If you're reading this, you must have accessed my fourth fanfic (and first AdvanceShipping fic).

Fair warning for fans of Paul: Paul is going to be majorly OOC for parts of the fic.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon; Nintendo and Satoshi Tajiri do.

CHARACTER AGES:

Ash: 18

May: 17

Paul: 19

Gary: 18

Dawn: 17

Drew: 17

FIGURE IT OUT

CHAPTER 1: THE START OF THINGS

Ash Ketchum sat in the small classroom at Viridian High School and sighed. He had better things to do than listen to a lecture on Pokemon type matchups, he reasoned to himself. He could be spending time with his buddies Gary and Paul, having finally settled his differences with the latter. Or he could hang out with May or Dawn, and help them with their Contest moves. He could even be working on new battle strategies with his own Pokemon, especially Pikachu, who was upset that he couldn't come with Ash to school.

He looked around the room, and saw his friends all displaying the same pointed boredom he felt. May had removed her bandanna, her brown hair falling down over the back of her chair when she leaned back on it. Paul was staring blankly out the window, his perpetual cold glare still on his face. Gary had, unbelievably, fallen asleep, something that rarely happened because Gary, as an aspiring Pokemon Professor, had to achieve top grades in order to enter the Research Academy. Dawn was looking down at her paper, stealing quick glances at Paul and turning back when he made any movement.

"So, that concludes this morning's lecture," Professor Oak concluded with a flourish of his marker, turning to face the class. "Any questions before I hand out the week's assignment?" When no-one answered, he looked around. "Nobody? How about you, Gary?" he asked, putting particular emphasis on his grandson's name. Gary woke with a start and looked around wildly, as if he didn't know where he was.

"The answer is seventeen!" he slurred, clearly disoriented, as he tried to wake himself up. When he noticed the whole class staring at him, he turned bright red and hid his face in his hands. Usually, Ash was the one to fall asleep, so now he knew how his friend felt.

"No, Gary, seventeen is not a valid question...or answer," Professor Oak said in a stern voice, although he was trying to stop himself from laughing. As he said this, the bell rang and the class filed out. "Remember to pick up your assignment from the front desk before you leave!" he added as he turned back to the class. Mild laughter and chuckles began to sound as Gary recovered from his embarrassment. The spiky-haired boy ran out of the room, followed by Ash and Paul.

"Well, Gary, now you know what it's like to fall asleep in class!" Ash said as Gary turned to face them.

"I learned from the best, Ashy-boy," Gary retorted, though he couldn't help laughing at himself. It was only fair that Ash got to take a shot at him, since he always did the same. Paul smirked and turned to walk down the hall. "What's got you so amused?"

"Just you two, arguing like a couple of little kids," Paul said, not looking at either of them. He had removed his navy jacket, and his dark teal shirt had a tear in the sleeve. As he saw May and Dawn walk by, deep in fervent conversation, his smirk widened and he motioned towards them. "Hey, look, Gary, there's Dawn. I'm sure she was watching you make a fool of yourself in front of everyone. It'd be a pity if you gave her the wrong impression. Ash should know what that's like..."

"What's that supposed to...?" Gary and Ash spluttered at the same time, but a second later another bell rang and they bolted for their next class. Teachers at the school didn't like it when students were late, and the next one was taught by one of the strictest ones around: Professor Rowan.

"Man, Professor Rowan gives you an earful if you doze off!" Ash groaned as he swung his locker open. His blue-and-white hooded sweatshirt was hanging up inside, and above it was a teal baseball cap instead of his usual red one. He pulled on the sweatshirt, then jammed the hat on his head, flattening his messed-up black hair. His backpack lay on the floor, half-open, and he grabbed it hurriedly before anyone could grab it—people stealing each others bags and turning them inside-out was a popular joke at the time.

Gary had already taken everything he needed out of his own locker, and now he turned to talk to Ash. He had a gray t-shirt on today, with his shard-like pendant hanging from his neck. "You sure have a knack for falling asleep at the wrong time, Ash. Maybe if you'd stop sleeping and start acting, you'd have a chance at beating Drew to May."

"WHAT?" Ash was so shocked he almost squeaked. Luckily, Paul was nowhere in sight, so he was safe from any side comments. "What do you mean, beat Drew to May?"

"I would have assumed you knew," Gary said with a shrewd grin. "Come on, Ashy-boy, it's no secret you like her, but Drew's a quick-witted fellow, and he'll seize any opportunity he gets."

"I do not...!" Ash started to shout, but cut himself off when May arrived right at that moment, tying a knot in the back of her bandanna and smiling broadly.

"Gary, you're not teasing him about falling asleep during Professor Rowan's class, are you?" May asked innocently, though her tone sounded amused. "Seeing as you did the same this morning? I'd say the joke's on you this time, hmm?" she said with a giggle. Gary went red, and Ash hid behind his locker door so that Gary wouldn't see him laughing.

"I...I, uh..." Gary stammered, and May giggled even more. "I'm just kidding, Gary. So Ash, when you're done hiding from me and Gary, shouldn't we head back to your house and work on our contest combinations?"

"Oh, yeah," Ash said, struggling to keep a straight face as he slammed his locker shut. "Yeah, we should definitely do that. Is Dawn coming?"

"No," May said, with no hint of disappointment. "She's going to her extra help session with Professor Birch until five, so it's just us."

"Ok, sure," Ash said, looking around. "Where'd Paul get to?"

"My guess is he went hunting some action," Gary said, looking around too. "Probably another fight, 'cause I saw him punching his locker door earlier. Veilstone's rough, and so's he." Ash knew. Paul had grown up on the wrong side of Veilstone City, and blew off steam in random fights. "And I'm helping Gramps with some experiment today, so I can't come either. So have fun!" he concluded as he ran away, smirking as he did.

I figured now was as good a time as ever to end the chapter, so I did. Read & Review and tell me what you think. This is my first AdvanceShipping fic, so try to help me as much as you can.