Epilogue

Two weeks after April's death, Ash returned to Cerulean City with Misty and Delta. April's body had been destroyed and Ash and his pokemon had cleaned and tidied up the attic in Davis' apartment as if nothing had ever happened. Everyone else had seemed to have returned to their normal whilst Ash was still trying to figure out what normal was. November had come to an end and it was truly becoming a winter wonderland with blankets of white snow.

Ash had visited his mother in hospital and made peace with his father and brother. The majority of the conversation with his family was mainly about how well his pokemon and his daughter had turned out to be despite his time in prison. They also spoke of Giovanni's change and the impact it has had on Team Rocket's reputation. Instead of stealing pokemon and using them for profit, they are now adopting abandoned pokemon and working with scientists to create new medicines. Of course Team Rocket were still after making the most profit as possible but the change was welcoming. It meant that Jessie and James would no longer be trying to kidnap Pikachu.

He had to return to court to be officially acquitted of all charges. The police began their search for April May. Ash knew the search was in vain, but none of the authorities were made aware of what happened in his cousin's attic: he knew it was for the best. He had made mistakes and he knew that it would take a long time to make atonements for all the bad things he had done, but he knew he could start with his family.

Ash was given an official apology and a generous compensation fee, but nothing would ever replace the years he had spent away from his family, missing out on his daughter growing up and failing to be there for his mother when she was sick. He didn't even know that she was poorly and for him not to be informed about it upset him.

Ash had called Brock last week and he was looking rough. Brock insisted that he was fine and kept smiling, but Ash had a feeling that deep down he was missing April despite the fact that she wanted to kill him. Brock was fathering all of April's children, but Ash knew that anybody out there could be the biological father of the kids. April may have been history but her spirit still left a depressing after-taste.

Misty and Ash had mainly stayed at the gym. It wasn't long until Delta would be ten years old and she would be starting her own pokemon journey. For now, Delta was happy riding on Bayleef around the Christmas tree as Ash watched from other side of the pool. Delta dived and jumped back out of the water with a smile on her face. "Daddy!" Delta cried out. "You should do it too."

"Jump in?" Ash asked.

"Yeah!" Delta squealed. "Swimming is so fun."

"I haven't been swimming for over ten years," Ash told Delta. "I might sink."

"You'll never know until you try," Delta insisted. "I love how the water makes you feel weightless and free."

Ash closed his eyes, turned his back towards his daughter and fell back. He allowed the water to push him further to the bottom of the pool. Delta was right, it was the first time in years that he felt so weightless and free. He felt he could almost sleep and never wake up. He had sunk, but he didn't care. He felt something thin against his hips moving him in a diagonal direction before splashing onto the surface.

"Daddy!" Delta screamed. Ash was struggling to breath as he gasped for air. "Oh thank goodness you're alive. I thought for a second I was going to lose you." Delta bought her dad's upper body out of the water and hugged him tightly.

Ash felt he had purified, not by the water but by his daughter's love.

Ash Of Vengeance is officially finished. I would like to thank everyone who has read, reviewed, followed and favourited this story. I'm happy that you all liked this fic, as for the people who didn't like the fact it's a crossover, I have a headcanon that all fictional characters live in the same universe as ours hence why it's so easy for me to crossover different fandoms.