The light coming from the egg grew brighter before it shattered. Time stood still as Ash froze in midair, mere inches from an untimely demise. His eyes widened as he stared at the Pokemon firmly grasped in his arms. It stared up at him affectionately.

Ash slowly was lifted up back on to safe ground. Iris, Pikachu, Juniper and Cilan ran up to him. "Oh my Arceus, Ash! That was so stupid!" Iris scolded. The Pokemon in Ash's arms stared at her with curiousity. "I have to agree with Iris. That was brave, but foolish. Where is the egg?" Professor Juniper questioned.

"It hatches into this," he replied, holding the small, dark Pokemon up. "What kind of Pokemon is this?" Juniper inhaled sharply. "A darkrai!" she gasped. "No wonder I didn't recognize the egg! An infant darkrai! I didn't ever think I'd see one!"

"Excuse me!" a woman's voice screeched. "Have you forgotten about us?" Jessie stared down in disgust. How dare they forget about her! Darkrai looked up at the trio. It's eyes narrowed, as if remember something distasteful. A powerful blast of the move Dark Pulse sent the three hurdling away, with a, "We're blasting off again!"

Ash looked at Juniper for answers, but she was deep in thought. "Come on. Let's go back to the lab to discuss our next move."

Ash and his friends sat in uncomfortable silence as Juniper tried to find a suitable home for the infant. Axew and Pikachu busied themselves with entertaining Darkrai, who was sitting in Ash's lap. Iris, Cilan, and Juniper had tried to hold it but to no avail. It had become attached to Ash.

Juniper entered the room, and all eyes shifted to her. "I believe it would be best to leave this Darkrai with its own kind. However, I'm not aware of places where other Darkrai may live."

"Professor," Ash called. Juniper never her eyes to him, nodding so that he knew he had her attention. "I know of a Darkrai that lives in Alamos Town in Sinnoh. We could take it there."

"Good idea, Ash! I'll book the three of you a flight," Juniper said, rushing out of the room. "I have friends in that town, I'll go contact them to say that we're coming," Ash stood and left, with Darkrai clinging to his hip like a leech.

"Kind of weird, isn't it Cilan?" Iris spoke suddenly. "Weird? How so?" Iris shifted her body to face him. "Professor Juniper seemed shocked at Darkrai. Like she had never seen an infant one before. Do you think it's strange that an egg just shows up out of nowhere? What do you think happened?"

Cilan pondered the question. It was very odd, once you thought about it. All he offered as an answer was a simple shrug. The two turned toward Pikachu and Axew, who were playing, deep in thought.

Ash returned a few minute later, holding a sleeping Darkrai. Juniper returned a little later. "You should be ready to leave in about three days. After that, all you have to do is bring the baby to Alamos Town and you're done."

Ash jumped up, forcing the infant into the waking world. "Oh man! I haven't been to Sinnoh in forever!" Iris gave a dejected sigh. "Don't act like such a little kid, Ash. It's not like it's that big of a deal."

It was at this moment that Darkrai decides it wasn't fond of Iris.

Floating out of Ash's arms, Darkrai used shadow ball, quick and precise." Iris yelped as the move knocked her backwards onto the ground. She groaned and sat up dizzily. Darkrai settled itself back into Ash's arms with a laugh. Ash chuckled nervously. "Are you alright, Iris?"

"Yeah, I think so," she stood up and brushed herself off. "Why would it attack me?" Juniper jumped in. "Well, probably since it's grown so attached to Ash, it feels protective of him."

Ash looked down at Darkrai with a smile, and it returned the look. "Alright, it's late. We've had a long day. You guys can stay here for a while. Get to bed now, you'll need to get ready to leave soon."

Obediently, the trainers obeyed. They were exhausted, and sleep seemed like a luxury at the moment. So they fell asleep, knowing that three days would surely pass quickly.

And they did. Before they knew it, it was the day of their departure. Ash was eager to be back in Sinnoh, while Cilan and Iris were anticipating seeing it for the first time. The three waved goodbye to Professor Juniper at the airport, before boarding the plane.

Darkrai flew around excitedly. Watching land slowly disappear on the horizon was inthralling. Ash watched the Pokemon with amusement. Iris was asleep, as was Pikachu and Axew, leaving Cilan, Darkrai, and himself as the only ones awake. Ash noticed that Cilan seemed to be thinking. In fact, he had looked like that a lot over the past few days. He was going to ask about it, but decided not to. Instead, he busied himself with keeping Darkrai out of trouble. This was going to be a long trip.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon.

A/N: I AM SO SORRY. I didn't plan a hiatus, but that's that ended up happening. I won't go into the details, but I've been super busy, with very little free time for anything. I should be able to update more often now. Also, thank you so much for all the love this story has received. Twenty-six followers, twenty favorites, and six reviews? After one chapter? That's amazing! Thank you guys so much!

Supersentai199: Thanks for the story request. Sorry for taking so long.

Reader of fate: Thank you!

Guest: Thanks! Thanks!

Darkenigma95: God I know right. Anyway, I hope I'm developing the story nicely. I'll let you be the judge of that. I hope you'll keep reading despite my absence.

Prototron MJ Tornada: Yes, yes it is. Goodness I can't tell you how hard you're review made me laugh. Thanks so much.

Gothicfantasy: I appreciate that. Look forward to future chapters!