AN: Hello there!

I'm MidnightFedora, or Midnight. This is my first Pokémon fanfiction, and I hope you guys enjoy it. This is another fanfiction where Ash is smart, calm, ect. ect. This is inspired by a variety of Pokémon fanfictions out there, mainly 'Chronicles of the Chosen One: Pokemon Master' by Sabor364. That there is a fanfiction which has managed to have a very strong Ash, catching legendaries and generally being awesome, and pulled it off very successfully. There are some other great fanfictions, such as 'Ash's Master Quest' by Shadow10503, that manage to pull off having both an Aura using Ash and a psychic Ash.

In this fanfiction, I will start right from the beginning, even before he becomes a trainer, and show Ash developing and growing to become a very good trainer. He will catch legendaries (a lot of them), he will also have use of both aura and psychic abilities later on in his journey. While this fanfiction is inspired by Sabor364's it is not a re-write of that one. There will be some similarities, and some ideas that were used in 'Chronicles of the Chosen One' (and a million other fanfics) will be found in the fanfiction, but they are my own interpretations, and wouldn't be in here if I wasn't originally going to have something of the sort in this, even without reading other fics.

So I hope you enjoy, tell me what you think, because my continuation of this depends entirely on the response I get.

I do not own Pokémon,

Time. Space. Threads woven together to create the world we live in. Together, it's a single, fragile thing. So easily changed, with but a single thought. It's never certain, still being woven, destinies changing every moment, at every action.

That's what happened to Ash Ketchum, though he would never really know.

It was so long ago that there was a Chosen One. The first Chosen One died protecting his kingdom, sacrificing himself in order for it's survival.

So what changed Ash Ketchum's path? A mere thought- a glimpse far into the future of many challenges and dangers that would stand in the way of a simple boy. That thought was passed on to one legendary Pokémon, and then further passed on to the one known as the God of Pokémon, Arceus.

And it was because of this that next time, being the Chosen One would actually mean something. The Chosen One would be guarded, watched over, and helped in any way possible to bring him to his full potential.

Ash Ketchum would become the greatest Pokémon Trainer to ever live- it had been foretold a long, long time ago.

Rest didn't come easy for the young boy. There was no particular reason why; the temperature was comfortable, his bed even comfier. He'd ran around that day, worn off plenty of energy, had nothing to eat or drink before bed that could have kept him awake, and he all in all felt very tired.

The three and a half year-old Ash Ketchum just felt as if he should stay awake- that there was something to see.

Of course, while he was a bright young boy, these thoughts were more subconscious.

The silver moon shone its cool light through the window, showing the restless form of the child. Ash was tossing and turning, trying in vain to let sleep take a hold of him. He was facing away from the window, looking at the lightest spot on his carpet with warm amber eyes, when a shadow blocked the silvery glow.

Ash madly scrambled among his covers, trying to sit up and turn over to see what was at his window.

Nothing.

He blinked madly in confusion. It had been right there!

A soft giggling sounded, similar to the tune of wind chimes. A pink furred head peered up over the bottom of the window sill, feline in shape, with large baby blue eyes holding endless curiosity. The head moved up, and with it, a body. It was small to match the head, the same light pink. Two short arms hung across the front, three pointed digits on the end. Two large feet dangled freely in the air, swinging back and forth. Behind the creature flicked a thin tail, longer than the rest of the body, which was rounded at the end.

Ash gasped in awe- he'd never heard of such a Pokémon. He couldn't help but stare at the beautiful feline.

"Mew!" Came a cheery sound, somewhat muffled by the glass. It reached out and tapped the window, then cocked it's head to the side as if asking a question. In response, Ash fumbled at the latch that kept the aperture closed, un-doing it and swinging the window open.

The moment that it could, Mew, Ash knew that most Pokémon said their name, flew in, moving around the boy's head happily before stopping in front of him.

Ash slowly reached out his hand towards Mew, and when she didn't move away, he gently rubbed the soft fur between her ears. The feline let out a happy purr-like sound, leaning into the rub, gaining a smile and a quiet laugh from Ash.

"Mew!" The pink cat flew over to a small, soft ball that was left lying in the corner of Ash's room. She picked it up and gently tossed it to Ash, cheering as he caught it and flying around in circles. The young child smiled, getting what the Pokémon wanted and threw it back lightly. The two ended up playing with the ball and other toys quietly for about an hour, before Ash blinked tiredly and yawned, his eyes slipping closed slowly, before hastily being forced open again.

Seeing that the boy was near to sleep, Mew calmly flew forward and coaxed Ash into lying down, pulling the covers up over him and then deciding to curl up for a little while before she left. Ash smiled as the pink Pokémon snuggled into his chest, her own eyes closing as well.

It was nearly dawn when Mew woke up, long before the child would arise. She carefully removed herself from his side, drifting up into the air and staring down at Ash with warmth in her eyes. Turning to the latch of the window, she psychically opened it and flew outside, hovering there for a few more moments while watching the boy, then closing the window with care.

Darting towards the far off mountains, a thought graced her mind.

'You'll go far, Chosen One.'

-Four and a half years later-

He never knew if it was real, or if it was just a dream. That graceful Pokémon that appeared at his window one night, for seemingly no reason. The memory was blurry at best- it was a long time ago. He'd all but forgotten about it for a while, never bringing it up around anyone else, feeling as though it was a very important secret. He still didn't even know what the Pokémon was- he'd never felt the need to find out.

So far, Mew's visit hadn't affected Ash's life very much- at all.

Until now.

"Come along, Ash! We don't want to be late to Professor Oak's, now, do we? The longer we take, the less time you'll be able to play with the Pokémon!" A middle-aged woman called.

This snapped the eight year-old out of his day-dreaming. Less time with the Pokémon!? He couldn't let that happen!

Ash ran forward to catch up with his mum, looking in awe as the famed professor's laboratory came into view. And it was just at the front of an expansive ranch, the Pokémon of trainers, both old and new, wild Pokémon, and even those of the greying Samuel Oak himself.

"Are you excited, honey?"

"You bet, mum! What sort of Pokémon do you think there's gonna be? Do you think I'll be able to play with the starters?" Ash kept on rambling out questions as fast as they could come. His mother laughed, shaking her head at his excitement.

A minute or two and a door-bell ring later, and the two found themselves greeted by an aging man who stood proudly, a warm smile on his face and a twinkle in his eyes. He had fading brown hair, was of a height slightly shorter than average, and wore a white lab coat over a polo shirt and khaki pants.

"Ah, Delia! It's been a while!" He stated.

"It has been, hasn't it? You haven't met my son yet- Professor Oak, this is Ash. Ash, this is my old mentor, Professor Oak."

"Nice to meet you sir! Can I please play with the Pokémon now?"

The adults chuckled and shook their heads at the child's antics. He truly loved Pokémon, even though he'd not been around many yet.

"Sure Ash, follow me. They're right out the back here." He boy wasted no time, hurrying after the Professor as fast as he could.

When they reach the back, after walking through some halls and a glass door, Ash gaped at the sight before him. Pokémon of many sizes and shapes milled around, battled, trained and played. While he didn't know what most of them were, he still stood amazed at the sight of them.

"Now Ash, while most of these Pokémon are friendly, here are some of them that are wild or defensive. Because none of them know you, you need to be careful about which ones you approach. Understand?" While his voice was stern, it was because he didn't want the child to get hurt. "And don't wander too far- the forests around here are hard to navigate, and you could get lost. Not to mention I want you close in case something happens."

Ash nodded hurriedly, wanting to go play all-ready. "Yes Professor Oak. Now can I pleeeeeaaaaaase go!?"

The man nodded with a smile, and Ash wasted no time in running onto the fields before stopping for a moment to look for a good Pokémon to go play with.

He looked over the field before him. He could see a lake far off, as well as the forest to the side. Close to him was two small and similar-looking Pokémon, one purple and the other light blue, running around with a slightly larger brown and cream furred Pokémon. He slowly, and shyly, walked over, stopping a meter from the three. They stopped their game and looked at him happily.

"Vuie?" Asked the larger one.

"Hi, my name's Ash! Can I play with you three?" He questioned, gathering his courage. He didn't have any real friends at school, and no one really wanted to play with him. He hoped it wasn't the same with Pokémon.

His fears were quickly banished, for the three quadrupeds all smiled warmly.

"Nido, doran!" The small blue one nodded, before perking up as if it had an idea. It- though he thought it was a girl, turned to the brown Pokémon. "Do, ni ran?" She asked.

"Ee! Eebui!" The Pokémon cheered- Ash thought this one was a boy. He seemed pleased with the idea. Turning to the purple one, he said "Bui! Eebui, vuie?" In response the middle sized one- it seemed to be a boy also, nodded, before scampering off to another location. It was at this time that Ash actually remembered what the Pokémon were- an Eevee and two Nidoran.

Eevee started making a series of gestures towards Ash, trying to explain something. He ducked down and covered his eyes, before standing up and moving his head as if looking for something.

"Oh, do you want to play hide and seek?" Ash realised. Eevee nodded, and at this time the purple Nidoran returned with two small purple rodents- Rattata.

It's not long before they find themselves fully immersed in the game, at first someone would count to ten, then go and find everybody that had hidden. When somebody was found, they'd help with finding the others.

"Bui!" Eevee squealed has Ash suddenly moved aside the bush that he was hiding under.

"Haha, found you Eevee! C'mon, let's go find the others!" Ash cheered, Eevee running after him.

They'd been searching for a while, but they couldn't find the others anywhere. They found themselves in from of the forest.

"Do you think they went in there, Eevee?"

Said brown Pokémon sniffed the air for a moment, and then nodded. They all had gone this way. The two started walking among the trees, keeping their senses open to any signs of the others. Eevee's head whipped to the side, where he had heard something from. Ash's head went the other way, having seen something move through the branches.

"You go that way Eevee. I'll look over here- if we split up we'll be able to look in more places." He decided, forgetting the rule that Professor Oak set out for him.

After the two went their separate ways, it wasn't long before Ash found himself lost. The forest seemed endless, and by now he was more concerned with finding a way out than finding his new friends. They lived around here, and would know their ways around easily. He, on the other hand, had no experience walking through these areas.

A low grumble sounded behind him, and he turned to see a large grey creature- larger than Ash, anyways- standing on four short legs with a short horn sticking out between it's eyes.

Ash gulped. The Pokémon didn't look friendly or happy, and it was at this moment that it started backing up slowly.

He should have run at that point, but he was too scared. He didn't want the Pokémon to attack because he suddenly moved.

But that didn't matter, because the Pokémon had started running forwards, anyway. It was then that Ash spun on his heel and bolted as fast as he could- but he wouldn't be fast enough.

Running. Running. Running. He was too slow, he needed to go faster. Keep going faster, and faster, and faster, and faster- it was so close because he wasn't fast enough.

He braced for the attack as much as he could, but when he never felt anything he stopped running for a moment- against his instincts- and looked behind him warily. The Pokémon was still there, but it wasn't moving, as a shocked look was displayed across it's face.

A pink energy surrounded it, holding is in place easily.

"Mew!" The cry was somewhat angry sounding, and a dis-pleased pink cat Pokémon appeared in front of Ash.

The grey Pokémon was slowly lifted up into the air, before suddenly being flung back into the undergrowth. It could be heard fleeing, heavy footsteps trampling away.

"…Mew…" Ash breathed.

The feline spun around in mid-air to face the young boy, a happy look on her face, before she sipped off amongst the trees in the blink of an eye.

"Wait, Mew!" He called, before sighing in slight exasperation, and taking off running again.

Shades of green blurred slightly on the edge of his sight, his focus purely on any possible signs of Mew. He barely ducked under another branch, catching another glimpse of light pink, his tired legs pumping to keep up with his demands.

Sunlight hit his eyes without warning, and he saw that he was back at the edge of the forest, facing into the Pokémon ranch.

A group of small Pokémon tackled him to the ground, Eevee chittering with worry and the two Rattata nuzzling his chest. Both of the Nidoran were chanting their names at him, seemingly asking if he was okay.

"Thanks guys, I'm fine. A bit tired, but fine."

This seemed to throw on a switch, the Pokémon relaxing visibly.

Ash turned his head in every possible direction, searching for a flash of light pink that belonged to a certain cat Pokémon, but nothing came into sight.

"Ash, is everything all right?" Professor Oak called out.

"Yeah, Professor Oak. I'm fine."

It was later that Delia, Ash, and Professor Oak could be found sitting in the kitchen back at the Ketchum residence.

"This is wonderful cooking, as always Delia, though I think you might have gotten better!" Professor Oak complimented.

"Thank you, Professor Oak. Ash here has the stomach of a Snorlax- it gives me plenty of practice when it comes to cooking, right Ash?"

Said boy was looking down at his lap, deep in thought. His food was mostly un-touched. "Huh? Oh, yeah…" He replied absent-mindedly.

"Are you okay Ash? You've barely touched your food!"

"Yeah, mum, it's just…" He looked up. "All of those Pokémon I saw today, there were so many that I didn't even know of. Seeing them all just made me realise how little I know, and I'm a bit worried about going on a Pokémon journey in a couple of years' time." He confessed, a serious expression on his face. "I mean, there are so many things that could go wrong. I know we get Pokédexes, but there's not always going to be time to use them if I have to run away from something. If I already knew what the Pokémon was, I'd be able to defend myself without needing to wait. And what would I feed my Pokémon? Sure, there's the generic Pokémon food, but it takes something better than that to keep a Pokémon in it's best shape. Thinking about that, what am I going to eat, myself? Not only are my Pokémon are going to need to eat good, but me as well! I'm going to be walking all over the region, climbing mountains, wading through swamps. Heck, I don't think that I'd be able to do any of that really well any time soon, I'm too un-fit. And I can't navigate at all! I'd get lost really easy." He stopped to take a breath. "I don't know about many Pokémon, I don't know how to look after them, or myself, and I'd have heaps of trouble travelling. I'm just not ready for a Pokémon journey, and at the rate I'm going, I won't be ready in two years' time, either."

The two adults were shocked into silence.

It was a moment before anyone spoke again, then Professor Oak broke the silence with a light chuckle.

"Ah, If only my grandson considered any of this. He'd be much better prepared to go on his own journey. From what I heard, he plans to drive a car." The man gained a contemplative look on his face. "I know! Ash, why don't you start visiting my lab when you get the chance? You can help look after the Pokémon, and I'd teach you all I can about them, through first-hand experience and some reading, if you're up to it. Of course, you have to want to learn, and your mother has to be okay with it." He turned to the woman, who was sniffling with tears in her eyes.

"Oh, my little boy's growing up! Of course you can go, Ashy, and I can teach you how to cook, for both you and your Pokémon!" She was smiling.

Ash grinned. "I'd love to! And I suppose I can start doing more exercise and fitness training, so I'll be physically ready! I can't wait!"

The grown-ups smiled and laughed at Ash's enthusiasm, a warm feeling settling over the group.

Ash Ketchum was taking the first steps to becoming a Pokémon Master- to becoming the best of the best.

Ash sat, flipping through a book he'd thoroughly read a large amount of. The book named every confirmed Pokémon and every Pokémon that weren't, but instead thought to be real. It kept some basic information on them all, the perfect place to start learning, and Ash'd already memorized most of the Kanto 'natives' off by heart.

When Professor Oak'd agreed to tutor the young boy, he had already known that he had the potential to be great, and learn a lot- He just never anticipated how fast Ash would learn. The eight year old was like a sponge when it came to information on Pokémon, among other things. The boy's grades hadn't been all too good, but the moment he heard that another condition for his daily visits to the lab would be him keeping his grades at a C, minimum, Ash had actually started paying attention, practically absorbing the knowledge and then applying it to his work. He was now working at a high B level, and the teachers were impressed with his improvement.

What was even more impressing was his current ability to recall and recite most Kanto registered Pokémon and some basic facts about them. And it'd only been two weeks- imagine what the boy could do after a whole month!

'Articuno

Articuno is a large avian species of Pokémon. Several sightings of different Articuno have been officially recorded. Height ranges from 5'07" to 6'5". The body colour ranges from a light sky blue to a slightly darker blue. It's crest and tail are always the same mid-blue. It's talons and beak are either a light brown/pink, or a dark grey. The tail length ranges from 1.5 x the height of the body to 2 x the height of the body. It is classified to be an ice and flying type. The Pokémon has been spotted in snowy and mountainous areas, and is said to save lost travellers. Articuno is one of the three legendary Bird Trio.'

Next to the Pokémon's name was a blurry picture, and at the bottom of the page was an artist's interpretation of peoples' descriptions and the few blurry images that had been captured.

He sighed and skipped past the next two- Moltres and Zapdos, as he'd already memorized them, as well as Dratini, Dragonair, and Dragonite, which he'd come back after he had a look at what Pokémon were coming up, before freezing at the next one- he'd found it.

'Mew

Mew is a Pokémon that has not been confirmed to exist, the only evidence being ancient temples dedicated to it and one or two possible sightings, lasting five seconds at the most. The size of Mew is not known, but is estimated to be around a foot tall. Ancient scripts name Mew as the 'ancestor of all Pokémon', but this cannot be confirmed. Mew is believed to be able to learn every Pokémon attack, and be extremely powerful.

Mew is believed to be feline in appearance, with two short front arms and large hind-quarters. It has a long thin tail, with a bulb-like shape at the end. Possible sightings have lead scientists to believe that Mew is white in colour.'

On the page was an image of a stone engraving, showing a picture of a feline creature, straight lines used to construct it.

'Not confirmed? But I saw her, clear as day just two weeks ago. And that time, years ago. I played with that Pokémon; I remember that she curled up to me as I fell asleep. And she saved me from that Rhyhorn- and that definitely lasted longer than five seconds. And she's definitely pink, not white.' Ash pondered.

He decided to just flip through the rest of the book for now, to see what other Pokémon were known. It would be a few minutes later that he was nearly finished taking a glance at the Sinnoh registered Pokémon, when he stumbled across another amazing Pokémon.

'Arceus…'

Delia started setting up to cook dinner, knowing Ash would be home soon to help. She wondered what his favourite Pokémon would be today. So far, every day that he'd come home from the lab, he had a new favourite, and it was pretty obvious that there was no particular defining feature of each of the Pokémon he said- the boy just loved Pokémon in general.

The sound of the door opening prompted the mother to look up toward the kitchen entrance with a smile as her son came into view.

"Hi honey, how was your day?" she was rewarded with a great grin.

"It was awesome! I finished Kanto today, and helped feed some of the water types!"

"That sounds great, Ash! What's your favourite Pokémon today?"

"Oh, that's easy! Mew and Arceus!"

Dawn broke the lengthy night, prompting the wake of the eight year old boy. He happily rose from bed, lacking the normal aversion to early mornings like most kids.

One month since he first met Professor Oak, one week since he started this early morning exercise routine, and he'd found that he enjoyed it.

Out of bed, shorts, sneakers, and singlet. Go outside. Stretch, warm up. Start jogging, then soon-

Running. Running. Running.

"Okay Ash, now add the pecha berries, and then give it a moment before stirring."

Learning to cook had been a bumpy road, but after a little practice he'd started to get the hang of it. He was currently learning to make poffins, starting with a sweet batch.

Several minutes later, the batter was finished and poured into the tin, before using an oven mitt to place them in the pre-heated oven.

He stood back in satisfaction, the oven timer ticking away to the side. He ducked up-stairs into his room- which had been cleaned as yet another requirement of his time at the ranch- and grabbed a book of his shelf, where several books related to Pokémon had accumulated, and then made his way back into the dining room, where he could see the oven. He sat down, opening the book- Food to Go; A Guide to Food for Both Trainers and Pokémon- to the page he was last on, and then continued his reading.

'The flavour of berry a Pokémon likes is only partially defined by their type, species, and nature- in fact, food preference is almost completely up to the Pokémon individual, just as it is with humans. To find what your Pokémon likes the most will take a bit of time, and then you have to make sure they are still eating food that's good for them and contains all the right nutrients.

There are some foods that aren't good for Pokémon to eat, and will make them very sick. Though, now days most food is made to be both Pokémon and human friendly, even generic Pokémon food (this can be eaten by humans, but it's not recommended). If a food item is un-healthy for human's it will likely be unhealthy for Pokémon too- neither should eat too much chocolate!

There are some obvious things that Pokémon can eat that humans can't, but most of these things will be specific to a certain species or type of Pokémon. Most fire types are able to safely eat coal, and some even enjoy it. It acts as fuel for the inner fire of some Pokémon, and can strengthen their attacks…'

His reading continued for a few minutes, before a buzzing sounded. He placed a book-mark in between the pages and closed the cover over, before standing and walking over to the oven, grabbing a mitt from the bench as he moved.

Pulling the baked treats out from the oven, he smiled as his eyes rested on the perfectly cooked pink coloured poffins. A sweet, slightly sugary smell wafted from them, and after tipping them onto a cooling rack and waiting for a few minutes, and picked up one and took a mouthful, pride filling him as a pleasant, sweet flavour graced his taste-buds.

While waiting for the rest to cool a bit more, he grabbed a cloth to place them in, as well as a few more berries of different flavours. When they were ready, the sweet poffins and the berries were placed onto the cloth, where the corners were tied together to keep them all in. Grabbing the bag, he made his way out of the house and down the road to where the Pokémon ranch was. His mom had gone to get some mulch for her garden, which Ash now helped with, while the Pokémon treats were cooking.

Arriving at the laboratory, he opened the door and walked in, having been told he didn't need to knock.

"Professor Oak! I finished some poffins this morning, do you mind if I take them out to the Pokémon?" he asked as he passed the man, who was in his office.

"Sure, Ash! Just be careful with the special diet Pokémon, will you?"

"Got it!"

When he arrived out at the back, he was greeted by a small group of Pokémon containing an Eevee, two Nidoran, two Rattata, and one Pidgey. These were Pokémon he interacted with often, and they'd become well acquainted.

The Eevee acted as the leader of the group, watching over them and keeping them in line. He was bred and raised by Professor Oak, and enjoyed life on the ranch. He'd taken on the name Aaron, after the legendary Aura Guardian of Kanto, Sir Aaron.

Dora and Doran, as he had come to call them, were wild. Dora was a bit cheeky and mischievous, while Doran was calm and aloof. They were siblings, who'd wandered out of their nests when they were you and eventually finding themselves a home here.

One of the Rattata was wild, who'd adopted the name Rico. He was a bit extravagant, but had a good heart, and was always willing to help out… No matter how much he 'sang' when he went on 'missions'.

The older and larger one was a trainer Pokémon, but he had a trainer who had all but forgotten him. Remy was the first Pokémon the trainer had caught, but the moment he had a full team the rodent was sent back to the Professor's lab and hadn't been acknowledged since- un-fortunately, there was no rule about such a thing. It was sad, but he had found a new family in the group of Pokémon as well as Ash. He was cheerful, for the most part, though a bit solemn every now and then. Ash swore he'd never forget Pokémon in such a way.

The last Pokémon was the Pidgey, who joined their group only a week ago. She was more interested in settling down and enjoying life than the constant fight of the wild, so when her flock flew over the Pokémon ranch she said goodbye and came down here, where she was found by Ash and introduced to the others. She was shy, but got along well with the others and cared deeply for them. She liked to go by the name Cara.

"Hey guys, I brought some poffins and berries! I made sweet ones because I know that most of you like sweet food. I also brought some berries for you guys, Dora, Rico."

The Pokémon cheered, happy to try out he treats he'd made. Ash set down the make-shift bag and un-tied the corners, letting the cloth sit flat. The Pokémon ran in to grab some of the treats, while Ash grabbed a few more and was about to go out in search for a few of the other Pokémon that enjoyed sweet food. He needn't bother, because a few of the other Pokémon came over to him, looking for food. He happily handed out a few to the Clefairy, Butterfree, and surprisingly the shy Ariados that was usually a bit stand-offish. Soon they were greeted by a Ledian and Nuzleaf, as well as a Mime Jr.

Surrounded by the Pokémon as they happily interacted and ate berries and poffins, Ash felt like he was truly at home. Sure, he loved his mother and his house with all of his heart, but when he was with the Pokémon, something just…clicked, and the eight year-old knew exactly where he belonged.

Ash was with his mother, walking through the town to look at some visiting street vendors. Many different goods were being displayed for sale, ranging from rare gems to rare foods, to even rare materials. Normally expensive products were on sale for a good price, making them affordable to those who didn't have massive amounts of money to spend.

"See anything you like, Ash?" Delia asked.

"Not yet-" He paused looking over as a particular stall. He turned back to his mother, who nodded, before running over.

Small pieces of metal had been worked into some-what simple amulets and medallions, different Pokémon inscribed into the surface, finished with little pieces of gems to add a bit of colour.

The one in particular that had caught his eye was a Mew one, a golden circle with elegant lines curving around in the shape of the Pokémon, who looked as if she was looking to the light green gem in the middle.

The aged man behind the counter smiled, his eyes crinkling at the corners.

"Do you like that one, kid?"

Startled slightly, having been staring intently at the amulet, Ash looked up at the man in surprise.

"Uh, erm, yeah. But it's so… It probably costs too much, it's just so pretty." He said.

"Not at all, kid. That one has been up for sale for a long while- You can have it for free, I need to get rid of it anyway."

Ash gaped. "R-really?"

The man smiled again. "Sure, go ahead and take it."

He carefully picked it up, before smiling and thanking the man profusely.

"Mum! Look at what I got!" He showed it to her.

"That's very beautiful, Ash! So I take it you still like Arceus and Mew the most?"

"Yep!"

Another school day ended, and Ash walked proudly down the road holding a white sheet with a nice big A+ up in the corner. His grades had only gotten better, and he was the best in his class, even compared to Gary Oak.

"Ketchum! How did you manage to get a higher score than me!?" The brunette exclaimed.

He didn't reply to the nasally voice, instead choosing to ignore the arrogant person storming behind him. 'Part one tutoring from your grandpa, part two a condition to play with the Pokémon every day, part three hard work and dedication.' Indeed, once he started paying attention, the work actually didn't seem too boring.

"Don't ignore me!"

Nothing.

"Heh, you know what? It doesn't even matter! I know you'll just fail at becoming a Pokémon trainer anyway."

Nothing.

Because Ash Ketchum was mature enough to know that all Gary wanted was for him to respond.

Running. Running. Running. He was too slow, he needed to go faster. Keep going faster, and faster, and faster, and faster- keep pushing forward, and work to be fast enough.

Over a log, under a branch, up into the trees and over the river.

Never stop, keep moving, go faster, keep breathing.

Large boulder in the way- move it.

Onto a rock in into the air.

Keep running.

The water's shallow- go through it.

Up the tree, keep climbing.

Jump out, onto a ledge.

Climb the cliff, keep climbing.

Make it to the top.

Keep running.

Ground slopes down- crouch and slide.

Keep sliding down, reach the bottom.

Don't stop moving, run to the lake.

Jump in, start swimming. Keep pushing on further.

Reach the other side, get out, keep running.

Reach a clearing, stop, focus on breathing.

Catch breath, get down start doing push-ups.

Sit-ups.

Lift rocks, get stronger.

Sit down, clear head.

No thoughts.

Breath in.

Breath out.

Get up, start running.

Running. Running. Running. He was too slow, he needed to go faster. Keep going faster, and faster, and faster, and faster- keep pushing forward, and work to be fast enough.

When Ash Ketchum got home, he was out of breath, drenched in sweat, and aching to the bone. But a grin slit his features.

He was nearly there- nearly fast enough. Nearly strong enough.

He closed the book with satisfaction, adding it to the pile next to him on his desk.

A month until he turned ten, and by this point there was few registered Pokémon he couldn't recall detailed information on off by heart, and even fewer he hadn't even heard of.

"Ash! Professor Oak called; he said he has a challenge for you at the lab!" His mother called,

Knowing that this could be interesting- it always was when he was called from his house to do one, he put his shoes on and ran down-stairs and out the door, waving to his mum as he did so.

"Be careful!"

At the lab, he was directed out to the back by one of Oak's lab assistants, where he saw the Professor standing there with a Pokéball in hand.

"Ash, today you are going to do a bit of a test- we're going to have a battle, but you need to get a certain Pokémon to battle with you."

Ash nodded. "Got it. Which Pokémon, Professor?"

The man pointed over to the tall grass, where a Pangoro that was well known for being aggressive to most people was sitting. It had been abandoned by its trainer a few months ago.

Ash nodded, ready to take on this particular challenge.

Approach the Pokémon.

Befriend it.

Get it to accept battling with him.

Beat Professor Oak.

"I understand."

Ash calmly walked over in the direction of the Pokémon, naturally falling into a stance that would help him approach the Pokémon. He stood with his back straight, shoulders and chin even, feet a comfortable width apart, eyes open to the point where he didn't seem sleepy, but not so much that he appeared excited. The corners of his mouth turned up ever-so-slightly in genuine happiness. It was something that he didn't really need to think about, he just instinctively the best way to look when approaching different Pokémon.

This Pangoro needed to see that Ash wasn't weak, but not aggressive, either. He also needed to see that Ash wasn't afraid of him and didn't see him as a threat. Look strong, but not in a position to attack or defend.

Ash stopped a meter and a half from the large grey and white creature, knowing that if the Pokémon attacked he wouldn't have anytime to run. Sometimes, you needed to take a chance. He was showing that he trusted the Pokémon to a certain extent, and if anything that would confuse them a little bit.

"Hey there, Pangoro. We haven't actually met before, but you've probably seen me around here a bit. My name's Ash, it's nice to meet you." He held out his hand for a handshake. He was definitely taking a risk by doing this, but he wasn't going to stop.

Slightly confused, Pangoro hesitantly returned the hand-shake, looking at Ash with slight curiosity.

Seeing that the Pokémon wasn't close to attacking, Ash's stance relaxed a bit, his smile growing, making himself appear friendlier.

"Pangoro, I have a favour to ask of you. Professor Oak challenged me to a battle, but on the condition that I can convince you to fight along-side me. I know that you aren't very happy about what your last trainer did, but even for the short duration of the upcoming battle, I swear I will treat you with all the respect you deserve."

The large bear narrowed his eyes, then after a moment of silence nodded his head, accepting the offer.

"Thanks, Pangoro. Now let's go beat him!"

And beat him they did- Professor Oak didn't stand a chance.

The two Pokémon were sparring, one of them a recent member of Ash's group of friends.

A Machop belonging to a retired trainer was up against a Sawk from the Unova region, who was going to be going back to it's trainer soon. The two were close friends, and had decided to have one last spar before Sawk had to go. Luckily, Machop was now also close friends with their group, and wouldn't be too lonely once the blue Pokémon left. The grey Pokémon was known as Sentō-ki, a word that meant 'fighter ' in Japanese.

Ash watched their spar with a contemplative look on his face, an idea forming in his head.

The Pokémon stood apart, and bowed to each other out of respect, before Sawk waved goodbye and went in the direction of the lab.

Sentō-ki, or Sento, as he was often called, seemed a bit sad to have lost someone to fight with, but Ash knew his idea would fix that.

"Hey, Sento. I have a favour to ask of you…"

Grinning, the Machop happily started instructing the boy in the art of fighting.

"Dinner's ready!" A voice called.

It was not the voice of Delia, but her son instead. Ash'd been practicing his culinary skills a lot recently, and was now cooking dinner every other night. Tonight it was French Onion Soup, which he happily set down a bowl of in front of both him and his mother.

He'd been focusing on making foods that would be easier on his journey- soups, stews, just keeping it reasonably simple.

Together they took a bite, smiling at the wonderful taste.

"Ash, this in great!"

"Thanks mum."

Delia help up the item of clothing happily, knowing her son would love it.

His favourite Pokémon still hadn't changed, and Delia wanted to make something that related to one of them, since he already had something for the other.

Besides, her motherly instinct told her that Ash could achieve his dream to be the best, as well as being someone that Pokémon knew as a friend.

So, to her that meant that he was is fully deserving of an outfit that resembles Arceus.

The match was fast paced, a kick here, a punch there, dodging and jumping. A round kick to the abdomen and an upper-cut in return.

Ash had been learning to fight for a while now, and had naturally gotten the hang of it. He could now match Sento as well as many other well trained fighting types in a fight, his daily exercise and strength training were a big help, and his knowledge and skill making up for the rest.

A low sweep at Sento's ankles, spinning around as the Pokémon jumped and delivering an elbow to his chest. After that, the fight stopped, Ash offering a hand to lift his friend from the ground.

He turned to the group of Pokémon, his closest friends, and smiled with triumph. They all cheered and tackled him to the ground, laughter echoing lightly around them.

-The night of Ash Ketchum's tenth birthday-

"Happy birthday Ash!" came the collective voices of his mother and Professor Oak, as well as some of the lab assistants he'd come to know.

Various other cries had joined in as well, ranging from 'Eebuie!' to 'Pan, go!', all of them conveying the same message.

Not only were they cheering to congratulate him on turning ten, but for finally reaching his pre-trainer goals.

After two years of constant hard work and dedication, training both his body and mind, Ash knew that he was finally ready for his Pokémon journey- which was due to start tomorrow.

Today, though, Ash had decided to solely focus on enjoying his birthday- opening presents, eating cake, playing with the Pokémon, and spending time with everybody who'd been there for him through-out the years.

"Awe, guys… Thank you so much!" He cried out in happiness. Before him on the grass just out-side behind the lab, was a semi-long table with enough food for everyone, and a large cake made to be eaten by both humans and Pokémon.

Soon the celebrations began, Ash playing games with all the Pokémon (except Pangoro, who preferred to watch), ranging from ball games to an all-time favourite- hide and seek. It was the game that had begun to bring the friends together in the beginning, and was now their favourite game to play to remember that. While there was a slight communication barrier between Ash and the rest, that hadn't hindered them much to begin with, and was hardly acknowledged anymore. Ash knew the Pokémon well enough that he often had a close idea as to what they were saying, and he'd learned all the little movements they made that conveyed their words in near clarity.

He'd learnt that one day, Aaron wanted to become a Leafeon.

Rico's favourite human food was Mexican.

Cara was considering searching for a mate once she fully evolved, and starting a family on the ranch.

Many other little quirks, dreams, and traits of the Pokémon were common knowledge to him now, and he knew that he'd miss them when he started his journey.

"Found you, Rico. You really need to find better hiding places, you know!" the Rattata in question huffed, before running off to find some more of their friends.

Later, Ash found himself in front of a large group of presents, which he tried to guess the contents of.

"Well, stop staring at them and open them, already!" A lightly mocking but playful voice cut into his thoughts. Lyle was the youngest of the lab assistants, and the one who Ash often hung out and had conversations regarding Pokémon with.

Ash grabbed the nearest one- funnily one from Lyle- and opened it to reveal…

"Pokémon training for Dummies. Really, Lyle? Really?" He said, false seriousness coating his words.

"It's perfect for you, huh kid?" He replied with a serious nod. "Yes, with that book, you could take over the world!" He declared dramatically.

"I'll be sure to try that out." He joked.

Other presents consisted of a few more Pokémon books, a new alarm clock- his old one broke, very long story- customized Pokéballs, some bits and pieces for his journey, like a prototype new Pokedéx, courtesy of Professor Oak as a 'thank you' for all his hard work around the lab- he knew it had a built in phone, map, and the national Pokédex, but according to the Professor, he'd find out about some new features 'as time goes on'.

The last present was one of the best in his opinion.

"An outfit!" He cheered.

The mostly white material hung comfortably in his hands, the material thick for the colder weather and strong enough to resist a lot of tearing. The collar came down the front pretty far, the outside white and the inside a dark grey. The zip was a warm, bright yellow colour, matching that of the pockets and the stripe that ran up the sides and reached the arm-pits. The sleeves reached the wrist, and had a yellow triangle on the underside. On the ark grey inside of the jacket was many pockets and other bits and pieces that could hold small items. On the front was four small green 'packets' that served the same purpose.

Looking down at the rest of the things before him, he saw thick black jeans with dark grey packets, a dark grey V-neck singlet, a pair of yellow gloves with white edges, a belt that had places to hold six shrunken Pokeballs, a pair of comfortable and durable shoes that were white with gold, and a thinner version of the same jacket and pants.

"Mum, this is…Amazing! It must have taken so long to make this, and you even partially based it off one of my favourite Pokémon! "

"I'm so glad you like it, Honey. But there's just one thing…Remember to change your you-know-what's every day!"

"Mum!"

Ash sat in his room, looking over the things set before him; his new bag, which was a large gold and black one that could hold all of the things he'd need, and his outfit, which he would put on tomorrow morning.

It was hard to believe that tomorrow morning he'd be leaving his home to begin his Pokémon journey, where he'd take the Gym Challenge and attempt to get into the Pokémon Indigo League, and then to win it. It was the first step to becoming a Pokémon Master, and he knew he was ready.

Somewhat nervous, he checked over all of the items in his bag once again, making sure he had everything. Once that was done, he changed into his pyjama's, double checked that his alarm clock was set, and turned off the light, getting in under the covers and looking out into the moon-lit sky.

'One day, I will be a Pokémon Master- Watch out world. And Mew- I'm going to find you again, no matter how long it takes.'

The sound of Dodrio cawing resonated through the calm and peaceful town of Pallet, Pidgey were gliding over-head, Tauros were wandering through grassy plains, and-

"I'M LATE!"

So, that was a bit long.

Whether you like long fanfictions or not is up to you, but the chapters aren't going to be this long again. I just needed to try and fit all of that in because I didn't want to split it up.

The whole point of that was to show what events led to Ash actually being a good trainer, and that the legends are watching over him because this time around, being the Chosen One will actually mean something.

All those bits and pieces between Ash's first visit to the ranch and to his birthday happened over the two year time period. You can mentally sort them out how-ever you want, but it was just to show Ash preparing for his journey and what his life is like.

The next chapter will start on the first episode, Ash will still be getting Pikachu.

So what did you think? Do you like the idea? Do you want to see more? Did I fail on an epic scale? Let me know!

To those who wish to flame- go away, no one cares about how 'ths sux!' or that 'THIS IS STUPID DONT READ THIS!' because all you're doing is showing how you have no idea what grammar is.

I am fully open to constructive criticism, and if you liked it, please tell me exactly what you enjoyed! It's nice to see that 'This is a good fanfic, please update!' but being told what it was specifically that people liked is even better.

Cheers!