane attack caught him briefly. Ash smirked at the look of surprise Tobias gave off.
"Alright, now use Draco Meteor!"
Tobias wasn't giving in himself. "You use Draco Meteor as well!"
Both Pokémon sent out their most powerful attack: The ultimate Dragon type move. They fired together, both attacks sent towards opposite ends of the field. Kommo-o attempted to use his multiplied speed to dodge the attack, but the amount was just too many for him to handle. As for Noivern, he attempted to use the same agility he used on the Rock Slide, but the Draco Meteor was coming down too fast for the Dragon type to handle. One struck his tail before causing a domino effect. When the smoke cleared, both Pokémon were struggling to stand up.
Ash tossed a quick glance at Tobias. "You think so too?"
Tobias nodded. "Yeah."
Ash looked at Noivern. "Thanks bud. I'm proud of you for keeping up with him. You've really grown since you were a Noibat. You don't have to struggle now."
"You too Kommo-o. You both really tore into this field, but I think that's enough. I don't want you to go too far. You did great."
Both Dragons nodded at their trainers before looking each other in the eyes, giving their own individual smirks before collapsing, letting the darkness take them for the time being. "Both Noivern and Kommo-o are unable to battle. The match is a draw." The ref concluded as the crowd roared with cheers.
. . . . . . . . .
"Well this is staged." Paul rolled his eyes in annoyance.
"What makes you say that?" Dawn asked.
"Cause Ketchum should've lost to Tobias in one attack no problem. He's too bad to even put a dent in any of Tobias' team."
"Yeah. They should have put someone actually strong down there and make it look like a real match." Misty stated.
Meanwhile, they couldn't hear someone clenching their fists in annoyance next to them, but if they could, they probably wouldn't feel the anger coming off of the individual.
'This is sad.'
. . . . . . . .
"Wow. That was impressive." Steven stated with a bit of surprise.
Cynthia tossed him a glance. "Didn't think Ash could handle this?"
"I figured it would be interesting, but I didn't expect that to come out of Ash. You don't even see that skill coming from Gym Leaders." Steven exclaimed.
Diantha gave a smirk. "Seriously Steven? I feel like you're the only one who doesn't know Ash is capable of those strategies."
Lance smirked too. "I agree. And here I thought you knew to expect anything from Ash."
Steven just smiled. "It's not like I've battled the kid before. Two of you have, and the rest have watched him in league tournaments."
"Well even then, Ash isn't one to take lightly in a battle. He can pull off some strategies you would never expect out of a trainer. He can turn type disadvantage into his favor in a heartbeat." Alder added.
"Yeah. Ash usually beat me pretty good back in our journeying days. That's what pushed me to get as good as I am now." Hau stated.
"Quite impressive. I wasn't too sure who had the upper hand in that match." Lance said as they all turned back to the field, looking at the field as the two battlers tended to their Pokémon.
"You know, in terms of strength and skill, I would not have recognized him. But just by looking at him right now, he still shares the same bond for his Pokémon as he always has." Diantha remarked.
"He really would make a great Champion or Elite Four member." Cynthia stated aloud.
"He truly would. After that display, I want to fight him myself." Wallace stated.
Lance smirked. "Sorry Wallace, but you will have to wait in line."
The others turned towards the Dragon Tamer. "I already challenged him myself."
The entire Champions box gasped. "You challenged him!?" Cynthia cried out in shock.
"Yeah. If I don't face him in the tournament, I asked him for a full six on six battle after the tournament ends. He agreed." Lance informed.
. . . . . . . . . .
"Wow. That was awesome. Yoish!" Greta stated with a smile on her face.
Tucker gave an exaggerated pose. "Simply marvelous."
Brandon nodded in approval. "That's Ash for you. I never had a doubt."
"Yeah. This makes me wonder how he will do against Lance when they battle." Anabel wondered.
"Anything can happen. After all, Ash still has a few trump cards that he hasn't used yet." Lucy said.
Scott smiled to himself. 'It feels like only yesterday when I saw him battle Agatha. He's come a long ways since I first met him. And he still has so much more to show.'
. . . . . . .
Ash grasped Tobias's hand. "That was awesome Tobias. Thanks for the match."
Tobias smiled. "It's no trouble Ash. Now I can see why Cynthia and the other champions are so interested in you."
Ash frowned at that. "They set this up, didn't they?"
"You have quite the sharp eye." Tobias commented. "But alas, it wasn't all of them. It was Cynthia's idea."
"I'm confused though. It's been like this since Anabel and I had our tag match. Why are they so interested in me in particular?" Ash asked.
"Out of your generation of trainers, you have shown the most promise and growth in such a short time. Just two years with the Battle Frontier and look at you now. We know Brandon is powerful, but you and that Anabel girl show enough strength and potential to be considered Elite level, and you're both still growing alongside each other. And the champions want to see how far they can push that, especially on you." Tobias explained. 'Though I think Anabel might be next if what Diantha has been saying is true.' He thought to himself.
Ash nodded. "Well good to know, I guess." He wasn't sure if this was a good thing or a bad thing. He could only hope for the former.
"Good luck in the rest of the tournament. I have business to go finish up on my own. I'll see you around." Tobias said as he walked away.
"Later Tobias." Ash waved him of as he took his own leave from the arena.
As he walked out into the lobby, he saw all of the brains already down there waiting on him. It only took a few seconds for the Castle Guardian to be mobbed by his family with a light chorus of congratulations from all of them. He thanked each of them until his eyes stopped on Anabel. She had Pikachu on one shoulder and Espeon on the other. He walked up to them with a light grin on his face.
Anabel noticed the grin. "Hopefully your ego didn't just take a big jump after that battle." She joked.
Ash waved off the jest as Pikachu hopped onto his shoulder, nuzzling his trainer slightly. "Well I found out what is going on with the champions."
After a quick explanation of what Tobias told him, they all had baffled and confused looks on their faces. Scott managed to snap out of it first. "They better not be planning what I think they are."
"Even if they did want me to join them, I have no reason to. Everything I need is with the Battle Frontier." Ash said as he turned his head to Anabel. "Including you."
Anabel blushed lightly while the others chuckled at the scene. However, it did not take long to break the atmosphere.
"I can't believe you're acting like you're so good when the match was clearly staged."
Ash knew that voice all too well, which brought only one thought to the minds of him and his co-workers. 'Why can we not catch a F***ING BREAK!!'
They all turned towards the side to see all of his traitorous old friends standing there looking at all of them with annoyed expressions on their faces. "Stop acting so high and mighty and wake up and smell the roses. You are not as good as you think you are. Leave the battling to people that are actually good, like us." Paul fired off.
Ash rolled his eyes. "I should be telling you the same thing. Did the argument that we won before not tell you that? Or what about the battle Anabel and I won against Clemont and Serena?"
"You cheated in that battle!" Max proclaimed. "You beat them in a single hit! That's not possible by normal means!"
"Kid, if the strength gap is that big, then of course it's possible." Noland chimed, rolling his eyes. "Serena is not a battler and Clemont had been getting lax by letting his robot fight for him."
"Or maybe it's the steroids you two are using." Trip claimed.
Scott sighed. "You know that the Pokemon are checked before and after the battle for drug usage. Your claim has no merit."
Paul growled. "That's it! Ketchum, I demand a battle from you! If I win you admit that you cheated like the loser you are!"
Ash frowned. "No."
"No!? You scared or something?"
"No, I just don't want to embarrass you any more than you already have yourself." The Frontier crew erupted with laughter.
"That's it!" Paul attempted to throw a punch at Ash, who caught it quickly. He gave Paul a very blank stare while the others were staring at him with 'Are you serious?' looks.
"You move in slow motion compared to the rest of my Pokémon." Ash stated and shoved him back to his group of friends. "I would also try to keep that temper in check. You're way too mad to beat me."
Paul erupted in fury. "How would you know?! You haven't even fought me in years!"
"Because this is exactly how you got when you fought Brandon at Snowpoint City several years ago. You were angry and snapping at every turn, and in turn, you never beat a single Pokémon." Ash responded legitimately. "What makes you think you'll have any luck? Especially going against high-class trainers with this much anger running through you. Think about it for a second."
Paul growled. "I don't have to listen to anything you have to say!"
Ash shrugged, disappointment on his face. "Your loss, Paul. We're out of here."
And before any more heated words could be exchanged, the Frontier Brains were gone in an instant.
. . . . . . . .
Ash and Anabel were cleaning up a little bit before their date. They had both decided on a simple diner not too far from where they were staying. Supposedly the place served Pokémon as well, so they resolved to bring Pikachu and Espeon with them. And they also had to promise themselves not to dress far too nice for this date.
After all, while they may be mature beyond their years, they still had the hearts of young teenagers.
It took a minute, but they were finally all set. Ash was wearing simple faded jeans and running shoes with a white Battle Frontier longsleeve, but had a blue jacket over it. He was also wearing a small Poke Ball hat that he had picked up from one of the accessory stands earlier. He lacked his fingerless gloves though, revealing slightly rough and calloused hands that came from years of training.
Anabel herself had taken to simple wear as well. She had on a pink tank top that was under her purple jacket. She wore white skinny jeans and had on tennis shoes as well. She opted out of a hat, but had on sunglasses to mask her face slightly. She had no doubt that they would get pointed out even if they were on a date, but she couldn't care less. Let the fans make their drama, it isn't like her and Ash put much stock into rumors.
Once they were ready, Espeon and Pikachu joined them as they walked out of their room together.
The walk to the diner was short. Ash memorized the directions (shocker, I know) and got them there in no time at all. They took seats at a small booth near the corner, which was away from the small amount of people that were cluttered close to the bar.
Ash sighed to himself. "I want to be happy right now, but them claiming that I didn't tie legitimately against Tobias has been annoying me all afternoon!"
Anabel's look turned sour. "Believe me. I know how you feel. Being told that the only reason I'm good at battling is because of my ability gets old just as fast."
Ash started petting Pikachu to attempt to calm himself down, much to the little mouse's enjoyment. "I know that I'm not the best battler, nor am I the best trainer. But to downgrade my achievements is stupid."
"They really don't have much room to talk. It isn't like any of the have done much. Only one of them has done anything worth praise since you've been gone. So just don't let it get to you too much." Anabel tried to pacify his negative emotions.
"I know but-" Suddenly, he picked up an odd scent. "Wait. Do you smell that?" Ash asked.
Anabel sniffed a couple times. "Yeah. Now that you mention it, I smell an odd mix of honey and Oran Berry pie." Then she widened her eyes. "Wait, that scent's familiar."
"Lilligant, you're doing it again."
They turned their heads to see a guy with blonde hair wearing a red and yellow jacket, black pants and sneakers. He had blonde hair that was tucked into a basic red cap. Fingerless black gloves covered his hands and he had an emblem on his jacket that Ash barely caught. He was staring at a beautiful Lilligant with an amused expression while said grass type blushed in embarrassment.
"What am I ever going to do with you?" He mused with a chuckle.
"Callum!" Ash called out to the individual, who turned his head. His bright blue eyes shined lightly in surprise when his eyes landed on Ash and Anabel.
Callum Bale. A member of the famous Pokemon Rangers, and one of the only twelve holders of the title 'Top Ranger' in the organization. He and Ash had met while Ash was studying battle methods under Noland. Noland had been Head Mechanic for the Pokemon Rangers in the past, and was one of Callum's family friends. They were in the rangers at the same time before Noland became a Frontier Brain.
When they met, Ash was desperate to fight Callum after he explained he had gone three elites deep in the Champion challenge in Unova, which amazed him. They went head to head with Pikachu vs Lilligant, and like Ash expected, as he had not really gotten much stronger than he had in Alola at the time, he lost. It was a heated match, but a well-timed strategy managed to catch Ash off-guard just in time to snag him the win.
They kept in touch while Ash became a Frontier Brain. They had one more battle after Ash's training was complete, and Ash managed to even the score 1 to 1. Since then, it's been 2-3 in Callum's favor, and they've only improved since each fight.
Callum is interesting for a Pokemon Ranger. He was like the normal ones, but he also was capable of using many different healing methods to cure people and Pokemon both of bodily problems and sicknesses. His Lilligant uses its aroma to soothe patients or heal them via aromatherapy. His and his Lilligant are well-known for their healing powers earning them the moniker 'The Miracle Makers.'
He walked up to the pair and grasped Ash's hand into a handshake.
"Well if it isn't the talk of the tournament himself." Callum joked and turned to Anabel, giving a slight bow. "Anabel. A pleasure to see you as always. I heard you two have been getting famous in the brackets recently. Care to explain?"
While Ash gave Callum the rundown of what had been going on with the champions, Pikachu and Espeon jumped down to greet Lilligant with light cries. The three of them appeared to get along extremely well.
"Huh. Never knew the Champions were the type to play with someone like that." Callum mused. "Cynthia, I can see, but Lance is a shock. Never seen the guy take that much of an interest in someone since Bruno."
"Well we don't really know why they're interested. I mean, everyone at the Arc Tournament is good at battling in one way or another." Anabel stated.
Callum rolled his eyes. "I guess I'm not surprised, but I figured you could see it. It's more obvious from an outside perspective."
Ash and Pikachu tilted their heads in confusion, comically mimicking each other. "What do you mean?"
"You two are basically the biggest representation of battling talent in your generation."
Now Anabel was lost. "Explain."
Callum rubbed the back of his head. "The Champions have an eye for talent. They can see potential in nearly every individual, but some individuals have this spark. It's kinda like what you see in your challengers, for instance."
The pair nodded and motioned for him to continue. "However, what they see is different. There's a reason why they are Champions after all. They have the talent to see what their pokemon are capable of and bring it out through their extensive bonds that they share. Not a lot of people can do this especially at a young age. But you two have progessed at a rate similar to former Kanto champion, Red. And they wan to see how far they can push that potential of yours."
Anabel frowned. "We aren't that special."
"Only you two would be so modest." Callum shook his head. "You're far more than that to a lot of us. Especially to people that know you really well, like me. I dare you to ask Scott later."
Ash smiled at that. "Thanks, Callum. We appreciate it." Then a question came to him. "So why are you here?"
Callum smirked. "You thought I would miss this? I'm in the tournament as well."
They gasped. "What?!"
He put a hand on his Lilligant's shoulder. "Yeah. I knew I was coming, cause I'm taking care of the local Pokemon and helping Nurse Joy take a load off. But I wasn't sure that I wanted to participate until my entire team said that they wanted in. Made it past the tag rounds with a really good trainer from Kalos. Alain I think was his name."
Ash widened his eyes. "You were teamed with my Kalos rival?"
"He's your rival?" Callum asked, tilting his head. "Huh. Small world." The Pokemon Ranger stretched out. "Well, I'm going to let you two enjoy your date."
They blushed hard. "How did you know?"
"I didn't. But if it wasn't, I'd have been disappointed." He answered with a small smirk. "You still have my number, right?"
Upon getting a nod, he walked away, giving a two fingered salute. "If you need me, call me. I'll catch you around."
"See ya later Callum." Ash responded.
Anabel frowned. "So he's in also? This just got a lot harder."
"Yeah." Ash agreed, but smirked. "But that just makes it even more fun!" He declared.
. . . . . . . .
What?! I'm alive?!
Yeah I know. I'm not active on here anymore. I'm a college student now though, so that makes it much harder in myself. However, I kinda left this chapter unfinished so I figured I would at least finish it before all hell breaks loose and I start stressing out weekly.
So let me know. Sword or Shield? I personally don't know which one yet but I'm definitely getting one of them. Now try to be patient with me. I'm not guaranteeing a comeback. I started this with the intent of pouring my creative energy out, but I have a lot of other stuff doing that for me now. I hope you all understand.
Take care.
-Bl0t0rch