216Chapter 14
"Tyranitar is unable to battle, Floatzel is the winner! Which means the victory goes to the challenger, Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town!" announced Brock, raising his arm on Ash's side for the final time to signal his victory.
Ash didn't say anything. He just stood there in a bit of a stupor.
"Woohoo! I knew you could do it, Ash!" cried Cynthia as she rushed down from the bleachers.
That managed to bring Ash back to reality. He shared a look with Floatzel and a goofy grin appeared on his face. "YES! WE DID IT!" he roared, pumping his fist into the air. He then let out an "oomph" as Cynthia tackled him into a hug. He hugged her back with one arm and gently patted her head with the other, which- as he had learned during their travels together- was something she greatly enjoyed. She sighed in content and leaned into his chest.
He stopped petting her and she raised her head and leaned in closer. Their lips were less than an inch apart, but then they heard a cough behind them and they instantly separated, remembering where they were. They stared at the ground, both faces a healthy shade of crimson. Slowly, they raised their heads and were met with Floatzel's mischievous smirk.
"Damn! In public, Ashy-boy? Didn't know you had it in you. What d'you think the others would say if they heard about this, eh?" he teased.
Ash paled. "Floatzel, I'm begging you, please don't tell the others."
The Sea Otter Pokemon put a paw on his chin, pretending to think hard about it. "I don't know; I'm sure they would love to hear about this bold new Ash. And they really wouldn't like it if I didn't tell them about it. Gardevoir especially would get super mad at me," he said, putting extra emphasis on the word 'super.' His eyes glinted mischievously.
Ash whimpered, knowing Floatzel was going to tell them all no matter what. He held up his pokeball. "Return," he said solemnly.
"Hey, wait! Ash, no, I was jo-" said Floatzel, before he was cut off by the beam of light returning him to his pokeball. Ash whimpered again, knowing that even if Floatzel had been joking, now he would definitely tell the others just out of spite. He sighed and hung his head. Cynthia squeezed his hand and gave him a peck on the cheek to try and cheer him up. It worked.
"I still can't believe you got yourself a girlfriend, Ash," said Brock, shaking his head at the two teens. Ash blushed and squeezed Cynthia's fingers tighter.
"I'm more amazed that Cynthia has a boyfriend, to be honest," said Flint, coming up from behind them. "After that interview she had I thought she'd stay single forever."
"What interview?" asked Ash curiously.
"Well, a few years ago, she-"
"Hey Flint, shouldn't you give Ash his badge now?" asked Cynthia sweetly. She gave the old man an icy glare. Ash's eyes darted between Flint and Cynthia.
Flint gulped. "Uh- yeah, that's right." He cleared his throat. "Ash Ketchum, as proof of your victory at the Pewter City gym, I award you with this Champion Badge." He took a small badge out of his pocket and handed it to Ash. The badge was gray with a gold perimeter and about two inches wide in diameter. A three-dimensional picture of a rock was on the bottom and the word "Pewter" was printed above it in golden cursive.
Ash stared at it for a moment, taking it in. A wide smile appeared on his face. "I won...a Champion Badge!" He posed, raising the badge into the air while simultaneously flashing the peace sign. Cynthia rolled her eyes endearingly at Ash's childishness.
"Aren't you a little too old now to pose every time you win a badge, Ash?" asked Brock, smirking. Ash responded by sticking out his tongue. Brock chuckled.
"I can't believe this kid beat me," grumbled Flint, unhappily.
"So Ash, where are we going next?" asked Cynthia, smiling.
"Cerulean City!" he declared, his eyes twinkling. "I can't wait to see Misty again! I wonder how much better she's gotten at battling?"
"Be careful, Ash," warned Brock. "Misty's one of the best gym leaders in Kanto now. The only gyms that are ranked higher than hers are Blaine's and the one in Viridian City."
Ash's jaw dropped for a second before his feral grin returned. "Oh man, if that's true, then I can't wait for our battle! It's going to be so awesome!"
Brock smiled at Ash's enthusiasm, before his face turned serious. He leaned in closer and whispered into Ash's ear. "Just don't forget what I told you before, Ash; Misty still has a crush on you."
Ash gulped and his face turned serious. "Don't worry Brock, I'll let her down gently. Misty is my friend, I don't want to hurt her any more than you do," he whispered back. "Besides, you know me," he said outloud. "Tact and diplomacy are my forte." He grinned and gave Brock the thumbs-up. Brock smiled and Cynthia started laughing.
"Take care, Ash. Good luck with your CB challenge; I'm rooting for you!" said Brock. He drew Ash in for a brotherly hug.
"Thanks Brock," said Ash, as he hugged him back. They separated and Brock put a hand on his shoulder.
"Win the whole damn thing."
Ash nodded once, eyes gleaming with determination. He turned to his girlfriend. "Let's go, Cynthia! I've got another CB battle to get to!"
"And win," Cynthia added, poking his nose. Ash pecked her cheek, causing Cynthia to giggle and latch onto his arm.
"Take care, Brock-o! You better come watch my Elite Four battles!"
"Of course! I wouldn't miss those for the world! Take care, Ash." Brock waved goodbye.
Ash grinned and waved back. With Cynthia still hanging on his arm, he exited the gym.
"How long 'till we get to Cerulean?" asked Cynthia, trying to sweep her long, blonde hair out of her face. The two were once again flying on Charizard, and as such, she had to scream just to make herself heard.
Ash had decided after his Pewter City battle that he would fly from gym to gym. This way he could get the CB's faster which would give him more time to train for his Elite Four battles (and spend with Cynthia).
Ash looked back over his shoulder and smiled. Even with her hair completely frazzled by the wind, Cynthia still looked beautiful. "At the rate we're going, I'd say another hour or so," he yelled back. "It took us about an hour and a half to get from Pallet to Pewter. We've only been flying for half an hour and it's roughly the same distance from Pewter to Cerulean."
Cynthia nodded. "Let me guess, we're going straight to the gym once we get there?" she teased.
Ash chuckled. "No, Pokemon Center first. I want to get Floatzel and Sceptile checked out and I need to make a transfer." He looked to his right. A familiar looking flying type was gliding alongside them, 200 lb weights attached to each of his wings and claws, and a sleeping Pikachu on his back. "And Staraptor will probably need a rest too. How you holding up there, buddy? Are those weights too heavy?"
Staraptor flapped his wings and grimaced. "I assure you, Ash, this-this is nothing," he panted. "I could- keep this up- all day- no problem." He winced as the weight dragged him down again, and he had to flap his wings extra hard to stay airborne.
Ash frowned. "You sure, Staraptor? You don't sound like you're doing so good. Maybe you should take a break?"
Staraptor cawed indignantly. "No! I'm fine, Ash! I can keep going!"
"Take a breather kid," suggested Charizard. "We don't need a repeat of Garchomp."
Staraptor waited for a bit to catch his breath before answering. "I appreciate the concern, Charizard. However, it is- unnecessary. I- assure you- I will be just fine."
Ash rubbed the back of his neck. He was still concerned, but if Staraptor wanted to continue then he wouldn't stop him. "Alright, but don't overdo it, Staraptor. You know what happened to Garchomp; pushing yourself is good, but too much is bad for your health. I don't want you to hurt yourself, understand?"
Staraptor smiled. "I understand, Ash. I assure you- I will not- push myself- to the same extremes- as Garchomp."
Ash sighed then nodded. "Alright then, just be careful." Staraptor nodded once then flapped his wings and continued flying in silence. He wanted to avoid any more unnecessary conversations so he could direct his focus towards staying airborne. Ash on the other hand, turned his head the other way. If he couldn't see Staraptor then he could almost ignore the stabbing pain of worry that had lodged itself in his gut.
Meanwhile, Cynthia beamed at him. It always amazed her to see how much Ash cared about his Pokemon. She hugged Ash tighter and rested her head on his back.
"Never change Ash," was all she said. Ash blushed a little and rubbed the back of his neck. He was a little confused, but he was enjoying the feeling of Cynthia laying on his back and wasn't going to question it.
"Hey Ash, isn't that Mount Moon?" asked Cynthia a little while later. She pointed over his shoulder at a mountain in the distance.
Ash looked to see where she was pointing at. He turned around to face her and smiled. "Yup, that's Mount Moon," he confirmed. "Want to get a closer look?" Cynthia nodded eagerly. "Alright then, Charizard bring us down to the mountain, please."
"You got it, Ash," said the fire type, as he began his descent.
"Staraptor, you follow behind us. Once we land I'll take those weights off you so you can take a break." Staraptor nodded, too exhausted to speak.
They landed at the base of the mountain. Ash thanked Charizard for his help and returned him to his ball. Meanwhile, Pikachu jumped off of Staraptor and on to the ground next to Ash while he took the weights off of Staraptor.
"I'm proud of you, Staraptor. You handled those weights like a pro," praised Ash, gently stroking the flying type's crest. "You did an amazing job, now take a good rest." Staraptor smiled at the praise and gave a tired caw in thanks before he was returned to his pokeball in a flash of red light.
Cynthia and Ash held hands again as they took in the giant mountain looming above them.
"Impressive, isn't it? Mount Moon is the tallest mountain in Kanto," said Ash.
Cynthia shrugged. "Mount Coronet is bigger," she replied.
Ash chuckled. "True, but Mount Moon is still pretty cool."
"True." The two teens smiled at each other.
"So what are we going to do now, Ash?" asked Pikachu after a few minutes had passed. "Did we only come to Mount Moon for some sightseeing?"
"Pretty much," he answered. "Unless there's something you want to do here, Cynthia?"
She shook her head. "I just wanted to get a closer look."
Ash smirked and grabbed her waist with one arm. "This close enough for you?"
Cynthia smiled back. "Very, thank you." Ash leaned in closer and kissed her. She immediately started kissing him back, and it soon turned into a passionate make-out session as she threw her arms around his neck to deepen the kiss and he started running his other hand through her hair. It was the first time the two had been alone together (or at least away from other humans) and weren't flying since they'd confessed to each other last night and both had some intense emotions to get out of their system. They would have kept it up forever, but unfortunately for them, human lungs require a constant supply of oxygen. Reluctantly, they separated, both gasping for air, as they stared into each other's eyes.
They were about to lean in for Round Two when they were interrupted by a small, yellow mouse. "Arceus, get a room, you two," said Pikachu, disgruntled. Ash and Cynthia blinked at each other then looked down at him. He was squirming and looked extremely uncomfortable.
Ash rubbed the back of his neck and separated from Cynthia. "Sorry buddy, forgot you were there."
Pikachu sighed. "Whatever, just try not to-" Suddenly, Pikachu's ears perked up and he froze, the rest of his sentence forever lost to the world. "Did you hear that?" he whispered.
"Yes, I did," replied Ash darkly, sharing a look with Pikachu.
"Hear what?" asked Cynthia, confused and a little scared by the sudden change in Ash's tone.
"Shh!" shushed Pikachu. His ears perked again as he listened for the sound.
"Ash, what's going-" Cynthia began. She stopped when she saw the position Ash was in. He was down on one knee with his palm on the ground and his eyes closed, face seemingly devoid of emotion as he concentrated. But that wasn't even the strangest part. Ash was glowing- yes, actually glowing- blue! Her eyes widened as she realized what he was doing. "Aura," she breathed, awestruck. "He's using aura." She knew that Ash could use aura; in fact, he'd been the one to teach her how to use aura to talk to pokemon she was close to. However, this was the first time she'd seen Ash (or anyone, for that matter) using aura for something other than communication. That was all she could do with it, and Ash had never used aura for anything else. Seeing him using it now, it was just incredible!
She stared in silence, mouth agape, when suddenly she heard a faint cry from afar. She jumped. "What was that?" she asked, worriedly. "It sounded like a pokemon screaming."
The blue glow around Ash faded. His eyes snapped open, and Cynthia was stunned to see that his eyes were glowing the same blue color. "That's exactly what it is, Cynthia," he confirmed, and Cynthia was shocked by how angry he sounded. "Two pokemon are being hunted down about half a mile that way." He pointed in the right direction and his eyes returned to their usual color. "One person pursuing them. Any idea what pokemon they are, Pikachu?"
"I don't know. My sense of smell is good, but they're too far away to say for sure," he said bitterly.
Ash smiled, crouched down, and pat Pikachu behind his ears. "Don't feel bad about it, buddy; it doesn't matter if you can tell what pokemon it is or not. All that matters is that we go and rescue them, agreed?"
Pikachu screwed his face up in determination. "Agreed!" He jumped on to Ash's shoulder.
Ash turned to his girlfriend. "Cynthia, you stay here. I'll be back once I save the pokemon."
That snapped Cynthia out of her trance. "No way, Ash!" She put her hands on her hips. "There's no way I'm letting you do this all by yourself! Those people chasing those pokemon could be dangerous!"
"Exactly! They could be dangerous! Remember what happened with Raikou?" he countered. She shuddered involuntarily as the memory was brought to the surface. "I don't want you getting hurt again, Cynth," he added softly.
Cynthia shook her head, crossed her arms over her chest, then looked him straight in the eye. "That won't happen again, Ash. I have my pokemon with me this time."
"But Cynth-"
"ASH KETCHUM, I AM THE CHAMPION OF THE SINNOH REGION!" she bellowed. Ash reflexively took a step back. "I may not be as experienced in rescuing pokemon as you are, but I can take care of myself in a battle, and I will not let you go play the hero all alone this time! I'm coming with you, and that's that!" She had a short, but furious, staring contest with Ash.
He sighed. "Fine, but just- stay safe Cynth, please."
Her stern glare softened at the desperation in his voice. "I will Ash, but you better not do anything reckless either, you hear me?" She poked him lightly in the chest. "Your mother would never let me hear the end of it if you got hurt."
Ash smiled. "Me? Reckless? I think you must be confusing me for someone else, Cynth. I never do anything reckless."
"Haha," she said dryly. "Come on, you, let's go. Pokemon are waiting for us."
Dragonair's day just kept getting worse and worse. That morning, she had finally worked up the courage to confess to the Dragonite she had a crush on. However, he had not only rejected her, but belittled her in front of the entire tribe. And so, heartbroken and ashamed, she flew to the lake. After about an hour of crying her eyes out, her best friend, Clefairy, had caught up to her. She had heard about her friend's failed confession and wanted to try and cheer her up. However, she hadn't gotten more than two words out, before they were both attacked by a poacher.
Before Dragonair could even blink, the poacher had ordered his Tyranitar to use Hyper Beam on her. Too shocked to move, she could only watch helplessly as the powerful beam came closer and closer. She closed her eyes to brace for the pain, but it never came. Slowly, she opened them, and they widened in horror at what lay before her. Clefairy- that stupid, wonderful pokemon- had jumped in front of the attack to save her. And now she lay motionless on the ground.
Dragonair screamed and fired the most powerful Dragon Rage she could. The Tyranitar dodged the attack, but it kicked up dirt in the poacher's face. In those precious few seconds that he couldn't see, she picked up her friend with her tail, put her on her back, and levitated away as fast as she could. Thank Arceus, Clefairy was still breathing! But despite her speed, she still wasn't fast enough to get away. The poacher had managed to catch up to her, thanks to his Salamence, and now she stood with her back against the mountain- nowhere to run or hide- with the poacher, his Salamence, and his Tyranitar surrounding her. She set Clefairy down and prepared to fight, even though she knew it was hopeless against these two behemoths.
"Finally caught you, you little pest!" the poacher snarled. His voice was deep and menacing, and caused Dragonair to shudder in fear. He saw how Dragonair was prepared to fight and laughed. "You can't be serious! Are you an idiot or something? You don't stand a chance, kid. Just give up now or you'll end up the same as that retarded Clefairy."
"Just give up, sweetheart. I'd hate to have to hurt such a pretty, little Dragonair," said Salamence. He licked his lips. "Maybe once this is over me and you could spend some quality time together, eh?"
"Never! I'll never give in to you!" she yelled defiantly, but the fear in her voice was palpable. The poacher couldn't understand what the two pokemon were saying, but he heard the fear in Dragonair's voice and saw the lecherous look on Salamence's face.
"Salamence, you crazy bastard!" He laughed maniacally. "I should've expected this. She's all yours man, just don't cripple her, understand? If she ends up losing a wing like the last bitch I let you have your way with, then we can't sell her." He recalled Tyranitar and stood back to let Salamence have his fun.
"Don't worry, boss. I'll be real good to her." He licked his lips again, and started walking slowly towards her.
Dragonair's eyes widened in fear. "N-no! St-stay back!" she stammered. She fired another Dragon Rage that hit Salamence right in the face and kicked dirt up, obscuring her vision. She let out a sigh of relief. "I-I got him!" She looked back at Clefairy, who was still unconscious. Maybe there was a chance she could escape!
Suddenly, she heard booming laughter. She quickly turned her head around, and her eyes widened in fear. There was Salamence, perfectly fine, not even a scratch on him.
"Looks like the little girl's got some fight in her! Good, I like 'em feisty! But now it's MY turn!" He roared and fired a Dragon Pulse. She barely had time to brace for the impact before the super effective attack slammed into her. The next thing she knew, a high powered Dragon Claw sent her barreling into the mountain side. She screamed in pain as she fell to the ground. A savage smile appeared on Salamence's face. "Give up, little girl. You can't beat me. Just submit and I'll start making you feel really good." He licked his lips again.
Dragonair looked up at Salamence, terrified, as he slowly made his way over to her, licking his lips again, and clearly enjoying her despair. She turned to her still unconscious friend and started to cry. "I'm sorry Clefairy, but this is it, I'm finished." She started getting angry at the injustice of it all. "This isn't fair! What did I ever do to deserve this?! I've done nothing wrong! I've been a good pokemon, so why Arceus? Why me?!" Salamence was a foot away from her, cackling like a madman, and she could feel herself losing consciousness. "Somebody, please save me!" she cried.
"It's no use, little girly. We're miles away from any human or pokemon," taunted Salamence. "Nobody's coming to save you. It's over!" He raised a claw to strike.
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" cried a voice.
"Get away from her!" cried another, and Salamence lit up like a Christmas tree as he was blasted with electricity.
"Now, Iron Tail!"
"With pleasure!" A yellow blur sped into Salamence, sending him flying back to the poacher.
The last thing Dragonair remembered was a raven-haired boy standing in front of her, arms outstretched to defend her.
"Don't worry; I'll protect you," he declared, as she slipped into unconsciousness. There was just something about him, maybe it was the calming aura he seemed to posses, or maybe it was the fact that she was so incredibly desperate, but when he spoke those words…
She believed him.
And there it is Chapter 14!
I know, cliffhanger, I'm so evil! But the chapter would've been too long otherwise.
Don't forget to leave a review! Oh, and I won't be able to post a new chapter for a while, the next chapter will be an A/N explaining why, but I will get back to the story as soon as I can.