"Home Reckoning"
Author: Robert Brown

Disclaimer: This story uses characters created and copyrighted by Nintendo, Game Freak, and/or 4 Kids Inc. (except where noted, in which case they were created and copyrighted by me or by another and I have permission to use them). The author hereby gives permission for this story to be downloaded and/or printed at 1 copy per user as long as (1) no changes to the story are made without my express written(not e-mailed) permission and (2) no attempt is made to profit from this story. If either or both rules are violated, it will be considered a violation of copyright law.

Author's Note: I can't believe it's been almost two years since I put out a Pokémon fic. Two years. Does anyone even care about this series anymore? I'm not going to stop, I've put too much effort into it. But I can just see myself still writing fics when I'm 50. Ah well, if that's how life will be, that's how life will be. I can do a lot worse. Take care everyone who's still out there, and till next time, Happy Reading!

Since I've been writing this, I've gotten some bad news. My mom has been diagnosed with ALS(Lou Gehrig's disease). It is completely incurable and invariably fatal. As such, my muses have left me in my state of depression. I'm trying to work my way through it, but please try to bear with me.

#9

The western beaches of Cinnabar Island were just starting to stir in the pre-dawn hours when two cries split the calm and quiet.

"Go Lapras!"

"Go Gyarados!"

Ash and Misty tossed their pokéballs into the air, releasing the water pokémon into the waiting surf. Lapras squealed with glee when she landed it the water and used her flippers to toss some of the chilly water onto her trainer, causing Ash to laugh. Gyarados, while equally happy to be in the water, was far more reserved in his actions and just waited for directions from his trainer.

"All right, let's get home!" Ash yelled joyfully, his sentiment echoed enthusiastically by Penny. The others were happy as well, but for different reasons. Brock was looking forward to seeing Professor Oak at his lab and seeing all the different pokémon he had. Suzie was nervous about meeting the great Pokémon Professor, something she never thought she'd actually be able to do. Misty was anxious to see Ash's mom again, hoping that the change in her and Ash's relationship would be accepted. A small part of her hoped that Ash's mom wouldn't want her son with Penny, but it was soon overwhelmed by guilt for even thinking that way.

Ash climbed aboard Lapras and reached down to help Penny up. But when he reached down to help Misty up as well, he was nearly knocked into the water by a wave that Gyarados kicked up with its tail fin. "Hey, what's the big idea?" he demanded, wiping water away from his face.

Gyarados roared angrily and fixed Ash with a harsh stare. "Umm, Ash, I think Gyarados is mad," Penny said quietly. Gyarados roared a few more times, looking purposely between Ash and Misty. "He says that he won't carry anyone unless Misty rides him as well."

Misty looked a little upset for a second, but then her face brightened. "All right, so we'll ride Gyarados and Brock and Suzie can ride Lapras!" she suggested. No sooner had she finished when Lapras shook her whole body, trilling in anger. "Let me guess," Misty sighed when Penny opened her mouth, "Lapras won't carry anyone unless she's carrying Ash, right?"

"Right," Penny shrugged. "Oh well, looks like Brock and Suzie ride with you and I'll ride with Pikapi!"

"In your dreams!" Misty yelled, jumping up and pulling Penny from her seat by Ash. "If I can't ride with him, you can't ride with him."

"Whoa!" Penny yelped as she landed in the water butt first.

"Come on you two," Brock said from the beach while Suzie shook her head. "Look, you two ride Gyarados and we'll ride with Ash."

"So you two get to ride together when we can't?" Penny and Misty asked together, looming over Brock. "You ride with Ash. We girls will ride together."

Suzie looked up at their suggestion, her eyebrow twitching slightly. Like the others, she now carried a backpack of her own and was dressed for travel. Packed away was the outfit she used to tend pokémon with. In its place was a bright teal tank top and a light brown skirt that fell to her knees with only the slightest of flares. "Oh no," she declared, "I'm not going to listen to the two of you bicker all the way to Pallet Town. I'm riding with Ash." While everyone just watched, Suzie climbed up on Lapras and lightly tapped her neck, causing her to take off across the water. "See you there!"

Ash knew full well that he would pay for it once the others caught up, but he couldn't help but laugh. Suzie found herself laughing as well, and the two friends shared a long chuckle together. "I can't believe you did that," Ash said. "But I want to thank you in a way."

"I meant what I said Ash," Suzie said, resting back against one of the protusions on Lapras' shell. "Dealing with those two would've given me a headache the size of a Snorlax. Let Brock deal with it; I still owe him for going...how did Misty put it? Oh yes, 'girl-crazy' was the word she used."

"Sometimes I just can't understand those two," he confided as Lapras made the turn north toward Pallet Town. "They're supposed to be the best of friends. But just now I swore they were going to try and claw each other's eyes out."

"It might have something to do with you Ash," Suzie said with a small smile. "It has to be hard for them to share you like they're doing. Misty had to be jealous of the idea of Penny spending time with you while she couldn't."

"But she wasn't jealous when I took Penny on a date."

"That's because she knew she was getting one too. A word of advice Ash, if you spend any significant amount of time with one of your girlfriends, make sure to spend that much with the other as well. At least until you make your decision."

Ash stroked Lapras' neck absentmindedly for a time. He hadn't really thought about that aspect of his relationships really. This was all so new to him, even though he'd had his first date with them both. Suddenly, Ash wanted to get to Pallet Town as fast as possible. It was no longer that he wanted to see his mother, he needed to see her. Maybe she could help him make sense of his confusing feelings.

As if sensing Ash's thoughts, Lapras sped up considerably, pushing herself forward through the water for her trainer's sake. Suzie nearly fell into the water, unprepared for the sudden change in speed. Hoping to save herself from an unneeded bath, she grabbed onto Ash's waist from behind. Ash himself was a little off-balance from Lapras' actions, and having Suzie suddenly hanging onto his waist didn't help matters any. But his grip on the front of Lapras' shell was secure enough that he was able to hold on long enough for Suzie to regain her balance.

"You OK back there?" Ash asked over his shoulder, turning his head as much as he could to check on her.

Suzie nodded, her breathing a bit harsh from her near fall. Even though she had her balance now, she couldn't quite bring herself to let go of Ash. At the speed Lapras was travelling, Ash would be long gone in seconds if she fell off for any reason. And that thought alone made her tighten her grip, pressing herself more fully against Ash's back. The idea that the others would probably find her on Gyarados didn't even occur to her. "I'm glad you're here Ash," she quipped, trying to lighten the mood a bit. "If I was holding Brock like this, he'd probably go girl-crazy and we'd both fall off."

Ash flushed slightly at how tightly Suzie was holding him and the soft feel of her leaning against him. "I really don't think so Suzie," he said after clearing his throat. "You're one of the few girls we've met that I've never seen him go girl-crazy over."

"Is that a fact?" Suzie asked in return, her voice going colder than Articuno's Blizzard attack.

Ash realized from her voice that he had just made a serious mistake. "Wait a minute!" he added quickly. "You're misunderstanding me. Brock goes girl-crazy over girls that he only sees how good they look. He respected you before he even met you, and he sees you as a lot more than your looks. So even though you're really pretty, he respects you too much to do that to you."

Suzie blushed noticably from Ash's inadvertent compliment as well as his words about Brock's feelings. "I guess I can understand," she said, her voice a little shaky. "I still don't want him to go girl-crazy at all though. It's annoying at best and embarrassing at worst."

Ash laughed at the expression on Suzie's face. "You look like you just swallowed a grimer," he said, making Suzie laugh as well. "But if you want to hear about embarrassing, I have plenty of stories I could tell you about Brock." That got Suzie's attention and she eagerly urged him to continue.

With the head start they had, it took another fifteen minutes of Misty coaxing Gyarados to his fullest speed for them to catch up to Ash and Suzie. In that time, Ash had related three tales that had Suzie laughing so hard she was in tears. Currently, Suzie was playacting as a very ditzy girl that might fawn over Brock. Ash, facing her fully now and playing the part of Brock, was doing a perfect rendition of being girl-crazy as the recipient of that affection. But it was so over-the-top and ridiculous that they were having trouble keeping their faces straight.

That's not how it looked to the ones riding Gyarados though. Brock could feel his eyebrows twitching as he watched the byplay between Suzie and Ash. Seeing her show that kind of affection to Ash was really rubbing him the wrong way. It didn't make any sense! Why was she acting like this? She shouldn't be that flirty with anyone but him!

Reality hit Brock like a punch to the stomach. This annoyance and anger he was feeling must have been exactly how Suzie had felt when he went girl- crazy on the beach during their date. All the anger drained from him in a heartbeat, leaving only guilt behind. This was the first time he could see how everyone else saw it. He was more determined than ever to get control of it now, he just had to figure out how.

If Brock had been just angry at what he was seeing, Penny and Misty were beyond words. If one had to compare the emotions they were feeling, Brock's would be as strong as a magikarp's Splash while Penny's and Misty's would each be about the strength of an electrode's Explosion. Their hands were tied up at the moment with keeping balance on Gyarados, so all they could do was plot out different ways to maim and torture Suzie for daring to flirt with Ash.

It was at that time that Suzie felt a strange prickling sensation on the back of her neck, as if she were being watched by someone who meant her harm. She turned around to try and find the source of the rather uncomfortable feeling and found that Misty and Penny were both try to burn holes through her back with just their gazes alone. But why were they looking at her like that? It couldn't be just from what happened back on Cinnabar's beach, could it? But from how they were looking at her, especially at how close she was sitting to Ash, it was almost like they were...jealous?

Suzie found herself blinking at the thought. As crazy as it was, that was the only thing that made sense. But why would they be jealous of her? After all, they knew of her feelings for Brock and Ash's feelings for them. So what was the problem?

"Hey Suzie, are you all right?" Ash asked, tapping her arm to try and get her attention. "You got quiet on me."

Suzie shook her head slightly and focused back on Ash. "Oh sure, sorry Ash," she said with a half-smile. "I just got to thinking about some things."

"Well, if you want to talk, it's still a half hour to Pallet Town at least," he said as he turned himself around to help guide Lapras through a couple of shoals. "I don't mind talking things out if it'll help you."

Suzie's smile grew warmer, touched by Ash's concern. He really was every bit the sweet boy he seemed to be. And that just made the reactions of Penny and Misty that much more mystifying. Even if, for whatever reason, they didn't trust her, they had to know that they could trust Ash. He hadn't given them any reason to doubt them, unlike Brock had with her.

"I don't know," she said, becoming sadder the more she thought about it. She held him from behind once more, her arms sliding easily around his chest and waist, smiling softly as she could feel Ash tense slightly at the contact. "There's not too much to talk about, I'm just thinking about how to deal with Brock. I mean, I've already forgiven him for that one incident, but I don't think I could forgive him a second time. I do have feelings for him, strong ones, and I don't want to get hurt."

"I don't think you'll have to worry about that too much," Ash said after a moment's thought. "Brock really likes you. I don't know if he told you this but he was ready to offer me anything if I let you come with us. He's gotta know how important this is to you, so there's no way he'll let you down. You just gotta trust him."

Suzie felt her jaw drop open at the wisdom coming from Ash's mouth. "Thanks a lot Ash," she said, her hold on him turning into more of a hug now. "I really needed to hear that."

"Glad to help out a friend," Ash said with a bright smile. "Besides, even though you always look pretty, you're beautiful when you smile."

Suzie grew a little shy from what Ash said. For years she had been so focused on her work that the only compliments she had received were on her breeding and pokémon massage techniques. And she knew Brock had feelings for her so he couldn't exactly be unbiased. So for Ash, who had no ulterior motives, to call her pretty and beautiful actually meant something. "You know, you're really quite the charmer," she said honestly. "No wonder you have two girls falling all over themselves to be with you." Ash turned his head a bit to smile at her, his cheeks red from both her thanks and her hug. Suzie couldn't help but giggle at the faintly embarrassed look on Ash's face. "Has anyone ever told you that you're cute when you blush?" She asked teasingly.

Ash felt his cheeks burn even hotter as he pulled his hat down to hide his face. He wasn't sure what possessed him to say that to her, but he really didn't like to see anyone sad, especially a friend. He'd overheard while wandering around the hotel that the quickest way to get a girl to smile was to compliment her looks, but only if it were true. He wanted to test it out on Misty and Penny, but held back for fear of unnecessary pain. But with how Suzie reacted to being complimented, it was definitely worth a try.

The rest of the trip passed with them bantering easily back and forth with a good dose of teasing and flirting occasionally tossed in. Suzie found herself not even caring about whether or not she was teaching a lesson to Penny and Misty about trusting Ash. In fact, she hadn't noticed that Gyarados had begun to fall behind, unable to keep up with Lapras' speed. By the time Pallet Town started to rise on the horizon, Gyarados was far behind them.

Suzie noticed the approaching Pallet Town and sighed. She wasn't sure if she were ready for the ride to end; it was a welcome diversion from her thoughts and worries. "Thanks Ash," she said, hugging him even a little closer than she already was and resting her chin on his shoulder so that she could look at the profile of his face. "I really enjoyed this ride...and the talk."

"Glad to be a help," Ash said with a smile, turning his upper body around to face her fully, making her lift her chin from his shoulder. "And hey, if you ever need to talk about what's going on with Brock just tell me. He may know how to deal with us, but I'm no slouch at dealing with him either."

Suzie smiled gratefully at Ash's offer, but then she suddenly froze. With how Ash had turned, their faces were very near each other. All the flirting and teasing they had done, along with hugging herself against him since almost the beginning of the journey, had left their mark on her. Some distant part of her knew this was wrong, but the only thing she wanted to do at the moment was to kiss Ash. But did she dare?

Well behind them, Misty sat perched on one of Gyarados' coils, trying to see exactly what was going on on Lapras. Lapras was still pulling away from Gyarados; she estimated that there was at least three-quarters of a mile between them now. All she could tell was that Ash and Suzie were still sitting very close to each other. Maybe even closer now than they were before, but she could not be certain of that.

So engrossed was she with her attempted spying that she didn't even notice when Penny's face popped up next to hers. "Can you see what they're doing?" Penny asked, wincing slightly as a particularly strong wave rocked Gyarados. She tried to use the brim of her cap to shield her eyes from the sun, but the glare reflecting off the water was just as bad if not worse.

"No," Misty admitted with a sigh. It didn't help that the distance was growing larger with each passing second. She was proud of Gyarados for even being able to catch up with Lapras in the first place; gyarados were built for battle, not speed. And even though Misty could sense the desire to go faster in the way her pokémon's muscles rippled and tensed, she knew that urging him any harder than he was already pushing himself would only lead to Gyarados becoming completely exhausted. And no matter how much this was bothering her, she refused to do that to any of her pokémon. She was glad that Togepi was sleeping comfortably in her backpack though; her "baby" would not like the tension in her "mommy's" arms very much and Misty didn't want to worry Togepi needlessly.

It was almost another fifteen minutes before Lapras reached the beach of Pallet Town, and both Misty and Penny watched closely as Ash slid off Lapras, then caught Suzie as she jumped off. It didn't look like anything inappropriate was happening, but they were still too far away to absolutely say so. Still, it wouldn't hurt to make sure that Suzie knew exactly where things stood.

Gyarados' body wasn't as streamlined as Lapras' so he when he reached the shore nearly ten minutes after Lapras had he was forced to beach further out. Misty, Penny, and Brock jumped off in waist-deep water instead of the ankle-deep water that Ash and Suzie had gotten to. "Thank you so much for everything," Misty whispered to Gyarados before recalling him to his pokéball.

By the time those three had waded through the surf to shore, Ash and Suzie were sitting side-by-side on top of a small mound of sand waiting for them. "About time you three showed up," Suzie called with a wave. Ash waved as well, but it was obvious his mind was on something else.

"Very funny," Penny muttered dryly as they stood up and hopped down to greet them.

Suzie reached up on top of the dune where Ash's jacket was laying and pulled it down, shaking some sand out of it. "Thanks for the loan Ash," she said, handing it back to him.

"No problem," Ash said distractedly, oblivious to the jealous looks that Misty and Penny were shooting at him.

As before, Suzie was not. "Is there anything you two would like to say to me?" she asked sharply, arching an eyebrow.

"Why yes," Misty said in a sugary sweet voice, taking hold of one of Suzie's arms. She nodded at Penny who took hold of Suzie's other arm, though a touch hesitantly. "You boys go on ahead, we girls have a little something to discuss.

"Let's go Brock," Ash said, adjusting his cap to fit better on his head. "I'm sure by now Mom has breakfast cooking." He seemed to be more focused now that the subject was on food.

Brock grabbed his and Suzie's backpacks, walking along behind Ash. "Does this mean I finally get to taste your mom's wonderful cooking?" he asked. When Ash just laughed in answer, Brock cracked a smile. "Hey, you always compare my food to hers; about time I get to make the comparison too."

Misty and Penny made sure to walk Suzie slowly enough that Ash and Brock had quickly walked beyond easy hearing range. "What was the big idea flirting with Ash like that?" she hissed, making sure to keep her face neutral in case Ash should look back.

"I didn't start flirting with him until you two gave me the jealous looks of death," Suzie answered calmly.

"Yeah right," Penny countered. "We saw Ash giving you the 'girl-crazy' look when you were acting flirty with him."

Suzie stopped suddenly, digging her heels into the sand and making Misty and Penny stop with her. "The key word there is acting. Ash had been telling me stories about how Brock has gone girl-crazy since they met to make me understand how hard it's going to be for him to just stop. So we were having a little fun with it and Ash did his best impression of Brock. That's all."

"That's all?" Misty asked, thinking about Suzie's words. It was true that going "girl-crazy" was very unlike Ash; now that she was thinking rationally she could see that. Suddenly she felt very ashamed of herself and from the look and Penny's face, they both felt the same.

Suzie shook her arms free of them, a scowl marring her pretty face. "Look, you're both supposed to be in love with Ash, right? Love is built on trust, so even if you don't trust me you really should trust him. This is one of the sticking points between me and Brock; if I can't trust him not to go girl-crazy, I can't allow myself to fall in love with him. Not that I'm all too far from it anyway."

Penny toed the sand with her boot, unable to meet Suzie's gaze. "It's times like this I almost want to be just a pikachu again," she muttered, rubbing her eyes. "But I can't bring myself to give this up."

Suzie walked around until she was behind the girls and threw an arm around their shoulders. "Come on, you don't want to miss breakfast do you?" she asked, steering them after the footprints that Ash and Brock had left behind. Suzie's instincts held true and soon a very nice house came into view. "I assume that's where we're going?"

"Don't ask me," Misty admitted. "This is my first time in Pallet Town."

"I've been here once," Penny offered. "Granted it wasn't a pleasant time for me, but I do remember the house. And that is it."

The girls walked up to the house, their bad spirits melting away under the bright sun. As they reached the door, it opened suddenly and Ash dashed through it, almost bowling all three girls over in his haste. As it was, he crashed into Suzie, nearly knocking her down; the only reason both her and him were not on the ground was because she was being held up by Misty and Penny. It took them a good thirty seconds to get themselves righted, during which Ash found himself leaning fully against Suzie. "Sorry," he muttered once he was on his feet, a faint blush staining his cheeks from the contact.

Suzie's cheeks mirrored Ash's, but she recovered quickly. "Where are you going in such a hurry?" she asked, somehow managing to keep her voice from squeaking as she dropped her arms from around the girls' shoulders.

"Umm, Professor Oak wanted to see me. He said it was something really important that couldn't wait. He didn't even let me have breakfast."

Penny couldn't help but giggle at Ash's pout while Misty rolled her eyes. "Well, the faster you get there the faster you'll get back," Penny pointed out. "Go on, we'll keep your food warm for you." That got a bashful smile out of him, which brought a smile to her face as well. She leaned in and brushed a quick kiss across his lips. "I'll be waiting."

"Me too," Misty chimed in, stepping up to Ash and pressing a slightly deeper kiss to Ash's lips than Penny had. "Don't take too long. And it's that way Ash," she added, turning Ash around before he walked back down to the beach.

"And while you're doing that," Ash's mom, Delia Ketchum, said, suddenly appearing in the doorway and pulling Penny and Misty inside, "we can all have a talk about just why you two are both kissing my son."

Ash felt very lightheaded as he walked down the path to Professor Oak's lab. That was the first time that he had been kissed by both girls one right after the other. And with what ahd already happened that day, he could not wipe the smile from his face. He kept replaying the kisses over in his mind so much that he didn't notice when he walked into the door. His head collided with the wood loudly and he fell down with a surprised cry.

As Ash sat there rubbing his head, the door opened up. "Oh there you are Ash," Professor Oak said, grabbing Ash's arm and helping him to his feet. "Hmm, I can't do that too much anymore," he said, rubbing his back.

"Umm, you wanted to see me Professor Oak?" Ash asked, making sure his cap was on right.

"Oh yes," Professor Oak agreed, his demeanor becoming serious. "Come in, please. There's something very important that we have to talk about."

"Umm, all right," Ash said, a little taken aback by Professor Oak's change in attitude.

Professor Oak sighed as he sat down and motioned for Ash to do the same. "I'm sorry Ash, but the Nurse Joy who treated you wasn't as discreet as I would've liked her to be. She informed one of her cousins about the your condition, just in a casual manner. But that cousin was so taken aback by the knowledge that she immediately told the Officer Jenny stationed in her town, and the Officer Jenny felt it was her duty to inform the Indigo League Council."

Ash felt a shiver run down his spine. The Indigo League Council, better known as the Elite Four, made all the rules concerning pokémon battling in the region. They were the ones who licensed the trainers and sanctioned the gyms in which badges could be earned. Their word was law, completely unappealable. "What did they say?" he asked slowly.

Professor Oak rubbed his eyes and looked at Ash with a sorrowful gaze. "After careful review, and extensive questioning of me, they've given you a choice. Either you promise never to use your powers again or you limit yourself to carrying only five pokémon from now on with you being considered your own sixth."

Ash leaned back in his chair with a harsh movement that nearly tipped both him and the chair over. "Some choice," he muttered, shifting his weight forward to right himself. "Can I change my mind at any point?"

"I'm afraid not. Once your decision is made it is final. Any attempt to change it will result in your permanent disqualification from being a trainer."

Ash pounded his left fist into his right palm. He was backed into a corner with no way out. His dark thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a pokémon rushing toward him. "Bulba!" Bulbasaur cried as he launched himself into Ash's chest.

"Hey Bulbasaur!" Ash said, cuddling the grass pokémon to him. He laughed as Bulbasaur's vine whips tickled the spot underneath his chin. Just holding his friend like this helped to take the edge off his anger, brightening his mood considerably.

Professor Oak cleared his throat, still looking rather ill at ease. "Ash, as much as I don't want to push you, the Council has 'asked' that you give your answer as soon as possible. In other words, I'm not allowed to let you leave until you decide."

"Why is it so important that I decide now? I mean, this is something I really need to think about."

"I understand Ash, really I do. But they're getting a little antsy about it, especially now that you've earned your seventh badge. They're afraid that if they don't impose some kind of limit on you then any further battles you have will be tainted by you misusing your powers."

"I would never do that!" Ash yelled, the sentiment echoed by Bulbasaur's loud cry.

Professor Oak held his hands up, forcing himself not to cringe as he saw sparks of electricity arcing around Ash's fists. "Don't you think I know that Ash? But they don't know you like I do.

"Ash, you could very well be on your way to being Pokémon Master, a title few have ever held. One thing you will learn is that every move you make can and will be dissected by those looking to bring you down. What on the surface is innocent can easily be spun into something the general public will find incriminating. You have to avoid even the appearance of impropriety at all costs, and that's all the League Council is doing here. Is it right? Maybe not, but it's the way it has to be."

Ash sat quietly, absently scratching the bulb on Bulbasaur's back. He didn't understand all the words that Professor Oak had said, but he got the main gist of them. "I'm not going to give up my powers," he said firmly. "I've been working too hard on learning how to use them," he added, holding his hand out and loosing a thundershock into the ground at Professor Oak's feet. "I'm not about to let all that go to waste."

Professor Oak smiled for the first time since he'd sat down with Ash. "I think you've made the right choice Ash," he said, standing up.

"I'm not done yet," Ash insisted, making Professor Oak sit back down. "I'll follow all their rules, but I have one of my own."

"And what might that be?" Professor Oak asked warily.

"If I ever get into a six on six battle, my opponent will know that I'm one of those six under these rules. I just want the option of registering six of my pokémon and not being forced to use myself."

"You actually think you can dictate to the Council?" Professor Oak asked, aghast at the thought. "They tell us what to do, not the other way around."

"Professor Oak, one day I'm going to be Pokémon Master. If I let the League push me around now, they'll never respect me as Pokémon Master. I need to show them that I'm going to stand my ground or they'll walk all over me."

Professor Oak sat back, thinking about Ash's words. "I guess that's fair, but I can't promise anything. It's up to the Council."

Ash stood and nodded, gently lowering Bulbasaur back to the floor. "I'll abide by whatever they say, but I won't turn over a pokémon until they make their ruling official." Professor Oak nodded and stood to walk Ash to the door. What neither one was aware of was that their entire conversation had been overheard by someone, someone who against his better judgement was beginning to feel very jealous.

Ash walked back to his house, thinking everything over. He had to give up a pokémon, but it was not going to be an easy decision. Pikachu, Lapras, Squirtle, Charizard, Pidgeotto, or Articuno. A case could be made for each of them. For instance, since his powers were electric in nature, it would make sense for him to leave Pikachu behind. But he discarded that thought as soon as he had it. Even if it weren't for the fact that she was also Penny and he needed to figure out exactly where things were going with her, she was his first pokémon. Ever since she'd run back to him the last time he tried to leave her behind with that group of pikachu, he swore he'd never leave her behind again.

Leaving behind Lapras made even more sense. Lapras was a water pokémon who was most at home on the open water. None of the rest of his journey was going to be on the water. Also, Professor Oak had a really nice lake on his property. And yet, Lapras was one of his newer pokémon and he'd grown very fond of her. Still, if she'd be happier staying with Professor Oak, he had to at least keep the option in mind.

Squirtle was another option. He and Bulbasaur were best of friends, and they'd surely be unhappy being separated. And he couldn't exactly bring Bulbasaur along right now anyway or he'd have to find two pokémon to leave behind. That was more of a headache than it was worth. But Squirtle was a battler; he wouldn't enjoy living with Professor Oak for very long. He might even get into some real trouble. Would it be worth it just to reunite some friends?

Charizard. Now he seemed like the easy choice to leave behind. He and Ash were still at odds with each other and it didn't look like that would change any time soon. Leaving Charizard with Professor Oak would eliminate one of Ash's biggest headaches. The problem with that was that this was what Charizard probably wanted. It would be wrong to give him what he wants for acting the way he did and Ash would never earn Charizard's respect that way.

Ash hadn't used Pidgeotto in battle since his first encounter with Mewtwo, and he felt guilty about that now that he thought about it. He wished he could say that he was going to do better in the future, but he didn't know what lay ahead for him. Leaving Pidgeotto with Professor Oak would have the least effect on his battling style, that was true. Still, he wasn't sure if that would just be a copout. He cared a lot about Pidgeotto and he should probably show her that more. Leaving her behind might do the exact opposite.

And then there was Articuno. Ash had to laugh to himself for a moment; only he would think about leaving behind one of the three most legendary pokémon in the area. Professor Oak had been waiting most of his life to study such a valuable pokémon, and he owed him that much at least. But in the battle with Blaine, Articuno had looked at him oddly, almost as if she were truly seeing him for the first time. Either way, he wanted to know more about her and what she was all about. And he couldn't do that if he didn't travel and battle with her.

Ash was still undecided as he reached his house. As much as he didn't like the idea, he knew that he probably couldn't make the decision until it was forced onto him. But maybe the others could help. "I'm home!" he called as he opened the door.

"Oh Ash," his mother said in a sickly sweet voice, "I'm so glad you're back. We were just waiting for you to come back."

Ash paused where he stood. He had turned around to close the door so he couldn't see exactly what was making his mom talk like that. But he knew that tone of voice well. His mother almost never got mad at him, but when she did she used this exact same voice to let him know that her anger wasn't very far behind. He turned around slowly, expecting the worst. What he saw was beyond even that.

His mother was sitting on a chair in front of their sofa, looking intently at Penny and Misty. Both girls were squirming in their seats, looking anywhere but at Mrs. Ketchum. Brock and Suzie were nowhere to be found, probably hiding out back or something. Ash thought about going to find them, wherever they were, but his mother suddenly turned and pinned him with a glare as effective as any Arbok's. "Ash, would you please come here and sit with us?" she asked, but Ash heard the underlying order.

Ash walked quickly into the living room and sat down in a chair in the far corner of the room. One of his mother's eyebrows started twitching ever so slightly and he moved to sit between Penny and Misty without her even having to say a word. He swallowed nervously as both Penny and Misty sagged tiredly against him. "Are you two OK?" he whispered, sliding an arm around each of their waists. Misty and Penny both nodded and rested their heads on his shoulders.

Delia's eyes narrowed as she watched the three of them. She folded her hands on her lap and leaned forward slightly, making Ash and the girls lean back into the sofa's cushions. "Ash dear, could you please explain to me what you're doing with two girlfriends?" she asked as calmly as she could. "I tried to get the story out of Misty and...Penny was it? But neither one seems to be able to talk much at the moment."

Ash winced, knowing exactly what that felt like. "It's a long story Mom," he said, trying to delay the inevitable. But from how her hands clenched, he knew it was a hopeless tactic. "Let me start at the beginning."

Ash spent the better part of the next hour recounting the most recent part of his journey. Through it all his mother stayed silent. He could see the fear in her eyes when he mentioned the threat of the Red Squad, the surprise of the singing contest, the shock at the de-evolution of Pikachu from a Raichu, the concern over his own powers, the worry over his time in Seafoam Islands, and her pride in his earning of his seventh badge. Her face was carefully neutral however whenever he mentioned anything that involved either Misty or Penny, especially the dates that he had taken them on. That worried him. "And we came back to Pallet Town this morning," he finished.

During some point in Ash's story Delia had rested her elbows against her thighs and brought her laced fingers up to rest her chin on. "You've had quite the adventure," she said thoughtfully. "But I notice there is one part you didn't quite explain. How did you meet Penny to begin with? I find it a little hard to believe that she saved your life out of the blue from Articuno and then showed up the very next day at a café with Misty."

Ash sighed and let his head drop forward. He'd been hoping that his mother wouldn't make anything of that detail, but he should've known better. There was precious little he could slip by his mother when he was younger and she'd only gotten better as he got older. "Well Mom," he began nervously, "you see that's a whole story in and of itself. I've known her really since the beginning of my journey, but something changed recently to make her let me know how she feels."

Delia finally allowed her confusion to show as she turned her gaze on Penny. "I know you met Misty on your first day out," she said slowly, trying to piece things together only to find that they didn't fit. "Ash, don't lie to me. If you had met Penny that day I think you would've mentioned her before this."

"I have to show her, don't I?" Penny whispered sadly. Ash's expression was pained at the thought, but he nodded his agreement. Penny sighed softly as she disentangled herself from Ash. She stood up with her arms out to the sides. "I hope you won't hate me after I show you this," she told Delia as a yellow glow surrounded her.

Delia leaned back sharply in her chair as Penny seemed to collapse in on herself. When she saw a familiar electric pokémon's face sticking out from the pile of clothing, her surprise was more than enough to send her falling backward head over heels as she overbalanced in her chair.

"Mom!" Ash yelled, hurrying to her side. Misty and a quickly changed Penny were there as well though Penny's clothes were a little askew from the quick transformation. "Are you all right?" Ash asked, checking Delia's head to make sure it wasn't bleeding.

Delia waved away Ash's probing hands. "I'm fine dear," she whispered distractedly, looking at Penny. "Please tell me I didn't just imagine that," she said as she righted herself with the help of all three. "Pikachu? Is that really you?"

"Pika!" Penny said as cutely as possible, adding a wink in for good measure.

Delia rubbed her temples as she was helped to the sofa. "At least tell me that you haven't always been able to do this all the time."

"Of course not," Penny said stiffly. "I only gained the ability just before we headed to Seafoam. And a good thing I did too or Ash..." She let her words trail off, but everyone knew what she meant.

Delia closed her eyes and let her head fall back against the sofa. "Well Ash," she said in her best "mother" voice, "it seems you have gotten yourself in quite the little dilemma here. You know I can't approve of you having two girlfriends. I think you're too young to have one!"

Ash very nearly whined, "Mom!" at her words, but held it back because that would have only proven her correct. What he said instead was simple, straight, and to the point. "I love them Mom."

Delia lifted her head slowly and stared into her son's eyes. Many times he had almost been able to slip a lie past her. But there was always something in his eyes whenever he tried. She held his gaze for a long time, searching hard for that hint. But it wasn't there. For the first time that she doubted him, Ash was telling the truth. "Looks like my little boy isn't so little anymore," she whispered, tears springing to her eyes.

Ash blushed a bit and looked down, embarrassed. "And to think, this isn't my only 'dilemma' to deal with," he said as he sat in the chair across from his mother.

"What do you mean Ash?" Misty asked, tilting her head to the side slightly as she watched him.

Ash heaved a heavy sigh as Misty and Penny sat down on opposite sides of Delia. "Apparently word leaked out about my powers," he said, making his fists crackle with electricity to emphasize his point. "Professor Oak said that the Indigo League Council heard about it and they're giving me a choice. Either I only carry five pokémon on me from now on or I never use my powers again. If I didn't agree to it they were going to strip me of my trainer's license."

"That's not fair!" Penny exclaimed. "How can they make you not use your powers anymore?" She was really worried about this. His powers were one of the things they shared together, one of the few true advantages she had over Misty in their friendly war over Ash's heart. If she lost that...

Ash smiled a sad sort of half-smile. "I'm not giving up my powers," he said gently. "I decided I'm going to carry only five pokémon from now on... At least, once they get back to me on my condition."

Misty opened her mouth to ask what he was talking about, but the phone took that moment to start ringing. Delia picked up the handset and held it to her ear. "Hello? Ketchum residence." She nodded along with whoever was on the other end, despite the fact that this wasn't a videophone and therefore she couldn't be seen. "OK, I'll tell him. We'll be right over Samuel.

"That was Professor Oak," she said as she hung up the phone. "The Indigo League Council has agreed to your terms. They're expecting your decision in a few minutes."

"That was quick," Ash muttered. "I haven't even figured out which one to leave behind yet."

Misty reached over and pulled Ash to his feet, linking her arm with his. "We'll figure it out on the way over there," she said, trying not to notice when Penny did the same on his other side. Delia giggled a little as she watched Ash grow uncomfortable in the grasp of both girls. Even though she was still not sold on this whole "two girlfriends" thing, it looked like she could use it to have a little fun at her son's expense. She decided to follow along, just so she could do just that.

As they all walked to Professor Oak's place, both Misty and Penny had their ideas on who should be left behind. Misty's vote was Charizard while Penny urged him to leave behind Squirtle. Delia kept her own thoughts on the matter silent but threw her support behind each girl as they spoke in turn. She was trying to see if Ash would clearly favor one of them over the other, but Ash remained perfectly neutral, focused solely on the task at hand. A part of her was annoyed by this, but a larger part was proud of him for being truthful about his feelings.

Professor Oak was waiting for them outside his lab, watching them approach. He was a little surprised that the Council had agreed to Ash's condition so readily; in his experience they did not take kindly to having demands made of them. But Ash was only trying to insure the same options were available to him as they were to other trainers. After all, no matter how much you relied on one pokémon, there was no rule that said you always had to use it.

"Hi Samuel!" Delia called, waving animatedly as she hurried forward ahead of her son and his two friends.

"Well hello Delia," he returned, a slight smile touching his lips. "I didn't expect you to join us today. Or either of the other young ladies present."

Delia blushed as she was called a "young lady." She prided herself on keeping her youthful looks despite having a teenage son, and compliments on that fact were always greatly appreciated. "Well, you didn't think I was going to let Ash make one of the most important decisions of his life without me here, did you?" she asked with a playful grin. "There was no way he was going to leave me or his girlfriends behind."

"Girlfriends?" Professor Oak asked in surprise, making sure to emphasize the plural of the word. When all four nodded, he just shook his head. "I'm sure this is an interesting story, but we'd better get the unpleasantness out of the way first."

Ash sighed softly and disentangled himself from the grasps of Penny and Misty. He pulled one pokéball from his waist and looking at it as he walked toward Professor Oak. "This was a hard decision to make," he said quietly, enlarging the pokéball to full size. "But I think the best thing for my team right now will be to leave behind Lapras. I haven't had her long, but she's already an important part of my team. I'm going to miss her."

"Very well," Professor Oak said solemnly. "I'll keep Lapras safe and sound here until you want her returned. I've also been asked by the Indigo League Council to officially record the five pokémon you have chosen to continue your journey with. Would you please call them out now?"

Ash thought the request was a little strange but complied anyway. "Well, you know I never go anywhere without Pikachu," he began as he pulled four pokéballs from his belt.

"Where is Pikachu?" Professor Oak asked, looking around and realizing for the first time that he didn't see the yellow rodent that was normally a fixture by Ash's side.

Ash's gaze flickered over to Penny for a second and she rolled her eyes. "You know, I'm starting to feel like I'm on stage or something," she grumped, but transformed anyway. Professor Oak seemed to take it as well as anyone who had seen it thus far, but a closer look showed that his knees were trembling slightly. "Don't worry," Penny said after she had transformed back and was adjusting her clothing, "this story is just as interesting as the other one and you'll hear it at the same time."

"Quite so," Professor Oak said, mopping his forehead with a handkerchief that he'd pulled from the pocket of his lab coat. "Continue Ash."

One by one, Ash called out Pidgeotto, who pecked Ash lightly on the top of his head because it had been so long since she'd been let out of her pokéball; Squirtle, who posed for a second while wearing his old Squirtle Squad sunglasses; and Charizard.

Ash tried to call Charizard back quickly, hoping to keep any trouble and damage to a minimum, but Charizard had other ideas. He hadn't been let out of his pokéball since the incident with Giovanni in Team Rocket Headquarters, and Ash had gotten the best of him then. Not only that, but he'd just been enjoying a lovely little nap. He avoided the recall beam and instead torched Ash with a close-range Flamethrower.

"Ash!" everyone present cried, watching as Ash emerged from the flames more than a little singed and smoking. Charizard looked rather proud of himself and snorted a small Ember at Ash for further insult before turning his back on Ash completely.

"I've had it!" Ash exclaimed, tugging on Charizard's arm to try and turn him around. Of course that didn't work and Ash only got backhanded to the ground for his efforts. Penny looked like she wanted to transform back to Pikachu and teach Charizard a lesson. Ash gestured for her not to though and stood up, grabbing Charizard's arm again and pulling on it.

Charizard was getting annoyed with Ash now. Didn't this kid take a hint? He tried to backhand him again but Ash was ready for it this time. Ash ducked under the blow and brought his fist up into Charizard's chin. Ordinarily such a blow wouldn't have even turned the fire pokémon's head, which is exactly what Charizard was expecting to happen. But because Ash had activated his powers just before making contact, Charizard found himself roaring in pain as the electricity of a Thunderpunch coursed through his body.

Ash felt a sense of satisfaction as Charizard fell down on his backside and looked up at Ash in surprise and shock. "Now return!" Ash said a little more harshly than normal. Charizard, too stunned by what Ash had done, didn't even attempt to dodge the beam that pulled him back into his pokéball. Ash clipped the ball back onto his belt angrily and had just enough time to take a deep breath before Misty and Penny were upon him, checking his for injuries and scolding him for being so stupid, though Misty was more rough about it.

Professor Oak waited until both girls had satisfied themselves of Ash's well-being and Misty had thumped Ash's skull a time or two before thinking about talking, and even then he had to speak loudly over the startled cries of the now awake Togepi who was sticking her head out of Misty's backpack. "While I appreciated the demonstration of your abilities Ash, you do still have one more pokémon to show me."

Ash's face twisted up like he had just eaten something really sour. "I was hoping I could get away without that," he admitted, cringing at the look Professor Oak shot him. "It's just that we've had so much excitement already today that I didn't think we could handle much more."

"What are you talking about Ash?" Professor Oak wondered.

"I guess I'll just to show you. Go Articuno!"

For a split second, Professor Oak was convinced that he had misheard Ash. But when the flash of light died down and before him stood one of the three most legendary pokémon in the land, he felt his jaw drop somewhere around the level of his feet. "I can't believe it," he heard himself say. "What...how...when?"

"Another story for another time," Ash promised, letting Professor Oak stare for a few more minutes before recalling her. "Is there anything else you need? I haven't had lunch yet and I'm really getting hungry right now."

"Typical Ash," a familiar, and unwelcome, voice sneered from the shadowy doorway of Professor Oak's lab. "Always thinking with your stomach first."

"Gary?" Ash asked, a little surprised at hearing that voice. "What are you doing here? I thought you were--"

"You thought wrong," Gary said, walking out of the shadows and toward Ash with slow, measured steps. "But then that doesn't surprise me. You've always been wrong about a lot of things."

Ash blinked in surprise as he watched Gary approach. Since ending their friendship, Gary had always had a superior smirk on his face when talking to Ash. But the look on his face right now was quite different. If Ash didn't know better, he'd swear that it was a mixture of anger and...hate? "Gary," he said slowly, "is something wrong?"

Gary's expression became even angrier as he stopped in front of Ash and folded his arms across his chest. "Is something wrong?" he repeated in a slightly mocking voice. "Something is always wrong when it involves you Ash. Just answer me one question. Who did you con out of Articuno? We both know you're not capable of catching it yourself."

Ash tried to control himself in the face of Gary's anger but found it increasingly hard to do so. "What are you talking about Gary? You're not making any sense."

"You know what Ash? You're right." For a split second Ash hoped that this was all some kind of bizarre joke on Gary's part, but that was quickly dashed with Gary's next words. "You're not smart enough to con anyone out of anything. So who did you steal it from?"

"Gary!" Professor Oak said sharply while the others gasped in shock.

"Oh please," Gary retorted. "We both know there's no way Ash possibly could've done such an impressive thing. And I heard you got yourself a Volcano Badge too. So tell me, did you get it in battle or because you showed the gym leader how pitiful you are and you couldn't get badges any other way?"

"That's enough Gary!" Professor Oak ordered sternly, keeping a careful eye on Ash's hands as they started to sparkle with electricity. Penny and Misty must've noticed the same thing because they ran over to Ash and tried to calm him down. It took a little while, especially with Misty's attention divided between calming Ash, caring for Togepi, and shooting death glares at Gary, but the glow around Ash's hands began to fade.

Gary didn't move until his grandfather came up behind him and forcibly turned him around. As he was marched back toward the lab, Gary looked back over his shoulder and saw Ash being led away by his two girlfriends. A quirky smile, warm brown eyes, and two green ponytails danced in his vision for just a moment, but that just made him even angrier and he said the unthinkable. "That's right Ash, run away from your problems just like your dad did."

The moment he said it, he knew he'd crossed a line that should've never been crossed. But before he could do or say anything else, Ash tore away from Penny and Misty and charged over to him, tackling him down to grass. They rolled away from the others, throwing in a punch whenever they could while trying to pin the other boy down.

"Stop it you two!" Penny pleaded while Misty looked on, torn between letting Ash fight his own battles and jumping into the fight herself.

Professor Oak and Delia managed to separate the tussling boys before any serious damage was done, but it wasn't so easy to keep them apart. "What is the meaning of this Gary?" Professor Oak demanded. "I know you and Ash have a rivalry going on but you've gone too far this time."

"Ash isn't my rival," he said coldly, shaking off his grandfather but making no move toward Ash, "and it's time I proved it! It's time we settled once and for all just who is the prodigy of Pallet Town. I challenge you to a pokémon battle!"

"I accept!" Ash yelled, forcing himself to hold back his electricity so that he didn't accidentally hurt his mom. "What are the terms?"

"Six-on-six, no time limit, no switching. Tomorrow morning, ten o'clock on the dot. If you're late, you lose."

"Fine!" Ash agreed, twisting away from his mother and storming back toward his house.

Gary smirked and started to walk back to his own house when he heard footsteps running up behind him. He turned around only to be met with a stinging slap to his cheek. "I can't believe you," Misty said in a voice so cold that it made how Gary sound earlier seem warm and fuzzy by comparison. "Don't you ever say anything like that to Ash again or I will make sure you regret it." Gary sneered at Misty but said nothing more as he was escorted away by his grandfather.

Much later that night, Ash was sitting alone at a small table in his mother's kitchen in a short-sleeved pajama top and a pair of sleeping shorts, a bunch of papers spread out on the table in front of him. Tomorrow would be the most important battle of his life and he had to be prepared. Never mind that he usually fought by the seat of his pants; that was not going to cut it against Gary Oak.

Still, it would be a good idea if he tried to keep some element of surprise. Being the grandson of Professor Oak, Gary surely knew every single pokémon that Ash had ever caught, especially now that he had seen Articuno. But Ash did not have that luxury; he didn't even know what Gary's starter was! The best he could do was put together as balanced a team as possible and maybe use a pokémon or two that Gary wouldn't expect.

Of course, there was one other surprise he had for Gary. After making her wish, it seemed like Pikachu had gained a greater control of her electric powers. They had spent the afternoon together away from everyone else trying to come up with something that had never been done before. It wasn't yet perfected, but maybe it would be enough.

Ash sighed as he looked over his notes again. No matter how many times he went over this he just couldn't find the combination he wanted. Misty and Penny tried to help at first, but he insisted that he wanted to do it by himself. They kept him company for a while, trying to help with just their presence. It worked, but eventually they had to get to bed and so he was right back where he started.

But to be honest, he couldn't concentrate fully on it. So much had happened in the past twenty-four hours that his mind was reeling. If he could only find some answers to the things that plagued him, he might be able to focus on the battle tomorrow. But those answers were even more elusive than the perfect team he was trying to devise.

He glanced over at the waiting sofabed and sighed. His house was very nice, but it didn't adapt to having this many guests easily. He had lost his room to the girls; Suzie drew the long straw and got the bed while Penny and Misty stretched out in their sleeping bags on the floor. That left only the sofabed available and Brock had thankfully chosen to sleep in the backyard so that Ash could get a good night's sleep. "I wonder what he'd think if he knew that I was still up," Ash mused with a yawn.

"Oh!" Ash turned around at the unexpected sound, nearly tipping himself over in his chair. Suzie stood at the threshold of the kitchen, looking at Ash with more than a little surprise. She was dressed in a nightgown made of teal satin that showed off her curves without being too clingy. "I thought you were already asleep," she explained lamely, a hint of a blush on her cheeks.

Ash stared at her for a moment before looking away, a blush on his cheeks as well. He and Suzie had been avoiding each other most of the day by an unspoken agreement, and having her here alone in the kitchen with him in the dark of night was not doing his state of mind any favors. "I'll be outside," he muttered, starting to gather up his notes only to stop when Suzie walked over and placed a hand on his bare forearm. "Suzie?" he whispered, looking up at her.

Her normally warm brown eyes were shadowed and troubled as she slid into the seat next to him. "Ash, we need to talk," she said softly.

Ash felt a cold pit open up in his stomach but he decided to feign ignorance. "Talk? There's nothing we need to talk about. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to--"

"Ash," Suzie interrupted firmly but quietly. For a moment, she looked like she might lose the nerve to say what she wanted to, but she found the courage to continue. "We need to talk about what happened on Lapras."

He closed his eyes and swallowed nervously. He'd been hoping that she had forgotten all about it, but it looked like he'd hoped in vain. Then again, how could he expect her to forget about it when he himself was unable to let it go? Even now, he could remember it like it happened a couple minutes ago instead of early that morning.

(flashback)

Ash saw Suzie moving her head toward his and his mouth dropped open in surprise. Not much, just barely at all. He realized that she was going to kiss him a split second before it happened but was unable to marshal his thoughts together before her lips slanted across his with a contented sigh.

His whole body tensed up as her lips molded to his. He really didn't know what was going on, but he was unable to deny the tingles that shot through him when she deepened the kiss, her own lips parting to more fully press against his. He felt rather than heard her sigh again, her sweet breath flowing lazily into his mouth and mingling with his own.

Neither Misty nor Penny had kissed him like this, but somehow he found himself kissing her back. She began to pull away after about ten seconds, but not before her tongue snuck into his mouth and swiped playfully against his, letting him briefly taste the grape juice she had drunk as they left the hotel.

When he could see her face again, she still had that soft grateful smile on her lips. "Thank you Ash," she whispered loud enough for him to hear.

To say he was stunned was an understatement; he wasn't even quite sure that he was still breathing. He was aware of her snuggling his hear head into his back, but that only served to put rational thought that much further out of reach. He stayed that way until they reached land, coming to only when he had to help Suzie down. Even then, he couldn't manage to get any questions out of his mouth and only barely found enough calm by the time he others had shown up to not let them know that anything was wrong.

(end flashback)

"You're thinking about it, aren't you?" Suzie's gentle question brought Ash out of his thoughts. He nodded shyly, rubbing his burning cheeks to try and calm his blush. "I have too."

"It's been...hard not to," Ash admitted. "I just...I mean I can't..."

"You don't know why I did that, do you?"

"It's not just that," he said, pulling his arm away from Suzie's grip and standing up. "I've never been kissed like that before, and it felt good, really good. It was just...different somehow. And I can't figure out how."

Suzie sighed and watched as Ash began to pace. "I wish I could take it back," she said slowly.

"So you regret it then?" Ash asked, wincing at how disappointed he sounded and hoping Suzie couldn't hear it.

But she had and shook her head. "I don't regret it," she said quickly, a blush darkening her cheeks. "Once we got here and I had time to think about it, I knew I was wrong to do that. And that was before I saw how bad it was bothering you."

"Would you still have kissed me if you knew?" Ash didn't know why he asked that, but some part of him just had to know. Suzie's blush deepened as she looked away from Ash, but he could still see the slight nod she gave in answer. "Why did you do it then?" he asked, sitting back down in his chair.

Now it was her turn to stand up and pace. "It's hard to explain," she said finally. "With all the playing around and the flirting and how easily we were getting along, right then I could see what Misty and Penny both see in you. All I could think about right then was kissing you. I was caught up in the moment. Do you understand?"

"Kinda," he answered after a moment. "I know what it's like to get caught up in something, though for me it's usually pokémon," he added with a small chuckle. Suzie chuckled as well though it quickly faded away. "I guess it could've happened with anyone under the circumstances."

"I doubt it," she said. "Other than Brock, I don't think anyone but you can bring that out in me."

Ash stared at her in shock, dreading what those words could mean. "Wait a minute. Do you mean...?"

"No!" Suzie said sharply, her voice a little too loud in the still night. "No," she repeated more quietly, sitting back down at the table. "I don't have those kind of feelings for you Ash. I just meant that you're the only other boy that I can relax and really be myself with. That might be what was so different about my kiss; you just didn't feel anything behind it."

"I wouldn't say I didn't feel anything," Ash said reluctantly. "I just...I don't know. I wasn't really thinking about it at the time. You--" Ash was cut off as Suzie pressed her lips against his again, sliding her hand around his neck to hold him there.

Ash once again felt her kiss send tingles through his body and his eyes closed as he returned it. Her lips coaxed his open and he felt her tongue probe into his mouth as it had briefly during the kiss they shared while on Lapras. But it lingered this time, sliding gently against his own tongue and sending all new types of sensations through him. He tentatively moved his tongue back against hers and felt her gasp before she gently pulled away.

The smile he remembered from when they were on Lapras was back on her face but it was accompanied by a rosy blush in her cheeks and a slight sparkle in her eyes. "Well?" she asked, her voice a touch breathy.

Ash tried to clear his mind and think about what he'd felt during that kiss. It was amazing, outstanding, like nothing he'd ever experienced before. But it was also...empty.

Suzie nodded as she saw understanding dawn on Ash's face. "It doesn't matter how good it feels everywhere else," she said, placing a hand over his heart. "If you don't feel it here, it doesn't mean anything." She stood up and walked away as Ash absorbed that, patting his cheek affectionately as she walked past him. "Don't stay up too late Ash. I don't want to have to tell your girlfriends that you're still awake."

Ash smiled as she left the kitchen then turned his attention back to the papers on the table in front of him. Now that he was feeling a little less burdened, a plan was forming in his mind. As he put the pen back to paper, he knew he had made an important breakthrough. A very small part of his mind wondered if that kiss had felt as good to Suzie as it had to him, but he was able to file it away to where it wasn't bothering him.

The morning dawned grey and cloudy but there was no threat of rain just yet. Both Ash and Gary were in place long before ten o'clock as well as the rest of Pallet Town. Word had spread about the match, probably because of Gary boasting of how badly he planned to humiliate Ash. Most everyone who didn't know Ash believed Gary and some had even placed bets on him. Brock would've bet on Ash, but he was tapped as the referee and he had to remain impartial.

Rooting for Ash was his mother, Suzie, Penny, and Misty. Gary had his usual cheerleader squad in attendance, but he wasn't paying them much mind. A bit surprising was the fact that Professor Oak was not sitting with either side, trying to remain neutral. It was apparent he still hadn't forgiven his grandson for his words to Ash, but neither could he turn against his own flesh and blood.

Ash and Gary stared at each other until Brock walked between them. "This is a six-on-six pokémon battle with no time limit," he said loudly, quieting the crowd. "The rules of a standard battle will apply here with one exception. If either competitor recalls a pokémon for any reason, that pokémon will no longer be eligible to be used in the battle. Would either competitor like to make a statement before we begin?"

"You won't be able to show your face in this town again after I get done with you," Gary proclaimed confidently.

"I'll let my battling do my talking," Ash said, refusing to rise to Gary's taunting.

"Gary lost the coin toss this morning so he will be the first to call out his pokémon," Brock announced, stepping back and standing on the sidelines. "Let the match begin!"

"Arcanine! I choose you!" Gary yelled, tossing out his first pokéball.

Ash nodded to himself. "I'm not surprised you have a fire type," he said, detaching a pokéball from his belt. "That's why I made sure to have a water type. Go Squirtle!"

"Arcanine! Fire Blast!"

"Dodge Squirtle!" Ash cried. Squirtle, who had just materialized from his pokéball, was a little surprised to see the fiery symbol streaking toward him before he could be ready. But he still managed to dive to the side and avoid it. He wanted to call Gary on the cheap shot, but that would just give him another opening to attack. "Water Gun!"

"Agility!" Gary ordered. The fiery pokémon blurred to the side, letting the stream of water go past him. "Now use take down!"

"Withdraw!" Ash called and Squirtle ducked into his shell, letting the hard shell take the damage. "This seems so familiar," he mused, thinking back to the time he had fought this exact same battle with Blaine. "If Gary is as good a trainer as he thinks he is, then he might try to pull the same thing."

"Arcanine! Aim your flamethrower right into--"

"Squirtle!" Ash interrupted. "Use Water Gun right in his mouth when he gets close!" Arcanine had already opened his mouth to launch a Flamethrower, but he got a nasty surprise when he got a mouthful of Squirtle's Water Gun attack. Arcanine tried to follow up with Flamethrower anyway, but all that came out of his mouth was a puff of smoke. "Now use Skull Bash!"

"Body Slam!" Gary yelled desperately. But even though the doglike pokémon fell forward onto Squirtle, Squirtle still managed to ram his head into Arcanine's chin, knocking the fire pokémon out cold.

Brock looked over Arcanine to make sure he was unconscious before making his ruling. "Arcanine is unable to battle. The first round goes to Ash!"

"Good job Squirtle!" Ash said. Then he noticed the Squirtle's arm hanging limply and got concerned. "Hey, you OK?"

"Squirtle!" the turtle pokémon confirmed, giving Ash a thumbs-up.

Gary snarled a little as he recalled his pokémon but stayed silent as he chose which one to bring out next. "Go Wartortle!"

Ash's eyes narrowed as Squirtle now faced an evolved form of himself. "A Wartortle huh?" he murmured, bringing out Dexter. "Well now I know what Gary's starter was."

"Wartortle, use Skull Bash!"

"What?" Ash was so concerned with scanning the pokémon with his pokédex that he forgot that he was in a battle. That distraction cost him as Squirtle was caught flat-footed, taking the full brunt of the attack.

Brock forced himself to unclench his fist as Squirtle came to a stop outside the marked battle area. Gary was fighting by the rules, but only just so. He certainly wasn't being ethical, but more than one trainer he had faced as a gym leader had done worse. "Squirtle is unable to battle. This round goes to Gary."

Ash was having much the same thoughts as Brock as he returned his pokémon, but he fought not to let them show. "Bulbasaur! Go!" The plant pokémon emerged with a happy cry, glad to be back on the battling team. "Now use Razor Leaf!"

"Use Water Gun to shoot them out of the air!" Gary responded calmly. When all the leaves had been shot down like skeet birds, he gave his next command. "Ice Beam!"

"Jump and use Vine Whip!" Ash said quickly. Bulbasaur jumped over the ice attack and launched his vines at Wartortle, ensnaring the pokémon tightly. "Now throw him over when you land!"

"Ice Beam the vines!" Gary yelled. But even though he was able to partially cover Bulbasaur's vines in ice, Bulbasaur still managed to bring him over and slam him into the ground. But Wartortle was tough and was able to get up...at least until Bulbasaur slammed him down again.

"Wartortle is unable to continue," Brock ruled. "This round goes to Ash!"

"Ash is really doing well," Misty commented as she watched Gary recall Wartortle.

"You sound surprised," Penny whispered, her eyebrows drawing together slightly.

Misty just shook her head, keeping her attention on the match. "Not at all," she said, bouncing Togepi gently on her lap. "I'll never doubt Ash or underestimate him again."

Meanwhile, Gary had called out his Eevee and was pelting Bulbasaur with Quick Attack after Quick Attack. Bulbasaur was hampered in his efforts to dodge because of the iced up vines that he couldn't retract so he was basically a sitting duck for Eevee's attacks. "Bulbasaur is unable to fight back," Brock judged after a particularly vicious Quick Attack. "This round goes to Gary."

"Good job Bulbasaur," Ash said, retrieving his pokémon. "But now it's time for one of my surprises. Let's go Tauros!"

"Tauros?" all of Ash's supporters and even Gary chorused.

Ash smirked at everyone's surprised look and decided to take advantage of it. "Tauros! Use Stomp!"

"Dodge with Quick Attack and use Bite!"

Ash realized he'd made a mistake. Even though Tauros was bigger and stronger than Eevee, his lack of training was glaringly evident. Ash kept trying to have Tauros herd Eevee into a vulnerable position, but Eevee was too maneuverable and was able to dodge easily. This upset Tauros to the point where he stopped listening to Ash, using his Rage attack to go berserk. But he still couldn't touch Eevee and eventually collapsed from sheer exhaustion. "Tauros is unable to continue," came Brock's decision. "This round also goes to Gary."

Ash recalled Tauros and started to sweat from the pressure. To this point, he and Gary had been trading victories which left Ash in control. But running off two straight had given the advantage squarely to Gary. He had only three pokémon left while Gary still had four. The odds had now tipped against him.

"Giving in Ash?" Gary taunted. "You can't beat me and you know it."

"Don't listen to him Ash!" Misty yelled. "Don't you dare give up!"

If Gary's words weren't enough to stoke Ash's competitive fires, Misty's support definitely was. "I don't intend to!" he said confidently. "I choose Muk!"

"Another pokémon he doesn't use much?" Misty wondered as she had to hold her nose from Muk's powerful odor.

Penny shuddered and clenched her lips together to help keep her breakfast in her stomach. "Is that doubt I hear?" she teased when she thought it was safe.

"No!" Misty answered a little too quickly. But to her surprise, her faith in Ash was well rewarded. Eevee's attacks were all but useless against the poison pokémon and Muk looked content to just lay down on Eevee and try to smother him. Gary was forced to recall him before any serious damage was done.

"Eevee has been recalled," Brock announced. "This round goes to Ash by forfeit."

"A lucky break Ash," Gary said, but he was confident beyond his words. "But that luck stops now. Go Nidoking!"

Ash gritted his teeth. He was at a clear disadvantage now. Not only was Nidoking also a poison type, but it was part ground as well. That made all poison moves all but ineffective against it. But that never stopped him before. "Muk! Use your Sludge attack!"

"Don't even dodge it Nidoking! Go straight through it with your Horn Drill!"

"Harden!" Ash called. But even though Muk stiffened up as much as he could, Nidoking's Horn Drill broke through his defense and threw him almost on top of Ash.

"Muk is unable to battle!" Brock said, and it was clear from how he sounded that the strain was getting to him. "This round goes to Gary."

Ash returned Muk and pulled the next pokéball from his waist. "Looks like I'm out of options," he said quietly. "Go Articuno!" This time, the whole crowd stood silent in awe of the majestic and legendary bird that flew over the battlefield. "Articuno! Blizzard attack!"

"Nidoking! Look out!" Gary cried. Unlike all of the pokémon Gary had used so far, Nidoking was not agile in the least. Instead, he crossed his arms in front of him and took the blow as best he could. But even braced for it, Nidoking's entire body was covered in a fine frost from Articuno's frigid attack. "Nidoking, you have to take it out now! Hyper Beam!"

"Articuno, use your Hyper Beam!" Ash directed. The two powerful attacks met in mid-air between the two pokémon and caused a massive explosion. Articuno was able to glide away on the shockwaves using her wings to navigate the tricky updrafts. Nidoking was not so lucky though; he was pounded into the ground by the force of the blast.

Brock checked on Nidoking before calling the round. "Nidoking cannot continue. This round goes to Ash."

"Don't get cocky Ash," Gary warned as he returned Nidoking. "I still have two pokémon for you to deal with. Go Alakazam!"

Ash waited for the exact moment that Alakazam appeared before calling out his next move. "Articuno! Use Sky Attack!"

"Teleport!" Gary said in response to Ash's choice. Alakazam disappeared just before Articuno connected with her attack and reappeared on the opposite side of the battlefield. "Now use Confusion!"

"Watch out!" Ash warned, but Articuno was still struck by the attack. "Are you all right?" Articuno glared at Ash like he was stupid for even asking. "Fine. Try Sky Attack again then."

"Teleport again!" Gary smirked. Ash was just proving him right. With the decidedly amateur way he was handling Articuno, there was no way Ash could have possibly caught her himself.

"Articuno! He's over here!" Ash called, pointing out where Alakazam had just teleported to. Articuno winged around sharply and struck with her Sky Attack before the psychic pokémon could set himself.

"Alakazam!" Gary all but growled as his pokémon landed hard near him. "Use Recover and get back in there!"

"Stop him Articuno! Freeze him with your Blizzard!"

"Teleport!" Gary called. But Alakazam had already started to use Recover and could not change the move that quickly. Articuno's Blizzard was so powerful this time that it literally blocked Alakazam from view. When the attack faded, all that could be seen was a solid block of ice where Alakazam had been.

Brock waited a minute to see if Alakazam could free himself. When it was apparent he couldn't, he called the round. "Alakazam is unable to battle. This round goes to Ash!"

"All right Ash!" Penny yelled at the top of her lungs, drowning out Gary's cheerleading squad. "You got him!"

"Don't be so sure of that," Gary said, pulling his last pokéball from his belt. "I've saved the best for last. Go--"

"Articuno return!" Ash yelled suddenly, drawing Articuno back into her pokéball before Gary could call his final pokémon.

"Umm...Articuno has been recalled?" Brock asked more than stated. "This round goes to Gary by forfeit."

Ash looked a little smug himself as he saw everyone looking at him like he was stupid much as Articuno had just moments ago. "You want to know why I recalled Articuno?" he asked his opponent though his voice was loud enough that everyone could hear him. "I know what your last pokémon is, and I know you were trained by the best. If you think even for a second that I was going to let you Transform into Articuno, you're the one who's crazy."

"You think you know so much Ash," Gary responded. "And what does it matter anyway? You're right, I was trained by the best. And this is my best! Ditto! I choose you!"

"If you're going with your best, so am I. Pikachu! I choose you!"

"You do?" Penny asked, surprised. "A little warning would've been nice Ash!" She stood up and ran forward, grumbling the whole way. When she reached the sidelines, she performed a mid-air somersault, transforming and shedding her clothes in time to land in front of Ash. "Pika!" she growled, her red cheeks sparking angrily.

"I might've known," Gary said. He didn't seem surprised by Penny's transformation, and neither did most of the crowd; yet another piece of information that it seemed was widely circulated. "Ditto! Transform and let's show them what a real trainer can do." Ditto glowed white for a second, then changed into a perfect replica of Pikachu down to the smallest detail. "Now use Thunderbolt!"

"Dodge with Agility!" Ash said calmly. "Now use your Thunderbolt!"

"Dodge with Agility!" Gary said, mimicking Ash's voice. "I can do this all day Ash!" Ash said nothing at first but just smiled at Gary. It wasn't one of his normal friendly smiles either; it was one that said, 'I know something you don't know!' "What's going on?" Gary demanded, feeling truly nervous for the first time since the battle began. "What are you smiling about?"

Ash chuckled and that only infuriated Gary further. "Don't worry Gary, you're about to find out," he promised. "Used correctly, I know how dangerous Ditto can be. But I've also learned Ditto's weakness: you can only use the attacks that the pokémon you've copied knows. And if you don't know what they are, then you're in trouble."

"What are you talking about? I know every move Pikachu knows!"

"Do you Gary? Do you really?" Ash asked in almost a condescending tone. "Well since you know them all, this shouldn't surprise you in the least. Pikachu! Thunder Bomb!"

"There's no such move!" Gary screamed. But against everything he knew, Pikachu was charging up a sphere of yellow-white electricity between her hands. When it grew to a couple inches in diameter, she tossed it right at the Ditto-chu. Because Gary was too surprised to tell it what to do, it just stood there as the sphere struck. True to the new move's name, it exploded on contact, sending the pokémon through the air with so much power that it was forcibly detransformed.

Brock picked up his jaw as Gary cradled the injured Ditto in his hands. "Ditto is unable to battle," he said as soon as he could. "This round and the match go to Ash!"

"Yes!" Misty cried, running over and nearly tackling Ash with a hug. Delia, Brock, and Suzie quickly followed, each offering their heartiest congratulations. Pikachu scampered over to her clothes and tried to find a good spot to change back into Penny so she too could join in the celebration. The rest of the town walked over like they were in a daze, not really believing that they'd just seen the grandson of the legendary Professor Oak beaten in a pokémon battle. But they all agreed it was a great match.

Gary glared at Ash as he tenderly placed Ditto back in its pokéball. "It doesn't matter anyway," he said to himself as he stormed off, leaving his crying cheerleaders behind. "I'll still become Pokémon Master! And then everyone will have to admit that I'm better!"

But as much as he didn't want to admit it, getting his final badge was going to be a problem. And if Ash got there first... There had to be a way to keep Ash busy while Gary got his final badge and made his way to the Indigo Plateau. And looking as Ash shared a kiss first with Misty and then with Penny, he knew just what he had to do. It was time the Sensational Sisters of Cerulean City got a little update about their youngest sister. Specifically, the strange relationship she now found herself in.