Serena sat back, gazing at the television screen. She'd anxiously been waiting through this all morning. The news was basically all focused on the attacks in Lumiose City and the hero behind the quick stop to Team Flare's rampage. There were several different angles of the encounter that had been recorded by civilians, all of them showing the young man using spheres of energy to empower his blows, and even shoot out some sort of blast from his hands.

"We have a theory as to what may be occurring here," a voice rang out from the television that snapped Serena back into attention. She focused back on the man who was talking. He was a thin and wrinkled man who wore a lab coat and sported a rather long gray beard and a title card beneath him with the name Maximilian von Spee. "We see extremely similar physical and ranged attacks from the likes of Riolu and Lucario, pokemon that are well documented in the use of so called aura abilities," He droned on, staring deeply into the camera and putting Serena off a fair bit. "It seems this young man here has somehow managed to harness the same abilities those pokemon are innately born with. We're all curious to know more about this from the source himself."

The camera zoomed out from Maximilian and panned over to a woman dressed in a red suit with well curled blonde hair and a title card beneath that read Debby Mars. "I was on the scene and attempted to talk with him myself. Ash Ketchum is known quite well in the battling circuit as a trainer who's already excelled in several different pokemon leagues in other regions. I can't say his actions this morning were unexpected, however I've never seen anything like what he did with these aura powers. On this topic though, is there a moral argument to bring up with how he fought back against the team members?"

There was quite a tussle with the other contributors on the show lambasting her while she held her poise. "No, I'm not trying to defend the Team Flare members, what they did was despicable, but was an excess of force used here? I mean two of them ended up dead with one of them having her face melted!"

Maximilian raised his voice sharply in response, "Ketchum was assaulted with a knife and was stabbed in the back! I'd say that was just the right amount of force used! So what if that attack killed her? She and all her pals in cahoots were wreaking havoc on the city and injured well over a dozen people! I'd say we're lucky no civilians ended up dead today!"

"All I'm trying to say Doctor, is that this doesn't seem like justice to many people. They see it as rampant vigilantism. We have a police force for a reason!" Mars exclaimed as she leaned further in her chair. "This is simply a devil's advocate to show the opinion of a section of our viewer base.

"That young man's so-called vigilantism saved countless businesses from being burned and likely dozens of lives on top of that. If you ask me I'd say this young man was more of an effective enforcer than our own police! And blast it to your viewers if they don't see these thugs as anything more than domestic terrorists! If you ask me, more trainers like Ketchum should be around to be a second line of defense for this kind of thing!" Maximilian shouted as he slammed his hand down into his notes on the table.

Their banter went on like that for what felt like hours. The longer Serena watched it the more she could feel her mind leaving her brain. She'd already zoned out whatever political discussion they were having and her mind focused on what she'd been shown. She'd never have imagined that Ash was capable of powers like the kind she saw him using. Serena could feel a bead of sweat trickle down the side of her head. Her thoughts racing with scenarios of Ash fighting...killing…it made the pit in her stomach sink even further down.

"You've been watching the news all morning Sweetie, are you alright?" Serena's mother, Grace, called from the kitchen. "I know these attacks are a big deal, but you've never really seemed all that invested with any of that Team Flare stuff before.."

"Well, let's just say things are a little more interesting this time around," Serena spoke as she leaned back into the sofa, pulling her blanket further over her to try and cover the nerve wracked look on her face.

"What do you mean by that?" Grace asked walking behind the sofa and leaning over her daughter. "Oh, well you weren't lying. Is that kid shooting lasers from his hands?"

"I think so…" Serena trailed, watching the scene play out yet again. Looking him over, he was such a strong trainer. She watched once more as all of his pokemon darted around the crowd of Team Flare members in perfect unison. His trust in them was unwavering as he approached the group alone with nothing but his fists. Well, his fists and weird energy balls.

"Ash Ketchum huh? Why's that name sound so familiar? Does his name ring a bell with you?"

"I think so..." Serena whispered to herself as she became lost to her thoughts.

"Ow!" Ash winced in pain as a needle continued to sew his wound shut. He had to admit, this wasn't exactly how he had envisioned his morning going. Some simple shopping with Dawn followed by a sizable brunch with sightseeing to follow. Instead he was now in a hospital, sitting on a bed clutching onto Pikachu's palm as if his life depended on it.

"It's okay Hun, just a couple more stitches and you'll be as good as new," The nurse tried to reassure him as she pressed on with her work.

Sceptile and Buisel both stood by him, cuddling onto his good arm. It had only been a couple of hours since the fight had gone down and all three were already back in action even though they had taken quite the pounding. Granted, because they were Pokemon they were physically able to take quite a bit more of a beating than humans could. Pikachu was already spry after a bit of time with Nurse Joy, whereas for Ash it would probably be a couple weeks before he would be completely healed of his wound, despite the nurses insisting the stab itself wasn't as deep as he'd first thought.

"Just one more dear and you'll be all done," She affirmed Ash, sticking it through a final time before tying the sewing closed.

"You know," Ash grit his teeth as the nurse finished up, "I'd say sucks more than the knife did." His hands gripped the bed sheets beneath him rather strongly, bunching them up in his sweaty palms.

"Well, it's all done now," The nurse chirped as she placed a fresh Hospital Gown by his side. "You're good to go. You're lucky that knife didn't hit anything vital to you. You'll feel some sharp pain for a few weeks, but we'll give you some painkillers for that," She said, as she pulled a chair from the corner of the room to sit in. "Your friend is bunked up down the hallway and from what I've heard she's alright too. A few cuts on her face and they'll heal up just fine," She caught a small smile on Ash's face as she looked at him. "By the way, I did want to thank you too. Not everyone around would have the courage to face a group like Team Flare head on. Even the police struggle with that."

"Hey," Ash sighed as he laid back in his bed, avoiding the nurse's eyes. "It's what I think anyone in my position should do. If I have the power and the ability to help people, it's what needs to happen. Isn't that right guys?" Ash asked his pokemon who all nodded in agreement, Buizel even giving him a sharp salute to back it up. "I'm really proud of you three, you know that?" Ash chuckled with his pokemon lunging into him in a playful dog pile. "Ow ow wow. Shoulder guys shoulder!"

Their playful banter was halted by a few knocks on the door. It cracked open with a familiar blonde head peeking through. "I hate to be a bother but I was hoping to talk to Ash here soon," He stuttered nervously as he stepped into the room.

"Oh, Clemont come on in. I'm all patched up now," Ash laughed as he gently pushed his pokemon to the side and rolled his arm to try and numb the pain. "Did you need to talk to us about what happened? I already talked to the police so if you need any of that info you can-"

"No, no it's not about that. Jenny has begun some light interrogation with some of the less injured of the group. I came to talk about something else. Would you mind leaving us the room?" Clemont requested. The nurse nodded her head and moved towards the door.

"If you need anything, just holler. I'll check up on your friend for you in the meantime," She affirmed, closing the door behind her leaving them alone.

"So," Ash responded as he grabbed Pikachu and placed him in his lap, "What do you need to talk about Clemont?"

Clemont sighed with frustration as he pulled the chair the nurse had been using over to Ash and his pokemon. "Okay, you didn't hear this from me, but the media is going to hound you. Hard. They're looking into every facet of your life right now. Some are going to try and take you down and I want you to be ready for that. The news is going ballistic right now and I cannot imagine it's going to all be in your favor."

"Is it because of my aura powers? Look, I haven't sold my soul to some ancient pokemon god for them or anything, it's something that's just came-"

"Ash it's because you killed two people," Clemont replied coldly.

Ash froze up as his eyes met with Clemont's, which were unwavering in their seriousness. He could feel his heart starting to beat faster and his hands started to grow warmer. He had realized what he had done this whole time. He knew it was the right thing to do at the time. No, it was the only thing to do at the time. It's what was required of him. He had to protect Dawn. He needed to protect the people around him. His pokemon, no the whole city. They hurt him...others...they needed to be stopped by whatever means necessary.

"I came here to tell you to skip town," Clemont spoke, regaining Ash's attention. "I think if you stay here and go to the press conference, you're only going to be hounded by the press and public. I'm guessing you had plans here though?" He asked Ash.

"Y-yeah… Dawn and I were going to take a few days off. Shop, explore the city, be tourists for a bit you know. I even drew up some battle plans to take you on," Ash chortled on that last note, even getting a small grin from Clemont.

"Well, if you were planning on the gym circuit anyways why not take a detour down to Santalune City. You can challenge Viola down there and lay low on your journey there through the woods on Route 4," Clemont noted.

Ash took a deep breath, and let it all come slowly out. He looked over to Sceptile and Buizel; both gave him reaffirming nods. He knew his pokemon were behind whatever call he made. He'd just hoped that for just once in his life, something could be normal. However, even Kalos seemed to want to follow the regular irregularity that was his life. Some simple shopping and sightseeing was just asking too much of the universe it seemed.

"I'll have to talk it over with Dawn, but I might just take your advice on that one. Thanks Clemont," Ash said with a shake in his tone. "It was a pleasure fighting by your side this morning." He extended his hand outwards towards Clemont.

Clemont gave a short smile, raising his hand and grabbing Ash's. "You've done more for Lumiose than I could ever-" Clemont stuttered pulling his hand away with a wince in his eyes. "Than I-uhh...could ever ask." He got up from the chair, shaking his hand a few times while making his way to the door. "I'll try to keep the press off your back. Best of luck on your journey Ash."

"I'll be around for your badge when I get back here!" Ash chuckled lightly, tucking his searing hands into the blankets on the bed. Clemont gave a wave and closed the door behind him leaving Ash and his three pokemon to themselves.

Ash laid back into the bed once more, closing his eyes and letting out a sigh of frustration. His pokemon crowded around him giving him soft coos and embraces to try and gain his attention. "Why is everything so messed up in my life," Ash spoke aloud as he stared up at the ceiling."

A set of tears began to form in his eyes. He moved to wipe them away only for a clawed hand to stop him. Sceptile gripped his hand tightly. Ash panicked and tried to pull it away, only for Sceptile to pull it closer into him. "Sceptile stop you're going to burn your-"

"Tile! Scep-tile," He screeched, cutting Ash off and clearly biting down hard to dull the pain. Sceptile's eyes were glued to his. Ash could see the fire in them. The determination. As Ash looked onto him, he could feel the tug of two others on his other hand. Pikachu and Buizel were both held onto his other hand. Pikachu had a similar reaction as Sceptile, though buizel seemed to fare slightly better. Still, they too had the same look in their eyes. Even if Ash couldn't understand their words, he could more than understand their actions. The tears in his eyes began to fall as he pulled his pokemon closer to him, embracing the three of them the best he could.

Dawn looked herself over in the bathroom mirror. There were a few bandages covering the cuts on her face she'd received from the glass that had peppered her and Piplup. A few wraps of gauze covered spots on her arms and legs that had also been hit. Overall she was perfectly fine if she glossed over the minor concussion she got when she hit the department store floor, but she wasn't going to let that slow her down. Piplup was thankfully doing alright too. The cut on his chest was rather deep, and they'd need to keep him at the center until later tonight, but Nurse Joy told her that Piplup would make a full recovery, which was quite the relief to hear.

Dawn exited the bathroom and was greeted by both Buneary and Pachirisu standing guard outside the door. The two of them jumped a bit at the sound of the door creaking open, but excitedly jumped onto her not a moment after.

"Hey- hey!" Dawn giggled as the two of them clung to her legs and begging as to grab her attention. "Okay guys, come on over here," Dawn motioned as she sat on the side of her hospital bed. The two pokemon hopped up and both climbed into her lap and Dawn brought them into a tight embrace.

"Cuepa cuee," The small squirrel cooed as Dawn's fingers ran down his back.

"Don't worry guys…it takes a lot more than that to keep us down," She smiled as Buneary made a bed for herself in Dawn's legs.

Time started to pass by quickly for Dawn despite the lack of things to do in the room. A few doctors and nurses had been in and out to keep tabs on her despite her insistence that she was fine. Lunch was soon delivered for her and her pokemon and the nurses were kind enough to take Mamoswine and Typhlosion to the back lot to feed them while Dawn was able to take care of Buneary, Pachirisu, and Togekiss. Though Togekiss was just a tad cramped inside the small hospital room, Dawn made it work by sliding the bed a bit more into the corner. Thankfully it was on wheels or that task may have been slightly more difficult.

A knock on the door gathered everyone's attention as a familiar black haired head popped through. "Hey, are you able to talk, Dawn?"

"Oh thank goodness you're not another nurse. Yeah, you can come in. We're just wrapping up lunch right now."

Ash walked inside with Pikachu riding atop his shoulder as per usual. He closed the door behind him, squeezed past Togekiss, and sat down next to Dawn. Meanwhile Pikachu leapt down from Ash's shoulder and hobbled over to Buneary.

"So, how're you handling?" Ash asked, eyeing the half dozen bandages and gauze wraps that were on her.

"Well, all of this will heal just fine. They're just little cuts is all. How about you and your wound?" She asked, putting her arm onto Ash's right shoulder, trying to avoid his wounded left one.

"It wasn't as deep as I initially thought. Just need to do some stretches to keep it limber and not break the stitches and I should be fine in a couple weeks is all."

Dawn smiled at hearing that, and Ash could tell she was slightly relieved to hear that bit of good news.

"Hey," Ash spoke, 'The Lumiose City Gym Leader and I met while in the city earlier, and he actually dropped by. We ended up talking for a little bit."

"Oh yeah?" Dawn asked, pulling her arm back. "What did he have to say?"

"Well you may not like it since it screws with our little tourism outing, but he suggested that we leave Lumiose City and head over to Santalune City."

"Wait what?" Dawn asked leaning forward, "Why would we leave Lumiose? We just got here?"

Ash sighed and laid back against the bed. "He said it's the media. They'll hound us the second we leave here and that the longer we stay the worse it may get. He suggested we stay out of the public eye for about a week, and traveling to Santalune from here in Lumiose would be about that long."

"Ugg…" Dawn groaned, collapsing back against the bed as well. "Things just never stay calm do they. It's one action packed episode to the next for us wherever we go."

"Hey, I promise you," Ash said, turning his head to look at Dawn's, "I'll make it up to you next time we come back. Things will be a lot calmer, and we can do all the shopping you want."

"You know it's not the shopping I care about right?" Dawn asked, turning to meet Ash with a considerable blush starting to form. "It's about getting to spend time with you."

"You know it's the same for me," Ash went on, red starting to overtake his cheeks as well. "But hey, we can still do that whether we're walking down dirt roads and sleeping in tents or eating at restaurants and shopping for clothes. It's all the same to me at the end of the day."

"It always has been." Dawn giggled, sitting up from the bed. "So what's the plan then?"

"I'm going to pick up some supplies here from the pokemon center and make our way to Route 4. I say once we get the word that Piplup is ready to go tonight, Let's do just a bit of hiking until it gets too dark and we'll make camp as soon as we find a decent spot," Ash replied, picking himself up and looking down at his yellow friend still chatting away with Buneary.

"Wait, the PokeCenter sells supplies here?" Dawn asked rather surprised at that tidbit.

"Oh yeah, Pikachu and I walked around for a bit earlier and they have a mini PokeMart attached to this place. Makes getting supplies for trainers stopped here pretty convenient I have to say."

"No kidding. I wish they had that kind of thing in Sinnoh!" Dawn laughed, looking back to Ash.

"So hey, you're good with taking off tonight then?"

"Like I said, so long as I'm with my Pokemon and my friends, I don't care where we go." Dawn smirked.

Ash smiled back at her, "Alright, I'll grab us some rations and other supplies," Ash spoke standing up from the bed. "Anything you want me to get for you?"

"Ooh, how about some marshmallows. I want to roast some!"

"Will do. Would you watch over Pikachu for me while I do? Seems he's busy at the moment," Ash chuckled, Pikachu barely registering what he'd said as he and Buneary waddled to one of the other corners of the room.

Instant noodles, Miltank Jerky, dried fruits, and various canned goods filled the shopping basket that Ash was walking around with. There was quite a bit that he could pick up if he really wanted, and a lot of it was tempting. Local candy and other treats beckoned his name to join his already packed basket. Fancy and expensive camping additions like a portable grill, radio set, and a mobile air conditioner all called out to Ash, but gritting his teeth he moved on.

He'd gone up and down the aisles of the shop looking for those damn marshmallows, yet he'd turned up with nothing. Slogging his way back down the candy aisle in a vain attempt to find them, he once again scanned the shelves, picking up a small treat bag to examine. It was a bright red package with the plastic of the bag having stenciled scales like that of a Magikarp.

"Looking for something specific mate?" A deep male voice asked behind Ash.

He turned around and behind him stood a rather imposing man. He was a few inches taller than Ash, though his shoulders were much more broad and he packed a bit more meat and muscle to his bones. His hair was a deep brown color that curled rather harshly leaving his whole head looking like a well organized mess. His caramel brown eyes stared right into Ash's, leaving him unsure with how to respond.

"Hey, you alright mate?" He asked snapping Ash back to reality.

"Oh, sorry there I was just surprised by you," Ash tried to joke as the man glared back at him with deadpanned silence.

"Uhuh, well you seemed a bit lost here for the sweets. I can tell you're not from around here," He said with a bellowed laugh.

"What makes you say that?" Ash pouted, as the man began to laugh at his expense.

"Cause you picked up the Choco-Karps. Not a single Kalos native would be caught dead eating those fish flavored cakes," He howled as Ash embarrassingly tossed the bag of snack cakes into his basket.

"Man I'm just looking for marshmallows for my friend and I," Ash slumped in defeat.

"That's it? Did you miss the stand at the entrance? Pretty sure they're on sale up front."

"Wait huh?" Ash leapt up and ran to the front of the store, and sure enough there was a small cardboard stand with bags of marshmallows and chocolate on display. Ten percent off too.

Ash let out a deep sigh of relief as he looked back to the man grinning back at him. "Thanks for the help. I'd have probably been here another half hour looking for these."

"Not a problem. Glad I could help out a foreigner," He laughed, slapping the back of Ash's bad shoulder and sending up a sharp stinging pain. Ash grit his teeth and forced a thumbs up to the man as he held back the urge to scream. "I see you're packing some rations too. You planning on heading out of here?"

"Yeah, my friend and I are hitting the road tonight. I'm headed to take on Viola in Santalune, so we need about a week's worth of rations. What about you?" Ash asked, placing a bag of marshmallows at the top of his basket.

"Ahh, well I travel alone. My home is here in Lumiose, but I just came back from a few months trek in the western gym circuit. I just finished my hike back from Coumarine today actually. I've gotta say, it's great to be back home." He looked back to Ash, who's eyes were curiously glancing a couple of the pokeballs on his belt.

"And where even are my manners?" He asked out loud as he extended a hand towards Ash. "George Danton, Pleasure to meet ya mate!" He pulled a great ball from his belt and held it open in his palm. And this here, is my starter. He's a bit big for the room right now, but I tell ya, my Camarupt, Vesuvius would love to meet ya."

Ash smiled and extended his hand towards him in respect. "My name's Ash. Nice to meet ya George. Same to you Vesuvius."

"You got everything you need there Ash?" George asked, placing Vesuvius's Pokeball back onto his belt.

"Yeah, I was just looking for these and that was the last thing I needed."

"Here, lemme' see that." He said pointing to Ash's grocery basket.

"Umm…" Ash paused, confused about the matter but held out the basket anyways.

George grabbed the handle of it from under Ash's hands, and swung it into his own all the while keeping the contents inside.

"Hey, what are you-"

"Repaying the favor, Ketchum."

Ash stepped back, slightly off put by the man giving him his last name...even though he'd never stated it. "Wait, what do you-"

George put the basket up the self scan counter and began to check out the various goods Ash had gotten. "Ya know, my mom owns a wonderful little cafe. I haven't seen her in months, and the day I get back," He began to say with his voice starting to taper, "it was just a couple blocks away from what I saw on the news when I got here this morning. I was too far to help, and then what do I see but a man not too dissimilar to yourself fighting back a group of thugs that was hurting my city."

He turned to face Ash, who was slightly embarrassed and uncomfortable with the current situation. "You saved my mother and her cafe. You're inspiring me and others to be the best versions of the trainers we're meant to be. Not to mention ya stopped those bastards dead in their tracks all by your lonesome. The least I can do is buy you some groceries."

Ash let out a sigh and smiled up at the man in front of him. "When it comes to society...there needs to be order, justice, and most importantly normality. Without these things… we end up with people like those we saw this morning. I do what I need to, to protect my friends, and It makes me feel better than I think you know to hear what you just told me. Thank you George."

They finished scanning the groceries and George inserted a few bills into the machine to pay for them. Ash packed what he could into his backpack and put the rest in a bag to take back upstairs for Dawn's pack. There was just one item he didn't know where to put.

"Care to share a few?" Ash asked, holding up the Choco-Karps.

"Ha!" George bellowed, slapping Ash once more and walking towards a small outdoor patio, "I'd love that."

Lysandre had been watching the news all morning. Initially, his reaction to the attacks was an unyielding rage at those buffoons for failing to even destroy a quarter of the targeted devastation he'd wanted.

Was a city block in ruins too much to ask for? Just goes to show you couldn't trust a grunt with any important work these days. They may be his loyal followers, and he'd fight a raging Bouffalant barehanded for them to see the promised true beauty, but he'd be lying if he didn't think half of his entire Team were brain dead idiots.

There were, however, a couple interesting things to come about all of this. Things that he'd not anticipated at the start of this mission. The first, was the interesting show of force that boy Ash Ketchum had made. He was shooting orbs of aura at his Team Flare members and even enhancing his own blows with it. To follow up on that, his three pokemon were able to, for the most part, wipe out an entire squad's worth of pokemon. Though, Lysandre thought, a several time runner up league champion's pokemon probably wouldn't have to put up much of a fight against his goons anyways.

Lysandre grinned, turning the volume up on the T.V.

"Ketchum was assaulted with a knife and was stabbed in the back! I'd say that was just the right amount of force used! So what if that attack killed her? She and all her pals in cahoots were wreaking havoc on the city and injured well over a dozen people! I'd say we're lucky no civilians ended up dead today!"

Lysandre grabbed his Holo Caster that was tied around his neck and began tapping on the name of the greatest mind he had access to.

"Ah Lysandre, Sir," Lysandre could hear the panic in his voice, the shakiness was far greater than what his voice was usually like. "I wanted to apologize for the events of this morning earlier but-"

"Xerosic, whatever it is you want to say, save it. I have new orders for you and your team, and I want you to start work on it post haste."

"I-uhm-yes Sir, what might you have in mind for us?"

Lysandre's grin stretched to his ears, as he took a photo of the news report in front of him. "I'd like you to run some tests for me."

AN: Hope it was worth the wait~